The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 366 Waiting

The setting sun burned the place where the river and the sky met with a riot of colour. The vast river was surging with waves, but a small boat was seen struggling upstream. Although the boatman had rowed with all his might, the boat was still as slow as a snail.

At some point, fog began to rise on the river. Xue Baochai looked at the vast river in the twilight, feeling anxious and helpless. It was just as she said: Where is my hometown at dusk? The misty river makes me sad.

This time, Xue Baochai had wanted to rush to Yangzhou to ask Lin Ruhai for help, but unfortunately she came back empty-handed and returned without success. She was also delayed for a few days. She didn't know how her family was doing now. She couldn't help but worry. She wished she could grow wings and fly back. However, there was a section of waterway from Yangzhou to Nanjing that went in the opposite direction. She was afraid that she would not be able to enter the city tonight and would have to stay outside the city for one night.

Shitou Xingwei had a short axe on his waist and was sitting at the bow of the boat, looking at the scenery with a grass root in his mouth. He obviously noticed the anxiety between Baochai's brows, so he picked up the oars to help row the boat, and the boat speed really increased a lot.

However, when the passenger ship docked at the pier outside Jinling City, the sky was completely dark and the night enveloped the earth.

Everyone paid the boat fare and went ashore. Baochai stood on the dim dock and looked back at the river. She saw the bleak autumn wind, the lonely fishing lights, a few cold stars in the sky, and Zhongshan Mountain in the distance like a giant beast that was ready to devour its prey. Just then, a jackdaw flew over their heads with a strange cry, which inexplicably cast a shadow on their hearts. The scene evoked emotions, and a feeling of sadness and helplessness instantly surged in their hearts.

At this moment, she really wanted to cry!
The author once read an evaluation about Xue Baochai, which described her as a wise person who had a deep insight into the world and saw through everything. I think this is an exaggeration. Although Xue Baochai is well-versed in human nature and knows how to handle things properly, she is only a girl in her teens after all. Naturally, she also has times when she is fragile and helpless, like now!

Ying'er and Xiangling looked left and right, but did not see the old servant and the carriage coming to pick them up. They guessed that the old servant had been waiting for a whole day but no one showed up, so he went back to the city when it was getting dark.

"Miss Xue, the city gates are closed now. Why don't you find an inn to stay for one night and then enter the city tomorrow?" Shi Tou suggested.

Although it was completely dark, there were still many people coming and going on the dock. Baochai, her master and her servant were all young women with graceful figures, which inevitably attracted attention. There were many malicious glances. If it weren't for the fact that Shitou looked short and sturdy with a sharp axe on his waist, I'm afraid someone would have come up to chat with him.

Xue Baochai nodded and said, "Thank you, Brother Shitou."

Shi Tou smiled and said, "Miss Xue, you are too polite. Please wait here for a moment. I will go find an inn, book a room, and come back to pick you up. This way you won't have to run around in the dark." After saying that, he turned and walked away.

Shitou was a clever boy, but he was still not prudent in doing things. He left Baochai and her servant behind and went to find an inn by himself.

As soon as Shitou walked away, two wretched guys came over from the darkness and asked with a grin, "Miss, do you want to stay in a hotel? We know there is a good inn nearby, which is clean and cheap."

The two guys looked at her nakedly, and Ying'er and Xiangling were so scared that their pretty faces turned pale. Xue Baochai was also nervous at the moment. She usually went out to take care of business, and she always made a detailed plan and must enter the city before dark. She had never encountered such a situation before, so she forced herself to be calm and said, "No need, my family has a separate courtyard outside the city, and a carriage will be here to pick them up soon."

The two hooligans looked at each other, subconsciously turned around, and saw no carriage. They smiled and said, "The girl is not trying to trick us, is she?"

As luck would have it, at this moment the sound of horse hooves and the pleasant ringing of carriage bells could be heard in the darkness, and vaguely a carriage was approaching the dock.

Xue Baochai secretly thought that she was lucky, and pretended to be calm and said, "It's coming!"

The two thugs were skeptical, but still stood where they were and refused to leave. Baochai and her servant became nervous, fearing that once their lie was exposed, the two thugs would become angry and ashamed.

At this time, the carriage was getting closer and closer, and a familiar and gentle voice came over: "Is it Sister Bao?"

Xue Baochai's body trembled, and she opened her eyes wide in disbelief. Ying'er and Xiangying were also startled for a moment, and then they used all their eyes to look. When they saw who it was, they covered their mouths at the same time and cried out in great surprise, "Master Huan San!"

In the dim twilight, a young man in a jade-colored scholar's robe was standing in front of the carriage. He was tall and straight, smiling, and looking over here with warm eyes. The cold river breeze made his clothes rustle. Looking closely in the dim light from afar, the young man had sharp eyebrows, bright eyes, and a gentle temperament. Who else could it be but Jia Huan! !

Xue Baochai's heart was instantly filled with endless surprise and warmth. Her almond-shaped eyes were filled with tears and her voice was trembling: "Brother Huan!"

Seeing that the two men really knew each other, and that Jia Huan was followed by two servants and an old man driving a coach, and it was obvious that he was from a wealthy family, the two thugs had no choice but to disappear into the darkness in disappointment.

Jia Huan approached, and Xue Baochai hastily wiped away the tears in her eyes and forced a smile, saying, "What a coincidence! How come Brother Huan is here?"

"Of course I am waiting for Sister Bao." Jia Huan looked at Xue Baochai's red eyes, which still had tears not yet wiped away, and felt very uncomfortable. He said with a hint of reproach: "Sister Bao, why didn't you come to me earlier if you had something to do? Do you treat Huan'er as an outsider?"

Xue Baochai's nose felt sore when she heard this, and the tears she had just wiped away suddenly came out again. Jia Huan felt distressed when he saw this, and couldn't help but hold one of Xue Baochai's hands and comfort her: "Don't worry, Sister Bao, leave this matter to me."

Xue Baochai's skin was as smooth as cream. When Jia Huan held her hand, she felt as if she had been electrocuted. She could no longer control herself and fell into Jia Huan's arms, crying in grievance.

Jia Huan couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Xue Baochai in the original version of Red Mansions always behaved properly and with ease. It seemed that nothing could stump her. Her emotions were stable and even a little cold, which was completely different from the sentimental and crybaby Lin Daiyu. Only in the last forty chapters written by Gao E, when Jia Baoyu became a monk, did Xue Baochai experience a drastic emotional fluctuation. This shows how much pressure the Xue family's survival is facing has put on her.

Jia Huan gently patted Xue Baochai's pink back, letting her vent her tears and emotions in his arms. Ying'er and Xiangling turned away with red faces, feeling both happy and shy. As for the old servant driving the carriage of the Xue family, he was even more stunned. After all, Jia Huan and Baochai's behavior was too intimate. It was really...

The old servant quickly turned his head away, while Jin Bao and Mu Ye had already tactfully retreated to an appropriate distance and disappeared into the darkness.

After venting for a while, Xue Baochai's emotions gradually stabilized. She then realized that something was wrong and hurriedly left Jia Huan's arms. Her cheeks were red as fire. She wiped the tears from her face while trying to dry the collar of Jia Huan's shirt that was soaked with tears.

"It's irrelevant. It will be fine after a while of wind." Jia Huan said with a smile.

Xue Baochai was so embarrassed that her pretty face turned red. Jia Huan quickly changed the subject and asked, "Sister Bao, have you had dinner yet?"

Ying'er interrupted, "Not yet. It was already dark when we got off the boat."

Without further ado, Jia Huan took Baochai's hand and walked towards the carriage house, saying, "Let's go have dinner. The inn is nearby and I've already booked a room."

Xue Baochai was a traditional virtuous wife and mother. She was overwhelmed by emotion just now and did not care about her image. But now she was too embarrassed to be overly intimate with Jia Huan. After all, everyone was watching. So she casually broke away from someone's hand and said softly, "Brother Huan, wait a moment. Shitou just went to look for an inn. If we leave now, he might not be able to find anyone when he comes back and will be anxious." Jia Huan also knew that Baochai was young, so he let go of her hand and said, "Did Shitou bring Sister Bao back?"

Xue Baochai nodded and said, "Pin'er was worried about our safety on the road, so she asked Brother Shitou to take us to the boat."

Jia Huan smiled and said, "It's hard for Sister Lin to think so carefully. It doesn't matter. Let's go to the inn first and leave someone here to wait for the stone."

At that moment, Baochai and her servant boarded the carriage. Jia Huan and Jin Bao walked towards the inn, while Mu Ye stayed where he was and waited for Shitou.

Soon, the carriage arrived at the inn. As expected, Jia Huan had booked a room in advance. Baochai, her master and her servant, settled down and asked for hot water to wash up. Then they invited Jia Huan back into the room.

At this time, Baochai had already changed into a dress that was neither new nor old, which looked simple and generous. Although her face was not made up, she was still dignified and beautiful. Just as the original book described, her lips were red without any makeup, and her eyebrows were green without any drawing. No wonder Aunt Xue said that Baochai hated flowers and powder the most, and even didn't wear perfume on her clothes. She was really naturally beautiful and was beautiful even without makeup.

Jia Huan sat down in the room, and Xiangling served him tea. Baochai's almond-shaped eyes quickly glanced at Jia Huan, and seeing that he seemed tired, she could not help but be moved, and asked softly: "Brother Huan, there are still traces of ink on your sleeves, and there is fatigue between your brows. Could it be that you just finished the provincial examination and rushed here?"

Jia Huan smiled and said, "Sister Bao has a sharp eye. I went to Xue's house right after I left the examination room. My aunt told me that Sister Bao was going to Yangzhou in three days. She also told the old servant to wait for her at the dock today. So I hurried to the dock to wait for her, but I didn't even have time to change clothes."

Jia Huan yawned as he spoke.

Ying'er and Xiangling could not help but be slightly moved. They had to say that Master Huan San really cared about the girls.

Xue Baochai's heart was filled with mixed feelings, and her nose could not help but feel a little sour. Seeing that Jia Huan's chest was still wet, she suddenly remembered something and hurriedly said to Ying'er, "Go and get the bundle that Ping'er brought to the Third Master."

Ying'er hurriedly brought a bundle over, and Xue Baochai opened it herself, picked out a brand new moon-white long gown from it, walked up to Jia Huan and said softly, "Sister Ping'er is really very considerate. Seeing that the weather is getting colder, she was worried that Brother Huan might not have enough clothes, so she asked me to bring some along. She made these not long ago, and they are just right for use now."

As Xue Baochai helped Jia Huan take off his tear-stained gown and put him in a new moon-white gown, her soft eyes and gentle movements made her look like a wife serving her husband, which inevitably made people think of impure things.

Jia Huan looked at Baojie's pretty face so close to him, and smelled the cool, sweet and faint fragrance emanating from her body, and couldn't help feeling a little distracted.

At this time, Xue Baochai was retying Jia Huan's belt and was about to tie the new lotus leaf sachet, but she paused for a moment and then continued to tie the sachet calmly.

Jia Huan did not notice the subtle change in Baochai's expression and just said, "Thank you, Sister Bao."

Xue Baochai's cheeks flushed slightly. She returned to her seat and sat down, and asked in a gentle voice, "How did Brother Huan do in the provincial examination?"

Jia Huan smiled and said, "It shouldn't be the case that he is not on the list."

Baochai nodded and said, "That's good. Congratulations to Brother Huan."

Xiangling said with admiration, "Then Master Huan San will soon become a juren scholar, right?"

Ying'er said with a smile: "That's right, a Juren can become an official. When we meet the Third Master, we have to kneel down and kowtow to him. Otherwise, you can kowtow now."

Xiangling stuck out her tongue.

"Xiangling is sincere, Ying'er, don't tease her!" Jia Huan smiled and asked, "Did Sister Bao gain anything from her trip to Yangzhou?"

Baochai shook her head sadly and said, "Master Lin happened to be out at sea. Others had no say in front of Jinyiwei Commander Yi Hong, so they had to return empty-handed."

"Aunt Lin's father went out to sea by himself?" Jia Huan could not help but be surprised. Although Lin Ruhai's health had improved when he left Yangzhou, it was too much of a stretch for him to lead troops out to sea.

Thinking of this, Jia Huan could not help but worry. He knew Lin Ruhai's physical condition very well. All his organs were damaged. If he stayed at home and took good care of himself, he might live longer. Now he was leading the troops out to sea. The bumps on the boat alone would be enough for him to bear. If things went wrong...

Xue Baochai was very thoughtful. She guessed most of what Jia Huan was thinking from his expression and asked softly, "Brother Huan, are you worried that Lord Lin won't be able to handle it?"

Jia Huan nodded and sighed, "Uncle Lin is still ill and it is not suitable for him to go out to sea."

Xue Baochai said thoughtfully, "From what Pin'er said, she also tried to persuade Lord Lin, but Lord Lin insisted on going. Perhaps Lord Lin had his own reasons for going."

Jia Huan had a bad feeling in his heart. Lin Ruhai was not a person who was greedy for fame. This action was obviously extremely abnormal. Could it be that he knew that his end was near and wanted to put an end to his life with this action?
For a scholar, establishing virtue, making achievements and making statements are the three immortal things in life. For Lin Ruhai, a civil servant, annihilating Dulong Island was undoubtedly a military achievement that would go down in history. Moreover, he had sworn on his sword, vowing to annihilate Dulong Island. This trip was undoubtedly his act of fulfilling his oath!

"Brother Huan, what's wrong?" Seeing Jia Huan frowning and his face changing from bright to dark, Xue Baochai couldn't help but ask with concern.

Jia Huan came back to his senses and smiled, "It's nothing. Sister Bao has been tired these days. Take a rest after dinner. Go home to reunite with your aunt tomorrow. Leave the rest to me."

Xue Baochai felt inexplicably relieved after hearing this and nodded, "Brother Huan, you should also go to bed early."

At that moment, Jia Huan left Baochai's room, and the next day he personally sent the master and servant back to Xue's house, and then went straight to the Jinling Pacification Office of the Jinyiwei.

(End of this chapter)