The Heavens Begin with Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 144 Xue Ke Sends His Sister
As the sun rises, the warm sunlight penetrates into every corner of Lixiang Courtyard, sprinkles into Baochai's bedroom, and shines on a pair of beautiful faces.

Baoqin's long eyelashes trembled, her eyelids fluttered, and then opened, and her brain gradually woke up from sleep.

But nowadays, there is still a lot of exhaustion.

Baoqin struggled to get up from the bed. Just as she was about to get off the bed, a soft and delicate hand suddenly reached out from behind her, grabbed her, and pulled her down on the soft bed, smiling and saying:
"Good sister, it's still early, let's sleep a little longer!"

Although this was not the first time she had been harassed like this, Baoqin still found it hard to imagine. She could not believe that Sister Xue Baochai, who was known for her gentleness, virtue, generosity and propriety, was actually such a carnivorous female Tyrannosaurus.

Her face flushed, she grabbed the silk bellyband and held it against her chest, symbolically struggling twice, and said in a reluctant but welcoming tone:

"It's already the end of the Chen hour. If you don't get up, it will be noon soon."

"Hehe..." Baochai smiled and leaned closer, "No one usually comes to visit my little courtyard, so it's no big deal even if I sleep until the afternoon."

Knowing he couldn't escape, he turned around and fell sideways onto the bed.

Suddenly someone knocked on the door.

"Miss Qin, your family has sent you news that your master has been released, and they want you to return home quickly."

Baoqin woke up immediately, pushed Baochai away hastily, and hurriedly got dressed and got out of bed.

"Tsk, what a nuisance." Baochai complained unhappily, but did not say anything to stop Baoqin. Instead, she helped her change clothes and put on shoes.

After Baoqin had put on her clothes, Baochai lazily lay down on the bedside, cast a coquettish glance at Baoqin, and said teasingly:
"My dear sister, don't forget about your sister just because you have a father and a brother. Remember to come over here and play when you have time!"

Baoqin's face flushed again, and she glared at Baochai fiercely, shouting in a slightly angry tone:
"If you keep being naughty, I'll tell my master about your fake illness!"

She was not a fool. She had been eating and living with Baochai these days and had played with her every night. How could she not tell whether Baochai was sick or not?

However, precisely because she had had close contact with Baochai, she thought that Baochai just didn't like men and pretended to be sick to delay the marriage, and instead regarded this as a trump card to escape.

"What do you mean by 'my master'? He is our master." Baochai chuckled and said, "Why, now that you see your father and brother have been released from prison, you have changed your mind?"

Baoqin was upset and wanted to break the contract, but she was afraid that the kidnapping case had not been resolved. If she offended Master Zhan, it would be troublesome if the government tried to link her family with the kidnappers.

After hesitating for a long time, Baoqin finally compromised and said while biting her lip:
"You've already ruined my body, so it won't be a big deal if one more person ruins it."

"I will definitely give him what I promised, but there is no need to mention things like entering the mansion as a concubine."

After a moment's hesitation, she continued:
"It's not a good idea for my sister to keep pretending to be sick."

"Since my sister doesn't want to marry him, instead of pretending to be sick and letting Miss Lin get the advantage in the end, it would be better to do as my father said and give the engagement to my younger sister. My family will definitely be grateful."

"Miss Lin?" After hearing this, Baochai burst into laughter and rolled over on the bed. "Haha... dear sisters, Miss Lin deliberately made up a fake dream for this position, and you all believed it!"

"My dear sister, I'm going to tell you something from my heart. The position of the first wife of the Zhan Mansion is not decided by my words, nor by Miss Lin's words. Only our master's words count."

"If you want to get this position, it's no use telling me. You have to serve the master well before you have that chance."

"Fake?" Baoqin was shocked when she heard it and wanted to ask for details, but Baochai refused to say anything and just smiled and said, "Come to my place in the evening, sister, and I will tell you slowly."

Baoqin was confused and didn't know if this sister Baochai was setting bait to tangle her again. But the most important thing right now was to go home to see her father and brother. So she left Rongguo Mansion with a heavy heart and rushed home.

When he got home, he found that his family was still in a gloomy mood, and there was no joy at all of escaping a disaster. After asking carefully, he learned that his father had suffered many tortures in prison and was now seriously injured. He was afraid that he would not survive.

It turned out that Jia Yucun was cruel and ruthless, and he thought he had a tacit understanding with the Jia family and no one could change his confession, so he tortured Master Xue Er repeatedly, on the one hand to force him to confess, and on the other hand to extort more gold and silver.

On the contrary, Xue Ke was well taken care of in prison because of the connections of Guihua Xia family. He is now safe and sound without any injuries.

After hearing this, Baoqin felt as if she had heard bad news.

If the father she had rescued with great difficulty died like this, wouldn't all the humiliation she had endured be in vain?

Baoqin hurried into the backyard and saw her brother Xue Ke talking to someone there.

"Thank you for your care. Xue Ke will definitely go to the Xia Mansion to express his gratitude in person in the future. However, as for this important matter of marriage, it may not be too late to discuss it after my father recovers from his illness."

The man who looked like a manager said politely:

"Our two families are relatives by marriage, so it would be unorthodox to say these things. However, I have something to say, but I don't know whether I should say it or not."

"Butler Xia also said that our two families are in-laws, so you can talk about anything you want."

Then Butler Xia whispered:

"If, I mean just in case, if something happens to Master Xue, then the 27 months of mourning will delay the marriage."

"My young lady is already seventeen years old. If we wait another twenty-seven months, she will be twenty!"

"In my opinion, we should get married as soon as possible to celebrate the occasion for Master Xue. What do you think, Master Xue?"

After Xue Ke heard this, he also hesitated. He saw Bao Qin coming in from the corner of his eye, so he bowed to Butler Xia and said,
"This matter is of great importance. Butler Xia, please allow me to think about it carefully and then give you a reply."

Butler Xia also bowed, said goodbye and left.

Seeing that housekeeper Xia had left, Baoqin hurried over and asked:
"How is the master injured?"

"Have you called the doctor?"

"What did the doctor say?"

Xue Ke sighed, pulled Baoqin aside, and shook his head with a sad face, "The imperial physician has examined him, but the injury is too severe, and the master is old, I'm afraid..."

Baoqin was struck by lightning. She staggered away from Xue Ke and went into the bedroom at the back.

As soon as I entered the room, I smelled a strong smell of medicine. Looking at the bed, I saw Master Xue lying on it, with a clean white cloth covering his legs, which was stained with blood.

Baoqin moved closer and looked at her unconscious old father. Thinking of the humiliation she had suffered before, and the confusion and fear about the future, she couldn't help but burst into tears and just wanted to cry loudly.

She drove out the maid who was serving her father by the bed, sat by the bed herself, and wept silently beside her father.

I don't know how long it took, but as the sky gradually darkened, a maid came in, lit the lamp, and said in a low voice:
"Miss, it's time for dinner. The young master invites you to come over for dinner and discuss something with you."

Baoqin helped the maid to stand up, stretched her numb legs and feet, and staggered out of the door to see Xue Ke.

The brother and sister sat opposite each other and ate dinner in silence. When they were almost done, Xue Ke spoke in a muffled voice:

"Sister, I have decided to marry Miss Xia in advance to bring happiness to father."

After hearing his conversation with Butler Xia just now, Baoqin actually already knew the result.

They are all children of businessmen and know each other's personalities very well. Profits come first in everything, and family ties take a back seat.

The Xue family is in a bad situation now, and being able to rely on the Xia family is a rare good choice. If they have to wait for twenty-seven months, they will only have more trouble.

"Okay, I understand. This is also good. Maybe after the wedding, the master's illness will be cured!" Baoqin responded casually with dull eyes and words that did not match her heart.

"Hmm..." Xue Ke hesitated for a moment, then continued, "Sister, you are not young anymore. Since the Jia family is so cruel, they are definitely not a good marriage partner. Sister, don't worry about it anymore."

Baoqin had long since stopped caring about Baoyu, so she nodded silently upon hearing this. Unexpectedly, Xue Ke said:
"The young lady of the Xia family has a cousin who is the son of Mrs. Xia's brother. He is a well-behaved man and might be a good match for her. You might as well meet him later."

"Hmm?" Baoqin looked up in surprise. Seeing her brother's face as gloomy as water, she asked carefully, "What is this person's family background? Does he have any honors or titles? How does he make a living?"

Xue Ke then said:

"This person has no honor or title, but he is the steward of the Xia family."

"The Xia family relies on him for all their business. If my sister marries him, we can easily drain the Xia family's business and turn it into the property of our Xue family."

"Manager?" After hearing this, Baoqin felt a chill in her heart.

What Xue Ke said was definitely correct, but he was afraid that the idea was not his, but was decided by his master when he was sober.

The problem is that all the benefits belong to the Xue family, but her daughter has become a complete victim.

The name "steward" sounds nice, but he is just a high-level servant.

If Baoqin married a steward, she would always be a housekeeper. Maybe after the Xue family emptied the Xia family, she would give some gold and silver to the heroes, but the master is the master and the slave is the slave.

It is easy for a master to become a slave, but it is extremely difficult for a slave to become a master again.

From now on, Baoqin's son will always be just the son of a housekeeper, and he will never be able to turn his life around.

People like Lai Shangrong, who can rise in social class through the imperial examination, are always rare.

From this perspective, Lai Da's ability is countless times stronger than Jia She and Jia Zheng!
Xue Ke was still persuading her, saying how handsome Miss Xia's cousin was, how well behaved he was, how loyal, loving, filial, and brotherly...

He also knew what his sister was worried about, so he said that after the Xia family was emptied out, he would no longer let his brother-in-law be the manager, but would help him buy a hundred hectares of land and let him become a gentry.

He was very eloquent, and even Baoqin was somewhat moved.

It would be great if I could transform myself into a gentry!

Although she was not as powerful as the rich and powerful, the current situation of the Xue family made it impossible for her to marry into a wealthy family and become the main wife. However, it was acceptable for her to be the wife of a gentry in the capital.

Suddenly, Baoqin suddenly remembered something. Since this cousin has become a manager, he must be quite old. So she looked up and asked:
"How old is this person?"

"Uh..." Xue Ke hesitated for a moment and said, "He is about thirty years old."

"More than 30 years old, that's not too old..." Baoqin carefully weighed the pros and cons and asked casually, "Exactly how many years old?"

"Thirty...nine."

"..." Baoqin's face suddenly turned dark. She threw her chopsticks on the table, flicked her sleeves, and was about to leave.

Xue Ke stood up hastily, stood in front of Bao Qin, and pleaded:

"Sister, I know that I have wronged you."

"But our family is no longer the same as before. If the master dies, I'm afraid that our original connections will instantly turn into hungry wolves and want to devour our family. Even the uncles are eyeing us covetously and making their own plans."

"The only solution now is to swallow up the Xia family as soon as possible to make up for our losses."

"But the Xia family has been a royal merchant for many years. If there is no one to support them, how can they succeed so easily?"

"This marriage was decided by the master when he was sober. Sister, please don't be too willful!"

Hearing this, Baoqin couldn't help but tremble all over. She immediately raised her eyebrows and shouted coldly:

"It's too late for you to say that!"

"Do you know why you and the master were able to escape from prison?"

"Don't think it's the Xia family's credit!" "It's already amazing that the Xia family can protect you, otherwise the master wouldn't have been beaten like this!"

"It was because I first asked the loyal and righteous Viscount Zhan to speak up, and then I asked my aunt and Sister Baochai to forgive me, that Xue Pan led the Jinyi Tiqi of the Hundred Households to capture the kidnappers and rescue the hostages."

"With the real criminal, our family can finally get out of this case!"

"But Master Zhan doesn't work for nothing. The price he paid is your sister!"

"Originally I was still hesitant, wondering whether I should find someone to mediate and change the agreement, but now I have made up my mind. I will not change it. I will go back to Master Zhan's house and become his concubine!"

"It just so happens that with my relationship with my younger sister, my brother can be considered to be ingratiating himself with Lord Zhan, and the pressure will surely be reduced a lot."

Xue Ke, who was originally shocked and angry when he heard that his sister had sold him, regretted his words when he heard that the buyer was Lord Zhan. He changed his face and said with a smile:
"Oh my, sister, why didn't you tell me earlier!"

"I certainly don't want you to marry the old and ugly Xia family steward, but this is what the master decided before, and I can't do anything about it."

"Well, when you get married, I will prepare a generous dowry for you, which will surely impress Master Zhan."

"If Mr. Zhan doesn't plan to host a banquet, then my brother will pay for it. All expenses for the banquet, opera troupe, etc. will be paid by our Xue family."

"Even if she is to be a concubine, the daughter of our Xue family must be a noble concubine!"

Seeing her brother being arrogant at first and respectful later, Baoqin sighed inwardly, knowing that her hope of becoming the legal wife in this life was completely gone. She couldn't help but feel a little disappointed, and said lightly:
"You can discuss this matter with Lord Zhan later. I will just stay at home and wait for my wedding."

"Okay, don't worry, sister. I will go to Mr. Zhan to discuss this matter tomorrow. I will definitely not let you suffer any injustice."

Xue Ke sent his sister back to her boudoir with a smile on his face, and then hurriedly asked the housekeeper to prepare various gifts in preparation for a visit to Zhan's mansion tomorrow.

The next morning, Xue Ke couldn't wait to pay a visit to Zhan's residence with gifts.

But... Master Zhan hasn't gotten up yet!

When the golden finger was first activated, his physical fitness improved rapidly. In order to train himself to have fine control over strength, Master Zhan did get up early every day to practice martial arts and worked hard for a period of time.

But later on, his physical fitness reached the limit of human beings, and the "dual cultivation energy" he obtained only improved his mental strength and soul quality. He no longer needed to work hard on practicing martial arts, so the habit of being lazy was gradually formed again.

Only those who work hard to make a living get up early in the morning. Exploiting class like Mr. Zhan, of course, have to sleep until they wake up naturally!
With so many women in the family who need Mr. Zhan's care, who would be so foolish as to get up so early in the morning and hug his beautiful wife to sleep for a few more hours?

So Xue Ke sat in the living room for more than an hour before he saw Master Zhan coming in from outside.

"Haha...it turns out to be Brother Xue Ke. I was a little tired last night and slept a little longer. I'm sorry to have made you laugh, Brother Xue."

Xue Ke quickly stood up, bowed, and said with a smile on his face:

"Your Excellency is so busy these days that it's inevitable that you're overworked. You should rest more."

The two of them sat down, had tea served, and after a few polite words, Xue Ke thanked them seriously:

"My family was in great trouble, and I am grateful to you for saving me, Sir."

"Originally, my father should have come to thank you, but he was seriously injured and couldn't come, so I had to come on his behalf. I hope you won't blame me, sir."

"Haha..." Master Zhan waved his hand disapprovingly, "Brother Xue, you are too polite. I just did it for the sake of convenience. Why thank me?"

Xue Ke shook his head repeatedly and said:

"No, no, it's just a piece of cake for you, Lord, but it's a huge favor to the Xue family."

"I have no way to repay such kindness. It just so happens that my sister Baoqin has admired you for a long time, and she only regrets that she cannot serve you. Therefore, with my father's permission, I came here this time, intending to let my sister enter the Zhan Mansion as a concubine, in order to repay you for saving me."

"Oh, how can I say this?" Mr. Zhan's face was smiling like a flower, but he pretended to refuse.

Xue Ke was familiar with this trick, so he insisted on sending the girl to his home. After Mr. Zhan refused again and again, he finally couldn't stand the Xue family's enthusiasm and had to agree.

"Well, since the Xue family is so kind and Miss Baoqin has a crush on me, I won't be polite."

"That couldn't be better." Xue Ke also smiled happily, took out a gift list from his sleeve, held it in both hands and handed it over, "This is my sister's dowry, please don't despise it, sir."

Mr. Zhan didn't mind this little money, but he also knew that if he didn't accept it, the Xue family would definitely be worried, so he had no choice but to accept it.

After giving the gifts, Xue Ke started talking about business.

"Before I came here, I asked someone to look for an auspicious date. Three days later would be a good date. We will hold the ceremony of taking in a concubine then. All expenses for the banquet will be paid by my Xue family. What do you think, Lord?"

Although Mr. Zhan is lustful, he is not in a hurry. Since he wants to take a concubine, of course he has to do enough superficial work.

"Since you want to take a concubine, then my family will naturally have to pay for the banquet. You can just invite the guests."

"But the date for taking a concubine is three days from now?"

"Isn't it a bit hasty?"

Xue Ke sighed and said:

"Well, to be honest, sir, my father is in poor health right now, so I want to bring him some happiness."

"Oh, I see. Then let's do it in three days!" He couldn't hold a wedding after someone else's father died, so Mr. Zhan readily agreed.

After Xue Ke got the exact news, he immediately said goodbye and returned home. He took out the guest list that he had prepared long ago and visited and invited everyone one by one, with the Xia family being the first to be invited.

After hearing this, the people of the Xia family were also extremely happy.

Originally they looked down upon the Xue family, but now with Baoqin as a link, they have established a relationship with the popular Lord Zhan, and are making a fortune.

Of course, Xue Pan and Baochai also received the invitation, and also received Xue Ke's apology.

Xue Pan, on the other hand, was carefree and didn't care about all this. He only listened to what Master Zhan said. Since Master Zhan was going to take Baoqin as a concubine, she would be one of his family from now on.

Baochai even used this as an excuse to invite Baoqin to stay at her house for a few days.

Xue Ke had no idea about the secret dealings, so he happily agreed and sent his sister into the wolf's den.

Not to mention how Baoqin was abused by Baochai these days, just talking about the Rongguo Mansion, ever since Wang Xifeng came back, she has clearly noticed the invisible gap between her and the people in the mansion.

Mr. Zhan kindly helped give her a chance to clear her name in front of the mansion gate. Afterwards, when Wang Xifeng woke up and learned about this, she was extremely grateful to Mr. Zhan and became even more tight-lipped about what had happened in the mountain stronghold. She only said that she had been locked up and guarded by a female bandit and had never been beaten or scolded.

Especially after Jia Mu and other people in charge of the family learned about this matter, for the sake of their own family reputation, they had people publicize it widely so that everyone knew about it.

Most people in this world are actually fools. They just follow the crowd. With such propaganda, they naturally believe that the young lady of Rongguo Mansion did not lose her virginity to a thief.

If everyone is talking about Wang Xifeng's loss of virginity, then those who follow the trend and gossip about her will naturally be insignificant, and the Jia family will be helpless.

But if everyone says that Wang Xifeng has not lost her virginity, and there are people who go against the trend, then it is obvious that they want to go against the Jia family. They should think carefully about whether their heads are strong enough to be chopped off by a knife.

Even if there were people who wanted to say something sarcastic, they had to consider the current attitude of the Jia family and could only mutter a few words in private.

It all seems to be good news, but in reality it is not that simple.

As the saying goes, only one knows whether the water is hot or cold when drinking it. Wang Xifeng herself could clearly feel the strange atmosphere in the mansion.

Apart from anything else, the attitude of Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang was always lukewarm.

"Feng'er, you've been through such a disaster, you'd better take care of yourself. I've discussed it with the old lady, and we plan to temporarily hand over the job of housekeeper to Tanchun."

"Tan girl is not young anymore, she will get married sooner or later, so it's a good opportunity for her to practice and get familiar with household affairs, so that she won't be ignorant of anything after getting married and lose face for the family."

When Mrs. Wang said this, her eyes were kind and gentle, and she seemed to have good intentions. But after hearing this, Wang Xifeng felt cold all over.

This is clearly an attempt to seize her power!
Fearing that this was a misunderstanding, Wang Xifeng forced a smile and said tentatively:

"Madam, what you said is true. Although my wife was kidnapped this time, she didn't suffer at all. On the contrary, she didn't have to worry about household chores for a few days, which was a lot easier!"

"Since Sister Tanchun is so interested, I will take care of her for a while, so that she won't start rashly and become confused and flustered, which is not good."

Seeing Wang Xifeng being so ignorant, Mrs. Wang became unhappy, her face drooped, and she snorted coldly:

"Feng girl, you were kidnapped this time. In order to save you, the mansion spent ten thousand taels of gold. The loss was not small, and many people in the mansion complained."

"Also, you have been using the mansion's name to lend money privately. Now it has become a hot topic in the city and everyone knows about it. Even the mansion's reputation has been affected."

"You should stay out of the spotlight for a while!"

"Don't blame me for doing this. I'm doing this for your own good!"

"After a year or half a year, when the limelight has died down, who will be the manager of the household? Isn't it just a matter of a word from the old lady?"

Wang Xifeng's heart suddenly sank, and she said anxiously:
"But wasn't the gold brought back by Xue Wenlong when he wiped out the mountain stronghold?"

"Humph!" Madam Wang snorted coldly, her eyebrows raised, and she scolded: "The gold is back, but can I repay the favor so easily?"

"This gold was borrowed by Baoyu from Master Zhan. I don't know how many good things he said and how many favors he put in for this. How can it be written off just because the gold was returned?"

Whenever she remembered that this person was rescued by her stupid son Baoyu who had run around everywhere, Mrs. Wang became furious when she saw her niece. She became even more certain that the two of them must be having an affair secretly, otherwise why would Baoyu work so hard?

The same goes for Baoyu. Why does he always think about other people's wives?

This Feng Lazi is not a faithful wife. She has a master who is around, but she doesn't serve him well. Instead, she seduces her own precious son. She is so abominable!
She would never admit that her son was a bad person, so it must be that Wang Xifeng was unfaithful to her husband and deliberately seduced her son to make mistakes!

Although there were many troubles in this powerful family, she had always turned a blind eye to it. But even though she heard and knew about it, she could not tolerate it when it happened to her own son.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, so she sneered and said:

"Your second master is so good. After accepting Jia Yucun's money, he just wanted to keep things quiet and just used the Xue second master's family as scapegoats!"

"If I hadn't been thinking about you, my niece, and hadn't asked Baoyu to run around for me, I'm afraid you would have been the wife of the leader of the mountain stronghold for the rest of your life!"

Before this, Lady Jia and Mrs. Wang had already made up their mind to let Wang Xifeng die outside, but now that she has come back alive, it is inevitable that there will be some embarrassment.

In order to avoid embarrassment, they had to find someone to take the blame for the mistake, and no matter how they looked at it, Mr. Lian seemed to be the scapegoat.

He didn't even try to save his own wife, so if he doesn't take the blame, who will?

Anyway, Mrs. Wang relied on the fact that Baoyu, who had made great contributions, was her own son, and thought that he would not expose her, so she took all the credit for herself.

Wang Xifeng had just woken up and was not familiar with the recent situation in the mansion, especially since Ping'er had been sent away, Lai Shun had died, and Lai Wang and his wife had fallen ill. She did not have any capable people around her, so her source of information was naturally much narrower.

She didn't know that Mrs. Wang was trying to pass on the blame. She just thought that her husband was really as bad as she said and that she was being taken out on. She immediately thanked him with tears in her eyes:

"It's all because of Madam's kindness and generosity. Feng'er is very grateful. I will follow Madam's instructions in everything."

(End of this chapter)