The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 149 The Three Meet
Yihongyuan.

Because of illness, Jia Baoyu did not go to school these days, and after he recovered, he was lazy in the garden.

I have nothing to do and feel bored in the yard.

There were a few rocks scattered about, some banana trees planted, and over there, two cranes plucking their feathers beneath a pine tree. Along the corridor hung cages of all sorts, depicting exotic birds. Above, there were five small side rooms, all with carved, intricately patterned partitions.

The scenery that he used to like no longer makes Jia Baoyu happy, and he no longer cares about these toys.

Seeing Baoyu was unhappy, Xiren went forward to comfort him, but she was still unhappy. She said helplessly, "Why don't you go to Miss Lin's place for a walk, so that the second master won't get sick from boredom."

Jia Baoyu was delighted to hear this. He just stood up, but then he thought of something and sat back down dejectedly.

"What's wrong?" Xiren asked.

Jia Baoyu explained dejectedly, "Now that we are all grown up, Sister Lin is no longer as close to me as she was when we were little. She is more like a guest. I am afraid that if I go there, I will annoy her again."

When Xiren heard this, she found it ridiculous, "Why would Miss Lin bother the Second Master?"

"Although she didn't say it, she is very understanding. How can I pretend not to know? Wouldn't that be bullying Sister Lin?" Jia Baoyu sighed.

After hearing Baoyu's explanation, Xiren was at a loss and suggested going somewhere else.

Jia Baoyu suddenly had an idea and asked someone to call Jia Yun in.

Xiren was bewildered, thinking the Second Master had gone mad again, and advised, "How can you allow a man from outside to come into the garden? If the mistress finds out, she will surely be scolded."

Jia Baoyu ignored it.

He thought that it was probably because Lin Daiyu felt that he was ignorant, or always said some nonsense. It would be better for him to do something serious this time and then go to Lin Daiyu to tell her than to repeat the same things over and over again.

Maybe Lin Daiyu didn't want to listen because she was tired of hearing these words.

It’s not that Lin Daiyu is impatient with me, but how could I not know that? Lin Daiyu is the most understanding person in the world. The more so, the more I cannot bully her.

Jia Baoyu had made up his mind, and Xiren had no choice but to follow Baoyu's wishes.

But let’s talk about Jia Yun.

Originally a descendant of the Jia family's side branch, he was also in a lonely situation, but better off than Wang Xin. Jia Yun also had a widowed mother, and lived close to the Jia family, so he could get help during the holidays.

This person is intelligent and good at currying favor.

He first asked Jia Lian for help, but it didn't work, so he went to ask Wang Xifeng for help and got a job. Now he wants to curry favor with Jia Baoyu. Jia Baoyu had forgotten about this person a long time ago, but after a few months, he finally remembered this matter.

A few months ago, Jia Yun found an opportunity to wait for Baoyu, and when they met, he went up to him to try to establish a relationship with him. According to seniority, although Jia Yun was a few years older than Jia Baoyu, he was Jia Baoyu's junior. Jia Baoyu joked with Jia Yun at the time, saying that he wanted to be Jia Yun's father.

Jia Yun was willing to listen to such nonsense and actually wanted to worship Baoyu as his father.

In fact, there is nothing wrong with finding a godfather to adopt as a son. Most poor families will look for a capable person to be adopted as a godparent. Capable people also need more trustworthy people. It is a matter of mutual benefit.

It’s just that Jia Yun is older than Jia Baoyu, but he wants to recognize Jia Baoyu as his father, which is quite extraordinary.

Several months passed without any news. Jia Yun had already given up, but unexpectedly, the opportunity came again. He hurriedly followed the maid from Yihong Courtyard into the garden and then to Yihong Courtyard.

Jia Yun looked up and saw a plaque hanging above the courtyard with four large characters on it, which read "Yihong Kuailü".

The little maid went inside to talk. After a while, she heard a voice laughing through the screen window: "Come in quickly. How could I have forgotten you for two or three months?"

When Jia Yun heard Baoyu's voice, he hurried into the room.

When he looked up, he saw only the splendor of gold and jade and the glittering articles, but he could not see Baoyu.

Turning around, he saw a large dressing mirror standing on the left. Two maids, about fifteen or sixteen years old, appeared from behind the mirror and said, "Please come sit in the inner room, Second Master." Jia Yun didn't even dare to look them in the eye and quickly agreed.

Entering another green gauze curtain, I saw a small lacquered bed with a bright red curtain decorated with gilded flowers hanging above it.

Baoyu, dressed in homely clothes and slippers, was reclining on the bed, reading a book. Seeing him enter, he threw down his book and stood up, smiling. Jia Yun hurried forward to greet him. Baoyu offered him a seat, and he took a chair below.

This time, Baoyu felt that he had to do something serious and make friends. Although he was just Jia Yun, he was also surnamed Jia after all.

Jia Baoyu also knew about Wang Xin's affairs.

I think about it.

Wang Xin is a member of the Wang family, and Jia Yun is also a member of the Jia family. Wang Xin has been an orphan since childhood, and Jia Yun has also been an orphan since childhood. Moreover, Jia Yun is better off than Wang Xin, at least he has a widowed mother.

If Wang Xin can achieve what he has today, why can't Jia Yun do the same?

If you meet Jia Yun more often and say good things to him, you might become the next Wang Xin.

He did not think of anything else. After all, he was simple-minded. He just thought his idea was really good. He went back to tell Lin Daiyu, feeling very happy. So he smiled seriously and said, "Since I saw you that day, I asked you to come to the study. Who knew that so many things happened one after another and I forgot about you."

Xiren, who was standing aside, was puzzled as to why Master Bao was so serious today.

Jia Yun didn't understand why, but he just thought it was a good thing and quickly replied, "It's just my bad luck that my uncle has been ill. Is he okay now?"

"Very well." Baoyu said patiently, speaking in an adult tone, "I heard you've been working hard for several days."

"It's well-deserved. Uncle is well now, and it's a blessing for our family."

As he spoke, a maid brought him tea.

While Jia Yun was talking to Baoyu, his eyes were wandering over to the maid, who had a slender figure and a long face, and was wearing a silver-red jacket, a blue satin vest, and a white silk pleated skirt.

Jia Yun was a smart man. Since he wanted to curry favor with Baoyu, he had of course inquired about what was going on in Baoyu's room. He guessed that it was probably Xiren. He knew that Xiren was different from others in Baoyu's room. When he saw her bringing tea and Baoyu sitting next to her, he quickly stood up.

"Sister, why are you pouring tea for me? I'm not a guest here, uncle. Let me pour it myself." Baoyu was becoming more and more satisfied. He felt like he was in control of everything. It was a different feeling. He said more and more proudly, "Just sit there. The maids will do the same."

Jia Yun had a smile on his face, but he was thinking a lot in his heart and did not dare to relax at any time. He smiled and said, "Even so, how dare I be rude to the sisters in my uncle's room?" As he spoke, he sat down to drink tea.

There was nothing serious going on. It was just Jia Baoyu's impulsive behavior, and they chatted nonsense for half a day.

Jia Yun coaxed Jia Baoyu to talk, and Jia Baoyu was very happy, thinking that it was a testament to his own ability. However, Jia Yun felt a little disappointed in his heart, but he did not show it, and Jia Baoyu did not notice it at all.

outside room.

Zijuan waved to the maid outside Yihong Courtyard. When Zhuier saw it was Zijuan, she hurried over.

"What is Master Bao doing today? Did he go to school?"

Zhuier was honest and answered whatever was asked. "The second master had guests today and did not go to school." Then he told everyone about Jia Yun. When Zijuan heard it, she was happy.

He spoke a few more words to Zhuier before leaving.

Zhuier likes Miss Lin. Miss Lin is nice to them all and never looks down on anyone. The last time she went to Miss Lin's place, Miss Lin was giving money to the maids. When she met Zhuier, she also grabbed two handfuls and gave them to her.

Zhuier always kept in mind that it was not all about money.

Miss Lin did not look down on her at all and treated her with respect as a human being. Zhuier could never forget this feeling and thought that Miss Lin was a really good person. Zhuier could not help but be intimate with the maids on Miss Lin's side.

Zijuan didn't know the reason behind this, she only knew that Zhuier from Yihong Courtyard liked to visit their Xiaoxiang Pavilion the most, so when she saw her, she thought of asking her to come and inquire.

After confirming that Mr. Bao would not leave Yihong Courtyard, Zijuan went back to tell her daughter.

Wang Xin ate three meals a day. Lin Daiyu knew Wang Xin's habit, so she also set it at noon, which just saved some trouble and made it convenient for them. They left Xiaoxiang Pavilion early in the morning, passed by Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun, and Li Wan's residence, and then arrived at Hengwuyuan.

Ping'er also came early in the morning to make arrangements. With Ping'er's instructions, the people in the kitchen made careful preparations.

Seeing that things were almost done, Ping'er left.

Over there in Tuobi Villa, Wang Xin was wearing casual clothes.

Among the several large rooms in Jiayin Hall, one of them is Wang Xin's main room. According to the rules of wealthy families, Qingwen should sleep in the same room with Wang Xin, with Wang Xin sleeping in the inner room and Qingwen sleeping in the outer room. However, in Jiayin Hall, Qingwen slept in the next room.

Qingwen was in the next room, which was used as Wang Xin's study.

The math problems that Wang Xin wrote and sent to Lin Daiyu were all written in this study. The study had no name, it was just an ordinary study, and he was sitting behind the desk in it today.

The dozens of war horses sent by the Xue family, plus the war horses obtained from various places, made up nearly a hundred horses. The rest could be put together to form a cavalry team of a hundred people.

This cavalry team maintained the traditional frontier military style, wearing bright red cotton armor, holding three-barreled muskets, and led by Zhang Can.

The more cavalry, the better.

Money was a problem, as was the source of horses.

Now that the scale is limited, what tactics should be used? Wang Xin thought about it and decided to build a multifunctional chariot battalion that can attack or defend. The cavalry is the outstretched hand, the bird gun is the thorn, and the chariot is the root.

There is a detachable baffle on one side of the chariot. During the march, the chariot can also transport supplies. Combined with the vehicles in the rear camp, it means sacrificing speed and increasing endurance, but the cost is huge.

In fact, according to what Jia Zheng said, he can lead the four major families and integrate their resources. Not to mention other aspects, he can build a larger army.

However, there are obvious advantages and disadvantages to leading the four major companies.

He looked at the panel again and thought that it was not bad that he had been tightening up and loosening up these days. He decided not to go to the camp today. Wang Xin was relieved. After a while, Qingwen knocked on the door outside. It was already noon.

Wang Xin got up and followed Qingwen to the Hengwu Garden next door.

The cool tile house has uniform water-ground brick walls and clear tile decorations. The overall style is simple and elegant. It may seem boring to those who like luxury, but I really like this simple style.

Wang Xin looked at the scenery of Hengwu Garden as he walked. After entering the courtyard, he saw not only strange rockery, but also various plant landscapes.

Ying'er and Wenxing, the maids from Hengwuyuan, had been waiting for a long time.

When Wang Xin came in, he saw all the beauties in the garden. Not only Ying'er and Wenxing, but also Zijuan, Xueyan and the others were there. They all called out, "Master Xin."

Hearing the noise outside, Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai came out.

Wang Xin saw Lin Daiyu at the door, and next to her was Xue Baochai.

She was wearing a newly cut honey-colored gold-thread gauze dress, the collar of which was densely embroidered with crabapple blossoms. When the hem of her light apricot-colored pleated skirt swept over the threshold, the pearls on the toes of her shoes were faintly visible.

The most beautiful thing is that the lotus-colored satin skirt makes the person look like a sculpture of mutton-fat jade. The red gold necklace on the collar rises and falls slightly with her breathing, which is even more moving than the stamens of the weeping crabapple tree outside the corner gate.

When he looked at Lin Daiyu again, her eyes were looking at him.

His brows were slightly frowned, and his eyes were full of affection. Although he knew that Daiyu had no feelings, he said that being indifferent was more touching than being affectionate. Although he thought he had experienced the baptism of the three great evil spells, he did not slow down his pace unconsciously.

Wang Xin never thought that he would show his weakness.

Lin Daiyu didn't want Wang Xin to go out to fight, but she also knew that Wang Xin had to go. Logically, the Jia family were her real relatives, but there were many people in the Jia family, hundreds of them, while Wang Xin was only one person.

It was this distant uncle who made Lin Daiyu feel dependent, and she couldn't explain why.

Xue Baochai thought that he was Wang Xin, and she felt shy inside. She looked at him twice but didn't dare to look at him any longer, but in the end she couldn't help but look at him twice.

When they met, all three of them hesitated.

"What are you all standing at the door for?" Xueyan was the most nervous and stepped forward to speak. The three of them then came to their senses, but they were no longer as generous as before. Wang Xin had more experience, so he followed them in with a smile.

(End of this chapter)