Dream of the Red Chamber: I can see the hidden labels of the beauties.

For Xue Baochai, her own reputation was secondary; what mattered more was the reputation of the Xue family. If outsiders knew that the Xue family was shrewd and calculating, they would probably have to avoid them from then on.

Moreover, she quickly realized that Jia Can's change of attitude and quick agreement was not because of the salt permit, but more because Xue Pan mentioned her, which was a way of giving her face, and that's why he agreed.

Thinking of this, Xue Baochai calmed down a little, and her heart even skipped a beat. A blush appeared on her originally dignified and elegant face, whether from anger or something else, it was hard to tell.

After a long while, Xue Baochai finally calmed herself down, looked at Xue Pan, and rebuked him:

"Brother, how could you speak so recklessly? How could you so easily reveal a conversation between us siblings? Do you know how disastrous the consequences of your actions will be?"

Xue Pan had no idea of ​​the implications, nor did he think he had done anything wrong. Instead, he replied with a grin:

"Little sister, what's the big deal? I have such a smart and capable little sister like you. If I tell outsiders, it will only make you look good. Just like Jia Can, as soon as he heard that it was your idea, his attitude changed immediately. Isn't that great?"

Upon hearing this, Xue Baochai felt both ashamed and angry. She could only coldly explain the pros and cons to him in detail.

Upon hearing this, Xue Pan finally realized something was wrong, his expression changed, and he quickly lowered his head to admit his mistake:

"I'm sorry, sister, I... I really didn't know any of this. I deserve to die. Don't worry, I will never mention you in front of outsiders again."

Xue Baochai breathed a sigh of relief, her tone softening considerably:

"It's good that you understand, brother. Now that Second Master Can already knows that I was the one planning to make friends, you don't need to hide it from him anymore. Next time you meet, just tell him frankly that it was me who said it."

The thought of doing this would be like having a conversation with Jia Can from afar, and Xue Baochai's heart skipped a beat. Based on her understanding and upbringing, she could not have any contact with men outside the family.

But for the sake of her family, and given that Jia Can had already seen through her scheme, she had no other choice but to do this. As long as Jia Can and Xue Pan didn't tell anyone, no one else would know.

Xue Pan muttered:

"Sister... if you ask me, this Jia Can isn't anything special. He just got a great deal and inherited everything from the Ningguo Mansion. Why should we rush to befriend him?"

Upon hearing this, Xue Baochai's face turned serious, and she retorted:

"Brother, you're wrong about that. You can say he's lucky, but look around, in both the Eastern and Western mansions, which one has such good fortune?"

"Furthermore, since he took power, he has ruthlessly purged the Eastern Mansion. He took down those old men in the Eastern Mansion without any scruples. Among the men of both mansions, who else has such courage and methods?"

"Furthermore, putting everything else aside, the fact that the title is not downgraded is something that others cannot match. Our Xue family is currently living under someone else's roof. You have seen the situation of your uncle's family. It is not as good as you imagined. We don't know how things will change in the future, so we need to leave ourselves some options."

Some things are better left unsaid, since walls have ears. Although this is a corner of the Rongguo Mansion, it is close to the back gate, and people come and go, so it is hard to say whether others might overhear.

But when faced with her slow-witted older brother Xue Pan, Xue Baochai could only try to explain things more clearly so that he could understand.

After hearing this, Xue Pan nodded slightly: "I understand. I'll try to befriend him."

Seeing that his attitude remained unchanged, Xue Baochai knew that he still looked down on Jia Can. A hint of helplessness flashed in her eyes. Knowing that further persuasion would be useless, she said no more and only hoped that the matter would go smoothly and not really backfire.

At the same time, the image of Jia Canfeng's handsome figure involuntarily appeared in my mind.

Thinking back to how Jia Can remained calm and composed despite being stripped of his inheritance rights, and confidently asserted that things would change, she had initially been skeptical. However, with the imperial decree being issued, she realized that Jia Can seemed to have foreseen the outcome, and she felt even more admiration for him.

Furthermore, after Jia Can took power, he immediately began to purge the Ningguo Mansion. In just half a month, the atmosphere in the Ningguo Mansion changed drastically. This made Xue Baochai take Jia Can seriously and realize that Jia Can was an extremely worthwhile person to befriend.

This is why she generously gave Jia Can a salt certificate as a gift to establish a friendship.

Just as Xue Baochai was pondering this to herself, Xue Pan suddenly asked hesitantly:

"Little sister... about what I mentioned to you before, did you tell Mother? And what was her response?"

Xue Baochai snapped out of her reverie, glanced at Xue Pan, and seeing the expectation in his eyes, knew he was referring to the matter of taking Xiangling into his room. She sighed helplessly.

"Brother, you only care about these things. Mother was just telling me that it was because of this Xiangling that our family had to come to the capital to avoid disaster, which resulted in us losing our roots in the south."

Upon hearing this, Xue Pan lowered his head in shame. He knew that his killing of someone had implicated his entire family, but he was still somewhat resentful and muttered under his breath:

"I...I didn't kill anyone, he died on his own, it has nothing to do with me, you're all framing me..."

Although she spoke softly, Xue Baochai, who was close by, heard her clearly and sighed in response.

Regarding Xue Pan's killing of someone, Xue Baochai also felt that the whole matter was very strange. Leaving aside the doubts, the final outcome was that Xue Pan was made an unregistered resident. On the surface, Xue Pan was now dead, and his household registration had been cancelled by the government.

There were clearly better solutions, such as making the servant who committed the assault take the blame, but they chose this method instead.

What's even more chilling is that Xue Baochai later vaguely heard some rumors that not long after they went to the capital, the Xue family's ancestral business in the south was immediately taken over by someone else, none other than her uncle, Wang Ziteng.

Wang Ziteng's public explanation was that he was helping his brother-in-law's family with their cooking to prevent it from falling into disrepair or being taken over by outsiders.

These circumstances made Xue Baochai think deeply, but the other party was, after all, her uncle. Even if she saw through it, she couldn't say it, and she knew it would be useless to say it, so she could only keep it in her heart.

For a moment, both siblings fell silent, and the room fell into a brief silence.

After a while, Xue Pan broke the silence:

"Sister...it's been so long since then, it's not good to keep holding onto it. Could you please persuade Mother to give Xiangling to me?"

Upon hearing this, Xue Baochai initially wanted to refuse, but considering that he was ultimately her elder brother, and in this era where the eldest brother was like a father, she, as the younger sister, couldn't openly contradict him. Therefore, she could only nod slightly.

"Alright, I'll go talk to Mother again. Brother, you also need to behave yourself. That way, Mother will be more willing to give Xiangling a break."

Xue Pan chuckled upon hearing this:

"I knew my sister was the most open-minded. I don't know what Mother is thinking. It's been so long, and she's still not willing to give Xiangling to me. Logically speaking, she should have had her first marriage ceremony when we first came to the capital, but it's been dragged on until now."

Upon hearing this, Xue Baochai shook her head slightly:

"Brother, how can you not understand Mother's good intentions? If we had performed the facial surgery on her as soon as we arrived in the capital, outsiders would have found out and I'm afraid some people would have caused trouble."

"Besides, I am also in the process of being selected. If the court finds out about this, it's not a big deal if I lose my qualification, but if the court investigates and you are imprisoned, that would be the most serious thing."