The Royal Merchant of the Red Chamber

"Who is looking for me?" Xue Pan glanced at Xue Zhizhang suspiciously, and asked loudly.

"Responding to uncle, I don't know this young man, I just feel his face is tight. It's not like the one who had contact with our family before." Xue Gui replied respectfully.

"That means there is no contact. I can still trust Uncle Gui's memory." Xue Pan replied with a smile. "No matter who it is, you invite them to the side hall to offer good tea and water, and tell him I'll be there soon."

"Hey!" Xue Gui bowed in response, and hurried down to prepare.

Xue Pan didn't want to delay any longer, and immediately bowed and bid farewell to Xue Zhizhang, and walked towards the side hall in the front courtyard Shi Shiran.He vaguely thought of a person in his heart.He secretly laughed in his heart, if this is really the case, then that guy might really be like what is written in the book—a kind of love.

When I got to the side hall, I saw a young man with a weak crown walking around inside, followed by an old man who looked like a servant.Xue Pan walked forward with a smile, cupped his hands and asked, "I don't know where you are from, Xiongtai. It seems that you and I have never met before. Why are you looking for me?"

Hearing that, the man turned his head abruptly.He bowed to Xue Panchang, and said in his mouth: "My surname is Feng Mingyuan, and I am a small local eunuch. I was not a figure in the same card with the uncle. Naturally, the uncle does not recognize me. This time I took the liberty to visit, it is really a If I have something important to ask, I only hope that the Xue family will help me!"

Sure enough, Xue Pan secretly laughed in his heart.But his face was blank, he raised his eyebrows in puzzlement, and asked knowingly: "Oh? Where did you say that?"

"Reporting to my lord, we have to start from the beginning. It turned out that our little master bought a girl, and he didn't want to be kidnapped by a kidnapper. The kidnapper sold her to my house, and he didn't worry about it. The uncle bought it. So my little master came to the door to beg, and hope that the uncle will be merciful and help my master!" The old servant beside him spoke tremblingly. "As long as the uncle asks, our family is willing to pay double the price to redeem this girl."

"How did you say that?" Xue Pan snorted disdainfully, seeing that Feng Yuan's handsome face was suddenly covered with cold sweat, his playfulness arose, and he couldn't help teasing: "What kind of family is our Xue family? Have you ever cared about the copper coins of your three melons and two dates? Now that you have received the grace of the sage, you have been granted the title, and there is no reason to submit to you. Besides, the only reason for a decent family is to buy people into the house. Hurrying to take away people? It will be passed on, so there is no need to make people laugh. Besides, we are not buying and selling by force, it is all stamped by the government as a proof. You said that your family bought it first, Can you get the official certificate?"

"This..." Feng Yuan was rendered speechless by Xue Pan's words.That day, he only thought about bringing Mei Jiaoniang home as soon as possible, and even happily ordered his servants to set up a bridal chamber!Who would have thought that the kidnapper would be so courageous?It was just a day's work, and so many messy things happened.

Seeing this, Xue Pan sneered even more. "Sure enough, you were stopped by me, right? Even if you have any disputes, since you go to talk to the kidnapper, there is no reason to come to our house to make a fuss. I am in a good mood today, so I just pretend it's nothing. I hope you don't spread the word everywhere, lest you be heard by the owner of the good thing, I am afraid that our Xue family is afraid of you, a little squire. If that is the case... At that time, don't blame our Xue family for not being ugly. Talk up front!"

When Feng Yuan heard the words, he bowed his hands again and again, wishing he could kneel down and beg for mercy, and apologized again and again: "I didn't ask for an invitation, and I didn't pass it on in advance. It's Xiaosheng's presumptuousness to come to your mansion so abruptly. Xiaosheng behaved in a hurry. It must be embarrassing for the old man. I only hope that the old man can fulfill my wish. I really like that girl, and I only hope that I can buy it back to the mansion and be a good husband and wife. If the old man can fulfill us, Xiaosheng is willing to offer the old man the Longevity Archway , burn incense and pray for the uncle every day."

"Come on, I'm not dead yet! I don't need your family's incense offerings." Xue Pan said indifferently, but didn't spit out.

"Master, please be merciful! She's just a lowly girl outside, I'm afraid she won't be as good as the sisters in the mansion. She is just a grass among thousands of flowers. You should put it as a thing Son, let her go to me!" Feng Yuan begged bitterly, his handsome face wishing to get tangled together.

"That can't be done." Xue Pan rolled up his sleeves in a leisurely manner, sat on the chair above Feng Yuan, pretending to be serious and said: "I bought this girl, and it will be of great use."

"This..." Feng Yuan was so frightened that his complexion was pale and he was dripping with sweat.After hesitating for a while, he suddenly gritted his teeth and said, "With the status of the uncle, what kind of beautiful woman has I never seen before? How can I really fall in love with this girl? I'm afraid it's just a matter of face. Although my family is not a well-known family, but in Jinling City can be regarded as having a lot of land. Especially there are several acres of hot springs on the east side of the slope. Now if the uncle is willing to accept Xiaosheng, Xiaosheng will go home immediately and take the land deed of good land. How about exchanging this girl?"

"Really?" Xue Pan sighed softly, seeing Feng Yuan anxious like an ant on a hot pot, couldn't help laughing out loud.

"Master Xue?" Feng Yuan looked at Xue Pan suspiciously.

"Our Xue family is not someone who is waiting to seize the people's land, and it is not your decision as to how much this girl is worth." Xue Pan said, telling Feng Yuan the whole story of Gusu Zhen's family.Finally, he gave Feng Yuan a suggestion. "I bought this girl because I wanted to send it to the Zhen family in Gusu... If you really want to, you might as well send someone to go with my servant. If it is really Miss Zhen's family, her family status is also worthy. For you, you simply married her with three matchmakers and six hires. If not, you would just ask Mrs. Zhen for someone."

Feng Yuan was overjoyed when he heard the words, bowed again and again and said, "My lord's righteousness is beyond my generation's ability. If it really happens, Feng Yuan will never forget it."

"Okay." Xue Pan waved his hand and sent Feng Yuan's master and servant away. "Our family has a caravan going to Gusu in the future, and we just sent this girl there. If you are sincere, go back and prepare immediately!"

"Thank you, sir." Feng Yuan bowed again, and left with his servants gratefully.

After sending Feng Yuan away, Xue Pan shook his head boredly, and then forgot about this matter when he turned his head.But they didn't know that after Feng Yuan followed the Xue family caravan to the Gourd Temple in Gusu, he really found the Mrs. Zhen's family.At that time, the Zhen family was completely down, Master Zhen disappeared with a Taoist priest, Mrs. Zhen's family wealth was exhausted, and was forced to marry an old rich man who was nearly seventy years old to fill the house. Mrs. Zhen refused, so she was driven out of her mother's house to sleep street.He and two dowry maids went back to live in the dilapidated Gourd Temple.He lived by washing and mending clothes every day.Life was once so difficult that it was hard to persist. If it weren't for the obsession in her heart to find her daughter, Mrs. Zhen would have closed her eyes long ago.

When the Xue family caravan took Zhen Yinglian to find Mrs. Zhen, Mrs. Zhen was fainting due to the cold air and high fever. Buy medicine to cure illness.It was the members of Xue's family who paid for the medicine before inviting the doctor back.After Mrs. Zhen woke up, seeing Zhen Yinglian, she just hugged her tightly and shook her head and cried.Its heart-piercing degree made others sigh when they saw it.You must know that although the Zhen family in Gusu was not a wealthy family back then, they were also a well-known local gentry in Gusu. How did you know that the world was unpredictable, the daughter was lost, the master left, and the house was in dire straits.

Everyone lamented three times, and Feng Yuan led the matchmaker to propose marriage.Looking at Feng Yuan, who had three matchmakers and six betrothal gifts, Mrs. Zhen sighed.The Zhen family has been in decline for a long time now, and it is a blessing to be able to find such a marriage.I also saw that although Feng Yuan looked mediocre and lacking in talent, he was sincere to his daughter anyway.Not only did they rush over from Jinling, but they also disliked their family's downfall.He even promised to take Mrs. Zhen back to Jinling together, so that the whole family could get together and live happily ever after.

Now that things have come to this, Mrs. Zhen has nothing to criticize.Immediately, the marriage was arranged in Jinling, and Feng Yuan followed Feng Yuan back to Jinling with the two maids.

After returning to Jinling, the steward of the Xue family caravan told Uncle Xue the whole matter, and finally sighed softly: "Young Master Feng, he usually fights chickens and dogs, and men and women are not taboo. Who would have thought that he would be like this?" With a lot of loyalty, it is a blessing for the mother and daughter of the Zhen family to meet this young master of the Feng family."

Xue Pan nodded in satisfaction when he heard the words.When he first saw the Red Mansion, he was a little worried about Xiangling and Feng Yuan, but now, for his own sake, he actually brought the two of them together and lived happily ever after.Leaving aside what will happen in the future, as Xue Pan, at least he has his heart set on it.

Immediately waved back the steward who came to report, turned over and went back to the inner courtyard.He happened to meet Ying'er who came out to look for him, and said that Baochai was looking for him on something.As soon as Xue Pan heard this, he turned his feet and entered Baochai's Wutong Garden.

As soon as Pu opened the curtain, he smiled at Baochai inside and said, "I heard that you sent someone to call me. What's the matter?"

"I've met my brother." Baochai immediately got up to salute, holding a thin letter in his hand.Xue Pan understood, opened his mouth and asked, "Have you received a letter from the Lin family in Yangzhou?"

"It's Sister Lin." Baochai sighed softly, and said, "The letter said that Mrs. Lin's condition is getting worse. She is very worried."

Xue Pan nodded clearly, and he also felt that it was almost done.After all, he has already met Yinglian of the Zhen family, I am afraid that sister Lin will also start the plot!But to be honest, he felt sorry for Sister Lin.After all, no matter how you look at it, Jia Baoyu is not a beloved man who can be entrusted to him for life.In addition, there is a future mother-in-law who doesn't want to see her... It's a pity that the Lin family doesn't have a brother Lin who has traveled through time, and it's really hard for me to be involved in the Lin family's affairs as a foreigner.Immediately sighed, shook his head and said: "Mrs. Lin's health has always been bad. Although Mr. Lin has been seeking medical advice for the past two years, we also asked the missionary for some western medicine to help, but it is always a temporary solution, not the root cause. The situation is also expected. It’s just that the younger sister of the Lin family may be more worried and panic after this incident, so please write to her more when you have time! Always try to persuade her, even though it won’t help, it’s better than nothing!”

In his heart, he concluded that Jia Min must die.As for Sister Lin, I am afraid that she will also embark on the road of "going to" the Rongguo Mansion.

Of course, what he doesn't know is that because of his existence, Baochai has sent precious western medicines to Yangzhou one after another in the past two years to maintain Jia Min's life.And the increasingly blurred plot in his memory has already quietly changed...

"It's the missionaries you're talking about!" Baochai sighed softly, "Sister Lin's letter to me was euphemistic, but she begged us to find some missionaries with good medical skills to send to their homes... ...The current situation is also urgent and rushed to the doctor."

"It's not a big deal, I have two foreigners who are proficient in medical skills, and I will send them to Yangzhou tomorrow." Xue Pan said indifferently. "Even if I can't help you much, I've tried my best. If I want to come in the future, I won't regret it."

When Baochai heard this, she smiled in relief, "That's what I mean too."

At the moment, Xue Pan sent the missionaries in his hand to Yangzhou without mentioning it.Let's say that after the missionary arrived in Lin's residence, he really had two brushes.After several times of tinkering, Jia Min's condition improved a lot.I was so happy that Lin Daiyu sent letters again and again, she was grateful between the lines, and the relationship between the two little sisters became more and more profound.

It's a pity that the good times didn't last long, but after two or three months, Jia Min's condition suddenly deteriorated again. Daiyu served the decoction by the bedside and didn't leave for a moment, but she persisted for a month and a half. let go...

Daiyu's side is naturally distraught, and Baochai's side is not feeling well either.She sighed that her sister was really suffering, but it was a pity that she was far away in Jinling, so she couldn't visit her in person to relieve her pain.For a while, the swan geese passed on letters more and more tightly, and they wished for a letter of comfort every day. Fortunately, the two of them later used letters to send letters by flying pigeons.

This is naturally what Xue Panxian came to make fun of.After hearing this, Baochai gave Xue Pan a blank look, and said bitterly: "He has suffered such a sad and sad thing, it's all right if my brother can't feel compassion and accompany the pain, why are you still making fun of us, really Shouldn't it?"

"I was wrong, I was wrong." Xue Pan begged for mercy repeatedly, seeing that Baochai was still worried, his heart moved, and he said: "If you are really worried about her, you might as well take her to Yangzhou for a while Day. Firstly, to relieve her distress—after all, she always stays in that house, so it’s inevitable that she will be hurt by the scene. It’s better to go out for a walk. The vision will be broadened, and the mood will be broadened. Second, I listened to my father in a daze. , Mr. Lin has been busy with government affairs for the past two years, and he really doesn't have the energy to take care of his family. If you take her over, you will not only take good care of her, but also reduce the burden on Mr. Lin."

"But my mother passed away. It stands to reason that the sister of the Lin family should stay in Yangzhou and serve Uncle Lin. If I invite her by letter...would it be difficult for her?" After all, in the Yong Dynasty, filial piety was the most important thing. .For the daughter's family, its importance is almost the same as that of the boudoir.Xue Baochai was careful and thoughtful, and she didn't want to ruin the reputation of the Lin family girl because of this kind of thing.

"It's nothing. After all, Master Lin is busy with court affairs, so he doesn't have the time to take care of Daiyu!" Xue Pan shook his head calmly.He also heard his father and Mr. Zhuang mention it by accident.It is said that Lin Ruhai has also joined the current sect, and is now fighting with the remnant forces of His Royal Highness the Prince of Loyalty, Lao Qiansui!In addition to wanting to seize the right to speak in the salt administration, Lin Ruhai also learned that many princes of Zhongyi ordered his servants to smuggle salt...

I'm afraid I really don't have the time to take care of Sister Lin because of the relationship between the two.

Baochai listened to Xue Pan's words, pondered for a while, and said, "If that's the case, it's not a bad idea to take over Sister Lin. It's just that I shouldn't have said this, so I'd like to ask Dad to write a formal letter to Master Lin. It's just a matter of mentioning it. It would be best if Master Lin offered to send his younger sister to relax, that would be even more beautiful given her name."

"It's not a problem, just talk to daddy at dinner. But you should write a letter to the girl of the Lin family first and ask her! Let's see what she means." Xue Pan casually fanned the wind with his hand, Looking at Baochai, he said.

"She is willing. She often writes that she wants to go out for a walk! It's a pity that she is a daughter, and she has to serve her mother. Now that I have told her, she must be happy." Of course, Sister Lin couldn't let go of taking care of Master Lin.It's just for Master Lin, after all, there are other aunts who can and are willing to take care of her.Now Sister Lin, a aunt who lost her aunt, is raised in the inner courtyard of the deep house like this...

Thinking about it, Baochai frowned in horror, and hurried to the back of the desk to study ink and pick up a pen.

Seeing this, Xue Pan shrugged his shoulders needlessly, opened the curtain and went out.

I mentioned this matter with Xue Zhizhang at night, Xue Zhizhang naturally had nothing to do.Mrs. Xue also thought it was good.Immediately, he wrote another letter to Lin Ruhai, and within a few days, he and Xue Pan replied: "Brother Lin has already agreed, and now I have sent someone to send the girl over. It will take three to five days to complete, You should hurry up and prepare. When someone else comes, you just tidy up the house in a hurry."

When Baochai heard this, she jumped up overjoyed.At the moment, Mrs. Xue wants to tidy up Daiyu's house and prepare her outfit, but Mrs. Xue agrees dumbfounded.Baochai immediately picked up all the big and small things in the whole house and packed them up.

Because she and Daiyu were close in the past, she didn't tidy up the yard alone.Fortunately, I chose a wing room closest to my house in Wutong Garden, and arranged the furnishings one by one according to Daiyu's preferences, such as Su Dongpo's poems, Tang Bohu's calligraphy and paintings, Liu Laozhang's clay figurines, flowers and plants in the field, whatever she finds interesting They all tidied up in the house, and even urged Ying'er to quickly weave two big flower balls with elegant colors, one left and one right hung on the bed curtain, looking very beautiful from a distance.

Seeing her enthusiasm, Ying'er couldn't help becoming suspicious, she found an empty space and asked quietly: "Miss is really devoted to the girl from the Lin family. In my opinion, the lady is not so good to the girl from the Zhen family." Oh! But I don't understand, it stands to reason that the girl from the Zhen family has a closer relationship with the girl, and they will even enter the palace for draft together in the future. And the girl from the Lin family..."

As Yinger spoke, she lowered her voice even more. "I've heard from outsiders that although the master of the Lin family has a prominent official position, his ancestors and previous courts are somewhat unclear, so the girl from the Lin family is not eligible for the draft."

"Silly girl." Baochai rubbed Ying'er's hair affectionately, sighed faintly, and said inexplicably: "You don't understand, it is because she is not qualified for the draft that I dare to say goodbye to her with all my heart and soul." She is good!"

After finishing speaking, he felt that he had made a slip of the tongue, and hurriedly ordered in a deep voice: "This word comes out of my mouth and into your ear, so don't say it again in the future. Otherwise... you can be careful."

"Ying'er knows." Hearing this, Ying'er nodded quickly, but the expression on her face became more and more confused...