The Red Mansions

Chapter 67 Xiangling and Ying'er

Jia Yun has sharp eyes and ears, no matter how softly Xiren and the others speak, he can still hear them clearly.

But he pretended not to know, and said in his heart: "Women talk to women more clearly than men."

It was late, Jia Yun did not cook that time-consuming dish, but tried to make it as simple as possible.

Of the two Siamese pigs, Jia Yun slaughtered one and made a porpoise, that is, roast suckling pig. The other dishes were prepared in a way that saved time and effort, but the quality of the dishes was not compromised.

The kitchen was busy but not chaotic, suddenly Xiren and Charming exclaimed, Jia Yun looked back, it turned out that Jia Baoyu came into the kitchen with a few maids!
Jia Baoyu looked at Xiren in a daze, walked up to Xiren like a walking corpse, and mumbled, but didn't know what to say.

"Second Master!" Xi Ren stepped forward to salute in a low voice.

Jia Baoyu came back to his senses, forced a smile, and said, "I'm relieved to see that Sister Xiren is doing well."

Standing behind him were Qingwen, Sheyue, Qiuwen, and Qianxue, all of whom were scorched, afraid that Jia Baoyu would make a mess.

Fortunately, Jia Baoyu only said a few words, and after glancing at the charming woman on the other side, he turned and left.

The four servant girls didn't go out, they came here specially to see Xiren.

After Jia Baoyu left, Sheyue's face brightened, she stepped forward and took Xi Ren and Mei Ren's hands and said, "You two good sisters, are you all right?"

As she spoke, her eye sockets turned red, her nose felt sore, and her throat felt stiff. She wanted to say more, but she couldn't speak out because of sobs.

Qingwen and her daughters also stepped forward with sore noses, seeing that Xiren no longer wore silk and satin, but coarse cotton padded jackets, gold and silver jewelry, rouge and gouache, but plain faces, unconsciously thinking cry.

"Okay, why are you crying, I'm doing fine now!" Xiren pursed his lips and went forward to hold Sheyue's hand, and said to the girls.

It was fine if she didn't say it, but when she said it, the girls couldn't help but burst into tears and began to sob.

As the saying goes, there are three women in one drama, and there is no need for gongs and drums to form a drama.

Originally there were only Xiren's four daughters in the kitchen, and they were not idle, muttering non-stop, but now four maids joined in, and the kitchen was full of chattering and chattering.

They said something here and there, and there was always something to say, laughing and cursing for a while, and being sentimental for a while, covering their faces and crying.

In the courtyard, Jia Rong and the others were astonished and unbelievable when they heard Mingyan say that Xiren had followed Jia Yun.

At this time, Jia Baoyu was coming out of the kitchen, walked over to Jia Rong and sat down sullenly.

Xue Pan spoke bluntly, and said: "I said Baoyu, who is so striking and charming, how can you bear it?"

Jia Baoyu kept his head silent, Xue Pan frowned and said, "You don't have any secrets, do you?"

"What are you talking about? Uncle Bao is still a child, he hasn't grown up yet!" Jia Rong quickly pulled Xue Pan back and whispered.

Suddenly, Xue Pan looked at Jia Baoyu with pity.

Jia Baoyu didn't know what Jia Rong said to Xue Pan because Jia Rong's voice was too low, but when he looked at Xue Pan head-on, he always felt that something was wrong, as if he had lost something, which made him feel a little uncomfortable. Comfortable.

It's just that he is in a bad mood at the moment, and he doesn't bother to argue with Xue Pan, just drinking tea with a teacup in a daze.

Jia Qin bowed his head and bowed his waist to serve tea and water, but he was full of joy. Seeing that everyone was silent and did not speak, he asked Xue Pan in a low voice:
"Uncle Xue, you just arrived in the capital today, won't Jia's mansion take care of you?"

Xue Pan shook his head and said, "I just arrived today, and the place I live in still needs to be cleaned and arranged. Besides, my uncle is on a business trip, so I have to wait for him to come back."

As he said that, he looked at the small courtyard and muttered: "Don't tell me, the courtyard of Brother Yun's house is small, but it is better than freedom. You can do whatever you want here, no one is in control, it's just a drinking and a joke." great place."

Jia Qin laughed and said: "This yard does not belong to his family. My family also has a small part. Even the house they live in was originally owned by an old watchman in the clan. Later, because Brother Yun wanted to study, everyone who came and went came and went. He is a scholar, so the family lent him a room for the sake of face."

"Hey, it's a pity that such a spiritual brother, Yun, puts his mind on pursuing Lu Xi!" Jia Baoyu suddenly sighed.

Everyone was speechless, even Xue Pan, who was idle all day long, knew that the family really had no savings, how could they live a comfortable life?
Not to mention Jia Rong and Jia Qiang, although they are lazy and lazy, they all know that fame is a good thing.

So at this moment, everyone ignored what Jia Baoyu said, which made Jia Baoyu very boring.

He was about to get up and go back to the house, but Jia Rong stopped him, saying that he had bought a good banquet at Brother Yun's place tonight, so don't leave.

Jia Baoyu said: "I said, why are you all gathered here? It turns out that you all came here to drink and eat meat."

"So I'm really lucky today. It's better to catch up early than to be lucky. I just happened to encounter such a good thing!"

Speaking of which, he hasn't eaten the food Jia Yun cooked himself for half a year.

Fortunately, Jia Yun also opened a shop, and every now and then, everyone would go to buy some stewed soup to make him enjoy himself, otherwise he would be hungry to death!
Jia Rong laughed, pointed at Xue Pan and said, "We all have to thank him, if he hadn't brought so many rare ingredients, Brother Yun wouldn't have agreed to cook for us!"

Xue Pan pretended to be nonchalant, waved his hand and said, "I have nothing to thank, it's just some food. If we are free in the future, we can come to Gaole often."

While talking, Jia Baoyu poked Xue Pan's arm with his finger, then pointed to the gate of the courtyard and asked, "Those two seem to be your maids, did Aunt Xue send someone to tell you to go back?"

Xue Pan turned his head to look, frowned and said: "Well, it's my maid, the one behind is the one I killed in Jinling and robbed her. My sister named her Xiangling, and she is serving my mother now."

Jia Baoyu nodded, looked at the maid in front of Xiangling, and said with a smile: "I know the one in front of her, it seems to be Sister Bao's maid, named Yinger."

"Well, it's her." Xue Pan nodded and replied, looking at the two maids who came over, he was a little unhappy and said:

"I just arrived in the capital today, so you can't let me have a good meal? Why can you find me wherever I go?"

Xiang Ling timidly stepped forward to salute, lowered her eyebrows and lowered her eyes, and said in a low voice: "Madam sent servants to look for uncle."

"Don't keep talking about my mother, and don't listen to me. You take the letter back, just say that Baoyu and Brother Rong and I will go back after a drink, and I promise not to make trouble." Xue Pan frowned.

Ying'er smiled and came forward to salute, and said in a crisp voice: "So that the uncle knows, the girl said that our family just arrived in the capital today, and there are still many things that need to be done inside and outside. Everyone is pointing to the uncle to go back and make arrangements!"

Xiangling is afraid of Xue Pan, but Ying'er is not. She is Xue Baochai's servant girl, and she speaks and behaves like Baochai's usual teachings to her.

Ying'er is lively and dexterous, with a dexterous mouth, a dexterous hand, and a measured manner. She hides needles in her cotton, and Xue Pan is the most troublesome.

But he is the best at saving face. With so many people watching at the moment, he will not easily agree to go back.

So Xue Pan said with a straight face: "What's the matter, there are so many servants in the family, can't cook without me? I don't care, anyway, I won't go back so early today, what's the matter, wait until tomorrow .”

(End of this chapter)