The Hairpin of the Red Chamber

Since Baochai parted with Daiyu, her lovesickness was unstoppable, and she was full of sentimental and poetic nature. She paid for paper and pen, and wrote articles every day. Although Daiyu was busy at home, her heart was full of sorrows. The matter of expressing love cannot be fully contained.

Although it was not easy to communicate between the two, Baochai always sent people to watch around Lin's house. Daiyu also had the same thoughts as her, often telling Zijuan to go home early and wander around the house, If the girl of the two happened to meet outside, it would be like a living dragon. You pass a piece of silk and I pass a note. Such communication will not break the relationship.

Baochai was delighted to be able to reciprocate with Daiyu, but poems and poems were hurt after all, so it was inevitable to persuade Daiyu a few words. Daiyu knew her heart and responded tactfully. Worry about it, or you can reduce the sorrow of parting.

Now the most important thing in the two residences of Xue and Lin is Xue Pan and Baoyu's exams. Baochai knows that Xue Pan's exams are hopeless, so she only sends people to watch the list every day, depending on Baoyu.

Unexpectedly, on the day when the rankings were released, there was a sound of gongs and drums outside, and there was a lot of commotion outside. A family member came in happily and said, "Here comes the announcer, our uncle has won the sack!"

Baochai hadn't regained her senses yet, the announcer was already outside clamoring for rewards, so she sent someone to take the money out, wondering, and went in to look for Aunt Xue. Said: "My wife is very happy!"

Aunt Xue wept with joy, clasped her hands together, and couldn't stop saying: "This is great, my son is finally promising!" She put Xiangling's hand and said: "In the future, you will also have a blessing!"

Xiang Ling just pursed her lips and smiled.

Baochai said, "Where's my brother?"

The mother-in-law on the left and right said: "I went out early in the morning and said I was drinking with Mr. Zhang."

Baochai frowned and asked, "Which Mr. Zhang?"

Xiang Ling said: "I know, it's that Uncle Zhang Jing from Sister Lin's house."

Baochai's brows tightened, and she urged the family to look for Xue Pan, but no one in the house saw Xue Pan all afternoon, but he came back at night, and asked as soon as he entered, "Is my sister asleep? "

The woman at the door saw that his face was panicked, not as usual, and hurriedly said: "I just saw Yinger fetching water, maybe she is washing up."

Xue Pan ran to Baochai's door in a panic, and rushed in rashly. Baochai happened to be undressing inside. He was startled, his face flushed, and he shouted, "What are you doing, brother?"

Xue Pan hurriedly withdrew, stretched his neck at the door and said, "I have something important to tell you, you put on your clothes quickly."

Hearing that his voice had changed, Baochai hastily put on a coat, sent Yinger out, and invited Xue Pan in again, asking, "Is it about the exam?"

Xue Pan stumbled and said, "That's right! Zhang Jing wrote my name and won the prize. This...this is cheating."

Baochai hissed hurriedly, and looked out of the window, and saw Yinger and Qingque standing outside, Fang pulled Xue Pan and said: "My dear brother, please keep your voice down, and tell me everything. Once again, Zhang Jing told you this today?"

Xue Pan nodded and said: "He called me out early this morning. He was so mysterious. I thought he was going to take me to go shopping. Heck, what about the restaurant, but who knew he was going to tell me the topic of this year, and The article he wrote. He forced me to memorize this article. I didn’t know it at the time. I thought he was going to teach me how to write an article, so I recited it. Unexpectedly, he told me after he finished memorizing it, saying that he wrote my name in the exam. .”

Baochai saw that his face had turned pale with fright, so she quickly wiped his sweat with a towel, and said, "Why did he suddenly think of such a thing?"

Xue Pan said: "How do I know what he means? I, I was frightened, so I ran all the way back, but I didn't see him."

Baochai said: "Don't panic, don't panic, brother, you come to Beijing, do you know all the people who are going to take the exam together?"

Xue Pan said: "Ah Jing and I both came from Yangzhou. When we came, we only cared about studying and didn't have much contact with them. But I know all the old people in Beijing, that is...the ones who had dinner together in the past."

Baochai said, "Aside from asking you to recite the essay, did Zhang Jing say anything?"

Xue Pan said: "He also said that he was wearing the same clothes as me that day, with a few pieces wrapped inside, and thick-soled boots underneath. He looked about the same height as me, and he took my student status and went in. We are the students transferred by Uncle Lin through the door. The door official saw that it was official, so he didn't check it strictly. He kept his head down, and there were so many people taking the exam that day, so no one would recognize it and call me. rest assured."

Baochai said: "So, he has been planning for a long time?"

Xue Pan anxiously said: "Whether he planned or not, what should we do now? At the foot of the emperor, there are frauds for personal gain. If this... this... If this is found out, I'm afraid even Uncle Lin will be troubled!"

Baochai resolutely said: "So no one can find out. You go and ask Zhang Jing to come over."

Xue Pan was shocked and said, "Go invite him now? It's... this time..."

Baochai glared at him and said, "Brother was so indifferent before, why is he so timid now?"

Xue Pan stomped his feet and turned around and said, "That's because I was ignorant before, but now I understand, why do you have the courage to fight?"

Baochai was also in a hurry, pinched him and said, "If this matter is to be revealed, the lightest thing is to be exiled. Why don't you hurry up and invite him here? What are you still doing here?"

Xue Pan also said: "It's already night now, you called a man over to our house, what will it look like?"

Baochai stared and said, "If you don't call someone, I'll ask Yinger to go out and look for him."

Xue Pan couldn't help it, so he had to send a servant to "see if your uncle Zhang is asleep? If he is not asleep, invite him to come to me and tell him if I have something important."

The young man ran out quickly, and came back quickly, and said with a smile on his face: "It just so happened that Uncle Zhang was about to go out, so I invited him along."

While speaking, Zhang Jing had already stepped into the door, wearing a square scarf on his head, and the weather was getting warmer, but he was still wearing several layers of jackets, a light robe, a slow belt around his waist, and small soap-colored thick-soled court boots. When he came down, he really looked like Xue Pan.

Xue Pan's face was pale and his head was covered with sweat, while Zhang Jing, as the instigator, calmed down, moved his steps lightly, bowed to Baochai, and called out, "Sister Bao."

Baochai didn't meet him, and immediately said, "Who else knows about this except you and your servant Fang'er? Tell us how you did it."

Zhang Jing smiled and said, "Sister Bao, don't worry, let me drink a glass of water first."

Baochai asked people to watch tea and seats, and then asked people to watch outside. Zhang Jing also asked with a smile: "Sister Bao, don't you care about your boudoir reputation at all when you meet outside men at night?"

Baochai was uncomfortable with his gaze, turned her head and said, "I'm naturally scrupulous, so you'd better make a long story short."

Zhang Jing just smiled, his natural gentleness made his smile more handsome and beautiful, Xue Pan stared at him blankly, and said, "Ah Jing, don't just laugh, talk to my sister quickly."

Zhang Jing opened his mouth and said: "Before the exam, I had already excused that I needed to review my homework, and I moved to the outer study with Big Brother Xue. I got up and went out at three o'clock, saying that I wanted to go to the exam room earlier, and told the people in the Lin Mansion Brother Xue can't sleep well at night, so tell them to evacuate. My servant Fang'er and Brother Xue's servant Xiu'er will watch over Brother Xue, and call him when the time comes. Er went to get some pens, ink, paper and inkstone first, and pretended to call Brother Xue, but in fact, we worked together to move him to the carriage outside and sent him to the house I rented outside. I went to take the exam, and Fang Er went to tell Xiuer that Brother Xue would go first. Now, I will go back to my house to take care of it. Brother Xue didn’t wake up until noon. The house was similar in layout to the Lin Mansion. Circle, tease him to go out to avoid the limelight, and you probably know all about what happened afterwards."

Baochai said, "Aren't you afraid of those discoveries in the same year?"

Zhang Jingdao: "In the capital of the capital, there are many more people who take the exam for talents than outsiders, and most of them are from wealthy families who call for slaves and maidservants. I'm dressed like this, who can recognize who?"

Baochai deliberately said, "Aren't you afraid that the people you used to associate with will recognize you?"

Zhang Jing sneered and said, "Brother Xue used to say how smart you are, but I don't think so. Ever since Brother Xue and I came to Beijing, how have we ever gone out? Besides, the talent test is different from the provincial test. All the talents are from the province and the local area. People come to take the exam, we are originally from Jinling, and we have nothing to do with these people, how could we be recognized? Besides, everyone was only focused on the exam that day, as long as the height, fat, and thinness are not bad as stated in the school records, who has the time to care about me? What do you look like?"

Baochai was not offended when he smiled, and asked again with narrowed eyes: "You have such knowledge, why don't you take the exam yourself, but give it to my brother?"

Zhang Jing smiled slightly, looked at Xue Pan, and said, "I took the risk to take the exam for him, of course I have something to ask for."

Feeling ominous, Baochai unknowingly stood up from the chair, stared at him and said, "What do you want?"

Zhang Jing smiled and took off the turban, pulled out the bun, and a head of beautiful hair poured down like a waterfall. Zhang Jing pushed the scattered hair back with one hand, and smiled softly: "I want to marry him."