The Second Master of the Red Chamber

Chapter 855 First Arrival in Tianjin
Baochai waited anxiously for two days.

On the morning of the third day, when everything was ready, she slowly left the city with her maid Ying'er, her cousin Xue Ke, two female servants, and several household servants.

The group of people slowly headed towards Tongzhou, but before they reached the ten-mile-long pavilion outside the city, they were stopped by a group of soldiers with swords and armor.

“We are here on the orders of the Duke to escort Miss Xue to Tianjin.”

Zhang Yong often went to the Xue family's house for meals with Jia Lian, so he was quite polite to the Xue family.

He first bowed to Xue Ke, who had poked his head out of the carriage, and explained his purpose before waving his hand to his men to take over the guarding of the carriages behind.

The servants and maids of the Xue family, of course, dared not stop them and all retreated.

At this moment, Xue Ke had already come down and said to Zhang Yong, "Since it is the Duke's order, we dare not obstruct it."

However, I was ordered by my wife to escort my sister to Tongzhou and other places to check accounts, and now we're halfway there... I'm afraid I won't be able to explain myself when we get back...

"Why don't we go with them to Tianjin? Once we see that my sister has safely reached Rong Gong's side, we'll be at ease."

Zhang Yong, who had just greeted Baochai at her carriage, thought for a moment upon hearing this.

Finally, he declined, saying, "No need. Having you with us will only slow down our journey."

Besides, our Second Master only told us to pick up Miss Xue, he didn't say you could come along.

"Do as you please."

After saying that, Zhang Yong didn't delay any longer. He clasped his hands in a salute to Xue Ke and then escorted the carriage away.

Throughout the entire ordeal, Baochai remained inside the carriage, except for responding to Zhang Yong once; she did not show her face.

Watching his cousin's carriage disappear into the distance, escorted by a dozen or so burly soldiers, Xue Ke's eyes were filled with admiration.

A real man should be like my cousin's husband!
Xue Ke was a staunch supporter of Jia Lian and Baochai. He always believed that only someone like Jia Lian was worthy of his cousin's character.

Now that Jia Lian has indeed become his cousin's husband, he naturally wants to protect him with all his might.

He knew that with such a relationship, if Jia Lian were to protect him in the future, his life would be much easier.

Looking at the old women and servants around him, he instructed them: "When you return home, you must not mention today's events to anyone else, or you should know the consequences!"

The Xue family members all had different expressions.

Someone asked, "Were those people really sent by the Duke to fetch the young lady?"

Someone retorted: "Nonsense, if it weren't for the Duke's orders, who could command these killers?"
"Damn it! I was a little slow to react and didn't get away from the young lady's carriage in time. That man glared at me with his big, round eyes, like he wanted to kill me."

Upon hearing this, Xue Ke explained, "Those were indeed the Rongguo Duke's men, and they were indeed sent by the Rongguo Duke to pick up my sister."

When we were at their residence before, Rong Gong had discussed with my wife the idea of ​​taking my sister to Tianjin for a visit.

The lady initially disagreed, but Rong Gong's words were so earnest.

Therefore, I agreed that after my sister has sorted out the external accounts, we can take a stroll around Tianjin.

I never expected that Lord Rong would value my sister so much, that he actually sent people to wait here all this time..."

Xue Ke was somewhat helpless.

What Aunt Xue told Zhang Yong earlier was what she instructed him to do before she left.

The purpose was to create the illusion that Jia Lian was determined to take Baochai to Tianjin, and that the Xue family was forced to cooperate.

Unfortunately, he considered it a futile effort.

Tell me, which of these people around me is a fool? Who can't see what's going on?

Sure enough, the two maids immediately came forward: "Since the young lady has gone to Tianjin, do we still need to go to Tongzhou to check the accounts?"
"Why don't we go back first and tell your wife about this?"

"No need. Madam actually anticipated that my sister would be taken away by Rong Gong. He instructed me that if my sister was not there, the matter of checking the accounts should be entirely entrusted to me."

"Listen carefully, all of you. Don't even think about slipping away until this trip is over, or don't blame me for reporting this truthfully to my wife."

Upon hearing this, the members of the Xue family all expressed their willingness to follow Xue Ke's instructions.

There's nothing we can do; their father is a troublemaker who got himself into jail and hasn't come out yet.

Currently, the Madam has entrusted all of the Xue family's external affairs to Master Ke.

Perhaps because of Xue Pan's "brilliant" example, even though Xue Ke was still young and his handling of affairs was still rather immature.

But simply because he was serious about his work and upright in character, never resorting to crooked means, he genuinely earned the praise and recognition of all the Xue family's employees and managers, both inside and outside the company.

Some servants even whispered among themselves that it would be great if Master Ke Er could manage the family business from now on...

……

Baochai endured a bumpy journey in the carriage. Despite repeatedly declining Zhang Yong's suggestion to stop and rest, it was already late at night when she finally arrived in Tianjin.

With a mix of trepidation and nervousness, I stepped out of the carriage and was greeted by Jia Lian's tall and imposing figure and the warm smile on his face.

Jia Lian walked up to Baochai, raised his hand and smiled, saying, "You must have had a long journey."

Baochai shook her head, took Jia Lian's hand, stepped off the carriage stool, and said:
"Ying'er and I are nothing special; we've been sitting inside the carriage the whole time. It's the older brothers who escorted us who have had a hard journey."

"Second Brother Lian, you must treat them well for me."

Baochai's words were calm and straightforward, without any hint of deliberate effort, which touched the hearts of the guards who had not yet completely left.

I've heard people say that Miss Xue is of impeccable character and manners, and her conduct is truly admirable. Seeing her today, I can confirm that she lives up to the reputation.

Jia Lian laughed and said, "It's only right to reward them, but you don't need to feel sorry for them."

They've all traveled with me all over the country; this short distance is nothing to them.

Baochai nodded, but didn't say anything more.

He glanced up at the words "Imperial Envoy's Residence" above the gate, then followed Jia Lian inside.

Upon entering, the desolation of the courtyard surprised her somewhat.

Under the lights, apart from a few scattered materials, it had no grand appearance whatsoever, which was quite inconsistent with the four characters "Imperial Envoy's Residence" outside the door.

Seemingly sensing her thoughts, Jia Lian smiled and said, "This place was originally an office of the Tianjin Navy, but it was later temporarily converted into my villa."

If I had known you would come here, I wouldn't have refused their suggestion to find me a better place.

Baochai said, "I think this place is very nice. It's spacious and looks like a place where people who get things done live."

Baochai was such a perceptive person.

Knowing full well that given Jia Lian's status, if he so desired to enjoy himself, all the officials, big and small, in Tianjin would surely flock to curry favor with him.

Just by looking at Jia Lian's office, one can tell that he came here to do important and practical things for the court.

Jia Lian smiled.

Although he knew that Baochai was not the kind of person who couldn't endure hardship, he still explained, "Let's go. Although the front yard is a bit simple, the back yard is not so bad."

After saying this, Jia Lian personally led Baochai to the backyard, to the room he had specially prepared for her.

As Jia Lian said, the backyard was indeed much better, at least resembling the residence of a wealthy family.

Upon entering the house, one finds it bright and airy.

Although there weren't many decorations, all the screens, wooden shelves, and other items looked brand new and were spotless.

Baochai thought to herself upon seeing this:

If he hadn't kept any other beauties in this camp, then this room must have been specially prepared for her these past two days.

"How is it? Although it can't compare to your room in Hengwu Garden, it shouldn't be too bad, right?"

Baochai nodded.

She could tell that the room was decorated in the style of her boudoir in the Xue family.

It's likely that Jia Lian put in considerable effort for this. Simply instructing others wouldn't have achieved such an effect.

"Second Master, the bathwater for Miss Xue is ready. You may invite Miss Xue to take a bath now."

When Jia Lian saw Aqin enter the room, he said to Baochai, "Besides my personal guards, I don't have anyone to serve me here."

So I've sent her over to take care of you for the next couple of days, so she can show you around and familiarize you with the place.

If you are not used to it and need someone else to serve you, I can buy two maids to serve you.

Baochai quickly replied, "No need, I have Ying'er by my side, there's no need to trouble myself."

After saying that, she said very politely to Ah Qin, "I'll leave the rest to you, sister."

Baochai naturally knew Aqin. Although they hadn't spoken much, she often saw her by Jia Lian's side and knew that Jia Lian trusted and valued her highly.

In response to Baochai's politeness, Aqin smiled and returned the greeting in a very friendly manner.

Seeing this, Jia Lian stood up and said with a smile, "Alright, go take a bath first, I'll come back to see you later."

By the way, I live just up ahead. If you need anything, you can come find me.

Baochai nodded and watched Jia Lian leave.

(End of this chapter)