Dream of the Red Chamber: Start by gaining Zhao Yun's martial prowess, and be ennobled in a sin

Xue Baoqin frowned, lowered her eyes, her thick eyelashes casting a small shadow beneath them, and a look of worry crossed her fair face. Nevertheless, she still spoke to comfort her:

"Brother, you don't need to worry too much. Father has traveled all over the country for many years. He knows where it is dangerous and where it is safe."

"And since he had men with him, it seems he's destined for good fortune!"

Xue Ke glanced at her, his lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but he hesitated and swallowed his words.

He stood up, paced back and forth in the room a couple of times, finally stopped, and said in a low voice:

"It's not just because I'm worried about Father. Sister, I also heard something else today..."

"The powerful families in the city are all packing their valuables, saying that Jinling City can no longer be defended and they are preparing to escape in the chaos."

"Several wealthy families in the south of the city had already secretly prepared their belongings last night. In the east of the city, it is said that someone even used a rope to lower down from the city wall last night, and the whole family ran east overnight."

Xue Baoqin was taken aback upon hearing this, a thoughtful look welling up in her watery eyes. After a moment, she whispered:

"Nanjing is our secondary capital, with high walls and thick defenses. It has been besieged for only a few days. How could it have fallen so easily? Besides, the imperial court will surely send troops to reinforce it."

Xue Ke gave a wry smile, sat down at the table, placed one hand on the table, and said:

"Xuzhou, or even Zhongdu, fell in a single night, didn't it? Don't you know what's going on with the troops in Jiangnan? To put it nicely, they're government troops; to put it bluntly, they're not even as good as bandits..."

Xue Ke and Xue Baoqin traveled with their father from a young age, traversing mountains and rivers, and witnessing the vicissitudes of life. Naturally, they gained their own insights!

"As for the imperial court..." Xue Ke paused, glanced at his sister, lowered his gaze further, and said:

"The imperial court did indeed send reinforcements, led personally by the Duke of Jing, but..."

"The elder brother of the Jia family?" Upon hearing this, Xue Baoqin's expression brightened before Xue Ke could finish speaking. The dark light in her almond-shaped eyes suddenly lit up, and her whole spirit lifted.

Speaking of the century-long friendship between the Jia, Shi, Wang, and Xue families, it wouldn't be wrong for Xue Baoqin to address Jia Jing as her elder brother!

However, when it comes to power and status, this "Brother Sheng" seems to be trying to curry favor!

Of course, it's perfectly fine to call each other that in private!

Xue Baoqin's affinity for Jia Jing stemmed from her correspondence with Xue Baochai, during which she often heard her talk about events in the capital, especially the legendary tales of Jia Jing.

"If he comes, the White Lotus Sect will definitely not be able to cause any trouble!" Xue Baoqin said with a hint of certainty in her tone and a slight smile on her face, as if she were stating a matter of course, and said lightly:

"The whole city is saved; he hasn't lost a battle in all these years..."

"I originally thought I would only be able to see his true face after I went to the capital, but I didn't expect that he would go down to Jiangnan at this time."

"My sister wrote to me saying that he is a kind and gentle person who is loyal to the emperor and loves his country. He is not as scary as people say."

"My sister also sent me several poems he wrote. His literary talent is outstanding; he is truly a remarkable person of our time. If I have the chance, I hope I can meet him..."

As Xue Baoqin spoke, the two shallow dimples on her cheeks unconsciously surfaced, and the corners of her mouth curved slightly. The melancholy she had just felt seemed to have been swept away by those three words.

It must be said that Jia Jing's reputation in Jiangnan plummeted after the factional scandal, with countless upright officials speaking out against him for his ruthless killings and cruel nature.

Some tabloids also denounced him as a treacherous official, a cruel bureaucrat, a powerful minister, and someone who "used force to control the people," using the emperor's hand to condemn scholars as criminals and turning the upright officials into partisans.

There were even all sorts of unfounded slanders, such as that he liked to eat people and was a lecherous scoundrel...

If Xue Baoqin hadn't received Xue Baochai's letter explaining things, she might have been misled by the rumors and thought he wasn't a good person!

"A man like him is not someone you can just meet casually! Even once we get to the capital, with your aunt's help, we should still be careful!"

Xue Ke interrupted her, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness, yet also a touch of brotherly doting.

Then, with a hint of worry in his eyes, he said:

"Not to mention now, we might not even be able to wait for him to arrive before the city falls! Our priority should be figuring out how to escape!"

Xue Baoqin pursed her cherry lips, blinked her moist almond eyes, and remained silent for a moment. She simply raised her head, her bright eyes gazing into the distance, as if passing through the misty rain of Jiangnan and landing on an unnamed place...

Leaving aside the discussions among the people in Nanjing, at this time, Chongming Island and the Xisha Islands...

This small island lies in the middle of the Yangtze River estuary, surrounded by turbid river water. From a distance, it looks like a withered leaf left behind by the waves.

The island is covered with reeds. When the autumn wind blows, the white reed flowers scatter everywhere, landing on the mudflats, on abandoned fishing boats, and on the roof of a makeshift bamboo shed.

The bamboo shed was built on a sheltered earthen slope on the west side of the island, with a thatched roof and windproof walls made of bamboo strips on all four sides.

Outside the shed, a dozen or so people were leading horses, dressed in a motley collection of clothes. Some had shaved heads and wore queues, some wore headscarves, and others wore worn-out Han Chinese short tunics.

The shed was simply furnished, with only an old wooden table salvaged from a fishing boat. On the tabletop was a nautical chart covered with red lines, its four corners weighed down by stones, the edges of which were slightly curled by the wind.

Several earthenware bowls, stolen from the island's inhabitants, sat on the table, filled with cheap wine that had already gone cold.

A man sat behind the table. He was about thirty years old, extremely tall and strong, with broad shoulders and a thick waist. His eyebrows were thick and black, slanted upwards and slightly upturned, giving him an air of natural arrogance.

He had a short, neatly trimmed mustache on his chin, which made his face look even more angular.

His posture was extremely casual, with one leg bent and the other straight, one hand resting on his knee, and the other hand casually pressing on a corner of the nautical chart.

Yet there was a sense of relaxed alertness in his posture that only a seasoned general possesses.

This person was none other than the fourteenth son of the Qing emperor, Aisin-Gioro Yinzhen.

The other man sitting beside him was half a head shorter than him, but more wiry and capable-looking. He was about forty years old, with slightly dark skin and high cheekbones.

His hair was shaved into a topknot, his forehead was bald, and the bun at the back of his head was held in place by a wooden hairpin, on which was carved the three-tiered diamond pattern of the Matsuura family.

This person was Matsuura Morinobu, a retainer of the Matsuura clan of the Hirado Domain in Japan.

His real name was Matsuura Morinobu, a descendant of Matsuura Takanobu. He was in charge of foreign affairs and intelligence in the Hirado Domain and spent most of his time in the Nagasaki area. He could speak broken Chinese and write decent Chinese characters.

This time, he was ordered by the feudal lord to secretly cross the sea with a team of elite samurai and foot soldiers to negotiate with the Qing Dynasty on cooperation matters regarding the invasion of the Han coast.