Chapter 55 World Three (Six)
Ever since being summoned to dine together that day, the precious fan seemed to have been forgotten by Wang and was left in a corner of the side courtyard.
Because she did not have Wang's permission, Baoshan stayed quietly in her own yard. Occasionally, she would pick up the pipa she brought from Yangzhou City and play a tune to relieve her loneliness.
Baoshan took out the pipa, unwrapped the silk wrapping, and with her slender, white jade fingers, she stroked the taut strings. The strings tinkled, a melodious sound. Baoshan then embraced the pipa and sat alone in the courtyard.
This is a five-stringed pipa in mother-of-pearl sandalwood. The entire body is made of sandalwood, the handle is inlaid with red gold amber jade, and the panel is carved with small pink and white flowers, which is extremely elegant.
Bao Shan held the pipa upright in her arms, her left hand gripping the handle while her right hand stroked the strings, plucking and twisting them gently until a tune gradually formed.
A Yangzhou lean horse must not only cultivate fair complexion and a delicate physique, but also possess a skilled skill to ensure it doesn't bore its master. Bao Shan is particularly adept at playing the pipa, her bare hands pluck the strings while her lips sing voluptuous melodies. Her voice is like a piece of extremely soft, glutinous dough, enhanced with a touch of sugar, imparting a sweetness that's not cloying. The clear sound of an oriole sings in the empty valley.
Because she had not left the yard, Baoshan had not dressed up, and her plain face made her look even more beautiful.
She parted her pink lips slightly, her voice as ethereal as a spring, and sang a song of picking lotus flowers.
The rivers and lakes can be seen everywhere in Yangzhou City. The green lotus leaves and tender lotus flowers fill the water surface. A young lady paddles a small boat and wanders among the flowers on the lake.
The melody is not complicated, and the story in the song is also very simple.
But Baoshan sang seriously, and the charming and lovely lotus-picking girl seemed to walk out from the sound of the pipa, graceful and elegant.
The soft hands of the precious fan stroked the strings of the zither, and she tilted her head slightly closer to the pipa. A few strands of hair hung down naturally, making her figure even more charming.
My mother once taught me that instruments like the pipa are most vulnerable to distraction and require complete concentration. If you lose focus for a moment, the strings will break and the tune will be disrupted.
Bao Shan was able to play the zither strings with one hand, and glanced at Xue Zhi, who was hiding behind the door with a twinkling look in her eyes. Xue Zhi showed hesitation and turned to run out of the yard.
Baoshan stopped singing, but his hands continued to move, and the sound of the pipa continued to come out.
Although Wang gave Xuezhi to Baoshan, she has been relatively well-behaved these days after being scolded.
But Xuezhi still worked for Wang, ostensibly to take care of her, but actually to spy on her.
Could it be that Wang's cold treatment these days was intentional, trying to test Baoshan's temper?
She was originally bought to be Xiao Yujing's concubine, but since entering the mansion, she has never seen Xiao Yujing's true face.
If he was a sycophant with an unstable mind, he would definitely not be able to stand these cold days and would look for an opportunity to meet Xiao Yujing.
Although Baoshan looked uneasy and troubled by the cold reception, she remained obediently in the courtyard, waiting for Wang's orders and occasionally playing the pipa to pass the time. She thought that after Wang knew this, she would let down her guard.
After the song of the treasure fan was finished, Xuezhi had quietly returned to the yard. Not long after, Wang passed the treasure fan over.
"My dear, you will be home tonight."
Wang chose her words carefully: "I want you to serve my husband tonight."
Baoshan's body trembled, and the tips of her ears hidden under her black hair turned slightly red.
"My dear husband, you don't like people to get close to you, so you will serve him tonight.
I will take care of everything. Whether you can get close to my husband depends on your ability."
Baoshan lowered his head meekly: "Yes."
Wang continued, "You know, opportunities are rare. If we can't succeed tonight, the next good opportunity will be a long way off."
If the treasure fan fails to succeed, it will surely arouse Xiao Yujing's disgust. Not only will Wang be implicated, not to mention the treasure fan, and Xiao Yujing will not be able to enter the mansion.
Baoshan was served by the maids, who took her to bathe, change her clothes, and put on makeup. She applied several layers of perfume and powder on her body. Every time she took a light step, she could feel the fragrance of the breeze.
Even the underwear was carefully selected by the maid.
The maid had originally picked out a red inner garment with a pattern of mandarin ducks playing in the water, which was extremely gorgeous. Baoshan pretended to be unintentional and picked up the snow-blue undergarment, which was only embroidered with two colorful butterflies, not even a single flower.
The maids didn't agree at first, but Baoshan changed into the small clothes. The plain clothes made her snow-like skin stand out more. Colorful butterflies were flying around, tempting people to look at her plump body.
The maids looked at each other and finally decided on the small clothes chosen by Baoshan.
The maid didn't put too complicated or flamboyant makeup on Bao Shan.
After all, no matter how much makeup you put on, Xiao Yujing will eat it.
If the fan was too powdery, Xiao Yujing would inevitably be dissatisfied, so she gave it a lotus-like makeup, which further highlighted its beauty.
After finishing dressing up, the maids all left the room. Wang asked Baoshan to stay in the room and send someone to take Baoshan away when the time came.
Baoshan looked at herself in the bronze mirror. Her eyes were clear and watery, her red lips were slightly upturned, and she looked like someone waiting for pity.
The only solution Wang could think of was naturally not to try her best to persuade Xiao Yujing to accept the treasured fan.
After all, the maids had heard that Xiao Yujing had never touched a woman. Neither Wang nor the beloved Madam Luo had ever been close to Xiao Yujing.
If Wang could take the trouble to get Xiao Yujing to agree to take her as a concubine, why shouldn't she put in a little more effort to get Xiao Yujing to accept her?
From this we can see that Xiao Yujing has a strong character and is extremely difficult to be influenced by others, so it is almost impossible for him to agree to take a concubine.
If persuasion is impossible, then there is only one solution left - force.
Forced into a good thing.
How to force it? It can only be done when Xiao Yujing is unconscious, unable to refuse, or unable to refuse.
Baoshan thought carefully and figured out Wang's plan.
Wang wanted to force Baoshan and Xiao Yujing to be together, but no matter how careful the method was, there would always be loopholes.
If Xiao Yujing regains consciousness, or if the treasure fan fails to live up to expectations, or for some other reason, what awaits the treasure fan will be the wrath of the master family.
Even if it turned out to be a good thing, according to Xiao Yujing's temper, the precious fan would not be treated well.
As for why Wang didn't do it personally, one reason was that this method was not fair and aboveboard.
Regardless of success or failure, Wang Shi would always be inferior to Xiao Yujing.
If it gets out accidentally, it will be an insult to the reputation of the ladies of the Wang family.
Firstly, if a person with unclear consciousness wants to accomplish good things, he needs to use some means. Wang Shi prides herself on the boudoir affairs, which are low-class and despicable.
Bao Shan didn't think Wang's method was a bad one. Directly making things happen with Xiao Yujing was the fastest way to get close to him.
Given Xiao Yujing's aloof nature, if one were to take a slow approach, it would take an unknown amount of time to get close to him, as could be seen from the hot spring water last time.
The two of them entered the hot spring pool together. After the treasure fan left, Xiao Yujing was able to calm his curiosity and did not look for the whereabouts of the treasure fan. This shows that this person has great patience and extreme restraint.
Baoshan untied the belt around her waist and replaced it with a thinner and more flowing belt.
When Xiao Yujing returned home, the lights were still on.
He stepped over the threshold with heavy steps, and Liu Fang, who was guarding the gate, quickly stood up to support him.
Xiao Yujing let go of his support and let Liu Fang lead the way with the lantern.
Colleagues gathered tonight and drinking was inevitable. Xiao Yujing was full of the aroma of wine, his cheeks were flushed, and his eyes seemed hazy.
But his steps were not light, and from his figure, it was impossible to tell whether he was drunk or not.
Liu Fang sent Xiao Yujing into the house and winked at the servant standing outside the room.
When Wang heard about Xiao Yujing's situation from Liu Fang, she felt relieved. She felt that it was worth it for her to write a letter home and find Xiao Yujing's colleague, asking him to treat Xiao Yujing well and not let him leave until he was drunk.
The servant put down the porcelain bowl. Xiao Yujing was sitting at the table, supporting his head with one hand and his eyes closed.
"My dear, this is the hangover tea made in the kitchen."
Xiao Yujing's voice was cold: "Wake-up tea?"
Even though Xiao Yujing closed his eyes, the servant felt that he could see everything clearly, and all his actions were exposed in front of Xiao Yujing.
The servant didn't dare to meet his gaze directly, and lowered his head deeply: "The kitchen made some rice dumplings with fermented rice wine. They were afraid that the lady would get drunk after eating them, so they prepared some sobering tea."
Xiao Yujing opened his eyes and said softly, "Let it go."
The servant said no more, picked up the tray and walked out of the room, feeling conflicted: he wondered if Xiao Yujing would drink this sobering tea.
The white candlesticks in the candlesticks were getting shorter and shorter. As the night deepened, even the night watchman leaned against the door outside the house, closed his eyes, and was half asleep and half awake.
Xiao Yujing's head became more and more dizzy, as he was not good at drinking.
Because of his aloof personality, his colleagues rarely chatted or drank with him at gatherings like this. But today...
Thinking of his colleague at the round table who had put his arm around his shoulders affectionately and spoke in an excited tone, Xiao Yujing frowned, untied his outer robe and threw it on the ground.
He doesn't like drinking, not only because it will leave a bad smell on his body, but also because -
Alcohol can make people unconscious, weak and difficult to control.
He really doesn't like it.
Xiao Yujing stood up and his arm touched the cold porcelain bowl. Inside was dark brown hangover tea with a spicy scent of ginger and a few jujube slices floating on the surface. He frowned, picked up the porcelain bowl, and drank it slowly.
The cool water flowed into his abdomen, and Xiao Yujing regained consciousness for a brief moment. He walked towards the bed, and as soon as he lay down on the bed, without even taking off his coat, the feeling of sleepiness came over him like a tide, and Xiao Yujing fell on the soft couch.
The servant outside the house rubbed his palms together and called out "Young Master" and "Young Master Xiao" softly a few times. When no one answered, he dared to push open the door and walk in tremblingly.
Xiao Yujing was lying on the bed, with furrows in his brows. The servant called him a few more times, but did not hear Xiao Yujing answer. Then he hurried out of the house to look for Wang.
The night was dark, and Baoshan was still sitting in front of the dressing table.
Several maids who were doing their makeup said: It's so late, maybe Xiao Yujing won't come back, or maybe she will come back but something happened.
When Baoshan heard all these speculations, her brows relaxed and she didn't feel any distress at all.
It was not until Liu Fang came to deliver the message that the maids all fell silent and pushed the door open to call for Baoshan.
Baoshan stood up. She had a delicate figure and her steps showed her slender posture. There was no joy on her face.
Only her clenched hands revealed the nervousness in her heart.
Without giving Baoshan any time to hesitate, Liu Fang led Baoshan into the house and closed the door.
Liu Fang's voice came through the wooden door.
"The eldest lady said that everything depends on my luck."
By luck? Wang once said that Madam Luo was lucky, and that she could earn Xiao Yujing's care and concern with a small amount of kindness.
Now the room is empty, with only an unconscious man lying on the bed and a frail and weak woman. What kind of luck is this?
Bao Shan walked slowly forward and stood in front of Xiao Yujing. Last time, she couldn't see Xiao Yujing's true face through the mist of the hot spring pool, but now she could see it clearly.
The slender fingers are like the finest white jade.
Baoshan's fingers moved lightly, sliding across Xiao Yujing's forehead, smoothing his furrowed brows.
Fingers with a slight pink tint in their fair skin brushed across the high bridge of the nose and finally landed on Xiao Yujing's lips.
He seemed to have just had some tea; his lips were particularly moist. Bao Shan glanced sideways and saw the empty porcelain bowl on the table.
So that's how it is. He must have just drunk some tea, which is why he got drunk here.
Baoshan took off her embroidered shoes, and her small and soft feet were wrapped in silk stockings. She stepped onto the bed and lay on the inner side.
Baoshan tilted her head slightly and snuggled up to Xiao Yujing's chest, listening carefully to the sound of his heartbeat.
Flutter, flutter.
I think it's just like usual, dull and powerful.
Baoshan took off her hairpins and rings, and her long black hair spread across Xiao Yujing's chest. A few strands of her hair found their way into his inner clothes, clinging to his skin.
Baoshan's soft hand was also placed on Xiao Yujing's chest, and her whole body was almost pressed against Xiao Yujing, looking particularly gentle and well-behaved.
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