Despite what her subordinates said, Xinran was still not entirely convinced. After all, someone who could sit in the position of commander-in-chief was definitely not a useless person who knew nothing. It was always better to be cautious.
"Go tell Qin Jian in a little while that I want to see him and ask him to come over. There are some things I need to find out for myself."
"yes."
Her subordinates responded and left, and she happily began to continue dressing and grooming with the help of her maid.
Since I mentioned today that I wasn't feeling well, I naturally need to dress up and look sickly.
Qin Jian was still putting on a show of not getting along with Lu Baichuan when a servant respectfully approached and said, "Second Master Qin, Miss Xinran has finished dressing up and would like to come over for a chat."
He spoke to Qin Jian, ignoring Lu Baichuan who was beside him.
Qin Jian immediately perked up, got up and followed the servant to the backyard, saying as they walked, "Isn't Miss Xinran sick? Why is she still dressing up? She should be resting!"
The servant said, "The young lady said that she couldn't let Second Master Qin see her sick and disheveled state. Second Master, Miss Xinran has feelings for you, but there's a huge gap in our social status, and Miss Xinran feels that she's not good enough for you..."
As he spoke, the servant sighed sadly, looking very sorry for Miss Xinran.
Qin Jian felt bad listening to this and said, "How could she have such thoughts? I'm all alone. Who would dare say she's not good enough for me?"
The servant stopped talking and led him to Xinran's residence, where Xinran was already prepared and waiting for him in the courtyard.
"I'm glad to meet you, Second Master..."
She was about to stand up and bow, but she pretended to be unsteady on her feet. Qin Jian quickly pulled her into his arms and then hurriedly let go, looking as if he didn't dare to take advantage of the young lady.
Xinran watched with satisfaction, thinking that this man was very naive, no wonder he was so easily deceived.
"Since it's just the two of us, there's no need to be so polite. You were perfectly fine yesterday, how come you're sick today?"
Xinran coughed twice, covering her mouth with a handkerchief, before saying, "I suppose you caught a chill while practicing music in the courtyard last night. It's nothing serious, you'll be fine in a couple of days, Second Master, don't worry about it."
Qin Jian said with great concern, "Your face is so pale, and you still say you're fine. You just like to pretend to be strong. To be honest, you still don't believe me."
"No, cough cough... Second Master, Xinran is just an actress. How could she be worthy of someone of your noble status? It is already a blessing for Xinran to have your favor. Xinran dares not think of anything else."
Xinran lowered her head in a very aggrieved manner, her face full of helplessness and pitifulness, which was truly heartbreaking.
She wanted to tell Qin Jian that she liked him, but because of their incompatible social statuses, she had never dared to accept his advances. At the same time, she also wanted to tell Qin Jian that she liked him as a person, not his social status, and to make it clear to him that she was not a materialistic girl.
These few words conveyed too much information. Although Qin Jian could understand the meaning, he still cursed inwardly that they were too dramatic.
Just say what you want to say directly. Why beat around the bush and make people guess? It's so annoying!
On the surface, however, he was still that innocent man, believing everything Xinran said and even feeling sorry for her.
"Why should you care about other people's opinions when you're with me? You are the first girl I've ever loved, and you will be the last. As long as you're willing, I, Qin Jian, will only have you as my wife for the rest of my life. I will give you the greatest respect, and naturally, no one will dare to say anything more."
As Qin Jian said this, he was inwardly cursing, "These words are meant for my future real wife. I'm just putting on an act now. I mustn't take them seriously!"
Xinran clearly hadn't expected him to say such a thing. "I'll have only one wife in my life"—what a beautiful love confession. There aren't many men like that these days.
Xinran thought that if she were just an ordinary actress, Qin Jian would indeed be a good choice, but unfortunately, she had no choice in the matter.
"Second Master holds a high position and is of pure heart; naturally, he wouldn't know how malicious some people's intentions can be. As the deputy commander, there are so many people, both above and below, waiting to see you make a fool of yourself. If you were to marry a daughter of an official, you would certainly gain everyone's respect, but if you were with me, you would definitely be ridiculed. Xinran... Xinran can't bear to see Second Master suffer such ridicule... Xinran can bear all that gossip alone!"
As she spoke, she wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief. When she lowered her head, Qin Jian deliberately leaned forward to take a look, just to make sure that she really had tears in her eyes.
It actually happened!
It must be said that the actors sent by Dongting were all quite good.
When she looked up, Qin Jian quickly put on an indignant look and snorted coldly, saying, "Isn't it because I'm just a deputy commander? If I were the commander-in-chief, I'd like to see who would dare to laugh at me! If it weren't for Lu Baichuan taking my position, I would definitely be the commander-in-chief of the Fire Cloud Division right now!"
Seeing that he had finally steered the conversation toward this matter, Xinran hurriedly said, "Then Master Lu must have some extraordinary qualities to become the commander-in-chief..."
"He has no outstanding qualities whatsoever! He just stole my opportunities! Like this trip to the capital, it was originally my turn to go, but he not only took it, but also used the information I found to do things for His Highness, stealing the credit that should have been mine!"
"Besides his silver tongue and his knack for flattery, what else can he do that compare to me? Humph! One day, I'll take over the commander-in-chief's position!"
Qin Jian appeared very angry, and Xinran hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Second Master, Xinran thinks that Second Master is the most capable one. No matter what Second Master does, Xinran will always support Second Master!"
That means encouraging him to take Lu Baichuan's position.
As if he had been genuinely encouraged, Qin Jian said, "Don't worry, once I become the commander-in-chief, I will marry you with great pomp and circumstance and make you the most glamorous commander-in-chief's wife!"
Xinran smiled shyly and said, "Xinran believes that day will come soon."
Qin Jian looked at Xinran with great excitement, as if he had been injected with chicken blood. Xinran lowered her head, unsure of how to react, and coughed twice more.
Qin Jian wanted to help her up, but considering the proper separation of men and women, he didn't. He simply said, "Although Lu Baichuan is no good, his wife's medical skills are indeed excellent. She has been practicing medicine at Yuyuantang. Since you are so seriously ill, why don't you go and see her?"
Speaking of He Jiuniang, Xinran had heard of her before and thought she was not an easy person to deal with. So she replied, "Thank you for your concern, Second Master. I will go to Yuyuan Hall tomorrow. You don't need to come again tomorrow, Second Master. Please don't let me interfere with your important business!"
"That won't do! I'll go with you to the doctor tomorrow!"
Qin Jian immediately replied, but Xinran shook her head repeatedly: "Second Master has already done too much for Xinran. Second Master, please take care of important matters first. As long as Second Master doesn't mind, Xinran is willing to wait for Second Master forever!"
Qin Jian was so moved that he couldn't speak. He nodded emphatically and said, "Xinran, I will never let you down!"
That's what he said, but after leaving the courtyard and seeing that no one was around, he hurriedly started spitting and muttering to himself, "It doesn't count, it doesn't count, it absolutely doesn't count!"
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