Chapter 35: Baochai’s maid tastes the lotus-leaf soup; Yingchun’s maid skillfully knots a plum-blossom pattern
CHAPTER 35
Jade Bracelet Tastes the Lotus-Leaf Soup
Golden Oriole Skillfully Makes a Plum-Blossom Net
Baochai had clearly heard Daiyu’s cutting remarks, but since she was worried about her mother and brother, she did not look back and went straight on her way. Daiyu remained standing in the shade of the flowering trees, gazing from a distance toward the Happy Red Courtyard. She saw Li Wan, Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun, and various others all go into the courtyard, then come out again in groups and disperse, until none were left except Xifeng, who had not yet appeared. Daiyu thought to herself: “Why hasn’t she come to see Baoyu? Even if something has detained her, she’d surely still put in an appearance to curry favor with the old lady and Lady Wang. For her not to have come by now, there must be some reason.” As she was wondering, she looked up again and saw a gaily dressed crowd approaching the Happy Red Courtyard. Fixing her eyes on them, she saw Grandmother Jia leaning on Xifeng’s arm, followed by Lady Xing, Lady Wang, Aunt Zhao, and a number of maids and matrons, all entering the courtyard. Daiyu nodded involuntarily, thinking of the advantages of having parents alive, and soon her face was bathed in tears. A moment later, she saw Baochai and Aunt Xue also go in. Suddenly Zijuan came up from behind and said, “Miss, you should go and take your medicine. The boiled water has gone cold again.” Daiyu replied, “What are you after? Always hurrying me—whether I take it or not, what business is it of yours?” Zijuan smiled and said, “You’ve only just got a little better from your cough, and now you won’t take your medicine. Though it’s the fifth month and the weather is hot, you still ought to be careful. Standing for half the morning in this damp place—you should go back and rest a while.” This reminder brought Daiyu to her senses, and she realized her legs were aching. After standing in a daze for some time, she slowly leaned on Zijuan and returned to the Bamboo Lodge.
As soon as she entered the courtyard gate, she saw the ground covered with crisscrossing bamboo shadows and patches of moss of varying shades, which involuntarily reminded her of a line from The Western Chamber: “In this secluded spot, does anyone pass? The green moss is cold with white dew.” She sighed to herself: “Shuangwen, Shuangwen, truly you were ill-fated. Yet though your fate was hard, you still had a widowed mother and a younger brother. But today Lin Daiyu’s fate is even harder—she has neither widowed mother nor younger brother. The ancients said, ‘Fair ladies are ill-fated,’ yet I am no fair lady—how is it that my fate is harder than Shuangwen’s?” As she mused, she walked on, but suddenly the parrot on the veranda, seeing Daiyu approach, swooped down with a squawk, startling her. She said, “You wretched thing! You’ve shaken dust all over my head again.” The parrot flew back to its perch and called out, “Xueyan, lift the curtain quickly—the young lady is coming.” Daiyu stopped and tapped the perch with her hand. “Has its food and water been changed?” she asked. The parrot gave a long sigh, sounding exactly like Daiyu’s usual sighs, and then recited: “Today I bury flowers, and men laugh at my folly; but when I die, who will bury me? See spring pass and flowers fall—that is the time when beauty fades. When spring is gone and beauty old, flowers fall and men die, and neither knows the other.” Both Daiyu and Zijuan laughed at this. Zijuan said with a smile, “These are the poems you recite every day, miss. Fancy his remembering them all!” Daiyu ordered the perch to be taken down and hung on a hook outside the moon-shaped window. Then she entered the room and sat down by the moon-shaped window. After taking her medicine, she watched the bamboo shadows cast through the gauze window, making the whole room cool and green, the mats and couch feeling chilly. To relieve her boredom, she teased the parrot through the gauze window and taught it some of her favorite poems. But of this, no more.
Meanwhile, Xue Baochai arrived home to find her mother combing her hair. As soon as she saw her, Aunt Xue said, “What brings you here so early in the morning?” Baochai replied, “I came to see how you were, Mother. After I left yesterday, I don’t know if he came to make trouble again.” As she spoke, she sat down beside her mother and could not help crying. When Aunt Xue saw her cry, she could not control herself either and wept too, while trying to comfort her: “My child, don’t feel wronged. Wait till I deal with him. If anything happens to you, who else have I to rely on?” Xue Pan, hearing this outside, rushed in and bowed to Baochai left and right, saying, “Good sister, forgive me this once! It was all because I’d been drinking yesterday and came home late. I must have run into something on the road, and I wasn’t sober when I got back. I don’t know what nonsense I talked—I didn’t even know myself, so you can’t blame me for being angry.” Baochai was crying with her face covered, but at these words she could not help smiling. She raised her head and spat on the ground, saying, “Don’t put on that act. I know very well that in your heart you resent us mother and daughter and are trying by some trick to get us to leave you, so you can have peace.” Xue Pan quickly smiled and said, “Sister, where do these words come from? You’re leaving me no place even to stand. You’ve never been the sort to be so suspicious and say such twisted things.” Aunt Xue immediately added, “You only hear your sister’s twisted words—were the things you said last night right? You must have been out of your mind!” Xue Pan said, “Mother, don’t be angry, and sister, don’t worry. From now on, I won’t drink or go out carousing with them again—how about that?” Baochai smiled and said, “Now you’re seeing sense!” Aunt Xue said, “If you had that kind of determination, dragons would lay eggs.” Xue Pan said, “If I go out with them again, sister, you can just spit at me and call me a beast, not a human being—how about that? Why should you two have to worry every day on account of me alone? If Mother gets angry at me, that’s understandable, but if I make sister worry too, then I’m worse than a beast. Now that Father is gone, I can’t be filial enough to Mother or cherish sister enough—instead I make Mother angry and sister distressed—I’m really worse than a beast.” As he spoke, tears could not help rolling down his cheeks. Aunt Xue had stopped crying, but his words stirred up her grief again. Baochai forced a smile and said, “You’ve caused enough trouble. Now you’re making Mother cry again.” Xue Pan quickly wiped away his tears and said with a smile, “When did I make Mother cry? Enough, enough, enough—let’s drop this. Call Xiangling to pour tea for sister.” Baochai said, “I don’t want any tea. Wait till Mother has washed her hands, and then we’ll go over together.” Xue Pan said, “Let me have a look at your necklace, sister—it probably needs gilding.” Baochai said, “It’s bright yellow as it is—why gild it?” Xue Pan said, “Sister, you should also get some new clothes made. What colors and patterns do you want? Just tell me.” Baochai said, “I haven’t even worn all the clothes I have yet—why make more?” Presently Aunt Xue changed her clothes, took Baochai by the hand, and went inside, while Xue Pan went out.
Aunt Xue and Baochai then entered the Garden to see Baoyu. When they reached the Happy Red Courtyard, they saw many maids and older women standing in the verandas around the main hall and knew that Grandmother Jia and the others were there. When the two of them entered and had exchanged greetings with everyone, they saw Baoyu lying on the couch. Aunt Xue asked him how he was feeling. Baoyu tried to sit up and answered, “Better.” He added, “I’m sorry to have troubled you, aunt, and my sister. I don’t deserve it.” Aunt Xue quickly helped him lie down again and asked, “What do you fancy? Just tell me.” Baoyu smiled and said, “If I think of anything, naturally I’ll ask you, aunt.” Lady Wang also asked, “What do you feel like eating? I’ll have it sent to you later.” Baoyu smiled and said, “I don’t really fancy anything to eat, but that soup with the little lotus leaves and lotus seeds we had once was quite good.” Xifeng laughed from the side and said, “Listen to that—his tastes aren’t expensive, but they’re finicky. He’s set his heart on that.” Grandmother Jia immediately ordered someone to make it. Xifeng smiled and said, “Don’t be in a hurry, Old Ancestor. Let me think who has the mold for it.” She turned and told an old woman to ask the kitchen steward. The woman went and returned after some time, reporting, “The kitchen steward said that all four soup molds have been handed in.” Xifeng thought for a moment and said, “I remember giving them to someone—they’re probably in the tea-room.” She sent someone else to ask the tea-room steward, but they hadn’t been received there either. Finally, the steward in charge of gold and silver utensils brought them over.
Aunt Xue took it and looked: it was a small casket containing four sets of silver molds, each over a foot long and an inch square, carved with patterns the size of beans—some chrysanthemums, some plum blossoms, some lotus seedpods, some water chestnuts, thirty or forty varieties in all, exquisitely crafted. She smiled and said to Grandmother Jia and Lady Wang, “Your household has thought of everything. Even a bowl of soup comes with such designs. If you hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have known what these were for.” Xifeng, not waiting for anyone to speak, laughed and said, “Auntie wouldn’t know. This is from last year when we were preparing the imperial meals. They came up with this idea—pressing some kind of dough into shapes, borrowing the fresh fragrance of lotus leaves, all relying on a good broth. It’s really pointless—who eats this at home regularly? That time they made a sample batch, and today he suddenly remembered it.” As she spoke, she took the casket, handed it to a maid, and ordered the kitchen to immediately take a few chickens, add extra ingredients, and make about ten bowls. Lady Wang said, “What do you need so many for?” Xifeng laughed, “There’s a reason: this dish isn’t usually made at home. Today Brother Baoyu mentioned it, so if we make it just for him, and Grandmother, Auntie, and you don’t eat any, it wouldn’t seem right. Better to take the chance and make some for everyone, so I can even steal a bit of credit.” Grandmother Jia laughed upon hearing this and said, “You little monkey, so clever! Using public funds to win favor.” Everyone laughed. Xifeng quickly added, “That doesn’t matter. I can afford this small treat myself.” She turned to the maid and said, “Tell the kitchen to make it properly with extra ingredients, and charge it to my account.” The maid acknowledged and left.
Baochai smiled from the side and said, “In all the years I’ve been here, I’ve noticed that no matter how clever Feng girl is, she can never outdo Grandmother.” Grandmother Jia replied, “I’m old now—where’s the cleverness? When I was Feng girl’s age, I was even sharper than she is. She’s not as good as I was, but she’s still fine—far better than your aunt. Your poor aunt barely speaks, like a piece of wood; she doesn’t shine in front of her in-laws. Feng girl has a glib tongue—how can people not dote on her?” Baoyu laughed and said, “If that’s so, does that mean those who don’t talk much aren’t loved?” Grandmother Jia said, “Those who don’t talk much have their own endearing qualities, and those with glib tongues have their annoying sides. Better to be quiet.” Baoyu laughed, “That makes sense. I’d say Sister-in-law doesn’t talk much, yet Grandmother treats her the same as Sister Feng. If only those who talk well were lovable, then among the sisters here, only Sister Feng and Sister Lin would be loved.” Grandmother Jia said, “Speaking of the sisters—I’m not flattering Aunt Xue to her face—but truly, among our four girls, not one is as good as Baochai.” Aunt Xue quickly laughed and said, “You’re being partial, Grandmother.” Lady Wang also laughed and said, “Grandmother often praises Baochai behind her back—that’s no lie.” Baoyu had been steering the conversation to praise Lin Daiyu, but instead, Baochai was praised, which surprised him. He looked at Baochai and smiled. Baochai had already turned away to talk with Xiren.
Suddenly, someone came to invite them to dinner. Grandmother Jia stood up, told Baoyu to rest well, gave some instructions to the maids, then, leaning on Xifeng and inviting Aunt Xue, they all left the room. She asked if the soup was ready and then said to Aunt Xue and the others, “If there’s anything you want to eat, just tell me. I can make Feng girl prepare it for us.” Aunt Xue laughed, “You know how to tease her. She often brings things for you, but you never eat much.” Xifeng laughed, “Auntie, don’t say that. Our old ancestor just finds human flesh too sour—if it weren’t, she’d have eaten me long ago.”
Before she finished speaking, Grandmother Jia and everyone burst out laughing. Even Baoyu couldn’t help laughing in his room. Xiren laughed and said, “Really, Second Mistress’s tongue is terrifying!” Baoyu reached out, pulled Xiren’s hand, and laughed, “You’ve been standing here for so long—are you tired?” As he spoke, he pulled her to sit beside him. Xiren laughed, “Ah, you’ve forgotten again. While Miss Baochai is still in the courtyard, talk to her and ask her to have Ying’er come and make a few netted tassels.” Baoyu laughed, “Good thing you reminded me.” Then he looked up and called out the window, “Sister Baochai, after dinner, send Ying’er over. I’d like her to make some tassels—is she free?” Baochai heard and turned back to say, “Of course she’s free. I’ll send her over in a bit.” Grandmother Jia and the others hadn’t heard clearly and stopped to ask Baochai. Baochai explained, and everyone understood. Grandmother Jia said, “Good child, send her to make a few for your brother. If you need anyone to help, I have plenty of idle maids at my place. Whichever you like, just call for them.” Aunt Xue and Baochai both laughed, “Just send her to do it—what help does she need? She’s idle and causing mischief every day anyway.”
As they talked, they walked forward and saw Xiangyun, Pinger, and Xiangling picking balsam flowers by the rockery. Seeing them approach, they came to greet them. Soon they reached outside the garden. Lady Wang, fearing Grandmother Jia might be tired, suggested they rest in the main hall. Grandmother Jia, feeling her legs sore, nodded in agreement. Lady Wang ordered the maids to quickly prepare seats. At that time, Concubine Zhao feigned illness, so only Concubine Zhou and the other maids and women hurried to lift the curtains, set up backrests, and spread cushions. Grandmother Jia, leaning on Xifeng, entered and sat down with Aunt Xue as host and guest. Baochai and Xiangyun sat below. Lady Wang personally served tea to Grandmother Jia, and Li Wan served Aunt Xue. Grandmother Jia said to Lady Wang, “Let the younger sisters-in-law serve. You sit there and chat.” Lady Wang then sat on a small stool and ordered Xifeng, “Set Grandmother’s meal here and add more dishes.” Xifeng acknowledged and went out, sending someone to inform Grandmother Jia’s household. The women there quickly relayed the message, and the maids hurried over. Lady Wang ordered, “Invite the young ladies to come.” After calling for a while, only Tanchun and Xichun arrived. Yingchun was unwell and didn’t want to eat. As for Lin Daiyu, she usually ate only half her meals, so no one paid much attention. Soon the meal arrived, and everyone set the tables. Xifeng stood with a bundle of ivory chopsticks wrapped in a cloth and said, laughing, “Grandmother and Auntie, don’t stand on ceremony—just listen to me.” Grandmother Jia smiled at Aunt Xue, “We’ll do as she says.” Aunt Xue smiled in agreement. Xifeng then set out four pairs of chopsticks: two for Grandmother Jia and Aunt Xue at the top, and one on each side for Baochai and Xiangyun. Lady Wang and Li Wan stood by, watching the dishes being arranged. Xifeng first busied herself finding clean utensils to pick out dishes for Baoyu.
Soon, the lotus-leaf soup arrived. Grandmother Jia inspected it. Lady Wang turned and saw Yuchuan’er standing nearby, so she ordered Yuchuan’er to take it to Baoyu. Xifeng said, “She can’t carry it alone.” Just then, Ying’er and Xier arrived. Baochai, knowing they had already eaten, said to Ying’er, “Brother Baoyu was just calling for you to make tassels. You two go together.” Ying’er agreed and left with Yuchuan’er. Ying’er said, “It’s so far and terribly hot—how are we going to carry it?” Yuchuan’er laughed, “Don’t worry, I have a way.” She called for an old woman, put the soup and other dishes into a serving box, and had the woman carry it behind them, while they walked empty-handed. When they reached the gate of Happy Red Court, Yuchuan’er took the box and entered Baoyu’s room with Ying’er. Xiren, Sheyue, and Qiuwen were joking with Baoyu. Seeing them arrive, they quickly stood up and laughed, “How coincidental that you both came together!” As they spoke, they took the box. Yuchuan’er sat on a small stool, while Ying’er didn’t dare sit. Xiren quickly brought a footstool, but Ying’er still hesitated. Baoyu was delighted to see Ying’er, but when he saw Yuchuan’er, he thought of her sister, Jinchuan’er, and felt both sad and ashamed. He ignored Ying’er and started talking to Yuchuan’er. Xiren, seeing Baoyu neglect Ying’er and fearing she might feel awkward, and noticing that Ying’er wouldn’t sit, pulled Ying’er out to the next room for tea and conversation.
Here Sheyue and the others had prepared the bowls and chopsticks and waited to serve the meal. Baoyu simply would not eat, and asked Yuchuan'er, "How is your mother's health?" Yuchuan'er's face was full of anger, and she would not look Baoyu straight in the eye. After a long while, she finally uttered a single word: "Fine." Baoyu felt rebuffed. After a moment, he had no choice but to force a smile and ask, "Who told you to bring this to me?" Yuchuan'er replied, "Just the ladies and mistresses!" Seeing her still with such a mournful face, Baoyu knew it was because of Jinchuan'er. He wanted to humble himself and coax her around, but there were too many people present, making it difficult to lower his voice and demean himself. So he racked his brains to send everyone else out, then with a smile, asked her about this and that. Although Yuchuan'er had been displeased at first, seeing that Baoyu showed no temper at all and remained gentle and amiable no matter how sharply she spoke, she began to feel embarrassed herself, and a trace of color returned to her face. Baoyu then smiled and begged her, "Good sister, bring that soup over and let me taste it." Yuchuan'er said, "I've never been one to feed people. Wait until they come back to eat." Baoyu laughed. "I'm not asking you to feed me. It's just that I can't walk. If you hand it to me, I'll eat, and then you can go back early to report and have your own meal. If I keep dawdling, won't you be starving? If you're too lazy to move, I'll have to bear the pain and get it myself." With that, he made as if to get out of bed and struggled up, unable to suppress a groan. Seeing this, Yuchuan'er could not help but stand up and say, "Lie down! What sin did you commit in some past life that you're paying for now? I can't bear to look at you!" As she spoke, she gave a sudden laugh, picked up the soup, and brought it over. Baoyu smiled. "Good sister, if you want to be angry, be angry right here. But when you see the old lady and the ladies, you should be more agreeable. If you're like this, you'll get scolded again." Yuchuan'er said, "Eat, eat! Don't try to sweet-talk me. I don't believe a word of it!" With that, she urged Baoyu to take two sips of the soup. Baoyu deliberately said, "It's not good. I won't eat anymore." Yuchuan'er said, "Amida Buddha! If this isn't good, what is?" Baoyu said, "It has no taste at all. If you don't believe me, try it and you'll know." Yuchuan'er, out of spite, did indeed taste it. Baoyu laughed. "Now it's good." When Yuchuan'er heard this, she finally understood that Baoyu had tricked her into taking a sip, and said, "Since you said it wasn't good, now that you say it's good, I won't give you any more." Baoyu kept begging and smiling, wanting to eat, but Yuchuan'er refused him, and meanwhile called for someone to get the meal ready.
Just as the maids came in, someone suddenly arrived to report: "The two old nannies from Master Fu the Second's household have come to pay their respects and to see the Second Master." When Baoyu heard this, he knew it was the nannies from the household of Fu Shi, the sub-prefect. Fu Shi had originally been a protégé of Jia Zheng's, and for many years had relied on the Jia family's fame and influence to prosper. Jia Zheng thought highly of him, so he was treated differently from other protégés, and his household frequently sent people to visit. Baoyu had always detested foolish men and stupid women, so why did he now call for these two old women to come in? There was a reason for this: Baoyu had heard that Fu Shi had a younger sister named Fu Qiufang, who was also a fine young lady of a noble house. He had often heard people say she was both talented and beautiful. Although he had never seen her himself, his distant thoughts and admiration for her were sincere and respectful. He did not want to refuse them entry, fearing it would be a slight to Fu Qiufang, so he hurriedly ordered them to be let in. Fu Shi was a parvenu. Because Fu Qiufang had some beauty and was exceptionally intelligent, Fu Shi was determined to use his sister to form a marriage alliance with a noble house, and was unwilling to betroth her lightly. Thus, she had been delayed until now. At present, Fu Qiufang was already twenty-three years old and still not betrothed. Unfortunately, the noble houses found her family too poor and vulgar, with shallow roots, and were unwilling to seek a match. Fu Shi's closeness to the Jia family also stemmed from his own private designs. The two old women sent today were exceptionally ignorant. When they heard that Baoyu wanted to see them, they came in, exchanged greetings, and had barely spoken two sentences. Yuchuan'er, seeing strangers arrive, stopped her teasing with Baoyu. She held the soup bowl in her hands and listened to the conversation. Baoyu, meanwhile, was entirely focused on talking with the old women. As he ate, he reached out for the soup. Both of their eyes were on the others, and without thinking, Baoyu reached too quickly, knocked the bowl over, and spilled the soup onto his own hand. Yuchuan'er was not scalded, but she was startled. She quickly laughed and said, "What's all this!" The flustered maids hurried forward to take the bowl. Baoyu did not even notice that he had scalded his own hand, but immediately asked Yuchuan'er, "Where were you scalded? Does it hurt?" Yuchuan'er and the others all laughed. Yuchuan'er said, "You scalded yourself, and yet you ask me." Only then did Baoyu realize that he had been scalded. The others came forward to clean up. Baoyu stopped eating, washed his hands, and drank some tea, then exchanged a few more words with the two old women. Afterward, the two old women took their leave and went out. Qingwen and the others saw them as far as the bridge before returning.
When the two old women saw no one else was near, they walked along and chatted. One of them laughed and said, "No wonder people say that this Baoyu of theirs looks good on the outside but is muddled on the inside—fine to look at but useless to eat. He really is a bit simpleminded. He scalds himself, but asks someone else if it hurts. Isn't that just being a fool?" The other one laughed and said, "When I came last time, I heard many people in his household complaining. It's absolutely true that he's a bit simpleminded. Once, drenched like a drowned rat in a heavy rain, he told others, 'It's raining, go take shelter quickly!' Isn't that ridiculous? Often, when no one is around, he laughs and cries to himself. When he sees a swallow, he talks to the swallow; when he sees a fish in the river, he talks to the fish; when he sees the stars and the moon, he either sighs heavily or mumbles to himself. And he doesn't have a shred of toughness—he even puts up with the temper of the little maids. When it comes to cherishing things, even a piece of thread is precious to him, but when he's in a mood to waste things, he doesn't care if it's worth thousands or tens of thousands." The two of them talked as they walked out of the garden, bid farewell to the others, and returned home. That is neither here nor there.
Now let us speak of Xiren. When she saw that the people had left, she brought Ying'er over and asked Baoyu what kind of cord he wanted to make. Baoyu smiled at Ying'er and said, "I was so busy talking just now that I forgot about you. I troubled you to come for no other reason than to ask you to make a few cords for me." Ying'er asked, "Cords for what?" Baoyu, upon being asked, smiled and said, "Never mind what they're for. Just make a few of each pattern for me." Ying'er clapped her hands and laughed. "That would be something! If you want that, it would take ten years to finish!" Baoyu laughed. "Good sister, you have nothing to do anyway. Just make them all for me." Xiren laughed. "How can you finish them all at once? For now, pick the most important ones and make two." Ying'er said, "What's important? Just the fan, the sachet pendant, and the sash." Baoyu said, "A sash would be fine." Ying'er asked, "What color is the sash?" Baoyu said, "Bright red." Ying'er said, "Bright red needs a black cord to look good, or else stone-blue to set off the color." Baoyu asked, "What goes with pine-green?" Ying'er said, "Pine-green goes with peach-pink." Baoyu laughed. "That would be charming and delicate. But I also want something that is elegant yet a little charming." Ying'er said, "Pale green and willow yellow are my favorites." Baoyu said, "All right. Make one in peach-pink, and another in pale green." Ying'er asked, "What pattern?" Baoyu asked, "How many patterns are there?" Ying'er said, "There's the single incense-stick, the skyward stool, the rhombus-eye, the double-square, the interlocking rings, the plum blossom, and the willow leaf." Baoyu asked, "What pattern did you make for Third Miss the other day?" Ying'er said, "That was the gathered-heart plum blossom." Baoyu said, "That one will do fine." As he spoke, he told Xiren to fetch the thread. Just then, an old woman outside the window said that the young ladies' meals were ready. Baoyu said, "Go and eat, and come back quickly." Xiren laughed. "There's a guest here. How can we have the face to go off!" Ying'er, as she arranged the thread, laughed and said, "What kind of talk is that? You'd better go and eat quickly and come back." Only then did Xiren and the others go, leaving behind two little maids to wait for orders.
As Baoyu watched Ying'er making the knotting cord, he chatted idly and asked her, "How old are you?" Ying'er, working on the cord, replied, "Sixteen." Baoyu said, "What is your family name?" Ying'er answered, "Huang." Baoyu laughed and said, "That name fits you well, truly a yellow oriole." Ying'er smiled and said, "My given name was originally two characters, Jin Ying. Miss Bao found it awkward to say, so she just called me Ying'er, and now it's become common usage." Baoyu said, "Sister Baochai really does dote on you. In the future, when Sister Baochai marries, you'll surely go with her as her maid." Ying'er pursed her lips and smiled. Baoyu laughed and said, "I often say to Xiren, 'I wonder which lucky fellow will get to enjoy the two of you, mistress and maid, tomorrow.'" Ying'er smiled and said, "You don't even know yet that our young lady has several virtues that no one else in the world possesses, and her appearance is only secondary." Baoyu, seeing Ying'er's charming and naive manner, her playful speech and laughter, was already deeply moved, and even more so when she mentioned Baochai! He asked her, "What are these virtues? Dear sister, tell me in detail." Ying'er smiled and said, "If I tell you, you must promise not to tell her." Baoyu laughed and said, "That goes without saying." Just as they were speaking, they heard someone outside say, "Why is it so quiet in here?" The two turned to look, and it was none other than Baochai who had arrived. Baoyu quickly offered her a seat. Baochai sat down and asked Ying'er, "What are you making?" As she asked, she looked at what was in Ying'er's hands, which was only half-finished. Baochai laughed and said, "What's so interesting about that? Why not make a cord to fasten the jade?" This remark reminded Baoyu, and he clapped his hands and laughed, saying, "What you say, sister, is quite right. I had forgotten. But what color would match it best?" Baochai said, "Using mixed colors is certainly not allowed; bright red would clash with the color, yellow wouldn't stand out, and black is too dark. Let me think of a way: take that gold thread, match it with black bead-thread, twist them strand by strand, and make a cord from that—then it will look good." When Baoyu heard this, he was overjoyed and immediately called out repeatedly for Xiren to fetch the gold thread. Just then, Xiren came in carrying two bowls of dishes and said to Baoyu, "How strange it is today! Just now the mistress sent someone to bring me two bowls of dishes." Baoyu laughed and said, "It must be that there were too many dishes today, so she sent some for you all to share." Xiren said, "No, they were specifically for me, and I wasn't even called over to kowtow in thanks. This is really odd." Baochai smiled and said, "If they were given to you, just eat them. What's there to be suspicious about?" Xiren smiled and said, "This has never happened before; it makes me feel quite embarrassed." Baochai pursed her lips and smiled, saying, "You're embarrassed about this? Tomorrow there will be things even more embarrassing than this." Xiren sensed there was an implication in the words, and knowing that Baochai was not one to make frivolous or sarcastic remarks, she then remembered Lady Wang's intentions from the other day, so she dropped the subject. She showed the dishes to Baoyu and said, "I'll wash my hands and then get the thread." Having said this, she went straight out. After eating, she washed her hands, came back in, and fetched the gold thread to make the cord with Ying'er. By this time, Xue Pan had already sent someone to call Baochai away.
Here, Baoyu was watching the cord being made when suddenly two maids from Lady Xing's side arrived, bringing two kinds of fruit for him to eat. They asked him, "Can you walk yet? If you can manage it, please come over tomorrow to relax a bit; the mistress is truly worried about you." Baoyu quickly said, "If I can walk, I will certainly go to pay my respects to the mistress. The pain is a little better than before; please tell the mistress to rest assured." He then asked them to sit down and called for Qiuwen, instructing her to take half of the fruit that had just been brought and send it to Miss Lin. Qiuwen agreed and was about to leave when she heard Daiyu speaking in the courtyard. Baoyu quickly called out, "Please come in." To know what happened next, listen to the next chapter for the explanation.