The Red Mansion.

Chapter 60 Another Willow Catkins Poem
In the study, Jiang Nian was sitting alone at the desk, sipping the fragrant tea that Xiangling had poured for him. Xiangling had gone out for lunch.

At this moment, a soft voice came from the door of the study: "Master."

Jiang Nian looked towards the door and saw Xue Baochai standing there shyly. He said calmly, "Come in."

Xue Baochai walked into the study, but looked back at the door with a reserved look.

He Yun and his wife and their servants were not eating in the main hall, but there were servants cleaning the hall at that moment.

Jiang Nian understood and said to Xue Baochai, "If you want to close the door, then close it."

Xue Baochai felt relieved, thinking that this gentleman was indeed thoughtful, so she reached out and gently closed the door. The moment the door closed, the study became particularly quiet.

Jiang Nian looked up at Xue Baochai with a playful smile on his face. He did not speak, but waited quietly for Xue Baochai to explain her purpose.

Seeing that Jiang Nian didn't ask any questions, Xue Baochai bit her lower lip, as if to relieve her nervousness and shyness. She took another deep breath, then pulled out a piece of flowery paper from her sleeve and asked softly, "Is this what my brother sent me on my birthday?"

Jiang Nian nodded slightly, his tone calm: "Yes."

Xue Baochai unfolded the flowered paper and looked at it with a look of shyness and admiration: "Master, your calligraphy is good, and this poem 'Linjiangxian: Willow Catkins' is even better. It has a profound artistic conception, and I like it very much."

Jiang Nian smiled: "As long as you like it."

Xue Baochai mustered up her courage and looked up at Jiang Nian, a hint of flattery on her face. "I didn't know it at first, but now I know. You are a man of both civil and military talents. You are good at martial arts, calligraphy and poetry, and you study so hard."

What she said now came from the heart, but there was also a hint of flattery in it.

Since she now lives with Jiang Nian, she regards herself as Jiang Nian's lover in her heart, and has followed Aunt Xue's instructions and started to please Jiang Nian, both for the Xue family and for herself.

After all, she is Xue Baochai who wrote "A good wind will help me soar to the sky" in the original novel.

Jiang Nian immediately sensed Xue Baochai's ingratiation and relished the feeling. He smiled faintly, his gaze penetrating, "Baochai, you are beautiful, intelligent, and talented, and I am both civil and military. We are a match made in heaven. No wonder we are so destined to be together."

Xue Baochai: “…”

She called him "Master" and he called her by her nickname "Baochai" and said such shameless love words.

Xue Baochai's heart was beating like a drum, but her breathing became light.

She managed to suppress her intense shyness, but she didn't dare to look Jiang Nian in the eye. She lowered her head slightly and said, "On Master's birthday earlier, my mother sent Aunt Xie to give you a set of clothes and a pair of shoes and socks. Master, do you still remember this?"

Jiang Nian nodded: "Of course I remember. It's a pity that I was expecting you to give me a gift that day, but you didn't."

Xue Baochai's eyes lit up, and the corners of her lips curled up slightly: "Actually, I gave a gift that day."

Jiang Nian raised his eyebrows slightly, revealing a look of surprise: "Oh? Did you give it to me? How come I didn't know?"

Xue Baochai's face was filled with a mixture of embarrassment and playfulness. "My mother originally sent a servant to buy you a pair of shoes at the clothing shop in Shuiyi, but I...I secretly replaced those shoes with a pair I made myself and sent them to you."

"Is that so?" Jiang Nian smiled slightly. "You had already made a pair of shoes for me back then? So, didn't you already like me when we were in Jiangning? That's why you had already made a pair of shoes for me back then."

Xue Baochai's cheeks flushed, and she said hurriedly, "No... that's not the case. Those shoes were originally made for my brother, and I gave them to you as a last-minute gift."

Jiang Nian's smile widened, and he said, "I see, that's why those shoes don't fit me."

Xue Baochai: “…”

In this era, shoe sizing wasn't as precise as in Jiang Nian's previous life. Instead, there were approximate shoe sizes, expressed as "foot number." Buying shoes based on these numbers often resulted in them not fitting properly. Besides using foot numbers, there were also other ways to buy shoes: custom-made services, try-ons, and in-home measurements.

Customized service means that customers go to the shoe store to measure their feet and record their foot shape, size and personalized needs.

Try on and purchase, that is, customers try on shoes in a shoe store.

Home foot measurement means measuring your feet at home and recording your foot shape, size and personalized needs. This service costs more money, and most people who choose this service are wealthy families.

At this moment, Xue Baochai said, "I remember that day my mother sent someone to inquire which foot the master had, and it turned out to be the same as my brother's."

Jiang Nian said, "Even if the tops are the same, your brother and I have different feet, so they won't fit me."

Xue Baochai hesitated for a moment, then said shyly, "I've been inconsiderate. How about I make you a new pair of shoes?"

Jiang Nian raised the corner of his lips slightly, and he suddenly stretched out a foot and said jokingly: "Then you can measure my foot first."

Xue Baochai was stunned for a moment, subconsciously thinking that the overbearing Mr. Jiang was serious. Her fingertips unconsciously stroked the pear blossom pattern on the cuffs of her sleeves. Her cheeks became even redder, as if the sunset was reflected on her face, and her head was lowered so low that it was almost buried in her neck.

Seeing Xue Baochai almost embarrassed, Jiang Nian chuckled and said, "It's just a joke, don't take it seriously."

Xue Baochai immediately breathed a sigh of relief, raised her eyes and rolled her eyes at Jiang Nian.

Although she was already trying to please Jiang Nian, she had just moved in today, so it was still embarrassing for her to measure Jiang Nian's feet right now.

But she was used to the dignified and self-respecting Xue Baochai.

Seeing Xue Baochai like this, Jiang Nian was amused and said, "You don't have to measure your feet. Just take one of my shoes and imitate them."

Xue Baochai said "hmm": "That's good."

Jiang Nian changed the subject and stared at Xue Baochai, "On my birthday, I gave you flowery paper and a poem you loved, and you also secretly gave me a pair of shoes that day. So, that day we gave each other tokens of our love, don't you think?"
Xue Baochai blushed again out of embarrassment. Oh my God, this was what she had in her mind that day, and today Jiang Nian said it to her in person!
Seeing Xue Baochai was embarrassed again, Jiang Nian smiled and said, "Yesterday, when I learned you were coming today, I specially wrote another short song. It's still in the tune of 'Linjiangxian' and still titled 'Willow Catkins'. This song is still dedicated to you."

Xue Baochai's eyes suddenly lit up, and her face showed anticipation: "Really?"

Jiang Nian immediately pulled out a piece of flowery paper from a pile of papers on the desk and handed it to Xue Baochai.

Xue Baochai quickly took it and unfolded it. She saw that there was no other words on the flowery paper except for a poem written on it:

"Linjiangxian: Willow Catkins."

"The poem goes: White snow dances lightly in the air, floating silk threads curl like cloud patterns. It touches clothes and brushes against hair, falling in pieces. Rather than follow the flowing water, I would rather be dust against the wind. After a hundred turns and a thousand twists and turns, it will eventually disperse, so why not separate and gather in the smoke? Life is originally just a duckweed. Clear frost condenses jade souls, and the Milky Way carries icy souls."

No online novel can satisfy all book lovers.

No book lover will be satisfied with all the contents of an online article.

Now, some book friends like to read the plot of Xue Baochai, while some book friends say that they are tired of reading Xue Baochai, and say that they come to watch the power struggle, or even say that they come to watch the war drama.

The author is writing a Dream of Red Mansions novel!

Shouldn't the Red Chamber novel properly portray the golden hairpin? Shouldn't it properly portray the love affairs between men and women? Xue Baochai is a golden hairpin who rivals Lin Daiyu in the original novel.

Aren’t the stories about the overbearing and mean prince and the golden hairpins fascinating?
Those who only enjoy reading about power struggles should check out the author's previous book, "The Emperor of the Red Chamber." Due to the author's inexperience at the time and the influence of fellow readers' comments, the protagonist proclaimed himself emperor in the first 100 chapters. The plot was incredibly fast-paced, leading to the title, and subscriptions were high at the time, averaging over 8,000. However, the author later struggled to properly write about the golden hairpin and the love affair.

The author has devoted himself to honing his writing skills, summarizing experiences and lessons, and will work hard to control the rhythm of the plot of the book. He also has his own outline layout. The book is expected to have several million words, and there is still a long way to go!
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(End of this chapter)