Chapter 14: Baochai and Daiyu

After Du Zhong had dealt with the Du Pingyuan brothers, he began to earnestly persuade Du Rui. Although the two brothers were Du Zhong's grandsons, they were more importantly servants of the Du household. For Du Zhong to dispose of them on his own authority was somewhat overstepping, but Du Rui knew he meant well and did not mind much.

"Young Master! Although the realm has been peaceful since His Majesty ascended the throne, there are still occasional scoundrels who try to stir up trouble. You are the flesh and blood of the Old Lord, and this old servant has been entrusted by Madam Cao; I beg you to be more careful in the future and not make things difficult for me! Furthermore, the Old Lord has only recently passed, and you are still in your period of mourning. If you act this way and it becomes known, it will ultimately hinder your future!"

Hearing this, Du Rui smiled and said, "Uncle Zhong, what you say makes sense. I will be more careful in the future!"

Du Rui then told Du Zhong about the matter regarding the two sisters. After all, Du Zhong was the head steward of this household, and certain matters needed to be known by him.

Du Zhong did not care much about this. Although Du Rui had been sent away from the Duke of Lai's estate, life in the household had become easier with the profits from the wine brewing. However, the servants consisted only of his family of six, and Du Rui lacked people around him. Even with the Du Pingyuan brothers, they were not sufficient; Du Pingyuan had a muddled, quiet temperament, while Du Pingsheng was naturally flighty. Du Zhong did not feel at ease leaving his young master to those two brothers. The household indeed needed more servants; even if Du Rui was a scholar, he should at least have a maid to grind ink for him.

After detailed inquiries into the sisters' origins and ancestral homes, Du Zhong found nothing amiss. He then had his daughter-in-law, Madam Liu, lead the two sisters away to wash and dress.

Although the Du household was not a high-ranking noble house, Du Zhong believed that as long as Du Rui was present, the prosperity of the Du family was only a matter of time. As they added more people to the household in the future, they would eventually need to maintain a certain level of prestige. Seeing his daughter-in-law lead them away, he sought Du Rui's permission and then urged his wife, Madam Xue, to go out and order some seasonal clothing to adorn the two sisters.

Du Rui held no particular interest in the two sisters; he had simply acted out of opportunity to save those in distress. Seeing that Du Zhong had made all the arrangements, he set the matter aside and went to the study to read alone. As he passed by Du Gui, he did not forget to instruct him to bring some food to the Du Pingyuan brothers in the woodshed that evening. Du Zhong naturally heard this but said nothing, feeling only gratitude in his heart for Du Rui's kindness and generosity toward the servants.

In the study, Du Rui held a volume of the *Analects* loosely in his hands, scanning it aimlessly, while his mind wandered toward his future path. If the realm were truly peaceful, being a wealthy man would suffice, but although the Great Tang was currently moving toward a golden age, the political situation would gradually descend into chaos after the Zhenguan era. First would come Empress Wu's regency, then the chaos of the Wei clan. Although the empire would later experience the prosperous Kaiyuan era, the subsequent An Lushan Rebellion and the Tibetan invasion of Chang'an would leave this great empire riddled with holes.

As a person from a later era, Du Rui could not avoid that history. In his past life, while reading history books, Du Rui had been captivated by the splendor of the High Tang. If he had to watch this prosperous dynasty gradually decline, his heart would feel empty, and his future descendants might suffer the consequences.

It seemed that the only path left was the officialdom. By using his foresight of the future, he could gradually change this dynasty and push the already brilliant Zhenguan era toward its absolute peak.

However, being an official nowadays required a prestigious family background. Although Du Rui was a descendant of Du Ruhui, he was merely a son of a concubine and had no social standing. Waiting to be promoted through imperial grace would likely be a hopeless endeavor; at this time, his name was probably entirely absent from the records of the Duke of Lai's lineage.

Therefore, there was only one other path: using his reputation for talent to attract the attention of the Imperial Family. In the future, wouldn't Li Bai, Du Fu, and Bai Juyi enter the imperial gaze through this very route? Although they ultimately failed to realize their political ideals, that was because their methods were flawed. Du Rui believed he could achieve a different end.

As he was thinking, Madam Xue knocked on the door outside. It turned out the two sisters had finished washing and dressing and had come to pay their respects to their master, Du Rui.

"Enter!"

The door opened, and under Madam Xue's guidance, the two sisters walked in with graceful, swaying steps. Madam Xue bowed and withdrew.

At first, Du Rui truly did not pay much attention, but when he raised his eyes, he could not help but be captivated by the peerless elegance of the two young girls. Although they were still young and their figures had not fully matured, even at their current age of ten-odd years, it was easy to see that once these sisters grew up, they would surely be beauties capable of toppling kingdoms.

The elder sister wore a pale primrose outfit, which, combined with her innate air of nobility, made her appear elegant and dignified. The younger sister wore green clothing; she had likely fallen ill from the wind and hunger of the past few days, making her look even more pitiable than Xishi clutching her heart, truly evoking a sense of tenderness.

When they first met, Du Rui had felt that the two were living versions of Lin Daiyu and Xue Baochai from the Tang Dynasty. Now that they were washed and dressed, their beauty and grace were even more pronounced, making the comparison even more apt.

"These servants pay respects to the Master!"

The two sisters approached and performed a graceful curtsy. Du Rui knew this was the custom; though he was quite unaccustomed to it, he could only accept it. Once the sisters rose from their bow, Du Rui finally spoke: "Since it is your first day in the household, let it be. In the future, we will all be under the same roof, so there is no need to be so formal. Although you have volunteered to sell yourselves into my service, there is no need for a formal contract. If you ever find news of your relatives in the future, you may leave of your own accord!"

The girl lowered her head and said, "Why would the Young Master say such things? Since we sisters have entered the household, from this day forward, we are people of the Du residence. The Young Master has shown us great kindness; how could we harbor any ulterior motives?"

Though he had not interacted with her much, Du Rui could see that this elder sister was a tactful and socially adept person, somewhat similar to the Xue Baochai in *Dream of the Red Chamber*. Thinking of this, he smiled and asked, "I wonder how you sisters should be addressed?"

"Among my siblings at home, I am the second. Being from a poor family, we have no formal given names; my parents only call me Er Niang. My cousin's given name at home is Feng'er!"

Hearing this, a playful whim rose in Du Rui. He smiled and said, "Those names are not very elegant. How about I give you both names instead?"

Since it was a gift of names from their master, the two sisters naturally had no reason to refuse. In these times, being given a name by a master was not an insult, but rather a great blessing. They hurriedly nodded in agreement.

"From now on, you shall be called Baochai, and you shall be called Daiyu. How is that?"

The two sisters exchanged a glance and bowed gracefully. "We, Baochai and Daiyu, thank the Young Master for the names!"

Seeing them agree, Du Rui was also delighted. A sudden thought occurred to him: now that he had this Xue Baochai and Lin Daiyu, once he became successful in the future, should he also build a Grand Prospect Garden like the one in *Dream of the Red Chamber*?

Thinking this, Du Rui smiled and said, "Alright! There is much to do today, and you two must be tired. Go and rest! Come to serve again tomorrow. There is nothing in this household that requires your immediate attention; in the future, you shall accompany the young ladies in the inner quarters and help my three concubines with minor chores!"

Upon hearing this, Baochai and Daiyu bowed once more and withdrew. When the lanterns were lit, Madam Liu came to call them for dinner. The rules of the Du household were quite different from elsewhere. In other great noble houses, even the mistress had no right to eat in the main hall, but Du Rui did not have so many such restrictions. Every day, Du Rui dined with his three concubines and his sisters, without the need for attendants at his side. Du Zhong's family ate in their own quarters in the outer courtyard, and since Baochai and Daiyu were new, they naturally ate with them.

At this time, ordinary families usually ate two meals a day, but since Du Rui had established his own independent household, it had been changed to three meals a day. Even the food for Du Zhong and the servants, while not called luxurious, included both meat and vegetables.

Coming from impoverished backgrounds, Baochai and Daiyu had never seen such good food. They appeared quite constrained at the table, merely bowing their heads to eat their rice, not daring to use their chopsticks to pick up the dishes.

Seeing this, Madam Xue gave a kind smile and said, "You two young ladies need not be so constrained. Our Young Master is the most generous person; he never mistreats his servants. Since you have entered the household, even though you hold the status of servants, you need not look down upon yourselves."

Madam Liu added, "Indeed. In the future, this Du household is destined for great prosperity. You two are now people by the Young Master's side, and there will be arrangements for you later. Perhaps in the future, my mother-in-law and I will even have to call you both 'Madam'!"

Baochai and Daiyu's faces instantly turned bright red with shame. Although they were young, they understood the implication of Madam Xue and Madam Liu's words. Thinking of Du Rui's gentle image, their hearts could not help but flutter like startled deer.

Du Zhong also smiled and said, "Today, you two shall simply share a meal with our family for now. Tomorrow, you shall dine in the inner hall! This is also the Young Master's wish. In the future, you two will be part of the inner quarters. Although the three ladies are not the Young Master's biological mothers, the Young Master is extremely filial. You two must be careful and attentive in your service; do not be negligent!"

Knowing that Du Zhong's family was reminding them out of kindness, Baochai hurriedly thanked him, "This servant thanks Uncle Zhong for his guidance!"

After the meal, Madam Liu led the sisters into the inner quarters. Currently, the inner quarters were only inhabited by Du Rui, Madam Ma, and the sisters, so there were many vacant rooms. Although they had been idle for some time, they were habitable after some simple repairs. The two sisters were assigned to one room. Madam Liu gave them a few more instructions and then left.

The two sisters closed the door, and the trepidation of arriving in a strange place finally relaxed a little.

As soon as Daiyu grew quiet, she began to miss her kin. Her tears could not be stopped, and she sobbed, "Cousin! I miss my mother!"

Baochai also looked sorrowful. She walked over, sat beside Daiyu, took her hand, and comforted her softly, "Why must you be like this? Even if Aunt and Uncle see that you have a good place to go, they will feel at ease. Although we sisters have sold ourselves into the household to become servants, the Young Master is a generous man and likely will not mistreat us. Sister! Just set your heart at ease; nothing will happen!"

Daiyu was still worried and said, "Cousin! But I know how to do nothing. I am worried I will make the Young Master angry!"

Baochai chuckled softly. "What is there to worry about? We only need to serve carefully. Given the Young Master's temperament, he won't do anything! Good sister! Don't worry anymore. It is our good fortune to have met such a benefactor; it must be the blessing of our parents in heaven. We only need to remember to be devoted to the Young Master, and that will be enough!"

Daiyu looked up at Baochai and suddenly laughed. "Cousin! Saying it like that, it really is just as Auntie Liu said—you really do have the intention of becoming a Madam!"

Hearing this, Baochai's face instantly flushed red. Seeing Daiyu's teasing expression, she said angrily, "You lazy thing, you actually dare to mock me! See if I don't hit you!"

For a moment, the room was filled with the laughter and chatter of young girls. Du Rui, who was in the courtyard behind planning for the future, heard this and felt a sense of refreshment in his heart. It seemed that adding some lively energy to this household was indeed the right move.