Early the next morning, Jia Baoyu found a moment to run over to Daiyu's courtyard again. He was probably hoping to spend some time with his Lin-meimei or something.
But when he got there, he found the courtyard completely empty. He'd come up empty-handed?
So!
He hurried into the courtyard to ask around. The little maids and matrons who were sweeping told him that the great immortal Annie had gone out early that morning, taking the recovered Lin-meimei, Third Sister, Zijuan, and Xueyan—four people in all.
As for where they'd gone, the servants didn't know, and hadn't dared to ask.
With no other choice, Baoyu—having come up empty and feeling glum because Lin-meimei had gone out to have fun with some annoying immortal without him—could only turn toward Pear Fragrance Court, at the northeast corner of Rongguo Mansion.
There was no doubt about it: he was planning to go play with his Bao-jiejie.
After all, even without Lin-meimei, Jia Baoyu still had his Bao-jiejie. It wasn't as if he couldn't live without Lin-meimei. So what did it matter who he spent time with?
Before long, he arrived at the covered bridge outside the floating island of Pear Fragrance Court.
At that moment, Aunt Xue had just finished breakfast. She was sitting on the heated platform outside the warm room, leafing through a ledger in the daylight filtering through the window.
Her full, well-kept face bore the shrewdness of a merchant household, softened by the ease of a life of comfort. She wore only a simple, everyday sapphire-blue brocade jacket with gold embroidery, topped with a dark fox-fur vest. In her hands, she held a small gilt-enamel hand warmer. She looked quite content.
Suddenly, she heard Ying'er, the maid outside, announce in a clear voice:
"Madam!"
"Second Master Baoyu is