Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 589 Mr. Xu’s Fortune
"Master Hou, why are you here?"

Seeing the visitor, Xu Jiaqing didn't realize for a moment why Marquis Luo Yun came to Shuntian Mansion. Naturally, he stuttered a bit and wanted to know more.

Zhang Jinyu walked forward and looked at the messy room. There was nothing like a yamen. He pulled a stool to the nearest place, sat down and smiled,
"Why can't I come? Look, what a coincidence. Mr. Xu has made a fortune. The first person to take the money is the one who praised Mr. Xu. With one hundred thousand taels of silver, it's possible that he can't buy it. Are you qualified for the yamen, Mr. Xu?"

Xu Jiaqing sighed in his heart. Sure enough, the money was very hot to hold. Before he received the money, the real owner came.
"Quickly, serve tea to Mr. Song. Mr. Song, what are you still doing?"

Seeing the two people next to him still in a daze, he immediately shouted,
The two of them suddenly came back to their senses, and hurriedly brought tea and water to Zhang Jinyu, and also brought a stack of cloud cakes. They took two steps back and waited.

"Master Marquis, you didn't inform your subordinates when you came. No matter what you say, you can't take the money from Master Marquis. It should be returned to the original owner."

finished,

He quickly took out a stack of banknotes and placed them on the table. They looked quite thick.

Zhang Jinyu was not polite. He took it over and counted it. Good guy, he directly returned two hundred thousand taels of silver. So today, Shuntian Mansion has definitely pledged a lot.
"Okay, Master Xu's kindness is appreciated by me!"

Not talking nonsense, he stuffed the stack of silver notes directly into his arms with silky movements. A warmth instantly flowed through his body, and Xu Jiaqing was even more smiling. Just take the money and the matter is over. Why did the Marquis come to the government office? He asked in confusion,
"Master Hou, why are you coming to Shuntian Mansion all this way?"

Looking at the hall, many servants and maids came out with brooms and other things to clean, and there was a lot of chaos, so he nodded,
"Okay, let's go and sit at your place."

"Sir, the letter came last night, saying that the cabinet ordered the Shuntian Mansion Yamen to serve as the court. It seems to be a joint trial of three divisions or something, to interrogate the case of Jia Zhen of the Ningguo Mansion. Yesterday, someone beat the Dengwen drum and sued Ningguo. Jia Zhen of the government raises alchemists, causing harm to the country and the people."

"Yes, my lord."

"Master Marquis, please."

The two of them got up one after another and walked to the back hall of the government office. As soon as they entered the back hall of the government office, the fragrance filled the yard. The yard and the house were clean and tidy, and the paths were spotless, just like the flowers in the dark willows.
"Master Xu, this yard is so well-kept. I can't believe how it looks before and after. It's really a paradise. Master Xu is also a wonderful person."

Xu Jiaqing was horrified and shouted out loud. He went to the Ministry of Internal Affairs last night and wanted to apply for money to repair the government office. Unexpectedly, the Grand Duke Wang Xiu gave him some advice and found a way to collect the money and put it into the account to build the government office. The son is there,

Zhang Jinyu didn't say much. He didn't know where the rancid smell came from. He coughed a few times. But Xu Jiaqing was shocked when he heard it. He was so anxious that he didn't wait for two days. The government office has not cleaned it up since the earthquake. , if the news reaches the palace, can this black gauze hat be kept? He immediately stood up,

"Master Xu, I will pretend that you don't know. Jia Zhen will be interrogated today. There are six people in charge of the trial, and I am one of them. I just asked the Yamen to deliver the message. The court will be held here soon. After the interrogation, you still need to arrange some things here. Without further ado, people from the Imperial City Department will also come. If you see this, ahem, you can take care of it yourself."

Zhang Jinyu was stunned by Master Xu's question. Shouldn't he ask this question himself? Why did he ask me about it? Is it because he just made money? His brain was confused.

Seeing Xu Jiaqing asking whether he really didn't know or was pretending, Zhang Jinyu tapped the table with her fingers.

"Mr. Song, Mr. Wang, hurry up, call them all out, the government office will be cleaned up, Wang Danian, the lobby will be re-swept and decorated, six people will be examined in the hall, and the outside of the courtyard will be handed over to Song Changping, hurry up. "

I wanted to write to the Ministry of Accounts to borrow money, but I didn't know that the Ministry of Accounts replied and asked me to go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to ask for the money. Otherwise, this would not have happened. I just don't know why the Marquis came here. There is no honorable minister involved in the three-division review. The Jia family is somewhat kind to me.
"Mr. Marquis, I am a stupid official. I didn't read the letter in time. I hope the Marquis will understand. I just don't know if the Marquis is here to listen."

then,

"What, this happened."

Xu Jiaqing didn't even react. Why was the Marquis so anxious? Could it be that he had fallen in love with a girl from a small family and wanted to get engaged? It's not surprising that Mr. Yi Xu of Shuntian Prefecture thought so. After all, Marquis Luo Yun loved beauties the most. As everyone knows, he wanted to ask, but was pulled away by Song Changping, the Zhizhong next to him.
Then laugh with me,
"Master Marquis, my lord has been busy with official duties these days, and has forgotten some things. The official letter from the court only arrived last night, and it has not yet arrived for my lord to see. Therefore, it is the fault of the lower official and some negligence."

"What's the matter? No way, Mr. Xu, what else can I do here? You haven't received the official letter from the court!"

Xu Jiaqing was still a little confused at this time. Song Changping smiled bitterly, then lowered his body and applied it to his ears, and whispered,

"What letter, what is it?"

shouted,

The two also knew that the matter was urgent, and after giving a salute, they ran out and arranged for people to clean the yard. Xu Jiaqing was left there with a sad face.
"Master Marquis, please forgive me, but please move and go to the back hall to have a rest."

Zhang Jinyu didn't say it clearly, but the tone of his words was not an inquiry. Xu Jiaqing could only smile bitterly in return.
"What the Marquis didn't know is that after the earthquake in the government office, the lower officials refused to clean it, just to ask the Ministry of Household Affairs for some money for repairs so as to subsidize the Shuntian government office. Who would have thought that the people from the Ministry of Household Affairs refused to take any money and even asked them to do it? I went to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to ask for money, and that’s why the previous matter happened. It was just for them to see, so where can I explain to the lower officials?”

Looking at Shuntian Mansion Yi, who was still a little aggrieved, Zhang Jinyu couldn't help but laugh out loud. You are still aggrieved. Shuntian Mansion is not comparable to other yamen. There is still a shortage of money in the capital. Even if it is a shortage of money, why don't you go to the Ministry of Household Affairs? If you give me the money to repair the government office, you won’t be using it.
"Mr. Xu, it's passed. Although I don't know the inside story, I also know that the Shuntian Mansion Yamen is not short of money. Naturally, the Ministry of Revenue will not approve the money for repairs. As for why you should go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to ask for it, I also know that I don’t want to know, but one thing is that once the money arrives, it’s not up to you, Master Xu, to use it according to your instructions.”

"Here, Mr. Hou Mingjian, although he said that, who would despise having a lot of money after all? The money that the lower official wants to bring is really to repair the government office, and then give some salary to the brothers, which can be regarded as the lower official. A little thought."

Xu Jiaqing smiled a little restrainedly, and what he said was true. His two-year evaluation was coming soon. If he got the first grade, his official position would be secure.

Zhang Jinyu didn't know that there were these things inside. Seeing that Mr. Xu's eyes didn't look fake, he didn't ask any more questions. Instead, he thought of Wang Xiu, the Grand Duke of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. It was really incredible that the old eunuch could come up with such a method. Look down upon, the eunuchs make money, and they are the best in the world.

"Okay, I don't like to get to the bottom of it, but after taking this money, how will you explain it to the Grand Eunuch of the Ministry of Internal Affairs?"

"My Lord Marquis, if you hadn't supported me, this amount of money would have come from so much. It's all deserved. This time I received one million taels of silver. You took 200,000 taels. The official quoted me one hundred thousand taels." I should be able to get the money, and the rest will be handed over to the Ministry of Internal Affairs."

Xu Jiaqing did not hide it. This time, so many business owners came here. He never dreamed that they could collect so much money. The government had money. As for the Marquis, who in the Ministry of Internal Affairs dared to say.

Zhang Jinyu was puzzled after hearing this. He thought he would keep at least 10% of the money, but how could it be so little? The old eunuch was so greedy, "Isn't it unreasonable that the Ministry of Internal Affairs can ask for so much?"

"Master Hou, lower your voice."

Xu Jiaqing hurriedly stopped him, then looked around and saw that they were all his own, and then whispered,

"Master Marquis, I'm telling you that my subordinates really know what's going on here. Because of the grain robbery in the capital, the Ministry of Internal Affairs was planning to raid several grain shops. Who knew that a natural disaster happened, so they put it on hold. But the guest Didn't the Ministry of Internal Affairs advance the salary of the army on behalf of the Ministry of Household Affairs? That's right. The Ministry of Internal Affairs was looking for ways to raise money, which is why this happened. It is said that at the pier, as long as you enter the pier, you have to pay a docking tax. A boat costs one hundred taels of silver."

Damn, it’s so dark. Zhang Jinyu thought about the number of ships that docked at the Beijing Pier every day. There were too many to count. Could it be that the Ministry of Internal Affairs had issued a notice? She was thinking,

The two of them passed through the central courtyard and entered the main hall. Xu Jiaqing invited the Marquis to take the main seat. Zhang Jinyu was not polite and sat down on a stool. A maid served him tea and cakes.
After taking a look around the house, although it was not said to be magnificent, there was a lot of elegance in the room. There were many precious calligraphy and paintings hanging on the walls. He looked like an elegant person at first glance. Zhang Jinyu took a sip of tea and praised,
"Master Xu, you are indeed a man of good temper. This house is kept elegant and clean. Just looking at it makes you feel calm. It is extremely rare. He is worthy of being a first-class Jinshi in the first year of Yuanfeng."

Master Xu was stunned when he heard what the Marquis said. Not many people knew about his status as a first-class Jinshi. How did Marquis Luo Yun know about it? There are also things about the Jia family that he has to ask.

"The Marquis is indeed very wise, and I admire him. However, there is one thing that I don't understand, so I would like to ask the Marquis for advice."

"Oh, please ask, Mr. Xu."

"May I ask, Lord Marquis, how do you plan to interrogate General Wei Lie today?"

After saying that, he looked over with some uneasiness. Zhang Jinyu was a little surprised by such a question, and had to sigh with emotion at the profound legacy left behind by the two old princes of Ning Rong's second house.
"Mr. Xu, people in the Ming Dynasty don't tell secrets. It's not how I want to interrogate, but how those civil servants want to interrogate, or even how General Wei Lie wants to interrogate. Although I and the Marquis of Xiangyang are in the position of presiding over the trial, they are just Supervisor, Mr. Xu also knows that there are some things that are not frozen in a day, and he will definitely not give up if he is strict with his officials."

Zhang Jinyu's words left Xu Jiaqing speechless. Yes, no one could save him if the civil servants persisted, especially the attitude of the palace. His Majesty was no longer suspicious of him every day.

"Hey,"

Then he sighed,
When the atmosphere in the hall was getting a little dull, a government official came to report outside the door.
"Report, my lord, Lord Feng, the Prime Minister of Dali Temple, Lord Meng, the Imperial Envoy to the Right Qiandu of the Inspectorate, as well as the Marquis of Xiangyang, and General Kang, the deputy commander of the Forbidden Army, have all arrived at the government office."

"So fast."

"Report, General, the valley has been explored, and there are no traces of Taiping followers within ten miles."

"Report, General, there is no one in the rear fifteen miles, so we can march,"

"Report, General, there's no one within fifteen miles to the left and right, it's safe."

The northern section of Fallen Leaf Valley, Gu Ping's camp,
In the central tent,
Gu Ping was sitting in the main seat, listening solemnly to the report of the scouts who were kneeling in the tent. He felt relieved and could finally take a breath.
"I know, let's explore again,"

"Yes, General."

Several scout captains performed military salutes and then exited the tent.
Qin Yunjiang and deputy general Chai Ping were left to discuss separately in the tent.

"General, should we withdraw our troops overnight, or should we assemble our troops and fight back?"

The deputy general Chai Ding, who was sitting on the west side, looked unwilling. He was just a little bit close to killing the opponent's ambush general. Unfortunately, the opponent's reinforcements came too quickly. The thieves' desperate tactics cost him losses. Many brothers.

Gu Ping touched the long knife in his hand. The cold scabbard was a little bit biting. In this battle, he still underestimated the Taiping Sect people. He thought he could easily kill them. But in the end, if Qin Yunjiang didn't lead the troops to attack suddenly, he would have been killed. I'm afraid I won't be able to hold on anymore.

"Yunjiang, tell me, what should we do?"

Qin Yunjiang had a look of exhaustion on his face and had been frightened for several days. Finally, he rushed out despite the danger.
"General, thanks to the general's rescue this time, if the general hadn't come, the general and his brothers in the army would have been trapped in the city."

Qin Yunjiang shook his fist and continued,

"As for Lin Yue Mansion, there is not much food and grass left. At least the treasury has long since run out of reserves. The rest are in the hands of wealthy families. They killed many people in humble positions before they could prepare all the food, grass and luggage. This is one of them.

Secondly, the deputy leader of the Taiping Religion is not a good person. There are 150,000 elite followers. Although they lack soldiers and armor, as long as the city is captured, they can make up for the shortcomings.
Thirdly, when the general led his troops to break through, there seemed to be a large number of people. Except for the 5,000 brothers from the old camp in the hands of the general, the remaining 10,000 soldiers could only fight with the wind.

It is not easy to counterattack, so the general believes that he must quickly withdraw to Linshan County to rest and wait for reinforcements from the court. "

Seeing Qin Yunjiang's sincere words, the deputy general Chai Ding on the opposite side could not find a reason to refute for a while, but when he thought of sitting and watching the fall of Fucheng and strengthening the enemy's strength, one can imagine the congestion in his heart.

"That's right. Today, brothers have tried their best. Chai Ding, we have lost half of our troops in the valley. It will be difficult to reach the sky if we want to rush over. Leader Chu of the Taiping Sect has heard about it and dares to rob the capital. How many people in the world dare to use the money of the Luoyun Hou Mansion to have two brushes."

Gu Ping's hands stroking the long sword finally left the scabbard. His blackened and rough hands, covered with a thick layer of calluses, suddenly clenched into fists.

"One more thing. Behind our backs, Chenzhou City was beaten down by a group of unknown people. Where did these people come from? I'm worried whether they will cut off our escape route."

"General, are you worried about the group of people who followed us in Chenzhou when we came? Even if they are strong enough, what are they waiting for?"

Chai Ding couldn't help but ask. After all, what Song Liang, a hundred households in the imperial city, had said before was that he followed the army and withdrew in the middle of the night. That's why the general dared to give it a try. Why was he still worried about them? The distance was not close. Now, If I want to ambush you, I'm afraid I'll be humiliating myself.

(End of this chapter)