Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 106 Nobunaga Has Wings?
As Madam Yan said, as Lu Jie rose step by step, Jiang's status also rose accordingly, and her title of Imperial Noblewoman was already a notch above Madam Yan's.

Faced with Madam Yan's angry rebuke, Jiang couldn't utter a single word in response.

More than the reprimand, she wanted to know how the letter had returned and how it had ended up in the hands of the censor.

She gripped the folded document tightly, her face flushed, and said, "This was my oversight; it wasn't my intention. I heard that Zhou Sheng's case was actually caused by trouble caused by local merchants in Shawan, so I asked Guo Lu to go to Tanzhou Prefecture to investigate. I didn't expect him to be so unreliable."

"Since we know he's unreliable, we shouldn't have used him anymore!" Madam Yan snorted and sat back down. "What clever people could the Jiang family possibly have? Using this to excuse yourself, aren't you ashamed!"

"If you think you can finally hold your head high and no longer need the Yan family's support, then you don't need to set foot on the Yan family's door again!"

Jiang bit her lip, her face burning and sweat beading on her forehead.

"Sister-in-law, you flatter me. How could I dare to say that?"

Madam Yan snorted coldly and left the room, leaving her behind.

When he arrived at Yan Shu's study next door, Yan Shu, who was standing by the window, turned around and looked over when he heard footsteps.

Madam Yan took a deep breath: "It really is her."

"I don't think she's very obedient these days. The marriage between the two families has been discussed for months, but we haven't seen her respond yet. And now, at this critical juncture, she's causing this trouble."

At this point, she looked up and said, "Is it alright? Father recommended Hu Yucheng to lead the resistance against the Japanese pirates along the southeast coast. The Emperor has already issued the decree, and Grand Commandant Shen of the Ministry of War has not objected. This matter will not change, will it?"

“No.” Yan Shu slowly shook his head as he looked out the window. “Although Hu Yucheng is my father’s student, he is quite capable in battle. Shen Bo did not object, so this matter can proceed.”

"That's good." Madam Yan breathed a sigh of relief. "As long as Hu Yucheng can take command, the losses in Tanzhou this time are nothing."

Yan Shu sat down: "Hu Yucheng will set off in two days. The provisions will be sent first tomorrow. Even if things are to succeed, it will take at least half a month."

Madam Yan nodded. She then handed him the tea beside her.

Jiang was left standing there for a while. Finally, she stood up, leaning on a chair, walked out of the east courtyard, and then out of the Yan mansion, which was like a cage surrounded by high walls. Her face was still burning with embarrassment.

Once inside, she said, "Go find Guo Lu! Tell him to get over here and see me!"

I had just sat down in my room when Guo Lu arrived.

Jiang slapped him across the face first, and threw the commemorative document in her hand in front of him.

Guo Lu was puzzled, but after reading the document, he panicked and knelt on the ground.

"You'd better explain yourself clearly! Otherwise, you can get back to your Jizhou right now!"

"what happened?"

Lu Ying heard the sound and rushed in.

She was stunned by the scene before her. She stood by the door for a moment before going inside. She looked at the furious Jiang Shi, then at the disheveled Guo Lu, and then picked up the folded document that had fallen to the ground.

“Shawan County? Xie family girl?...Who is this person?” She raised her head in confusion.

Jiang glanced at her but said nothing.

Guo Lu covered his face, his voice trembling with tears, and said, "Nephew, I don't know what happened! I clearly instructed two people to go south with me, it was just a letter... who knew they couldn't handle it!"

Madam Jiang gritted her teeth: "Was it you, sir? Did you leak the news?"

Guo Lu paused, then shook his head frantically: "No, absolutely no word of this has been leaked! You see, I haven't even told my cousin! There's no way Master could know! My aunt knows too, I've handled so many things over the years and have never made a mistake!..."

Lu Ying was even more curious: "What exactly are you talking about?" Madam Jiang took a deep breath, gritting her teeth: "You get back to the Jiang family first. Without my order, you are not allowed to set foot in the Lu residence!"

Guo Lu prostrated himself in agreement, covered his face, and withdrew.

Jiang closed her eyes and propped her forehead up; blood was even coming from the corner of her mouth.

Lu Ying stepped forward with the memorial in her hand: "Mother, who is this Xie family girl? Why are you asking the authorities to punish her?"

“Lu Jia.” Madam Jiang opened her eyes, her throat bobbing up and down: “She is Lu Jia.”

"..."

……

Tang Yu's trip to Shawan to pick up Qiu Niang and back will take at least one or two months. Those two months are enough time to prepare in advance.

Lu Jia had already instructed Tang Yu to tell Qiu Niang to temporarily entrust the care of the shops in Shawan to Li Chang.

In this way, although business will inevitably be affected, it is still not as important as the safety of Qiu Niang and the others.

Furthermore, Xie Yi's studies were actually somewhat aided by his trip to the capital.

Lu Jia plans to hire several skilled guards, leaving half for Qiu Niang and the others after they arrive in the capital, and bringing the other half into the Lu family so that they will have someone to help them.

Qinghe offered her suggestion: "Why don't you find two female guards? They can be at your beck and call in your room, or they can stay by your side at all times."

Lu Jia sighed, "I would like to, but I don't know where to find such a person."

Qinghe thought for a moment: "In the past, the princesses of the Ji Prince's Mansion all had one or two such people by their side. If they didn't have enough manpower, they would buy them from the market."

"There are people who do this kind of work. They specifically target poor women who sell themselves into servitude and train them, like the 'slim horses' of Yangzhou. However, these women only learn martial arts and not the arts of music, chess, calligraphy, or painting."

"They're all quite young, just to make them easier to sell, so they don't have the skills of Guard He or Guard Tang. The rest still need further training."

"That's alright!" Lu Jia said. "As long as you know some martial arts, it'll be enough for emergencies and saving your life."

Qinghe smiled and said, "Alright, I'll have Changfu inquire about it later."

Just then, Shen Qingzhou returned.

He said with a serious expression, "How strange, we don't even have to wait two months. The letter you had He Qu send out has already shown signs of life."

Lu Jia stopped abruptly.

"This morning, an official received this letter and wrote it into a memorial impeaching your father for failing to manage his household properly, which he intends to submit to the Censorate."

"As a result, it was intercepted by the cabinet halfway and reportedly sent to the Yan family."

Lu Jia stared in disbelief, then turned to He Qu, who had followed him in: "Didn't you already end up in my father's study? How did you end up in someone else's hands?"

"I don't know either," He Qu said, genuinely bewildered. "I'm certain this letter was placed in Lord Lu's study, and that he would see it as soon as he entered. I have no idea why it turned out this way!"

For a moment, all three of them seemed to be stuck in their own minds.

Since Lu Jie is certain to obtain the letter, there is no question of it being leaked. This is clearly something that would give others leverage, so he would never leak it.

Why did it fall into the hands of the censors?
And it almost gave the censors the opportunity to impeach the Lu family.