Tiger Guards

Chapter 480 A Clump of Nits

Guan Shang watched the female official follow Zhao Ji into the house, then thought for a moment before following her in as well.

Only two palace servants remained at the door, turning around and extending their arms to block Guan Shang's path, giving him a polite smile.

Guan Shang frowned in thought, then took a step forward, breaking through both arms, and entered the living room.

Zhao Ji did not enter the inner hall or the side hall, but sat in the main seat of the outer hall, with a wooden lattice screen behind him.

Four palace maids stood on either side, holding wooden trays and bowing their heads, waiting for Zhao Ji to change his clothes after his bath.

In fact, Zhao Ji had already taken a bath at the Marquis of Pingyang's residence before he arrived.

At that moment, Zhao Ji, sitting in the main seat, was about to speak when Guan Shang barged in. He couldn't help but smile: "Ah Shang?"

Guan Shang cupped his hands in greeting: "Grand Marshal, the hot soup is almost ready. Shall we bathe in the kitchen or in the side hall?"

"It's in the side hall, mainly for washing up."

"I understand."

Guan Shang cupped his hands in greeting, then glanced at the female official, making her feel somewhat uncomfortable. Guan Shang then took a few steps back, turned, and left.

Zhao Ji then looked at the female official and asked, "Who are you?"

"This lowly servant was the daughter of a convicted official, and the Empress bestowed upon her the name Chunfang. After the death of the traitor Dong Zhuo, this lowly servant was taken into the palace. Later, when Chang'an was in chaos, she was captured by Li Jue. She was later returned to the palace and followed the Emperor on his eastward journey. In September, she fell into Li Jue's hands again in Hongnong. Later still, she was rescued by the Grand Marshal."

As she spoke, the female official took a wooden waist tag from her waist, held it with both hands, and carefully stepped forward to hand it over. Zhao Ji picked it up and glanced at it, seeing that it was engraved with "Changqiu Female Historian Tian Chunfang".

Zhao Ji returned the waist token to the other party and asked, "Who is mainly in charge of external affairs here at the imperial palace?"

Tian Chunfang did not retreat, but knelt down in front of Zhao Ji and replied: "The Director of the Imperial Palace, Dai Lie, is from Guangling and is in charge of the entry and exit of the palace, the concubines, and the general affairs of the palace; the Director of the Yongxiang Palace is Dong Lihua, a close friend of the Empress, who was originally in charge of disciplining the palace servants and handling disputes; the Director of the Imperial Treasury is an old friend of the Empress and manages the seven estates of the palace and the replenishment of the palace's supplies; the Director of the Hook and Shield is Shang Tiao, the nephew of Shang Hong, the military commander, and is in charge of the palace guards."

Zhao Ji listened patiently. During the six months he was away on the expedition, many things had happened back home, and he simply had no time to attend to them.

He didn't mind trusting Tian Chunfang, and even if he didn't tell the truth, he wouldn't express any outrageous information.

Because if you kill the other person, no one will plead for their life.

The position of Imperial Attendant Dai Lie was filled by Zhao Yan, with the aim of limiting the Empress's unchecked expansion, but without having to rely entirely on his own people.

Using more people from the emperor and high-ranking officials is the only way to indirectly prove the authenticity of the prince.

Listening to the other person's soft voice, Zhao Ji asked, "My elder sister originally had a manor, why did she move it? I want to hear some unpleasant stories, so please feel free to speak."

Tian Chunfang remained hesitant, and the atmosphere grew tense. She cautiously glanced at Zhao Ji's face, and seeing that he showed no anger and remained calm, she said, "This lowly servant heard that after the Grand Marshal's western expedition eliminated the two traitors, Li and Guo, he sent many former servants to the temporary palace. Many noblewomen were also granted freedom and are now living there. And..."

"To be frank, I was just curious, that's all."

“Well, I’ve heard a lot of slander about him, saying he’s some kind of country bumpkin…”

Tian Chunfang dared not say anything more. She pressed her forehead to the ground, held her breath, and could only hear the sound of her breathing heavily through her nose. She felt as if she had stepped into a fire pit.

Even if the Grand Marshal doesn't burn her, the noblewomen who live off the imperial palace will retaliate against her.

Zhao Ji smiled upon hearing this: "My sister is a country bumpkin and doesn't really understand the refined things of nobles. It's good that she's gone now, saving me from having to put up with anything."

"Grand Marshal, please calm down."

"This matter is none of your business. I led my officers and soldiers to protect the country and fight against the rebels in the sweltering heat. Those people do not engage in production but instead slander and humiliate my sister. I will go to see the Empress later. It just so happens that His Majesty also misses Consort Dong. So let these noble ladies accompany Consort Dong back to Xuchang. Perhaps she can reunite with her family and marry a good husband."

As Zhao Ji spoke, a smile played on his lips. The initial reason for sending the rescued noblewomen here was that he was worried that these people with high standards and extensive knowledge would corrupt his military and official ranks; secondly, he also wanted to use these women to endorse the prince's bloodline.

He had already experienced Du's flexibility and adaptability, and he didn't want all the officers under his command to have such a fickle wife.

I'm more resistant to corruption, so I can handle the assessment myself. There's really no need to add extra courses for my officers.

Lu Bu would probably like it very much.

In fact, Zhao Ji wouldn't believe everything Tian Chunfang said.

After all, it somewhat contradicted his logical understanding. The noblewomen had suffered so much torment under Dong Zhuo and Li Guo's forces, so they should have been mature and restrained.

Perhaps these people also wanted to flatter and curry favor with their elder sister. Maybe, as Tian Chunfang said, while currying favor, the noblewomen felt resentful and wanted to balance their psychological debt, so they slandered their elder sister in private.

Or perhaps it's simply that in everyday conversations, they can't hide the pride ingrained in their bones, and inadvertently reveal a sense of contempt.

But none of that matters. Their historical mission is complete, and the eldest prince no longer needs their pitiful influence to endorse him. Even sending them to raise silkworms and weave textiles worries Zhao Ji; he fears these people will infiltrate and corrupt his army.

After much deliberation, I decided to give them to the imperial court to enhance its resources and allow them to realize their true value.

After all, she was the daughter of a noble family, and the military and official class also had a taste for her. Keeping her around would be a hidden danger, so sending her away directly would be the easiest solution.

Zhao Ji then inquired with Tian Chunfang about the population and output of the various estates in the imperial palace. Tian Chunfang, in a state of panic, dared not hide anything and told him everything.

Strictly speaking, she was just one step away from being packaged up and sent away as a member of the nobility's female relatives.

As the two were chatting, Guan Shang also brought in his men, all carrying buckets of hot water.

Zhao Ji then got up and went to the side hall, where there was an iron furnace. The furnace was close to the fire wall, and the coal had already burned the furnace red.

Guan Shang saw the Tiger Guards pouring buckets of hot water into a large tub, then looked at the four palace servants who came in carrying shoes, hats, clothes and socks, and then at the female official Tian Chunfang and two palace servants, who were either rolling up their sleeves to get combs or preparing dressing boxes.

With a smirk, Guan Shang feigned disdain, then turned and left, closing the door behind him.

Tian Chunfang and two palace maids helped Zhao Ji change his clothes. They had been kidnapped several times and were quite skilled at doing these things.

Knowing he would be seeing the Empress soon and not wanting to waste time, Zhao Ji said, "After paying my respects to the eldest prince, I will see the Empress. Just wash and comb my hair."

"It is still early, and the Empress is taking her afternoon nap. The Grand Marshal should not disturb her."

As Tian Chunfang spoke, she instructed a palace maid to lift her leg into the large tub. The tub walls were quite high, and even with a low stool, the maid had some difficulty. She could only helplessly straddle the tub walls, and with nowhere to put her weight on, she was in great discomfort and immediately called for help.

The other four palace maids carrying wooden trays also put down their trays and rolled up their wide sleeves to help her.

Zhao Ji discovered that these palace women were still dressed in the old style, with two straight silk trousers under their curved hems, which were hung at the waist by ribbons from their inner garment belts.

The weather is cold now, and it's easy to catch a cold or get typhoid fever if you don't wear new-style trousers.

To teach them a lesson, I had no choice but to slap them.

The results showed that after more than a year of recuperation, these palace servants not only had rosy complexions and bright eyes, but also became more robust, and could survive for half a month in the wild without starving.

Unlike before, when they all looked like skeletons.

Even though there was plenty of food during the year or so, some of the palace maids were already young when they entered the palace, and they suffered from hunger during the most critical period of their growth, which resulted in congenital defects.

This is something that cannot be made up for in a short period of time, perhaps even in the rest of one's life.

Like eating a rainbow-colored cotton candy, Zhao Ji tried it and exclaimed, "How does my excess compare to that of the kings and nobles of old?"

This caused the palace servants around him to chuckle. Not wanting to waste a single grain of rice, they could only line up in an orderly yet tense manner to comb Zhao Ji's hair.

However, Zhao Ji's hair was exceptionally thick, and although the combs they brought were of excellent quality, they were somewhat difficult to comb.

They could only comb through small sections of hair carefully. There were no lice or nits in the hair, but they insisted on being meticulous and wanted to comb out the white nits from Zhao Ji's hair.

Some palace servants, unwilling to give up, picked up Zhao Ji's discarded clothes and carefully searched the seams, seemingly trying to find lice hiding in the crevices.

They couldn't find any lice or nits on Zhao Ji's hair or clothes, but Zhao Ji found lice behind a palace maid's ear; they had just crawled out of her hair.

He was used to it; when leading troops on campaign, even if he only took a bath once a day, there would still be all sorts of insects.

Lice and nits are relatively mild parasites.

The palace servants were used to it. They would wash their hair with water and, if they saw a louse, they would gently pinch it with their fingernails, causing it to burst open and stain their fingernails red.

When the water temperature in the large tub became unsuitable, they finally finished combing Zhao Ji's hair.

Zhao Ji pinched one person's chin, wanting to rub the powder off their face with his thumb. He really wasn't used to the thick layer of powder on their faces.

He just wanted to get a clear look at the other person's face, but the other person turned their head away forcefully and glared at Zhao Ji.

Seeing that she was so thin and lacked the enthusiasm of the other palace maids, Zhao Ji became angry and tried to find lice on her so he could humiliate her severely.

Instead of finding lice, Zhao Ji was satisfied and let her go after finding a clump of white nits.

Tian Chunfang was burning coal in the iron stove nearby. Not wanting to keep the Empress waiting for too long, she urged the palace servants to stop fooling around and began to style Zhao Ji's hair in a new style and dress him in the winter clothes that had been prepared in the palace.

(End of this chapter)