Beautiful step by step

Chapter 165

In the siege of Wala last winter, Yan Heng did win the battle.According to the court's consistent principle of rewarding meritorious service, such a big victory will definitely be rewarded.

It has been three months since the victory, and there is even Chinese New Year in these three months.The Spring Festival is the most rewarding festival. After a year of busy civil and military affairs in the Manchu Dynasty, it is always necessary to say goodbye to the old and usher in the new at the end of the year. Summarize what has been achieved in this year, and then reward silver and reward silver. .

However, when the good news from the Northwest reached the capital, it was like a misfired salute. It was supposed to be full of splendid fireworks on such a festive day, but it was ignited with hope at the slight risk of being injured, and the fuse was buzzing. After the seed was burned, it fell silent.

No movement is the biggest movement. If there is no reward for winning a battle, it will never be peaceful, and the rest can only be punished.

The expected reward did not come, and the entire northwest officialdom fell into silence, and this year was a bit deserted.After calming down a bit, she and Yan Heng also thought about the matter carefully.

First of all, the result of the victory is unquestionable. Although the process was a bit brutal, those officials in Dai Viet would not be stupid enough to use this flaw to criticize.Even if this point is brought up, it will not be the key to determining the final reward and punishment.Then there is the Northwest Accounts. The state school is a waste of money and it is all public accounts. However, she was sealed as a school supervisor, which is enough to show Emperor Qinglong's attitude, and there is no big disturbance on this point.

Eliminate all impossibilities, and the last thing left is the truth.

Regarding the leak of military aircraft, it does sound absurd.Their wealth and lives are in Liangzhou, why bother to leak the military plane to attract the Oirat enemies.Taking ten thousand steps back, even if Yan Heng's brain was caught by the door, and he did such a thing of collaborating with the enemy and treason, why should they resist stubbornly and use such iron and blood methods to wipe out the enemy army?

"What madam said is indeed reasonable. At first glance, it seems that your lord has no reason to do so. But I have overheard the conversation between your lord and his wife. Your lord wants to use this Northwest War to increase his rank and rank."

Standing in front of her was Dong Xue, the maid who was preparing to replace Gu Yu after she got married.

Dongxue looks very pleasing, with a round face, big eyes, and two small dimples on her lips when she smiles, which makes it easy for people to let go of their guards.After entering the mansion for three months, she learned Gu Yu's way of serving people in only half a month. Usually, she can see in time who needs help. She is a maid with good eyesight.Both she and Gu Yu, who is about to be succeeded, are very satisfied with her.

She was only satisfied, while Gu Yu was so satisfied that she was jealous.She even once said sourly that Dong Xue was much better than her as a maid.

Wei Wei clearly remembered how she felt at the time. Dong Xue was indeed much smarter than Gu Yu. It was a matter of talent. A smart person would adapt faster than others, whether she was a maid or any other role.But everything has two sides, and it is not easy for smart people to grasp.For someone like Gu Yu who is a bit clever, it's easy to win her loyalty by showing kindness and power.As for people like Dongxue, it would take a lot of effort to subdue them.

Gu Yu was already married a few years ago, and this time when she came to Beijing, she clamored to follow her.But after getting along for so long, she has already regarded Gu Yu as her half sister.The newlyweds are just at the time when they are inseparable, how can they be separated like this.Even if Yan Heng could bring Zhu Zi with him, but the husband and wife were working beside her and Yan Heng, it would be the same as being separated.

Thinking of this, she planned to bring Li Qiu here, although Li Qiu's mind was not as flexible as Gu Yu's, but she didn't expect to let the servant girl make any decisions.Coincidentally, Liqiu caught wind and cold before coming here, and her condition became severe and she needed to rest. In desperation, she had to settle for the next best thing, and chose Dongxue, who had just entered the mansion a few years ago.

It is not an easy task to go on the road while pregnant, but fortunately, she has fought against Yan Heng whenever she has free time in the past two years, and her health has improved a lot, and there is no pregnancy reaction, so the journey was not so tossing.Even so, there were some physiological reactions that should be experienced during pregnancy, and Dongxue took good care of her along the way.As a man, Yan Heng could not think of some details, and she took care of them all.It is precisely because of this meticulousness that she was able to reach the capital in a relatively comfortable way even though the post stations along the way were not so popular.

With this friendship there, she also slowly let go of her wariness about smart people at the beginning, almost treating Dong Xue as one of her own.

Unexpectedly, it was this person who directly stabbed her in the heart when she was only one step away from victory.

"Growing an official rank?"

Repeating the last few words, facing Dongxue in the hall of the Ministry of Punishment, Wei Wei put away his astonishment little by little.

"If I remember correctly, Dongxue is a family member who was lost during the war in Liangzhou. You have personally experienced the siege of the city by the Oirat army that day. Liangzhou city is in danger, and everyone in the city, rich or poor, high or low, is in danger. If you can't even save your life, what's the point of being promoted to a noble? Could it be that when you become a high-ranking official, you burn the black hat in front of the grave, and then go underground to enjoy the blessing?"

Although she spoke bluntly, her words were not harsh. Chu Ying nodded at the side, and chimed in: "It turns out that the leaking of the military plane is such a big matter that Ah Mao discusses it directly in front of the servants."

How can it be? !
After being surprised, she also understood, a pair of almond eyes that became wider and wider due to anger stared straight at Dongxue, and a smile appeared on her face even more angry.

"Master Hou is right, Dong Xue, you came to the mansion years ago, and you stayed in the kitchen until the New Year. Let alone the kitchen and bedrooms in the Liangzhou mansion, even if they are in the same courtyard, you will be separated from each other. Can you hear this clearly from that far away?"

It's no wonder that she can hear clearly, she and Yan Heng are not alone with a loudspeaker next to their mouths, talking as a broadcast.

The confidence on Dong Xue's face gradually disappeared, biting her lip, she looked at Yang Shangshu helplessly.

Following her gaze, Wei Wei also looked at Yang Shangshu.

"Could this be the evidence of Lord Shangshu? A maid who has only been in the mansion for three months and has been doing odd jobs in the backyard can frame a court official personally appointed by the emperor with just a few words."

Listening to her pressing questions repeatedly, Yang Shangshu's face did not change at all, he put down the tea cup and his slightly cloudy eyes swept over her, and finally fixed on Dongxue.

"Don't you have evidence?"

The sun was slanting to the west, shining through the window lattice into the hall, making Yang Shangshu's muddy eyes faintly blue.The same sunlight hit Dongxue's body, and the slender patterns embroidered on the green robe became more obvious. As her body shook, the light blue patterns seemed to come alive.The similar scene reminded Wei Wei of the old locust trees she saw in the corridor just now, and a bad premonition arose in her heart for a moment.

In the open hall, Wei Wei and Chu Ying sat on the west side, opposite to the east side were officials from the Ministry of Punishment in blue official robes, and Yang Shangshu in ocher official robes.Standing on the green brick ground between the four of them, Dongxue turned around and looked at her with that round face.At this moment, there was no usual lovable smile on her face, and her eyes were full of hatred.

hate?This recognition made Wei Wei's heart ring loudly.

With the corners of her lips raised lightly and her face full of sarcasm, Dong Xue said slowly: "The servant girl is just a lowly maidservant, and it is true that she rarely has the opportunity to enter the main room on weekdays, so it stands to reason that she would not hear the secrets of the lord and madam."

The four people present are all officials, and there are groups of servants in their families.Maids are also divided into three, six, and nine grades. Those who can serve in front of the master and stay in the main room for a long time are all honorable.After all, the main room is not a vegetable market, and it is not possible for any rough and handyman to come in and stay there.

That's exactly what Wei Wei said just now, and she's not a respectable maid, so how can she hear any secrets.But now that Dong Xue had admitted it, she panicked for no reason.If she keeps holding on to this point, it proves that she has no other options.But now that she easily gave up on this point, what did she have left behind?

"Even as Madam said, when the city of Liangzhou was besieged, the slaves hadn't arrived at the mansion yet, and some things can't be heard casually."

Hearing that she even admitted this, the bad premonition grew stronger.Wei Wei felt that the blue pattern on her clothes turned into little snakes, entangled her body, and pointed their poisonous fangs at her heart.

"It's just that the maidservant didn't hear this in the bedroom, because the maidservant has been in the mansion for a long time, and the maidservant is mainly responsible for some cleaning work. Years ago, the maidservant accidentally fell asleep while tidying up the study room. When I woke up, I just heard the adults and my wife say this .”

The study is indeed a good place to talk about things, and she and Yan Heng often discuss some things there.

"Red lips and white teeth don't matter what you say, Dongxue, I don't know why you hate me so deeply, and even hate to frame me out of thin air. But you have only been in the mansion for three months with empty words. Little girl, what you said is not enough evidence. Yang Shangshu, are you right?"

The official of the Ministry of Punishment next to Yang Shangshu nodded: "According to the law of Da Yue, it really doesn't count. Dongxue, right? Do you have other evidence?"

Other evidence?Wei Wei's pupils narrowed slightly, and then she nodded to Dong Xue in front of her.

"The servants found a lot of jewels from the royal court of Oara from the Yan family."

What else should she be!Before Dong Xue gave the evidence, she was really nervous, but after listening to her, she finally put her heart into practice.But then she thought about it, and suddenly she didn't know what to say.Because she suddenly remembered that the Oirat jewelry at home came from a bit of a wrong place.Those jewels were all obtained by Yan Heng's private greed. Although it is customary for generals to withhold some spoils privately after winning a battle, the Dai Yue Law even allows this.But the problem was that Yan Heng was just a small flag at that time, even if she didn't know the standards stipulated by the Dai Yue Law, she knew that there were too many jewels in the house.

To say or not to say?

No matter what, keeping the loot privately is better than collaborating with the enemy and treason. Thinking of this, Wei Yao quickly made a decision in his heart.

"Those jewels from the Western Regions..."

"It's my dowry for Auntie," Chu Ying snatched the words, with a helpless expression on her face: "These are the most indispensable things in the Zhenbeihou Mansion. There are boxes and boxes piled up in the storeroom, and they are full of hair. I don't know if I can find you in them." The lost crown? Dong Xue, oh, I should respectfully address you as Her Royal Highness Princess Boketu."

(End of this chapter)