Chapter 14
"Can you please do your work properly? You're lazy every day. What do you think of the military camp?"
When Lu Ling walked back to the military camp, Fang Qianqian cursed her loudly.
I had heard her talk that day and she seemed quite approachable, but today she had returned to her old ways.
Qingdai heard Fang Qianqian's voice not far away and came over to seek justice for her young lady.
"Fang Qianqian, don't be so ungrateful. Why do you care what my sister does? You should know that you are not in charge now. You are not qualified to be my sister!"
This sentence reminded Fang Qianqian that she was no longer in charge and there was no need to manage these things anymore.
So Fang Qianqian left in disappointment.
"Qingdai." Lu Ling called her Qingdai.
Qing Dai thought Lu Ling was going to scold her again, so she quickly lowered her head and apologized, "Sister, I was wrong. I won't do that again next time."
Lu Ling patted Qingdai's head and said, "What have you done wrong? You're just protecting someone you didn't know."
"Sister, you won't tell me?"
"I won't blame you. I see clearly that if you don't resist, they will bully you." Lu Ling said.
"And I just wanted to yell back at her. I thought she had changed, but she's still like this."
Lu Ling took Qingdai's hand and said earnestly, "But Qingdai, you must remember that you must always pay attention to your own safety before doing anything."
Qingdai nodded and said okay.
"What is this?" Lu Ling touched the chain in Qingdai's hand.
Three small red stones were strung together with a thin rope and worn on Qingdai's slender white hands, which was really beautiful.
Qingdai hesitated and never said anything.
Lu Ling frowned, then relaxed, as if he already knew who had given it to Qingdai.
Qing Dai looked at Lu Ling and thought she already knew, so she lowered her head and said, "Sister, although Zhang Xunwen is a bit of a mixed bag, he is still a good person."
He's confessing himself, Lu Ling thought.
Lu Ling pulled Qingdai's hand closer and said with a smile, "Oh, it's Zhang Xunwen. I was wondering who would dare to mess with our Qingdai!"
"Yeah, Zhang Xunwen is indeed good." Lu Ling let go of Qingdai's hand, looked up at her, lifted Lu Ling's head, and continued: "He looks a little fierce, but he is still a good person."
"Sister, do you think he is a good person?"
"Yeah, otherwise, think about what ability he has that would make Xie Yuwang let him be the steward?"
Qingdai nodded blankly
"Sister, he is not without skills. He can cook. The food he cooks is delicious. And look at this chain, it was also made by him. He knows a lot." Qingdai disagreed.
"Okay, he's capable." Lu Ling said helplessly.
"Since you like each other, just be together. It's a pity that I can't hold a wedding for you now."
Qing Dai didn't expect Lu Ling to consider this step, so she quickly said: "Sister, it's okay. As long as we really love each other, I don't care about the wedding and other things. As long as we can be together forever, that's all."
"You are quite easy to satisfy." Lu Ling smiled at Qingdai.
"Just live each day to the fullest. Why dwell on those distant things? Changes can happen at any time. We might be gone soon. Why should I bother worrying about trivial matters?"
Lu Ling has always known that Qingdai has a good attitude, but he doesn't like what Qingdai said at all.
"Pfft, pfft, what are you talking about? We are sure to live a hundred years."
"Okay, I think so too." Qingdai's eyes curved into a smile.
*
Lu Ling was asked to do laundry and cooking again these days. I don't know who told Xie Heng about it. He felt that it was unfair that Lu Ling could do less work than others since they were both slaves.
Jealousy is the most terrible thing at any time.
Xie Heng originally didn't want Lu Ling to do these things. While he was thinking about it, Lu Ling heard the news and went to find Xie Heng himself, saying that he would not slack off.
Seeing Lu Ling's determination, Xie Heng didn't say what he wanted to say in the end, so he agreed.
Qingdai was not around today to help Zhang Xunwen, so Lu Ling and others were washing clothes by the river.
After the first month of the lunar year, the water was not as cold as before, and the already lush trees grew many more branches.
"Hey, why are you back again?" the man asked sarcastically.
Lu Ling ignored her and just lowered his head to do his own thing.
Fang Qianqian walked to Lu Ling and put the clothes in her hand together with Lu Ling's.
"Grandma Fang, this is a bit unfair of you. I just washed these, and now you're throwing these dirty clothes on top. Do you want me to wash them again?"
"Has it been washed? I thought it wasn't washed yet?" Fang Qianqian said sarcastically.
"Since it's dirty, why not wash it again?" Fang Qianqian said indifferently.
Lu Ling stood up and glared at Fang Qianqian.
"Fang Qianqian, I feel sorry for your old friend leaving, and I didn't want to argue with you, but aren't you going a bit too far now?" Lu Ling said.
"I don't need your pity." Fang Qianqian said angrily.
"Since you still think about him, why don't you be with him? Why bother yourself with such trivial matters?" Fang Qianqian suddenly changed the subject, making Lu Ling a little flustered.
"This is my own business, you don't need to teach me." Lu Ling's voice became lower.
"If you didn't want to be with him anymore, why did you pull him out of the river last time? Why did you slap him?"
Every word Fang Qianqian said fell into Lu Ling's ears, and every word was heartbreaking.
"Did you see it that day? You actually eavesdropped." Lu Ling acted angry.
"Hmph, if you don't want others to know, then don't do it yourself." Fang Qianqian put her hands on her hips, "And you were just standing there, how could you ask me to eavesdrop!"
"Okay, even if you weren't eavesdropping, you don't have to meddle in our affairs. My fate with him is over, so there's no need to talk about it anymore." Lu Ling said righteously.
"Do you really want to break up with him?"
"really!"
"Okay, you will regret it later." Fang Qianqian said and left.
Lu Ling stared at her departing back, and suddenly seemed to realize that yes, this person actually threw all his clothes to her.
"Ms. Lu, have you offended her again?" It was Su Yun's mother, Yang Yun.
Lu Ling had seen her many times, but had never spoken to her. He never thought that this person would take the initiative to talk to him today.
Su Yun himself was domineering, but Yang Yun was easy to talk to. At the beginning, the Su couple had a good reputation among the neighbors.
"Mrs. Su." Lu Ling bowed.
"I didn't offend her. She was just overthinking it." Lu Ling was answering the question just now.
"She has a bad temper. When Zhou Jin was around, she was more restrained. Now..." Yang Yun shook her head, hesitating to speak.
"He was the only one who could control her temper. As soon as he left, her personality changed drastically, becoming what she is today."
"Why do you have to suppress your temper? Shouldn't you be your most genuine self in front of the person you like?" Lu Ling asked puzzledly.
"Yes, in fact, she was not like this before. She dared to love and hate, and she was very compassionate. That's why she dared to elope with Zhou Jin."
Yang Yun sighed and continued, "After Zhou Jin left, she became like this. Everyone thought she had been suppressing her temper, fearing that Zhou Jin would abandon her if she turned her true self. Her true colors only showed after Zhou Jin left."
Lu Ling smiled and said, "How ridiculous!"
"She has good intentions, but her words are unpleasant to the ear. Please don't mind it," said Yang Yun.
Lu Ling just found it a little funny. These people were afraid that he would hurt her, so they all spoke well of her.
Lu Ling nodded and said that he didn't mind.
As soon as she finished speaking, Yang Yun left.
Lu Ling stared at the clothes on the floor and felt a headache.
*
The palace was magnificent, with the floor paved with gold bricks and the vermilion doors tightly closed. The emperor sat on the dragon throne, holding a memorial in his hand, while a group of ministers in red official uniforms stood below, trembling with fear.
"Hmph! Xie Heng actually dared to pretend to obey but actually disobey! And he even let that woman steal the show in the military camp. This is exile, not childish play." The memorial in his hand was thrown to the ground. The emperor stood up with his hands on his hips and said angrily.
"Your Majesty, please calm down. General Xie must have his reasons for keeping people in the military camp. Otherwise, he would not have kept the daughter of a guilty minister in the military camp. Wouldn't this endanger the safety of the army?" said Wu Gang, the Minister of War.
"What reason does he have! He just wants to protect the daughter of the guilty minister." The emperor retorted.
"In this case, why doesn't the emperor issue an edict to exile that man to another place?" Someone in the court stood up and said.
"Xie Heng has been in Shu for more than ten years. I'm afraid he has already colluded with many local officials. I'm afraid it would be useless to exile him to other places." said Liu Yong, the Minister of Works.
"Your Majesty, I think Xie Heng needs to be thoroughly investigated," said Liu Yong.
The emperor's expression was so cold that it was hard to tell whether he was happy or angry.
"Your Majesty, General Xie has served the country for more than ten years. If we investigate him thoroughly for such things, I'm afraid he will be disheartened." An old man stood up and said.
"Your Majesty, I think we should start with the investigation of small matters. If we don't, I'm afraid this kind of atmosphere in the army will only become more prevalent, and the punishment of exile will become a joke." Wu Gang said.
The old man continued, "Your Majesty, Xie Heng holds great prestige in the army, and the people admire him greatly. This incident will not only chill the hearts of General Xie, but also those of the people and those who wish to serve the country."
The emperor listened to these ministers talking to each other, with a hint of displeasure on his face.
"Okay, okay, let's do as Wu Gang said, thoroughly investigate Xie Heng, and exile Lu Ling to the northwest." After the emperor said this, he withdrew from the court.
The old man stood there in a daze, his face full of helplessness.
"Lord Ouyang, don't waste your words on Xie Heng anymore. It was Xie Heng's fault in the first place." Liu Yong walked up to Ouyang Liang and said.
"Liu Yong, you are putting Daliang in danger." Ouyang Liang pointed at him and said.
"Lord Ouyang is wrong to say that. I am doing great service to Daliang." Liu Yong straightened his clothes and said with a smile.
"Speaking of which, Lord Ouyang is seventy-two years old this year. Hasn't he ever thought about retiring?" Liu Yong asked with a smile.
"How can I retire when someone like you is in the court? Even if I die, I will die in the court and die for Daliang." Ouyang Liang said seriously.
"Then Lord Ouyang, please live a long life and don't let me gain power." After Liu Yong finished speaking, he smiled and left.
Liu Yong had just turned forty and originally respected Ouyang Liang, but for some reason, this man had always liked to oppose Ouyang Liang since he entered the court.
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