Chapter 19 Chapter 19 Be quiet... She is not a good person...
Cen Xiu began to look at Xie Tingyu with admiration.
If we say that the last time he was in the limelight at Qingliang Villa, Cen Xiu simply regarded Xie Tingyu as the young master.
Now, Xie Tingyu hit the target with an arrow from fifty steps away. Cen Xiu almost knelt down to Xie Tingyu on the spot, kowtowed three times, and asked if she could be accepted as a disciple.
Because, this is so cool!
Xie Tingyu turned around and walked down the rockery, walking towards those useless palace soldiers with an expressionless face.
The soldiers had not yet recovered from the shock of the arrow piercing the shield when they saw Xie Tingyu striding towards them with a frosty face.
They had all heard the stories about Xie Tingyu's "weak, miserable and old" youth, so when they learned that it was she who shot the arrow, they couldn't help but look at each other in surprise.
Two of them who were more perceptive immediately stood up, picked up the cards on the stone table, and stuffed them all into their arms.
Xie Tingyu walked up to the soldiers and stood in front of them. Her gaze was like a sharp sword, scanning their expressions one by one, and suddenly asked, "Let me ask you, what are your duties in the Xie Mansion?"
Everyone looked at each other, and no one dared to say a word.
Xie Tingyu raised his chin slightly, "The tallest one in the middle, you go ahead."
The mansion soldier who was called turned pale and had to take a half step forward, clasping his fists, and answered with a stiff upper lip, "Young Master, according to the rules of the Xie Mansion, our duties are as follows. First, guard the mansion and ensure its safety. Second, patrol at night. Third... third... and... we must practice martial arts in the training grounds every five or ten days."
Xie Tingyu stroked the bowstring nonchalantly, "So you guys knew that. I thought you were all focused on playing Mahjong."
The soldiers were sweating profusely. It was the scorching summer, but they felt as cold as if they were in the dead of winter. When the young master plucked the bowstring, the vibrating "buzzing" sound made their hearts tremble.
I saw this young master from afar a few days ago. Judging from her appearance, she seemed to be a gentle lady. Who would have thought that she could show such skill with a bow and arrow? Judging from her expression, I'm afraid she won't give up today.
Everyone just felt that they were unlucky to be caught today, as there were usually not many people around at this time.
"Young Master, I know I was wrong, I hope..."
As soon as Xie Tingyu raised his hand, everyone fell silent.
"If we are caught red-handed..." Xie Tingyu handed the bow to Cen Xiu and removed the feathered arrow nailed to the sycamore tree. With his hands behind his back, he slowly walked around the crowd, "According to the rules of our Xie family, what should you do?"
Everyone lowered their heads and remained silent. All they could hear was the sound of Xie Tingyu's footsteps on the bluestone slabs. Every step seemed to step on their hearts, and they dared not breathe.
"Cen Xiu, you speak."
Cen Xiu, who was called out by name, shuddered and replied loudly, "Reporting to the young master, those who neglect their duties will be punished with twenty strokes of the cane and a deduction of three months' salary at the very least. At the worst, they will be expelled from the Xie residence and will never be allowed to serve as guards in the Jiankang prefectures again."
Those who were playing Mahjong just now suddenly turned pale.
Twenty strokes of the cane would be fine, but being expelled from the Xie Mansion would mean a complete loss of one's future. After all, being expelled from such a prestigious family would most likely be considered taboo in the eyes of others. Even if one's martial arts skills were excellent, carrying the label of "abandoned pawn of the Xie family" would make other noble families afraid to use him, and he wouldn't even be able to serve as a caravan guard.
Moreover, the world is in turmoil right now, with refugees from the north pouring in from outside Jiankang City daily. Working in the Xie Mansion not only means a regular monthly salary, but also guaranteed clothing for all four seasons and three meals a day. Even the elderly and children at home can be taken care of. If I were kicked out...
"Alas, my luck is really bad today. I should have avoided touching those cards earlier." The palace soldiers all thought to themselves.
Xie Tingyu surveyed the sullen expressions of the crowd and said in a cold tone, "You don't really think this is just a trivial matter of playing mahjong, do you?"
She turned her wrist and aimed the arrowhead of the eagle-feather arrow at the soldiers, tapping them lightly on their armor capes from time to time. The crisp "ding, ding" sound was particularly harsh in the silent West Garden.
When the soldiers heard this, their hearts sank.
The arrowhead suddenly hit the upper arm armor of one of the men, and with a slight flick, the strap was untied.
"Do you think it's easy to support these palace soldiers? The monthly salary you receive, the chain mail and arm guards you wear, the ring-handled swords you wear at your waists, all these expenses, which one of them is not funded by the Xie family's money?"
The armor fell to the ground with a clang, and the man trembled all over, but did not dare to bend down to pick it up.
Xie Tingyu put away his arrows, hands behind his back, and raised his voice: "My mother gave you a monthly salary and entrusted her life and property into your hands. Is this how you serve your master? You are so careless on weekdays, neglecting your duties when on duty, and your morale is so low. If we were attacked by the enemy, wouldn't you just run away in panic? With your character, how can you protect my mother and father? Are you really going to use a handful of dice as hidden weapons?"
She glanced at everyone with disdain, "Now you know where you went wrong?"
This feeling of oppression is intimidating, like a mighty general who has been on many battlefields and will not tolerate any dereliction of duty by his subordinates.
Everyone swallowed their saliva in confusion, their faces turning from blue to red and then to white.
"Young Master..."
"Young Master, I know I was wrong. Please punish me."
"Young Master, I am willing to take turns on duty day and night, and make meritorious contributions while serving my sentence."
The soldiers all knelt on one knee, saluted with their fists, and begged for forgiveness in unison.
"This is only a minor punishment, not a major offense. Now everyone should return to their posts immediately. After the shift change at 12:00 PM, each of you will go to the punishment room to receive twenty strokes of the cane. As for the monthly salary, since we are all here to make a living, I will only fine you one month."
Everyone was as if blessed with great honor, thanked him in unison, and left after receiving the order.
Xie Tingyu turned around and took back the horn bow, and asked Cen Xiuxin to act as a target. After practicing on it for an entire afternoon, his inner clothes were all wet, and the plain fabric stuck to his back, making him very uncomfortable.
She went straight back to Changhaoyuan to take a shower and rest.
At this moment, she was wearing a moon-white inner garment and a dark blue outer robe. She sat on the couch, her fingers tapping her chin while her other hand rhythmically tapped the small table. This was a subconscious movement she made when she was thinking.
...No? Something really feels off. Am I missing something?
Xie Tingyu suddenly realized and immediately called Wei Fenghua over. After giving him some instructions, Wei Fenghua came over with three volumes of books in his hands.
This is a directory that records the troops who defended the Xie family mansion and the village, including their age, place of origin, etc.
There are now 479 people on standby in the government office, and there are more than 2,300 people in the farm responsible for protecting the fields, guarding the farm and patrolling. Together, these are enough to match the standing military force of a small county.
Having lived in the Wang family's residence in Langya for several years, I'd witnessed the rigorous training of their soldiers, practically on par with border troops. Consequently, the Wang family's residence had always been well-maintained, with no thieves or bandits ever so foolishly causing trouble.
Thinking of this, Xie Tingyu decided to reorganize the soldiers in the mansion first, and then set rules for rotation, training, etc. After everything in the mansion was in order, she would go to the farms below to inspect and rectify things.
As the saying goes, only by preventing problems before they arise can we be safe.
Jiankang was currently experiencing unrest, with refugees from the northern invasions constantly migrating southward. This time, Grand Tutor Xie Qingyan and Grand Minister of Agriculture Yuan Zhaoyun were on a mission specifically for this matter. Everything needed to be prepared in advance, lest something unexpected were to happen and leave them helpless.
Early the next morning, Xie Tingyu gathered all the people except those who were beaten for playing mahjong and could not get out of bed. After setting a series of rules, he selected a few of them with good looks and good skills to form a team of personal guards, who were specifically used to accompany him and protect him on his travels.
Xie Tingyu's grandiose actions naturally reached Xie Qingyan's ears. She then hinted to her subordinates that they could provide Xie Tingyu with some help when appropriate, such as writing letters to the Wang family of Langya or the Huan family of Qiaoguo to ask them for advice on how to manage the palace soldiers, so as to avoid mistakes due to lack of experience.
But surprisingly, Xie Tingyu was not just a show-off. She personally reviewed the martial arts of each of the palace soldiers and was able to rearrange the troops according to each person's specialty.
The originally lazy and disorganized soldiers of the Xie family mansion were completely transformed under Xie Tingyu's command. They gathered in the morning when they heard the drum and dispersed at sunset according to orders. They were well-organized and advanced and retreated in a measured manner.
Xie Qingyan was amazed when he saw this. He didn't expect that Xie Tingyu was so talented in military management. He immediately wanted to recommend her to the Sirong Mansion.
But it's still a bit difficult.
After all, Xie Tingyu served as a prayer envoy in the palace, and was despised by military officers. He had not achieved anything yet. It was impossible for him to drag the Protector General of the Imperial Army, Huan Zhanyue, to the palace to watch Xie Tingyu train the palace soldiers.
"Last time, my wife wrote to me, hoping that Protector Huan would serve as Tingyu's archery instructor." Father Xie pushed a cup of freshly brewed tea onto the table. "I think this is a good idea. If you take your time, you'll have a happy ending. My wife, don't be impatient."
Xie Qingyan nodded, stroking the edge of the teacup with his fingers: "Let's wait and see tomorrow."
It happened that Xie Tingyu had finished his work in the palace, so she spent ten consecutive days in Xie's mansion training the palace soldiers, busy from morning to night.
There was a crisp sound.
The dice spun around on the chessboard, finally settling on five and three, ready to make a move.
Ji Lian's hand, holding the chess pieces, hung suspended in mid-air. Backgammon, which she had once enjoyed playing for her own amusement, now seemed dull. The carved window was wide open, and the chirping of cicadas outside only added to the gloom.
Bored, he stood up and randomly took a volume of Yuefu poetry from the bookshelf, forcing himself to concentrate on it. However, he hadn't read many pages when someone's clear yet slightly teasing voice rang out in his ears, "Your Highness, why did you lose again? Do you need me to give you the upper hand?"
Ji Lian nodded and looked out the window.
There was a thud. Jiangzhu accidentally knocked the corner of the table when pouring tea for him.
Ji Lian withdrew her thoughts, tracing the embroidery on her wide sleeves with her fingertips. As if casually asking, "So, Xie Tingyu has been busy praying in the palace these days, so he doesn't have time to come to Posuo Pavilion this afternoon?"
Jiangzhu was caught off guard by the question and looked confused. "I don't know. How about I go outside and ask?"
Ji Lian turned to the next page and hummed an unclear "hmm" from her nose.
Jiangzhu returned quickly. He said, "Your Highness, Master Xie's mission has long since concluded, so he hasn't been in the palace for many days. If Your Highness wishes..."
"What are you thinking about? I'm not thinking about it..." Ji Lian's face suddenly changed, and he snapped the poetry book shut. In a corner where no one could see, a crimson crept up the back of his neck, then spread to the tips of his ears, and finally, blatantly, dyed his cheeks.
Ji Lian covered her face with the poetry collection, her voice muffled between the pages, "I don't miss her at all. It's best if she's not around. She always makes me angry."
The cicadas are chirping outside the window again.
Ji Lian took the poetry collection down, let out a long breath, and turned to look at the cicadas fluttering their wings on the tree trunk. "So noisy," he said in a low voice. "Be quiet... She's not a good person... Don't think about it."
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