Chapter 28 The Master Dotes on Miss Zhuang
The cause of the incident started in Hezhou. The magistrate of Chang'en County in Hezhou impeached the governor of Hezhou for privately setting taxes and stealing national funds. This incident immediately caused an uproar.
Hezhou was the ancestral home of the Liang family and had always been considered the family's foundation. The Hezhou prefect's private tax collection was clearly aimed directly at the Liang family, with Duke Xin bearing the brunt of the blame.
However, before Duke Xin could say anything, Pei Xingju stood up to defend him.
He spoke with a fair expression, saying that although Hezhou was Duke Xin's hometown, it was not his fiefdom, and that Duke Xin was in the capital, so he couldn't reach him. He said, "Don't wrongly accuse a good man. Since the problem lies with taxes, then investigate the tax issue."
This pointed the finger at the Ministry of Revenue, which annually settled taxes across the country and could have been unaware of Hezhou's private tax collection. Furthermore, the Chang'en County magistrate had provided several account books, further confirming the Ministry's guilt.
Gao Jing of the Censorate had sufficient reasons to impeach the Liang family and the Queen Mother with even greater righteousness, and he also scolded Pei Xingju for speaking for the Duke of Xin and being in cahoots with the corrupt.
Pei Xingju rubbed his nose and retired after accomplishing his mission.
The construction of the Taimiao was completely delayed, and the empress dowager was really angry and fell ill.
The Empress Dowager was unhappy and would inevitably take her anger out on the Emperor. The Emperor, deeply in mourning, had no choice but to dismiss Gao Jing, the Censorate's official, to appease the Empress Dowager's anger.
Upon learning of this, Pei Xingju hurried into the palace.
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Pei Xingju had been busy with state affairs and hadn't returned home for many days. When he did return, it was usually late at night. In short, Zhuang Wan hadn't seen him for several days.
She was bored, so she just played around with Uncle Niu about eating.
Zhuang Wan deeply believed that great people should hide in the wild. Even in his previous life, Uncle Niu was considered a gourmet expert. He was usually trapped in the kitchen, preparing large pots of rice, and was unable to show his skills. But after making crayfish with Zhuang Wan, the gourmet expert and the foodie began to connect.
So, Zhuang Wan was responsible for paying the money, and Uncle Niu was responsible for finding the ingredients, and the two of them had a good understanding.
For example, roast chicken should be wrapped in early spring lotus leaves and roasted to be fresh and fragrant; red mushrooms should not be stir-fried, but fried in peanut oil to be fully flavorful; and when eating mutton hot pot, the soul of the dish should be added with coriander.
After a few days of leisurely time, Jingzhe, which had disappeared for more than half a month, came back.
Jingzhe had changed a lot, becoming thinner and darker, but still had that serious look. Seeing Zhuang Wan and several other maids discussing how to eat, she was speechless.
Not long after, Lixia also squeezed over to join in the fun, and her expression became even more complicated.
"Jingzhe, do you want to have a taste?" Zhuang Wan asked her.
Jingzhe stood straight at the door and shook his head: "Thank you, Miss Zhuang, but it's not necessary."
"What a pity! This grouper is extremely rare."
Lixia nodded in agreement.
After eating and drinking her fill, Zhuang Wan suddenly felt like she had endless energy. She stood at the foot of the wall for a moment, then suddenly ordered, "Qiutan, go get a hoe."
Qiu Tan responded and went there immediately.
Jingzhe asked, "What does Miss Zhuang want a hoe for?"
"Loosen the soil," Zhuang Wan pointed at the base of the wall. "There are lots of earthworms here, and the soil is fertile, perfect for growing flowers."
Jingzhe's mouth twitched. It turned out that this person planned to stay in Pei Mansion for a long time.
However, she didn't know that Pei Xingju's attitude towards Zhuang Wan had changed long ago. When he sent Jingzhe and Lixia to monitor Zhuang Wan's every move, Jingzhe privately thought that Zhuang Wan was a spy sent by someone else.
Now, I still think so.
Seeing that she wanted to plant flowers in the osmanthus courtyard, Jingzhe thought for a moment and stepped forward to stop her, saying, "Miss Zhuang, I'm afraid this is not appropriate."
"Why is it inappropriate?"
"We adults don't like flowers."
Zhuang Wan nodded. This was obvious. The entire Pei Mansion had almost no flowers or plants, and the few trees that did exist were old locust trees.
She said, "Who doesn't like flowers? I'll have a field of roses here, and next spring the walls will be covered in pink. How pleasing to the eyes."
She took the hoe and started digging with great effort.
Jingzhe wanted to stop her again, but Lixia came forward and shook her head at her.
Lixia pulled her aside and whispered, "Don't interfere in Miss Zhuang's affairs in the future. Just let Miss Zhuang do as she pleases."
Jingzhe is puzzled.
"You just came back and you don't know yet, but the master dotes on Miss Zhuang very much. Not only did he accompany her to the cloth shop to choose clothes, he also gave her money and told her to treat this place as her own home and do whatever she wants."
Jingzhe was surprised and looked a little confused. What happened during the half month she was away?
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It rained in the afternoon, and the raindrops were as big as beans, smashing the rose seedlings that Zhuang Wan had just planted into pieces.
She sat on the porch and sighed.
She has been feeling a little anxious lately, and as the days go by, she feels more and more insecure.
The book said Pei Xingju would recover his memory in six months, but now there were only three months left. What could she do in three months? She had originally wanted to paralyze Pei Xingju's stomach, but he had been missing for days, so there was no chance to see him.
After a while, Qiu Tan brought over a bowl of drink.
"What is it?"
"Uncle Niu made an osmanthus drink. Everyone got one. It tastes amazing. Miss, try it too."
Zhuang Wan took two quick sips and didn't think much of it.
Qiu Tan thought she missed her parents and brothers, so she told her some interesting things that happened in the capital.
"I heard the Duke of Xin's mansion held a coming-of-age ceremony the day before yesterday, and it was quite grand. One gentleman ran so fast that his hair crown tilted askew, and someone asked him if he wanted to have a coming-of-age ceremony, which caused everyone to laugh."
"Who will be crowned?"
"Prince Liang," Qiu Tan said, "Prince Liang will be able to enter the government as soon as he comes of age. Prince Liang is truly blessed, born into a wealthy family and with a powerful father. He doesn't need a recommendation to enter the government, nor does he need to study hard for the imperial examinations. He only needs to be blessed by his father's influence. How many people would envy him?"
Zhuang Wan nodded. Yes, if she had such a father, she wouldn’t have to suffer like this.
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The rain continued for several days, and Zhuang Wan watched helplessly as all her flower seedlings were drowned, as if she saw her hopeless fate in her struggle.
She was feeling a little down. After dinner, the maid asked her if she wanted some sour plum drink. Zhuang Wan waved her hand and dived into the quilt, wrapping herself up like a silkworm pupa.
I don’t know how long I slept, but when I was half asleep, I heard a commotion outside.
She opened her eyes and listened for a while, then asked Qiu Tan, "What happened?"
Qiu Tan was doing needlework under the lamp. She put down her things and came in after drawing the curtain.
"Miss, it's Master Pei who has returned."
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