Chapter 22 Chapter 22 Can I refuse this reward tonight...

Chapter 22 Chapter 22 Can I refuse this reward tonight...

In the end, Cheng Mingyu was unable to accompany Cheng Yian to the restaurant. A deputy censor from the Censorate came to the outside of Donghua Gate and said that there was a problem with the grain transport and several lives had been lost, and he was needed to coordinate the situation. Cheng Yian was also very tired and wanted to go back and rest early, so the father and daughter said goodbye at Donghua Gate.

All the way from Qionghua Island to Donghuamen, except for some polite words, the father and daughter had almost no communication. Cheng Yian was not used to the change of identity yet, and her brother and sister spoke easily. Her father's identity was different after all. Cheng Yian couldn't tell why. She had no mother since she was a child, and she had never received father's love. The unsatisfied desire slowly became like a landslide hole, which was getting deeper and deeper and could not be easily filled up.

I couldn't say "Daddy" out loud.

She never learned to bark.

She stood on the side of the car and waved at him, smiling.

"Please go and do your work. I will be leaving soon."

Cheng Mingyu naturally hoped that she would call him daddy, but he also knew that it would not happen in a hurry.

Fortunately, she had instructed the housekeeper to deliver the food box from the Cheng family. Cheng Mingyu personally took it and handed it to her.

"Eat well and go back to have a good rest."

"Okay!" Cheng Yian bent down and got into the carriage.

When she opened the lunch box, there were five or six side dishes, including her favorite carrot cake, rouge goose breast, and a small bowl of wild duck and mushroom soup. It was obvious that he had asked about her preferences. Cheng Yian quietly lifted the curtain, but he was still standing there, never moving. The father and daughter looked at each other for a long time before they looked away.

The cooking skills of the Cheng family chef were more to her liking. With all her worries gone, she was in the mood to enjoy the food.

Lu Xusheng was busy until the evening when he entered the city from the west gate. When he arrived at the Meridian Gate, a trusted servant was already waiting there and told him what had happened in the palace that day.

Lu Xusheng's face paled and he was silent for a moment. He threw the reins to the servant and stood under the city wall for a while.

The boy hurriedly took the reins he threw to him and told him,

"The Second Madam scolded the Yao girl, saying that it was you and the soldiers at the border who blocked the breach in the border town with your flesh and blood, which gave her the opportunity to brag about it here..."

It was this sentence that kept lingering in his ears. Lu Xusheng began to picture the tone of her voice in his mind. He couldn't help but smile. He looked up and heard a crow's cry fly over his head, gradually leaping towards the depths of the sea of ​​clouds. The long palace corridor stood majestically on both sides, leaving him a sliver of sky, which was shrouded in blue clouds. He vaguely recalled those dark years in the Silver Mountain.

Those young faces went from being high-spirited to fighting to the death. Even in the most dangerous moments, those one thousand soldiers never thought of giving up. The body of their commander-in-chief fell into the hands of the enemy, which was a shame for the entire army. Even if they repelled the advance of Prince Nankang, they still could not reverse the downward trend of the Jin Dynasty. Ever since the previous emperor's hundreds of thousands of troops were annihilated in the Battle of Jinshan Fort, the three words "Prince Nankang" have been a dark cloud hanging over the head of the Jin Dynasty. It would be difficult to avenge the shame without getting rid of Prince Nankang.

This is a battle for national destiny.

It is a responsibility to rush forward.

From a thousand men, they went to the mountains to set up ambushes, and slowly reduced their numbers to five hundred, three hundred, two hundred, and finally one hundred....

The boy, who was about the same age as him, lay under a deep rock with his legs broken and unable to move. He was as thin as a stick, but he still managed to cut his wrist with a sharp stone. The drops of blood slowly gathered into the dried sheepskin spoon and passed to him. The desire to survive was always in his eyes.

"Major General, stay alive...you must stay alive..."

Live with everyone's mission.

Yes, it was these mouthfuls of blood that saved the lives of the remaining one hundred soldiers, and it was this belief that allowed them to hold on day after day, and finally break out of the heavy encirclement of Baiyin Mountain, sneak into the Northern Qi camp, and make the three words "King of Nankang" become history.

A fire spread from the Nankang king's tent all the way to the Silver Mountain, burning everything to ashes, and he never even found their bodies afterwards.

Ahead, going up along the vast Danxi Tree, 108 stone steps lead all the way to the solemn Fengtian Hall. Lu Xusheng walked slowly forward. He had never walked so slowly before, as if he was stepping on the backbone of his comrades.

Halfway through the walk, an endless cold wind rushed in from behind. Lu Xusheng seemed to hear someone calling him and could not help but look back.

It was as if countless heroic spirits were standing behind him, but upon closer inspection, one could not see their voices or faces, only distant mountain ranges and rippling clouds.

The emperor summoned Lu Xusheng to Lu's study.

Lu Xusheng reported the military affairs as usual, and the emperor personally poured him a cup of tea and pushed it in front of him.

"I'm sure you know what happened today."

Lu Xusheng's expression remained the same, and he nodded, "I heard that. I just want to ask your majesty, is An An injured?"

The emperor glanced at him and asked, "You are injured. What are you going to do?"

Lu Xusheng looked at him quietly without saying anything.

Only this brat dared to look the emperor in the face without changing color. The emperor snorted.

"It's okay. She's fine. She beat three people by herself. It's very satisfying."

Lu Xusheng smiled, looking proud, "She is worthy of being my wife."

The emperor glared at him and asked tentatively, "What are you going to do with the Yao girl?"

Lu Xusheng said calmly, "Your Majesty, you can do whatever you want to do with her. Didn't my wife teach her a lesson for me?"

The emperor looked at Lu Xusheng's calm face and suddenly let out a long sigh.

Lu Xusheng looked calm and indifferent, but in reality he was unruly. The Emperor thought that Lu Xusheng would kill the Yao girl for insulting him, but he just brushed it off.

"Why?"

The emperor seemed to be insisting on a reason.

Lu Xusheng suddenly turned around, his gaze leaped out the window and fell on the palaces dotted around on both sides.

The government office area not far away was ablaze with lights all night long, and palace servants and officials could be seen moving back and forth in an orderly manner everywhere. Under this seemingly peaceful imperial city, there were countless piles of bones, and those people moving back and forth were nothing more than duckweed in this vast world.

At this moment, the emperor heard him suddenly speak,

"Your Majesty, we didn't survive so hard just to kill..."

The emperor's body trembled violently. Such an ordinary sentence suddenly made the emperor feel infinite sadness in his heart.

Three years have passed, a full three years. This is the first time that Lu Xusheng has given an account of what happened at Baiyin Mountain.

We do not live to kill.

When I looked at him again, that heroic figure had been gone for a long time and disappeared into the night long ago.

The emperor's heart was dominated by a myriad of emotions, with only one thought in his mind, which was not to let those soldiers be humiliated.

"Someone come."

The emperor, who was known for his leniency, frowned and ordered coldly,

"Issue an order to have Yao's daughter imprisoned in the palace and to serve her sentence for life."

The Yi Ting was a cold palace in the northwest corner of the imperial palace, where many palace maids or wives of officials who had committed crimes were imprisoned. It was also privately called the Nei Zhao Prison.

*

When Lu Xusheng returned to the mansion, Cheng Yian had already fallen asleep.

He glanced towards the east room in surprise, "Sleeping so early?"

It is only three quarters past ten o'clock.

Rulan held a pot of freshly picked late chrysanthemums in her hands, and came over to whisper, "To tell you, Second Master, Second Mistress was furious when she came back. She fell asleep while she was so angry."

Did you get so angry that you fell asleep?

Prospects.

Lu Xushengmo

He went into the bathroom silently, washed himself slowly, and got on the bed wearing a dark blue robe.

There was a glass lamp burning on the dressing table. Lu Xusheng could see her face clearly in the light. Her plump oval face was softly sunken between the pillows, her thick eyelashes were neatly spread under her eyes, her skin was as soft as snow, and she was sleeping very well.

He seemed to have never looked at her so seriously before.

Lu Xusheng walked over, raised his hand to stroke the ends of her hair, tucked the few messy strands of hair behind her ears, revealing her face completely, and looked at her quietly for a long time.

Looking at it this way, this face is truly impeccable, as if Nuwa had created this beauty in one breath, without a single flaw.

How could such a delicate and gentle person actually resort to violence?

The rough fingertips could not help but rub her cheeks, the delicate skin made people reluctant to let go but unable to stop. This movement probably woke her up, Cheng Yian opened her misty eyes,

Lu Xusheng took his hand back, sat aside and looked at her, and asked her confusedly,

"Which hand did you hit?"

Very serious tone.

Cheng Yian was still in shock, so he obediently took out his right hand and threw it in front of him.

"This hand, what? Are you blaming me?"

Lu Xusheng said no and asked softly, "Does it hurt?"

This time, Cheng Yian did not hide anything and said with grievance,

"How can it not hurt? It's still burning now."

I didn't notice it at first, but when I got home and had dinner, my palms were covered in red.

Lu Xusheng held her palm in his arms and rubbed it, "Don't stand up for me next time."

Cheng Yian glared at him, "Why?"

"To prevent the soldiers in the barracks from thinking that Mr. Lu is a freeloader."

Cheng Yian chuckled.

That night, Mr. Lu saw that Cheng Yian had a good sleep and wanted to reward her.

Cheng Yian was pressed into the quilt by him. His clothes were untied and he could feel the wind blowing in from outside.

"Do I have to have this reward?"

Lu Xusheng's eyes were deep, "When have you ever seen an arrow that can come back after being shot?"

"But I'm cold..."

The man at the top paused, holding her and changing his position. The quilt was pressed on her, so she was no longer cold, but...

Cheng Yian blushed and hit him hard, "Can't you just be quiet for one night?"

The man held her steady, "You're already fighting one against three, what's the point of this little battle?"

Cheng Yian gritted his teeth in anger.

Men are really not good people. They take advantage of others and still act ungratefully.

Never stand up for him again.

Cheng Yian grumbled and scolded him all night long.

The next day, Lu Xusheng took a day off and did not go to the government office. Instead, he accompanied Cheng Yian in the study to read.

Cheng Yian read a few poetry books in the morning, and in the afternoon he asked Li Ma to bring Lu Xusheng's notebook.

In the past, all of Lu Xusheng's businesses were in the hands of his second wife, Wang, and the shops and farms were also hers. It was almost time to settle the accounts at the end of the year, and she should take stock of the accounts so that she would have a clear idea of ​​who to hire and who not to hire, and then she would have a basis for doing so.

After a while, someone came and asked Lu Xusheng to come over, saying that the master wanted to see him for something.

After less than a quarter of an hour, he returned. Cheng Yian was calculating. Seeing him drinking tea alone, he asked,

"What happened?"

Lu Xusheng put down the teacup that was about to reach his mouth and said, "My uncle asked me to borrow some money."

Cheng Yian was shocked. "The Duke's Mansion is under the control of the Grand Master and his wife. Why would he borrow from you instead of going to the Mansion to get money?"

Lu Xusheng's expression was calm and composed.

"Some time ago, he made friends with a Southeast Asian businessman through a nobleman in the palace, and invested a lot of money in this business. As a result, the nobleman must have committed a crime and was in urgent need of money, so he asked me for help. He then asked me."

Cheng Yian sat up straight and asked, "You didn't agree?"

In his previous life, Lu Xusheng was a very macho man who didn't take money seriously. His brothers' families were very strict, so whenever they saw him, they would ask him to borrow money. As for him, as long as he had money in his pocket, he would lend it out, which made Cheng Yian very angry.

Seeing his wife's frown, Lu Xusheng quickly replied, "No, I rejected it outright. Besides, I would never lend money to others without asking you."

Lu Xusheng received Cheng Yian's sharp gaze and said with an embarrassed look, "I was wrong in the past. I will change."

Cheng Yian said unhappily, "What's wrong with you, Master? Is there no money in the treasury? Or is he deliberately trying to trick you?"

Lu Xusheng analyzed, "The public account probably doesn't look good either."

Cheng Yian was stunned for a moment, then he understood.

In her previous life, she was forced by the Second Madam to learn accounting from the First Madam. The First Madam complained to her every day, and she then realized that a Duke's Mansion like the Lu family may look glorious on the surface, but it is actually difficult inside. The First Master likes ostentation and face, and loves to save face in front of the clan members. If anyone encounters any disaster, he will take it on himself. But the Lu family is not like the Cheng family. They do not have that foundation. The Cheng family's eldest branch is capable of managing the food, clothing and daily expenses of all the clan members, and the clan members have a very high cohesion and are proud to be members of the Cheng family. But it is not the case with the Lu family. Those people in the Lu family's old house always like to take advantage of the First Master, and after getting any benefits, they slip back to their hometown to enjoy themselves. There is no backbone to preside over the clan affairs.

In this way, more money goes out than comes in, and over time, you have to tear down the east wall to repair the west wall.

Although the Lu family's reward was not as difficult as the eldest lady said, they had already shown signs of failure.

"What are you going to do?"

Lu Xusheng pondered and said, "We can't let them continue to lose."

It seems that he is planning to take action.

After sitting for a while, Lu Xusheng thought of the widows of his comrades and said he wanted to go to the south of the city. Cheng Yian ignored him.

The eldest master couldn't find Lu Xusheng, so he had to flatter the eldest lady.

"Take out three thousand taels of silver from the bottom of the box in the storehouse and give it to me."

The eldest lady, holding her box, sat in front of the dressing table and sneered at him.

"You still want to trick me? Last time you tricked me out of two thousand taels of silver, saying that you could make a lot of money with just two thousand. What about now? It will take time to turn rice into mulberry. You haven't even made your money back yet, and you want more money..."

The eldest master was embarrassed and asked, "Didn't the nobleman ask to borrow it?"

"Bah," the eldest lady laughed angrily and stood up. "When did he not say he was just borrowing money? Have you ever seen him pay it back? I have long told you that greed is the key to success. You should take care of our family business and live a good life. Your family should not have to worry about food and clothing, which is enough for you to squander. But you refused to listen and insisted on making trouble. You are greedy and you will not let go until you have a hole in your pocket every year."

At this point, the eldest lady suddenly became sad and cried, "I am not as lucky as Wang, I don't have a good son to support me. Otherwise, I would have learned from her and lived a life of luxury with a mountain of gold and silver."

Seeing the eldest lady sad, the eldest master said, "She's not having a good time either. I heard that Xusheng's share was taken away, and now she only has my second brother's share. She also has a useless son and an unmarried daughter, and they all depend on her for expenses."

"Hey, you look like you're feeling sorry for her?" The eldest lady looked at him sternly.

The old man was forced to retreat to the window, hesitating, "Am I so stupid?"

"Aren't you stupid enough? You don't have Cheng Mingyu's ability, but you want to live up to Cheng Mingyu's pomp? Don't you see who we are? How can we have such a big family to support your family members? There are many children in our family, and each of them is outstanding. I heard that the two young masters of the second and third rooms who are staying in the eldest room passed the autumn imperial examination and are just waiting for the results of the spring imperial examination next year. They can be called talented people. And you, you take your family members to eat, drink, gamble and whore all day long. There are so many young masters in your family, except for Xu Sheng who passed the imperial examination that year, there are only two who are successful candidates, and they are dukes. I am ashamed for you!"

The eldest master didn't like his wife comparing him with other men. His face immediately fell and he stormed out.

"If you don't want to give it to me, then don't give it to me. As for the dignity of a servant..."

Seeing that the man was scolded and sent away, the eldest lady became worried again, fearing that he would cause trouble behind her back, so she hurriedly shouted,

"Come back!"

The eldest master thought his wife had changed her mind, so he slowly peeked in from the window, deliberately frowning, "If you have anything to say, just say it!"

The eldest lady put down the box and came over, whispering, "The old lady still has some good friends. You should ask her for help first."

The third son was born out of wedlock, and the second son is dead, so the old lady has the eldest son in her hands.

The eldest master thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I'll go to the upper room."

In the afternoon, Cheng Yian woke up from a nap and remembered that the master was short of money. He was worried that the company had not received the monthly salary. He asked Ruhui if the monthly salary had been paid. Ruhui replied,

"It was only a few days late. It was only brought this morning. The forty taels from you and the Second Master are all here. Do you want to see them?"

Cheng Yian was about to say that it was not necessary when Lu Xusheng came in through the curtain.

"Have you been to the south of the city?"

"Yes, I have been there."

Lu Xusheng looked like he had something to say, so Cheng Yian winked and asked Ruhui to leave.

"What's the matter?" she asked with a smile.

Lu Xusheng rarely had this look on his face, he looked like a hero bending over backwards for a cause.

Seeing his wife's deep smile, Lu Xusheng touched his nose and said embarrassedly,

"An An, you know that one thousand soldiers followed me to Baiyin Mountain, nine hundred of them died, and only one hundred survived. In my heart, those nine hundred people are no different from my brothers. Most of them are children from poor families. It's almost the end of the year, and the family has to buy some clothes and New Year's goods..."

The man who was so powerful on the battlefield spoke so unconfidently for the first time, "Your Majesty gives me some money every year. It's not the end of the year yet, so I want to ask you for some money first, and then I'll give it to you when I get the money."

Cheng Yian had already agreed in her heart. Lu Xusheng's family assets were all in her hands. As long as there was a legitimate reason, she would not stop him. She could not let a man lose face outside because of a little money. However, in order to avoid encouraging his arrogance, Cheng Yian still pretended to be reluctant.

"It's not impossible to give it to you, but it's just one place. You have to discuss everything with me, and you can't make promises behind my back."

Lu Xusheng repented and agreed readily.

Cheng Yian asked him how much silver he wanted, and Lu Xusheng said he wanted one thousand, so Cheng Yian called Ruhui and gave it to him.

A few more days passed, and it was almost the end of October. As winter was approaching, the Cheng family came to pick someone up.

The one who came this time was Cheng Yijun, the only son of the second elder of the eldest house. He was also a handsome young man. Although he looked a little immature and not as experienced as Cheng Yiyan, he was very sincere.

He bowed to Lu Xusheng.

"Shenzhi's brother-in-law, my grandmother sent me to take sister An home to stay for a while."

He is older than Cheng Yian but younger than Lu Xusheng. He calls himself brother-in-law, but he does not have half the aura of Lu Xusheng. His advantage is that his eyes and eyebrows are lively and he looks very likable.

Lu Xusheng received him in the front hall and asked with a frown, "How long is a while?"

Before Cheng Yijun came, Cheng Yiyan had told him not to give Lu Xusheng a definite answer, so he rubbed the back of his head and replied, "About half a month?"

Lu Xusheng's face turned cold.

"Oh, maybe in seven or eight days."

Lu Xusheng's lines are still.

Cheng Yijun said with a headache, "Stay for a few days and see how An An feels. If your brother-in-law misses you, you can come and pick her up, right?"

He never mentioned letting Lu Xusheng live with him.

This was Cheng Yiyan's order. Cheng Yijun always obeyed his cousin's orders and dared not disobey.

Cheng Yian was listening at the side, thinking, why didn't he even bother to say a word of courtesy and take Lu Xusheng along as well?

Lu Xusheng knew it very well, and it was his words last time that offended his father-in-law.

"What's taking so long?"

Cheng Yijun explained solemnly, "The first day of the winter month is our Cheng family's annual New Year's Eve banquet. It starts on the first day and lasts for half a month. All of our clansmen gather in the eldest house, and my uncle distributes the annual rituals and gifts to them, ranging from living things, food, jewelry, furs to money, more than a dozen categories, which take several days to prepare. There is a buffet every day. It is the grandest and most lively banquet day for our Cheng family."

"In the past, married women would just come home to join in the fun and have a banquet. Since my uncle took over the family, even married women have been given a share. An An's status is now out in the open, and my grandmother has instructed that we must come in person to pick her up and let her stay for a while."

To put it bluntly, most of the annual rent from the Cheng family's properties all over the world has been collected. Now the warehouse is full of treasures, so the people from the eldest house have to pick them first.

Among the children of the eldest son, Cheng Yian was chosen first.

For other married-out daughters, it would only take one letter to get them married, but Cheng Yian was different. They were afraid that the invitation would not work and that Lu Xusheng would interfere. So the ancestor dispatched troops and sent the famous nerd from the eldest house. Lu Xusheng could refuse Cheng Yiyan but not Cheng Yijun.

Don't bully honest people.

Lu Xusheng turned his head to look at Cheng Yian.

"Are you really going?"

"Of course I will."

She had been waiting for this day for a long time, hoping to take back her mother's dowry when the eldest branch of the family distributed dividends to the fourth branch.