Chapter 30: Ignorant and Informed "Oh, what do you mean?" Xie Hanshan...
"Oh, what did you say?" Xie Hanshan swallowed a mouthful of rice and asked slowly and methodically. He had learned this posture from Eunuch Su.
Ning De heard this and said resentfully, "Didn't you tell me to go check out Thirteenth Prince's house today? So I walked around the courtyard carefully and it took some time. I was afraid of delaying serving you your meal, so I took a shortcut. Who knew that I accidentally saw the steward sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs molesting a palace maid in the corner!" His face was full of anger when he said the last sentence.
Although Ning De was attentive to Xie Hanshan, it was merely survival wisdom. He had been assigned to the Southern Third Chamber upon entering the palace, and hadn't experienced any of the intrigues, so a trace of chivalry still remained in his heart. Now, seeing the palace maid being bullied, he actually felt a sense of sympathy. After all, his status was similar to that of the servant, both at the bottom of the social ladder. Before he hooked up with Xie Hanshan, his life wasn't necessarily that good either.
"Huh? Did you see it seriously?" Xie Hanshan was also a little surprised when he heard this and frowned.
Although the Nansanso was a gathering place for the princes, there were also female relatives, such as Qi Buchen and Yinzhi's two princesses. Therefore, the steward sent by the internal service could only be a eunuch. The dynasty strictly prohibited such practices, but it was certainly impossible to completely ban them. It was just that they were kept secret, afraid to let anyone know. This steward of the Imperial Household Department was quite bold, daring to molest the palace maids in broad daylight. If he were caught, he would be skinned alive.
"Why not?" Ning De said, "I've seen that maid twice before. She was cleaning the Seventh Prince's courtyard and was assigned there not long ago."
"Did you help that palace maid?" Xie Hanshan frowned even deeper.
Ning De was disappointed and said, "How could that be? I know my place and wouldn't dare cause any trouble for our master. I just made some noise on purpose to scare them away. I haven't shown my face since the beginning."
"That's good." Xie Hanshan relaxed his brow. Seeing Ning De's dejected look, he sighed, "This palace is just like this. You should have experienced this yourself, not to mention others. Even I, although I have some face in front of the concubine, am just a small pawn outside. Even Eunuch Su, who is by the master's side, has to smile when he meets the steward of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. After all, we are all under the control of others. If you get into trouble with them, I can't save you."
"Of course I wouldn't dare to interfere beyond my capabilities." Ning De shook his head like a rattle, paused, and hesitated, "Actually, I mentioned this because didn't Concubine De ask our wife to look after the Thirteenth Master's courtyard? I'm just afraid that if something bad happens here and someone finds out, it will affect the master's wife, and then she will be charged with negligence in supervision. Then..."
He hadn't finished speaking, but the worry on his face made it clear.
Xie Hanshan was also moved to deep thought by what he said. "You're right. It's better to be safe than sorry. The people in the Imperial Household Department are used to being arrogant and they don't do things strictly. If you can see it, it's possible that others will see it. If I meet a fool and shout it out without thinking, it will not be good for the master's reputation."
He frowned, pondering a solution. "Well... let's not talk about this for now. I'll ask my wife for instructions. I'll go to that courtyard more often every day to supervise it. I'll first interact with the manager and observe him. If he gets worse and doesn't stop, we'll find a way."
"I'll listen to you." Ningde nodded repeatedly.
Xie Hanshan thought for a moment and then said, "You should get to know the rough guys in our courtyard better and talk to them privately. There are so many people coming in and out of the South Third Institution nowadays, so tell them not to go out so often. And try to go out in pairs."
"no problem."
When Qi Buchen received Xie Hanshan's request to supervise the courtyard, he didn't think much of it. He just thought he wanted to work to show his ability, so he readily agreed. Thinking of the rumored reputation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, he simply allocated some activity funds to Xie Hanshan: "It will be difficult for you to deal with those people. Use what you need. If it's not enough, ask Yue Ma Ma."
Xie Hanshan felt that Fu Jin was truly wise and sage. How could he not work diligently for such a master? With silver and Ning De in hand, he went to try to get close to the steward of the Imperial Household Department with great confidence.
That day, Qi Buchen was curled up on the couch reading a novel. She had only just discovered that there were many different types of ancient novels. She was currently reading a book about strange people and unusual events. Although the classical Chinese was a little difficult to understand, she was still enjoying it.
As she watched, Qi Buchen found that the light was getting dimmer and dimmer. She looked out the window in confusion: "Is it going to rain?"
At this time, Songying came in from outside holding a lantern and replied, "Fujin, there is a solar eclipse outside."
"Solar eclipse?" Qi Buchen's eyes widened suddenly, then he threw down his book and stood up and ran out. He looked up at the sky and saw that there was not a single cloud, but half of the sun had turned black.
It really is a solar eclipse!
Baozhu chased her out and put a cloak on her, complaining, "Fujin, you're such a fool! At least put on some clothes before you go out. It's so cold, what will happen if you get sick again?"
Qi Buchen looked at her in surprise: "Solar eclipse, aren't you surprised?"
Didn't ancient people take solar eclipses very seriously? How come you're so calm?
"What's the big deal?" Baozhu was surprised. "I've seen it three or four times. Didn't Lady Furen also see the solar eclipse last year?" There was confusion and inquiry in her eyes.
Qi Buchen choked. She really didn't remember that her original self had seen a solar eclipse two years ago. She could only smile awkwardly: "It's just a strange thing to see."
Baozhu said nothing more: "After you've finished, you should go back quickly. It's cold outside."
"Yeah." Qi Buchen responded perfunctorily and glanced at the servants in the yard. She found that few people cared about the solar eclipse, which made her look ignorant, which made her a little disappointed.
When Yinzhen returned in the evening, Qi Buchen was unwilling to give up and approached him to ask, "Did you see the solar eclipse today?"
"Yes." Yinzhen nodded. "The Imperial Observatory calculated it a few days ago."
"Ah?" Qi Buchen was surprised. It turned out that astronomy was already so developed at that time?
Seeing her surprise, Yinzhen remembered that his wife probably had no chance to learn such knowledge at home, so he explained, "It's nothing. In the previous dynasty, people were able to calculate when a solar eclipse would occur. Since the emperor came to power, there have been ten solar eclipses. A solar eclipse is simply the invasion of the yin by the yang. It happens every once in a while, so there's no need to be surprised."
"Oh oh." Qi Buchen nodded blankly. It turned out that she was looking at the world from a narrow perspective.
"If you are interested in this, I have several books on calendar calculation that I can show you." Yinzhen remembered that he was very excited when he saw a solar eclipse for the first time, and then his father threw books all over his head.
No, no, that’s not necessary, Qi Buchen refused madly in her heart. Her current level of classical Chinese is only good enough for reading novels, so forget about the rest.
"That's not necessary. I haven't finished reading the book on hand yet." She smiled sweetly.
Yinzhen didn't insist, but brought up another matter: "The Emperor's father will be going to the Nanyuan hunting grounds soon, and I'll be going too. Is there anything you want? I'll have someone buy it for you then."
"Hmm..." Qi Buchen thought for a moment, but couldn't think of anything he wanted. "I don't want anything. But the Wanshou Festival is coming soon, so why not see if there are any good things out there that can be used as gifts?"
Yinzhen shook his head. "Right now, everyone in the capital is probably looking for gifts for the Emperor's birthday. Even if there's something good, who knows how many times the price will go up. My father's food and clothing are all under my control now, so there's no need to seek face. As long as the intention is there, it's fine."
The author has something to say:
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Yinzhen: I want to give a gift to my wife, but she says she doesn’t want it. Should I still buy it for her?
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