Chapter 174 Chapter 174 Update.
Yulu invited her to sit in the hall, and immediately a maid brought her tea.
"We should have met a long time ago, but I just returned from Youzhou because of the Yan Wang case, and a few days later I went back to fight there again, so we haven't been able to see each other since then. You come today, and you must see me before you leave."
He invited her to drink tea, and Yulu took his own tea and gulped it down. When he heard her talk about her current difficulties, he threw the cup and slammed the table, saying:
"What a wicked Li family! What a wicked Li Quanye! He relied on his grandfather's position as Minister of Agriculture to bully you to this extent! I will come to your house and bring that bastard here to face charges!"
The martial artist was very fast. He picked up a big knife from the table and rushed out the door in the blink of an eye. Ji Xu tried to stop him, but he couldn't catch up with him.
Fortunately, he was stopped by a man at the hall door.
"Changping absolutely cannot do that."
He was a young man wearing a half-worn Zen robe, holding a folding fan, and with an air of elegance that could not be concealed.
"Mr. Chen, why are you stopping me? That old scoundrel previously embarrassed my brother in the court, and now he's allowing his grandson to embarrass my brother's old friend. I'll use this knife to shave off all his beard and whiskers, and then throw him out on the street, so that this generation of nobles will also taste the shame of losing face!"
Chen Juan said, "You contradicted the Minister of Agriculture during your time in the court. The general orders you to repent. Do not cause trouble again, or even I will not be able to protect you."
He bowed to Ji Xu and said:
"You shouldn't have come. I just heard what you said outside. The Minister of Agriculture is one of the Nine Ministers. Although our general has made military achievements, his official position is still lower than his, and his foundation is unstable. If you still have feelings for him, you really shouldn't have spoken to our general about this. Please go back."
The Grand Minister of Agriculture, one of the Nine Ministers, has a rank of two thousand stones. Although the General of the Imperial Guards is now in a very high position, he is a subordinate of the Guanglu Xun, and his rank is slightly lower than that of two thousand stones. "Compared" means his rank is slightly lower than that of two thousand stones, which is below the Grand Minister of Agriculture.
Moreover, the Grand Minister of Agriculture had always looked down on the general and even dared to ridicule the general in public for being a Marquis of Guanwai. However, we still need to win over the Grand Minister of Agriculture on the matter of King Outuo. This is definitely not the time to make trouble, Chen Juan thought.
When Ji Xu saw Chen Juan's troubled expression, he knew that this matter was difficult to handle.
Although she was disheartened, she judged others by herself. Although she and Zhuang Gaiyi had some interactions, they were just old acquaintances from the same county and their friendship was not deep.
There was no reason to help this outsider and cause himself to commit crimes and have a bumpy official career. She understood what he meant and did not force him to do anything, so as not to embarrass him. She said:
"I was inconsiderate. I rushed over in a hurry and ended up causing Brother You more trouble. Now I know how difficult it is, so I won't say anything more. It's getting late, and I should go back after bothering you for so long."
"I send you!"
"Brother You, please stay."
Chen Juan bowed and made way for her to go out. He raised his hand to stop You Lu and said as he looked at the receding figure:
"If you truly wish the general well, then keep what happened today a secret and don't have any contact with her."
Yulu was so angry that he punched a big hole in the column.
"This job of a Beijing official is so frustrating. It's not as exciting as fighting a war!"
Ji Xu still remembered the way she came. After leaving the mansion, she couldn't find any ox carts or donkey carts to carry people or goods. Fortunately, she met an old man who was delivering firewood to an official's family. As the sun was setting, he drove an empty ox cart and kindly took her out of the territory of Changling Town.
When she reached the bank of the Wei River, the atmosphere of the city became even more lively. She hired a maid to take her back to Sangshu Lane before dark.
By chance, Tian had also returned from the dock and, at the entrance of the alley, she gave the rent and said:
"Where have you been all day? You were away only a short time when the market officials snatched away Jindou and Yindou's stewed food and ruined it. You returned with empty baskets, but you were the only one missing. I searched all over Wei Bridge, and just when I was getting anxious, a renter came to your house asking for money. He brought your basket and said you were meeting an old friend in Changling. Who was that old friend?"
"It's the Marquis of Muping. I heard he was promoted to General of the Imperial Guards. I wanted to ask him for help, but later realized it wasn't right, so I came back."
As he spoke, he brushed the dust off Tian's body.
"Are you tired today, Mom?"
"Your mother is the best at being lazy, how could I possibly be tired? The clothes were deliberately dirty, but you, after being exposed to the sun all day, your face has turned red. For dinner, I asked them to make some cold rice porridge, which you can eat later to cool off."
"Um."
Ji Xu thought a lot along the way. It didn't matter if the restaurant issue couldn't be resolved. His family had a house to live in, a cart, and horses. The loan money owed to the Wuyan family had already been deposited in the bank and could be repaid every month. He didn't have to worry about not having enough money for this purpose.
Now she just wants to make money to support herself, and she has decided to find a job to make a living and no longer worry about the restaurant business.
The mother and daughter went back together. She felt the bulge on Tian's waist and thought she had stolen something from the government again. When she was about to ask, she saw Tian take out a Hu pancake with linseed oil soaked through it.
"Isn't it delicious? I saw you from afar at the dock and just bought it for you. It's still hot.
Don't worry, your mother promised you long ago that she would stop stealing and cheating, and she will keep her word."
Ji Xu was convinced by what she said and broke off small pieces of the Hu pancake to eat.
"fragrant."
Having not eaten it for a long time, I felt that the Hu Bing was more delicious. I gave the remaining bigger ones to Tian Shi to eat, and Tian Shi pushed them to her.
"I only ate one, you ate the whole thing. Look how skinny you are. Mom is very happy that you can eat."
"Then leave the rest for my sister and the maids to share. They must be craving for it."
"Erfeng and Xiaozhu are fine, they are all my children. How can I give those four girls so much good food? I didn't sell them back to the scoundrel, which shows how kind I am. Do you still want to eat Hu Bing?" He went back and broke the remaining Hu Bing in half, giving half to Jifeng and half to Jizhu, and deliberately said in front of Sidou:
"I only bought one, just this one bite, and your sister saved it for you."
Jin, Yin, Tian, and Candou knew that he was talking to them, so they pretended not to be greedy and went about their business, watering the vegetables, sweeping the yard, collecting the clothes, and lighting the fire...
After Tian came into the room, Feng and Zhu went over to them one after another and patted them quietly. They each tore off a small piece and shared it with them. They all thought it was delicious and tacitly kept silent.
Tian bolted the door, took off her shoes and knocked out a piece of cinnabar. Who would have thought that she had hidden the thing in her shoes and didn't even feel uncomfortable.
I hid it secretly now, and when I saved enough, I would exchange it for money. I guessed that Ji Xu would go back to his room after taking a shower, so I put the mat back in place first.
From the next day, Ji Xu started looking for work everywhere. She had skills, but the restaurants asked about her background and found out that she was a wealthy girl in the past, so they didn't dare to hire her for fear of bringing trouble.
Passing by Gao City, I saw the bustling Manxianglou, with the smiling Hu the shopkeeper.
"I heard that a rich girl is looking for work everywhere now? I'm short of a handyman here, someone who can wash dishes and pour out slop every day. I'm afraid it would be a shame for you."
"How much are you giving?"
Ji Xu thought that she couldn't do business and no one in the restaurants dared to hire her. As long as Manager Hu could hire her, she would be willing to do odd jobs.
Ever since the braised food couldn't be sold at Weiqiaotou, Jin and Yindou followed Tian to pick up goods at the dock. She had wanted to go there too, at least her family wasn't excluded there.
But Tian refused, saying that she was weak and would be crushed by those people, so she should just stay at home and eat well to stay healthy.
Ji Xu knew that the more idle she was, the more she would worry and worry, and she couldn't let go of the past, so she went out to find some relatively easy work.
"Ten dollars a day, would you do it?"
Shopkeeper Hu said that this was an amount that had been intentionally withheld.
"I do."
"You are a dignified young lady, yet you come to work for me as a handyman. Aren't you afraid of being laughed at? Well, well, well, I'll take you in."
Two carriages with black canopies and red banners stopped in front of the Li family's door, and Zhuang Gaiyi, dressed in casual clothes, came out from inside.
Next to him was Youlu, whose face was as red as a pig's liver with anger. When his brother returned to the court to report on his work, the Grand Minister of Agriculture was very critical of him. The younger brother was so angry that he spoke rudely in the hall and offended the Grand Minister of Agriculture Li Dan. He came here to apologize.
Li Dan saw that their noses were not noses and their eyes were not eyes. He was so suffocated by the apology.
"Brother, you're out there killing enemies, but this old fellow looks down on us soldiers. If I had my temper, I would have pulled his old beard off!"
He didn't get in the carriage anymore. He untied a horse and climbed onto it, accompanying the carriage until they passed Gao City. When he could smell the aroma of wine and meat, he felt relieved. Pointing to the Manxiang Tower, he said:
"Since arriving in Beijing, I've often heard people talk about the best restaurant in the world, but I've never been there. Better today than tomorrow, let's go in and have a good drink!"
Seeing that the carriage curtain did not move at all, he dismounted and came to ask,
"Brother, since arriving in the capital, I've become increasingly concerned with formalities. There's a saying that a son of a wealthy family shouldn't enter the market. If you can't eat meat and drink wine to your heart's content, what's the point of being an official?"
I don't know what moved Zhuang Gaiyi to get off the bus. He looked around and smelled the fragrance, so he asked:
"How's the situation with the matter I asked you to inquire about?"
You Lu didn't dare to look at him, he just stepped into the Manxiang Building and muttered:
"No one in Chang'an has asked about her. Maybe she is not in Chang'an and has returned to her hometown."
Here, the shopkeeper Hu invited the two of them upstairs with a smile. This was the most elegant room, with a cloud shell screen, an ice jar, incense and flowers. However, the guests had just left, and a female servant was still tidying up the table, her back slender.
Shopkeeper Hu first coaxed the two of them to wait a moment, and from outside they could hear her whispered lecture:
"You are no longer the sought-after golden girl by customers. You should be more efficient. If you delay the payment of this month's salary to your customers, forget it."
"Um."
Although there is an ice tester here, Ji Xu is still busy and sweating. It is said that the shopkeeper Hu hired her originally to make fun of her, but she persisted for half a month and was assigned more and more work. Her arms have not stopped working today.
After wiping the food table and lighting the incense again, he picked up a basin of plates, cups, bronze bells and pots, got off the couch while Manager Hu was chattering, put on his shoes and went out.
"In that case, I'll ask the officials in Yangzhou to find out. If he really has returned to his hometown, it would be better than staying in Beijing..."
Before she could finish her words, she exchanged glances with the person who had just come out. She bared her two thin arms, holding a heavy earthenware basin, her hair sticking to her face. She hurriedly acknowledged the person and said,
"Marquis Muping?"
He was driven away by the shopkeeper Hu behind him:
"Don't stand there, little hoof, you're blocking the way for our distinguished guest."
Ji Xu nodded slightly and went out. You Lu's eyes were filled with shock, and he was afraid of Zhuang Gaiyi's scrutiny, so he told the truth.
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