Chapter 83 Rewards
Steward Xie knew that Mao Neng wasn't lying. After all, how could a servant thousands of miles away possibly know what his master was doing? But Mao Neng must have some information that his master wanted to know, so he brought him back.
He had just bowed to the Emperor Zhuwei when Minister Meng, with his eyes half-closed and hands in his sleeves, remained silent, resolutely carrying out his and Meng Ying's statement that "the road to heaven is wide open, let each go their own way."
Chief Meng gestured for Mao Neng to stand up and immediately got to the point: "Mao Neng, what happened when your master saved the Crown Prince? Tell me as much as you know."
Mao Neng said with a bitter face, "Master, I just heard about this from the bookstore and I don't know what happened... My master and I live nearly a thousand miles apart, so he couldn't possibly tell me what's going on at home."
Chief Meng asked, "Did your master leave you in the capital just to collect exam papers and current affairs papers? Did he ask you to follow other people's paths? Who were those people?"
Mao Neng's heart skipped a beat. Although these words came from the Meng clan chief, they had already overstepped the bounds.
The connections one's master maintains are extremely private matters; how could they be revealed in public? Even if he knew how the young master got involved with the crown prince, he wouldn't say it.
Mao Neng immediately replied, "I don't know. My master left me here for two reasons: first, to collect rent from the shop, and second, to collect current political and social issues circulating in the capital outside the various academies and bookstores, and send them to Biyang County once a month. As you gentlemen should know, our young master is now in a place like Biyang County, where he can't find any famous teachers to guide him. My master gave him this job because he knows a few characters, so that our young master wouldn't be out of touch with the capital for too long. I know nothing else about this."
Magistrate Meng certainly didn't just give him this job. He was indeed helping to maintain the few connections the master had. Everyone knew that he was collecting information on current affairs, and it was fine for him to say it. But he would never reveal the connections the master had asked him to maintain in secret.
He didn't think that the people sitting in the hall were all kind elders or loving brothers. Ever since his master was demoted, these people had been avoiding him as much as possible, wishing they didn't know him. Now, just as news spread that the young master had done a favor for His Highness the Crown Prince, everyone jumped out and pretended to want to share the glory and relieve his master's worries.
Mao could play dumb. Even if he really didn't know, he wouldn't say anything.
Seeing that he couldn't get any information out of Mao Neng, Chief Meng had no choice but to wave him away. After he left, he said, "It's normal that Mao Neng, a servant, doesn't know the ins and outs of the matter. It seems that we need to send someone from our family to Biyang County to find out what exactly happened. Just before the New Year, Meng Ying sent me a letter mentioning that Qi Ge'er was drugged and framed by the son of an eighth-rank official. We must not only investigate this matter, but we must investigate it thoroughly and get justice."
Minister Meng maintained his aloof silence. Third Master Meng nodded: "That makes sense. There's another matter. Second Brother, you divided the family property, so why didn't you even give Fourth Brother a single house? The imperial gifts that came in were taken back. Now the whole capital is laughing at our Meng family—"
Grandpa Meng swallowed back even harsher words. After all, he was his second brother, and it was not his place as the younger brother to criticize him.
But the clan chief Meng immediately took over the conversation. As the eldest brother, he had no qualms about criticizing Minister Meng: "Second brother, you did wrong. Although there are customary practices for illegitimate sons to divide the family property, you should at least give the fourth brother a room. Now that Qi-ge'er has caught the Crown Prince's eye, he might be allowed to study at the Imperial Academy. But when he returns to the capital, he doesn't even have a place to stay. Is that reasonable?"
Minister Meng finally opened his eyes, his voice icy: "When I divided the family property with the fourth son, you were all present to witness it. Although I didn't give him a house, I did give him shops and money. If he really wants to return to the capital, he should buy a house himself. I did raise him to be a Jinshi, but he's already married and has children. What does it have to do with me if he loses all his money because he's not good at business?"
Master Meng thought to himself, with the thousand or so taels of silver you've been allocated, it'll be hard enough to buy a small house in the north of the city. Besides, he and his wife have been demoted to a place a thousand miles away, what's the difference between that and being exiled? If they spend all the money they have to buy a house in the capital, they probably won't even have enough for the travel expenses to Biyang County.
Minister Meng seemed to see through Third Master Meng's thoughts and sneered, "If he really had the foresight to buy a house in the capital to secure his future, he wouldn't have had the opportunity to spend money in Biyang County to help the refugees, and he wouldn't have been reprimanded and fined by the court. Now it's just a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse; whether he can handle this enormous wealth is another matter. I also advise you not to rush into this hot pot. Whether Meng Ying is an official or a person, he values moderation. He's afraid of everything, has no backbone, and only focuses on his immediate needs. He won't go far."
Upon hearing this, apart from Chief Meng, who was still glaring and bristling, the other juniors dared not utter a single word.
Chief Meng trembled with anger: "You're just pretending! How long have you been retired? Our family finally has a junior who can talk to the royal family, and you're determined to offend him to death, aren't you?"
Minister Meng said sternly, "Our family has never been involved in factional strife. Can't I just not approve of Meng Ying?"
Chief Meng was furious. Not getting involved in factional strife meant not getting involved with other princes' camps, but Meng Ying was now approaching His Highness the Crown Prince, the future rightful heir apparent. How could that be the same as other situations? Others would kill for such a good opportunity, and Meng Shiqian was thinking of pushing it away?
Chief Meng was so angry that he turned and left.
Grandpa Meng chased after him: "Brother, are we leaving already? Are we just going to abandon Meng Ying's matter?"
Clan Chief Meng said, "Your second brother's personality has become increasingly eccentric since he retired from his official post. He likes to go to extremes at the slightest dissatisfaction, and no one in the family dares to disobey him. He may be willful and carefree, but what about the younger generation in such a large family? Does he not care about his future? Does he still think he is the Minister of Rites of yesteryear?"
Third Master Meng said, "Second Brother is determined not to mend relations with Meng Ying. It seems we two will have to handle this matter. Even if his second branch doesn't consider him their own son, he's still under the Meng family's jurisdiction. Here's what we'll do: in a few days, I'll have Wenli make a trip to Biyang County to take care of everything for him. I'll also send him a house in the east of the city. Since his family is small, I'll send him a two-courtyard house and a few servants to watch over it, so that he won't have to carry it back if the imperial family gives him any rewards later..."
Although Third Master Meng did not hold an official position, he had been running a large business for many years thanks to the influence of his two older brothers. In addition, his wife's family was very powerful, so he didn't care about a mere house.
Chief Meng nodded: "That's good. I'll give him some silver notes too. Qi-ge'er will be taking the imperial examination this year, and he'll definitely need a lot of money."
The two brothers discussed it and quickly made a decision, as long as they could get past Minister Meng.
While turmoil was brewing in the capital, Biyang County, a thousand miles away, remained calm and peaceful.
After spending the eighth day of the Lunar New Year at home, Meng Guanqi packed his luggage and took his books to Wanshan Academy in Luzhou to study.
Zhao Jian, Li Xiaoxiao, and Asheng were still traveling with them.
As they passed the dilapidated temple, they all glanced in that direction without getting out of the car.
The Crown Prince took away all the Luzhou Guards who participated in the siege of the county government's backyard that day. Presumably, it won't be long before they stir up a storm in Luzhou.
However, Magistrate Meng told Meng Guanqi not to concern himself with these trivial matters, as he needed to focus all his energy on this year's autumn imperial examination.
In Magistrate Meng's mind, one should not expect anything in return for kindness. Once His Highness the Crown Prince left, the matter was over. The power struggle among the gods in the capital had nothing to do with his small Biyang County. His family should continue with their lives as usual. For Meng Guanqi, nothing was more important than taking the provincial examination. He had to distinguish between what was important and what was not.
Meng Guanqi readily accepted the arrangement. He had decided that he would stay at Wanshan Academy to study until August of this year and would not return home.
I'll go home for the Mid-Autumn Festival on the 15th of August, stay for a few days, and then head to Lin'an Prefecture to find a place to stay so I can participate in the Autumn Examination on the 12th of September.
Everything else should be sidelined.
Because female servants were not allowed in the academy, Li Xiaoxiao and Zhao Jian would return to Biyang County together after sending him to the mountain, leaving only Asheng by his side to take care of his daily life.
Meng Guanqi first went to report for duty, then found Headmaster Gu, and spent two days recovering the two thousand-tael silver notes that had been soaked by the rain. He then exchanged the silver notes for silver ingots, silver coins, and dozens of small-denomination silver notes.
Li Xiaoxiao was unaware that the two thousand taels of silver notes had been soaked in water. Her eyes lit up when she saw the money: "Wow, so much money! Our family still has so much money?"
Meng Guanqi never expected that there would be a famous painting by Mr. Zhiyong in his father's study. If the family hadn't been so poor, given Magistrate Meng's indifferent nature, he probably wouldn't have been willing to sell it.
This money should have been kept at home before the New Year to tide me over, but it got ruined by the rain, so I had to come back to ask Headmaster Gu for a replacement.
Meng Guanqi left 300 taels and gave the remaining 1,700 taels to Zhao Jian to take home.
Looking at Li Xiaoxiao's greedy and carefree attitude, and thinking that he would not be able to see her for eight months, he suddenly felt a lump in his throat.
He pulled her aside and handed her a purse.
Li Xiaoxiao asked curiously, "What is this?"
She had no intention of hiding the gift she received; she immediately opened the purse and saw two flimsy pieces of paper inside. When she took them out, she was shocked to find that they contained two hundred taels of silver notes.
She stared in disbelief at the silver note: "For me? Two hundred taels?"
many!
Meng Guanqi said, "This money should have been given to you a long time ago, but it wasn't readily available when I was at home. Now that I have the money, of course I can't keep delaying it any longer."
Whether it was fighting the black-clad assassins in the dilapidated temple in Luzhou or dealing with the Luzhou Guards in the backyard of the county government, Li Xiaoxiao made great contributions. It can be said that without her, the Crown Prince and his entourage, as well as their entire family, would probably be dead.
But it was she who saved the crown prince, yet the credit went to her and her father. Meng Guanqi wasn't shameless enough to insist that the crown prince was saved by them. Although theoretically she was a servant and all the credit she earned should ultimately belong to her master, Meng Guanqi didn't want to treat her that way.
She is a truly capable person.
He wanted to give her more than just these things, but the time was too early; now was not the right time.
This money is a token of his gratitude for her risking her life to save him. He couldn't give it to her when his family was struggling financially, but now that he has the money, he's determined to make it up to her.
As for Huichuntang: "You don't need to pay for Huichuntang. You got sick because you were trying to save us. My mother will have Granny Qi settle the bill. It has nothing to do with you."
Li Xiaoxiao couldn't help but be overjoyed: "You really don't need me to pay? Then won't I become a millionaire? Hahaha, thank you, young master!"
She actually has two hundred taels! Meat skewers on East Street only cost eight coins a skewer, how many meat skewers could she eat with two hundred taels of silver?
Seeing how happy she was with the money, Meng Guanqi couldn't help but laugh.
She is a very easily satisfied person; a little money or a good meal can make her happy for a long time.
Meng Guanqi was so afraid that she would be kidnapped.
Although he had reminded her many times, he still couldn't help but say, thinking about the eight months they would be separated, "Do you remember the date you're supposed to come pick me up? We'll be leaving home on the first day of the eighth lunar month. We'll spend two days exploring Luzhou before going home for the Mid-Autumn Festival. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, we'll have to set off for Lin'an Prefecture to rent a house and get used to the place beforehand so we can participate in the Autumn Examination."
Li Xiaoxiao's mind was filled with thoughts of the barbecue skewers on Dongda Street. Her mouth watered as she said, "I know! Even if I don't remember, there's Zhao Jian, right? He'll definitely remind me..."
Meng Guanqi was depressed.
They're about to be separated for so long, doesn't she feel any reluctance at all?
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