Upon seeing this, Chef Wu immediately covered Wei Changyun's mouth, saying, "Don't you want to lose your life?"
As Fukang'an and Yan Ning exited the manor gate, they saw Butler Luo and Chef Wu arguing with someone. Fukang'an frowned and called out towards the scene of the argument, "Luo Song!"
Upon hearing Fukang'an's voice, Butler Luo immediately turned and jogged forward, bowing deeply to Fukang'an and Yan Ning. Chef Wu, standing some distance away, also bowed to the two.
Fukang'an asked Butler Luo, "What happened?"
Butler Luo glanced at Chef Wu, then lowered his head and said, "A rogue has arrived! He insists he's the personal servant of the Holy Ancestor's favorite concubine!"
Wei Changyun did not bow, but kept looking at Yan Ning beside Fukang'an, though she was too far away to see clearly. He then walked forward and stood at the foot of the high, layered stone steps of the Fucha Mansion.
After looking closely, he immediately knelt on the ground and gave Yan Ning a deep bow, "This servant Xiao Yunzi greets Your Highness, the Moon Mistress!"
Wei Changyun was old and his legs were not nimble. Before he could even finish the full ceremony, he started to sob.
"This servant knew you would come back! You were wronged! This servant is also innocent, cough cough... cough cough... This servant has been waiting for you to do justice for this servant!"
Wei Changyun was dressed in all black, but it couldn't hide the grease and grime on his body. In addition, he was weak and coughed so badly that he couldn't speak before he could finish a sentence.
Fukang'an and Yan Ning were some distance from Wei Changyun and couldn't hear what he was saying clearly, only his sobbing.
The words "Empress Yue" drifted into Yan Ning's ears, and she suddenly remembered the "Miss Yue" that the Empress Dowager had mentioned. Just as she was about to ask Wei Changyun, who was kneeling below, what was going on with Miss Yue, Fukang'an ordered the guards in front of the mansion to lift Wei Changyun up and throw him far away from the gate of the Fucha mansion.
After Chef Wu escorted the guards back to the gate of the mansion, and after Steward Luo saw Fukang'an and Yan Ning off, he dared to step forward and help Wei Changyun up.
After boarding the carriage, Yan Ning lifted the curtain of the carriage window and watched as Chef Wu helped the trembling Wei Changyun to his feet. She asked Fu Kang'an, puzzled, "He's getting old, why are you treating him like this!"
Fukang'an looked sharply at the back of the carriage. "During the national mourning period, there are always some troublemakers who take the opportunity to cause trouble. They should be executed immediately, but I have already shown leniency because of their advanced age! Now that I am in the manor, there are still such troublemakers. If I were not here, wouldn't all kinds of hooligans from the Fucha family be able to cause trouble in the manor!"
Upon hearing this, Yan Ning knew that this was Fukang'an's duty. She also understood that he was afraid that others would bully the Fucha family while she was away from the capital.
Wei Changyun looked at Chef Wu and muttered almost incoherently, "That's Consort Yue! She's back! Now that the one from Cining Palace is gone, only my Consort Yue is left. Let's see who can bully my Consort Yue now!"
Looking at the disheveled Wei Changyun, Chef Wu was filled with doubt. Back then, when Wei Changyun left the palace, he brought back bags and bags of gold and silver jewelry. He became a local tycoon and ruined several respectable young women.
Why has it become like this?
He took Wei Changyun to a small tavern at the junction of the inner and outer city. The owner was from the same hometown as the two of them. On weekdays, Chef Wu would come here in his spare time to have a couple of drinks and listen to the flattery the people in the tavern had for him.
This small tavern was a gathering place for servants and lackeys in the inner city to gossip. Because the Fucha family held an extremely high position in the inner city, ranking among the top not only outside the imperial clan but also within it, the servants from other households all rushed to curry favor with Chef Wu, and thus never paid for the drinks themselves.
Chef Wu himself knew his place. After all, the Fucha family was a royal guard family. When he met the servants of the master's family in the capital, he naturally became a servant himself.
In the tavern, even the most insignificant servants who easily cause trouble and offend their masters would seek out Chef Wu for help. He would then forget about it and become a respected servant among the tavern's servants.
He used to be able to weigh things clearly, but why couldn't he do so with the ladies and concubines in the mansion? Chef Wu sighed inwardly, glancing at Wei Changyun beside him, who was much more down on his luck than himself, and immediately felt much calmer.
The two arrived at a small tavern, located at the end of the street where the inner and outer cities met. Although the city gate was half-closed, one could still see the bustling and lively scene outside the city, a stark contrast to the solemnity and desolation of the inner city.
Since the city was inhabited by Manchu bannermen, white silk flowers and white silk ribbons were hung in front of the vermilion gates of the mansions to express their grief and sorrow over the passing of the Empress Dowager.
Peddlers were forbidden from walking the streets and alleys or opening shops within the city. In front of most officials' houses, there was a vast expanse of white that connected to the empty, wide streets, which made people feel uneasy.
The fellow villager was unaware of what had happened in the Fucha mansion. He welcomed the respected Chef Wu and the down-on-his-luck Wei Changyun into the house. During the national mourning period, it was forbidden to open for business without an imperial edict, but since the tavern owner was Chef Wu's fellow villager, it didn't count as receiving customers.
After drinking two cups of wine and eating two pieces of meat, Wei Changyun, without being asked by Chef Wu, began to ramble on and on about the matter of Emperor Kangxi's favorite concubine, Miss Yue. He had initially dared not speak because of the Empress Dowager's threats, but now that she was dead, he no longer had any reservations.
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