Chapter 182 The fish delivered itself to my door...
Du Li was no longer surprised by Du Min's habit of bowing and kneeling at the drop of a hat. He picked up the teapot, poured a cup of tea, and pushed it over, saying, "Have some water to calm down."
Du Min straightened up, stared blankly at Meng Qing for a moment, then suddenly laughed, his laughter becoming more and more excited.
Meng Qing smiled and shook her head. She stood up and said, "You think about it yourself. I'm going out for a walk."
Du Li got up and followed without hesitation.
Meng Qing and Du Li left, leaving Du Min alone in the room. Alone and unrestrained, he laughed twice, then lay back on the ground in a carefree manner. Lying on the ground, he looked at the ceiling and quietly felt his restless ambition growing stronger inch by inch in his chest. His lofty aspirations seeped into his blood and flowed rapidly through his limbs and bones.
After an unknown amount of time, when the tea had gone cold, Du Min finally calmed down. He propped himself up on his arms, sat up, picked up the cold tea on the table, drank it all in one gulp, and then got up and went out.
Meng Qing and the others were sitting idly under the shade of trees outside the post station when Du Min saw them and said, "I'm going out for a bit."
Du Li said "Oh," and then asked, "Are you coming back for lunch?"
“Not necessarily. You don’t need to wait for me to come back for dinner. Second Brother, when it’s cooler this afternoon, tell the caravan to prepare provisions. We’ll set off for Hanoi County tomorrow morning,” Du Min said.
"Okay," Du Li replied.
Du Min glanced at his second sister-in-law, then strode away with a grin.
"What happy event has happened to him?" Meng's father wondered. "He exudes a festive spirit."
“He’s happy that there’s some money coming in for the paper mill,” Meng Qing replied.
"You gave it to us?" Meng's father asked instinctively. "Should we give it to them?"
Meng Qing waved her hand, "It wasn't me."
After saying that, she clapped her hands and said, "Wangchuan, come here."
When Meng's father saw that she had changed the subject, he knew that she did not want to talk about it anymore, so he did not ask any further questions.
*
Under the scorching sun, Du Min walked to the county government office. Upon arriving at the clerk's quarters, he picked up the teapot on the table and poured himself two cups of water.
"My lord, where have you come from? Why are you in such a hurry? Aren't you riding a horse? You're sweating profusely." Magistrate Guo handed him a handkerchief. "Please wipe your sweat."
"I'm going back to Hanoi County tomorrow and will be back in half a month. While I'm away, proceed with the affairs of Wen County as we agreed. Don't delay." Du Min informed the other party of his departure. "I have one more thing to entrust to you. First, find painters and craftsmen to finalize the layout and scale of the paper mill. Also, arrange for the workshop builders in advance and prepare all the manpower. Once I bring the money, start construction immediately."
"Yes." Magistrate Guo immediately understood that he wanted to go back to Hanoi County to raise money.
"There's one more thing. Have someone build two rows of thatched huts near the paper mill site I've chosen. These will be used for the workers to rest and cool off. Construction on the paper mill will begin in the sweltering heat of June. It'll be too hot during the day for heavy physical labor under the blazing sun. We can consider having them dig mud and ram the earth at night, and rest and sleep during the day when it's hot." Du Min wiped the sweat from his chin. He had been thirsty and anxious all the way here. Carrying mud and ramming walls in this kind of weather would truly be a grueling and exhausting task.
"Yes, sir!" Magistrate Guo quickly agreed, "I'll arrange it right away."
"No rush, come with me to Meng's paper mill first," Du Min said.
Magistrate Guo agreed, and he went out to instruct his attendants to send a carriage over.
Du Min then went out and appointed three more yamen runners, and then led Magistrate Guo and the runners to visit the Meng family paper mill. After touring the paper mill twice, on the way back, he said to Magistrate Guo, "Have these three yamen runners find some prominent locations in the county town to set up a few stalls. Firstly, to recruit workers. Soaking hemp and pounding it requires strong, able-bodied men, while washing, peeling, and steaming the hemp can be done by women and girls. When recruiting, focus on selecting from poor families, and the yamen runners guarding the stalls will be responsible for checking the families of those who apply. Secondly, if any paper-making masters from other places come, the yamen runners guarding the stalls will be responsible for receiving and entertaining them."
Magistrate Guo agreed, saying, "Your humble servant obeys."
Du Min looked at the three constables in the carriage and said, "You have all seen the papermaking process with your own eyes. When recruiting people, keep your eyes open and know what kind of people are suitable for what kind of work. Don't just pick the strongest people because I say they are strong."
The three constables nodded quickly to indicate that they understood.
"Sir, would you like to dine at the government office tonight?" Magistrate Guo asked, seeing that the carriage was about to arrive at the yamen.
Du Min waved his hand, signaling the carriage to stop. He jumped down and said, "You all go back. I'll walk back to the inn."
"I will have the coachman take you back to the inn," Magistrate Guo hurriedly called out.
Du Min waved his hand without turning his head, then strode into the crowd, turned into two alleys, and went straight into a clay sculpture shop. When he first came to Wen County, he had passed by here while visiting the streets and saw two children holding two clay figures, which were sculpted to be very lifelike.
"What would you like to buy, sir?" The woman tending the shop hurried to greet him as he entered.
Du Min walked towards the master clay sculptor. He glanced at the items displayed on the counter and asked, "Can you sculpt geese and horses?"
The master craftsman nodded, "You can make it."
"Make a little pony and a big goose." Du Min thought for a moment. He didn't know what his second sister-in-law liked. His gaze swept over a big-bellied donkey. He remembered that when he was in Wu County, the Meng family kept a donkey.
“I want this donkey,” Du Min said.
"Please sit here for a while; it will be ready in half an hour," the woman invited.
Du Min nodded. He thought of Yin Caiwei, glanced around the counter, and then picked up a clay dressing case and handed it over. "I'll take this one too."
An hour later, Du Min returned to the inn. He gave the goose to Wang Zhou, the foal to Wang Chuan, the donkey to Meng Qing, and finally put the clay dressing case in his purse.
After receiving the gift, Wangchuan finally addressed him as "Uncle".
*
The next morning, Du Min and Meng Qing's family left the post station and set off for Hanoi County.
Hanoi District is adjacent to Van District. It can be reached by horseback in half a day, but by carriage it takes an hour or two longer.
Before the sunset had faded, the convoy arrived at Du Min's Chief Secretary's residence, which was right next to the Prefect's residence, separated only by an alley.
Next to the Chief Secretary's residence was the Prefect's residence. Prefect Cui was leisurely returning home in the evening glow, carrying a birdcage. As he entered the alley, he saw a procession blocking the road. The first carriage was a two-horse carriage. He approached in surprise and just then met Du Min getting off the carriage.
"Second sister-in-law, second brother, we've arrived," Du Min said, lifting the carriage curtain.
"Du Changshi? You have a distinguished guest?" Cui Biejia stepped forward and looked into the carriage through the door.
"Yes." Du Min nodded with a smile. He introduced, "Second sister-in-law, this is the Prefect of Huai Prefecture, from the Cui family of Boling, and the son of the Lady of Longxi County. Prefect Cui, this is my second sister-in-law, surnamed Meng, and she is the Lady of Wu County, personally appointed by the Empress Dowager."
Meng Qing stepped down from the carriage. She glanced at Cui Biejia. He was the son of the Lady of Longxi County, a descendant of the Cui family of Boling. His mother was from the Li imperial family, and his father came from a prestigious family. His lineage was truly excellent.
"The Lady of Wu County? I know you, the one who advised the court to promote the making of paper-made funerary objects?" Prefect Cui sized up Meng Qing twice and asked disdainfully, "You, a merchant's daughter, dare to call yourself a Lady of Wu County?"
"I am honored by the Sage's own decree." Meng Qing smiled slightly. "The Sage is wise and appoints people based on merit, not on favoritism. This is our good fortune."
Prefect Cui scoffed, "What audacity!"
Meng Qing ignored her and saw the maid helping Yin Caiwei out, so she went to greet her.
"Second sister-in-law, you've finally arrived." Yin Caiwei beamed with joy. She looked Meng Qing up and down and said playfully, "This humble woman greets the Princess."
Meng Qing laughed twice.
"Although it's late, I still want to congratulate you, Second Sister-in-law. Congratulations, Second Sister-in-law," Yin Caiwei said. "You are the second most capable woman I have ever met."
"Let's talk inside." Du Min led Wang Zhou over and said, "Caiwei, you take your second sister-in-law, second brother, Uncle Meng, and Aunt Pan inside to rest. I'll stay outside and watch the caravan move their luggage."
Meng Qing glanced at the road and saw that the arrogant Prefect Cui had already left.
“Second sister-in-law, don’t bother with him. Prefect Cui comes from a good family, and he looks down on many people, not just you. Even Governor Xu is nothing in his eyes,” Du Min said.
Meng Qing was surprised, "Huaizhou is a place with shallow ponds and lots of turtles, it's quite interesting."
Du Min choked. Was he being insulted as well?
"Second sister-in-law, come inside and let's talk." Yin Caiwei said with a smile, "You're two days late. If you had been two days earlier, you would have met the messenger. A courier from Luoyang Post Station sent an official document from Chang'an the day before yesterday. It's for you. Come with me to take a look."
Upon hearing this, Du Min immediately abandoned his idea of staying outside to watch the caravan move their luggage. "Second Brother, you stay outside and watch. I'll go in and have some tea first."
Meng Qing followed Yin Caiwei into the mansion. As soon as they sat down in the reception room, a maid brought them an official document.
"Quickly open it and see who wrote it," Du Min urged impatiently as he strode in.
“It was probably written by Prime Minister Zheng,” Yin Caiwei said. “My husband, along with the official document came a letter for you. It has Prime Minister Zheng’s seal on it. He sent someone to deliver ten jars of fine wine to you.”
"Bring the letter quickly!" Du Min said happily. "It seems that Minister Zheng has already ascended to the throne of prime minister."
"It's an official document written by Prime Minister Zheng. He asked how many skilled paper craftsmen I manage in the free school, and asked me to gather them together in Luoyang next month to join the new and old scholars in returning to their hometown to establish a free school." Meng Qing handed the document to Du Min.
Du Min quickly glanced at it and said, "It seems that the matter of the free school is still under the responsibility of Prime Minister Zheng."
The maid brought the letter, which Yin Caiwei took and handed to Du Min. Du Min tore open the letter, which contained only one sentence: "Please invite Chief Secretary Du to celebrate my promotion."
"Does Prefect Xu know that Prime Minister Zheng sent someone to deliver wine?" Du Min asked Yin Caiwei.
“They should know. The letter, official documents, and the cart of wine were first delivered to the governor's mansion. Then, the official in charge of the governor's mansion led the way for the postman, and only then was the cart of wine delivered to the mansion,” Yin Caiwei said. “Husband, is there a problem?”
"My lady, my lord, someone from the governor's mansion has arrived." A maidservant rushed in to report, "It's the governor's entourage."
Du Min's spirits lifted; the fish had come to him of their own accord.
"Please let them in," he said.
The visitor was an attendant of Governor Xu. As he entered, he looked at Meng Qing first and said, "This must be Lady Wu, right? I pay my respects to you. The governor heard that you had come to Huai Prefecture and sent me to tell you that he invites you and Chief Secretary Du to visit the governor's residence tomorrow."
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Author's Note: There will be another update at 12 o'clock.
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