Fu Shifeng

Chapter 216 The old woman keeps her business
In Wucheng County, the administrative center of Huzhou, the weaving and dyeing workshops belonging to the Guan family are connected one after another. The huge waterwheel made of bamboo and wood rotates slowly, and the dyed cloth is hung on the towering bamboo frame, floating in the wind. Only the shuttles of the loom are spinning. There was a rare pause in the sound.

In the courtyard where the cloth is stored, there are more than 300 weavers, both male and female. No one dares to speak, but they can't help but raise their heads and listen.

The door of the library was closed, and an old woman was seen sitting on a high chair. Her long silver hair was simply tied behind her head, with a wooden hairpin stuck horizontally. She was wearing a plain black dress, and she had no other luxurious decorations.

Although this old woman is thin, she is not weak at all. Just sitting there shows the temperament of a person in charge.Although there are deep fishtail-like wrinkles at the corners of her eyebrows and eyes, her eyes are deep and her limbs are slender. It is conceivable that the old woman must have been a beautiful woman with great grace when she was young.

The old woman was holding the account book and slowly flipping it. Behind her were two young women standing by. One was wearing a fine dress with arrow sleeves and a sword at her waist. The other was wearing jade-skinned green clothes and holding an incense burner. They were both women with outstanding looks. They walked to the street. It will definitely attract men's attention.

However, the few men standing in front of the old woman did not dare to look up. They looked nervous and unsteady. Even though it was winter, their faces were still sweating, and they seemed to be overwhelmed by the invisible majesty. Come.

"Can any of you tell me..." the old woman said slowly, "why the amount of ramie sent here will be nearly [-]% more than last year, but the linen cloth of various colors woven will be the same as in previous years?"

Those men were all the bosses of the weaving workshop. One of them wiped his sweat and said reluctantly: "Mrs. He doesn't know something. The ramie sent this year is not of good quality. Just by spinning the yarn, there is a lot of hemp silk." It is broken and cannot be used again.”

Mrs. He put the account book on her lap, looked at the few men, and said expressionlessly: "You are all from the Guan family, and you are a little greedy and greedy. I used to turn a blind eye and try not to treat you carelessly. For business."

The heads of several principals lowered their heads. Mrs. He's tone seemed calm, but there was an unfathomable depth to it, as if a storm was about to come.

"I do this because I hope you can treat the weavers who are really doing their best." Mrs. He looked at one of the principals: "Jiu Lang, I heard rumors that you raped a woman in the name of repaying a debt. Female weaver, is this possible?"

Hearing this, Jujiro immediately defended himself: "Old madam, you are wronged! My fierce wife is jealous, and it is well known in the clan..."

As a result, before the words were finished, a woman among the weavers at the rear shouted loudly: "You lied! You have been eyeing Gu Ping for a long time. Her husband broke his leg and was unable to work. He borrowed the money to heal his illness and recuperate." How much money you have, but you always deduct money from her, leaving her unable to repay her debt!"

Mrs. He frowned slightly, her eyes became sharp, and she looked at the weavers: "Is this serious?"

With the permission of the old lady, the weavers became emboldened and talked about all the misdeeds of this nineteen-year-old man, from molesting the weavers and deducting wages, to hiding the fabrics secretly and reselling them to other families, all in one breath. .

The weavers vented their anger as if taking revenge. It wasn't until the noise subsided that Mrs. He looked at Jujiro and asked, "What else do you have to say now?"

Juro fell to his knees with a pop and begged for mercy: "Old madam, I was distracted for a moment, please forgive me this time."

As soon as these words came out, Mrs. He did not express her position, and the two women behind her showed disdain.

"We may be able to discuss other matters." Mrs. He's tone became colder: "But you should know that the only thing the Guan family in Huzhou cannot tolerate is adulterous women."

Nineteen Lang defended like crazy: "I, I, I... I'm not committing adultery, it was Aunt Ping who seduced me. If you don't believe me, ask her neighbor!"

Mrs. He was obviously impatient. She leaned back and waved her hand gently to the woman in smart clothes.

The well-dressed woman said nothing, tapped her toes, and came to Jujuro's side in one step. She kicked out her two feet like lightning, and heard a dull cracking sound. She kicked Jujuro's two legs off on the spot. A calf.

The screams instantly spread to every corner of the courtyard, and it was horrifying. The weavers were all shocked. They had long heard that the Guan family in Huzhou had strict laws, but they did not expect that Mrs. He would really punish the Guan family's children.

"Call two people to take the [-]th man to the county government office, and he will be charged with raping a good woman." Mrs. He was too lazy to pay attention to the [-]th man rolling on the ground and screaming, and allowed the well-dressed woman to drag him out of the courtyard.

Then Mrs. He waved to the woman in green on the other side and ordered: "Wait a while and pay a sum of money to help Aunt Ping pay off her debt. By the way, she said that the weaving workshop will not abandon her and she can come back in the future. The weaving mill will work as usual and there will be no shortfalls or deductions.”

"Yes." The woman in green nodded in response.

Mrs. He looked at the other two principals without a good expression: "You are also from the Guan family. I originally hoped that you would help take care of Jujiro and let him learn to manage the family business. But you knew that he didn't learn well, but you didn't take care of him. Dissuade him and collude with him. What do you think I should do with you?"

The two principals knelt down quickly, and one of them said: "Old madam, Jujiro personally asked for help. We really have no choice."

Mrs. He understood at a glance: "I'm afraid it's not enough just to embezzle the money from selling cloth. What promise has he made to you?"

The two principals looked at each other, neither of them dared to say anything.

"Speaking frankly, I don't have to pursue it." Mrs. He said.

The boss had no choice but to muster up his courage: "Jiu Lang said that old madam, you... will drive Hexi sooner or later, and there are no heirs. He is from the Guan family in Huzhou, and he will definitely get a generous fortune in the future."

As soon as these words came out, the scene suddenly fell into dead silence. Everyone held their breath and no one dared to speak.

"It seems that I am really getting old, and these juniors are all starting to have their own evil thoughts." Mrs. He did not rebuke harshly, but instead laughed at herself.

The boss didn't dare to answer, so Mrs. He sighed softly and said to them: "Take out the money you have embezzled and give the weavers this year an extra wage. The more we weave, the more they will get. Do you understand?"

"Understood, we will make arrangements immediately." The two principals did not dare to disobey. They were craftsmen who were attached to the Guan family in Huzhou. Their current position as the principal of the weaving workshop depended on Mrs. He's appreciation and promotion. The life, death, misfortune and misfortune of the whole family depended on the old lady's thoughts.

When all the weavers witnessed Mrs. He's arrangement, they were all even more excited. Their previous dissatisfaction was gone, and their faces were full of joy.

The weavers respectfully sent Mrs. He off, and some people couldn't help but talk:

"I heard in the past that Mrs. He was strict in discipline, but I still didn't believe it. After meeting her today, I found out that the rumors were true."

"That [-]-year-old boy didn't come to the weaving workshop even one day in ten days. He was just a fighting dog on weekdays. He finally learned his lesson today!"

"I wonder if the county government will let Jujuro go lightly."

"Then don't worry, once Mrs. He coughs, the governor of Huzhou will pour tea and water for the old lady. Even if Nineteenth Lang is named Guan, he will never get a good deal if he is sent to the government by the old lady!" "Oh, but, but At this age of the old lady... I'm afraid those Guan family members will really separate their families in the future, what will happen then?"

"The old lady has great skills, so she will naturally find a way. We are just weavers, so we don't need to think so much."

……

After leaving the weaving workshop, Mrs. He boarded a flat-bottomed canoe.As a wealthy and powerful local family in Huzhou, Mrs. He's boat was not ornately decorated, unlike those nouveau riche who wanted to show off their wealth and had to paint their boats and cars with gold even if they were suspected of violating the regulations.

In a place like Jiangnan with a dense network of rivers, this simple flat-bottomed canoe can be seen everywhere. If it enters the spacious river channel where boats and ships come and go, it will not be easy for outsiders to find the exact whereabouts of Mrs. He.

After boarding the ship for a while, but before it set sail, a woman in green came to report: "Old madam, Zhang Jida from Tingyulou in Gusu is here to visit. Do you want to see him?"

"Zhang Jida?" Mrs. He frowned: "Didn't this person invite several experts to assassinate Lord Zhaoyang?"

"It is this person, but according to rumors in the world, he seems to have failed."

Mrs. He sneered: "You smart guy...let him do it."

Not long after, Zhang Jida entered the cabin and saw the old woman in black clothes and silver hair who could not sit upright. He immediately cupped his hands and bowed deeply: "Junior Zhang Jida, pay my respects to Mrs. He."

"Yes." Mrs. He just responded with a calm expression: "Why did Master Zhang come here this time?"

Although Zhang Jida could not use force now, even when facing this old woman in the past, he was always afraid, just like facing the teacher with a ruler in his hand, he was frightened and uneasy.

"Has the old lady heard about Lord Zhaoyang?" Zhang Jida asked first.

"This matter has spread throughout Jianghuai Wulin, who doesn't know about it?" Mrs. He seemed a little tired, closing her eyes to rest.

Zhang Jida was slightly startled. He originally thought that Mrs. He would definitely ask about the results of his assassination, but he didn't expect that the other party was so ordinary.

"Previously...it was rumored that this Lord Zhaoyang was Fan Zhongming, who brought trouble to Jianghuai." Zhang Jida said cautiously: "This junior was anxious, so he invited several fellow Jianghu people to go to Jiangdu to kill this thief."

"Then what?" Mrs. He remained calm.

"Later, it was discovered that the information was wrong. That Lord Zhaoyang was not Fan Thief himself." Zhang Jida changed his tone and became excited: "The old lady didn't know something. That Fan Thief was protected by the Ministry of Internal Affairs back then, and he was the official to worship Lord Zhaoyang. . But he did not change his evil intentions, and still relied on his power to commit crimes. This move provoked a master, and he was shot to death by the opponent. And that man was Lord Zhaoyang who replaced him now! "

After hearing these words, Mrs. He slowly opened her eyes: "Who told you these words?"

Zhang Jida's tone was like a teacher's test of school knowledge, which made Zhang Jida stunned for a moment, and then replied: "Of course it is the Zhaoyang Lord. Due to a misunderstanding, the junior once fought with him and found that his appearance and martial arts moves were completely different from those of Fan Zhongming." After a deep conversation, I realized that Thief Fan died in his hands."

Zhang Jida has been observing Mrs. He, and the shadow of the window pane casts on her, making her even more unpredictable.

"Master Zhang." Mrs. He was silent for a moment before speaking: "My Huzhou Guan clan and Fan Thief have a deep hatred. Do you know why I didn't send anyone to deal with Lord Zhaoyang before?"

Zhang Jida thought that the Huzhou Guan clan had no successors and could not deal with such a powerful enemy, but of course he would not say that and just shook his head to express his confusion.

"If it's true that Thief Fan is back in Jianghuai, it's clear and explicit, so why bother with all kinds of hints?" Madam He gently smoothed the hem of her skirt on her knees: "It should be noted that news from Jianghu cannot be transmitted too fast. And this time it was almost ten days. In a matter of days, the news about Lord Zhaoyang spread throughout Jianghuai. Such a situation is absolutely unusual, someone must have deliberately spread it."

Zhang Jida smiled stiffly as Mrs. He continued: "I don't like to rely on one's old age to show off one's abilities, but I have seen similar tactics when I was traveling in the world. This move is clearly someone secretly instigating martial arts people to target Lord Zhaoyang. But it’s hard to say clearly that he is not a thief... Frankly speaking, this move is not very clever."

"The old lady is very discerning, it is the younger generation who has been impulsive." Zhang Jida could only change his words and said: "But the fact that Lord Zhaoyang killed Fan Zhongming is absolutely true! He has arrived in Suzhou now, and maybe he will leave for Huzhou soon. .”

"Oh?" Mrs. He finally showed a smile at this time: "Is this Lord Zhaoyang here to ask for the reward that was set during the Taihu West Mountain Alliance?"

"The Ministry of Internal Affairs is well-informed and wanted to know about this matter." Zhang Jida hurriedly flattered him: "I am worried that the matter will happen in a hurry and the old lady will not be able to respond in time, so I came here to inform you."

"Are you only telling me this?" Mrs. He asked.

Zhang Jida wanted to say yes directly, but inexplicable fear made him reply: "I have also contacted various factions in the Jianghuai Wulin... When the time comes, we will gather in Huzhou to witness together. It will not only understand a grudge from the past, but also be a grand event for the Jianghuai Wulin. "

Mrs. He thought for a moment, then nodded and said: "That's fine. I'm old and can't travel far away. Since this Lord Zhaoyang is willing to come, the Huzhou Guan family will treat him wholeheartedly. If it's convenient, Mr. Zhang, please tell me. Mr. Zhaoyang, if he doesn’t mind the long journey, please come directly to Wulingzhuang to meet this heroic man and thank you very much.”

"That's natural!" Zhang Jida was overjoyed when he heard this.

"If it's okay...cough cough cough!" Before Mrs. He could finish speaking, she suddenly coughed. Upon seeing this, the woman in green clothes quickly patted the old lady on the back.

After waiting for a while to straighten her breath, Mrs. He couldn't hide her look of weakness and sighed softly: "I'm old and no longer of use, so I'll send him away."

"Old Madam, there is no need to see you off. I will take my leave now." Zhang Jida saluted and left, secretly rejoicing. He expected that Old Madam He was not going to die soon, and the Guan family's property in Huzhou was not easily captured?

After Zhang Jida left, Mrs. He put away her twilight attitude, her eyes flashed, and she snorted coldly: "These evil-minded guys saw that I was getting old, so they couldn't wait to pounce on me one by one."

"But Lord Zhaoyang is a member of the imperial court after all, and his status is not low." The woman in green rolled her eyes: "Is it possible that Zhang Jida has climbed up to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and wants to use this to put pressure?"

"That must be the case." Mrs. He sighed softly: "I have heard that these people in the chamberlain are the most greedy and cruel, and they will definitely dominate when they get to the place. It seems that this disaster... will not be easy to survive. "

(End of this chapter)