Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 480 What is inside?
In the pear courtyard hall,
talking room,
Ping'er, who was busy outside, trotted back from outside.

When I took a breather, my chest was a little tired and my breathing was uneven. I blushed secretly.
"Grandma, see you."

Wang Xifeng glanced at the place where Ping'er's hand was pressing, which was plump and round, and cursed in her heart, this little meaty hooves is so coquettish in front of the second master Lian, what man can bear it, and who can't stand this handsome sister? Love is joyful even when you look at it,
"What did you see? I asked you to look at something. It's rough, but can you tell whether the carriage belongs to the Chamber of Commerce?"

"Reply, grandma, yes, the driver is the clerk at the counter. I met grandma last time when I went there. He is the clerk who serves the president of the chamber of commerce in the courtyard. He also paid greetings to grandma."

When Ping'er saw her grandma's bad tone, she didn't know why she made her unhappy. This wasn't the first few days since she came.

"Okay, I got it, let's go back and have a look."

Wang Xifeng took the people and returned to the west hall. When she entered, Grandma Liu had already finished her meal and was smiling. When she saw her aunt coming, she pulled the board over and wiped her tongue and smacked her lips to thank her.

Wang Xifeng waved her hand and replied,
"Grandma, please sit down and listen to me tell you, old man. I already know what you just said and what you meant.

To be honest, if there are difficulties between relatives, they should be taken care of before they come to the door.But now the chores at home are too annoying, and the second wife is getting older, and there are times when she doesn’t expect it. The thing here is not that the second wife doesn’t want to see you. "

"Looking at what my aunt said, they are all noble people, so they are naturally busy. How can they be as free as country people like me?"

Grandma Liu followed her words and nodded obediently. She knew that her wife didn't want to see her, but she couldn't say it openly.

Wang Xifeng calmed down beforehand and said,

"Grandma, don't be anxious. I have been taking care of some things in the house over the years, but most of them are from the Jia family. As for the Wang family, they don't know much about these relatives.
Ever since the two families got married, they all thought the Duke's Mansion was great, but little did they know that it would be very difficult, and people might not believe it even if they say it. However, since you have come all the way, you are opening your mouth to me for the first time. , How can I ask you to go back empty-handed? It’s my fault.
Fortunately, the 20 taels of silver that my wife gave me yesterday to make clothes for my girls have not been touched yet. I am giving you 20 taels of silver myself. If you don't mind it being too little, just take it first. "

Grandma Liu was sitting there. When she first heard her aunt complaining about her difficulties, she just pretended that she was not in trouble. She suddenly became quite restless. Then when she heard that she was given 20 taels of silver, she was so happy that she froze there. Then she said that she still had 20 taels of silver to take. It was a direct surprise. There were so many, and I immediately felt warm currents all over my body. It was indeed a wealthy family. It cost dozens of taels of silver at a time. It saved a little, but it was enough for an ordinary farmer to last for a long time. It was a shame for me to come here, but If you hesitate today, you may miss out on a few noble people, especially the young marquis you met on the bridge. He is really a kind man.

Then I looked at the fairy-like woman in front of me. She was truly a life-saving Bodhisattva.

"Hey! My aunt is still majestic. I also know that as the family grows, there will be difficulties. But for small families like mine, after all, 'a skinny camel is bigger than a horse.' No matter what he does, my aunt, Your hair is thicker than our waists!"

Grandma Liu spoke in a hurry, and when she was happy, she spoke in a farmer's voice.

The lady of the Zhou family heard what she said was vulgar and had no control over her words. She just winked at her behind to stop her and told her to shut up immediately. As Grandma Liu was talking, she stopped talking when she saw the look in the eyes of the lady of the Zhou family. , slightly embarrassed, afraid that I said the wrong thing.

After Wang Xifeng heard this, she smiled and ignored her, which was quite interesting. She hadn't had such a person talk to her like this for a long time, and she understood the old woman's joy. She just ordered Ping'er to bring the bag of silver from yesterday, and then After sealing two [-]-tael silver notes, I came back and presented them to Grandma Liu.

Looking at Grandma Liu's hand with nowhere to rest, she pushed the silver forward.
"Grandma Liu, these are the 20 taels of silver I just mentioned, and the banknote I sealed for you, totaling 40 taels of silver. I will give your family some time to help you out. As for the matter of grabbing food, the capital will definitely not There will be a shortage of food. Just get over it. If you don't take these, it's really my fault. I have nothing to do tomorrow. I just came to the house for a stroll. It's what my relatives wanted. It's getting late. , you still have to go back a long way, so it’s not a waste of time to keep you here, it’s time to say hello to you when you get home.”

After saying this, he no longer kept anyone around and asked the maids around him to accompany Grandma Liu to give gifts and send them out of the house.

Grandma Liu took the money, said nothing but words of gratitude, and followed Mrs. Zhou to the wing outside. The three of them had just left the yard.

Lady Zhou complained:

"My grandma! How come you don't know how to speak when you meet her? She speaks in country language. I won't worry about you being annoyed. Even if we are really relatives, we should speak softer and use those country vulgarities. How is this appropriate?"

Grandma Liu slapped her thigh, angry at herself for being useless.
"My sister-in-law, I don't know what's going on. As soon as I saw her, I fell in love with her so much that I couldn't care less about talking to her!"

While the two were talking, they didn't dare to go through the front door. They went to Mrs. Zhou's house and sat for a while. Mrs. Zhou saw that today's matter was handled satisfactorily. In particular, Grandma Liu got the benefit, and the Second Mistress also took care of it herself and gave her money, which was regarded as her approval of the matter.
"Grandma, it's not a coincidence that you came today. You came at the right time. I'm finally safe."

"That's not the case, but now that I have a way to survive, my old lady's wish has been fulfilled, and I can explain it to my son-in-law when I go back. I still have to thank Sister-in-law Zhou. Without you, I don't know what to do with my busy schedule! "

Grandma Liu thanked her sincerely. She thought that the concierge had not looked at her seriously just now. If she had listened to those ill-intentioned words at the gate, her trip might have been in vain. It can't be said that this trip was in vain. After all, I met a noble person and gave him a few stones of food, but the food was not as real as the money, let alone the favor with the Duke's Mansion, which would be his future support, let alone It is a long-term business, Grandma Liu also thought in her heart, from now on, not to mention coming often, she will definitely come back when encountering difficulties.

Mrs. Zhou's wife smiled and said nothing, and she could guess what Grandma Liu was planning in the future. However, she must have had some ideas, unless the second mistress of the Duke's mansion did not recognize this family relationship, but how could a high-ranking family do that? In order to save these few taels of money, I caused gossip and made jokes,
"I also understand what grandma means, but I also want to remind grandma that even if there is movement between poor relatives, they will also come and go. As the saying goes, it doesn't matter whether there are more or less. The etiquette is light but the affection is heavy. There is this That's okay when your heart comes to it, but you can't just think about taking advantage of it and forget about other things, that's not okay."

Mrs. Zhou's wife was thinking about Grandma Liu. Although what she said didn't sound good, it was still a piece of advice. If she only came here for alms, it would be fine once or twice. If it goes on for a long time, it might not be such a good thing.

After hearing this, Grandma Liu nodded repeatedly and responded hurriedly,

"Sister-in-law Zhou is right. Grandma, I understand in my heart that although the village below is a little poorer, the relationship between people is the same. If something happens between neighbors, they will take care of each other. The rich will contribute money and the powerful will contribute. , No one dares to fall behind, no matter what, we can’t leave any clue.”

"It's good that grandma understands this etiquette, and I can explain it clearly. Otherwise, it will be a waste of words and make you dislike it. Then I will be in the middle, but I will not be able to please you inside and outside."

Madam Zhou's wife was sitting on the kang, and she felt a little relieved. Just listen to what she said. Grandma Liu understood the situation inside, and those who asked for alms had to be more particular. How could they come to fight the autumn wind so often? Even if they wanted to come, they should be more particular. If you reciprocate a favor, you must return a favor, even if it is something worthless. Grandma looked at the worried look on Mrs. Zhou's face and said hurriedly,

"Oh, look at what you said. Sister-in-law of the Zhou family must not think like this. If she thinks like this, then who will my grandma be? Isn't she just a beggar? It's just annoying."

"Haha, it's good that grandma knows, but don't blame me for speaking harshly."

"Sister-in-law from the Zhou family, you definitely won't. Grandma understands very well."

The two talked about old things again, and seeing that it was getting late, Grandma Liu was about to say goodbye and leave.

Before leaving,
Grandma Liu wanted to leave a piece of silver, estimated to be as much as five taels of silver. Although she was reluctant to part with it, she still understood the rules, saying that she wanted to buy fruits with the children of the Zhou family.

How could Madam Zhou take such a small amount of money seriously? She was no longer the concubine of the past, but was now the steward of the Duke's Mansion. If she missed a little bit, the money would not be used up. She insisted on refusing, and Grandma Liu couldn't thank her enough. I went through the back door and returned to the entrance of the alley. I saw that the carriage was still there. Seeing the cold weather, the man was still waiting here. I felt grateful. He took out a few pieces of silver and handed it over, "Thank you for your hard work, brother. Come on, take it and buy some food when you go back, this is a big help to grandma."

Grandma Liu also knew that the changes in her aunt before and after must be related to this carriage, otherwise she would not have paid another 20 taels of silver out of her own pocket. At most, she felt that it was what she said before, and she felt very grateful. Looking at the three stones of food in the carriage, That's what's in demand.

The man took the broken silver and his face was full of joy.
"Thank you grandma for the reward. Please sit tight. We'll be back soon. Come on."

A whip was struck and the carriage left.

Not long after Grandma Liu left, Wang Xifeng in the room asked,
"Ping'er, where is the Laiwang man? I asked him to buy grain for so long and he didn't reply. Also, who is giving out grain in the alley outside? If you are brave enough, you dare to turn a deaf ear to my words. "

"Grandma, stop talking. He's not the one distributing food outside. He hasn't returned from Laiwang to buy food. It's Uncle Xue who is distributing food to the clan members. It is said that every family has it, which is a full five hundred stones of food. When I went to see the carriage, The alleys and alleys were crowded with people.”

Ping'er tugged Wang Xifeng's sleeve behind him and whispered this in his ear. Wang Xifeng's face darkened. What's going on? Xue Pan could have this idea because Aunt Xue came up with it.

Where does this put the master's house? Isn't it nonsense!
Jingcang, halfway up the mountainside of the warehouse,

Zhang Jinyu asked the people from the Forbidden Army to stand aside and wait. Guerrilla General Han Shougao stood behind him with a smile on his face.

"Master Marquis, it depends on what you said. If you have anything to do, just give me instructions."

"Okay, you came here so quickly, and you are fulfilling your duties. Today, I and Shen Shilang came here to investigate the case, and they made some discoveries. General Han, do you want to know?"

Zhang Jinyu didn't cheat him. Since he came here, he was involved in the situation. He also brought in the people from the Forbidden Army and shared some of the burden for Shen Shilang of the Ministry of Household Affairs. It was impossible to call him out for everything. Exhausted.

General Han, who was still smiling at first, immediately paled when he heard this. He knew that this matter was important and it was too late to hide. He still dared to inquire. What if he heard something he shouldn't have heard? He replied in a trilling voice. road,

"Back, Lord Marquis, back to Master Shen, the general is just a little guard and doesn't know anything. Lord Marquis, please spare me."

Shen Zhongxin glanced at General Han, as if he knew what the marquis meant, and said,

"General Han, there is no need to be modest. Since you are here, you should know that even though you are a guard, you must also know whether the place is safe or not. The fire last night was deliberately set by someone. And, look at this, not only food was burned. And sand.”

After saying that, he handed the burnt paste to the Forbidden Army guard in front of him. Han Shougao looked mournful, as if a relative had died. He didn't even look at it, nor did he look at it, so he asked,

"Master Shen, what should we do next?"

"Master Hou, what do you think?"

Shen Zhongxin looked at Marquis Luo Yun in front of him, as if he had a backbone.

Zhang Jinyu actually had no clue. After all, he didn’t know how much it was based on the unit of stone. It was better to go and see it on the spot. If it was too much, he would be exhausted and unable to move it all.

"Go in and take a look first. Based on the burned warehouse, we will decide where to move it. If there are too many, we won't be able to finish it today. I'm afraid there will be a rush over there."

After finishing speaking, he quietly pointed in the direction of the palace. Shen Zhongxin naturally understood and nodded.

"The Marquis has thought carefully, so let's do it this way. General Han, I may have to work hard for the Imperial Army today and put in some effort, but my hands and feet must be clean and there is a guard on my mouth. If it is found out that the Imperial Army is the one who saw it, If the news spreads, it will be troublesome."

Han Shougao knew he couldn't escape, so he still dared to say another word, nodded and said,
"Don't worry, Mr. Shen, the people from the Imperial Army who come today are all blind and deaf, and they will be even more mute in the future. Everything will rot in their stomachs."

"That's good, Lord Marquis, we don't have to go far. There are many large warehouses in the C-shaped area. Just pick one and check it out. It's relatively close."

Shen Zhongxin knew that if someone could set fire here, it must be a big warehouse with problems, so other warehouses could also have problems.

"Okay, that's it, let's go take a look."

Zhang Jinyu thought it was right, and pointed to the right side of the road where there was a lonely large warehouse standing there.

Seeing this, Shen Zhongxin stopped staying. He took a bunch of keys and took the lead. When he got to the warehouse door, he found the key and opened the copper lock, and then opened the door.

Zhang Jinyu dismounted and stood at the door of the warehouse. Looking inside, she saw that the building was indeed tall. There was a smell of plant ash inside, which was dry and clean. There were large wooden boards on the ground, and bags of food were piled on them. Stacked together, the grain in the entire inner warehouse was piled up to the top of the warehouse, which was full and quite spectacular.

I don't know how to check so many. He looked back at Shen Zhongxin and brought a long cylinder over at some point and said,

"Master Marquis, use this to test the surrounding grain first,"

Looking at the thing in his hand, isn't it a bamboo tube? How can I check it?

I saw Shen Zhongxin took a knife, cut a hole in the outermost grain sack, and then placed a bamboo basket underneath. Then he took the bamboo tube and inserted it hard, and then grains of yellow came out from the bamboo tube. After a while, half of the bag of rice flowed out. At this time, I could only hear the creaking of the board below. Before I could react, Shen Zhongxin shouted,

"General Han, bring people here, start moving from here, and move all the food out."

(End of this chapter)