Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 595: The Manager of the Imperial Kitchen
The strange interrogation in the Shuntian Mansion Yamen had long frightened Yu Lan, and she also saw clearly what the nobles and civil servants were doing behind their backs.

It was obvious that the Marquis of Luo Yun and the civil servants had killed the Ningguo Mansion. The Marquis of Xiangyang was probably still in the dark. As for the general at the end, he said nothing and looked like a dead man. No need to ask, how could he dare to do that? After objecting, Jia Zhen was sent to prison, fearing that she might not be able to get out.

I felt a little scared for a moment, thinking of this,
Outside Shuntian Mansion,

Shopkeeper Yu Lanyu couldn't help but walk a little fast, and walked out of the government office gate with lingering fear. He wanted to get on the carriage and go back to the red building in a hurry. As soon as he arrived at the carriage, he looked up and saw a woman waving to him on the other side of the road. ,This is?

A closer look revealed that this was not the master's personal maid Liu Yue. She was dressed in coarse cloth, carrying a bag, and had a wooden hairpin missing from her head. She looked very much like a farmer's wife. How dare she come to this place.

Looking around nervously, the yamen entrance was crowded with people watching the excitement, and it was a mess.
He moved quietly and walked to the opposite side of the street, then grabbed Liu Yue's hand and got into the carriage together.
"Why did you come to the capital? The capital is so windy now, so be careful about everything."

Liu Yue lowered the car curtain, looked at Yu Lan's face, and said with a smile,

"Sister Yu, I'm careful. Your Highness asked me to come to the capital to deliver a message. I also want to tell you that the people in the harem will take action tonight to urge the Queen Mother to go to Jing'an Temple to offer incense tomorrow. Time is too urgent, so we can only I'm coming to town,"

"What, why are you in such a hurry? The Queen Mother has already decided to go to offer incense the day after tomorrow. How can she take risks with her own people in one day?"

Yu Lan was shocked, why would the master be so reckless? Waiting for one more day would not be enough.

Yu Lan narrowed her eyes and asked carefully, which seemed to have a profound meaning. Liu Yue shook her head and replied;

"I'll give you a sachet from Heshantang. I bought it after waiting for a long time."

The smile returned to Yu Lan's face. Deputy Ambassador Song had not forgotten his responsibilities. Only those who are tight-lipped can stay. He took out a sachet and handed it over.

And how to arrange the prince's old subordinates? There should be quite a few people there.

Liu Yue's face was rosy, and only Sister Yu could be so unscrupulous. After the matter was explained, naturally she couldn't stay for a long time.
"Sister Yu, I have finished the mission of delivering the message. I have also brought what the master asked me to bring to you. Be careful with everything. It is not convenient for my sister to stay for a long time. By the way, the master wants me to ask, is there anyone here in the capital now? Something big happened, why are you in trouble at Shuntian Mansion Yamen?"

"I didn't say that. I just said that you came to Shuntian Mansion for something. I didn't tell you what happened."

"Then has he told you what happened?"

Then he looked around vigilantly, walked over carefully, and whispered,

Liu Yue shook her head and said she was not sure. After all, such a big thing was not something she, a personal maid, could understand.

Yu Lan reached out and took Liu Yue's hand. The little girl in her early years had also grown up. Not only was she tall and beautiful, but she also had a lot of thoughts.

"Yeah, the ladies in the capital are rushing to buy Heshantang sachets. My sister is so awesome."

Yu Lan did not ask further about the matter in the south. This matter was very involved and the walls had ears. Instead, she thought about Tian Baoliang, the eunuch in charge of the royal kitchen in the palace. He once served his master. Everything in the palace was passed down by the Grand Eunuch. How he will solve it, and whether the master wants to use this matter as a bargaining chip and return to the capital, it will be clear after thinking about it.

"What? Is this true or false? I have been in the capital for more than ten years and have been in charge of the capital. There is no trace of it. How did the master know about it?"

"Sister Yu, please don't be impatient. The master has his own reasons. There is a letter from Jingnan,"

"Since it was the eunuch who took over, I think it shouldn't be too difficult. The master's mind is hard to figure out, so don't speculate casually. When are you leaving?"

"There is a letter from the old department of Jingnan Marquis Mansion in the south, saying that the former prince's subordinates have entered the land of Jingnan. The master guesses that the prince is not dead, and he is very powerful."

"Sister Yu, I don't know about this either, but when the master saw the visitor from the south, he immediately concluded that it was true. I don't know the details. When I arrived at noon just now, I had already given the royal kitchen to the palace. My husband over there handed me the message and he should be there tomorrow,"

"Ah That's good,"

Seeing Sister Yu being so vigilant, Liu Yue laughed and said,
"Of course I went to the Red Mansion to look for you. If Song Qingyun hadn't told me, where would I have found you?"

Yu Lan was shocked. If the former prince was really not dead, then how should the Emperor Wu, who now reigns in the world, deal with it? Should he continue to send people to secretly pursue and kill him, or should he issue an order to welcome him back to the capital to be imprisoned? At that time, the interests of the kings would be involved. , the situation is difficult to control.

Yu Lan touched the back of Liu Yue's hand and asked,
"Then how did you find yourself here? How did you know about my coming to Shuntian Mansion?"

Liu Yue happily took it in her hand and sniffed it in her nose. It smelled really good.

"Keep it. I came to Shuntian Mansion to give perjury to Marquis Luo Yun. Jia Zhen of Ning Guo Mansion was targeted by civil servants. Marquis Luo Yun also wanted to kill him secretly, so the matchmaker who protected Jia Rong of Ning Guo Mansion before was One of the chief judges is Feng Yongwen, the Prime Minister of Dali Temple. I think Mr. Feng has taken refuge with Marquis Luo Yun and went to the Red Mansion to find me, just to break off the engagement. Do you think I can't agree? "

Yu Lan thought about it carefully and deduced the relationship between Marquis Luo Yun and Master Feng. Two people who had never met before, for no reason, a dignified Marquis could actually take over this matter for the Prime Minister of Dali Temple. Among them If there was no profit involved in what happened, according to Luo Yunhou's temperament, how could he be a lobbyist himself.

Obviously wanting to keep Feng Yongwen as one of the chief judges, he observed several adults in the hall, but it seemed that none of them noticed. In this way, Luo Yunhou secretly controlled the overall situation. Whether others wanted to save Jia Zhen, Whether he should be punished or punished was decided by Marquis Luo Yun, so Yu Lan immediately gave up her little thoughts and returned to Ningguo Mansion.

"Ah, how could this happen? The Jia family is the head of the eight princes in the capital. How could this happen? If the other nobles don't help, what will happen to the matter that the master entrusted to my sister?"

Liu Yue was greatly surprised. Jia Zhen of Ningguo Mansion was still the nominal head of the clan, but was taken to Shuntian Mansion for trial. It was simply unbelievable. It was impossible for the master to tell Sister Yu to win over the Jia family.

Yu Lan looked at Liu Yue's innocent look, shook her head and said;
"What you call the leader of the Eight Dukes is from old history. Now Zhen Guo Gong is the leader of the Eight Dukes. The Jia family has insufficient stamina and has a false name. However, in this way, the master's affairs are really difficult to handle. If Ning Guofu Jia Zhen is convicted and deprived of her title, there will definitely be chaos. Once a big family is in chaos, there will be no threat. "

"Then I'll talk to my master about this when my sister gets back. I'll wait and see for now, but that Luo Yunhou is really that powerful. My master is a little afraid of his 10,000 ghost-faced cavalry. I heard that they all wear masks. , very scary.”

Liu Yue shrank her neck and hid in fear, letting Yu Lan grab her.
"You, who told you that Luo Yunhou has more than 10,000 elite cavalry in the capital, wearing face masks? When should you wear masks? Besides, what are you afraid of? If the Queen Mother really goes to offer incense tomorrow, the guards will The soldiers, except for the imperial guards, are all his soldiers and horses along the way. You will naturally see it when you get there. Okay, go back quickly so that no one will notice. "

"Yes, Sister Yu."

Liu Yue nodded in response, and Yu Lan did not hesitate. She opened the curtain and looked outside. The people surrounding the yamen had not dispersed yet, and no one was paying attention. Then she carefully got off the carriage, and then walked a few steps forward. On the same frame as when it came.

"Let's go back to the red building."

"Yes, big shopkeeper."

The coachman responded, then waved his riding crop, gave his horse a hard slap, and drove away. And inside the hall,
Zhang Jinyu took a look at the confessions given by several people, and found that they were all pretty good. Although he didn't ask for a clear explanation, he asked about the general meaning, and the signatures and signatures were clear at a glance.
"Mr. Chang, you are the Minister of Justice of the Ministry of Justice. We have just taken a preliminary look at the matters your Majesty has given you. You will submit these to Your Majesty. The rest of the matters will be reviewed by your three departments. You will be notified when the trial is held. That is, as for the arrest, we still need to ask the prince to cooperate. "

Zhang Jinyu put the confession in Chang Zuo's hand, and then asked about the matter, including the smuggling of contraband by Wu Jinxiao in Ningguo Mansion, and also handed it over to Chang Zuo and the other three. By the way, he mentioned Wang Gonggong, meaning I've already done what I'm supposed to do, and you can take care of the rest.

Chang Zuo was still a little dazed. He looked at the confession in his hand and still couldn't figure out what the Marquis meant. Meng Li heard clearly and his face was overjoyed.
"Master Marquis, I will definitely investigate the case carefully. I will never miss any clues, let alone wrongly accuse anyone."

"Okay, Master Chang, what do you think?"

"The Marquis knows his lesson well, and so do my subordinates. We will definitely get to the bottom of it."

Seeing that the Marquis asked him again, Chang Zuo immediately agreed, and the princes and princes around him were all smiles.

"Don't worry, my Lord. I've got it in mind."

Only the Marquis of Xiangyang behind him hesitated to speak. He always felt that today's interrogation was a bit strange, as if it was a trap. How could Jia Zhen be so cooperative?

When Zhang Jinyu saw that the matter was over, she stopped delaying. After a tiring day, it was better to go back and rest early. She took the Jingmu Tang and smashed the table again.
"Retire!"

"Zong Tian, ​​Zu Zong Tian, ​​please walk more slowly,"

Ouchi Miyagi Imperial Dining Room,
One or two young eunuchs surrounded a luxurious old eunuch, serving tea and water.

The pastries on the table nearby were all the same. The old eunuch was leaning leisurely on the lounge chair and sitting in the lobby of the imperial dining room.
"It's you two little kids. Why, you want to be lazy again."

"Ancestor, you have wronged us both. After all, it is important to serve you here. How can we be lazy?"

"Yes, ancestor, I still have some skills in making tea. I have to go to work. My ancestor is thirsty and there is no one to make tea, right?"

The two young eunuchs had flattering looks on their faces and said nice things.

Only Manager Tian narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at the two of them secretly. After raising them for so many years, he finally felt a little filial.

"You two little bastards have been lazy and sneaked into the ancestor's place. Okay, you two don't have to work today. I'll let you two do some errands at night. How dare you."

Eunuch Tian Baoliang didn't care to ask this question. Not long ago, he received a secret message from His Highness, asking the Queen Mother to go to Jing'an Temple to offer incense tomorrow, and also to give the Queen a reason. This matter was a bit impatient.
However, there must be a reason for His Highness to take such a risk to send a message. Eunuch Tian thought for a long time and could not think of anything useful. After all, the Queen Mother had already arranged to go to the incense the day after tomorrow. There was only one day difference, so she couldn't wait any longer.

The two young eunuchs beside him looked happy when they heard this. One of them quickly brought a bowl of tea and handed it over.

"Ancestor, don't worry, I will definitely dare to do it,"

"Okay, since you dare to do it, you have to do it well and make sure there are no mistakes. From now on, you two will be the confidants of the Za family. Let's become a godfather."

Tian Baoliang didn't know what the eunuch was thinking in the palace, so he also made a big bet. He wanted to cause trouble and discredit the queen. It was really difficult in the harem. When the three princes left the palace to build a mansion, the queen would be free. Concubine Wu He is also much more honest with Zhou Guiren.

But it was easy to handle. Tian Baoliang took a sip of tea and thought of many harem secrets of the previous dynasty, especially the self-immolation case of the last queen, and he came up with a plan.

"Dad, my son is kowtowing to you."

The two young eunuchs were overjoyed. They did not expect such a good thing to happen. They immediately knelt down and kowtowed.

And served tea,
Eunuch Tian took the tea and took a sip. Then he thought that the reward money in recent days and the salary had not yet been paid, so today he also paid it together to hide the public's eyes.

"Drink the tea. From now on, you two will be my sons, Tian Baoliang. One of you will be called Tian Da and the other will be called Tian Er. You can also leave me a thought. I am happy to receive the salary and silver reward from the imperial kitchen. Now, go and inform them and wait here.”

Tian Baoliang pointed at Tian Da who was kneeling on the left and ordered,

"Yes, godfather, my son will go right away."

Without waiting for the Grand Eunuch to explain again, he jumped up in a hurry, and then with his hat on its side, he didn't bother to straighten it up, turned around and ran out, calling for someone.

The two people looked a little stunned, Tian Baoliang laughed,
"This kid is in a hurry and doesn't have much future,"

"Godfather, you didn't give it to me. My son is very happy now."

Tian Er hurriedly explained beside him, then stood up and came behind him, giving his "godfather" a pat on the back, serving him attentively.

"You are still smart. Please be more careful when doing things in the future. You also know in the palace not to stir up trouble. The water is very deep."

"Yes, godfather, my son understands."

Tian Er nodded seriously, knowing what his "godfather" meant. In the harem, no matter who it is, if there is no one to look after him, the palace will be a cannibalistic place. How many eunuchs and palace maids died unknown, no? Even if they don't die, if they offend someone and are sent to the cold palace, there will be many people who are worse off than dead.

To be favored by the "godfather" can be regarded as smoke rising from the ancestral grave.

After waiting for a while,
The eunuchs in charge of the imperial dining room and the little eunuchs serving as servants all came here after hearing the news, with excited expressions on their faces. They heard that there was a silver reward, but as soon as they entered the lobby of the imperial dining room, they saw Manager Tian lying half-lying in the room. ,
Everyone immediately stopped talking and stood respectfully in the hall. It didn't take long for everyone to gather.

Tian Da counted the people with his fingers. When he saw that everyone was gathered, he bowed and said,

"Godfather, everyone is here."

It doesn't matter what he shouted. All the eunuchs and supervisors in the hall looked at Tian Da in front of them in surprise. What kind of ability did this boy have to be attracted by Tian Da? Even many supervisors were full of envy and jealousy, let alone the other young eunuchs. Envy and jealousy are intertwined on his face, as if his face is changing.

"Well, just come,"

(End of this chapter)