Chapter 969
: Jia Zhen went south to fight the epidemic
Chapter 969: Jia Zhen went south to fight the epidemic
In front of the Shuntian government office,
The atmosphere was a bit depressing.
At the corner of the street, the waiter's call came from the tavern. Almost instantly, Song Changping immediately understood the purpose of Mr. Tang's visit.
This is to deliver the case closure documents, but how could the case that the Imperial City Division gave to the Ministry of Justice be transferred to Shuntian Prefecture? I guess they don't know which family's son committed the crime. For the case committed in the capital, the Imperial City Division, the Ministry of Justice, and Shuntian Prefecture can theoretically communicate with each other and close the case.
But few people would do this. If someone suddenly appeared before them, who would believe that there was nothing strange?
"Lord Tang is really dedicated to the court, and he even delivered it personally. I dare to ask, this document is for closing the case. Why did the Ministry of Justice come to Shuntian Prefecture if it didn't close the case itself?"
In response to the question,
Song Changping smiled, his hands did not move at all, and he had no intention of taking it. It was not right for Tang Zheng to hold it, nor was it right for him to take it back. He asked coldly;
"What does Lord Song mean?"
"I just want to ask, which students' case closing documents are these?"
Song Changping continued to ask without any fear;
"Haha, Lord Song is really dedicated to his duties. I am not going to hide anything. This is the case closing document of Jia Zhen from Ningguo Mansion. The Imperial City Department has written a receipt. Jia Zhen couldn't stand the hardship of traveling by boat and got sick on the way south. It's hard for the Ministry of Justice to intervene, so I came here today to ask Shuntian Mansion to help. Of course, the Ministry of Justice also has its own explanation. The three cases brought by Shuntian Mansion have been closed by the Ministry of Justice. How do you think?"
Tang Zheng naturally did not come empty-handed. Shuntian Prefecture still had many cases involving many people, which were transferred to the Ministry of Justice, including some that Lord Xu had handed over. However, Lord Chang did not nod his head due to the internal affairs, so many cases were not settled. Before coming here today, he specially asked Lord Chang to speak, so that he could speak.
After listening to Lord Tang's story, Song Changping knew that the cases Lord Tang mentioned were all taken over by his master. He was weighing the pros and cons in his mind. There was another thing. Jia Zhen was fine when he left, and he was still riding in a carriage. How could he suddenly get sick? Someone must have done something. The Jia family's Rongguo Mansion is now in its heyday. Wouldn't it be a nuisance to deliver this news at this time?
No wonder the people from the Ministry of Justice didn't go. He glanced at Lord Tang and asked;
"Your Excellency is so frank, I admire you. I will take over this matter on behalf of my master. However, do you have the receipt for the case that my master transferred to you before?"
"Well, of course there is. Take it."
Tang Zheng snorted, took out three documents from his pocket and handed them over. Song Changping took them in his hands and checked them carefully. They were indeed true. He smiled and said,
"Thank you, Lord Tang. How about I invite you to come in and rest for a while?"
"That's not necessary. Sir Song must pay attention to this matter. I'm going back now."
Tang Zhengqi was still not satisfied, so he waved his hand and turned away with his two followers. In the blink of an eye, they were no longer around the corner.
"You guys did a good job. Go to the mansion to collect your reward today."
"Thank you, sir."
Several yamen runners happily agreed, and Song Changping nodded, holding the documents in his hand, and hurried to the backyard of the yamen.
In the pavilion,
Lord Xu, the governor of Shuntian Prefecture, had already been sitting in the pavilion, eating breakfast and sipping sake, feeling quite comfortable.
"Sir, Sir, Director Tang from the Ministry of Justice just came here and brought a case closing document. I thought about it for a moment and asked for the case closing documents of three cases that were transferred a month ago. Sir Tang nodded in agreement and brought them all together. So, today the case was transferred and I took it over."
It seemed simple, but the reason was clear. Xu Jiaqing was startled and turned to look at Song Changping. All three cases were closed, which meant that the matter sent today was not a small matter.
"Haha, this is strange. They sent something cheap to Shuntian Prefecture so early in the morning. I guess the matter sent by the Ministry of Justice is not easy to handle, right?"
Xu Jiaqing had been the governor of Shuntian Prefecture for so long that he had memorized all the twists and turns. It was nothing more than the son of a powerful family. The Ministry of Justice could not intervene, so they could only transfer the case over. However, the Ministry of Justice was able to close the cases of his family, so it was not a loss.
"Your Excellency has a keen eye. When I heard that Lord Tang had settled Chuchun's case, I was moved and agreed to it. However, there is one thing: this matter is simple, but it is hard to explain."
Song Changping hesitated. It hadn't been long since the Rongguo Mansion's big wedding, and now they were coming to announce the funeral. Who would be happy if they came to pour cold water on him?
"Sir, when Jia Zhen of Ningguo Mansion went south, he was infected with an epidemic on the way."
"Huh? What! Jia Zhen is dead,"
The wine cup that Xu Jiaqing had just picked up was suspended in the air, with a look of disbelief on his face. How could the people escorted by the Imperial City Bureau disappear halfway? Unless there was an order from above, he suddenly realized that it was no wonder that the people from the Ministry of Justice were unwilling to accept it. They must have noticed this a long time ago.
Although Ningguo Mansion was defeated, Rongguo Mansion was just the opposite. It was favored and favored. It was really difficult to deal with it.
"My Lord, that is true. We have brought the documents, so they cannot be forged. However, I am a little embarrassed as to how to pass them on. Otherwise, we can find an errand boy to deliver them directly to the gatekeeper of Rongguo Mansion. We will not show up."
Although Song Changping had no good solution, he was straightforward enough. They did not show up and only sent runners to deliver documents. No one would think much of it.
"That's a good idea. Well, in that case, arrange for someone to deliver it immediately, and don't say anything else."
"Yes, my lord."
But the Shuntian government had already arranged for an official to deliver the letter.
In Ningguofu Hutong,
Jia Qiang got up early yesterday and went to the street corner of the south city. He bought a shop that he had been eyeing for a long time for three thousand taels of silver. He also found a pawnbroker to rent out the shop, which he could get five hundred taels of silver a year. After signing the contract, he found a secluded place to hide the title deed and the banknotes.
Then he went out.
I was going to the construction site. After breakfast, I went to clean up the Ningguo Mansion Academy. I heard from Madam You that the three teachers would come tomorrow. The clan academy was open, and Jia Qing and the others would have a place to study. They didn't need to work here anymore.
Thinking of this,
I felt much better and walked towards Rongguo Mansion.
Didn't go far,
Then he saw three runners from Shuntian Prefecture hurrying over on horseback. They seemed to be going to Rongguo Mansion. Although he was curious, he did not take it seriously.
Just waiting to come in.
"Brother Qiang, come here, sit down here."
As soon as he arrived at the courtyard in the southwest corner, he saw Jia Qing, Jia Qin and others eating noodle soup around a table. When they waved, Jia Qiang walked over with a happy look on his face. Then, a servant brought another bowl of noodle soup and placed it in front of him.
"Thank you for your help, brothers. The division of the family has been settled. After the clan school opens in a few days, we brothers will get together again. By the way, I have already recorded your names on the school roster and reported it to Grandma and Madam You. I think you should pack up tomorrow, no, tonight, because the teacher will be here tomorrow. You can't delay your enrollment. You can get two taels of silver per month."
When Jia Qiang went to the middle courtyard of Ningguo Mansion to sort out the roster for Madam You and the eldest grandmother, he saw that Jia Qing and others were not on the list. He felt strange and wondered if Jia Rui was interfering. So he took the pen and filled in the names of several people. When he saw it today, he told it out.
After hearing this, Jia Qing and the others had complicated expressions and replied;
"Brother Qiang is really taking care of his brothers. This list was written by Jia Rui. I thought that he could not enroll this time. I wonder what position Jia Rui holds in the middle courtyard?"
The rest of the people were delighted. With Qiang'er's recommendation, they no longer had to help out here.
"Why mention him? He is just for the elders to supervise. From now on, I will be in charge of the affairs of the middle courtyard. Brothers, just study with peace of mind. If you can achieve fame like Brother Qiang, and get a job, then you will be able to make a name for yourself."
Jia Qiang's eyes were filled with envy. The great changes in the grandmother's side were not necessarily due to Jia Qiang's official status. He might also be able to study and have a place to go. "Ah, it's easier said than done, Brother Qiang. I'm not afraid of you making fun of me. I've been studying for a year. Although I understand the subject well, the eight-part essay is really hard to understand. You know, the eight-part essay accounts for more than 80% of the imperial examination. How can those scholars who become teachers learn well?"
Jia Qing sighed a little. Without a famous teacher to guide him, no matter how much he learned, it would be useless. The rest of them were even more listless. Brother Qing was the best at reading the classics. The others were just eating and drinking for free. How could they concentrate on reading the classics and poems?
"Brother Qing said so. He is the best scholar among us brothers. Let's listen to the teacher's matter for now. The great grandmother said that after this year's special examination is over, those who failed the exam can be invited to be teachers. There is no need to rush. After all, we have the monthly salary to support ourselves. The great grandmother said that anyone in the clan who goes to school will receive three taels of silver a month, and meals will be provided."
At first, Jia Qiang was a little bit unbelievable when he heard about this, but the eldest lady always kept her word, so he thought it would not be false. When the others heard this, they looked complicated and bowed to the west.
"Grandma is so kind, never mind, I'll just listen to Brother Qiang and eat first."
He picked up the bowl again and started eating.
At this moment,
I don't know where a shout came from.
"Master Zhen is sick!"
Everyone in the hospital was shocked. What was going on?
In front of Rongguo Mansion,
Lai Da looked at the document in his hand with a gloomy face. He never thought that Master Zhen would be gone just a few days after he set out on the journey. He wanted to ask more questions, but found that the yamen runners had left without a trace.
The Rongguo Mansion was still in a festive mood, and this incident was really inappropriate at the right time. Looking at the official document in his hand, Lai Da had a bitter face, complaining about why he came here so early today. But he couldn't not go in, so he hesitated for a moment.
He turned around and told the concierge to stay here and watch.
"You guys, take good care of this place, I'll be back soon."
Without waiting for the doorman to speak, he hurried into the front yard with the government documents in his hand. After he left, the sound of a few people talking rang out, which was heard by the waiters coming in and out and spread to others, arousing the curiosity of more people.
In Rongqing Hall,
The old lady was in a good mood these days and got up early every day. Wang Xifeng happened to be busy in the courtyard and outside. After a while, the first one to pay her respects was Wang Xifeng. The old lady was happy and had meals with the two of them every day. After the meal, the two of them returned to the warm room and sat down on the soft couch on the kang to rest.
Grandmother Jia was dressed casually today, in a loose reddish-brown dress, without any gold or silver jewelry. The same was true of Wang Xifeng, who was sitting next to her. She was wearing a light pink dress with a golden hairpin stuck behind her bun, which made her look plain.
"Feng girl, how is the construction of the fort outside the city going?"
As soon as the old lady sat down, she started to ask, her heart still on the farm outside the city. In the past few days, the Imperial City Division in the capital has been mobilizing troops everywhere, and she knows everything she should know. She doesn't know whether those daring bandits have been wiped out. It's not a good thing to be worried every day.
"Don't worry, old lady. Once the fortress blueprint is out, I will arrange for the East Palace Manager Yu to gather the people from the two manors to start building the wall on the high ground of the East Palace manor. We will demolish the manor in our mansion and move the stones and wood to fill the foundation."
Wang Xifeng came over with some tea and carefully placed it on the square table beside the old lady. As for the fort, it was not very big and there were enough people. It would take less than a month to build the wall. It would not cost more than 100,000 taels of silver.
"That's not right. Why should we build a fortress at the East Mansion? The original location of the Rongguo Mansion is not good."
The old lady was a little confused. The two farms were close to each other. Logically, the farm of Rongguo Mansion should be bigger. Why was the fort built on the east side? If she calculated it, she would have to rebuild the house. Wouldn't it cost more?
"Old lady, look at what you said. It's not my decision to build the fort. I asked Master Architect Song to take a look. He said that the farm in our mansion is a bit low and there is no place to get water. If the farm is leveled, we can get more land. The farm in the east mansion is closer to the river and has higher terrain. Building a fort and diverting river water can solve the water problem. Or we can spend more effort to dig a ditch like a moat, which is safer."
Wang Xifeng said nice things to her. Actually, these were all arranged by the Second Wife. Since the location was good, why not take advantage of it? By removing the old farm of Rongguo Mansion, they could leave more land for farming. With the Second Wife's words, Wang Xifeng and the eldest lady could not refuse. They had no choice but to do so.
After hearing this, Jia's mother nodded and smiled.
"Just build a fort, why build a moat? It's not like building a city, but this idea is good. It's a safe thing anyway. From now on, the matter of reconciliation of Zhuangzi's accounts will be handed over to you. Pay more attention to it."
She spoke slowly and calmly. The tea in Wang Xifeng's hand trembled slightly, splashing a little water. The old lady meant that it was her turn to manage Rongguo Mansion. This was the largest manor in the south. She had checked the account books for the harvest of the year, and at least 50,000 taels of silver had been recorded.
In the past, the second wife had tampered with the accounts, which resulted in a lot less money. Now that it was transferred to her, she would have a share of the remaining money.
"Old Madam, in the past, the accounts of the farm were managed by the Second Madam, and every year it was the housekeeper Zhou Rui who went to collect the rent. Now that it is my turn to manage the accounts, should I discuss these personnel matters with the Second Madam?"
Wang Xifeng thought about it and told the inside story. If she wanted to be in charge, she would naturally use her own people. She didn't want to use the people from the Second Wife's side. Even if they were familiar with each other, she would still feel more at ease with her own people when handling money.
"Just take care of it as I ask you to. It's up to you. As for the Second Madam, I'll just let someone know. The two families have merged their farm and built a fort. It's a big deal for the Jia family. As the head of the family, you naturally have to put the farm in order. Have you arranged for the family members to go to school?"
When it comes to going to school, Grandmother Jia thinks of Baoyu going to the Imperial College, and the quota for the additional students can be arranged. She wants to ask more, but Wang Xifeng observes her expression and knows what the old lady means, so she speaks first.
"Oh, look, there have been so many things going on in the mansion these days that I forgot. The quota for the Imperial College has been filled in by my eldest sister-in-law, who has reported her hometown and name. My eldest sister-in-law has also added 1,000 taels of tuition. The badge for the supplementary student has been sent to Baoyu's courtyard. Tomorrow, I can go to the Imperial College to study.
Coincidentally, tomorrow the clan school will also find three teachers, saying that they can open a clan school, but the eldest sister-in-law said that in order to let the children of the clan study safely, the monthly salary has been raised to three taels, and meals are also provided. The eldest sister-in-law really takes it seriously. "
Wang Xifeng shouldn't have asked these questions, but when she thought about it, she thought about how much money was given and how many people in the clan were there. People who originally didn't come also came. There were at least a hundred people. It would cost a lot in a year.
She was somewhat reluctant, but could not speak. The family property was a public account, and no one could interfere. Perhaps Grandmother Jia saw a hint of mystery, so she smiled, reached out and took Feng's hand, and said:
"You are not as good as the daughter-in-law of the Zhu family in this respect. It's rare for her to be in charge of the family. She also holds the title of clan leader in the East Mansion. The clan property is not much, but the harvest is still good. Many people in the Jia family are eyeing these harvests. Instead of keeping them in the minds of others, it's better to use them here and spread them out to gain a reputation. You can kill two birds with one stone."
Grandmother Jia sighed in her heart. Feng wasn't the only one who could manage the household. The girl from Zhu's family was pretty, intelligent, and very opinionated. Unfortunately, Zhu'er passed away early and became a widow. When something happened, there was nothing you could do.
Fortunately, after all the hardship comes happiness. Lang'er from the Zhu family is diligent and the scholar is given an official position. It has been many years since they last met. Grandmother Jia feels strange and indescribable in her heart.
"What the old lady said is right. It's better for those elders not to say anything."
Wang Xifeng sighed. After all, as a businessman, there were things that could not be said. If she hadn't had the work at the Chamber of Commerce, which employed so many people, the young men in the clan, if led by a few elders, would probably come to the mansion to make trouble every year. The eldest sister-in-law should know about this. This was a good idea. Since she couldn't keep the money, she would just spend it all and let no one worry about it.
While the two were chatting, Lai Da had already hurried in, stood outside the warm room, and called out;
"Madam, I, the servant Lai Da, have something to report to you,"
When the people in the room heard this, they immediately stopped talking. Why did Lai Da come into the room? Could it be that someone from outside the house came? Wang Xifeng was still a little puzzled.
"come in."
"Yes, old lady."
Lai Da lowered his head, Xiao Ci walked in, bowed,
"Greetings to the old lady and the second lady. I have something to report."
He walked in a hurry and spoke in a hurry. He was afraid that the master would not believe him. He took a few steps forward, put the official documents in his hand on the table, and then slowly returned to his original seat and continued;
"Old Madam, Second Madam, Master Zhen of Dongfu, he caught a cold on the way south, and he was overworked and has contracted the disease!"
"What, epidemic?"
(End of this chapter)