Ningguo Mansion
When I returned from Qin's house with Qin Keqing, it was already midnight in the afternoon. Because the summer was long, the sun was still lingering in the western sky, but the heat had already subsided by five or six points.
Jia Heng sipped a cup of tea in the hall, thought for a moment, and headed to the backyard kitchen, intending to personally inspect the female cook who was a skilled cook but whose origins were unknown.
The kitchen of Ningguo Mansion is located in the southeast corner. Trees are planted on all sides of the courtyard. It is midsummer, and the trees are swaying in the wind. The shade of the trees is like waves. Not far away, you can see the smoke steaming from the chimney, and in the corridor connecting the backyard, you can see each The maids and nannies were moving things in and out.
This is the small stove owned by the master of the Ningguo Mansion. It is naturally very different from the servants' large stoves in the servants' houses.
In addition to Jia Heng, Qin Keqing and Xichun, those who could be called masters in Ningguo Mansion also had guests like Miaoyu and the You sisters.
The third-class nun who was washing vegetables next to a wooden basin in the courtyard was startled when she looked up and saw Jia Heng. She clearly did not expect that Jia Heng would come to the kitchen in person. She quickly got up from the small bench and put her wet hands on her waist. He wiped it on the scarf he was wearing, put on a flattering smile on his wrinkled face, and asked: "Uncle Heng, why are you here in the kitchen?"
"I have nothing to do, come and take a look." Jia Heng looked at the woman, nodded, and asked softly: "The food we have been here for the past two days is very delicious. Which cook made it?"
"Master, are you talking about Chef Xiao? She is preparing dinner now. I will call her right away." The grandma said with a smile.
Jia Heng quickly stretched out his hand to stop him and said, "I'll just go and see for myself."
At this moment, in the back kitchen, by the window, a slim figure, Chen Xiao, wearing a lotus-colored floral skirt, blue silk tied on her head, and wrapped in a blue and white square scarf, stood in front of the stove, holding the iron in her hands. Pot, under the stove, a girl is delivering dry firewood, and the flame is burning brightly.
Because it was midsummer, the weather was hot, and the girl was cooking again. Her bright and clear forehead, together with her beautiful and refined face with melon seeds, seemed to be dripping with sweat. From time to time, she turned aside and picked up a handkerchief to wipe the sweat.
Chen Xiao looked attentive. The White Lotus Saint picked up the kitchen knife and put it on the willow tree cutting board nearby. "Dong dong". It was not known whether it was the sharpness of the kitchen knife or the sharpness of the technique. Almost in the blink of an eye, she neatly cut the green vegetables. Cut it up, pinch it with both hands, and put it into the oil pan. Suddenly there is a "sizzling" sound, and the heat mixed with the aroma rises.
The girl picked up the shovel and turned it over with skillful movements. Coupled with her youthful and beautiful curves, she was quite a beautiful sight in the kitchen of all the yellow-faced women.
And this scene naturally fell into the eyes of the young man who quietly entered the kitchen. His brows were condensed, and his eyes showed thoughts.
As the saying goes, one stands out from the crowd and is different from others. This is what Chef Xiao gave him. Could this kind of person be an ordinary cook?
It's not like Xi Lai Le, the miracle doctor, has a lion's head in his hands, and besides, he has the charm of a good family with no hands for spoons.
Well, his thinking seemed to be a little divergent, and it was all his fault that Chu Princess Zhen Qing led him into the ditch.
"Uncle, why are you here?" The woman who was busy in the kitchen stopped her work when she saw the young man in plain brocade robe standing in front of the window and greeted him with a smile.
This naturally caused the girl who was concentrating on cooking to turn around and look around, her eyes slightly surprised.
I can't describe the feeling of looking back so suddenly. That oval-shaped face illuminated by the golden-red sunlight in the afternoon, with its clear eyebrows and eyes, the contours and lines of the cheeks, half-hidden and half-light, almost gave me an inexplicable sense of familiarity.
For a moment, I thought it was Xianning.
Well, the temperament of this Chef Xiao, no, or the layout of her eyebrows and facial features, seems to be a bit like Xianning.
"Come and take a look, you are all busy." Jia Heng waved his hand and told the women to retreat. He walked closer, looked at the girl with stars and moon in her eyes, and asked, "Is it Chef Xiao?"
"Uncle Heng." Chen Xiao's clear eyes narrowed under his beautiful eyebrows, and he clenched the hand holding the shovel, feeling a vague feeling of something bad in his heart.
"The dishes I've been cooking these past few days are delicious. Come and see the cook who can cook northern and southern cuisines." Under Jia Heng's sharp eyebrows, his eyes were clear and he looked at the girl opposite. Her eyebrows were curved but her cheeks were as white as jade. Powdered
If the cheeks can still be explained by youthfulness, then the slender fingers and the calluses at the tiger's mouth undoubtedly indicate that it is not only caused by holding a spoon and carrying a knife. Maybe he has martial arts skills.
Jia Heng looked at the calm girl and asked, "Are the dishes finished? I have something to ask you."
"There are two more dishes." Hearing this, Chen Xiao breathed a sigh of relief and looked calmly.
If she was exposed, this person would never say whether the vegetables were finished cooking, let alone be so calm and indifferent, he should just doubt her.
Jia Heng glanced at the dishes being stir-fried in the pot and said, "Let's finish frying this dish. There's no rush. Don't burn it."
"Yeah." Chen Xiao said softly, turning around to stir-fry the dishes.
This Chef Xiao is quite suspicious.
Jia Heng thought, and moved farther away. Now he looked at the girl's back, frowning, thinking, this back was really familiar, but compared to when he suddenly looked back before, his appearance and facial features were somewhat similar to Xianning's. It was different. He should have seen this back before, but this made him unable to remember when he had seen it.
"Where have you seen it before?" Jia Heng's eyes flickered, searching for memories in his mind.
Because of his professional habits in his previous life, he has a deep memory of the people he has met and will not forget them for a long time.
On the other side, Chen Xiao looked calm and was still frying the vegetables meticulously, occasionally pouring vinegar and sprinkling salt, without any trace of panic.
After a while, the girl put the fried vegetables on the plate and asked a nanny to take them away. Then she wiped her hands on her scarf and said, "Uncle Heng, let's go."
Without saying much, Jia Heng led the girl to a spacious pavilion not far from the backyard.
Chen Xiao walked into the pavilion, wiping his hands on his scarf while quietly observing the surrounding environment with bright eyes, looking for an escape route if he was exposed later.
"Sit." Jia Heng sat down on a pearwood chair behind the small table and invited the girl.
Chen Xiao said softly: "I don't dare to be in front of the master, but the master has something to give me?"
Jia Heng smiled, looked at the calm girl opposite, and asked, "It's nothing but a casual chat. Where is Miss Xiao from? Who did she learn this cooking skill from?"
Although it is just a suspicion, it is enough to inquire.
There was no smile on Chen Xiao's face, but still clear and frosty, and he cherished his words like gold and said: "I am from Yangzhou, and I learned my cooking skills from my mother since I was a child."
"A native of Yangzhou?" Jia Heng put down the tea cup, raised his eyes to look at the girl opposite, staring into her clear eyes, and asked, "But Miss Xiao can cook more than just Yangzhou cuisine."
Chen Xiao looked at the boy opposite and whispered: "I have learned more dishes because I like cooking, so I can make them over time."
Jia Heng pondered for a moment and said, "Then how did Miss Xiao enter the house?"
Chen Xiao said in a clear voice: "I came to the capital to seek refuge with my relatives, but I couldn't find them. I ran out of money. Fortunately, I met a nanny in my house who kindly took me in. She said that the house was short of a cook, so she recommended herself to the Xifu to cook."
Jia Heng thought for a while, looked at the girl opposite, chuckled, and said, "It makes sense to say it this way."
Chen Xiao: "???"
But there was confusion on his face at the right time, as if he didn't understand what Jia Heng was talking about, and asked, "Sir, what's wrong with me?"
The man in front of me, who had grown from a commoner to become a first-class uncle of the Han Dynasty and a commander-in-chief in brocade clothes, is by no means an easy person to deal with.
Jia Heng said: "It's nothing. Miss Xiao's cooking skills are very good, and her knife skills are also good."
As he spoke, he came closer, looked at each other with an aggressive gaze, and suddenly asked in a low voice: "Miss Xiao, is she capable of martial arts?"
There is probably something wrong with Chef Xiao. Which faction is the spy?
From the current point of view, there is no harm done, and his suspicion is more like an intuition, without any basis, but he is 70% certain in his heart, and he will turn around and ask the palace guards to investigate the cook surnamed Xiao.
As if frightened by Jia Heng's aggressiveness, Chen Xiao lowered his eyes and whispered in a calm voice with a bit of trembling: "Uncle Heng, I can't dance."
My cousin has danced since she was in elementary school, but she doesn't know how to dance. Of course, this person asked if she practiced martial arts, so he could only pretend to be deaf and dumb. He was really doubting her.
Jia Heng observed the changes in the girl's expression, but did not expose the girl's pretense of being deaf and mute, and whispered: "Forget it if you can't dance."
In front of him, it was precisely the calmness and calmness that was a little abnormal. So, which force was the spy? Don't be someone from the Emperor's faction, right? Maybe the skill of cooking like this was learned in the palace?
Not long after, Jia Heng looked at the girl with deep eyes and said softly: "Okay, there's nothing else to do. Miss Xiao, go cook. I really like the dishes made by Miss Xiao."
"Yes." Chen Xiao whispered and slowly exited the room, feeling relieved.
For some reason, being in the same room with this young man always gave me the feeling that my identity would be exposed at the next moment.
Jia Heng was silent for a moment, with some speculations in his mind. He didn't linger much, returned to the back house, and went to Xichun Courtyard, intending to see Miaoyu.
Ever since they sealed their love with a kiss that day, I haven't seen Miaoyu for several days. It's possible that the young lady became angry and secretly recited salvation scriptures to him.
Thinking like this, I walked through the flower wall hanging with vines and walked towards the Xichun courtyard. Suddenly I passed by Huifang Garden and heard the sound of laughter and laughter. I saw Xichun with Xiangyun, Tanchun, Yingchun, and a few other people. The maids, big and small, were playing hide and seek, but Chai and Dai were nowhere to be seen in the crowd.
It turns out that Jia Heng went to Guining with Ke Qing today, and several girls from Xifu were not idle either. At Xiangyun's suggestion, Chaidai, Sanchun, and Yunxiu came to Ningguo Mansion in the morning to find Xichun to play. I drew a few pictures, and then several little girls came to Huifang Garden to enjoy the flowers, write poems, and play the piano and listen to music.
After a while, because Baochai was afraid of the heat, Daiyu also went back to take a nap. Only Xiangyun, Tanchun, and Yingchun were left to take a nap at Xichun. In the evening, when the weather was cooler, they came to Huifang Garden again. Playful.
Playing a hide-and-seek game, it was now Xichun's turn to catch someone. The eyes of her pretty little face were covered with a pomegranate red handkerchief, and she didn't know whose it belonged to. She was playing catch with Xiangyun, Tanchun, Yingchun and the maid. Hide.
Not far from here, beside the sparsely branched flower trees, under an octagonal pavilion with red beams and brackets, Xing Xiuyan and Miaoyu were sitting on a stone bench, playing chess across a square of chess ground.
Seeing that Xichun was playing catch-and-seek, Jia Heng's face paused slightly, his eyes focused deeply, and then his eyes became gentle again.
At this moment, Xichun was not wearing a monk's robe, but a girl's pink dress, her hair tied in a bun with airy bangs, and a bright smile on her pink cheeks.
Seeing this, Jia Heng breathed a sigh of relief.
Quietly stepped forward and wanted to say something, but when they saw Jia Heng, all the maids' expressions changed slightly, and they subconsciously moved aside to get out of the way.
Jia Heng came closer and was about to open his mouth to speak, but he saw the arrogant little loli suddenly fluttered into his arms like a butterfly, wrapped her arms around Jia Heng's waist, and said with a chuckle: "Sister Yun, let me catch you. Bar."
But it was Jia Heng's generous body that made Xichun think he was Xiangyun.
Xiang Yun covered her mouth with a handkerchief, laughed and said, "Fourth sister, you didn't catch me. Look who you caught."
Xichun also felt something was wrong. She felt that she was tall and tall, and her aura was that of a man. Her heart skipped a beat, and when she was about to let go, she heard the maids around her calling Uncle Heng. She quickly let go of her hands and hugged him tightly again.
Suddenly, he felt that the handkerchief in front of him was gently untied from the hair on the back of his head.
Then, a clear and heroic young man's face jumped into his eyes, his eyes and smile were gentle, as if he was melting himself.
Jia Heng stretched out his hand to rub Xichun's bangs, and said with a smile, "Fourth sister's hair has reached my chest."
"Oh, brother Heng, why are you here?" Xichunfang felt happy and embarrassed when she saw it was Jia Heng. She asked in surprise without letting go of her hand holding Jia Heng's waist.
Tanchun and Xiangyun also looked at Jia Heng. Even the two people who were playing chess under the octagonal pavilion in the distance also turned their faces. Yun Lan's bright eyes and cold jade face were full of curiosity and frost. Gladly.
Jia Heng once again arranged the girl's bangs, smiled softly, and said: "I just came back with your sister-in-law, and your sister-in-law is a little tired.
Come back to your room and rest first. I originally wanted to visit you in your courtyard and ask you to draw a picture for me. I passed by Huifang Garden and saw you all busy here. "
As he said "you", his clear and clear eyes glanced over the faces that were either charming and naive, or bright, or quiet, and were as beautiful as the flowers competing in the garden.
Finally, he looked through the distance of two feet and looked at the graceful figure wearing a dark blue cloud-patterned robe under the pavilion with red beams and brackets. When he met the eyes that were like autumn water and gazed with affection, the nun's expression was subtle. , there was a hint of shame and anger in his bright eyes.
Being stared at by Jia Heng, Miaoyu's heart trembled, a slight blush appeared on her originally cold and frosty cheeks, she averted her eyes, and with a "click" sound, it was clearly the chess piece in her hand, which landed on the chess surface.
Since that day when she and Jia Heng expressed their feelings to each other and sealed their love with a kiss, the lady who was originally an official from the land of the south of the Yangtze River has been frowning in shame and anger in the past few days, sometimes in a cheerful mood, and sometimes in a daze... Even Xing Xiuyan, who had been looking for Miaoyu's Zen teachings for the past two days, could sense that Master Miaoyu was distracted.
And when their eyes met just now, they undoubtedly truly realized what it means to not see each other for a day, just like seeing a gentleman after three autumns, Yun Hu is not happy.
Xichun's eyebrows were filled with a smile, and he was keenly observant. He caught the momentary softness of his clear eyes under the firm sword-shaped brows, and couldn't help but pouted. Did her brother come to see her, or to see Master Miaoyu?
Jia Heng smiled softly and said, "Your sister-in-law and I were not at home, and you guys were having fun at home. What were you playing just now?"
Tan Chun's bright eyes shone under Yingli's beautiful eyebrows. She chuckled and said, "Brother Heng, this is not all Sister Yun's trick. You should take care of Sister Yun. She went riding a horse just now. I also want Sister Lin and Fourth Sister to ride horses and learn archery."
Xiangyun took Tanchun's arm and said with a smile, "Third sister said to me that you didn't want to ride a horse just now."
Jia Heng turned his eyes and took Xichun's little hand, and asked with a smile: "Fourth sister, do you want to ride a horse?"
Xichun looked at the young man. At this moment, Jia Heng was accompanying Qin Keqing to Qin's house to visit the bride. He was not wearing a python suit. His usual civilian clothes were already a little dignified. At this moment, his back was facing the setting sun. His heart was beating for unknown reasons. After a few minutes, he said: "Brother Heng, I heard from the third sister that it's a bit dangerous. It's not too late to wait until you are older to play."
Jia Heng smiled and said: "Then I will take the time to teach you. You are young, so I will lead you to ride."
Those who were good swimmers drowned in the water and played like Xiangyun. They were also worried that something like Jia Mu would break her head. There was no tetanus shot at this time.
Xiangyun's bright eyes flashed under her beautiful eyebrows. She was not very young, but brother Heng was partial and loved his fourth sister the most.
Just as the girl couldn't sleep at night and argued with Tanchun on the boat about who Jia Heng loved the most, Xiangyun believed that Jia Heng loved Xichun the most.
Jia Heng was talking to a few little girls, then let go of Xichun, then came under the pavilion and called out: "Cousin Xiuyan."
"Brother Heng." Xing Xiuyan said softly, with a pair of slender eyebrows, a face as fair as jade, and a quiet and calm bookish air all over her body.
Jia Heng looked at Miaoyu and asked, "Master Miaoyu, why do you have time to enjoy flowers and play chess in Huifang Garden today? It's so noisy around here."
Miaoyu's beautiful eyebrows furrowed, her clear eyes showing no signs of abnormality, she said softly: "I'm just asking for peace in the midst of the commotion. Uncle Heng, could you please have a hand-to-hand talk?"
Jia Heng glanced at Qiping and said softly: "Shan."
Miaoyu: "..."
As long as it's good, what's good?
Jia Heng looked at Miaoyu, whose bright eyes were speechless, and a flash of interest flashed in his heart. Well, he actually likes Miaoyu's tone of Buddha.
Because everyone is here, I can't find Miaoyu to talk about Zen, so I can just play two games of chess for entertainment.
Xiangyun smiled and said, "Brother Heng, shall we play chess later?"
"Come here, Sister Yun, I will teach you how to play backgammon." Jia Heng sat on the pavilion and played with Miaoyu. Several girls were watching the game until the maid came and called the girls to go to dinner.
Miaoyu just stood up, looked at Jia Heng, and said, "Uncle Heng, it's getting late, so I'll take my leave first.
"
Jia Heng looked at the nun, nodded, and said softly: "When I have time, I will talk to Master Tai about the Sutra."
Miaoyu clasped her palms together without saying much, and led the little girl Susu away. Everyone knew that Miaoyu had a cold temperament, so they didn't take it seriously.
...
...
The moon is sparse, the night is dark, and the maids in each room have lit lanterns. The summer night wind blows on the face with hot air, making people drunk.
After dinner, Jia Heng came to the study, sat behind the desk, and pulled out the information about the Yangzhou salt merchants or Yangzhou salt government that had been delivered by Jinyi Mansion.
"Jiang Tong, Huang Rishan, Huang Cheng, Bao Zuhui, Ma Xianjun, Cheng Peili, Xiao Hongsheng, and the Lianghuai salt transport envoy Liu Shouwen, who is the nephew of the emperor's concubine Zhuang Fei, and the former salt transport envoy Guo Shaonian The consort of Princess Kuaiji, the daughter of the Supreme Emperor's concubine, is of course very old and has become an official official not long ago.
The Supreme Prince has many heirs. In addition to Jinyang, the emperor's sister, there are also other concubines who have given birth to many princesses. They also have their own consorts, and the oldest ones are all in their forties.
"So this is really the money bag of the Chonghua Palace. No wonder the emperor is hesitant and has delayed it until now." Jia Heng's eyes were dark, thinking.
If Emperor Chongping hadn't gradually taken control of the imperial power, he would have waited until the death of the Supreme Emperor and started to hunt down all the four princes and eight princes, including the Zhen family in Jiangnan, but unfortunately...there was no way to save the day.
"Guo and Liu now live in Jinling, not visible from the mountains and dew, so they are surrounded by other officials, such as the Nanjing Household Department in charge of Nanjing's salt diversion and prospecting cooperation, Yangzhou local officials and salt merchants. These people They are connected to each other, no wonder it is a bad book." Jia Heng's eyes seemed to be passing through the information book in his hand, guessing the methods of these salt merchants.
He borrowed silver from the transportation warehouse, and then used part of the silver to bribe officials from the Nanjing Ministry of Revenue. Then the White Gloves of the Supreme Emperor also took the opportunity to collude, and then caused the Salt Transportation Department to suffer a loss.
And Emperor Chongping sent Lin Ruhai to patrol the salt, and he already wanted to take back this part of the power. However, Lin Ruhai's temperament was still a bit soft, or it was due to the court situation, and the two-day hanging situation prevented Emperor Chongping from stretching.
"It can be seen from the previous poisoning and assassination methods of those salt merchants that the salt merchants who control the money have cultivated private armed forces and killers." Jia Heng thought as he looked at the night outside the window.
Don't play any tricks against these people, just smash them with an iron fist and sweep away all the monsters and monsters.
"As for the rest, you may need to worry about the face of the Supreme Emperor." Jia Heng thought.
As more and more information is gained, all the affairs of the Chongping and Longzhi years can be thoroughly sorted out, and there is no longer any confusion.
In the more than ten years since Emperor Chongping came to the throne, the first five years were busy to secure his position and cut off the gang members of the Crown Prince, King Zhao Tuesday and others. On this issue, the Supreme Emperor basically acquiesced. Even for the sake of the Han Dynasty, he could no longer be half-hearted. The ground is tossing about randomly.
Then, in the name of justice, Emperor Chongping settled the civil servant group, selected and promoted a large number of civil servants through the imperial examination, divided and attracted Wu Xun, and began the last game with the remaining power of the Supreme Emperor in the field of Beijing.
In order to maintain the declining power of the Chen-Han Dynasty, the two sides tacitly understood each other and fought without breaking up.
Until the Emperor was in his late seventies and in his twilight years, Xu really had no intention of fighting anymore.
He just happened to have successfully organized the army and paraded the troops, and then completely handed over the last piece of power to Emperor Chongping. At this point, Nan'an, Beijing and other martial artists with different ideas had all turned against the emperor.
It can be said that the years after Emperor Chongping took the throne have been a process of constantly cleaning up and sweeping away the remaining forces of the Supreme Emperor.
"To be too old to die is to be a thief. If he had died all at once, it would not have resulted in a government situation that was hanging in the balance for two days. The two governing ideas restrained each other. The old was steady, and the young were radical. Then the radical young people survived until middle age. , has been exhausted mentally and physically by the natural and man-made disasters in recent years. The window period for the new king to take drastic measures and eliminate the long-standing shortcomings is lost, and then he misses the exciting and promising time, and there is no way to save the day." Jia Heng put down the book in his hand, thinking about Chen Han Chongping and Long Zhi. Thinking about the two dynasties and the future.
Even after the death of the Supreme Emperor, due to environmental problems, the Zhen family and the Jia family copied
How much money do you have without money?
The two houses of Ning and Rong pawned boxes of tickets and relied on them to make ends meet, because the country was declining and no eggs were left intact after the nest was overthrown.
The military strength of the Han Dynasty has not been completely improved. The king of Nan'an County sent troops and was captured. Tanchun married in a distant place. He looked around the country. Bandits and bandits were everywhere, and wars were everywhere. It was already difficult to return, and the building was about to collapse.
Looking at the state of the Chen-Han Dynasty, from the loss of Liaodong to the struggle for the right to inherit the throne, we can truly say that such a court cannot be killed from the outside, and must first commit suicide and destroy itself.
"Fortunately...it's not too late now." Jia Heng suppressed his thoughts and closed the book. Now he was sitting in the passenger seat and slamming on the brakes.
Just as he was about to get up and go have lunch, he suddenly heard a woman's voice talking from outside, and he couldn't help but feel a little surprised.
