Xie Rongzhao put away the account book and asked carefully: "Do you know the specific place?"
"Miss Hui, I heard that the concubine's surname is Xu, and she is originally from Qing County, Fuzhou, Xiangzhou, but her brother works in Daxing County. Well, County Magistrate Xu is a Jinshi in one subject after our master."
For those who entered the imperial examination in one subject later, that division should be Qin Ge Lao.
Xie Rongzhao believed that she did not have as smart a mind as her father and brother Jingzhou, but she was lucky and knew that all news about Xiangzhou Prefecture should be sent to her father in time.
"What else did you find out?"
"This Master Song is the Minister of the Huangmen of the Menxia Province. It can be said that he was our master's former immediate boss."
Xie Rongzhao frowned. He had followed his father in Beijing for several years. Apart from anything else, he knew clearly about the responsibilities of official positions.
Huangmen Shilang is the fourth rank, the deputy governor of the province under the gate. He is in charge of attendants, memorials, criticism of right and wrong, and general judgment on provincial affairs. Participate in the daily management of the province and the criticism of edicts and chapters.
This right is not insignificant.
The Huangmen Shilang has the nature of an attendant who accompanies the emperor and participates in sacrifices, ceremonies and other activities. When the chief minister of the Menxia Province is vacant, the Huangmen Shilang can take over the work of the Menxia Province, including handling matters such as diplomacy and edict recruitment. .
Xie Rongzhao vaguely remembered that his father had mentioned it before, saying that it was about a report and approval issue. It seemed that he was suppressed by the superior. Could it be this Lord Song?
If this is the case, then his father has an old grudge against him.
In the evening, Wang Zizhen came in with a cup of pigeon soup and whispered back: "Miss, Song Erlang asked someone to bring a message. He said that he wanted to see you. There are some things that he can't decide, and he must ask for your instructions."
"Well, then let's do it tomorrow."
When Wang Zizhen saw the young lady starting to drink soup, she started to organize the things on the table one by one.
"Miss, Miss Chunhua from Xie's Mansion on Anhe Street has sent you another invitation. You accepted it last time. Do you want to do it again this time?"
Xie Rongzhao shook his head, "Xie Chunhua's character is pretty good. Our two families live close to each other and have the same surname. If my distance from him was too obvious, it would be easy for others to take advantage of me."
"Then the lady is going?"
"Well, it's better not to show up all the time. My father has been away from Beijing for more than ten days, and my mother and I have never left the house. This time we go to Xie's Mansion, and Sister Ying is with us, so nothing will happen."
After breakfast the next day, Xie Rongzhao went to the front yard to meet Song Erlang.
"Miss, I have been ordered to be responsible for some external affairs of Fuyuan Villa. The day before yesterday, we found two girls who fainted in the village, so we took them in temporarily. They only said that their family was poor and wanted to sell them. The two sisters escaped from the brothel. Originally, the villagers felt pity for them, so they thought of asking the village chief to take them in. However, yesterday when the younger one was delivering delicacies to a large family in Beijing, they heard that two escaped from the Song family. Slave, we are searching vigorously.”
Xie Rongzhao looked slightly solemn. What a coincidence?
"Do you know what those two escaped slaves look like?"
Song Erlang shook his head: "I only know that the two escaped slaves are both women, thirteen or fourteen years old. The two girls we took in in the village are almost the same. The younger ones knew that something was wrong and did not dare to make their own decisions, so I came here specifically to ask for permission, Miss."
Xie Rongzhao took a deep breath. It was abnormal for two young girls to suddenly appear in the countryside.
"If you do this, when you go back, go to the county government office first. My eldest brother is now with County Magistrate Chen. You can tell everything in detail. After you return to the village, you must place the two girls properly and don't take them with you. Go to the villa, are there any widows in the village?"
Song Erlang thought for a while: "Yes, Aunt Wang has been a widow for more than ten years. Her son works as a bookkeeper in the county, and she and her two daughters usually live together."
"Then place these two girls in her home. Also, this matter should not be made public. After you go back, inform the village chief alone and let him make arrangements in advance. If someone really comes to harm you, you can't tell them The whole village was arrested.”
"Yes, I understand, little one."
Xie Rongzhao did not let this matter go unnoticed.
In fact, those two girls were indeed runaway slaves from the Song Mansion.
Later, when the official brought people to the door, he really shocked the whole village.
The original purpose of the two girls was to go to Fuyuan Villa so that they could complete the tasks assigned by their master. They only said that they were kidnapped by people from Fuyuan Villa so that the master could operate better.
But who would have expected that not only would the two of them not have the opportunity to go to the villa, but they would also be shunned by the men even in the village.
So when the official came to the door, the two of them did not dare to say anything nonsense and followed them back obediently.
When things didn't go as Zhao expected, Mr. Song was naturally very angry, but no matter how angry he was, it would be hard to fabricate evidence out of thin air for this kind of thing.
Xie Rongzhao felt uneasy after hearing Song Erlang explain the whole story clearly.
"This kind of thing has its consequences. When you go back, you should inform the village chief so that everyone can be more careful. In addition, when you return to the villa, make it clear to Zhu Weng and Zhu Xiaoyun that patrols inside and outside the villa should be stepped up. Mo If we want to let suspicious people in, the safety of the young masters is the most important thing."
"Yes, miss."
"You should report this to my fourth brother and Brother Lang, and let them be more alert."
"Okay, miss, do you have any other instructions?"
"How are things going at Feng County Embroidery Village?"
"Don't worry, Miss. The place has been chosen, and the village chief has agreed. Moreover, many of the female relatives from our own village work there, so everyone is very grateful to you and Madam."
"After the embroidery village is built, I want to go and see it in person. Will the money be enough?"
"There are still more than forty taels left, and with the purchase of some furniture later, it should be possible."
"I can rest assured when you do things. I still have two pieces of cotton cloth there. You can take one to the village chief's house and give the remaining one to the sisters-in-law."
"Thank you, Miss."
Xie Rongzhao was busy here again, and in a blink of an eye, the day for Xie Chunhua's banquet came.
Zhao Ying rarely attended such banquets. Now, although Xie Mingyi still holds a third-grade official position, his influence is not as good as before.
Moreover, Xie Meiren seems to be in the palace, so it can be seen that the holy family is not visible.
"We were worried about Sister Chunhua earlier, thinking how difficult it would be for her to be sent to the palace to make a living at the age of thirteen. Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, this matter was rejected by Mrs. Xie. Speaking of which, I haven’t seen Sister Chunhua for a while, and I heard that she got a very beautiful pot of peonies, so I have to open my eyes."
Xie Rongzhao said with a faint smile but not a smile: "It is said that the peonies were transported from Luoyang, and they were taken care of very carefully along the way. I don't know if they can be kept alive in the capital." (End of this chapter)
