An Ying took people to Cheng Mansion again.
It was a hot summer day, and while walking An Ying, I asked Xiao Yi: "Does the Ministry of Punishment provide subsidies for working in such a hot weather?"
Xiao Yi rolled his eyes, "What are you thinking about?"
An Ying fanned himself and said: "Look, if we work in the Ministry of Justice, we will have to spend money on ice from the government office. One more person can melt the ice much faster. When we come out and there is no ice to enjoy, we should be given subsidies. .”
After hearing this, Xiao Yi nodded in agreement, "Yes, what you said makes sense. But who will listen to us? Those who stay in the government office are all civil servants with grades above six."
An Ying thought for a moment and said, "What rank is Master Wang's official?"
"Seventh grade." Xiao Yi replied: "Are you going to find him? He is such a snobbish person, how can he speak for us?"
An Ying wiped his sweat and pointed to the soaked soap coat on his body, "I'll give it a try." He then whispered: "I specially applied to bring three clerks here today. The Cheng Mansion is cool. We will try our best to bring the Cheng Mansion here today. All the work is done, so you don’t have to make another trip.”
Mrs. Cheng was already waiting in the flower hall with the housekeeper and her team.
"Mrs. Cheng, I'm here to bother you again today. I came here today to ask some questions from the other people in the house, including the women, the gatekeeper, the housekeeper and the guards."
Mrs. Cheng nodded and said: "Even if An Sizhi investigates, the government can also check it at will. This is not only a matter for our Cheng family, but also involves military and national affairs."
"This is Butler Jiao. He is responsible for all matters in the house. When you came last time, he went out to buy things for the family memorial ceremony in the next few days."
Butler Jiao, who was about thirty years old, stood aside respectfully and said, "If you have any questions, just ask An Sizhi."
An Ying took a sip of Chengfu's watermelon ice drink. The watermelon juice and ice cheese were so comfortable.
"Steward Jiao, after Xiao Tao discovered Mr. Cheng's body that day, you checked everything except Mr. Cheng's study. It is said that you were in charge of the documents in the house and Mr. Cheng's personal dealings?"
Butler Jiao returned: "Xiao Tao found the master lying on the ground early that morning, so my wife asked me to find Dr. Chen, who is often used in the house. When Doctor Chen came, he confirmed that the master was gone. Hey, actually I also I know what it was like at that time."
"Later, Xiao Tao discovered that the study had been disturbed. I also went to check. The study is usually managed by Xiao Tao, and I rarely go there. The master doesn't care much about the affairs of the house, and I usually report to the wife."
"Then there are a lot of documents and letters from the palace in the study?"
"Nothing is missing. I have a brochure for everything here, Master. An Si-zhi, you can take a look at it and I've checked it all. Nothing is missing." After that, Butler Jiao handed over a stack of brochures respectfully.
An Ying flipped through it and sighed in his heart, Cheng Shilang is really a very organized person. Letters from him and his friends are all recorded, as well as the dates of the letters. The fields and real estate in the mansion are also clearly listed.
"How is your master's health on weekdays?"
"My master has always been in good health. Our master was born as a military officer, and later became a civil servant. Doctor Chen has a pulse file, and you can also check it out."
"Did anything unusual happen in your house before and after your master's accident?"
Butler Jiao replied simply: "Everything is normal in the mansion. After what happened, in order to prevent people from being upset in the mansion, I gathered all the guards and women who were guarding them that afternoon and gave them a lecture. Collect your thoughts. Don’t have crooked thoughts.”
An Ying nodded. After all, he was from a wealthy family and had rules for dealing with things.
An Ying thought for a while and asked: "Master Cheng likes to go to Jiaofangsi on weekdays?"
Butler Jiao paused, said nothing, and looked at Mrs. Cheng sitting next to him.
"Oh? Where did An Sizhi get the news? Why didn't I know?" Mrs. Cheng was a little surprised. She looked at Butler Jiao who looked uncertain below, and she understood most of it.
"Lao Jiao, now the officials from the Ministry of Justice are coming to ask questions. They have all checked before asking. Why are you hiding it? What you should say and shouldn't be said, please say it quickly." Mrs. Cheng has been doing these days. She had encountered too many things and felt extremely tired. She felt that she would not have the energy to be surprised or angry when more news came.
The maid who followed Mrs. Cheng handed her soup and carefully stroked her back. An Ying glanced over and saw that Mrs. Cheng's whole body was shaking gently.
Butler Jiao hunched over and lowered his head, saying, "We adults do often go to Jiaofangsi in the east of the city. The expenses of Jiaofangsi are all for me to leave from the master's private treasury instead of entering the mansion. , so our lady doesn’t know.”
"Oh, then who usually follows Mr. Cheng when he goes to Jiaofangsi? He can't go alone, right?"
Butler Jiao buried his head on the ground, "I, I'm going with you."
"Who does he go to the Jiaofang Division to find? When does he usually go there and how long does he go there?"
Butler Jiao complained in his mind about why the ice cubes in the flower hall were not cold, while wiping his sweaty head.
"Master Cheng is looking for Hong Xiao'er, and there is also a girl named Mei Niangzi. Hey, every time I accompany him, he is waiting down below. Every time it is only for a while, just an hour. Hong Xiao'er is in the Jiaofang Division. He is well-known for his painting skills. Not counting the famous people in Jiaofangsi, most of them are people who watch singing and dancing. Our master goes to see a painting."
When Butler Jiao heard what An Ying said next, he took a long breath. If he continued to ask, he would become seriously ill. He was sweating and being blown by the cold air.
An Ying turned around and said to Mrs. Cheng: "Mrs. Cheng, there are a lot of things going on in the house, so you need to stay here with us for a day. I have asked someone to copy the record of the subsequent interviews for you. Do you want to read it?"
Mrs. Cheng understood what An Ying meant and left voluntarily.
The next one is Mrs. Liu who guards the inner courtyard. Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Wang both guard the gate of the inner courtyard.
"Lao Wang and I are responsible for guarding the second gate. There is nothing special about it. The management in our house is strict and it will not be as messy as other houses. On the afternoon of the incident, Butler Jiao took the few of us guarding the second gate. The guards of Qinghui Garden have also been called to the front of Pixiang Hall to give a lecture to keep everyone in high spirits. If Fan Bang’s secret work gets involved in the mansion, everyone in our mansion will not have a good life."
"Are all the guards, wives and maids gone?"
"That's not true. We are the ones responsible for looking after the guards. Butler Jiao has already summoned all the maids and servants to train them. He also asked them one by one according to the roster. I'm afraid they might sneak in and take action."
An Ying nodded. I asked a few more maids, and almost all of them gave the same answer.
Next are Cheng Shilang's concubines, Qing Niang and Qi Bei.
An Ying looked at the information and said, "Let Qi Bei come in first. She is the dowry maid brought by Mrs. Cheng, and she is also a child of the Qi family."
Qi Bei is wearing a mourning dress. She is a slim and pretty woman.
"Tell me, is there anything special going on in the house recently? Or something related to Mr. Cheng."
Qi Bei sat on the flower bench next to An Ying, holding her head with one hand, and said: "I'll tell you the truth, An Sizhi. Our government here is like a military camp, can anything special happen? Master, too." I don’t come to the backyard very often, and when I come I always look for a young lady. I can’t help it, I can’t draw, and I have no chance to learn even if I want to.”
"So your master prefers Qing Niang? Doesn't he have a good relationship with your wife?"
Qi Bei sat up straight and said, "No way. The relationship between our master and his wife is very good. The young master and the young lady in the house were both born to the lady. I was the concubine carried by the lady. After the lady gave birth to the lady that year, her health It’s not good. I came here as a dowry, and the wife asked me if I wanted to, so I agreed. But our master still goes over to see the wife every day.”
"But I heard that your master bought that young lady yourself?"
Qi Bei sneered, "Isn't that right? Our master is famous for his love of painting, so she sneaked in with her bad painting skills. And because she was not in the hands of the wife because of her status, she acted pretentiously. . When I go there later, I just want to watch her draw a picture. There is nothing special about it."
"Is it special? Didn't Butler Jiao give a lecture that day? He was afraid that Xi Zuo would get into the house. It must have been a long delay. The afternoon snacks were delivered late. In the courtyard next door, oh, Qing Niang is next door to me, and she didn't lose her temper. She usually has missing needles and threads, or the snacks she brings are not what she wants, and she won’t give up until she causes a scene. Also, every time there is a scene, Butler Jiao comes to comfort her. That day I knew that Butler Jiao has no time to care about her, so she knows what’s going on. "
