Phi-Fic Chapter 526 Catching a turtle in a urn
Chapter 526 Catching a turtle in a urn
Lu Shian continued to spend his days in Ganquan Palace. The weather got colder, and Lu Shian became less willing to go out!
The development of the northern part of the city has not been shelved. After all, it was promised to Li Hongting!
Lu Shian ordered people to collect some information about the north of the city, such as how many fields there are, how many businesses there are, and what crops are produced in abundance!
Li Hongting attached great importance to how to develop the north of the city. He would go to Ganquan Palace whenever he had time, and would ask Lu Shian if he didn't understand something.
Lu Shian naturally told Li Hongting everything he could say, and Li Hongting couldn't hide his surprise.
During the days of investigating the north of the city, Lu Shian also asked someone to investigate the actions of the Guo Ermeng brothers.
It is no exaggeration to say that it is difficult to describe in words.
Forcibly robbing women was just an appetizer. They also bought and sold people, occupied people's land and houses, and maliciously collected money and property.
Lu Shian flipped open the information that Cheng Kuan and his brother Cheng had investigated. It was several pages long, but Lu Shian couldn't read any further after reading two pages.
She was shaking with anger. "Isn't this the Black Society? These bastards are totally inhumane. No wonder the north of the city is so dead. Except for the elderly who can't leave, all the young people have already fled."
The Cheng Kuan brothers were called from Wanning Prefecture by Lu Shi'an not long ago. In order to facilitate their entry and exit from the palace, Lu Shi'an gave them the identities of purchasers.
Lu Shian was still very confident in the work of these two men. Sure enough, the two brothers could complete the tasks they were taught to do very quickly.
Cheng Kuan clasped his fists and said, "Madam, Guo Dameng said that the housekeeper of the Duke's Mansion will go to the north of the city in the next two days."
"sure?"
"There shouldn't be any lies."
Lu Shian slammed his palm on the table: "Okay, watch me catch the turtle in the jar."
"You two go back first and follow me at the palace gate tomorrow morning."
After sending the two away, Lu Shian immediately ran to see Li Hongting!
Upon learning that Lu Shian was coming to see him, Li Hongting quickly ordered someone to invite her in!
"Your Majesty, I have seen you!"
"My beloved, please stand up."
Li Hongting put down the red brush in his hand and said, "Didn't I tell you that when there are no outsiders around, there is no need to perform formalities?"
Lu Shian directly stated his purpose: "Your Majesty, is this a matter concerning Chengbei? Can I make the full decision?"
"Since I have entrusted it to you, you will naturally have full authority to handle it."
"No matter how high the position of the cancer in the north of the city is, I can eradicate him."
After a pause, Lu Shian added: "Completely remove it."
Li Hongting's expression also became more serious. He replied solemnly, "I allow my beloved concubine to handle the affairs of the north city with full authority. The emperor is guilty of the same crime as the common people. No matter who it is, my beloved concubine can take it."
"Okay, now that Your Majesty has said this, I can let go and do it."
Early the next morning, Lu'er pulled Que'er and Xi'er aside and carefully told them to take good care of their master.
Ever since she came back from the north of the city last time, Lu'er has been teaching the two some martial arts skills in her spare time.
The two of them repeatedly assured Lu'er that they would definitely protect the virtuous concubine this time.
Watching the two turn around and leave, Lu'er sighed helplessly. With their fancy moves, they could hardly protect their master, and it was good enough that they didn't cause any trouble.
But Lu Shian was worried about leaving Chen'er alone in the palace, so even though she was worried about Lu Shian, she had no choice but to stay in the palace.
Lu Shi'an got up without even eating. He hurriedly fed Chen'er and left the palace in a hurry.
She also asked the emperor for Yongchang. In fact, she could have kept her mouth shut, but she was afraid that the emperor would send Shen Cuo over. There had been bad rumors about the two of them before, so of course she had to be careful so as not to give the villain a chance to seize the opportunity.
In the north of the city, it’s still the same yard.
A carriage slowly stopped in front of the yard, and he walked out after opening the curtain.
Seeing that there were several unfamiliar faces standing at the door to greet him, he immediately became alert and asked, "Where are the two brothers of the Guo family?"
Cheng Kuan nodded and fawned on Butler Yu, and his servile appearance made Cheng Lu want to give his brother a few slaps.
"Don't worry, Steward Yu. We brought two young ladies from the village this morning. They are pretty, but have a bit of a temper. The two of them are teaching them how to serve Steward Yu."
"Oh?"
Butler Yu raised his eyebrows, his eyes sparkling, but he still stood at the gate of the courtyard without going in. Instead, he asked about the identities of the two people: "Why have you two never met before?"
"To Butler Yu, my two brothers are distant relatives of the Guo brothers. The world is in a difficult situation right now. We know that Butler Yu has connections, so we want to follow him to make a living."
"Distant relatives? Why have I never heard them mention it?"
Cheng Lu clasped his fists and said, "In terms of seniority, we are of the same generation as Guo's father. The two Guo brothers said that when Butler Yu comes this time, they will introduce us to Butler Yu."
Butler Yu's eyes swept between the two of them. At this moment, the door opened and Guo Daming walked out.
Seeing Guo Daming coming out, the Cheng Kuan brothers immediately became nervous.
First of all, Guo Daming had been locked up for a long time, so it was impossible for him to suddenly appear here.
Secondly, as soon as he appeared, their identities were exposed.
Unexpectedly, Guo Dameng didn't even look at them. Instead, he went up to Butler Yu, clasped his fists and said with a smile, "Butler Yu, I'm so sorry. I couldn't wait at the door. Please forgive me."
When Butler Yu saw Guo Daming coming out, he no longer had any worries.
When Guo Daming invited housekeeper Yu into the yard, the Cheng Kuan brothers were still standing at the door in a daze.
The two didn't understand why Guo Daming was suddenly willing to help them.
What the two of them didn't know was that as soon as they came out, Lu Shian grabbed Guo Daming and brought him in front of him.
She didn't say anything nonsense, but ordered someone to pry open Guo Daming's mouth and then threw a chocolate bean into his mouth.
Seeing him swallow it, Lu Shian said, "You must have known who I am. I have a good friend who is a disciple of the Divine Doctor. She is very famous in Anjing City and is nicknamed the Little Divine Doctor. This medicine was given to me by her. It is extremely toxic. If you don't take the antidote within twelve hours, you will bleed from all seven orifices and die."
Guo Daming was not a man of integrity to begin with. When he heard Lu Shian's words, he was so scared that his legs went weak and he knelt down.
"Please spare my life, Madam, please spare my life. As long as I can survive, I will do whatever you ask me to do. I will do it without hesitation."
Lu Shian nodded: "Very good, then please invite Butler Yu in first."
After hearing this, Guo Daming kowtowed to Lu Shian twice without saying a word, then turned and left.
Then came what the Cheng Kuan brothers saw at the door.
The two brothers followed into the yard, and someone immediately closed the gate.
This yard is filled with things that cannot be seen in public, and the gate is always closed.
Guo Daming led Butler Yu into the room, took out a wooden box from the back of the room and put it in Butler Yu's hand.
"Butler Yu, please take the harvest of these two months."
Butler Yu weighed the wooden box and glanced at Guo Daming inconspicuously. Guo Daming rubbed his hands and smiled.
"As for the respect for you, old man, it's down there."
After hearing this, Housekeeper Yu smiled and said, "We are all doing things for our master, so why would we talk about filial piety or not?"
"Yes, yes, yes. Steward Yu works for the master, and we two brothers work for Steward Yu. If Steward Yu has anything to do, just tell him to do it. If it can't be done, it's because we two brothers are incompetent."
"Haha, you can talk."
"Butler Yu, what I said is all from my heart."
"Okay, this is all for the master. Are you ready for what I asked you to prepare?"
Guo Dameng nodded repeatedly: "I'm ready, I'm ready, butler Yu, please follow me."
Guo Daming walked in with a smile. Butler Yu looked excited. It seemed that Butler Yu was more lustful than greedy for money.
After entering the inner room, Guo Dameng's smile disappeared and he stood aside respectfully. Butler Yu, who followed him in, looked up and saw a man sitting on the armchair.
"tear……"
The fact that Butler Yu could be a butler was enough to show his ability, but when he saw several people standing in the inner room, he immediately realized that something was wrong.
At first glance, he felt that Lu Shian looked familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen him.
At this moment, the Cheng Kuan brothers also came in from outside, blocking the housekeeper Yu's retreat.
He glanced at everyone, and when he saw Yongchang, his face changed suddenly.
If he didn't know who Yongchang belonged to, he would have spent so many years in Anjing City in vain.
He trembled and looked at Lu Shian again, from shock to horror: "You, you are the wild girl from the Marquis's house."
Yongchang said angrily, "How dare you not kneel down when you see the virtuous concubine."
Housekeeper Yu's knees softened, and he knelt on the ground, saying loudly, "I greet the virtuous concubine."
"Butler Yu."
"Hey, hey..."
"Don't you have anything to say?"
"This..." In just a short moment in the cold winter, Butler Yu was sweating profusely.
"Your Highness, I am only here to collect rent. I don't know what you mean."
"I don't know!" Lu Shian nodded: "What's in the box?"
"It's the rent money."
"Whose rent is it collected from? And how often is it collected?"
"Of course, the rent collected is from the shop in the Duke's Mansion, which comes once every quarter."
"Every season, I heard that you come here once every one or two months."
"Your Highness, the rent is collected every quarter, and I come here once every one or two months to inspect the shop."
After the panic, Butler Yu slowly calmed down and began to answer questions without any mistakes.
"What's going on with the woman in the dungeon?"
"Dungeon?" Butler Yu's eyes widened. "What dungeon? I don't know."
"You do not know?"
"Your Highness, I really don't know what the dungeon you mentioned is. Please tell me."
Seeing that Butler Yu refused to cooperate, Lu Shian smiled.
"Butler Yu, I am giving you a chance to redeem yourself and make meritorious contributions. You should understand that since I am sitting here asking you questions today, I already know most of it. The man who can cover the sky with one hand in the north of the city will definitely be arrested this time, and whether you cooperate or not, the outcome will not change. I am giving you a chance today, if you don't cherish it, then there is no need to ask."
After Lu Shian finished speaking, she sat up again and said coldly, "Yongchang, hold him down. You know what to do."
"Yes."
"Wait a minute." Steward Yu suddenly said, "Your Majesty, the harem is not allowed to interfere in government affairs. This is against the rules."
Lu Shian snorted disdainfully: "That's not something you can worry about."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you cannot arrest me without permission. I want to go back to the Duke's Mansion and tell the Duke first."
"No need, I will find someone to talk to the Duke."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Concubine..."
Before Butler Yu could say anything else, he was dragged out.
Seeing that the man had been caught, Yongchang said again: "In fact, your Majesty does not need to come in person for this kind of thing, just let me handle it."
Lu Shian did not hide it from Yongchang: "This is just one of the reasons why I went out today. There is another more important thing."
"Something more important?"
Lu Shian smiled faintly and said to the two maids who were waiting beside him: "Go and get ready, we should go back."
The group stood up and walked out. Lu Shian continued the previous topic and said, "I can't build Chengbei alone, so I have to find a helper."
"Helper?" Yongchang didn't understand, he just kept scratching his head behind Lu Shian.
Shen House.
Lu Shian didn't expect that Old Madam Shen would be there. It was Shen Teng who told her, and she hurriedly followed Shen Teng to see Old Madam Shen.
When Mrs. Shen saw that it was Lu Shian who came, she was stunned at first, and then she quickly stood up and saluted Lu Shian.
Lu Shian was unwilling to do that and quickly stepped forward to support her.
"Mrs. Shen, please don't be polite."
"Back then, I knew that your Majesty would definitely be different in the future. As expected, now I heard that your Majesty is deeply loved by the Emperor and has given birth to a prince for him. Now your Majesty is truly invaluable."
"Mrs. Shen, please stop laughing at me."
"It's no joke. Back then, I wanted to... Haha, forget it, forget it, let's not talk about it."
When she learned that Lu Shian was close to her grandson, she was very happy. If she could marry Lu Shian and marry into the Shen family, then the Shen family would definitely be able to move to a higher level. However, she did not expect that the news of the marriage would be granted not long after.
From then on, Lu Shian and her grandson were no longer possible.
But the current girl Nanxing is not bad, it’s just that Nanxing’s personality is really not suitable for her to bear the responsibility of being the mistress of the Shen family.
However, each generation has its own way of living, and she has taken care of enough of them. It is time to let go and let the younger generations make their own way.
"I wonder why the virtuous concubine came here today?"
Shen Zhimu was called back from outside. Knowing that Lu Shian had come, he did not dare to delay along the way.
The Shen family was all there, so Lu Shian did not hide anything and expressed his thoughts.
"I came here today to discuss something good with Mr. Shen."
"Your Highness, please feel free to speak up."
"It's a long story..."
After Lu Shian finished speaking, Shen Zhimu quickly expressed his opinion: "This is a good thing. Our Shen family is willing to do our best. Whatever the queen wants us to do, our Shen family is willing to cooperate with us."
Lu Shian was overjoyed: "With Master Shen's words, I feel relieved."
"I came here today to inform Mr. Shen. There are more important things right now..."
Before Lu Shian finished speaking, Shen Zhimu knew what she was talking about.
"My queen, you want to clear the clouds and let the sun shine, so that the north of the city can be clear again."