Chapter 陆府 The Lu Residence

A carriage from the Prince’s mansion entered the residence through the back gate.

The front gate was for guests;

Family members used the back gate. Unlike servants, carriages could enter the inner courtyard.

Two women had returned to their maiden home.

One was the “daughter” of the house, and the other was a maid raised by the old madam.

Logically, the arrival of a Prince’s consort required proper etiquette, just as when Empress Tian returned to the Tian family, everyone had to kneel and welcome her.

But that was an imperial visit; this was just a casual visit.

Besides, rules were for those who needed to abide by them;

As the wet nurse of the Yan Emperor, Lady Fengxin held a position of high respect and naturally didn’t need to concern herself with these formalities.

Lingxiang was delighted to be back at the Lu residence. She had been born and raised here and was very familiar with every plant and tree.

After getting off the carriage, she personally helped He Sisi alight.

The inner courtyard of the Sixth Prince’s residence was quiet. After she became his concubine, there were only two women in the residence.

Before becoming a dowry maid, Lady Fengxin had instructed her to know her place and propriety. The most important rule was that she was not to sleep with Sixth Master Ji until He Sisi had given birth to a child.

When He Sisi was pregnant, she had intended to arrange it, because women of this era still considered their “husband” to be everything. Her body was inconvenient, but how could she let her man be without someone to serve him at night?

It wouldn’t be proper, and she would gain a reputation for jealousy.

Ji Laoliu didn't care. Lingxiang was from Lady Fengxin’s residence and would be his sooner or later.

In this regard, Ji Laoliu was much more open-minded than his good friend Zheng Boye. Anyway, the woman was his, so he would just take her. Why be as pretentious as Zheng Boye, treating the act like a “pilgrimage”?

But Lingxiang had always refused, either claiming she was having her period or that she had caught a cold. In short, she waited until Ji Chuanye was born and He Sisi had recovered and served Ji Laoliu before she stopped refusing and went to Ji Laoliu’s bed.

The title hadn’t been conferred yet. Ji Laoliu said there was no hurry; they would report it after she became pregnant.

Lingxiang wasn't upset about this. Firstly, He Sisi was the principal wife in the residence, and she, as a concubine, was second in rank;

Secondly, she was essentially still a slave, so everything depended on her bearing a son.

Life in the Prince’s mansion was actually very comfortable, and she was very satisfied.

A woman would eventually marry someone, and this life was already the best she could imagine. She felt that it couldn't get any better.

Therefore,

She didn’t want this good life to slip away.

After helping He Sisi out of the carriage and looking at the Buddhist hall ahead, Lingxiang felt a surge of courage.

Men and women both lived under a roof called “home.”

The men were the face of the family, but if that face collapsed, the women inside would suffer even more.

Therefore, no matter what, this face couldn't collapse, absolutely not.

He Sisi reached out and patted the back of Lingxiang’s hand. She could feel Lingxiang’s hand was a little tight.

Lingxiang smiled and let go.

Behind them, a matron carried Chuanye out of the carriage.

A young girl was already waiting at the entrance of the Buddhist hall. Her name was Lu Yi, the daughter of Lu Bing, and the old madam’s granddaughter.

“Greetings to the Princess Consort, may the Princess Consort have good fortune.”

“Hello, sister.” He Sisi reached into her sleeve and took out a pouch. She opened the pouch and carefully took out a gold coin.

Merchants traveling to and from the desert had brought back some gold coins, said to be made in countries west of the desert, with a woman wearing a crown printed on them.

The design was quite exquisite and could be used as an ornament.

Of course, Easterners found it difficult to understand this “hen crowing” behavior, that it could be done so openly.

Throughout history, countries had seen empresses, often when the ruler was young and the country was unstable, the empress dowager and her relatives would become an undeniable force in the court, but there had never been a woman who openly and completely ruled the world.

Commoners didn’t usually use gold, but as a gift between dignitaries, sending gold seemed a bit vulgar, but these exquisitely carved gold coins were a fine novelty.

“Thank you for the Princess Consort’s gift.” Lu Yi held the gold coin, loving it.

“Ahem.” Lingxiang coughed twice.

Lu Yi realized and said with a smile, “Oh dear, is Sister Xiang’er wanting me to bow to you?”

“Come, wait here.”

Lingxiang said with a smile.

Lu Yi often stayed by the old madam’s side, and her relationship with Lingxiang was excellent. They could speak more freely.

“Grandmother is waiting inside,” Lu Yi said with a smile.

Behind the tea table in the side hall of the Buddhist hall, the old madam was quietly waiting, playing with her prayer beads. When He Sisi and Lingxiang walked in, a smile appeared on her face.

She noticed that Lingxiang’s brow wasn't furrowed with depression, indicating that she was living a relaxed and happy life in the Prince’s mansion.

This girl had grown up by her side since she was a child, trained by her, and developed a strong character despite her soft appearance.

Having lived in the Lu residence for so many years, the old madam had seen all kinds of incense and spices and knew that Lingxiang was essentially a good candidate for palace intrigue.

But no one was born wanting to fight; who didn’t want a peaceful life?

From one leaf, one could know the coming of autumn.

A man whose inner courtyard was unstable wasn’t necessarily incompetent;

But a capable man’s inner courtyard would definitely be stable.

“Grandma.”

He Sisi called out naturally.

“Come, sit, sit next to me.”

The old madam reached out her hand, and He Sisi took it and sat down next to the old madam.

“Greetings, Old Ancestor, I missed you, Old Ancestor.”

Lingxiang knelt down and kowtowed three times to the old madam.

The old madam pointed at Lingxiang and scolded with a smile:

“Returning to your maiden home is returning to your maiden home, what’s the point of making such a show? You’ll ruin your makeup with that kowtow. Are you just thinking of coveting the old woman’s rouge?

Forget it, forget it, A’Yi.”

“Grandmother.”

“Go, take this little hussy to choose some. Didn’t His Majesty just bestow a batch a while ago? Let her choose as much as she wants.”

“Yes, Grandmother.”

Lingxiang was stunned for a moment. She had wanted to stay and talk some more, because she knew the situation in the Prince’s mansion, but the old madam directly dismissed her.

Not daring to disobey the old madam’s wishes, Lingxiang thanked her and got up, following Lu Yi out.

Inside the side hall, only the old madam and He Sisi remained.

“How is Sixth Master doing?” the old madam asked.

“Replying to Grandmother, he’s doing well, but he’s just too busy. He finishes his work in the yamen during the day and goes straight to sleep when he gets home. He didn’t used to snore, but now his snoring is loud enough to make the child cry.”

“Hehe, right, did you bring Chuanye?”

“I did.”

The matron waiting in the Buddhist hall brought the child in.

The old madam carefully looked at the child and nodded with a smile, saying, “This child is strong.”

As she spoke, the old madam took off the prayer beads in her hand and placed them on the child’s swaddling clothes, “I’ve chanted with these beads for many years. I hope the Buddha will bless him.”

“Thank you, Grandma.” He Sisi didn’t decline and accepted it directly.

“External matters are for the men to handle themselves. As women, we just need to stabilize the inner courtyard for them, so that they don’t have to worry about family matters. That’s fulfilling our duty.”

“Grandma is right, Sisi remembers.”

At this moment, a servant outside announced:

“Old Ancestor, Madam has arrived.”

Madam referred to Lu Bing’s wife, Wang Shi, who was known as Madam Wang in the Lu family.

She was also He Sisi’s nominal godmother.

Since He Sisi had returned to her maiden home, she naturally had to come and visit.

“I knew she’d be quick on her feet, tell her to come in.”

“Yes.”

Not long after,

“Yo ho ho…”

Before she arrived, her laughter came first.

Madam Wang was wearing a green mandarin duck shirt today, paired with a red skirt on her lower body, losing some elegance and adding a bit of youthfulness.

Seeing this, the old madam immediately scolded:

“Look at what you’re wearing today!”

“Oh dear, didn’t I hear that my daughter was back? I was still napping earlier, and when I got up, I wanted to rush over to see her, so I didn’t bother to pick and choose.

The girls heard that the Princess Consort brought the Young Master, and they’re all waiting to see him, rummaging through their chests for gifts to give the Young Master.”

“No need, no need,” He Sisi said quickly.

“Oh, that won’t do. Since ancient times, there’s never been a rule that a daughter should return to her maiden home empty-handed if she’s particular about etiquette.”

The old madam nodded and said to He Sisi, “Take the child to show them. After all, they’re family, we can’t let them feel estranged. They usually don’t dare to come to my place.”

“Yes, Grandma.”

He Sisi picked up Ji Chuanye and left the Buddhist hall under the guidance of the matron and maids outside.

Madam Wang shook her head, sighed, and said:

“What a pity, I originally thought I could use this connection to climb up, who would have thought, some see the flowers in full bloom, while others see only cold desolation.

With a single word from His Majesty, no matter how much the people below fuss, it won’t amount to anything.”

Yanjing City was the political center of Great Yan, and any disturbance in the court would cause a storm here.

His Majesty had gone to the rear garden to recuperate,

The Crown Prince had formally taken over the reins, holding the great seal and advising the officials.

The Crown Prince’s staff and officials had all been promoted, and the situation was already very clear. His Majesty was already paving the way for the Crown Prince, and the transfer of power in the Great Yan court had begun.

Hearing this, the old madam smiled and said:

“Come here.”

Madam Wang leaned in.

“Slap!”

The old madam slapped Madam Wang in the face. Madam Wang was shocked and immediately knelt on the ground.

The old madam sighed,

Closed her eyes,

Her hands were no longer holding prayer beads but were still as if she was fondling something,

From her mouth,

Came two words:

“Stupid woman.”

………

Battles were actually fought with money and supplies.

When a large army was stationed in one place, its consumption of money and supplies would be much smaller, and the huge number of laborers could maintain production.

Once war broke out, the army’s consumption doubled, and rewards and pensions flowed like water, and domestic production was reduced or even stagnated, which was equivalent to forcibly twisting the country’s balance on both sides.

It was impossible to reduce expenditure. As long as the commander of the expeditionary army against Chu was the Prince of Jingnan, not only would Yingdu not dare to reduce expenditure, but the court would not dare to say anything.

This was the role of a famous general, no, a famous commander.

As long as he led the army in front, not only would he be more at ease in the face of the enemy in front, but the pressure from the rear would also be reduced a lot.

Therefore, the only way was to increase income.

Taxes had already been collected for the next few years, and they couldn’t be collected any further. If they were, everyone’s life in the future would be unbearable.

Before the war, Ji Chengjue had already made many plans to increase revenue, and these plans were being implemented step by step.

But the biggest problem was that the war had seriously affected commercial activities. It was now difficult to even do smuggling business on the border of the Qian Kingdom. Although the Qian people didn’t know what they were doing and didn’t launch a northern expedition, they were very nervous.

A clever woman couldn’t cook without rice. Ji Chengjue could only barely maintain the situation now, and everything depended on the specific progress of the war.

Originally, the court’s view of the Chu expedition was similar to that of the Jin expedition. Perhaps it was because the Prince of Jingnan’s previous achievements were too brilliant, which led the Great Yan to misunderstand the war model.

When the army really had to gather, the laborers had to support it, and the front line began to slowly grind, the pain of being cut by a soft knife began to really hit.

The logistical cost of the Chu expedition was too great. A cart of rice transported from Yanjing City would be eaten by the laborers on the way, and if it encountered weather or other factors, the amount transported to the top would be a drop in the bucket.

However, the Chu people’s Zhennanguan Pass was stuck there, and the Jindong area had long been turned into a wasteland due to the rebellion of the wild people and the invasion of the Chu people in the past few years. The army couldn’t be supplied locally at all, and millions of Chu expeditionary soldiers and civilians were like millions of mouths waiting to be fed, and their food and drink had to be pushed up from behind with gritted teeth.

Difficult,

Difficult,

Difficult!

“Zheng Fan, Zheng Fan, finish this war as soon as possible, I really can’t hold on any longer.”

A new batch of grain and military equipment had been arranged for transfer, and next, preparations had to be made for the next batch.

Ji Chengjue had also noticed the matter of river work for a long time, but he didn’t speak out or raise any objections to this extremely unreasonable choice.

Although he didn’t know what it was for, he believed that the Prince of Jingnan wouldn’t be idle and messing around.

After leaving the Ministry of Revenue, he happened to see the Crown Prince’s carriage leaving the palace.

Where to go out of the palace?

Naturally, to the rear garden.

Ji Chengjue smiled. The Yan Emperor was recuperating in the rear garden, and even Wei Zhonghe had been relieved of his duties as the Seal-holding Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial and handed it over to Li Yinglian.

But his second brother didn’t dare to really “supervise the country.”

Even if his father said no, no, no,

No one dared to take it seriously.

Therefore, he had to take all the memorials to the rear garden every day to ask for instructions.

Although his father refused to read the memorials, the Crown Prince would still ask him to inquire about the policies of governing the country, respectfully.

After the Crown Prince’s carriage had gone far away, Ji Chengjue walked out of the palace gate and got into his own carriage.

The driver was Eunuch Xiao Zhang.

Inside the carriage, Eunuch Zhang handed Ji Chengjue an ice towel and said:

“The Fourth Prince has been transferred to the Polu Camp outside the capital to serve as a general.”

The capital garrison originally had twelve camps, eight camps outside and four camps inside, collectively known as the Great Yan Capital Twelve Garrison Camps.

But after several battles in the past few years, the garrison was first transferred to the east, and then a large part was transferred to Beifeng County. During the Eastern Expedition, the First Prince took another batch to Wangjiang.

After a dismantling,

In the end,

The safety of the capital had to be maintained by Li Liangshen’s garrison.

The former Capital Twelve Camps, except for the two camps guarding the imperial city and the palace, had preserved their organization, the remaining ten camps were really just empty shells.

“Well, if he’s smart, after a few days, the Crown Prince will probably issue an edict to the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of War will transfer it to my Ministry of Revenue, to extract military pay and equipment.”

A prince leading troops couldn’t be too sloppy.

If the Deng family was still around in the past, if his fourth brother went to lead a camp, he would have been properly arranged in all aspects, from the generals at all levels to the subordinates and other aspects.

But now, his fourth brother didn’t have that ability and could only rely on the “brotherhood card” to ask for some family wealth.

Although the court was now very difficult,

But to be honest, no matter how difficult it was, it wouldn’t be short of food for his camp.

“Master, are you planning to help the Fourth Prince?”

“Help my ass, he’s not Zheng Fan.”

Eunuch Zhang smiled when he heard this.

Then,

Eunuch Zhang said again:

“But Zheng Boye is fighting a war now, and even if the Chu expedition is over, distant water can’t quench the immediate thirst.”

“Eunuch Zhang.”

“This servant is here.”

“Things aren’t that simple.”

“What Master says is true.”

“But things are by no means that complicated. How did His Majesty solve the chaos of the Great Yan’s century-old clans?

Hehe, he directly sent thousands of iron cavalry from the Northern and Southern Armies into the palace.

Simple,

Decisive?”

Ji Chengjue reached out and rubbed his brow, continuing:

“Eunuch Zhang, this time, I don’t know why, I don’t want to play any conspiracies or tricks. Although we’ve made a lot of preparations, and we’ve also made a lot of preparations that we ourselves don’t know if we’ll use, I still feel that if we take the throne in that way, we’ll feel uncomfortable sitting under our ass.

Alas, hypocritical, hypocritical;

I actually want to compete for this position in an upright manner. I’m really corrupted by that Zheng.

If that Zheng was here, he would definitely say: This is in line with the beauty of seizing the throne.

Besides, it’s not time yet. Before the Chu expedition ends, nothing will happen to me, and no one will dare to let anything happen to me. If the Chu expedition is lost, then the card table will be overturned, and I’ll be even safer.

Damn it,

If the Chu expedition is won, as the Fourth Brother said that day, there’s no need to destroy the Chu Kingdom, just conquer the Chu Kingdom and take Zhennanguan and Shanggu County. This expedition will be considered a victory.”

“Master means that if the Chu expedition is won, we’ll be in danger?”

Ji Chengjue nodded, but shook his head again.

“This servant is foolish.”

“Once the war is over, Zheng Fan will be free.”

Eunuch Zhang’s face tightened.

“Hehehe, are you going to say that distant water can’t quench the immediate thirst again?”

“Master is wise.”

“A victory in the Chu expedition isn’t the end, but the real drama is just beginning. Hundreds of thousands of triumphant troops are there, and their attitude, which is the attitude of the Prince of Jingnan, is the most important. Even His Majesty can’t ignore their attitude.”

“But this servant thinks that the Prince of Jingnan has no attitude.”

If the Prince of Jingnan could have a little attitude, the Crown Prince wouldn’t have had such a miserable time recently. Even the Crown Prince’s party felt desperate.

And since the Prince of Jingnan doesn’t support his own nephew, why would he support you?

“But Zheng Fan has an attitude.” Ji Chengjue raised his hand and smiled: “Do you remember the last time he took the princess into the capital, causing trouble all the way and acting high-profilely? Whose banner was he fighting under?”

Obeying the order of the Prince of Jingnan, leading troops into Yingdu;

The guards wore mourning clothes to worship in Litian City;

It wasn’t that no one with a clear understanding noticed that he was “falsely conveying the Prince’s order,” and even some people with a clear grasp and understanding of the current situation could almost conclude that the Prince of Jingnan wouldn’t do that!

But,

After the Earl of Pingye returned,

He wasn’t punished and continued to be reused, which meant that even if he was really “falsifying the decree,” it would become a real order!

Tian Wujing,

Was like a mountain,

Standing there.

Under the mountain, there was a mountain god temple.

The mountain didn’t say anything, the mountain didn’t do anything,

But the temple priest in the mountain god temple could announce the will of the mountain god to the mountain people in all directions.

And the Earl of Pingye was the temple priest.

Eunuch Zhang was a little worried:

“But if His Majesty really insists on promoting the Crown Prince, the Earl of Pingye may give priority to the overall situation, for the sake of the situation that Great Yan has finally achieved, he won’t…”

Making hundreds of thousands of Chu expeditionary troops oppose the central government and the court, even if they didn’t do anything, just conveying and expressing this intention would be almost equivalent to wanting to put Great Yan in a dangerous situation of disintegration!

Ji Chengjue looked at Eunuch Zhang with some doubt,

Seeing this, Eunuch Zhang looked at his master with an even more puzzled expression.

After a long time,

Ji Chengjue said with some amusement:

“A long time ago, I knew one thing.”

“Master, what is it?”

“That is…”

Ji Chengjue stretched lazily,

Continuing:

“In his Zheng Fan’s eyes, the overall situation is worth nothing.”

——————

Thanks to the student Haha Da Lala Lala La for becoming the 140th leader of *The Descent of Magic*!

See you all tomorrow for the next chapter, don’t stay up late.

Please ask for monthly tickets again, only six hundred votes away from the ninth place!

chun jie di xiao long