The maid's road to success

When Chen Luoxi arrived in Yuzhou, there were several people wearing government uniforms sitting in a pavilion on a hillside outside the city of Yuzhou.

"How long will this damn weather last? I'm freezing to death."

A tall officer said.

The other one, holding the hot water bottle given by his wife, glanced at him and said with a pout.

"Why do you always say these things? It's your fault that you are so ignorant that you are forced to do this hard job."

While the two were talking, Chen Luoxi came over with his men.

"Are you from Yuzhou Prefecture? Where is your prefect? ​​Take me to see him."

The two men looked at Chen Luoxi and the others, and the tall officer said impatiently.

"Come on, come on, I have important things to do and I don't have time to play with you."

Zhuhe scolded immediately.

"How dare you! Our young master is an inspector appointed by the court to inspect all officials. How dare you offend me?"

The tall officer obviously didn't believe it. Even the prefect was accompanied by a bunch of guards, officers and servants wherever he went.

The man in front of him was very young, wearing a cloak, and was followed by only a few servants.

There is no inspector who meets even half of the standards.

"Inspector? He is the Inspector, and I am the prefect."

The older man next to him had obviously seen more of the world.

He grabbed his companion and told him to stop talking nonsense.

"Sir, do you have any items that represent your status?"

Zhuhai took out the inspector's token from his arms.

This is a new sign made by the Imperial Household Department of the imperial court, with the words "Inspect all officials and execute first and report later" engraved on the back.

"I am a servant of the prefectural government office, and I have been ordered to wait here for the imperial envoy from Kyoto. I have offended you, and I beg you to forgive me, Inspector General."

Zhuhe looked at Chen Luoxi and knew that he didn't intend to care about this matter.

Said to the two frightened yamen runners.

"Take us to see the governor."

The older runner asked the taller runner to go ahead and inform the prefect, while he led the way for Chen Luoxi and the others.

"What are the casualties now?"

The bailiff answered.

"Before I came here, I heard that there were more than ten casualties. Before the flood, the prefect sent people to lobby every household to move out of Yuzhou City as soon as possible."

"Now many people have been settled in high places found by the government, and there is no risk of mountain collapse. Therefore, the biggest losses in Yuzhou City are goods and cattle and sheep, but there are not many casualties.

Chen Luoxi's expression finally relaxed a little.

After walking for a while, he already felt the severity of the disaster. The river water had risen and flooded many towns and villages.

Yuzhou has abundant rainfall, but such severe disasters rarely occur.

Despite the current situation, all the people are settled in a safe place. This shows that the officials of Yuzhou are good and they make proper arrangements when disasters occur. After this disaster, if there are no accidents, they should be able to be promoted.

The yamen runner breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Chen Luoxi's complexion had improved a little.

Before meeting the prefect, he should appease the inspector. When the prefect finds out, he will probably reward him.

To the prefect, the inspector was even more terrifying than the disaster relief envoy sent from Kyoto.

This official's duty is to supervise all officials. Once he finds corrupt officials or officials who harm the people, he has the right to execute them first and report later.

I heard that the current queen is his aunt, and the current emperor can inherit the throne because of this person's contribution.

"Sir, now our governor and other lords are temporarily living in a village. The conditions are harsh and the mountain roads are difficult to travel. Please send someone to inform you to come and greet us. There is a place to rest on the way."

Chen Luoxi looked at the place he pointed at and shook his head.

"No need, just get there as soon as possible."

Chen Luoxi rode his horse at full speed on the official road and missed the opportunity to rest in Chunyuan.

Wen Niang fell into deep thought as she listened to Wu Shan's words.

The bailiff led the stranger to where the prefect was.

There are only a few people on the other side?

But the yamen runner was very respectful to those people?

Who is this person? The officials of Yuzhou are all busy now, and they are wearing official uniforms, so Wushan will recognize them.

Could it be someone from Kyoto?

But why are there only a few imperial envoys in Kyoto?

"Niang Wen, have you figured out who those people are?"

Wen Niang suddenly thought of something.

His face became very ugly.

"Lord Protector."

Bihe almost screamed out loud, she moved closer to Wen Niang and spoke in a low voice.

"Why is he here now?"

Wen Niang closed her eyes and did not answer, thinking quietly.

Chen Luoxi was ordered to supervise all officials. It was not surprising that he came here after hearing that there was a disaster in Yuzhou. But if he came, why would he only bring so few people with him?

Since the inspectors supervise all officials, they will inevitably be feared and there is a possibility of assassination, so the court sent many experts to follow them and would not let the inspectors act alone.

However, Chen Luoxi is different from ordinary officials and does not like to follow the rules.

Unless, he was worried about alerting the enemy.

It was the snake itself that was frightened.

"He's still looking for us!"

Bihe waited for a long time before Wen Niang spoke.

"He went to Luzhou to investigate the case of the prefect of Luzhou. It was a big deal, so the officials would find out immediately and take corresponding cover-up measures."

"If it was just for this reason, he could have let a small group of people hide in the state capital to investigate and monitor, and he could lead the team to slowly rush over from behind. Wouldn't he be able to get more information and find more traces, and not take such a big risk?"

"Unless, he is afraid that we will know his whereabouts. Many people can find out the whereabouts of the inspector because there are so many people in the team and they are from high backgrounds. If he is not with the inspector's team, can we still know?"

Bihe frowned.

"But how do you know those people are the Protector of the Kingdom and his people?"

Wen Niang looked out the window.

"Wushan said that the man was wearing a rainproof cloak with a large chrysanthemum embroidered on it."

Bihe looked at Wen Niang and asked.

"You did it?"

Wen Niang nodded. During the years that Chen Luoxi was in Gongzhou, he did not wear a raincoat or carry an umbrella. Every time it rained, Chen Luoxi would think of the rainy night when he escaped from Kyoto.

But Gongzhou is different from Yuzhou. It gets very cold when it rains. Wen Niang was worried that he would not take care of himself, so she made him a rainproof cloak and embroidered a large chrysanthemum on the hem of the cloak.

Chrysanthemum is one of the Four Gentlemen and a flower of longevity, symbolizing peace and health.

At that time, Wen Niang hoped that Chen Luoxi could take care of herself and stay healthy.

"So it really is him, what should we do? Should we leave?"

Wen Niang shook her head.

"Don't act rashly. The Duke of the Protectorate came here to deal with the disaster. He may not be here to find us. Let's not scare ourselves first. We should remain unchanged in the face of all changes."

Wen Niang looked at the children in the yard outside.

"Besides, there are so many children who depend on us. If we leave, how will they live?"

Bihe looked at the children who were still excitedly discussing what to cook today.

Yes, once a person is tied down, his movements are easily restricted. It’s still not too late for them to leave now, but what about these dozens of children?

They have already left the charity and there is no chance for them to go back. Without people like us to protect them until they are old enough to work, how are they going to survive?

Anze and Anya had just started living like normal children, and now they were leaving. Wouldn't they have to go back to Chunyuan and rely on Anze to carry sacks every day? Living on leftovers?

Bihe wanted to leave enough money for them to live on, but for a group of rootless children, having so much money would be a disaster if someone discovered it.

But who would believe that a group of helpless children can have enough food to eat every day and live well? They have no money.

Wen Niang watched Wu Shan use a bamboo stick to draw a topographic map of the surrounding area for the children on the ground, and she immediately thought of something.

Return to the bed and look through the books.

"What are you looking for?"

Bihe felt a little nervous when she saw Wen Niang's behavior.

"Map of the states and counties of Chen State."

Bihe helped to search and finally found a copy in a book of travel notes of Chen State.

"Bihe, we may not be able to escape."

Bihe became concerned when she saw Wen Niang's worried look.

"I'm a very stable person, Chen Luoxi knows that, and we two women will definitely consider safety first."

“So the north and the far west, I won’t go.”

"There are many talented people in the southwest. I have always been afraid of these witch doctors. The sisters in Fushou Hall know it, and Chen Luoxi knows it too, so there is no way I can go to the southwest."

"In the south, the nobles guard it, and the officials and businessmen protect it. We have no backers, and we don't know what dangers we will encounter if we go there, so I won't go."

"So the places I can go have been fixed from the beginning: Luzhou, Qingzhou, Yuzhou, and these places."

Bihe was so surprised that she couldn't speak. It seemed that there was a reason why Wen Niang followed the Duke of Protectorate and fought all the way to Kyoto for revenge.

She has grown a lot.

"I'm afraid Chen Luoxi has already been to Qingzhou and knows that the only places we can go to are these counties."

Bihe grabbed Wen Niang's hand in horror.

"But I have only shown up once in Qingzhou, and I have never told anyone that my hometown is Qingzhou. I just told you."

Wen Niang sighed.

"We have overlooked Liu Xi. He was deceived by Wang Lianhua for Cai Lian, so why can't he search for you in Qingzhou? Besides, we are using him for revenge, so I'm afraid he will want to find us even more."

Bihe bit her lip.

"But the Duke of Protectorate wouldn't pay attention to a businessman, right? He wasn't in Qingzhou at that time."

Wen Niang thought of someone she hadn't thought of for a long time.

"Hua Yesheng is Chen Luoxi's partner in Gongzhou who is trying to make money. He has a great talent for business. I heard from Chen Luoxi that after he entered Kyoto, he married Princess Baozhu and used the name of the princess to let Hua Yesheng open many shops outside, almost covering half of Chen State. I'm afraid there are people from Hua Yesheng in Qingzhou."

"If Chen Luoxi is determined to find us, he will definitely use Huayesheng. I'm afraid our portraits would have been sent to all of Huayesheng's shops long ago."

Bihe was frightened just by hearing it. It was worthy of the Duke of Protectorate to be able to fight his way back to Kyoto. He had such a good mind and good means.

It's almost like casting a huge net.

"Niang Wen, you have changed a lot."

Bihe looked at Wen Niang and suddenly felt a little strange. Perhaps it was because Wen Niang never played such tricks in front of her, so she didn't notice it. What made the young master miss her so much was not only the seven years of companionship, but also the seven years of their common growth and sharing of responsibilities.

Without Wen Niang behind him, how could the Duke of Protectorate fight so bravely in the front, because there was always someone to cover him and he had a way to retreat.

This retreat is Wen Niang.

Perhaps in Qingzhou, when Wen Niang meticulously helped her punish the evildoers without getting her hands dirty, she should have discovered that Wen Niang was no longer the same Wen Niang as before.

Seeing that Wen Niang had quickly calmed down, Bi He refuted her own thoughts.

No.

Wen Niang was smart from the beginning. She and Wen Niang depended on each other in Fushou Hall. She relied on her beauty and good speaking skills to please her master and sisters in front of them. She might have aroused jealousy from others, but she had never been targeted by anyone.

Because Wen Niang always managed to handle her relationship with everyone in the yard well, she didn't get too close to her master and worked diligently. That was the impression she gave to everyone, and no one had any conflicts with her.

This is actually her cleverness, but no one noticed it. She and Wen Niang have such a good relationship, and no one has ever thought about it too much.

"Bihe, are you afraid of me?"

Wen Niang felt a little uncomfortable when she saw Bihe's complicated eyes.

"Don't be afraid, I just think I'm stupid. You've always been very smart, but I always thought you were too honest and simple-minded. If I had known you were so capable, I would have let you take the lead in everything I said, and I would have stayed at the back and enjoyed the good life."

After hearing what Bihe said, Wen Niang burst out laughing, and the tension between the two of them disappeared.

When Bihe was in Fushoutang, she always thought that Wen Niang was a stupid quail, and Bihe protected Wen Niang behind her like an old hen.

If anyone took advantage of Wen Niang, they would go over and ridicule them, trying to get more for Wen Niang.

Anyone who takes advantage of Wen Niang's good temper and asks her to help her with work will definitely be torn apart by her.

"You little fox, you act like a quail, but you are actually smarter than anyone else."

Wen Niang glanced at her and pulled her to sit in front of her.

"I'm afraid we can't go anywhere right now, so we might as well stay in Yuzhou and see what Chen Luoxi does. Since he's here to help with the disaster, he won't hide his whereabouts, so we can observe him. Besides, it's often said that the darkest place is under the lamp."

Bihe has been looking at Wen Niang. This is not the first time she has noticed this.

Wen Niang knows the Duke of Protectorate very well. Does she really have no good feelings towards him?

Bihe now felt that Wen Niang actually had the Duke of Protectorate in her heart. She was actually very similar to the Duke of Protectorate at times, and they thought in the same way.

After being together for so long, there was no affection at all, and Bihe didn't believe it.

It's simply that Wen Niang thinks too much. She puts the future of the Chen family first. Wen Niang feels that her identity not only cannot help the Chen family, but is a burden instead.

They were unwilling to get married, but faced with the gap in status and endless ridicule, the two eventually drifted further and further apart.

She always puts herself in a difficult position to help others.