The maid's road to success

When Chen Luoxi arrived at the place where the prefect Wu Guang was, they were already waiting in front of him wearing straw raincoats.

"I am Wu Guang, the governor of Yuzhou. I am honored to meet the Lord Protector of the Country."

When the tall yamen runner came back in a dishevel, he was still discussing with other officials how to collect more food.

"Sir, the person who went to pick up the imperial envoy has returned and said that the inspector is on his way."

When Wu Guang heard the word "Inspector", he could no longer sit still. He called the man over and after asking him questions carefully, he became even more worried.

Unlike the yamen runners, he knew the token of the inspector.

The right to supervise all officials and execute them first and report later is given to the inspectors by the emperor.

Once corrupt officials or people who harm the people are discovered, they can be dealt with directly according to the circumstances and then reported to the court.

He must have come this time because of the disaster in Yuzhou.

If I don't handle the situation properly, I'm afraid my official career will be over.

"What did you say to the inspector?"

When several adults were discussing how to deal with the situation, the steward saw the look in the prefect's eyes and came over to ask.

"Manager Li, please save me. I didn't recognize the inspector at the time and offended that gentleman, but I didn't mean to do that. The inspector only brought a few people in plain clothes, and I didn't recognize them."

Manager Li asked him to tell him everything and immediately his face turned stern.

This idiot spoke rudely as soon as the inspector arrived. If the inspector takes it to heart, I'm afraid it will be held accountable by the prefect.

Everyone knew that the bailiff's words were disrespectful and they were all very nervous, but when they saw Chen Luoxi, they knew that he didn't take it to heart.

"On the way here, I saw that the disaster was serious. The yamen runners said that you have allowed the people to flee the city in advance. You have done a good job. I will report to the court and reward them for their merits."

Since the imperial envoy has not arrived, Chen Luoxi can command the rescue and all the officials.

After all, the imperial envoy sent by the court was not of higher rank than him, and he was responsible for supervising all officials.

It means that as long as you are an official in the court, the inspectors can investigate and manage you.

Wu Guang was glad that he had listened to the advice and persuaded all the people to come out early. He led Chen Luoxi to the only house with two courtyards with even more respect.

Manager Li walked at the end and motioned the older bailiff to follow him.

I carefully asked him about everything he said on the way and nodded in appreciation.

"You have done a good job. Go back and take a rest. You don't need to go to meet the imperial envoy tomorrow. Go directly to the disaster victims and be a head of the police. This is a reward for you for mentioning the Inspector's achievements in front of him."

The man could not hide his excitement. He thanked the master respectfully for a long time before taking the silver ingot as a reward and leaving.

Chen Luoxi looked at the relatively clean room, which did not contain too many luxurious items, and felt quite satisfied.

This was also the reason why the prefect quickly removed some things after discussing with the magistrate.

I used to think that the imperial envoys in Kyoto were used to a life of luxury, and the environment in this village was far from that, so I was afraid that they would not be satisfied.

However, it was not realistic to return to the city to get the luxurious items at this time, so Lord Wu searched for a long time in the bags of the female relatives.

I brought a lot of brocade porcelain bottles, inkstones, pens, ink, charcoal stoves, hand warmers and many other things from Mrs. Wu and Miss Wu.

Although the angry daughters cried for a long time, they couldn't care less at this time.

Who knew that the first person to come was the Inspector, who was to investigate whether officials had engaged in corruption or bribery and were not doing their job properly.

It would be bad if you saw many luxurious items at this time.

A lot of things were simply taken away, and the wife of the Tongpan contributed many practical but not luxurious things.

An iron stove and the most common hot water bottle.

Common writing brushes, inks, paper and inkstones were not considered treasures, but the newly made cotton and silk bedding and the white porcelain teapot were.

"Mr. Zhizhou is very thoughtful. He can clean up a room like this at this time. Thank you for your help."

Wu Guang said humbly.

"The conditions were tough. Yuzhou Prefecture was flooded. Madam Tongpan spent a long time to sort out these things. Please don't despise me, sir."

Chen Luoxi was not prepared to chat any more. He nodded with satisfaction and began to discuss river affairs with the adults.

Jin'er felt aggrieved when she heard the crying sounds from the next yard.

"Mother, why are you giving away all our things? They have so many good things over there, why do you want ours?"

Mrs. Tongpan was not very happy when she heard the crying of Miss Wu from next door.

"The inspectors supervise all officials. Using the things of the Wu family would be bad for Lord Wu and your father. Many of our things were bought by Madam Yufuzhai of Chunyuan. They are all ordinary people's things, but they are practical."

"The Wu family's things are good, but the inkstone alone is worth a thousand gold coins. Doesn't it tell the inspector that the Wu family has a lot of money? If for no other reason, we have to give it away just for your father."

Jin'er looked at the empty room with grievance. There was nothing in the room to begin with, and now the fever was getting worse. There was no charcoal stove, no hand warmer or hot water bottle, and they had to wake up from the cold at night.

"Madam, Madam Liu said that the things they sent this time were not appropriate, and instead asked Madam and Miss to take out their own portions and send them to the Inspector. She felt guilty and sent a lot of things."

Mrs. Tongpan looked at the many things moved into the wooden boxes and finally felt relieved. After all, Mrs. Liu and Lord Wu were smart people.

But why are the second daughter and youngest daughter of the Wu family so miserable?

"Thank you Madam Liu for your help. Jin'er and I are a small family, and we don't have many people to serve us, so you don't need to ask me for help. We will leave the charcoal stove, and Madam, please take the rest back."

"Ladies, you are precious, and this is hard, so don't feel wronged. If we need anything, it won't be too late to ask Madam Liu for it."

Jin'er felt much better when she saw that Mrs. Liu had sent her many gifts, but her mother actually only kept the charcoal stove.

But it's okay. They don't have the leisure time to practice calligraphy and painting now, so it's practical to keep a charcoal stove. At least it will keep them warmer at night.

"Madam, she only kept the charcoal stove and returned the rest, saying that they were for the ladies to use first. If you need anything, come and ask for it from her."

Mrs. Liu felt a headache when she saw her daughter crying.

A few days ago, in order to clean up the two-story house, the adults took away a lot of things from them, including the best Su ink, glazed porcelain bottles, wolf-hair brushes, brocade fox-skin charcoal stoves, charcoal blocks, celadon teapots and teacups, and the best Longjing and Biluochun teas.

The daughters kept crying and making a fuss about this, saying that their father was deliberately trying to make them suffer.

"Okay, why are you crying?"

The eldest daughter of the Wu family felt very complicated when she saw the wife of the Tongpan returning the things.

"Jin'er is younger than you. She didn't bring anything with her from the Tongpan Mansion to begin with. Today, we searched for everything we could use, but she didn't cry or cause any annoyance."

"Besides, haven't we returned all your things to you? Why are you still crying? Those illegitimate children live next door. Are you deliberately letting them laugh at you?"

Mrs. Liu felt relieved seeing that her eldest daughter was at least sensible.

The eldest daughter of the Wu family is also very troubled by her two younger sisters.

When her father took those things away, she had tried her best to give away her share, but she couldn't help but use some of her younger sister's, and they started to make a fuss.

I was happy for a while when I got it back just now, but when my mother heard that it was exchanged for many things of the wife of the magistrate, she packed up a lot of things and went to the next courtyard to give as subsidies.

Who knew they would be unwilling and throw tantrums again.

"You are not children anymore, you should understand things. Jin'er and the others lack much more than you do, but they never made a fuss. Even when so many things were taken away from them, they didn't cry like you do. Do you want to go out and be called selfish by everyone, and not as good as the young lady of the Tongpan Mansion?"

"Those ladies have been praising those illegitimate children recently, and you still don't repent. I think you should be locked up and reflect on your mistakes. Find a scripture and copy it a hundred times to calm your mind."

The two young ladies of the Wu family are actually more afraid of their eldest sister than Mrs. Liu.

When my mother was young, she was wary of concubines and neglected them a lot. As far as I can remember, the two younger ones were taken care of more by the eldest sister.

When I do something wrong, it is the eldest sister who disciplines me more.

The mother has only recently had time to discipline them, so naturally her WeChat is not as good as that of the eldest sister.

"Mother, elder sister, we were wrong."

Mrs. Liu finally breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that her daughter had a way to discipline the other two.

"Don't worry, mother. Take good care of yourself. I will definitely take good care of my sisters and prevent them from causing any more trouble."

Madam Liu nodded, then she held the maid's hand and went back to the room. Actually, the layout and the houses here were not as good as those in Chunyuan.

But fortunately it is spacious, so it is more comfortable for one person to live in one room.

It's okay after cleaning and arranging it.

Xier carefully put charcoal on the charcoal stove and lit it, and placed the kettle on top.

Their charcoal had been almost used up. When the steward took people to settle the victims, he exchanged a lot of charcoal for food and money at a family that specialized in charcoal burning.

He secretly brought back two baskets first, and then brought back a cart of charcoal.

Another basket was divided according to the number of people.

It can take quite a while to use it every day.

"After all, the ladies at Yufuzhai are kindhearted. They used all the things they prepared for us. When you come back, don't just give them some benefits. You should also treat them better."

Jin'er was sitting on the bed with a quilt covering her legs, reading a book.

"Don't worry, mother. I know that the people in Yufuzhai have always been kind to us. Besides, they are also people who do good deeds. We have only been together for a few days and we feel very compatible."

The wife of the magistrate also liked the two ladies in Yufuzhai.

She only has one daughter, Jin'er, and she usually disciplines her strictly for fear that someone might teach Jin'er bad things.

The circumstances these days were special, and she didn't want Jin'er to be caught in the middle and suffer, so she often asked her to go play with the ladies in Yufuzhai.

Unexpectedly, I would be very happy every time I came back, chirping like a happy lark and telling myself what I did there.

After carefully asking Xier in private, I found out that she taught Jiner how to make tea, do housework, and also told her about the customs and habits of various places in Chen Kingdom.

Jin'er, on the contrary, learned a lot from them.

The wife of the magistrate looked at Jin'er's tea-making skills and housework, which had improved a lot, and wondered why they could do things that only women of the nobility could do.

The way he behaves and speaks doesn't seem like something that can be raised in an ordinary family.

I'm just afraid there are other secrets.

However, these two people have no bad intentions. They have taken in so many homeless children and are kind people. There are only benefits for Jin'er to associate with them.

On the third day after Chen Luoxi arrived in Yuzhou, Zhushan had already arrived with a dozen carts of food. In order to save time along the way, he bought a horse-drawn carriage at a high price for transportation.

"Go and give the grain to the magistrate, and ask him to arrange for it to be delivered to the victims."

Chen Luoxi has already investigated the nearby river affairs and disaster situation. The casualties are not serious and they are all concentrated in a safe area, so he can do many things with peace of mind.

"Your Excellency has prepared enough sandbags to block the flood discharge gap."

"Sir, these workers have been working at the docks for many years. They are all young and strong men who are good at swimming."

"My lord, the safety rope is ready."

"Okay, first arrange for someone to clean up the silt at the dam mouth and release the water from here."

“Check whether there are any low gaps in the river where floodwater is to be released and fill them with sandbags.”

"All the people who participated in the disaster relief will be rewarded with fifty taels of silver."

Several officials heard the order and immediately went to make arrangements.

In fact, they also knew that they could not allow the river water to continue rising and flood the villages around Xudu.

However, they have already controlled the number of casualties very well. If they act rashly and increase the number of casualties, they will not get any credit but will be punished instead.

Chen Luoxi acted decisively and Zhushan arrived in time. He not only brought food but also brought a number of experts to help the people who were good at water to dredge the river. This ensured the safety of the people and offered generous rewards.

Chen Luoxi would pay for it himself first, and then deal with it separately when the imperial court received relief money.

Life is still peaceful here in Chunyuan.

Julien couldn't sit still. Even when it was raining, he collected bamboo every day to make things.

Wenniang, Bihe, Anping and Ning were the first people to enjoy Julien's craftsmanship.

The bamboo chair is much more comfortable than a simple stool. It is very comfortable with a small cushion on it.

There are also large and small bamboo baskets and flower baskets, which are beautiful and practical for holding things.

Wulan's health has improved a lot. Previously, she had been beaten and her internal organs were damaged. After taking medicine and recuperating, her family can rest in peace and she has gotten much better.

This child is surprisingly talented at making pastries. He just learned it, and the pastries he makes taste delicious.

Anping directly asked her to learn and practice more with him, and when she grew up, she could either start her own electric oven or take over Yufuzhai with Anze.

Wushan was curious about Lian's craftsmanship, so he followed Anze and learned from Lian every day.

In the end, all I could do was weave two baskets, and they weren't as pretty as Julien's.

So he gave up. Wushan was strong and had endured hardships when he worked at the dock, so he planned to weave bamboo mats to sell for some money and then buy a few acres of land to make a living.

Since arriving in Yuzhou, An Yun has been studying the plague cure behind closed doors, and even asked Zhu Hai to catch some sick rats for research.

Finally, we got some harvest when the rain stopped.

Wen Niang was very happy when she saw that the rain finally stopped. As long as the rain stopped, everyone would be saved, and Yuzhou would be saved.

The person from the imperial court finally arrived. He was one of the emperor’s former aides when he was a prince, and now he was the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works.

"The Duke's measures are very effective and have greatly reduced the damage on both sides of the river. However, the accumulation of silt is due to the influx and deposition of a large amount of muddy water from the hillside."

"Simply opening the downstream dam to clear the silt is only a temporary solution, we still need to find a way to clear the silt in the entire river, otherwise if there are continuous rainy days in the future, the river bank will collapse and the fields will be flooded."

Chen Luoxi felt much more relaxed when he saw people coming from Kyoto.

"I know, but I'm not good at river management, and I don't have the manpower and resources to implement such a large project. I wish you were here."

Also coming was the son of the Marquis of Yong'an, who was also a famous young man in Kyoto.

The ancestors had originally expected the daughter of the Marquis Wu'an family to be on the list of daughters-in-law for the Chen family.

"Greetings, Duke Protector of the Country. We were ordered to come to Yuzhou. The roads were difficult to travel on, which delayed us. Fortunately, thanks to the Duke's presence, the disaster was quickly brought under control. We admire you."

The Prince of Yong'an actually admires the Duke of Protectorate very much.

When his family was persecuted, he endured it silently, accumulated strength, and returned to Kyoto to take revenge.

Although the Emperor covered up for the Duke of Protectorate and took on a lot of the blame.

However, all the old-established families entrenched in Kyoto could guess that the downfall of the Queen and Duke Cheng'en, and the fate of the Fourth and Sixth Princes, were all due to the Duke Huguo.

No one would believe me if I said it had nothing to do with him.

Who wouldn’t admire such a brave and resourceful youngest Duke of Chen State?

It's a pity that he doesn't like his sister, otherwise the marriage between the two families would only have advantages and no disadvantages.

"You are too polite, my lord. I am just helping the emperor. Now that you are here, I can take a break."

These things were not originally Chen Luoxi's job, he was just helping to carry out disaster relief as quickly as possible.

Now that Kyoto has sent a special disaster relief team, it would be inappropriate for him to interfere in the matter.

Besides, the inspection team will be here soon, so there is no need for him to waste time here.

It would be better to free up some time to find out if Wen Niang and the others are in Yuzhou.