"Hey! Don't run away. Mrs. Si Bing cares about you." Luo Muyu couldn't see it and tried to chase her.
Hua Qingxue grabbed her and said, "You are pregnant now, what are you doing?"
"What are you doing? I just want to catch up with her and try to persuade her, this kid!" Luo Muyu was interrupted by her and saw that he couldn't catch up. He felt a little pity, "He is also a poor kid."
No... Hua Qingxue also sighed quietly in her heart.
Unexpectedly, the little girl who had just run away ran back along the alley, with a frightened face, as if she was trying to avoid being chased by someone.
What happened
While the two were wondering, they saw a woman chasing the little girl fiercely, and kept yelling: "You are such a broom star, I told you to chop wood for a long time and you can't come back. It turns out you are hiding here and being lazy. You are so bad at such a young age, why don’t I take care of you!"
The woman was holding a long bamboo stick in her hand, and as she saw this, she hit the little girl.
There was only a stabbing sound, and the little girl was beaten so hard that she fell to the ground, but she didn't cry or make a fuss, she just held her head in fear.
The little girl's eyes were like a trapped animal in a cage, desperate and sad, but so stubborn that not a single tear fell.
Hua Qingxue's heart was touched so hard.
"stop!"
"stop!"
"stop!"
Besides Hua Qingxue and Luo Muyu, the third voice was shouted by Meng Zhize.
After Meng Zhize handed over to Hua Hua Qingxue, he went straight to the fierce woman: "In public, you beat a child so cruelly. Doesn't your conscience hurt?"
The woman looked him up and down for a moment, and saw that the clothes he was wearing were not very particular. Maybe he was a lowly person like herself, so why should he care about her.
There was annoyance in her expression, but she was very sensible. She caught a glimpse of Hua Qingxue and Luo Muyu wearing unusual clothes, so she probably didn't dare to offend them, so she patiently explained: "This child is a third-class slave of our master's family. Every day She is responsible for chopping wood, carrying water, and doing odd jobs. If she comes out to be lazy, I will naturally take care of her, and it has nothing to do with you."
In ancient times, slaves were just like tools sold in the market. They could be beaten, scolded and traded at will.
Sometimes, even if it was the master's fault and the slave was tortured to death, the master would not be held accountable.
The implication of the woman's words is that this is their household matter and you have nothing to do with it.
"You are simply arrogant. I see this child passing by carrying firewood every day, and she has never been left behind. This shows that she is not lazy." Meng Zhize was very angry and argued hard.
But the woman sneered: "You see her every day, which is enough to prove that she is lazy every day!"
"You!" Meng Zhize felt like he was about to faint with anger: "You... use such forceful words to make excuses!"
"Hmph!" the woman spat: "Our master's house is in Zuoer Alley. When she comes back from chopping firewood every day, she takes East Street and turns to Zuoer Alley. That's the shortest route, but she has to take a detour to the narrow alley near Sibing's Madam's Mansion. Hey, isn’t this laziness?”
So that's it.
Every day when the little girl went out to chop firewood, she would come over and learn to read from Master Meng. The journey was so sad.
"You! You are simply unreasonable!" Meng Zhize discovered that he was completely helpless when facing a shrew with all his benevolence and morality.
"Huh!" The woman glared at him arrogantly, and then planned to beat the little girl severely with a whip.
I have been slacking off to catch this child these days, but I have spent a lot of time on her. I have to deal with her well today.
The woman swooped out, grabbed the little girl's ears, and lifted her up: "Come on, come back to me, you will be whipped a lot."
Seeing that the poor child was about to be taken back, Hua Qingxue stepped forward to stop him: "Wait a minute, how much does this child cost? I bought it."
The evil woman seemed not to hear clearly, or maybe she heard a joke.
"Madam, I see you are a pampered rich person. Why would you buy such a wild girl? This girl has a bad temper. Buying her back may not be a good thing."
Hua Qingxue paused and realized that she was possessed by the Holy Mother's White Lotus again.
But she couldn't bear this situation no matter what: "It's none of your business, just tell me how much this slave costs."
When the woman saw that there were guards behind Hua Qingxue, she thought she had an extraordinary status, so she didn't bother much. After asking for twenty taels of silver, she let him go.
The little girl was rescued by Hua Qingxue, but she was not moved at all. She looked at the others with empty and lifeless eyes.
"I really don't know how to arrange the extra child." Hua Qingxue found that the next question was a bit of a headache.
"How about I take her back? I really like this child." Luo Muyu leaned over and pinched the child's face gently, "Are you willing to go back with me?"
The little girl looked at her, then at Hua Qingxue, and pointed at Hua Qingxue.
What does it mean
"You want to follow Madam?" Luo Muyu guessed.
The little girl paused and nodded hesitantly.
"Haha, it seems that this kid is destined to you." Luo Muyu laughed.
Hua Qingxue smiled lightly: "How about letting her study with Master Meng every day? There is not much work in my house, and besides, she is too... too young."
She was younger than Huan'er and Xi'er, and she didn't dare to use child labor anymore.
"That's fine. This kid is quite interested in studying anyway." Luo Muyu agreed with this decision.
"Then let me thank Madam on behalf of the child." Meng Zhize also became happy. It was obvious that he liked the child very much.
How could such a person mislead others? From this point of view, it seems that some people insist on teaching only if they have a reputation, which is completely old-fashioned.
"So you're here, it's really easy for me to find you!"
Li Jingnan's voice came over, and everyone was startled.
Hua Qingxue blinked, and before she could ask why you were here, she was dragged away by Li Jingnan.
"Let's go and make bubble soap with me."
Making bubble soap
The emperor is really free...
"You couldn't have been angry again in the morning and came to me to relieve yourself, right?" Hua Qingxue tentatively guessed.
But I guessed it right.
"No, don't mention it. Today I saw how stubborn the old men's thinking is." Li Jingnan was so angry that he started to stamp his feet when he pulled her out to be alone with her.
"The minister of the Ministry of Industry said two days ago that the construction of the glass factory was in progress. In the past two days, he came here to complain about the lack of funds and the difficulty in progress."
"The Ministry of Household Affairs also sang the opposite tune. Obviously there is money for other projects, but this project can't be moved. It really pisses me off."
It turned out to be related to the construction of the glass factory.
She didn't understand the political checks and balances in the imperial court, but...
"What did the general say? He should support you, right?"
"Fu Tingye?" Li Jingnan became even more angry when she heard this: "He didn't even come to the morning court. The people I sent came back and said that his mother was seriously ill and had no flaws."
"By the way! Isn't he here with you too?" Li Jingnan looked at Hua Qingxue for a moment, trying to find the answer on her face.
Hua Qingxue then remembered that the general had not been to the other courtyard for two days.
"He hasn't been here."
"It seems like it's true that his mother is seriously ill?" Li Jingnan tugged at the corner of his lips: "Okay, I will forgive him for not going to court."
Mrs. Fu is seriously ill
Hua Qingxue's mood gradually became heavy.
"Are you... okay?" Li Jingnan looked at her with a different expression, and immediately noticed something.
Hua Qingxue shook her head: "It's okay, didn't you say we were going to make bubble soap? Come on, we haven't finished eating the oranges you sent us a few days ago. Today we can make some orange-flavored ones."
"Okay." Li Jingnan quickly jumped in.
There are some things that since she doesn't want to talk about, she won't ask.
When she wants to say something, she will definitely tell herself.
"Yes, I heard that the Third Highness of the Liao Kingdom was very restless and came to harass you?"
Hua Qingxue stopped what she was doing and thought for a moment: "Yes, but she was driven away by Fu Tingye."
Li Jingnan put down a piece of the mold: "Huh, if Fu Tingye doesn't rush, I will dare! How dare he make an idea for you? I will let him know that there is no way!"
Hua Qingxue knew that Li Jingnan had always hated the Liao people.
"Thank you, Li Jingnan, but His Highness the Third Highness of the Liao Kingdom is here to seek peace. You'd better not act out of emotion. In this politically sensitive period, any move you make may trigger a war between the two countries."
"Who is afraid of whom? We have thunder, but we are afraid that their cavalry will fail?" Li Jingnan was very disdainful.
Hua Qingxue chuckled: "You have forgotten why your father would rather cede territory than trigger a war. War consumes a huge amount of money for a country, so it is best to solve the problem without fighting."
She said it made sense, but Li Jingnan was speechless.
"Okay, okay, you women just like to nag."
Hua Qingxue chuckled, this guy is still as docile as before.
…
Xiao Han, who is now a popular figure in Shengjing's reputation, is not as relaxed as the people say.
The resentment Fu Tingye brought to him that day at Si Bing's wife's courtyard has not yet faded away. Now he has received a secret letter from the monarch of Liao, urging him to handle peace negotiations between the two countries as soon as possible. It is urgent for him to return and lead troops to suppress it.
If we want to resolve the peace negotiations as soon as possible, we cannot get around Fu Tingye.
To deal with Fu Tingye, one must find out whether Mrs. Si Bing's true identity is Fu Tingye's deceit, or whether she is really talented.
To find out the reality of Mrs. Si Bing... This is another headache.
"That woman seems to be a child who talks nonsense. The thoughts in her mind are weird and bizarre. And she is so young. How can she create thunder?"
Qi Liancheng followed him, thought for a while, and replied in a deep voice: "Hua Qingxue is indeed eccentric, but her idea is not unrealistic. When her subordinate was injured in Panshui and the wound suppurated, she once said I went through a weird treatment method, and it turned out to be really effective.”
Xiao Han became interested: "What method?"
Qi Liancheng thought for a while: "Mix egg white and sesame oil and apply it on the wound. The pus should be separated. If there is no sesame oil, cooked honey can be substituted."
Xiao Han frowned and began to think slightly.
"This only proves that she knows some common sense of life, but it does not prove military talent."
"..." Qi Liancheng also fell into deep thought.
"Let's try it out again. Besides..." Xiao Han suddenly looked towards Qi Liancheng: "Looking for an opportunity to arrange our spy, I want to find out what tricks she is playing."
"yes."