Sima Hong successively recovered Tianshui and Longxi. The emperor was very pleased and promoted him twice, from the fourth rank to the third rank. Now Sima Hong is the general of Huaihua.
The officials sent to the northwest by the emperor were the first batch of civil servants under Sima Hong. They were responsible for economic and administrative work such as population and land management in the area west of Xi'an Prefecture and east of Longxi.
As the number of people increased, they could not all live in the few shabby houses in Gaoping Town. Sima Hong had been fighting for many years and was used to a hard life. As long as the roof over his head did not leak, he would be satisfied. However, those officials could not bear this hardship. Under Sima Hong's command, he summoned young and strong laborers who came to Tianshui to make a living, plus tens of thousands of garrison troops, purchased a large amount of bricks, tiles and wood, and began the reconstruction of Tianshui City.
Mingyu was not idle either. In addition to being in charge of the expenses for the reconstruction of her own home, the Anxi Marquis Mansion, she was also responsible for checking the accounts of the entire Tianshui reconstruction. Lord Xu Si, who was originally in charge of this, was furious when he learned that the accounts he had sorted out had to be checked by a woman in the boudoir. He jumped up and down and cursed, saying that this was a humiliation to him. He was too ashamed to face his ancestors in the underworld, and he insisted on resigning, going home, and kneeling down to apologize to his ancestors.
Sima Hong ignored him. When he got to him, he just waved his hands impatiently, indicating that if he didn't want to do it, he could go home and eat by himself, and don't get in his way. He was busy!
As a result, Lord Xu went back to keep accounts obediently. He never did what he had said before, such as resigning, going home, and kneeling down to apologize to his ancestors.
Mingyu had no idea that this was happening. Managing the accounts of the entire Tianshui Reconstruction was not an easy task, much more difficult than managing the accounts of the two small shops of the Xu family. However, except for Lin Hui and Baihao who were slightly literate, the rest of Sima Hong's men were just rough men.
The reconstruction of Tianshui involves too much money and the amount is huge. If we are not careful, someone with ulterior motives will take advantage of it, tamper with the accounts, and make a lot of money.
Sima Hong was well aware of the importance of accounts, but he could not find someone he absolutely trusted to do this at the moment, so he could only ask Mingyu to help him. Mingyu was naturally willing to help her husband share his worries and solve his problems.
Xu Si was confused about the power of this Marquis's wife. If she had no ability, the Marquis would not have entrusted her with such an important matter. To be cautious, there were a few hidden manipulations in the accounts that Xu Si had sent before. The amount of money involved was not large. Mingyu circled them one by one without hesitation. Immediately, a soldier took the account book to question Xu Si. From then on, Xu Si had learned the power of the Marquis's wife whom he had never met. Although he was unwilling, he put away his thoughts.
I heard that the marquis, who was the general of Huaihua, not only killed the Tartars without blinking an eye, but also killed his own people who committed crimes without hesitation. No matter how important money was, it was not as important as his own life.
In the blink of an eye, it was June, the hottest month of the year in Tianshui. Sima Hong was so busy that he did not go back to his home in Gaoping Town to rest for several days. He only sent Baihao to tell Mingyu to stay at home and he would come back to be with her after he was done with his busy schedule.
Three or four days passed, and there was still no sign of Sima Hong returning. Mingyu thought about it and felt uneasy. She got up in the middle of the night and asked Sister Liu to make mung bean soup and sour plum soup, filling two jars. She told Baihao to stay at home to look after the house. She and Sister Liu asked the "bodyguard" Junhan left by Sima Hong at home, and drove the carriage to Tianshui while it was cool before dawn.
When Mingyu arrived in Tianshui, the sun had risen more than ten feet high, shining hotly on the ground. Mingyu touched the pot in the carriage, luckily it was still cold, because she was afraid that the soup would go bad after such a long journey.
Tianshui City is still heavily guarded. The soldier driving the carriage was a small flag in the army before. He had met the young general guarding the city several times. When he heard that it was the wife of the Marquis's Mansion who came, the young general guarding the city did not dare to hesitate and let her go.
It was naturally inconvenient for Mingyu to show up in public, so the soldier drove the carriage and asked along the way, and finally saw Sima Hong from a distance in front of a construction site.
The construction site was filled with workers carrying wood and bricks. The weather was hot, and most of them were shirtless with their trouser legs rolled up high, with only a sweat towel draped around their necks. Mingyu lifted the curtain and looked over. The house on the construction site had already taken shape. A dozen workers were working in a row, as if they were about to hoist a piece of wood to make a beam for the house.
As the carriage got closer, Mingyu could see Sima Hong clearly. He was standing with his hands behind his back among a group of young officers. He was wearing a light blue linen robe, his hair was simply tied up in a bun with a bamboo hairpin, and he had an untidy beard. He looked much darker and thinner than the last time he had seen him.
Mingyu felt sad. Every time he went out, she would dress him up neatly and cleanly, but every time he came back, he was slovenly. People who didn't know him would think he was a poor beggar who had fled from famine. He didn't look as majestic as a marquis or general. When talking about this, Sima Hong always smiled and comforted Mingyu, saying that it would be fine after a few years of hard work. Mingyu knew that there was nothing left in the Marquis' Mansion. If Sima Hong wanted to rebuild the reputation and prestige of the Anxi Marquis' Mansion, he had to work hard on his own. No matter how hard it was, he was not afraid.
"Hey, Madam, isn't that woman in Xi'an Mansion? Why is she here?" Sister Liu lifted the curtain to take a look, then hurriedly turned around and pushed Mingyu, screaming.
Mingyu frowned and drew aside the curtain, and saw Lu Xuer and a maid walking slowly towards where Sima Hong and his group were standing.
Ever since Lu Xuer had caused trouble at Mingyu's house in Xi'an Prefecture, Sister Liu had grown tired of this unreasonable and shameless young lady. She angrily said to Mingyu, "Madam, she must have bad intentions. You must teach her a lesson when you get down! A woman who always stares at other people's husbands must be beaten up and scared before she knows how to behave!"
Mingyu couldn't help laughing. She used to think that Sister Liu was a reserved and timid person who didn't dare to talk to Sima Hong. Later, after they got to know each other better, she found that Sister Liu's personality was quite similar to that of Sima Wu's wife. She told Mingyu privately that if her husband and son heard the news that Da Chu had recaptured Tianshui, they would definitely return to their hometown. If her husband dared to bring any woman back, she would pick up an axe and kill them, and then go to the yamen to surrender herself.
Vigour and courage, this is the style of a first wife! Mingyu almost applauded Liu Saozi. If Miao had chopped Yu Yi Niang with an axe, she would probably have admired her mother-in-law. Unfortunately, Miao was tough on everyone except her husband. The reason why she let Yu Yi Niang live well was actually for Sima Qing's sake.
But in Mingyu's opinion, if a man changes his mind, it is not worth it for you to give anything for him.
When Mingyu got off the car, she saw Lu Xuer opened the jar held by the maid, covered the jar with soup, and handed it to Sima Hong respectfully. From Sima Hong's actions, it seemed that he thanked him and drank it all. He drank too fast, and some soup spilled along the edge of the bowl onto his clothes. Lu Xuer quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe it for Sima Hong. Sima Hong was startled, and immediately took two steps back, smiling and waving his hand.
Lu Xuer's face darkened, but she did not show her expression directly as usual. She smiled gently, scooped some soup, and prepared to pass it to the person next to Sima Hong.
Mingyu smiled. Wow, after not seeing you for a few days, Miss Lu has changed her style to that of a gentle, virtuous, intellectual woman. Mingyu felt deeply guilty. The enemy's combat strategy was sophisticated and perfect, changing every day. If it continued like this, even the hardest rock would be worn through by her. And she was still here as if nothing had happened. It was simply too... unaware of the dangers of peace.
Thinking of this, Mingyu walked over quickly, smiled sweetly at Sima Hong, and called out, "Husband!"
A group of people turned around and looked over. Sima Hong was startled for a moment, then ecstatic. Joy spread from the corners of his eyes and eyebrows, and he walked over quickly. The wife he had been thinking about day and night suddenly appeared in front of him with a sweet and bright smile. Sima Hong thought he was hallucinating because of the strong sun.
The workers on the construction site behind Sima Hong saw a beautiful lady coming over and calling Sima Hong "husband". They stopped their work, stood there in twos and threes, and rushed to look at the beautiful lady. They thought she must be the general's wife. They didn't expect that these people who did rough labor would have the honor of seeing the lady of honor.
Fortunately, although Sima Hong was happy, he was not so happy that he lost his mind. He looked around and immediately became unhappy. His wife was not a Bodhisattva statue in the temple, so what were these shirtless men looking at!
Several people who were standing behind Sima Hong followed him. Lin Hui was the smartest and shouted at the workers: "Why are you standing there instead of working properly? Do you still want to work?!"
As soon as these words came out, the workers who were watching the beauty came back to their senses and lowered their heads to work in a hurry. Although the beauty was beautiful, everyone wanted to take a few more glances, but no one dared to imagine the consequences of angering this general who was said to kill without blinking an eye.
Seeing that the adjutants had all followed, Sima Hong stood one step away from Mingyu, put his hands behind his back and asked, "Why are you here?"
Mingyu was stunned. This tone was so distant...
"I made some mung bean soup and sour plum soup and brought them to you." Mingyu said with a smile.
Sima Hong coughed pretentiously, glanced around at the adjutants who had gathered around him, and acted like a general, very serious and earnest, "The military camp is an important place, it's better if women stay away." What a joke, those unmarried bachelors looked at his wife so hard that their eyes almost popped out, so how could they let Mingyu come over
Mingyu narrowed her eyes and glanced at him, curling her lips inwardly, then suddenly bowed and saluted, respectfully apologizing: "General, what you are teaching me is that I was not thoughtful enough and acted impolitely. I will take my leave first, and I hope that the general will forgive me."
After saying that, he turned and left.