Every day was colder than the last. As the end of the year drew near, the people of the Capital started hurriedly buying the things they needed to celebrate the New Year.
This was the time of the year when the country estates and shops paid in their rent, and also the time when the taxes collected from the various counties were sent to the Capital. This year was considered a prosperous one. Qingyang was the only county which had suffered a flood disaster that year; the Central Plains and Jiangnan were relatively unscathed, and a bumper crop of taxes was collected.
On the seventh day of the twelfth month, snowflakes danced in the air amidst the snow-covered buildings, giving the Capital a very pristine, peaceful air.
Thick, fluffy clouds obscured the sky, and it was dark even before dusk fell. The Drunken Fairy was brightly lit, and looked very lively in contrast to the dull grey brick and stone of the Capital. At this time of the year, the officials from the various counties also had to come to give their annual report to the Emperor, and the Capital was more crowded than usual. The Drunken Fairy’s business was even better than usual thanks to this.
AD
“I made a lot of money this round, and it was all thanks to Zhuoyu,” the Qingyang Bo said, raising his winecup and smiling widely at Lou Jing.
Just as Lou Jing clinked his cup against his, Zhou Song scooted over. “Big Lou, you can’t only toast the Qingyang Bo. You should be toasting me too – this business lead was mine after all,” he said.
“Indeed. I should certainly give you a toast,” Lou Jing said, taking the wine jar and filling Zhou Song’s cup to the brim. “This first cup honours you for remembering your brother when there are benefits to be shared.”
“This first cup? What?!” Zhou Song said, his expression becoming pained immediately. This meant that Lou Jing intended to make him drink all night! He couldn’t decline though, so he had no choice but to throw his head back and down the wine in his cup.
“This second cup honours you for being young and talented. Even though your father and elder brother aren’t here, you can still hold your own,” Lou Jing said, looking at the tall, thin Zhou Song and thinking back on the first time they met as children. He had been a snot-nosed little brat then. Lou Jing felt rather gratified thinking that that snot-nosed brat had grown up into a respectable adult.
Zhou Song couldn’t help laughing self-importantly on hearing this. “I couldn’t agree more,” he said.
Lou Jing poured another cup for him, then raised his own winecup. “I won’t be toasting you with this third cup. Let’s drink this together, and celebrate the fact that we got to know each other, that you trust me, and have my back no matter how big the issue is. I, Lou Jing, have no regrets having you as my sworn brother in this life,” he said.
Zhou Song’s eyes reddened with emotion on hearing this. “Ah, why did you suddenly get serious?” he mumbled. “We were just having fun drinking wine…”
Lou Jing didn’t say any more. The two of them clinked their cups together and downed their third cup of wine.
Lou Jing didn’t ask any others to be his business partners in the river canal business. He only wanted to work with these two people. Ultimately, what they were doing was essentially profiting from the Imperial Treasury. They had to have a strong backer, but at the same time, it couldn’t be known to too many people.
Lou Jing had invested eighty thousand taels of silver, and on top of that, the Qingyang Bo and Zhou Song had contributed a total of a hundred and fifteen thousand taels. After that the taxes had reached the Capital, Shen Lian had faithfully given him what he promised, and essentially doubled whatever they had invested. In addition to that, Shen Lian found that Lou Jing was a very able partner, and had also agreed to work with Lou Jing in another business opportunity – building a new Summer Palace.
“I hear that all the officials who came to report this year have to give Shen Lian ‘protection money’,” the Qingyang Bo said. After quite a few rounds of drinks, he suddenly started talking about this under the influence of alcohol.
“Protection money? Why would these officials need to give Shen Lian protection money?” Zhou Song asked, confused. The officials were coming to give their annual report on their counties to the Emperor – what did that have to do with Shen Lian?
“Protection money to protect their promotion,” the Qingyang Bo said, lowering his voice. “Anyone who was promoted has to pay him a visit and present him with a gift. That’s basically all of these officials coming into the Capital. If they don’t, they will suffer the consequences. In the very least, you have to give a thousand taels of silver.” As he said this, he gestured with his hands, first extending one finger, then extending all five fingers. What he meant was, on average, most people gave five thousand taels.
Lou Jing was rather stunned. He knew that that wily old eunuch was avaricious by nature, but the things he dared to do to satisfy his greed were really on another level…
“One of my distant relatives is a Sheriff, and he didn’t realise that the asking price for the protection money was so high. He had no choice but to borrow from me at a two percent interest, and promised to pay me back after the New Year,” the Qingyang Bo said, smiling mysteriously.
Lf vlvc’a rjs jcs wbgf bc atlr abqlm joafg atja, yea Obe Alcu jcv Itbe Vbcu uba la lwwfvljafis. Ktbrf boolmljir kfgf jii bo gfjrbcjyis tlut gjcx jcv tjv yffc lc atflg qbrlalbcr obg delaf rbwf alwf, rb atf rlinfg atfs tjv kjr qgbyjyis jr qifcaloei jr atf rcbk atja ofii lc klcafg. Pa kjrc’a atja atfs mbeivc’a joobgv atf qgbafmalbc wbcfs Vtfc Oljc jrxfv obg, yea atfs kbeivc’a yglcu rb wemt wbcfs klat atfw ktfc atfs agjnfiifv ab atf Jjqlaji. Cr j gfreia, atfs tjv ab ybggbk ogbw atf kfjiats ojwlilfr lc atf Jjqlaji. Rbk atja atfs tjv gfmflnfv atf gfaegcr bc atflg lcnfrawfca ogbw atf mjcji gfqjlg qgbpfma, atfs tjv j iba bo rlinfg ab rqjgf, jcv mbeiv wjxf j cfja qgbola boo atf lcafgfra mtjgufv obg ifcvlcu atfw atf wbcfs klatbea fzqfcvlcu jcs foobga ja jii.
The snow fell thickly from the skies, and before long, the world was covered in pristine white snow. It sparkled prettily in the light, and made the world suddenly seem much brighter.
Lou Jing’s alcohol tolerance had always been very good. He’d out-drunk the Qingyang Bo and Zhou Song by a mile; the two were already sloshed by this time, but he himself was only half-tipsy. Lou Jing walked jauntily toward the Min Wang residence and went through the side gate. Xiao Chengjun forbade him from flipping over the walls during winter, when everything was slippery with ice.
“Shizi, you’re back,” Le Xian said, hurriedly assisting to brush the snow off his clothes, then wrapping a large leopard skin cloak around his body. “Wang ye is in the garden looking at plum blossoms.”
Lou Jing frowned, then strode quickly toward the garden. He saw someone in thick, pale blue winter robes standing in front of a plum tree. The pastel yellow plum blossoms were in full bloom.
“Why are you standing here all alone?” Lou Jing asked, pulling Xiao Chengjun into the huge cloak he wore. He caressed Xiao Chengjun’s cheek, which was cold from standing out in the snow.
Xiao Chengjun turned to look at him and smiled gently, then reached out to hug him. “I’m not cold. You, on the other hand, should not be running around in this weather wearing such thin clothes,” he said. To reduce the chances of being spied upon, Lou Jing never brought any servants with him when he went out, and so didn’t have a change of clothes handy even when he was feeling too hot or too cold.
Alcohol tended to act faster when one was feeling warm and cosy, and Lou Jing felt very warm and cosy now that he was in Xiao Chengjun’s arms. He rested his head on Min Wang’s shoulders, feeling rather sleepy.
Over the last two days, the heads of the country estates had come to give in the rent that was due, and the shop managers had also come to give an account of the profits. Even though he had Cheng Xiuru to help him out, he was still kept very busy attending to this, and hadn’t been to the Min Wang residence for three days as such. Lou Jing pressed his nose against Xiao Chengjun’s neck and took a deep breath. His skin there was warmed by the sun earlier, and had a faint smell of milk.
“Did you hear about how Shen Lian has been taking bribes from the officials?” Xiao Chengjun asked, nuzzling against Lou Jing’s face.
Xiao Chengjun’s slightly cold face felt like cool silk against Lou Jing’s cheek. It was a very pleasant sensation, and Lou Jing couldn’t help nuzzling back. “I just heard about this from the Qingyang Bo. Why, has the Imperial Court gotten wind of it too?” Lou Jing said.
Xiao Chengjun’s eyes darkened briefly. “No one in the Imperial Court knows yet. However, yesterday, one of the officials couldn’t cough up the protection money, and Shen Lian found an excuse to lock him up in the Imperial Prison,” he said.
Lou Jing’s eyes widened in shock. This Shen Lian – was he that crazy about money?!
“The money he’s insisting on from the officials of the various counties – this all comes from the blood, sweat and tears of the local people there. If they have to pay bribes to Shen Lian, they will just pass on the full sum to the commoners and extract more taxes from them. If this goes on…” Xiao Chenjun looked up at the overcast sky and sighed deeply.
What crime had the commoners committed to deserve this?
Lou Jing stood straight and rubbed the tip of his nose against Xiao Chengjun’s. “Don’t think about this anymore. Heaven will punish those who do evil deeds, and these people will reap what they sow one day,” he said.
They were incredibly close to each other now. That faint scent of sweet milk was more obvious now, and its allure was irresistible to Lou Jing. He couldn’t stop himself from licking Xiao Chengjun’s sweet smelling lips. “Very sweet,” he said.
Xiao Chengjun froze after his lips were licked, and his ears turned bright red. Lou Jing always found him out every time he secretly ate sweets.
“Dianxia, I want to eat sweets too,” Lou Jing said, smiling faintly as he gently bit down on a red ear.
“I’ve eaten them all. If you want some, you’ll have to wait until the New Year,” Xiao Chengjun said with a mock serious look on his face. He pulled out his ear from between Lou Jing’s teeth after saying this and turned to enter the house.
Lou Jing couldn’t help laughing out loud as he watched Min Wang walking blithely into the residence.
The financial accounts of the Anguo Gong residence were given to Lou Jing’s paternal Second Aunt to manage for the time being. The Second Aunt was very pleased. She rolled up her sleeves, preparing to organise a really lively New Year celebration.
The Shizi’s new clothes for the New Year arrived, and the Second Aunt brought these to Zhuque Hall personally. When she got to Zhuque Hall, however, she didn’t see Lou Jing there. “It’s dark outside already – why hasn’t Zhuoyu returned?” she asked.
The Zhuque Hall’s butler smiled as he replied. “The Shizi ye has gone out drinking with the lords in the Yulin Troops. He usually drinks until very late at night,” he said.
“How should this work then?” the Second Aunt said, her lip curling in annoyance. She looked at the new winter robes in her hand. She had originally hoped to use this to get on Lou Jing’s good side, but now that he wasn’t even here, there was no way she could do that.
“Second Madam, you can just leave the clothes here,” the butler said, smiling as he reached out for the clothes. Unexpectedly, the Second Aunt shied away from his hand.
“These clothes were made by me personally. Zhuoyu has to try them on. If there’s anything that doesn’t fit, I will fix it for him,” the Second Aunt said, looking around rapidly. She suddenly had an idea. “Could I trouble Butler Li to send someone to inform me when the Shizi is back?”
The butler rolled his eyes inwardly. Was it really necessary to personally deliver a new set of robes? Nonetheless, he smiled and agreed. Thankfully, tomorrow was the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, and the Shizi would definitely return the next day. During regular times, it was hard for them to catch even a glimpse of Lou Jing. He barely returned more than once every ten days.
The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month was the day the Lou family paid its respects to their ancestors.
Lou Jing left the warm bed he shared with Xiao Chengjun in the Min Wang residence and returned to the Anguo Gong mansion. The Imperial family didn’t worship their ancestors on the same day – they did so on New Year’s Eve instead.
Lou Jianyu quickly lit the necessary incense for the Lou family ancestors in the ancestral hall, made offerings to the Kitchen God, then left in great haste.
“Is the Guogong ye very busy these days?” Lou Jing asked curiously. Just two days ago, Lou Jianyu had entered Zhuque Hall to quarrel with him when the Jinzhou shopkeepers came to give him an account of the profits. Why had he suddenly changed his tune?
“The Guogong ye has had many social gatherings of late,” the butler said in a low voice.
Lou Jing narrowed his eyes, then instructed Yun Ba to investigate who his father was meeting with at these social gatherings. He then returned to Zhuque Hall, and the first person he saw was his Second Aunt, who had personally brought over his new clothes.
The Second Aunt made a great show of giving Lou Jing the clothes and checking the fit. The sleeves and hem were a little too short for Lou Jing. “Your measurements were just taken last month, and you’ve grown again?” she exclaimed.
Young men were still growing fairly rapidly at the age of seventeen and eighteen. The Second Aunt nagged at Lou Jing incessantly as she took back the clothes, saying that she would fix them. “Zhuoyu, you’re now a third-ranked high official, but your second brother still doesn’t have a good job. You’re already a married man – can’t you help this Second Aunt of yours to find something for your second brother to do?”
Lou Jing looked at her, then smiled. “The Yulin Troops will be recruiting in early spring. I’ll get Second Brother into the troops then,” he said.
“Ah, fantastic! That’s… that’s really a good thing! I thank you on behalf of my son,” the Second Aunt said, so happy that she couldn’t string the words together properly. She had never thought that Lou Jing would agree so easily. He was nothing like that Anguo Gong. Her husband had tried to speak to Lou Jianyu about finding a good opening for their son a few times now, but he had just given perfunctory, non-committal answers. “It’ll be the New Year soon. I wonder how the furen’s temporary ailment is?” she said.
“I hear Father has already sent people to check on her. If she is able to return, someone will definitely inform you,” Lou Jing said. He wasn’t keen on speaking about Madam Wei in too much detail. They had kept Madam Wei’s pregnancy a secret even from their own family members. Other than Madam Wei’s personal Mama and her two personal maids, everyone else who knew about this had all been silenced by Lou Jing.
After Lou Jing sent his talkative Second Aunt off, Yun Ba came back with news.
“Guogong ye met a fourth-ranked official who came to the Capital to give his annual report to the Emperor. He was a County Magistrate in Jiangzhou, but has since been promoted to a Prefectural Magistrate,” Yun Ba said. He had heard this very clearly when he spied on them.
Lou Jing understood. He was probably borrowing money from the Anguo Gong.
“Should I continue to observe them?” Yun Ba asked.
“No need,” Lou Jing said, waving a hand to dismiss him. The noblemen in the Capital were probably all getting their hands into this business, and it probably wouldn’t bring any harm to the Anguo Gong’s name. The one thing that did trouble him was that, yesterday, when Shen Lian threw someone who refused to pay behind bars, the Emperor didn’t respond at all, which increased the number of officials who tried to borrow money to pay the bribe to Shen Lian. This was truly a senseless state of affairs.
Every day was colder than the last. As the end of the year drew near, the people of the Capital started hurriedly buying the things they needed to celebrate the New Year.
This was the time of the year when the country estates and shops paid in their rent, and also the time when the taxes collected from the various counties were sent to the Capital. This year was considered a prosperous one. Qingyang was the only county which had suffered a flood disaster that year; the Central Plains and Jiangnan were relatively unscathed, and a bumper crop of taxes was collected.
On the seventh day of the twelfth month, snowflakes danced in the air amidst the snow-covered buildings, giving the Capital a very pristine, peaceful air.
Thick, fluffy clouds obscured the sky, and it was dark even before dusk fell. The Drunken Fairy was brightly lit, and looked very lively in contrast to the dull grey brick and stone of the Capital. At this time of the year, the officials from the various counties also had to come to give their annual report to the Emperor, and the Capital was more crowded than usual. The Drunken Fairy’s business was even better than usual thanks to this.
AD
“I made a lot of money this round, and it was all thanks to Zhuoyu,” the Qingyang Bo said, raising his winecup and smiling widely at Lou Jing.
Just as Lou Jing clinked his cup against his, Zhou Song scooted over. “Big Lou, you can’t only toast the Qingyang Bo. You should be toasting me too – this business lead was mine after all,” he said.
“Indeed. I should certainly give you a toast,” Lou Jing said, taking the wine jar and filling Zhou Song’s cup to the brim. “This first cup honours you for remembering your brother when there are benefits to be shared.”
“This first cup? What?!” Zhou Song said, his expression becoming pained immediately. This meant that Lou Jing intended to make him drink all night! He couldn’t decline though, so he had no choice but to throw his head back and down the wine in his cup.
“This second cup honours you for being young and talented. Even though your father and elder brother aren’t here, you can still hold your own,” Lou Jing said, looking at the tall, thin Zhou Song and thinking back on the first time they met as children. He had been a snot-nosed little brat then. Lou Jing felt rather gratified thinking that that snot-nosed brat had grown up into a respectable adult.
Zhou Song couldn’t help laughing self-importantly on hearing this. “I couldn’t agree more,” he said.
Lou Jing poured another cup for him, then raised his own winecup. “I won’t be toasting you with this third cup. Let’s drink this together, and celebrate the fact that we got to know each other, that you trust me, and have my back no matter how big the issue is. I, Lou Jing, have no regrets having you as my sworn brother in this life,” he said.
Zhou Song’s eyes reddened with emotion on hearing this. “Ah, why did you suddenly get serious?” he mumbled. “We were just having fun drinking wine…”
Lou Jing didn’t say any more. The two of them clinked their cups together and downed their third cup of wine.
Lou Jing didn’t ask any others to be his business partners in the river canal business. He only wanted to work with these two people. Ultimately, what they were doing was essentially profiting from the Imperial Treasury. They had to have a strong backer, but at the same time, it couldn’t be known to too many people.
Lou Jing had invested eighty thousand taels of silver, and on top of that, the Qingyang Bo and Zhou Song had contributed a total of a hundred and fifteen thousand taels. After that the taxes had reached the Capital, Shen Lian had faithfully given him what he promised, and essentially doubled whatever they had invested. In addition to that, Shen Lian found that Lou Jing was a very able partner, and had also agreed to work with Lou Jing in another business opportunity – building a new Summer Palace.
“I hear that all the officials who came to report this year have to give Shen Lian ‘protection money’,” the Qingyang Bo said. After quite a few rounds of drinks, he suddenly started talking about this under the influence of alcohol.
“Protection money? Why would these officials need to give Shen Lian protection money?” Zhou Song asked, confused. The officials were coming to give their annual report on their counties to the Emperor – what did that have to do with Shen Lian?
“Protection money to protect their promotion,” the Qingyang Bo said, lowering his voice. “Anyone who was promoted has to pay him a visit and present him with a gift. That’s basically all of these officials coming into the Capital. If they don’t, they will suffer the consequences. In the very least, you have to give a thousand taels of silver.” As he said this, he gestured with his hands, first extending one finger, then extending all five fingers. What he meant was, on average, most people gave five thousand taels.
Lou Jing was rather stunned. He knew that that wily old eunuch was avaricious by nature, but the things he dared to do to satisfy his greed were really on another level…
“One of my distant relatives is a Sheriff, and he didn’t realise that the asking price for the protection money was so high. He had no choice but to borrow from me at a two percent interest, and promised to pay me back after the New Year,” the Qingyang Bo said, smiling mysteriously.
Lf vlvc’a rjs jcs wbgf bc atlr abqlm joafg atja, yea Obe Alcu jcv Itbe Vbcu uba la lwwfvljafis. Ktbrf boolmljir kfgf jii bo gfjrbcjyis tlut gjcx jcv tjv yffc lc atflg qbrlalbcr obg delaf rbwf alwf, rb atf rlinfg atfs tjv kjr qgbyjyis jr qifcaloei jr atf rcbk atja ofii lc klcafg. Pa kjrc’a atja atfs mbeivc’a joobgv atf qgbafmalbc wbcfs Vtfc Oljc jrxfv obg, yea atfs kbeivc’a yglcu rb wemt wbcfs klat atfw ktfc atfs agjnfiifv ab atf Jjqlaji. Cr j gfreia, atfs tjv ab ybggbk ogbw atf kfjiats ojwlilfr lc atf Jjqlaji. Rbk atja atfs tjv gfmflnfv atf gfaegcr bc atflg lcnfrawfca ogbw atf mjcji gfqjlg qgbpfma, atfs tjv j iba bo rlinfg ab rqjgf, jcv mbeiv wjxf j cfja qgbola boo atf lcafgfra mtjgufv obg ifcvlcu atfw atf wbcfs klatbea fzqfcvlcu jcs foobga ja jii.
The snow fell thickly from the skies, and before long, the world was covered in pristine white snow. It sparkled prettily in the light, and made the world suddenly seem much brighter.
Lou Jing’s alcohol tolerance had always been very good. He’d out-drunk the Qingyang Bo and Zhou Song by a mile; the two were already sloshed by this time, but he himself was only half-tipsy. Lou Jing walked jauntily toward the Min Wang residence and went through the side gate. Xiao Chengjun forbade him from flipping over the walls during winter, when everything was slippery with ice.
“Shizi, you’re back,” Le Xian said, hurriedly assisting to brush the snow off his clothes, then wrapping a large leopard skin cloak around his body. “Wang ye is in the garden looking at plum blossoms.”
Lou Jing frowned, then strode quickly toward the garden. He saw someone in thick, pale blue winter robes standing in front of a plum tree. The pastel yellow plum blossoms were in full bloom.
“Why are you standing here all alone?” Lou Jing asked, pulling Xiao Chengjun into the huge cloak he wore. He caressed Xiao Chengjun’s cheek, which was cold from standing out in the snow.
Xiao Chengjun turned to look at him and smiled gently, then reached out to hug him. “I’m not cold. You, on the other hand, should not be running around in this weather wearing such thin clothes,” he said. To reduce the chances of being spied upon, Lou Jing never brought any servants with him when he went out, and so didn’t have a change of clothes handy even when he was feeling too hot or too cold.
Alcohol tended to act faster when one was feeling warm and cosy, and Lou Jing felt very warm and cosy now that he was in Xiao Chengjun’s arms. He rested his head on Min Wang’s shoulders, feeling rather sleepy.
Over the last two days, the heads of the country estates had come to give in the rent that was due, and the shop managers had also come to give an account of the profits. Even though he had Cheng Xiuru to help him out, he was still kept very busy attending to this, and hadn’t been to the Min Wang residence for three days as such. Lou Jing pressed his nose against Xiao Chengjun’s neck and took a deep breath. His skin there was warmed by the sun earlier, and had a faint smell of milk.
“Did you hear about how Shen Lian has been taking bribes from the officials?” Xiao Chengjun asked, nuzzling against Lou Jing’s face.
Xiao Chengjun’s slightly cold face felt like cool silk against Lou Jing’s cheek. It was a very pleasant sensation, and Lou Jing couldn’t help nuzzling back. “I just heard about this from the Qingyang Bo. Why, has the Imperial Court gotten wind of it too?” Lou Jing said.
Xiao Chengjun’s eyes darkened briefly. “No one in the Imperial Court knows yet. However, yesterday, one of the officials couldn’t cough up the protection money, and Shen Lian found an excuse to lock him up in the Imperial Prison,” he said.
Lou Jing’s eyes widened in shock. This Shen Lian – was he that crazy about money?!
“The money he’s insisting on from the officials of the various counties – this all comes from the blood, sweat and tears of the local people there. If they have to pay bribes to Shen Lian, they will just pass on the full sum to the commoners and extract more taxes from them. If this goes on…” Xiao Chenjun looked up at the overcast sky and sighed deeply.
What crime had the commoners committed to deserve this?
Lou Jing stood straight and rubbed the tip of his nose against Xiao Chengjun’s. “Don’t think about this anymore. Heaven will punish those who do evil deeds, and these people will reap what they sow one day,” he said.
They were incredibly close to each other now. That faint scent of sweet milk was more obvious now, and its allure was irresistible to Lou Jing. He couldn’t stop himself from licking Xiao Chengjun’s sweet smelling lips. “Very sweet,” he said.
Xiao Chengjun froze after his lips were licked, and his ears turned bright red. Lou Jing always found him out every time he secretly ate sweets.
“Dianxia, I want to eat sweets too,” Lou Jing said, smiling faintly as he gently bit down on a red ear.
“I’ve eaten them all. If you want some, you’ll have to wait until the New Year,” Xiao Chengjun said with a mock serious look on his face. He pulled out his ear from between Lou Jing’s teeth after saying this and turned to enter the house.
Lou Jing couldn’t help laughing out loud as he watched Min Wang walking blithely into the residence.
The financial accounts of the Anguo Gong residence were given to Lou Jing’s paternal Second Aunt to manage for the time being. The Second Aunt was very pleased. She rolled up her sleeves, preparing to organise a really lively New Year celebration.
The Shizi’s new clothes for the New Year arrived, and the Second Aunt brought these to Zhuque Hall personally. When she got to Zhuque Hall, however, she didn’t see Lou Jing there. “It’s dark outside already – why hasn’t Zhuoyu returned?” she asked.
The Zhuque Hall’s butler smiled as he replied. “The Shizi ye has gone out drinking with the lords in the Yulin Troops. He usually drinks until very late at night,” he said.
“How should this work then?” the Second Aunt said, her lip curling in annoyance. She looked at the new winter robes in her hand. She had originally hoped to use this to get on Lou Jing’s good side, but now that he wasn’t even here, there was no way she could do that.
“Second Madam, you can just leave the clothes here,” the butler said, smiling as he reached out for the clothes. Unexpectedly, the Second Aunt shied away from his hand.
“These clothes were made by me personally. Zhuoyu has to try them on. If there’s anything that doesn’t fit, I will fix it for him,” the Second Aunt said, looking around rapidly. She suddenly had an idea. “Could I trouble Butler Li to send someone to inform me when the Shizi is back?”
The butler rolled his eyes inwardly. Was it really necessary to personally deliver a new set of robes? Nonetheless, he smiled and agreed. Thankfully, tomorrow was the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, and the Shizi would definitely return the next day. During regular times, it was hard for them to catch even a glimpse of Lou Jing. He barely returned more than once every ten days.
The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month was the day the Lou family paid its respects to their ancestors.
Lou Jing left the warm bed he shared with Xiao Chengjun in the Min Wang residence and returned to the Anguo Gong mansion. The Imperial family didn’t worship their ancestors on the same day – they did so on New Year’s Eve instead.
Lou Jianyu quickly lit the necessary incense for the Lou family ancestors in the ancestral hall, made offerings to the Kitchen God, then left in great haste.
“Is the Guogong ye very busy these days?” Lou Jing asked curiously. Just two days ago, Lou Jianyu had entered Zhuque Hall to quarrel with him when the Jinzhou shopkeepers came to give him an account of the profits. Why had he suddenly changed his tune?
“The Guogong ye has had many social gatherings of late,” the butler said in a low voice.
Lou Jing narrowed his eyes, then instructed Yun Ba to investigate who his father was meeting with at these social gatherings. He then returned to Zhuque Hall, and the first person he saw was his Second Aunt, who had personally brought over his new clothes.
The Second Aunt made a great show of giving Lou Jing the clothes and checking the fit. The sleeves and hem were a little too short for Lou Jing. “Your measurements were just taken last month, and you’ve grown again?” she exclaimed.
Young men were still growing fairly rapidly at the age of seventeen and eighteen. The Second Aunt nagged at Lou Jing incessantly as she took back the clothes, saying that she would fix them. “Zhuoyu, you’re now a third-ranked high official, but your second brother still doesn’t have a good job. You’re already a married man – can’t you help this Second Aunt of yours to find something for your second brother to do?”
Lou Jing looked at her, then smiled. “The Yulin Troops will be recruiting in early spring. I’ll get Second Brother into the troops then,” he said.
“Ah, fantastic! That’s… that’s really a good thing! I thank you on behalf of my son,” the Second Aunt said, so happy that she couldn’t string the words together properly. She had never thought that Lou Jing would agree so easily. He was nothing like that Anguo Gong. Her husband had tried to speak to Lou Jianyu about finding a good opening for their son a few times now, but he had just given perfunctory, non-committal answers. “It’ll be the New Year soon. I wonder how the furen’s temporary ailment is?” she said.
“I hear Father has already sent people to check on her. If she is able to return, someone will definitely inform you,” Lou Jing said. He wasn’t keen on speaking about Madam Wei in too much detail. They had kept Madam Wei’s pregnancy a secret even from their own family members. Other than Madam Wei’s personal Mama and her two personal maids, everyone else who knew about this had all been silenced by Lou Jing.
After Lou Jing sent his talkative Second Aunt off, Yun Ba came back with news.
“Guogong ye met a fourth-ranked official who came to the Capital to give his annual report to the Emperor. He was a County Magistrate in Jiangzhou, but has since been promoted to a Prefectural Magistrate,” Yun Ba said. He had heard this very clearly when he spied on them.
Lou Jing understood. He was probably borrowing money from the Anguo Gong.
“Should I continue to observe them?” Yun Ba asked.
“No need,” Lou Jing said, waving a hand to dismiss him. The noblemen in the Capital were probably all getting their hands into this business, and it probably wouldn’t bring any harm to the Anguo Gong’s name. The one thing that did trouble him was that, yesterday, when Shen Lian threw someone who refused to pay behind bars, the Emperor didn’t respond at all, which increased the number of officials who tried to borrow money to pay the bribe to Shen Lian. This was truly a senseless state of affairs.
