Zhe Jinchun

Chapter 38 Dehui Hall

Dong Liang stepped forward and slammed the gate of the courtyard, and after a while, a small door on the left side of the gate opened, and a little maidservant about twelve or three years old came out, holding a green cloth umbrella, combing her hair in a bun, her eyes were so black Like water grapes.

"Director Dong is here, is someone here?" The little maid bowed slightly, and glanced behind Dong Liang again.

Dong Liang still had that indifferent look, and answered "yes" briefly.

The little maid opened the corner door and let Dong Liang in. Qin Wang didn't dare to look any further, and followed Dong Liang into the courtyard with his head down.

The courtyard inside the gate is quieter than the outside.

Pines and cypresses stand quietly in the evening, and the road is paved with white stones, staggered into a cross shape in the middle of the courtyard.The chaoshou corridors on both sides are oiled with black paint, with blue bricks and black tiles, and silk curtains. The whole courtyard is not colorful, and it is as solemn as a temple.

There were also people in the courtyard, maids and maids walked by from time to time, with solemn faces and sleeves drawn up while walking, no one spoke, only the slight sound of skirts rubbing against each other, mixed with the fine sound of snowdrops falling, quietly It's hard to breathe loudly.

Qin Wang heard his own footsteps, kicking and treading in a disorderly manner, like an uninvited guest who broke into the tranquility of the courtyard, abrupt and disgusting.And the more he wanted to walk through the corridor faster, the more chaotic the footsteps became. In the end, he really wished he could put his feet on his shoulders.

When a curtain finally appeared in front of him, Qin Wang no longer felt the cold.

He raised his sleeve and wiped the sweat from his forehead, and followed Dong Liang step by step. He didn't even dare to lift his head, let alone look at the furnishings. An old woman's voice said, "Come in."

Dong Liang is in front, Qin Wang is behind, and both of them entered the house.

It was only then that Qin Wang realized that the clogs on Dong Liang's feet had disappeared. He was wearing a pair of black cloth round-toed cotton shoes, standing on a huge green felt, motionless.

"Qin Zhuangtou is here." Dong Liang's voice was also steady, and after he finished speaking, he took a step to the side and let Qin Wang out.

Qin Wang hurriedly stepped forward and knelt down: "I pay my respects to Mrs. Tai, Mrs. Tai is well."

"Get up and talk." Mrs. Tai's voice was still gentle, she paused for a while and then ordered: "Go get a pair of cotton shoes and put them on Qin Zhuang's head."

Qin Wang shrank his feet uneasily.

The muddy water on his boots had already smeared on the green felt, black and very conspicuous.

"I...that... Madam forgive me." He bowed, his face as red as a boiled shrimp.

Mrs. Tai laughed: "Innocence, Qin Zhuangtou has been driving for several days, it's hard work, please sit down."

Two maids carried a couch, set up a small table, and someone brought new shoes. Qin Wang repeatedly pushed back, and then went outside to change into clean cotton shoes, and returned to the house to kneel and sit on the couch.

Dong Liang had already left. At this time, there were only Qin Wang and Mrs. Tai in the room, and there were a few other maids standing there.

Mrs. Tai asked someone to serve him tea, Fang Cisheng asked: "Director Dong said that Qin Zhuangtou has something important to report, what is it?"

Qin Wang supported the couch with both hands, touched his head, and said anxiously: "Mrs. Tai, several things have happened in Zhuangzi recently. After thinking about it, I should apologize to Mrs. Tai, and then I returned to the mansion."

Opening his mouth was to apologize, and he didn't find any reason to shirk, and there was a smile on Mrs. Tai's face.

Qin Wang is still a bit smart.

She slowed down her voice, and said in a harmonious voice: "Where did the apology come from? The head of Qinzhuang's management of Lianyuntian Manor is very good, and the harvest has been good these years. Kneeling on the ground, I'm tired of watching."

Seeing Mrs. Tai being so kind, Qin Wang made up his mind, kowtowed to the ground again, then bowed his head straight and said, "Thank you Mrs. Tai for your innocence."

Mrs. Tai laughed again, and Fang asked, "What happened to Zhuangzi?" Her tone was very kind.

Qin Wang thought for a while before reporting: "Returning to Mrs. Tai, after careful calculation, the first incident happened a few days before the girl returned to the house. There was a maid named A Dou beside the girl. then disappeared..."

He slowly told about Adou's disappearance, Uncle Fu's report to the official, and his daughter Ali's selection as a maid. He told the story in an orderly manner, and he did not hide his omissions and selfishness in this matter. His attitude can be described as frank .

Mrs. Tai listened quietly, and when Qin Wang finally finished speaking, she murmured and asked, "Why did you report the fugitive slave as soon as you came here? Can you look around?"

Qin Wang replied: "The girl went to the town to look for someone that day, but she couldn't find her, but..." He looked around at this point, hesitant to speak.

Mrs. Tai understood and waved her hand to make all the maids retreat.

When there was no third person in the room, Qin Wang continued: "Madam Tai, forgive me, it's not because I'm playing tricks, but it's not easy to talk about it." He seemed to be thinking about how to describe it, and frowned for a while. After a while, Fang said: "I heard people say that after A Dou ran away, someone saw her in the town, saying that she was dressed very well and entered the book and ink shop in the town with a roll of things. When she came out, the roll The things disappeared, and what she held in her hand became a bookcase, as if she bought it in that shop."

"Book ink shop?" Mrs. Tai murmured and repeated, as if a little puzzled: "Is Adou literate? What are you doing there?"

Qin Wang lowered his head and said: "Adou is literate. I also asked what she was doing in the calligraphy and ink shop, but I didn't find out anything. It was only later that I heard Mrs. Dong Yuan said that she was looking for some rare books. I understand." After a pause, he lowered his voice and said, "I heard people say that behind that shop...is the Cheng family."

Cheng family?

Madam Tai's breathing paused for a moment.

The Cheng family in Nan'an is also a noble family in the county.The head of the Cheng family, Cheng Tingzhen, was promoted to Lang Zhong Ling a few days ago, and Qin Shizhang's original position was filled.According to rumors, the Cheng family is now looking for the road of the Marquis of Han'an.There are also rumors that the Cheng family and the Zuo family have had a lot of trouble recently in order to establish a relationship with Captain He.

If those three rare volumes fell into the hands of the Cheng family, then maybe she should...

Mrs. Tai did not make a sound for a long time.

Qin Wang held his breath and didn't dare to raise his head. From the corner of his eyes, he could only see a corner of Mrs. Tai's sleeve hanging by the desk.

After a long silence, Mrs. Tai's voice sounded again: "Since that's the case, there's no need to investigate any more." There was an unconcealable exhaustion in her tone: "It's just a servant. If you report to the official, you will be sent to the official office." That's it for the investigation."

Qin Wang replied yes, and after hesitating for a moment, he said, "There is one more thing to tell Mrs. Tai. Apart from A Dou, Zheng Da is also gone. Some tenants said that A Dou and Zheng Da are like... ..." He frowned and thought for a while, and it took him a long time to find a suitable explanation: "...it seems...some relationship. The day after Adou disappeared, Zheng Da's family came to report that he had disappeared too. .I didn’t dare to report this matter to the officials first, so I asked Mrs. Tai to make a decision.”

(End of this chapter)