Chapter 773: Warmth in the Cold Night

Love Shenjing, outside the east suburb, Ministry of Industry firearm workshop.

The wilderness was desolate, the autumn grass was withered and yellow, and there was still unmelted residual snow on the tips of the tree branches.

A two-horse carriage decorated with bright yellow palace satin stopped quietly at the entrance of the workshop, followed by four saber-wielding imperial guards.

Even though there was only a sixth-rank eunuch in the carriage, he was there to proclaim the Emperor's decree, representing imperial majesty, and the necessary pomp was not reduced by half.

When Jia Cong and Liu Liu Shizhen rushed to the entrance, Yuan Jing, the duty eunuch of Ganyang Palace in the carriage, stepped down with a smile on his face.

Jia Cong led Liu Liu Shizhen to the entrance of the workshop and stepped forward, saying, "So it is Eunuch Yuan who has come to pass the decree. Jia Cong failed to welcome you from afar."

Yuan Jing smiled and said, "Count of Lord Weiyuan, you are too polite. I am here to proclaim the imperial decree, acting according to the rules. I hope you will forgive me. Kneel and receive the decree."

When Jia Cong, Liu Liu Shizhen, and the others knelt down in order, Yuan Jing unfolded the yellow satin imperial decree in his hand and read aloud:

"The grassland tribes, admiring the heavenly grace, have entered the capital to seek peace, to weigh and negotiate, to seek mutual benefit, but have not yet obtained the grace.

It has been a long time, weighing the pros and cons, setting the strategy, working together in the peace talks, with many complicated matters, so be diligent and encourage yourself.

Hanlin Academy Scholar Jia Cong, with elegant learning and respectful service, is hereby appointed as the peace talk recorder of the two states, to participate in all matters of the peace talks. Respect this."

Yuan Jing finished reading the imperial decree with cadence and presented the yellow satin scroll to Jia Cong with both hands.

He said, "The Emperor has already inspected the Count of Lord Weiyuan's direct memorial. The Emperor asked me to pass on a message: let the Count of Lord Weiyuan act according to the situation."

Liu Liu Shizhen, who was receiving the imperial decree together, was slightly surprised after hearing the content of the decree.

He knew that the people in charge of the remnant Mongol peace talks were Grand Secretary of the Cabinet Wang Liu Shilun and Minister of War Gu Guo Yankui.

These two were both high-ranking officials of the second rank or above, and the subordinate recorder official was a fifth-rank Hanlin scholar. This specification was not low.

And the duty eunuch passing the Emperor's oral decree, "act according to the situation"—what did that mean?

His young superior, who was devoted to the construction of rear-loading rifles, was suddenly sent to the Ministry of War's peace talks, which was somewhat surprising.

Compared to Liu Liu Shizhen's confusion, Jia Cong immediately understood after hearing the oral decree passed by Yuan Jing.

Yuan Jing finished passing the imperial decree and returned to the palace by carriage. Jia Cong looked at the departing yellow-satin carriage, his thoughts surging.

His direct memorial not only resolved the unknown haze but also undoubtedly gained the Emperor's approval for his speculation about the Ordos tribe.

The Emperor appointed him as the peace talk recorder. This was just a nominal position; the Emperor didn't want him to bargain with the Mongols.

Instead, he used this title of peace talk recorder to let him reasonably intervene in the peace talks between the two states, and even use this to approach Nuoyan Noyan Taiji to investigate the truth.

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao asked Yuan Jing to pass the oral decree, "act according to the situation"—these four words contained many meanings and also gave him more power to respond.

He said to Liu Liu Shizhen beside him, "Master Liu, the imperial court and the remnant Mongols are currently in a tug-of-war stage of peace talks, so there must be many complicated matters.

Since the Emperor appointed me as the peace talk recorder, I naturally have to put effort into this. During this period, I need Master Liu to take more care of the workshop matters.

Fortunately, the construction of 500 rear-loading rifles has been completed. Although the construction affairs before the end of the year are just icing on the cake, there can be no slack."

Liu Liu Shizhen said, "Since it is the Emperor's decree, and you have other important state affairs, just go ahead and handle them.

I will definitely go all out for the workshop matters. You can rest assured."

……

Count's mansion, South Slope Courtyard.

The sun had set for more than half, the sky was just beginning to darken, and the side room on the left side of the Buddha hall was brightly lit with candles. Four or five plates of vegetarian dishes and a large bowl of vegetarian soup were placed on the table.

At this time, most of the courtyards in the mansion had not yet started dinner, and the dinner time of the South Slope Courtyard was obviously a bit early.

Because Abbess Abbess Xiushan had been practicing for half her life, her routine was rigorous. Every day, except for worshiping Buddha and chanting sutras, she was focused and rested at sunset and rose at sunrise.

Zhi Shao and Sister Miao Yu, as her disciples, naturally knew their master's daily habits.

After Abbess Abbess Xiushan and Sister Miao Yu moved into the East Prefecture, Zhi Shao told the kitchen to send meals on time every day according to Abbess Abbess Xiushan's daily routine.

Every day, dinner was sent to the South Slope Courtyard before sunset.

Ever since Zhi Shao returned to the Love Shenjing with Jia Cong, she had returned to secular life and no longer ate vegetarian food.

The two Jia households were noble families, and their daily diet was exquisite and detailed. Delicacies were common things.

For the past two years, Zhi Shao had been eating delicacies every day, but when she went in and out of the South Slope Courtyard for meals, she still ate vegetarian food like her master and senior sister.

It is said that it is easy to go from simple to luxurious, but difficult to go from luxurious to simple, but this principle didn't seem to apply to Zhi Shao.

She was used to eating delicacies by Jia Cong's side, but she still ate green vegetables and tofu with her master and senior sister with relish, without any difficulty.

Sister Miao Yu saw her eating sweetly and occasionally put food in her bowl.

Abbess Abbess Xiushan was getting on in years, and her daily diet was restrained. She only ate half a bowl of rice before putting down her bowl and chopsticks.

She smiled and said, "Master is getting on in years, and her appetite is mostly not good. You are still young and should eat more."

After the three of them finished their meal, the sky outside was already dark, the sunset had sunk, and sparse stars could be seen in the sky.

The kitchen woman came to clean up the bowls and chopsticks, and Zhi Shao and Sister Miao Yu accompanied their master for a walk outside the courtyard gate.

Standing on the South Slope, they could see the courtyards below, which were all lit with candles at this time, reflecting the stars in the sky, appearing peaceful and warm.

Outside the second gate of the inner courtyard, from the inner ceremonial gate to the mansion gate, it appeared empty and dark. That was the outer courtyard of the East Prefecture.

Sister Miao Yu noticed Zhi Shao's gaze, always looking at a spacious courtyard. She followed Zhi Shao's gaze and looked over.

She couldn't help but smile slightly. That spacious courtyard was Jia Cong's residence. At this time, he was probably about to finish his official duties and return to the mansion……

The two accompanied their master for some small talk, and when the sky became increasingly dark blue, they sent Abbess Abbess Xiushan back to her room to rest.

After serving the master to sleep, the two returned to Sister Miao Yu's room. Zhi Shao took two changes of clothes and prepared to go out.

She said, "Senior sister, I'm going back to the courtyard to be on night duty today. You should also rest early."

Sister Miao Yu nodded, watching Zhi Shao's departing back, and felt a sudden emptiness in her heart.

Suddenly thinking of the night duty Zhi Shao mentioned, her face felt a bit hot, and her heart jumped wildly.

She was also from a noble family, so she naturally knew what night duty meant.

Maids in wealthy families on night duty for young masters and young ladies needed to serve them at night to drink water and other things.

She and her senior sister whispered in bed, and Sister Miao Yu had heard many things about the Jia mansion. Zhi Shao was embarrassed to say more,

but Sister Miao Yu understood the meaning. Her junior sister on night duty for Jia Cong was not the same as an ordinary maid's night duty; most likely, she was going to…… accompany him to bed.

Her mind just skipped over that word, and she felt burning hot all over. She hurriedly extinguished the thought, not daring to think more.

She just wanted to find something else to do to divert her inappropriate thoughts. She saw two half-finished undergarments hanging on the clothes rack by the bed.

One was made by Zhi Shao, and the other was half-finished by Sister Miao Yu.

Seeing the two undergarments, her mind gradually calmed down, and the distracting thoughts that made her panic faded away like the tide. There was no coldness in her eyes, only tenderness.

Just in an instant, strange visions appeared before her eyes: the warm clouds and gauze, the diligent gaze of her lover, the red dust moving three thousand, and the weak water settling to the bottom.

The night was silent, the room was lonely, and Zhi Shao's unintentional words when she left made Sister Miao Yu feel lost, dazed, and suddenly gave birth to inner demons, breaking out in a cold sweat.

She pinched the Bodhi prayer beads hanging on her chest and silently recited to herself: "If one sees me by form, or seeks me by sound, this person is on a crooked path and cannot see the Tathagata……"

Although she recited silently for a long time, the inner horror seemed to dissipate, but her mind was still fluctuating.

She stood up involuntarily, took down the half-finished undergarment, and rubbed it gently in her hand.

She took out a needle and thread and sewed stitch by stitch under the lamp. The mood that could not be calmed by chanting sutras and holding mantras gradually became calm and waveless as she threaded the needle.

……

Count's mansion, Jia Cong's courtyard.

After the heavy snow a few days ago, the accumulated snow had gradually melted away, but the weather was becoming increasingly dry and cold.

Lingguan and Zhen Ying Lady Lian had gone to the kitchen early, and it wasn't until the sun had set for more than half that they used a shoulder pole to carry two hot water steamer baskets back.

Although Lingguan and Zhen Ying Lady Lian both grew up in Jiangnan, Lingguan was more afraid of the cold than ordinary people. She not only wore cotton clothes and skirts, but also wore hand warmers.

She also wore a cloak outside, and the hood wrapped her small face tightly, revealing only a pair of moist, large eyes, bright and moving, turning back and forth.

As soon as she entered the hall, she put down the steamer basket, and before she even took off her cloak, she leaned against the warm incense burner to warm herself, as if she couldn't bear to leave.

Qingwen, who was setting the bowls and chopsticks, saw her looking like a frozen cat and smiled, "Since you are so afraid of the cold, you should go out of the courtyard less and stay in the room more.

Just let the kitchen woman run errands. You insist on going out to stroll. Look, you'll freeze your skin."

Lingguan smiled, "Qingwen sister, you don't know. The colder the weather, the warmer the kitchen is. When I was in the Su Zhou opera troupe, although the winter there wasn't as cold as the Love Shenjing, the winter there was humid, and the cold air just drilled into the bone seams.

No matter how many clothes you wear, you can't block it. Only sitting in front of the furnace fire is the most useful."

Qingwen smiled, "There are incense burners and fire basins everywhere in this courtyard, and it's not enough for you to warm yourself? It's worth it for you to go to the kitchen to warm yourself. If you say that, you'll laugh your teeth off."

Lingguan smiled, "It's not specifically to warm myself. Cong Sanye got some top-grade flower deer and wild chicken, so I went to the kitchen to help cook two dishes. Cong Sanye will definitely love to eat them."

A figure flashed at the door, and Douguan didn't know where she popped out from, asking, "What good dishes are there today? Let me smell them quickly, are they fragrant?"

Qingwen scolded with a smile, "The half-grown girl is never full. When she hears there is something good to eat, she starts to frolic. A girl doesn't even know how to be ashamed."

Douguan didn't care about Qingwen's teasing at all. She walked to the hot hand steamer basket and lifted the top layer.

Seeing a plate of red, tender, and crystal-clear meat dishes inside, the color was tempting, the fragrance was rich, her eyes lit up, she let out an exclamation, and her small hand reached into the basket.

Lingguan stood up and slapped Douguan's small hand, stopping her action in time.

She scolded with a smile, "How big a girl, and still so reckless. There is hot water in the steamer basket, aren't you afraid of being scalded? Wait until Cong Sanye comes back to eat."

Douguan said unconvinced, "Even if I can't eat it now, I should put it on the table first. It's good to look at it to satisfy my craving. I'm starving to death."

Lingguan smiled, "In such cold weather, if the dishes leave the steamer basket, they will lose their heat and won't be fresh. Look at your greedy look, eating a little later won't make you thin."

The two were talking when they suddenly heard footsteps in the courtyard, followed by Jia Cong's clear voice.

"Douguan, since you are so hungry, you must eat two more bowls of rice today."

Douguan cheered, "Cong Sanye is home! Lingguan, hurry up and put the dishes out, don't let Cong Sanye go hungry."

Qingwen knocked on her hair bun with chopsticks and scolded with a smile, "You little ghost, you are not afraid of Cong Sanye going hungry, you are afraid of yourself going hungry."

Zhen Ying Lady Lian heard Jia Cong's voice and came out of the study. Several people just put the dishes on the table, and just happened to see Wu'er and Ping'er return from the West Prefecture.

The two returned, and Zhi Shao followed into the courtyard.

She only said that she had used vegetarian food at the South Slope Courtyard and would not join the table for dinner. She said a few words to Jia Cong and then went into the main room to tidy up things.

……

Everyone was surrounding the table when they heard footsteps at the courtyard gate.

Looking back, it was Seeing Yingchun who entered the courtyard, wearing a light blue satin round-collar robe with broken-branch magnolia patterns, a rice-white cotton skirt, and a large red flower-scattered fur cloak.

The cold wind rolled the cloak, and the pearl-inlaid phoenix hairpin on her head was crystal clear, flashing slightly, making her appearance even more beautiful, her demeanor quiet and elegant, and generous.

Behind her followed the maid Xiuju, holding a bright tile windproof lantern.

Jia Cong smiled, "Second Sister, why are you free to come over at this time?"

Seeing Yingchun smiled, "I didn't see you yesterday. I heard you were drinking outside and came back late. Today I specifically came to see you."

Jia Cong asked, "We are just having a meal now. Have you eaten, Second Sister?"

Seeing Yingchun smiled, "I haven't eaten yet. I'll just eat here with you, and we can talk."

Jia Cong hurriedly asked Qingwen to add bowls and chopsticks, and the siblings ate while chatting.

Because a cooking maid in the East Prefecture was bought from the south, she was good at making southern dishes, and Lingguan was also used to making exquisite Su Zhou dishes.

The dishes on the table used the game Jia Cong got, all of which were rare and top-grade materials.

Several venison dishes and a large bowl of wild chicken soup were cooked with bright colors and a rich fragrance.

Seeing Yingchun smiled, "I had a venison banquet at Rongqing Hall at noon. Our East Prefecture maid's craftsmanship is even better than the West Prefecture's."

Jia Cong smiled, "Although venison is good and chewy, the Old Ancestor is getting on in years, so she might not be able to handle it. It's better to make it into soup."

The two chatted casually about the venison banquet. As for Jia Baoyu's behavior at the banquet, Seeing Yingchun naturally didn't mention a word.

She wanted to avoid dirtying her brother's ears, and if she wasn't careful, he would be angry for nothing, which was truly not worth it.

Jia Cong asked, "Second Sister, are there any extra perfumes, soaps, toothpaste, and toothbrushes in the warehouse?"

Seeing Yingchun said, "Although the sisters often use them, and some have been sent to the West Prefecture, there should be quite a lot left. Why do you ask, Brother Cong?"

Jia Cong smiled, "The venison and wild chicken I ate today were a favor, so I should send some return gifts."

Seeing Yingchun said, "This is easy to handle. You don't need to worry about it. I'll prepare a portion for you tomorrow and ask the steward to send it for you."

"At noon, the Old Ancestor also said that your friend knows the market. It's not easy to hunt these game in the depth of winter."

"She also asked which noble family's son in the capital he is, saying that perhaps the Old Ancestor might know his elders."

Jia Cong smiled, "This person is not a noble family's son in the capital, he is a person from the grassland……"

……

Seeing Yingchun found it rare and said, "How could Brother Cong know people from the grassland? Although my sisters and I are in the inner courtyard, we also know some things outside."

"I heard that the imperial court and the Mongols are confronting each other at the Nine Borders, and it is said that they are about to go to war. Now there are many grassland people in the city, saying they want to make peace with Da Zhou."

Jia Cong said, "I have been appointed by the Emperor as the peace talk recorder, and I will have to deal with these grassland people in the future, but it's just a matter of courtesy."

After the siblings finished their meal, they drank tea and chatted for a while. It was getting late, so Jia Cong sent Seeing Yingchun back.

After he returned, he went to the study and found the Ministry of War newsletters he had collected a few days ago, which gathered the military situation of the Nine Borders in the past month.

The content of the newsletter came from the military situation memorials of the border towns, compiled and copied by the Ministry of War, and circulated within a small range in the imperial court as a reference for responding to the war at the Nine Borders.

Only the Emperor, the Cabinet, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Industry, and the Ministry of Revenue, and the heads and deputies of relevant government offices could access such military situation newsletters.

Originally, according to Jia Cong's official rank, he could not access this kind of military situation newsletter.

But as the Supervisor of the Ministry of Industry's Firearm Department, his position in the Ministry of Industry was very special, and even Minister Li Li Dekang had no right to control him.

All affairs of the Firearm Department were directly assigned by the Emperor, which made his position in the Ministry of Industry somewhat transcendent.

Li Li Dekang and Jia Zheng were colleagues for many years, and he had always been very friendly and polite to this overly young subordinate and junior.

Once, when Jia Cong entered Li Li Dekang's office to discuss the construction materials of the firearm workshop, he saw the Ministry of War newsletter on his desk and couldn't help but look at it a few more times.

Li Li Dekang saw that he was interested, so every time the Ministry of War issued a military situation newsletter, he would copy a copy for Jia Cong, which could be considered a favor.

Jia Cong noticed that since the beginning of the first ten days of November, according to the Ministry of War newsletter, the remnant Mongols' harassment of the border towns had significantly decreased.

By the end of November, the remnant Mongols' raids and looting of border villages and towns had almost completely disappeared. At this time, the remnant Mongol mission had just entered the capital for peace talks.

The most recent military situation newsletter came from nine days ago. Along the Datong and Qiu Xuanfu lines near the remnant Mongol tribes, it was calm and waveless.

Only the border army scouts patrolled outside the pass, occasionally reporting that there were sporadic movements of remnant Mongol thousand-man teams fifty miles outside the border.

The Datong and Qiu Xuanfu town commander's offices paid close attention, but so far no abnormalities had been found.

Jia Cong flipped through the newsletters back and forth, but these fragmented pieces of information could not be sorted out for a while.

Seeing that the night outside the window was getting deeper, he packed up his things, let Zhen Ying Lady Lian go back to rest, and after leaving the study, he returned to the main room.

He gently pushed open the door and saw that the candles in the room were bright, flickering, the bed curtains were hanging, and the quilt was shining, feeling very warm.

He saw Zhi Shao holding a charcoal box, adding silver frost charcoal to the incense burner. The fire-red charcoal fire reflected her pink face, which was infinitely beautiful.

Seeing Jia Cong return to the room, she hurriedly put the charcoal box back in place, washed her hands in the basin, and helped Jia Cong take off his official clothes and change into sleeping clothes.

Finally, she went to the dressing mirror, took off her hairpins and jewelry, untied her hair, and combed her hair in front of the mirror.

Seeing Jia Cong sitting on the edge of the bed in the mirror, watching her dress with great interest, she couldn't help but smile at the mirror, looking even more moving.

Jia Cong said, "The government office has been too busy recently, and I haven't been home on my days off. I haven't seen the Abbess for many days. Is she still stable?"

Zhi Shao said, "The master has been eating and sleeping well recently, and her old illnesses have subsided. She is quite well."

"But news came from the suburbs that the Mouni Nunnery has been repaired. The master said that after the paint and wall ash have been dried for a few days, she will move back on the tenth day of the twelfth lunar month."

"I originally wanted to keep the master until after the New Year, but the master said that she has disturbed us for a long time and should move back."

Jia Cong heard Zhi Shao's reluctance and walked behind her, saying, "The Abbess is a person of the Buddha gate and likes the cleanliness of the Buddha courtyard, so you should follow her wishes."

"I calculated that the tenth day of the twelfth lunar month is just a day off. That day, I will accompany you to send the Abbess and Miss Sister Miao Yu back."

"When the New Year comes, if you really miss them, we will pick them up again……" (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 774 =====