Red Mansion: Picking up a Lin Daiyu

Chapter 153 Lin Daiyu's Excitement
In the 38th year of Yuanqing,

The King of Qin ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor, changing the reign title to Longyou, meaning to accept the blessings bestowed by heaven and protect the prosperity of the country.

The King of Qin was crowned Emperor Longyou.

People from all directions come to pay tribute and congratulate us. Today's prosperity far surpasses the past.

As soon as Emperor Longyou ascended the throne, he promulgated several important policies.

First, abolish the slavery of craftsmen, grant them equal status with ordinary people, encourage the improvement of craftsmanship, and allow multiple companies to jointly research and innovate.

Second, a general amnesty will be issued, and all prisoners, except those on death row, will be allowed to return home after they have repented.

Third, special examinations will be held across the country, starting with the provincial examinations to recruit talents from all over the country.

Fourthly, he is discussing with various ministers how to eliminate the impact of the war and restore the national finances. Confucian scholars all over the world who have suggestions can report them directly to the Secretariat, and if they are adopted, they can be admitted to the officialdom as an exception.

Emperor Longyou issued several major policies in succession, and the entire Dachang took on a new look.

That year, Lin Daiyu was nine years old.

……

"Brother Yue, slow down, it's too fast!"

In a wilderness, Lin Daiyu, who went south with Yue Ling, was galloping on horseback with Yue Ling.

The wind blowing in her face made Lin Daiyu's hair messy and made it impossible for her to open her eyes.

Lin Daiyu fell into Yue Ling's arms involuntarily, opened her eyes slightly, and looked ahead.

The little girl was so scared that Yue Ling pulled the reins.

The horse neighed and then stopped.

Yue Ling played with Lin Daiyu's messy hair, combed her temples, and said with a smile, "How was it? Was it as exciting as you imagined for your first time riding a horse?"

Lin Daiyu was almost dizzy from being tossed around. She panted a few times and said, "I, I never thought that one day I would be able to ride a horse in the wilderness. What I learned from books is so different from what I experienced in person."

Somehow, Lin Daiyu, who had always been well-educated and familiar with all kinds of etiquette, fell in love with this kind of novelty of pursuing excitement.

It was as if some prison inside me was being broken.

Looking up at Brother Yue who was playing with her freely, Lin Daiyu's eyes were almost filled with different emotions, which made her heart beat faster.

"Brother Yue, thank you for being willing to accompany me no matter how willful I am."

Yue Ling tapped her nose and said with a smile, "Of course I can't satisfy you no matter how willful you are. Now that you are in good health, you can do this. If you were still like when I first met you, you would get sick at the slightest breeze. I would probably have to wrap you in several layers of quilts."

Lin Daiyu was not angry. She knew that Yue Ling was really doing this for her own good, so she laughed along with Yue Ling.

"Okay, that's enough of playing around for a while. It's time to go back to the ship. I think it's time to finish resupplying on the ship."

Yue Ling kicked the stirrup again and carried Lin Daiyu back to the boat.

As soon as we got on the boat, Zijuan and Xueyan came to greet us.

Zijuan helped Lin Daiyu board the boat, and Xueyan asked happily, "Miss, is it fun to ride a horse? Is it very exciting? I also want General Yue to give me a ride."

Zijuan said helplessly, "The ship is about to sail, Xueyan, stop messing around. Don't cause trouble for General Yue."

Lin Daiyu also smiled, "It's fun, but we don't have enough time now. Let Brother Yue take you next time."

Xueyan pouted and said, "Well, girl, you must keep your word."

Lin Daiyu nodded gently, took the warm tea poured by Zijuan, and said, "Sister Zijuan, it's fine for Xueyan to call him General Yue, but why do you follow suit and refuse to change your words?"

"Don't forget, whose house your indenture is in now."

Seeing Lin Daiyu blinking and looking at her, Zijuan blushed again and stammered, "That's the truth. I... I can't say it out loud for the moment."

Xueyan said, "Why can't I call you that? If the young lady is willing, I would have changed my name a long time ago. Calling you General Yue is too unfamiliar."

Lin Daiyu blushed and spit at Xueyan, "You are the only one who talks too much. Go quickly and prepare some food."

Xueyan's eyes lit up with joy, and she said quickly without saying anything more: "Okay, I'll go right away."

outside the cabin,
Yue Ling stood on the boat, looking at the river, and Jia Yun beside him reported: "Master, we will be able to reach Cangzhou Prefecture in less than two days."

"We have already found a place to stay in Cangzhou Prefecture. Once the master brings Miss Lin into the city, we can go there first."

Yue Ling nodded slightly and replied, "Well done. When we get close to Cangzhou Wharf, we will first change to a carriage to enter the city. I will take them with me. You and the soldiers of the Beijing Camp will first find another place to stay. Remember to change into casual clothes before entering the city."

"I don't know whether the prefect of Cangzhou Prefecture is good or bad. I want to inspect it myself first."

Jia Yun cupped his hands and said, "Yes."

Looking at the vast wilderness on the shore with few people, Yue Ling sighed again.

Jia Yun asked in confusion, "Master, why are you sighing?"

Yue Ling pointed to the distance and explained to him: "The Grand Canal was originally used to divert water for irrigation, but in Cangzhou Prefecture, the land near the riverbank has become wasteland, with no one cultivating it. The fertile land within a radius of dozens of miles is deserted and uninhabited. How can Cangzhou Prefecture not be poor?"

"I don't know who owns these lands."

Jia Yun said hurriedly, "I will go and find out after I enter the city." Yue Ling nodded, "The Cangzhou prefect only knows that a new censor is coming, but he doesn't know when he will come. You should be careful and don't let others find out your identities. There are still strange things in this Cangzhou city."

……

Cangzhou City, the prefectural government office,

Behind the hall, Pu Zheng, the prefect of Cangzhou City, was drinking tea and could not help sighing.

"This is terrible. A big Buddha has come from the capital. Once Yue Ling arrives, how can we have a good life? The authority that Your Majesty has given him is not too much to execute us in court."

"The food stored in the granaries is still insufficient. The food originally sent by the surrounding areas has also been wasted by us. There is no money left in the treasury. How can we fill this gap?"

"It's spring and summer now, and food is scarce everywhere. Where can we get some food?"

No matter how serious the disaster is, the government has to prepare warehouses for distributing porridge. But now in Cangzhou Prefecture, even the porridge stalls have been abandoned for a long time. If the people can have a bite to eat, they have to rely on some kind-hearted wealthy families.

In the hall, Tongpan Jiqing said, "Don't worry, sir. As long as we complete this business, we will naturally have a source of income. We can buy some grain to add to the treasury and deal with this situation first. Then, I will negotiate with them. We have to give them some grain to keep our official hats, otherwise no one will be able to make money."

Pu Zheng sighed deeply, "It's all your fault. You insisted on believing in the promise of earning tens or hundreds of times more money, and opened the granary without permission, but ended up losing everything. Otherwise, how could we be in this predicament now?"

"You must handle this matter properly, otherwise, none of us will survive!"

Ji Qing was also frowning, "Who would have thought that during the war in the capital, they used swift and decisive means to control the grain price. Either we or those wealthy merchants lost all their money."

"All the grain that entered the capital after hearing the news was hoarded by them at a high price. After half a year of fighting, none of it was sold. It all became old grain. How can we sell it?"

Pu Zheng angrily slammed the table, "You don't know, it is Yue Ling who is in charge of the capital, and now he is coming to our Cangzhou!"

Ji Qing waved his hand and said, "Sir, it is difficult for a powerful dragon to suppress a local snake. Many imperial censors have left in disgrace. You can relax."

At that time, a minor official came into the hall and whispered something to Lai Jiqing.

"Sir, the whereabouts of that famous bandit have been found. Someone has found his whereabouts and he is now roaming around Shili Lane."

Ji Qing's eyes lit up and he stood up immediately. "Good, good news! If he hadn't been pestering me in secret, I would have already completed this deal!"

"Sir, our lives are safe. I will go to work now!"

Park Jung nodded and said, "Okay, go quickly."

Ji Qing clenched his palms and whispered, "I don't know where this wild boy came from, but he dared to ruin my good deeds. Today I will let you see how powerful I am!"

……

The Xue family traveled all the way from Nanjing to Yangzhou, then entered the Grand Canal and headed north to the capital.

The mother and her two sons traveled on the Xue family's speedboat for half a month, and Xue Pan returned to his original playboy appearance.

One day, the three of them were having dinner in the room.

After eating only two bites, Xue Pan put down his chopsticks, hugged his shoulders and said, "It's really hard to have such bland food all day long."

Aunt Xue frowned and said, "We are on the boat, not at home. What's wrong with just having a bite? Besides, there are fish and shrimp here. Do you think it's unfair?"

Xue Pan was certainly not talking about his appetite. He looked Xiangling up and down and couldn't help but salivate.

"How can I see her but not eat her? This is the maid I bought myself! I just played with those guys and they were boring! "

Xue Pan thought about this secretly in his heart, but he didn't dare to ask his mother for Xiangling in person.

The last time he boarded the ship, Xue Pan had tried to ask several times, but ended up making his mother very angry and his sister also cried several times, blaming him for being ignorant.

She also said that when they arrived in Beijing, he would be left alone in the prince's palace, while she and her daughter would live in Rongguo Mansion.

How does this work?
If he were in the palace himself, wouldn't he be beaten to death by his uncle?

Xue Pan didn't dare to speak again. Compared with the prince's palace, Rongguo Mansion was better.

With a deep sigh, Xue Pan said, "I have no appetite. I won't eat anymore. I'll go out first."

Xue Baochai looked at Xue Pan's back as he left the house, and said to her mother, "Mother, send someone to keep a close eye on my brother and don't let him escape from the boat."

"Get off the boat. Why would he want to get off the boat before reaching the capital?"

Xue Baochai's cheeks flushed slightly as she said softly, "Anyway, mother, don't ask me for now. If you don't do as I say, something terrible may happen."

Aunt Xue was confused, but since Bao Yatou had said it, it must not be without reason. "Okay, mother, I'll listen to you. I'll have someone take care of your brother."

Xue Pan walked out of the door bored, came to the deck, looked into the distance and sighed secretly.

Not long after, the servant who had served him yesterday appeared beside him and tried to please him.

"Why are you sighing, sir?"

When Xue Pan saw that it was him, he lost interest even more. "It's boring. This boat is really boring."

The servant rubbed his palms and said with a flattering smile: "Master, I have a good place to go."

　twenty two!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)