The Grand Secretary's Child-Raising Diary

Today, Imperial Censor Yang impeached General Lin for condoning his brother-in-law's bullying of men and women and forcibly seizing other people's property.

Tomorrow, General Ding will be impeached for dereliction of duty, for being absent from military exercises without cause, for soldiers in the camp not training for a long time, for weapons to rot and for armor to be worn out.

These matters were not entirely unfounded, but they were not as serious as Yang Peiyuan described in his memorial. However, since the censor had impeached them and His Majesty had approved the report, the Censorate had the authority to cooperate with the Prefect of the Capital to investigate.

In the eyes of the military officials in the court, these censors and officials were always capable of stirring up trouble even without cause. Now that Ding and Lin had offended someone, if these censors really found out something, their faction of officials would probably suffer a lot.

As a result, Ding and Lin, who were usually only responsible for reporting for duty at the yamen, were forced to be fully armored all day long and had to personally handle some trivial matters in the city from time to time.

After enduring more than ten days of hardship to finally send the Censorate officials away, he thought things would finally calm down. But then, Censor Yang accused General Lin during the morning court session of allowing his family and retainers to lend money at exorbitant interest rates and exploit the common people.

It was no secret that General Lin's private quarters were in disarray, and it was not surprising that the censors had repeatedly seized upon his faults to impeach him. General Ding had just cast a sympathetic glance at him when, in the next moment, Censor Yang spoke with a firm and resounding voice:

"I also want to impeach General Ding Zhaocheng, the Commander of the Cavalry, for privately mobilizing troops, and his intentions are unclear."

General Ding realized he was in trouble and no longer had time to sympathize with General Lin.

The civil and military officials in the court lowered their heads, feeling no sympathy for Ding and Lin. They only prayed that the two generals could hold on for a few more days, so that Yang the Madman would not have time to keep an eye on them all day.

In fact, Imperial Censor Yang has not had much time to worry about other people's troubles lately. After all, he had just dealt with Ding and Lin and then set his sights on Consort Zhao's brother.

.....

Mother Qian instructed Qian Xiu to get close to Lu Youning, and Lu Youning's confinement at home gave Qian Xiu the opportunity.

In Qian Xiu's view, no matter how smart Lu Youning is, he is still a child, a child who lost his mother at a young age.

She didn't need to use any special methods; she just needed to act like her mother loved her younger brother, and Lu Youning would definitely become close to her.

So on the first day, Qian Xiu personally made mirror cakes and candied fruits from Jiangyin and sent them to Lu Youning.

Zhang's mother disliked Qian Xiu at all, but Lu Shiyan had asked her to stay, and even for Lu Youning's sake, Zhang's mother didn't stop Qian Xiu from entering.

Upon seeing Qian Xiu, Lu Youning obediently greeted her, "Aunt Xiu."

Seeing that Lu Youning did not dislike her, and thinking that if she could really marry Lu Shiyan, even if she was just a concubine, Lu Youning would still be considered her son, Qian Xiu felt more confident.

"Ah Ning, you must be tired from doing your homework. Your aunt made some pastries and fruits. Have a few and rest."

Lu Youning did not object. She put down her pen and walked to the table, where Banxia had already brought over hot tea to replace it.

Qian Xiu subtly observed Zhang Mama and Banxia, ​​and soon noticed that the servants around Lu Youning were all indifferent and did not seem to be very close to Lu Youning, the young master.

Lu Youning had been practicing calligraphy all morning and was feeling a bit hungry, so he picked up a piece of mirror cake and ate it. Seeing that he seemed to like it, Qian Xiu smiled and said, "If Aning likes it, Auntie will make some more and send them over tomorrow."

Lu Youning nodded indifferently, and Qian Xiu was somewhat pleased, so she quickly picked up another piece of pastry and handed it over.

After eating two pieces, seeing that Qian Xiu was about to hand her another, Zhang Mama said, "Young Master, it's almost lunchtime."

This mirror cake is made with glutinous rice, which is difficult to digest and can cause indigestion if eaten in excess.

Lu Youning was born prematurely, and she has been well cared for in the past two years so that no abnormalities are visible. However, Zhang's mother and the others have always paid close attention to her diet and daily life.

Fortunately, Lu Youning himself was restrained and never got entangled in these culinary desires.

Those who served Lu Youning knew about these things, but Qian Xiu didn't take Zhang Mama's words to heart. In her opinion, Zhang Mama, just because she was Lu Youning's wet nurse, seemed to think too highly of herself, not even allowing her mistress to have an extra piece of pastry.

Seeing that Lu Youning obediently put down the pastries, but didn't seem very happy, Qian Xiu became even more certain of her thoughts.

Once they returned to their temporary lodging, Qian Xiu recounted in detail what she had seen in Lu Youning's courtyard to her mother. After some thought, her mother said:

"Take advantage of these next few days to visit that courtyard more often. That child has no mother, and Erlang is busy with court affairs all day long. There is no proper master in this mansion to keep the servants in check, so the servants have become arrogant."

Go a few more times, and as long as the child can feel your kindness, and you say some comforting words to him when no one is around, you won't have to worry about him not being close to you.

Qian Xiu deeply agreed. She had originally thought that Lu Youning, who was showered with love and affection, was probably spoiled, but now she saw that he was just a pitiful little thing being manipulated by servants.

Such children are sensitive and crave their mother's love the most.

Qian Xiu's plan was good, and Lu Youning gave her the opportunity. The next day, Lu Youning sent over more pastries and then sent Zhang Mama and a few others to be alone with Qian Xiu.

Qian Xiu: Poor thing, I can't even eat a piece of pastry freely.

Lost in her own thoughts, Qian Xiu didn't notice that even without Zhang's mother reminding her, Lu Youning would only eat two pieces of pastries at most before stopping.

Seeing that Lu Youning had crumbs of pastry on his lips, Qian Xiu reached out and wiped them clean for him. Then, she said with some heartache, "Don't be afraid, Aning. No one else cares about you, but your aunt does."

Lu Youning: Where did you get this from?

Lu Shiyan's 30th birthday banquet arrived as scheduled.

Although Qian's mother was determined to take care of Lu Shiyan's affairs, she had not been in the capital for more than ten years and was very unfamiliar with Lu Shiyan's interpersonal relationships.

She had no idea who to invite to her birthday banquet, what the standard of the banquet should be, whether to cook the food herself or hire a chef from an outside restaurant.

Fortunately, there was Huaiyan, so Madam Qian only held the title, and the actual work was still handled by Huaiyan.

Lu Shiyan had no wife, and with no one to manage the household, he naturally didn't need to entertain the female relatives. Huaiyan handled the arrangements with ease.

But Qian's mother was not idle either. She carefully inquired about everything from the guest list to the banquet and drinks, with the aim of teaching Qian Xiu, who was by her side.

The intricacies of wealthy families cannot be learned overnight. Qian Xiuguang was overwhelmed by the various official titles on the list. The thought of dealing with the women in these families in the future filled him with both fear and excitement.

Madam Qian comforted her, "I'm having you learn these things so you can understand Erlang better. If there ever comes a day when you need to take care of him, surely we can find a few people in this large mansion who can do these things?"

Qian Xiu deeply agreed.

Lu Shiyan's birthday celebration was not intended to be a grand affair, so he did not invite many guests. Most of the attendees were from the Hanlin Academy, the Censorate, and the Court of Judicial Review.

But that's how interpersonal relationships work in the court. If you're not close enough, it's not appropriate for someone to send you an invitation when they hold a banquet. But if they do know about it, it's reasonable to send them a birthday gift.