From street beggar to high-ranking official

Chapter 57 Revisiting Godfather

As Lu, the official who had left the territory of the Imperial Palace Administration, walked discreetly along the path at the corner of the palace wall. He prepared to kneel down as soon as he saw the carriage of the nobleman in the distance. His respect and filial piety were impeccable.

Today is no ordinary day; it is the Dragon Boat Festival, and only three days have passed since the palace maid Qiu Rong died from scalding.

From the first day of the lunar new year, a lot of mugwort was hung in the palace, including in Jingyang Palace. It was precisely because of this that Lu Li was willing to repel mosquitoes.

The Imperial Observatory presented cinnabar talismans, which were pasted on the lintels of various palaces, with the inscription "On the fifth day of the fifth month, the Midsummer Festival, all slander and gossip will be eliminated." Activities were also held in various palaces of the inner palace.

Emperor Yongxi led his empresses and concubines to the Fengxian Hall to worship their ancestors, offering zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) and seasonal delicacies.

At first, Lu Li thought that jiaoshu was some kind of delicacy, but after asking carefully, he learned that it was just an ancient name for zongzi.

Consort Wu also went, accompanied by Lu Li in the carriage, but waited outside the Fengxian Hall. The Empress Dowager gave Consort Wu a five-poison sachet, symbolizing fighting poison with poison, and Empress Murong gave the prince a longevity thread tied to his wrist.

After the sacrificial ceremony, there was a dragon boat banquet at Taiye Pond. Emperor Yongxi and his civil and military officials drank and feasted together. The imperial kitchen sent mugwort wine, zongzi (sticky rice dumplings), and five-poison cakes, all intended to ward off evil spirits.

When the concubines returned to the palace, according to the rules of the dynasty, the women of the inner palace were not allowed to participate in court affairs. The Imperial Kitchen sent them food separately. Consort Wu was seven months pregnant, so she only drank a few sips and gave the rest to her servants.

At Shenshi (3-5 PM), the Dan Ding Si (official in charge of alchemy) delivered plague-repelling pills. These pills were not to be taken orally, but rather to be hung on the carriage frame to maintain prosperity and safety.

At this moment, Lu Li was standing in front of the Jingyang Palace, chatting with the gatekeeper. However, despite his probing, the gatekeeper still did not reveal any more information.

Lu Li's expression darkened slightly, and he swept his sleeves and entered the palace.

"We came here with good intentions to spy on you, but we never expected you to be so ruthless. Do you really think we're some kind of clay idol?" Lu Li cursed inwardly, his mind flashing with the names of those on duty in the directory, his killing intent surging.

We haven't seen any blood on our hands for days, so let's start with you, you little eunuch!

Lu Li was filled with resentment, but when he returned to his side room and was alone, he was taken aback. He immediately began to silently recite the "Netherworld Inner Landscape Technique" in his mind, and the surging killing intent in his heart gradually subsided.

"Could it really be as Supervisor Liu said, that our servant is born with a murderous look?" Lu Li was unconvinced. He didn't think the little eunuch counted as a person. Since he didn't count as a person, killing him wouldn't be a big deal. Besides, when he saw important people, he kowtowed decisively and meticulously.

How could someone as loyal as my family allow bloodshed to recur in Jingyang Palace?

After hypocritically comforting himself, Lu felt much better and planned to visit the Seal and Seal Bureau later. Although he had basically no dealings with the Bureau, he could still send some money and inquire about information.

However, before that, Lu Li still needs to stabilize his position in Jingyang Palace.

Before long, he took small steps into the side room, bowed, and reported to his superior: "Godfather, someone has come to our house."

Lu Li's eyes flashed, and a hint of suspicion crossed his mind: "Who is looking for you?"

"It was someone from the Imperial Household Department looking for Gan'er." Xiao Buzi reported the conversation from not long ago in detail. This happened after Lu Li left the palace with Consort Wu's carriage. The eunuch from the Imperial Household Department found Xiao Buzi.

As he spoke, Xiao Buzi cupped his hands and took out a gold ingot: "This is our reward."

Lu Li's eyes were practically glued to the gold ingot. One tael of gold was worth ten taels of silver. Even though Lu Li could estimate the value of this gold ingot, gold was gold, and the gleaming gold was even more beautiful than the gleaming silver.

The monthly salary and allowance of palace eunuchs were in silver taels, silver notes, and copper coins. If they did not have their own connections, they could only exchange them in a few places.

For example, the Imperial Household Department.

Moreover, the gold and silver exchange within the palace was not based on market prices; how much one could exchange depended entirely on the mood of the eunuch in charge of the exchange.

Lu Li hadn't gone to exchange information specifically, but having been in the palace for so long, he knew more or less about some things.

"Little Buzi picked up a windfall, why isn't he keeping it safe?" Lu Li was in a good mood when he saw the gold, and even had the mood to tease him.

"This servant cannot accept gold of dubious origin; to do so would be disloyal to my godfather." Xiao Buzi clearly knew that some gold and silver were not to be taken.

He had seen many foolish eunuchs who were blinded by gold and silver and blinded by lard, accepting benefits they shouldn't have, and ultimately ending up with their heads separated from their bodies.

Long before becoming Lu Gonggong's adopted son, Xiao Buzi had heard Xiao Luozi boast when he was doing odd jobs in the palace, saying that the newly arrived Lu Li was nothing special and could be easily subdued.

However, times have changed, and Xiao Luozi is long gone. It seems that Eunuch Lu is not far from achieving true success!

Our family came to Jingyang Palace, isn't it all for this future?

The key to the merit of following the dragon lies not in the merit itself, but in the act of following!

"Little Buzi is indeed very filial." Lu Li reached out and took the gold ingot directly into his sleeve. The small piece was surprisingly heavy. "I'll take it to my godfather to have a look."

Xiao Buzi's heart trembled. He urged his true energy to force out a few tears and asked, "I never thought I would have a godfather. I had never felt the warmth of a family before entering the palace, but I felt it today in the palace!"

As Xiao Buzi spoke, he took out another stack of silver coins: "This is the money I've saved up for red envelopes. I want to show filial piety not only to my godfather, but also to my godfather whom I've never met!"

"Good lad, you really know how to talk a good game," Lu Li praised.

The next day, when it was time to deliver the official report, Lu Li was already waiting at 3:45 a.m. Even though the scorching sunlight shone on him, he did not dodge or avoid it, but stood steadily in his usual position without moving an inch.

When paying respects, one always slumps their shoulders, bends their back, and crosses their hands in front of their body, ready to kneel and kowtow at any moment.

When Eunuch Chen opened the door, Lu Li bowed and kowtowed, saying, "Your son greets his godfather!"

'

Although the timing of the greetings has changed to once every ten days, Lu Li dares not make any mistakes. If they don't see each other for a long time, even relatives will become estranged. Since he still needs to rely on his godfather, he must not make any mistakes in etiquette.

"Little Lu is so punctual," Eunuch Chen said, raising an eyebrow. He thought to himself that he had indeed chosen a good godson. His family had a sharp eye and could not have misjudged the person.

"Godfather, I have some questions about serving in the palace and would like to ask you for advice." As he spoke, Lu Li stepped forward to serve, showing the same level of respect as he did to Consort Wu.

"Little Lu, what do you think?"

Lu Li then gave a general account of what had happened inside Jingyang Palace. After some time, Lu Li had learned some new things. Some things, such as those in the harem, needed to be spoken up by oneself. This was called "an elder resolving doubts." Back when they were still in the martial arts school, Xiao Fuzi used this trick, taking the initiative to share his insights on the techniques, which successfully made Lu Li remember this little eunuch.

Of course, Xiao Fuzi later betrayed Lu Li and accidentally drowned, but that's another story.