Han Erlang's house was built at the foot of Mount Shaohua. It was built against the mountain and covered an area of more than ten mu. It had thick and high walls, a spacious courtyard, green tiles, vermillion eaves, and richly ornamented rafters. The stone lion and flagpole at the entrance indicated that this was an official's house.
The west wing of the house's second courtyard was where the guest rooms were. There were lush flowers and trees here, a pond and a pavilion. The flowers and plants were not much decorated, so it was full of wild charm.
In an elegant and clean guest room, the windows were bright and the table was clean. A vase of orchids was placed on the table, exuding a faint fragrance. A woman was sitting on the side of the bed. She was wearing a jade-colored silk dress with large sleeves. She had a slender neck, and her black hair was tied up with a jade hairpin. Her delicate facial features and delicate skin were as elegant as the orchids in the vase.
This woman, who was as elegant as an orchid, was the tigress mentioned by Han Erlang.
The tigress' name was Xiang Ruolan. Her husband, Guo Jingzhi, was now the provincial governor of Weizhou. Weizhou was located in the Longxi region and was not safe there. There were often wars with Tubo, so it was not convenient for her to bring her family along. Moreover, her mother was still in the hall, leaving only a naive younger brother at home. There was no one in charge. Guo Jingzhi was worried, so he left his wife at home to take care of his mother.
There were a few people standing quietly beside the bed. There were two maids in green, an old man dressed as a steward, and the naive Guo Shaofan. When Guo Shaofan saw his sister-in-law retracting her hand, he asked in a simple voice, "Sister-in-law, how is my cousin?"
Xiang Ruolan rolled her eyes at him and said angrily, "I told you she's not your cousin. Don't talk nonsense!"
Guo Shaofan scratched the back of his head and said curiously, "Is she really not my cousin? How did she recognize me?"
Xiang Ruolan ignored him and only instructed the two maids, "Although this lady's injury is serious, fortunately it is not fatal. She just lost a lot of blood and needs to rest for some time. It is not convenient for her to live now. Both of you stay here and take care of her! "
"Yes!"
The two young maids answered. Guo Shaofan grinned and said, "Sister-in-law's medical skills are excellent. If you say she's fine, then she's definitely fine. Hehe! When I met her in the mountains, she was covered in blood. I don't know how badly injured she was. It was really scary. "
Xiang Ruolan gently shook her head and said, "There are many abrasions on this young lady's body, especially on her right leg. The abrasions are so deep that the bones can be seen. It seems that she didn't meet any bad people, but rather, it seems that she fell off a cliff. However, it was unknown whether he committed suicide or if he accidentally lost his footing while touring the mountains. Erlang, pass down the order. If anyone comes to inquire about the whereabouts of Miss Luoshan, bring them to see me … "
"No! Don't go … "
Suddenly, a hurried voice came from the couch. Xiang Ruolan turned her head and saw that the young lady had already woken up. She couldn't help but exclaim happily, "Young lady, you're awake?"
Guo Shaofan put his big face up and saw the young girl on the bed with her almond-shaped eyes wide open, her face full of anxiety. Although her face was pale and haggard due to excessive blood loss, it was like a snow lotus that had just bloomed. Even though her lips were completely bloodless, they still looked delicate and beautiful, really lovable. He couldn't help calling out, "Sister-in-law, Biaomei is so beautiful!"
Xiang Ruolan glared at him snappily and said, "Go away! I told you she's not your Biaomei! "
Tin Aino's cherry lips slightly parted as she gasped for breath and said, "Thank you, Madam … for saving my life. The news that I am here, please … keep it a secret …"
Xiang Ruolan's face suddenly showed vigilance and blurted out, "Miss, who are you? Why are you so heavily injured?"
"I … am …" That sentence just now seemed to have used up all of Tin Aino's strength. She barely managed to say it before her head tilted and she unexpectedly fainted again.
Xiang Ruolan pondered for a moment and said to Guo Shaofan, "Second Brother, pass down the order. No one is allowed to leak the news that we have rescued a young lady. Anyone who disobeys will be driven out of the residence!"
"Okay!"
Guo Shaofan replied. He stomped his feet and rushed out like a big bull.
Xiang Ruolan then ordered, "Bring this young lady's clothes and all the utensils she was carrying!"
The two little maids quickly brought over the clothes that they had taken off when they were changing Tin Aino's clothes. Xiang Ruolan carefully examined them. Apart from noticing that the clothes were of good quality, she did not find anything that could identify her identity. She then said, "Take care of her. Let me know when she wakes up!"
Xiang Ruolan got up and left. The old steward followed her every step. As soon as the two of them left the guest room, the old steward said, "Eldest Lady, this young lady's origin is unknown. We should not have taken her in."
Xiang Ruolan said, "Her origin may be somewhat suspicious, but the injuries on her body are not fake. Looking at her expression, she does not seem to be a criminal. How can we leave her in the lurch? I have been married to Langjun for many years and I still do not have any children. Didn't Zen Master Zhi Yuan say that I should do more good deeds and accumulate more virtue? Isn't this a good deed? When she wakes up, I'll ask her about her background. "
The old steward nodded in agreement.
Xiang Ruolan raised her eyebrows and said with a smile, "Alright, you don't have to worry about this. Concentrate on gathering food. Shen Mu is using Chang 'an as a battlefield and food as a weapon to fight against Young Master Jiang. We cannot lose this battle! "
…
In Wu Cheng Hall, Wu Zetian frowned slightly. She carefully read the two memorials in her hands and flipped through the one that she had just approved. She picked out another one and compared it with the two in her hands. Her face showed a hint of anger. She threw the three memorials on the table and said unhappily, "Liu Zitian probably doesn't want to be the prefectural magistrate of Chang 'an anymore. What kind of stupid official is this?"
Chang 'an and Luoyang were the capital and auxiliary capitals of the Tang dynasty. After Wu Zetian became the Emperor in Luoyang, the capital and auxiliary capitals were reversed. Chang' an became the auxiliary capital and Luoyang became the capital. The highest official of the capital and auxiliary capitals was the "Mu". However, the "Mu" did not preside over government affairs. It was only a prince who held this position. The official who actually presided over government affairs was the "Magistrate". Liu Zitian was the magistrate of Chang 'an.
This Magistrate of Chang 'an submitted a memorial to Wu Zetian. He said that because of the invasion of the Turks, in order to avoid the chaos of war, the merchants of the Western Region were buying up food. In addition, Huselo had also brought tens of thousands of the Western Turks to Chang' an. Food was in short supply. The price of food in Chang 'an had risen three times a day. A bucket of rice was worth a thousand gold. It was extremely expensive. He begged the Emperor to immediately allocate food to solve the crisis in Chang' an.
Chang 'an was originally the capital of the Tang dynasty. Although it was now an auxiliary capital, its status was not inferior to that of Luoyang. If the political situation in Chang' an became unstable, it would cause turmoil throughout the country. Wu Zetian did not dare to take this lightly. She had just personally written an official reply, ordering the various regions to allocate food to stabilize the price of food in Chang 'an. However, before the memorial could be sent out, Liu Zitian sent another memorial. He said that because the Turks had retreated, the merchants of the Western Region who had stockpiled food had all sold off their food. The price of food had fallen back to normal.
This was supposed to be a happy event. Since the price of food in Chang 'an had stabilized, the imperial court could save a lot of effort. However, almost immediately after, Magistrate Liu sent another urgent dispatch. He said that there were frequent rumors in the streets. Some said that there would be a drought in Guanzhong this summer and there would be no harvest. Some said that the Turks had not given up and wanted to join forces with the Tubo to invade the border again. As a result, the aristocrats and the common people were fighting for food, causing the price of food to rise again and again, resulting in a food shortage. They begged the imperial court to allocate food to solve the crisis.
Wu Zetian complained. Originally, she wanted to listen to Wan 'er's explanation. After all, she was already old and did not have the energy to deal with so many government affairs. Many things were handled by Wan' er on her behalf. Wan 'er knew the situation of the people and the local officials like the back of her hand. Without Wan' er, as the Empress, it was really difficult for her.
However, when she spoke today, Wan 'er, who had always been smart, did not reply. Wu Zetian glanced at her with some surprise. She saw Wan' er standing beside the imperial table, looking absent-minded. It was obvious that her mind was elsewhere.
Discontentedly, Wu Zetian grabbed the "Zhenshan He" and slapped it twice. Startled, Wan 'er quickly collected her mind and asked, "What's your order?"
Wu Zetian said unhappily, "Wan 'er, what's wrong with you these days? Why do you always look absent-minded?"
Wan 'er said in a panic, "Oh! Wan 'er has caught a cold these days. My body is not well yet, so I don't have much energy. "
"Oh!" Wu Zetian said with relief, "If so, you can go back and rest later. You don't have to wait in front of the Emperor. First, take a look at these muddled memorials from the Chang 'an Local Government. What's going on? "
Wan 'er took over the memorials. She had seen the first two, but the last one was just delivered by Wu Zetian after she left the court and rushed to Wucheng Hall. Wan' er carefully read the three memorials and said to Wu Zetian, "Liu Qiantian has always been diligent as an official. He is honest and talented, and has a good reputation.
However, food is the most important thing to the people. Once food is involved, even the slightest disturbance will inevitably cause a big commotion. If some unscrupulous merchants wanted to make a huge profit and took the opportunity to say something shocking, those ignorant commoners would not have the ability to distinguish between them. Naturally, they would add fuel to the fire, blindly robbing and raising the price of goods. Once the price of goods increased, there would be complaints of injustice. No wonder Liu Qian was so busy.
If Wan 'er remembered correctly, the Chang' an Local Government had enough grain last year. Although this year's new grain has not been put into the warehouse, after last winter's consumption, there should be at least 16 cellars of grain left among the 24 cellars in Chang 'an. You can order the Chang 'an Local Government to sell the official grain. If the people are willing to buy it, we can sell it openly. If the people have grain in their homes, they won't panic. When the people are calm, the grain price will naturally stabilize. "
Wu Zetian nodded and said, "Well, what Wan 'er said is very reasonable! Little Hai! "
The servant Little Hai waved his horsetail whisk and stood in front of the imperial desk with a bow. Wu Zetian said, "Go to the Ministry of Revenue and ask them to immediately check how much grain Chang 'an Local Government has and report to me as soon as possible!"
Little Sea received the verbal order and hurriedly left for the Ministry of Revenue. As soon as Little Sea left, an extraordinarily handsome young general dressed in military attire arrived in front of the palace gates and said in a clear voice, "Featherwood Left Commander Yang Fan has an important matter to request an audience with His Majesty!"
Shanghai Wan 'er let out a soft cry and immediately knew that she had lost her composure. She could not help but secretly look at Wu Zetian, but she saw Wu Zetian looking at her strangely. She quickly changed her mind and said, "Wan' er, I almost forgot. Whether Chang 'an lacks grain or not, since the warehouse has been moved, we still need to transport grain from other places to make up for the shortage of the Local Government."
Wu Zetian laughed and said, "You little girl, what's there to be surprised about? Don't tell me I haven't thought of this? First, send an urgent edict to the Chang 'an Local Government and ask them to sell the official grain to calm people down. As for the matter of collecting grain, ask the Prime Ministers to handle it. "
Wan 'er smiled shyly and said, "Yes!"
Wu Zetian turned her head and said, "What does Yang Fan want to see me about? Ask him to come in!"
Wan'er quietly retreated to the side. Her pair of limpid eyes, full of affection, glanced at the door.
…
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