"Beta Persei, take this pot of tea to the West Wing."
"Beta Persei, take the four bedding sheets that have just been moved out from the storeroom to the side courtyard to dry and get rid of the mold."
"Beta Persei, take these two lunches to the rear residence. These are the lunch for a few officials from the Ministry of Justice."
Yang Fan busied himself around the Lang Zhong's residence, successfully changing from a patrolling sentry to a moving errand boy.
The reason was simple: he was a good subordinate.
The bailiffs from the Ministry of Justice and Luoyang Prefecture would definitely not personally do this kind of work. If they really wanted to catch the robbers, they would have to rely on them. These bailiffs lived on the edge of a knife, so how could they do some lowly work?
The Marquis Wu who had been transferred to the Lang Zhong's residence had a lower status than them, but they felt that they were nobler than the workers. Naturally, they were not willing to do anything. As for the workers, everyone was ranked according to seniority. The big fish ate the small fish, the small fish ate the shrimps, the shrimps ate the worms, and the worms ate the mud. In the end, Yang Fan, the young and inexperienced "mud", became the errand boy.
Of course, this was not without Yang Fan's active cooperation. This identity made it easier for him to understand the situation in the Yang Residence.
"Xiao Fan, where are you going?"
An old man in his fifties walked towards them. He wore a green robe with a round neck and a green handkerchief. Behind him was a strong man with a saber. Yang Fan raised his head and saw that it was the head steward of the Lang Zhong's residence, Liu Hen, and the saber-wielding warrior behind him was Maqiao.
Yang Fan held the lunches and stood still. He first greeted Steward Liu politely, then smiled at Maqiao and said, "Marquis Wu told me to take some food to the officials from the Ministry of Justice."
Maqiao said unhappily, "Those bastards are ordering you to do things again. Xiao Fan, don't be too honest. Kind people get bullied. Why? "
Yang Fan said with a smile, "Hey! It's not a big deal. I'm young, so it's not a big deal for me to walk a few more steps. "
Steward Liu nodded his head in satisfaction and praised, "Mm! Young man, you're not bad! "
Yang Fan smiled shyly at him, revealing two shallow dimples on her cheeks. "Thank you for your compliment. I'll go now."
"Alright, go ahead. It will be lunch soon. Come to the Five Apricot Pavilion and have lunch with me."
Yang Fan quickly bowed and said, "Manager Xie, I'll be there in a moment!"
Yang Fan bowed to Steward Liu and nodded to Maqiao, indicating that he understood the situation. Then, he walked past them.
Steward Liu narrowed his eyes as he looked at Yang Fan's back. He nodded his head approvingly and said, "This child is really not bad. He has a good temper, is handsome, and is diligent and capable. He's not like other youngsters with bad habits."
Hearing Steward Liu praising his brother, Maqiao said proudly, "I won't hide it from Steward Liu. In our workshop, most of the workers are sneaky and ruffian scoundrels. However, this Beta Persei is an exception. He moved here from the countryside and lives here alone. Yet, he's not infected with bad habits. Usually, he's doted on by the elders in the workshop. Steward Liu, if there's a suitable daughter in your family, haha, Xiao Fan will definitely be a good husband. "
It turned out that because of Tin Aino's' elopement ', this Maqiao couldn't wait to promote Yang Fan to others as soon as he had the chance.
Steward Liu smiled. "He's a good child. Unfortunately, he's a 'bad person' and has no parents or brothers to help him. I do have a little granddaughter, but if she marries this kind of person, won't she be poor as well?"
Steward Liu shook his head and sighed regretfully. He turned around and walked forward.
Because there were many guards placed everywhere in the residence, Lang Zhong's residence had long broken the separation between the inner and outer residences. At this time, the wives of the family did not avoid guests. The barrier between men and women was not as serious as it was in later generations, so breaking the separation between the inner and outer residences was not a big deal.
Compared to the front hall, the Yang family's rear residence had a much richer atmosphere of life. There was a small pavilion here, a clump of flowers and trees there, a winding corridor with a pond, and emerald rockery. It appeared exceptionally elegant.
Beside the pond, there was a small pavilion with five corners. Several officials of the Ministry of Justice were resting in the pavilion. Some of them were sitting with their legs crossed and boasting about their heroic deeds in arresting criminals and robbers. Some of them were looking around, and as long as they saw a servant girl's robe flutter through the rockery and wisteria, they would raise their eyebrows and give a frivolous whistle.
Yang Fan carried the lunch box and hurried into the pavilion. Placing the box on the table, he smiled and said, "Officials, it's time for lunch."
Those who had been talking and looking around all gathered around. When they opened the lunch box, the food was piping hot and the aroma assailed their nostrils, stirring their appetites. Although it was impossible to cook a few dishes and get a pot of wine for them, the food prepared for the officials of the Ministry of Justice was clearly of a higher grade than the food prepared for Marquis Wu and the workers.
A Minister of Justice with a long, thin face and a green mark on his cheek rolled up a steamed cake with meat filling in his hand. He glanced at Yang Fan and curiously asked, "Why are all the servants in your mansion equipped with knives?"
Yang Fan was vigilantly scanning the surroundings of the rear garden. Hearing the inquiry, he hurriedly smiled at the official and said, "You misunderstand. I am a worker of the Xiu wen workshop. I was transferred to the Lang Zhong's residence to help guard the residence."
"Pfft!"
The man couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of pie on the ground. He laughed and said, "I was wondering why the front yard was so noisy. So it turns out that people like you have been transferred here. What can people like you do?"
His expression was full of disdain, but Yang Fan didn't seem to care. He still had a faint smile on his face and replied humbly, "If we are talking about catching thieves and arresting criminals, we, the workers, naturally can't compare to the officials. However, we can still do small things like night patrols and call for people."
The official curled his lips in disdain and looked Yang Fan up and down. He said, "Fine, come over and spar with me, Wang Wulue. Let me see just how capable you are."
Yang Fan was shocked and hurriedly waved his hand. "How can I do that? You are an official of the Ministry of Justice. How can a mere worker compare to you?"
Wang Wulue snorted and said, "It would be strange if you could. Come! I only have one hand, so I'm just trying! "
As Wang Wulue said this, his right hand was still holding the pie. He took a big bite and the meat juices flowed down the corner of his mouth. He only raised his left hand and walked towards Yang Fan step by step. Yang Fan retreated and said, "Officials, please stop. This is Lang Zhong's manor. How can we use force?"
The other patrolmen of the Ministry of Justice saw this and started to jeer, "Why can't we spar? You little brat, you are a man. How can you be so spineless? "
Someone laughed and said, "I see that he is so handsome and his eyes are gentle. He looks like a woman."
Someone else said, "Haha, now that I mention it, I also think so. Most of the women in our Tang dynasty are fierce and bold. Look at him. Not only does he look like a woman, he looks like a docile and obedient Korean woman."
"Hey, I say, why don't you learn a dance from a Korean woman, or walk a few steps like a woman and shake her butt. Then there's no need to compete. Hahaha … "
The officials of the Ministry of Justice laughed impudently. If this was any other time, they would not dare to be so impudent in Yang Langzhong's manor. But now was different. Yang Langzhong's face was so hot that it was scarier than a ghost's. Both of his eyes were said to have been scalded blind. His career as an official had come to an end. This kind of "the tea cools when the person leaves" reaction was the first to show.
No subtlety!
On the other hand, officials, even if they no longer needed you, would not be so quick to act like the tea cools when the person leaves. At the very least, their enthusiasm on the surface would not diminish.
"Alright … alright! Then let's compete … compete! "
Yang Fan had the image of a young man who cared about his face. After being ridiculed, his face turned red. He gathered his courage and forced himself to emphasize, "You said before, only use your left hand!"
Wang Wulue nodded and laughed, "That's right. I only use my left hand and not my right. Haha, come, come!" As he said this, he pretended to take a bite of the steamed pie with contempt.
"Ya!"
Yang Fan used the 'Black Tiger Steals the Heart' to strike Wang Wulue's chest. From the looks of it, he had a bit of a kung fu stance. He must have trained with an amateur boxer for three to five days.
His fist had just reached a foot in front of Wang Wulue when the motionless Wang Wulue's body suddenly exploded. He took a step forward and leaned to the side. His palm struck toward Yang Fan's chest. Yang Fan's' Black Tiger Steals the Heart 'was full of openings. He was hit by Wang Wulue's palm and was forced back three steps.
Yang Fan had not yet stabilized his footing when Wang Wulue shot forward like an arrow. His right foot stuck between Yang Fan's legs and his left hand grabbed the front of Yang Fan's clothes. He twisted his left elbow and raised it with all his strength. He shouted, "Go!"
"Ah …"
Yang Fan's arms and legs flailed as he fell into the pond. With a "bang", water splashed everywhere. The officials inside and outside the pavilion burst into laughter.
"What a good-for-nothing. This kind of trash can only be used as a decoration!"
Wang Wulue took a bite of the steamed biscuit and proudly walked back to the pavilion. Yang Fan did not dare to climb ashore, so he swam to the other side of the pond. Unexpectedly, he used the posture of a dog paddle. The officials from the Ministry of Justice saw this and laughed even harder.
Yang Fan used both his hands and feet to swim to the other side of the pond. He grabbed a rock and was about to climb up when he suddenly heard a clear and melodious child's voice. "Why did they throw you into the water?"
Yang Fan raised his head and saw a pair of silk children's shoes on the rock, a pair of white cloth socks, and a child's skirt embroidered with beads.
Because that person was squatting on the rock garden, one could vaguely see a pair of striped trousers underneath her skirt. Raising her head to look up, she saw a green silk embroidered shirt with small sleeves, with a clip-on collar against a pretty little face. Her hair was combed into two buns with the tips of her hair. It was a little girl with pink and jade-like makeup.
This little girl was about six or seven years old. She looked at him curiously with a pair of lacquered eyes. Because the place where the girl was standing was covered with jagged rocks, it blocked the view from the direction of the pavilion. Therefore, it was not easy to see her from the pavilion.
"Oh, they … were playing with me!"
Yang Fan answered randomly. He wiped the water off his face and rushed up the rock.
The little girl squatted and moved back to make room for him. She wrinkled her nose and said, "You're lying! They were obviously bullying you. "
Yang Fan laughed and squatted on the rock, wringing the water off his clothes. He turned his head and asked, "Little girl, who are you?"
The little girl said quietly, "This is my home. Who do you think I am?"
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