Chapter 22 Selection

Although Li Qing didn't have a beard, as someone with experience, Princess Anqing could still tell the difference between a eunuch and a man.

At this time, the other princesses also noticed Li Qing's "peculiarity" and couldn't help but look surprised.

Li Qing bowed deeply and said, "Your humble servant pays his respects to Your Highness the Princess."

Your humble servant?

"He is my personal physician." Empress Ma explained, "A few days ago, my illness worsened. If it weren't for him, I might have been buried by now."

Several princesses quickly said, "May Your Majesty be in good health and peace!"

As they spoke, they nodded to Li Qing to express their gratitude briefly.

After that, it was time for the mother and daughters to chat about daily matters. Listening to these trivial things, Li Qing felt extremely bored.

...

"Chang'an, last month, I heard your father praise Ouyang Lun for his capable work. Come to think of it, it's been tough on you two." Empress Ma sighed, "Right after you got married, he took on the task of inspecting the tea-horse trade. In the past two years, you haven't seen each other many times, and you still haven't conceived a child."

"It's all for the court. Your daughter doesn't feel it's tough." Princess Anqing's answer was very official.

Empress Ma smiled bitterly and shook her head, "I'll talk to your father when I get back and ask him to come back and rest for a while. We can find someone else to take over his job..."

"No, that's not possible."

Princess Anqing suddenly sat up from her chair. Then, she realized she had失态 and tried to make up for it, saying, "Your daughter is a woman of the royal family. How could I delay matters of national importance for the sake of personal feelings?

The imperial son-in-law is already proficient in inspecting the tea-horse trade. If we replace him rashly, the new official will surely need a long time to get up to speed.

If I were to ignore national affairs just for my own sake, what would the people of the world think of me?"

Li Qing secretly curled his lips: Women really should study. Look at how she can talk so smoothly. She really seems to be "thinking of the country and the people."

...

As noon approached, Empress Ma left the Princess Mansion in a phoenix carriage, and Li Qing accompanied her.

"Li Qing." Empress Ma lifted the curtain of the carriage and waved, "Come here."

"What orders do you have, Your Majesty?" Li Qing stepped forward.

"Aren't you in charge of the Jinyiwei?" Empress Ma said in a low voice, "Send someone to Bashu to find that Ouyang Lun."

After a pause, she added, "Give him a good warning."

"Ah?"

"Don't make a fuss." Empress Ma glared at him.

"Er... yes." Li Qing lowered his voice and tentatively asked, "Your Majesty, is it about his lifestyle or...?"

"Do I need to spell it out for you?"

Empress Ma was a bit annoyed, "The tea-horse trade involves huge interests. Although Ouyang Lun is a Jinshi and has studied the classics of the sages, he may still act foolishly at times."

"So... what do you want your humble servant to do, Your Majesty?" Li Qing continued to play dumb.

He secretly praised in his heart: Empress Ma may be old, but she's not muddle-headed at all. Princess Anqing's tricks are simply no match for her.

Empress Ma said with hatred, "Let him do his job properly and not be greedy for money. Is this order clear enough?"

Li Qing sighed secretly and asked, "But what if he has already committed a heinous crime?"

What that procuress said about a "terrible big deal" was by no means an empty threat.

"Li Qing." Empress Ma's face turned a little cold. "Accusing a first - rank official without evidence, do you know what the crime is?"

The title of Commandant - in - chief of the Imperial Guards was a vice - first - rank position!

"Your servant knows his crime."

Empress Ma took a breath and didn't answer Li Qing's question. Instead, she said, "Anqing is my youngest daughter."

"Understood!" Li Qing nodded slightly.

...

Li Qing didn't follow into the palace, nor did he go to the Embroidered - uniform Guard Command, but went straight home.

He didn't know how to choose now. From a rational point of view, he should follow the Empress's order and send Liu Qiang and the others to warn Ouyang Lun.

As for how Ouyang Lun was harming the common people, what did it have to do with him?

But he couldn't convince himself to just let Ouyang Lun continue to cause harm when he clearly had the ability to stop it.

After traveling through time for ten years, although he rarely went down the mountain, he still had an understanding of the lives of the common people in this era.

Life was extremely difficult!

The yield of paddy per mu in a season was about 2 - 3 dan. After deducting land rent, taxes, seeds, farming tools, etc., the paddy that could be harvested twice a year could barely yield once.

After threshing, there were only about 260 catties. A young couple could normally cultivate 5 - 6 mu of land. That is to say, after a whole year of hard work, they could only obtain about 1,500 catties.

The whole family's food, clothing, and other expenses all depended on this grain to survive. On average, there were only about 200 catties per person.

When averaged out to each day and each meal, there were only three taels of rice. Children and the elderly could barely have enough to eat, and it was far from enough for young people. They could only work as hard as they could.

Whether it was planting mulberry trees, wheat, or others, when the harvest was converted into grain, it was more or less the same.

Of course, if a family had its own land, or if they were the common people living along the coast, life was still okay. At least they could have enough to eat.

But nearly half of the cultivated land in the Ming Dynasty was firmly controlled by landlords.

It is very appropriate to call young and strong men the mainstays of the family, because if the "mainstays" fell, the whole family would not be able to make a living.

The lives of the common people were already so difficult. If there were huge corrupt officials, no one knew how many people would die.

When in poverty, one should cultivate one's own character; when in power, one should help the world.

This was a saying that his master, Zhang Lata, often said.

Although the master and the apprentice were practicing on the mountain, they were not truly isolated from the world. From time to time, villagers would come up the mountain to ask for medicine. Master Zhang Lata never charged any money. If the villagers could afford it, he would accept some grain; if not, he would treat them for free.

Neither the education he received in his previous life nor the teachings of his master in this life could make Li Qing convince himself to be a pure and sophisticated egoist.

Besides, he was a Thousand - households of the Jinyiwei. It was his duty to check whether the officials of the Ming Dynasty had violated the law, and it was not beyond his scope of power.

The Commandant - in - chief of the Imperial Guards was also an official!

Taking a step back, even if he was regarded as a member of the imperial family, the Jinyiwei still had the right to investigate. It was just that most of the Jinyiwei were reluctant to do so.

After much deliberation, Li Qing slowly said, "The imperial order cannot be violated, but the investigation must still be carried out!"

He knew very well that a warning would be of no use at all. Once a person developed greed, it was impossible to stop.

Having made up his mind, Li Qing got up and went out. He ate a bowl of cold noodles on the street and then went to the yamen.

The Embroidered - uniform Guard Command.

As soon as Li Qing arrived, Liu Qiang presented the information he had gathered.

"Sir, it's all clear. The cousin of that Wang Hai is married to the cousin of the Commandant - in - chief of the Imperial Guards, Ouyang Lun."

"..." Li Qing said speechlessly, "This Wang Hai is really good at taking advantage of relationships. Even such a distant connection has allowed him to live a prosperous life."

"It's not entirely like that. His cousin lost both parents since childhood and was brought up in Wang Hai's family." Liu Qiang explained, and then asked suspiciously, "The matter you want to investigate, couldn't it be related to the imperial son - in - law?"

Li Qing thought to himself: If a cousin's maternal uncle can get such treatment, it can be seen how wealthy this imperial son - in - law himself is.

He asked, "Are you afraid?"

"Is it really related?" Liu Qiang smacked his lips. "I'm not really afraid. Even if members of the imperial family and relatives break the law and fall into our hands, we can still deal with them. It's just..."

"Just that you have some concerns, right?" Li Qing finished his sentence for him.

Liu Qiang scratched his head and forced a smile. "That's exactly the case."

Li Qing took a deep breath and said in a solemn voice, "There's an imperial order. You take fifty shrewd and capable brothers and go to Bashu. Tell that Ouyang Lun to do his job conscientiously and not be greedy for money."

After a pause, he added, "After delivering the oral decree, break up into small groups and thoroughly investigate what Ouyang Lun has done in the past two years. Remember, it must be kept secret. As soon as you get any news, send someone back to tell me immediately. Don't spread it around, not even to the Commander."

With Li Qing's guidance, Liu Qiang indeed misunderstood. He thought that the subsequent instructions were also given by imperial order, and his courage immediately grew. "Yes, this subordinate will follow the order."

"Alright, go and do it as soon as possible. No matter what you find out, don't alert him. Just send the news back truthfully."

"Yes!" Liu Qiang cupped his hands and said, "This subordinate will go and handle it right away."

...

Li Qing sat there in a daze for a while, then went to the back hall to ask Mao Xiang for a copy of the "Laws of the Ming Dynasty" and then went back.

The "Laws of the Ming Dynasty" was formulated by Zhu Yuanzhang. In a sense, the regulations in it were like imperial decrees and must be memorized thoroughly. It might be of great use in the future.

In the evening, Li Qing didn't go to the Drunken Immortal Tower.

However, the back hall of the Drunken Immortal Tower was livelier than ever before, and the guests were in higher spirits than at any other time!