Zhao Xiu was a little surprised when he heard that it was an old servant: "Didn't they all settle down before?" How can there be? ”

The housekeeper said: "The one who was returned by the Internal Affairs Office was waiting in the house when the house was raided. The family members who have come here now left the house before the raid, so they are not implicated. ”

Zhao Xiu heard that it was a family member who left the house before the raid, so he didn't say anything. Most of the family members who were kicked out of the house before Zhao Jiong lost his title were at odds with the Niu family, and it is very likely that they are more intimate with their room, and it is unknown if the grandmother is willing to take care of it.

Sure enough, Zhang's showed a look of concern: "Which ones are they?" ”

The housekeeper reported the names of the men, and Zhang nodded: "There are a few people who used to be small stewards and purchasers under me, and their character is quite decent, but because of the fat difference, the people under the Niu family are regarded as thorns in the side." When they separated, they didn't follow me, but they escaped a catastrophe. Later, he left the Hou Mansion early, so he didn't have to suffer from the raid. Although it is not easy to make a living outside, it is better than others locked up in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which is a blessing in misfortune. She instructed the housekeeper: "Go and ask them what they have been doing outside for the past few years, and is there any difficulty in running here?" ”

The housekeeper took the order, and Zhao Xiu asked Zhang: "Grandmother is not very confident about them, so she plans to ask clearly before deciding whether to take them back?" ”

Zhang smiled and said, "How could it be? They are all old servants, and since they have the heart to vote, I cannot neglect them. It's just that there are only three masters in the family, our ancestors and grandchildren, how many people can be used to serve? Originally, there were too many male and female servants. Now adding a few more people will inevitably cost too much. If it is among those old servants, it is good. It's just that I rushed to run to them when they were in trouble, and I rewarded them with a few taels of silver to help them get through the difficulties, and still let them go back to live their own lives, wouldn't it be the best of both worlds? If others really want to come back, I won't miss their bowl of rice. ”

After a while, the housekeeper came to report that almost every family had been doing odd jobs or doing small businesses in recent years. Life is not good or bad, and I would rather go to the old master. There is only one family, and it is the man of his family who is capable. I can do carpentry work, do some work at home, or repair houses for others, and I can earn a lot of money. He has already bought a family property of twenty acres of land. Who knew that his mother was sick. The money for medical treatment and medicine was sold, and the twenty acres of land were sold. His wife's illness has not yet recovered, and she has to eat ginseng soup again, which is really unbearable. When Zhang was a housewife in the past, she was a loving and pitiful person. If any of the servants were seriously ill, as long as they were not cheaters, she would order someone to hire a good doctor to cure her, and she didn't care how much money was spent. Therefore, this filial son wanted to take the family back to the old master. I'm going to cure my mother's illness.

When Zhang heard this, he said, "Look at his actions, he is an ambitious person." He was out of the house that year. has been released, and now he is coming back, although it is for the sake of the old lady, he is also a little wronged. Even so, in the newly purchased Zhuangzi of our family, he needs to repair the house and ask him to work with the craftsmen, and his salary will not be less. Since his wife is sick, he should live outside, and I will reward him with the medicine money. ”

The filial son got the medicine money rewarded, and gratefully kowtowed to the Zhang family three times in the outer courtyard, let his wife help the old lady's house, and took his son and an apprentice, under the leadership of the servants of the Zhao family, to Zhuangzi in Xishan. When the old servants saw this, they knew that they had made a wise decision, and they all smiled at the thought that there would be another merciful lord in the future, and that everyone would have a better life.

Even those old servants in the Hou Mansion heard about it, and they were glad in their hearts, and they regretted it a little. If he hadn't turned a blind eye to the Hou Mansion's Xiao Changfang's calculation of the Xiao Erfang's exclusion and calculation, and had publicized the ugly story of Zhao Jiong's family's unfilial piety earlier, maybe the emperor would have been angry, and he would have directly taken away Uncle Jiong's title, and it was unknown if he rewarded it to Second Master Zhuo. In that way, the Hou Mansion will still be the good-natured mother-in-law and daughter-in-law of the Zhang family and the Mi family, and they will not be copied, and everyone will naturally not have to suffer all these years. It's a pity that it's too late to say this now, and the master's family has also separated from them, so they can only put away the careful thoughts in the past and work honestly.

Zhao Xiu discussed with his grandmother Zhang how to settle the family members who voted back. Their ancestors and grandchildren are not slaves and maids, and there are not many people waiting for them around. The old servants returned by the Internal Affairs Office, except for the people who needed to be used in the functions that had to be arranged in the mansion after the Hou Mansion was repaired in the future, many of them were sent to Zhuangzi to work. Now how many more people will be arranged? Although there is a village added to the family, it is just a small village with more than 100 acres of land, and it is enough to put a family member to look at the house and manage the tenants by the way. When the master goes to escape the summer, he will naturally bring the people who serve. So what should the rest of the people do?

At this time, Lu's mother walked into the house with a worried face, looked at Zhang, and stopped talking.

Their mother and daughter love this style, Zhao Xiu smiled when she saw it and asked, "Mom, do you have something to say?" Just say it, don't have any scruples. Zhang also showed a puzzled expression: "What's wrong?" "She just asked Mother Lu to arrange the residence of those old servants, could it be that someone made trouble and embarrassed Mother Lu?

Mother Lu hesitated for a moment, sent the girls away, moved the small pestle and sat down in front of the Zhang family and Zhao Xiu, and then lowered her voice and said: "I went to see those people just now, and asked, it seems that there are still a few families missing, where did they go?" There are a number of people who waited in the former house in our family, except for those who died, followed that side, and were later sold, as well as those who were sent back from the internal affairs office, and those who left to make a living on their own, there are still a few people left. Because there was a distant relative of my man, I asked a lot. I learned that there were still a few families that had voted for other owners, or went to other places to make a living. But there is one of them, but there is something strange. Does the old lady remember Liutai? ”

How can you not remember? Liu Tai used to be in charge of the old county prince's horses, and although the errand was hard, it was also very decent. When the old county saw the spirit of a few horses, he didn't appreciate Liutai. Just because he is so good and low-key, the Niu family left people behind after he became the family, but I don't know why he drove people out again?

Mother Lu smiled bitterly: "That's a long time, does the old lady still remember Gao Cheng?" ”

Zhang was stunned. Zhao Xiu quickly remembered: "Is it the Gao Cheng next to Zhao Jiong?" I remember, he was Jiang's henchman, right? Back then, Zhao Jiong watched his brother's family fall into the water, but he couldn't save him when he saw death. This Gao Cheng's instigation is indispensable. This person naturally had no good death back then, but he didn't expect to die and refused to stop. Zhao Xiu asked Lu's mother: "What does this have to do with Gao Cheng?" ”

Lu's mother said: "Gao Cheng's wife and Liu Tai are cousins of two aunts. After Gao Cheng's death, his wife and children were kicked out of the house, and it was this Liu Tai who took over the help. Liu Tai has his own errands and many rewards, but he has no wife and children, and he has money in hand. In order to treat his cousin, he spent money like water. Some people couldn't see that his errand paid a lot of money, so they sued Niu. The Niu clan threw Liu Tai out of the house. I heard that later Gao Cheng's wife married Liu Tai with her children as a continuation, and even her son changed his surname to Liu. At first, his family lived with other families who were also kicked out by the Niu family, and it didn't take long to hear that he had joined another large family as a servant. I moved away with my family. ”

Zhang couldn't help but sigh. But she didn't understand, Lu's mother suddenly said what Liu Tai was doing? When Mama Lu heard this question, she smiled bitterly again: "The old lady doesn't know that the new owner of Liu Taitou is none other than the Wang family!" ”

Zhang was taken aback, and Zhao Xiu hurriedly asked, "Mom asked clearly?" Is it Wang Dongsheng's family? ”

Mother Lu nodded: "Isn't it his family?" His family's original house was in the capital, and it was purchased with the help of the old county lord. Over the years, it is just to leave a room for the old family to look at the house in Beijing. Coincidentally. This old family and Liu Tai are old acquaintances, and they have inherited his favor in the past. Seeing that he had lost his errand, he thought of a way and sent a letter to General Wang in the northwest. When General Wang lived in the Hou Mansion when he was young, he had dealt with Liu Tai, and they were also familiar with each other, and they admired his ability to regulate horses. No, as soon as he heard that he had left the Hou Mansion, he immediately wrote back and took him to his house. Liutai's family originally went to the northwest to wait, and I heard that it was very valued by the master, and even the two young masters of the Wang family followed him to learn to raise horses. This time General Wang returned to Beijing, and they also returned. He had only visited his old friend two days ago, so the family knew where he was. ”

Zhao Xiu and Zhang looked at each other when they heard this. The latter frowned, thought for a while, and said, "That's it, Liu Tai voted for Wang Dongsheng, and it was also their fate." The Wang family is a gatekeeper, and he needs him to be a good hand at conditioning horses, which is better than him burying it in our house. It's that his wife and children are like that......" she paused, "There are a few ancestors and grandchildren of the Niu family, and now they are going to the Wang family again, I hope they don't find them, and what slander they say in front of the Wang family, and cause Liu Tai to lose his errand." ”

Zhao Xiu didn't know this Liu Tai, and he didn't have any love for him and the former little second room. Moreover, he married Gao Cheng's widow and recognized Gao Cheng's children as children, so Gao Cheng was one of the accomplices who killed Zhao Zhuo and Mi, and she didn't have a good impression at all. She didn't care about what would happen to his children, so she said to Zhang: "The Niu family and Gao Cheng are the same dog, but one is the mastermind and the other is the minions." None of them are good people, what does grandmother think of them? ”

Lu's mother shook her head and said, "If that's just the case, it's fine." But the Gao family may not think so. They only felt that their Lao Tzu was acting on orders, but it didn't end well, the Jiang family refused to be compensated, and the Niu family also drove their family of women and children out of the door, and they must have a grudge in their hearts. The girl knows that Gao Rong, the son of Gao Cheng, has now changed his name to Liu Rong, and as soon as he returned to Beijing, he sent a matchmaker to propose marriage, and the daughter-in-law he said was none other than the sister Qingqi who was the big girl next to the Jiang family. That year, the old lady and the little marquis went to Beijing, and she once came to our house with Aunt Tu. ”

Zhao Xiu looked at her strangely, and only reacted after a while: "I remember...... When Qing Yan was in Fengxian's old house, he confessed to the bad things that the Jiang family had done, but after being escorted back to the capital, he changed his confession and died in prison not long after, right? ”

Zhang's family also slowly came back to his senses: "Her family and friends are either in the hands of the Jiang family, or in the hands of the Niu family, and it is easy for the Jiang family's family to pinch her?" Later, she will change her confession, and that's why she's right? As for her death...... Her sister was able to find our family with confidence, but I was afraid that she hated that side in her heart. ”

Liu Tai's position is unknown for the time being, but he is living a good life, and he was suddenly kicked out, and he must also have a grudge against the Niu family in his heart. His wife, stepson and stepdaughter, and his stepson's new daughter-in-law who is about to marry into the door all have enmity with the Jiang family. His family has now voted for a new master, and life is booming, but the Niu family has moved into his new master's house with his grandchildren......

Zhao Xiu suddenly became interested in what happened in the Wang family's house. (To be continued......)