Translator: Dj2203
Editor: Dj2203
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The weather outside the Great Wall was unpredictable, especially at night, so businessmen and travellers basically dared not travel at night. Whether it was the nightly dust storms, the temperature difference between day and night, or the ants, insects and scorpions in the desert, they could all easily take people’s lives.
When Xu Jiao and his companions entered, the tavern was already full of people who were waiting to spend the night here and set off for Beiguan City the next morning.
All eyes in the tavern looked towards Xu Jiao, and they couldn’t help but reveal surprise. However, when they saw the guards approaching from behind Xu Jiao, they swallowed and looked away.
The tavern was already full, and the waiter came forward and asked someone at a table to leave, making room for Xu Jiao.
The person who was chased away from the table by the waiter immediately became angry, and the two sides became hostile.
However, Peng Qinyun signalled Xu Jiao and the guards not to worry about it.
Sure enough, these people were quickly thrown out by the people in the tavern.
There was only one place to stay in the oasis, and everyone had to pass by it. No one wanted to offend the people in the tavern. After the scene just now, the whole tavern was only briefly quiet for a while, but soon it returned to its earlier bustle and noise, with voices of talking, drinking, and shouting everywhere. No one cared about the people who had just been thrown out, as if nothing had happened in the tavern from the beginning.
Xu Jiao took a seat.
Just now at the entrance of the tavern, Xu Jiao noticed that Peng Qinyun gave the waiter one tael and eight cents of silver as a tip. When the waiter took it, he took a closer look at them and then led their camels to the shed in the north.
Later, someone followed them to the tavern. Xu Jiao saw that these people gave more rewards, but the waiter led their camel to the south. After entering the tavern, the waiter did not make room for these people alone, and they squeezed in a corner.
Seeing her like that, these people showed envy to her, but probably because they just saw the person who was kicked out, they didn’t dare to speak.
“What’s so special about this one tael and eight cents?” Xu Jiao asked while scalding the bowl and chopsticks with tea.
The tavern was full of people and no one noticed Xu Jiao using tea water to wash chopsticks.
Xu Jiao had always had this habit, wherever he went.
Use high temperature to kill bacteria or wash away dust and grease.
Amid the noise, Peng Qinyun lowered his voice, “One tael and eight cents is the code word on this road. Long ago, there was no garrison in Beiguan City, and the trade route was not as stable as it is now. It was often hijacked by the Bal people, bandits, and fierce bandits. Over time, everyone learned to stick together, and “1 tael and 8 cents” was chosen as the codeword at that time. After more than a hundred years, now there are garrisons in Beiguan City, and the trade routes are not so chaotic, but “1 tael and 8 cents ” is still passed down. It means that we should not kill our own people.”
Xu Jiao couldn’t help but look at him again.
“What about the camel?” Xu Jiao asked again.
“The camels that are led to the north are not slaughtered, but the camels that are led to the south are slaughtered. When they set out the next day, either the things are gone, the camels are gone, or the people are gone. This is an unwritten rule in the northern frontier. The seats in the tavern are reserved for those who can keep their camels in the north.”
After Peng Qinyun finished speaking, Xu Jiao had an idea in her mind.
She was right to take him out of Fancheng this time, which saved her a lot of trouble.
In such an oasis, the wine shop was an inn. But the wine shop only had more than ten rooms, and most people would stay in the wine shop for a night. Xu Jiao didn’t want to attract attention, so she won’t touch the ten rooms. Anyway, it was just for one night, and she would leave tomorrow morning.
Most of the business travellers nearby also had this mentality. With good wine and delicious food, they could spend most of the night in the tavern itself.
“Have you heard? The right prime minister was dismissed this time because he did not attend court for several days, which angered the emperor.” Someone at the next table happened to mention her.
Xu Jiao’s fingertips paused slightly, and the chopsticks stayed in the air for a short time. Soon, she steadily picked up a piece of red oil pig ear[1] and put it into her mouth calmly.
It was as if they were talking about other people and it had nothing to do with her.
This was just a tavern outside the Great Wall. The emperor was far away and no one would say anything even if they wanted to gossip about the emperor, let alone her.
Xu Jiao took it calmly.
Along the way from the capital to the frontier, some people even said that she was a monster with a bloody mouth. As for being called a treacherous minister, homosexual, someone who disrupted the government, enriched himself, suppressed loyal and good people, etc., she was no longer surprised by them.
Besides, this was not the first time she was dismissed from office.
But the truth was, in the middle of summer, she ate too much ice, and when she got her period, the pain was so severe that she didn’t want to get out of bed. She lay in bed for several days, feeling hopeless, and thought to herself why she had to choose this time to make things difficult for herself, so she simply claimed to be sick and didn’t go to court for several days.
She was really sick!
But she couldn’t let the imperial physician treat her illness!
She did annoy Emperor Yuan at that time, and he asked her to go back and reflect on herself, but in Emperor Yuan’s opinion, she was just angry and so didn’t come to court for several days. With so many eyes watching in the court, Emperor Yuan couldn’t leave it without dismissing her. But she couldn’t tell others that she didn’t want to go to court for a few days every month, as at that time of the month, she ate ice…
After all, the mouth was long in others…
Anyway, the night was long, so she just listened to storytelling in the teahouse outside Beijing to kill time.
She was right next to them, but the people at the next table were totally unaware. “Since the Right Prime Minister left the court, His Majesty has been dissatisfied with everyone. After the Right Prime Minister was dismissed, His Majesty has promoted two right prime ministers in a row, and they have been replaced in less than two months. With the previous Right Prime Minister in place, being a right prime minister is a high-risk job and it’s not easy to do it!”
In Nanshun, the Right Prime Minister referred specifically to Xu Jiao.
Prime Minister was the position.
Xu Jiao let it go in one ear and out the other.
“I heard that Gu Xiangru impeached the Right Prime Minister in front of the emperor in front of all the civil and military officials in the court, saying that the Right Prime Minister abused his power during his tenure, suppressed loyal officials, formed cliques for personal gain, and accepted huge bribes. He was also arrogant and domineering and had the power to cover up everything. He was no longer in the court, but he was still manipulating the imperial examinations behind the scenes, hindering the court from selecting talented people…”
Wow! The whole tavern was filled with sounds of surprise.
“Even daring to impeach the Right Prime Minister. Left Prime Minister Gu must be stupid.”
Xu Jiao picked up the teacup and took a sip. Gu Lingyun was not stupid, he was just confused by anger.
In front of the emperor, he said that she abused her power and formed a clique for personal gain, and also said that she was no longer in the court but was still able to cover up everything – isn’t this equivalent to arguing in front of Emperor Yuan that he was blind, which is equivalent to telling Emperor Yuan that he was incompetent?
Those who were in the position of prime minister were not worthy of this position because they were so impatient.
With Emperor Yuan’s temper, he certainly couldn’t tolerate Gu Lingyun.
Xu Jiao knew what must have happened next.
Sure enough, the man asked again, “Guess what did the emperor do?”
Many people in the tavern gathered around to listen.
What happened last month was still fresh news in the frontier!
Xu Jiao also pricked up her ears.
In the past two months, she and Song Qingyuan (Emperor Yuan) were angry with each other and so she asked people around them not to tell her any news from the court. She only knew that Gu Lingyun had resigned, but no one had ever told her in detail how he resigned.
“The emperor said, what is there to investigate about a clean-handed scholar with only three room shabby house?”
Phew, that’s amazing!
Everyone couldn’t help but laugh out loud, and Gu Xiangru’s face was probably swollen this time.
Xu Jiao had just picked up a piece of red oil pig ear and put it to her lips, how come her three rooms were broken?
It was warm in winter and cool in summer, a paradise on earth, with a private lake at the doorstep and green mountains. Before the time travel, it would have been a top-notch lake view mansion!
It took her a long time to choose the one she chose.
How come in his mouth it became three room dilapidated mansion!
“The Heavenly Family is missing the Right Prime Minister!”
“That’s right, that’s right! Come on, come on, let’s drink. Who cares if he’s the Right Prime Minister or not? Anyway, it’s better not to stay in this tavern!”
Peng Qinyun almost laughed out loud. Xu Jiao glanced at him.
At a glance, “You still want to squat back down?”
“No, no, no, I definitely didn’t mean that! Absolutely not!” Peng Qinyun swallowed nervously.
Only then did Xu Jiao close her eyes.
The border had not been peaceful recently. The troops stationed everywhere were racking their brains to get salaries, and each one was asking for more than the other. Even the biggest treasury could not afford it.
While the emperor was still thinking, she came to Beiguan City first.
To kill a chicken to scare the monkeys, there was a chicken in Beiguan City that opened its mouth the widest and crowed the best to ask for food.
….
As a result, when Xu Jiao showed up at the Beiguan garrison, Cao Fushui looked disgusted and said, “The Right Prime Minister is not in the court anymore, but you are still so concerned about the court affairs and take the trouble to come to the Beiguan garrison?”
Xu Jiao washed her face and took off her gloves as she stepped forward. “I heard that General Cao is asking for more military pay…”
Cao Fushui looked at her angrily, why was she so straightforward!
Xu Jiao sighed, “I think you are missing…”
Cao Fushui, →_→
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