Powerful ministers are husbands

Mrs. Pang thought about it and didn't go to the village for a while, so she agreed to Pang Miao's proposal, and only brought Jinxiu, a maid, to live in Zhuangzi for a few days.

Therefore, on the afternoon of the second day after the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet, several members of the Pang family left the imperial capital in a carriage.

Pangjiazhuangzi is a little far away from the imperial capital, and it takes a day and a half to get there by carriage. It is located in Hanyun Village with beautiful mountains and rivers. It mainly grows rice and fruit trees.At that time, Pang Miao's great-grandfather felt that the environment here was good and the land was fertile, so he bought a lot of fields and built a house for the family to come and have fun when they had nothing to do.

Later, the Pang family gradually declined and sold many properties and fields to make ends meet, but the fields in Hanyun Village were kept until the end.

Now only the steward's family lives in the village, who is responsible for handling the tenants' affairs on weekdays. After collecting the rent every year, the accounts are prepared and sent to Mrs. Pang.

The housekeeper's surname is Tong, who is a distant cousin of Pang Miao's father.After the death of my parents, I have nowhere to go, so I have to come to seek refuge with relatives.Pang Miao's father thought he was really pitiful, and the old steward wanted to return to his hometown for the elderly, so he left him. He thought that he was a relative of his own, so he was safe to use, and he would not treat him badly in terms of wages and benefits.

Tong Guanshi was overjoyed when he saw the Pang family's mother and daughter coming suddenly, and hurriedly called his wife and children to come out to greet and arrange the arrangement.

"You have worked hard these past few years." Mrs. Pang thanked her. After all, they are relatives, so they can't be seen by others.

"Where is it? Madam gave me food, drink, and a place to live. I'm too late to be grateful." Guanshi Tong bowed his body slightly, looking very enthusiastic, "Madam, what do you want to eat tonight? I told my wife to prepare quickly go."

Mrs. Pang looked around at the well-kept courtyard, "Just prepare some fresh melons, fruits and vegetables that are in season, and I will trouble your wife."

"Hey, no trouble, no trouble." Shopkeeper Tong's eyes fell on Pang Miao again, "Oh, I haven't seen you for a few years, and the young lady came out...beautiful. I heard that the young lady married General Cao. It's gratifying. Hey."

Pang Miao smiled reluctantly, because he was worried that Mrs. Cao would send someone to "raid him", so he had to continue disguised as a woman.

Fortunately, like the relatives of the Pang family, they haven't seen each other for several years. After putting on makeup, they can't tell the difference between him and Pang Wenjun.

"I'm going to tell my daughter-in-law a few words, madam, please sit down and rest first." After Mrs. Pang and Pang Miao were arranged thoughtfully and earnestly by Steward Tong, he ran out to make arrangements without stopping for a moment.

"Guan Tong is still capable." Mrs. Pang nodded slowly, stroking the somewhat old wooden table with peace of mind, "Leave this place to him, so that we will not have to worry about food and clothing."

Jinxiu was holding two pieces of baggage, and walked into the room while turning her head, muttering something in a low voice.

"Miss..." She put the bundle on the chair next to Pang Miao, and said in a low voice, "Just now I saw Guanshi Tong hastily lock the door of a yard on the east side, and then ran to the kitchen to look for Mrs. Tong, His sneaky look doesn't look like a good person."

"It's strange." Pang Miao murmured in a low voice.

"Maybe it's something belonging to the Tong family. Is it inconvenient or embarrassing for us to see it?" Mrs. Pang noticed Jinxiu's words and excused the Tong family, "Although they are relatives, they are not of the same clan and surname."

Pang Miao nodded in agreement, "Mother is right. Jinxiu, don't take this matter to heart."

"Oh." Jin Xiu replied without thinking too much.

Pang Miao turned his head to look at his mother, and followed her footsteps to look at the furnishings in the house.The furniture and everything are old things that have been used for about ten years. There are some calligraphy and paintings on the wall, all of which are vivid landscape colors, bringing some vitality to the dull room.

Madam Pang turned her head, and Pang Miao smiled at her.

Tong Niangzi and the mother-in-law in Zhuangzi quickly prepared dinner. In addition to local fresh fruits and vegetables, they also slaughtered chicken and fresh fish.Tong Niangzi's craftsmanship is very good, and the dishes she makes are no worse than those made by the chefs in the big restaurant in the imperial capital.

"Madam and Miss, how long do you plan to stay in Zhuangzi this time?" Guanshi Tong drank two glasses of wine, his cheeks flushed, and he smiled honestly, "I want to change my pattern every day and cook delicious food for you."

"Stay for seven or eight days." Mrs. Pang replied, looking helplessly at Pang Miao, "Oh, Mr. Wen can't stay at her mother's house all the time, it's time to go back to Cao's house."

Pang Miao answered, "Seven or eight days is enough to sort out Zhuangzi's accounts for the past few years."

"Huh?" Guanshi Tong blinked blankly, "Miss wants to check the accounts?!"

"Don't think too much about Guanshi Tong, it's not that we suspect you of tampering." Pang Miao explained gently, trying not to embarrass Guanshi Tong, "The main reason is that my mother is getting old and my brother doesn't care much about family affairs, and he will be an official in the future. Yes, according to his own wishes, he doesn't know when he will be able to marry a sister-in-law. Therefore, I want to take over first and share my mother's worries, so I want to take a look at the accounts of recent years. "

"Oh-oh--" Guanshi Tong nodded repeatedly to express his understanding, "Miss, don't worry, I will send you the accounts of which year you want, and I will send them to you immediately."

Pang Miao smiled, "Trouble Manager Tong."

The dinner ended in a pleasant atmosphere. During the meal, Guanshi Tong had asked his mother-in-law to clean up the two best guest rooms. Mrs. Pang had worked hard for a day and a half, and she was even more sleepy after dinner. Jinxiu took care of her Soon fell asleep.

Pang Miao sat in the room, reading a book by the dim candlelight.

There is a bookshelf in this room. There are many books collected by Tong’s sons and daughters. There are scriptures about children’s love, travel notes recording mountains, rivers and rivers, and court anecdotes that happened hundreds of years ago.

He has never met Guanshi Tong's sons and daughters. He only knows that Dalang Tong is doing business outside and running around.The daughter of the Tong family followed her husband who was a petty official in a county outside of Gyeonggi.The two of them go home to visit their parents throughout the year, at most during Chinese New Year.

Pang Miao was fascinated by the book, and before he knew it, midnight had passed, and the sound of "squeaking" insects came from outside the window, making the night even quieter.

Suddenly, a subtle "click" sound broke the silence, which was very abrupt in the middle of the night.

Pang Miao put down the book, lifted her skirt and lay down on the ground, crept to the window, and looked out through the gap.

Under the silver moonlight, Guanshi Tong stood like a stone sculpture in the center of the yard, with only a pair of eyes turning around in a panic.After a long time, without any movement, he took a cautious step and rushed into the courtyard on the east side.Without unlocking the door, he jumped over the wall nimbly.

After seeing Guanshi Tong for a long time, Pang Miao yawned and crawled back to the bed to undress and sleep.

The next day, Pang Miao was not in a hurry to look at the account book. After breakfast, he accompanied his mother for a walk on the field ridge, and then went to the lake at the foot of the nearby mountain to enjoy the scenery.The lake is rich in fish and shrimp, and villagers often fish and catch shrimp by the lake when they have nothing to do.Rows of willow trees are planted by the lake, and if you sit in the shade of the willows, you can see the lotus leaves in the middle of the lake, which is very pleasing to the eye.

In the evening, Pang Miao walked slowly back to Zhuangzi with his mother. Mrs. Tong had already prepared a delicious dinner.

Under Pang Miao's deliberate attention, he noticed that Guanshi Tong looked at him from time to time. Although he tried his best to conceal it, he could still feel a trace of nervousness.

"Guan Tong, you can't drink too much tonight, and I have to ask you about the accounts tomorrow." Pang Miao said deliberately.

Guanshi Tong nodded his head like a chicken pecking rice, "Miss, just ask."

Pang Miao smiled slightly at his mother who cast doubtful eyes, without saying a word.

At night, Pang Miao still didn't go to bed early, and waited quietly by the window.Sure enough, when it was Zishi, Guanshi Tong sneaked into the courtyard on the east again.This time, he waited patiently.

After half an hour, Guanshi Tong still did not come out.