The First Lackey Under The Empress

"You stay hidden in the room, I'll go take a look." Hearing the commotion coming from the direction of the house gate, You Jinhua's face changed. A look of instinctive timidity flashed across her delicate face, which was then replaced by determination.

A woman is inherently weak, but a mother is strong.

"Mother, I'll go with you!" Zhao Pan said anxiously.

Zhang Changji's intrusion with his men had only happened recently, how could she feel at ease letting her mother go out alone while she hid behind?

As she spoke, Zhao Pan didn't bother to dress carefully, hastily putting on her clothes.

She felt under the bedding for the delicate dagger, took her mother's hand, and hurried towards the door.

However, when the mother and daughter arrived in the front yard, they couldn't help but be stunned.

They saw the Zhao family's maids, old women, servants, and doorkeepers all crowded in the front, discussing something as if a major event had occurred.

"The Madam is here!" someone shouted.

Immediately, from the back of the crowd, the Zhao family's old steward ran over, his old face beaming with smiles:

"Madam, Miss, good news, great news..."

The mother and daughter were dumbfounded and hurriedly inquired.

The old steward said excitedly:

"An official from the palace has come to the door, saying that our young master has solved a case and made a contribution, and the Emperor has bestowed a reward."

Made a contribution?

A reward from the palace?

You Jinhua and her daughter were once again dizzy from this news, looking at each other in dismay.

Although Zhao Du'an was rumored to be a scandalous gigolo, this was the first time a reward had been sent to their door in such a proper manner.

At this moment, a white-faced, beardless eunuch holding a duster stepped forward.

Behind him were palace guards, seemingly unloading carts and moving something into the residence.

"This commoner, You Jinhua, greets the Celestial Official!" You Jinhua shuddered and was about to kneel, her slender hand still tugging at her daughter, signaling her to imitate her.

Although she also came from a scholarly family, she had suffered the coldness of human relationships and dared not offend the Celestial Official in the slightest.

"Oh, you mustn't, you mustn't..." The eunuch hurriedly helped her up, not allowing her to kneel, and said with a smile:

"Is this the mother of Zhao, the Envoy? Please don't embarrass this servant."

Zhao Du'an had recently gained the Empress's favor, which was no secret in the palace, so how could he dare to offend her?

You Jinhua became even more bewildered. Which of the people from the palace wasn't arrogant and imposing?

The eunuch's smile made her uneasy.

"May I ask, Celestial Official, what exactly happened?" Zhao Pan asked calmly.

A newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger, and the young girl lacked reverence for authority.

The eunuch flicked his duster and said with a smile:

"This must be Miss Zhao, right? Truly a beauty in the making..."

Accustomed to offering a few compliments, he then explained the details.

After learning that Zhao Du'an had successively arrested the Zhang brothers yesterday and, in conjunction with the Imperial Prison, solved an important case.

The mother and daughter were stunned again.

Young Master... he didn't return home all night, and he went to do such a big thing?

You Jinhua's heart was pounding wildly, filled with both worry for her stepson and joy at his honor.

Zhao Pan's focus, however, fell on the Zhang brothers.

The纨绔 who broke into their home, intending to humiliate her and her mother, was thrown into the Imperial Prison by him?

And the entire family behind them was implicated?

Facing the fate of beheading?

Zhao Pan's dagger fell to the ground with a "clang" sound, and she felt a cloud of gloom dissipate from her heart—she had been secretly worried about Zhang Changji making a comeback.

"Ah, this..." Everyone around looked at the sharp short dagger on the ground, and a silence fell.

"Haha," the eunuch took the lead in breaking the awkwardness:

"Worthy of being a family of military merit, Envoy Zhao is exceptionally brave, and his sister is also a heroine."

Family of military merit... The Zhao family was so embarrassed by the flattery that they almost dug out a three-bedroom apartment from the ground.

Fortunately, the eunuch was quick-witted and immediately waved his hand, ordering people to move in bolts of silk:

"To reward Envoy Zhao, His Majesty has specially bestowed two hundred bolts of tribute Shu brocade."

The Great Yu Dynasty did not have a "Shu Land", but it had Shu County, whose silk and satin production was exquisite, with beautiful patterns and a wide variety of types.

It was the leader of the four famous embroideries in the world, and most of its annual output was consumed by the imperial family.

A small portion flowed into the folk, and the price was extremely expensive.

You Jinhua was fortunate enough to have seen a noblewoman wearing Shu brocade clothes, but she never dared to hope that she could own them.

But at this moment, there were actually two hundred bolts of such good material... You Jinhua couldn't take her eyes off the exquisite silk fabrics that were being delivered in one after another.

Zhao Pan was not much better than her mother, her autumn water-like eyes stuck to them, unable to move.

They didn't even notice when the group of Celestial Officials said goodbye and left.

"Mother, don't look, we can't possibly use them anyway," Zhao Pan said calmly, watching the last batch of Shu brocade being delivered into the room.

You Jinhua also woke up from her joy, her beautiful eyes dimming.

That's right, Zhao Du'an wouldn't even give enough money for household expenses, so these good materials were destined to be out of their reach.

Hearing this, she forced a smile and said: "It's still for the family, and we won't lack material to make clothes for your elder brother in the future."

All the good things in the Zhao family were primarily supplied to Zhao Du'an, which was an unwritten family rule.

The servants knew this well and expressed sympathy for the mistress's plight, so they silently went about their work, and the joyful atmosphere in the air gradually dissipated.

"Young Master is back!" the doorkeeper suddenly shouted.

Then, Zhao Du'an was seen walking in alone, looking around at everyone, and frowning:

"What are you all doing standing here? Is lunch ready?"

... ...

Inner hall.

The Zhao family of three was sitting around a round table for a meal.

Since the day Zhao Du'an ordered the mother and daughter to sit at the table together, they had been eating together whenever he was at home.

The table had six dishes and one soup, all vegetarian.

"No meat?" Zhao Du'an pinched his chopsticks, his brows furrowed.

You Jinhua carefully explained:

"There are only a few coins left in the family's account for buying vegetables, and we really can't afford meat."

The plump and beautiful woman's voice became lower and lower, and panic appeared in her eyes, fearing that Zhao Du'an would hit someone again.

"Is that so?" The expected rage did not come. Zhao Du'an's expression was calm. He reached into his arms and took out a stack of silver notes, pushing them to his stepmother:

"I've been busy outside these past few days and forgot. Take these."

A full thousand taels of silver notes.

You Jinhua was stunned, staring blankly at the large sum of money in front of her.

From the day she was born until now, she had never controlled such a huge sum of money.

"Household expenses... don't need this much..." You Jinhua was certain that her stepson had taken the wrong amount and hurriedly pushed it back.

Zhao Du'an scooped a mouthful of white rice and said:

"I don't remember the trivial matters of the family. Giving it every month is too troublesome. Put these in your hands. You don't have to report to me about the family's food, drink, and expenses in the future. I'm too lazy to listen."

Give it all to me... and I don't have to report the details of the expenses... You Jinhua suspected that she had heard wrong.

You're giving me the household expenses for the next fifty years in one go... Zhao Pan also looked over suspiciously.

And Zhao Du'an's next words once again severely impacted the mother and daughter's old impressions.

"I will inevitably entertain friends at home in the future. You are dressed too shabbily, which is a disgrace to my face. Choose some of the silk fabrics bestowed by the palace today and make at least five new sets of clothes each. The cost of making the clothes will come from the account. Do you understand?"

Zhao Du'an said while eating.

Finding that there was no response for a long time, he couldn't help but look at the two in confusion.

He saw the mother and daughter holding their bowls, the chopsticks in their hands frozen in the air at the same time, already stunned.

Five new sets of clothes each... a thousand taels of household money...

The Shu brocade bestowed by the palace was really for them to use...

"Is there a problem?" Zhao Du'an frowned.

The plump and beautiful stepmother tilted her head, revealing her slender, white, and delicate swan neck. You Jinhua quickly wiped her eyes, as if she was crying.

Although still somewhat thin, Zhao Pan's appearance had become as pure as a lotus flower, her eyes full of disbelief:

Has this wolf changed his nature?

... ...

Tomorrow is Tuesday, PK data, please help to open tomorrow's update, thank you.