Chapter 409: The Stone Statue of the Goddess

The last thing Emperor Liang instructed in the letter was to have the book "Collected Annotations of Various Philosophers" printed and widely distributed.

Signed with Concubine Lan’s real name.

After reading it, Yan Xiuyun looked at Empress Dowager Dong with a complicated expression.

"Mother, this..."

If the real name was used as the signature, the world would know that the girl who disguised herself as a man and committed the crime of deceiving the emperor did not die, but was saved by the emperor.

The emperor's action was against the law, and history would be as iron-clad as iron. It would be a stain that Emperor Liang would never be able to erase in his lifetime.

Empress Dowager Dong had a calm expression, as if she had already discussed everything with Emperor Liang.

“The talent of your biological mother, Concubine Lan, is rare in the world and should be remembered by the world.

Your father has already thought about it. The day he passes away will be the day this book is published. Let future generations decide the merits and demerits."

"Does the Queen Mother also agree with this?" Yan Xiuyun asked softly.

Mrs. Dong sat back and nodded slightly.

"I married your father when I was fifteen, and later Concubine Lan entered the palace. We had a deep and loving relationship.

It is impossible to say that I don't feel any sadness when I see this.

However, I am not only your father's wife, but also a descendant of the Dong family and the queen mother of Daliang. I dare not sacrifice my public office for personal reasons.

Concubine Lan was born into an imperial family and has talent for economics. She can not only assist your father in government affairs, but she has never been arrogant because of her favor in the harem. She has always been respectful to me and has never overstepped her boundaries.

Your father wants to publish this book now not out of selfish motives, but to use it to inspire scholars all over the world. As long as there are talented scholars, regardless of gender, they can serve the court.

As for why this time was chosen, maybe you know it in your mind?"

Yan Xiuyun knelt on the ground, suppressing his slightly trembling voice.

"Father has taken the blame for releasing my mother on his own shoulders. Even if the world condemns him, it will not be the fault of this son of yours..."

"It's good that you understand your father's painstaking efforts." Empress Dowager Dong looked at him lovingly.

"Preparations are already underway for the coronation ceremony next month. The court is busy with many things, so you can go and get busy."

"I'll take my leave."

…

Half a month later, hundreds of copies of "Collected Annotations of Various Philosophers" were printed and were about to be distributed to various academies in Daliang.

Along with the uproar caused by this book, there was also a name that was almost forgotten by the world -

Situ Lanzhang.

Along the banks of Ziyan Lake in the capital, there are many elegant pavilions and houses scattered around. Every morning, groups of scholars and literati gather by the lake to recite poems and compose couplets.

At this time, in the attic of Mingxiao Tower by the lake, three young women in blue, wearing silk scarves on their heads and student uniforms, were holding a copy of "Collected Annotations of Various Philosophers" and taking turns reciting.

One of them sighed:

"I never thought that this book was written by a woman. If I pass the imperial examination someday, I will definitely publish a book about it!"

Another woman laughed and said, "Who says she isn't? This Situ Lanzhang is really talented, but I don't know where she is. If I have the chance to meet her, I will definitely take her as my teacher!"

The woman next to her was a little confused when she heard this.

"If we talk about the most talented woman in the world, it must be the number one scholar named Zhu. No matter how talented this Miss Situ is, I have never heard of her name before. It's really strange..."

While the three were discussing, a sneer came from the side. It turned out to be a scholar in his early thirties.

A woman in green clothes bowed to the scholar and said, "Brother, why are you laughing? What can I teach you?"

"I dare not ask for your advice." The scholar returned the greeting perfunctorily.

"You don't even know who this Situ Lanzhang is? Well, considering the age of the three of you, it's understandable that you haven't heard of him.

Let me tell you, this woman committed the crime of deceiving the emperor twenty years ago. It is said that she was imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison and has been executed!

Now the imperial court is actually printing a book about criminals, haha..."

The scholar shook his head, his dissatisfaction evident in his words.

"The crime of deceiving the emperor?" The three women were shocked and asked the reason quickly.

"She disguised herself as a man to take the imperial examination, and even sneaked into the palace examination. Fortunately, she was discovered."

After the scholar finished speaking, he found that the three people's faces not only showed no disgust, but were full of admiration and regret. He left with a sigh of regret, saying "People's hearts are no longer the same as they used to be" and left.

The three women were excitedly discussing the deeds of "Situ Lanzhang" and did not notice that there was a young man in a blue-gray Taoist robe sitting by the window not far from them.

He also wore two black discs over his eyes, framed in gilded bronze.

It was unknown what material the pair of black discs were made of. Behind the discs, a pair of calm eyes were quietly gazing at the lake not far away.

There were many boats coming and going on Ziyan Lake. A boatman was paddling an oar and his eyes suddenly fell on the shimmering water more than ten feet ahead.

Old man Yu, who was rowing the boat, widened his eyes as if he had seen something strange, and called out to everyone in the cabin to come out and see.

Everyone saw clearly that it was a stone statue's head just barely above the water, and their faces changed instantly.

Old man Yu was so frightened that he knelt on the deck, "It's a natural phenomenon, it's a natural phenomenon..."

Soon, the stone statue in the water was salvaged and it turned out to be a statue of a woman!

The woman held the imperial edict in her hands, with a smile on her face, she looked like a scholar.

This stone statue quickly attracted hundreds of nearby people to watch. Everyone was confused as to what was going on, but they only knew that the stone statue suddenly appeared in the lake today, and it must be a revelation from God.

So they all prostrated themselves on the ground, kowtowed and worshipped, calling her "Goddess".

Officials in the capital also learned about this and rushed to the palace to report the good news.

At this time, someone in the crowd recognized it and pointed at the stone statue and said:

"Isn't this the girl who took the imperial examination 20 years ago? Her last name seems to be Situ...

When she went to Beijing to take the imperial examination, she lived in our store!"

"Situ Lanzhang!?" the three women in green shouted.

"Yes, that's her! I didn't expect this girl to be a goddess. No wonder she was able to pass the palace examination... But wasn't she executed?"

A civil servant nearby rolled his eyes.

"Didn't you read the new notice posted by the court? That Situ Lanzhang is not dead at all. She became the concubine of our late emperor and the biological mother of the current emperor!"

"Ah? Could it be that the late emperor rescued someone from prison..." The person who spoke lowered his voice in fear and made a "fishing" gesture with his hand, "But this is against the law--"

"You know nothing! It was our late emperor who recognized the goddess' identity with his keen eyes.

Think about it, if we kill the goddess, won't God punish us, and then won't we ordinary people suffer?"

"That's right, the late emperor is doing this to save the country!

Moreover, the current emperor is the son of the goddess, so he will be blessed by heaven. Our Daliang will surely prosper in the future, and the country will be peaceful and the people will be safe!"

"The late emperor was wise! Let's all come together to pay homage to the goddess and ask her to bless us with good weather and good harvests in the future, without illness or disaster!"

"Yes, come and pay homage to the goddess!"

In the attic of Mingxiao Tower, Zhu Lan lowered his eyes and looked at the crowd who were worshipping the stone statue devoutly by the lake, and couldn't help but smile.

"You had a way to calculate that the water level of Ziyan Lake would drop last night, and you prepared the stone statue of Concubine Lan in advance and put it in.

Prince, oh no, His Majesty owes you a favor this time."

As she spoke, she added tea for herself and Xu Shiming sitting opposite her, and joked:

"I heard from people that when you were in the East Palace, they secretly called you 'Xu Banxian'.

Look at the way you are dressed now, you really look like a demigod who has just come out of the mountains."

"Do what you love." Xu Shiming pushed his sunglasses calmly.

Those two lenses were made of the black crystal bestowed by His Majesty, and there are only two of them in the world.

Xu Shiming stood up, shook off his wide Taoist robe, put his hands behind his back, and looked like a hermit.

"The coronation ceremony is still waiting for me to calculate the date. I am leaving now."

He took two steps and turned back to Zhu Lan and said with a smile:

“By the way, you should go back soon, I heard that the appointment given to you by His Majesty will arrive soon.

Congratulations on your promotion, Zhu Zhongcheng."

(ps. Happy Mid-Autumn Festival, my dears! Amie is on vacation and going out to play, so there is only one chapter today, sorry QAQ)