The emperor was very surprised, "Mu Wanqing? Which Mu Wanqing?"
Hearing the name again, he was surprised that she could get through Wu Dongming's channel and reach Shangting directly.
Even if ordinary people want to offer treasures, they can't find the way.
Wu Dongming lowered his head and answered respectfully, "It was Mu Wanqing, the niece of the former Minister of Revenue. Zeng Yayi, who was in charge of escorting the Mu family, was my childhood playmate."
The emperor looked at him steadily, his expression puzzled. "Do you still remember that little girl?"
Wu Dongming did not dare to slack off at all, "Remember, be bold and smart."
This is his evaluation of Mu Wanqing.
As soon as the emperor extended his hand, Wu Dongming immediately handed the envelope in his hand to the eunuch. The eunuch checked it and found that the seal was intact and there was no sign of having been opened.
He opened the envelope and found, uh, another envelope inside it.
Okay, open it again. This time there is another envelope inside, and it says “Top Secret, To the Emperor Personally”.
In addition, there was a piece of paper full of words.
The eunuch didn't dare to look at it any more, and handed the paper and envelope up. "It's a letter."
The emperor waved his hand and did not take it. "Read it."
The eunuch cleared his throat and began to recite, "Hi, wise and powerful emperor, hello. I am Mu Wanqing, the patriarch of the Mu family. After a series of twists and turns, we finally arrived in Liangcheng smoothly. Thank you for God's protection and the grace of the emperor. I accidentally figured out the cement formula on the way, and I would like to present it to you, my emperor. May our Great Qi prosper for thousands of years and our country be forever stable..."
Everyone in the room was stunned. It was... too straightforward.
But this move hit the emperor's sore spot accurately. After being used to reading boring official documents and letters, he felt quite comfortable when he suddenly heard something so straightforward.
"Not bad, quite sensible."
I've heard a lot of flattery, but never one this vivid and interesting.
"Cement is extremely strong and can withstand the erosion of wind, rain and time. It can be used in road construction, house construction, water conservancy, military defense and other projects. It is a magical material and must not be leaked."
Magical object? The emperor raised his eyebrows, half believing and half doubting. What kind of magical object could a little girl realize?
"I would like to exchange the cement formula for amnesty for my Mu family. Is that possible? Your Majesty, the wise and mighty Emperor, please agree to my request. I don't want to be an exiled prisoner. It's really miserable. Not to mention people, even dogs can step on me..."
"Pfft." The prince couldn't help laughing, "Shaoxuan, is she really that miserable?"
Du Shaoxuan looked very serious. "Well, it was quite tragic. The first time I saw her, a sword was stabbing at Mu Wanqing's heart. If I hadn't shot the sword away with an arrow, she would have died."
The scene was extremely dangerous. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but thinking about it afterwards I felt a little scared.
The prince was silent. Yes, exiled prisoners were lower than civilians, and they were lucky to survive to the place of exile.
The emperor waved his hand and said, "Go on."
"I believe that His Majesty the Emperor, who loves his people like his own children, will definitely reward those who have made contributions, right? I love His Majesty the Emperor very much, too. I love him! I respect him!"
A smile flashed in Du Shaoxuan's eyes. Her handwriting was so vivid and lifelike, as if a real person was standing in front of him.
Even though the emperor had never met Mu Wanqing, he still thought she was an interesting and lovely girl.
Of course, he would never admit that he was coaxed into happiness.
Then, Mu Wanqing changed the subject and said, "I want to confess one thing. Mu Zhongde's family of five did not die. They were taken away by the Prince of Jin. I was as lowly as a blade of grass and was powerless to stop them. I am guilty."
She said so, what else can others say? Why didn't she fight to the end with the Prince of Jin?
If we talk about crime, it must be the Prince of Jin who is guilty. He committed the crime knowingly and bullied others by taking advantage of his power.
The prince smiled slightly, okay, he had just put on an eye drop in a fair and open manner, it seemed that the Prince of Jin had offended her badly.
I have to say that this little girl is really smart. Now that she has confessed, she will be able to get away with it unscathed if anything happens in the future.
"Finally, I sincerely wish His Majesty the Emperor good health and longevity, a happy smile, a long life, and everlasting prosperity for the country and harmony for the family."
The signature is, your most loyal subject, Mu Wanqing.
What she writes is too straightforward and too unconventional, but the emotions are particularly sincere and contagious.
At the very least, the emperor and the prince both have some favorable impression of Mu Wanqing.
Who doesn’t like loyal subjects who regard you as their king and father?
"Prince, what do you think?"
The prince paused for a moment and said, "Let's test the cement formula first. If it's really that good, it's only right to give her a reward."
She was right in saying that the way to govern a country is to reward those who have made contributions and punish those who have committed crimes.
The emperor nodded with satisfaction, "Okay, I'll leave this matter to you."
It is said to be a magical object. No matter whether it is true or false, you have to keep it in your own hands.
The prince responded, "I'll arrange it right away."
He deliberately chose an inconspicuous imperial farm for the experiment and watched it personally, not daring to be careless in the slightest.
Du Shaoxuan was about to leave, but his curiosity was aroused, so he stayed for a few more days.
In order to avoid suspicion, he did not get involved and just waited for the final result.
Royal Manor
The prince has been staying here under the pretext of recuperating from illness, supervising the entire process at all times.
"Your Highness, the Emperor is here."
The prince stood up suddenly and rushed to greet him. "Father, why are you here?"
The emperor traveled incognito, keeping a very low profile. "I heard that the results will be out today, so I came here specially to take a look."
Not only did he come in person, he also brought Du Shaoxuan with him.
The prince led the people to the experimental area and said, "Remove the obstructions on both sides."
Soon, a wide and flat concrete road came into view.
Water it and it will naturally spread around.
When doing an experiment with a horse-drawn carriage, it was found to be stable and flat, with no dents, and it rolled very smoothly, with no issues with its sturdiness.
After doing several experiments back and forth, everyone's eyes became more and more excited.
The emperor stepped on it and found it hard, but smooth. "How much material and human resources did it take? How long did it take?"
The prince was beaming with joy. "It took the four of us half a day to build this road, and the cost is about half a tael. It is 80% cheaper than the blue brick road, saving time and effort."
"Most importantly, it is smoother than blue brick and stone roads, and it won't be muddy on rainy days. I suggest building this kind of cement road on the main roads in the capital."
The palace does not have this need.
The emperor nodded slightly, "Yes."
"What about the newly built houses?"
The prince took them to a newly built brick house and said, "This is it. The adhesive strength is as good as glutinous rice juice."
The city walls are built with glutinous rice juice and soil, and the cost of regular repairs is extremely high.
Food was scarce those days and people couldn't even get enough to eat, let alone build houses with glutinous rice juice.
Once this cement is produced, the cost will be greatly reduced, which is good for both the country and the people.
The prince was very interested in cement, "Father, this material can also be used in flood control dams."
It is not wrong to say that it is a magical object, this thing is indeed very useful.
Du Shaoxuan's eyes rolled, "Your Majesty, I want to apply for Xiliang to use cement. Our city walls are in tatters, but we can't afford to repair them."
The amount of silver allocated each year is not much, not enough to support the army, let alone repair the city walls.
This request was very reasonable. The emperor thought for a moment and said, "Go ask that girl for it."
That girl is very smart. She said she did some experiments and I guess she has already used them herself.
Of course, she would not spread it except for her own use.
Du Shaoxuan happily responded, "Thank you, Your Majesty. Should you give her a favor?"
The emperor paused for a moment and said, "Issue an imperial decree to pardon the Mu family and reward Mu Wanqing with 100 taels of gold. Mu Zhongde and his three generations below will not be included in the special list."
The Mu family was implicated by Mu Zhongde, and many people were innocent. Now that the culprit Mu Zhongde has escaped, Mu Wanqing has made real contributions, so he should be pardoned.
After all, he loves talents and rewards those who have made contributions.
Du Shaoxuan sincerely felt happy for the little girl. She was free! "I thank you on behalf of Mu Wanqing."
He acted so happy that the emperor couldn't help but scrutinize him, "You seem to be particularly good to her."
The boy has reached the age of marriage and is beginning to feel love in his heart. However, his wife can be an innocent civilian woman, and definitely not the once exiled Mu Wanqing.
It’s not that she is a bad person, but her experience of exile is a stain.
Du Shaoxuan said frankly, without hiding anything, "We are friends, I admire her as a person, hey, why is she not a man."
Here it comes again, here it comes again, the prince couldn't help but roll his eyes.
The emperor stared at him for a long time before he was sure that he had no other ideas.
This kid hasn't figured it out yet.
When the imperial edict was issued, the people in the capital were the first to know the news and were a little confused.
What's going on? Is the Mu family going to make a comeback? What's the basis for their comeback?
Who is this Mu Wanqing? How did she receive the emperor's reward?
Everyone dug up the details. Eh, she was Mu Zhongde's niece? Mu Jinyao's cousin? No one had ever heard of this person before, but she suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
But why is Mu Zhongde’s family not on the exemption list?
There are too many questions, and people in the capital are gossiping.
The alleys in the backyard of the Fifth Prince's Mansion are filled with small houses where the servants of the mansion live.
Mu Zhongde and his family were allocated a small courtyard. Although the place was not big, it was stable and they didn't have to wander around.
Mu Jinyao brought Madam Mu into the mansion, and only Madam Mu and Mu Zhongde and his son lived there. They relied on Madam Mu to give them monthly allowance to get by.
Madam Mu only received one or two taels of silver per month, and she gave away half of it. They lived a very tight life. Old Madam Mu was old and sick, and Mu Zhongde's tendons in his hands and feet were cut. They both needed someone to take care of them, but Mu Zifeng and his brother didn't know how to take care of people. They wanted to buy a maid but had no money. What should they do?
When the Mu Zifeng brothers saw that this was not going to work, they decided to marry the servants of the prince's mansion. It didn't matter if she was ugly, as long as she was capable, so that they could temporarily get through the current difficulties.
As for what happens in the future, we’ll talk about it later.
In addition, the whole family hid their identities and did not dare to go out and meet people openly.
However, they could still comfort themselves that at least they did not have to suffer, which was a hundred times better than those exiled tribesmen.
No matter how difficult it is now, it is only temporary. Once Mu Jinyao gets through it, everyone will have a good life.
Unfortunately, an imperial edict completely shattered their dreams.
Mu Zhongde was completely mad, "What's going on? Why didn't they pardon our family? Huh?"
Mu Zifeng and his brothers were also at their wits' end. What on earth were they trying to achieve by betraying the family at all costs?
If I had known this would happen, I would have stayed in the tribe. Now I have been pardoned and become a good citizen.
Ahhhh, I'm going crazy.
Amid the discussion among the crowd, Lord Zeng and his entourage set off in a low-key manner, escorting the imperial edict, to Xiliang to issue it.
By the way, bring your family along.
Xiliang, they are coming! Miss Mu San, they are coming!
At this time, the Mu family, who had not yet received the news of amnesty, were terrified, and the inn where they were staying was surrounded by people.
There was a loud shout outside, "Hand over the murderer Mu Wanqing, otherwise, you will bear the consequences."
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