Chapter 362 Presenting a plaque, Ning Yuanze announced the establishment of Yingfeng Town
"Your Excellency the Prime Minister is mistaken. In our dynasty, only the mother and wife of a minister are eligible to be promoted to the rank of Third Rank Lady."
"Even if Xiao Yiren made some contributions, she would still be far from reaching this level, right?"
"In my humble opinion, it would be most appropriate to promote her to the rank of Sixth Rank Consort."
"I second the motion."
"I second the motion."
"I do think that the sixth rank is a bit low. The printing technology that Concubine Xiao presented is beneficial to the country and the people. It would be fine if you didn't let her serve as an official, but why are you so fussy about conferring an imperial edict?"
"Mrs. Xiao Yi has made many contributions. I believe she should be promoted to the rank of Fifth Rank Envoy. We must not let her down."
"I also think that the fifth rank is more suitable. Don't forget that the soldiers of Beizhou still rely on the potatoes contributed by Xiao Yiren to survive."
“…”
Seeing that another quarrel was about to break out, the emperor was already getting impatient.
"You're so fussy about an imperial edict. If this gets out, the people will think our court is suppressing meritorious officials."
"Xiao Ying has made numerous contributions, and the printing technology he presented this time is also beneficial to the country and the people. He is more than worthy of being promoted to the fifth rank."
"Propagate my decree: confer Xiao Ying the title of Fifth Rank Envoy!"
"Two boxes each of pearls and gemstones, four pairs of jade ornaments, four pairs of jade ruyi, two paintings and calligraphy by famous artists, two sets of the four treasures of the study, and twenty-four items of pearl, jade, bracelets, and jade ornaments."
"Five hundred taels of gold, ten thousand taels of silver, one hundred rolls of fine silk, one thousand acres of fertile land, and twenty slaves."
"I remember that I had already conferred a posthumous title on her late husband last time. This time, I will grant her eldest son the idle position of a seventh-rank court attendant."
This reward was extremely generous, and many ministers were surprised.
But the emperor's words were already spoken, and they could not refute them just for a mere reward.
I could only comfort myself in my heart that she was just a woman.
Even if you receive a lot of rewards, you still can't enter the officialdom, right?
As long as the emperor doesn't grant her an official position, he can compensate her in other ways.
As for granting Xiao Ying's eldest son the title of seventh-rank court attendant, it was just a sinecure.
There is no right to say anything, and you don’t even have to go on duty, it’s just a good reputation.
"Your Majesty is wise!"
Little did he know that the emperor had never thought of letting Xiao Ying become an official from the beginning.
These ministers did not know Xiao Ying's background, but he knew very well that he was an extremely powerful cultivator.
How could such a person be confined to the court?
He was secretly happy that they were willing to offer these things.
The reason for saying that was to shut these ministers up so that they would not be able to refute the imperial edict promoting Xiao Ying to the fifth rank.
He was promoted two levels at once to show his sincerity. The Yu family intended to win over such a cultivator.
Prime Minister Ning was also very satisfied. He had proposed the promotion to the third rank at the beginning for this purpose.
It is already very good that Xiao Ying was promoted to the fifth rank this time.
Even if Xiao Ying comes to Shangjing in the future, he will not be looked down upon because of his identity.
Zhou Hong, Qi Yuping and others have become somewhat numb, and even feel powerless.
In just over half a year, they could only watch the woman rise step by step.
From an ordinary village woman, she suddenly grew into a fifth-rank official.
Zhou Hong laughed at himself. If it were any higher, he would be the same as him.
He has been in the officialdom for so many years and has people supporting him, but now he is only a fourth-rank official.
Of course, his fourth-rank rank means real power, while Xiao Ying only has a title.
This was the only way he could comfort himself.
Qi Yuping felt even worse. In terms of rank alone, Xiao Ying was already the same as Chen Ning.
He suddenly felt a little disgusted. Did he make a mistake in the first place?
This Chen Ning is so useless. It took him so many years to reach the fifth rank, and he also made a lot of efforts in it.
No matter what these people think, Xiao Ying's promotion to the fifth rank is a foregone conclusion, and all that is left is for the team to go and announce the decree.
Xiao Ying naturally didn't know about these things.
Early in the morning, Yingfeng New Village became bustling with activity.
Both the former villagers and the newly resettled refugees were all delighted.
They all knew that the county magistrate would come today and would officially announce the establishment of Yingfeng Town!
Most of these refugees came from poor backgrounds and rarely even went to town in their entire lives.
I never thought that I would have the honor to become a townsperson now. I feel so happy as if it were a dream.
Although one has to own property in the town to become a townsperson, Xiao Yiren said that all the houses in the town are sold at cost price.
If they work hard to earn money, they might be able to buy one, especially resettlement housing.
Although the resettlement houses are simple and small, they are also made of cement. It is said that the cheapest one only costs more than ten taels of silver.
They can now earn 30 wen a day at work, which is 900 wen a month.
It will take at least half a year for Yingfeng Town to be fully built, and by then we can save at least five or six taels of silver.
If two people in the family work, maybe they can save enough money for a house!
The more everyone thought about it, the happier they became. They felt like they had something to strive for every day and were full of energy.
As everyone was eagerly waiting, Ning Yuanze's carriage finally appeared in sight, and the crowd suddenly became even more excited.
"Be quiet! Be quiet!"
"The county magistrate has arrived!"
"Xiao Yiren is here!"
With a few loud shouts, Ning Yuanze and Xiao Ying finally came together and came into everyone's sight.
Ning Yuanze smiled and said, "Every time I come here, everyone is so enthusiastic. It's very different from other places in Yun'an County."
Although the people in other places were also enthusiastic, they still lacked some energy.
He wished that all the people were like the people in Yingfeng Village.
Xiao Ying smiled and said, "This is all because of your good governance, the county magistrate. That's why everyone loves you."
"My cousin, what you said makes me ashamed." Ning Yuanze laughed: "It's obvious that they love my cousin."
The two of them joked with each other.
In just ten days, a huge pit appeared in the originally barren land, and a huge building rose from the ground in the middle.
It’s the Central Building Department Store!
The cross streets around the department store have also been demarcated, and several buildings have been built on the east and west streets, which look like shops.
Ning Yuanze was quite surprised. It really is true that there is strength in numbers. The speed was too fast.
"It's already taking shape. It seems I've arrived just in time."
After saying that, Ning Yuanze no longer wasted time.
After exchanging pleasantries with everyone, he quickly got down to business.
"I'm here today to celebrate the establishment of Yingfeng Town."
"Yingfeng Town originated from Yingfeng Village. It was Xiao Yiren who took in over a thousand refugees and expanded Yingfeng Village into Yingfeng Town."
"Xiao Yiren has made great contributions to the establishment of this town!"
"Therefore, I hope everyone will remember Xiao Yiren's contribution!"
Upon hearing this, everyone present immediately cheered and echoed, praising Xiao Ying loudly.
Both the original villagers of Yingfeng Village and the people who came later were extremely grateful.
Hearing the praises, Xiao Ying felt a little embarrassed, but her heart was filled with warmth.
"It's popular."
In the corner, Nangong Jingyan laughed.
He is indeed the man of destiny predicted by the master.
We have to hurry up and try to bring people to Jingguo as soon as possible.
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