Chapter 605 One by one, they were promoted.
Eunuch Ming flicked his whisk.
Even the Emperor couldn't figure out the He family's affairs, so it's best for a mere eunuch like him not to get involved.
He coughed and said, "Young Master He, you're from Sui'an. We've come here on an imperial mission. No matter what happens, we must first complete the Emperor's orders. Isn't that the right thing to do?"
Before He Ling could say anything, Magistrate Shen stepped forward and said, "Then, Eunuch Ming, please get down to business."
He knew all too well why Eunuch Ming had come to Dahe Village. It must be to promote Sui'an people. The higher Sui'an people's status was, the more confident they would become. He figured that Young Master He wouldn't dare to cause any more trouble.
Eunuch Ming nodded and raised his hand. The little eunuch behind him immediately placed the yellow imperial edict in his hand.
He cleared his throat and said, "Zhao Chengshi, a native of Sui'an, receive the imperial decree!"
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone in Dahe Village knelt down as if they knew what was going on. A large group of them knelt down in unison. Prefect Zhu and Magistrate Shen also knelt down. Only He Ling remained standing.
He was so angry he was practically fuming. This wretched woman got a promotion, and he actually had to kneel down? This was an utter disgrace!
But he dared not defy imperial authority, so he lifted his robes and reluctantly knelt down.
"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Since being granted the title, the resident of Sui'an has been devoted to the common people, fulfilling his duties in his post, serving the court, and working for the well-being of the people. His talents have long surpassed those of a sixth-rank resident of Sui'an… He is hereby promoted to the rank of fourth-rank resident of Sui'an, and is hereby granted a thousand taels of gold, a thousand bolts of brocade… and a seal of a fourth-rank resident of Sui'an… So be it!"
After the imperial edict was read, all those kneeling were in disbelief.
Everyone knew that this imperial edict was for a promotion, but no one expected that he would be promoted directly from the sixth rank to the fourth rank. This leap was astonishing.
He Ling clenched his fists tightly. He had just looked down on this lowly woman for being only a sixth-rank official, but in the blink of an eye, she had become a fourth-rank lady-in-waiting, and with the added position of a sixth-rank official in the Court of State Ceremonies, her status might not be lower than his, a third-rank official...
He was too eager to catch He Xiao, so he took the wrong path and ended up failing in Dahe Village today... But there's always tomorrow.
"Your Majesty, I accept the decree! Long live the Emperor!"
Cheng Wanwan was overjoyed and respectfully accepted the imperial edict with both hands raised above her head.
She truly hadn't expected the Emperor to arrange such a surprise for her... He had already written an imperial edict promoting her, yet when she went to ask for her reward, he generously bestowed upon her a yellow riding jacket. This Emperor was truly generous; she didn't mind dedicating more of her light and heat to the Great Yu Dynasty!
Eunuch Ming smiled and asked, "Is Lady Sui's eldest son, Zhao Jingxing, here?"
When he mentioned Zhao Jingxing, Cheng Wanwan didn't immediately understand, because the eldest son had always been called Dashan in the village and had never had the chance to use the name Zhao Jingxing.
Zhao Dashan immediately raised his head: "This humble subject is here."
Eunuch Ming raised his hand again, and the little eunuch behind him placed another imperial edict in his hand.
"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Zhao Jingxing, a native of Dahe Village in Ping'an County, is well-versed in the properties of cotton and has helped promote its use, thus relieving the people of Dayu Dynasty of the suffering of winter cold... I have heard that Zhao Jingxing is of honest character and skilled in agriculture, and therefore hereby exceptionally appoints him as a seventh-rank official in charge of cotton, and bestows upon him official robes and hat. This is the imperial decree!"
Zhao Dashan suddenly looked up.
His lips were parted slightly, and he even raised his hand to rub his ears.
He thought he had heard it wrong.
Eunuch Ming smiled and said, "Zhao Lingshi, what are you waiting for? Accept the imperial decree."
"I...I..." Zhao Dashan stammered, "I don't know anything, I'm not qualified to be the cotton-managing official..."
"What nonsense are you spouting, child!" Old Mrs. Zhao slapped her eldest grandson on the back of the head. "In the entire Huzhou, you're the only one who grows cotton the best and has the highest yield per mu. If you can't take responsibility for that, then who can?"
As she spoke, she looked at Grandpa Ming and said, "We villagers are so unsophisticated that we've made a fool of ourselves in front of you, Grandpa."
Zhao Dashan glanced at his mother, and seeing her nod, he crawled over on his knees, respectfully accepting the imperial edict, his head banging loudly on the ground: "Thank you, Your Majesty! Thank you, Eunuch Ming! Long live the Emperor!"
A smile appeared on Cheng Wanwan's lips. This emperor was more generous than she had imagined.
Although the Cotton Keeper was just a minor seventh-rank official, he was still an official, and his family now had three officials of rank: she was a fourth-rank Lady Gong, the deceased Zhao Youjin was a seventh-rank Guard, and Zhao Dashan was a seventh-rank Cotton Keeper. That was enough to support a family... It should be much easier for Si Dan to enter officialdom in the future.
Cheng Wanwan thought that was the end of it, but to her surprise, Eunuch Ming spoke again: "Shen Dongming, the magistrate of Ping'an County, receive the imperial decree."
Magistrate Shen knelt in the crowd, a wide smile on his face. He was happy for Cheng Wanwan... He thought the matter was over, but he didn't expect his name to be called.
He shouted, "Your humble servant is here!"
"...Shen Dongming has served as the magistrate of Ping'an County for more than ten years. Although he has not achieved any outstanding political achievements, he has not been corrupt or taken bribes, nor has he disregarded human life. The people of Ping'an County live and work in peace and contentment, which can be considered a merit...In the past two years, the county has achieved outstanding political achievements, from the development of ratooning rice to the handling of displaced people, to the discovery of coal mines...and now to water-powered windmills and threshing machines...Under Shen Dongming's governance, the people are at peace and the administration is clean and efficient. He is hereby promoted to the rank of Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, a fifth-rank official, and is to go to the capital to take up his post as soon as possible after the new magistrate of Ping'an County arrives. This is the imperial decree!"
Shen Dongming was stunned.
He was promoted two ranks from the seventh rank to become a fifth-rank official!
This "Yuanwailang" is not the same as that "Yuanwailang." One type is a merchant who buys an official position and becomes a nominal, idle "Yuanwailang," while the other type is an "Yuanwailang" in one of the Six Ministries, holding an important position in the court and belonging to the emperor's close ministers.
The typical career path for a county magistrate is to become a local official, then serve as an inspector for three years, and if the opportunity is good, he can be promoted to prefect. After serving in this position for about ten years, he may be promoted to the provincial level. Some county magistrates never get promoted to the provincial level in their entire lives, let alone become officials in the capital.
This was not just a promotion of two ranks, but a breakthrough in the previous promotion path for county magistrates; it was an immense imperial favor.
"Your Majesty, I thank you. I will certainly live up to your trust and dedicate myself to helping you solve your problems and doing as much as I can for the Great Yu Dynasty..."
The eunuch Ming closed the imperial edict and placed it in Shen Dongming's hand, smiling as he said, "The imperial edict has been read. Everyone, please stand up."
The villagers were incredibly excited, huddled together and chattering incessantly.
"My goodness, Aunt Dashan is now a fourth-rank lady! My goodness, that's really scary."
"It's normal for Dashan's mother to be promoted. The key thing is that Dashan's son has also become an official. I never thought that growing cotton well could lead to an official position. I've broadened my horizons."
"What do you know? This official position was given to Dashan by the Emperor because of Dashan's mother."
"Da Shan got his position by virtue of his mother, but our county magistrate got promoted based on his own abilities. Over the years, Ping'an County has never had a wrongful conviction or a case, nor has it ever been subject to exorbitant taxes. In my opinion, the county magistrate should have been promoted long ago, but he has waited until now."
"Lord Shen will surely rise higher in the future. I'm truly happy for Lord Shen..."
Suddenly, Eunuch Ming slapped his forehead: "That's right, is your village head here? The Emperor asked us to deliver a message."
The village head immediately squeezed out from the crowd, looking extremely apprehensive: "This humble one is the village head of Dahe Village..."
"His Majesty said that Zhao Lizheng has done a good job in governing Dahe Village and deserves praise. If Zhao Lizheng can pass the county's assessment, he can be promoted to a ninth-rank county magistrate and be in charge of Ping'an County's affairs." Eunuch Ming said with a smile, "This is also because His Majesty heard that Dahe Village is going to be changed into Dahe Town and needs someone familiar with the village to govern it, so he specially gave you an opportunity. You must cherish it."
The village head was dumbfounded.
A ninth-rank county magistrate!
Good heavens, he actually got promoted! Is it because so many people got promoted today that he's just daydreaming about being promoted?
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