"Your Highness, if I am not mistaken, this imperial edict should be for me, right?"
Xie Yuan couldn't help but smile when he saw Cui Boyong kneeling upright on the ground.
She mimicked Helian Jue's manner and asked a question jokingly.
Helian Jue nodded, "Yes! Your curved plow is a divine instrument that benefits the country and its people, and it deserves to be rewarded!"
Xie Yuan felt a little embarrassed, because the curved plow was not her invention, but rather the crystallization of the collective wisdom of the working people.
She was merely a "transporter" of technology; her contribution was that farmers were able to use curved plows hundreds of years earlier.
From this perspective, it's not unreasonable for her to receive a reward.
"It's just that Prefect Cui is 'pitiful'!"
I knelt down for nothing.
Xie Yuan composed himself and refocused his attention on the matter at hand.
In the Great Zhou Dynasty, the hierarchical relationship between the emperor and his subjects was far less distorted than it had been during the Qing Dynasty.
Unless it is a very formal occasion, even when attending court, subjects do not need to kneel before the emperor.
Receiving an imperial edict is a very formal occasion.
The problem is that this imperial edict was not for Cui Boyong, but for Princess Xie, the wife of the King of Yue.
The messenger, Eunuch Feng, was clearly enraged by the Cui family's unruly servants, so he deliberately misled the recipient of the decree, causing Cui Boyong to misunderstand and kneel down!
Cui Boyong actually knelt down, and the surrounding guests also bowed in greeting, while the servants were so frightened that they prostrated themselves on the ground, trembling with fear.
At this moment, Cui Boyong's wife, Zheng, along with their children and other family members, also rushed out.
They knelt together behind Cui Boyong to receive the imperial edict!
A large group of people knelt down, taking up a third of the huge alley... Seeing this scene with his own eyes, Eunuch Feng's mood instantly improved.
"Where is Princess Xie, the Princess Consort of Yue? A decree has been issued!"
Pretending not to notice Cui Boyong's "misunderstanding," Eunuch Feng continued shouting at the top of his lungs.
Cui Boyong suddenly raised his head and stared intently at Eunuch Feng.
If looks could kill, Eunuch Feng would probably be torn to pieces by Cui Boyong.
What a eunuch! How dare he try to fool me?
Cui Boyong wasn't stupid; after a moment's thought, he understood Eunuch Feng's scheme.
However, although Eunuch Feng was of lowly status, he was an angel who delivered imperial decrees, so no matter how much Cui Boyong hated him, he could only suppress it in his heart.
He lowered his head again, concealing the resentment and murderous intent in his eyes.
"This humble servant, Xie, respectfully welcomes the imperial edict!"
Xie Yuan knew she couldn't stay in the oxcart watching the commotion any longer, so she slowly got off, her demeanor dignified.
Upon hearing the sound, Cui Boyong's wife, Madam Zheng, instinctively looked up.
Xie Yuan came to the front of the line and knelt down in front of Cui Boyong and his wife.
Madam Zheng clenched her fists; she was the true First Lady of Yuezhou.
She had made arrangements long ago, intending to thoroughly suppress Xie's arrogance at today's birthday banquet.
She wanted to let Madam Xie know that in the circle of noblewomen in Yuezhou, she, Madam Zheng, was the boss.
Madam Zheng's actions were not only due to her disregard for the Prince of Yue's residence, but also because she acted in accordance with propriety and etiquette.
Cui Boyong was a prefect, a fourth-rank official.
Lady Zheng's status rose with her husband's influence; thanks to Cui Boyong, she obtained a fourth-rank imperial title.
As for Xie Yuan, although she was a princess, she was not highly regarded when she married Helian Jin.
Whether the Emperor and Empress forgot or did it intentionally, after Xie Yuan married into the family, they did not give her the title of Princess Consort, nor did they register her in the imperial genealogy!
Therefore, Xie Yuan was just a figurehead princess, an unregistered person not recognized by the royal family!
Faced with such a Yue princess, Lady Zheng, who considered herself a noblewoman, was naturally very confident.
However, because of an imperial edict and because of a heartless eunuch, Madam Zheng knelt behind Xie Yuan.
Madam Zheng looked up and could only see Xie Yuan's back. Her resentment grew stronger.
"You are from the Xie family?"
Eunuch Feng dismounted from his horse, took out the imperial edict from the box, and stood solemnly at the front.
"This humble servant, Xie Yuan, respectfully welcomes the imperial decree!"
Xie Yuanlang answered in a clear voice, his expression calm.
Helian Jue leaned out of the carriage window and coldly cursed, "You dog slave, you haven't seen my princess before, but don't you recognize me?"
Upon hearing that familiar voice, Eunuch Feng instinctively felt a chill run down his spine.
There was no way around it; the deposed crown prince was a demon king in the palace back then.
Those eunuchs and palace maids who offended him all met with bad ends.
"This servant greets Your Highness!"
Although she knew that Helian Jue had been crippled, the psychological trauma that had formed over the years was not so easy to overcome.
With a trembling voice, Eunuch Feng disregarded the fact that he still had the imperial edict in his hand and knelt down on the ground with a thud, kowtowing repeatedly to Helian Jue.
"snort!"
Helian Jue snorted coldly, "Enough with the formalities! The important thing is to deliver the imperial decree!"
"Yes! Yes, yes!"
Grandpa Feng agreed repeatedly, and it took him a while to get up.
When he stood before the crowd again, Eunuch Feng was no longer as arrogant as before.
With a fawning smile, he said, "This must be Princess Xie! Ah, as expected of a noble lady from a prominent family, intelligent, virtuous, and with the world in her heart."
After the flattery was finished, Eunuch Feng began to read the imperial edict.
The imperial edict was written in standard parallel prose, full of flowery and superfluous words, but it had only one main point—
Xie Yuanjin was rewarded for his meritorious service in presenting the "Yuande Plow" and was specially granted the title of First-Rank Princess Consort, along with a reward of gold and silk.
"Yuan De Li? What is that?"
Cui Boyong thought he knew everything about the Yue Prince's Mansion, but he never expected that Xie Shi had secretly made a treasure that would earn the emperor a great reward.
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