Chapter 2774 Palace Banquet
Bai Shan and Man Bao kept the secret very secret. No one told their family that Bai Shan was injured, not even the two guards and Daji who followed Bai Shan.
Of course, they didn't say it because Bai Shan told them to.
The current Bai Shan is no longer the Bai Shan of the past.
In the past, they would naturally listen to the old lady, but now Bai Shan has established a family and is the head of the Bai family, so they naturally listen to Bai Shan, even though they were sent by the old lady to take care of Bai Shan.
Daji was originally going to tell the old lady, but thinking that the young master's injury was a bit strange, he stopped talking.
In the evening, the family sat together. Old Zhou was like listening to a foreign language. It took him a while to find his voice. "Does this mean that Manbao is now the county lord?"
Manbao nodded.
Old Zhou swallowed his saliva. He didn’t know much about the village chief, but he knew about the county chief. According to legend, wasn’t the county chief the prince’s daughter?
"Can a daughter from outside really be named a county lady?"
Manbao pointed at himself and said, "Dad, just look at me. I can do it."
She said, "Actually, I don't really want to be named a County Lady. It would be much better to be named a County Earl. The title of County Lady cannot be hereditary, but the title of County Earl can be hereditary."
Although it was a downgrade to inherit the title, it was better than her own generation ending in death.
Everyone looked at Bai Shan with bright eyes after hearing this.
Madam Liu, however, curiously asked Bai Shan, "You are just a secretary, responsible for organizing government affairs and drafting imperial edicts for His Majesty. How could you have achieved such great merit and been awarded the title of Earl?"
As the saying goes, titles reflect merits and positions reflect abilities. Even if Bai Shan is promoted, it should be a promotion to a higher official position to highlight his abilities. Only those who have made merits, and great merits, can be conferred the title of earl.
Bai Shan said, "I fought in the battlefield several times. The last time, I gave timely warning and saved General Qibi and two thousand soldiers. That's why His Majesty gave me the higher title."
Madam Liu looked him up and down suspiciously, "Really?"
Bai Shan nodded seriously, "It couldn't be more true. If you don't believe me, ask Daji."
Old Lady Liu glanced at Daji and didn't ask him any questions. The child had grown up and it would not be good for her to ask too many details.
Madam Liu read the imperial edict awarding the two people again and again, and finally became happy. She asked with a raised lip, "This is a great event. Do you want to invite guests?"
Bai Shan and Man Bao exchanged a glance and shook their heads in refusal, saying, "His Majesty has bestowed many honors on many people this time. This is just a small promotion for us. If we were to host a banquet for guests, we wouldn't know how long it would take. It would be better for us to just invite a few close relatives for a meal."
Mrs. Liu thought about it and decided that it would be better to keep a low profile.
Their family has appointed two people this time, and both Manbao and Baishan actually have shallow foundations, but they are both too young. If they hold a big banquet for guests, it will inevitably attract attention.
In fact, even if there were no guests, Bai Shan and Zhou Man still attracted a lot of attention.
Not to mention Bai Shan, his trip was highly praised by the emperor, who believed that his experience was more important than the entire Liaodong.
The second is Zhou Man. As a woman, she entered the officialdom without any foundation. Now, she not only has an official position to demonstrate her ability, but also a title to demonstrate her merits.
It's impossible not to be shocked.
Some families who have unfilial sons and grandsons but happen to have one or two smart daughters and granddaughters could not contain their excitement.
If their daughter (granddaughter) can also become an official and serve as a supporter of their father and brothers, wouldn't this also bring honor to the family?
But when they thought about it more deeply, they couldn't help but feel regretful that Zhou Man's path to success was difficult to replicate.
She entered the Imperial Medical Bureau based on her medical skills, and entered the Chongwenguan because she needed to compile medical books and provide medical services for the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess.
If other women wanted to follow her path, they would have to first enter the Imperial Medical Bureau and start studying medicine like her.
Currently, the only departments in the court that can accept female officials are the Imperial Medical Bureau and the Imperial Physician Bureau. Other departments obviously will not accept them.
Even Chongwenguan would probably find it difficult to accept a second female official.
And let their smart daughter study medicine...
The adults were not very willing.
Doctors are craftsmen. Although the status of the Imperial Medical Bureau has been elevated, in the eyes of the public, doctors are still craftsmen who serve people.
Everyone just thought about it in their minds, and after struggling for a while, they suppressed the idea.
But the young girls had their own ideas, and many of them got together to make an appointment to do something big at the palace banquet.
The emperor would hold a celebration banquet in the palace within two days after bestowing the award.
Manbao and Baishan were both among them this time, and they could bring their families in, so Manbao brought Qian and Zhou Liru, and Baishan brought his grandmother and mother.
Originally, he hadn't wanted to bring Old Madam Liu along. Palace banquets were very complicated, with all sorts of formalities. Although it was an honor, it was also very tiring. He didn't want Old Madam Liu to suffer this.
But Old Lady Liu felt that if Bai Shan was sent away, his family would have to be left in the capital to take care of him.
Manbao was out of the question, and Zheng was shy, so she was the only one left. So Old Lady Liu wanted to go to the palace to meet someone this time, leave an impression first, and have something to talk about when she met someone in the future.
So the family of six went out together.
Bai Erlang and Princess Mingda were waiting for them at the palace gate, and they all entered the palace together.
With Zhou Man around, the eunuchs in the palace were already considerate enough. With Princess Mingda also present, everyone showed even more respect to Madam Liu and Qian, and they were directly carried to the palace where the banquet was held in a sedan chair.
Madam Liu and Madam Qian were both a little uneasy, so the eunuch leading them explained softly, "Your Majesty and the Empress are considerate and don't want the elderly masters and ladies to walk such a long way, so they specially asked me to wait at the palace gate for the sedan chair to be carried."
The wife of Duke Zhao and others also entered the palace in sedan chairs, not just Madam Liu and Mrs. Qian.
The two of them finally felt relieved.
This was Qian's first time to enter the palace. She was a little panicked when Manbao helped her get off the sedan chair, but her hand holding Manbao's little hand was warm and calmed her heart.
She raised her head and glanced at the palace entrance, and let out a breath. The door looked quite tall and large, much more imposing than the one in their house.
It’s worthy of being a palace.
However, because the Zhou residence where she lives now is also quite nice, although the grandeur of the Taiji Palace frightened her, she still remained calm.
Manbao helped Qian into the hall and turned a door. There was a large courtyard inside. Because it was winter, there were not many flowers at the moment, but the gardeners in the palace still managed to arrange many potted flowers, which looked particularly beautiful in the cold winter.
There are also red plum blossoms that bloom early, with bright red branches piled up together, which is very beautiful.
After turning around the courtyard and going up the corridor, entering the second courtyard is the main hall where the banquet is held. At this time, many officials and their families are already there.
As soon as the two families came in, everyone's eyes couldn't help but look over. A few young ladies' eyes lit up, and they stepped forward gracefully, bowing to Zhou Man. They raised their eyes slightly and smiled, saying, "Greetings, Master Zhou, Little Queen Jiuniang, my cousin and Master are good friends..."
See you tomorrow
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
