The people of Lizhou are incredibly wealthy, with brick houses on average, and they enjoy both basic needs and a comfortable standard of living.
Therefore, the imperial court decided to open up five more prefectures.
Construction is in full swing throughout the Jade Dragon Kingdom.
Busy, very busy, extremely busy.
They have no time to deal with Dongli Kingdom.
The Yulong Daily is now published every three days, and the Yulong Daily Life Edition has been separated from the Yulong Daily and established as a separate branch office, with Zhang Yanyan in charge.
On the day the branch was established, Xie Zhaozhao visited the newspaper office and was very pleased to see Zhang Yanyan in high spirits and more than a hundred female editors.
An imperial edict was issued on the spot:
"By imperial decree, Princess Ning is appointed as the deputy director of the Jade Dragon Newspaper and concurrently the editor-in-chief of its lifestyle section, holding the rank of fourth grade. All female editors of the newspaper are to be hired as female officials of the imperial court in accordance with regulations."
This was the highlight moment for the female official of the Jade Dragon Kingdom.
Newspaper editors, once they passed the examination, could hold official positions ranging from the seventh to the fourth rank, just like all officials in other departments of the imperial court, receiving salaries and having official ranks.
The status of women in the Jade Dragon Kingdom rose accordingly.
Women are no longer considered a "money-losing burden." Impoverished families are working hard to support their daughters' education, which is also a way for families to change their fate.
After all, only a minority of women received an education. If they did well in their studies, they had a higher chance of becoming officials than men, and not only did they receive good treatment, they could also marry into a very good family.
Xie Zhaozhao was still very excited when she returned to the palace from the newspaper office, but as soon as she entered the palace gate, everything suddenly went black and she fainted.
Yuan Yuanman was so frightened that she immediately summoned the imperial physician.
Zhou Shaoyu was discussing matters with his officials in the imperial court when Xiu Ning hurriedly whispered something to him.
"I have an urgent matter to attend to, Prime Minister, please take charge."
His Majesty the Emperor hurriedly ran away.
Upon arriving at the palace, they saw the imperial physicians taking turns taking their pulses.
He came in with a very unpleasant expression. He didn't disturb the imperial physician, but simply sat down beside her, frowning as he watched her take his pulse.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! Congratulations, Your Majesty! Emperor An is pregnant again!"
Several imperial physicians delivered good news.
"reward!"
Zhou Shao was overjoyed, and Xie Zhaozhao was also very happy. Xiao Heng'er was already four and a half years old, and the two were expecting their second child. If all went well, the baby would be born at the end of the year, making the two children exactly four years apart in age.
However, the pregnancy was unstable during the first three months, so she kept it low-key and did not announce it to the public.
Therefore, only the imperial physicians and those who served in the palace received the reward, and the news was kept secret.
Now that the world is at peace and Zhou Shaoyu is holding the fort in the court, Xie Zhaozhao wants to take a break.
The next morning at court, she announced: "With peace prevailing throughout the land and few wars, I will temporarily refrain from holding morning court."
As soon as she spoke, the military officers became somewhat anxious.
In the imperial court, military officers were already heavily suppressed by civil officials. If Emperor An did not attend court, they would be squeezed out of the court, right?
Seeing their anxiety, Xie Zhaozhao said, "Although I no longer hold morning court, I have two important matters to attend to."
She wanted to establish a comprehensive survey department, led by Zhou Lingyin, to conduct an accurate survey and census of the territory and population of Yulong Kingdom.
She always needed to conduct an accurate survey of the territory's size, especially since she was in charge of territorial control.
We should also have a clear understanding of the current population of Yulong Kingdom and the financial situation of each household.
In recent years, Yulong Kingdom has focused on developing its economy, its national strength has grown stronger, wars have decreased, the people have been able to recuperate and thrive, and the population has increased exponentially.
Originally, the total population of Dagan was only 35 million, but after the establishment of Yulong Kingdom, the population rapidly increased to more than 80 million.
Zhou Lingyin was appointed Minister of the Comprehensive Department, a second-rank official.
The Ministry of Works, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Revenue each selected a group of people to join the General Affairs Department.
The Comprehensive Survey Department has two main responsibilities: first, to conduct a census of the population, classifying and counting men, women, the elderly, and children; and second, to investigate housing and property.
Knowing how many people you have, their proportions, and your assets will give you a clear understanding of how to fight wars and provide disaster relief.
Secondly, a detailed survey and record of the territory map was conducted to draw an accurate map of the territory.
Neither of these tasks can be completed in a short period of time.
When Zhou Lingyin's appointment letter was issued, Prince Kang, Princess Kang, and Princess Qi (Princess Changping) all went to the palace to express their gratitude.
There was no other reason than that when Yulong Kingdom annexed Daqian, Prince Jing, under the instruction of Emperor Hui, took advantage of the relationship between Princess Qi (Princess Changping) and Xie Zhaozhao as sisters-in-law to send people to assassinate Xie Zhaozhao twice.
Enraged, Xie Zhaozhao eliminated Prince Jing's faction and imprisoned him.
The Prince Jing's Mansion was stripped of its monopoly on canal transport, and its fleet was prohibited from launching ships on the canal and from being issued official permits for sea voyages.
Prince Jing was not released until just before Emperor Hui's death, and he was allowed to hear Princess Yu Rong's confession, which angered the deposed Crown Prince Zhou Jingrui and Emperor Hui to death.
Prince Jing held the empty title of prince, but had no official position and spent his days in hardship, tending to a bunch of sun-dried ships.
Zhou Shaoyu was a staunch henpecked husband, while Prince Jing and his family were left hanging.
Zhou Lingyin felt ashamed and asked Li Yunmu to mediate. He then asked Xie Zhaozhao for permission to go on an expedition at sea. Xie Zhaozhao, mindful of the friendship the four of them had formed during their collaboration at Qingyuan Teahouse, agreed to let him take five large ships with him.
At the same time, Yunyang and Yunhe were sent along. They sailed at sea for more than two years before returning, bringing extremely generous rewards to the court.
People in high positions become more open-minded. Zhou Lingyin sincerely submitted to her, so she specially set up a department for him that had never been done in history and appointed him as a second-rank minister.
This can be considered a reconciliation with the Prince Jing's Mansion.
Xie Zhaozhao withdrew from the court to focus on her pregnancy, but to those unaware of the situation, this was an extremely significant event.
"Your Majesty, Emperor An of Yulong Kingdom has been ousted from the court and is now obediently living as a concubine in the harem."
"Your Majesty, we've found out! Six years ago, on the Dragon Boat Festival, when Emperor Chen was still the Third Son of the Gu family, he had already died in Jiangnan. The current Emperor Chen is a reincarnation; he is indeed our ancestor!"
A spy from the Eastern Li Kingdom reported to the Emperor of Eastern Li.
The Emperor of Dongli is even more sinister. After hundreds of years of painstakingly summoning souls, what he summoned was not the original ancestor, but an ambitious ghost from another world.
Kidnapping? They can't even cross the border into Yulong!
Invite them? Inviting a god is easy, but sending him away is difficult!
What should they do?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com