Chapter 394: Rewarding according to merit and getting what you want
The first thing Lu Xueyin did after ascending the throne was to reward people according to their merits.
After all the hard work over the years, everyone worked tirelessly for her and now, finally, the dust has settled. Shouldn't they be rewarded?
Lu Xueyin is not stingy.
First are the civil officials, Gao Ming and Chen Songyuan.
These two men were invaluable to Lu Xueyin. Though they didn't fight in battle, their contributions to governance were significant. Lu Xueyin conferred upon Gao Ming the title of Duke of Jingyuan and appointed him Minister of the Chancellery. Chen Songyuan was also conferred the title of Duke of Chen (a title Chen Songyuan himself requested, honoring his family name. Furthermore, Chen Songyuan stated that the Chen family would not come to the capital, and their lineage would remain in Lingnan). He also served as Minister of Revenue, yet Lu Xueyin allowed him to continue managing the finances. Furthermore, Lu Xueyin handed over her private treasury to Chen Songyuan.
In this way, on the surface, Gao Ming's official position is higher than Chen Songyuan's, but Chen Songyuan is in charge of Lu Xueyin's purse, a position of real power that cannot be more powerful, and both of them are very satisfied.
Then came the matter of the military generals. Lu Xueyin was hesitant about appointing them as military generals, and hesitated for several days.
Yan Xing couldn't sit still anymore. He had come for the reward, which was the position of the emperor's husband. Now that Lu Xueyin had ascended the throne, the dust had settled, and he was not young anymore, when would he be given a title?
Lu Xueyin frowned in thought when the eunuch came in and reported, "Your Majesty, Prince Yan requests an audience."
Yan Xing is still just the prince of the Duke of Zhenguo.
Lu Xueyin said, "Let him in."
Yan Xing walked in and bowed. Lu Xueyin then said, "Don't be so polite. Come and help me take a look at this canonization."
Yan Xing walked up and talked about the enthronement of Tan Feng and others.
Lu Xueyin said, "Tan Feng was given the title of Marquis of Wu'an and promoted to Commander of the Imperial Guards. Ji Ping was given the title of Marquis of Yongyi and promoted to General Weiyuan. Cao Wenkai was given the title of Marquis of Anping and promoted to General Mingwei... Lu Ning was given the title of Marquis of Xuanle and promoted to Commander of the Imperial Guards. And Dou Ye, I have given him the title of Earl, and I plan to send him to Quzhou. And Zu Xingwei..." She lowered her eyes and said calmly, "Zu Xingwei came from a bandit family, and I did dislike him before. However, he does have some abilities and has reformed his ways. He was also brave in battle, so I can't treat him differently. So this time I have given him the title of Earl."
This is not because Lu Xueying is partial to one over the other. Zu Xingwei is different from Ji Ping, Cao Wenkai and others. They have followed Lu Xueying from the beginning, but Zu Xingwei is not.
So giving him the lower rank of Earl was fair. Otherwise, if he was also made a Marquis, what would Ji Ping and others think? Tan Feng was only a Marquis.
Yan Xing knew what Lu Xueyin was hesitating about. How to distribute these generals and where to send them was a problem.
Lu Xueyin continued, "Ji Ping... I plan to send him to Yanhui Pass."
Yan Xing was stunned for a moment, then he understood. Lu Xueyin would not allow another Zhenguogong to appear. She would dilute the Zhenguogong's influence on Yanhui Pass, so she also transferred Dou to Quzhou.
Yan Xing thought for a moment and said, "It's not a good thing for any general or minister to stay in one place for too many years. In the future, you can choose a rotation system to prevent a single official from becoming too powerful in a certain place."
Just like Lu Xueyin, her influence on Lingnan and other places remains. Even though she has left and new officials have replaced her, if you ask the local people, it is estimated that they still trust and obey Lu Xueyin more.
However, how many people can be as popular as she is?
Yan Xing’s suggestion is not wrong.
Next are Zhao Xi, Zhang Qian, and an unexpected name, Shen Yihuan.
This time, Lu Xueyin appointed Zhang Qian as the governor of Shu, but did not grant her a title of nobility. Lu Xueyin believed that her achievements were not enough to deserve a title of nobility.
Then there's Zhao Xi. Her contributions put her in the top three of the Lu Group. Furthermore, our Emperor has always favored Zhao Xi, so Lu Xueyin named her Marquis of Yong'an. Just look at this title; it's clear who the Emperor truly loves.
In addition to being granted the title of marquis, Lu Xueyin also appointed Zhao Xi as the Imperial Physician Commander, in charge of the Imperial Medical Bureau, and also to compile the "Jiayuan Medical Canon".
Seeing this, Yan Xing looked at Lu Xueyin and asked, "Are you going to employ female officials in the future?"
Lu Xueyin nodded without hesitation: "Women's abilities are no worse than men's. I will gradually promote the use of female officials in the future." She smiled and said proudly: "You would never have thought that this suggestion was made to me by Shen Yihuan."
Yan Xing was slightly surprised. He didn't have a deep impression of Shen Yihuan. He only took over as Shen Shiqian's sister, and later went to the workshop to be a manager.
However, Lu Xueyin liked her very much, and even after Lu Xueyin left Lingnan, the two of them kept in touch. This was actually very difficult, you know, Lu Xueyin was getting busier and busier, even Shen Shiqian couldn't say a word in front of her, but Shen Yihuan could actually contact Lu Xueyin directly.
It can be seen that Lu Xueyin values her.
"She wrote a letter recommending herself. She said she wanted to come to the capital and serve by my side. She said that my becoming the empress was a historic achievement, and she believed she was capable enough, no less capable than any man, so she wanted to come to the capital to see the wider world. She said she was willing to undergo my assessment and qualify based on her own abilities, just like the men's imperial examinations." Lu Xueyin said, her eyes sparkling. "She's a brave girl. From the moment she left the Shen family and went from being a rich lady to working as a manager in a workshop, I knew she was special."
Lu Xueyin admires girls who are brave and dare to control their own destiny. This is true for Shen Yihuan and Zhang Qian.
Lu Xueyin said: "I agreed, so I appointed her as the Minister of Works. She has managed the workshop well over the years. I have counted that the new products created by the workshop she manages are higher than those of the workshops in Quzhou and Huai'an City. Most of the most commonly used agricultural tools and weapons are produced by the workshop she manages." So she specially promoted her and appointed Shen Yihan as the Minister of Works.
Lu Xueyin said, "I am very dissatisfied with the current Ministry of Industry. I hope she can make some changes to it."
This was because, apart from Lu Xueyin, no one cared about craftsmen. Craftsmen's status had always been low, and the Ministry of Industry was the least prominent of the six ministries. Therefore, the people in the Ministry of Industry were just idling away their time. Lu Xueyin certainly wouldn't let this continue, and she transferred Shen Yihuan back to change the current situation in the Ministry of Industry.
Yan Xing nodded and said, "This is the perfect time to confer the title. You've just ascended the throne, so you'll definitely have to make some moves. The ministers in the court won't go against you at this time."
Lu Xueyin smiled and nodded. She thought so too: "And the late crown prince. I named him Prince An. As for his fiefdom, he chose Lingnan and said he wanted to visit Lingnan." He also wanted to bring her brother with him.
Speaking of this, Lu Xueyin felt a headache. She didn't know how to tell Wang.
Yan Xing's eyes fell on Prince An's fiefdom. He said, "That's good. Prince An did this to reassure you. Your position in Lingnan is as solid as a rock, and no one can shake it. Besides, Lingnan is now rich, so it's good for him to go there."
It must be said that Prince An was a man of his own accord. He chose Lingnan to curry favor with Lu Chenyang while also reassuring Lu Xueyin. His position as Crown Prince was not in vain.
Lu Xueyin nodded and said, "Since you agree, then let's do this."
Yan Xing looked at her quietly. Lu Xueyin was stunned for a moment: "What's wrong?"
"Your Majesty is busy, have you forgotten something?"
Lu Xueyin didn't understand, so she asked humbly, "What's going on?"
Yan Xing then took out a memorial and said, "I also have something to report."
Lu Xueyin laughed and said, "I've been really busy these past few days, why are you joining in the fun?"
When the new emperor ascended the throne, many ministers, eager to gain recognition, sent memorials. Some spoke of their concerns, while others sought to stir up trouble. The most outrageous case Lu Xueyin witnessed was a minister writing a memorial flattering her. He said he had long anticipated the emperor's swift ascension, and now that his wish had come true, he was moved to tears. He believed that under the emperor's leadership, the country would continue to improve, and he sincerely looked forward to it.
Lu Xueyin was speechless, and then she wrote back to him: "That's a good idea. From now on, you should spend more time on the people."
However, Lu Xueyin still took Yan Xing's memorial and opened it. It said that Your Majesty has now ascended the throne and has accomplished his great cause, and it is time for him to get married as soon as possible. Then he recommended himself and thought that he was very suitable to be the emperor's husband.
Lu Xueyin: “…”
I'm here to urge you to get married, but this was already agreed upon long ago, I just forgot about it for a moment.
Lu Xueyin said calmly, "Even if you didn't say it, I've been thinking about you. I'll never forget you. This is such an important matter, I always keep it in my heart."
Yan Xing raised his eyebrows and looked at the booklet in his hand: "Why don't I see my name?"
Lu Xueyin said, "That's because I value you the most, so I have to issue the decree personally."
Yan Xing couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth. Although he knew she was coaxing him, he still let her succeed.
"I knew that you had me in your heart." Yan Xing said softly, his eyes softening.
Lu Xueyin nodded without hesitation: "Of course, do you think I'm a heartless person? I'm not that kind of person! I promised to make you my imperial husband, and I will never break my promise."
Yan Xing said, "It's better to do it today than to wait for a day. I have watched Your Majesty issue the decree, so we will announce it now. This will save the eunuchs in the palace from having to make an extra trip. We are family, so there is no need to worry about so many formalities."
Seeing the look in his eyes, Lu Xueyin had no choice but to pick up the pen and write the imperial edict herself. Lu Xueyin and Yan Xing were in love with each other, and they would accompany each other hand in hand, weathering the storms together, and have many children for the rest of their lives.
Yan Xing stood aside, watching her quietly with her head lowered as she wrote their marriage certificate stroke by stroke, his heart softening.
This is not the imperial decree for the marriage between the empress and the emperor, but the marriage certificate between Lu Xueyin and Yan Xing.
He had finally waited for this day. When he thought they would have to face the world's gaze and countless obstacles, he had already prepared to make the whole world his enemy for her. However, things took a turn for the better. In the secular world, he had a status that matched hers.
He was so lucky.
Now, he is finally going to get what he wants.
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