After instructing a few people, An Ning and the others returned to the capital. After lunch, An Ning and An Dashan were about to take a rest when they saw Butler An coming over. He said, "My Lord, there's news from the palace. You and the princess will be allowed to come to the palace to see the emperor tomorrow."
An Dashan nodded and said, "Okay, I got it. You go down first." Butler An bowed again before turning around and leaving.
An Dashan was a little worried and said, "The last time we entered the palace, the Crown Prince accompanied us. This time, it's just the two of us. I'm still a little unsure."
An Ning comforted him, "Dad, don't worry. We will follow the procedure from last time and be careful when we enter the palace. When the time comes, we will greet the emperor, thank him for his grace, and then we will leave."
An Dashan nodded and said, "Well, that's the only way."
The next morning, the two put on their imperial robes and rode in a carriage to the palace gate. When they arrived at the palace gate, the emperor had not yet finished his morning court session. An Dashan and An Ning had originally thought that they should wait at the palace gate until the emperor finished his morning court session before being summoned in, but they did not expect that Eunuch Qian had already been waiting at the palace gate.
Eunuch Qian watched An Dashan and An Ning get off the carriage, and hurried over to greet them, saying, "I pay my respects to the Earl of Rongchang and Princess Yongjia."
An Dashan quickly helped Eunuch Qian up and said, "Eunuch Qian, you are too polite, but did the emperor ask you to wait for us here?"
Eunuch Qian nodded and said, "Yes, the emperor received your letter yesterday and sent me to wait for you two at the palace gate early this morning. The emperor told you two to go to the imperial study and wait."
An Dashan nodded and said, "Thank you, Eunuch Qian, for leading the way."
The group arrived at the Imperial Study. Eunuch Qian brought An Dashan and An Ning to the side hall and said, "The Emperor asked you two to wait in this side hall. If you need anything, just let me know."
An Dashan didn't dare to tell Eunuch Qian to do anything. He just nodded and said, "Okay, Eunuch Qian, go and do your work. We two will just wait here."
Eunuch Qian nodded and walked out of the side hall. Before leaving, he instructed the eunuch at the door, "Be smart and serve well." The eunuch at the door quickly agreed.
An Dashan and An Ning waited in the side hall for about two quarters of an hour before the emperor came back from his morning court session. Eunuch Qian had already prepared breakfast, and the emperor said, "Go and call the Earl of Rongchang and Princess Yongjia to come and have breakfast together."
Eunuch Qian said "yes" and went to the side hall.
Soon, An Dashan and An Ning, led by Eunuch Qian, came to the side hall where the emperor was having his meal. After they came in, An Dashan and An Ning quickly knelt down and said, "Your humble servants greet the emperor. Long live the emperor."
The emperor said, "Everyone, get up. It's not breakfast yet! Xiao Qianzi, give seats to the Earl of Rongchang and Princess Yongjia."
An Dashan and An Ning quickly said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."
The father and daughter sat down at the table. An Dashan felt very uncomfortable, but An Ning was quite generous. The emperor looked at An Ning's performance and nodded with satisfaction. In fact, An Dashan and An Ning had eaten breakfast, but they were afraid of going to the toilet, so they only ate a little to fill their stomachs.
After the emperor had eaten each dish, he would ask Eunuch Qian to serve the dishes to An Dashan and An Ning. When he ate the shredded potatoes with vinegar, the emperor said, "Yongjia, these potatoes are grown by you. They taste good and can fill your stomach. From now on, the people in the north will no longer have to worry about hunger. This is great."
To be praised by the emperor means that the potato is really loved by the emperor. An Ning put down her chopsticks and said, "Thank you for the compliment, Your Majesty."
The emperor waved his hand and said, "Let's eat. There's no need to be so reserved."
So the three of them slowly began to eat breakfast again. The royal family insisted on not talking while eating or sleeping, so the few of them had not spoken since just now.
The emperor was full and put down his chopsticks. An Dashan and An Ning also quickly put down their chopsticks. The emperor asked, "Are you full?"
An Dashan and An Ning said in unison: "Your Majesty, we are full."
The emperor stood up and walked to the imperial desk and sat down, then said, "Everyone, sit down and talk."
An Dashan and An Ning expressed their gratitude again, and Eunuch Qian also brought chairs for An Dashan and An Ning.
The emperor saw An Dashan and An Ning sitting down, and said, "Does Lord Rongchang want to take a job?"
An Dashan was shocked and quickly said, "Your Majesty, I have neither the ability nor the experience, so I am afraid I am not qualified for the job."
The emperor smiled and said, "Marquis Rongchang is being modest. I heard that you also made military achievements in the past, and this winter wheat was cultivated by you and your daughter. If I were to confer an official title on you, that would be fine."
An Dashan did not dare to refuse and said, "Your Majesty, I will leave it to you."
The emperor nodded in satisfaction and said, "Chen Zhong drafted an imperial decree to confer the title of Rongchang Bo as a fifth-rank official in the Ministry of Revenue, in charge of the cultivation of new grain varieties." After a pause, he continued, "Lord An, there is an imperial farm in the suburbs of Beijing. From now on, you will be responsible for cultivating grain varieties in the imperial farm."
An Dashan complained in his heart, he knew nothing about cultivating grain seeds.
An Ning secretly complained in her heart that the emperor knew very well that the grain seeds were developed by her, but it was not easy for the emperor to appoint a woman as an official, so he appointed his own father. And she couldn't bear to watch her father fail to cultivate new grain seeds, so she would definitely help. How smart!
An Dashan quickly knelt down and kowtowed to express his gratitude, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your great grace."
The emperor waved his hand to signal An Dashan to stand up, and then said to An Ning: "Yongjia, you are about to marry the Duke of Yingguo, and I don't have anything good to give you, so I will give you a dowry of thirty-six loads!"
An Ning also quickly knelt down and kowtowed to express her gratitude, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace."
The emperor still smiled and said: "You two are both pillars of the court. Keep up the good work in the future."
An Dashan and An Ning said in unison: "Yes, Your Majesty, we will never let you down."
The emperor asked a few more questions before letting the father and daughter leave. After entering the palace, An Dashan was given a fifth-rank official position, and An Ning received a dowry of thirty-six loads, which was considered a great success.
When the father and daughter returned home, Gao asked quickly, "How was it? Did no one give you any trouble when you entered the palace this time?"
An Dashan shook his head and said, "The emperor was so gracious that he appointed me as a fifth-rank official in the Ministry of Revenue and gave Ningning a dowry of thirty-six loads."
Gao was very surprised when she heard this, but after the surprise, she said with some embarrassment: "Dad, can you be an official?"
An Dashan shook his head and said, "The emperor told me to only cultivate good varieties and not to do anything else."
Gao was relieved and said, "That's good. With my daughter helping you, it shouldn't be a big problem."
Although An Dashan was underestimated, what Gao said was true, so An Dashan could only nod his head.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
