Five years later, it had been fourteen years since Yan Qingqing came to this era.
She also went from being thirty-three years old to forty-seven years old.
The older Yan Qingqing gets, the more peaceful she becomes.
Now, no one in the Great Yan Dynasty is unaware of the name of Lady Mingzhao, Yan Qingqing.
Moreover, not only was Lady Mingzhao herself remarkable, but her seven children were also very successful.
The eldest son, Li Xiangping, served as an agricultural official in the Great Yan Dynasty and dedicated himself to agricultural research.
In addition to inventing organic fertilizer, they also cultivated hybrid wheat and grafting techniques.
He greatly increased grain production and was appointed Grand Minister of Agriculture by the emperor.
The second son, Li Xiang'an, was the richest man in the Great Yan Dynasty.
His assets are countless, including various physical businesses and a money exchange.
There were even rumors that Li Xiang'an's toilet was paved with gold bricks.
The third son, Li Xiangjian, had been guarding the border. The people of Northern Yan knew he was brave and skilled in battle, and in recent years they had not dared to invade the border.
However, Li Xiangjian's marriage had always been a headache for Yan Qingqing, but fortunately it was finally resolved two years ago.
He married Lan Yu'er, the niece of Madam Pei. The girl seemed spoiled but was actually very determined. After the marriage, she followed Li Xiangjian to the border to serve with the army.
The fourth son, Li Xiangkang, became the top scholar in the imperial examination five years ago and was highly regarded by the new emperor.
After five years of honing his skills, he has risen to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.
Of course, Ling Ziyuan, the former Vice Minister of Revenue, has been promoted to Minister of Revenue.
Although the eldest daughter, Li Xinniang, did not have a good time in the Wu family a few years ago, her family was very helpful.
Moreover, Wu Jingzhi resolutely separated from the Wu family, and after the young couple reconciled, they started a new business, which became even more prosperous than the Wu family in the past.
The second daughter, Li Yueniang, married Han Yu, a top scholar in the imperial examination. Han Yu is now a high-ranking official of the second rank in the imperial court.
Even their youngest daughter, Li Xiangyang, is almost fourteen years old.
Li Xiangyang had practiced martial arts since childhood and was quite talented.
It is said that her kung fu skills have long been perfected, and she also likes to fight evil and promote good. She is known as the "Sunshine Heroine" in the martial arts world, and basically no one can defeat her.
Yan Qingqing sat under the grape trellis, eating grapes while listening to Ruyi tell her about how others described her.
Regardless of what outsiders say, Yan Qingqing feels that she has truly reached the pinnacle of her life.
After saying these things, Ruyi asked again, "Madam, recently we have received many letters from ministers in the capital, all asking you to persuade the Emperor to establish an Empress."
Yan Qingqing scoffed and replied, "Those people are just meddling in other people's business. Choosing an empress is a major event, how could I possibly interfere?"
Ruyi retorted, "How can you say that Madam is an outsider? The Emperor treats you like family."
They are incredibly filial to you, always sending lavish gifts during holidays and festivals.
That's true. Every year, Xiao Mochen would send people to deliver many things, including seasonal fruits, seafood, and other strange and unusual items, in addition to those for holidays.
Moreover, when Xiao Mochen was unsure about important matters in the court, he would write to Yan Qingqing for advice. Yan Qingqing would only give him some suggestions and would never make decisions for him.
This made Xiao Mochen respect her even more.
Therefore, Yan Qingqing absolutely did not object to Ruyi saying that Xiao Mochen was being filial to her.
But when it came to his marriage, she could only shake her head and say, "The Emperor Emeritus is still in power; how could I possibly concern myself with such matters?"
Moreover, the letters those ministers wrote to me were simply because the Emperor wanted to follow our family rules, which stipulated that men who were forty years old and had no sons were allowed to take concubines.
Being an emperor is tough enough as it is; how could I possibly shatter his hopes of choosing someone he could spend the rest of his life with?
Yan Qingqing knew exactly what those court officials were planning.
If she were to step forward and persuade Xiao Mochen, wouldn't that put him in a dilemma?
Of course, such a major matter as choosing an empress was not something Yan Qingqing could worry about.
On a small scale, this concerns Xiao Mochen's lifelong happiness; on a larger scale, it's about choosing a queen.
Choosing the right path leads to national prosperity and peace, while choosing the wrong one can bring disaster to the country and its people. Yan Qingqing is quite good at distinguishing between what is important and what is not.
As a maid, Ruyi had no right to interfere in this matter.
The two then started talking about Qingqing Academy.
When Yan Qingqing first established Qingqing Academy, she simply wanted to provide the children of Canghe Village with a safe place to study.
But unexpectedly, it got better and better, and its scale grew larger and larger.
Because of the blessing of Lady Mingzhao, who is of the highest rank, many famous teachers from far and wide came to teach at Qingqing Academy.
Over the years, many scholars and graduates have emerged from this field, attracting an increasing number of students to study here.
The school has also expanded to more than twice its previous size.
Li Kaishan also attached great importance to this matter and immediately designated a large plot of land as the site for the school.
After Yan Qingqing returned, she would occasionally go to the school to teach a few classes.
It has indeed attracted a lot of students.
You must know that Yan Qingqing is the Imperial Tutor. If they can study under Yan Qingqing, they can be considered fellow disciples of the current emperor.
Even if they don't achieve anything great in the future, no one will dare to look down on them just because they are the students of the Imperial Tutor.
A good bird chooses a good tree to perch on, and the teachers in the school probably also valued this point.
Several times, he visited Yan Qingqing to invite her to serve as the headmaster of Qingqing Academy, but she declined each time with various excuses.
While massaging Yan Qingqing's legs, Ruyi asked with a smile, "Does Madam feel it's unfair to other students if she doesn't want to take on the role of headmaster?"
Yan Qingqing glanced at Ruyi and laughed, "Our Ruyi is really capable; she even knows about this now."
Upon hearing this, Ruyi grinned foolishly, just about to say that it was all thanks to Madam's excellent teaching.
Who knew Yan Qingqing would say, "No, this lady is just simply lazy."
There's a ton of trouble at the school; sometimes I even have to settle cases with those kids. I want to live a few more years.
Ruyi burst into laughter upon hearing this.
Before she knew it, the end of the year was upon her again, and Yan Qingqing was counting on her fingers who would be coming home for the New Year.
Apart from Li Xiangping staying by her side, the other children were all busy outside.
Yuan Huiniang smiled and said, "Mother, don't worry, they will all be back this year."
Yan Qingqing smiled and said, "They're all busy, it's okay if they don't come back."
Although Yan Qingqing said that, she really wanted them all to come back, after all, they were all good children she had put her heart and soul into.
Sure enough, they all returned on the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month.
Even Li Xiangjian, who was stationed at the border, has returned.
Yan Qingqing was overjoyed and instructed the kitchen to prepare all the dishes they liked.
Just as everyone was happy, Ah Da hurriedly walked in and whispered something.
Yan Qingqing and the others' expressions changed and they quickly came out to greet them.
Xiao Mochen, dressed in casual clothes, walked in accompanied by Xiao Ruizi.
Just as Yan Qingqing was about to step forward to pay her respects, Xiao Mochen knelt down first to wish Yan Qingqing a Happy New Year.
Seeing this, the others quickly dodged to the sides; their mothers could accept the emperor's grand gesture, but they couldn't.
Xiao Mochen said loudly, "Mochen wishes Aunt a Happy New Year and a long and healthy life."
Yan Qingqing quickly pulled Xiao Mochen up and said with a smile, "Okay, okay, your aunt is most happy that you can come."
Only then can our family be truly reunited.
After she finished speaking, Yan Qingqing let them all go inside.
The large group of people looked quite impressive.
Xiao Mochen slowed his pace and looked at Li Xiangyang, who was walking at the back, and asked, "Has Xiao Qi come of age?"
Li Xiangyang nodded with a smile: "I just turned 18 last month, Brother Mochen, don't forget my coming-of-age ceremony."
Xiao Mochen smiled brightly after hearing this, and Li Xiangyang suddenly felt a sense of spring warmth and blooming flowers.
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