The emperor looked coldly at Minister Qin and said, "Since Minister Qin has made up his mind, then speak."
This Lord Qin was originally favored by the emperor, but later he became short-sighted, secretly participated in factional struggles, and sided with the eldest prince, following the eldest prince's lead in everything, hoping to gain merit for supporting the emperor.
Lord Qin took a deep breath, stepped forward, and said, "Your Majesty, the eldest prince is of noble character, accomplished in his training, and has come of age. He should rightfully be treated as a prince."
Consort Yu served His Majesty for twenty years, managing the inner palace with harmony and virtue.
Although he made a small mistake, he has done a great service by raising a prince to adulthood.
Moreover, given her illustrious family background, it would be fitting for her to be made heir.
Therefore, I humbly request the Emperor to reinstate Consort Yu's rank of Imperial Noble Consort.
Upon hearing this, the emperor coldly replied, "Minister Qin, this is my family matter. Do you intend to interfere in my harem?"
Upon hearing this, Lord Qin knelt down with a thud, replying with trepidation, "Your Majesty, I dare not. My loyalty to Your Majesty is as clear as the sun and moon."
Your Majesty, I am only afraid that Your Majesty, out of favoritism, will fail to offer honest advice and thus discourage loyal ministers.
Lord Qin's words are quite clear: he is saying that the emperor favors his youngest son and neglects his eldest son.
The emperor was truly enraged. If his favorite son had to be brought up and criticized by these ministers, what was the point of him being emperor?
The emperor snorted and said, "Since Lord Qin has said so, it seems that if I don't do this, I would really be letting down Lord Qin's words."
The messenger brought the items up.
Soon a young eunuch brought out a tray with several account books on it. The emperor picked up an account book, glanced at it, and then smashed it hard on Lord Qin's head.
He said viciously, "This is what you call unwavering loyalty, as clear as the sun and moon? You've embezzled, accepted bribes, sold official positions, and are utterly devoid of conscience."
"Guards, immediately throw Qin Rong into the imperial prison, confiscate his property, and exile his entire family to Ganzhou!"
Lord Qin was stunned upon hearing this, and soon the Imperial Guards dragged him away.
All these changes happened so fast that Lord Qin was suppressed before he could even react.
How could the emperor have gotten hold of those account books? He remembered hiding them in a secret compartment in his study, where no one knew about them.
Only after being dragged out of the main hall did Lord Qin remember to beg for mercy, shouting loudly, "Your Majesty, spare my life! I know I was wrong, Your Majesty, spare my life!"
The emperor watched coldly, unmoved. If Xiao Mochen hadn't prepared evidence of Qin Rong's crimes beforehand, he would have truly been labeled a tyrant today.
Seeing that the emperor had punished Lord Qin, the others hesitated whether to be the first to speak out.
Xiao Mochen spoke again, saying, "Your Majesty, I have a memorial to present."
The emperor's expression softened slightly as he spoke, "What is it, Prince Chen? Please speak freely."
Xiao Mochen replied, "Your Majesty, during the New Year, I happened to talk with Lady Mingzhao about the difficulties of salt taxation. Lady Mingzhao said that she once obtained a book on the method of refining fine salt."
It produces not only well salt, but also sea salt, lake salt, and rock salt.
Lady Mingzhao, deeply grateful for her father's kindness, was also willing to donate this law to the court free of charge.
After speaking, he presented the emperor with what Yan Qingqing had written.
The emperor took the memorial and read it, thinking to himself that Lady Mingzhao was truly an extraordinary woman.
The members of the Crown Prince's faction, including the Crown Prince himself, all had ashen faces.
Lady Mingzhao is really causing trouble. Why should a woman like her meddle in these things instead of being a good wife and mother?
However, the eldest prince immediately thought that Yan Qingqing was a widow who didn't even have a husband, so she deserved it.
The eldest prince was even more furious, wondering why he hadn't been able to kill Yan Qingqing twice. This woman was really lucky; now she was ruining his plans again.
When the emperor saw that his ministers were all speechless, he was overjoyed and beamed with delight.
He then said, "Lady Mingzhao has rendered such a great service, I must reward her. How about we promote Lady Mingzhao to the rank of..."
Before the emperor could finish speaking, the eldest prince stood up and objected: "Father, salt production has always been a major undertaking, not a child's play. How can we determine whether it is feasible or not based solely on Lady Mingzhao's statement?"
If we blindly promote her, wouldn't that invite criticism?
Of course, I don't mean to refuse to reward him; it would be better to wait until the salt is actually made before rewarding him.
Your subject believes that Lady Mingzhao, so devoted to the country and its people, should have been able to wait these past few months.
Those sent by the eldest prince also expressed their agreement upon hearing this.
The emperor found Xiao Moyan's words quite reasonable.
However, he would probably be unhappy if he didn't reward Xiao Mochen. So he thought for a moment and said, "That makes sense, but I am very pleased that Lady Mingzhao has such a heart."
He bestowed upon Lady Mingzhao a pair of jade ruyi scepters, ten bolts of Shu brocade, ten bushels of pearls, two pearls from the East, and one thousand taels of gold.
Furthermore, Lady Mingzhao was granted the privilege of entering the palace at any time.
Although the emperor bestowed many honors upon Yan Qingqing, they were nothing compared to the prospect of being promoted another rank.
Although Xiao Mochen was also dissatisfied with the emperor's small reward, he couldn't fight for his aunt's sake since the salt hadn't been refined yet.
However, Xiao Mochen firmly believed that his aunt's method was absolutely correct.
Yan Qingqing did not show any unusual reaction when she received the emperor's reward.
She didn't care about being rewarded or not, as long as she could keep Consort Yu and the First Prince in check.
So Yan Qingqing happily thanked the emperor and even had Ruyi slip a large red envelope to the eunuch who delivered the imperial decree.
Li Xiangkang had successfully entered the Imperial Academy. Just when Yan Qingqing thought Ding Xiu wouldn't come to the capital, Steward Yu hurriedly came over to report that someone from Chengyang County had arrived.
Yan Qingqing was still wondering who it was when A-Da led the people in.
Yan Qingqing was surprised to see that it was actually Master Ding and his son.
Upon seeing Yan Qingqing, the two quickly knelt down to pay their respects. Yan Qingqing gestured for A'da to help them up, saying, "Oh dear, what are you doing? It's been months since we last met, and you're already being so polite."
Master Ding stood up and said, "This is the capital, not our small county town. Besides, Lady Mingzhao has shown such great kindness that I, Ding, can hardly repay her kindness even if I were to repay her with all my heart."
No matter how rich Master Ding was, he was still a businessman at heart. Given his family's social standing, Ding Xiu would never have been able to study at the Imperial Academy.
That's the best academy in the entire Great Yan Dynasty, and now Yan Qingqing has given them this opportunity.
If Ding Xiu were to prove himself and pass the imperial examinations to obtain an official position, thus changing the Ding family's reputation, that would truly be a momentous event that brings glory to the family.
Yan Qingqing looked at Ding Xiu beside her and smiled, "This child is loyal and kind-hearted, I like him very much."
"Don't be shy at home from now on. Actually, I still prefer you to call me 'Auntie,' it sounds more intimate that way."
Upon hearing this, Ding Xiu gave Yan Qingqing a big smile, and at the same time breathed a sigh of relief.
Although Lady Mingzhao looked so noble that it was hard to look directly at her, at least his aunt was still the same aunt he used to know.
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