Li Xiangping and Yuan Huiniang, along with their younger siblings and all the servants, stood neatly in Yan Qingqing's courtyard.
Before Yan Qingqing could speak, they knelt down and said, "Madam, congratulations on your honorary title of Mingzhao Shuoren."
Seeing this, Yan Qingqing smiled and said, "Get up, everyone. You've all worked hard these past few days."
Today is a double celebration for our family; everyone received three months' worth of monthly allowance.
As soon as Yan Qingqing finished speaking, cheers erupted again in the courtyard.
Then Yan Qingqing said, "Now that I've given the reward, I'd like to take advantage of this auspicious day to announce something else."
Ah Da has been at our house the longest and has spent the most time with me.
Although he is still young and lacks experience, his loyalty and ability are evident to all. Therefore, today I hereby announce the formal promotion of Ah Da to the position of head steward of the household.
Ah Da was stunned. Had the Madam actually promoted him to the position of Grand Steward?
Although Ah Er and the others often joked in private about how much the madam valued him and treated him like half a son, the position of chief steward would be his sooner or later.
But Ah Da knew that he was not yet twenty years old and lacked experience and training.
Even if the lady really wanted to promote him to the position of chief steward, it would be several years later.
He never expected that his wife would promote him so quickly.
You must understand that their wife is no ordinary merchant's wife. She is the Imperial Consort Mingzhao, with the rank of a third-grade official.
Even in the Great Yan Dynasty, this rank would be among the top and most prestigious.
His importance as the chief steward is self-evident.
To put it bluntly, the Li family currently has no illegitimate children. If they did, his position as the chief steward would probably carry more weight than theirs.
Seeing that A-Da was somewhat dazed, A-Er quickly tugged at his sleeve and said, "Hurry up and thank Madam. If you don't want to be the head steward, let me take the position!"
Ah Da then came to his senses, stepped forward, and knelt down on the ground with a thud. He kowtowed heavily to Yan Qingqing and said, "Thank you for your promotion, Madam. I will do my best to serve you in the future and will certainly not let you down."
Yan Qingqing looked at him and smiled, "Alright, get up now."
I have witnessed your loyalty and ability. Although you are a little young, you have always been steady and reliable in handling matters.
You remember that I promoted you because of your outstanding abilities, and it was also my way of recognizing you.
I've entrusted you with the position of Grand Steward, and I trust you. Just go ahead and do your job.
As long as you don't break the law, abuse your power, or bully others, I, as your wife, will cover for you no matter what happens.
Ah Da was even more moved. How could he not know what Yan Qingqing meant? The lady was clearly afraid that he wouldn't be able to convince the crowd, so she deliberately said this to support him.
Moved by the experience, A-Da became even more loyal to Yan Qingqing. He would probably die for her without hesitation.
Yan Qingqing glanced at the others and said, "I value A-Da, so naturally I value you all as well."
Although Madam Ben has not given many of you specific positions, she has entrusted you with important responsibilities.
I have seen your performance all along, and I plan to appoint two deputy general managers under Ah Da in the future.
So as long as you work hard, you still have opportunities.
In addition to the stewards in the outer courtyard, I also plan to appoint a few stewards in the inner courtyard.
Putting aside ability, loyalty is paramount.
After Yan Qingqing finished speaking, the servants of the Li family were also excited. They had all entered the Li family around the same time and all had opportunities.
Even if they don't think about themselves, they should think about their descendants.
They have already sold themselves into slavery, and the possibility of them being restored to their free status in the future is slim.
However, judging from the current prospects of the Li family, their future is limitless.
If they could become stewards in the household, the master would definitely treat them better in terms of marriage and children than others.
This is the effect that Yan Qingqing wanted.
People only have motivation once they have a goal, and those management skills she learned weren't for nothing.
Yan Qingqing knew that everyone was tired after a long day, so she waved to them and told them to go and rest early.
After A-Da and his men left, Li Xiangping and his siblings were still extremely excited and followed Yan Qingqing into the house.
Yan Qingqing looked at the group with a helpless expression and said, "What's wrong with you all? Why aren't you resting? Aren't you tired after a whole day of running around?"
Li Xiangping rubbed his hands together without saying anything, but Li Xiang'an spoke first: "Mother, how can we sleep when we're having such a happy time?"
You are now a third-rank imperial consort, bestowed by the Emperor himself. This is completely different from a fifth-rank consort.
Li Xiangping chimed in, "That's right, Mother. Aren't all the rank of Shuo Ren the fourth rank? Why did the Emperor appoint you as the third rank?"
Li Xiangping is now an eighth-rank agricultural official, so he has a good understanding of the ranks of officials.
Yan Qingqing smiled and said, "I don't know much about this either. It's probably because the Emperor thinks that cotton is a great thing that benefits the country and the people, and wants to reward it handsomely."
However, our family's foundation is too shallow, so it is not appropriate to reward them too much.
Besides, Mother was only granted the rank of Fifth Grade Official last year. If she were to be promoted two more ranks this year, it would attract too much attention.
There are probably some ministers in the court who oppose this, which is why the Emperor came up with this compromise.
Li Xiangping nodded upon hearing this, finding Yan Qingqing's analysis extremely reasonable. However, with this title of Third-Rank Imperial Consort, one no longer needed to bow when meeting a proper Third-Rank Lady.
Yan Qingqing thought to herself that she would ask Xiao Mochen about it when she had time in the future. After all, it was his father who had conferred the official title, and he should know best what the emperor meant.
However, Xiao Mochen has been away on business recently, and Yan Qingqing can't find him for a while.
Seeing that she had asked all the questions she needed to, Li Yueniang tugged at Yan Qingqing's sleeve and said coquettishly, "Mother, what good things has the Emperor bestowed upon us? Please let us see them too."
Yan Qingqing glanced at her and laughed, "You little rascal, you've got a lot of tricks up your sleeve. How could your mother possibly neglect you?"
Li Yueniang chuckled twice. She had money in her hands and was not lacking in any kind of jewelry.
But she didn't have any of these imperial gifts. It would be nice to have one or two of them.
Of course, Li Yueniang wasn't thinking about herself. She thought that if Li Xinniang had one or two pieces of jewelry bestowed by the emperor, her situation in the Wu family would be much better.
But she didn't dare say this to Yan Qingqing's face, for fear that Yan Qingqing would disagree.
Since Li Xinniang got married, Yan Qingqing has never mentioned her again.
Of course, Yan Qingqing was unaware of her thoughts.
In the end, Yan Qingqing still had Ruyi open the storeroom and let the few of them go in and choose.
When Yan Qingqing saw Li Yueniang choose a set of sapphire jewelry and a red gold hairpin, her eyes darkened, but she sighed again.
The children are grown up and have their own ideas; let them be.
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