The imperial edict had already been sent to Qihuai County, but Empress Wu Lanxi still couldn't calm herself down.
Unable to concentrate, she simply put down what she was doing.
"Wan'er, do you think it would be meaningful to give him a certificate of merit?"
Lin Wan'er said earnestly, "Your Majesty, Tang Huan is an extremely unruly person. Before he was even favored by you, he dared to go against Lei Yan and even directly rejected the power of the Cui family. He was already somewhat lawless. Now that he has the imperial edict, he will only become more arrogant."
"Then do you think I shouldn't give it to him?"
Despite saying that, Lin Wan'er still said, "That's definitely not the case. After all, Tang Huan has already done a lot, whether it's disaster relief in Kuizhou, or the housing relief in the southern district, plus his outstanding contributions with the Northern Region delegation this time. Your Majesty, his contributions are already great enough."
"Yes, he has made merits, but he doesn't want money or a promotion. I can only grant him his wish and bestow upon him a certificate of merit."
Previously, Wu Lanxi wanted to give Tang Huan an official position to keep him by her side, wanting to use him for her own purposes.
However, after witnessing the immense sincerity shown to him by the Northern Region delegation during this incident, Wu Lanxi realized that perhaps she shouldn't have viewed this man with the same mindset she had before.
Unbeknownst to them, Tang Huan had grown to the point where everyone had to take her seriously.
He is wealthy and owns numerous industries and businesses in Qihuai County.
He had enough prestige to be worshipped and respected by countless people.
He also had a gun, a weapon far superior to those of today.
Add to that the countless and unaccounted-for mercenaries of Qihuai County, and this person is already a force to be reckoned with.
Wu Lanxi gave a bitter smile, "He has only been in Qihuai County for four or five years, the same amount of time I have spent planning for the throne, yet he seems to have done something even more remarkable."
Wu Lanxi knew that compared to Tang Huan, everything she had done as emperor paled in comparison.
The difficulty levels for the two are completely different.
He only needed to follow the emperor's lead to ascend the throne and possess immense power, while Tang Huan had to ensure his own survival and that of the people in the impoverished and backward Qihuai County, and then use his limited energy to develop the area.
"Where's Xiao Shen? Hasn't he come back yet?" Wu Lanxi asked Lin Wan'er, pulling herself out of her thoughts.
"Your Majesty, we set off with Tang Huan the day before yesterday. Logically, we should have arrived at Qihuai County yesterday and returned today, but there has been no news yet."
This was the evening of the third day since Tang Huan left, and the imperial edict had most likely fallen into that man's hands.
Lin Wan'er explained, "Perhaps it was because Eunuch Shen was left in Qihuai County by Tang Huan and was so happy to receive the imperial edict that he celebrated with the eunuch. He might have even given him a lot of reward money."
"Alright, it's good that the things have been delivered. Since we've already promised Tang Huan that he could return to Qihuai County for the winter, there's no reason to go back on our word."
Wu Lanxi waved her hand, not dwelling on the matter too much.
Just as she calmed down and was about to review the memorials, there was a knock on the door of the imperial study.
The chief eunuch Li Lianying walked in with slightly unsteady steps, appearing somewhat uneasy compared to his usual calm demeanor.
The chief eunuch approached the Empress and said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, Jiang Huai, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, is dead."
Wu Lanxi recalled the person in her mind, formed a certain image of him, and confirmed that the person had a close connection with Cui Renshi.
"How did he die?"
Li Lianying's expression was grave. "According to the person who brought his body back, he died at the hands of Tang Huan."
"Um?"
Noticing the change in Wu Lanxi's expression, Li Lianying quickly said, "The body was sent directly to the Prime Minister's residence. I heard that Jiang Huai went to Qihuai County because of some matter, and then had a conflict with Tang Huan, who cut off his head with one stroke."
Lin Wan'er's expression changed. "Your Majesty, Tang Huan just received the imperial edict and is already acting so recklessly..."
Wu Lanxi said seriously, "No rush. Although Tang Huan seems unreliable because of his indulgence in wine and women, his previous actions have proven his ability and character. He is not that kind of person. There must be some inside story here."
"So what should we do next?"
In response to Lin Wan'er's question, Wu Lanxi picked up the memorial and said, "Wait, wait for the news to spread, or wait for Cui Renshi to enter the palace. Otherwise, just pretend this never happened."
Li Lianying was greatly alarmed and could not calm down even after leaving the imperial study.
The emperor was already pleased by the bestowal of a certificate of merit, but now, faced with such a momentous matter, His Majesty is so inclined to favor Tang Huan.
Even before we've figured out exactly what happened, has His Majesty's trust in Tang Huan reached this level?
Li Lianying couldn't help but feel fortunate that he had already shown goodwill to Lord Tang beforehand; otherwise, he probably wouldn't be able to hold onto his position now.
Whether intentional or unintentional, the news that a coffin had been sent to the Prime Minister's residence spread throughout the capital, and many people were talking about it.
However, there are many conflicting opinions regarding the coffin.
Some say that Choi In-seo's political enemies sent the coffin as a sarcastic gesture, signaling the start of a power struggle.
Some say the coffin contains the body of someone, someone who was extremely important to Choi In-sa.
In short, the capital city became much more lively because of this incident.
Since the matter involved the renowned Chancellor Cui, everyone, from court officials to ordinary citizens of the capital, was paying close attention.
Meanwhile, Tang Huan was living a leisurely life in Qihuai County.
He was taking Princess Gongyang Tingbai and Princess Qin Yuyang to experience the blind massage program at the Qihuai County Entertainment City, and Li Daikui and Xue'e also came along.
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