Chapter 301 Entering Beijing
The capital city is prosperous, but Jing Wei has no good feelings towards it. Since Jing Chao's death, he has not even come here to do business.
Originally, he thought that he would never set foot in this place in his lifetime, but it was obvious that plans could not keep up with changes. When he returned to the capital again, he was accompanied by his lovely wife and daughter, and it was not as uncomfortable as he had imagined.
Cui Yunshu was a chatty little boy. He sat in his father's arms, looking around curiously and making exclamations of surprise from time to time.
The soldiers in charge of checking people in and out of the city gate were almost laughing. The court promoted Cui Qingyi to the rank of county princess, and according to the rules, Cui Qingyi had to come in person to express her gratitude.
Originally, His Majesty was considerate and waived the long journey from Dongping to the capital, but Cui Qingyi thought that she had already reached this point, and if she still stubbornly guarded the three acres of land in Dongping County, she would inevitably be restricted in the future. Besides, it was time for her to express her loyalty to His Majesty.
The fact that the county lord was bringing a caravan to the capital had been reported long ago by Doctor Fan from the Ministry of Rites. In recent years, Luhuabai has been very popular in the capital, but many things in Luhua Town were also obtained by officials and people in the capital from other caravans. Therefore, everyone was very curious about Luhua Town, the so-called commodity distribution center.
Even when His Majesty learned that the Princess of Dongping County came to express her gratitude and brought a caravan with her, he personally instructed the officials of the Ministry of Rites and the Military Affairs Department of the Capital to entertain them well.
The guarding of the capital city gates was the responsibility of the Bingmasi, so they treated Cui Qingyi and his group with great courtesy.
Looking at the long line, Doctor Fan came over with a young official. "County Lady, I'm afraid the inspection of the caravan will take some time. Why don't you follow me to the post station to settle down? As for the caravan's personnel and goods, I will also make arrangements."
Cui Qingyi knew how much cargo they had brought on this trip, and she wasn't prepared to wait foolishly at the city gate. Upon hearing this, she said, "Master Fan is the most reliable and prudent person. I'll leave the caravan in your care."
Listening to Cui Qingyi's words, Doctor Fan smiled and said, "I will not let the county lady down. This is Master Xiao Qin. He will be staying at the post station. You can tell him anything you want."
Lord Xiao Qin bowed to Cui Qingyi.
This young Master Qin's official rank was obviously not high. Cui Qingyi said that he was probably like a modern intern who had just entered an internship unit, specializing in running errands and doing miscellaneous work.
It’s just that Lord Qin’s errand job is a little more high-end. After all, he is dealing with the Ministry of Rites and distinguished guests of different identities.
After the two sides agreed, Cui Qingyi assigned some guards to follow the caravan, while he and Jing Wei took Taozhi and others to the post station.
Jing Wei was very silent throughout the journey except for talking to the child in his arms. Cui Qingyi noticed it but did not ask what was going on.
The post station in the capital is very different from those elsewhere. Not only is it located not far from the imperial city, it also covers a very large area. As the county lord, Cui Qingyi was assigned a separate courtyard, which made her daily life very convenient.
Doctor Fan had been away from home for a long time. After sending Cui Qingyi all the way to the post station, he couldn't wait to go home, leaving Lord Xiao Qin to be at his disposal at any time.
Cui Qingyi's place is no longer like before. Many people can come here. Seeing that it is still early, Cui Qingyi asked about the arrangements for Lord Qin to go to the palace to express his gratitude. Don't mention that she is about to meet the highest ruler of this feudal dynasty, Cui Qingyi is really nervous.
Master Qin said sternly, "In reply to the county lady, according to the procedure, you can rest at the post station today. Tomorrow morning, I and Master Fan will accompany you to the palace to pay your respects to His Majesty."
Cui Qingyi had thought she had to leave today, and the thought suddenly struck her as truly considerate. They had been on the road for many days straight, and even though the carriage she had ordered was large and comfortable, it still felt a bit shaky from the bumps along the way.
The only one in their team who was still energetic and in excellent condition was probably Jing Wei. He was holding two children in his arms and introducing the architecture and layout of the post station.
Because Cui Qingyi was a county princess who was canonized from the common people, and there were many rules in the palace, the Ministry of Rites specially arranged for someone to come and tell Cui Qingyi about the taboos and rules of entering the palace.
Cui Qingyi cherished her life very much and studied hard without slacking off. The next morning, as soon as she opened her eyes, she was thinking about whether the official from the Ministry of Rites had told her which foot she should step with first before entering the palace.
Taozhi and Mammy Cui, who were helping him with his dressing, were both amused. Mammy Cui, while arranging the county lady's official attire, comforted Cui Qingyi, "Don't be too nervous. Taozhi and I are here with you. Besides, our emperor is very kind and will not punish you even for small mistakes."
Taozhi nodded in agreement. After all, everyone knew that His Majesty was kind and generous.
Jing Wei had already packed up and sat aside, watching the two children while watching Cui Qingyi dress up. After living together for so many years, he rarely saw Cui Qingyi nervous, which he found extremely novel.
He was thinking that Cui Qingyi's title of county lord was different from those who relied on family influence to get the title. She had contributed high-yield grain seeds twice, which was a great contribution to the country and the people. Even the title of princess was worthy of her. If she was punished because of a little rule issue, it would be truly unfair.
Cui Qingyi saw the smile on Jing Wei's face in the peep show and secretly took note of him. She had originally had no interest in exploring Jing Wei's past, but who made this man laugh at her?
When the time came, Doctor Fan and Mr. Qin were waiting at the entrance of the post station on time.
This trip to the palace was more grand than Cui Qingyi had imagined. Looking at the canopied carriage parked at the entrance of the post station, Cui Qingyi almost wanted to turn around and ask, "Is this thing definitely not against the rules? She shouldn't have any enemies in the capital who can bribe the people in the Ministry of Rites to make trouble for her, right?"
Jing Wei supported her waist unnoticeably, and when she reacted, Cui Qingyi was already sitting steadily in the carriage.
Looking through the curtain at the man riding on a tall horse following behind, my originally nervous heart slowly calmed down.
The journey to the palace was extremely smooth. Although the current emperor is old, he is as kind and benevolent as rumored by the outside world. He asked Cui Qingyi many questions about the development of Luhua Town.
What made Cui Qingyi feel the most pressured were the emperor's sons who were sitting neatly in a row. After all, whenever the current emperor asked her a question, he would immediately ask a few of the best among them.
Whenever the questions were asked at a tricky angle, Cui Qingyi could even feel the resentful look from some unlucky person.
For example: "Your Majesty, I will open up a piece of land in your palace when I return today, and I will personally experience the difficulties faced by the people."
Cui Qingyi...it's really not necessary!
Despite the embarrassment, Cui Qingyi had a very good impression of the supreme ruler of the Jin Dynasty. Since ancient times, emperors have been suspicious, especially emperors in their twilight years. It is actually difficult for them to remain calm when facing their young and strong sons.
(Supplement Chapter 2, 2000 words)
But from Cui Qingyi's perspective, this Majesty had a mass of white hair on his temples, and his face was stern but his eyes were gentle when facing his children.
It is somewhat ironic that Cui Qingyi had a shallow relationship with her parents in both of her lives.
Fortunately, she and Jing Wei are qualified as parents.
I thought I could leave the palace after paying my respects and expressing my gratitude, but I didn't expect that His Majesty was in a very good mood for chatting today. It was only when the personal eunuch reminded me that I realized it was time for lunch.
"It's already this late. I have to go have lunch with the Queen Mother. Dongping also had lunch in the palace before leaving."
When Cui Qingyi heard that the emperor had given her a meal, she didn't feel anything. After all, she was a country bumpkin who had never been to the palace. However, the princes sitting on the side looked at Cui Qingyi, the county lady from a small place, again and again.
Cui Qingyi had a very pleasant lunch. The plot that often occurs in novels where the food loses its flavor due to waiting for too long did not happen. Every dish was a delicacy that Cui Qingyi had never tasted before.
While waiting to come out of the palace and meet Jing Wei who was waiting outside the second gate, Cui Qingyi almost breathed a sigh of relief. No matter how kind His Majesty was, she was still nervous about this trip, but now it was finally over.
After walking through the long palace road and stopping one or two steps outside the imperial city, Cui Qingyi couldn't help but look back.
She had always had a question in the past: how could the ancient emperors rule the world but spend almost their entire lives trapped in the imperial city? They could rule the feudal dynasty for thousands of years? Perhaps Cui Qingyi could find some answers at this moment. The heart and wisdom of an emperor are indeed incomparable to ordinary people.
Climbing onto the carriage and heading towards the post station, Cui Qingyi thought that she would probably never set foot in the imperial city again in her life.
Cui Qingyi had important matters to attend to in the capital this time. Fortunately, the officials in the capital were very efficient. The next day, Master Qin brought news, "Because you brought a lot of goods this time, the officials in the Beijing Municipal Office spent several days clearing out the market near the Huguo Temple. Once your people have sorted out the goods, the market can be opened."
Cui Qingyi smiled when she heard what Master Xiao Qin said. "I've heard that Huguo Temple is very popular. Now I can go to the Buddha every day and make myself familiar with him."
Master Xiao Qin also laughed, "Huguo Temple is not only prosperous, but also has a unique scenery. The county lady will definitely like it."
As he spoke, he handed the thing in his arms to Taozhi: "The day I met the county lady, the two young masters gave me some gifts. I have been thinking about it for a few days and don't know what gift to give in return. I heard that the young master has been missing his beloved pet at home these days, so I gave this to the young master to ease his homesickness."
Wangcai is old and not as energetic as before, so Cui Qingyi did not bring him with her on this trip. As for the two little ones, they are very lively and playful at that age, so she was afraid that they would cause trouble in the capital, so she simply left them at home.
Yunjuan and Yunshu were used to the dog's company, and they would often talk about it after not seeing it for a long time. Even Lord Qin knew that the young masters of the county lord's mansion each had a majestic big dog.
He had been in the Ministry of Rites for almost a year and three months. During this period, he went from following Doctor Fan in receiving foreign guests and royal relatives from all over the country to going out on independent missions. Those foreign guests were okay, but the royal relatives were really difficult to serve. After all, he was an official who had entered the government through the imperial examination, but he was often ordered around like a servant.
We had already gotten used to this kind of life, but then a family of normal people appeared.
Cui Qingyi raised her eyebrows in surprise, took the two wooden boxes personally, and opened them in front of Lord Xiao Qin. She saw a set of cute porcelain puppies lying or standing in the brocade boxes, and they were the same black as Wangcai.
Cui Qingyi smiled at Taozhi and said, "Look, our little girl has made good friends so quickly. This gift must have touched their hearts."
Lord Qin felt a little embarrassed when the county lady called the two little girls' good friends, but he was mostly happy. He liked children who were gentle, polite and not unruly. These two in the county lady's family were such good friends, not to mention that he was the one who received the gift first.
Taozhi: "Then I must quickly help the two young masters put it away and give them a surprise when they come back."
Jing Wei got up early this morning and took his two children out.
The two of them had agreed last night that it was not easy for them to come all the way to the capital, so they must take their two children to visit all the fun places in the capital.
But the commodity exchange meeting was also very important, so the couple had to act separately, one taking care of the children while the other took care of business.
Rather than doing business, Jing Wei prefers to spend time with his two precious children.
The caravan under Cui Qingyi's command is no longer the makeshift team that was put together in the beginning. Back then, it took a lot of courage for everyone to just walk from Luhua Town to Dongping County. But now, even if they are standing in the territory of the capital, everyone they see are either rich or noble, and everyone can remain calm in the face of praise or criticism.
At Cui Qingyi's command, the caravan quickly organized its men and horses and set off. The market that had been emptied by the Beijing Municipal Government was soon filled with goods again.
The Huguo Temple Market is an indoor market with a tent. It is crowded but well-organized.
Even though Master Xiao Qin, who grew up in the capital, was stunned speechless upon entering, he pointed at the sign at the market entrance and said, "County Lady, your caravan actually has goods from the North and the Western Regions. I thought they were all produced in Dongping County."
Before Cui Qingyi could speak, Taozhi explained to Master Xiao Qin, "Our Luhua Town Commodity Distribution Center now has everything you can't imagine. We have everything we don't have."
Whenever this is introduced to outsiders, the people of Dongping County and Luhua Town are particularly proud. Who can understand their excitement about transforming from a poor and remote area to what they are today?
However, the shock Cui Qingyi received was far more than what he saw at the moment. After Lord Xiao Qin had completed a complete tour of the entire market, he was left with only sincere admiration for the Princess of Dongping County.
For a woman to be able to manage her business to this point, she is simply divine.
After the goods were sorted, notices of the Dajin Commodity Exchange Fair were posted all over the streets and alleys of the capital. Luhua Town has been very famous in recent years. Not to mention anything else, the soy sauce used in every household almost all comes from Luhua Town.
Common people have always been more concerned about things that are closely related to their own lives. If you mention Cui Qingyi, people may not be so sensitive, but if you say that the Luhua Town caravan has brought goods to the capital, it will surely spread throughout the streets and alleys of the capital in less than a day.
Cui Qingyi was not worried about the flow of people at this product exchange meeting at all. She was only worried about what to do if there were too many people and some uncontrollable situations occurred.
Fortunately, the officers at the Military Affairs Division were more thoughtful than she was. Besides the soldiers standing guard outside to maintain order, there were also quite a few soldiers in civilian clothes mingling with the crowd. The officer at the Military Affairs Division assured Cui Qingyi confidently, "Don't worry, County Lady. Our officers are professionals, whether they're catching thieves or handling fights and quarrels."
Cui Qingyi had nothing to worry about and was just waiting for the market to open to welcome customers.
When Cui Qingyi arrived early in the morning, she saw the long line outside and felt as if she had encountered a supermarket discount day in her previous life.
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