Fang Qing gripped Zhao Shi'an's hand tightly, and Zhao Shi'an soothingly rubbed the back of her hand.
Afterwards, palace servants brought up many lanterns, and Fang Qing and Zhao Shi'an each received one.
Fang Qing handed it to Zhao Shi'an because she could write on it.
He only wrote one sentence: "Holding your hand, we will grow old together."
It's the most ordinary thing, yet it's also the most heartwarming.
The subsequent palace banquet seemed to end without any major incident.
People gradually left the palace.
It wasn't very late, so Fang Qing and Zhao Shi'an went to visit Fang Qing's parents. Doumiao and the others didn't rest either; they enjoyed the moon with them for a while, ate mooncakes, and then went home late.
After a long day of travel, Fang Qing slept in late, and when she woke up the next morning, the weather outside had changed.
Seventeen told Fang Qing about what she had found out.
Overnight, Consort Xian was confined to her quarters. A female official in the palace exposed her correspondence with people outside the palace.
It turns out that interfering in the buying and selling of seeds and grains is one thing, but what's even more despicable is the buying and selling of official positions.
The incident caused a huge uproar once it was exposed.
This matter is inextricably linked to Consort Xian's family. However, in order to preserve the family's foundation, Consort Xian's family pushed her and an insignificant disciple out as scapegoats.
This matter dragged on for a long time, from the time Fang Qing saw Princess Min'er off after the Mid-Autumn Festival until it finally came to an end half a month later.
Consort Xian was demoted to commoner status and imprisoned in the palace for giving birth to a prince. The scapegoat sent by her family was executed. As for the problems in local government offices, the court is also making reforms.
Following this incident, an imperial edict was issued from the palace.
Fang Qing was granted an imperial title.
Fang Qing was stunned for a moment when she received the imperial edict, and subconsciously looked at Zhao Shi'an next to her.
The timing of this imperial edict was truly too coincidental.
According to the official records, she already had a title, so this imperial decree was irrelevant.
After the person from the palace who was announcing the imperial edict left, Fang Qing asked Zhao Shi'an what had happened.
"I asked the Emperor for it."
"His Majesty is quite generous."
“Of course, when I told the Emperor that my wife had been mistreated by the Imperial Concubine at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, he immediately granted her an imperial title.”
Fang Qing looked at him helplessly.
She told the Emperor that she had been wronged, so how could the Emperor not do something?
"Who has taken over the task of rectifying local officials?"
"The Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of Justice are investigating together. Don't worry, with Fang Dashu involved, Yuzhou will be the first place to be rectified, and the Zhou family's business will be resolved soon."
With Fang Dashu by her side, Fang Qing would naturally feel at ease.
She didn't expect the business with the Zhou family to be huge or successful; she just hoped it would go smoothly.
Fang Qing told Doumiao about it, and Doumiao and the others breathed a sigh of relief.
Fang Qing originally wanted the family of three to stay in Beijing for a while longer, but they wanted to go home before winter.
Fang Qing naturally wouldn't stop them, and specially arranged for someone to escort them away from the capital.
The incident involving Consort Xian implicated many people in the capital, and the capital has been calm for a long time after the matter was resolved.
The Zhao family still did not receive any invitations or visiting cards every day.
Now that Zhao Shi'an is an official in the imperial court, even if Fang Qing doesn't want to socialize, she still has to interact with these ladies in the capital.
I picked and chose some invitations from banquets that didn't involve any conflicts of interest, and I got to know some ladies there.
After winter arrived, Fang Qing stayed at home and refused all visitors from other residences.
But since they couldn't find Fang Qing, they turned their attention to Fang Daniu and his wife.
That day, Fang Qing was going over the household accounts with the steward when Zhao Shi came over.
Zhao waited for a while, and only spoke after seeing the steward take away all the account books.
"I pickled some vegetables and had someone take them to the kitchen for you."
"Mom, you really know me. I was thinking about the pickled vegetables you made last night."
Lady Zhao was pleased.
"I've pickled a lot this year. If you need more, just let me know and I'll send you some."
"OK."
Fang Qing casually picked up a storybook and started flipping through it.
"Did Mother come here for something?"
Zhao was someone who couldn't keep things to herself; Fang Qing could tell she was troubled as soon as she arrived.
“I know about your relationship with Shi’an. You two are not young anymore. Even if you can’t have children, you should consider adopting one, don’t you think?”
Fang Qing hadn't expected that the rumors about Zhao Shi'an had already reached the Zhao family's ears.
“What did I say? My brother and I have already told each other that we have no plans to have children.”
"Look at what you're saying. Having one child is great, you two can raise it together, otherwise what will you do in the future?"
Fang Qing's head started to ache when she heard Zhao Shi say this.
"Mother, with my brother's and my current status, there won't be a situation where we have no one to take care of us when we get old. Besides, even if we adopt a child, can we guarantee that the child will treat us well when they grow up?"
“If you raise your child well, he will naturally become sensible. Besides, can you guarantee that the people in your household will still treat you with the same dedication when you and Shi’an get old? It’s different if you have children. At least with children around, the servants will still serve you diligently.”
Fang Qing opened her mouth to refute, but Zhao said again, "And another thing is that the servants are sycophants. When you are gone, they may not even take good care of your funeral, and no one may even visit your grave."
As she spoke, Zhao imagined such a scene, and she felt miserable, her eyes turning red.
Fang Qing remained speechless.
"Mother, what's the point of worrying about anything else now that the person is dead?"
Why are you so stubborn, kid?
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