As everyone expected, the Emperor once again sent refugees into Beining County. It is unknown whether he felt that the area was sparsely populated due to its proximity to the border, or whether he simply wanted to give Wang Zheng more political achievements.
—Inside the Shuhua Palace in the capital city
"Your Majesty, are you looking at that painting from the General's wedding again?" Qingsong said, pouring Xiao Lanhua a cup of hot tea.
Over the years, the palace maid who once secretly harbored feelings for the painting has let go of her obsession and can now calmly look at the painting with her mistress.
The Imperial Concubine, dressed entirely in golden robes, nodded.
“My brother said that my sister-in-law gave birth to a nephew for me. I don’t know what the child looks like. He will send me a painting of good fortune after the baby turns one month old.”
"Your Majesty, I heard that the Emperor has sent all the refugees who escaped from the plague-stricken area to the border cities. Could the General possibly...?"
Xiao Lanhua frowned. This was a strategically important place, and she didn't know what the Emperor was thinking, sending the plague to that place.
The woman shook her head.
"I don't know what the Emperor is thinking, but you should first convert all the things in my private treasury into silver and send it to my brother. We can keep it for a few years. In a few days, I will go to the Emperor to ask for some rewards."
"yes."
If there is a place in the palace more comfortable than the emperor's, it is the Empress Dowager's Cining Palace.
"Master, you can finally sleep soundly now. You haven't had a good rest for the past few days, and you don't look well."
The withered woman looked at herself in the mirror. She had aged and become like this. People who think too much age quickly. If she saw him again looking like this, she wondered if he would recognize her.
"As long as that brat from the Lan family doesn't die, the Emperor feels he can't sit securely on the dragon throne for even a day."
"That's fate."
This time, Hou Xiangxiang wasn't beaten. Instead, Huo Xiaolong was being nagged by someone who wasn't his biological brother. She felt that Tingche was becoming more and more like a male mother, and he was going to nag her to death.
"I was only gone for two months to retrieve some things for my grandfather, and you were so bold as to go down the city wall with your friends?"
"What if something happens to you? What will happen to all the ladies at the brothel?"
The young man possessed a refined, jade-like face, with fair skin tinged with a rosy blush. An air of elegance emanated from his brows, and his eyes sparkled like stars. His nose was high and straight, his lips beautifully shaped, and a slight smile played on his lips. His hair was styled with a jade hairpin, with a few strands fluttering gently in the breeze. He wore a moon-white brocade robe embroidered with delicate cloud patterns, bound with a pale gold and jade belt, adorned with jade stones.
Huo Xiaolong mumbled "uh-huh" incoherently. After seeing so many beauties under the moon, they were all the same. Although Tingche was handsome, he couldn't resist seeing him every day.
Now only the little girl sister still cares about looks. She's not a fangirl, she just wants to better immerse herself in her stories.
"Long'er, I'm talking to you."
"Okay, Tingche, how about I take you with me next time?"
Hearing the answer he wanted, the man nodded, then took out an exquisitely crafted, openwork gold pendant from his sleeve and handed it to Huo Xiaolong.
"I found it when I went back to the Prince of Zhennan's mansion. Here you go."
The girl accepted the bell with both hands, thanked her, and then held it up to the moonlight, saying...
"This little gadget is really well made."
"They're just some accessories; it's a blessing that Long'er likes them."
Moonlight streamed through the gaps in the accessories, illuminating the girl's face. Her beauty was breathtaking. As the bells jingled in the wind, Lan Tingche snapped out of his reverie, told Long'er to go to bed early, and then returned to his room.
On the rooftop, Xiao's secret guard nudged his colleague beside him.
"Hey, what did your little master do all the way home for?"
What does it have to do with you?
"Tsk, you're really easy to tease. But speaking of which, it seems my wife has one of those things on her waist too," said the Xiao family's guard.
"What do you think? It's a royal gift, something my young lady left for her master."
"No wonder."
The gift hanging on Ruyi was a congratulatory gift from Xiao Lanhua to his sister-in-law. Huo Xiaolong liked it from the first day it was hung up, and the woman wanted to give it to her after taking it down, but her sister refused.
"Sister Ruyi likes it too, but I don't want it. I'll make one myself later."
"Long'er, take it if you like, don't be shy with your sister." Ruyi still wanted to take it off and give it to her younger sister, but Huo Xiaolong forcibly hugged her so she couldn't move.
The girl said
"This is Xiao Lanyi's way of showing his affection to my sister. I don't want it. If I want to see it, Sister Ruyi can bring it out for me to play with for a while. Why should my sister give me what she likes? She should keep what she likes in her own hands. I don't want my sister to suffer because of me."
"You silly child."
Looking at Huo Xiaolong nestled against her waist, Ruyi touched her hair, just like she did when she was a child.
Hua Luan was getting a beauty treatment at the Fengyue Tower today. She had pearl cream on her face, Huo Panlijian was sitting next to her, and she was holding a book, quietly listening to her teacher and Cen Mama talk.
"Aren't you really going to report this to your superiors? She and her girlfriends have done a great service this time; they'll probably at least get a title like a county princess."
"Princess? Lijian, go and call Long'er over."
Cen Ang smiled; his own child had a big heart.
"What's wrong, Mom? What do you want?" Huo Xiaolong, who was in the middle of a battle of wits with his two children, ran in with his face flushed. He walked to the table, picked up the kettle, sipped his water, and asked.
"Your Aunt Hua asked me if I should submit a memorial to the Emperor for you."
Why are you handing over a memorial?
"A reward, indeed! Our Long'er has rendered meritorious service in fighting the epidemic," Hua Luan replied.
"What can he give me in return?"
"At least she should be a county princess."
"Then I won't do it. What's a county princess? I don't care even if she's a county princess," Huo Xiaolong said, sitting next to the sword.
Madam Hua asked, puzzled.
Why?
“Whether it’s a county princess, a county princess, or even a princess, they have no say in the court. Aunt Hua, I’m doing these expensive and laborious things to speak up for the people and women of the world. Wealth and glory are not what I desire.”
"I still stand by what I said: I want to ensure that one day, no one in Great Yan will starve or freeze to death."
"Neither the princess nor the noblewoman can do it."
Hua Luan sat up slowly upon hearing this, and the bottle behind her removed her face cream. Then the woman asked...
"What does Long'er want to do?"
Huo Xiaolong looked at the woman's beautiful, fair face with a few strands of damp hair without saying a word, and instead asked her a question.
"If I reclaim the grasslands, what reward will Long'er receive? What title will the Emperor bestow upon me?"
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