The village head, who was working in the fields, received the news and rushed over. When he saw Zhao Xian, he slapped his forehead in dismay.
"Sigh, I missed such a good opportunity. I also wanted to see what the imperial edict looked like."
Zhao Xian smiled and said, "It's easy for Uncle Village Head to see the imperial edict. I'll show it to you. Please wait a moment."
After Zhao Xian finished speaking, he went to his room, took out the imperial edict and the document granting five thousand mu of fertile land to Shuixian Village, and handed them to Wang Lizheng.
"The imperial court has also bestowed a reward upon our Narcissus Village. This reward is quite substantial: 5,000 mu of fertile land. This is the imperial court's document; Village Head Uncle, please keep it safe."
After reading the imperial edict, Wang Lizheng picked up the imperial decree of reward, his hands trembling with excitement.
"I never expected the imperial court to bestow such a generous reward upon our Narcissus Village. I wonder why the court is giving such a reward."
Zhao Xian smiled and said, "It was because Shuixian Village developed the waterwheel and promoted this agricultural tool, benefiting farmers all over the country, that the imperial court rewarded Shuixian Village."
"Actually, you made the waterwheel, so the credit should go to you."
"The imperial court has already bestowed many rewards upon me. This credit should rightfully belong to Uncle Village Head. Uncle Village Head deserves all the credit for promoting the waterwheel throughout the country."
Shuixian Village suddenly gained 5,000 mu of fertile land, and the village's area far exceeded that of the surrounding villages, making it a well-known large village. This brought great opportunities for the development of Shuixian Village. Wang Lizheng calculated that if these fertile lands were rented to large farmers for cultivation, the annual rental income alone would be several hundred taels of silver.
With this money, the village will increase its infrastructure construction and attract more people to settle down in the village, at which time the village will undergo tremendous changes.
Just as the village head was envisioning a bright future for Shuixian Village, Li Xue and the others returned from hunting.
The hunt was very successful; everyone carried their prey and even two large wild boars.
Zhao Xian breathed a sigh of relief when Li Xue and Lin Xi returned safely.
"A good haul, huh? You've hunted so much game, and you haven't encountered any wild beasts, have you?"
"Although we had a lot of fun, it wasn't exciting enough. Apart from hunting wild boars, the rest was too bland, and we didn't really get to enjoy it," Li Xue said regretfully.
"I'm already very happy. Hunting wild boar is indeed dangerous, but it's very exciting. I like it." Lin Xi's feelings were different from Li Xue's; she was very excited.
At this moment, Li Xue noticed that many people had arrived, and Li Guang had also come over. Everyone seemed to be very excited.
"What happened here? Why are there so many people?" Li Xue asked.
The village headman said, "Your Highness, you may not know this, but an imperial edict has just arrived, rewarding Scholar Zhao and bestowing upon him an official position. He is now a government official."
"The imperial edict has arrived." Li Xue was surprised. She hadn't expected it to arrive so quickly; she had thought it would take another two days.
But this is for the best. She missed the imperial edict today while hunting in the mountains. The messenger in the capital knows her. If news of her being in Narcissus gets to the capital, it won't be a good thing.
There was something else she hadn't expected: the imperial court not only rewarded Zhao Xian, but also granted him an official position.
"Young Master Zhao, what official position has the court appointed you? Tell me quickly, so I can be happy too," Li Xue said with a smile.
"Ninth-rank registrar of the Military Equipment Bureau".
Li Xue was a little disappointed to learn that Zhao Xian was only a low-ranking official of the ninth grade. However, the imperial court's appointment of him elevated Zhao Xian's status, which was indeed a good thing.
"Congratulations, Registrar," Li Xue said, offering her congratulations.
The social hierarchy was scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants. Originally, Zhao Xian's social status was very low. However, his appointment as a ninth-rank registrar elevated his status significantly, which was indeed something to celebrate.
"Thank you, Princess." Zhao Xian was quite interested in this minor official position, which was nominal but not real. With this official title, things would be much easier for him in the future.
"Today is a joyous day, we should celebrate properly. Don't leave at noon, just have lunch here."
Zhao Xian asked the chef to start preparing the meal, and Chen Xiaoxiao and several other girls went to help, while the others began to clean up the wild game. Everyone was in high spirits.
Only Ruan Fang looked sullen, and Zhao Xian went over to her when he saw this.
“Miss Ruan, don’t worry. After lunch, I will accompany you back to Xinkou County to find Magistrate Gao. He will stand up for you.”
Zhao Xian's words made Ruan Fang's eyes light up, and she almost knelt down before him.
"Thank you, Registrar." Ruan Fang bowed.
"Miss Ruan, you're too kind." Zhao Xian thought this form of address was quite good, as most people wouldn't know the official rank or grade of this position.
Li Xue noticed Li Guang working with his head down, plucking feathers from a pheasant, and felt a little strange.
Li Guang was very cautious. When the imperial messenger came to Shuixian Village, Li Guang's presence would easily expose his identity. Li Guang should have known this, so why did he still come? What exactly happened?
Thinking of this, Li Xue pulled Li Guang aside and asked him in a low voice.
Li Guang noticed Li Xue's worry and smiled as he spoke:
“How could I not know about the risks involved? It’s not just me who came; everyone from the farm came because of the unexpected incident. How could I just stand by and do nothing? So I came.”
Li Xue was taken aback. Could something have happened here before the imperial edict was issued?
"Tell me quickly, what happened here?"
Li Guang then ordered the Ma family to come here to arrest people and cause trouble. Zhao Xian refused to hand over Ruan Fang, which led to a standoff between the two sides. Fortunately, Prefect Shen arrived in time with an imperial messenger to resolve the crisis.
Li Xue breathed a sigh of relief. If she had known it would turn out this way, she wouldn't have gone hunting and would have taught those people a lesson instead.
Li Xue knew that Zhao Xian had brought Zhao Cheng and Chen Daniu with them to protect her and Lin Xi, which left the family vulnerable; otherwise, the Ma family wouldn't have been able to act so arrogantly.
"When we arrived, we never expected the imperial messenger to come to the village at this time. There were so many people here. I was mixed in with the crowd, wearing tattered clothes and a straw hat, a typical mud-covered man. How could they recognize me? So there was no need to worry at all. I could just blend into the crowd."
Li Xue thought about it and realized that was indeed the case, but she still warned Li Guang not to do such a risky thing next time.
"Sister, I know, I'll be more careful in the future."
An hour later, the food was ready, and it was time to eat.
There were so many people having lunch that the food was spread across three tables.
The workers in the workshop deserve much credit for being able to intimidate the Ma family today. Zhao Xian originally wanted to arrange a meal for them, but there were too many people to make arrangements. Fortunately, they had hunted a lot of game, so Zhao Xian distributed the game to them and gave each of them two jugs of wine.
The villagers were overjoyed; it was an unforgettable day for them, as they not only participated in receiving the imperial decree but also received wild game and liquor.
They knew that this kind of liquor sold for four taels of silver per jin on the market, so two jugs of liquor would cost eight taels of silver. They couldn't afford such expensive liquor, so they went back and tried to sell it to earn a few taels of silver.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
