Zhongli Tao's situation immediately became awkward.
Because everyone else was executed, Emperor Mingde kept him alive.
Although he was spared, his surname Zhongli was stripped from him and he was demoted to a commoner.
The last time Emperor Mingde saw him, he looked at him for a long time without saying a word.
"I know you are innocent, but your birth represents sin."
"I have raised you for many years, and I have invested so much effort in you that you can sense it as long as you are not heartless. But today, the fate between you and me as grandparents ends here."
"You are forbidden from ever setting foot in the Imperial City again. I know you are not in good health, so I will have someone escort you to the border. No one will restrain you from now on. Live a good life!"
Looking at the child kneeling on the ground, Emperor Mingde felt both disgusted and a little bitter.
"Thank you, Your Majesty! I will live a good life in the future. From afar, I pray for Your Majesty's good health. Please take care of yourself!"
Zhongli Tao knelt on the ground with his weak body and kowtowed heavily.
Emperor Mingde couldn't bear it any longer. He closed his eyes and turned his back. "Get up! I'll give you one last name: Kang Tao. Come! Take him away!"
With tears in his eyes, Kang Tao kowtowed again and was dragged out of the palace, leaving the place where he had lived since he was a child.
Regarding the future, a trace of confusion flashed in his eyes.
——
After the preparations were completed, Wuyouzi, Huang Lao, and Song Yuanshi began to work together to remove the poison from the emperor, empress, and Xie Siheng.
Xie Siheng's was the simplest, it was a puppet Gu, the same as the one that Ren Dongnan and the others had. The experienced Huang Lao and Song Yuanshi quickly cured Xie Siheng's.
The poisonous insects in Emperor Mingde and Jiang Qianruo are much more poisonous and are called heart-eating insects.
Not only does the whole process require a high level of concentration, but even the prepared materials are more expensive than each other.
Fortunately, several of the important main medicines were brought by Wuyouzi.
It took the three of them plus Ji Changying a whole day to get rid of the poisonous insect.
At the moment when the poisonous insects were cleared out, a scream like that of a human came from the body of the Grand Master placed on the side, making people's hair stand on end.
Wuyouzi's face was solemn as he quickly ordered the Dragon Shadow Guard: "Quick! Light the fire!"
There was already a pile of oily firewood under the Grand Master's body. The moment Dragon Shadow Guard heard Wuyouzi's words, he threw the torch up without hesitation.
In an instant, the entire fire platform was ignited, and the Grand Master's stiff body rolled and struggled inside. The surface of the body bulged from time to time, which made people's scalps numb.
Ji Changying couldn't help rubbing her arms. She had really broadened her horizons.
Even the most staunch materialist cannot help but doubt the world at this moment.
Wuyouzi stared at the fire pit with a serious expression, not daring to slack off in the slightest.
He waited until the Grand Master was completely burned to ashes before he breathed a sigh of relief: "It's done!"
Although the poison was cured, Emperor Mingde and Jiang Qianruo felt as if their energy and spirit had been drained away, and they were somewhat listless.
Emperor Mingde ordered Zhonglizhou to be regent. After he and the empress recuperated, he stayed at home and stopped attending court, leaving all matters to Zhonglizhou to handle.
Only when the problem could not be solved would Zhongli Zhou bring it to Emperor Mingde for answers.
This year passed by in complete silence.
The Ji family had lost all their former joy, and they looked at Ji Changying with some hesitation about what to say.
Ask yourself every day: “Do you really want to go?”
After getting Ji Changying's affirmative answer, he would sigh.
Ji Mingxue's confession was already frustrated, and hearing that Ji Changying was about to leave for Beiyan made things even worse.
Instead, Ji Changying looked at him mischievously: "Second brother, how did you get rejected?"
When talking about this, Ji Mingxue's face turned dark.
I thought it was a sure thing, but I ran into obstacles one after another with Xu Qi.
"She said she's not considering marriage now and wants to wait until later, and advised me to find someone else!" Ji Mingxue gritted his teeth.
"Tsk tsk tsk, it must be that Second Brother failed to attract the girl. You should try harder!"
Ji Changying patted Ji Mingxue's shoulder with a smile.
A month passed in a flash.
Emperor Mingde and Jiang Qianruo felt much better, and Wuyouzi also began to prepare to set off for Beiyan. However, before leaving, he spat at the morning court because of an official position to be given to Ji Changying.
"Let me tell you, it would be most appropriate to give the princess the position of Deputy Director of the Ministry of Revenue."
Since the emperor has spoken, Wei Qiumao naturally did not hesitate to bring the princess to the Ministry of Revenue as soon as possible.
"Bah! The Ministry of Revenue's Deputy Minister is only of the fifth rank! If we get to Northern Yan, won't everyone be superior to the princess? I think the Minister of Agriculture is a better fit!"
"What you two gentlemen said is really inappropriate. Since we are going to Beiyan as a Dali official, then naturally an official from the Ministry of Rites would be the most suitable! I think it would be better to appoint him as the Minister of Rites, that would be the right thing to do!"
"Bah! What's it got to do with you? Go play somewhere else!"
····
It was a rare occasion for Ji Fengshou to attend court without feeling sleepy at all. Listening to others arguing and spitting at each other over his daughter, he felt a strange sense of satisfaction in his heart.
He stood there and thought leisurely, no matter how much you scold him, no matter what official position he holds, in the end, it belongs to his daughter.
Zhongli Zhou was also pondering in his heart before making the final decision.
"Everyone has witnessed Princess Hehua's dedication to agriculture and sericulture. I have decided to appoint her as the Second Rank Minister of Agriculture! I will have her represent the Dali Emperor and go to Beiyan to exchange ideas. She can return at any time."
"As a sign of sincerity, the King of Northern Yan has added another ten years to the ten-year contract. This is all due to the Princess's impressive talent. Do you have any objections?"
After a few seconds of silence, the matter was settled as no one in the court objected.
Zhongli Zhou relaxed his brows and said, "Since that's the case, then let's announce this to the world! From now on, anyone with outstanding contributions and talent, regardless of gender, can serve as an official in the court! This will enhance the prestige of our Dali nation!"
This decision is jaw-dropping.
Many court officials originally thought that Princess Hehua was an exception. After all, she had real talent and achievements in her hands.
I didn't expect that the emperor's eldest grandson would actually encourage more people to follow suit. This action immediately sparked a buzz of discussion in the court.
"This is truly inappropriate! The princess is a member of the royal family, and she has indeed made great contributions and set a precedent, so why are you encouraging others to follow suit? Won't there be more women serving in the court alongside us in the future? This is outrageous!"
"We're a bunch of grown men, why should we be afraid of a bunch of women? Besides, there are very few people like the princess who are among the best. There hasn't been another one yet. Why are you so anxious?"
"That's not what I'm saying. If this were to happen, wouldn't my wife be riding on my head? That won't do! I absolutely disagree!"
"Then you take the lead and go to discuss with the emperor..."
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