Qin Fang saw that Yang Haiyan asked him, so he answered truthfully: "Lord Du wrote me a letter, saying that I was just promoted in March, and even if the contributions of the sulfur mine and saltpeter mine were great, it would not be easy to get promoted at this time. I figured that the emperor didn't want me to get promoted too quickly."
Even though Yang Haiyan had never worked in the workplace, she knew some of the situations there. The workplace was nothing like the imperial court. Even the boss would put pressure on the employees, not to mention the emperor? "What about this merit? No reward at all?"
Qin Fang said: "Not really. The Emperor conferred the title of Imperial Edict on Grandma and Mother, both of them being the Imperial Edicts of the 7th Rank Lady."
Yang Haiyan heard this and said, "According to the laws of our Qi Kingdom, a man who is an official can apply for an imperial decree for his wife or mother, usually for his wife. When you were promoted to General Wude, my imperial decree was also granted, so my mother didn't have an imperial decree. This time, I exchanged the rewards of sulfur and saltpeter mines for imperial decrees for my mother and grandmother, which is a happy thing." She had a weak bond with her family. She was abandoned by her biological parents when she was young. It was her great grandmother who picked her up and raised her. But when her great grandmother picked her up, she was too old, otherwise she would not have been her great grandmother. So when she was fifteen years old, her great grandmother passed away.
Therefore, she yearned for family affection. Now Qin's mother and grandmother loved Qin Fang very much, and they loved her as well. If it were her, she would be willing to use her own rewards to exchange for their imperial edicts. Therefore, she could see that Qin Fang was also very happy. However, in Yang Haiyan's opinion, there was another benefit, "In this way, mother and grandmother will have a monthly allowance of four taels of silver every month." The monthly allowance of an official is half of that of an official, but a monthly allowance of four taels of silver is a lot of money for ordinary people. After all, they spend less than four taels of silver in a year.
Even if the emperor conferred imperial titles on Grandma Qin and Mother Qin, it was not generous. Two imperial titles of the seventh rank would add up to about 100 taels of silver per year, which was enough for them to live on until they died. But if it was an imperial title of the fifth rank, it would cost more than 1,000 taels per year, which was a huge difference.
Qin Fang hadn't thought of this. All his subsidies now added up to 120 taels a month, which was enough to support his parents and grandparents, so he didn't think about the imperial salary. Now that Yang Haiyan mentioned it, he felt that things couldn't get any better.
The couple chatted for a while, and Yang Haiyan went to prepare dinner. Today, she would definitely entertain Wei Ting and Chief Steward Chi. However, Yang Haiyan didn't know that although the military camp land policy and saltpeter ice making had great contributions, they were not enough for the emperor to canonize her as a county lady and grant her a title. Half of her honor today was due to Qin Fang. The real contributions were from the sulfur mine and saltpeter mine.
However, Qin Fang was not going to tell her about such things. In Qin Fang's heart, she just needed to be happy. He was willing to make any sacrifice for her, just like she had never disliked him before.
Baili Village
Baili Village is holding a banquet right now. Although Qin Fang is not here, the elders and the village chief know about such a glorious event, so the banquet will be held. Moreover, the banquet is very sumptuous, thanks to Qin's mother's wealth. When the eldest brother and his wife returned to the border last year, they left 100 taels of silver for building a house. There are still 30 taels left. Add to that the 10 taels of filial piety silver they brought back at the end of last year, and Qin's mother's purse is bulging.
"Qin Fang's mother, congratulations to you. Qin Fang was a smart kid when he was young. It was obvious that he would have a promising future. I never thought that he would become a great general now."
"That's right. As the saying goes, you can tell a person's future from the age of three. I've always thought Qin Fang was a capable person."
"The Qin family has changed their family background. They used to be a government family."
"It is said that General Qin Fang is more powerful than the county magistrate."
"Will the county magistrate come today?"
"The Qin family didn't invite the county magistrate, right?"
The Qin family did not invite the county magistrate, and the county magistrate did not know about this matter in advance. After all, Qin Fang did not take the military examination route, and his promotion by the imperial court would not be made public, nor would the news be passed back to his hometown, so how would the county magistrate know
Moreover, the Qin family was not the kind of family that liked to show off, so apart from the villagers, the guests at this banquet were the Qin family's relatives.
But the county magistrate still found out because someone from the capital came to announce the imperial edict.
The people in Baili Village were eating at this moment. Everyone was eating and chatting at the same time. It was very lively. Just then, a group of people came in, led by a yamen runner. The yamen runners of the county government were wearing yamen runners' clothes, so they were very conspicuous. When the yamen runners came in, everyone in the village was startled. Some people even hadn't swallowed the food in their mouths yet, and just stared in shock.
Some people began to whisper: "Why are the bailiffs here?"
"Will the Qin family get into trouble?"
"Qin Fang is a general, a higher official than the county magistrate?"
"Then Qin Fang must have done something wrong?"
"Who knows?"
The Qin family was also very uneasy. Everyone looked at each other. Finally, when Grandpa Qin stepped forward and was about to ask, he saw the yamen runner standing still and not saying anything. Someone else came in at the gate of the yard. The man was wearing an official uniform and was obviously an official.
"County Magistrate..." the village chief shouted. Others did not know the County Magistrate, but the village chief did. The village chief hurriedly stepped out of the crowd and walked in front of the County Magistrate, "I am here to meet you, County Magistrate."
When everyone heard the village chief say that the man was the county magistrate, and saw the village chief kneeling down, they all stood up and prepared to kneel down.
The county magistrate hurriedly said, "Don't be so polite, just listen to me."
Suddenly, the people who were about to kneel down stopped. The villagers were very obedient to the county magistrate's words.
The county magistrate looked around and asked, "Excuse me, is this General Qin Fang's home?"
When everyone heard this, they all stepped aside and looked at the Qin family. However, from the county magistrate's question, they also understood that Qin Fang did not seem to have committed a crime, and the county magistrate seemed to be here to celebrate
Grandpa Qin walked up to the crowd and said respectfully, "I am Qin Fang's grandfather. I am honored to meet you, the county magistrate."
The county magistrate stepped forward and quickly supported him, not letting him salute. The county magistrate then said, "No need to be polite, old man. General Qin has made great contributions to the country, and the emperor has conferred imperial decrees on Madam Qin and Old Madam Qin. The official who is going to announce the imperial decree is waiting outside. I will go and invite him in." In Qi, an official is an official, that is, a eunuch, and a eunuch is also called an eunuch, so there is the same title of official and official.
Many common people don't know what an imperial edict means, but in Baili Village, there are still many people who know the meaning of an imperial edict. Because there are scholars in Baili Village, people will talk about scholars and officials when they chat. Therefore, they know that if the son of the family has a promising future and becomes an official, he can ask for an imperial edict for his mother.
However, imperial edicts were rarely granted to grandmothers.
Grandpa Qin also has some knowledge about this aspect. After his grandson returned to the military camp last year and learned that his grandson had become a seventh-rank captain, Grandpa Qin often asked Tongsheng about officialdom. Although Tongsheng knew very little, he still knew more than Grandpa Qin.
"He..." Grandpa Qin was dumbfounded. His eldest grandson fought for the imperial edict for his mother and grandmother? Or two? How high of an official position was he? Grandpa Qin seemed unable to react, and he looked at Huang Huzi.
Huang Huzi stepped forward and supported Grandpa Qin: "Don't worry, the general did make a great contribution this time. Let's invite the official in now."
Hearing Huang Huzi say that his eldest grandson had indeed made great contributions, Grandpa Qin breathed a sigh of relief. He said to the county magistrate: "Thank you for telling me, my dear sir."
The county magistrate glanced at Huang Huzi and said to everyone, "The official has come with an imperial decree, so everyone should give way."
Then a eunuch came in holding an imperial edict: "The imperial edict has arrived. Qin Fang's birth mother, Qin Li, please receive it."
"Long live the emperor..."
No one could understand what the eunuch read next, not even Qin's mother. After the eunuch finished reading the imperial edict to confer the title of empress on Qin's mother, he read the imperial edict to confer the title of empress on Qin's grandmother. After reading it, he looked at them and said, "Two ladies, please accept the edict."
Mother Qin said in a panic: "I accept your order. Thank you, Your Majesty. Long live the emperor."
Seeing this, Grandma Qin also said, "I accept your order and thank you, Your Majesty. Long live the emperor."
The eunuch saw this, but he did not say that their etiquette was not proper. He knew that they were ignorant women, so he would not be too picky. The eunuch handed them the imperial edict and said a few polite words: "General Qin has a bright future, and the two ladies will have better and better luck in the future. I am here and would like to congratulate the Qin family in advance."
Grandma Qin said hurriedly, "You are so polite. Today... Today we are having a buffet to celebrate Ah Fang becoming a general and to show the respect the court has for Ah Fang. You are a guest from afar, please take a seat."
The eunuch said, "Thank you, my lady. The emperor is still waiting for our reply, so we won't bother you any more."
Grandpa Qin said hurriedly, "Sir, you have come a long way, and it is too rude of us not to even offer you a cup of tea. Please come into the inner hall and have a cup of tea before leaving."
The eunuch smiled and said, "Then I'd better obey your command."
Grandpa Qin brought the eunuch into the house, and Grandma Qin hurriedly poured a cup of sugar water. The eunuch took the sugar water and took a sip symbolically: "I have finished the tea, and I really have to say goodbye. If we are destined to meet again in the future, maybe we can meet again in the capital."
Grandpa Qin quickly handed over a purse and said, "We're having a buffet today. According to the custom in our family, all guests must accept donations to share in the family's good fortune. Please don't refuse, sir." Grandpa Qin's words were so profound that the eunuch would not refuse, and even if he did, he couldn't give a good reason.
No, it was just a formality, and everyone knew it. The eunuch took the purse and put it in his sleeve: "Then I'll take my leave." He was used to receiving rewards, and when he took the purse, he felt it was light and knew it must be silver bills. And if someone knows how to use silver bills, the amount must be large, so the eunuch was in a good mood.