Emperor of the Red Chamber

Chapter 146: Promoting Good
It was already the 30th day of the twelfth lunar month, New Year's Eve of the ninth year of Chengtai.

Since Yuan Qingbai was in the 27-month mourning period, there were not many lights and no loud music in the palace on New Year's Eve, so it was not very lively, but of course it was not deserted either. After all, it was a good time for the family to get together.

The next day, New Year's Day, the palace was extremely lively because the New Year's Day celebrations were held as per tradition. This was the first New Year's Day celebrations since Yuan Qingbai ascended the throne.

Yuan Qingbai got up at midnight and ate an apple that symbolized "peace every year". Then he performed the opening ceremony in the warm room of the Baohe Hall and offered sacrifices to the ancestors in the Fengxian Hall. Then, Yuan Qingbai took a sedan chair to the Zhonghe Hall and took his seat. The officials in front of the emperor knelt down to pay respects to him. Then, accompanied by the Zhonghe Shao music, he took his seat in the Taihe Hall and was congratulated by the princes, nobles, civil and military officials. However, there was no banquet this time.

This New Year's Day celebration has another meaning, which means that from now on, the "Chengtai" era name has become a thing of the past, and the "Tianlong" era name is officially used. Today is the first day of the first year of Tianlong!
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The "Da Zhou Bao" has been published for many issues and is very popular in Rongguo Mansion. Even Lady Jia likes to read it.

Since the newspaper would report on Emperor Tianlong Yuan Qingbai and important court affairs, and since the newspaper's supplements contained poetry and jokes, Jia's grandmother could use them to entertain herself.

On the eleventh day of the first lunar month, a new issue of "Da Zhou Bao" was published.

In the morning, the newspaper delivery man from the Da Zhou Newspaper delivered a copy of "Da Zhou Newspaper" to the Rongguo Mansion as usual. The servants then took it directly to the Rongqing Hall and handed it to Lady Jia.

Wearing glasses, Grandmother Jia read through this issue of "Da Zhou Bao" from beginning to end. When she saw the jokes in the supplement, she couldn't help laughing out loud.

Mrs. Wang, who was sitting in the hall, asked Jia's mother with a smile, "Old lady, is it that this time the "Da Zhou Bao" has a good joke again, which makes you happy?"

"This time there are three more jokes, all of which are hilarious." Grandmother Jia nodded and smiled, "This time it reports the grand occasion of the New Year's Day celebration, and also reports Zhai Xiucheng's honesty and diligence. The emperor praised his behavior, and the county officials of the Great Zhou Dynasty took him as a role model."

Mrs. Wang was slightly surprised and couldn't help but curious: "Oh? They actually reported this?"

Jia's mother then ordered her maid Yuanyang to pass the newspaper to Mrs. Wang, who lowered her head and began to read. She had limited education, but it was enough for her to read the "Da Zhou Bao", although she could not understand some of the content.

As expected, Mrs. Wang saw that the front-page headline of this issue of "Da Zhou Bao" reported the New Year's Day celebrations, and the next piece of news was about He Qi's late husband Zhai Xiucheng.

This piece of news was quite long, almost as long as the headlines. It reported in detail Zhai Xiucheng's deeds of integrity and diligence, and included a long comment from Emperor Tianlong Yuan Qingbai.

This long comment is as follows:

"The number of prefecture and county officials is vast, and they are of great importance to the court and the people. The people rely on the prefecture and county officials for safety; the prefecture and county officials should report the sufferings of the people to the court; the court's kindness and intentions can only be made known to the people by the prefecture and county officials."

"When the late emperor was alive, he deeply understood this principle and repeatedly summoned county officials with his imperial presence to show his great favor. Now that I have inherited his legacy, I want to bring peace and prosperity to the country and the people. I should follow the late emperor's example and pay special attention to county officials."

"I have seen that there is a man named Zhai Xiucheng in the Great Zhou Dynasty who is diligent in his work and cares for the people. I am very pleased. I am also pleased that there are not only Zhai Xiucheng, but many other county officials in the Great Zhou Dynasty who are diligent in their work and care for the people. I hope that in the future, there will be more and more such county officials. The Great Zhou Newspaper should publicize their stories to encourage other officials."

"As for the county officials who are corrupt, pervert the law, neglect government affairs, and harm the people, they are truly the scourge of the people, despised by the whole world, and intolerable by the law. They must be severely punished to serve as a warning to others."

The affairs of Zhai Xiucheng, He Qi, and Zhai Xiaoqing's family were naturally just a trivial matter to the emperor Yuan Qingbai, but since he encountered such a trivial matter, he had to use it to punish evil and promote good.

The purpose of reporting and publicizing Zhai Xiucheng's deeds in the "Da Zhou Bao" is to promote good deeds and commend the honest and diligent administration of officials.

The officials of prefectures and counties were an important class in the administration of officials. Once this class was in chaos, it meant that the administration of officials in the Great Zhou was in chaos. If this class was well governed, the administration of officials in the Great Zhou would not be very bad.

When Mrs. Wang finished reading the news report, she felt a little depressed.

He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing have been living in Rongguo Mansion for more than ten days, and Mrs. Wang has become a little disgusted with them.

The reason was that a few days ago, Zhen Baofen complained to Mrs. Wang, roughly saying that she was worried that the pretty He Qi would hook up with Jia She, Jia Zheng, Jia Zhu, Jia Lian and other gentlemen in the mansion. In fact, Zhen Baofen was afraid that her husband Jia Lian would hook up with He Qi.

In addition, Mrs. Wang had already discovered that Jia Baoyu met Zhai Xiaoqing when he returned home on New Year's Day and was very attentive to her, so she was also afraid that Zhai Xiaoqing would hook up with Jia Baoyu.

If Yuan Qingbai had not allowed He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing to live in Rongguo Mansion, Mrs. Wang would have found a way to drive the mother and daughter away.

Mrs. Wang had originally planned to have Jia Zhu arrange for the mother and daughter to leave after the Lantern Festival. But after seeing this issue of the Da Zhou Bao, she hesitated. Yuan Qingbai praised and promoted Zhai Xiucheng so much, and unless Yuan Qingbai took the initiative to let He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing leave Rongguo Mansion, it would probably make Yuan Qingbai angry.

At this moment, Jia's mother ordered He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing to come to Rongqing Hall and let He Qi read the "Da Zhou Bao". He Qi was deeply moved after reading it and cried with joy.

She had learned that the emperor had issued an order to punish Ding Shoujin and Zhai Xiuye. Now, the emperor praised and promoted her late husband in the "Da Zhou Bao".

Although she was very happy and relieved, He Qi also felt uncomfortable.

She had sensed the hostility of Zhen Baofen, the second wife of the Rongguo Mansion, towards her, and also felt that Lady Wang had become cold towards her. She felt that although the Rongguo Mansion was rich and prosperous, it was not suitable for her and her daughter to live in for a long time.

"If the emperor could grant me and my daughter a place to live, his kindness would be even greater." He Qi secretly glanced at Madam Wang in the hall, thinking so in her heart, and then she blamed herself, thinking that she should not think like this, which was asking for more and was not greedy.

At this time, Lin Zhixiao's wife came to Rongqing Hall and said respectfully to Lady Jia and Lady Wang, "Madam, Madam, Master Zhu sent someone back to the mansion to convey the emperor's decree, ordering the mother and daughter of the Zhai family to move to a house in the imperial city and to register their household registration with the Ministry of Internal Affairs."

Grandmother Jia was stunned for a moment, then asked, "When will you move?"

Lin Zhixiao's wife reported: "They said they would move there immediately. The house in the imperial city has been prepared. Let us send the Zhai family mother and daughter to the outside of the imperial city, and Master Zhu will personally lead them into the imperial city."

He Qi was surprised again. Just now she was still hoping that the emperor would grant her and her daughter a place to live. In the blink of an eye, this wish came true.

The household registration of He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing was placed under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which meant that from then on the mother and daughter were servants of the royal family. These "servants" were extraordinary and of great importance. They were servants of the emperor and had many benefits.

For example, the mother and daughter can live in the imperial city with this identity.

For example, if the mother and daughter encounter similar troubles as Ding Shoujin's harassment in the future, they can directly go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to handle it.

If Zhai Xiaoqing was a boy, he would have the opportunity to enter the official school of Xian'an Palace, and even if he did not pass the imperial examination, he would have the opportunity to become an official, or even a high-ranking official.

As a daughter, Zhai Xiaoqing had to participate in the selection of concubines when she reached a certain age. This was not a free choice, but in He Qi's opinion, this was also a good thing, and she hoped that her daughter could be selected as a concubine of Emperor Tianlong in the future.

Mrs. Wang was also surprised. That was great. She didn't have to take the initiative. The emperor had already ordered the mother and daughter of the Zhai family to move out of the Rongguo Mansion. She didn't have to worry about the mother and daughter hooking up with the men in the mansion.

Mrs. Wang smiled at Lady Jia and said, "I would like to congratulate them again. They have been admitted to the Imperial Household Department and are now living in the imperial city. This is truly a gift from the emperor."

Grandmother Jia nodded, congratulated He Qi, and then ordered Lin Zhixiao and his wife to be responsible for the relocation of He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing.

Xue Baochai, Lin Daiyu, Yingchun, Tanchun, Xichun and other girls came to see He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing when they learned that they were going to move to the imperial city. These girls sighed that Yuan Qingbai was really kind to the poor mother and daughter of the Zhai family and was really an emperor who punished evil and promoted good.

"Remember to bring Sister Qing to visit us often!"

At the time of farewell, Tanchun was reluctant to leave.

"Good girl, I remember that."

He Qi responded to Tanchun, also showing his affection.

Although He Qi had only lived in Rongguo Mansion for more than ten days, he had already developed a liking for Tanchun.

Tanchun and Zhai Xiaoqing are the same age. As the Chinese New Year has just passed, they are both thirteen years old. Tanchun is older than Zhai Xiaoqing, and both of them are smart and mature. Over the past ten days, Tanchun has taken care of He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing, and she has also asked He Qi for advice on some things.

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He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing bid farewell to the Rongguo Mansion and headed for the imperial city under the escort of Lin Zhixiao and his wife and other servants of the Rongguo Mansion.

Outside the palace is the Imperial City, which is surrounded by a tall Imperial City wall with a circumference of more than 20 miles, unique gates and clear boundaries. The Imperial City is densely populated with majestic palaces, courtyards with blue bricks and gray tiles, the Three Seas of the Western Garden, and the verdant Jingshan Mountain.

At this moment, He Qi and Zhai Xiaoqing were sitting in the same sedan chair.

Zhai Xiaoqing gently opened the curtains, looked at the street scene outside the window, and said to He Qi: "Mom, look, the sun is shining brightly on the street outside."

Upon hearing this, He Qi looked out the window and saw the warm winter sun breaking through the clouds and mist and pouring down onto the street, shining brightly like fine gold paving the ground. It was full of warmth and the carriages, pedestrians and shops on the street were all illuminated, making people feel relaxed and happy and forget the cold winter.

He Qi's mood at this moment was as bright and warm as the winter sunshine.

Zhai Xiaoqing had spent more than ten days in Rongguo Mansion. Although she was still a little pale and thin, she was much better than she was ten days ago. At present, she was wearing a golden and green cloak and jewelry. The cloak and jewelry were given by Jia Mu and Wang Fu Ren.

Zhai Xiaoqing, leaning against the window of the sedan chair, basking in the bright and warm winter sunshine, further highlights her natural beauty.

"You don't have to wait long. In two or three years, Xiaoqing will grow up to be a beautiful lady, even better than I was. The emperor is so gracious that he has allowed us mother and daughter to become citizens of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Perhaps one day Xiaoqing will be chosen by the emperor to enter the harem and serve the emperor. This will be considered a way to repay the emperor's kindness."

While admiring her daughter's beauty, He Qi secretly hoped for something in her heart.

(End of this chapter)