Chapter 264: The Road to High Office 64

Chapter 264: The Road to High Office 64

Xu Zeping and his spouse were celebrating the New Year with great enthusiasm, and the imperial city in Yanjing was no different.

"Your Majesty, it is said that Liaobei Prefecture has presented a New Year's theatrical performance titled 'The White Fox Lord Assisting the Immortal in Transforming into a Dragon' this year. I am very interested in it. I wonder if Your Majesty could fulfill my wish?"

Li Chengxue looked at the Sheng'an Emperor on the high throne, smiling as he bowed respectfully.

Although Xu Zeli held a low-ranking official position, his role as a court chronicler naturally granted him the privilege to attend the state banquet.

Moreover, his seat was quite close to the front, allowing him to clearly see the Sheng'an Emperor's expression and hear his words.

He took up his brush and wrote:

"On the 30th day of the 12th month of the 19th year of Sheng'an, during the state banquet, the Hanlin Academician recommended the New Year's theatrical performance from Liaobei to the Sheng'an Emperor. The Emperor calmly replied, 'Approved.'"

The Sheng'an Emperor had heard about Xu Zeping's actions in Lingbei County and was somewhat curious about the play he had prepared. Typically, most county magistrates focus on managing farmland or combating corruption upon taking office. But this guy, instead, decided to stage a grand play.

He was intrigued to see what kind of spectacle this young man would stage.

Clang, clang, clang!

As the loud music of gongs and drums rang out, a wolf demon and a snake demon appeared on stage.

The wolf demon wielded a spiked club, with the bodies of slain common folk beneath his feet.

The snake demon held a sword, glaring fiercely.

"Audacious wolf demon! How dare you commit such heinous crimes against the common folk! Watch as I, Liu Yuchun, bring you to justice!"

"Hahaha! A mere snake demon dares to show off in front of this Wolf King? Watch as I absorb your cultivation and make it my own!"

With that, the wolf and the snake began to fight.

The intense battle, driven by fierce drumming, captivated the audience. Everyone watched the struggle between the two demons, all holding their breath for the Immortal.

The civil officials remained calm, but the military officials were eager to intervene and slay the wolf demon on behalf of the Immortal.

As the fight grew more intense, the snake demon gradually began to lose, eventually being struck by the wolf demon's spiked club and spitting blood.

Seeing the pale-faced snake demon, the wolf demon let out a triumphant laugh: "Hahaha! You pitiful snake demon, prepare to die!"

Deng, deng, deng!

Just as everyone thought the Immortal would perish, a handsome deity in a bright red official robe descended from the sky, holding a spear. With just one strike, he defeated the wolf demon.

The wolf demon knelt on the ground, begging for mercy: "Please, Lord Linghui, spare my life! I will never dare again!"

At this scene, some of the noble youths in the audience realized what was happening and exclaimed in surprise—it was a spin-off of the White Fox Immortal's journey!

"The White Fox Lord!"

"Lord Linghui!"

The excited voices filled the hall, and the Sheng'an Emperor, who was thoroughly enjoying the performance, frowned and glanced at the youths below, who immediately fell silent.

"Wolf demon, you have brought harm to the land, and the heavens and earth will not tolerate you!" Lord Linghui coldly looked at the wolf demon. "Today, I shall rid the world of this scourge and eliminate you."

With a single palm strike, Lord Linghui killed the wolf demon, who fell to the ground, lifeless.

Immediately, the Divine Martial God Linghui turned to the snake demon: "Immortal Chang, you have cultivated for a thousand years, accumulating good deeds and cultivating virtue. The Heavenly Emperor has sent me to assist you in achieving ascension."

With that, Divine Martial God Linghui directed a burst of golden light at the snake demon.

—Hiss~ Roar

A wisp of green mist rose, and a group of colorful divine maidens descended from the sky, playing enchanting celestial melodies.

Amidst the enchanting celestial music, the long snake transformed into a dragon and soared into the sky with a mighty roar.

—Bravo!

With Emperor Sheng'an's cheer, Li Chengxue also breathed a sigh of relief.

At that moment, all the lead actors of the performing troupe took the stage to bow, with the martial artist who played the dragon transformation kneeling and presenting a brocade box—

"Congratulations to the Sage on his long and prosperous life. On behalf of the people of Lingbei County, I present the treasure developed by County Magistrate Xu to the Sage."

Emperor Sheng'an gave a glance to the chief eunuch beside him, who understood and stepped down to receive the brocade box presented by the martial artist.

Emperor Sheng'an opened the brocade box, which contained a folded memorial, a neatly folded piece of rice paper, and three small stacked brocade boxes.

He couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, thinking, "This kid has quite a few tricks up his sleeve."

Emperor Sheng'an habitually picked up the memorial, and the more he read, the more he couldn't control his joy.

The memorial explained that the presented treasure, called a toothbrush, was designed for oral hygiene.

Emperor Sheng'an, being elderly, naturally had weaker teeth, often experiencing swelling and pain.

Xu Zeping clearly stated the benefits of brushing teeth in the memorial... and finally made his request.

"To the Sage above, this humble official only wishes for the Sage to officially recognize the toothbrush as a product of the Lingbei County Government Toothbrush Factory. Henceforth, any merchant wishing to manufacture toothbrushes must submit twenty percent of their profits to the Lingbei County Government Toothbrush Factory. Those who disobey shall be executed, along with their entire family."

When Emperor Sheng'an read this, he frowned, thinking, "Oh, this kid has quite the audacity."

But upon reading Xu Zeping's subsequent words, he felt that twenty percent was insufficient.

Because the memorial clearly stated that all net profits from the toothbrush factory would belong to the government.

As for the monthly salaries of the factory staff, Xu Zeping also clearly recorded them...

At the end of the memorial, Xu Zeping left his usual closing remark.

—"May Your Majesty live for ten thousand years, ten thousand years, and ten thousand times ten thousand years."

Respectfully submitted by your humble servant, Xu Zeping.

After reading the memorial, Emperor Sheng'an opened the folded rice paper.

The rice paper clearly depicted six illustrations, which were the instructions for using the toothbrush.

Finally, Emperor Sheng'an opened the top small brocade box, revealing a toothbrush carved with a five-clawed golden dragon.

Opening the second and third brocade boxes, he found toothbrushes carved with golden phoenixes.

From the size of the golden phoenixes, it was clear they were intended for the Empress Dowager and the Empress.

He closed the brocade box and looked with satisfaction at the kneeling troupe members from Lingbei County: "County Magistrate Xu of Lingbei, you have deeply pleased me. You shall be rewarded!"

Emperor Sheng'an reflected on the tangible achievements Xu Zeping had made in Lingbei County, deeply recognizing him as a talent capable of governing the country. If Lingbei County didn't still need steady governance, he would have liked to exceptionally bring such a talent back to Yanjing.

Looking at the upright and refined second son and the ambitious eldest, Emperor Sheng'an sighed silently in his heart; the second son had indeed been raised too upright.

Fortunately, he was kind-hearted and a wise ruler who maintained stability.

With the assistance of these good ministers in the future, he could rest assured to meet his imperial ancestors.

"Congratulations to Your Majesty on obtaining this treasure," Crown Prince Long Xihe looked up at Emperor Sheng'an with admiration, congratulating his father with heartfelt joy, just like an ordinary father and son.

Prince Long Xiyang, the eldest son, looked down upon his brother who only knew how to flatter their father, thinking it was pretty annoying for someone over thirty to still act so immaturely.

"Does Prince Jin have any different opinions?"

Sitting high on his throne, Emperor Sheng'an easily caught the expression of his eldest son Long Xiyang.

Naturally, he held high hopes for this eldest son. Having experienced the struggles for power, he knew well that between the eldest and the legitimate son, it was either the east wind prevailing over the west wind or the west wind prevailing over the east wind.

Thus, he had given opportunities to both sons.

As for why he leaned towards the second son, it was because he understood the nature of his sons; if the eldest ascended the throne, his younger brothers might not survive.

The assassination attempt on the Crown Prince, though partly orchestrated by the Crown Prince himself, Prince Jin had covertly applied snake venom to the arrow, aiming to kill the Crown Prince...

This was what Emperor Sheng'an most abhorred. The throne could be contested, and he had given both sons the power to compete. But the one thing he could not tolerate was underhanded tactics.

Long Xiyang restrained his emotions and respectfully said, "Your servant dares not, but I was thinking, why not summon such a talent to the capital?"

Xu Zeli lowered his eyelids, like a quail, hiding himself beside the chief eunuch.

Recently, the capital had been turbulent, with several officials from Huai Su being purged by the Sage, demoted or dismissed, amidst the private interests of the Crown Prince and Prince Jin, many positions had been occupied by officials from both factions.

The position of the Director of the Ministry of Rites that Xu Zeli had his eye on was also coveted by both factions.

The incident at the Hanlin Academy had long made Xu Zeli a thorn in Prince Jin's flesh. If it weren't for his standing in compiling history books that caught the Sage's eye, he might have...

Seeing Prince Jin now targeting the youngest, Xu Zeli had his own ideas.

No matter what, Prince Jin must never ascend the throne!

"If I summon him to Yanjing, who will govern Lingbei for me?" Emperor Sheng'an looked gently at Long Xiyang, smilingly saying, "How about you, Prince Jin, go and share my worries?"

Long Xiyang reacted promptly, immediately kneeling down: "Your servant is terrified; please forgive me, Your Majesty."

No matter how arrogant Long Xiyang was, he dared not act out of line in front of Emperor Sheng'an.

Prince Jin's response was indeed not clever. If it were Xu Zeli, he would have tactfully followed the imperial will, willing to go and build Lingbei with capable ministers.

The next second, Crown Prince Long Xihe knelt out: "Father, though I am not talented, I am willing to share your worries, willing to go to Lingbei to build it with capable ministers, to recall them to Yanjing to serve Your Majesty as soon as possible."

The Crown Prince's textbook answer was a total win.

Emperor Sheng'an looked at his two kneeling sons and waved his hand: "Get up, Lingbei is not a place for you two incompetents to mess around."

...

The whirlwind he stirred up in Yanjing was something Xu Zeping naturally did not know, as he was still enjoying a romantic moment with his young husband.

"Ding ding ding."

Xu Zeping took out the long-prepared brocade box, looking excitedly at Cheng Ge Er.

Cheng Ge Er looked at the square brocade box, his eyes curving into a smile: "Pingping, what is this?"

"Go ahead, open it."

Cheng Ge Er opened the brocade box and saw two cups and two toothbrushes inside.

The cups and toothbrushes were adorned with adorable duck designs, and his eyes sparkled: "Pingping, what is this?"

"I specially commissioned Zhang the Craftsman to make these. The patterns on the cups and toothbrushes are of Donald Duck and his wife Daisy," Xu Zeping said gently. "What do you think?"

"I like it, I really like it so much."

One set for Pingping, one set for him.

It's a matching set, just for us.

Cheng Ge Er threw his arms around Xu Zeping's neck and planted a kiss on his cheek: "Your reward."

The four kids, worn out, had already gone to bed in the west courtyard.

The two of them stayed in the main hall to ring in the New Year.

Cheng Ge Er stashed away the gift and then pulled out the one he'd prepared, a gray-white woolen hat.

During their last trip to the countryside, he'd noticed how Pingping's ears turned red from the cold.

So he'd spent the last few days secretly knitting this woolen hat for him.

"So that's what you've been up to these past few days?"