spend time

Cui Du, dressed in plain clothes, did not have the bearing and demeanor of the Earl of Changning, but was still like a boy next door. The moment he saw Jiang Shaohua, his eyes shone brightly, the corners of his mouth raised high, and he walked quickly to meet him.

When Jiang Shaohua saw Cui Du, his depressed mood instantly improved, and he smiled and said, "I have nothing to do, so I came to stay at the farm for a few days."

Cui Du smiled and hummed, looked at Jiang Shaohua seriously, and suddenly asked, "Is there something wrong with the court?"

Jiang Shaohua smiled and asked back: "Why do you ask that?"

"Nanyang County has had good weather and a bumper harvest this year, and more and more hungry people are being taken in. Everything is going well in Pingzhou as well. The only thing that would make the princess unhappy is the capital." Cui Du stared at the girl in front of him and whispered.

Jiang Shaohua did not hide anything and nodded, saying, "You guessed right. I recommended Lu Cong as the governor of Pingzhou, and the Empress Dowager has already agreed. Prime Minister Wang and others firmly disagree. Now the situation is at a stalemate, and we have to wait for some time before there is a result."

not only that.

The position of Pingzhou governor was not important enough to make Jiang Shaohua worried. What was worrying her must be something else.

Cui Du pondered silently in his heart. In front of everyone, he would not ask questions and walked around the farm with Jiang Shaohua for half a day.

Jiang Shaohua asked casually with a smile: "How is Cui Wang doing in his job?"

Cui Ping and others had already returned to Boling County, and Cui Wang stayed in the farm. After Lu Cong left, Cui Wang took over Lu Cong's job and was responsible for arranging the training of the farmers.

Cui Du answered in a matter-of-fact manner: "My cousin is young and energetic, and he is also a bit impatient. He is not as calm and careful as Lu Sheren. However, my cousin is very hardworking and willing to learn. After half a year, he has made some progress."

Jiang Shaohua hummed: "It's good that he can handle this mess. Lu Cong will stay in Pingzhou and will not be back in the short term."

Cui Du was stunned and subconsciously asked, "Didn't the princess say that the court did not agree with Lu Sheren being the governor of Pingzhou?"

Jiang Shaohua glanced at Cui Du and said, "Whether they agree or not, Pingzhou is now under the control of this princess. Even if Lu Sheren does not hold the position of governor, he can still be in charge of Pingzhou."

These words were powerful and domineering.

Cui Du's eyes flashed with admiration: "The princess is right. We in Nanyang County spent countless money and food to save the lives of the people in Pingzhou. Why should the court come to pick peaches? This Pingzhou is our princess's territory."

The words may be rough, but the truth is there. This is the truth.

Cui Du has the ability to simplify things. With just a few words, he was able to put Jiang Shaohua in a good mood.

Perhaps it was because Cui Du came from another world and had no loyalty to the emperor of Daliang who sat on the dragon throne. He also had no respect for the high officials and ministers who were thousands of miles away. Therefore, these "treasonous" words came out of his mouth.

Jiang Shaohua laughed: "You are right, this princess thinks so too."

……

Another month passed, and the court finally reached a conclusion.

Emperor Taihe was unable to persuade Prime Minister Wang, and the post of Pingzhou governor was held by an official under Prime Minister Wang. Lu Cong was also meritorious in governing Pingzhou, so the court made an exception to overturn Lu Cong's case. Emperor Taihe personally issued an imperial decree to pardon Lu Cong's status as a criminal. He also gave Lu Cong an official position as the governor of Liaoxi County, Pingzhou.

Pingzhou governs four counties, with Liaoxi County being the largest and most populous. The position of a fourth-rank county governor was not unfair to Lu Cong at all.

When the news reached Nanyang County, Jiang Shaohua sneered a few times, called Song Yuan, and whispered a few instructions to him.

Song Yuan did not say anything, but accepted the order with his hands clasped, and rode to the Imperial Guards camp that day. Two days later, Meng Dashan from the Second Imperial Guards Camp quietly led several hundred men out of the camp.

Lu Cong, who was far away in Pingzhou, received a handwritten letter from the princess a few days later.

Pingzhou's autumn harvest was over, and Lu Cong was busy organizing the people to plant winter wheat and beans. He inspected the fields every day, and he was tanned and lost a lot of weight, but he was still energetic every day.

It is said that men do not shed tears easily, but after reading the princess's letter, Lu Cong, a nearly forty-year-old man, had tears in his eyes and his right hand holding the letter kept shaking.

Doctor Sun and Sun Guangbai and his son had already set off to return to Nanyang County. Qin Hai assigned half of his personal guards to escort them away. The other half stayed with Lu Cong. First, to protect Lu Cong's safety, and second, governing Pingzhou and controlling the people cannot rely on words alone. When necessary, force must be used. Facts have proved that swords are far more effective than reason.

Qin Hai saw Lu Cong turned his head to wipe his tears, and he was surprised and a little amused: "What happened? Why is Lu Sheren so excited? Can we also set off to return to Nanyang?"

Lu Cong took a deep breath, turned around and said to Qin Hai: "No, the court pardoned my status as a criminal and appointed me as the governor of Liaoxi County. I will really stay in Pingzhou."

Qin Hai was also happy for Lu Cong after hearing this: "This is really great! Lu Sheren... No, starting today, I should call him Lu Junshou."

When Lu Cong heard the long-lost name after several years, he was dazed for a moment, then he calmed down and smiled, "It won't be too late to change it when the imperial edict and appointment documents arrive."

"The princess said in the letter that you should stay in Pingzhou. The princess will send more people to maintain order in Pingzhou."

Qin Haiwai was a man of great talent, but he could understand the meaning of what he heard. He exchanged a glance with Lu Cong, nodded and said, "Okay, if the princess lets me stay, I will stay."

The imperial edict of Emperor Taihe arrived in Pingzhou a few days later.

The imperial envoy who came to read the imperial edict was Dong Langzhong from the Ministry of Rites. In view of the good relationship between Dong Langzhong and the Nanyang Palace, Emperor Taihe specially ordered Dong Langzhong to read the imperial edict.

Lu Cong thanked God with tears in his eyes and accepted the imperial edict.

Doctor Dong had someone bring the official uniform and the official seal of the Liaoxi County Magistrate, and said with a smile: "Please accept these official uniforms and official seals, Magistrate Lu. From today on, Magistrate Lu is the Magistrate of Liaoxi County in Pingzhou. The emperor personally pardoned Magistrate Lu's status as a criminal, which is a great grace and cause for celebration. Of course, this is also what Magistrate Lu deserves for his meritorious service in governing Pingzhou."

Lu Cong immediately said, "I came here on the orders of the princess. I am doing my duty and I don't deserve any credit. Even if I have made some small contribution, I should give it to the princess."

Doctor Dong was the one who was not angry at all when hearing such treasonous words. He even smiled and sighed, "The princess strongly recommended you to be the governor of Pingzhou. On that day in the court, I and Minister Yang also argued for it. But we couldn't win the argument with Prime Minister Wang, so we had to let the princess down a bit, and let you down too."

Lu Cong thought that if this was considered a grievance, then it would be okay to endure more of it and he had to be polite in response.

After finishing his work, Doctor Dong stayed in Pingzhou for a few days before leaving. Before he returned to the capital, he heard that the newly appointed governor of Pingzhou had an accident on the way. (End of this chapter)