Dream of the Red Chamber: I can upgrade my entries!

Chapter 76 Imperial Edict Delivered to the Eastern Palace, the Gift Surprises the Jia Family!
"Da da da! Da da da!"

As evening fell, a group of imperial guards rode into Ningrong Street and arrived at Ningguo Mansion. Following them were hundreds of eunuchs from the Imperial Household Department, some carrying trays and others carrying large crimson chests. Leading them was Su Peisheng, the chief eunuch of Qianqing Palace.

"Meet the old lady!"

Su Peisheng greeted Grandmother Jia with a smile, his demeanor very humble.

"Thank you for your trouble, Your Excellency."

Grandmother Jia naturally knew the principle of not hitting a smiling face, especially one who was a trusted confidant of the emperor, and she responded.

‘Wow! ’

Without further conversation, Su Peisheng lifted the tray held by the eunuch beside him, revealing an imperial edict.

Except for Grandmother Jia, everyone in the Jia family knelt down to receive the imperial edict.

"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Jia Yan, the eldest son of the Jia family of Ningguo Prefecture, is loyal, righteous, benevolent, and filial. He is young and valiant, and has fought bravely on the battlefield for the country, achieving great military exploits. He is hereby granted the title of Marquis of Daqian, a hereditary title, and is bestowed with a python robe, a mansion, a reward of 100,000 taels of gold, 3,000 bolts of silk and satin, and is granted the privilege of having 800 personal guards. This is the imperial decree!"

Holding the imperial edict high, Su Peisheng's sharp voice echoed throughout Ning'an Hall.

'The Great Qian Martial Marquis!'

For a moment, the entire Ning'an Hall fell into silence. The Jia family members were all stunned and did not come back to their senses for a long time.

"With Lord Wu'an absent, please have the Dowager Madam receive this imperial edict on his behalf."

With a slight smile, Su Peisheng closed the imperial edict and handed it to Grandmother Jia, speaking gently.

"Thank you Lord for your grace!"

Grandmother Jia was the first to react and accepted the imperial edict with both hands.

"Gentlemen, please be patient, there are still people coming."

Just as the Jia family was about to get up, Su Peisheng stopped them with a look.

"what?"

The Jia family members were increasingly confused.

“Tap tap.”

Another series of heavy footsteps came from outside, and Dai Quan, the chief eunuch of Daming Palace, arrived late with his men.

"The Emperor has a decree!"

"The son of the Jia family served the country and shed his blood on the battlefield. He should succeed the Marquis of Wu'an. His fief shall be increased to 30,000 households. Chengde shall be granted a fiefdom with a radius of 1,000 li. All matters shall be in accordance with the system of the Western Han Dynasty. He shall be exempt from taxes for three years. The Marquisate of Wu'an shall be hereditary and shall live and die with the country."

"I trouble the old lady to accept this imperial edict on behalf of Marquis Wu!"

After reading the imperial edict, Dai Quan handed it to Grandmother Jia.

"Uh... okay."

Grandmother Jia belatedly accepted the imperial edict from the retired emperor once again.

“Brother Zhen”.

Jia She secretly gave Jia Zhen a look, and the two of them stepped forward separately, flicking several silver notes into Su Peisheng and Dai Quan's sleeves. The notes were worth at least five thousand taels of silver, which made the two palace eunuchs who served the emperor smile.

"Old lady."

"The Emperor Emeritus is waiting for this old servant to return and serve him. It is inconvenient for me to stay any longer, so I will take my leave now."

Dai Quan, the chief eunuch of Daming Palace, left a message, turned around and left with his men, coming and going in a hurry.

Only the eunuchs and imperial guards who had brought the imperial decree with Su Peisheng remained in Ning'an Hall, and the Jia family members then stood up.

"Superintendent."

"I wonder when Yan-ge'er will return?"

Grandmother Jia was no stranger to Su Peisheng, and asked him directly.

'Eh!!!'

Lin Daiyu and Xiao Xichun stared intently at Su Peisheng, wanting to know the exact time Jia Yan would return to the mansion.

"To be honest, Madam."

"His Majesty held a royal banquet in the palace to entertain Zhuge Liang and his meritorious officials."

"After the imperial banquet, His Majesty will summon Wu Hou for a private audience to inquire about matters in the northern frontier."

"I don't know exactly when it will end."

Su Peisheng shook his head slightly and replied.

'Whoosh!'

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia and the others were shocked. The imperial banquet was secondary; the emperor's private audience was a true act of imperial grace, demonstrating that Jia Yan now held a high position and great power in the court, ranking among the most prominent.

"Old lady."

"I still need to deliver imperial decrees to other noble residences, so I'll take my leave now!" Su Peisheng waved his hand, and the accompanying eunuch put down the gifts, and the group left Ningguo Mansion.

As a trusted eunuch of Emperor Yongping, in addition to the Jia family, he also needed to visit the Niu, Liu, and Hou families. After all, Niu Jizong, Liu Fang, and Hou Xiaokang were all marquises in the current Daqian Dynasty and top noble figures.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the entire Ning'an Hall was frozen, and no one was recovering from the imperial edict that had just been announced.

"What is Zhuge Liang?"

Xiao Xi's innocent face showed a bewildered expression in the spring.

"Giggle!"

Wang Xifeng laughed heartily and teased, "Fourth Sister, the Marquis is a super-rank title in the country, second only to the Duke."

"In today's world, marquises are the pinnacle of nobility, and I imagine that Yan-ge'er, as a Marquis of Martial Arts, is the most esteemed among them."

The Wang family ancestors were once Grand Commandant and County Earl. Although Wang Xifeng was illiterate, she knew about the five ranks of hereditary nobility: Duke, Marquis, Earl, Viscount, and Baron.

"Throughout history, only Zhuge Liang has been called the Marquis of Wu. Second Brother Yan is too amazing."

Tan Chun's beautiful eyes lit up with admiration, and she exclaimed in praise.

'amazing!'

Yingchun, Li Wan, You Shi, Qin Keqing and other women were all amazed. It was unbelievable that such a person would appear in the Jia family!

Since the establishment of the Great Qian Dynasty, through the founding and Yuan dynasties, military merit and power have been outwardly inconspicuous but in reality of paramount importance, something many people can only dream of but cannot attain.

Military merit and the conferment of titles symbolize the prosperity of a family, which can last for at least several generations. The Jia family, with two dukes in one family, is even more aware of its value!
'Damn wretch, why didn't you die on the battlefield?'

Of all the people, only Madam Wang's eyes were filled with resentment, and the fire of jealousy burned fiercely.

"Why shouldn't a man carry a Wu hook and seize fifty states beyond the passes? Please, sir, ascend the Lingyan Pavilion for a moment; which scholar among you has ever become a marquis of ten thousand households?"

Lin Daiyu recalled her dashing figure from that day and couldn't help but recite this poem, instantly touching everyone in the Jia family.

"A crude and uncouth brute like him deserves such praise from Lin Daiyu?!"

Seeing that all the sisters were praising Jia Yan, especially Lin Daiyu's "differential treatment", Jia Baoyu felt indignant and couldn't help but grumble.

Boom!

As soon as the words were spoken, the entire room fell into a deathly silence. All eyes were fixed on Jia Baoyu, and everyone was filled with dread.

That was the Marquis of the Great Qian Kingdom, a figure personally bestowed with titles by the Emperor and the Retired Emperor. Let alone insulting him, even the slightest thought of him would be considered an offense. The power of Jia Baoyu's words was truly terrifying!

"evil creature!"

Jia Zheng was so frightened that his face turned ashen, his eyes wide as gongs, and he wished he could strangle Jia Baoyu.

"Baoyu, be careful what you say."

Grandmother Jia couldn't help but scold her.

"Mother."

"This wretched child is going to bring ruin to the entire household."

Jia Zheng could easily see that Grandmother Jia was favoring Jia Baoyu, and he became even more furious.

"These are just childish words, don't take them to heart."

“Now that Yan-ge’er has made great contributions, the whole household must make arrangements to set up a banquet and offer sacrifices to the ancestors.”

"Boss, you should help Brother Zhen with the arrangements."

Grandmother Jia immediately changed the subject and gave Jia She some instructions.

"Ah."

Jia She glanced at Jia Zheng but didn't say anything more.

Jia Zhen, You Shi, Jia Rong, and Qin Keqing always respected the West Mansion, so they naturally knew that Jia Baoyu was behaving inappropriately and did not take the matter to heart.

"Second brother, how dare he?"

Tan Chun was furious; the Jia family's joyous occasion had become so insignificant in Jia Baoyu's words.

"Baoyu."

Yingchun glanced at Jia Baoyu and sighed inwardly.

"Bad guy!"

Xiao Xichun glared angrily at Jia Baoyu, while Lin Daiyu's eyes were cold and clear, clearly having remembered the incident.

Afterwards, Grandmother Jia led Jia Baoyu back to the Rongguo Mansion in a sedan chair, surrounded by maids and servants.

After seeing this, the others returned one by one, except for Jia She and his son Jia Lian, who stayed behind to discuss the grand banquet and the opening of the ancestral hall with Jia Zhen and his son.

(End of this chapter)