Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

The three continued walking, with Fang Zheng waiting for Emperor Jing to speak.

After walking for about half a cup of tea's time, Emperor Jing looked around before slowly saying, "Fang Qing, I must admit, the achievements you've made here have far exceeded my expectations."

"I should reward you handsomely."

Hearing Emperor Jing say this, Fang Zheng felt a familiar sensation, and couldn't help but think.

If there were no surprises, His Majesty would say next: 'You are too young now, I will definitely give you important responsibilities in the future.'

"However, you are still too young, I will definitely give you important responsibilities in the future."

Heh heh, this empty promise is suffocating, I've already eaten several pieces of it.

Emperor Jing continued to say to himself: "What I didn't expect even more was that you actually exposed Liu Xun."

"It seems that my gifting you the sword was the right decision."

Mentioning the Shangfang Sword, Fang Zheng's heart jumped.

Let's not talk about this! The sword is broken beyond repair, and it's still broken now. If you take it back one day, how will I survive?

"Even I have never used that sword. You should keep it well in the future!"

Huh?!

Hearing this, Fang Zheng perked up and asked curiously, "Has Your Majesty never used that sword either?"

"I have many swords! If I were to use every one, who knows when I would get around to it. Why are you suddenly bringing this up?" Emperor Jing suddenly stopped and looked at Fang Zheng.

"Could it be that the sword has some special significance?"

Upon hearing this, Fang Zheng was overjoyed, his face filled with grief and indignation, "Your Majesty! To be honest, that sword is useless! It's just a ceremonial sword, flashy but impractical!"

"Not only was Liu Xun extremely evil, harming the common people, but he also had rebellious thoughts and bone spurs!"

"When I beheaded him, that Qian Kingdom sword actually broke!"

Broke?

The corners of Emperor Jing's eyes twitched involuntarily.

Even a ceremonial sword from the Qian Kingdom's royal family shouldn't break when used to behead someone, right?

Rebellious thoughts grow in the back of the head... shouldn't beheading involve cutting the neck?

But this was a minor matter, and Emperor Jing didn't take it to heart, saying lightly, "If it's broken, it's broken. I'll give you another one later."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Luckily, His Majesty didn't overthink it and brushed it over.

Emperor Jing continued, "The implications behind Liu Xun are significant, which I didn't expect. The Jianjiang Prefecture treasury was actually emptied. Do you have any leads on this?"

Fang Zheng thought for a moment and replied, "No, if I had the ability to investigate, I would have definitely investigated and then reported to Your Majesty."

"This matter is beyond my ability, please make a decision, Your Majesty!"

Emperor Jing glanced at Guo Tianyang and said faintly, "I have already entrusted the Eastern Depot to investigate, but so far, they have not found a single clue."

Guo Tianyang, who was slacking off on the side, immediately became nervous when he heard Emperor Jing say this.

What's going on! How did it come back to me again?

"The Eastern Depot has become increasingly disappointing to me over the years!"

"I have to consider establishing a new force to patrol the country and monitor the officials on my behalf."

"But I haven't decided what to call it yet."

"Fang Qing, you are capable, and I value you greatly! However... your experience is still shallow."

"You must perform well..."

Fang Zheng gasped and blurted out, "The Embroidered Uniform Guard?"

Emperor Jing was also stunned, then chuckled, "The Embroidered Uniform Guard? A good name, let's call it the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

Fang Zheng broke out in a cold sweat.

If I were to really do this job, I would be completely opposed to all the officials.

Everyone would be afraid of me when they saw me, how would I be able to get along with people?

Wouldn't my reputation be even worse?

He quickly declined, "No, no, no, I'm still young, I can't do this job."

"In my humble opinion, Eunuch Guo is good at recognizing talent, and the court doesn't need to spend more money to create the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

Guo Tianyang was also in a daze, standing aside.

His heart was cold, it seemed that he had really fallen out of favor this time.

His Majesty didn't just want Fang Zheng to replace him, but directly abandoned the entire Eastern Depot.

Fortunately, Guo Tianyang came back to his senses when he heard Fang Zheng speak.

He couldn't help but feel a little moved.

This virtuous brother... still knows how to speak human language.

Emperor Jing glanced at Fang Zheng faintly and said, "What, are you afraid of offending people?"

"Acting lawlessly, even the Crown Prince has become like this under your influence!"

"I still have accounts to settle with you!"

Huh? Fang Zheng was dumbfounded.

He asked cautiously, "I, I didn't do anything, did I?"

Emperor Jing frowned and glared, "Didn't do anything!? What did you and Miaohan talk about!?"

"She's been taking that thing called a sanitary napkin in the palace, telling all the palace maids to use it!"

"She even came to me, asking me to give her money."

"I've tolerated you for a long time about this matter!! It's now forbidden in the palace, don't mention this vulgar thing again!"

"You can be shameless, but don't drag my daughter down with you!"

Hearing Emperor Jing say this, Fang Zheng was relieved.

I thought it was something else!

After breathing a sigh of relief, Fang Zheng explained patiently, "Your Majesty! That's a good thing! How is it vulgar? Promoting civilization and hygiene is a good thing!"

Before he could finish speaking, he heard Emperor Jing angrily say, "Shut up, I don't want to hear it!"

"But it makes money!"

"How much can it make?"

"That's countless! How many women are there in the world! Even if you earn a few coins from each person every month, it would be a huge profit!"

Emperor Jing's expression was a little awkward. He adjusted his expression and said faintly, "No matter how much money it makes."

"This matter is not allowed to be mentioned again for the time being! Even if it's a good thing, it appeared at the wrong time."

"The people of the world see it as ominous, you also have to consider your reputation as an official, so be it!"

Fang Zheng smiled slightly, "Your Majesty, the so-called ominousness that the people of the world see in it is only because women have low status!"

"If women can earn money to support their families, this kind of saying may not always prevail."

"Several textile factories have already started construction in Jianjiang Prefecture, only recruiting female workers. The monthly salary is no less than that of men, I don't know how many people envy them."

"I think some trends will change sooner or later."

Emperor Jing chuckled after listening, "Perhaps, when the Crown Prince reaches my age, I might see it."

Fang Zheng shrugged.

If the emperor doesn't believe it, he doesn't believe it. It's normal that some things can't be done in a few decades or hundreds of years, but since I've started it, it's not a waste of effort.

It's just a pity.

If it could really be done, wouldn't my female rights be doubled in power, and I could walk sideways in Jing Country?

"This matter doesn't need to be discussed anymore! You don't need to mention it in the palace either."

The two of them chatted casually.

Soon, a construction site appeared in front of them.

The ground had already been turned over, and a pile of bricks and stones were piled up next to it.

The workers were constantly leveling the land, and then putting in bricks....

Emperor Jing looked towards the end of the street, a look of surprise in his eyes, and said in surprise, "Why are there so many characters on this road?"

Seeing this, Fang Zheng explained, "Your Majesty, the characters on this road are actually ......."