Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 287 Lord Song
"vomit--"

Princess Changqing frowned, suddenly feeling nauseous. Then, she began to vomit.

The young palace maid serving her hurriedly brought over a basin to attend to her, and asked with concern, "Princess, are you alright?"

"I don't know, I just suddenly felt really nauseous, like I was going to vomit..."

She placed her hand on her chest and breathed heavily, sounding pained.

Just then, Consort Xu, who was outside the door, entered without knocking. Upon seeing the scene, she asked excitedly, "Was Your Highness vomiting just now?"

"Yes, she's vomiting terribly..." the little palace maid said anxiously. "I wonder if she ate something bad."

"Fool." Xu Shangyi laughed, but didn't say it directly. Instead, she walked to the princess's side and tentatively asked, "Your Highness, when was your last period?"

"..." Upon hearing this, Princess Changqing blushed, and then said uncertainly, "It's been more than a month... You mean?"

“Feeling nauseous is normal. It’s also normal for your period to be a little late sometimes.” Based on her extensive experience, Xu Shangyi judged, “You are pregnant.”

"Oh my, His Highness is pregnant!" The palace maid realized what was happening and immediately beamed with joy.

"Huh? Can this be confirmed?" Changqing said very cautiously. "It can't be a mistake. If this gets out, it might not be good."

"It can't be wrong." Xu Shangyi leaned closer to her, pointed, and whispered, "Is it going up where you are?"

With her lips pursed, Changqing nodded shyly.

"That's probably it. Her belly will start to show soon." Xu Shangyi said to her maid, "Go to the Imperial Academy quickly and tell the young master the good news."

"Alright!" The palace maid immediately agreed and prepared to get up.

"When you go out, remember to call a maid to come back in," Xu Shangyi instructed before turning to the princess. "I also need to go and tell the master and mistress the good news."

"This..." Changqing placed his hand on the back of the old woman's hand, trying to calm things down. "It's enough to have Jingming come back to keep me company. Things haven't been settled yet, so let's not tell the father-in-law yet."

“Princess, this is the first legitimate grandson of the Song family.”

Xu Shangyi smiled and gently reminded him, "Such an important matter is naturally worth alarming the entire Song family."

.........

"Lord Marquis, Young Master." Song Gan knocked on the study door, and after being allowed to enter, he reported to Song Jing and his son, "Prefect Ji and the other three are about to leave Sheng'an. So they wish to come and bid farewell to the Lord Marquis before their departure."

“This…” Upon hearing this, Song Jing, an honest man who always prioritized official business and dared not slack off in the slightest, immediately became troubled. “This trip is far too ostentatious. This matter has already been the subject of much discussion in the court.”

“Father.” But Song Shi’an had a different opinion. “It’s no wonder people are talking about it. We just did it.”

Song Jing did it too.

“Oh, that’s right…” Song Jing still didn’t really want to see it. “Doing this would be equivalent to becoming a disciple of our Song family.”

“Father, you can’t just seek the substance of the Song family’s disciples without seeking fame,” Song Shi’an advised. “Besides, it’s not all about currying favor. They’ve been subordinates for so many years, and now that I’ve promoted them, they’re naturally grateful. It would be a bit heartless not to let them speak out.”

"Yes, you are right."

Song Jing actually understands this principle very well, but he has never been a big boss and doesn't understand the leeway that a real big boss needs.

Actually there is one more thing.

The value of united front work.

Sun Situ's glory, with his students and former officials all over the world, was due to the fact that the Jiangnan gentry regarded him as their leader and that the Jiangnan gentry had been a prominent family for hundreds of years with a rich cultural heritage.

The way the new aristocracy does things is rather ostentatious and high-profile.

This applies both in China and abroad.

During the Stuart dynasty in England, the differences between the new and old aristocracy became irreconcilable, to the point that the new aristocracy completely embraced the emerging bourgeoisie in order to counterbalance the old money.

However, the production methods of Dayu did not change, and it was in the middle of the dynasty. Therefore, Song Jing cannot be called a new noble class—but rather a 'young' person who came to the old noble class.

But they didn't associate with the old aristocracy.

"Father." So Song Shi'an encouraged him again, "Not only our family, but Jia Guihao, Fan Wuji, and Gao Yunyi have also risen to prominence. With the major reforms taking place in Dayu this time, their retainers will also be plentiful."

If you're afraid, don't do it; if you do it, don't be afraid.

"Song Gan, receive guests in the main hall."

With her son's encouragement, Song Jing no longer hesitated and accepted the offer.

"Yes."

Song Gan received the order and then withdrew.

Before leaving, Song Jing looked at Song Shi'an and said, "You should come too."

.........

Just as Xu Shangyi was about to inform Song Jing of this good news, she saw Song Gan leading several officials in their robes towards the main hall behind a flower garden.

Judging from the robe, he seems to be a person of the fourth rank or above.

The remaining three are all between the fifth and seventh ranks.

This must be to find the Marquis.

Therefore, she did not go there rashly.

The four officials, led by Song Gan, arrived at the main hall.

Not long after, Song Jing and Song Shi'an, dressed in casual clothes, went to the main hall.

"We pay our respects to Your Excellency. We pay our respects to the Young Earl."

The Prefect Ji and his entourage bowed to him.

Song Jing nodded with a smile.

Song Shi'an also smiled and slowly bowed.

"Shi'an, let me introduce you." Song Jing pointed out to Song Shi'an, "Prefect Ji will be working with you the most in the future, so you can rely on him a lot."

"Your Excellency is too kind. I will assist Lord Song as much as I have assisted you before," said Prefect Ji modestly. "I will be a good steward for you."

"A fourth-rank official acting as my housekeeper? That would be too much of a burden for Shi'an," Song Shi'an joked.

"Without Your Excellency's patronage, I would not be where I am today." He bowed again.

“Zhao Hetai of Huai County,” Song Jing continued, “is in charge of all water affairs in Huai County.”

In the Dayu region, water conservancy officials were ranked as follows: State River Commissioner (4th rank); County River Commissioner (6th rank); County River Officer (9th rank).

These were all official positions with considerable real power.

In ancient times, river management was of paramount importance to agriculture.

However, under the circumstances of the Great Yu Kingdom, the gap between the river officials of prefectures and counties and the chief officials of prefectures and counties was much smaller than that between the river officials of the state and the governors.

In other words, the river officials in prefectures and counties had greater power within their jurisdictions.

This is actually easy to understand.

The relationship between county and prefectural river officials and the provincial waterways was one of guidance and being guided, not one of vertical leadership. County and prefectural river officials were subordinate to the prefectural governor and county magistrate.

This is similar to how the provincial education department, among provincial-level units, seems to have significantly less power. On the one hand, good universities are under the jurisdiction of ministries, while ordinary universities are directly under the provincial government. And high schools are directly under the jurisdiction of the education bureaus of each county and city.

This has resulted in the county and city education bureaus having a very strong voice.

"Young Master Song, you are truly handsome and extraordinary," Zhao Hetai said with a smile.

Song Shi'an smiled and returned the greeting.

“This is Magistrate Sun, and Magistrate He,” Song Jing continued.

“From now on, we two will be Lord Song’s henchmen. Please give us your orders,” said Magistrate Sun on behalf of the two magistrates.

"From now on, I'll have to trouble you two."

Song Shi'an was very polite and courteous to them all.

This is the network of connections my own father has built up over many years.

In the future, he will definitely be a trusted confidant.

And Dad was quite meticulous, arranging them all for important positions.

The county magistrate was the highest-ranking official of the seventh rank, wielding the most power. The prefectural assistant was theoretically the second-highest-ranking official. The river chief was the most pragmatic official, with the greatest connection to land reclamation.

If we don't use them, are we really going to use the King of Wu's men?
"Please have a seat, everyone."

After the introductions, Song Jing took the seat of honor, and Song Shi'an sat down next to him.

The remaining four people sat on the left and right sides.

A maidservant came over to pour tea.

The atmosphere was quite natural and relaxed, with people chatting and laughing.

“Since you still have to go to your posts, don’t delay.” After chatting for a while, Song Jing took the initiative to say, “Otherwise, it will be too late when you arrive at the inn along the way.”

"Thank you for your concern, Your Excellency."

Ji, the prefect, then stood up, and the others followed suit, preparing to leave.

After exchanging glances, the group did something unexpected in front of Song Jing and Song Shi'an.

The four people stood in the middle, and then slowly knelt on the ground and kowtowed to the two.

Song Shi'an immediately stood up.

Song Jing also tensed up and replied, "There's no need for such formalities, please rise quickly."

At this moment, the four people raised their heads.

As Prefect Ji looked at Song Jing, tears welled up in his eyes, and he said tremblingly, "I will never forget your kindness in helping me. I am leaving now, and I don't know when I will see you again, my lord... I hope you take good care of yourself!"

After he finished speaking, Magistrate Sun said gratefully, "I have been a Juren (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations) for more than ten years and have served as a ninth-rank official for nearly ten years. If it weren't for the appreciation of the old magistrate, how could I have become a magistrate? We will definitely go through fire and water for the future young magistrate Song!"

Don't think it's an exaggeration.

After serving as a section chief for ten years, he was promoted to county magistrate by his former boss. The fact that he could only bend his knees when he left shows that he was a man of considerable integrity.

Song Shi'an was quite satisfied with their actions.

However, his eyes narrowed when he saw the maidservant at the door bowing her head, seemingly having something to report.

Song Jing saw it too.

This is no ordinary maid.

These are palace maids who came to the Song residence as part of the dowry.

"Working hard and bringing benefits to the people is the greatest reward for me." Song Jing accepted their sentiments.

Everyone stood up, and at this moment, Song Shi'an said, "Wait a moment, you should go and pay your respects to His Highness Prince Wu."

His son's words immediately brought Song Jing back to his senses, and he said, "Don't be so self-conscious about your status that you dare not see His Highness. Without His Highness's recommendation, you wouldn't be where you are today."

Very cleverly, the phrase "I bid farewell to Song Jing but did not see the King of Wu" was cleverly changed to "I am of low status and embarrassed to go."

In fact, this was precisely the reason why they did not go to see the King of Wu.

To meet the King of Wu?
Do we deserve it?

"Yes."

Ji, the Prefect, and the others obeyed the order and paid their respects. Then, Song Shi'an himself personally saw them off as they left.

After everyone had left, the former palace maid's maidservant entered with her head bowed, cautiously apologizing, "My lord, I was only trying to bring good news, I didn't expect you to be so busy with important matters..."

"Good news?" Song Jing asked. "What good news?"

The maid raised her head and said, "Reporting to the Marquis, the princess is pregnant."

"Is that so?" Song Jing was somewhat surprised, but his surprise quickly turned into delight. "Did Consort Xu tell you?"

"Yes, she sent me to deliver the good news to the Marquis, which is why I came here so abruptly... breaking the rules."

"Song Gan, I'm going to be a grandfather." Song Jing seemed completely unconcerned, still immersed in this joy.

"Congratulations, Your Excellency." Song Gan quickly offered his congratulations.

"A reward." Song Jing waved his hand generously.

Afterwards, the young palace maid received her reward money and was no longer nervous: "Thank you, Lord Marquis! Thank you, Lord Marquis!"

They've already given me a tip, so they're probably not angry anymore.

"Go down and tell Grandmother the good news."

"Yes."

And so, the palace maid left.

The joy on Song Jing's face faded somewhat.

Seeing the situation, Song Gan whispered, "My lord, I will discipline the maids in the manor."

"Not today."

"Yes."

.........

"You mean, all those people knelt before the Marquis and the young master?" Xu Shangyi asked to confirm.

"Hmm..." The maid swallowed and added, "Then Lord Song told them to remember to bid farewell to His Highness Prince Wu, and the Marquis said not to worry that their lowly status would prevent them from seeing His Highness Prince Wu."

"understood."

(End of this chapter)