No one dares to forge the Imperial Decree!
That would be a capital offense!
Fully aware of this, they finally believed it; then, they felt as if the Emperor of Xiyun had gone mad.
To actually appoint a woman as an official!
Of course, these were the thoughts of the men present.
The women present, however, were green with envy towards An Jing. Not only had An Jing given birth to quadruplets, but despite being a woman, she had been appointed as an official. She had become the first in each respect, and regardless of An Jing’s performance in office, her name would be recorded in history, honored for generations to come.
Inside the courtyard, as soon as the bearer of good tidings had finished reading the Imperial Decree, An Jing merely said as a formality, "This humble official receives the decree and shall not disappoint the Emperor’s expectations."
Only then did the bearer of good tidings respectfully offer the decree towards An Jing, but before she could take it, Xiao Changyi grabbed it and casually threw it to Meng Zhuqing to hold, treating the decree with apparent indifference.
The bearer of good tidings: "..." Isn’t the decree supposed to be respectfully displayed?
This is a grave act of disrespect!
Immediately after, the bearer of good tidings understood. No wonder the Emperor had said not to be too surprised by anything in Prince Yi’s presence, to just go along with however Prince Yi pleased... It all made sense now...
Recomposing himself, the bearer of good tidings then respectfully handed over the Document and the Seventh Rank Farmer Knight’s official attire to An Jing, saying, "Here are the appointment Document and the official attire of the Farmer official." He paused for a moment, "Since you are a woman, the Crown Prince has requested the Emperor to alter the official uniform into a style suitable for you to wear."
As soon as An Jing heard the bearer of good tidings mention Su Chengyu specifically, she knew this was Su Chengyu trying to curry favor with her, hoping she would put in a good word for him to her husband so that he won’t hold on to the fact that Su had arranged her appointment without notifying her in advance.
With a profound smile, An Jing glanced at her husband and then said, "The Crown Prince is thoughtful indeed."
Xiao Changyi was the one to take both the Document and the official attire, then he handed them to Meng Zhuqing as well.
Scanning the surroundings cautiously, the bearer of good tidings lowered his voice even more and said, "Prince, Princess, the Crown Prince has asked me to inform you that he will personally come to celebrate the little princes’ hundred-day banquet."
Xiao Changyi immediately replied dismissively, "Tell him not to come."
The bearer of good tidings: "..."
As for whether Su Chengyu attended her children’s hundred-day banquet or not, An Jing honestly didn’t mind, but she was still quite pleased that Su had the intention to come.
And the blunt words of Xiao Changyi made her even happier.
She knew her husband was still bothered by the fact that Su Chengyu had arranged her appointment without a word in advance.
Since Su Chengyu had said he would come, regardless of whether her husband wanted him to or not, he would definitely come. Therefore, An Jing didn’t undermine her husband’s stance, and she let the bearer of good tidings leave without conveying Xiao Changyi’s message for Su not to come.
Once the bearer of good tidings and the County Magistrate left with their entourage, those who came to watch the excitement wanted to enter the courtyard to congratulate An Jing on her appointment. But none managed to do so.
Simply because Meng Zhuqing, following a glance from Xiao Changyi, had closed the courtyard gate, refusing entry to anyone knocking.
Xiao Changyi truly disliked anyone disturbing the peace he shared with his wife.
But an hour later, Shi Xiaolan came knocking and happened to be overheard by An Jing; otherwise, Shi Xiaolan would have made the trip in vain.
Upon learning of An Jing’s appointment, Shi Xiaolan had come over to congratulate her. As soon as she entered the courtyard, she grabbed An Jing’s hands, her eyes brimming with tears, her expression incredibly agitated.