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Led by the constables, the county magistrate and Tang Jinghong went straight to the entrance of Chu Qingzhi’s house.

Chu Qingzhi walked out with her family. Everyone looked confused.

The villagers had never seen such a scene before. As they guessed what had happened, they gathered at Chu Qingzhi’s house.

Chu Laipi and Chu Peipei climbed up the tree to see what was going on.

The village chief rushed over and asked nervously, “County Magistrate, may i know what brought you here?”

The county magistrate glanced at everyone and then looked at Chu Qingzhi. He raised his voice and said, “Everyone, kneel down and receive the imperial edict!”

Everyone was stunned. An imperial edict? Did they hear it correctly?

The constables were the first to kneel. Then, Tang Jinghong walked over and pulled Chu Qingzhi to kneel on one knee. Yuan Hongjun and Bao Linjiang also hurriedly knelt down. When the others saw this, they were stunned and instinctively knelt down. Soon, everyone was kneeling.

The county magistrate nodded slightly, then took the imperial edict from the secretary beside him and unfolded it.

“Chu Qingzhi from the Shuiyun County, the Chu Village, contributed greatly to curing malaria and tackling the refugee crisis. His Majesty the Emperor thus bestowed on her a thousand taels of silver, 12 pieces of jewelry, and 12 bolts of silk as well as the title of a baroness.”

Although the commoners couldn’t become nobles, they could be conferred the title of baroness or baron as a reward for their outstanding contribution to the society.

Once conferred the title of a baroness, Chu Qingzhi could travel in a carriage pulled by two horses, and the carriage was allowed to be well decorated.

No matter how rich one was, without being granted the right, they could not travel in a well-decorated carriage. Otherwise, they would be punished.

Therefore, it went without saying how huge the honor was.

The county magistrate folded the imperial edict and said kindly, “Miss Chu, you may now receive the imperial edict.”

“Long live the Emperor!” Chu Qingzhi raised both her hands and took the imperial edict carefully. Then, she stood up, and the others followed.

The county magistrate was overjoyed.

The appearance of a baroness under his rule was very beneficial to his political career. He would definitely pass the official assessment this time. Not only could he pass, but he might be able to outperform his peers.

“Miss Chu, you’ve surprised me again. In the four hundred years since our Dating Dynasty was founded, only nine commoners have been conferred the title of either baron or baroness. You’re the tenth, and there hasn’t been one in the past thirty years. Congratulations.”

After saying that, the county magistrate waved at the secretary. “Bring the rewards over.”

“Yes, my lord.” The secretary hurriedly waved at the constables. “Carry the boxes into Miss Chu’s house.”

“Yes.”

The boxes looked heavy, and the constables carried them into the courtyard.

Chu Qingzhi said politely, “County Magistrate, why don’t you come in and have a cup of tea?”

The county magistrate waved his hand. “No, no. 1 have to go back and prepare for tomorrow’s flower parade. Miss Chu, this parade is specially prepared for you. Tomorrow, 1 will send someone to pick you up. Miss Chu, you need to dress up a little more formally. It’s best if you wear the jewelry rewarded by His Majesty to express your appreciation of His Majesty’s kindness.”

After becoming a citizen of the Dating Dynasty, she would surely abide by the rules of this dynasty. Chu Qingzhi smiled and agreed. “I understand.”

The county magistrate smiled like a flower. “I have to get going.”

Tang Jinghong said to Chu Qingzhi, “I still have something on. 1’11 leave with the county magistrate. I’ll pick you up tomorrow.”

Chu Qingzhi smiled. “Okay.”

She turned around and took a box from Shen Ruyue. She placed it in Tang

Jinghong’s hand. “Share it with everyone later.”

Tang Jinghong nodded. “I will.”

Everyone in the Chu Village watched the county magistrate and Tang Jinghong leave.

When Zhang Xiuqin and Tang Shan saw how close Tang Jinghong was to the county magistrate, they began to feel that something was not right.

Tang Jinghong didn’t seem to be simple. When they thought of the generous betrothal gift Tang Jinghong had given the Chu family previously, they felt more and more uneasy, as if they had missed something.

The Chu family looked at each other. Their daughter was really amazing. Not to mention in the surrounding villages, there had never been someone who was conferred the title of baroness in the surrounding county cities. They were proud of Chu Qingzhi.

Thinking of this, everyone in the Chu family straightened their backs and looked very smug.

Yuan Hongjun and Bao Linjiang looked at each other. As expected of their master, even if she was born a commoner, she was the best among the commoners.

The village chief said excitedly, “Qingzhi, the villagers have never seen the reward given by the emperor. I wonder if you can let us broaden our horizons?”

Chu Qingzhi said generously, “Sure.”

The villagers followed Chu Qingzhi into the courtyard curiously. Their necks were about to turn into giraffes.

With two disciples around, there was naturally no need for Chu Qingzhi to do anything herself. Yuan Hongjun and Bao Linjiang hurriedly ran over to serve her. Yuan Hongjun asked, “Master, which one should we open first?”

Chu Qingzhi glanced at a few boxes and pointed at the largest one. “Open the largest one.”

Yuan Hongjun immediately walked over and opened the largest box. This box was filled with silk.

The moment the box was opened, the silk inside reflected the light, dazzling everyone.

The twelve bolts of silk were exquisite and came from the royal family. Naturally, the quality was the best. Everyone was envious.

Chu Qingyue walked over. “Fifth Sister, I’ll choose some to make a set of clothes for you to wear tomorrow. How about that?”

Chu Qingzhi smiled and nodded. “Second Sister, that’s a good idea. Thank you.”

Bao Linjiang opened the second box. This box was relatively small and contained twelve pieces of jewelry. There were hair accessories, hairpins, earrings, jade ones, and some emerald ones. There were also collars, bracelets, and gold bracelets. They were very beautiful and suited girls well.

The last box contained a thousand taels of silver. It was filled with silver ingots and was neatly stacked. Under the sunlight, it flickered with silver light.

When the villagers saw this, their eyes lit up and they couldn’t help but swallow.

Shen Ruyue came forward and said something to Chu Qingzhi. Chu Qingzhi nodded and raised her voice. “From today onwards, our family will hold a two-day banquet. In a while, we’ll invite all the uncles and aunties in the village to stay and help prepare the banquet. I’ll have to trouble everyone for the next two days..”