Chapter 941: Cinnabar Privilege Proof
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Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Yu Youyao took a deep breath. Without thinking about anything else, she picked up the “privilege proof” under the secret decree. This was the most important thing.
For a moment, she was trembling in fear.
The “death-exemption gold plate” was often mentioned in operas.
However, in fact, in every dynasty, there was no so-called death-exemption gold plate. There was only the privilege proof.
Therefore, it was a “book”, not a gold plate. It was not a gold medallion. It was made of fine iron, not gold. It was modeled after the pages of a book and had many words engraved on it.
During the Han Dynasty, this contract was all written with cinnabar, so it was called the “Cinnabar Book.” Later on, it was mostly written in gold powder. Alternatively, the words were carved.
It recorded in detail the time of the contract, the name of the target, the official t.i.tle, and the land.
Second, they would write down the contributions of the person who had been given the privilege proof.
Later on, the special privileges that the emperor gave to the recipient would be written. For example, death exemption was one of them. Of course, there were prerequisites.
At the end, the emperor’s oath would be written. The rough meaning was that meritorious officials would be treated well.
The privilege proof was like an open book. It was divided into two parts. The right contract was kept in the Imperial Temple, and the left was given to the family of the meritorious official for generations to pa.s.s on.
If a meritorious official or his descendant committed a crime, the awarded “privilege proof” had to be combined with the “privilege proof” hidden in the Imperial Temple to be verified before they could be pardoned.
However, Yu Youyao knew very well that the “privilege proof” was not as reliable as it seemed.
First, at the end, the emperor made an oath. “Even if the Yellow River is as thin as a belt and Mount Tai is sharpened, as long as the ancestral temple is present, your t.i.tle and manor will be pa.s.sed down forever.”
The general idea was that as long as the Great Zhou Dynasty existed, the contract would always be effective unless the Yellow River dried up and Mount Tai collapsed.
The emperor had sworn on the Yellow River and Mount Tai. It was indeed a promise using Mount Tai. One shouldn’t forget that the world was huge. Could it be that all of the land was under the emperor’s rule? Could it be that all officials, be it the Yellow River or Mount Tai, were under the emperor’s rule?
However, although the privilege proof wasn’t that guaranteed, it was still a
promise. As long as the recipient didn’t harm the interests of the royal family, causing the royal family to hate them, it was basically very reliable.
However, the privilege proof was not given to her.
It was for Yin Huaixi.
It was first engraved that Yin Huaixi!s dragon vein was related to Emperor Chengzong. He was a true “dragon’s grandson”. It seemed as if it was only writing about Yin Huaixi’s ident.i.ty, but it emphasized on the “orthodox lineage of the royal family”, increasing the weight of the privilege proof.
Second, it even briefly explained the extraordinary contributions his father, King Li of Zhou, had made to the Great Zhou.
Although it was glossed over, it emphasized that “his ancestors were virtuous and meritorious.’
Later on, it was written in detail. Yin Huaixi entered the military camp at the age of seven. At the age of 12, he went into battle to resist the Di people. At the age of 15, he used his crippled body to serve his ancestors. He was strong-willed and wanted to stabilize the nine states and calm the four seas.
He quelled the rebellion in Shandong and eliminated the lingering troubles in Shandong for hundreds of years to avenge his father. Later, he was conferred the t.i.tle of King of the North by Yue Fei. He guarded the main border of Liaodong and intimidated foreign states. He fixed the country and protected it. He worked hard.
At the age of 18, the Great Zhou Dynasty had suffered natural and man-made disasters. He helped the Imperial Court promote national policies, take in refugees, and settle them down…
Every word was pertinent.
At the end, there were these sentences. “He bears the legacy of his n.o.ble ancestor. He has the five virtues of benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom, and trust.’
Yu Youyao was shocked. She held the box and observed it carefully, but she did not find any secret compartments or mechanisms.
In that case, after the Empress Dowager borrowed her hand and bestowed the “privilege proof” on Yin Huaixi, she did not even give her a single word. This was a little interesting.
Did this also mean that since the privilege proof had been handed over to her, she had full authority to deal with it?
Whether she gave it to King Yue Fei depended on her.
The Empress Dowager had given her the initiative.
Yu Youyao’s heart suddenly surged. She kept feeling that the Empress Dowager’s actions were really difficult to figure out. She felt uneasy.
Yu Youyao quickly put away the ebony box and placed it in the secret cabinet at the head of the bed. She called Yin Shi over. “Go to Longcheng immediately and tell His Highness that I have something important to ask him. Ask him to come back immediately.” With that, she reminded him, “No one must know about this.’
There was still the last batch of refugees in Longcheng that had yet to be settled.
In addition, there was a group of refugees who had contracted the epidemic.
They needed to continue staying in the camp and undergo isolation treatment. Only after confirming that they were fine could they be resettled.
The situation in Longcheng was set, so it would not affect Yin Huaixi much if he returned to Xiangping in advance.
Yin Shi’s heart skipped a beat, and she quickly agreed.
After Yin Shi left, Yu Youyao sat in her room, unable to calm down for a long time.
There were two decrees for the betrothal, one for the man and one for the woman. Longcheng was the door to the three cities in the capital, so Yin
Huaixi must have already received the secret decree sent by the Empress Dowager.
That night, Yu Youyao had another dream.
In her dream, not long after her grandmother pa.s.sed away, there was suddenly a rumor in the capital that her second sister, Yu Shuangbai, was born with a phoenix fate.
This news had originally spread from the Precious Peace Temple. When the news reached the palace, it immediately attracted the Empress’s attention. The Empress sent someone to the Yu Residence to investigate and confirmed that when Old Madam Yu was alive, she had indeed seen Grandmaster Hui Neng three times and received the “Golden Buddha Mouth” from him.
The abbot of the Precious Peace Temple had also confirmed that Grandmaster Hui Neng indeed treated the Yu Residence differently. Grandmaster Hui Neng had traveled the world and his whereabouts were uncertain. He had only returned to the capital a few times and had seen Old Madam Yu three times.
The Empress had sent the Imperial Astronomer to the Yu Residence and realized that the feng Shui of the Yu Residence was very good. There was even a thousand-year-old parasol tree.
This shock was no small matter.
Phoenixes only perched on parasol trees, but they didn’t perch on all parasol trees. Only parasol trees that had grown for a thousand years like this were called “phoenix parasols.” However, parasol trees were easy to obtain, but phoenix parasols were difficult to find.
No one cared who this phoenix parasol belonged to or whose courtyard it grew
in.
How could an ill-mannered “bereaved eldest daughter” be qualified to take on the phoenix’s fate because she had damaged her reputation by “secretly meeting” the prince and was engaged?
Meanwhile, Third Miss Yu Jianjia was born to the second wife. Her status was weaker, and her body was weak, so she naturally couldn’t bear the phoenix fate.
The only person in the Yu Residence who was most qualified to inherit the phoenix fate was the only legitimate daughter of the Grand Secretary Yu
Zongshen.
Yu Shuangbai!
The Imperial Astronomer also a.s.serted that Yu Shuangbai’s fate was rich and n.o.ble.
At this moment, Madam Yao suddenly thought of something. “A few years ago, when I accompanied the Matriarch to the Precious Peace Temple, the sisters in the family asked for a lot out of curiosity. I remember that the lot Shuangbai drew was ‘A Blessing in Disguise r .”
This was a sign of good fortune. The Imperial Astronomer became even more cautious. He found an old monk who had interpreted lots at the Precious Peace Temple in his early years to confirm this lot.
Dou Yujun taught his children the right way of conduct, and his five sons were very outstanding. It was a legend that had been widely circulated for generations. In the “Three Character Cla.s.sic”, there was a saying, “Dou Yujun taught the right way of conduct. His five children raised the family reputation.”
This also confirmed the rumor that Yu Shuangbai was born with a phoenix fate.
The Empress immediately agreed with the Yu Residence and issued a decree to give Yu Shuangbai to the Fourth Prince as the princess consort..