Su Muqing lay on the bed for a while before dragging her exhausted body up. Things were different now; those thoughts of giving up were just wishful thinking.
As expected, it wasn't long before Madam Zhou led a line of palace maids into the inner chamber. She was now a first-rank嬷嬷 in the palace, primarily responsible for Su Muqing's daily life.
Although Su Muqing and Lu Yuzhi were not yet officially married, their relationship was already public knowledge. They had even moved into the palace once it was built, albeit in separate courtyards.
As for Xu Fu, the head eunuch of the palace, in addition to managing palace affairs, he primarily stayed by their side, more often following Huo Qiyuan.
The palace maids carried basins of water, clothes, and accessories, forming a long procession. Upon entering, they all knelt respectfully on the ground.
Madam Zhou stepped forward and half-bowed to Su Muqing, performing a palace curtsey. She said in a gentle tone, "Your Majesty, time is almost upon us. Everyone is waiting in the Golden Hall. Allow us to help you with your ablutions and change of clothes!"
Su Muqing nodded, then spread her arms, waiting for them to approach and assist her. She only had twenty minutes. She had to change clothes to go to the main hall soon, and after finishing there, she would need to change again for the banquet hall.
The palace maids first removed her heavy coronation dragon robe, revealing the down-filled inner layer and thermal underwear beneath. Madam Zhou helped her change into a set of ordinary, lighter court attire and placed a nine-beaded golden crown on her head.
When Su Muqing was chosen to be the empress, Lu Yuzhi had immediately sent Xu Fu to the Great Yu Dynasty to find the professionals who had previously made royal attire. These individuals were secretly relocated to Huaxia City to design clothing for everyone.
As the empress, Su Muqing's attire was naturally the most intricate. While they were dressing her, her eyes remained closed.
Madam Zhou initially thought she was simply resting her eyes, but upon closer inspection, she realized Su Muqing had actually fallen asleep. Standing and falling asleep—how exhausted must she be?
Although feeling a pang of sympathy, Madam Zhou still whispered in Su Muqing's ear, "Your Majesty, everything is ready. Shall we proceed to the Golden Hall now?"
Su Muqing opened her eyes, her gaze still a little hazy. "Alright, let's go!"
"Yes! Your Majesty proceeds to the Golden Hall~"
"Proceed~"
Su Muqing, adorned in her formal attire, arrived at the Golden Hall. This was where she would work from now on, the grand setting where emperors and ministers discussed state affairs, just like in the dramas.
"Long live Your Majesty, long live, long live, long live!"
"All ministers, rise!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Below the throne, including Lu Yuzhi, all the officials expressed their gratitude, rose, and took their positions on either side. Su Muqing nodded at Xu Fu beside her.
Xu Fu, holding an imperial decree, approached the front of the dragon throne. He unfurled the fine jade scroll with both hands. The imperial yellow silk brocade was embroidered with golden dragons and bordered with auspicious cranes and other patterns. "Huo Qiyuan, receive the decree~"
Lu Yuzhi, whose name was called, stepped forward and stood in the center of the Golden Hall. He lifted his robe, knelt, and touched his forehead to the ground to receive the decree. Those in the Golden Hall who were unaware of his true identity widened their eyes in disbelief as they looked at the person kneeling in the hall.
Huo Qiyuan? Isn't this the former heir of the King of Bingjian's estate in the Great Yu Dynasty? The youngest general, the undefeated war god of yesteryear? How could he still be alive?
Three years ago, after the old king was found guilty of colluding with the enemy and treason, and the estate fell into ruin shortly thereafter, it was reported that the undefeated war god had been defeated and died on the battlefield. Thus, a grand estate withered away.
In the beginning, the common people truly believed Huo Sizhun had committed treason and cursed the Huo family for a long time. However, not long after, the Great Yu Dynasty was plagued by continuous disasters.
Now, seeing the person rumored to be dead standing before them alive and well. Furthermore, being so trusted by the empress, and even considered the prospective imperial consort. How could those people not be astonished!
Xu Fu felt a surge of excitement but maintained his composure and announced loudly, "By the mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Huo Qiyuan possesses noble character, is proficient in both civil and military arts, and has the talent to govern and secure the borders. He has led mighty armies to expand territories, braved mortal danger three times, and made significant contributions to the development of Huaxia Nation. He is hereby bestowed the title of Grand Regent Prince of the First Rank, granted a golden book to assist in governing affairs, appointed as the Grand General protecting the nation of Huaxia, and bestowed the military tally to command the mighty armies of Huaxia. Additionally, he is appointed as the Grand Tutor of the Central Cabinet to cultivate talent for the nation. It is hoped that you will dedicate yourself to the nation, govern diligently, repay the imperial grace, and live up to expectations!"
"Your subject, Huo Qiyuan, accepts the decree and will dedicate his life to serving the nation, repaying the imperial grace and the people, and will not flinch from sacrificing himself." (From this chapter onwards, the male protagonist resumes his original name, Huo Qiyuan.)
After reading the decree, Xu Fu rolled it up and placed it on the tray containing the golden book. Su Muqing rose from the dragon throne and slowly walked to Huo Qiyuan.
Su Muqing took the tray containing the military tally and the golden book from Xu Fu and handed it to Huo Qiyuan. Huo Qiyuan raised the tray above his head with both hands, then kowtowed again to express his gratitude.
After Huo Qiyuan's investiture was complete, it was Su Muxuan's turn. He was enfeoffed as Prince Rongbao. Initially, Su Muqing wanted to directly appoint him as the crown prince, but she feared that with such a prominent position, he would be too closely scrutinized, which would be detrimental to his physical and mental well-being. Therefore, she decided to bestow upon him the title of Prince first.
Su Minghui and Madam Wang were enfeoffed as Prince Haotianyi and Princess Consort Zhaodeyi, respectively. Su Cuiping was granted the title of Lady Wenchang. Su Muqing also posthumously bestowed the titles of King Haotianxian and Princess Consort Shudexian upon the deceased Su Mingyuan and his wife, to express her gratitude for their upbringing.
After bestowing titles upon Su Muqing's close associates, the focus shifted to Huo Qiyuan's retinue. Starting from Leng Ren and extending to Huo Xiao, all of them received rewards and important positions. For those who were not present, imperial decrees and appointments were issued on the spot.
The remaining individuals to be honored were those talented individuals who had been discovered over the past two years. The selection of most of these talents was personally reviewed and chosen by Su Muqing and Huo Qiyuan.
In the Golden Hall, sixty-nine imperial decrees for official appointments were issued. These were for important officials who were qualified to attend court, generally of the fourth rank and above.
For minor officials, such as the Assistant Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, who held fifth or sixth rank positions, the imperial decrees were sent directly to their homes to avoid occupying public time.
At half-past one in the afternoon, all personnel had received their enfeoffments. The group then proceeded to the Jiuxiao Grand Banquet Hall, a venue specifically designed for grand feasts.
Su Muqing returned to her sleeping quarters once more, changed into casual attire, and then proceeded to the banquet hall. As the empress, she naturally sat at the central head seat. Huo Qiyuan, as the second-in-command of Huaxia Nation, sat to her left. The seat to her right was occupied by Ke Biyou and Madam Qin.
The exposure of their identities as the former Emperor and Empress of Tianzhao Nation had greatly surprised the citizens of Huaxia City.
Later, they also learned that their City Lord had been adopted as a daughter by the former Emperor of Tianzhao Nation. It was said that they had abdicated the throne to accept the City Lord's invitation to reside there.
All the citizens of Huaxia Nation unconditionally obeyed every decision made by Su Muqing. Therefore, their arrival was met with immense welcome from the entire nation.
Now that Su Muqing was the empress, her biological parents were naturally acknowledged. Thus, she respectfully conferred upon Ke Biyou the title of Emperor Emeritus and Madam Qin the title of Empress Dowager.
The banquet officially began at two o'clock in the afternoon. Amidst the toasts exchanged between the sovereign and his officials, old friends and new acquaintances, the scene was one of harmony and celebration of a prosperous era.
Li Ziwen, the newly appointed Minister of Rites, raised his wine cup to propose a toast. "Empress Your Majesty, I toast to you, congratulating your ascension to the throne and wishing everlasting prosperity to our Huaxia Nation."
Su Muqing smiled, lifted her wine cup, and took a sip. "I accept Minister Li's auspicious words!"
After toasting the empress, Li Ziwen then toasted the Grand Regent. Just as the person behind him prepared to stand up and toast, he saw Li Ziwen cup his hands again and say,
"Now that the grand situation of Huaxia Nation is settled and all matters are peaceful. May I inquire if Your Majesty's marriage is also due to be put on the agenda?"
"I second the motion."
"I second the motion."
...
Following Li Ziwen's proposal, all the attendees at the banquet stood up to second the motion. The previously lively atmosphere suddenly fell silent.
Ke Biyou, standing nearby, raised his eyebrows and gave Li Ziwen a displeased glance. This young man had probably colluded with others to force his daughter into marriage, hadn't he?
Hmph! He was dreaming too big. Now that both he and his wife were by Muqing's side, they absolutely could not let Huo Qiyuan marry their empress daughter so easily!
Huo Qiyuan remained silent, merely watching Su Muqing with a smile. This matter had already been discussed privately between them, but the others around them were unaware, constantly worrying about their marriage.
Xu Fu and Madam Zhou were overjoyed to hear this matter being brought up. Huo Qiyuan was already twenty-seven. Xu Fu genuinely feared that he would follow in his father's footsteps and only marry in his thirties or forties.
If not for the inappropriate occasion and his special status, he would have impulsively stepped forward to second the motion as well! If the young master married sooner, he could have children earlier, and with their old bones still able to move, they could help raise them, couldn't they?
Seeing everyone awaiting her response, Su Muqing turned to look at Huo Qiyuan. "This matter is not urgent for now. We shall discuss it after we have conquered the Great Yu Dynasty."
Everyone eagerly awaited her decision, but Su Muqing reiterated her previous statement. They hadn't understood before why she insisted on waiting until the Great Yu Dynasty was conquered to hold the wedding.
It wasn't until today, when Huo Qiyuan accepted his enfeoffment under his real name, and the newly appointed officials in the court, who had originally migrated from the Great Yu Dynasty, finally began to understand.
Seeing the slight disappointment on everyone's faces, Su Muqing raised her wine cup and said, "I understand your thoughts. Although we will not marry immediately, I have already discussed with my future imperial consort that we will hold an engagement ceremony on the Lantern Festival. As long as we conquer the Great Yu Dynasty within this year, clear the name of the late Prince Huo and his consort from treason charges, and avenge the innocent soldiers and their families who died in the estate, we will marry immediately."
Upon hearing Su Muqing's words, no one raised the matter of marriage again. Instead, they congratulated Huo Qiyuan. In fact, many younger officials present felt immense envy towards him.
Already holding the title of Grand Regent Prince of the First Rank, second only to the empress, and soon to be the empress's imperial consort, Huo Qiyuan's fate was truly remarkable.
If only they had met the Empress earlier, perhaps this position would have been theirs.
However, although Su Muqing was the empress, she was still an emperor. Since ancient times, emperors had inner palaces, seventy-two concubines, and it was unknown whether the empress would only have one imperial consort, or more. If there were more than one, would they still have a chance...
Su Muqing and the others were unaware of the hidden thoughts of those present. However, she herself had no such frivolous ideas. She had been exposed to the modern concept of monogamy since childhood. In that era, marrying more than one person, or marrying multiple people simultaneously, was illegal.
Ke Biyou had initially wanted his daughter to be more reserved and delay the matter, to prevent Huo Qiyuan from easily deceiving her. Who knew that before he could even offer any advice, his naive daughter directly announced her engagement to him!
Oh well, they had been in love for several years. It was best for them not to interfere casually. Their child had grown up and it was time for her to leave the nest! Lest their attempts to keep her lead to animosity!
...
Time flew by, and it was now the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the Lantern Festival. Early in the morning, Huo Qiyuan accepted the enfeoffment of Imperial Consort in the imperial court. Aside from the differences in attire and gender, the procedures were almost identical to the ceremony of enfeoffing an empress in dramas.
Su Muqing sat on the dragon throne, finding it difficult to suppress a smile as she watched Huo Qiyuan accept the enfeoffment. She raised her hand to cover her mouth, concealing the smile at the corner of her lips. She hadn't expected that in this lifetime, she would experience the novelty of marrying a husband as a woman.
The ceremony of enfeoffing the Imperial Consort was also complex: reporting to Heaven and Earth, informing the ancestral temples, and inscribing into the imperial genealogy. After these rituals, there was a procession around the city.
This was a joyous occasion for universal celebration, and it was natural to share it with the people, allowing them to recognize the Father of Huaxia Nation! With this, the marriage between the two was officially announced to the world.
On the morning of the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, Huo Qiyuan boarded a carriage and, with an army of two hundred thousand, departed to rendezvous with Leng Ren and the others in Si'an Prefecture.
Now that he was engaged to Su Muqing, their status was confirmed, but he still had to strive to conquer the Great Yu Dynasty in the shortest possible time. He also needed to investigate the truth behind the false accusation against his estate back then and clear his father's name.
Su Muqing had also wanted to accompany them to the battlefield, but the court officials had all objected. Firstly, Huaxia Nation was developing too rapidly, and there were many other matters to attend to.
Furthermore, as the emperor, although expanding the territory was important, the nation's other affairs were equally crucial. Even if she couldn't manage everything perfectly, she absolutely could not let there be too much of a bias. Therefore, Su Muqing ultimately had to abandon the idea of personally leading the troops.