Translator: Dj2203
Editor: Dj2203
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The Emperor was beaming with joy and said to General Zhenyuan, “General, you are indeed a pillar of the nation. If it weren’t for you, I really wouldn’t know what to do in this battle!”
The Prime Minister, the Crown Prince, and several other officials all looked rather grim, clearly not expecting that General Zhenyuan would actually resolve the matter.
General Zhenyuan was also extremely shocked. Three months ago, Lu Huan told him that he had a way to persuade Wan Sanqian to deliver the grain to his door. He thought that the young man was just boasting and did not know the immensity of heaven and earth!
But to everyone’s surprise, in March, when he and his other soldiers had tried every means to raise only a few thousand shi of grain, Lu Huan actually persuaded Wan Sanqian to send grain to the front line. This time, tens of thousands of shi were sent, and the grain supply for the whole year was no longer a problem!
General Zhenyuan was overjoyed, and his conviction about the Minister of War’s recommendation from that day was now even stronger.
With that in mind, he decided to ask for a promotion for Lu Huan.
“Your Majesty, I was able to successfully resolve the food shortage this time thanks to one of my subordinates. I would like to seek a promotion for him.”
If this were revealed in the imperial court, Lu Huan would likely make countless enemies. It would be better to keep him under his command for now and wait until he had fully consolidated his power before making any further plans.
The Emperor was extremely relaxed and happy at this moment. When he heard General Zhenyuan say that someone under his command had made a contribution, he assumed that it was someone who had made a contribution in persuading Wan Sanqian, so he naturally rewarded him without hesitation.
When he heard General Zhenyuan say that it was Lu Huan, he couldn’t help but smile and casually praised him: “I have some impression of this young man. The Grand Commandant also praised him to me before. He is so young that he can be appreciated by both the General and the Grand Commandant. He must be a talented person. I want to meet him another day.”
Of course, despite saying that, the emperor couldn’t possibly remember the name of a minor official at that moment.
….
That very evening, an imperial edict arrived from the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Personnel, appointing Lu Huan as a Cavalry Commandant (partial post), in charge of supervising the Imperial Guards, a rank of fourth grade.
The officials in charge of the second department were stunned. They had previously seen the assistant minister frequently visiting the residence of General Zhenyuan and assumed that they were just handling miscellaneous matters for the general. After all, General Zhenyuan looked down on them, who were just literati in the Ministry of War, and dealt with all sorts of scheming and infighting.
But to everyone’s surprise, just a few months later, Lu Huan was promoted again!
At only sixteen years old, he had already risen to the fourth rank!
The officials in charge of the second department were extremely envious, and even the deputy director of the second department was a little jealous, seeing that Lu Huan had been promoted two times and now had a higher official rank than him.
In the Zhenyuan General’s mansion, the general was unusually cheerful and held a banquet for Lu Huan. He toasted his friends, including Grand Commandant Yun, asking them to take care of and help Lu Huan.
General Zhenyuan had no sons of his own, so why was he treating a son of a concubine from the Ning Wang’s household like this? Could it be that he intended to adopt him?
The old lady of the Ning Wang’s mansion was a distant relative of the Zhenyuan General. If adoption were to be considered, this young man, who was only marginally related to him by blood, would indeed be the best candidate.
However, in the past, General Zhenyuan had always looked down on the Ning Wang’s mansion!
With everyone keeping their eyes down, they couldn’t help but look at this young man, who had repeatedly distinguished himself in the capital over the past year, with newfound respect. They figured he would probably have to be treated as a capable subordinate of General Zhenyuan in the future.
So they all went over to offer a toast.
The former officials and ministers still had to address him as Lord Lu.
Meanwhile, the Ning Wang’s mansion was in an uproar. Lu Huan had moved out of the Ning Wang’s mansion more than a month ago, and in just a few months, he had actually gained the favor of General Zhenyuan and been promoted to the fourth rank in the Ministry of War?!
The old lady was very excited. She wanted to send servants to quickly invite Lu Huan back, but when she thought that Lu Huan was entertaining guests at the Zhenyuan General’s Mansion, she tried her best to suppress her excitement.
At this time, she did not realize that Lu Huan had already decided to sever ties with the Ning Wang’s Mansion. She thought it was her wise decision to send this illegitimate son to the court to serve as an official. Otherwise, how could this illegitimate son have ended up like this!
Since her family’s downfall, Lady Ning, who had been in a state of despair, was filled with resentment upon hearing the news.
Leaving that aside for now, a message quickly popped up on Su Xi’s screen:
[Congratulations on completing Task Six: Managing the Famine, becoming famous throughout the capital, earning the title of “The Unknown Divine Merchant,” and initially attracting the Emperor’s attention.]
Congratulations on receiving a points reward of +10!
Su Xi thought to herself, “Damn it! My little one has been so busy these past few months, he’s lost so much weight. He finished these two parallel tasks all at once, and now the points are…”
She counted, and her eyes lit up with excitement. She had 72 points in total!
The Cavalry Commandant was a minor post, a fourth-rank official, in charge of supervising the Imperial Guards. His official robes were crimson, embroidered with lions. Su Xi liked them very much. So far, the cub had collected three official robes, which made her feel very accomplished.
Tonight, the cub was supposed to be entertaining guests at the Zhenyuan General’s Mansion, but for some reason, he suddenly came back halfway through, followed by someone from the Zhenyuan General’s Mansion. It seemed that someone had just told him something that made him extremely excited.
He wasn’t sure if Su Xi was there, but he still rushed back from the general’s mansion immediately.
Su Xi didn’t know what had made the cub so happy. His eyebrows and eyes were practically sparkling with joy, and he was almost ecstatic. He had been working day and night for the past few months and had lost a lot of weight, as if it was all for this moment.
Was it because of a promotion?
Su Xi found it a little funny; she thought her son would be calm about being promoted and making money.
It hadn’t been easy for the cub to get to where she was today, starting from that small courtyard in the Ning Wang’s Mansion. She was always incredibly happy for the cub, but the cub herself always seemed calm and unperturbed.
Today, however, things were reversed. His mother watched his promotion as if he had just gotten another good grade, and she was already used to it. But he himself moved with lightning speed, as if he were running towards the moon.
When Su Xi saw him come in, she closed the door and kept the guards outside, so she knew he must be looking for her.
So she plucked a pear blossom and placed it in his hand.
The sixteen-year-old boy had run back through the streets, his fair forehead still covered with a thin layer of sweat.
He looked down, panting, at the snow-white pear blossom in his hand, and a smile unconsciously appeared on his lips.
Then, he stared into the void, his eyes gleaming with wild joy, as if he were going crazy with happiness.
In Su Xi’s eyes, the little dumpling’s face was more excited than ever before, and there were several little suns on its head— what’s wrong?
Su Xi was caught up in his excitement and couldn’t help but smile. She tugged at his hair, trying to figure out what had happened.
Then, the little one, barely suppressing his elation, took a deep breath and said to her, “I’ve found someone who can help you find a home!”
He seemed too excited; his voice was trembling slightly.
His eyes were full of hope: “Shall we go see that person tonight?”
Su Xi: …
She gasped for breath for a second.
She never imagined that all these months, her son had been working tirelessly from dawn till dusk, barely having time to eat, becoming so thin, and with his eyes often red from lack of sleep, all because of this.
She noticed that her son had stopped studying those books on spirit summoning recently, and thought he had finally given up, which made her feel relieved.
But it turns out—
The cub’s obsession was far deeper than she had imagined.
….
Su Xi looked at the little one like this.
Looking at her little one, whose eyes were full of longing and hope, unaware of what was to come, her heart suddenly leaped into her throat.
Nothing had happened yet, but her eyes stung and her heart ached.
The author has something to say:
Su Xi: Even cartoon faces need to shave. I was shocked. It turns out that the little one is really a teenager!
Little one: ‘Don’t treat me like a child’—I’ll have you copy this 100 times as punishment… (Never mind, I’ll copy it myself qaq)
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