The three of them continued walking, with Fang Zheng waiting for Emperor Jing to speak.

After walking for about half a cup of tea’s time, Emperor Jing looked around before slowly saying, “Minister Fang, I must admit, your achievements here have far exceeded my expectations.”

“I should reward you properly.”

Hearing Emperor Jing say this, Fang Zheng had a sense of déjà vu and couldn’t help but think to himself.

If there’s no surprise, His Majesty’s next sentence will be: you’re too young now, I will definitely make important use of you in the future.

“However, you’re still too young. I will definitely make important use of you in the future.”

Hehe, this promise is hard to swallow. I’ve already eaten several pieces of it.

Emperor Jing continued speaking to himself: “What I didn’t expect even more was that you managed to root out Liu Xun.”

“It seems giving you that sword was a correct decision.”

At the mention of the imperial sword, Fang Zheng’s heart skipped a beat.

Let’s not talk about that! The sword is badly damaged, it’s still broken now. What if you ask for it back one day? How will I survive?

“Even I haven’t used that sword. You should keep it safe from now on!”

Huh?!

Hearing this, Fang Zheng perked up and asked curiously, “Your Majesty hasn’t used that sword either?”

“I have many swords! If I were to use each one, who knows how long it would take. Why, why suddenly bring this up?” Emperor Jing suddenly stopped and looked at Fang Zheng.

“Could it be that sword has some special qualities?”

Hearing this, Fang Zheng was overjoyed inside but put on a grieved expression, “Your Majesty! To be honest, that sword is useless! It’s purely ceremonial, all show and no substance!”

“That Liu Xun not only committed many evil deeds, harming the people, but he also had a rebellious nature, with bone spurs!”

“When your subject beheaded him, that Qian Dynasty sword actually broke!”

Broke?

Emperor Jing’s eye twitched involuntarily a couple of times.

How could a ceremonial sword from the Qian royal family break when cutting someone?

A rebellious nature is in the back of the head… isn’t beheading supposed to cut the neck?

But this was a small matter, and Emperor Jing didn’t dwell on it, saying lightly, “If it broke, so be it. I’ll send you another one later.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty!”

Fortunately, His Majesty didn’t think too much about it, and we’ve moved past it.

Emperor Jing continued, “The matter behind Liu Xun is more significant than I thought. The Jianjiang treasury was emptied. Do you have any leads on this?”

Fang Zheng thought for a moment and replied, “No, if your subject had the ability to investigate it, I would have done so and reported to Your Majesty already.”

“This matter is beyond your subject’s capabilities. I request Your Majesty’s wise decision!”

Emperor Jing glanced at Guo Tianyang and said lightly, “I’ve already handed it over to the Eastern Depot for investigation, but so far they haven’t found a single clue.”

Guo Tianyang, who had been slacking off to the side, immediately tensed up when he heard Emperor Jing say this.

What’s going on! How did it come back to me again?

“The Eastern Depot has been increasingly disappointing me these years!”

“I have no choice but to consider establishing a new force to inspect the realm for me and monitor the officials.”

“But I haven’t decided what to call it yet.”

“Minister Fang, you are capable, and I value you highly! But… you lack experience.”

“You need to perform well…”

Fang Zheng drew in a sharp breath and blurted out, “The Embroidered Uniform Guard?”

Emperor Jing was also taken aback, chuckling, “The Embroidered Uniform Guard? Good name, let’s call it the Embroidered Uniform Guard then.”

Fang Zheng broke out in a cold sweat.

If he really took on this job, he would be completely at odds with the other officials.

Everyone would be afraid of him when they saw him, how could he get along with people then?

Wouldn’t that make his reputation even worse?

He quickly declined, “No, no, no, your subject is still young, I can’t handle this job.”

“In your subject’s humble opinion, Eunuch Guo is good at knowing people and assigning tasks. There’s no need for the court to spend more money to establish a separate Embroidered Uniform Guard.”

Guo Tianyang, standing to the side, was also lost in thought.

His heart sank. It seemed this time he had truly fallen out of favor.

His Majesty wasn’t just thinking about having Fang Zheng replace him, but directly setting aside the entire Eastern Depot.

Fortunately, hearing Fang Zheng speak, Guo Tianyang came back to his senses.

He couldn’t help feeling a bit touched.

This worthy brother… can still speak some human language after all.

Emperor Jing glanced lightly at Fang Zheng and said, “What’s the matter? Are you afraid of offending people?”

“Acting without any regard for rules, and the Crown Prince has become like this following you!”

“I still have some scores to settle with you!”

Huh? Fang Zheng was dumbfounded.

He cautiously asked, “Your subject… hasn’t done anything, has he?”

Emperor Jing frowned and glared, “Haven’t done anything!? What did you say to Miaohan!?”

“She’s been taking that thing called sanitary napkins around the palace, telling all the palace maids to use them!”

“She even came to me asking for money.”

“I’ve been tolerating you on this matter for a long time!! It’s now forbidden in the palace. Don’t mention such vulgar things again!”

“You can be shameless if you want, but don’t lead my daughter astray!”

Hearing Emperor Jing say this, Fang Zheng relaxed.

I thought it was something serious!

After breathing a sigh of relief, Fang Zheng patiently explained, “Your Majesty! That’s a good thing! How is it vulgar? It’s about civilization and hygiene, it’s a good thing!”

Before he could finish, Emperor Jing angrily interrupted, “Silence, I don’t want to hear it!”

“But it makes money!”

“How much can it make?”

“That’s countless! How many women are there in the world? Even if we make a few coins from each woman every month, we’d still make a fortune!”

Emperor Jing’s expression was a bit awkward. He composed himself and said lightly, “No matter how much money it makes.”

“This matter is not to be mentioned again for now! Even if it’s a good thing, it’s not the right time for it to appear.”

“The subjects of the realm view it as inauspicious. You should also consider your own reputation as an official. That’s that!”

Fang Zheng smiled slightly, “Your Majesty, the so-called inauspiciousness in the eyes of the people is only because of the low status of women!”

“If women could earn money to support their families, this kind of talk might not prevail for long.”

“Several textile factories have already been built in Jianjiang Prefecture, only hiring female workers. Their monthly wages are no less than men’s. Many people envy them.”

“Your subject thinks some customs will change sooner or later.”

After listening, Emperor Jing chuckled lightly, “Perhaps. Maybe when the Crown Prince reaches my age, I’ll see it.”

Fang Zheng shrugged.

If the emperor doesn’t believe it, so be it. It’s normal that some things can’t be accomplished in less than decades or even a century, but at least he had made a start, so it wasn’t a waste of effort.

It’s just a pity.

If it could really be done, wouldn’t our Woman’s Fist be much more powerful, striding across the Jing Dynasty?

“This matter need not be discussed further! You don’t need to mention it in the palace either.”

The emperor and his subject chatted casually.

Soon, a construction site appeared before their eyes.

The ground had been dug up, with piles of bricks and stones placed nearby.

Workers were constantly leveling the ground and then laying bricks…

Emperor Jing looked towards the end of the street, his eyes showing surprise, “Why are there so many words on this road?”

Seeing this, Fang Zheng explained, “Your Majesty, the words on this road are actually…”