It was already afternoon.
Inside the Golden Throne Hall, the Chief Seal-Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial read out urgent dispatch after urgent dispatch. Their contents were unanimous: this was a magnificent feat that "no one under heaven had believed possible, turning the utterly impossible into a glorious achievement."
The ministers listened with rapt interest, longing to learn every last detail!
They admired Jia Commanding Commissioner from the bottom of their hearts. If he could emerge from such boundless darkness, who could stop him henceforth?
At some point, a eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial brought over a Brocade Stool and quietly helped Jia Zheng sit down-the vice minister whose son's glory had elevated his standing.
Jia Zheng's mind was utterly blank. He sat down in a daze, all reason gone.
Many times before, in desperate straits, he had clung to one thought-
What if Huan'er won?
But this time, he could only pray-
What if Huan'er could keep his position as Commanding Commissioner?
Even his fantasies and prayers had gone no further. One could only imagine the terrifying force of this battle report.
Inside the Golden Throne Hall, amid an endless, deathly silence.
One man slowly stepped out of the ranks. It was Ouyang Jin.
He bowed to Emperor Jingde and said respectfully:
"Your Majesty, this humble minister ventures to ask: for Lord Jia's world-shaking military achievement, might he be ennobled as a duke?"
Ouyang Jin did not mention the Ghost Marriage again. He knew anything he said would be useless. He had to wait until Lord Jia returned to the capital; then, a storm would surely rise.
A duke?
The ministers could not hide their astonishment, yet they also felt it was only right.
The Commanding Commissioner of the Embroidered Uniform Guard already stood at the pinnacle of