Bring your aunt to eat big meat, the scumbag father's family is furious

For the emperor, Princess Lingyu's mistakes were tantamount to holding her and the Dongfu Kingdom by the handle, which she had offered up herself, giving the Daze Kingdom an excellent opportunity.

"The people will be detained at Dali Temple for now. Next, I will negotiate with the Eastern Fu Kingdom," the emperor said slowly.

Princess Lingyu is now a hostage, and to ransom her, one must show sufficient sincerity.

The next day, Qiao Lian'er was summoned to the morning court.

Now that she is a princess who protects the country, she can attend the morning court with the ministers and officials and discuss matters with the emperor. Whether she goes or not is up to her. When she is required to go, the emperor will send someone to summon her.

The news of the naval victory had reached the court, and Qiao Lian'er knew that the emperor had summoned her to court to reward her.

Inside the Golden Palace, the atmosphere was exceptionally harmonious and joyful, a feeling of relief that even the air felt incredibly peaceful.

The courtiers were talking and laughing, much more boisterous than before, but the emperor did not stop them or show any displeasure; on the contrary, he was lenient with them.

This major victory along the coast was the first of its kind in nearly two hundred years since the founding of the dynasty.

The Dongfu Kingdom's thousand well-equipped warships were utterly routed, much to the delight of the people.

Looking back, every time the Eastern Fu Kingdom invaded, it caused headaches for everyone, and even before the battle began, people would start calculating the manpower and resources that needed to be invested.

But now, the ships of the Eastern Fu Kingdom were blasted back by cannons.

What a triumphant and exhilarating feeling!

When Qiao Lian'er entered the court, all the officials turned their gazes to her, instantly filled with awe and respect—a heartfelt admiration and complete reverence.

In everyone's eyes, the Princess Who Protects the Nation has become a kind of faith—

The court officials, including first-rank ministers and members of the royal family, all bowed and paid their respects.

"The Princess Zhenguo is truly remarkable, driving away the pirates and enhancing our nation's prestige."

"Princess Zhenguo has solved a major problem for Daze Kingdom. With this success, we will no longer have to worry about those island nations invading us."

Yes, the improvements to the cannons fundamentally enhanced the naval headquarters' combat capabilities, and could even serve as a permanent solution.

After Qiao Lian'er finished her greetings, the emperor said with a smile, "I never imagined that one day, this great worry of mine would be ended by the Princess Zhenguo. This is a great event that the whole country should celebrate, and I am very pleased."

One of the princes said, "The Dongfu Kingdom has suffered such a heavy blow this time, and its vitality has been greatly damaged. It will not attack again in the short term. Even if it does come again, our Daze Kingdom has a princess who protects the country. What is there to fear? We will make him run back in a panic, without even having time to raise the banner of surrender."

Hearing these praises, Qiao Lian'er secretly pondered that this meant the defense of the East China Sea had been entrusted to her, and from now on, she could only win and could not lose.

However, one should only do what one is capable of and what one has acquired.

She's happy to do so as long as she gets the appropriate reward.

"Before Princess Zhenguo went to the Naval Headquarters, I promised her that I would give her another fief, or even two. In just a few days, Princess Zhenguo has made such great progress and has not disappointed my trust. I have decided to grant Princess Zhenguo the fiefs of Queyuan Prefecture and Jinglang Prefecture."

"Queyuan Prefecture is three hundred li west of the capital, and Jinglang Prefecture is four hundred li north of the capital. Queyuan Prefecture is more prosperous, while Jinglang Prefecture is somewhat desolate. I believe that under the rule of Princess Zhenguo, both places will surely prosper. I await good news from Princess Zhenguo."

Qiao Lian'er had done a general study and understanding of all the prefectures and counties in Daze Kingdom that were of any significant size.

Jinglang Prefecture is located in the north, on the border, and adjacent to the northern regimes and tribes. Because the terrain is mainly characterized by water, grass and plains, the people here mainly have nomadic habits, with herding as the main activity and farming as a secondary activity.

Queyuan Prefecture is located on flat land with a humid climate, so its economy is relatively good and the people are self-sufficient and can make a living. However, it is surrounded by towering mountains and has difficulty communicating with other prefectures and counties. As the saying goes, different places have different people, and the people of Queyuan Prefecture have developed a rather aloof and stubborn personality, making them difficult to manage.

Moreover, the several counties in Queyuan Prefecture were separated by rugged terrain, making unified management extremely difficult.

Qiao Lian'er knew that the emperor would not give her a prefecture with convenient transportation and a very prosperous economy.

She had put in a lot of effort to govern Tianhe Prefecture. Entrusting Jinglang Prefecture to her was to make it the first line of defense against the invasion of the northern tribal regimes, and to strengthen the defenses there. This was the emperor's true intention.

While Que Yuanzhou sounds nice, as if he had done her a good favor, in reality, the place was isolated, and she had to deal with civil disputes from time to time, with inconsistent laws and regulations, making her life difficult and arduous.

Her several fiefdoms were separated by difficult passes and terrain, so the emperor was worried that she might form a unified force and was therefore wary of her.

But for her, as a subject, to be able to obtain these fiefdoms, and at the state level which is second only to the national level, is something that others dare not even dream of.

No matter what kind of land it is, it will become good land in her hands.

Qiao Lian'er expressed her gratitude with a sincere attitude.

The emperor was also observing Qiao Lian'er's reaction. He knew his own calculations; it was impossible for Qiao Lian'er to be completely unaware of everything.

However, Qiao Lian'er was very sincere and serious.

The emperor liked such a clever person. Even though he granted him a fiefdom, all land under heaven belongs to the emperor. Qiao Lian'er should understand that every inch of land in Daze Kingdom belongs to the imperial family.

Qiao Lian'er returned with the investiture orders for Queyuan Prefecture and Jinglang Prefecture, which were seals of even higher rank than the seal of a prefectural governor.

The Qiao family was very excited.

"Two more fiefdoms have been added." Grandma Qiao was proud of her granddaughter, but also felt a pang of heartache.

"But from now on, Lian'er will have to work even harder."

“Grandma, it’s not bitter. If I develop both places, all the tax revenue will go to the Qiao family. That’s a good thing,” Qiao Lian’er said.

Although she has reduced the various commercial taxes, agricultural taxes, and poll taxes in Tianhe Prefecture quite a bit, the amount collected is still a huge sum.

She turned over a portion to the national treasury and kept the other portion for herself.

Now, with the addition of Jinglang Prefecture and Queyuan Prefecture, and as their economic levels rise and commerce flourishes, they will generate a steady stream of tax revenue.

Princess Lingyu was detained at Dali Temple. Upon learning the news, the Dongfu Kingdom immediately sent another envoy, led by Princess Lingyu's elder sister, Princess Hefeng.

Dongfu is an island nation, and Daze has no interest in its territory and waters, nor does it demand that the other party cease its incursions.

For Daze Kingdom, it's a good thing if Dongfu Kingdom comes more often, allowing its navy to practice more.

What Daze Kingdom wanted was a huge indemnity, which would empty the treasury of Dongfu Kingdom for ten years.

In order to take her sister away, Princess Hefeng had no choice but to agree.

Once the compensation was delivered, Princess Lingyu was finally released from the Dali Temple. By then, she had become a completely different person.

He lost over ten pounds in an instant. At less than twenty years old, his hair turned gray, and his face lost its former pride and vigor, becoming haggard and worn.

But his eyes were bloodshot with resentment.

"Sister, I can't just leave like this."