Princess Menglang is hard to change, the whole capital is embarrassed for her

"Think carefully. Such a great achievement is only rewarded with this kind of imperial decree. You won't regret it later."

The emperor reached out to help Fang Yao up, but Fang Yao quickly stood up and sat down across from the chessboard again.

"I have no regrets. Every time I won a battle, the Emperor rewarded me with a lot of land and shops. As long as my descendants are not extravagant, those rewards are enough to support two or three generations. This time, I don't want money, I just want a favor. Your Majesty, please fulfill my wish."

He was a great general of cavalry, even with wrinkles on his face, yet he actually acted like a rogue in his youth in front of the emperor. If the emperor didn't agree, he would roll over in anger.

The emperor was not amused and deliberately said, "You don't need money or property. I can give you an official position. Your contribution this time is too great. You can have any official position you want."

In fact, he was telling the truth. Now that the border is stable, he hopes Fang Yao can stay in the capital and stay by his side.

These days he has been thinking about what kind of official position to give Fang Yao, one that is higher than his current one and one that he can handle.

"I don't want to be an official. If I were, I'd have to deal with those sour-smelling scholars every day. They always say things with a sarcastic tone. I get impatient listening to them. When I'm tired of them, I want to hit them."

Fang Yao was afraid that the emperor would really confer an official title, so he quickly put down the chess piece in his hand and said seriously: "If the emperor continues to confer an official title, I can't stand the restraint and will argue with others at the slightest provocation. Sooner or later, I will cause trouble for you."

"I still feel more comfortable leading troops in battle. Moreover, while I am still able to fight and carry heavy loads, I want to train the next generation of men who can lead troops in battle for Your Majesty. When I am old and can no longer lead troops, and the enemy attacks, our Great Zhou will still have brave men who are brave enough to fight them to the death."

The emperor's eyes suddenly became moist.

The emperor lowered his eyes to glance at the chessboard, then raised his head again. He reached out and patted Fang Yao's shoulder, "Okay, I promise you. I will issue an imperial decree right now. I will assign that child...what's her name? I will assign her marriage to you. No one in the Shen family is allowed to interfere."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. Thank you for your grace. Thank you, Your Majesty." Upon hearing this, Fang Yao excitedly stood up and knelt, kowtowed several times before standing up.

Not knowing how to please him, he leaned forward and said attentively, "Your Majesty, would you like to eat some spicy sausage? I just found a small restaurant. It's in a very secret place and it's hard for ordinary people to find. I'll secretly take you out of the palace to try it someday."

That was their favorite food back then. It may sound like an indecent name, but who cares? As long as they like it, it’s good.

The emperor's appetite was also aroused by him. Just as he was about to speak, he was hit by a cough, which he quickly suppressed with tea.

"Alas, I want to eat, but I can't."

Even a little bit of spiciness can irritate his throat, causing him to cough endlessly. If it causes asthma, it will be a big trouble.

The desire for food has long left him, but his body is not strong enough, so he has to endure it.

The imperial study became quiet for a moment, and a faint sadness enveloped the emperor and his ministers, as if the chess pieces in their hands were as heavy as a thousand pounds.

Shen House.

The first thing Shen Zhaojiang did after returning home was to ask someone to call Shen Li to the study. He wanted to see his daughter.

Shen Li walked over slowly.

The original owner's memory of his father had long been vague when he was a child.

She just wanted to see what the man who had hurt her mother so badly looked like.

When Shen Li entered, he hadn't had time to take off his official robe. Shen Yao was also in the study, pulling at his sleeves and shaking them, looking all cute and adorable like a young girl.

"Daddy hasn't been home for several days, and your daughter misses you so much," Shen Yao glanced at Shen Li proudly, pouting and saying coquettishly, "Daddy always brings gifts for your daughter every time he goes out. What did he bring this time?"

Shen Li stood quietly at the door, watching the father and daughter perform their love and admiration for each other with cold eyes.

It was obvious that Shen Zhaojiang doted on his daughter Shen Yao very much. When he saw Shen Li coming in, he hurriedly said to Shen Yao like coaxing a child: "Daddy will bring you a gift in a while. You go out first. Daddy has something to say to... to your eldest sister. Be obedient."

Shen Yao let go of her hand half complainingly and half proudly, and when she walked past Shen Li, she wanted to push her.

Shen Li glared.

Shen Yao was so frightened that she was stunned. Suddenly she remembered the loss she had suffered at the hands of Shen Li, and she snorted and walked out.

Shen Zhaojiang turned around and looked at Shen Li.

He was indeed a handsome man, with a dignified appearance and a scholarly air. No wonder he charmed the only daughter of a wealthy merchant and the daughter of the prime minister's family.

He stood there with a distant expression, waiting for Shen Li to greet him.

Unfortunately, Shen Li had no such plan at all.

How could such an ungrateful and fame-seeking person be worthy of her calling him daddy or kneeling to him?

Seeing Shen Zhaojiang's brows getting tighter and tighter, Shen Li couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth and laugh through his nose.

Shen Zhaojiang's face darkened, and he put on the airs of an elder, uttering his first words in ten years: "You have no manners, and you don't have the manners of a lady from a noble family. How did you learn the rules?"

Shen Li glanced around and saw a chair nearby. She slowly walked over and sat down. In front of Shen Zhaojiang's almost disbelieving gaze, she said calmly, "I'm really sorry. I grew up in a rural village. There's no need for fake rules there."

Shen Zhaojiang seemed to be choked, his aloof mask gradually cracked, veins bulged on his forehead, and he pointed at her nose for a long time without saying anything.

Just as he was about to call someone in, he suddenly remembered Fang Yao and for a moment he didn't know how to deal with Shen Li.

......

So, after Shen Li came back from the study in the front yard, she was confined to her room for three days.

The first meeting between the father and daughter in ten years was quite unpleasant. In Shen Zhaojiang's words, Shen Li lacked discipline, had no respect for elders, spoke rudely, and behaved in a disorderly manner.

There was simply nothing about it that caught his eye.

He Gu heard Shen Zhaojiang's evaluation of Shen Li, and was afraid that she would be sad, so she went to her several times under the pretext of making and delivering snacks, and each time she looked at her with sympathetic eyes.

I want to say something comforting, but I don't know where to start.

Finally, when she came over again, Shen Li stopped her with a smile, "Aunt He, are you worried about me?"

He Gu, whose heart was touched by what she said, put down her plate awkwardly and nodded.

Yes, the girl was such a kind person, and she must have felt bad when people spoke so badly of her.

The other girls were not feeling well either.

"It's okay, I thought about it a long time ago. I'm not unhappy at all." Shen Li stuffed a snack in her mouth and said to the girls in front of her: "Shen Zhaojiang even framed his wife who had assisted him. He is a typical despicable villain. I don't regard him as a relative. What he said means nothing to me. You all worried in vain."

She was telling the truth, and the girls saw it. They finally felt relieved and started chattering around her again.

Banxia held her cheek, her eyebrows knitted together in worry. "Miss, you can't even leave the yard for the past three days. You must be suffocating to death, right?"

Not only she thought so, but others thought so too.

Shen Li laughed, "I've already said that what he said is nothing, and you still don't understand."