Time Travel: The Best Doctor in Ancient Times

Chapter 274: Chapter 165: To Kneel or Not to Kneel, That Is the Question Chapter 274: Chapter 165: To Kneel or Not to Kneel, That Is the Question Yuan Bao’s voice was so loud, it seemed he was using even the strength needed for breastfeeding.

An imperial edict? When they heard about the imperial edict, the crowd that was ready to disperse immediately widened their eyes.

Zhou Mu’s distinguished brows also furrowed instantly as he looked toward Gu Changsheng beside him, a flash of worry appearing in his eyes and then disappearing.

A whisper came softly.

“Could it be that His Highness Prince Mu angered His Majesty by leaving Southern Fujian without permission?”

“Could the Emperor be planning to punish His Highness Prince Mu?”

“How could that be? His Highness Prince Mu has fought hard in battles to the south and north. How could he be punished for that?”

“Right, horses stumble, and people doze off. Even if His Highness Prince Mu lost one battle, he should not be punished for that!”

“Even a tiger does not eat its offspring, and Prince Mu is His Majesty’s own grandson. Surely he wouldn’t…”

“It looks dubious to me. I heard from a merchant coming from the south that Prince Mu did more than just leave Southern Fujian unauthorized. Before this, he even beheaded several high officials in Southern Fujian. It’s all in chaos there now…”

“Scary!”

“Scary!”

“…”

In the midst of the rising and falling discussions, Zhou Mu’s frown deepened. From Yuan Bao’s recent shout, he was clear it was meant for Lady Changsheng to receive the decree, not him!

If it were him, that might be fine, but Changsheng…

Zhou Mu looked at the petite woman in front of him, dressed in red. Her long eyelashes trembled slightly.

Under Zhou Mu’s intense gaze, Gu Changsheng blinked her long eyelashes once more, her eyes full of disbelief as she pointed at her nose, “Me?”

She hadn’t heard wrong, had she?

She was to receive the decree?

An imperial edict, such a high and mighty thing, and it was somehow related to her, Gu Changsheng. The world is indeed full of wonders…

She, at least, had been born under the red flag and grown up in the military, a true red third generation! You’re telling her to go and receive… the decree…

The crowd was bustling about. Even if they wanted to make way for Eunuch Yuan Bao, they couldn’t.

Having no choice, Yuan Bao had to abandon the horse and fiercely squeeze his way forward.

Gu Changsheng tilted her head to think, thought some more, and then looked up at Zhou Mu, “To receive the decree, do I have to kneel?”

Ever since she started having these unclear dealings with Zhou Mu, the evildoer, she knew she would eventually face the Imperial Family!

Knowing it was one thing, but actually catching the attention of the Imperial Family… that’s a whole other experience! Truly mysterious!

Zhou Mu, who had been worried until then, burst into a smile after hearing Gu Changsheng’s question.

This woman, her focus was always so unique!

At such a time, shouldn’t she be more concerned about the content of the imperial edict?

The people standing beside them also stared in shock upon hearing Lady Changsheng’s words.

What kind of question was that?

What does she mean by asking if receiving the decree requires kneeling?

“My lord, kneeling is the least! If we had known the imperial edict was coming, we would have had to burn incense and bathe three days in advance!” Diao Chan said as she nibbled on a large meat bun and explained.

Gu Changsheng shrugged her shoulders, looking very innocent, “Obviously, I only found out just now!”

She couldn’t help but curl her lip inside. Burn incense and bathe three days beforehand? Must it be so solemn? If you bathe three days in advance, won’t you be dirty again after three days? Human metabolism wouldn’t just stop because an imperial edict is coming…

With bright eyes!

“My lord, you might not have known before, but now that you know, you also need to wash up, change into new clothes, and set up incense at the place where the imperial edict is read,” Jiang Liu wisely continued to explain.

Gu Changsheng looked at Yuan Bao, who finally managed to squeeze through the crowd, drenched in sweat. She blinked her large phoenix eyes, “It seems I will have to kneel?”

Damn it! In her whole life, Gu Changsheng had kneeled to her parents and her grandparents, and even heaven and the gods weren’t often on her kneeling list, yet now she was expected to kneel to a piece of paper…

Of course, there was also the Old Demoness at Li Mansion when she first arrived.

But that was then, and now she was supposed to kneel to a piece of paper! Even if this paper had a significant origin, it couldn’t change the fact it was just a piece of paper!

The crowd was collectively speechless.

Diao Chan, clutching the half-eaten large meat bun, wailed, “Oh, Lord Changsheng… Why are you still struggling with this?”

This really wasn’t something to rack her brains over, not something to think about, or even mention!

Seeing the imperial edict, one word: kneel! Definitely kneel! Must kneel! Have to kneel!

Gu Changsheng rolled her eyes. She didn’t want to dwell on it, but indeed, she was most concerned about this very point! What’s good about ancient times? Bowing for a piece of yellow paper!

All men are equal! Damn, it’s so necessary!

“Do I really have to kneel?” Looking at the loyal followers in front of her, Gu Changsheng hesitantly asked.

They nodded collectively like pounding garlic, “Really!”

“No discussion?” Gu Changsheng was still struggling.

The group shook their heads like rattle drums, “Absolutely no discussion!”

Gu Changsheng conceded defeat under everyone’s accusing eyes. Alright! If she kept dwelling on the issue of kneeling or not, she would become a freak in their eyes!

“Alright…” Reluctantly compromising, Gu Changsheng sighed, “If I must kneel…”

“Hold this!”

Before Gu Changsheng could finish, something suddenly fell into her embrace.

Gu Changsheng hadn’t yet made out the true face of the item in her embrace when the ground before her suddenly filled with people kneeling…

Those who had just insisted that she kneel were all, without exception, a head shorter, kneeling on both knees…

Gu Changsheng grabbed the item in her embrace with one hand and looked at them with a face full of surprise and confusion, “What are you doing?”

Wasn’t she supposed to kneel when receiving the imperial edict? Why hadn’t she knelt yet, but they had?

Gu Changsheng blinked her large eyes towards Zhou Mu, silently asking.

“Didn’t you not want to kneel? With this, you won’t need to perform the kneeling salute, even before His Majesty,” Zhou Mu said indulgently, rubbing her head, his eyes full of indulgence.

“Really?” Holding a brocade rope with one finger, Gu Changsheng’s eyes widened as she stared at the palm-sized yellow plaque dangling from it.

As everyone stared dumbfounded, she put it in her mouth and bit down, her eyes lighting up immediately, “Wow! Pure gold, wow!”

Everyone was collectively speechless!

Lord Changsheng, always so uniquely concerned!

Zhou Mu, helpless, looked at the little woman before him whose true nature was apparent, and shook his head, saying, “Completely pure gold!”

“When we’re so poor we can’t scrape a meal together, can we smash it and exchange it for silver?” The little gold plaque was tossed and caught in her hands, rising and falling.

More and more onlookers on their knees followed the uncertain rise and fall of the small gold plaque with nervous eyes.

“You can.” Zhou Mu’s voice.

“You can’t!” The crowd exclaimed in shock.

Are you kidding? Look across the Great Zhou, there’s only this one, to be smashed for silver! How big a fantasy does it take to do something so out of line?

The crowd looked disapprovingly at Zhou Mu, Prince Mu indeed indulged Lord Changsheng so shamelessly…

“Evildoer, is this thing really that useful?” A Gold Tablet exempting from kneeling; what a lovely item! She liked it!

Zhou Mu neither confirmed nor denied with a nod, the corners of his mouth curving slightly.

The woman he fancied was always so special, so different from the rest…

And he liked that immensely!

Eunuch Yuan Bao, kneeling on the ground, moved forward on his knees in a sweaty struggle, his hands stretched out ready to catch at any moment, speaking, “My ancestors, Lady Changsheng, please don’t throw it anymore, this servant’s little heart can’t take it…”

Gu Changsheng gave Zhou Mu a stunningly radiant, beautiful smile, then turned her head and bent down to look at Yuan Bao, shaking the brocade rope in her hand, “Alright, I won’t throw it anymore. Tell me, what exactly is this? A Gold Tablet Exempting From Kneeling? A Death Exemption Token?”

Sweat beads the size of beans appeared on Yuan Bao’s forehead, and he swallowed nervously, “A Gold Tablet Exempting From Kneeling? A Death Exemption Token? Lady Changsheng, do you have no common sense? Have you seen the Nine-Clawed Golden Dragon on it?”

Gu Changsheng tilted her head and looked closely, counting carefully, and no kidding, there really was a Nine-Clawed Golden Dragon! The craftsmanship was indeed good!

“Then is this an Elixir Book Decree?” Gu Changsheng tried hard to recall the items she had seen in plays and suddenly had a stroke of insight.

Yuan Bao secretly wiped the sweat from his forehead and shook his head.

“It’s not?” Gu Changsheng was stunned, looking at Zhou Mu.

Zhou Mu still stood as calm as a breeze, as if the kneeling masses were mere ants, resembling a divine abode, yet his indulgence was overly evident. Seeing his beloved looking his way, Zhou Mu shook his head, “No, it’s not.”

Now Gu Changsheng was puzzled, catching the little gold plaque’s Nine-Clawed Golden Dragon and scrutinizing it thoroughly. She couldn’t make heads or tails of it and had to give up, asking Yuan Bao, “Then tell me, what exactly is this thing?”

Yuan Bao’s eyes widened instantaneously, “Thing? This is not a mere thing!”

“Uh…” Gu Changsheng was taken aback.

“Slap, slap, slap, slap!” Very promptly, a few slaps, Yuan Bao slapped without hesitation and then looked at Gu Changsheng with a pleading face, “Lady Changsheng, please don’t ask anymore. If you ask, this servant also dares not say, just turn it over, there might be characters on the back, look for yourself.”

Even Gu Changsheng couldn’t help but feel a little drumbeat in her heart.

Damn, something seemed quite off here.

Seeing Yuan Bao, a little eunuch used to imperial edicts, looking so scared was unexpected…

Logically speaking, Yuan Bao should have seen countless imperial items…

Could this little gold plaque really be more powerful than the Emperor’s imperial edict?

The word “rumored” was quite subtly used here; if it was just rumored, it meant that even Yuan Bao hadn’t seen this thing before…

Gu Changsheng blinked, and under Zhou Mu’s observation, she hesitantly flipped it over.

“Yikes!” Well, that even gave Gu Changsheng a start.

The front had only a carving of a Nine-Clawed Golden Dragon, but the back was uneven, with several Nine-Clawed Golden Dragons carved in relief!

“One, two, three… nine?” By the end, even Gu Changsheng was a bit surprised.

Nine vivid and distinct Nine-Clawed Golden Dragons, each in a different pose, some puffing clouds and fog, soaring through the Nine Heavens, some high above with narrowed dragon eyes disdainfully overlooking all beings, some with bared teeth and claws looking ferocious and formidable, some majestically dominating all around…

Nine lively Nine-Clawed Golden Dragons guarded around a small sunken square memorial with characters…