At this moment, aside from the brother and sister, Ke Biyao, who were lost in daydreams, everyone else on the field was also calculating their own moves. Any household with an unmarried son had their eyes fixed on Su Muqing.
This woman's future was boundless. It was certain that after this incident, she would be granted the title of county princess. If they could marry her into their family, their clan would prosper eternally.
Conversely, those with daughters to marry off, or sons already married, focused their attention on the three individuals demonstrating the weapons. They were all handsome, debonair, and dignified. The key was that they had now appeared before the Emperor; what opportunities for advancement would they lack in the future?
The four of them were unaware that, after only half of the weapon demonstrations, they had become hot commodities, eagerly sought after by the higher echelons of Tianzhao Kingdom.
Su Muqing was by the Regent's side, verifying the list of death row inmates to be tested next. Initially, Ke Bite felt she was being too meticulous. After all, they were all death row inmates, and their identities had been confirmed before they took the stage. What need was there for verification?
However, she had a nagging feeling that something was amiss. Especially after Ke Bite mentioned that the order of appearance was not arranged by him, Su Muqing became even more certain of her suspicions.
Lu Yuzhi was next to demonstrate the Gatling heavy machine gun.
His appearance bore a six-tenths resemblance to Qian Dasheng, and there was an even greater similarity between them that the housekeeper had inadvertently discovered: Lin Yi also had six toes on his right foot.
The housekeeper couldn't help but sigh! This was simply the will of heaven, destined for Lin Yi to die in place of the young master! Thus, he quickly led the person back to claim credit.
They had originally intended to switch the person out that very night, but the security in the death row prison was too strict, and they never had an opportunity to make the switch. Later, the person who devised the plan told him that since the execution date was still some time away, the Qian family should first build good relations with the prison officials. They could simply switch the person right before the execution.
Who would have thought that just as they had finally finalized the plan to switch the prisoners, the Emperor would suddenly announce a demonstration of new weapons and select death row inmates from the prison to test them?
As fate would have it, the prisoners they had prepared to swap were all on the list for testing. This forced them to implement their plan earlier. Upon receiving the list of death row inmates, the prison warden immediately contacted those officials and the wealthy families who had bribed their way in.
Through a joint operation between both parties, six death row inmates were placed in one prison cart, and the people to be swapped were mixed in. Since they were all death row inmates, no one paid attention to whether a few extra people were present.
Finally, to ensure that the prisoners had no recourse for their grievances, they colluded with the jailers and cruelly administered large doses of paralytic drugs to the replaced prisoners, rendering them mute.
Ke Bite twirled his thumb ring, his gaze sharp as he fixed on the head jailer. "Since the people were switched in the training grounds, where did you hide the original death row inmates?"
"We, we, we don't know..." the head jailer stammered, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, too terrified to speak clearly.
"You don't know? You brought the people here, and you don't know?" Ke Bite's voice was exceedingly cold. He never imagined that these people would dare to play such a trick, a 'stealing the sun and changing the moon,' right under the Emperor's and his nose!
"We really, really don't know! After we brought the people here, those six were taken away by the prison warden..."
Ke Bite glanced at the guards beside him. After the guards nodded, they left. He turned to Su Muqing. "How are they?"
"Their lives are no longer in danger, but their throats... it's estimated that their voices will be affected from now on." Having used too much healing magic, Su Muqing's lips and complexion were somewhat pale.
After dealing with the matters here, she got up to leave. The Regent would handle the subsequent affairs, so it was no longer her concern.
Long before the interrogation of the jailers, several loud bangs had already echoed from outside. It was likely that Lu Yuzhi and the others had finished their bomb demonstrations, and she needed to go and see how things were.
Seeing her about to leave, Lin Yi scrambled towards her. His hands were dirty, and he dared not pull Su Muqing's clothes, so he could only tightly grasp her ankle. He said nothing, merely looking at her with pleading eyes.
The boy, simply tidied, looked very thin, but he was quite handsome. However, his complexion was rather pale, there were traces of blood on his lips, and clear tears slid from the corners of his eyes, making him appear incredibly fragile and pitiable.
"You don't need to worry. With the Prince here, he will bring you justice. For the harm you have suffered, you will also receive corresponding compensation." Su Muqing, suppressing her dizziness, crouched down to comfort him, then looked up at Ke Bite.
Under her gaze, Ke Bite nodded. These people treated human lives with such disregard. Even if Su Muqing hadn't said anything, he would severely punish these officials who treated human lives like straw. He would let them know that Tianzhao Kingdom's laws were not merely for show!
Receiving Ke Bite's assurance, Su Muqing looked down at the boy again and reached out to help him up. "See? The Prince has agreed. Get up quickly and rest for a while!"
However, the boy still refused to let go. Tears welled up in his eyes as he shook his head, a deep attachment appearing in his gaze. It was as if someone who had wandered for a long time had finally found their family.
Su Muqing guessed that he had been greatly traumatized by this incident. His current behavior was also because she had saved him, so he felt secure by her side.
She reached out and embraced the boy's slender shoulders, intending to help him up. Lin Yi, upon seeing the girl approaching, froze on the spot. Beneath his dirty, matted hair, the tips of his ears quietly turned red.
She smelled so good! She was so beautiful! She...
"Muqing, what's wrong?" Lu Yuzhi, having finished his demonstration, shook off the generals who were pestering him with questions and found his way over.
Who would have thought that the moment he arrived, he would see a thin, disheveled young boy, his hand tightly grasping Su Muqing's foot, and from his perspective, Muqing seemed to be holding him?
"It's nothing. He's likely suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder," Su Muqing replied to Lu Yuzhi while forcibly helping Lin Yi up from the ground.
Seeing this, Lu Yuzhi quickly stepped forward. Just as Lin Yi's hand was about to reach for Su Muqing's clothes, he grabbed the boy's wrist and then flashed between them, separating them.
"Your Highness, if there's nothing else here, we'll take our leave. The weapons still need to be collected." Lu Yuzhi said, then helped the boy sit to the side and pulled Su Muqing away towards the demonstration area.
"Did the subsequent demonstrations go smoothly?" Su Muqing asked the person beside her, noticing his mind seemed to be drifting. "Brother Lu? What's wrong? What are you thinking about?"
"Nothing. What was going on with that person just now? Why was he holding you? And why were you holding him..." Lu Yuzhi's last sentence was spoken in a very low voice. If Su Muqing hadn't had good hearing, she likely wouldn't have heard what he said.
"I wasn't holding him, I was just trying to help him up. It's truly pitiful, his name is Lin Yi, and he was swapped with death row inmates. His throat was also scalded with blisters, not much better than your condition back then." Su Muqing briefly explained Lin Yi's situation to Lu Yuzhi.
Hearing the pity in her tone, Lu Yuzhi frowned imperceptibly. Suppressing the discomfort in his heart, he tightly held Su Muqing's hand and asked no further questions.
As they neared the crowd, Su Muqing tried to let go of their clasped hands. However, Lu Yuzhi refused. He intertwined their fingers, then walked with her to face the crowd like this.
Su Muqing glanced at Lu Yuzhi with some confusion. What was going on with Brother Lu? Why did he seem a little moody? Looking at their clasped hands, she sighed! Since she had already appeared before her parents, there was not much she could do about others.
Those people were still eagerly awaiting the day's protagonists. Who would have thought they would see the two they were anticipating appear publicly, holding hands and looking intimate.
"Click..."
"Click..."
"Click..."
Suddenly, many people in the crowd heard the sound of their hearts breaking. They had only thought of marrying the two to their own children, never imagining that the pair were already a couple! All their previous fantasies had now turned to dust.
Some had considered marrying their daughters to Lu Yuzhi as concubines. But upon recalling the weapons in Su Muqing's hands, this woman was clearly extraordinary and deeply favored by the Emperor. Forget it! They should give up. It wasn't worth risking their entire family's annihilation for a marriage.
The majority were focused on their careers. Su Muqing automatically tuned out the envious and jealous gazes directed at her. From the expressions of others, it was evident that they were quite satisfied with the results of the weapon demonstrations.
Especially the generals who led troops in battle; their faces showed not just satisfaction, but excitement, their eyes practically shining at Lu Yuzhi and the others.
Su Muqing and Lu Yuzhi knelt on one knee. "Reporting to Your Majesty, the weapon demonstration has concluded."
"Hahahaha! Excellent! Simply marvelous! This demonstration has truly opened my eyes! I never imagined such exquisite and ingenious weapons existed in this world. I am extremely pleased!" The Emperor laughed heartily, unreservedly praising Su Muqing.
The surrounding officials, seeing the Emperor in good spirits, quickly stepped forward to offer congratulations. "Congratulations, Your Majesty. To have a talent like Miss Su is a great fortune for Your Majesty, indicating that heaven itself protects our Tianzhao Kingdom!"
"Minister Gu speaks wisely! To have talents like Su Muqing and Lu Yuzhi is indeed the fortune of our Tianzhao Kingdom. While everyone is present, I wish to announce something today..."
Hearing the Emperor's words, Ke Biping below felt extremely nervous. Here it comes, the Emperor was going to mention recognizing foster children. He subtly glanced at the officials he had privately contacted, noticing they all unreservedly wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads. It seemed their attempts to obstruct today would likely fail!
"I have decided to recognize Su Muqing and her brother as foster children. I hereby confer upon Su Muqing the title of Princess Ning An, and upon Su Muxuan, the title of Prince Yong Rong. They shall be entered into the imperial genealogy, join the Ke Bi imperial clan, and enjoy all the honors befitting royalty!" The Emperor finished speaking unhurriedly, then leisurely picked up his teacup and took a sip.
This sudden, earth-shattering news was undoubtedly like water being poured into a hot oil pan. Despite being explosive news, the entire hall was silent; no one dared to speak first.
After several minutes of silence, the officials below began to murmur amongst themselves. Their discussions undoubtedly revolved around whether it was appropriate to recognize foster children and whether they should be directly granted the title of princess!
Ke Biping exchanged glances with those officials, but their gazes became evasive, or they simply avoided looking at him. With the situation today, all the reasons they had prepared were now useless.
Not a single person they had agreed with stepped forward. Ke Biping was so enraged he was almost spitting fire. No! He couldn't let this matter proceed so easily. The Emperor had not only enfeoffed a princess but also bestowed the title of Prince Yong Rong upon that mere child! He clenched his fists tightly, feeling deeply resentful.
The capital of Tianzhao Kingdom was Rongcheng. What did Prince Yong Rong mean? Forever the king of Rongcheng? Was the Emperor paving the way for his foster son? Just as Ke Biping stood up, preparing to voice his opposition, the Regent Ke Bite also arrived...
Without even bothering to pay his respects, he lifted his robes and knelt before the Emperor on one knee. "Your subject congratulates Your Majesty on gaining a foster daughter, Princess Ning An, and a foster son, Prince Yong Rong."
With the Regent setting an example, the generals who had admired the pair all knelt and shouted, "Your subjects congratulate Your Majesty on gaining a foster daughter, Princess Ning An, and a foster son, Prince Yong Rong."
Although the civil officials did not understand warfare, they could comprehend the destructive power of the weapons. Their analysis focused more on whether recognizing these foster children would benefit or harm the nation and the court.
Finally, after their comprehensive considerations, the civil officials also knelt. "Your subjects congratulate Your Majesty on gaining a foster daughter, Princess Ning An, and a foster son, Prince Yong Rong."
The other princes exchanged glances, then looked at the Emperor's expression. They all stood up and paid their respects. They reasoned that the Prince Yong Rong was still a child, and whether he would grow up was uncertain.
Even if he managed to grow up safely, he would never have imperial blood flowing through his veins, and would ultimately not ascend to the throne. Since that was the case, why displease the Emperor over such minor matters?
In the end, only Ke Biping remained, standing conspicuously alone. The sons behind him sat dumbfounded, unsure whether to kneel or stand.