Prime Minister

Chapter 1095 Crane Roar (Thanks to the 3-yuan book friend Jinzhaozhong for becoming the leader of th

Chapter 1095 Crane Roar (Thanks to the book friend Sanyuan in Jinzhao for becoming the leader of this book)

The court meeting is a place where the etiquette between the monarch and his subjects is clarified.

When Liu Bang conquered the world and became emperor, he looked at his ministers who followed him and were in a mess, as if they were going to the street to buy vegetables.

Therefore, they adopted the suggestion of Confucian scholar Shusun Tong and used ancient rituals and Qin rituals to design the Han Dynasty etiquette, which then had its proper structure.

Shusun Tong was also a wonderful man. He was a Confucian official in the Qin Dynasty. When Chen Sheng and Wu Guang rebelled, Qin II asked the Confucian scholars what to do?

Confucian scholars said that rebellion must be severely punished.

Qin II was very angry when he heard this. Shusun Tong stood up and said, "Your Majesty is right. The world has been unified. How can there be a rebellion? These people are just thieves."

Qin II was very happy to hear this. He imprisoned all the Confucian scholars who were accused of rebelling, and promoted Shusun Tong, who was accused of being a thief.

After Shusun Tong returned, the Confucian scholars all scolded him for being shameless and only knowing how to speak in accordance with the emperor's wishes.

Shusun Tong shook his head and said, "You don't know me." Then he packed his luggage and ran away at night.

Later, Shusun Tong followed Xiang Liang, King Huai of Chu, and Xiang Yu, and jumped off the ship before the other party's ship was about to sink. In the end, he defected to Liu Bang without any integrity.

Liu Bang didn't like the fact that Shusun Tong was wearing a Confucian scholar's robe, so he immediately changed into a short shirt.

After Liu Bang came to power, he thought it was unacceptable that his ministers were of humble origins and had no manners. He thought the etiquette of the previous dynasty was too complicated and that he, an uneducated person, would definitely not be able to learn it.

Shusun Tong saw through Liu Bang's thoughts and said to him, "Confucian scholar, it is useless to conquer the world, but it is useful to keep it."

Liu Bang agreed and said, "Design a set of etiquette for me, but it has to be simple."

Shusun Tong summoned Confucian scholars to discuss the matter. Many people scolded him, saying, "You have followed ten masters and have relied on flattery to get to the top. I look down on your character, and I can't stand your random changes to rites and laws, which have ruined the hard work of the ancients and brought shame to Confucian scholars."

Shusun Tong shook his head and said that these people were really inflexible.

Shusun Tong brought a hundred Confucian scholars to practice for a month and then showed it to Liu Bang. Liu Bang was very satisfied and thought he could do this set of etiquette himself.

Finally, Shusun Tong's tactics were used at the court meeting. Liu Bang was very happy and said, "Today I realize the dignity of being an emperor."

Sima Qian praised Shusun Tong for his ability to adapt, such as being able to make small details out of big principles, and said he was worthy of being the Confucian master of the Han Dynasty.

Sima Guang looked down on Shusun Tong, saying that this man only followed the times, conformed to customs, and sought favor, thus causing the rituals of the previous kings to decline and not revive.

The two Simas who compiled the history had completely opposite evaluations of Shusun Tong, and later generations also had different opinions.

China has always had a centralized political system. If you don't understand this, you can study but you cannot be an official.

Another thing about Shusun Tong that caused criticism from later generations was that "the emperor should not make mistakes."

In other words, whatever the emperor does is correct, and you can never admit your mistakes to outsiders. This is part of centralized politics.

Liu Bang came from a humble background and needed a simple set of etiquette. Shusun Tong removed the complicated parts of the Qin etiquette and designed a simple one specifically for him and his subjects.

Etiquette is part of ideology. The emperor is Party A, and we will make changes based on his requirements.

The meaning of "only the emperor can discuss rituals" is that only the emperor can decide the ideology.

Ministers like Shusun Tong designed the country's entire system, etiquette and criminal laws based on the emperor's ideology.

Since Shusun Tong, the grand court meetings of every dynasty have undergone some changes. The court meeting rituals of the Song Dynasty were also based on the Kaiyuan rituals revised in the Tang Dynasty, and there were more red tape for the ministers than in the Tang Dynasty.

Zhang Yue thought so much because he knew the cruelty of politics. What the centralized power cannot tolerate most is the duality of power.

Even fathers and sons cannot get along on this point, so being a crown prince has always been a high-risk job, especially during the Ming and Qing dynasties when imperial power was strong. After the abolition of the prime minister, all conflicts were concentrated on the emperor and the crown prince.

The higher you go, the more dangerous it becomes.

But so what?

Why is Su Shi called the eternal god?

Whether it is right or not.

There will always be times in life when people are treated unfairly and oppressed by powerful forces. Many people go along with the crowd, but there are still people who insist on being themselves.

When you are at your worst, can you still smile and say, "I can eat 300 lychees a day and live in Lingnan forever"? When you have persisted for a lifetime, although your injustice has been redressed, your life has also come to an end. When you look back on your life, can you let it go and say, "I asked you about your life's achievements, Huangzhou, Huizhou, Danzhou".

Therefore, Su Shi himself must be saved, and saving him is saving himself.

……

In previous grand court meetings, Wang Gui, the prime minister, would ride in a carriage directly in front of the Daqing Gate and get off, then escort all the officials into the court from the Daqing Gate and go to the Daqing Palace to congratulate the emperor. However, today Wang Gui made an exception and arrived early, and personally parked the carriage in front of the palace gate.

It was an exception to escort the guards into the court from the palace gate, but it was in accordance with the rules for such a grand occasion as today's Great Elephant Ceremony.

So today Wang Gui and Feng Jing are standing on the left and right respectively.

Zhang Yue, Yuan Jiang and other prime ministers followed behind, and behind them were a huge group of officials, all forming a queue.

After meeting Zhang Yue, Zhang Yue greeted Feng Jing and all the other officials separately. As long as he was not the prime minister, everyone was on the same level.

Watching the palace gate slowly open in front of them, Wang Gui led all the officials to enter one after another.

After the officials, Zhang Gen and six hundred newly appointed Jinshi who had just finished their examination entered the Daqing Gate.

They had been rehearsing the ceremony of visiting for three days, preparing to bid farewell to the emperor and then take up official posts in various places. However, because the emperor was ill in recent days, the date was postponed again and again.

Today is the great worship day, and he is also in the middle of it.

Under the guidance of the instructor, Zhang Gen happened to see Hanlin scholar Zhang Dun walking out from the side.

Zhang Dun's brows were still arrogant, but when he saw Zhang Gen, his gaze paused, and he nodded slightly at him before leaving.

Zhang Gen knew that it was Zhang Dun who greeted him.

Zhang Gen had heard about the reputation of this "Second Uncle" from many people. People who were close to Zhang Yue had nothing good to say about him. Moreover, Zhang Yue never mentioned Zhang Dun at home. Zhang Gen had tried to ask about him, but saw that Zhang Yue did not look happy.

Uncle Zhang Shi always sighed when he mentioned Zhang Dun.

Zhang Gen also had some resentment towards Zhang Dun. Later, he learned that although Zhang Dun had betrayed his family, he was not completely heartless. He also made arrangements to help the family overcome difficulties. However, Zhang Yue later resolved the difficulties himself, so the plan was not used.

As Zhang Gen grew older, he began to have more and more opinions about the young traitor Zhang Dun.

Zhang Gen was a rebellious person by nature. He understood the difficulties faced by his father Zhang Yue and his second uncle Zhang Dun in rising to prominence from humble backgrounds.

He was puzzled by the help provided by relatives, villagers and classmates after Zhang Yue became rich. He hated those people who used the trivial favors of the past to blackmail others with various moral principles, and only thought about how to climb up from Zhang Yue, and then become rich overnight and stand out from the crowd.

He is tired of stupid people, and even more tired of people who get something for nothing.

……

Zhang Dun, who was walking with the other officials in the hall, saw Zhang Gen, then looked at Zhang Yue who was following Wang Gui in front of him, and couldn't help but sigh at the fickleness of fate.

The younger brother whom I used to look down upon the most.

Really good fortune.

Zhang Dun always felt that his decision was correct, and he never explained what he had done in the past.

Zhang Dun spared no effort to support and cultivate those members of the Zhang family who were able to study and become talented, even if they were distant relatives. He did not expect anything in return from them. Friends with similar personalities would also help out.

But as for those who are useless, stupid and lazy, he won't even look at them, even if they are his own younger brothers or elder brothers.

He never thought there was anything wrong with this. He was never bound by morality when doing things, and he didn't care about other people's opinions. He just did what he thought was right.

There are two paths for people from poor families. One is like Zhang Yue, who has noble people to help him along the way and rises quickly to the top.

The first type is someone like Zhang Dun, who relied on himself from beginning to end and fought his way out without recognizing his relatives.

But to be precise, you are in me and I am in you. To be specific, you can do it and the person who promotes you can do it.

Now Zhang Dun is watching Zhang Yue moving towards the top of this path step by step, but when will it be his turn?

Zhang Dun looked at all this and curled the corners of his mouth.

……

A team of nearly a thousand officials and more than 600 Jinshi candidates marched along the palace road, and the six armies of the left and right Jinwu were lined up on both sides of the palace road.

The officials paused briefly in front of the Daqing Gate, then reorganized and entered the palace through the Daqing Gate.

Zhang Yue followed Wang Gui and entered the Daqing Gate. He saw the Daqing Hall, which served as the main hall of the outer court, standing majestically in the courtyard.

The Daqing Hall has nine rooms in the main hall, nine rooms in the side hall, and sixty rooms in the east and west corridors. The large courtyard in front of the hall can accommodate tens of thousands of people. In the past, only grand court meetings such as New Year's Day and Winter Solstice were held here.

Today is the day when the Prime Minister holds a grand ceremony of worship, and it is also here.

As he stepped into this place, Zhang Yue couldn't help but feel his heart beating like a drum, and all his thoughts were emptied in an instant.

Yesterday's heavy rain just cleared the dust from the palace where today's grand ceremony was held. The yellow tiles of the magnificent Daqing Palace shone brightly, and the palace, which could accommodate tens of thousands of people, was surrounded by palace guards and various ceremonial guards on display.

In the center of the main hall stood the five chariots of the emperor: the jade chariot, the golden chariot, the ivory chariot, the leather chariot, and the wooden chariot. Under the rising sun, the jewels on the chariots sparkled and were dazzling.

Dozens of strong imperial horses carrying five chariots stood with their heads held high on the red platform in front of the hall, with umbrellas and fans erected on the left and right.

Today, on the occasion of the Great Retreat, a large yellow banner was set up. There were a total of 5,075 yellow banners, which were held by more than 5,000 ceremonial guards and spread out inside and outside the Daqing Hall.

Yellow is the color of the center and represents the virtue of earth. It has been used since the time of Emperor Huangdi and Youxiong.

Under the dragon head's pole, there is a crimson silk flag, and a yellow flag with intricate colors forming seal characters flutters in the wind. Countless objects are dimly visible under the yellow flag, and the corners of the red silk flag flutter past the eyes in the wind, like a dazzling array of flowers.

The grand ceremonial guards demonstrate the importance of today's appointment of officials, since Taizu said that the prime minister should be a scholar.

The position of prime minister represents the prominence of a country's culture and governance, so it should be commemorated with grand ceremony.

There are twelve zodiac stands on the side of the courtyard, on which bells and chimes are hung. The musicians, the music masters, and the musicians hold hammers and sticks and stand under the bells with their hands hanging down.

At this time, dozens of cranes came from nowhere and rode the wind, circling above the palace.

Finally, the cranes came to rest on the palace frames and the halls.

The cranes sometimes lifted their necks, sometimes bent their necks, sometimes pecked their feathers, and finally let out a loud and clear crane cry, which was heard in the nine palaces and nine heavens. Finally, the cranes flapped their wings together, flew over the flags and palace racks, and flew eastward like a group of white auspicious clouds.

When the officials and palace people saw the appearance of the crane, they were all amazed. The crane is a lucky bird second only to the phoenix, and has a noble character. It has been loved by scholars since ancient times. Its appearance here today during the Great New Year's Day is truly an auspicious scene, and extremely appropriate for the occasion.

Watching the cranes flying through the palace, as if they were flying in the clouds and the rising sun in the sky, all the officials thought that this was a good omen for their upcoming promotion.

Zhang Yue looked at the scene of the cranes dancing and roaring and smiled.

Immediately the scene became solemn.

More than a thousand officials waved their hairpins and crowns in unison, and stood in a row with their hands holding tablets.

Wang Gui led all the officials to stop in front of the Daqing Palace. As the escort, his every move attracted much attention.

Wang Gui was old after all, and he made mistakes during the court not just once, but many times. You should know that Lü Yijian had a source for his behavior, that is, he never made mistakes, but one day he stood up after bowing once during the court meeting instead of bowing three times.

After this action, all officials thought that Lu Yijian had lost his mind and would not stay in the position of prime minister for long.

Every time Wang Gui made a mistake at a court meeting, the government would impose a fine on him. Although the fine was not much, he still had to go to the palace to apologize.

It was extremely embarrassing for Wang Gui to be the prime minister. He was only the co-director at the beginning. After Han Jiang's death, he was granted the title of director of the Secretariat and became the prime minister.

As for the worship ceremony, it was certainly far inferior to today.

Only such a grand ceremony can be called the Great Worship.

At the beginning, Emperor Gaozu of Han Dynasty appointed Han Xin as a general. Emperor Gaozu was arrogant and rude to others. Xiao He persuaded Liu Bang that Han Xin was different from others, so Han Xin was appointed as a general on an auspicious day, fasted, and set up an altar.

Going up to the altar and worshipping will become a good story.

Today, the emperor treated the new prime minister with the great ceremony of paying homage, and Wang Gui felt unhappy at heart, even though he had been an official for so many years and was accustomed to being overtaken by others.

Apart from this, there is no such case with Han Jiang.

The new prime minister was initially appointed as the Minister of the Secretariat.

As for the other officials, they were also in awe.

If you have not witnessed this grand ceremony, you will not know the dignity of a prime minister; if you have not paid homage to the emperor, you will not know the sincerity of the courtesy.

The emperor uses this ceremony to announce to all officials how much he values ​​the prime minister, which is almost like a teacher-minister relationship.

Who can have this experience?

After three silent whip sounds, the jade sedan was brought out, and the musician stretched out his hammer to hit the first bell of the five bells, the Huangzhong, the so-called Huangzhong and Dalü, and the five bells on the right responded in harmony.

The jade sedan chair was carried to the center of the hall and he sat down. Then the musicians played the Qian'an music, and drums and trumpets played in unison on both sides of the hall.

The eunuchs held fans in front of the hall and closed them. After the fans were removed, the emperor was already sitting in the hall, with the eunuchs serving him on both sides.

Smoke rose from the two tripods in front of the palace steps, and Fu Baolang held the emperor's imperial seal and placed it before the throne.

After ascending the throne, the prince and the attendants, as well as about a hundred people from the horizontal class and above, entered the hall on the left and right, and the bell music changed to the music of Zheng'an.

Cai Que, the Chief Censor, sat alone on one side and supervised the march of officials.

At the sound of the whip, ministers in the hall, dressed in red and purple robes, led by Wang Gui, bowed three times to the emperor.

Zhang Yue stood up from the hall holding a sceptre and looked at the emperor on the throne. He saw that the emperor was wearing a crown and a crimson gauze robe, and his face looked a little sick, but he was in good spirits.

The official said solemnly: "There are rules!"

Wang Gui, the prime minister, stepped forward and said, "I will take the decree!"

Shi Deyi handed a white linen imperial edict to Wang Gui. Wang Gui took it with trembling hands and said, "I accept the order!"

At this moment, everyone in the hall was looking at the white linen paper in Wang Gui's hand.

Can this thin edict bear the weight of the world in the future?

Ps: Thanks to book friend Jinzhao Zhongsanyuan for becoming the 23rd leader of this book.

(End of this chapter)