Winter has passed and spring has come, and another new year is coming.
Just like the previous ten years or so, this year's winter is also very cold. It snows heavily for several days at a time, then clears up for a day or two, and then snows again, and the cycle repeats, making it extremely cold.
There was heavy snow the day before yesterday, so today all the roofs in the city are covered with thick white quilts. Only the ridges on the roofs are stuck out, and their bodies are also covered with snow. Ice crystals hang upside down on the eaves, and most of the lanterns in front of the door have been extinguished.
, some people’s door couplets fell to the ground and froze into crispy flakes, with a yellowish paste as hard as stone on the back. This paste is usually made with flour and alum, and is extremely sticky.
Well, if it hadn't been for the extremely cold weather, the ice would not have fallen off.
The snow on the streets had been shoveled away two days ago and was piled on the roadside. However, overnight, a layer of ice had formed on the road again. There were no pedestrians on the streets at the moment, and there were heavy barriers at important intersections.
, there were officers and soldiers waiting nearby. There were hundreds of watchmen on patrol. They were exhausted all night, and most of them were huddled under the eaves in the corner of the alley and taking a nap.
The Ming Dynasty has always had strict laws, especially in the sacred capital at the foot of the emperor. Many systems must be implemented according to the law regardless of whether they are really reasonable or not. This is a rule set by the second ancestors. The capital is updated at 3 o'clock every day.
After the bell rings, you are not allowed to go out. Anyone who violates the law is called a night offender and will be whipped fifty times according to the law. The night ban is not lifted until the morning bell rings at five or three o'clock. Horses are blocked at all intersections and iron bars and other objects are removed together.
Down.
Generally speaking, except for those who have urgent official duties, or are sick, giving birth, or dying, there are no exceptions. As for officials... after reaching a certain level, of course, they can always "have urgent official duties", then
That's another story.
As soon as the night ban was over, the city began to become lively, and many people came out for no reason. Most of these people wore black gauze hats, regimental collar shirts, and belts, and they were obviously officials.
Ordinary people usually stay behind closed doors at this time in order to avoid bumping into the officials who are rushing to attend the morning meeting.
The uniforms of these officials do not specify the color of the robes, only the tube style and embroidery are required. Therefore, to distinguish civil and military officials and their grades, you only need to look at the patchwork on the chest. Of course, there are exceptions, such as those of Gao Pragmatic.
Most of the special gifts of high-quality clothing are "red silk".
Today is the regular dynasty, so this is the rule. However, if the new moon is changed and officials need to wear official uniforms to attend the dynasty, it will be another distinction.
Officials of the same rank can ride together. If you encounter an official who is one rank or above higher than you, you should avoid the horse. If you are three ranks or above higher, no matter what important thing you are rushing to do at the time, unless it is six hundred
If you don't ride a horse in a hurry, you will have to dismount and kneel down.
This is the court etiquette, the so-called ancestral rules.
Among the officials who were rushing to attend the morning court, there were no cranes, golden pheasants, or peacocks on the embroidery, because these people at this time were all civil servants with grades of third grade and above.
According to the regulations of this dynasty, these officials can go to court in sedan chairs, while the rest can only ride horses. It is freezing cold today, so most of these officials are huddled in their sedan chairs and cannot be seen outside.
Zhu Yijun, the Emperor of Wanli, is not neglecting his duties now. On the contrary, he is very diligent in his work. He wants to do something great that will surpass his ancestors. Therefore, every time he goes to court, the ministers do not dare to neglect their duties. They are always ready before dawn.
As soon as the ban was lifted, we set off immediately. However, no matter how early we set out, we rushed slowly along the way. Only when we arrived in front of the Meridian Gate could we truly let go of our hanging hearts.
Before arriving at the Meridian Gate, you must first pass through the Daming Gate. Daming Gate is the south gate of the Forbidden City, and outside the gate is Qipan Street. It was still early in the morning and not many businesses were open yet.
There is a huge stone tablet erected in front of the Ming Dynasty Gate, commonly known as the dismounting tablet, because it is engraved with the eight characters "Officials will wait until they dismount from their horses", and there are officers and soldiers guarding it next to it. Regardless of their rank, the officials who participated in the dynasty were riding horses.
Regardless of whether you are traveling in a sedan chair, you can only get here, and the rest of the way is on foot.
The Daming Gate is built of bricks and stones, and the roof is in the style of a single eave resting on a mountain. There are couplets engraved on both sides of the door: "The sun and moon light the sky, the mountains and rivers make the emperor live", which was written by Xie Jin, the chief minister of the cabinet during the reign of Emperor Chengzu.
Since ancient times, the emperor sat north and faced south, so the south gate has a particularly unique status, and the Daming Gate also enjoys the treatment of a national gate. Unless it is a special day, it is closed and officials go to court from the northeast through the Daming Gate.
Enter through Chang'an Gate on the left and right at the northwest corner.
There are people who manage the gate registration at the gates of the two Chang'an gates. The so-called gate registration is a book containing the officials who attended the morning court. When officials report their identities here, the gate registration will have a record of their attendance at the court today. If an official is sick,
A small word "disease" will be written under the name, so this is also called a registered door. Such records are also to facilitate monthly inspections, so that absent officials can be found in time and dealt with accordingly according to the law.
After the family registration is recorded, you will receive a plaque. According to regulations, this plaque must be tied around the waist. This is the so-called waist badge for Beijing officials. After passing the Chang'an Gate on the left and right, there are Chengtian Gate and Duan Gate, and then the
It's the Meridian Gate. Both gates are also guarded by officers and soldiers. If you don't have a waist badge hanging on your waist, you will not be allowed to enter.
When they arrived outside the Meridian Gate, everyone looked for colleagues they were familiar with and gathered together in twos and threes to talk. When the drum sounded, they had to stand in order.
At this time, the censor will come out to correct the etiquette. Whenever he sees a minister who spits, makes a noise, or dresses inappropriately, the censor will come forward to question him and write down his name for impeachment.
Those whose names are written down will inevitably be fined according to the law, and in serious cases they may even be dismissed from their posts. Of course, for these officials, being punished is a small matter, being reprimanded in public, and losing their dignity as civil servants is what they deserve.
A huge scandal.
The civil servant class stood in front of the Zuoye Gate, and the military attache class stood in front of the Youye Gate. When the bell on the Meridian Gate Tower rang, they entered in order from the door in front of them, crossed the Jinshui Bridge, and came to Huangji
Danchi stopped in front of the door and stood facing each other, waiting for the emperor to sit down. Then he blew his whip and saluted, and then started the morning court.
The emperor's throne was set up in the middle of the Huangji Gate, facing the south, surrounded by yellow curtains to separate the cabinet ministers, royal guards and ceremonial supervisors standing next to the throne. All officials stood with their hands hanging, waiting for the emperor's arrival.
, however, after waiting for nearly half an hour, the throne was still empty. Neither the emperor appeared nor the servant came to deliver the order.
After another half an hour, there was still no news, and the officials standing far away from the throne finally couldn't help but began to whisper.
The cabinet ministers all stood to the east of the throne. At this moment, the civil and military officials all looked here in unison. Everyone was waiting for Chief Minister Shen Shixing to speak.
Gao Pingshi was standing not far away, and at this time he also cast his eyes towards Shen Shixing.
The officials around Gao Jingshi were a little scared at the moment. Although everyone was of high rank, the general censors would not "find trouble" with the officials in the six departments, but the important ministers of the imperial court naturally had the dignity of the important ministers of the imperial court. These ministers and ministers
Instead, he stood very honestly, rarely even stamping his feet secretly to activate his blood. Therefore, although he was standing in a sheltered position, his hands and feet were now cold and trembling slightly.
It's good that Gao Pragmatic is the best. Firstly, he is the youngest among these officials. Secondly, he is known to the world for not being afraid of showing off his wealth. In addition to the python robe on the outside, he is also wearing a special fox crop coat inside.
Don't feel cold.
Crop is commonly known as "chicken crop" and "duck crop", which refers to the fur on the fox's chin, under the neck, and part of the front abdomen, as well as the precious fur clothing made by splicing the fur from these parts. This part of the fox
The fur has thick and dense fluff and good warmth retention. Compared with fur processed and spliced with fur from other parts of the fox's body, such as fox legs, armpits, and fox crotch products, it has better warmth retention, but of course is more expensive.
Except for people like Hai Rui, there are not many Tang Shangguan in the Sixth Department who can afford to wear fox crop tops, but there are not many who dare to be as upright as Gao Pragmatic. This is the typical style of saving face rather than arrogance, and it may also be the Ming Dynasty.
One of the characteristics of the dynasty.
When Gao Pragmatic looked at Shen Shixing, Shen Shixing was also in a dilemma.
It is not that Shen Shixing has encountered this kind of situation before, but that was during the Longqing Dynasty, and this is the first time that this situation has occurred in the Wanli Dynasty.
During the Longqing Dynasty, there was a situation where the emperor was notified to excuse himself from the court at short notice before the start of the regular court. Shen Shixing encountered this twice in total. The reason was that the emperor found himself dizzy when he woke up in the morning and could not insist on going to court.
Everyone knew that Mu Zong was in poor health, so when this happened, the courtiers were generally calm and did not have any special reactions. After the Chief of Ceremonies made the announcement, everyone dispersed according to the rules.
toward.
But the Wanli Dynasty was different. Zhu Yijun was in good health and very young in everyone's opinion. Logically speaking, Mu Zong's situation should not have happened. But now, how should we explain and deal with the unexpected Chang Dynasty?
Woolen cloth?
Xu Guosheng, the second assistant, spoke first: "Yuanfu, the emperor is still here. It's okay if the imperial court can't go on. The civil and military officials are still blowing the wind. If a few of them are frozen, the emperor may say
The 'bad dragon body' problem has been solved, but our cabinet is afraid..."
Shen Shixing exhaled a breath of turbidity, nodded, waved to the attendant at the Li Jian beside him, and told him to invite the emperor - in fact, it was a reminder.
The chamberlain came back not long after he went down. Shen Shixing asked from afar: "How is it? Did the emperor say when he can arrive?"
The chamberlain said awkwardly: "When I returned to Yuan Fu, the palace was in chaos, and I didn't see the emperor."
"A mess?" Shen Shixing's heart tightened and he frowned: "Why is this?"
"This... I don't even know about this."
Shen Shixing was annoyed, you are also the Supervisor of Ceremonies after all, why don't you have this ability?
Xu Guo glanced at Shen Shixing, who was suppressing his anger, and continued to look at his eyes, nose, and mind.
Zhang Xueyan couldn't help but waved to Gao Pragmatic, who was not far away. Gao Pragmatic bowed slightly to Liang Menglong, and then walked towards where several pavilion elders were.
When Shen Shixing saw Gao Pragmatic being called over by Zhang Xueyan, he felt even more unhappy. However, what he lacked most was the city government. Although he was in a bad mood, a smile appeared on his face: "Qiuzhen, what's the matter?"
Of course he knew why Gao Jingshi came, and he also knew that Zhang Xueyan asked him to come, but he couldn't take the initiative to admit that he couldn't ask about the emperor's situation, yet Gao Jingshi had to intervene in such a trivial matter.
However, Zhang Xueyan didn't care about this. He was not only older, but also experienced. He had always estimated that he would only be able to work for the last few years, so he was not afraid of Shen Shixing's dissatisfaction with him.
Zhang Xueyan said directly: "Please tell the truth, the emperor is still here. It is unreasonable for all the civil and military officials to drink in this ice and snow. You have been studying in the palace for ten years. You know all the people in charge of the ceremony, or you?" Find someone to find out what happened in the palace!"
Gao pragmatic did not agree immediately, but turned to Shen Shixing and cupped his hands: "Yuan Fu?"
Shen Shixing glanced at the officials shivering in the cold outside and sighed softly: "Go."
Gao Pragmatic still didn't say much, nor did he show any proud look. Instead, he nodded slightly and turned around to find someone.
He just randomly selected a chamberlain sent by the Supervisor of Ceremonies and ordered: "When you go in, go to Mr. Huang or Mr. Chen first, and say that it was me who asked: What happened in the palace?"
The chamberlain responded quickly and was about to leave when Gao Pragmatic added: "Also, even if the Emperor is really delayed by something, you have to go to the Emperor in person to ask for an order, even if it means asking all the officials to leave first. , otherwise a few of them will freeze to death, which will also have a great impact on the court's reputation, do you understand?"
The chamberlain was from Chen Ju, so naturally he didn't dare to show off in front of Gao Pingshi, so he quickly agreed and left in a hurry.
Gao pragmatic went back to report to Shen Shixing and Zhang Xueyan. Shen Shixing held his posture and refused to ask first. Zhang Xueyan had no intention of doing so. He nodded and said directly: "You met the emperor a few days ago. Is the emperor in trouble? What’s the appearance?”
Gao pragmatic shook his head slightly: "The emperor just has some foot problems, and there is nothing wrong with the rest."
Wu Dui had the closest relationship with Gao Pragmatic, and he did not hide his words. He frowned and said: "Qing Zhen, I remember that you don't know much about medicine. You didn't realize it, did you?"
Gao pragmatic thought for a while, then shook his head: "Although I don't understand medical science, the emperor was in good spirits at the time, so this is not a mistake."
Wu Dui wanted to say something else, but Shen Shixing waved his hand and said: "Since we have sent people to invite you again, we can just wait for a while with peace of mind. Your Majesty, Your Majesty, Your Majesty, how can any minister talk about Your Majesty again and again because he is impatient to wait? The truth.”
He is the chief assistant, and since he has said so, it is hard for others to say anything. Gao Pragmatic does not want to be too public in public, so he plans to return to the queue.
But Zhang Xueyan stopped him again and said: "You ordered the ceremonial supervisor to go, so you should wait here, lest he come back later and look for you again."
Shen Shixing's face became gloomier, but he didn't say anything. Gao Pingshi glanced at him, then looked at Zhang Xueyan, only to see Zhang Xueyan nodded slightly.
He could roughly guess what Zhang Xueyan meant, and he couldn't refuse, so he had to stand behind several pavilion elders.
This scene was seen by all the civil and military officials, and the discussion seemed to get louder for a while.
Not long after, the chamberlain came over in a hurry. From afar, he bowed to Gao Wu and said, "Gao Gongbao, the matter has been clarified. The emperor's eldest son suddenly fell ill. The empress dowagers of the two palaces, the emperor, and the empress all went to the palace." Seigong!"
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