The children were playing, the imperial concubine made tea herself, and Wang Yuan and Zhu Houzhao sat across from each other.
"This is the new calendar? It's no different from the old calendar." Zhu Houzhao said, flipping through the almanac he had just received.
Wang Yuan explained: "The error of Zhengshuo is about one day."
Zhu Houzhao smiled and said: "The error is only one day, why bother to change the calendar?"
"Besides this, there are some small corrections," Wang Yuan said. "Although the error is only one day, it is still very important. Don't you think, Your Majesty, there have been a lot of disasters in these years? Why not take this opportunity to change the calendar and make a new one?"
A new atmosphere. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty created a new situation and was also responsible for changing the calendar in the early days. Many of his new laws were implemented based on the new calendar."
This didn't suit Zhu Houzhao's taste, so he nodded and said, "It's okay to create a new atmosphere."
Wang Yuan also said: "This calendar takes the winter solstice of the 18th year of Zhengde as the epoch. It can be called the 'Guiwei New Calendar', the 'Zhengde New Calendar', or the old name of the 'Datong New Calendar'."
Zhu Houzhao liked the "Zhengde New Calendar" very much, but in order to take care of the ministers, he still said: "Let's call it the Datong New Calendar."
The calendar of the Ming Dynasty was the Tatong calendar, and the algorithm followed the time-giving calendar and referred to the Western Hijri calendar.
The time-telling calendar compiled by Guo Shoujing can be said to be the pinnacle of ancient Chinese calendars. It not only absorbs the essence of past dynasties, but also relies entirely on actual measured data. It is not like the Taichu calendar, which relies on the numbers of Huang Zhong; nor is it like the Dayan calendar, which is far-fetched and based on the Yixiang.
It is related to politics, but the calendar making in the Yuan Dynasty did not concern politics.
The calendar of the Qing Dynasty was not edited by a Chinese person. The main editor was Tang Ruowang. Moreover, when Qianlong revised the calendar, he used Newton's year-end data, which is no longer a purely Chinese calendar - the lunar calendar of the Republic of China and New China still uses this system.
According to the calendar, the precession of the equinox is likely to exceed one day by the 21st century.
Well, the lunar calendar we usually use was compiled by missionary Tang Ruowang.
If he did not consider the objections of his courtiers, Wang Yuan even wanted to adopt the "Twelve Qi Calendar". That is, the moon is determined by the twelve solar terms, which is a 100% solar calendar and has nothing to do with the waxing and waning of the moon and the seasons.
This calendar is similar to the Gregorian calendar of later generations, and it is better coordinated with the actual celestial phenomena and is more convenient for agricultural production.
After Shen Kuo proposed the twelve qi calendar, he was collectively opposed by the courtiers of the Northern Song Dynasty. Because this purely solar calendar negated the traditional Chinese lunar calendar (lunar and solar calendars). Although Shen Kuo was hit hard, he still firmly believed that his calendar would be used in the future.
Will definitely be adopted one day.
Unfortunately, Shen Kuo's day had to wait until after the Revolution of 1911.
Ancient Chinese astronomy can be said to be very impressive in terms of data alone.
"Shangshu" records that during the period of Yao and Shun, a year has been measured to have 366 days. It is impossible to verify when Yao and Shun happened, but judging from the stars recorded in "Shangshu", it should be more than 2000 BC.
By the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Taichu calendar calculations were more precise, with a year being 365.2502 days (modern data is 365.24219 days).
As for the precession phenomenon that will occur if the lunar calendar is used for too long, this was discovered in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Moreover, when Jia Kui and Li Fan changed the calendar, they discovered that the precession was related to the change in the moon's travel speed, and they also calculated the change in the moon's speed.
Law. Explained in scientific language, it is the precession of the perigee of the moon's orbit - but they don't know that the earth will also precess due to the gravitational pull of the sun and the moon, which will also cause the precession of the lunar calendar.
Wang Yuan did not dare to switch to the solar calendar because he was worried about the objections of his courtiers, but he could add things to the lunar calendar.
For example, the Qing Dynasty Calendar edited by Tang Ruowang threw all kinds of Western scientific data into it.
The Chinese lunar calendar is a lunisolar calendar. It is a combination of the lunar calendar and the solar calendar. It is very convenient to throw things away. Throughout the dynasties, people have been working on the calendar when compiling it, throwing in various new discoveries, so that we have a comprehensive time telling calendar.
Wang Yuan also said: "While implementing the new calendar, please Your Majesty to implement the hour and minute system. From now on, the government and military camps, and even the imperial examinations in various places, will be calculated according to certain hours and minutes."
Zhu Houzhao asked puzzledly: "Why is it so troublesome?"
Wang Yuan smiled and said: "Your Majesty can open a clock factory, make clocks and sell them to the government and people in various places, and all the profits will go to the internal treasury."
Zhu Houzhao immediately clapped his hands: "This method is good!"
Wang Yuan reminded: "Don't sell it too expensively."
The clocks and clocks improved by the Ministry of Industry are more advanced than those in Europe. They already have a minute hand, and they are thinking about how to add a second hand. Moreover, the clocks have been promoted to the prefectural level, and the time is managed by the Yin and Yang of each prefecture.
Wang Yuan wanted to completely promote the "minute" to the whole country by promulgating the new calendar - the Ming Dynasty had already had the 24-hour concept, and there was no need for Wang Yuan to promote it.
This kind of promotion may seem useless, but it is actually as important as promoting crops.
Early humans understood time in days. Gradually, there were months, years, hours, and hours. Every time a new concept of time was born, it was regarded as a new development of human society, "minutes"
The birth of human beings will make human activities more sophisticated.
…
Morning meeting.
Mao Cheng, the Minister of Rites, was the first to object: "The Datong calendar was created by Chengyi Bo (Liu Bowen) and was decreed by Emperor Taizu. How can we rashly change it?"
Wang Yuan held the wat tablet in his hand and said calmly: "The Datong calendar still uses the time-giving calendar without much change. The precession of the equinox is one day now. Mr. Mao, as the Minister of Rites, is responsible for the sacrifice. The time of your sacrifice is off by one day.
Aren’t you afraid of being blamed by the ancestors of the ancestral temple and the gods of the mountains and rivers?”
Mao Cheng was stunned for a moment. He shouldn't object to this matter, he should fully support it.
Cabinet minister Mao Ji came out and said: "The promulgation of the new calendar will waste people and money, so please be cautious in doing so."
The promulgation of the new calendar is not a done deal. Just like when the names of cities and counties are changed in later generations, all official letters, official seals, related companies and institutions all have to be renamed together. The same is true for the new calendar, as well as related activities and documents across the country.
Everything has to be changed, and the folk almanacs have to be changed as well.
Moreover, the speed of information dissemination in ancient times was slow. It is possible that many remote mountain villages did not know about the New Calendar for one or two years. What if there was a scholar in the village who took part in the provincial examination according to the old calendar, lay down in an inn to review slowly, and made mistakes all day long?
?
Wang Yuan sneered: "Mr. Mao Ge knew clearly that the calendar was wrong, but he blocked the promulgation of the new calendar and allowed the Ministry of Rites to make mistakes in the sacrifices. What was his intention?"
Mao Ji asked: "How can Wang Shilang be so sure that the Datong calendar must be wrong?"
Wang Yuan said with a smile: "It seems that Mr. Maoge does not understand astronomy. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, astronomical officials had discovered that every three hundred years or so of the calendar, there would be an error of one day. The Tatong calendar continued to use the time calendar, and from the time calendar
It’s been almost three hundred years since it was promulgated.”
"Are the opinions of the ancients necessarily accurate?" Mao Ji was still arrogant. The main reason was that it was very troublesome to implement this thing. Mao Shangshu did not want to waste people and money and alarm the people.
This is what traditional bureaucracy is like. Everything requires stability, and it is best to remain in a pool of stagnant water, with the entire society remaining unchanged.
Wang Yuan said: "The ancients may not be accurate, but the observations of the Qin Tian Jian for many years are definitely accurate. Moreover, this new calendar was created by Zheng Shanfu, a doctor in the Ministry of Rites, together with the officials of the Qin Tian Jian, as well as Yin and Yang officials from the north and south, and Hua Hua.
It took six years to compile it together. Is Mao Shangshu’s knowledge of astronomy better than that of so many yin and yang officials?”
Mao Ji was silent and found it difficult to refute.
Wang Yuan added: "And I remember that when Mr. Mao Ge was the Minister of Rites, he impeached Qin Tianjian because he calculated the solar eclipse incorrectly, resulting in Qin Tianjian being fined three months' salary. Qin Tianjian calculated the eclipse incorrectly.
Eclipse errors are caused by the precession of the calendar. You don't allow others to modify the calendar, but you also require others to accurately calculate the solar eclipse. Isn't it a bit overwhelming?"
Mao Ji didn't say a word and went directly back to his shift. However, because of the wrong calculation of the solar eclipse, he impeached Qin Tianjian and fined him three months' salary.
There is no way. Every time there is a solar eclipse, you have to prepare in advance. This has to do with etiquette.
Moreover, there is a clear record that the solar eclipse should be dealt with in this way: "The emperor saves the sun and sets up five troops, five soldiers, and five drums; the princes set up three troops, three soldiers, and three drums. The officials beat the watch. Any sound is a positive thing, and it is disgusting.
Yin Qi."
This thing requires the use of the army and the arrangements are made by the Ministry of Rites. Once the calculation of the solar eclipse is wrong, everyone from the emperor to the ministers to the soldiers will have to work in vain. Mao Ji was the minister of the Ministry of Rites at the time, how could he not impeach the Qin Tianjian for this?
Wang Yuan looked around the main hall and asked loudly: "Whoever thinks that worshiping mountains, rivers and sheji can be wrong even if it is wrong for one day, then stand up and argue with me."
With this big hat off, who else dares to object?
If we oppose it now and natural disasters occur in the future, it will not be the emperor's responsibility, but the responsibility of those who oppose the calendar.
The new calendar of Zhengde passed smoothly.
The concept of "minutes" was also implemented throughout the country along with the new calendar. Gradually, even the important officials in the court no longer asked what time it was, but what time it was now.