Volume 1: Birth! Seven time travelers Chapter 88: Sacrifice to Xiaoling Mausoleum at Shenlie Mountain
"Your servants and I respectfully wish you the best of heaven."
"Saints be with you."
"Your servants and I bow to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
"No need to bow, everyone."
On the fifth day of February, Zhu Youdong and his entourage arrived in Nanjing. The eunuchs and honorable officials of Nanjing, the six ministries, the Censorate, the Tongzhengsi, the Wujun Dudufu, the Imperial College and other officials of the secondary capital, as well as officials of all levels in Yingtian Prefecture, all knelt down to welcome him at Zhengyang Gate.
After a brief exchange of words between the emperor and his subjects, Wang Kun, the eunuch guarding Nanjing, said, "Young Master, last year after His Majesty sent out the decree that the Crown Prince should go to Nanjing to guard it, I have already sent people to clean up the palace. At the beginning of this year, when Eunuch Cao came, he decided where I would live from now on. It is in the fifth courtyard on the southeast side of the palace. This was where the underage princes of the royal family studied when Grandpa Taizu was alive. According to my master's wishes, I have already named the palace 'Nanhua Palace'."
"Well, thank you for your hard work."
"I dare not. Working for you is working for His Majesty." Wang Kun, who looked quite honest, took two steps and said softly, "My dear, I dare to get closer to you and talk to you."
Zhu Youdong took the initiative to put his ear close to me and said, " Come on, Prince, talk to me."
"Thank you very much, young master. Young master, if other ministers ask me to go to the palace to rest later, I must not go. I must ask them to go to the Xiaoling Mausoleum to pay homage first."
It seems that Wang Kun has been in Nanjing for too long and doesn't even know how famous I am in Beijing. This is common sense for the royal children, not to mention that their bodies have the souls of adults. Even a real six-year-old child, as long as he is not stupid to a certain extent, knows that after arriving in Nanjing, the first thing he has to do is to pay homage to the Xiaoling Mausoleum!
But you're telling me this right after you arrive. Are you showing your loyalty? Or are you taking this opportunity to curry favor or even frame your colleagues?
According to the Ming Dynasty system, Nanjing, as the capital, had a complete team as a capital. Except for Emperor Xuanzong, there was no crown prince in Nanjing. There were all kinds of other government offices.
Among these many officials, the three with the most power were: the eunuch who was in charge of the Nanjing garrison, the Nanjing military governor, and the Nanjing Minister of War who was also the assistant minister of maintenance.
The order of the emperor's trust is: eunuchs, meritorious officials, and the Minister of War. However, by this time in the Ming Dynasty, civil officials had already formed an overwhelming advantage over meritorious officials and eunuchs. Therefore, if we really talk about real power, eunuchs and meritorious officials have to rank behind the Minister of War in Nanjing.
However, today we are welcoming His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. According to etiquette, after the garrison eunuchs come out, the meritorious officials must come out to welcome him.
"I, the Nanjing Commander-in-Chief and Honorable Minister of Military Affairs, Liu Maoxun, the Marquis of Anyuan, pay my respects to Your Highness."
Yes, the Duke of Wei family founded by Xu Da did rule Nanjing for generations. But the Xu family only inherited the title of Duke, not the position of Nanjing Military Commander. In this life, Duke of Wei Xu Hongji is now only the assistant secretary of Nanjing Military Office, which is considered a deputy position of the three major camps in Nanjing.
The first Marquis of Anyuan in the Ming Dynasty was Liu Sheng, a favorite general of Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty. The title was passed down to Liu Maoxun, who was considered the seventh generation.
Seeing Liu Maoxun, who was fat and had a bulging belly, and was the admiral of Nanjing but only wore court robes without armor, Zhu Youdong frowned slightly, but still helped him up with a smile.
"Your Highness, the matter of pacifying the streets on the Imperial Road has been completed. Your Highness must have come a long way and must be tired. After meeting with the ministers, you can go to the palace to rest first."
Um……
"I, the Minister of Military Affairs of Nanjing, Xu Honggang, pay my respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. Your Highness, although the Imperial Road is already quiet, the people of Nanjing have not seen the Crown Prince for many years, so they have been waiting along the street early. Soldiers from the three major camps of Nanjing have also been standing guard along the street since the hour of Yin today... It is late winter and the wind is biting cold, Your Highness should go to the palace earlier..."
Hiss~~Why do I feel like you don’t like me?
Next, of course, the other five ministers of Nanjing and officials at all levels of the Censorate came to pay their respects one by one. Zhu Youdong also had to comfort them for a while.
Generally speaking, among the six ministries in Nanjing, the Ministry of War has a high status because it is responsible for the military preparations of the entire southern part of the Ming Dynasty. The other five ministries are not nursing homes as ordinary people imagine.
After the Ministry of War, the highest-ranking one was the Ministry of Revenue. The Nanjing Ministry of Revenue was responsible for collecting taxes from the four provinces of Nanzhili, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, and Huguang. As the economic gap between the north and the south continued to widen, this income accounted for more than 50% or even 60% of the fiscal revenue of the Ming Dynasty.
In addition, the Nanjing Ministry of Revenue was also responsible for grain transport, national salt permit inspection, and the most fundamental thing of the Ming Dynasty: the management of the Yellow Book.
As for the remaining four ministries, the Ministry of Personnel is only responsible for the inspection of Nanjing officials, and there is no other major matter. The Ministry of Punishment is only responsible for the judicial affairs in Nanjing, and is also very idle. The Ministry of Works is also only responsible for the projects near Nanjing that involve the central level. And the Ministry of Rites is almost done: education, sacrifice, and diplomacy are the main responsibilities of the Ministry of Rites. In Nanjing, where there is no emperor, the imperial examinations have been concentrated in Nanjing in the north. The Nanjing Ministry of Rites is indeed a retirement home...
Whether it was the powerful Ministry of War and Ministry of Revenue, or the other four ministries with little power, almost like a nursing home, at least today, Zhu Youdong clearly felt that the six ministries in Nanjing, or the meritorious officials, were not very enthusiastic about his arrival.
That's right! Unlike the eunuchs guarding Nanjing: everything the eunuchs have comes from the royal family. The eunuchs who were kicked to Nanjing for garrisoning, although nominally the third person in the Silijian. But their power is far less than that of the ordinary eunuchs in charge of writing in the Silijian. Now that the royal crown prince is here, the status and power of the garrison eunuchs naturally become more important. So Wang Kun is happy and diligent. As for the civil officials, they have been lazy for many years: although they are not as powerful as the six ministries in Beijing, they are free! Suddenly there is a crown prince hanging over their heads, it would be strange if they could be happy!
"Everyone. Since Emperor Xuanzong, the Ming Dynasty has not had a crown prince guarding Nanjing for a long time. Naturally, there has been no crown prince presiding over the worship of Xiaoling Mausoleum. I am in Nanjing for the first time today. If I don't go to worship Xiaoling Mausoleum first, I will go directly to the palace to rest. Hahahaha..." After saying this, Zhu Youdong's expression became serious: "Send an order, let all the people who watched the ceremony return to their homes, and the soldiers of the three camps can withdraw their troops and return to the camps. I will not enter the palace from the imperial road, I will go to Xiaoling Mausoleum first!"
After the officials exchanged glances, they all leaned forward and said, "We obey your orders."
Nanjing city is different from Beijing.
Beijing is located on a large plain, so it can be built in a square shape. The palace and the imperial city can be built in the center of the city. However, Nanjing is different. Due to the numerous water systems and lakes, the palace and the imperial city of Nanjing are squeezed to the easternmost side of the entire city.
To the northeast of the imperial city is Shenlie Mountain, where the Xiaoling Mausoleum of Zhu Yuanzhang, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty, is located.
It is no small matter for the current grandson of the emperor to pay tribute to the founding emperor. In this matter, Zhu Youdong deliberately did not communicate with the Nanjing officials in advance, just to see what attitude the Nanjing officials had towards him. And the performance of the Nanjing officials, haha...
However, thanks to Wang Kun's prior arrangements, the corresponding ceremonial guards and offerings were quickly arranged - according to the Ming Dynasty system, the Xiaoling Mausoleum was officially sacrificed three times a year. Zhu Youdong's sacrifice was a temporary addition to the three fixed sacrifices, so there was not much to be said for it.
"Hu~~" After all, this body is only six years old. After climbing up Shenlie Mountain step by step, Zhu Youdong was already out of breath.
Gently releasing Cao Huachun's supporting hand, Zhu Youdong took a deep breath and nodded to Wang Kun beside him: "Let's get started."
"As the prince commands."
The eunuchs guarding Nanjing also had another job: the Xiaoling Shrine Supervisor. There were also special Xiaoling Guards around the Xiaoling Mausoleum. In addition, the Nanjing garrison eunuchs had to personally preside over the three annual worship ceremonies at the Xiaoling Mausoleum. Therefore, Wang Kun was very familiar with this routine.
Quickly, the praise ceremony, the reading of the blessing, the first offering, the second offering, the final offering, the deacon, the praise and the introduction were all in place. Each process was also carried out skillfully.
It was Zhu Youdong's turn to read the eulogy in person. He took out a stack of manuscripts from his arms and walked up steadily.
"Drive out the Tartars and restore China. Reopen the sun and moon, restore our clothes and hats. Establish a system and appease the people. The achievements of Taizu will be remembered for thousands of years. Time flies. Since the Hongwu period, the country has been prosperous. Since the founding of the country, it has been 239 years. The population is growing, and the decline is gradually showing . Although the Mongols are remnant, the Jurchens are rising. The northwest is in trouble, and the southwest is in chaos. Although the Japanese retreated in the east, the red barbarians are coming. The country is rising but in danger. Unfilial descendants are all worried. At this time, remember the ancestors. Determine to fight for the rest of the bravery and serve this situation. All officials, gentry, soldiers and civilians. With one heart, there is no difficulty that cannot be overcome. Revitalize the Ming Dynasty and surpass the Han and Tang. This thing and this ambition will never be forgotten. The heaven and earth will witness it. Enjoy it!"
