Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

"Chapter 1 of the Ming Dynasty Convention on Rites and Laws: Ming Dynasty Court Institutions
Article 1: The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty will rule the world, establish the Ming Dynasty court, and rule the world.

The Ming Dynasty included but was not limited to the Ming Empire itself, overseas territories and vassal lands.

The Ming Emperor is the Ming Dynasty emperor, who directly governs the Ming Empire's homeland and overseas territories and serves as the core of the Ming Dynasty.

The vassal territories of the Ming Dynasty are owned by the feudal lords or autonomous councils appointed by the Ming Emperor, and are governed according to the rules and treaties signed with the Ming Dynasty court.

"This is another draft of etiquette!"

“And it was put first.”

Listening to the article in the "Dibao", the tea drinkers who were listening to the newspaper being read in the teahouse were amazed.

When the "Great Ming Convention of Rites and Laws" was drafted, only court officials and scholars paid attention to it at first.

However, after the newspapers repeatedly publicized the formulation of the provisions, the people who often listened to the newspapers also paid attention to it.

In particular, some time ago, the emperor publicly recognized that "the monarch, his subjects and the people govern the world together", wrote it into the general principles of rites and laws, and held an essay contest, publishing the best articles in newspapers.

As long as the people in the capital city are not blind and deaf, they all have some understanding of the rights and obligations of the monarch, ministers, and people.

They naturally became concerned about the new etiquette and laws.

The first article of the first chapter of the Convention of Etiquette and Law aroused heated discussion among them after it was drafted.

The man reading the newspaper was an old scholar who was well-versed in the books of sages. He shook his head and said:
"The emperor has the whole world, dukes have their own states, and officials have their own families. This is what Mencius's Commentaries says."

"The first article of the Great Ming Etiquette and Law Convention is to confirm the emperor's power to rule the world!"

Other well-educated tea drinkers nodded their heads to show that they were educated. Some even took up the newspaper and read it carefully.

Although the uneducated people respected these intellectuals, they were not very interested in their boasting. Someone asked loudly:

"Scholar, everyone knows that the emperor governs the world."

"What does the first article of the Etiquette and Law Convention have to do with us?"

The old scholar chuckled, very satisfied with the respectful looks from the people around him, and was not surprised by the man's somewhat offensive questions.

He came to read the newspaper not only to earn some spare money, but more importantly to be elected as a member of parliament.

He was naturally very kind to the people around him, twirling his beard and smiling as he said:

"The monarch, his subjects, and his people govern the world together, so the monarch naturally comes first."

"The first one talks about the power of the monarch. Do you think it has anything to do with us?"

Ruler and subject, father and son, husband and wife, these are the three cardinal guides of Confucianism.

Subjects without a monarch are like wild dogs without a master.

Therefore, in the old scholar's view, the monarch in the first article is closely related to himself.

Otherwise, even if he had learned both literary and martial arts, where could he display them?
However, some people did not agree with this. Although they did not dare to say that it was against the emperor and father, they were not interested in it.

Someone asked loudly:

"What does this have to do with us?"

"Can we, the common people, become the king?"

Everyone laughed and thought it was a joke.

They are just common people, how can they possibly become kings?
Even the lowest rank of knight is not something that ordinary people can dream of.

The most likely scenario is that he would die in battle and earn the status of a martyr. Then his descendants would become hereditary soldiers and perhaps even accumulate military merits to earn knighthood.

Thinking about the difficulty involved, many people shook their heads. Not many people would voluntarily join the army unless they were desperate.

Especially those people in the capital, after the food prices stabilized and their lives became better in the past few years, they were even less willing to join the army. If it weren't for the court's compulsory conscription, the Shenshu Camp in the Beijing Camp might not have been able to recruit enough people.

So they felt that the monarch was far away from them, and that they were just common people and had no chance of becoming the monarch.

But when the old scholar heard this, he burst into laughter.

It was not until everyone asked in confusion that he raised his eyebrows and explained:

"You guys don't understand the etiquette!"

"The emperor said that the monarch, his subjects and the people will rule the country together. Will he break his promise and get rich?"

"Take a closer look. Who can own the vassal states? Can only meritorious officials become monarchs?"

Everyone looked carefully and noticed from the etiquette and laws that after the princes and lords, there was an autonomous parliament.

A tea drinker who knew something about overseas free trade zones immediately slammed the table and said:

"oops!"

"It turns out that the parliament can be the king."

"So, the Xiangshan Bay and Xiangjiang Island Free Trade Zones are owned by the parliament."

"As long as you are elected as a member of parliament, you will have the power of a monarch?"

Everyone was surprised to hear this and asked about the situation of the free trade zone.

Some people then learned that the former Grand Secretary Feng Quan, who was born in Zhuolu, is now in the Xiangjiang Island Free Trade Zone.

Once he was elected as the Speaker of the Xiangjiang Island Autonomous Council, he would be able to exercise the power of the monarch together with other members of the council.

In that case, doesn't that mean that ordinary people are qualified to become monarchs?

Some people looked at the old scholar and couldn't help but feel envious.

Because according to the current draft election method, only those with a status of Gongshi or above have the right to be elected. Ordinary people only have the right to vote, but still cannot become the king.

The old scholar has a scholar citizenship, which is a citizen above the level of a public official. He can run for a seat in parliament. As long as he becomes a member of a certain autonomous parliament, he is eligible to act on behalf of the monarch together with other members.

When the emperor said "the ruler, his subjects and the people govern the world together", he did not leave the common people aside.

There was a lot of heated discussion about this article, and both the gentry and the common people highly recognized its content.

After understanding the difference between the Celestial Empire and the Empire, some people even shouted loudly that the Ming Dynasty should once again become the Celestial Empire and the master of the world.

People's enthusiasm for exploring overseas markets has risen again:
Everyone knows that the territories and free trade zones that can be divided can only be overseas.

Both officials and common people can share the benefits from the development.
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However, some people were feeling uneasy at this time.

Because this time, what was drafted was not only the etiquette and laws concerning the monarch, but also the laws that identified the Chinese, Han people and their citizenship.

Some time ago, the newspapers reiterated that "Those who submit to us will live in peace in China forever, and those who betray us will flee to the border areas", and that all foreigners who were unwilling to naturalize would be relocated.

In the northern Zhili area, the action had already begun, forcing the Mongols and Semites who had not changed their Chinese surnames to move to the outskirts of the Great Wall.

Mao Pijiang considered himself a surrendered Ming Dynasty man. He was completely Chinese in his thinking and was not worried at the time.

But after Kublai was designated as a half-Chinese, half-barbarian ruler, he became nervous and raised his voice to his father:
"Dad, our ancestor was the King of Zhennan, the ninth son of Emperor Shizu of Yuan Dynasty."

"Now that Emperor Shizu of the Yuan Dynasty has been identified as half Chinese and half barbarian, are we Chinese or barbarians?"

Mao Qizong was also a little nervous because he didn't know what he would be identified as.

If they were just ordinary Mongols, it would be fine, but they are the direct descendants of Kublai Khan.

Kublai Khan was identified as half Chinese and half foreigner. How could his descendants be identified as Chinese? So when faced with his son's question, he could only force himself to remain calm and say:
"Don't panic!"

"This debate on Chinese and barbarians was initiated by the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Qian Gong."

"My father is also an official in the Taichang Temple. I will ask him in person some other day."

"I don't think Qian Muzhai would act recklessly and label the Mao family as barbarians!"

As he spoke, as if to convince his son, and also to convince himself, he added:

"We now use Chinese surnames and customs, and have intermarried with Han people for generations."

"According to the court's rules, if three generations of Chinese were naturalized as Han Chinese, they could all be identified as Han Chinese."

"If anyone dares to violate the laws of the court, I will report him to the emperor!"

The more he spoke, the more confident he became, and he determined that he was Han Chinese.

How could he, a distinguished Jinshi, become a barbarian?
Mao Pijiang felt somewhat relieved at first, thinking that it was impossible for Jinshi to be regarded as barbarians.

But after thinking of one person, he said worriedly:

"The former Imperial College Priest Ma Zhiqi was also a Jinshi!"

"But there are still people in the court who say he is 'not of our kind'."

"If we get into a conflict with someone in the court, we might be implicated in the same matter."

"Do I have to cower in the court from now on?"

When Mao Qizong heard this name, he fell silent.

Because those who participated in the Ma movement were not of our clan, they were members of the Donglin Party.

Although he himself did not join the Donglin Party, he was quite close to the party. His son Mao Pijiang was even more of a Donglin Party member in terms of ideology, and he mixed with many rising stars of the Donglin Party.

When I thought about how the Donglin Dangshen people's reasons could be applied to me, I suddenly felt a sense of absurdity:
"Is this retribution?"

"Those who harm others will eventually harm themselves?"

As a Buddhist, he felt that everything had cause and effect. If it weren't for the support of people like him, how could the Donglin Party prosper so much and reject all heresy?
Now, he could only sigh and wait for the judgment of fate.

If their identities cannot be confirmed, they will have to keep their heads down in the future.

The next day, in the Taichang Temple, Mao Qizon specifically stopped Qian Qianyi and asked him about his identity.

Many people know that the Mao family is the descendant of Zhennan King Tuohuan. This is not a sensitive issue now.

Unlike the early years of the country, the Mao family lay dormant for five generations before they passed the imperial examination and became officials.

Qian Qianyi had not paid any attention to Mao Qizong's identity before this, but now that Mao Qizong took the initiative to ask, he began to pay attention.

Seeing that Mao Qizong was uneasy and somewhat frightened, he hurriedly comforted him:
"The Mao family has been naturalized for hundreds of years and has long since become Han Chinese."

"Brother Mao, don't be uneasy. This status is not different from your ancestors' status."

"At most, they can say that you have Mongolian ancestry, just like Wu Ruyin, the Marquis of Gongshun."

As he spoke, he introduced to Mao Qizong the identification of Wu Ruyin in detail. Now, the Gongshunhou family is identified as Han Chinese with Mongolian ancestry.

There are also Qingping Earl, Nanning Earl, Fuqiang Earl, etc., who are also identified as Han people.

Even if the emperor emphasized the distinction between Chinese and barbarians, he would not push out these nobles who had been loyal to the Ming Dynasty for hundreds of years.

These people were all identified as Han Chinese according to the regulations that Chinese people who have been naturalized for three generations are considered Han Chinese.

Mao Qizong heaved a sigh of relief when he heard this, thinking that he would no longer be attacked by “non-members of his race”.

However, thinking of his son Mao Pijiang who was studying foreign languages ​​at the Translation School, he asked Qian Qianyi:
"Han people should use Chinese surnames and Chinese. My son is learning Japanese in a translation school. Is there any problem?"

"Will you be considered as being barbarized? Will you become a barbarian again?"

I was secretly glad that my son learned Japanese instead of the more familiar Mongolian because of gold speculation.

Otherwise, it would be hard to explain now, and people would definitely think that we are turning into Mongolians again.

Qian Qianyi listened to his worries and laughed:
"rest assured!"

"The Emperor said that learning a foreign language is to open your eyes to the world, not to become a barbarian."

"In the future, we will need the help of students from the Translation School to educate foreigners."

"The translation school will strengthen etiquette education to let students know what Huayi is."

"As long as we strictly guard against foreigners, we will not become foreigners by learning their languages."
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Only at this time did Mao Qizon feel completely relieved.

He also asked Qian Qianyi for a policy on education, hoping to help Mao Pijiang make achievements in education.

This way we can better get rid of doubts about our identity and avoid being considered as a non-member.

When Qian Qianyi heard that he had this idea, he was of course very supportive.

He also had some ideas about education, and he told Mao Qizong:
"When it comes to educating foreigners, our Taichang Temple also has a responsibility."

"You should know that some Semu people believe in ethnic unity. The former Imperial College Priest Ma Zhiqi was considered not to be of our ethnic group because of this."

"The religious sacrifices are all under the jurisdiction of the Taichang Temple. Do you think there is a way to educate them to become Chinese?"

When Mao Qizon heard this, he immediately became interested.

Although he did not know what convert fanaticism was, he was now quite enthusiastic about educating foreigners, hoping that after making some achievements, he would be able to completely get rid of people's doubts about his identity as a Mao family.

So, after Qian Qianyi mentioned this issue, he immediately said:

"Starting from religion, the Taichang Temple also has the responsibility to educate foreigners."

"The Emperor has set up a religious committee in Congress, and we can discuss this with them."

Qian Qianyi nodded slightly and took Mao Qizong to the Congress Preparatory Office to discuss the issue with the Religious Committee.

He was the deputy director of the Etiquette and Law Committee and had considerable influence in the Congress Preparatory Office. He soon met people from the Religious Committee, including Zhang Jiugong, Wang Changyue, and Master Zhixu.

These people have deep insights into various religions, Zhang Jiugong said:

"The Ming Dynasty has always advocated that the three religions are one. Now that the system of gods and immortals has been rectified, the three religions of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism are even more difficult to distinguish from each other."

"If we want to start education from religion, we must first integrate those religions and make the Ming religion one."

“We should allow believers of all religions to believe in other gods, rather than preaching that only the god they believe in is the true God.”

This is what he learned about polytheism and monotheism when he communicated with the emperor. Compared with polytheism, monotheism is exclusive. Only by breaking the belief in a single god can they be integrated.

For this reason, Buddhism and Taoism have been discussing the law with the Nestorian Church in recent days, trying to absorb Nestorianism and other religions to achieve religious unity in the Ming Dynasty.

When Qian Qianyi learned this, he was overjoyed. After learning that the emperor also talked about freedom of religious belief and opposition to extreme religion, he immediately wrote a memorial with Mao Qizong and other officials of the Taichang Temple:
It is suggested that religious freedom be written into the etiquette and law, and any citizen of the Ming Dynasty can freely believe in the religion recognized by the court, and no religion may restrict its believers from believing in other religions.

Other policies proposed by officials of the Taichang Temple included prohibiting minors without ordination certificates from believing in religion and prohibiting preaching outside religious places. They also planned to use the Ming religion to convert foreigners to Chinese. They also encouraged clergy to go to sea, following the example of Western missionaries.

Various associations supervised by the Religious Committee were also established. The previously established Taoist Association, Buddhist Association, and Nestorian Church were all included in them. They set aside funds from the donations they received as expenses for the clergy to go to sea.

The Ming court issued certificates of ordination and provided various conveniences to those who went abroad to preach or learn scriptures. Like Western missionaries, they traveled all over the world and contributed to the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty. (End of this chapter)