Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 113 Personal Teacher, Zhou Gong Ritual

In fact, people often cannot stand being teased.

Especially when the stakes aren't that high.

Now when Zhu Changluo took a closer look, he realized that these "loyal servants" had already had this intention.

"Your Majesty can have the favor of anyone you like. These eight have been chosen as concubines by the Empress Dowager and Consort Dowager. As for the other maids on duty, if Your Majesty wants to show favor, you can also give them a position as concubines. The rest will naturally be maids who obey your orders."

Xuanshi was a position in the sequence of noble ladies, not an official position for a female official.

Among the palace maids serving in the Qianqing Palace, eight of them have already been awarded the title of "selected concubines", and they were carefully selected.

The imperial palace did not only hold beauty contests when the emperor got married or when new concubines were being selected.

There has always been a replenishment and update mechanism for so many people. After all, since Emperor Yingzong, when a new emperor ascends the throne, he usually releases a group of people, ranging from hundreds to thousands.

If the emperor reigns for a long time, there will be special centralized replenishment.

For example, in the recent 19th year of the Wanli reign, Zhu Yijun issued a special decree to show that he was not prepared to not enthrone Zhu Changluo: the six Shang bureaus in the palace were in charge of the enthronement of the eldest prince, and when the eldest princess grew up, they were all short of people to serve, so the Ministry of Rites was ordered to select 300 girls from the common people, aged ten to fifteen, to bring in for preliminary training and employment.

Three hundred people were selected in this batch.

In addition to this centralized replenishment, there was also plunder, tribute, and capture.

For example, many eunuchs and maids in the palace might be captives of war, tributes from vassal states and clans, tributes from eunuchs, or even descendants of criminals.

In short, since they have already entered the palace, even if they have any grievances against the Ming Emperor before, the palace management has some ways to prevent them from endangering the emperor's life.

In the huge Forbidden City, there are too many hard jobs that are purely hard labor.

Therefore, with such a large scale and such a "flexible" supplementation mechanism, and after special selection, the palace maids in the Qianqing Palace are naturally all outstanding and well-behaved.

There are also three "big sisters" among them.

The oldest and most prestigious one was the female official who came from the former Concubine Dowager Wang's side. She was in charge of the palace maids in the Emperor's palace and had a corresponding title called Shang Gong.

Among the many palace maids in the Ming Dynasty harem, there were about two hundred female officials with ranks and corresponding salaries. They were roughly divided into the six bureaus of Shanggong, Shangyi, Shangfu, Shangshi, Shangqin, and Shanggong, as well as the Gongzhengsi.

The Palace Supervisor is in charge of admonitions, prohibitions, exiles and punishments, and generally does not need to send people to each palace. It is equivalent to the "Duchayuan and Ministry of Justice" among the palace maids.

Under the six bureaus, there are various departments. In addition to the two chief officials named after the bureau, there are also middle-level officials named "Si", "Dian" and "Zhang" and the most basic female officials named "Nüshi".

Nowadays, the three most important female officials in the Qianqing Palace are all old, because in addition to the Shang Gong, the most important Shang Shi and Shang Qin need to be arranged effectively.

As for the female officials in other departments such as Shangyi, Shangfu, Shanggong, etc., who are needed in the Empress' Palace, the Qianqing Palace is now arranged by the Silijian.

In addition to the three top female officials, there are eight "imperial sisters" of the Qianqing Palace: the one in charge of food, the one in charge of pharmacy, the one in charge of furniture, the one in charge of lighting, the one in charge of ceremonies, the one in charge of gates, the one in charge of bedrooms, and the one in charge of accounts.

The eight "young ladies" female officials have already been selected as concubines.

In other words, except for the three older female officials, these eight "experienced sisters" are teachers who have been assigned tasks.

Once given the position of a selected concubine, she will no longer have to be a female official, but will be cared for in the palace until old age.

It is already night time, so we will not meet with any outsiders.

The palace attendant Qiu Chunmin, who was waiting at the side, spoke up: "Your Majesty, would you like me to tell them to help you bathe first? Your Majesty, take a look. I have taught them all and they know how to deal with people."

Zhu Changluo looked at her and said, "Gong Shang Qiu, did you also get instructions from your mother?"

Qiu Chunmin had watched him grow up, so she smiled and said, "Of course, your majesty has been thinking about this matter day and night. I went to Ciqing Palace first, and then came to Qianqing Palace. Since I didn't see your majesty's intention, and I knew your majesty was busy, I didn't dare to say anything. Yesterday, I saw your majesty had time to read, and today the concubines entered the palace, so I had to remind Eunuch Tian."

"...So you guys are in collusion."

"We are also thinking about your majesty."

"... He also said that he would come back to look at the memorials of previous years. I have only seen the June of the 20th year of the Wanli reign."

"Your Majesty, please start from the first month of the 20th year of Wanli and read through the resumes of officials and the previous events. I am getting more and more anxious!" Tian Yi said with a look of pity, "You are working so hard. Your Majesty, don't you know that the Empress Dowager and the Concubine Dowager are worried about your health?"

This was a plan that Zhu Changluo started when he was relatively free during the Chinese New Year holidays. Originally, he only intended it to be a long-term plan to get familiar with the subject.

Now he suddenly realized: "No wonder you looked so strange when I asked you to look for it on New Year's Day."

"I have also asked Wang An, and I am afraid that Your Majesty is completely ignorant of the relationship between men and women." Tian Yi was a little embarrassed, and then he said boldly, "In my opinion, Your Majesty is also quite an unusual person now. I have talked so much with Concubine Qiu, but Your Majesty is not moved at all?" "..."

Zhu Changluo was speechless. Did these two people suspect that he was abnormal?
It seems like it would be strange if we don't do something today.

So he sighed: "In the past, when I was in Jingyang Palace, my mother and Concubine Qiu always told me not to indulge in lust. Now that I have ascended the throne as emperor, although I have not yet married, you are more anxious than I am."

"Your Majesty should also study the Zhougong rituals first. After the concubines are selected, the wedding will begin!" Tian Yi said that this is the normal process. "Otherwise, if Your Majesty is embarrassed during the wedding, then we, the ministers, will have failed in our duty!"

Zhu Changluo understood that this was enlightenment education and direct physical practice.

Perhaps this is also the best time window for palace maids or female officials who are interested in this path.

If the Central Palace already had an owner, the ladies-in-waiting and palace maids serving the Emperor would have to be wary of the Empress and pray that she was not a jealous or suspicious person.

After all, they often interact with the emperor, so it is easy for sparks to fly.

"I see... If I don't understand, you will blame yourself?"

"It's more than just self-blame! I'm afraid that the Empress Dowager, the Empress Dowager, and the Concubine Dowager will scold me for not doing my job well!"

Zhu Changluo couldn't help but feel the joy of being an emperor from these details.

In a corner that he had not yet noticed and paid too much attention to, they had already quietly arranged everything, but since this matter really needed to be discussed at the right opportunity.

If Zhu Changluo had shown such thoughts before, they would probably have said it long ago and would have felt happy that they had accomplished their mission.

Zhu Changluo then stretched out his hand and said, "Since you want me to study the rites of Zhou Gong, there must be some picture book, right? Bring it to me and let me have a look."

"…Your Majesty, you are joking. How could I have such knowledge? But don't worry, Your Majesty. Although they are virgins, they have all comprehended it."

Tian Yi smiled awkwardly, and old aunt Qiu Chunmin also lowered her head a little embarrassedly.

Your Majesty is really too direct!

How could I just ask for those shameful books and read them?

Zhu Changluo felt a strange and funny feeling as if he had to complete a mission.

I wonder how naive those virgin teachers in the Qianqing Palace are who think they have mastered the skills and want to teach the emperor the art of harmonizing yin and yang.

"Well! Then I won't read the memorials of previous years tonight. I will learn the great rituals of Zhou Gong instead."

After working so hard for half a year, can't you just indulge yourself?
Tian Yi felt that His Majesty was worthy of being His Majesty, as he handled such a matter so openly that he asked Qiu Chunmin to call them all over, saying that he had not paid much attention to it before and had not looked at it carefully.

The absurd and wanton side of the emperor's life finally unfolded before Zhu Changluo's eyes. The colorful and beautiful flowers had their own charming looks, and they were shy and happy with boundless charm.

Zhu Changluo confirmed that there was no love in the Forbidden City, at least not at the beginning.

So, can't we just choose based on our preferences?
Or taste them one by one.

So he smiled and said, "Since you have been selected as my concubines, I naturally cannot let you wait in vain. It is said in books that love between men and women is infinitely fun. If you all live in seclusion for your whole life without experiencing it, wouldn't it be a pity?"

These words were shameless, but they all put aside their worries.

"I would like to thank Your Majesty for your kindness."

Tian Yi, who was preparing to see who the emperor favored so as to arrange how to record the daily records, panicked: "Your Majesty, the emperor's health is important, you should not indulge yourself!"

"You're in a hurry again! Isn't the wedding still at least half a year away?"

Zhu Changluo felt a little awkward again: the emperor had no privacy in front of his close eunuchs and palace maids.

Although they would not stand aside and watch, it is said that they might remind the emperor not to play for too long in order to avoid hurting his body.

It is said that in the past, one of the ways to test whether a person is a true noble person is to see if he/she would feel restrained when being naked in front of others.

Zhu Changluo waved to the two in the middle and drove Tian Yi and the others away first.

At least for now he is not used to walking his bird in public.

(End of this chapter)