The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 835: King of Han's Usurpation
In the evening, weak sunlight poured into the rocky Han River bed through the gaps in the clouds.

The sky was dim and everything was silent. Cotton-like snowflakes floated over Tianxin City.

The Sishanjian was located south of the imperial city.

The snow brushed against the skirts of the eunuchs and palace maids who were chopping firewood, touched their faces and hands, as if telling of the brevity of life, and then disappeared.

These people who have lived in the deep palace for a long time have no time to care about the heavy snow that heralds a good harvest.

In the eyes of the eunuchs and palace maids of Da Qi, Tianxin City is the best city in the world.

Just as people in the Sui Dynasty said, Luoyang City is the greatest city in history;
People in the Tang Dynasty said that Chang'an was the greatest city of all time;
People in the Song Dynasty said that Bianliang was the greatest city of all time;
So it's hard to figure out which is the greatest city of all time.

However, what is certain is that Tianxin City is far more solid than Luoyang and Kaifeng.

The soil for Tianxin City was made of the purest loess transported from afar. After being steamed in a steamer until softened, it was mixed with cow and horse dung (cow and horse in a narrow sense) and put into a mold to build the city wall.

The city wall is covered with a thick layer of concrete, which can withstand various artillery attacks. Even if the enemy warships sail into the Han River and fire directly with large-caliber naval guns, it is difficult to cause damage to the walls of Tianxin City.

The river channel of Tianxin City is paved with tiles. The project was undertaken by the king's brother-in-law Jin Dajiu. It is said that the cost of each mile is as high as 230,000 taels of silver, and it can withstand a flood that occurs once in a hundred years.

Considering that the Great Qi was established only for thirty years, there has been no chance to verify whether this statement is true or not.

In short, Tianxin City is a great city.

People living in this city obviously don't worry about the growth of crops or floods and droughts.

Like all capital cities, every year, grain from the entire province and even the entire country of Da Qi is continuously transported to the capital, to Tianxin City. Even in years of major disasters, Tianxin City must receive sufficient and priority food supplies.

As for where the food comes from, that is a question that farmers need to consider.

Farmers not only have to worry about the growth of crops, pests, floods and droughts, but they also have to be careful and cautious about drying the grain after harvest.

The headman will not accept grain that is not dried or mixed with impurities.

For ordinary farmers, if they did not deliver grain to the government in time during the summer and autumn every year, it would be equivalent to committing a serious crime, second only to treason.

~~~~~~~~
Snow is like a shadow, circling around people all the time.

The snow was getting heavier and heavier. The lower-ranking palace maids and eunuchs who were busy outside the Ministry of Food had little time to rest. Even though they were at the bottom of the chain of the Da Qi court, they didn't have to worry about food at all.

"The Emperor was furious recently because the gifts presented by the King of Han were too few!"

"The small amount of gifts is just an excuse. Now everyone in and outside the capital wants the King of Han to go to Shaanxi as soon as possible."

"I am well-informed. Isn't the King of Han going to Annan to defend it?"

"Annan is such a bitter and cold place, how could the King of Han be willing to go there?"

"Annan is not a cold and bitter place at all. South of Guangdong and Guangxi, I heard that rice can mature three times a year. It's even more prosperous than Jiangnan!"

A group of eunuchs gathered under the long corridor, gossiping enthusiastically. These ballless men would occasionally chat about dirty things with the palace maids who were washing rice and vegetables nearby, causing the old palace maids to burst into laughter.

There are always rumors in the palace.

With the loss of power by the King of Han, there would no longer be any danger in making such unscrupulous comments about the King of Han's vassal states.

Even in the corners of the Imperial Kitchen, people knew the Emperor was ready to abandon the King of Han. "The gifts sent by the European barbarians displeased Emperor Guangde. It's said that the day after the Empress Dowager Cisheng's banquet, she severely reprimanded the French delegation."

"Why are you scolding the envoy? You shouldn't hit someone who smiles at you. They have come from afar to pay their respects to our Great Qi..."

"I heard that the emperor doesn't like Europeans showing off. The clocks made in the capital's workshops only have a one-minute difference in time. They can't compare with others."

"Nonsense! It's obvious that Emperor Guangde didn't want to marry a French princess, so he deliberately embarrassed the French..."

The chattering stopped abruptly, and a strange sound of footsteps was heard outside the courtyard gate. Someone was coming.

The eunuchs and palace maids who were chatting and laughing immediately shut up, lowered their heads and went about their own business.

With a bang, the iron gate was kicked open from the outside. A group of aggressive straw raincoat guards stood at the door, led by a centurion who glanced fiercely at the courtyard.

"You are all people who have made mistakes. Our ancestors sent you to the Ministry of Food to give you a chance to redeem yourself from your crimes and make meritorious contributions. Work hard and don't be ungrateful! If I hear you gossiping again, I will no longer want your tongue. I will pull it out and drive you out of the palace! Go farming and go mining!"

Everyone was silent.

Snowflakes fell quietly in the courtyard.

The centurion glanced around, his eyes shifting away from the group of white-haired eunuchs and palace maids. He turned to the few straw raincoat guards behind him and said,

"Bring that bitch in!"

As soon as he finished speaking, two burly captains dragged an old eunuch in like a chicken and threw him into the yard.

A maidservant from the Imperial Kitchen whispered, "Isn't this Yu Huachun, the eunuch in the Prince of Han's palace?"

The centurion pointed at Yu Huachun lying on the ground and said, "To deceive the princes and bring chaos to the imperial court is a heinous crime. The emperor, considering that you have taken care of the King of Han's food and daily life and are a good servant, has spared your life and will let you work as a food supervisor, chopping vegetables and firewood, to spend the rest of your life. If you dare to commit crimes again, you will be executed without mercy!"

Yuhuachun's hair was gray, and he stuck his butt out to salute the group of straw raincoat guards and thank the emperor for his grace.

The centurion looked around and said loudly, "Excuse me, where is the chief steward?"

Eunuch Liang, the head of the Ministry of Food, came out quickly and bowed to the centurion, "May I know who this gentleman is?"

"I am Ji Tie, a centurion of the Suoyi Guards, and a close attendant of Emperor Guangde. Today, I am sending this traitor from the Prince of Han's Palace to the Ministry of Food. I hope that Officer Liang will discipline him well and help him clear his name as soon as possible."

Eunuch Liang nodded repeatedly.

Ji Tie looked around and saw that some eunuchs who knew his past had already started whispering, and there was clearly some fear in their eyes when they looked at him.

"Listen carefully, everyone! From now on, anyone who dares to deceive the princes and stir up trouble will suffer this fate!"

~~~~~~~
The impact of European powers on the Great Qi became increasingly obvious, and the future of the empire was not optimistic.

At the celebration of Empress Dowager Cisi's 49th birthday, Prince Liu Qian of Han's gift was rather perfunctory, and the number of gifts was not even half of that of his sister, the eldest princess.

The impeachment of the censors came soon. They impeached the King of Han for being unfilial and suggested that the Supreme Emperor and Emperor Guangde take away his fiefdom and hand him over to the Ministry of Clan Affairs for severe punishment.

Although Liu Zhaosun loved his youngest son, Liu Qian had repeatedly crossed the bottom line in recent years. This time, the emperor could no longer tolerate the King of Han's rudeness.

(End of this chapter)