Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 198 The First Year of Taichang
Cui Wensheng instructed the Chief Justice to use salt water to wake the unconscious Ma Tang while he said to Wei Chao, "I heard that the account book was also made by these brats. Is that true?"

"Yes." To avoid getting his robes stained by the splashing salt water, Wei Chao took a step back before continuing, "The reason you arrested him was Mi Cairen's instigation, and Mi Cairen was personally trained by the Lord." Wei Chao nodded in the direction of the eunuchs from the Western Factory and gently reminded them, "To make it easier for you to understand, these guys even specially replaced those useful symbols with words. You'd better stop complaining."

"Okay, okay. I'll listen to you." Cui Wensheng shrugged, obviously not really listening. "Let's get down to business. Why did you come to my place?"

"Ah!" Ma Tang, who was awakened by the salt water, screamed like a pig being slaughtered.

Wei Chao frowned, but it wasn't out of sympathy for Ma Tang; he just thought he was being too noisy. "I came here to say hello. Are Chen Feng and Liang Yong, the two servants from the Imperial Stables, here?" Wei Chao asked.

"The Shandong silver, continue the investigation." After giving the order to the Chief Justice, Cui Wensheng replied to Wei Chao, "They're not here. To prevent collusion, the principal suspects are being held separately. We've arrested quite a few this time, and there's not enough space here, so they're in other cells." Cui Wensheng then asked, "Does His Majesty have any new instructions? How does he plan to deal with these two?"

"It's up to you how you deal with them. Just chase them until they're done with you. Just don't kill them." Wei Chao nodded and said, "Since they're not here, I'll make it clear. After the trial, take these two men to the Imperial Stables."

"After punishing and recovering the stolen goods, you still have to go back to work? That's the Imperial Stables that protect our master, His Majesty." Cui Wensheng asked in confusion.

"Of course not. The Imperial Stables have been replaced from top to bottom." Wei Chao paused for a moment to sort out his thoughts and said in one breath:
"Our Lord felt sorry for Old Ancestor Shang and wanted to give his two unfilial godsons a chance to live. He originally wanted you to interrogate them and send them to the Imperial Household Department for life. But Yang Songquan, Old Ancestor Shang's eldest son, said that only by killing them and putting their own relatives before their own can the shame of Old Ancestor Shang's misbehavior of his sons be avenged and he can live in peace. So he asked Old Ancestor Han to intercede with His Lordship to execute them. Finally, after careful consideration, His Lordship decided to send these two evil creatures to the Imperial Stables to wait for Old Ancestor Shang to deal with them himself. But the silver must be recovered. You must conduct a thorough interrogation and spare their lives."

"Okay. The executioners here are very capable and know how to handle things very well. We also have doctors ready to treat injuries at any time. It will be difficult for you to die." Cui Wensheng was very confident.

"You must be careful and never let them commit suicide again. Otherwise you will have a hard time explaining yourself." Wei Chao reminded kindly.

"I know," Cui Wensheng replied. If a prisoner was killed while recovering stolen goods, the most common accusation would be corruption. Generally speaking, as long as the crime wasn't too extreme, the emperor would turn a blind eye. But Cui Wensheng had recently been caught embezzling stolen money and nearly died under torture, so he was very sensitive to the situation. "Each cell is guarded by at least six people in four shifts, and there are constant patrols. They wouldn't even have time to bite their tongues and commit suicide."

"That's good." Wei Chao looked at Ma Tang, who was twisting and struggling on the execution platform. "You can crack some sunflower seeds. I'm going back to my work."

Wei Chao had been incredibly busy lately. On the day the East Factory arrested someone, he first led a team from the West Factory to defend the Ciqing Palace. After the protection was lifted, he had to return to deal with the backlog of memorials. While the Imperial Household Department technically had one eunuch holding the seal, three eunuchs holding pens, and four eunuchs with seals and pens, he and Wang An were the only two who officially exercised the power of approval by the Emperor. Remember, the cabinet had six people with similar responsibilities.

"Hey, wait a minute." Cui Wensheng stopped Wei Chao.

"What's wrong?" Wei Chao couldn't help but yawn when he thought about the pile of things he still had to do.

"It's nothing, I just want to treat you to a meal." The spies sent by Cui Wensheng have found Ke Yinyue, but after thinking about it, he still thinks it would be better to tell Wei Chao about Ke Yinyue after the New Year.

"Let's finish this busy period first." Wei Chao didn't doubt him, just shook his head and chuckled.

"Okay, let's talk about it after this busy period is over."

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With the emperor's full support, Xiong Tingbi didn't become "angry and depressed about leaving Liaodong" due to the factional strife between the Donglin Party and the Zhejiang, Chu, and Qi factions. Instead, he stabilized the situation in Liaodong, and the court even issued a notice urging Liaodong residents to return. As a result, by the time New Year arrived, the number of refugees gathered in and around Beijing and the northern Zhili region had significantly decreased. Thanks to the joint efforts of the Jinyiwei and the Imperial City Administration, public security in the capital was stabilized. The first year of the Tianqi reign, marked by suffering for both the government and the people, became the first year of the Taichang reign, marked by palace turmoil, court intrigue, and a peaceful people.

The first day of the first lunar month, the first year of Taichang.

"Your Majesty." Zhu Changluo vaguely heard a voice calling in his ear.

"Your Majesty." This time, Zhu Changluo felt a gentle push at the same time as he heard the voice.

"What time is it?" Zhu Changluo blinked his dry eyes and asked.

"6:15 am." The owner of the voice replied.

"Okay." Zhu Changluo stood up, kissed Li Qinfang on the forehead, and said, "Help me put on my clothes."

"Yeah." Li Qinfang's expression and voice were normal, but her blushing cheeks betrayed her. Fortunately, it was still dark and the candlelight was as bright as a firefly.

Zhengdan, also known as New Year's Day, was one of the three major festivals in Han society during the Ming Dynasty. On that day, all officials had a holiday.

The New Year's Day holiday during the Ming Dynasty was continually extended. In the early Ming Dynasty, Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang was extremely diligent, granting officials three days off annually: New Year's Day, the Winter Solstice, and Zhu Yuanzhang's own birthday. While it might appear that the New Year's Day holiday in the early Ming Dynasty was one day long, in reality, officials in Beijing didn't get a single day off. This was because they had to pay New Year's greetings to the emperor and perform a series of rituals, making their daily routines even more elaborate than those of the morning court session.

The holiday period then began to be extended. During the Jiajing reign, Tian Rucheng's "West Lake Travelogue" states, "Officials seal the gates on New Year's Eve and do not open them until the third day of the first lunar month." This means that from New Year's Eve to the third day of the first lunar month, there were four days in total. Excluding New Year's Day, there were three more days. During the Wanli reign, the holiday was extended again. The "Ming Hui Dian: Festivals and Holidays" states, "Every year on the first lunar month, starting on the first day, all civil and military officials shall have a five-day holiday." However, the tradition of sealing the gates on New Year's Eve did not disappear, so the theoretical holiday for officials and the emperor was extended from three to five days. During this period, both court officials and the common people engaged in lively celebrations and entertainment. Most importantly, of course, it reduced everyone's holiday by one day of court celebrations.

During the imperial court ceremony, the emperor would rise at five o'clock in the morning, burn incense and set off cannons before proceeding to the Huangji Hall to worship the heavens. This tradition began before the Jiajing Emperor's reign. At the beginning of the Jiajing Emperor's reign, the daily ceremony of worshipping the heavens was carried out in the palace, following the old rituals of the previous dynasty. Later, this practice was considered disrespectful and abolished. On New Year's Day, the Winter Solstice, and Christmas Day, the ceremony was performed on the steps of the Fengtian Hall. With the establishment of suburban sacrifices, the Winter Solstice ceremony was abolished. Only New Year's Day and Christmas Day were performed in the Xuanji Hall. On New Year's Day of the first year of the Longqing Emperor's reign, the emperor ordered the worship of the heavens to take place in the palace, without the need for external deacons.

In other words, the New Year's Day Heaven Worship Ceremony was a simplified version of the usual rituals, originally held in the Fengtian Hall. After the establishment of the suburban sacrifice system in the ninth year of the Jiajing reign, the New Year's Day Heaven Worship Ceremony was moved to the Xuanji Hall, a hall associated with Taoism. In the first year of the Longqing reign, the newly enthroned emperor abolished the New Year's Day Heaven Worship Ceremony in Xuanji Hall and moved it back to the palace. However, because Fengtian Hall had been burned down and rebuilt, renamed Huangji, by this time, the ceremony was held in Huangji Hall. This ritual system continued for over twenty years until the Wanli Emperor, who became lazy and abolished all major ceremonies, eliminating sacrifices, temples, and courts.

In order to change the emperor's lazy image in the minds of his subjects at home and abroad and to demonstrate his enterprising spirit, Zhu Changluo not only unprecedentedly rehabilitated the "criminals" of the Wanli period at the last court meeting in the 48th year of Wanli, but also decided to pick up all these rituals.

In state rituals, the emperor reigned supreme, but in family rituals, this was not the case. If the emperor had a living mother, biological mother, or grandmother, the first New Year's greeting would be to kneel at the palace of the Grand Empress Dowager or the Empress Dowager, paying their respects and wishing them a happy new year. However, the Wanli Emperor's reign was so long, forty-eight years, that all of these women, who were held above the emperor in family rituals, died. Therefore, Zhu Changluo could skip this ritual and proceed directly to the New Year's greetings.

Zhu Changluo, wearing a dragon robe and a golden dragon crown, set out from the Qianqing Palace, passing through Qianqing Gate, Jianji Hall, and Zhongji Hall, arriving at the Danbi of the Huangji Hall. By this time, the ceremonial procession was in place: the Jinyiwei (Emperor's Uniform Guard) displayed the procession to the east and west of the Danbi and Danchi, while the Jiaofangsi (Dictation Bureau) displayed the Grand Musical Instruments to the east and west of the Danbi and facing north. The Yilisi (Rites Department) set up the Tongwen Yubo (Yubo Bo) case to the east of the Danbi.

Immediately afterwards, the Huangji Gate opened, and the two princes, all officials in the capital, and envoys from Korea, Ryukyu, and the Atlantic vassal states, dressed in court robes, filed in from the left and right side doors. They arrived at the foot of the Danbi and stood in the order arranged by the Ministry of Rites. When the sound of footsteps subsided, Zhu Changluo turned and walked to the center of the Danchi, facing the Huangji Hall, lifted his robe, and knelt. All the officials also knelt with him.

Zhu Changluo, as the Son of Heaven, performed the solemn ceremony of kneeling three times and kowtowed nine times to the heavens. The officials also accompanied him, but in the entire square in front of the palace, only one voice could be heard:
"Taizu received a mandate from Heaven to establish the imperial cause. Chengzu revived the clan society and founded the world. Their virtues and achievements are worthy of heaven and earth! I revere them both with unwavering devotion. Now the imperial cause is failing, and the world is in decline. I pray to Heaven to grant great virtue, to glorify the Ming Dynasty, and to bring peace and prosperity to the nation and its people!"

After the ceremony, Zhu Changluo stood up and turned around, returning to the front of the Danbi to face the ministers. At this time, the officials who had been kneeling with him had already stood up.

"Kneel!" Xu Guangqi, the Minister of Rites and Minister of the Temple of Rites, shouted loudly.

"Kneel!" This order was passed down layer by layer by the Han generals.

"Happy New Year! Congratulations! Long live our emperor, long live him, long live the emperor!" Chinese and foreign officials, civil and military officials, all officials in Beijing bowed to the emperor and shouted "Long live the emperor".

"Happy New Year! Best wishes! Long live our emperor, long live him, long live the emperor!" Almost at the same time, outside Beijing, officials from major government offices across the country and princes from all over the country wore official uniforms and stood in the main hall of their respective government offices to pay their respects to the emperor from afar, performing the ceremony of "looking at the palace to offer congratulations from afar."

"The ceremony is over! Play the music!"

There were many rituals in the Ming Dynasty, and different rituals required different crowns and clothes. When worshiping heaven and earth, people often changed their clothes several times a day. However, when worshiping heaven and accepting congratulations from all officials on New Year's Day, they only needed to perform this ceremony and did not need to change clothes.

After returning from their visits to the imperial court or the imperial palace, officials in the capital and the provinces would exchange greetings, following the principles of hierarchy and performing the ritual of "New Year's greetings." For example, a student would kneel in congratulations to their teacher, and the teacher would simply bow in return. Officials without a teacher-student relationship would usually bow to each other.

After the New Year's greetings, officials filed out. They returned to visit relatives and friends, organizing and participating in traditional activities such as "dropping a thousand gold coins," "drinking pepper and cypress wine," and "eating dumplings." Sometimes, silver coins were wrapped inside flatbreads like dumplings, and if someone was lucky enough to eat one, it would herald good fortune for the coming year. After the New Year's Day ceremony, the palace would reward the eunuchs and palace maids with "good luck boxes" made primarily of dried persimmons, lychees, jujubes, chestnuts, and ripe dates, as a token of the emperor's care for his servants.

While folk ceremonies weren't as elaborate as the "Emperor's New Year greetings to Heaven, and all officials' New Year greetings to the Son of Heaven," the tedious ritual itself was essential. Sometimes, due to the pressure of traveling to various locations to pay New Year's greetings, citizens would resort to sending personal greeting cards to places where visiting in person was unnecessary. By the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty, the custom of sending personal greeting cards spread throughout major cities and towns nationwide, leading many to hang a red paper bag on their door with the owner's surname written on it. This was called a "door book" to receive personal greeting cards.

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When Lu Wenzhao left the Forbidden City and returned to his home in Fucaifang, his wife Hai Rou had already dressed and was ready to go back with her husband to pay New Year's greetings to her father Hai Zhentao.

"Husband!" Hai Rou greeted him enthusiastically. "Let's go."

"." Lu Wenzhao's heart tightened. He hadn't told Hai Rou yet that he was going to take a concubine.

"Husband?" Hai Rou was a very perceptive woman. Therefore, she immediately noticed that something was wrong with her husband. "Husband, what's wrong with you? I feel like you've been absent-minded these past few days." Hai Rou asked with a gentle smile.

"There's something I've been holding back for days, and I think it's best to tell you now," Lu Wenzhao decided to confront. He could have waited until he visited the Hai family for New Year's greetings, waiting for Hai Zhentao to bring it up. In this situation, she wouldn't even have the right to interrupt, and would have been forced to maintain a graceful demeanor to demonstrate her Hai family upbringing. But Lu Wenzhao felt that this was too harsh on her.

"Let's talk on the way." Hai Rou frowned slightly, and her woman's instinct gave her an ominous premonition.

"It's like this, Rou'er. If, I mean if..." Lu Wenzhao let out a long sigh and said, "If I want to take a concubine, do you agree?"

"You want to take a concubine?" The smile on Hai Rou's face froze all of a sudden.

　Happy New Year, comrades.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)