Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 403 Two Rites in Parallel
"Come here." After transcribing the last word, Xu Guangqi's request for rectification of the national version was completed.

Although this memorial begins with a discussion of gifts for the birth of an imperial daughter, the entire text is devoted to the importance of appointing a crown prince as the legitimate heir to the throne. It can be said that the birth of an imperial daughter is merely a prelude to the appointment of a crown prince, and is not important in itself.

Earlier this year, Xu Guangqi submitted a petition requesting a grand enthronement ceremony to restore public confidence. The reply he received was: "There are many ceremonies to be performed, and the imperial examinations are imminent, so the ceremony should be postponed for now."

While the rituals—reporting to heaven and earth, announcing the ancestors, receiving congratulations, and attending the imperial court—were not complex and could be completed in a single day, following a strict timetable, the necessary costumes, utensils, and rehearsals did require considerable effort to prepare, making them unsuitable for co-ordination with the imperial examination. Furthermore, the emperor had approved the Ministry of Rites' budget. Therefore, the court and the people accepted this arrangement, and no one interfered or urged them to do so.

Now that the most tedious and crucial joint examination in the Enke exam is over, it is time to put the enthronement ceremony on the agenda. Even if Xu Guangqi does not mention it, the people from the Rites Department will bring it up. If they take the initiative to speak, they will surely curse Xu Guangqi in their memorials, saying that he is just sitting in an office and doing nothing. As the Minister of Rites, he does not care about the fundamental rites of the country at all. It is better for him to retire and return home as soon as possible.

"What orders does the minister have?" The bailiff came over.

"Send this memorial to the Ministry of Internal Affairs." Xu Guangqi handed the transcribed memorial to the yamen runner and said, "Call Xu Yizhi and Xiong Ciji."

Xu Yizhi was also known as Xu Mo, a doctor in the Ministry of Rites's Department of Ceremonial Affairs. Xiong Ciji was also known as Xiong Wencan, a doctor in the Ministry of Rites' Department of Ceremonial Affairs. These two officials were indispensable in the preparation and organization of national ceremonies.

"Yes." The bailiff walked quickly towards the gatehouse with the memorial.

The yamen runner quickly delivered the memorial to the office in the front yard and handed it to the ninth-rank clerk in the office who was responsible for receiving and sending documents. Then he ran to the second yard to look for Xu Mo and Xiong Wencan.

Just as Xu Guangqi was holding up his head and waiting for the two people to come over, a familiar face suddenly appeared in his sight.

When he saw that face, Xu Guangqi instinctively turned his head to the side and averted his gaze, but the next moment, he deliberately straightened his posture and sat upright, staring at the gradually approaching figure.

"Your humble servant, Johann Adam Schall von Bell, is here to greet Minister Xu." Schall von Bell performed the ceremony meticulously.

"What are you doing here?" Xu Guangqi didn't approach him too closely, but instead assumed a businesslike demeanor and asked, "Shouldn't you be working at the Imperial Observatory right now?"

"I've come here to apologize for the commotion at the entrance to the Imperial Examination Hall." Johann Adam Schall von Bell bowed again. "I'm sorry for being so reckless and causing trouble for you, Your Excellency."

Xu Guangqi's eyes flickered, and after a long silence, he let out a long sigh. "I understand that worry can lead to confusion. Since the emperor has already punished you, I don't blame you."

As they were talking, Xu Mo and Xiong Wencan came over together.

"Wait a moment. I have something important to do here." Seeing the two people coming, Xu Guangqi immediately cut off the conversation without any hesitation and made a swiping gesture to Johann Adam Schall von Bell, indicating him to stand next to him.

"Yes." Johann Adam Schall von Bell quickly stepped aside.

Xu Guangqi collected himself and said to Xu Mo and Xiong Wencan, "I have just submitted a memorial requesting the restoration of the imperial court. There are many things that need to be prepared."

Upon hearing this, the two of them were startled. Only Johann Adam Schall von Bell stood there blankly. He didn't know how heavy the word "foundation of the country" was for the officials of the Wanli Dynasty.

Xu Mo asked, "Minister, should the ceremony of coming of age be held first, or after the enthronement?" The age for the ceremony of coming of age is usually twelve or fifteen. The eldest prince had already passed the age of coming of age last year. However, he was busy with other things at that time and had not been able to attend to it.

"I proposed in my memorial that the enthronement ceremony and the coming-of-age ceremony be held together," Xu Guangqi replied.

Xu Mo's eyes widened, and he asked in confusion, "How can we hold both events together?"

"The capping ceremony was inserted into the enthronement ceremony," Xu Guangqi explained.
"The capping ceremony is relatively simple. It only needs to be performed in the ancestral temple and the ancestors are informed. The enthronement ceremony also includes a part of the ancestral worship, so I think it is entirely possible to cap the child first and then inform the ancestors of the capping and enthronement ceremony at the same time."

"This way, we can shorten the total time spent on the three national rituals and save on the overall cost of the ceremony. Because if the ceremony of capping is integrated into the ceremony of enthronement, there will be no need to prepare a separate banquet for the ceremony, nor will there be a need to use ceremonial guards twice, and the cap, belt and robes can also be the same set."

Xu Guangqi estimated that by carrying out the two rituals simultaneously, it should be possible to save several thousand or even tens of thousands of taels of silver.

As for the source of the funds, Xu Guangqi planned a two-pronged approach. He initially avoided discussing who would spend the money, stating only that it would save money. If the emperor directly approved, he would tentatively propose using the treasury. If the emperor did not want to use the imperial treasury, he would consult with the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works, requesting that they join him in submitting a joint petition to postpone the enfeoffment of Prince Rui, Prince Hui, and Prince Gui, as well as the remarriage of Prince Gui. He would then withdraw funds from the Ministry of Revenue's Taicang Treasury, the Ministry of Works' Jishen Treasury, and the Guanglu Temple's silver treasury.

Anyway, the eldest, Prince Rui, was thirty-one, and the youngest, Prince Gui, was twenty-four. They had lived in the Ten Princes' Palace for so many years, and for the sake of the country's foundation, staying a few more days wouldn't be a big deal. After all, there were priorities, and how could a prince's enfeoffment compare to being the head of state?

"Will this work?" Xiong Wencan asked.

"Why not? Just add one more word to the memorial. It's already too late." Xu Guangqi said.

"The main thing is whether the emperor is willing?" Xu Mo asked again.

"I don't know," Xu Guangqi shook his head. "First, I'll prepare according to the enthronement ceremony process. If it's rejected, I'll submit a separate petition for enthronement."

"Yes." The two replied.

Xu Guangqi continued, "What are the procedures? What equipment is needed? Who should be involved? How much will it cost based on past practices and today's prices? Come up with a plan as soon as possible."

"Yes." Xu Mo agreed directly. Xiong Wencan asked, "Excuse me, Minister, which year's old rules should be followed?"

"Of course it is the old precedent from the second year of Longqing." Xu Guangqi calculated according to this example when he reported the budget of the Ministry of Rites at the imperial financial meeting. However, at that time he only reported the expenditure of that year and did not take into account the current prices.

"Minister," Xiong Wencan said, "I think the old rules of the second year of the Longqing reign are inappropriate to use as a reference."

Xu Guangqi asked, "Do you want to follow the recent precedent of the 29th year of Wanli?" The recent precedent of the 29th year of Wanli was the example of enthroning the current emperor as the crown prince.

"I think the recent precedent in the 29th year of Wanli is not good either." Xiong Wencan bowed and shook his head.

"Why?" Xu Guangqi pretended to listen patiently.

"Going back to the Ministry," Xiong Wencan explained. "First, let's talk about the recent precedent of the 29th year of the Wanli reign. Not only was the enthronement ceremony held in that year, but the three kings were also conferred titles simultaneously. Even without mentioning the fact that the parallelization of these two ceremonies blurred the priorities and disrupted the order of seniority, it was truly inappropriate. Furthermore, combining these two ceremonies made it difficult to carefully calculate the costs of the enthronement."

"Yes, that's true," Xu Guangqi nodded. He had previously chosen to follow the Longqing precedent over the Wanli precedent for this very reason. "Then why is the precedent from the second year of the Longqing reign inconvenient?" "Because the late emperor was only six years old when he was enthroned as Crown Prince, many of the ceremonies were necessarily simplified. The eldest son is now sixteen, so if we follow this precedent, there might be some inconsistencies," Xiong Wencan replied.

Xu Guangqi shook his head and laughed, "According to what you said, there is no example in this dynasty that can be compared to it."

If we go by age, the best precedent for enthroning Zhu Youxiao was his father's. To be honest, Grandfather Wanli was truly awkward. He waited until his eldest son was nineteen to appoint a crown prince. After the birth of his eldest grandson, he didn't appoint a crown prince. He also refused to crown anyone when he reached the required age, and even forbade him from leaving the palace to study. Only when he was nearing death did he write in his will: "The eldest grandson should be enthroned and enrolled in school promptly." He essentially dragged out all the formalities until now.

"Yes." Xiong Wencan replied.

"What year is it from?" Xu Guangqi asked.

"Follow the example of the ancestor, according to the 22nd year of Yongle, when Emperor Renzong enthroned Emperor Xuanzong." Xiong Wencan said.

"Xuanzong was already 25 years old when he was enthroned," said Xu Guangqi.

"Yes," Xiong Wencan replied, "Although Emperor Xuanzong was already over the age limit when he received the imperial decree, he was already grown and strong. His situation is similar to that of the eldest prince. It's even better than the example of the second year of the Longqing reign. Furthermore, I have checked the old rituals of the Ministry of Rites, and the ceremony for the emperor receiving the imperial decree was probably modeled after them."

Xu Guangqi was silent for a moment, then said, "Since that's the case, let's follow the examples of Emperor Renzong and Emperor Muzong and draft a set of regulations for each. Once His Majesty approves the Ministry of Rites' request, we'll submit them together for His Majesty's approval."

"Yes." Xiong Wencan and Xu Mo both responded.

After saying this, Xu Guangqi looked at Xu Mo again and said, "The palace examination will be held in half a month. Xu Yizhi, you have to bring out the rules for the palace examination as soon as possible."

Compared to the joint examination, the palace examination was more of a grand ceremony. And grand ceremonies are often complicated. From pre-entry searches, to which gate the examinees entered through, to how they moved once inside, to the specific drums and music used throughout the process, to the deadlines for each step to be completed—all of these things were regulated and arranged.

Drafting the regulations was only the beginning. After the regulations were finalized, the Ministry of Rites would communicate with other government offices and wait for them to select officials for the palace examination. Once this was complete, the Ministry of Rites would submit a memorial to the emperor detailing the procedures and candidates. After the emperor's approval, the officials participating in the palace examination would gather at the Ministry of Rites to rehearse the entire process to ensure it was foolproof. In short, it was quite a hassle.

"Yes." Xu Mo replied.

"I want to see your draft before the court ends tomorrow at the latest," Xu Guangqi added.

"Yes." Xu Mo sighed in his heart: I have to stay up late again.

"Go ahead." Xu Guangqi waved his hand.

"I'll take my leave." Xiong Wencan and Xu Mo bowed and walked out.

Until the two left, Xu Guangqi did not mention anything about celebrating the birth of the princess.

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"Tell me, what do you want from me?" Xu Guangqi waited until Xiong Wencan and Xu Mo had completely disappeared from his sight before turning to look at Johann Adam Schall von Bell. "Don't tell me you're here just to apologize."

This was the first time Tang Ruowang had seen Xu Guangqi at work, and he couldn't help but feel even more awe. "May I ask how much Xu Butang knows about the Jesuits?" he asked cautiously.

Xu Guangqi rubbed his brows and replied, "What you know, I know. What you don't know, I also know."

"So the emperor summoned Xu Butang into the palace for this matter?" Tang Ruowang asked again.

"You're quite well-informed," Xu Guangqi smiled silently and asked, "Can you tell me where you found out about my entry into the palace?"

"I didn't ask. I asked for half a day's leave from the supervisor in advance and accompanied Brother Chuyang to the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall to see the list. I also wanted to see you by the way." Tang Ruowang replied.

"I see." Xu Guangqi nodded slightly, but his tone became even more hostile. "So it was Sun Yuanhua who wrote it for you?"

Tang Ruowang was visibly stunned. "Yes, my memorial was indeed written by Brother Chuyang. But how did you know that?"

"Because I taught him calligraphy!" Xu Guangqi was clearly a little displeased. "Tell me, why did you want to drag him into this?"

Xu Guangqi's serious tone made Tang Ruowang panic a little. He hurriedly said, "Minister, please listen to my explanation. This is not the case. On the day of the accident, I was panicked and went to the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall to look for you. The Jinyiwei stopped me outside and would not let me in. In despair, I sat on the ground and cried. It was Brother Chuyang who took me away from the scene. I was penniless and had nowhere to go. It was he who took me in and provided me with shelter and food."

"So," Xu Guangqi smiled bitterly and shook his head, but his tone softened somewhat. "He brought this upon himself?"

"This..." Tang Ruowang didn't notice the softening of Xu Guangqi's tone, but only heard the underlying meaning. He couldn't help but feel a lump in his throat and said, "I will move out after I receive next month's salary."

"You may not be able to move back until the day you get your salary," said Xu Guangqi.

"This..." Tang Ruowang immediately became nervous. "Is the case closed?"

"It should be soon. At most, we'll have to go to the Dali Temple and go through the case file review process." Xu Guangqi sighed, and the brows that had just been smoothed began to frown again. "But it's just a formality. The Left Censor-in-Chief, the Left Assistant Censor-in-Chief, and the thirteen Supervisory Censors will jointly submit a memorial. The nature of this case has been determined. Tang Guanzheng, you should know this better than I do."

"Yes," Tang Ruowang nodded. "I was called in by the Censorate and have been involved in translation since the beginning."

"Can you tell me why Xiantai is willing to let you participate?" Xu Guangqi asked.

"I am borrowing the majesty of His Majesty." Johann Adam Schall von Bell simply recounted his mission to the Censorate.

After hearing this, Xu Guangqi's face lit up with a hint of realization. "That's not surprising, that's not surprising! This was originally meant to be a reward for you."

(End of this chapter)