I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

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Chapter 666 Qingdeng's Conferment Ceremony! [4300]

The Ministry of War, which oversees all the military forces in the country, and the Grand Chancellor of the Ministry of War, who is responsible for supervising all the documents and archives of the ministry... It sounds impressive at first glance, but it's just a fancy name.

In Japan under the rule of the shogunate, it was truly unnecessary to discuss the specific duties and actual power of court officials.

The daily necessities of the Emperor and court nobles in Kyoto depended on the support of the shogunate and various feudal domains.

They have none of the following: military power, financial power, and governing power.

With such a court, what kind of Ministry of War is there to speak of?

If there isn't a single soldier under its command, what power does this Ministry of War have?

Simply put, these official positions in the Kyoto Imperial Court were basically honorary titles.

Some official positions are hereditary and can be passed down indefinitely.

The high-ranking officials held various important official positions according to their family's social standing.

For example, the person appointed as the Grand Minister of State had to be a court noble from one of the Five Regent Houses (Konoe, Kujo, Takatsukasa, Nijo, and Ichijo) or the Seika House (Kuga, Sanjo, Saionji, Tokudaiji, Kazanin, Ooi-Mikado, Imadegawa, Daigo, and Hirohata).

Some daimyo of vassal states could also obtain hereditary official positions.

For example, the lords of the Aizu Domain were granted the title of Junior Fifth Rank, Upper Higo Governor through generations.

Under the shogunate's careful manipulation, the official positions in the imperial court had neither real power nor specific benefits.

It serves no purpose other than making your name more famous.

Qingdeng's title of "Grand Vice Minister of War" was a completely useless honorary title.

The positions of Minister of War, Grand Assistant Minister of War, and Junior Assistant Minister of War above him are all vacant, waiting for someone to make a great contribution in the future so that these official positions can be awarded to them.

From a utilitarian perspective, official positions in the imperial court were indeed utterly useless.

However, if judged by the values ​​of this era, being granted an official position by the imperial court was an immense honor.

Firstly, influenced by the Zunpu Movement, the political status of the Kyoto court was strengthened on an epic scale, and the value of court positions also increased significantly.

Secondly, driven by historical inertia, people have a special "filter" when it comes to official positions in the imperial court.

Since the Heian period, before any important figure could accomplish something significant—such as usurping power—they always had to obtain the approval of the Kyoto court.

The most typical example is Toyotomi Hideyoshi at the end of the Sengoku period.

Not just any Tom, Dick, or Harry could establish a shogunate.

In theory, only members of the samurai aristocracy (of the Minamoto or Taira clans) could serve as Shogun and subsequently establish the shogunate.

The Ashikaga family (Genji) that founded the Muromachi Shogunate, and the Tokugawa family (Genji) that founded the Edo Shogunate, are examples of this.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi came from a poor peasant family.

His relationship with the samurai aristocracy was like Kaspersky's relationship with Pakistan—it was a Kaspersky-Pakistani relationship.

Therefore, he was naturally ineligible for the position of General of the Expedition.

So he took a different approach.

After unifying Japan, he changed his surname to Fujiwara as the adopted son of Konoe Sakihisa, became the Kanpaku (regent) and concurrently served as the Grand Minister of State. Later, he was granted the surname Toyotomi by the Emperor and established the Toyotomi regime.

[Note: Kanpaku: An official position outside the legal system, equivalent to the Chancellor in the Tang Dynasty. It was not a position held by the Grand Councilor, but rather an official position created during the Heian period as a regency, and later became an honorary title.]

Over time, this became a political convention—to achieve great things, one must first be granted an official position by the imperial court, that is, to gain the court's recognition and support.

This is similar to the abdication ceremony in ancient China. Although it was all just a show, with a group of people pretending to act, it was still an essential part of the process.

Therefore, in the minds of most people in the Edo period, obtaining an official position in the imperial court was a full affirmation of one's social status and personal abilities.

Just like in ancient China, in ancient Japan, if someone held the official rank of XX department, they would be given the respectful title of "XX department".

For example, Du Fu, who once held the official position of Assistant Minister of Works, was honored with the title "Minister Du".

In other words, from then on, Qing Deng had a new honorific title—Tachibana Heibu.

In accordance with the prevailing custom that "official positions in the imperial court are more prestigious than those in the shogunate," the honorific title "Tachibana no Hyōbu" would be superior to titles such as "Lord Tachibana" or "Lord Niō."

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, until he steps down as Vice Minister of War, officials will refer to Aoto as "Minister of War Orange".

The rank of the Vice Minister of War is the sixth rank, which is not high, but it is not low either, and it is in line with Qing Deng's current status and achievements.

After all, Qingdeng is not yet a daimyo, so it would be inappropriate for him to obtain an excessively high official position.

Official positions of the sixth rank and above were generally held by high-ranking officials and powerful lords of vassal states.

In other words, Qingdeng would have to become a powerful regional daimyo in order to obtain a higher-ranking official position.

And that goal... is not far off!

Qingdeng's original salary was 5220 shi (a unit of dry measure).

Now that another 3000 koku have been added, the total is now 8220 koku.

During the Edo period, the status of a family with a stipend of 10,000 koku was a watershed moment.

Below the ten thousand koku are ordinary samurai who can only receive a fixed salary.

Above the ten thousand koku... is a true daimyo who possesses his own autonomous territory and can appoint his own subordinates!

When that time comes, Qingdeng will have truly reached the realm that countless warriors throughout history have dreamed of—becoming the lord of a city and a region!

……

……

Unlike in the past, Aoto had only received honors from the shogunate before.

This time, because he was granted an official position by the imperial court, according to the established rites, Qing Deng would personally go to the imperial palace to receive the official appointment.

Imperial Palace - the emperor's palace.

The official appointment ceremony is scheduled for April 18.

In principle, the court would not hold a grand celebration for someone who was merely granted a sixth-rank official position.

However, Qing Deng's current social status and political power are so extraordinary that they cannot be measured by ordinary rules and common sense.

Therefore, after considering the practical conditions and various factors, the imperial court made an unprecedented decision to hold a grand and unprecedented ceremony to confer official titles upon Qingdeng.

At that time, the current emperor, a number of key ministers of the imperial court, and high-ranking retainers of the shogunate stationed in Kyoto—such as Matsudaira Katamori and others—would all attend in full regalia.

Since they were to enter the palace to meet the emperor, they naturally had to be treated with great ceremony.

On this day, Qingdeng wore his most formal official attire for the first time.

Samurai formal attire (裃) and court attire are not the same thing.

Qingdeng always thought the former was incredibly ugly, lacking in detail and aesthetics, with protrusions on its shoulders like scapulae, making it look like a giant flying cockroach.

In comparison, official formal attire is much more attractive and sophisticated.

After all, the prototype of official attire was the official robes of the Tang Dynasty.

For this reason, its form has a strong Tang style.

Time flies... and before we know it, April 18th has arrived.

Before dawn, Qingdeng crawled out of bed to make essential preparations for today's official appointment ceremony.

The way official formal attire is worn is particularly complex; it is absolutely impossible for one person to put it on alone.

Things like putting on a crown or tightening a belt all require the help of others.

Among all the newly formed troupe members, only Sanako, from an exceptional family, knows how to wear official court attire.

Left with no other choice, Aoto had to ask Sanako for help.

At first, Sanako was somewhat reluctant.

She pouted and muttered, "What a hassle..." Actually, she was just shy about helping Qingdeng get dressed.

There's really nothing to be ashamed of.

Qingdeng wasn't naked. Before putting on his official uniform, he would definitely wear a white undershirt first, so there was nothing impure about him.

If it were the commander, he would have helped Qing Deng get dressed without even blinking.

However, in the eyes of Sanako, who is conservative and values ​​chastity above all else, "men wearing undergarments" and "naked men" are the same thing.

It took Qing Deng a lot of effort to barely get Sanako to suppress her shame and timidly tiptoe into his room.

And so, with Sanako's help, Aoto finally managed to change into his brand-new court attire—

He wore a black crown with black tassels on his head, held an ivory tablet in his hand, wore a black straight robe, white trousers, and a belt adorned with gold and silver.

[Note: *Hu*: A narrow, elongated tablet held by officials when they met with their ruler in ancient times. Made of materials such as jade or ivory, its use varied according to rank, and it was used for recording information. *Zhichui*: A type of garment consisting of a top and skirt, with a cross-collar, wide triangular sleeves, and a belt at the chest.]

At 6 a.m., the imperial envoys appeared on time.

They came to welcome Qingdeng in a luxurious sedan chair.

The imperial sedan chair was no different from an ordinary sedan chair except that it was more ornate in appearance and had more people to carry it.

They carried it like a coffin, with a thick, long log and a sedan chair hanging below it.

Leaving aside the fact that Japanese people are generally short, the interior of the palanquin was not very spacious.

Qingdeng never crawled into the sedan chair; he always squeezed in.

He had to hunch his shoulders, bend over, and bury his head to squeeze himself into the sedan chair.

Once inside the sedan chair, he had to remain completely still; if he raised his head or stretched out his arm, he would surely bump or stumble.

Therefore, Qingdeng hated riding in a sedan chair.

Every time he rode in a sedan chair, he felt extremely uncomfortable. He would rather walk than stay in the sedan chair for even a second longer.

However, the imperial envoys would certainly not grant Qingdeng's request.