I served as an admonisher in the Song Dynasty

Chapter 319: After being promoted to a commoner, you should perform the ritual of "quitting the day"!

The third day of April.

The Prospecting Department was officially established.

The overseas mining team has also been formed and will set off from Quanzhou Port in the near future.

Because of the mobilization of troops and the use of firearms, the imperial court assigned the ore prospecting department to the Privy Council.

It was under the direct control of Zeng Gongliang, deputy envoy to the Privy Council.

Business in Ju City in the southern suburbs is booming day by day. In order to meet the needs of the people, the game has been changed from one game every five days to one every three days, and the number of Cuju teams has also increased to ten.

Other parties are also busy preparing to set up Cuju courts and teams. It is expected that the Song Dynasty Cuju League will be officially launched in the second half of the year.

At the same time as the tea introduction method is implemented.

The imperial court also made improvements in selling salt, wine, spices and other items, and the commercial taxes collected increased by nearly 30% compared with the past.

at the same time.

Su Liang was very sad.

Su Liang and Cao Yan comforted Bi Sheng's family.

Bi Sheng, the master of Baijia Academy and the inventor of movable type printing, passed away at the age of eighty.

He walks vigorously and energetically, and his words are obviously much better.

Sometimes when I meet the chief officials of some small yamen, they will also say: If you are short of money, just talk, the court is not short of money! "

The next day, afternoon.

The Jinzouyuandi newspaper, newspapers in various state capitals and folk tabloids printed in Bianjing City can have this effect.

The two had no choice but to give up.

Immediately he and Uncle Cao Yi went to Bi Sheng's home in the north of the city to express their condolences.

Su Liang was drinking tea in the house when he suddenly heard an urgent voice coming from outside.

The sun is shining and the weather is getting hotter.

However, I also admire this kind of craftsman who only does one thing in his life.

This incident was too sudden for them.

Bi Sheng's wife Li, as well as Bi Sheng's four sons and three grandsons, were all dressed in plain silk and looked sad.

Poetry albums, essays, almanacs and other books with a small number of words sold in street bookstores and book stalls are all printed with movable type.

The entire Song Dynasty was immersed in a strong business atmosphere.

"Su Yushi, help me quickly. This Wang Jiefu is really stubborn, like a stubborn donkey. I can't communicate with him!"

……

At this age, it can almost be considered a joy or a loss, but it is a bit unexpected.

Unexpectedly, Wang Anshi and Sima Guang got there first.

More than ten big businessmen in Bianjing City also rushed to the border between the Song Dynasty and Dali to do business. With the secret help of the imperial court, the business was naturally booming.

During the three years at Baijia College, he studied movable type printing intensively and tried many types of movable type including wood, tin, copper, lead, clay, etc., constantly improving the efficiency of book printing.

Su Liang and Cao Yi originally planned to cover all Bi Sheng's funeral expenses. In addition, Su Liang also planned to write an epitaph for Bi Sheng to show their respect.

After calculating this year's estimated income, Wang Yaochen, the Third Chief of Staff, became very determined.

Although Bi Sheng is a commoner.

Bi Sheng had made great contributions to Baijia College, so Su Liang would not treat his family poorly.

He also promised that Baijia College would be responsible for all the living expenses of everyone in the Bi family.

Bi Sheng deserves at least 70% of the credit.

Su Liang and Bi Sheng didn't have many interactions.

The seventh day of April.

But in the book printing industry of the Song Dynasty, he was regarded as a master, and he was destined to leave his name in history.

……

Wang Anshi and Sima Guang have collected the money, and the epitaph has been written and has begun to be engraved.

Bi Sheng was invited to Qizhou by Wang Anshi and Sima Guang, so the relationship between the three of them was naturally extraordinary.

not far away.

Bi Sheng came to Baijia College on the recommendation of Wang Anshi.

present.

Bi Sheng was still studying movable type at Baijia College yesterday, but this morning, he suddenly passed away in his dream.

Su Liang suddenly heard bad news.

Yushitai, inside the courtyard.

Inside Bi's house.

Before Su Liang could stand up.

A chubby figure appeared in front of him.

Su Liang smiled and said: "Xu Siqing, which wind brought you here? Drink tea, drink tea."

This middle-aged man is Xu Qianyou, the minister of Taichang Temple, who is mainly responsible for various ritual matters in the Song Dynasty.

"Jing Ming, I never thought there could be such a stubborn person in the world. That Wang Anshi is driving me crazy. You... go and persuade him!"

"What exactly happened? Tell me slowly." Su Liang motioned for Xu Qianyou to sit down.

Immediately, Xu Qianyou told the details of what happened.

The cause of the matter is——

Wang Anshi wrote a biography of Bi Sheng's life and deeds and submitted it to Taichang Temple. He implored the court to honor Bi Sheng's funeral as an official and to break the usual rules and to stay away from court for a day.

After Xu Qianyou saw the job description, he immediately rejected it on the grounds that it was "not in line with etiquette."

This kind of matter must be reviewed by the Taichang Temple ritual officer before it can be handed over to Zhongshu.

Then it will be reviewed by the officials.

If Taichang Temple does not pass the review, then the deed will not be able to appear in front of Zhongshu and officials.

That is, if the initial review is rejected, there will be no re-examination and final review.

In such matters, the etiquette officials have considerable say.

After Wang Anshi was rejected, he went to Xu Qianyou to reason with him.

He talked about Bi Sheng's important role in the printing of books and the dissemination of knowledge in the Song Dynasty, and that the court could not treat such people who had contributed to the court poorly...

Wang Anshi kept talking.

Even when Xu Qianyou went to the toilet, he didn't let him go.

If Xu Qianyou disagrees, he will always pester him.

Wang Anshi's mouth can be said to have iron teeth and bronze teeth. Anyone who listens to it for half an hour will be a little overwhelmed.

If the Third Division hadn't summoned Wang Anshi temporarily for something, I'm afraid Xu Qianyou would still be listening to Wang Anshi's long speech! "

Xu Qianyou knew that Wang Anshi was more convinced of Su Liang, so he went to find him.

"Isn't this nonsense? Only third-rank officials in our dynasty can enjoy the treatment of missing the imperial court for a day, and Bi Sheng is just a commoner. It is really not in line with etiquette!"

present.

The funeral rituals of the scholar-bureaucrats in the Song Dynasty were as follows: civil and military officials of the first and second grades were mourned for two days; civil and military officials of the third grade were mourned for one day.

Some higher-ranking clan princes will be absent from court for five or seven days due to mourning.

For example: Zhao Yuanyan, King of Jing, who died in the fourth year of Qingli, was absent from the court for five days.

After Su Liang finished listening.

I immediately understood what Wang Anshi was thinking.

Wang Anshi believed that Bi Sheng was more beneficial to the country and the people than some scholar-bureaucrats, and the court should give him the treatment of "waiting for a day".

After Su Liang thought for a while, he looked at Xu Qianyou.

"Xu Siqing, to be honest, I also think Master Bi is qualified to enjoy the treatment of 'stopping from working for a day'."

As the master of Baijia College, Bi Sheng taught movable type printing.

Su Liang always respected him as Master Bi.

Hearing this, Xu Qianyou frowned. "Jingming, I strictly follow the etiquette of the Song Dynasty to do my work. I was promoted to a commoner, and I am just a carver. It is impossible for me to hand over this deed to Zhongshu. If you insist on doing so, you can report it directly to the officials! "

Xu Qianyou has always pursued rigor in matters of etiquette.

Su Liang smiled and said: "Xu Siqing, let's do this. I won't let Wang Jiefu bother you for now. After three days, you will decide whether to submit this letter of deed to Zhongshu according to the situation."

Xu Qianyou was stunned.

"In three days, can you make this matter in line with etiquette?"

Su Liang smiled slightly: "Everything is possible, just give it a try!"

……

Half an hour later.

Su Liang appeared in front of Wang Anshi.

Wang Anshi's mouth was like a bursting river, gushing endlessly.

"Brother Jingming, the engraving industry began in the Tang Dynasty and flourished in this era. He was the master of movable type printing. Bi Fuzi is an extraordinary commoner. He is a master in the book printing industry. His contribution to the country and the people far exceeds the average three-grade printing in our dynasty. Officials should deal with special matters. I beg the court to stop working for a day, and I have already stopped talking..."

Wang Anshi finished in one breath the reasons why he insisted that the court should "abstain from the court for one day" for Bi Sheng.

Su Liang nodded.

"Jiefu, I understand, I think you did the right thing!"

Wang Anshi couldn't help but be overjoyed when he saw Su Liang recognized him.

"Brother Jingming, how about we write a memorial immediately and petition the officials directly?"

Su Liang shook his head slightly.

"Even if we convince the officials, the ceremony officials of Taichang Temple do not agree, and this matter will still be difficult to implement!"

"Then...then...then...what should I do? Xu Qianyou, the minister of Taichang Temple, is very stubborn and always refuses me because this matter is not in line with etiquette!" Wang Anshi looked helpless.

At this time.

Su Liang asked: "Jiefu, have you ever thought about why the ceremony officials disagreed?"

"It's not in line with etiquette!"

Su Liang shook his head and said: "There are things that are not in line with etiquette in our court. For example, when Zhang Guifei was appointed, she was almost on the same level as the Queen's ceremonial guard. There was also the car driven by Prime Minister Xia, which has always been the standard of the Prime Minister. Officials And the etiquette officials all turned a blind eye..."

"Then why?"

"Because scholar-officials have the dignity of scholar-officials, or in other words, vanity!"

"Vanity?"

"Let's apply to the officials now. The officials may agree, but if this matter reaches the court, a large number of officials will definitely stand up to object. The reason for their opposition is that the unique honor that belongs to scholar-bureaucrats has been given to As a commoner, they are ashamed to associate with Mr. Bi!"

"Only if we make them feel honored to be associated with Master Bi, will the resistance to this matter be minimized."

"You and I both know about Bi Fuzi's achievements, but the people in Bianjing don't know it. Some even don't know the name of the inventor of movable type printing. We need to raise Bi Fuzi's identity first. I suggest that we don't need to find Xu Fuzi first. Temple Minister, there is no need to report to the officials, we start from the streets of Bianjing..."

"I understand!" Wang Anshi nodded with excitement.

……

Early the next morning.

A long article of about 6,000 words, "A Book of Mourning for Confucius," spread on the streets of Bianjing City.

The author of this article is Wang Anshi.

Wang Anshi is a master at writing long articles. His articles are always written quickly, long and well.

In this article, he described in detail the impact of Bi Sheng's movable type printing on book publishing and academic communication throughout the Song Dynasty, and listed many details of Bi Sheng's production of movable type.

For a time, the people on the streets of Bianjing City exploded.

It's like discovering a treasure.

This is a story of "little people, big achievements", and people are willing to tell this story.

Bookstall vendors, bookshop keepers, tabloid writers, engravers, copywriters and many other people engaged in book printing and selling all went to Bi Zhai to express their condolences to Bi Sheng.

These people were not organized by Su Liang or Cao Yi.

It was completely spontaneous.

Bi Sheng's movable type printing technology allowed book sellers to abandon those huge book editions that were bulky, piled up, difficult to keep, and time-consuming and laborious to write.

Especially for small booksellers who print hundreds of copies, costs are continuously reduced and efficiency is improved.

Bi Sheng made them money, and after they knew who their benefactor was, they were naturally grateful.

On that day, there was a crowd of people in front of Bi Zhai's door.

Influenced by the "Book of Mourning for Master Bi", the common people also called Bi Sheng Bi Master.

For a while.

Mourning Master Bi has become something that countless literati should do.

On the streets and alleys, people were discussing this matter.

It is almost a supreme honor for a carver to be called Master.

This matter naturally spread to the court.

At this time, Bi Sheng was no longer an ordinary engraver in the publicity, but a master who invented movable type printing.

Even Fan Zhongyan, Ouyang Xiu, Song Xiang and other ministers went to Bi Zhai to mourn Bi Sheng.

……

At this time, inside Taichang Temple.

Xu Qianyou, the minister of Taichang Temple, looked at the deeds written by Wang Anshi and couldn't help but think of Su Liang's words.

The real reason for his refusal.

In fact, a commoner should not enjoy the same treatment as a scholar-official.

This is the hidden rule of the court.

The high status of scholar-bureaucrats and officials must be ensured.

But this moment.

He didn't think Bi Sheng was no longer qualified.

If this matter comes to pass, it will become a good talk. This good talk may even leave Xu Qianyou's name in history.

Immediately.

Xu Qianyou sent his deeds to Zhongshu Zhengshi Hall.

The ceremonial officer agreed.

Wen Yanbo and other ministers were even more open-minded.

Without any hesitation, they stamped the seal of Zhongshu and sent it to the prison.

Inside the Chui Gong Hall.

After reading the 6,000-word "Book of Mourning for Confucius", Zhao Zhen raised his eyes and looked at Su Liang and Wang Anshi who were standing aside.

"You two are quite generous. You first made him famous and made all the officials feel honored, and then you helped him use your official position to make the imperial court stop working. It was all in your plan!"

Su Liang and Wang Anshi both laughed awkwardly.

Everything they did was within the eyes of the officials, and the two of them had no intention of hiding it.

"Officials, Master Bi deserves this honor. Without movable type printing, I am afraid that the dissemination of our tabloids and some short and concise poems will be twice as slow!" Wang Anshi took the lead.

Su Liang continued: "Officials, this is a good story. The history books of future generations will definitely say that officials are benevolent. In addition, through this incident, we can also tell the people of the world that you can become the number one scholar in your profession. If you have no way out in studying, you may not be able to succeed." If you change the road, it will be done!"

Zhao Zhen laughed immediately and immediately said: "For Master Bi, we can make an exception. If there are people like Master Bi again in the future, we can still make an exception!"

Hearing this, Wang Anshi and Su Liang couldn't help but be overjoyed.

This means that the official family can accept people who are not "scholars" to sit side by side with scholar-bureaucrats.

This made Su Liang firmer in his belief that Baijia Academy cultivates people like Bi Sheng.

Wang Anshi looked at Su Liang with eyes full of admiration.

His original intention was to win the honor he deserved for Bi Sheng despite losing his official status, so that Bi Sheng would be remembered by future generations.

But unexpectedly, Su Liang changed his strategy slightly, and the matter fell into place.

(End of this chapter)