back to ancient times to be emperor

Chapter 497 Returning to Beijing to Debrief
The time of the twelfth lunar month passed quickly, and in the successive snowstorms, it came to the twenty-fourth of the twelfth lunar month.

This day is called "Jiao Nian" in the Dashun calendar, which means that the old year and the new year are handed over on this day.In this sense, this day is the folk New Year.

In fact, this is indeed the case. On the New Year's Day, the people in Chang'an City burn money paper and recite Buddhist scriptures to send off the old and welcome the new.During the day, every household, rich or poor, must prepare "vegetable food and beans" to sacrifice to the stove, that is, to respect the stove prince.According to folklore, the kitchen god reports to heaven on the 23rd night of the twelfth lunar month every year, and returns to the world on New Year's Eve. The Han people hope that he will "go to heaven to say good things, and return to the palace to bring good luck."This is just a legend, but in fact it also proves that the common people understand the importance of a fire stove to a family. If the kitchen is not clean, people will easily get sick, and all the money earned throughout the year will go to the pharmacy.So there is a folk saying, "The Kitchen God is greater than the God", which means that the Kitchen God is higher than the God when the god is on paper.It is not difficult to see that these simple people pray for the safety of their family.

At night, "please monks and Taoists to read scriptures, and prepare wine and fruits to send to God".Sending off the God is sending off the Kitchen God. There is a record in Ge Hong's "Baopuzi Weizhi" in the Jin Dynasty: "On the night of the moon, the Kitchen God also went to the sky to accuse the white people. The big one wins the discipline. The discipline, three hundred days. The small one wins the calculation. The calculation takes a hundred days."That is to say, whoever offends the Kitchen God will lose [-] days of life if it is serious, and [-] days less if it is mild.These were some illusory legends at first, but all the foolish men and women of the people believed in it, so it gradually became a custom.

Because it is the "Sacred Gods Day", there is a lot of noise in the neighborhood during the day, and there are voices of selling five-color rice, flowers and fruits, jelly teeth, skip beans and other sacrifices for stoves.There is also a "Welcome Nuo" worshiping team in the market, beating gongs and drums, "begging for a profit" from every household.

Nuo opera was originally a dance in ancient sacrificial ceremonies, and later gradually became a drama performed at the handover of the New Year.At this time, in Chang'an City, whether it is Goulan or Washe, there will be Nuo opera on these days.

For ordinary people, especially the people in the slums in the north of Chang'an City who rent official houses, buying new year's goods must cost a lot of money.These coins are naturally not a problem for big families.However, poor families living in official public housing may not be able to cope with the expenses of the New Year.

Everything grows in its own way.As the saying goes, ants have their way, snakes have their way, and the poor have their ways.After entering the twelfth lunar month, the poor families in the market form a team of three or five people, pretending to be gods and ghosts, judges, Zhong Kui, little sisters, etc., beat gongs and drums, and beg for money from the door. Nuo meaning.In fact, "expelling Nuo" is just a superficial form of this custom. More importantly, this custom gives the urban poor a chance to get relief without losing dignity.Chinese people value face the most, even if they are poor, they have to live a glorious life on the surface, let alone the people in Kyoto in life.

Lu Chengqi didn't know about this at first, but it wasn't until Gao Hao accidentally mentioned it that Lu Chengqi learned about it.He felt that this was a form of social relief, so he did not interfere.If it could reduce some poor people, Lu Chengqi would be happy to do so.

The happiest people on the New Year's Day are not the common people, but the people who go out to be officials.Because according to the customs of Dashun, from the [-]nd day of the twelfth lunar month, the yamen of various state capitals will be closed. Officials who go out to serve as officials can pack their bags and go back to their hometowns to visit relatives.Chinese people have a strong sense of locality, and visiting relatives every year is essential.

It has become a common practice for some Beijing officials to return to Beijing to report on their work when they go out to do business.

Therefore, from the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, Beijing officials who went out on errands returned to Beijing one after another, including supervisory envoys from various places.

While the streets of Chang'an City were busy, there was a dilapidated carriage driving slowly from Chunming Gate.Because the new year is approaching, the soldiers of the Forbidden Army of the City Defense Department are also busy.Originally, the defense of Chang'an City was not very strict.But during the Chinese New Year, it suddenly became tense.For nothing else, envoys from dozens of countries are all in Chang'an City.If something happened to them, it would be difficult for anyone to be investigated by the higher authorities.

Therefore, the city defense department specially inspected such carriages. No matter which one it was, it had to be carefully checked from the inside to the outside to see if any weapons were brought into Chang'an City.

The dilapidated carriage was stopped, and the chief of the city defense department gave a military salute to the driver and said, "During the twelfth lunar month, I was ordered to strictly investigate, please bear with me!"

The coachman seemed to be used to big scenes, and was no stranger to such things. He nodded, and then turned around and said, "Master, it's a routine inspection by the City Defense Department."

A young voice came from the carriage and said, "Since the government is handling the case, let them investigate it!"

The coachman got out of the carriage and let the City Defense Department check, and at the same time whispered: "Master, my master is the second-rank Minister of the Ministry of Industry, and he is ordered to return to Beijing to report on his duties. It is getting dark, so you can be accommodating." , The meaning is just that. If you delay the emperor's important affairs, I'm afraid you won't be able to bear it!"

In Chang'an City, anyone who bumps into someone casually may be a fourth-rank Beijing official.There are so many people coming and going here, why haven't the officials of the city defense department seen it?Immediately said lightly: "Understood, we will not embarrass."

With a wave of his hand, some soldiers from the city defense department stepped forward and checked everything inside and out.At this time, a young man in his twenties and nineties, dressed in a second-rank official uniform, got out of the carriage and looked at the towering gate of Chang'an City. The three big characters "Chunming Gate" written in regular script suddenly felt a little moved. He said: "The capital of the Yellow River is actually two landscapes!"

The head of the city defense division was quite discerning, seeing the second-rank official, he knew that the coachman was not lying, and seeing that his men had finished the inspection, he gave another military salute and said, "Shangshu, please forgive me, I have an order, so I can't act cheaply. "

The second-rank official waved his hand and said: "This is your duty, there is nothing to blame. Li Cheng, let's go, and hurry to the palace before you, I want to face the saint."

Li Cheng, the coachman, responded quickly, and when he got into the carriage, he jumped on it, waved his whip, and pretended to hit him, and the horse, like a conditioned reflex, walked slowly into Chang'an City.

Passing through the long arched city gate, the eyes suddenly opened up.There was a little snow before, but now it has stopped, and there is still snow on the ground.The minister of the Ministry of Industry lifted the curtain of the car window, looked at the children playing and playing in the street, and there was an indescribable emotion in his eyes...

(End of this chapter)