The Prosperous Era of Longwan

In Wei Guangde's opinion, Qi Kang's performance was just looking for trouble.

Originally, the issue of sea opening was discussed at the court meeting tomorrow, even though most people were opposed to it, but Gao Gong said a few words in the court hall, and finally asked the emperor to step back and mention a pilot project in Fujian. .

The livelihood of people in Fujian has been kidnapped. Beijing officials should just hold their noses and admit it.

If you still object, then if word spreads that you don't care about the life and death of the people of Fujian, you will be stabbed in the back whether in officialdom or in Shilin.

As a result, Xu Jie and Gao Gong took action before the matter was completed.

Xu Jie's side was clearly planning before making a move, while Gao Gong's side, which was already a sure winner, really made a series of stupid moves. I really don't know why the cleverness of the past was gone.

Thinking about tomorrow's court meeting, Xu Jie went back to his house to write a self-defense. Xu Jie was missing from the court meeting to help Li Chunfang's urine, so I might as well continue dragging him down.

Wei Guangde has a headache.

However, Wei Guangde was also interested in Xu Zhi, the former right minister of the Nanjing Ministry of Justice, and couldn't figure out why he was suing his brother.

Although his classmate Li Chunfang joined the cabinet and became a second assistant, after all, he was the number one scholar appointed by Emperor Jiajing and he, Xu Zhi, was only the second grade.

Although the ranking is not bad, it is really incomparable.

Compared with other people in the same department, his current official position is actually not low, and he is still in the third rank.

Behind this, without Xu Jie's secret care, it would have been impossible.

In fact, many of the Jinshi of the 26th Jiajing period are still only in the fifth rank, or even lower.

Officialdom is a place where people are ranked based on seniority. Unless they are valued by the people above and promoted out of the norm, otherwise it will be hard work, and they will slowly work their way up in three to sixty-nine years.

Wei Guangde really didn't know about Xu Zhi's impeachment of Xu Jie before, because at that time he was still busy in the school registration office, so he had no time to care about this so-called "official matter" caused by family affairs.

Don't think that Xu Zhi was selfless and would kill relatives for justice. There were too few officials in the Ming Dynasty who were truly honest and dedicated to their duties.

Even Wei Guangde, who had received the education of later generations, had to consider integrating into the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty in this era, otherwise he would not be able to continue his career as an official.

As for the powerless temporary organization, the School Recording Hall, there were actually quite a lot of shit happening in it, and as the director of the School Recording Hall, he had to find a way to help hide it.

To re-record the ceremony, the court's money was poured into it in the later period, just to complete the transcription work before the burial of Emperor Jiajing. No one cared about what happened in the middle, they only looked at the results.

He didn't care about Hai Rui's ending.

Wei Guangde was woken up before dawn the next day. He was really not used to going to court.

In a daze, I was being served by the maid to get dressed.

The daughter-in-law Xu Jianglan is pregnant again, so naturally she cannot get up to serve, but there are still many maids in the Wei family.

After just eating a little something, Wei Guangde left the house and got on the carriage and rushed to the palace city.

Fortunately, Emperor Longqing was too lazy. Apart from the small court meetings held every day, he only reserved the large court meetings on the first and fifteenth day of the lunar month. Otherwise, it would be really boring to be an official.

Hundreds of officials gathered outside the palace gate. Wei Guangde stood among the officials from the Ministry of Personnel, and next to him were officials from the Ministry of Rites and people from the Ministry of Household Affairs.

He and Yin Shizhen looked at each other, and then looked at the place in front where the cabinet ministers and the six ministries and nine ministers were staying.

Gao Gong has arrived and is standing in front.

However, among the cabinet ministers, only Xu Jie was not present. After all, he had already petitioned to return yesterday. No matter how Emperor Longqing approved, he would not be able to come here.

There are censors constantly wandering around to monitor. Although they have not yet entered the palace, they still have strict requirements for court rituals.

At this moment, a person from the team walked out and whispered something next to the second assistant Li Chunfang, and then Li Chunfang and his team went aside.

The surrounding supervisory censors turned a blind eye when they saw it, pretending that nothing happened.

After all, the person next to Li Chunfang was their immediate boss Wang Ting, the censor of Zuodu of the Metropolitan Procuratorate. There must be important matters to discuss when he pulled Cifu aside.

Not long after, Li Chunfang waved to other cabinet ministers, and soon the six ministries and nine ministers were also summoned.

Wei Guangde knew in his heart that it was Wang Ting who reported Qi Kang's impeachment of Xu Jie to his second assistant.

This matter was not handled well, but it was a big uproar, and Li Chunfang could see it clearly.

Li Chunfang also heard about the rumors yesterday evening. He also guessed that this was Xu Jie's strategy to win over more supporters and pretend to be pitiful first.

There will be a court meeting soon. It is worth considering whether this memorial should be presented after the court meeting or after the court meeting.

Li Chunfang also understood Emperor Longqing's plan yesterday, but she was a little tempted.

If the memorial to impeach Xu Jie were presented at the court meeting today, I am afraid that all the ministers in the court would feel the same hatred. As a result, some people who originally supported Gao Gong would temporarily change their stance and support the poor chief minister.

Look, people have been forced to beg for help, and they still don't let go, and they still have to impeach them.

Moreover, Qi Kang's memorial also brought up the matter of Xu Zhi. It took a lot of effort to suppress it. After all, talking about it would have a bad impact.

If this memorial were to be exposed to officials now, it might not be so easy to conceal.

Li Chunfang already hated Qi Kang in her heart and was looking for trouble.

Wei Guangde thought about how to deal with this matter for a long time but actually couldn't figure out a way. When the news spread, there was an uproar.

No one dared to hide anything on this matter, so Wei Guangde did nothing.

Gao Gong, Guo Pu, Chen Yiqin and others gathered there, as did the officials of the Liubu Hall.

Wei Guangde estimated that Gao Gong must be in a bad mood at this time. Qi Kang was really too reckless.

The news cannot be concealed. If we don't make it clear now, we don't know how this matter will be spread among officials in the next court.

The key is that time is very sensitive, and so is the person who presented it. One look at it will make people think that it was Gao Gong who ordered it to take revenge on Xu Jie.

After talking for a long time, there seemed to be no result.

Not long after, Chen Yiqin suddenly left the crowd and walked over, but he was not directed at Wei Guangde, but on the side of the Ministry of Personnel officials.

The distance was relatively close. Wei Guangde also heard Chen Yiqin's words and asked the Minister of Rites to come over.

Wei Guangde also observed Zhang Juzheng at this time. He was standing in the crowd, seemingly calm and calm all the time.

Although he couldn't see his expression clearly, Wei Guangde felt that given Xu Jie's strength in the court, he might have known the news last night, and Zhang Juzheng might also have known about it in advance, so that's why.

Thinking about it carefully, Qi Kang felt that he was the undercover sent by Xu Jie and stabbed Gao Gong in the back at the critical moment.

Thinking that something he had planned for many years would be aborted today, Wei Guangde felt a sense of unwillingness in his heart.

After Yin Shizhen walked out, Wei Guangde quickly followed and whispered in Yin Shizhen's ear: "If it is Qi Kang's matter, don't talk about it at the court. The royal court and cabinet ministers will report it to Your Majesty after the court."

After speaking quickly, Wei Guangde returned to the ranks of officials and troops. He believed that Yin Shizhen understood the meaning of his words.

Although the officials sympathized with Xu Jie's experience, as long as there was no memorial from Qi Kang at this time, everyone's mood would not be so bad, and the sea opening issue would still have a chance to pass.

Xu Jie's absence could just allow him to avoid this matter, and Xu Jie probably wanted to do this.

Chief Assistant, it is not a good thing to offend the emperor too much.

Wei Guangde didn't know exactly what was said there. He couldn't hear it because it was too far away, but when Yin Shizhen came back and stood next to him, he saw Yin Shizhen nodding slightly at him.

"Uncle, do you have any objection?"

Wei Guangde couldn't help but asked in a low voice.

Yin Shizhen just shook his head and did not answer.

At today's court meeting, as long as Zhang Juzheng doesn't come out to disrupt the situation, there may be a chance.

Although Wei Guangde only thought that the chance of passing today was 50-50 at first, after thinking about it just now, he realized that Xu Jie's absence could actually increase his chances of winning.

After all, the chief minister's statement had a great influence on the officials. In his absence, Li Chunfang would speak out, but he had no idea.

If you can't say it, it becomes an opportunity that is not an opportunity.

However, I went out to the court room and queued up here today, and I felt that the waiting time was a bit too long.

Wei Guangde was just wondering when the drums on the Meridian Gate sounded at the right time, and the flag schools of the officers and soldiers who had been waiting in line were the first to enter.

They are the royal guard of honor, so they naturally have to go in first and arrange themselves in formation.

After a while, the bell tower bell rang, and the officials who had already lined up began to move forward, passing through the left and right gates to go up to court.

When officials enter the palace, civilian officials enter through the left Yemen, and military attachés enter through the Youyemen. They are first arranged in order according to their grades south of the Jinshui Bridge.

After the whip was sounded, they crossed the bridge one by one and arrived at Danqi of Fengtianmen. The civilian officials were on the left class and the military officers were on the right class. They stood facing each other on the imperial road.

The door of Fengtian Palace is open, and on the left and right of the steps is the band of the Bell and Drum Division. Between the pillars of the palace gate are "generals of the Han Dynasty" in full uniform and armor. On the left and right sides of the royal road and behind the civil and military officials, there are captains holding swords standing.

At this time, all the officials stood respectfully. At this time, the censor in charge of picketing was supervising. Anyone who coughed, spitted, was crowded or behaved improperly would be recorded and dealt with as a breach of etiquette after the meeting.

However, Wei Guangde always felt that today seemed a little later than usual, but he didn't bring a watch, so he didn't know if he felt wrong.

In fact, he didn't feel wrong. Today's time was indeed later than the prescribed time because Emperor Longqing was lying in bed.

If people can't find out that the emperor is lazy, then they can only adjust the engraving a little later.

Naturally, Li Fang, Chen Ju and others did not bother to do these dirty and tiring tasks, but there were always others around the emperor.

After waiting for another moment, the Bell and Drum Division finally started playing music, which also meant that the emperor's chariot had arrived at the imperial gate.

Sure enough, Wei Guangde saw the Jinyi guards holding five umbrella covers and four fans, ascending the Danqi from the east and west sides, and standing on the left and right behind the throne. There are two people inside, one holding the umbrella cover and standing on the seat, the other holding the "weapons" and two fans, standing in the middle behind the seat.

Emperor Longqing's imperial carriage also appeared, surrounded by a group of chamberlains. After passing the platform in front of the Fengtian Hall on the imperial road, Emperor Longqing stepped off the carriage and entered the Fengtian Hall.

After the emperor sat on the throne, he blew his whip again, and the Honglu Temple "singed" to enter the class. The civil and military classes on the left and right advanced side by side into the royal road. At this time, the civil servants "went north to the west" and the military officers "went north to the east" and bowed three times. The gift.

In fact, in normal times, the emperor would not enter the Fengtian Hall. The throne was located in the middle of the corridor of the Fengtian Hall, and the courtiers all knelt down in front of the audience. This was different from what later generations saw on TV.

Only in windy and rainy weather will it be moved to the palace. At this time, low-level officials will not participate. Only officials of fifth rank and above can enter the Fengtian Palace, but now it is called Huangji Palace.

Many palaces and pavilions in the palace were renamed at the end of the 41st year of Jiajing, so for most courtiers, the old palace names are actually more familiar to them.

In fact, in the Ming Dynasty, the court meetings were mainly divided into the following three types: the first was the Dachao; the second was the Shuowang Dynasty; and the third was the Changchao.

The so-called court refers to the court meetings held every year on major festivals such as Zhengdan, Winter Solstice and Wanshou. In such a court meeting, all civil and military officials will come to express their congratulations, and the surrounding vassal countries will also send envoys to express their wishes. It is a courtesy. Sex meeting.

During the Shuowang Dynasty, on the first or fifteenth day of every month, all officials will perform public salutes, which are also of a ceremonial nature. They perform "congratulatory rituals" and, like the Great Dynasty Meeting, generally do not introduce memorials.

The ceremonies of Dachaohui and Shuowangchao will be held in Fengtian Hall.

The one who really handles government affairs is the Changchao. Literally speaking, it is the most common court meeting. It is usually divided into morning and evening dynasties. But usually, the evening dynasty is abandoned, so the Changchao is only the morning dynasty.

However, the location of the regular court is not in Fengtian Hall, but in the middle of the corridor of Fengtian Hall. This is also called "sitting in court".

If it is held in the hall, it is called "sitting in the hall".

In addition, there is the "Imperial Gate Listening to Government", which is held on the Fengtian Gate Tower, with hundreds of officials crouching below the tower. Of course, it can also be held at other gates, but Fengtian Gate is mostly chosen. After all, the tower here is tall and more convenient. style.

In addition, in the early Ming Dynasty, Chang Dynasty was often held in the inner side hall of Zuoshunmen.

However, Emperor Jiajing did not go to court for more than 20 years, and Emperor Longqing almost abolished the Chang Dynasty, so the Shuowang Dynasty became the only opportunity for Beijing officials to perform affairs in front of the emperor besides etiquette.

After discussing the matter, the cabinet also nodded in agreement, but the matters reported by the officials need to be reported to the cabinet one day in advance.

Wei Guangde was mixed in the queue of civil servants. His current official position as the right minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs was not low, but there were several cabinet ministers, six ministers and five temple ministers in front of him. He was just among the people who were qualified to enter the palace. Front position.

Those who can enter the Huangji Hall are all officials of fourth rank and above, while those below fifth rank can only stand outside the hall. They stand according to their positions. As the officials of Honglu Temple sang praises, Wei Guangde shouted "Holy bow, long blessings". , perform five bows and three kowtows.

After the ceremony, Wei Guangde raised his head and looked at Emperor Longqing. He had a leather bean on his head, with a sharp top and black gauze. There were twelve seams on the front and back, and twelve colorful jade were decorated between each seam. He was wearing a crimson gauze garment and covering his knees. , leather belt, large belt, white socks and black jacket matching.

In the past, the court meeting would have ended at this time, because the Shuo Wang Dynasty did not discuss matters, and the cabinet would generally not approve officials to report at this time, but would instead ask them to write memorials and assign them.

However, Emperor Longqing said in the cabinet yesterday that the proposal of Fujian Governor Tu Zemin to open the sea was discussed today, so naturally he could not withdraw from the court like this.

After the chamberlain called out "I have something to report," Li Chunfang, the second assistant, turned slightly and glanced at Zhao Bingran, the Minister of War, and then Zhao Bingran coughed softly, and then quickly walked out and said, "I have a notebook to report."