Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Imperial Palace, Hanlin Astronomical Bureau.

An astronomer, together with several bureau students and students, were making routine observations of the stars.

At the beginning, there was only Si Tianjian (renamed Taishi Bureau) in the Northern Song Dynasty. Due to frequent horoscope fraud, Emperor Zhenzong of the Song Dynasty established the Astronomical Academy of the Hanlin Academy (renamed the Astronomical Bureau) to allow the two astronomical observation units to supervise each other.

This kind of mutual supervision gradually turned into plagiarism from each other, and then gradually turned into a collaboration in fraud. Anyway, I was too lazy to observe the stars every day.

After Song Huizong ascended the throne, the trend of fraud was wiped out.

Because the emperor also knew how to observe stars, and occasionally observed them himself. If he didn't pay attention, he would be in trouble.

At this moment, the astronomical officer on duty was sitting there yawning.

The bureau students (low-level astronomical officials) are responsible for observing and constantly describing the observations, and the students (trainee astronomical officers, staff establishment) are responsible for writing and recording.

"Shufan Eight Stars, as usual."

"The Seven Stars of Western Tibet, as usual."

"The five stars of the North Pole are as usual."

"..."

Cui Shijin was the astronomical officer on duty tonight. He waved to Si Chen (the military attache envoy) who was not far away: "Come here for a drink!"

Military Attaché Si Chen, who was in charge of the strike force, sat over to drink and chat.

Stargazing is so boring, and winter is even worse. It can freeze people to death.

After more than half an hour, Ju Sheng suddenly shouted: "The four stars of Shaowei... are abnormal! The Virgo star is bright, broad, and yellow in color!"

Cui Shijin instantly became energetic and immediately conducted the observation himself. Then he said happily: "When a small star appears, it will be a great sacrifice!"

For astronomers, their happiest thing is to encounter auspicious signs in the stars.

An ordinary good omen can accumulate political achievements.

If there is a very amazing good omen, you will be rewarded immediately, and you may even be directly promoted.

If the Virgo star is bright and yellow, it is a good omen, indicating that there are hermits and sages among the people who have been recruited by the emperor, or are waiting for the emperor to recruit them.

There are also four stars in Shaowei. If Taiyin Ling Shaowei and five stars Ling Shaowei, it is a bad omen. Depending on the situation, it indicates: the queen is in trouble, the prime minister is replaced, a villain is appointed, loyal ministers are in danger, there are too many traitors in the court, etc.

The next day, the Astronomy Bureau of the Hanlin Academy took the star observation records to the Taishi Bureau for comparison.

Both astronomical observation units found that the Virgo star was bright and yellow, so they compiled reports and submitted them to the emperor.

Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty attached great importance to astronomy, paying special attention to the three stars in Mingtang and the three stars in Lingtai.

There are three stars in the Mingtang. The brighter the stars, the more auspicious the monarch will be. If there are five stars, guest stars, or comets intruding, it means that the monarch cannot live in the palace.

The three stars of the Lingtai can predict good and bad luck and predict the world's auspiciousness.

Song Huizong would personally observe the three stars in Mingtang every night to confirm whether he was safe.

He ordered the construction of the Mingtang, even at the expense of demolishing the Secretariat. In addition to showing the orthodoxy of the destiny, he also wanted the heaven and earth to correspond, so that the three stars of the Mingtang would be brighter, and the emperor would be in good fortune.

After receiving the report from the astronomical officer, Song Huizong did not dare to neglect, and immediately issued an edict: "When a small star appears, we should recruit talents. The edict ordered officials from all walks of life to search for talents within their jurisdiction. The military supervisors in each prefecture should recommend at least one person, and they should be recommended immediately. Send the candidates to the capital!"

This emperor is really crazy!

Nowadays, there are so many non-commissioned officers, as well as various Taoist and medical officers, and a large number of artists. The financial expenses make the people miserable.

He just found that the Virgo star was bright, so he just pretended to recruit talented people. He actually set a recommendation index for the state capital. There were more than 400 state armies in the Northern Song Dynasty, and hundreds of people were recommended at once. Even if only half of them were selected, there would still be two to three hundred people waiting to be appointed officials.

Several prime ministers, no matter loyal or traitor, were all shocked when they heard the news.

Song Huizong didn't care about that. He had already planned the imperial city, and next he had to repair the outer city walls.

Two days later, edicts were sent in all directions.

An official ship sailed in from the northwest water gate.

There was an eunuch standing next to Zhu Guoxiang: "Ms. Zhu, go ahead and enter the Jinshui Gate. After that, it's time to disembark. Go around the palace city and enter through the Donghua Gate."

Zhu Guoxiang nodded and said: "Change the boy's body and face clothes, and comb his bun."

Several eunuchs and forbidden soldiers immediately rushed into the cabin.

They held Fang Mao down, untied him, and forced him to change into clean clothes. He also washed his face and combed his hair until it was shiny.

"Uh huh huh..."

Fang Mao struggled hard and wanted to speak, but his mouth was stuffed with rags and he couldn't utter even a single word.

Zhu Guoxiang personally brought some cakes, tore open the rags and said, "Eat some, don't be hungry."

Fang Mao shouted and cried: "Ms. Zhu, I was wrong, please spare my life. I offer raw cards to my husband, pray morning and night, and ask the gods to bless my husband to be rich and prosperous in his life..."

Zhu Guoxiang stopped talking and just sat aside and watched quietly.

Those eunuchs were originally Fang Mao's confidants.

At this time, the betrayal was complete. A eunuch picked up the pancake and forced it into Fang Mao's mouth: "Eat quickly, eat quickly, Xianggong Zhu wants you to be a ghost, why don't you thank Xianggong Zhu for his kindness!"

"Uh-huh!"

Fang Mao's mouth was full of pancakes and he could only swallow them passively.

The eunuch didn't even give him water, so his throat was blocked and he almost choked to death on the spot.

Yi Xian entered Beijing and disembarked after passing through Jinshui Gate.

Zhu Guoxiang strode in front, Deng Chun escorted Fang Mao away, and the security team, eunuchs, and imperial guards were all carrying things.

Two of the eunuchs were carrying Ganoderma lucidum with a diameter of 57 centimeters. The terrifying size instantly attracted attention.

There were Tokyo citizens who spontaneously followed them along the way, asking about the Ganoderma lucidum.

From Yangzhou to Tokyo, the Imperial Guards have repeated it countless times, and the story has become more and more rounded. Now it is just repeating it again.

When they walked to Xuande Tower, hundreds of people were already following behind them, all of whom came to watch the giant Ganoderma lucidum.

When they arrived outside Donghua Gate, everyone stopped and explained the situation to the guards guarding the gate.

The guards quickly informed everyone, and the eunuchs ran frantically to Yanfu Palace, panting and reporting: "The official... the official family, Zhu Guoxiang from Yangzhou has... arrived, and he also brought a big Ganoderma lucidum! He said... he said it was... Ten thousand years of Ganoderma lucidum.”

"Wannian Ganoderma lucidum?"

Song Huizong, who was painting, suddenly threw down his brush: "Get the chariot ready quickly!"

The foolish king was galloping in a carriage, constantly asking the driver to speed up, and his speed was almost as fast as the Gaoliang River God.

The entire expedition team was put into the palace city and met the emperor north of the Secretariat.

From a long distance away, Song Huizong saw Ganoderma lucidum.

The whole body is red and shining.

Song Huizong was so excited that he was breathing heavily and completely ignored Fang Mao, who was tied up.

Zhu Guoxiang learned the etiquette from the eunuch, straightened his clothes, stepped forward, bowed and said: "Zhu Guoxiang of Yangzhou pays homage to your majesty, may you be blessed!"

"well!"

Song Huizong moved his eyes from Ganoderma lucidum to Zhu Guoxiang. The more he looked at it, the more he liked it. He praised: "The appearance is majestic and the bearing is extraordinary. I really deserve the appearance of the young star!"

Of the four stars in Shaowei, only one is the Virgo star, which represents the hermit.

Those four stars can usually be seen, but if the Virgo star is bright and yellow, it can be called a "little star appearance", which indicates that a great sage will be conquered.

"Uh huh huh..."

Fang Mao began to struggle wildly. This guy had such a strong desire to survive that Deng Chun couldn't control it.

Song Huizong finally saw someone being tied up and wondered: "Why is this?"

Before Zhu Guoxiang could speak, the eunuchs and imperial guards had already started performing.

"Fang Mao, you missed an important official matter!"

"We went out of Beijing on the orders of the officials. Fang Mao asked for goods along the way. The local officials didn't give them, so he refused to leave. He also said that making money was important. After leaving Tokyo, the officials were blind and deaf..."

"When we arrived at Daming Village, Mr. Zhu was out on business, Fang Mao had a seizure on the spot. Mr. Zhu's wife was about to give birth, and Fang Mao made her stand under the scorching sun for two whole hours!"

"Xianggong Zhu said that there is Ganoderma lucidum in the mountains, which is only three to ten thousand years old, and can be used to refine the elixir of immortality. Everyone refused to listen no matter how much they tried to persuade us, so Fang Mao forced us to pick it."

"Yes, yes, after picking Ganoderma lucidum, he wanted to eat it himself first. When we tried to stop him, he beat and scolded us."

"Guan, this guy is so bad. We couldn't get angry, so we tied him up!"

"..."

You say something, I say something, and it’s as noisy as a vegetable market.

Song Huizong probably heard it clearly, and his face was as dark as the bottom of a pot.

Zhu Guoxiang took out the receipts from the officials along the way, held them up and said: "Your Majesty, the gold and silver that Fang Mao asked for have been returned at my own initiative. This is the receipt signed by the officials along the way."

Song Huizong took it and took a few casual glances, and then he knew that the bribe demanded was true.

Asking for bribes is okay, but delaying his important events is unforgivable.

Song Huizong asked: "Can this Ganoderma really be used to refine elixir of death?"

Zhu Guoxiang sighed: "It's still three years before we can reach ten thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum. Now that we're picking it in advance, we've ruined the spirit of the spirit. I'm afraid the efficacy of the medicine has been greatly reduced, and it's still unclear whether we can make an elixir of death."

Song Huizong suppressed his anger and asked, "How did you know there are still three years left?"

Zhu Guoxiang looked around but didn't answer.

Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty shouted: "You guys stand back!"

When there were only two people left at the scene, Zhu Guoxiang said: "After the official family and the common people moved to Daming Village, they went to the mountains to collect medicinal materials. They happened to encounter this giant mushroom. The common people wanted to pick it, but they heard the giant mushroom spitting at people's mouth. He said that he had been practicing for more than 9,000 years, and his merits would be complete on the first day of the first lunar month four years later. By that time, the Ganoderma elves would emerge from their bodies and become immortals, and the remaining sludge could be used to refine elixirs. The people have been waiting for a year. , wait for another three years, and I can present it to His Majesty. Who knows... Alas!"

Song Huizong wanted to vomit blood after hearing this. It was true that he was a smart man, but regarding immortality, even though he still had countless doubts in his heart, he unconsciously believed that it was true.

Zhu Guoxiang added: "A few days after picking Ganoderma lucidum, Zhuo Jing gave birth to a daughter. The night before the birth of the little girl, I dreamed of a woman, blaming me for breaking my promise. He also said that Fang Mao had the emperor's mandate, and a dragon's energy suppressed her. Words. She claimed that her nine-thousand-year-old path has been broken, and she can no longer cultivate to become an immortal, and can only be reincarnated as a human being. When I woke up from a dream, I heard the clumsy thorn cry out in pain, saying that she was suffering from abdominal pain and wanted to give birth."

Song Huizong asked: "The spirit of Ganoderma lucidum reincarnated, but took away the spiritual energy of Ganoderma lucidum?"

Zhu Guoxiang said: "I don't know."

Song Huizong felt weak and had no interest in doing anything. It's like a working man who finally won the jackpot, only to find that he lost the lottery ticket.

He stood in silence for a long time, and finally remembered that there was another outlet for venting. He called the eunuchs and the imperial guards back, pointed at Fang Mao and said, "Cut this bastard!"

"Uh-huh!"

Fang Mao was so frightened that he wet his pants on the spot and was dragged away with his body limp.

Song Huizong roared again: "Call the doctors from the Royal Pharmacy Hospital, the Shang Pharmacy Bureau, and the Taoist masters in Tokyo, and let them see how many medicinal properties this Ganoderma lucidum has! Hurry, hurry, don't waste any time. !”