Rule the Ming Dynasty Alone

The west corner gate is three rooms wide and two rooms deep. It has a single eaves resting on the top of the mountain and the roof is covered with yellow glazed tiles.

It is connected to Fengtian Gate and Dongjiao Gate and is located on the Yuntai. It is one of the three gate towers spanning the square in front of Fengtian Gate and the square in front of Fengtian Hall.

Although the West Corner Gate is not as imposing as the Fengtian Gate, the single-eaves Xieshan roof covered with glazed tiles and the white marble steps on three sides also convey the majesty of the emperor.

More than a thousand civil and military officials, holding dental plaques, came to the west corner gate in an orderly manner and stood facing each other from east to west, quietly waiting for the arrival of Emperor Hongzhi.

The sky in the east has become brighter, and the morning dew has not yet dried on the square in front of Fengtian Gate in the morning light.

The morning in September was obviously a bit chilly. Many officials stood in the vast square in front of Fengtianmen and shivered with the cold wind when they were blown by the east wind.

This was the environment for Ming Dynasty officials to have morning court. If they had a choice, they actually did not like to go to court every day, but wanted to hide under the quilt with the bed-warming maid.

Of course, this is the mentality of low-level officials who are not enterprising. The ambitious officials are already looking at the gate tower hopefully, but their sight is blocked by the collapse in the center of the gate tower and the case.

The imperial couch is actually a bed-style throne with short screens on the back and left and right sides. It is standing on a golden platform.

The royal guards holding the umbrella canopy and the eunuch holding the canopy canopy are already in place, guarding the throne. There is another eunuch standing in the middle behind the throne holding two armed fans.

Xu Pu, as the left minister of the Ministry of Personnel, stood among the officials of the Ministry of Personnel on the east side. Wan An and Liu Ji, as cabinet ministers, climbed to the cloud platform from the white marble stairs on the east side, appearing to stand respectfully to the west of the throne, and next to them were the living rooms. Note.

Not long after, there was movement behind the gate tower, and a dragon chariot came from the direction of the inner court. Since it is a mourning period, there will be no palace music this morning.

Zhu Youtang deliberately slept early last night and seemed to be in good spirits today. He walked out of the west corner door in his shabby clothes, Yi Suyi Shanguan linen robe and waistband, and walked directly around to the throne in the imperial couch to sit down.

Unlike the civil and military officials who came from all over the capital, he could be said to have come from the "main hall room" of his home to the "second door", but this home was a bit messy.

The emperor stands on the royal couch in the gate tower, and hundreds of officials stand on both sides of the square. This is the "imperial gate listening to political ceremonies" that began in the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yuanzhang, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty, did not believe in the Song Dynasty's political philosophy of "ruling the world with the scholar-bureaucrats and the emperor". He not only abolished the prime minister system, but also greatly changed the law of court meetings, expanding the number of officials to discuss government affairs to a thousand officials to listen to government.

After all, more than a thousand officials attended the morning court every day, and even the largest Fengtian Hall could not accommodate so many officials. Therefore, the morning court of the Ming Dynasty was not held in the Fengtian Hall, but in the square in front of the Fengtian Gate.

The Ming Dynasty stipulated that civil and military officials should go to Fengtianmen to pay homage at dawn every day, and the emperor would personally accept worship and handle political affairs.

In addition to the Chang Chao Royal Gate Ceremony, there is also the Chang Chao Royal Palace Ceremony on TV. The locations of the Chang Chao Royal Palace Ceremony are Fengmen Hall and Huagai Hall. You can also choose Wenhua Hall and Wuying Hall in the outer court.

The imperial rituals of the Chang Dynasty are aimed at the great dynasty, and are only held on the first day of the lunar month, the winter solstice, and the Wanshou Festival. All officials congratulate the emperor but do not discuss political affairs. The location is usually set at Fengtian Hall. Only officials of fourth rank or above enter the hall, and the rest of the officials just salute outside the hall.

Zhu Youtang sat on the throne, looking down at the dark crowd of officials in the square. He finally ushered in his first morning court appearance in his ruling career.

Liu Jin was holding an incense burner in his hand. The incense burner was engraved with the pattern of green mountains, Shoushan, and sea patterns. At this time, the incense was already burning. He seemed to place it carefully on the treasure table in front of him, and reported to Zhu Youtang: "It's settled!"

This ceremony originated from the Yongle Dynasty and heralded the stability of the country.

Etiquette has long penetrated into the bones of this dynasty. The warriors of the Jin Yiwei stood on the edge of the jade white stone platform in the south, waving their whips at the civil and military officials.

"I pay homage to your Majesty, long live my emperor!" All the civil and military officials headed by Wan An turned to the north and knelt down and kowtowed three times to Zhu Youtang who was sitting on the throne.

Zhu Youtang looked at the civil and military officials who were kneeling before him. When the ceremony was over, he said calmly: "Pingshen!"

"I would like to thank your Majesty, long live my emperor!" Wan An and other officials expressed their thanks again.

Since there are too many officials here, the low-ranking officials can only look at Zhu Youtang on the imperial couch from a distance. As the saying goes, "with an official title as big as sesame seeds and mung beans, I can get a glimpse of the holy face from a distance today."

It's just that the distance was too far, and they could no longer see the face of the great emperor clearly. Some officials with poor eyesight could only see an outline.

Today is Zhu Youtang's first court meeting, so the process is different.

Liang Fang raised her head and glanced at Zhu Youtang on the throne. After receiving the rebuttal, she raised the imperial edict in her hand and said, "Your Majesty has issued an edict to the civil and military ministers, please listen to the edict!"

"Your Majesty, please listen to the decree. Long live my emperor!" Wan An and Liu Ji exchanged silent glances and immediately led the civil and military officials to welcome the decree.

Liang Fang opened the bright yellow imperial edict in her hand, and immediately read it out in the unique voice of a eunuch: "I believe that the rule of the country is more important than serving the heaven, and the preservation of the country is not more important than the ancestors; the way of being a minister is not to be loyal to the emperor but to love the people. I am the heir. Inheriting the great cause, God only pays tribute to the ancestors, and I only respect you day and night... Now I am personally in charge, and I am completely new to the court. All the civil and military ministers have been appointed by the late emperor. Those who leave me will definitely have the hope of serving me. ... I admire the great emperor of Huang Kao, who is as bright as the ancients, whose sage wisdom comes from heaven, and who is pure and honest. On his deathbed, he gave me a volume with good strategies for governing the country. I have benefited a lot from reading it... It is so unreasonable, and I am virtuous and careless about etiquette, and indulge in selfish desires. The ancestral rules of rewards and punishments are here, and I dare not be selfish! Don’t neglect your Majesty, so here’s the edict!”

Zhu Youtang couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth slightly as he listened to the edict he concocted.

Since these civil and military officials like to use ancestral systems, the only thing that can defeat magic is magic. I will take the opportunity to give them some eye drops first, so that I can use the topic more easily.

"A volume of good policies for governing a country?"

Wan'an and other officials were not impressed by Zhu Youtang's previous remarks, but they couldn't help but look at each other in shock when they heard that Emperor Chenghua actually left Zhu Youtang with the policy of governing the country.

"That's it! Haha... I mean, this prince can't become so holy and wise!" Xu Pu looked at the student who was obviously different and seemed to suddenly realize it.

Since the death of the late emperor, the always well-behaved prince seemed to have changed into a different person. He not only alienated them, the old people of the East Palace, but also revised the "Edict on Accession" he had drafted.

Especially when it comes to the revision of the Salt Law, they did not adopt their own ideas of curbing the indiscriminate use of salt. Instead, they pointed the finger at the core collusion between government and business.

Out of his understanding of the prince's ability, he concluded that there was an expert behind the scenes, but after several investigations to no avail, the mystery was finally solved.

It was not the dull prince who enlightened him, but the deceased Emperor Chenghua who gave him some advice. I am afraid that only Emperor Chenghua could have such vicious eyesight.

The sky in the east has turned white, and the entire west corner gate has become very bright. Emperor Hongzhi sitting on the throne no longer looks so mysterious.

Being guided by others and understanding on your own are completely different things. As long as the new emperor believes in "ruling from the top", then Emperor Hongzhi will be led by their civilian officials.

"If you have something to do, please leave the court!" Liang Fang put away the imperial edict and sang to all the civil and military officials in the square.

Thousands of officials discuss government affairs, and they already have a fixed order of events.

When there is something going on in the Zongren Mansion, it is the first to start, followed by the four departments of Li, Hu, Bing, and Gong in turn, followed by the Criminal Department and the Three Law Departments, followed by the Hanlin Academy, Zhan Shifu, Ke, Dao, and Jiuqing, and the Officials Department comes last. .

Officials from the Zongren Mansion went out to report: "Please give the name of the fourth son of Zhu Junniu, the general of the Prince of Chu's Mansion: Zhu Rongxiao; the name of the fifth son of Zhu Qiqiao, King of Yonghe of the Prince of Jin's Mansion: Zhu Biaomei; the name of the lieutenant of the Fuguo of the Prince of Jingjiang's Mansion. The eldest son of Zhu Gui Dong said: Zhu Yuehui."

"It's accurate!" Zhu Youtang seemed unable to complain about such a trivial matter, but he still replied according to yesterday's cabinet vote.

After the memorial at the Zongren Mansion was completed, Ni Yue, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, stepped forward and said: "Ni Yue, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, has a copy of the memorial!"

When Ni Yue came out, the officials who had already known the content of the memorial in advance silently exchanged glances. The favor of enthronement promoted by Xu Pu, the left minister of the Ministry of official affairs and a bachelor of Hanlin, must now be reported to His Majesty in person.