On March 23rd of the 11th year of Yongli, the Nanyang Tianfei Temple by the Lingding Ocean, starting from the Council's vote to confirm the commendation request, went through several months of repair and expansion work, and finally opened its doors not long ago.

The main expansion work has been roughly completed.

According to the overall design idea, the building complex still stands at the southern foot of Dajiao Mountain. The mountain is lush and green. The original trees are rarely damaged, and some trees have been transplanted from other places to surround the building complex.

in nature.

The style of the palace was copied from the Mazu Temple in Meizhou, which is the hometown of Mazu. That Mazu Temple is also the ancestral temple of Mazu temples around the world, so it is like this.

In order to ensure the effective implementation of the project, Chen Kai specially invited craftsmen from Fujian who were responsible for maintaining and repairing the Meizhou Mazu Temple to cooperate with craftsmen in Guangdong. At this time, straight and tall pillars were inserted into the finely carved pillar foundations.

Huge beams are supported. The Chinese-style beam-and-column structure, with blue bricks and red tiles, looks solemn and solemn.

The building complex mainly consists of the Xian Hall, the main hall and the dormitory hall. In front of the three halls is the mountain gate. In the hall inside the gate, there are statues of the Clairvoyant and the Shunfeng Er, respectively standing on both sides, because folklore says that they were recovered by the Queen of Heaven and became the messengers for fishermen.

The spirit of the message of waves and winds.

Further ahead of the mountain gate is the archway, and what is written on it is not the original Tianfei Temple, but the five golden characters of Nansha Tianhou Temple.

The calligraphy was naturally written by Chen Kai, the respected governor who was the proposer and leader of the construction. However, it took a long time to perfect these five characters. I don’t know how much paper was used for copying. Now it seems that,

But the hard work pays off, and the writing is indeed quite bold, highlighting the grandeur of Thean Hou Palace.

However, I know my own affairs well, and apart from these five characters, I still haven’t made much progress in writing other characters. The improvement of my calligraphy level is limited to these five characters.

"I guess the next step to be promoted is Mingtao."

Chen Kai wanted to come, and he and a group of people who came to worship were already waiting for the auspicious moment in the square in front of the archway. Today is the annual birthday of Mazu, but it is not like in previous years. Either the government organized it, or

The private gentry and merchants took the lead. At this moment, the square was already occupied by civil and military officials from Guangdong and members of the Consultative Bureau. Other gentry, merchants and ordinary people who came after hearing the news could only wait at the outer perimeter.

The planned building complex has not yet been completely completed. In the past few months, Chen Kai mobilized a large number of craftsmen and civilian workers to work overtime to successfully complete the construction of the three main halls, the mountain gate, the archway, the bell and drum tower, and the stele pavilion.

and the expansion and leveling of the square.

Such large-scale construction is bound to waste money and people. However, no one in Guangdong today has raised any questions or dissatisfaction. There are only merchants, gentry and even civil servants and generals who want to donate property for construction purposes.

.

This is not due to Chen Kai's power, forcing others to do this. Speaking of which, it is due to the popularity of Mazu belief in China's coastal areas, especially among civil and military officials and parliamentarians, most of whom are from Guangdong.

There are many people with Fujian status who are not from these two provinces. For example, Cao Conglong was mostly from Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and had a lot of contact with the sea. It can be said that everyone believes in Mazu. The belief is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and now the commendation has been approved by the emperor.

, expansion is natural.

Money and donations are naturally indispensable. Civil and military officials and parliamentarians from Chen Kai on down in the Guangdong officialdom donated a large amount of money. In addition, the donations from the gentry and merchants were quite huge. But it didn't take long for them to finish them off one by one.

He was compared with Zheng Chenggong.

Chen Kai wrote a special letter to Zheng Chenggong regarding the proposal of commendation and the construction of the Tianhou Palace. Zheng Chenggong did not say anything about the Advisory Bureau, but he appreciated the proposal of commendation and the construction of the Tianhou Palace and directly took out the letter.

Twenty thousand taels of silver came out, and a large number of civil and military officials including Zheng Tai, Hong Xu, Chen Bao and others made donations. There is an inscription on the stele pavilion on the side of the mountain gate for donations. Among the lists below the text, the one at the top is the one who donated the most.

Zheng Chenggong, followed by Chen Kai, who has the second largest number, as well as a large number of civil and military officials, parliamentarians, gentry, and merchants from Guangdong and Fujian provinces have their names and donation amounts.

There is no need to worry about money. The Zheng Group relies on the sea for its livelihood. Even if the money is not enough, Zheng Chenggong will not hesitate for a second with just one word.

In addition, Chen Kai had no intention of really burdening the people with the required precious stones, wood and other materials. He might as well just dismantle them directly from Pingnan Prince's Palace and Jingnan Prince's Palace. They also had them anyway.

Chen Kai felt at ease with the people's wealth and their wealth. Presumably, Mazu would not be willing to really burden the people. That would not be in line with her kindness.

During this period, the members of the Consultative Bureau all said that the offices of the Consultative Bureau were built using the land and buildings of the Jingnan Palace. As far as they were concerned, the materials used there would not affect their work.

Enthusiastic, but the building materials of Thean Hou Temple must be the best. This is absolutely non-negotiable!

As expected, this incident spread in the city of Guangzhou. The local people praised the members of the Advisory Bureau for what they said was for the country and the people. As for the fishermen and maritime merchants, they even worshiped the members.

The existence of the Council was quickly consolidated in the hearts of local people.

The members of the Consultative Council participated in voting and commendation, so they were naturally qualified to pay homage together with the civil and military officials of the province. After waiting in the square for a long time, more and more boats, large and small, arrived, carrying merchants and people.

Everyone hurried over with their respective tributes, and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when they saw that the auspicious time had not arrived.

After a long time, the auspicious moment has arrived. Chen Kai bowed politely and led the civil and military officials and parliamentarians up the stairs, solemnly passed through the archway, and presented tributes to the clairvoyants and shunfenger at the mountain gate, praying that they would continue to serve the people.

Forecasting waves and rough conditions.

On both sides of the mountain gate are the Bell and Drum Towers and the Stele Pavilion. In the Bell and Drum Towers, the bells and drums are already ringing, creating a joyful atmosphere. And in the Stele Pavilion, there are not only stone tablets built with donations, but also the "Imperial Stele" of Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty.

There are two steles, "Hongren Pu Ji Tianfei Palace Stele" and Zheng He's "Tianfei's Spiritual Response". The inscription records the experience of Zheng He, the eunuch of the Three Treasures of the Ming Dynasty, who was repeatedly blessed by the Tianfei and completed his seven voyages to the West.

In addition, there is also a monument of "The Queen of Heaven protects the country and shelters the people". The inscription records that Chen Kaiyi prayed to the Queen of Heaven before saving Guangzhou and the battle of Jiangmen. As a result, both times were the most critical moments that changed the situation of the battle.

A turning point. One was when Chen Qice's navy rushed to the Pearl River battlefield and joined forces with the Guangzhou volunteers to annihilate the Qing navy; the other was during the Battle of Jiangmen, when the Ming army was fading, Chen Kai suddenly appeared on the northern front, thus laying the foundation for

Victory - this is also evidence that the Queen of Heaven protects the Ming army and the people.

After passing the mountain gate, there is the Xian Hall. Inside the Xian Hall is a standing statue of the Queen in official uniform. In addition, there is the Dragon King of the Four Seas Zhigui standing on both sides, showing the leadership status of the Queen as the goddess of the sea.

Tributes were still offered here, but the formal worship activities were held in the main hall. So, soon the group of people passed through the dedication hall and entered the main hall. There was the Nansha Tianhou Palace.

In the center, Chen Kai stepped into the main hall. Wherever he looked, in the wood carving shrine, there was a camphor wood carving and a gold-plated seated statue of the Queen in official uniform. When everyone entered the hall, the presiding officer determined the auspicious time. Chen Kai

Then he strode forward and prostrated himself before this god.

"In the winter month of the fourth year of Yongli, the Tartars massacred the people of Guangzhou. Nobunan once went here to ask the Queen of Heaven to protect the fleet and cover the evacuation of the people; in the twelfth month of the eighth year of Yongli, the king's division and the Tartars fought a decisive battle in Xinhui County. Nobunan also went there

This is to ask the Queen of Heaven to protect the king's army in defeating the Tartars, and to promise that on the day of success, the Queen of Heaven will petition the Emperor to be given the honorific title of Queen of Heaven to highlight the merits of the Queen of Heaven."

"Today, after the people's representatives of the Guangdong Consultative Council voted and unanimously approved it, Nobu Nan petitioned the Emperor and obtained the Emperor's approval. Therefore, the original Nansha Tianfei Temple was expanded into the Nansha Tianhou Palace. On this birthday, special worship is held.

"

Having said this, Chen Kai stood up and took the edict, worshiped it among the tributes with his own hands, and immediately returned to his original position. The edict had been read in the previous Tianfei Temple, "Protect the country and protect the people, the wonderful spirit Zhaoying Hongren Puji Tianhou"

, compared to the praise of 258 years ago, only one word was changed, but it completed the transition from Tianfei to Queen of Heaven. This is the first birthday after the praise, plus the approximate expansion of the main building.

The completion was of great significance, so Chen Kai directly presented the edict and it will be stored in the Tianhou Palace in the future.

It was Chen Kai who took the lead in the obeisance. He was accompanied by civilian and military generals, ranging from Zhou Hezhi, the Marquis of Pingyi, and Ke Chenshu, the left admiral, to the land and water generals. The military generals who could come here were on one side, including Wang Jiang, the chief envoy, and Cao Conglong, the inspection envoy.

They were headed by a group of civil servants. And those councilors, arranged by Chen Kai, were not on the other side with the civil servants and military generals, but were ranked behind them. However, this did not prevent them from behaving in a decent manner.

Bow down and pay homage.

Sacrificial activities pay attention to a comprehensive etiquette to show respect to the gods. This is also one of the main tasks of local officials, because from the theoretical point of view of feudal society, the whole world is the king's land, and the shore of the land is the king's ministers.

As an extension of the emperor's authority and a representative for the grassroots, officials should logically carry out such sacrificial activities. After all, the king's power is divinely vested, and the emperor's respect for the gods is also a blessing to his own legitimacy. Not only local officials, but also officials

The emperor also held a series of sacrificial activities every year.

If feudal society realizes the legitimacy of rule from the top down, then since the members of the Advisory Council are theoretically elected from among the people, then rights arise from the bottom up. Compared with the divine right of kings,

Chen Kai's idea is that the executive authority retains law enforcement power and cedes legislative power and the advisory board in exchange for legitimacy. In this way, these two conveniences are exactly the opposite.

However, this is just the beginning. The members of the Advisory Council are still elected from the candidates selected by Chen Kai. He does not plan to enter the stage of popular election so quickly, because his first priority is

Let the system be deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, rather than be achieved overnight. Here, Chen Kai used the realization that the congressmen voted on behalf of the people of Guangdong and received commendations. It was already a big progress for the congressmen to enter the house. He did not intend to overly stimulate these civil servants.

Military general.

The sacrificial activities were carried out step by step. After everything was completed, Chen Kai led the crowd to leave the Tianhou Palace and headed to the dock to return to Guangzhou. At this time, the gentry, merchants, and common people who had been waiting for a long time were able to enter to worship and pray for this year's blessings.

Good weather.

"The tower in the back mountain will be built after the sacrifices for Mazu's birthday are over. In addition, the unfinished parts of the three main halls, the mountain gate and the bell and drum tower must be completed as soon as possible. It must not be completed on Mazu's Ascension Day.

Never again."

The day Mazu goes to heaven is on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, and as usual, sacrificial activities are still held. If there is a way, what is good is good, and what is good for the bottom must be bad. The essential attributes of the Zheng Group make their belief in Mazu so high that they

No previous military and political group could compare with it. Even Zheng He and the crew of the treasure fleet that made seven voyages to the Western Seas were only among the best.

After seven voyages to the Western Ocean, the Ming court began to ban the sea. To this end, the Ming court even burned treasure ships, drawings and records. Therefore, even after Longqing opened the sea, the Wanli period continued to deepen its reliance on sea trade, and the Ming court's own political inertia was still there.

, and as the political dominant civil servants, their power base comes from internal governance. It is the eunuchs and military generals who really benefit from maritime trade - the benefits from maritime trade can enable the presiding eunuchs to gain the approval and trust of the emperor, and expand their territory externally.

, the military commanders naturally have great achievements in battle, and the source of their power is such. From the Yongle period to the present, it can be seen that the Ming court has not praised Mazu anymore.

"Unless the civil servants can benefit from the process of going to the sea, they will definitely oppose it in order to suppress other political forces."

This was inevitable in the peaceful times from the center to the local areas, but now it is a troubled time. The Ming Dynasty itself is still in danger. It is natural that the Zheng Group is popular in maritime trade. But for Chen Kai, the smooth achievement of the commendation is actually a matter of course.

It's just a signal. It's not enough to really move this country toward the ocean.

"It's still a benefit."

With this in mind, Chen Kai couldn't help but recall the names, hometowns and origins of those congressmen, especially their current political composition. He knew how many of them were related to maritime trade. However, this was far from enough.

, he still needs to do more.

Back in Guangzhou City, the councilors still had another issue to discuss, so they went directly back to the Consultative Bureau. The construction work there was completed faster than that of the Tianhou Temple. The main body is composed of a discussion hall, surrounded by

It is a building where each member of Parliament works independently, as well as a warehouse where materials and other materials are stored.

Everything is still very simple, just like the relevant systems of the Advisory Council. The basic system has been discussed and the voting has been completed. This has taken a lot of time, and there will be continuous additions in the future. However, basic operations can now be carried out.

Other things can be studied until problems actually arise.

Like them, Chen Kai went directly back to the governor's office and did not intend to use the sacrificial activities to squander the remaining time before his next shift.

However, at work, Chen Kai was still dealing with a matter involving the Advisory Bureau. To be precise, it was a letter from Chen Bao. In it, Chen Bao directly asked Chen Kai whether the establishment of the Advisory Bureau was related to Zheng Chenggong.

It was well discussed, but this blunt statement seemed very awkward.

If it were anyone else, Chen Kai might have to think more. But Chen Bao is a straight man, and he is loyal to Zheng Chenggong. From this, it actually stems from the internal affairs of the Zheng Group.

Power structure - Chen Kai has full control over military and political affairs in Guangdong. Chen Bao is theoretically Chen Kai's subordinate and is responsible for Chaozhou's military affairs. He is not directly responsible to Zheng Chenggong.

Chen Bao made this move, and Chen Kai knew what he meant. The letter was received before he left for the trip. When he returned to the governor's office, Chen Kai immediately began to write a reply. In fact, Chen Kai did not discuss the establishment of the advisory bureau or the commendation.

He wrote a letter to report to Zheng Chenggong, but it had the element of cutting it off first and reporting it later, and Zheng Chenggong did not give any explanation to the Advisory Council.

"I believe that my reasons are enough to convince Zheng Chenggong. I don't ask for support, as long as I can not oppose it, it is enough."

………………
Chapter completed!