Zhao Kuanghuan's primary school classmate He Qianji, although he was eliminated from Huangcheng Primary School, he has been studying hard. He paid his own way to study in college, but he accumulated a lot of experience in the imperial examination and passed the second list of the 78th place. Relying on his political achievements and the prince's appreciation, he is now
He has been appointed Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
He Qianji said: "Cremation is a bad custom in Buddhism. How can the emperor do this? Of course, the late emperor's orders must be followed. The late emperor's royal belongings can be cremated and scattered across the land to nourish the pines and cypresses. As for the late emperor's body, it should be given a state funeral.
, there must be no neglect at all.”
Li Yong, who was born in the Prince's Division, is 60 years old this year and currently serves as the chief assistant. He immediately refuted: "The last emperor's decree cannot be changed. It must be cremated!"
"This is disrespectful!" He Qianji said.
Li Yong said: "Etiquette is determined by people, and the emperor's decree is etiquette!"
He Qianji said: "Burning the dragon body of the former emperor, where will the current emperor be placed? Do you want the emperor to bear the infamy of destroying his father's body?"
Li Yong said: "Cremation was ordered by the late emperor and has been announced to the world. How can all the people say anything?"
"Today's officials and people don't gossip, but what will happen a hundred years from now? What will future generations think when they read the history books?" He Qianji asked.
Li Yong roared angrily: "How do you know the great ambitions of the late emperor? Thousands of years later, your majesty will guard thousands of miles of territory with the body of a real dragon. The descendants of China will only respect the late emperor more and more. Only those ignorant people can
I think this is disrespectful!"
Zhao Kuanghuan finally spoke up: "Mr. Li, discuss matters as they arise, and do not slander your colleagues."
Li Yong picked up the wat tablet, held it on his chest and said: "If your majesty does not obey the late emperor's order, I will not be able to see the late emperor after my death. Please accept my appointment!"
As the leader of the princeling party, Li Yong often confronted the imperial party officials. But when the prince actually succeeded to the throne, he quarreled with his colleagues again and even forced him to resign and be cremated.
Zhao Kuanghuan was very conflicted at this time. Of course he wanted to abide by the late emperor's order, but he also wanted to do what He Qianji said.
In Zhao Kuanghuan's view, the cremated body was divided into twelve parts and scattered in the soil to plant trees all over the world. How is this different from crushing the bones of his own father and scattering the ashes?
He Qianji said it very well. All aspects of the cremation of the late emperor's relics and the burial of the late emperor's body were taken care of.
Zhao Kuanghuan felt that Li Yong was a bit troublesome, especially threatening to resign, which was a challenge to his majesty as emperor.
Zhao Kuanghuan looked at the ministers: "Do you have anything to say?"
Li Kaiji, the first number one scholar in the new Datong Dynasty, walked out of the procession holding a wat tablet and said: "We must obey the late emperor's order and cannot change it at all."
Shen Wei, the top candidate in the first imperial examination, has passed away at an early age. However, Zhang Shooyue, who was ranked second, is still alive and currently serves as the Minister of the Ministry of Commerce. He said: "Your Majesty, I second the words of He Shangshu to cremate the late emperor's relics and bury the late emperor.
The remains. In this way, Your Majesty will be loyal and filial."
The cabinet ministers expressed their opinions one after another, and the supporters of the two views were almost evenly divided.
Zhao Kuanghuan looked behind the curtain: "What did mother teach me?"
Fei Rumei, who has always been quick-tempered and playful, said slowly at this moment: "Brother Han won't talk nonsense or say the wrong thing. Everything he does is right. You are the emperor now, and you are not my biological child.
Yes, you can do whatever you want. You don’t have to ask me, I just listen to Brother Han."
Suddenly, a guard rushed into the side of the palace and whispered to the female officer on duty.
The female officer hesitated for a few seconds and quietly walked to Zhao Kuanghuan: "Your Majesty, the people of Jinling Mansion came from all over the country to mourn the late emperor. The people in the city also gathered at the gates of the imperial city. They also recommended
A few leaders want to set up a mourning hall outside the imperial city, but the guards don't know how to deal with it."
Zhao Kuanghuan asked: "Where is the magistrate of Shangyuan County?"
"The magistrate of Shangyuan County has mobilized the police to maintain order outside the imperial city." the female officer replied.
Zhao Kuanghuan said loudly: "Where is Jinling Prefecture Yin?"
An official who was nearly fifty years old came out: "I am here!"
Zhao Kuanghuan said: "I will leave the Forbidden City immediately to appease the people outside the city. That's all. Please come with me to have a look."
The ministers didn't know what happened, so they followed the emperor out.
After boarding the Donghua Gate Tower, Zhao Kuanghuan's breath was stagnant, and his chest was stuffed with something unknown.
Outside the city wall, as far as the eye can see, all the people are in plain clothes, and everything as far as the eye can see is white.
Everyone was kneeling, some were silent, some were wailing.
Pu Songling, who has already served as the right minister of the Ministry of Industry, murmured to himself: "The people's hearts, you can see them with your own eyes, they are not that illusory thing. Who can win the people's hearts like this throughout the past and present?"
The ministers were all stunned and deeply shocked.
This was not organized by anyone, but the people came spontaneously.
When everyone went to the city, there were two to three hundred more people outside the city. It is estimated that as time goes by, more and more people will enter the city, and by then, all the streets near the imperial city will be blocked.
People in the city are infected and are coming one after another, and the number of young people is also increasing.
Young people, of course, know how good the old emperor is, but after all, they have never personally experienced the hard times. It is difficult to empathize with them only when their parents tell them. They are protected too well, especially those under the age of forty, and their lives are getting worse and worse after they are born.
Coming more smoothly.
Ten thousand, twenty thousand, thirty thousand...one hundred thousand, two hundred thousand...
There was no need to wait that long, the number of mourners increased rapidly, and more than 100,000 people came to the city. Not only the linen in the city was sold out, but all the white fabrics were bought, and some people even wore them.
White silk.
The streets around the Forbidden City are densely packed with people, stretching from Shangyuan County to Jiangning County.
Zhao Kuanghuan called the officials from inside and outside the court and ordered: "You go and prepare food. The cooks in the palace quickly light a fire to cook. As for outside the palace, the canteens of various yamen and restaurants in the city can cook as much as they want.
Make as much food as you can and buy as much food as you can. Before evening, the food must be delivered to the people and all expenses should be paid into the royal family's accounts."
Immediately, he called the Minister of Rites and said: "Take people out and set up a mourning hall outside each city gate for the late emperor to pay his respects to the people. There are also mourning halls in the streets farther away, one on each street. Don't worry.
Let the people move around randomly, otherwise chaos will occur over time."
Then, he called the governor of Jinling: "After you leave the city, immediately contact Shangyuan and the magistrate of Jiangning. In addition to the police, all official officials must come to maintain it. There are also mourning halls set up outside the gates of the inner city, and on the docks.
There are also two. There is also Zhongshan Temple, where monks can build mourning halls and divert some common people there."
Zhao Kuanghuan called the clan again and said to his brothers: "You will leave the city immediately and preside over the various mourning halls on my behalf. You will discuss the specific places you are responsible for. If there is any disagreement, the King of Chu will make the decision."
The princes have been avoiding suspicion and did not participate in previous discussions. Generally speaking, they still reassure the new emperor.
Zhao Kuanghuan has strong adaptability and handles things appropriately. He is completely a qualified emperor.
It's a pity that he is destined to live in his father's shadow his whole life.
Once the emperor spoke, everything inside and outside the palace began to move quickly.
Zhao Kuanghuan said to the ministers: "After the people have dispersed, we can choose a date to cremate the late emperor."
That night, the French envoy Bertrand wrote to Louis XIV: "Dear Your Majesty: The great Chinese Emperor has finished his life. His last order was to cremate his body and divide his ashes into ten pieces.
Spread two copies throughout the country..."
"Today, I saw a scene I will never forget. Citizens inside and outside Nanjing, as well as farmers from further countryside, spontaneously came to express their condolences outside the palace. Everyone was wrapped in white cloth, and they gathered together as if it had snowed heavily in Nanjing.
.I can’t determine the number of people. It may be one hundred thousand, it may be two hundred thousand, or it may be more.”
"By evening, all the streets outside the palace were blocked by crowds. Most of them were old people, but there were also many young people. There were farmers, businessmen, scholars, students, vendors, workers... everything I could think of.
Careers, all are here.”
"The number of people continues to increase, because just as I was writing this letter, there were voices outside the embassy. They were farmers coming from further rural areas..."
"The great Chinese emperor, he was respected by countless people. I saw an old man kneeling on the street crying until he fainted, as if his father had died. It was such a shocking scene. I never thought that the death of a monarch would
Let the people be so sad. They all came spontaneously, no one forced them, and their pain came from their hearts. At this moment, I understood the title of the emperor, why he called himself the 'People's Emperor'. He really did it...
…”
The next day, mourning halls were set up in all universities, middle schools, and elementary schools inside and outside Nanjing.
The students were first called back to school, and the crying people on the street were also diverted to school in batches.
Some wealthy families also set up mourning halls in their yards or in the backyards of shops to help divert traffic from the court. After a full day of work, traffic in Nanjing was finally restored, but cries could still be heard everywhere. Some people left after expressing condolences, but people came as soon as they left.
, especially after the mourning hall was erected, Nanjing citizens who originally stayed at home came to the mourning hall to express their condolences and kneel down.
The number of people mourning the old emperor is increasing!
The princes were all exhausted. As family members of the deceased, they knelt in various mourning halls. They knelt for a whole day and night and could only use the toilet time to stretch their legs and feet.
This memorial event for all people brought a strong soul impact to the new emperor, clan and officials.
Everyone knows that the old emperor is loved by all the people, but it is still deeply shocking that he could reach such an extent.
…
Old man Li and his wife supported each other, knelt down and cried bitterly in the mourning hall, and then planned to go home. They were afraid that their son and daughter-in-law would be worried, and they did not even know that their son had been found.
But there was no way to get out, the road was blocked.
For half an hour, the old couple only walked a hundred meters. They couldn't squeeze anymore, so they had to retreat to a street shop to rest.
There was no way for officials to deliver meals, so they had to wait outside the crowd and let the common people pass the meals in. It was not until the mourning hall of Zhongshan Temple was built outside the inner city and the people in the outer areas were separated, that the situation improved slightly.
Old man Li did not get food from the government, so he ate dry food with his wife.
It was getting dark, and another old man came to take a rest, even accompanied by his children and grandchildren.
"Brother, what's your surname?" Old Man Li asked.
The old man said: "My surname is Rong, and everyone in the village calls me Rong Mazi. Where are you, brother?"
Old Man Li said: "The surname is Li, Li Laosan, from Racecourse Village, just east of the Royal Racecourse."
"Then you are very close. I am from Meijia Village," Rong Mazi said. "I used to farm the land for Master Mei. But when Lord Long Live came, I farmed the land for myself."
Old Man Li said: "The commander of the Xiaoling Guard is named Mei. I used to be a military household, and I cut down trees for the Mei family."
Rong Mazi said: "You are the main sect, and I am the branch. My old lady is also named Mei, and she is a maid of the Mei family. She takes the father's surname, and she doesn't know what her own surname is."
Old Man Li asked: "How are the crops this year?"
Rong Mazi said: "Long live God, it's okay, the weather is good. Last year it was not good. First there was a spring drought, the rice eared and then there was heavy rain. I worked so hard that I didn't get a few kilograms of rice."
"They're all the same," said Old Man Li. "The night before, I heard a strong wind blowing outside. I was afraid that the Long Live Lord was summoned back to the sky by the gods. Alas, I should have gone out and had a look. Maybe I could still see the Long Live Lord.
The last time."
Rong Mazi said: "Long live the Lord's ascension to immortality and go to heaven to enjoy blessings, but how will we live in the future?"
Old Man Li said: "I have discussed with the old lady that the food at home cannot be sold. If Long live the Lord is gone, we may encounter corrupt officials in the future. I have food in the warehouse so I don't panic."
"That's what I think too. The grain must not be sold," Rong Mazi said. "My family has money in the bank and we have to withdraw it quickly."
Rong Mazi's son interjected: "Dad, the money is fine in the bank and you can earn interest every year. Why do you take it out?"
Rong Mazi pointed at his son and said to Old Man Li: "This little bastard was born with plenty to eat. Who knows how uncomfortable it is to be hungry?"
Old Man Li also said: "It is true that young people have never seen corrupt officials. Nowadays, the officials in the town are considered corrupt if they have to pay for their jobs? It's a joke. A real corrupt official can peel off every layer of your skin and bones."
It can squeeze out oil and water!"
After Zhao Kuanghuan took office, the first crisis he encountered was brought about by his father.
In the autumn of that year, grain prices across the country skyrocketed because farmers refused to sell grain.
And it’s a universal grain harvest!
At the same time, Datong Bank in many places was run by people trying to withdraw money.
Zhao Kuanghuan could only issue more military and official tickets, allowing soldiers and officials to use all banknotes. He took out the financial money from the national treasury and provincial, prefecture and county finances and loaned them to banks to cope with the bank run.
Immediately afterwards, he accelerated the cleanup of the officialdom, inspected the land in advance, and let the newspapers publicize it. By fighting corruption and encroaching on private land, he showed that he was just like the old emperor, and gained recognition from the people across the country.
People gradually discovered that even though Long Live Lord was gone, the sky didn't seem to fall.
It was not until winter that the crisis was smoothly passed.
Zhao Kuanghuan broke out in a cold sweat. Fortunately, he didn't mess with the New Deal, otherwise he wouldn't know how it would end.
The cremation of the late emperor's body was carried out in the Forbidden City, for fear of causing another disturbance among the people.
But the news still spread, and when the ashes were sent away from Nanjing, countless people lined the streets to see him off, and the whole city cried and mourned.
A portion of the ashes was buried in Zijin Mountain. Before the stone tablet was carved and the trees were planted, people were already flocking to visit the grave.
Old Man Li called his sons back and went up the mountain with them, carrying a full basket of eggs and spending money to buy pork head meat.
Outside the cemetery, there are all tributes.
Chicken, duck, fish, eggs, wine, rice, fruits, peanuts, melon seeds... and a lot of tomato scrambled eggs, because the people heard that Long live the Lord liked to eat this dish during his lifetime.