4355 years (AD 1658), the first day of the first lunar month.
The capital is still immersed in the festive atmosphere of the Spring Festival.
Yesterday, on New Year's Eve, families were reunited, and the wanderers returned home one after another. Relatives and friends of the family told their stories.
On the first day of the first lunar month, as usual, people would bring gifts to the homes of Shangguan and relatives and friends to pay New Year greetings.
Today's capital has a different scene.
A large number of civil servants, nobles, members of parliament, and people's representatives stood outside Chengtian Gate in costumes.
The Chengtian Gate was wide open, and the soldiers of the Qilin Guards lined up on both sides of the Chengtian Gate with guns.
Prime Minister Qian Mingyi, Grand Governor Qi Gangyi, and Prince Su Shu stood at the front of the team.
At eight o'clock in the morning, the clock tower next to the Parliament rang the hourly bell.
The high-pitched voice of Zhou Fangzhi, the eunuch and eunuch responsible for the ceremony, sounded.
"His Majesty the Emperor has arrived and the ceremony begins."
All the civil and military officials saw Emperor Su He walking over wearing a crown and a formal dress.
They bowed neatly and chanted.
"Greetings to Your Majesty, long live my emperor, long live, long live."
Emperor Su He walked to the front of the microphone and said confidently: "Pingshen."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
After everyone thanked him, they stood up straight.
Wei Yuansheng, the Minister of Rites, walked over from the ranks of civil servants.
He walked up to Emperor Su He, bowed and saluted, and said: "Wei Yuansheng, Minister of Rites, by your Majesty's order, will preside over today's memorial ceremony."
Emperor Su He nodded and signaled Wei Yuansheng to start.
Today's grand ceremony to worship ancestors is just a daily routine every year.
The highlight is the enfeoffment of princes and kings and the division of vassal states among these princes and kings.
Wei Yuansheng, the Minister of Rites, arranged for the ceremony to proceed normally in accordance with the empire's standard procedures.
This is the first time he has held such a ceremony since he took office as Minister of Rites.
Ever since the Ministry of Rites was split, and the two important powers of education and diplomacy were all separated into separate departments, the status of the Ministry of Rites has plummeted.
The Ministry of Rites has gone from being able to compete with the Ministry of Officials and the Ministry of Households to become a little transparent today.
Everyone has walked inside the ancestral temple. Emperors Yan and Huang, Qin Emperor Han Wu, Tang Zong Mingzu and other emperors throughout the ages are all enjoying incense and offering sacrifices.
Below the emperor's tablet are the important ancestors of the Chinese nation.
Emperor Su He walked to the bronze tripod in front, lit three incense sticks, and bowed three times to his ancestors.
All civil and military officials and noble people followed Emperor Su He to worship their ancestors.
Emperor Su He then turned to look at the civil and military officials, the representatives of the noble people.
Eunuch Cao Chun followed Emperor Su He carrying a heavy microphone.
He could neither let the microphone affect Emperor Su He's movements nor prevent Emperor Su He's voice from reaching the ears of everyone present.
Emperor Su He said with excitement: "The two emperors, Yan and Huang, took their tribal Chinese ancestors and occupied the fertile Yellow River Basin.
The reclamation of the Xia and Shang dynasties allowed the ancestors of China to spread throughout the Central Plains.
The Zhou Dynasty divided the princes into feudal states, allowing China to completely occupy the core territory.
After I conquered the world, I always warned myself not to indulge in a arrogant and luxurious life, but to make tools like the Qin Emperor and the Han Dynasty.
Since I ascended the throne, I have attacked the Houjin Tatars from the north and captured the homeland of Mongolia.
Go south and conquer the land of Baiyue, and seize the Nanyang Islands.
The navy marched eastward to the American continent to expand the living space of the Chinese people.
Recently, he has been conquering Arabia and Europe to the west, wiping out all countries hostile to the empire.
The Zhou Dynasty enfeoffed the vassal states, allowing China's core territory to expand several times.
I followed the example of the sages and enfeoffed the vassal states again, allowing the wise men of the empire to transform the foreign lands into the homeland of the Han people."
After Emperor Su He said these words, those who had been worried were now completely at ease.
They did not have a real title to the king, and would worry that Emperor Su He would find reasons to refuse.
In front of his ancestors, Emperor Su He once again promised that this matter would never be changed.
Everyone bowed and saluted, shouting that the emperor was wise.
Emperor Su He took the lead in leaving the attic where his ancestors were and went to the hall of the ancestral temple.
Under the auspices of Wei Yuansheng, the Minister of Rites, Emperor Su He began to award titles to the meritorious officials of this Western expedition to Europe.
Some of the meritorious officials wore military medals and were awarded titles by Emperor Su He himself.
These people appeared extremely happy, but most of the people watching the ceremony were absent-minded.
Whether it is the title of Viscount, Earl or Duke, it only represents a further step in the title of these people, and there is no major change.
The thing that everyone is most concerned about is who can be crowned king today.
The Royal Army is taking military control of Europe, and the army is gradually completing its defense changes.
But in the early stage, two commanders and one supervisor returned.
Everyone speculates, and there are rumors among the people, that these people will be crowned kings.
No one has any information about which of the princes have been crowned kings.
Not even the civil and military officials in the imperial court could detect any information about who was crowned king.
Those who are paying attention to this matter can only wait for the ending to be revealed.
This time the title of king is unusual after all.
Every time a vassal state appears, it will bring great wealth and honor.
Whoever is close to their family is crowned king. These people build a country from scratch and will inevitably use someone they are familiar with as the ruler of the country.
Wei Yuansheng, the Minister of Rites, received the list for the first time from Zhou Fangzhi, the eunuch of the Ministry of Rites.
When he saw the people on the list, his surprised expression disappeared for a moment, and then his expression returned to calm.
He followed the order on the list and began to let people come forward to hear the seals.
"Gong Qi Gangyi of the State of Wu, as the Grand Governor of the Governor's Palace, was an effective commander during the Western Expedition to Europe, and was named King of Wu for his merits."
Grand Governor Qi Gangyi confirmed that he was crowned king.
As a veteran who followed Emperor Su He, he was also a member of the Guards responsible for guarding Emperor Su He's safety.
Over the years, I have been working hard, not competing with others for credit, and doing everything arranged by Emperor Su He.
Now he finally got his wish and was granted the title of prince.
Wu Wangqi resolutely clasped his fists and said, "I'll go ahead and wait for everyone at the front."
Qi Gangyi was crowned king. This result was no surprise to anyone.
Many people think that Qi Gangyi should be in the second or third batch and be crowned king.
Now he got what he wanted and met everyone's expectations.
Except for those who are here for the first time and are very interested in the etiquette process of Emperor Su He conferring royal titles, most people have become accustomed to it.
They looked at Wei Yuansheng, the Minister of Rites, with their peripheral vision, waiting for the next name.
It has almost become everyone's consensus that King Wu Qi was crowned king with determination.
For the rest, there are different opinions and no definite answer.
What follows is a tense moment for everyone.
Wei Yuansheng, the Minister of Rites, did not keep everyone waiting.
"As the Chief of General Staff of the Governor's Office, Qutian, the Duke of Gui, strategized in many battles and laid the foundation for the victory of the army. He was named King of Gui for his merits."
Qu Tian was crowned king, which surprised many people.
Gui Wang Qutian himself never thought that one day he would be crowned king.
He was not the Qiandi faction who first followed Emperor Su He, but the Hanzhong faction who joined later.
As the leader of the Hanzhong faction, they and those of the Qiandi faction belong to the Longnan faction.
His seniority is definitely superior to that of the Sichuan-Shu faction and some other factions that were formed later.
The main reason is that most of the Qiandi faction are ordinary soldiers who are illiterate, and the casualty rate during the battle is very high.
The Qiandi faction's success rate is not high, but as long as they can stand out, they will be important ministers of the country without exception.
As a clan member of the concubine Qu Qingyi, Qu Tian was just a lowly member of the Ming Dynasty. He never thought that one day he would be able to build his own country.
He shed two lines of tears and happily waited for the canonization of Emperor Su He.
The crowd watching the ceremony were talking in low voices.
"Two princes and kings have already appeared in the Grand Dudu Mansion, plus the Royal Army and Royal Navy who will definitely be enfeoffed. The princes and kings who will be enfeoffed this time must be mainly these warriors."
"This situation is bound to happen, and only in prosperous times do we need civilian officials to govern the country.
But when it comes to running a country, many people think they can do it.
Civil servants can manage a country from its prosperous times to become more powerful, and this is what it should be.
If a civil servant manages a country from a prosperous time to a time when the people are in dire straits, then he is a treacherous minister.
Besides, the prosperous age is the joint efforts of all civil servants. How can we allocate all the credit for the prosperous age to a certain civil servant.
It is really difficult to assess the merits of civil servants, which far exceed those of everyone else.
Among the civil servants who were enfeoffed during the previous few enfeoffments, there was only one person, Prince Zheng and Wang Zhongce.
He followed His Majesty the Emperor to conquer the country. The Emperor only became successful after he captured Hanzhong, and Wang Zhongce has been in charge of government affairs.
Wang Zhongce’s sister is also the empress, and his status is too special.”
"That's true. This time, the king will not be crowned without a single civil servant. That would be too miserable.
No matter what, a civil servant must be crowned king, so that we civil servants will not be completely crushed by those warriors."
"Qu Tian was crowned king, this situation is really unexpected.
I bet on Lai Guo Gong Wen Jingming, who has higher qualifications than Qu Tian.
Now Qu Tian, who has lower qualifications, has been crowned king, and Duke Lai Guogong, who is of the same rank but has higher qualifications, seems to have no chance."
"You're so stupid. You dare to suppress Duke Lai. Wen Jingming, Duke of Lai, has pretty good abilities, but his ability to manage his family is too poor.
He arranged for his family to work in the Dudu's Mansion. The Duke's Mansion was not short of money at all, and even embezzled the money from the Dudu's Mansion.
Prince Su Shu led a team to personally investigate the matter. His Majesty the Emperor issued an order to reprimand and asked the Sanfa Division to deal with it seriously.
The Duke of Lai, Wen Jingming, could not handle his affairs well, and he even had a rift with the prince, Su Shu.
Prince Su Shu and Queen Wang Wenjun will definitely oppose it strongly.
His Majesty the Emperor must also consider the abilities of Duke Lai and the hidden dangers of becoming a king.
Xiongtai bets on Lai Guogong because he wants to burn the cold stove.
Even if the stove is burning cold, it is necessary to find a way to rekindle it. It is impossible for Lai Guogong to get up.
Duke Lai Guo maintains the glory of the Duke's Mansion, and this is for the sake of his Majesty's veteran minister."
"The Duke's government can't even handle it. Let him lead a country. Just think about it and you know what kind of tragedy it will cause.
We Han people have not yet established a firm foothold in Europe. If Lai Guogong makes a big move, no one can stand it.
I believe there will be many people who oppose him being crowned king.
If you want to be crowned king, you must convince the public.
Those who disobey the crowd are crowned kings, which is not conducive to the stability of the empire.
Everyone knows this simple truth, and His Majesty the Emperor will not make such a mistake."
Lai Guo Wen Jingming was also present to watch the ceremony.
He watched Qu Tian being crowned king and heard the discussions of the others.
Lai Guo Wen Jingming's face was gloomy and terrifying, and he made one wrong step after another.
It is not wrong to be greedy for beauty, but it is a big mistake to want to turn the canary he raised into a flying eagle.
Wei Yuansheng, the Minister of Rites, listened to the discussion and was not surprised at all.
There is indeed no Lai Guo Wen Jingming on this list.
The mistake he made may not be big, but what his wife and concubines did was too offending.
The Duke of Lai State relied on the Dudufu, but in addition to offending Prince Su Shu, it also offended many people in the Dudufu.
As a result, his fundamentals collapsed and he had no one to support him, so it was no surprise that he ended up like this.
If the Duke of Lai, Wen Jingming, had not made a real contribution and he had not made any mistakes, the glory of the Duke's mansion would not have been there.
But if the Duke of Lai does not keep a low profile until Prince Su Shu ascends the throne, the consequences can be imagined.
Wei Yuansheng, the Minister of Rites, saw that King Qutian of Gui had completed the ceremony of canonization.
He took out the list and immediately attracted everyone's attention.
The people in the hall stopped talking, and they were waiting for the next lucky person.
"Qingguo Gong Jiang Zhiyu is the head of the logistics department of the Metropolitan Governor's Office.
He made outstanding contributions to the application of new weapons and military logistics for the imperial army.
A thermal weapon army using firearms cannot achieve victory in combat without logistical support.
He was named King Qing for his meritorious service."
When Jiang Zhiyu heard about his reward, he couldn't believe it.
His face turned red with excitement and his body was trembling.
The friend next to him immediately comforted him: "Old Jiang, calm down and start taking deep breaths now.
If you faint on this occasion, it will be an embarrassment to you.
If you die because you are too excited, the throne may be retained, but the feudal country will most likely be gone."
When Jiang Zhiyu heard his friend's advice, he took deep breaths and took more than a minute to adjust.
His body stiffened and he walked towards Emperor Su He.
Jiang Zhiyu flashed back his life in his mind.
He was born in a small county town in Shandong, and his family was ruined at a young age. He made the arduous journey to Shaanxi to seek refuge with relatives, and began a life of living under the shelter of others.
When he was in despair, Emperor Su He invaded Hanzhong City.
At that time, he did not reject literati like other rebels. Instead, he held recruitment halls to recruit literati.
Jiang Zhiyu paid for a few taels of silver so that he could eat enough.
He endured the disdain from his friends who turned to thieves and defected to Emperor Su He.
Unexpectedly, this decision would be the beginning of his glorious life.
Under the guidance of Emperor Su He, he attached great importance to the development of new military technologies.
Water-cooled heavy machine guns, metal-cased bullets, armored ships, tanks and other new military equipment.
Jiang Zhiyu led tens of thousands of workers to tackle difficult technologies together, and then he lived up to Emperor Su He's trust.
He positioned himself as a civil servant, but he went to a place similar to the Ministry of War.
Jiang Zhiyu had never thought before that he would one day be crowned a vassal king.
He was very satisfied when he became the Duke of the country.
Many people watching the ceremony were extremely surprised when they heard this unexpected name.
"The Duke of Qing, Jiang Zhiyu, is a close minister of His Majesty the Emperor.
He usually doesn't show off his appearance, and he has no military exploits at all.
I really didn’t expect that Jiang Zhiyu, the Duke of Qing State, could also be crowned king."
"Qingguo Duke Jiang Zhiyu is not a warrior who came from the army, he is a serious scholar.
He won the title of king, which is considered a victory for the literati."
Everyone is looking forward to seeing if something more unexpected will happen today.
Qing Guo Gong Jiang Zhiyu exceeded everyone's expectations.
No one thought that an official who was usually only responsible for the design, manufacture and logistics of ordnance and material transportation would be so important in the heart of His Majesty the Emperor.