The imperial edict to be promoted to a noble title has been announced. According to the practice of the Ming Dynasty, as long as it is not an "over-reward", ministers generally do not have to and will not refuse. The reason why Gao Pragmatic declined the title of Nanning the last time was because the emperor wanted to use him as a reward.
It is indeed rare for someone to be granted a title as a civil servant.
This time it was different. His status as a civil servant was already stable. This time it was just a simple promotion. Even if he was promoted to the highest dukedom all at once, there was no need to resign. Therefore, Gao pragmatically calmly chose to be the leader.
To express gratitude.
However, the matter is not over here. The real focus of this edict is to explain the reasons for the promotion of Gao Jingshi, but it does not explain what happened after "Jin made Gao Jingshi the Duke of Jingguo", so all the officials present knew it.
, there must be an imperial edict to clarify other important matters.
What matters? This is about the title system of the Ming Dynasty.
The titles of the Ming Dynasty were divided into two categories according to status, one was the title of the clan, and the other was the title of the relatives of the meritorious officials.
The titles of the clan are more complicated. According to the closeness, they are divided into princes (including the crown prince and the eldest grandson), princes (including the crown prince and the eldest grandson), generals of the country, generals of the auxiliary country, generals of the country, lieutenants of the country, lieutenants of the auxiliary country, and Fengguo.
Lieutenant, etc. However, since the clan titles have nothing to do with the current events, I will not introduce them in detail here. I will mainly talk about the titles of the relatives of the hero.
The title of the meritorious official's relative is relatively simple, with only three levels: duke, marquis, and uncle. However, it also has a slightly complicated side, that is, the title of the meritorious official's title is divided into four levels.
Under the Ming system, a knighthood must be based on contributions to assisting the country or major military merits. The title of a knighthood must be issued by an edict issued by the emperor.
The titles of the Ming Dynasty were originally the same as those of previous dynasties. They were divided into three levels: duke, marquis and uncle. However, in order to reflect the rarity and nobility of the title, the viscount and baron were removed, leaving only three levels: duke, marquis and uncle.
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The reason why Gao Jingshi was granted the title of Marquis of Nanning was quite shocking. Firstly, it was because he was a civil servant, which was rare except during the founding period of the People's Republic of China. Secondly, because he skipped the level of earl and became a marquis directly.
Even though his merits were considered worthy of a marquis at the time, it was so rare that it was unavoidable to be surprising.
Next is the key point: Iron certificates will be issued to meritorious officials when they are ennobled. The iron certificates should indicate the basic identity and title of the hero. The so-called identity mainly distinguishes between civil servants and military ministers. The iron certificates of military ministers usually read "XXXX Xuanli".
Military ministers", while civil servants are written as "XXXX Shouzheng Wenchen".
The title should also be written on the iron certificate, and the title is divided into four levels: the first level is for those who followed Zhu Yuanzhang to found the country, which is called "the founding of the country, assisting the movement and pushing sincerity"; the second level is for those who followed Zhu Dijing and made meritorious deeds, which is called "the founder of the country."
It is called "Fengtian Jingnan Tuicheng"; the third and fourth grades are called "Fengtian Yiyun Tuicheng" and "Fengtian Yiwei Tuicheng" respectively.
As for whether it can be inherited, it depends on whether there is a "gain certificate", which is a hereditary certificate given by the imperial court. The certificate is made in two copies, one is given to the meritorious official (the person who received the title), and the other is kept in the inner court.
If a meritorious official dies and the descendants of the family want to seize the title, they must take out the certificate, and then the Ministry of Personnel will be responsible for checking the merits and demerits and deciding whether to seize or remove the title.
As for the titles of relatives, they were all hereditary at first, but in the early years of Jiajing, Emperor Jiajing abolished the system of hereditary titles of relatives - unless the emperor had a favor.
Back to Gao Pangshi. Originally, all the officials already knew that there was a high probability that he would be promoted to nobility. Everyone was desensitized to this and were not very willing to bring trouble on this matter - the emperor even mentioned that.
You are still jumping out and gibbering, are you really living your life just for the so-called Naomi title?
Don't think of "being loyal and upright and daring to remonstrate" so high-minded. There are preconditions for everyone's "loyalty and uprightness to dare to remonstrate": firstly, the emperor usually does not kill people because of his remonstrance. If he is actually killed, it is bad luck - for example, if you did it during the Jiajing Dynasty
In this matter, there are indeed some people who eat the court staff until they die. But after Jiajing really did this, wouldn't the ministers become more honest?
You know, even for Hai Rui, Jiajing was already about to die when he appeared in "Public Security", and his temper was much better than before, but Hai Rui was still ready to die.
Secondly, even if the admonisher is demoted, he can often be brought back by his colleagues in the same faction. It just depends on whether the hardship is long or short. If you have to endure some hardships and make a direct minister famous throughout the world, this is actually a lot of money.
That's why some people are willing to do it. But there is a clear prerequisite here: they can get it back.
What is the situation in the court now? Gao Pragmatic's power is stable, and the pragmatic school is getting stronger and stronger. After Zhao Zhigao gave in, the last boss of the Xin school, Shen Yiguan, could only "afford to offend and hide away" and went to Nanjing to help the emperor.
If we stand before the fight, who is stronger and who is weaker still needs to be clearly stated?
At this time, everyone suddenly realized another thing, that is, when he was in Qufu a few days ago, why did the emperor suddenly use Fang Congzhe's memorial to talk about it, and slapped the Heart School with a big mouth without warning.
Now that the case has been solved, it turns out that the emperor's intention in doing this was to shout to the officials of the Heart School: You, the Heart School, should be careful recently and don't speak against me when I promote Yuan Fu to the rank of nobility. Otherwise, just wait and see whether I will die.
you.
After understanding this matter, the Xinxue School was indeed extremely low-key, and no one stood up to oppose Gao Pragmatic's promotion. However, everyone continued to wait and see on something: third or fourth class?
In other words, is the "prefix" of Gao pragmatism, the Duke of Jingguo, "Fengtian Yiyun Tuicheng" or "Fengtian Yiwei Tuicheng"?
According to everyone's general understanding, since "Founding the Founding of the People's Republic of China" and "Fengtian Jingnan Tuicheng" are historical relics that have "expired without waiting", in fact, the only thing that can distinguish between high and low status is "Yi Yun" or "Yi Wei"
"This word is different, and Gao Pragmatic is still less than forty years old. In order to prevent him from making any great achievements in the future...
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Well, this mainly refers to the case where the emperor walks ahead of him, and as the chief minister of the dynasty, he leads the ministers to support the crown prince's succession and continues to lead the ministers.
If he is in charge of politics, then the new king will most likely continue to reward him - if he is "Yi Luck" now, the new king's operating space will be too small in the future. Therefore, the officials estimate that this time it should be "Yi Wei"
”.
However, another imperial edict that followed immediately broke this stereotype, because the emperor clarified in the imperial edict that Gao Pragmatic's title was "Fengtian Yiyun, sincere and upright civil minister Jingguo Gong".
Now, he is really the only civil servant and Duke since Li Shanchang. Although he can't get the out-of-print "Founding Assistants to Push Sincerity" or "Fengtian Jingdi is Hard to Push Sincerity", he is already the first in the world. , what else is there to be dissatisfied with?
Seeing that Gao Pragmatic once again received the order to thank him, the officials of the Xinxue Sect felt really bitter and self-conscious, and many people secretly cursed: Let's see the day when you will regret it for being so prosperous!
What's more, some people have resentment in their hearts: If the emperor controls Bintian with a dragon, you will have no reward, and sooner or later the new emperor will want you to look good!
However, these slanders can only be slander after all. Who dares to say it outright? Seeing that everything is going well, Zhu Yijun smiled and said: Get off and return to the palace.
The most important event on the journey south, the Zen Ceremony, has now come to a successful conclusion.
The Holy Emperor only rested in the palace, and set off again early the next morning, continuing southward. After returning to Yanzhou, he passed through Xuzhou, Huai'an, and Yangzhou and entered the Yangtze River. He first arrived at Zhenjiang on the other side of the river to review the navy, and then with the navy The escorting holy dragon boat fleet sailed upstream and arrived in Nanjing.
Naturally, a lot of things happened during this period. For example, Shengjia and his party visited an important industrial park in Beijing in Xuzhou, held a North-South Salt Merchants Conference in Huai'an, inspected the trade market in Yangzhou, and visited Slender West Lake.
In short, the entire itinerary was arranged in a tight and tight manner, and many problems were solved on the ground. It effectively implemented the spirit of "This is His Majesty's move for the welfare of all people" that Gao Pingshi promoted before going south, which made me want to criticize this trip. The second trip south was "a waste of national strength", and people in "tired places" had no way of talking about it, so they had to hold back the words that were already on their lips, and they didn't know if they would make them sick.
It is worth mentioning the "ship review" held in Zhenjiang. For this review, not only were all the elite naval forces in the southern part of the Ming Dynasty mobilized, but a squadron from Beijing was also recruited to replenish the fleet. The appearance - it is said to be a recruitment, but in fact it is a highly pragmatic and proactive deployment, but this does not need to be explained to the outside world.
On that day, a grand naval review ceremony began on the Yangtze River in Zhenjiang. The imperial boat on which the emperor was riding slowly sailed into the waters of Zhenjiang and began to conduct a grand review of the Jiangnan navy "stationed here".
The sky is blue, the sun is bright, the river breeze is gentle, and the waves are sparkling, adding a bit of magnificence to this ship review.
The waters of Zhenjiang have always been an important base for the Jiangnan Navy. Today, flags are fluttering and war drums are thundering. Navy ships have long been lined up on the river. Viewed from a height, they look like neat battle formations, majestic. Majestic. On the ship, soldiers wearing armor and holding weapons stood in their respective positions, waiting for the emperor's review.
With the long blast of the horn, the drums sounded immediately, and the ship review officially began. First, the honor guard fleet slowly passed by, and the soldiers on the ship held colorful flags and waved them uniformly to the rhythm of the drums. The colorful flags were There was a roaring sound in the wind, like brilliant rainbows spreading on the river.
Immediately afterwards, there was the display of the main warships. Each well-equipped warship, like a fortress on the water, slowly sailed in front of the imperial boat. For the sake of military appearance, the so-called "main warship" this time was actually the one mobilized by Jinghua.
The warship fleet, the leading flagship is a battleship of the same class as the "Dongchang", matched by six cruisers.
The "soldiers" of these seven main battleships have all replaced Jinghua's own somewhat too low-key brown uniforms and put on the bright-colored mandarin duck uniforms of the Ming Dynasty army. They are all full of energy and have firm eyes. The weapons in their hands are shining in the sun.
The cold light shines below, demonstrating the majestic military power of the "Ming Dynasty Navy".
Of course, for the sake of scale, after these top-level main forces, the real main forces of the Daming Navy also followed suit. This time, the scale was beyond the reach of just seven ships. A total of more than forty Dafu ships participated.
During the review, although the single size of the warships was smaller than those of Jinghua, the advantage was its large number, especially since this was on the river rather than the sea. It would not be an exaggeration to say that it had blocked the river.
After the main warships, there are fast and flexible reconnaissance ships and messenger ships. They shuttle on the river, demonstrating the mobility and flexibility of the navy. The soldiers on the ship are agile and skillful in operation, demonstrating the good training level of the navy.
and battle preparation.
Well...this is actually nonsense. How can the elites mobilized from the navy in all the southern provinces be worse? You must know that since Gao Pragmatic came to power, the imperial court has never been short of their salary. No matter what,
It has to be somewhat effective, right?
As the ship review progressed, the atmosphere on the river became more and more lively. The sound of drums, horns, and the shouts of soldiers intertwined to form a majestic symphony that echoed over Zhenjiang City and this section of the Yangtze River.
Zhu Yijun, the Emperor of Wanli, stood on the bow of the imperial boat, his eyes burning like a torch, his expression solemn but unable to hide the excitement in his heart. Sure enough, all men like to see big ships and cannons, and it would be even better if it was a fleet that covers the sky and the sea.
!
He looked at this powerful navy that belonged to him, and his heart was full of pride and satisfaction. He had seen Dongchang in Tianjin, but he had not seen Jinghua's large fleet, so he couldn't help but turn around after seeing "his own navy"
He turned to Gao Pragmatic, who was standing beside him, and asked, "What does Duke Jingguo think of this Jiangnan navy?"
"The military is at its peak." Gao Pingshi replied with a smile: "According to reports, it can be seen that if our Ming Dynasty navy joins forces to attack, no one in the world will be able to defeat it."
Zhu Yijun was overjoyed and laughed and said: "Jingguo Gong commanded the Korean naval battle. Since you said so, I think even if you boast about it, it should be pretty good."
Gao pragmatic smiled and said: "I told the truth and did not exaggerate." Zhu Yijun nodded with satisfaction, turned around and glanced at the envoys from various countries who were following him. Naturally, the envoys from various countries did not dare to neglect, and they all praised loudly to express their appreciation for Daming Water.
The great admiration of the master.
Zhu Yijun was very satisfied. This was what he wanted. It was important to feel good about himself, but he was the emperor after all. The key was to make the vassal states feel fearful. This was the emperor's political purpose.
In fact, what he didn't know was that Gao Pragmatic's "reporting based on the facts" was actually very problematic. The latter made a joke here: the so-called "the warships dispatched this time are only ten out of ten of the naval forces in the entire Jiangnan province".
"One or two" is true, but it refers to "one-tenth or two in quantity", but it does not mention the difference between big and small ships.
In other words, these "twelve out of ten" have almost included the main warships of the navy in the southern provinces of the Ming Dynasty, and the warships left to look after the warships in various places are almost all small boats one size or even several sizes smaller... But Gao is pragmatic
You are not afraid of being scolded by the emperor afterwards. After all, the key now is to intimidate the vassal states. You are just saying this to cooperate with the emperor. What's wrong?
Taking another ten thousand steps back, although the strength of the Ming Navy is somewhat exaggerated, Jinghua’s Two Oceans Fleet is not an exaggeration! As long as he is pragmatic and loyal, why can’t the strength of the Two Oceans Fleet be included in the broad sense of the Ming Dynasty?
"Navy"? When we were aiding Korea to fight against the Japanese, didn't Jinghua's fleet take the initiative to join the expedition?
At the end of the parade, there was a spectacular fleet salvo. Following the order from Admiral Cao Jiang, Geng Dingfang, the right censor of the Nanjing Metropolitan Procuratorate, all the artillery on the warships fired at the same time.
The huge waves were like thousands of horses galloping, majestic. At this moment, the entire Zhenjiang waters were shaken by this powerful force.
The ship review ended successfully with cheers. Zhu Yijun spoke highly of the performance of the navy and commended them for their loyalty and bravery. The ship review in Zhenjiang demonstrated the powerful strength of the Ming Dynasty Navy and attracted everyone's attention.
The vassal states were more clearly aware of the power of the Ming Dynasty and achieved the fundamental purpose of the ship review.
After the ship review, the Shengjia fleet sailed upstream along the Yangtze River, heading towards its final destination of Nanjing. The atmosphere inside and outside Nanjing became more solemn and solemn as the scheduled pick-up time approached.
Festive. The emperor’s chariot chose the waterway not only because of its convenience and comfort, but also because it could best display the grandeur and splendor of the Ming Dynasty.
When the emperor's fleet gradually appeared on the water of the Yangtze River in Nanjing, the spectacular scene was enough to make everyone who witnessed it feel excited. The fleet consisted of hundreds of ornately decorated ships, the largest of which was the emperor's arrival on the Yangtze River.
Later, the new Royal Boat. This ship was originally a sailing battleship owned by Jinghua. This time it was temporarily requisitioned and renovated in order to save the court's expenses. The Ministry of Revenue only provided Jinghua with the renovation cost.
The hull of the ship is engraved with exquisite dragon patterns, and a huge bright yellow flag is hung on the mast, which rustles in the wind. The bow of the ship is raised high, like a giant dragon raising its head, and the stern is carved with tumbling waves.
, symbolizing the endless stretch of the Ming Dynasty like a river. The dozens of dark and huge cannons with muzzles on both sides of the ship are a concrete display of its powerful power.
The royal boat is surrounded by escort ships decorated with various flags and ribbons. They line up in a neat formation on the river to protect the safety of the royal boat. The fleet rows across the river, stirring up layers of waves, like strips of white.
The dragon is churning in the river.
When the fleet slowly approached the dock in Nanjing, the shore was already crowded with people. Under the leadership of Shen Guan, the Sixth Department of Nanjing and local officials had already set up a huge honor guard on the shore, preparing to welcome the emperor's arrival. The honor guard consisted of It consists of thousands of soldiers, wearing bright armor, holding spears and flags, arranged in a neat square formation, extending from the dock to the city of Nanjing.
In fact, the Nanjing garrison had a large number of firearms, but Shen Guanyin still felt that spears were more powerful, so under his order, the Minister of War of Nanjing and the Nanjing garrison ministers had to replace all the rifles and bayonets of the honor guard with long spears. spear.
At the front of the honor guard is a group of warriors holding pumpkins and axes. They are the guards assigned to the emperor by the Nanjing Palace, representing the supremacy of imperial power. Followed by rows of musicians holding various musical instruments, they play Playing solemn music creates a solemn and festive atmosphere for the emperor's arrival.
In the center of the pier, there is a huge incense table with various sacrifices placed on it, and the smoke is lingering, symbolizing reverence and blessings for the emperor. On both sides of the incense table, there are two rows of warriors holding halberds. ...I don’t know where these halberds were found. In short, their halberds were hung with colorful ribbons, fluttering in the wind, which added a bit of festive cheer.
As the royal boat slowly docked, Shen Yiguan led the Nanjing officials to kneel down and loudly said: "I, Shen Yiguan, the great scholar of Wenhua Palace, and the officials from the six ministries of Nanjing, respectfully welcome the emperor! Long live, long live, long live our emperor. Long live!"
Zhu Yijun stood on the edge of the ship and watched this scene with a smile, nodding lightly, but did not give any other instructions. When the mountain call was over, he was wearing a Wu Bian dragon robe for easy movement, under the guidance of Gao Pragmatic and the support of Chen Ju After walking down the gangway, he waved to the officials to get back down.
His eyes swept across the honor guard on the shore, and he was quite satisfied with Shen Yiguan's careful preparation. At this time, the emperor slowly said: "Shen Aiqing, all my beloved friends in Nanjing, please be safe. I am lucky to have a smooth trip to Nanjing this time. , I am very pleased to see that the officials and people in Nanjing are happy, and the army is in high spirits. All kinds of things are inseparable from your diligence and loyalty, and I am very relieved."
This is all stage talk, and everyone is used to it. Shen Yiguan once again took the lead in shouting: "Thank you, Your Majesty for your commendation!" Then, he stood up slowly and began to introduce the three important ministers of Nanjing and the officials of Nanjing Liubu Hall to the emperor one by one. After a long time, all the procedures were completed, and the emperor's chariot was guided slowly to Nanjing City.
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