What was placed in the Xinuan Pavilion of the Qianqing Palace was Emperor Zhu's family banquet. The family set up several tables in a hall on the second floor of the Xinuan Pavilion and had a prosperous meal.
Today is the third day of March. In the Ming Dynasty, it was a festival called Shangsi Festival. Before the Song Dynasty, it was an important festival where the "purification bathing" activity was held. It means going to the waterside to bathe together to clear away the bad luck. However, this custom gradually declined after the Song Dynasty - men and women gathered by the water to bathe and so on. It looked like a lot of people were lustful. It was not natural at all, and of course it was not allowed!
After Zhu Yuanzhang founded the Ming Dynasty, the activities of the Shangsi Festival were changed to "Spring Outing". Zhu Cixiang has been busy with government and military affairs in the past two years, and has no time to take a day trip outside Nanjing, so he instead uses the most simple way of celebrating the festival - having a dinner together!
The dinner party in the emperor's house is not about setting up a round table and everyone eating together, but eating in separate portions. There were tables and tables arranged in a circle, not one person per person but one small table, but people seated in twos and threes. Zhu Cihong and Wu Sanmei were at the same table, Emperor Chongzhen and his concubine Hu were at the same table, and Empress Zhou and Empress Lao Zhang were at the same table. There are also some children who sit either with their biological mothers or with their wet nurses. Children who are too young are not served on the table, and adult meals are not suitable for them.
Zhu Cibing, the sixth son of the Emperor, and his biological mother, Concubine Wei (the Emperor's concubine), placed a table next to Emperor Chongzhen. The six-year-old little fat boy has always loved food. After the banquet started, he covered his head and ate non-stop. He was not picky about food. He didn't miss any of the food that was served one after another... When the little fat boy was happy, let him Then comes the heartbreaking bad news.
"Father, is it time to enlighten your sixth brother?" Zhu Cixi also loves food, but he doesn't dare to eat too much - if you want to get a high school these days, you don't even have medicine, so you can only wait for death! So when I was about half full, I put down my chopsticks and talked to Emperor Chongzhen.
The content of the conversation was about the education of the little fat boy Zhu Cibing... He has to go to school, and he can no longer eat, drink and play happily!
"Are you enlightened?" Emperor Chongzhen smiled, "Just find a chamberlain to teach you first... Brother Xiaochun is an ordinary prince, and he will just sit back and enjoy wealth in the future."
Zhu Cibing was actually the prince, but Chongzhen believed that he was still the emperor when he was born, so he should be allowed to enjoy the treatment of a prince. But he didn't think this little fat guy could have any big future - he already had Zhu Cijiong and Zhu Cizhao, so he didn't count on Zhu Cibing anymore, so he could just hang around.
"Yes, Brother Six is just a rich and idle man." Wu Sanmei was not speaking for Chongzhen, but for Zhu Cibing.
In her opinion, the little fat man has already reached the top level of financial freedom - retirement freedom! You can retire when you are born, so why bother working hard? Just recognize a few words and eat and drink.
"What does it mean to be a rich and idle person?" Zhu Cixiang smiled, "Xiaofu, are you willing to be a good-for-nothing prince who eats, drinks and has fun all day long with nothing to do?"
The little fat man who was stuffing a piece of crispy roasted duck skin into his mouth heard his elder brother's question and didn't know how to answer. He quickly looked at his sister-in-law Wu Sanmei - the fat man just looked honest, but he was actually quite smart. I know my sister-in-law loves me.
Wu Sanmei nodded lightly, "You are all a "little lucky king". If you don't want to be trash, what do you think you are?"
The little fat man said happily: "Yes, my brother is willing!"
Quite clever! Zhu Cihong said in his heart: I didn’t see it! You little fat guy hides your secrets... You already know how to act stupid when you are only six years old. How can you still do it when you grow up?
You must educate yourself well!
"Father," Zhu Cixiang said to Chongzhen with a smile, "Look...you don't know how to make progress at such a young age. You can't do it without a good education! What can you do when you grow up?"
What to do? Emperor Chongzhen said in his heart: Oh my lord! You have to give one to the prince, right? You have a royal palace, 5,000 acres of land, and a reward of tens of thousands of taels of silver, and you want to refuse it?
"Even if you are granted the title of prince, you can't just eat and do nothing!" Zhu Cihong said, "Now the country is in a difficult situation, and the court's financial resources are limited, and there is no spare capacity to support so many princes and eldest sons. Therefore, princes and princes can only grant land, and there is no fixed salary. . If you can’t serve as an official, you will be poor in the future.”
Hearing what Zhu Cixi said about "limited financial resources", Chongzhen groaned a few times in his heart: You are obviously stingy, why are you crying about being poor... You are the richest among the emperors of the Ming Dynasty, but even the prince They don't even want to give out their salary, they are so stingy!
Zhu Cixiang added: "Fortunately, the law of vassal ban has been abolished. Princes, emperors and grandsons can serve as officials. The third and fourth brothers have become Fangzhen Jiedu. The fifth and sixth brothers also have to be well educated. Maybe he can also become a pillar of the country."
The fifth son of the emperor, Zhu Cihuan, the prince of Chongqing County, was also in the dining room of Xinuang Pavilion. He was squinting in the corner. Each person had a small table with several pots of leftover dishes eaten by Queen Zhang and Queen Zhou - Zhu Cihuan had a "rebellious" streak. Suspicion, and the emperor's sister-in-law didn't treat him as a son, and he also understood things and knew something was wrong. He was suspicious all day long and was afraid of food poisoning.
So when I went to Zhu Cihong's place for a banquet, I didn't dare to let go of eating and drinking. It looked pitiful. So Queen Zhou and Queen Zhang rewarded Zhu Cihuan with their leftovers.
Now when I heard Emperor Zhu say that he should educate himself well so that he can be a pillar in the future, he quickly put down his chopsticks and cupped his hands and said: "Brother Huang said, I must study hard and be admitted to the Jinshi exam in the future."
Still taking the Jinshi exam? Zhu Cihong said in her heart: I will take the university entrance examination in the future! If you fail the exam, you will have no choice but to go home and be a useless prince!
"Okay! Be ambitious!" Zhu Cixiang raised his thumb, "This is the good prince of my Ming Dynasty!"
He then said to Chongzhen: "Father, why don't we take advantage of the opportunity to get together today to discuss the study of the prince, the upper prince, the prince, the princess and the princess!"
"Why are there still princesses and princesses?" Wu Sanmei was stunned.
"Not only the princesses and princesses, but also the children of dukes, marquises, uncles, sons, and sons, as well as the fourth-rank and above officials living in Beijing, must go to school and make progress!" Zhu Cixiang said, "This matter is related to the long-term peace and stability of our Ming Dynasty. We must not Negligence and perfunctory.”
Emperor Chongzhen saw his son's expression being extremely serious when he spoke, and was a little puzzled: "Your Majesty, the matter of reading and learning calligraphy is the business of each household, so why don't we take care of it?"
"Father, you are wrong!" Zhu Cixiang shook his head repeatedly, "The reason why our dynasty has difficulties in Jiashen (now refers to abandoning Beijing and moving the capital south) is ultimately because Emperor Taizu neglected the education of princes and children of nobles!"
Emperor Chongzhen nodded and said to himself: I didn't teach you well either... You don't know the rules at all, and you always criticize Emperor Taizu Gao!
Zhu Cixiang went on to say: "One year's plan is better than planting valleys; ten years' plan is better than trees; and the country's plan is better than planting people... This dynasty started in the grass, Taizu started in the early days, and wiped out the wasteland with his unparalleled genius. , established the Ming Dynasty. But the princes, the emperor's grandsons, and the children of nobles were born in peace and happiness, and they had no destiny. If they were not taught strictly, how could they become talented? How could the foundation laid by Taizu be continued by those with little ambition and talent? The prosperous Ming Dynasty?"
Chongzhen said in his heart: You rebellious son has harmed all the ancestors of the Ming Dynasty with your words... You are still a filial son! He is simply the most treacherous son in history!
The filial son Zhu Da sighed: "Thank God for blessing the Ming Dynasty, I have a talent like me who is comparable to Taizu and Emperor Gao to come out to turn the tide! But my power is limited after all, and I cannot live forever. If I don't take advantage of now to help The Ming Dynasty has nurtured talents, so how can the country be sustained in the future? Who will the world be left to?"
Emperor Chongzhen said with a cold face, "Your Majesty, how do you plan to cultivate talents for the Ming Dynasty?"
"Run a school!" Zhu Cixiang said, "You can follow the example of the forefathers, run a school and educate talents, and running a school and educating talents must start from childhood, so we should open a primary school first, and then open middle schools and universities... All the children of nobles must enter school, etc. When the school gets bigger, it will recruit children from the common people."
