"I want to go to the foot of Tianshou Mountain to worship my ancestors. My dear friends, please make arrangements today!"
Zhu Youxiao didn't just have a sudden idea. He had been thinking about worshiping his ancestors for many days. His purpose of going to worship his ancestors was to visit his great ancestor in Changling.
Emperor Yongle was so great. Although he usurped the throne and proclaimed himself emperor, although he made many mistakes during his reign and had a great direct impact on the national policies and politics of the Ming Dynasty, he can be said to have made great contributions.
As the last emperor of the Han Dynasty who was talented and strategic, Zhu Youxiao, who had also been emperor for a few months, was deeply admired, and he was now considered his descendant. Whether it was for his personal thoughts or the overall situation, he Everyone must pay homage to their ancestor.
"Zhang Aiqing, you are the Minister of Rites. The Ministry of Rites should set the date first."
Zhang Ruitu was the Minister of Rites who was promoted half a month ago. Before that, he was just a director of the Sixth Department, so it was considered an unusual promotion by Zhu Youxiao.
"Your Majesty, the tenth, twelfth and thirteenth days of the lunar month are all auspicious days for ancestor worship. Please make your decision."
"Then let's set out on the tenth day of the lunar month. It just takes two days to reach the foot of Tianshou Mountain. I will officially bow down on the twelfth and thirteenth day."
"Seven days should be enough time to prepare the ceremony, joy and sacrifices. If you have any difficulties, please speak up now."
According to the etiquette of the emperor's sacrifice, officials from the six cabinet ministries and nine ministers, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the General Affairs Department, the six subjects and the thirteen roads all had to go with him.
Taichang Temple prepares the sacrifices, the Hanlin Academy writes the sacrificial edicts, and the Jin Yiwei is responsible for traveling, ceremonial guards, and scene arrangements. It can be said to be quite troublesome.
Wang Xiangqian, Yuanfu of the Cabinet, stepped forward and said:
"Your Majesty, why not appoint the remaining officials today?"
"Well, Master Wang is already old, so there is no need to go. The Minister of War, Wang Zaijin, and the British Duke Zhang Weixian are in charge of the defense of the capital. Do you have any other candidates to add to the list?"
"Your Majesty, you must also decide on the generals who will guard the nine gates, as well as the accompanying troops!"
This is very important. The emperor and the ministers of civil and military affairs are gone, and the capital is without an owner. This is the time when trouble is most likely to occur. Wang Xiangqian was afraid that his majesty would forget this matter, so he reminded him quickly.
"When the Nine Gates City is defended, it will be guarded by the Yulin Army, and the Five Cities Soldiers and Horses Division will be in charge of the city, so there should be no worries!"
"The Habayashi Army should also be responsible for the escort. The Ministry of Revenue has prepared food and supplies for the 30,000 troops and accompanying personnel."
"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"
"Now that the regulations have been decided, it is up to the cabinet to issue an edict to the officials."
"I have one more thing to do here. The Ministry of Rites has prepared an order and set an auspicious day. Master Liu will be the chief envoy and Ai Qing will be the deputy envoy. I want to canonize Su, the female official of Cining Palace, as the imperial concubine. We must hurry up before worshiping our ancestors! "
"I obey the decree!"
"Okay, if there's nothing else, let's get ready."
"Your Majesty, please leave!"
"Wang Banban, go to the military camp and inform the British Lord that 20,000 Yulin troops will be mobilized to accompany you. In addition, ask Li Songping to lead the cavalry from the Xiaoqi Battalion to clear the place for me first!"
Zhu Youxiao naturally wanted Li Songping to help him explore the way and station himself near Tianshou Mountain in advance.
Although he now has basic control over the capital, safety issues still need to be taken seriously.
"I order Wei Zhongxian and Xu Xianchun to come see me!"
…
arsenal
Although it was only the second day of the first lunar month, the craftsmen in the arsenal were busy making ordnance and armor at this time.
Xu Guangqiguang was shocked when he saw such a large-scale factory on the outer wall.
"who are you?"
"Xu Guangqi, my assistant minister in the cabinet, came to the arsenal to supervise the production of ordnance under the orders of His Majesty."
"Then please ask the assistant minister to show your majesty's handwriting and token!"
Not everyone can enter the arsenal. Except for Zhu Youxiao himself, no matter who else wants to enter the gate, they must show their handwriting and token. People inside are not allowed to go out. It is completely closed management. Food supplies can only be sent to the outer perimeter, and then pulled in by sergeants from the arsenal.
"Secretary, please come in!"
The guard sergeant opened the door after completing the inspection. Xu Guangqi looked inside and was dumbfounded. He saw more than a dozen men in armor and swords guarding the door. It seems that His Majesty attaches great importance to this place.
"General Secretary, Cabinet Assistant Minister Xu Guangqi is here!"
The general system was invented by Zhu Youxiao. The highest officer of the arsenal is the general. Now the first general is held by Zhang Zhiji, the son of the British Duke Zhang Weixian.
"President Zhang, Your Majesty ordered me to come here mainly for firearms and artillery. Please take me to the artillery factory first!"
Xu Guangqi is a scientist of this era, and Zhu Youxiao cannot waste his talents. With Xu Guangqi's knowledge, not to mention how awesome weapons he can develop, it is more than enough to improve the existing ones.
Zhu Youxiao asked him to come here this time for the small and lightweight bronze cannon. There was going to be a war soon, and the army must be armed to the maximum extent in terms of weapons.
"This is the sketch that His Majesty left last time, and these are some of His Majesty's ideas and suggestions. I can take a closer look. Although these craftsmen are skilled in craftsmanship, they have never read a book. They have not had a clue after these days. No."
Zhang Zhiji is also very helpless. His Majesty has said it himself, he must build the kind of cannon he mentioned. The army will soon use it. However, after so many days, these craftsmen have not even found a threshold. He was also impatient.
"Okay, please, Mr. Zhang, please prepare some jade for me, and gather all the artillery craftsmen here."
After everything was prepared, Xu Guangqi began to discuss and study with these craftsmen. Zhang Zhiji saw this and was sensible enough not to disturb them, and went to supervise the factory where the armor was made.
…
"When I go to worship my ancestors, you two must keep an eye on the palace and the capital, especially those with ulterior motives. You can't cause any trouble. But if there is a little chaos, you can first report to Wang Xiangqian for discussion. You two will report it to me every day. Part memorial!"
"Xu Xianchun, arrange for a few clever Tiqi to go to the outskirts of Beijing to bring the imperial concubine's family back to the city and protect them carefully."
"I obey the decree!"
After Zhu Youxiao finished speaking, he said to Wei Zhongxian:
"I want you to conduct an inventory of the palace to see if there are any fish that slipped through the net last time or other half-hearted people. Try not to alert the enemy and investigate secretly."
"But remember, you would rather kill by mistake than let go. As long as there are suspects, please report their names to me!"
"This slave knows!"
Be careful when sailing for ten thousand years. Although Zhu Youxiao had already purged the palace a few months ago, it was too hasty after all. Zhu Youxiao did not allow his life to be threatened in the slightest.
What's more, there is an imperial concubine in the palace now. Zhu Youxiao wants Qin'er to conceive an imperial heir for him as soon as possible, so there must not be any problems.
