The Ancestral Temple is the place where the ancestors of the Qi Dynasty have their shrines. Worshiping the Ancestral Temple is equivalent to worshiping the ancestors, so the procedure is extremely cumbersome. Fortunately, with the presence of the Minister of Rites and the Minister of Taichang Temple, Huang Qiong, who really knew nothing about this, did not cause any trouble. Although the sacrifices began at Yin Shi, due to the extremely complicated etiquette, they could not be completed until Mao Shi.
After this extremely complicated etiquette, even though Huang Qiong was young and strong, and still had martial arts skills, she still felt a little sore in her back and legs. He kowtowed countless times. He would kowtow before the Minister of Rites read out the sacrificial text, and he would also kowtow when the tributes were presented. Finally, it was almost done, and he was dragged by the Minister of Rites and the Minister of Taichang Temple. Starting from the throne of Emperor Taizu, they bowed three times and kowtowed nine times.
Since the founding of Da Qi, there have been eight emperors since it was passed down to Huang Qiong's father, not including Emperor Liezong. An emperor has to kowtow nine times to his throne, which means that the eight emperors Huang Qiong have to kowtow a total of seventy-two times, not counting the previous kowtows. When the ceremony was over, Huang Qiong felt dizzy from kowtowing and felt a little dizzy.
It wasn't until she came out of the Imperial Ancestral Temple that she looked back at this magnificent building, which was not even much smaller than the main hall of the palace. Huang Qiong felt somewhat emotional in her heart. After living two lives, he realized that being an emperor also required kowtow, and there was also a lot of kowtow. No wonder the old man didn't come by himself. At his age, it's strange that he didn't get caught up in such a circle.
Fortunately, he only needs to kowtow to eight gods. If there were more, Huang Qiong felt that it was very likely that he would faint in the Ancestral Temple. This was really the best of luck. But at this moment, Huang Qiong, who thought he was very lucky, didn't know that he might not be able to laugh if he stayed for a while. Because of the sacrifice to the Ancestral Temple, this is just the beginning of a series of tedious sacrifices on the last day of the year.
After offering sacrifices to the Ancestral Temple, Huang Qiong took the place of the emperor and offered sacrifices to all the gods in the palace who needed to be sacrificed. Although there is no need to kowtow, there is still a lot of etiquette involved in offering incense and bowing. At the end of the day, or to be exact since midnight, Huang Qiong had not even had a drink of water. He was either busy kneeling and kowtowing, or busy worshiping gods and burning incense. From the Ancestral Temple outside the palace, people kowtowed and bowed all the way to the palace.
After everything was over, Huang Qiong not only didn't feel excited at all, but actually felt dizzy. Because he had to clean his belly to perform sacrifices at the Imperial Ancestral Temple, Huang Qiong was wet and dry since he set out in the early morning. Next, he offered incense to the gods he knew and didn't know enshrined in the palace. I only ate some snacks at noon to satisfy my hunger, and my stomach and intestines were even more hungry.
Fortunately, all the sacrifices were finally finished before Huang Qiong felt exhausted. Huang Qiong, who was dazzled by just kowtowing and saluting, never figured it out. When I was in the Ancestral Temple, I was bowing three times and nine kowtows to the previous emperors of the Qi Dynasty one by one. The mature and prudent Minister of Rites was okay. Although the expression on his face was more or less surprised, he was generally very strict.
Why is the expression on Taichang Temple Qing's face always so unnatural, giving people the feeling that he wants to laugh but dare not. When he stood up, he suddenly became serious again. Huang Qiong wanted to ask the Minister of Taichang Temple why he made such an expression when he was kowtowing. But when I thought about it, maybe this Minister of Taichang Temple was participating in a sacrifice for the first time like him.
This kind of complicated but frustrating etiquette also feels a bit funny. It's just that Huang Qiong forgot that he could be the official of Taichang Temple, the official responsible for various sacrificial activities of the imperial court. Who is not familiar with the etiquette of the imperial court? Even if he just took office yesterday, he would never feel unfamiliar, let alone feel ridiculous about the complicated etiquette.
Huang Qiong, who was about to change out of the heavy princely gown, was guided to the back of Wende Hall by Gao Wuyong, who had been accompanying him in the sacrifice. But he was shocked to find that the emperor himself was actually sitting behind the royal desk, holding flowers in his arms, and teaching them to write stroke by stroke. The emperor was obviously in a good mood today, and Hua Hua praised him every time he wrote a word.
Huang Qiong could tell that the emperor really liked this little girl. After Huang Qiong finished bowing politely, the emperor didn't look at him at all. Instead, he gently pinched Huahua's still little fleshy face and said, "Our Huahua is really smart, and our handwriting is really good. If our little flower wants any reward, tell Grandpa, and Grandpa promises to get it for you." .”
Originally, after seeing Huang Qiong, some excited flowers wanted to pounce on her. It's just that the emperor didn't let go, so the flowers stayed in the emperor's arms. Hearing the emperor's question, Hua Hua smiled sweetly and said: "Hua Hua has nothing else. He only wants his grandpa and grandma to live a long life, and that his father and mother can always be together and never be separated. "
As people get older, they are naturally willing to listen to some auspicious words. Especially the child Huahua, this is the first time he has met a saint, and he doesn't even know that this old man with great rules is the current emperor. This sentence naturally made the emperor even more happy after hearing this. Hearing Hua Hua's childlike answer, the emperor behind the imperial case immediately burst into laughter.
But Huang Qiong, who broke out in a cold sweat instantly, couldn't help but feel a little nervous in her heart. Until I saw the emperor's face, there was nothing strange. It seemed that all his thoughts were focused on the children beside him, and he felt slightly relieved. However, when the emperor handed the flowers to Gao Wuyong and sent them back to Ting Xuexuan, he looked at Huang Qiong and said calmly: "Although children's words are a bit unbridled, sometimes they are telling the truth."
"I hope that my father and mother will always be together and never be separated. It's really nice to say that. I really haven't seen that you have such great ability, and you are so good at building plank roads and secretly infiltrating Chencang. I have said it several times. I ask you, how can you still pretend to be nothing? Do you really think that there are not many scandals in the Tian family now? Or do you think that my family's laws will really not fall on you? "
"Ajiu, you are so thick-skinned. Among all my sons, you are the only one. You have been criticized for being careless, but you are so courageous? Others are accused of bullying the emperor, It is regarded as a serious crime of confiscating the family and exterminating the family. But when it comes to you, it is ignored again and again. Is it so that you have no king and no father in your eyes? "
Huang Qiong couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat after the emperor's words were obviously solid evidence. He wanted to explain something, but the emperor waved his hand and said: "You don't have to say anything to me. Although I am old, my eyes are not full of flowers yet. The day you returned to Beijing, I noticed that you and I There's something wrong with that Lin Hanyan."
"If you two have nothing to do with each other, why did she look at you every time she answered my questions that day? I still know the Lin family's tutoring. The Lin family, which has always taught poetry and etiquette, will never teach you. That kind of woman with a frivolous personality. If it weren’t for this, why would I have proposed her marriage to Prince Jing in the first place?”
"It's because I have taken a fancy to this woman's character, and I hope she can restrain King Jing after the wedding and not do things too out of the ordinary. I also need to treat King Jing well because he is a bit perverse and tends to go to extremes when things happen. Yilin How could Han Yan, a calm and reserved person, easily agree to live in someone else's house just because of my decision?"
"Don't tell me that you are just her brother-in-law, even if you are her own brother, she may not agree. But that day I asked her to temporarily live in the Prince of England's Mansion, but she nodded and agreed without even thinking about it. She even passed the decree. The people came back to report to me, and there was a hint of joy on her face when she heard that I asked them to stay in the Prince's Mansion for the time being."
"It's a pity that although she is very smart, she is still a woman after all. Compared with you, she is still too shallow. Although not much is revealed, it is enough for me to see the relationship between you two. There is absolutely no ordinary uncle and sister-in-law. It’s so simple. It’s just that you pretended too well before. Although I have some doubts, there is no conclusive evidence after all.”
"Before, I always thought that you saved their family in Zhengzhou. It is normal for her to be a little attached to you. You and she adopted a child together because you both felt pity for the child and wanted to take good care of the child. . At least that child is yours, and Huahua’s future will be more secure."
"Your second brother's concubines, especially the sarcastic mother of the eldest son Wang, will not bully her in disguise because the child is just an adopted daughter. Although you have a somewhat flamboyant temper, you are still unable to do such things that violate human ethics. Come. But Huahua’s words today have confirmed my original suspicion. Children’s words are the least likely to lie."
After the emperor said this, Huang Qiong knew that he could no longer hide it. He simply gritted his teeth and was not hiding anything. He thought that because of Wang Dalong's death, he was in a bad mood, even extremely irritable. When Lin Hanyan came to persuade him, he did some irreparable things because he was drunk. As for what happened next, things just fell into place.
Since Lin Hanyan got married to King Jing, he has been keeping an empty house alone. In fact, the fact that he and King Jing were just a couple in name was revealed. However, Huang Qiong hesitated for a while about Concubine Shen, and finally hid it. It was not because of Concubine Shen, but because he was worried about the Chinese New Year, and knowing about this matter would cause trouble for the old man.
After Huang Qiong finished speaking, the emperor frowned deeply. After a long time, he sighed softly: "Hua Hua is a good child, sincere and filial, and quite smart. Since I have adopted her as my adopted daughter, I told Lin Hanyan to raise her well and she will be someone to rely on in the future. I am now an adult." , some things are beyond our control and we can’t control them even if we want to.”
"But I said that I don't want to hear any bad rumors spread between you. You have to remember this sentence for me. You don't have to take my face seriously, but this ancestor has hundreds of ancestors. The Great Qi Dynasty, which was passed down from the war side, really cannot afford to lose people again. Don't think about imitating Emperor Gaozong. What he can do, you may not be able to do. If the foundation is unstable, the earth will shake. .”
Although the meaning of the emperor's words was a bit vague, Huang Qiong could hear the real intention. The emperor told him clearly that it doesn't matter whether you are secretly plotting against someone else or playing tricks on others. But this matter must not be spread, and Lin Hanyan must not have children. At that time, Emperor Gaozong could take his sister-in-law into the palace, and even planned to make her a queen.
But you don’t have the capital of Emperor Gaozong, so don’t think about adopting your brother-in-law as your sister-in-law. You can take my reputation as a father seriously, but you cannot ignore the reputation of the Tian family. If you don't want the world to laugh at you, it's best to stop doing some things in moderation and don't go too far. The Tian family has lost enough people this year.
As for the last sentence, it is even more obvious. Emperor Gaozong dared to do that because Emperor Gaozong was actually Emperor Taizong, a newly established crown prince. Taizong personally conquered the Northern Liao Dynasty many times, and Emperor Gaozong, as the crown prince, supervised the country. In his later years, Emperor Taizong was bedridden for several years due to the pain accumulated from years of fighting. Emperor Gaozong almost replaced Emperor Taizong in running the government.
