Because of the trip to the bell tower, the hearts of the three missionaries were severely damaged. Matteo Ricci fell ill after returning. He had a high fever and talked nonsense, which made the royal representative Xu Guangqi who was in contact with him very busy.
When Matteo Ricci recovered from his illness, the three missionaries were all as wilted as eggplants beaten by frost. They honestly prepared lesson plans according to the teaching tasks given to them by Xu Guangqi.
The opening season of the Capital University is scheduled for July 18th. Fan Li'an and others are not only busy with the construction of the new church, but also with the imperial court in organizing missions to Europe. They are busy with their feet hitting the back of their heads. As a member who was not fluent in Chinese, Matteo Ricci took over the task of preparing lesson plans and discussed with Xu Guangqi day and night. The two soon became good friends who talked about everything. In order to facilitate communication, Xu Guangqi also asked Matteo Ricci for a badge of Wenhua Palace.
On the seventh day of the fifth lunar month in the tenth year of Wanli, Princess Leping married Xu Guangqi. The entire papal delegation attended the wedding. This was also the first time for the delegation to participate in a social banquet in China. After the wedding banquet, many members of the mission became guests of the capital's dignitaries, and the missionary cause took a sudden step forward.
On the fifth day of June, Xu Guangqi gave Matteo Ricci a day off because the Queen Mother summoned his son-in-law and Princess Leping. After Matteo Ricci took a nap, he was writing a diary at home when Xu Guangqi came to the door again and said, "I heard that you can play the piano, right?"
Matteo Ricci nodded in agreement, and Xu Guangqi took a long breath and said: "Fortunately, I didn't say anything wrong. Come with me quickly. The Emperor is at the Queen Mother Rensheng's house. The Queen Mother has summoned you to play the harpsichord."
Matteo Ricci was overjoyed when he heard this and hurriedly tidied up his clothes. Xu Guangqi smiled and said: "You don't wear priest robes anymore?" Matteo Ricci adjusted the jade-colored robe and said: "Please help me see if I am wearing the right turban? I told Teacher Fan Li'an that I will wear it in the future." Wear Ming Dynasty clothes. They are currently making some of them."
.......
Strangely enough, after putting on Ming Dynasty clothes and seeing the emperor and the queen mother again, the psychological barrier of kowtowing was gone. After seeing the ceremony, Matteo Ricci did not dare to raise his head and look around, because he was already in Ciqing Palace, and the flowers in the palace were all women from the harem.
Queen Mother Rensheng saw Matteo Ricci's yellow beard and blue eyes and smiled: "He is really different from our race and looks weird. Can he speak our language?"
Matteo Ricci sweated on his forehead: "I'm quite capable, but I said no." Rensheng smiled and said: "You're quite capable! Haha!"
Zhu Yijun laughed at the side and said: "Zixian started learning Latin last year, and now he speaks fluently. Let him be an interpreter." After saying that, he gave Xu Guangqi a thumbs up and said, "You are really a genius. I have learned it for two years." Years are not as good as you."
Xu Guangqi hurriedly bowed and said: "The emperor has many things to do every day, unlike the ministers who have so much free time."
So Ricci spoke Latin and Xu Guangqi translated. At this time, in the Ciqing Palace, there were the Queen, Prince Luo, Princess Leping and some concubines, all gathered around Queen Mother Rensheng to have fun. Queen Mother Rensheng ordered: "The piano you presented me has a nice tinkling sound. Can you play it?"
This time the mission came to Beijing with more than ninety tribute items. Among them, there are more than 20 Western musical instruments alone, and the rest include the most detailed world map of the Portuguese at this time, enamel and gem-set crosses, Bibles and other objects.
As for the cross of Pius V, it was a sacred object and was not among the tributes. Fan Li'an originally wanted to give it to Zhu Yijun when he met in court that day, but later gave it to Prince Luo.
Among the Western musical instruments presented as tribute were the harpsichord and harpsichord, the predecessors of the violin and piano. The harpsichord and harpsichord were quite large. They were brought from Goa by Fan Li'an when he established the mission, and they were polished and painted to make them look like new.
In his previous life, Zhu Yijun studied piano for several years because of his better family conditions. Later, because of the extreme pain of the exam, he lost his temper and stopped practicing, and only passed the sixth level. After he saw the harpsichord and harpsichord, the shadow of his childhood shrouded him again.
I tried to play, but I was very unfamiliar with it. Moreover, the harpsichord and harpsichord at this time looked similar to the piano, but they played completely different. Zhu Yijun had no time to figure out the reason. After trying it a few times, he stopped playing.
Unexpectedly, Queen Mother Rensheng found the sound very pleasant because of the few times the emperor played it. Just because I have to prepare for Leping's marriage, I haven't had any time. Matteo Ricci was summoned only today.
In Europe at this time, the harpsichord, which struck steel strings, was not the mainstream. The harpsichord, which plucked the strings through key transmission, was the popular musical instrument. Matteo Ricci worked hard when he was a child. After entering the seminary, he also tried to arrange Gregorian chants into piano music, so he played it very smoothly.
He tried the sound check first, and as expected, after long-distance transportation, many of the sounds were no longer accurate. Matteo Ricci opened the back cover of the piano, found the tuning tools placed in the piano, and quickly tuned the piano.
Rensheng smiled and said: "This guy named Li must often play with this piano, and he is very familiar with it." Zhu Yijun and others smiled and agreed.
After Matteo Ricci tuned the piano, he calmly played a mass adapted from the fixed tunes of Gregorian chants.
The mass was solemn and solemn, and everyone in the room felt something in their hearts after listening to it. Queen Mother Rensheng sighed: "It has the flavor of our "Zhonghe Shao Music"." Xu Guangqi smiled and said: "Queen Mother, the music played in our palace is all symphony; the hundreds of plays, dramas and operas at our banquet are all symphonies. Matthew’s hometown doesn’t exist yet.”
Queen Mother Rensheng sighed: "You are right, but it is not easy for these musical instruments to be found in the land of Western Yi." Pointing to the violin, she said to Matteo Ricci: "That violin monster is beautiful, can you do it?"
Matteo Ricci responded: "Let me tell you, Your Majesty the Queen Mother, I know a little bit, but I am not as good as Mr. Capassa from our mission. I can make a fool of myself."
So he played the violin again. Queen Mother Rensheng was immediately moved by the sound of the violin and sighed: "It sounds so good! It's a pity that I can't hear it often." After speaking, he stared at Matteo Ricci with bright eyes, as if to let the missionary It's like entering the palace.
Matteo Ricci listened to Xu Guangqi's translation: "The Queen Mother seems to be regretful that she cannot hear this beautiful music often." After speaking, he glanced at Matteo Ricci's lower body.
Matteo Ricci had known that there were no men in the Chinese imperial palace except the emperor and his younger brother and son. Hearing this, his crotch went cold. Although European courts at this time also used eunuchs, they were complete slaves and had no political status. The Holy See maintained a group of castrati, the so-called eunuch choir - something Ricci knew very well.
In order to dispel the Queen Mother's thoughts, Matteo Ricci said a lot of urgent words. Xu Guangqi smiled and translated: "Queen Mother, Mr. Li said that we can train violinists on your behalf. They have experienced people in the mission who can teach these instruments to the people in the court."
Zhu Yijun's heart moved after hearing this, and he took over the words: "Okay! I will allocate a sum of money to establish a palace orchestra. We can try to combine Western instruments with our instruments to create some elegant music and great music, which will also save the elderly in the palace." It’s those old tunes. Besides, it’s time for the Jiaofang Department to be abolished. After so many years of no recruitment, the musicians are getting old.”
Empress Dowager Chen loved music, so the emperor allocated funds to build an orchestra. All the concubines in the palace praised the emperor's filial piety to the empress dowager. While the whole room was having a good time, Wei Chao, the most trustworthy eunuch around the emperor, suddenly saw Chen Ju waving to him outside the palace, so he bowed his back and walked out of the palace.
After a while he came in and whispered beside the emperor: "Your Majesty, Mr. Zhang passed out in the political hall."
When Zhu Yijun heard this, he was surprised and said, "Is it important?" Wei Chao shook his head to express his ignorance, and then said, "It was said by Chen Ju, the traveling minister of the inner court. He asked for an audience outside the palace."
Zhu Yijun remembered Zhang Juzheng and said to the Empress Dowager Rensheng: "Mother, there is something in the previous court, my son should go and deal with it first." The Empress Dowager Rensheng said hurriedly: "The emperor just goes to work." Zhu Yijun led Wei Chao out quickly.
When he went out to see Chen Ju, he said, "Why don't you just invite me?" Chen Ju said, "I'm afraid of the public, so rumors will spread, and I don't want the emperor to give them instructions. The prime minister has woken up, but the boss is so dense that it's difficult to manage, and he has just returned home. Rested."
Zhu Yijun took a long breath, relaxed, and said, "Let's talk about it in the Yangxin Hall."
When he arrived at the Yangxin Hall, Zhu Yijun asked: "What happened to Liu Tai? I remember that Dali Temple sentenced him to be exiled to Guangxi. Did he die of illness?"
Chen Ju whispered: "The news that came back is this. Because the emperor wanted to use Zhang Juzheng as prime minister, Liu Tai wrote a 5,000-word book criticizing him. Later, the emperor ordered him to be imprisoned and set up a flag for reform, and the imperial staff was not followed. Later, when Zhang Xueyan, the governor of Liaodong, attacked Liutai and patrolled Liaodong, he committed corruption and bent the law for personal gain. Does the emperor still remember these things? "
Zhu Yijun patted his leg and said with a wry smile: "I remember this. I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to forget what happened at that time."
Chen Ju continued: "At that time, the imperial court sent a censor Yu Yingchang to review and confirm Liu Tai's crime. Due to the beginning of the reform, the emperor ordered Liu Tai to be exiled to Guangxi in order to appease the prime minister."
Zhu Yijun nodded and said, "Go on."
Chen Judao: "On the first day of April this year, Liu Tai died suddenly. Today, the so-called "Liu Tai's suicide note" suddenly appeared in the capital. Some were even printed into big-character posters and posted everywhere in the capital. The contents of the suicide note were mainly announcements. At that time, Zhang Juzheng gave instructions to Yu Yingchang to frame him, and reported Zhang Xueyan and his subordinate Zhang Juzheng, who formed a party with them and had disloyal intentions."
"When the news reached the political hall, Zhang Juzheng suffered from vertigo and fell down."
