Zhu Ci didn't answer, but instead asked, "Did Huaizhang write this himself?"
Fu responded, Zhu Ci waved his hand. "That's enough, I won't look at it anymore."
The other three??
Is there really such a double standard? Others' writings must be read, but the Grand Secretary can just write whatever he pleases, right?
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: What do you mean by double standards? If it weren't for the tradition of you civil officials setting traps for the Emperor, I wouldn't even read what you write! A tsundere kitty looking up at the sky. jpg
Next update at 6:00 PM~
Chapter 177
However, the three people present only complained in their hearts; they didn't think there was anything wrong with the Emperor trusting the Grand Secretary.
Zhu Yujian and Zhu Ci were both members of the imperial clan, they were not people who could be replaced by just anyone; even if the Emperor did not favor them, it would not matter. Chen Zilong was upright by nature and only wanted to do his duty.
However, once word got out, there was no telling what others would think.
While others were marveling at how much the Grand Secretary was trusted by the Emperor, Grand Secretary Fu said, "Your Majesty should still take a look; if there are any improprieties, it is not too late to make corrections."
“Take it away, take it away! I'm not looking!” Zhu Ci glared secretly at Fu.
Don't think he didn't realize Fu had ulterior motives; if he had actually looked, this might have become a model essay, the Grand Secretary would have lectured him right there in the hall.
He had not put effort into this aspect for a long time; he hadn't regressed, but he hadn't improved either. If he were found out, would he have no sense of shame?
Fu saw through the Emperor's little scheme at a single glance and replied with a suppressed laugh, "Yes."
Everyone watched the two of them exchange glances with strange expressions, feeling as though the Emperor and the Grand Secretary indeed shared some little secrets unknown to others.
Setting everything else aside, just looking at the interaction between these two, they even felt that the rumors outside weren't all that far-fetched.
Even they couldn't help but wonder if there was some unspeakable story between the Emperor and the Grand Secretary.
However, it was merely speculation; the two of them were simply far too open about themselves.
One had never hidden his favoritism, the other acted as if it were only natural; it certainly didn't make anyone think there was anything scandalous between them.
The day for the sacrificial rites was set for after the Winter Solstice, though Zhu Ci had originally intended to hold them together during the Winter Solstice sacrifices.
As a result, he was pushed back by the collective opposition of his officials.
Everyone's opinion is that you are not being sincere.
The Winter Solstice Sacrifice to Heaven is a ritual, a prayer for favorable weather in the coming year; how can they be combined? If they are combined, what if the Heavens cannot hear the subsequent prayers?
It's just.. to put it bluntly, if you say they don't believe, they actually care quite a lot; if you say they do believe, they still resort to forgery.
He really couldn't help but grumble to Fu, "If you're faking it, why aren't you afraid of being held accountable by Heaven?"
“That's different,” Fu Qingsheng said calmly. “The sacrificial text is real, the sincerity of the heart offering it to Heaven is real. How can what follows be called deceiving Heaven?”
To put it plainly, they had merely prepared a fallback option; if the results of the sacrifice were not ideal, they would simply twist the truth.
In any case, there aren't many officials who can truly participate in the Sacrifice to Heaven, especially even fewer who can stand in the front row. When the time comes, they can easily control the spread of information within a small scope, as long as they make the people believe the Sacrifice to Heaven was a success.
As long as Heaven favors them, it will be fine. As for what to do if it snows incessantly.. then they will simply say it is a trial from Heaven.
Anyway, they had come up with all sorts of contingency plans to ensure that every problem could be perfectly resolved when the time came.
Fu thought that Zhu Ci was worried about things going wrong when the time came, so he could not help but comfort him in a gentle voice: "Your Majesty, please rest assured. The Imperial Observatory has been conducting surveys for a long time; after the auspicious day, the snow will gradually decrease."
Oh, right, the Imperial Observatory's main task is actually weather forecasting; as for metaphysics, it is actually one of their least prominent functions.
Everyone was so well-prepared that what more could Zhu Ci say?
He could only wait for the auspicious day to put on his coronation robes and make the difficult journey toward the Altar of Heaven in the outskirts.
Zhu Ci sat upright in the carriage, using all of his strength to support the weight of his Coronation Robes.
The thought of having to walk a long distance in his coronation robes in a moment made him feel somewhat despondent.
Normally, he only needed to come here twice a year, for the Winter Solstice and the Summer Solstice, but now he had to come once more.
Fine, at least it's better than it was during the Summer Solstice.
He comforted himself.
After all, the weather was already quite hot during the Summer Solstice. Although the coronation robes were made of slightly thinner fabric, there were simply too many of them; layer upon layer, one could soak through three layers in sweat during a single ritual to Heaven.
When the actual ritual of sacrificing to Heaven arrived, Zhu Ci had many things to do, starting with Welcoming the Gods.
For this step, he needed to lead the officials in four prostrations to welcome the gods amidst the performance of the Song of Zhonghe by the musicians, then he had to perform the Guai Position, Hand Washing, Hand Washing, followed immediately by Offering the Cangbi, Offering Silk, returning the jade tablet to its position.
Then came the core of the ritual, the Three Sacrificial Rites, where he would perform three kneelings and nine bows amidst the chanting of the Ritual Reader.
And that wasn't all; he would also have to kneel when drinking the ritual wine and receiving the ritual meat.
And just as Zhu Ci knelt to drink the Ritual Wine, the snow that had been drifting from the sky stopped.
Not only did it stop, but even the thick clouds in the sky slowly dispersed, streaks of sunlight fell down, enveloping Zhu Ci.
In an instant, the gold and silver patterns on his coronation robes reflected the starlight, making his figure appear radiant.
Zhu Ci faintly heard a stir among the civil and military officials below the altar and instinctively looked up after setting down his wine cup.
As he looked up, he couldn't help but be startled. As the clouds in the sky slowly dispersed, the sunlight passing through them actually formed the shape of a dragon.
Zhu Ci could not help but look up for a few more moments, the twelve tassels of his ceremonial crown making a faint sound.
Fu stood below and first looked back, because it was a cloudy day, he had specifically chosen not to wear a wide-brimmed hat or sunglasses for this ritual of offering to Heaven.
His glance successfully caused all the officials behind him to shut their mouths obediently, yet the astonishment in everyone's eyes could not be hidden.
Zhu Ci felt a bit nervous himself; had a.. had a real omen actually appeared?
Fortunately, the entire sacrificial ritual was nearing its end; all that remained was to see off the gods.
One had to kneel and kowtow during the sending-off of the gods as well, Zhu Ci had already been somewhat perfunctory about it.
He felt a surge of emotion; in ancient times, being an Emperor with poor health was simply not an option, otherwise, this entire ritual process would likely be fatal.
After respectfully seeing off the gods, Zhu Ci returned to the command tent to change into casual robes.
However, this time was a bit different; Zhu Ci called Fu inside as well.
Anyway, Jiang Xueyan and Wu Xia were already in the command tent to help him change his clothes, so having Fu there wouldn't make any difference.
Because his undergarments were already soaked with sweat, after Zhu Ci removed his coronation robes with the help of Jiang Xueyan and Wu Xia, he went behind the screen to change his undergarments by himself.
Even though there was a screen blocking the view, Fu still kept his eyes cast down toward the floor, listening to the faint sounds from behind the screen, his mind momentarily wandering.
Zhu Ci, while changing clothes inside, asked, "Did your previous preparations include a contingency plan for this kind of situation?"
Fu forced himself to focus and said, "Your Majesty, please rest assured. At this stage, things have actually become much simpler."
What else is there to prepare? Just let the rumors spread quietly, say whatever needs to be said.
In fact, there was no need to wait for them to do anything; the outside world had already begun to buzz with rumors.
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: I think it's just a coincidence. A kitty with dragon horns and a dragon tail runs away. jpg
Next update tomorrow morning at six o'clock~
Chapter 178
The news of the Emperor's ritual to Heaven was not kept secret.
This matter couldn't be kept secret either; there were too many people and items involved, making it impossible to maintain complete secrecy.
Not to mention that the sacrifices to Heaven were originally intended to stabilize the people's hearts, so once the date was set, the news was released. This served to suppress the rumors from the outside and acted as a reassurance for the officials.
Those rumors were far too inflammatory; never mind the ordinary commoners who lacked the ability to distinguish truth from falsehood, even some officials were starting to harbor suspicions.
Could it be that the Imperial Court has killed so many people that it has offended Heaven?
Within a single year, first there was the Ma and Gao case, followed immediately by a corruption case; in every instance, heads were rolling, the corruption case was even more severe than the previous Ma and Gao case.
In the past, an auspicious day had to be chosen for executions, but now, executions take place at the execution grounds almost every day.
The many officials being executed were trembling with fear, terrified that one day they might offend the Emperor and lose their own lives.
If you want to deal with magic, you naturally have to use magic cannons to blast it.
This was the method devised by the Grand Secretariat and the Censorate, or rather, it was Grand Secretary Fu's idea.
Unexpectedly, the results were so good.
Although ordinary people were not allowed to watch the Great Sacrificial Ceremony, the entire process was transparent.
Anyone with even a little bit of knowledge would know, just by glancing at the time, that the dragon shadow appearing in the sky appeared at the exact moment the Emperor received the ritual meat.
Of course, it wouldn't matter if they didn't know; there would always be someone who knew, speaking of their guesses in a mysterious manner, then telling everyone not to spread the word.
The phrase "don't spread this" might be magical in itself. If it were ordinary news, perhaps it wouldn't spread very fast, but once someone says "don't spread this," it means the news will spread at the speed of light.
A dragon's shadow, that was a dragon's shadow.
What does this explain? It explains that the current Emperor is truly the Son of Heaven recognized by the heavens, that his actions are permitted by Heaven!
If one could call the dragon shadow a mere coincidence, then once the sacrificial rites were completed and the sky brightened, with the originally gloomy weather gradually clearing, surely this could not be a coincidence?
One must realize that when the sacrificial procession walked toward the Altar of Heaven, the sky was as dark as dusk, snow was even falling.
Now the snow has stopped, the sky has cleared.
Doesn't this prove that the ritual to Heaven was a success and that the Emperor is in perfect health?
Zhu Ci was multitasking, reviewing memorials while listening to Jiang Quan describe the situation outside.
He didn't pay much attention to the public opinion outside; since it had already been suppressed, he would set it aside for the time being.
He only asked, "Did this expedition cause any disturbances in the local areas? Were there any violations of discipline or order?"
Jiang Quan immediately replied, "Of course not. Your Majesty, you may not be aware, but everyone praises the Jinyi Guard wherever they go."