Chapter 42 Wu

Shangdu Da'an Pavilion.Morning a few days later. Da'an Pavilion is located in the northern part of the inner city. It was completed in December of the third year of Zhiyuan (1266).Every important event, Kublai Khan would hold a grand ceremony here, or often meet with kings and ministers here, and receive foreign envoys. Da'an Pavilion was built with precious wood from Xichun Pavilion in Bianliang, Nanjing (Kaifeng, Henan). It is 222 feet high and 46 steps wide.The architectural structure is extremely ingenious, and there are two out of fifty pillars, which are in the middle of the pavilion and the east and west.There are two couplets each, so the sun and the moon are covered by the clouds, but the wind and rain are blocked.The pavilion has four floors, and the stairway is 50-fold.The side structures of the two wings are bent under the upper rail structure, with ups and downs and miscellaneous, ethereal flying.At that time, people praised it as "magnificent".

At the moment of Yinshi, Kublai Khan came to court on time. The prime minister entered the palace to play. During the reign of Kublai Khan, the court had strict institutional restrictions.In addition to the emperor's personal servants who must be present, the servants in the palace of Yushitai must enter the palace with the ministers.In order to prevent leakage of secrets, the personnel on the scene of the report are restricted, and those who cannot be heard will be avoided.Xue Shi, who is in charge of daily life notes, stands in front of the hall, and records all the things he heard from the provinces, Taiwan, courts, and various divisions.

After the prime minister finished his work, the emperor issued an order.The decree that the chief executives think is inappropriate can be repeated, which is also called rebuttal.In August of the fourth year of Zhongtong (1263), Kublai Khan stipulated: "All ministers pass orders, and those who have doubts must repeat them." Therefore, in major state affairs such as personnel, rewards, and punishments, there are often cases where the chief executives seal the order. rebuttal case. For major national policy decisions, the officials of Zhongshu Province need to "discuss" with the chiefs of the Privy Council, Yushitai and other central institutions, and then report the agreed matters to the emperor. If there are different opinions in the "discussion", or someone reports that the executive staff of the "central organization" has misbehavior, the imperial court allows "court debate", that is, each appeals its reasons in front of the emperor, and those who are poor in reasoning are called "debates". Volt (failure)".Debates in the court are often violent, especially when impeaching officials.

"Three days and one event, military and national urgent affairs are not limited to this limit!" Ke Xuechang sang the never-changing lines of political etiquette, "Set up a political book, and all matters decided by public discussions are recorded in the book, and no additions are allowed when translating." reduce!" Liu Bingzhong took a step sideways, held the memorial in both hands, and went out of the class to play: "My minister, Liu Bingzhong, has written a memorial to Your Majesty!" "What is Aiqing's memorial?" Kublai Khan motioned to Xue Chang to take the memorial, and asked gently behind the red lacquer case.

"The matter played by the minister is related to the court rituals. The court etiquette formed during the Mongolian period has not changed since the present, complicated and chaotic. In the ten years since the founding of Yuanfan in the central government, the palace is still not erected, and the court rituals are still undecided. Congratulations, all the ministers, regardless of their rank or status, all gathered in front of the tent hall. The law enforcement officers were tired of it, and they swung their sticks to strike them, chasing them back and forth, several times in an instant. Together, court etiquette must be respected. Ministers and others request that court rituals be established as soon as possible." Liu Bingzhong supported the wat and played, with a serious expression.This has been the subject of repeated discussions between him and the ministers including An Tong, Lian Xixian, Yao Shu, Dou Mo, Shi Tianze, and Zhang Rou in recent months.Although not all Mongolian, Han, and Semu officials approved of this, they were silent when Kublai Khan recognized it.

"How to formulate, Aiqing may wish to tell me in detail!" Kublai Khan's voice was like a bell, and his demeanor was still full of vigor like a young man. "Now that the country is prosperous and the people are safe, I think that ministers and Confucian scholars should be sent to recruit the old men who have died of gold, imitate the classics, participate in the timeliness, customize according to the situation, and practice it freely, and it will be completed in a hundred days. Once the court ceremony is established, it will surely benefit the world and benefit the world. Admiration. Your Majesty, please allow Bingzhong and others to collect scattered folk music scores and musical instruments for use in court ceremonies. Customize the color of court ceremonies, set up a minister of ceremonies, and build a guard of honor inside and outside. After one month, the emperor and queen are respectfully invited to watch Bingzhong in the palace. Zhong et al. set up court ceremonies. In August, on the occasion of His Majesty’s birthday, the internal and external battles and the official music seats were established, and the court ceremonies were officially used. Since then, when the emperor ascended the throne, Yuanzheng, Tianshou Festival, and when kings and foreign countries came to court, the book was set up. The empress, the crown prince, and the honorable titles of the officials are honored by the empress dowager, the empress dowager, the treasures of the empress dowager, and the ceremony in the suburban temple. The country title, year title, emperor title, and hall rules follow the system of previous dynasties." At this point, Liu Bingzhong took a step back, "I have finished my request, Your Majesty, please judge."

"Okay, very good." Kublai Khan replied. Ahema coughed twice, came out and knelt down: "I have something to tell Your Majesty." He cleared his throat, put his hands on the carpet, and knelt down with his head between his palms, his fat body and round buttocks Then he twisted awkwardly.Some of the ministers secretly smiled, some looked sideways, and some seemed to have not seen it. "If Aiqing has something to do, just come here, why do you have to make such a big gift?" Seeing his appearance, Kublai Khan couldn't help laughing. "Your Majesty! Your Majesty..." Ahema got up, sweat dripping down his face.

"You have something to do, but it's okay to talk about it." "I don't dare to say it. Since Your Majesty asks, I have to say it." Ahema finally got to the point in a roundabout way. "That's right, Your Majesty, the Minister Shen Zhongshusheng You Chan Tong An Tong and a group of Han Confucian ministers have trouble with the Shangshu Province. Government orders coerce and personnel set up obstacles, making it impossible for the ministers to work and do nothing." "At the beginning of the establishment of the Shangshu, His Majesty issued a decree. All the officials were selected, and the Ministry of Officials drafted the financial products, submitted them to the Shangshu Province, and the Shangshu consulted the Zhongshu to hear them. It belongs to me, I can't help myself, I don't consult Zhongshu." An Tong had expected that Ahema would come to this move, so he argued calmly.

"Is there such a thing?" Kublai Khan asked Ahema. Ahema seemed to have infinite grievances: "Your Majesty once said to the ministers: no matter how big or small, all ministers are entrusted, and the people they use should be chosen by themselves." Kublai Khan was silent. "Your Majesty! Ahema is domineering and domineering. He ignores the imperial decree of the Great Khan and has no clue. He should be punished." An Tong couldn't bear it. "You are in a prominent position, and you are all my arms. Why don't you put the country's major affairs first, and only take pleasure in intrigue? If things go on like this, the state affairs will be miserable! Moreover, the Minister of Finance has the power of personnel, wealth, and state affairs. My affirmation. An Tong, you are young and vigorous, you should reflect on yourself."

At critical moments, Kublai Khan always accommodated Ahema.An Tong understands that this has something to do with Ahema's shocking policy of "accumulating wealth" to cater to the growing financial needs of the imperial court, and this is the real reason why Ahema has been favored and promoted repeatedly, and is still as stable as Mount Tai after several impeachments where.Since he couldn't take an active part in politics, An Tong couldn't help feeling disheartened. "The separation of the two provinces is not good for the country. From now on, only the severe punishment and the move to the road belong to the minister, and the rest of the affairs are paid to Ahema. The general affairs are clear." An Tong angrily asked to reduce his power.

"Zuzao!" Kublai Khan issued an order, "Merge the Shangshu Province into the Zhongshu Province, and appoint Ahema as the political affairs of the Zhongshu Pingzhang." "Minister—lead the decree!" Satisfied, Ahema bowed his head and thanked him. The merger of the two provinces of Shangshu and Zhongshu, on the surface, merged Shangshu Province into Zhongshu Province, but actually expanded Ahema's power.This round of struggle between the Han-Fa faction and the money-gathering faction within the Yuan court ended again with the victory of the money-gathering faction. So, at this moment, where is the real gold of the King of Yan, who is the only one in the court who can restrain Ahhema and make Ahhema fearful?It turned out that Zhen Jinzheng and Guo Shoujing were ordered to inspect the national water conservancy.When he returned to Yanjing the following year, Ahema's power was even stronger than before.