How deep the foundation is, how high the wall is.

- Japanese proverb

The place where a great man can become a great man is not that he has three heads and six arms, but that he stands higher and sees farther than ordinary people.

Kublai Khan was different from the Mongol Great Khan, who conquered cities and plundered property. While expanding the territory of the Great Mongol Kingdom, he was planning the future empire in his mind. He was determined to abandon the backward way of life of the nomadic people, who lived in pursuit of water and grass, and to adopt an effective way of governing the country to consolidate the great cause of the Mongolian nation for a thousand years.

In 1260, the Mongol Empire founded by Genghis Khan split and evolved from Kublai Khan's accession to the throne into Kublai Khan's Great Yuan (Great Yuan Empire), the four khanates located in the western part of the Great Yuan. Among them, the territory of the Great Yuan included today's Mongolia and most of China, and the political center shifted to the Central Plains.

Kublai Khan ascended the throne in Kaiping, and in order to take into account the management of the northern steppes and the Han lands of the Central Plains, he upgraded Kaiping Prefecture, located on the southern edge of the Mongolian steppe, to the upper capital, replacing Hala and Lin. However, the location of Shangdu was still far north, which was very unfavorable to the central government's control of the vast areas of the Han region in the Central Plains. Therefore, in 1264, Kublai Khan settled the dispute with Ali Buge for the throne and issued an edict to change Yanjing (present-day Beijing) to the central capital.

In addition to unifying the whole country and building a large capital, Kublai Khan also learned from others, learned the laws and regulations of the Han people, and established various political systems, such as the establishment of provinces at the local level, and the central government set up Zhongshu Province, creating a provincial system in Chinese history; The establishment of the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Persuasion of Agriculture, and other institutions in charge of agriculture, with the results of persuasion of agriculture as the main criterion for evaluating officials, led to the compilation of the "Compendium of Agricultural Mulberry" and its promulgation throughout the country.

Kublai Khan agreed with the proposal to record the history of the Great Yuan in the traditional Song style, and suggested that the imperial court establish the Hanlin and National History Academy under the Hanlin Yuan to collect, record, and write the histories of the Liao and Jin states.

Kublai Khan introduced banknotes into circulation, making them the basis of finance.

In order to prepare for famine, Kublai Khan resumed the state grain control policy that was canceled after Wang Anshi, and in good years, the state purchased surplus grain and stored it in the state warehouse; When the price of grain rises in a famine year, open a warehouse and distribute grain for free.

Kublai Khan pursued a liberal religious policy. Lamaism, Islam, Christianity, Taoism, Confucianism, etc., are all respected and developed.

In order to strengthen the management of the border areas, open up communication between China and foreign countries, establish post stations in various places, and consolidate the rule over the whole country.

In 1267, Kublai Khan eliminated the interference of the old ministers and nobles, and resolutely moved the capital to Yanjing, the capital of the Central Plains.

Kublai Khan moved to the central capital and temporarily lived in the Daning Palace, the palace of the Jin Kingdom, outside the city.

Kublai Khan set out to build a new state, and of course a new palace and a new capital. He appointed Liu Bingzhong, an official of Zhongshu Province, as the chief of the construction of the capital, Guo Shoujing to plan and repair the water conservancy system, and Hui to design the new palace.

Ali's second son, Amar (meaning construction), worked under Ihediel and was therefore involved in the construction of the new capital of the Great Yuan.

On this day, Dayuan held a grand palace groundbreaking ceremony in Zhongdu. The whole city played in unison, and the voices were full of voices, as lively and festive as the New Year.

The housekeeper of Ali's house suddenly ran to Amar's side in a panic and said breathlessly, "My lord, my lord is dying. ”

Amal's heart sank, and he hurried home.

Ali, a remnant of the Khorezm Empire and a servant of the Great Mongolian Empire, died suddenly at his home in Niujie, the old city. On his deathbed, Ali was no longer able to speak. He trembled and handed over the pebbles of his polished hometown to his eldest son, Nuhai.

Ali has not been able to return since he left Khorezm at the age of 16. Now, his body and his homesick dreams are buried deep in the yellow earth of Zhongdu. His descendants will continue to thrive and live on this land.

At the same time, Badr, a loyal minister of the Great Mongolian State, was very old, and he swallowed his last breath in the mansion of Zhongdu and left for the Western Heavens.

Nuhai, Amar and Arslan buried their father Ali. They built a large mansion in the new town, and then moved their old mother Sauron and the whole family from Cow Street to the new town. At this time, Nuhai was also in his 50s, with no worries about food and clothing, children and grandchildren, and he was happy.

Since then, Amal has been immersed in the construction of the new capital, and sometimes tells the progress of the construction of the capital to Nuhai, Arslan and other brothers.

One day, Amal returned home and excitedly told Nuhai: "The new capital is a rectangle, the city wall is 60 miles and 240 steps long, with an area of about 75,000 acres, equivalent to three-fifths of the area of Chang'an City in the Tang Dynasty, close to the area of Tokyo City in the Great Song Dynasty, with 11 gates, 3 gates on each side of the south, east and west, and 2 gates on the north side, which is said to be three heads, six arms and two legs. ”

Nuhai asked with concern, "How was the wall designed?" My primary concern is the safety of the capital. ”

Amar smiled and said, "Big brother, you are three sentences that do not leave the industry." I've heard that the city defense was designed like this: the walls, the gates, and the moat formed three lines of defense. The city wall is made of rammed earth, with a height of about 3 zhang, a base width of 7 zhang, and a top width of about 3 zhang. When building a castle, Yongding wood is first set up in the wall, plus horizontal koji wood, and then rammed earth. Due to the rainy summer here, the earthen walls are easily washed and soaked by rainwater, so I was going to build them with bricks and stones, but I heard that I gave up because of lack of financial resources. The imperial court specially dispatched troops to harvest reeds, weave reed mats, and cover the city walls with reed mats. ”

Arslan interjected with a smile: "Isn't this capital city a reed city? ”

Nuhai also smiled: "I think it's a city of cloth." I'm worried that when the world is in turmoil, the troublemakers will set fire to the reed mats, which will be self-defeating. ”

Amar looked down for a moment and said, "You're right. I will go to the construction site tomorrow to report to Lord Liu. ”

Arslan followed up and asked, "Tell me what the layout of the city looks like?" ”

Amar said: "The most distinctive feature of the new city plan is that the water surface is the center to define the layout of the city. This may be related to the traditional habit of Mongolian nomads who live in pursuit of water and grass.

The new city has a central platform, which is the center of the city's east, west, north and south. The central platform covers an area of one acre, and there is a central pavilion next to it, which is located on the central axis of the capital. The site of the castle is expanded to all sides based on the central pavilion.

To the south of the Central Pavilion is the Imperial City. The Imperial City is centered on the Taiye Pond and is surrounded by three palaces - Ouchi, Longfu Palace, and Xingsheng Palace.

The main gate of Ouchi is Chongtian Gate, the north is Houzai Gate, the east is Donghua Gate, and the west is Xihua Gate.

There is a Jinshui River in front of Chongtian Gate, and there is a Zhou Bridge on the river.

The main hall of the Great Inner is the Daming Palace, which is the place where the Great Khan governs and lives, and there is a corridor behind it to connect the apse.

Behind the Daming Hall is the Yanchun Pavilion, the residence of Empress Chabi.

Tall red walls were built around the imperial city. The main gate is called the Lingxing Gate, and there are thousand-step corridors on the left and right.

Outside the east wall of the red wall is the Cao Canal Road.

The south and southeast of the imperial city are the official districts, the north area is the downtown area, the east is the Taimiao, and the west is the Taisheji.

To the west of the central pavilion is the Drum Tower and the Bell Tower, a time-telling mechanism. The installation of tall bell towers and drum towers in the center of the city is a pioneering step in urban construction. The Han Dynasty has always used the inner gate, the city tower, the tower or the city tower to beat the drum to tell the time.

The bell tower is topped by an attic with a large bell hanging from it. At night, the chime is so loud that it can be heard throughout the city. After the third bell, no one is allowed to walk on the street. Except in the case of an emergency, such as a pregnant woman giving birth or someone is sick, an exception can be made unless it is necessary to go out to seek a doctor. If this happens, people who go out must carry a lamp. Patrols are constantly patrolling the streets, checking for anyone to leave their homes during curfew hours.

The west side of the bell tower and the drum tower is the pond, which is the end point of Caoyun, and is also the most prosperous business district in the city, with rice market, noodle market, satin market, leather hat market, gold, silver and jewelry market, iron market, goose and duck market and other market houses, as well as garden pavilions such as Wanghu Pavilion and Wanchun Garden. ”

Nuhai asked, "It's better to see than to hear." I'm going to follow you to see it on the spot one day, okay? ”

Amar smiled: "You are the hero of Dayuan, what's not to do?" ”

Arslan shouted, "I'll go too." ”

The next day, Amal really took the eldest brother and the younger brother to the new capital city under construction.

Nu Hai looked at it, and the new capital was really extraordinary.

The streets are neatly planned, the warp and latitude are distinct, and there are generally avenues between the opposite city gates. The streets all go straight to the base of the city walls.

Standing on the gate and looking straight ahead, you can see the gate of the opposite wall. There are a variety of shops and stalls on both sides of the street...... The whole city is arranged in a square like a chessboard.

The width of the main street on the central axis is 9 zhang, the width of the other main streets is 8 zhang, the width of the side streets is half of the width of the main street, and the width of the hutong is about half the width of the side street.

Amar walked over and said: "Because the new capital was built on a new site, the planning was not bound by the old layout. The residential area is different from the mixed form of the old and new squares in Jinguo, and all the streets and alleys are open.

According to the direction, the imperial court divided the street into 50 squares. Each square is bounded by a street and has a square gate, but there is no square wall, and the square gate is just a sign.

An alley is an area between two adjacent city gates. There are 22 east-west alleys.

Although there are gates in the south and north of the capital, there is also a wide imperial road from the main gate of Li to the north through the Chongtian Gate in the middle of the imperial city, the Daming Gate, the Daming Palace, the Yanchun Gate, the Yanchun Pavilion, the Qingning Palace, and the Houzai Gate to the central axis.

The naming of the city gate is related to the hexagram of "Zhou Yi". In the middle of the south wall is the Li main gate, in the east is the Wenming gate, in the west is the Shuncheng gate, in the middle of the east wall is the Chongren gate, in the south is the Qihua gate, in the north is the Guangxi gate, in the middle of the west wall is the Heyi gate, in the south is the Pingze gate, and in the north is the Suqing gate. The east of the north wall is Anzhen Gate. ”

Arslan said: "The Han people are very particular. Now the Mongols have learned. ”

Nu Hai sighed sincerely: "My Dayuan is really prosperous. ”

There was also a problem when building the castle wall: the direction was straight, but the southern side of the castle wall happened to be the tomb of two masters, Haiyun and Kean, to the west of Keju Temple.

Liu Bingzhong asked Kublai Khan for instructions.

Kublai Khan asked the city wall to go around a section and enclose the tomb tower into the city.

Therefore, there is a city wall in the western section of the south city wall between the Shuncheng Gate and the Lizheng Gate in the form of an arc that protrudes outward.

Due to the square outline of the city and the regular streets, the layout of the city is particularly spectacular. The layout of Xindu streets has laid the basic pattern of today's Beijing city.

The major commercial markets were scattered in the urban areas around the imperial city and the areas where the residents at the gates of the city gathered.

Dongcheng District is the concentration of government offices and aristocratic residences, and there are many commercial markets, including East Market, Corner Market, Literary City, Paper Market, Boots Market, etc.

Because Guo Shoujing opened the Tonghui River in Beicheng District, Haizi (Jishuitan) became the terminal wharf of the North-South Grand Canal. A thriving commercial area has been formed along the Haizi area. The diagonal street on the north shore of Haizi is even more lively. All kinds of Getai taverns and daily necessities are gathered here, such as rice market, noodle market, hat market, satin market, leather hat market, gold, silver and jewelry market, iron market, goose and duck market, etc. Bell Tower Street, a little north, is also very lively, and there is also the largest poor man market in the city, which is a market for the urban poor to sell their labor.

Xicheng District has a camel market, a sheep market, a cattle market, a horse market, a donkey and a mule market. The livestock trade is mainly concentrated here. The level of residents is lower than that of Dongcheng District.

Nancheng District is the old city of Jinguo Zhongdu, with Nancheng City, Steamed Cake Market, Poor Han City, as well as Car Market, Fruit Market, Vegetable Market, Grass Market, Poor Han City, etc.

The distribution of commercial markets and residential areas is not only limited by urban planning, but also spontaneous by urban life and external transportation.

Water scarcity has always been a problem in Yanjing, especially in urban life. Residents rely mainly on well water for drinking water. The water of the palace is led from the western suburbs to the mountain spring through the canal into the Taiye Pool, because the water comes from the west, so it is called gold water.

Guo Shoujing poured water from many springs in the west and north into the Gaoliang River, and then poured into the Cao Canal through Haizi, which once made the grain and materials in the south of the Yangtze River directly reach the central capital, and was rewarded by Kublai Khan.

The territory ruled by the Great Yuan was very vast, and the capital was the political and cultural center, so it was densely populated, and the commercial economy was very prosperous, with more than 30 kinds of markets. Among them, the rice market, the noodle market, the satin market, the fur hat market, the hat market, the poor man market, the goose and duck market, the bead market, the shara market (i.e., the treasure market), the charcoal market, and the iron market, are all in the area of the bell tower and the drum tower, because the ships from the south are moored on the pond.

In addition to some daily necessities that are local products, many of the goods sold in the market come from all over the country. At that time, the sea was wide open, the river transportation was smooth, the wealthy merchants of Sichuan, Shaanxi, Wu and Chu, flying sails and reeds, arrived at the road, and carried the raw silk to the capital no less than 1,000 times a day with horse-drawn carriages and pack horses, providing rich commodities for the capital. There are all kinds of precious furs such as mink and pigs, rare treasures such as pearls and fragrant rhinos, and noble textiles such as brocade and Luo Qi for the dignitaries to enjoy.

There are not only wealthy businessmen and tycoons in Dayuan, but also businessmen from Central Asia and South Asia who do business here. Some of the world's rarest and most precious things can be found in the city, especially Indian goods such as gemstones, pearls, medicinal herbs and spices.

In 1272, Kublai Khan ordered that the central capital be renamed Dadu (meaning the largest city. The Turkic language calls Dadu Khan Bali, which means imperial capital), and Shangdu is used as a companion capital.

In 1275, Kublai Khan issued an edict to allow the residents of the old city (the former capital of the Jin Kingdom) to move to the new capital: "Those who relocate to the capital of the old city residents shall be given priority to those who are high-ranking and in office, and they shall still be given eight acres of land as a portion, and those whose land exceeds eight acres or who cannot be used as a room shall not be allowed to take the claim and listen to the people as a room."

Nuhai and Amar, as the eunuchs of Dayuan, naturally moved into the new capital. Arslan continued to stay in the old city for the convenience of business.

Over the next nine years, about 400,000 to 500,000 residents moved from the old city to the capital.

During this period, Liu Bingzhong, Iheitier, Amar and Guo Shoujing successively completed the construction of important buildings such as the Inner Palace, the palace city wall, the prince's mansion (Longfu Palace) on the west bank of the Taiye Pond, Zhongshu Province, the Privy Council, and the Imperial Historical Tower, as well as the city wall, the Jinshui River, the Bell and Drum Tower, the Great Protector Ninwang Temple, and the Great Shengshou Wan'an Temple.

The construction of Dadu lasted more than 20 years. The splendid palaces, palaces, imperial cities, capitals, and palaces formed the capital of the empire for a prosperous generation.

In the first month of 1281, Kublai Khan looked at the snowflakes flying in the sky, and once again thought of the pain point in his heart. Unwilling to fail, he decided to reactivate Dalai, who had been idle for a long time, and ordered the old man to take his son Tengger to lead the Yuan army and the Goryeo army again, and the troops were divided into two ways to expedition to the Wa Kingdom, and the defeat of the past was snowed.

However, this expedition still did not break the curse of the Mongol army's repeated attacks on the Japanese kingdom, and failed again.

Both Kublai Khan and Dalai were depressed and incomprehensible.

To Kublai Khan's dismay, he personally selected the heir to the throne, the 42-year-old emperor's eldest son, Zhenjin, who unfortunately died early.