"And just after we returned to the palace, an extraordinary incident happened, which had something to do with the conversation between the Queen Mother and me. Pen %Fun %Pavilion www.biquge.info"

"When His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Qian Empire ruled the country alone, he used to come to the court early at 3 o'clock in the morning to listen to the government. However, it is said that this habit was formed both because he liked to wake up early and because he was shy. Because at that time, he was only allowed to light two candles on the imperial table in front of his throne, and the rest of the main hall was only lit with beautiful Qianguo lanterns, and this kind of lantern only had a little dim light, which was far from enough as a lamp. In this way, even if an official forgets Chaoyi and raises his eyes to look at him, he will not be able to see his face clearly. ”

"The early dynasties of His Majesty the Emperor and His Majesty the Empress Dowager were held in the Great Hall of the Imperial Court, which was a separate building that was distinctly different from the other buildings in the court. The inscription above the gate indicates that this is the 'Hall of Diligence'. Of all the palaces, the main hall was the closest to the outer walls and the population, so that ministers who were qualified to come to the court could only enter the main hall from the outer court, from which the palace where the emperor and the empress dowager lived. In the Forbidden City, many places are walled with walls, the emperor's and the queen mother's palaces are erected outside the wall, and the court hall is also in a walled courtyard near the palace gate somewhere, but Qingqiyuan has no other walls except for the outer wall. ”

"The interior of the Imperial Hall of Qingqi Garden is by no means empty or shabby, and its furnishings are of the same type as those in the throne room. Beautiful furnishings, antiques, coffee tables and chairs, and surprisingly out of tune with the environment, are three pianos. On the walls are scrolls, some of which are written in large characters of the imperial pen of an emperor, some of which are condensed philosophies of the sages, and some of which are decorative. One of the scrolls admonished later emperors to remember that he was 'commanded by heaven to protect the people with his health'. In the center of the main hall there is a large Dan Majesty, on which are placed the throne and the dragon bookcase, and behind it are three, five, or seven screens. The ancient Dan Majesty was lower than what is used today, and the ancient throne was large in size and had cushions on it, which was more like a sofa than the modern one. This seems to indicate that the emperor in ancient times was more casual in enforcing the law than it is today. More paternalistic. In the past, the emperor could lie comfortably on the throne when he saw his ministers, and the ministers could also walk closer, because His Majesty was not as big or tall as it is now. ”

"The heads of the ministries and the princes with honorary official positions enter the court on certain days every month, either to report official duties, or to greet the emperor and the queen mother. The emperor and the empress dowager came to the court every day to listen to the government and meet with the foreman and scholar of the minister of military aircraft, and often summoned the minister of military aircraft. Prince Jing, the head of the Minister of War, was always the last to be received to discuss the affairs reported by the ministers earlier in the day. ”

"All telegrams and official documents are sent to their respective authorities, except in particularly serious cases, and are only addressed to the emperor and the empress dowager at the court meeting. As soon as 11 o'clock passed, the emperor and the empress dowager thought that the state affairs were over, and they would no longer worry about the country until tomorrow. During the assassination of Mr. Lin Yat-ching in London, the days when the British sent a fleet to the Baltic, and the blockade of Vladivostok by the British-Qian-Cadre Combined Fleet (three major events that occurred during my time in the palace), telegrams and official documents were constantly delivered to the Empress Dowager outside of the early court hours, usually to her throne room, and sometimes even to her while she was walking in the garden. These official documents are transferred to the palace as soon as they arrive at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (i.e., the Prime Minister's Yamen for State Affairs). Of course, it was entirely out of her own special purpose to disturb the Queen Mother in this way, otherwise no official would have the courage to go beyond the rules. At the palace gate, the official document was received by a eunuch who specialized in his duties, who placed it in a silk-lined yellow satin box, and then knelt before the empress dowager. ”

"During the early dynasties, there were 5 mats on the ground in front of His Majesty, which were specially for the Minister of Military Aircraft to kneel on when he made a statement to the emperor and the empress dowager. The cushion of the head of the Minister of War and Aircraft is closest to the throne. There are mats to kneel, this privilege can only be enjoyed by the Minister of Military Aircraft, and other officials can only kneel on the erected stone floor when communicating with the emperor and the empress dowager, and they cannot kneel beyond these five mats. In this way, it is very unfavorable to those people, and the distance between him and the emperor and the empress dowager may cause some of the words they say to be inaudible to him, especially the emperor, whose voice is originally soft and cannot be transmitted far. The way to overcome this difficulty and shorten the distance between him and the emperor and the empress dowager was to bribe the eunuch who had introduced him into the main hall of the court to move the mat so that he could kneel closer to His Majesty. The mats of the head of the Minister of War and the scholar were absolutely immovable, but the other three mats could be at the discretion of the eunuch who led the way. If the latter gets enough money (there is a fixed price for each mat), he will move the mats of the other three lower-ranking military ministers. ”

When the officials who had been allowed to appear before him were led to the main hall by the eunuch who was in charge of his duties, the latter pushed open the two huge doors of the temple, knelt down near the threshold, and loudly announced the names and positions of the courtiers and the exact moment of arrival in the palace, and when he stood up, the mat had been easily moved by him. When the official's name had been reported, he went in and knelt down as best he could find a place closest to His Majesty and befitting his rank and the bribes he had paid. After the eunuch had introduced the official, he turned and walked away from the door, and he had to run as quickly as possible. At a distance, officials and other eunuchs stood, closely observing his movements as he left. If he stays behind or doesn't go away as soon as possible, he will be punished with death. This is to prevent eavesdropping and the proliferation of state secrets. ”

The officials who had been allowed to appear waited until the footsteps of the eunuch had disappeared, then fell to their knees and began to state their affairs. If necessary, the emperor and empress dowager would ask him questions in order to get further explanations. When the audience was over, the officer got up and walked out. The Qianguo people never go backwards, and they do not think it is rude to turn their backs to the monarch. ”

"The officials who had to be in front of each other often came up with a funny way to protect their knees. They had wrapped thick cushions around their knees before they went in, so that they could kneel comfortably on the stone floor. The men of Qianguo wore long robes, and of course the cushions on their knees could not be seen. ”

"The emperor was still very young, and he was still full of childishness. Many of the chiefs of the ministries were old men, and some of them must have gone too far into the details when they recounted the matter. The young emperor often seemed impatient as he listened to a few of these old men chattering with details. When the minister raised his eyes to look at the emperor, it would be considered that he was 'out of court', so when those old men were talking about such tedious details, the young emperor often quietly left the throne and slipped down from His Majesty. When the poor official raised his eyes and kowtowed to the emperor, he would see only an empty throne. The emperor himself was behind the screen at the back of the main hall, perhaps having been drinking tea for five minutes, or doing some other pastime. ”

"Regarding the sacredness of the emperor and the empress dowager, I note a strange fact: this sacredness seems to belong only to them as rulers, and not to them as individuals. When they gave the decree in the main hall of the court, they could only kneel on the ground to speak to them. In the palace, in private, when they gave a decree or any order involving official duties, the attendants, the courtiers, the nobles, and the prince would kneel. Whenever there is a formal conversation with the Emperor and the Empress Dowager, whether in private or elsewhere, the subordinates must kneel down and start playing; But if they were in private and the topic was ordinary, they would speak to them casually and almost intimately, and the close ministers and even the ordinary attendants would speak standing at this time. However, if an order is suddenly inserted in the middle of this intimate chat, the attendant will still kneel down and answer the order. ”

"Kowtowing is given as a way of thanking and is not used as a greeting. At the beginning and end of each performance on the Xiangxi Theatre, the actors kowtow to the Emperor and the Empress Dowager, first thanking them for being allowed to perform in front of them, and then thanking them for the honor. Officials kowtowed to thank the emperor and the empress dowager for their summons, or for the favors or gifts they had received or would receive from the empress dowager. It is not the people in the palace who kowtow to the emperor or the queen mother: people of similar status and status sometimes kowtow to each other to thank them for some great favor they have received. When kowtowing, kneel three times, and knock down three more times each time to touch the ground. Foreigners will look servile and extremely embarrassed when they kowtow, but when they kowtow, they are very solemn and do not look indecent or humiliated. This is a long-standing way of expressing gratitude, and this Qianguo tradition may have originated in the days when the nature of the courtiers was like slaves, but now there is no slave-like inferiority to those who kowtow. ”

"After the ceremony of worshiping Confucius, at the court meeting, a minister proposed to the empress dowager that since the important minister who had been thrown into prison for embezzlement and murder was the younger brother of Zeng Bohan, the most loyal and famous big tooth of the late Daqian Empire, and that the younger brother not only did not stop him when he committed the crime, but also covered for him everywhere, so he also committed the crime of deceiving the emperor (which is a great crime in the Qianguo), and he demanded that Zeng Bohan be held accountable and that Zeng Bohan be abolished. Wenzheng's nickname also removed the portrait of Zeng Bohan from the side hall where Confucius was worshipped. His suggestion sparked a heated debate in the court meeting, and the officials were divided into two factions, and the two princes, Prince Jing and Prince Chun, could not stop it, and the empress dowager calmed the argument as soon as she spoke. The Empress Dowager said that Zeng Bohan, as an elder brother, did have a great fault in this matter, but his credit is the main one, and the fault is secondary, as the eldest brother in the family, it is reasonable to protect the younger brother, although the younger brother is lawless, but the fault cannot be borne by the eldest brother. If Zeng Bohan's merits are calculated according to the proportion, his merits are seven-tenths, and his faults are three-tenths, and he has already died, as long as his faults are written as a sacrificial text and burned in front of his spiritual seat, so that his soul can understand that he has made a mistake, but the court is lenient and exempt from accountability, and it is too much to pursue the name, but it is appropriate to remove his portrait from the palace of Confucius, because his virtue has some flaws after all, and he is no longer suitable to accompany the saint Confucius. The Empress Dowager's wise opinion was unanimously endorsed by the two princes and the ministers attending the court meeting, and I was impressed from the bottom of my heart. ”

Weng Shuping heard at home that Zeng Bohan's portrait had been removed from the Confucius Sacrifice Hall.

When the protégé Gao Hongchao told him the news, Weng Shuping just sneered a few times, and after Gao Hongchao left, Weng Shuping couldn't wait to spread the paper and polish the ink and write.

"The merit of killing thieves is high, and the rest of the battle is really blessed; The crime of bullying the king is big, and dying three years early is a perfect person. ”

Looking at the couplets he had written, Weng Shuping nodded with satisfaction.

This couplet, he planned to find a time, incinerated it and sent it to Zeng Bohan.

At this moment, his nephew Weng Zhenghan ran in happily.

"Uncle! Look what the little nephew found for his uncle today! Weng Zhenghan happily held a slightly damaged scroll in front of Weng Shuping.

Weng Shuping glanced at the seal on the scroll, and a pair of eyes immediately lit up.

This is supposed to be an ancient painting from the Nanji period.

"You're going to the glass factory again?" Weng Shuping looked at his favorite nephew with a smile and asked.

"A few days ago, I heard that someone took a piece of Ma Yuan's "Plum Stone Map" to sell, so I rushed there this morning, and sure enough, I touched it!" Weng Zhenghan came to Weng Shuping's bookcase excitedly, and was about to unfold the ancient painting, but saw the couplet written by Weng Shuping.

"It's ...... Uncle wrote to Zeng Bohan's old son? Weng Zhenghan only glanced at it, and immediately knew what was going on.

As the son of Weng Shuping's elder brother Weng Shugeng, Zeng Bohan, who engraved his father with the fold and his father and grandfather Weng Xincun, can be said to hate it to the bone, and of course he can understand the meaning of this couplet.

"You will take it to incinerate it in a while and give it to Zeng Bohan." Weng Shuping smiled.

"Little nephew understands." Weng Zhenghan smiled knowingly and rolled up the couplet.

"Uncle, please enjoy the painting." After rolling up the couplet, Weng Zhenghan put it aside, and then slowly unfolded the ancient painting on the bookcase.

Weng Shuping stood in front of the bookcase, took the jade paperweight, pressed the four feet of the painting, and then stood with his hands in his hands, admiring it carefully.

Weng's family is a family of poetry and books, the family is wealthy, Weng Shugeng Weng Shuping brother is influenced by his father, loves books, calligraphy and paintings and antiques, Weng Tonghan has been influenced by his father and uncle since he was a child, and he is also very accomplished in this way, and from time to time he goes to the glass factory to play, because the family is knowledgeable,

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