The great man will live forever

Chapter 270 Guangwu Reform

In the Jiaofang Hall,

"I'm paying homage to the Queen Mother. I wonder what the Queen Mother wants to do with her son?" Liu Han asked knowingly.

"Don't you know? Look at what you have done recently. First, you met with Marquis Qingfeng alone, and then you met immediately. You called the guards away. Is this in line with etiquette? Where have you read all the books for so many years?

As the saying goes, don't see anything that's not polite, don't hear anything that's not polite, don't say anything that's not polite, don't move anything that's not polite... What are you doing seeing her? "

"I heard that she is the only female general and marquis in the imperial court. She is also very skilled in martial arts and good at fighting. So I am curious and want to take a look."

"Didn't you see it in the court?"

"I want to talk alone."

"What's there to talk about?" Guo Shengtong was so angry that he wanted to hit someone, but then he waved his hand and said: "Let's not talk about this matter, what are you messing around in the palace recently?

Okay, now, Your Majesty lets that bitch’s child serve in politics. Don’t you know what this means? What on earth do you want to do? You have to put a knife on your neck to know the emergency? "

Guo Shengtong said, his chest shaking with anger.

"Mother, don't be angry. You're pregnant, so don't get angry." Liu Han quickly stepped forward to support him.

Although Liu Xiu's love for Guo Shengtong has visibly diminished, he still has children with her from time to time. The number of children she has given birth to is basically the same as that of Yin Lihua.

Yin Lihua gave birth to a total of 5 sons and 2 daughters for Liu Xiu, who were later Han Ming Emperor Liu Zhuang, Dongping Xian Wang Liu Cang, Guangling Si Wang Liu Jing, Linhuai Huai Gong Liu Heng, Langxie Xiao Wang Liu Jing , Princess Niyang Liu Zhongli, Princess Li Liu of Suiyang.

Guo Shengtong gave birth to five sons and one daughter for Liu Xiu, who later became King Gong of Donghai Liu Jiang, King of Peixian Liu Fu, King An of Jinan Liu Kang, King Zhi of Fuling Liu Yan, King Jian of Zhongshan Liu Yan, and Princess Guantao Liu Hongfu.

"I know you are still angry with me, but what are you thinking about? The three provinces and six ministries you proposed are very good. Your Majesty is also working on this matter now. You can put some people in it to cultivate your own power, especially the people of our Guo family. , even if His Majesty wants to touch you, he will be unable to do so. Why are you so stupid?"

"Mom, don't worry so much. No matter how hard we work or how much we cultivate our power, our father can knock us down with just a few words and a few actions. He is the founding emperor of the country. We just have to do our own thing well. Sometimes it's too much. Tossing things around is counterproductive..."

"Okay, okay, whatever you say makes sense. Isn't the Queen worrying too much? Just get out of here, my wings are hard now and I can't control you."

Guo Shengtong pointed outside the hall as he spoke, his face turning red with anger.

"Okay!" Liu Han said he was about to leave. He turned around and walked out of the main hall. He said he was obedient and not sloppy at all.

"Come back here, wuwu, you know how to make me angry..."

Guo Shengtong said and began to cry.

"Mother, I am wrong. Whatever you say, I will do it. I will go up the mountain of knives and get off the oil pan without blinking an eye."

"You're a rebellious son. Is your mother willing to let you go to the sword or the frying pan?"

She cried for a while, and Liu Han comforted her for a while.

"Do you really agree to anything?"

"Of course." Liu Han nodded. If you don't nod, you will cry to death.

"You are not young anymore. These are the women of the generals and important ministers of the imperial court. Their age is suitable for you. Here are their portraits. You can choose the ones you are satisfied with.

When the time comes, I will bring you to meet. If it is suitable, we can settle the marriage and report it to your father. We will get married in a few years. You are not too young. After you get married, you can officially enter the East Palace. There are more Gaining autonomy..."

As Guo Shengtong spoke, he took out many portraits of women and handed them to Liu Han one by one.

"This is not bad. She is the youngest daughter of the great Situ Houba. She is beautiful and intelligent, and a lady among all the people..."

"And this one is the second daughter of Grand Sima Wu Han. She is smart, well-behaved and cute..."

"Well, General Han Xin's fifth daughter has extraordinary talents. I heard that Han Xin is likely to take over the position of Grand Situ Houba. This year, Grand Situ is not in good health..."

She obviously put a lot of thought into choosing these people. It's hard to tell whether they look good or bad, but their backgrounds are really extraordinary.

"Well, I still have something to do. I'll see it another day. I'll see it another day..."

Good guy, it turned out that he was waiting for him here. Liu Han hugged the portrait and ran away.

"What can be wrong?"

"Remember to watch." Guo Shengtong shouted from behind.

……

In the thirteenth year of Jianwu (37th year), Hou Ba died of illness.

In the same year, Liu Xiu appointed Han Xinhou Ba as chief situ.

Also in this year, great changes occurred in history. Liu Xiu ordered the implementation of the three provinces and six ministries system and the imperial examination system.

The three provinces refer to Zhongshu Province, Menxia Province, and Shangshu Province, and the six ministries refer to the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Husbandry, the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Punishment, and the Ministry of Industry under the Shangshu Province. Each ministry has four divisions, making a total of twenty-four divisions, and the official positions are divided into nine grades.

The Zhongshu Provincial Department is responsible for formulating orders and generally has:

Zhongshu ordered two people to be of the second rank. The commander-in-chief assists the emperor in governing affairs, while the chief judge saves trouble.

The two ministers are of the third rank. He is in charge of the post of Erling, and participates in the discussion of major affairs of the imperial court. Linxuan registers the order, and as the envoy, he will hold the register and give it to him. When the barbarians from all over the world come to court, they will receive their memorials and play them; if they offer Zhi coins, they will receive them as payment to the officials.

There are six people in the house, who are on the fifth rank. The attendants in charge of the imperial examinations advance in the performance and consult the table of seals.

There are four people in charge of writing, starting from the seventh rank. There are four people in charge, starting from the eighth grade. There are twenty-five people who have made orders and histories, fifty people who have written orders and histories, four people who can write, ten people who can translate Tibetan books, twenty people who ride on the post, ten people who have passed down the system, eighteen people who are the chiefs of pavilions, and twenty-four people who are holding the palms of hands. , there is one imperial craftsman for decoration, fifty craftsmen for repair and maintenance, and twenty people each for correspondence and case management.

There are two casual knights on the right who serve as regular attendants, four who advise the officials on the right, six who repair the palace on the right, and six who collect things from the right. Their palms are like the provinces under the door.

There are two people living in the house, from the sixth grade. He is responsible for compiling and recording the history of the country, and recording the imperial edicts, just like the system of recording events, and at the end of the season, he teaches the history of the country. There are four regular calligraphers and two classic calligraphers.

There are sixteen people in Tongshishe, ranging from the sixth grade. The palm of the hand is used to introduce people to the court and to play in the palace. Whenever the ministers who are close to the court come to serve, and the civil and military officials are on the list, they will be guided to advance and retreat, and they will be praised for their obeisance, coming and going.

The review of rejections by the provincial governor generally includes:

There are two servants, the second grade. The palm of the hand accepts the emperor's orders and performs etiquette. In all affairs of the country, the general secretary and the general secretary are in charge, and Zhuan makes the decision to save trouble.

Zuo Sanqi often serves two people, who are of the third rank. Master the rules and ridicule mistakes, and serve as advisors.

Zuo Jianyi, the four officials, are of the fourth rank. He is responsible for the success and failure of admonishment, and he is the attendant of the minister of praise.

Give it to the four people in the matter, who are on the fifth rank. He was in charge of waiting on the left and right, making decisions separately to save trouble. He inspected the Hongwen Hall and wrote down the lessons of the school.

There are four people in the province who record things, starting from the seventh rank, and four people who take charge of things, starting from the eighth rank. There are twenty-two people in the history of the order, forty-three people in the history of the book, thirteen people in the history of the Jiaku, one person who can write, two people who can make the order, six people who are the chief of the pavilion, fourteen people who can hold the palm, and five people who can repair the order. People, decorate one person...

The Shangshu Province is the most important, and its responsibilities are execution. The chief officer is Shangshu Ling (the second rank), and the deputy chiefs are the left and right servants (the second rank).

The Shangshu Province has jurisdiction over the six departments of officials, households, rituals, military, punishment, and work. The chief minister (third rank) is responsible for various political affairs. Each department has four departments, totaling 24 departments...

Anyway, Liu Xiu asked Liu Han for his suggestions. He basically imitated the Tang Dynasty's Three Provinces and Six Parts, but it took many years. Even if there were changes in the Song, Min, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, they were just revisions, and the general framework remained unchanged. .

The three provinces and six ministries of the Tang Dynasty, the second government and three divisions of the Song Dynasty, the cabinet of the Ming Dynasty, and the military aircraft of the Qing Dynasty...their essence was to strengthen the imperial power, and the shadow of the three provinces and six ministries can be seen in them.

In addition, there are three divisions and three princes, one each of Taishi, Taifu, and Taibao, who are called the three divisions; one Taiwei, Situ, and Sikong each are called the three princes. They are all of the first rank and assist the emperor, but they are mostly honorable and have no specific responsibilities. Assisting the emperor is a very broad term.

Moreover, the chiefs of Shangshu Province, Menxia Province, and Zhongshu Province can all be regarded as prime ministers. In the past, there might be two prime ministers in the Han Dynasty, one on the left and the other on the right, but now there are several.

In addition, there are the Yushitai and the Remonstrance Court, which are mainly responsible for inspecting officials and directly admonishing the emperor. After the system was established, the next step was the selection of chiefs. Deng Yu, Guo Ji, Du Shi, Han Xin, and Ouyang She became the chiefs of the three provinces.

Then came the imperial examination system. Liu Han directly skipped the Tang Dynasty and used the Ming and Qing Dynasties, but the names were changed, namely county examination, county examination, state examination, Beijing examination and palace examination.

The imperial examination in the Ming and Qing Dynasties became a huge and rigorous system with many levels, grades, rules and titles. There were five levels: children's examination, college examination, provincial examination, general examination and palace examination.

Children's Examination (County Examination): The most basic local county and government examination in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Those who passed the county and government examinations twice became Tongsheng, indicating that they had basic cultural knowledge and writing ability.

College examinations (county examinations): held in "colleges" in prefectures and prefectures, and are divided into two levels: "yearly examinations" and "subject examinations". The annual examination is an "entrance" examination for children held every year. After admission, they are "students", commonly known as "xiucai".

The scientific examination is a test for talents who are already in school. Only those with excellent scores can participate in the provincial examination for electors at the next level. Those with poor scores will be punished or even disqualified from being students.

The scientific examination is also called the admission examination. As long as you pass the examination as a student, you will be separated from the civilian class and be called a "shi".

Provincial examination (state examination): also known as Dabi and Qiuwei, it takes place every three years. There are three rural examinations, respectively on the 9th, 12th and 15th of August.

The number of candidates admitted to the rural examinations in the Ming and Qing Dynasties was determined by the central government. Depending on the population of each province, the number ranged from dozens to hundreds and hundreds. The total number of admissions nationwide ranged from 1,000 to 1,230.

Since passing the examination means you are qualified to be an official, the provincial examination can be said to be the most important and arduous step in the imperial examination in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the list of the provincial examination was called the B list, and the provincial examination was called the B subject. It was opposite to the A list and the A subject of the Jinshi examination.

The National Examination (Beijing Examination): The examination is held at the Ministry of Rites of the Capital from the 9th to the 15th of the second month of the following year after the provincial examination, also known as Chunwei and Liwei. The content of the three joint examinations was the same as that of the provincial examinations. In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, about two to three hundred people were admitted to the Jinshi in each subject.

In addition to the main list of the Ming and Qing examinations, there are usually deputy lists.

Although the candidates listed on the deputy list are not considered Jinshi, they can be awarded school instructors or other lower-level official positions, or they can be admitted to the Imperial College as supervisors and receive a certain salary from the state.

Palace Examination: The last level of the imperial examination in the Ming and Qing Dynasties was held one month after the examination, that is, on March 15th. The content of the palace examination was based on the timely affairs and policies. Several types of test questions were prepared by the cabinet ministers and temporarily submitted to the emperor for delineation.

In the imperial examinations of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, no one was dismissed, only rankings were determined. The top three candidates, such as No. 1 Scholar, No. 2 Scholar, and No. 3 Flowers, are ranked as First Class Scholars, and are regarded as Jinshi;

There are several people in the second A who are considered to be Jinshi; there are several people in the third A who are considered to be from the same Jinshi background.

On March 25, the new Jinshi and imperial examination officials enjoyed the imperial "Enrong Banquet" at the Ministry of Rites. After the banquet, the stage of official appointment gradually entered.

The three first-class Jinshi are generally awarded important positions such as editors and editors of the Hanlin Academy. The remaining Jinshi often have to undergo a library selection or imperial examination, and then are awarded official positions based on their rankings in the imperial examination. The best ones also enter the Hanlin Academy.

To put it simply, those who have passed the imperial examination are considered to be Tongsheng, those who have passed the imperial examination are considered to be scholars, those who have passed the provincial examination are considered to be successful candidates, and those who have passed the provincial examination are considered to be Jinshi.

The final palace examination was just to re-rank the Jinshi and to meet the emperor.

Regarding these, Liu Han basically used doctrines, but he strictly controlled tax exemptions. People who were promoted to Jinshi could be exempted from tax, but it was only fixed fields.

Liu Xiu was very happy about this, made few changes, and rewarded him greatly.

Especially the appearance of paper, Liu Xiu described it as auspicious, and it was indeed auspicious. At the request of hundreds of officials, a ceremony to worship the heaven was held.

In ancient China, the power of the emperor was supreme, and every move and decision they made could affect the fate of the entire country.

In this ancient country, the invention of paper is undoubtedly an epoch-making feat.

When people were still using bulky bamboo slips and expensive silk to record text, Liu Qiang, the prince of the Han Dynasty, successfully invented paper with his wisdom and hard work.

This invention not only greatly improved people's writing efficiency, but also reduced the cost of cultural transmission, making it possible to popularize knowledge.

Sacrifice to heaven is a sacred and solemn ceremony. In the long history of China, many emperors have performed rituals to worship heaven.

Since ancient times, the objects of sacrifice have been divided into three categories: gods, earth, and human gods. The gods are called sacrifices, the earth is called sacrifices, and the ancestral temple is called enjoyment.

In ancient China, "gods do not worship non-human beings, and people do not worship non-ethnic people." There is a strict hierarchy for sacrifices.

Only the monarchs offered sacrifices to gods and earth, the princes and officials offered sacrifices to mountains and rivers, and the common people offered sacrifices to ancestors and the Kitchen God. Therefore, "sacrifice" also means worshiping gods, praying to gods and worshiping ancestors.

The word "sacrifice" focuses on reporting work to the ancestors and to heaven and earth. The focus of worship is to hope that the ancestors of heaven and earth can give you new guidance, teachings and inspiration for your new work in the future.

The upper part of the sacrifice has the animal on the left, a hand on the right, and the god below.

Sacrifice, on the left is God and on the right is Si. Si Ye, April, the Yang Qi has emerged, the Yin Qi has been hidden, all things can be seen and formed into articles, so it has become a snake, pictographic.

In Chinese culture, yang is good and yin is bad. The gods here do not refer to the kind of personified monsters, but the natural force that dominates the creation of yin and yang. Through sacrifices, you can apply for this power to come out of the yang and hide the yin. , you can seek good fortune and avoid misfortune, seek good fortune and avoid misfortune.

Liu Xiu's process of offering sacrifices to heaven was very solemn and sacred. First, he asked Tai Shiling to choose an auspicious day.

From the Qin and Han Dynasties to the Southern Dynasties, Taishi Ling was in charge of the Tianshi Calendar, which was the predecessor of the Qin Tianjian in later generations.

Choosing a good and auspicious day is a sign of respect for the gods of heaven and earth.

Then, he put on special sacrificial clothes, which was a sign of reverence for heaven and earth. Before offering sacrifices to heaven, Liu Xiu also fasted for three days to show his sincerity.

On the day of offering sacrifices to heaven, the sun shines brightly and everything is renewed.

"Dong dong dong!" There were hundreds of people around, beating drums rhythmically. The sound was loud and loud, spreading very far.

"Woooo..."

Then came the sound of the trumpet, solemn and solemn.

Liu Xiu personally took Liu Han and led all the civil and military officials to the altar early.

Various sacrifices, including cattle, sheep, pigs, etc., are first offered to the gods of heaven and earth to show respect to the gods of heaven and earth. Then, Liu Xiuhui personally presented the wine glass and toasted to the gods of heaven and earth.

"Qiang'er, it's up to you to recite the sacrificial rites." Liu Xiu finished drinking the wine for worshiping heaven and looked at Liu Han.

"promise!"

Immediately, Liu Han opened the memorial text he had specially written on the paper and began to recite it.

"In the fourteenth year of Jianwu, at the age of Bingzi, on the Gengxu day in the eleventh month of winter, Liu Xiujin offered wine and rice as a sacrifice to the gods of heaven and earth. The virtues of heaven and earth are inexhaustible, and his protection for the common people is endless.

I am a mediocre man who inherits this great virtue and feels it in his heart, so he praises it with words and dedicates his tribute. In the past, during the time of Yao and Shun, benevolence and virtue were outstanding, and the whole world was subdued.

However, the world changes and Yin worries arise. I inherited the ambition of my ancestors, aiming to stabilize the country and revive the Han Dynasty. Since the beginning of the army, he has gone through many hardships and finally achieved great success.

Today I am offering sacrifices to the gods of heaven and earth. May heaven and earth bless our Han Dynasty to prosper and the people to live and work in peace and contentment. When I look at the world, if it has been divided for a long time, it must be united, and if it has been united for a long time, it must be divided.

However, in troubled times, people suffer. Fortunately, today's peaceful and prosperous age is due to the blessings of heaven and earth. I should also work diligently and love the people, and live up to the high expectations of heaven and earth...

My son Liu Qiang is sensitive, studious, and kind-hearted...

After receiving God's wish, the paper came out...

Therefore, a sacrificial inscription was used to tell heaven and earth: The Han Dynasty will be at peace and all the people will be happy. May the gods of heaven and earth keep the Han Dynasty prosperous and the people live and work in peace and contentment forever. Sincerely! "

From this day on, Chinese history has completely entered a new chapter.

(End of this chapter)