Chapter 657: Marriage (1)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“Does the Cabinet Grand Secretary really think so?”
The Emperor asked with a smile, staring steadily at Xiao Shoufu below. His usually gentle eyes were especially deep at this moment, as if he was probing or just asking casually.
Xiao Shoufu maintained the posture of holding his hands in front of him. His every move seemed to have been measured with a ruler. He said steadily, “The Eldest Prince is the eldest son and is also a talented person, making him the legitimate heir without a doubt.”
He lowered his head slightly, his posture revealing respect. His tone was unprecedentedly firm, but his half-closed eyes made it impossible to see his gaze clearly.
Seeing this, Lord Liu and the others, who were still full of fighting spirit previously, completely deflated like a pierced leather bag. They no longer had any fighting spirit.
“Alright!” The Emperor slapped the armrest of the throne heavily. He was in a good mood and seemed to have become several years younger.
At this point, everyone was convinced of how they should express themselves. They bowed in unison and stepped out to second the suggestion one after another.
“I second that!”
“I think it’s time to appoint a Crown Prince as soon as possible. Please allow it, Your Majesty.”
“Her Highness and the lords are right.”
These voices were all loud and powerful, a united scene.
Looking down at the ministers below, the Emperor’s mood was even better. A deep smile appeared in the corners of his old eyes. He instructed in high spirits, “Pei Wenrui, then let the Ministry of Rites prepare the matter of the Crown Prince as soon as possible.”
“Imperial Astronomer, find an auspicious day as soon as possible.”
The Minister of Rites, Pei Wenrui, and the Imperial Astronomers immediately stood out and bowed respectfully.
The dust had settled.
Feng Yang smiled and looked around again.
She was seriously ill this time, and her cheeks were so thin that they were slightly sunken, but her eyes were abnormally bright and abnormally determined.
To her, it was most important for Emperor Taizu to have a successor.
The establishment of a reserve was a national matter in all dynasties. It couldn’t be decided with just an imperial decree.
After the Emperor issued the decree, the Minister of Rites, Pei Wenrui, and the officials of the ceremonies department spent a full three days reading ancient books and formulating the rules for the Crown Prince.
“The Imperial Astronomer has calculated three auspicious days. Your Majesty, please choose.”
“The Ministry of Rites has already drafted an edict to appoint the Crown Prince. Please take a look at it, Your Majesty, before sending it to the various states.” “The various gowns and crowns of the Crown Prince have been arranged by the Ceremony Director.”
“Before establishing the Crown Prince, he has to pay respects to the ancestors first. Coincidentally, the previous Emperor passed away a year ago. Do you think the Eldest Prince should pay respects to the previous Emperor on behalf of Your Majesty and pay respects to his ancestors?”
“On the day of the ceremony, he still has to worship the heavens and the earth and pay respects to the sect temple. Only then will the ceremony be completed.”
“The Crown Prince is the future monarch. We can’t be sloppy with the ceremony.”
H 11
The Great Jin Dynasty had only been established for 50 years, and there weren’t many old cases to follow. When the previous Emperor was announced as the Crown Prince, when the dynasty was first established, Emperor Taizu expressed that there were a hundred things to do and everything was simple. Back then, when the previous Emperor established the Crown Prince, the Minister of Rites at that time was Wang Zi from a noble family. Wang Zi roughly organized such a set of rules according to the old cases of the previous dynasty.
This time, the Rites Department only made slight changes.
The Emperor carefully looked at the memorandum presented by the Ministry of Rites and was overjoyed. He readily agreed.
That day, the Emperor issued a decree, ordering the Eldest Prince Chu Yi to go to the imperial mausoleum to pay respects to the previous Emperor.
The sacrifice of the imperial mausoleum was a big deal. The Ministry of Rites immediately started preparing. They were so busy that the Minister of Rites, the Left and Right Assistant Ministers, and other important officials worked tirelessly for several consecutive days, to the point where they wished they could grow three heads and six arms to get everything done.
After the Imperial Court’s divination, the date of the sacrifice to the imperial mausoleum was set for the eighth of April, which was half a month later.
Therefore, the ceremonial department became even busier. They had to draw up a list of sacrifices for the imperial mausoleum with the Eldest Prince, arrange for the ceremonial guard of the sacrifice, coordinate with Taichang Temple, and even arrange for fasting before the sacrifice.
The news that the Emperor was about to designate a Crown Prince quickly spread throughout the capital, and even the commoners felt happy.
March seemed to have passed in the blink of an eye. At the start of April, the weather became warmer and warmer, and the wind and sun were beautiful.
On the sunny days of April, peonies, peony trees, roses, pomegranate flowers, and others embraced the sunlight and bloomed extravagantly, filling the air with their fragrant scents.
A few colorful butterflies spread their wings and flew among the peony flowers. They stopped between the flowers one moment, flew the next, and played with each other the next…
“Meow-”
A snow-white cat and a black cat ran past the two of them one after another. The two cats chased after the butterflies in the garden happily, their cries soft and excited..