You can't only love the Qing Dynasty when you're eating the fruits of others' labor.

Chapter 395 Does this conform to the Zhou rites?

The Duke Yansheng's mansion was in an uproar.

The protocol officers, who have existed for over a thousand years, are especially excited because they have dedicated their entire lives to preparing for only one thing—receiving the emperor!
Children aged 3 to 8 learn the classics, history, philosophy, and literature.

Children aged 9 to 12 learn the Six Arts of a Gentleman.

Students begin specializing in different subjects between the ages of 13 and 18.

From then on, each of them devoted themselves to one to three small areas, such as rites and music, elegant cooking, ceremonial arrangements, Zhou Dynasty rules and regulations, banquet seating arrangements, clothing and decorations, and activities to enhance the atmosphere of court life.

We learn both theory and practice.

Maintaining such a team for over a thousand years would have cost an immeasurable amount of money.

But none of the Dukes Yansheng ever frowned.

This is because it is a sacred political mission! There is only one kind of person who can receive such a warm welcome from the Confucius Mansion: the emperor.

Emperors were very busy, managing countless affairs of state, and their health was poor. Coupled with many other constraints, very few were able to personally visit the Confucius Mansion.

So~
Many people spend their entire lives merely paying lip service to the idea of ​​loving dragons but fearing their own potential.

True dragons are extremely rare~
……

The chief protocol officer was an elderly man in his fifties, and at this moment, his face shone with an unusual radiance, as if he had returned to his youth.

His hunched back miraculously straightened.

"Confucius said to achieve benevolence, and Mencius said to uphold righteousness. Fellow colleagues, please use all your life's learning to organize a grand welcoming event that will attract worldwide attention, be stunning, and be remembered in history."

"Yes."

Before the words were even finished...
The butler came running.

"The Duke of Yansheng has given instructions that there is no limit to the amount of money, manpower, or determination required for this grand event."

"Please rest assured, Duke Yansheng!"

The concierge team quickly dispersed, each performing their duties calmly and methodically.

The Confucius Mansion Kitchen!

The 20-year-old head chef was emotional and trembling slightly. Neither his grandfather nor his father had ever encountered a real dragon, and he never expected to encounter such a grand event so soon after starting his career.

Within sight~
Hundreds of cooks and laborers are busy cleaning, ensuring that everything from the roof to the stove to the floor is spotless, and even every brass kitchen utensil must be gleaming.

Half an hour later~
The kitchen has been cleaned.

The second part.

"Shave your head, take a bath, and cleanse yourself."

The cooks and servants all shaved their heads, took a bath together, and then changed into brand new clothes.

During this process, some people suspected of having the disease were excluded.

The third step.

The cooks and servants followed the head cook, bowing to the portrait of Confucius from afar and reciting aloud.

"One should not be too particular about the fineness of the food, nor about the delicacy of the preparation. Food should be clean and fresh, and one should not eat fish that is rotten or meat that is spoiled, food that looks bad, food that smells bad, food that is improperly cooked, food that is not properly cut, or food that is not served with the right sauce."

This comes from the Analects, Book 10, "Xiangdang".

The Confucius Mansion has a high threshold for entry, and even ordinary cooks are familiar with the teachings of the sage.

The deputy in charge of supervision watched everyone's mouths open and close. Suddenly, he spotted a charlatan pastry chef and quickly stepped forward to pull him out.

"Expelled!"

The cook, unable to recite, looked ashen-faced.

The cook who was dismissed from the Confucius Mansion could not be hired by anyone in Shandong and had to go to Henan to make a living.

"The ceremony is over."

"The Confucius Family Banquet, let it begin!"

When the head chef shouted "Start," tears streamed down his face; his excitement was indescribable.

……

The kitchen machines in the Confucius Mansion started up with a rumble.

Countless precious ingredients were brought to the long table like a flowing stream, each one something that ordinary people had never eaten, seen, or even heard of.

There were 18 people just working on the chopping board.

The rhythmic sounds of eighteen cleavers clashing against the cutting board are so enticing and appetizing that they whet the appetite, much like a symphony.

At the Duke of Yansheng's residence, as they discussed receiving the emperor, the sound of swords clashing filled the air.

The chopping board workers would occasionally pick out a few expensive ingredients and throw them into the swill bucket next to them.

The sage said: "I will not eat food that is not properly cut." This means that Confucius would not eat food that was not aesthetically pleasing.
In a short while~
The swill bucket was filled with oddly shaped ingredients, such as crabs missing legs, sea cucumbers that weren't very lively, abalone that wasn't very bright, scallops that were crooked, and tendons that were too short.

Confucius didn't eat it, but the cook did!

We can no longer infer Confucius's true purpose in saying "I will not eat food that is not properly cut." It may not have been that Confucius was being pretentious; perhaps it was to snatch some food from the mouths of the nobles.

In an era when food was scarce, many servants may have survived by eating food that was not aesthetically pleasing.

The sage also said: A wise man keeps away from the kitchen.

I won't go into the literal meaning.

The underlying meaning might be to prevent nobles from entering the kitchen, allowing cooks and servants to eat and take freely, even if it means stealing to support their families.

The sage is worthy of the title of sage.

Confucius was willing to smear himself in order to ensure that the people could have something to eat. This is probably why the sage's thoughts have remained relevant for thousands of years.

As we gain more life experience, we may find that we have overestimated ourselves and underestimated sages.

The above cases are included in "A Study of the Fundamentalist Thought of Confucius and Mencius", by Xiaoxiaosheng.

……

The music and rituals of the Confucius Mansion were elegant music.

Inside the warehouse~
Various musical instruments were piled up like mountains.

The person in charge of rites and music would select the best-performing instrument from dozens of identical instruments to ensure that the sound produced during the welcoming ceremony was rich, elegant, and absolutely in accordance with the Zhou rites.

After the instruments were in place, he checked each musician's face and fingers to make sure they were in good health and full of energy.

Finally, it was time for the ensemble performance.

In this process, musicians who were not skilled enough were constantly expelled.

The musicians who were dismissed from the Confucius Mansion were not hired by anyone in the entire Shandong Province, so they had no choice but to go to neighboring Henan to make a living.

The collapse of rites and music was something Confucius deeply abhorred and something that absolutely could not happen.

Everything must be perfect.

The person in charge of rites and music was under immense pressure, all for the sake of rehearsing the Eight-Row Dance, which best conformed to the rites of Zhou!

Eight-year-old dance!
It was the highest-level sacrificial dance in the entire ancient feudal dynasties. Originating in the Zhou Dynasty, it consisted of 64 dancers and was exclusively used by the Zhou emperor.

The chief minister could enjoy the same treatment as the Zhou emperor.

……

Among the 36 officials, the only woman was the official in charge of Dunlun.

at this time!

She hurriedly went to find the head of the department.

"Master, may I ask how old the Grand Secretary is?"

"Twenty-seven."

"May I ask your height and appearance, Your Excellency?"

"He was seven feet tall, robust and imposing, skilled in the Six Arts, and revered the rites of Zhou, possessing the demeanor of an ancient gentleman."

"Yes."

The steward, Dunlun, understood.

In Mandarin: young, strong, respectful, gentleman.

In plain language: I am ill.

Newborn's words: lustful.

As Zhou Shuren of Zhejiang once said, "Language is an art, an art that has been neglected. Young people who master the art of language will benefit for life."

……

The most mysterious organization in the Confucius Mansion has made its appearance.

The head of the group, Dunlun, led the young women present in a loud recitation: "Food and sex are human nature. Benevolence is internal, not external. Righteousness is external, not internal."

The above is from the fourth section of the "Gaozi" chapter of Mencius.

The person in charge emphasized again:

"The concept of 'Dunlun' (敦伦) is the most important of human relationships. The Zhou rites (周礼) are the highest form of rites."

"Yes."

The women echoed in unison.

(End of this chapter)