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

Chapter 396 If Jiang Ziya had not been born, the world would have remained in darkness forever!
Selecting qualified dancers and maids was not a formality, but the official in charge of the ceremony, Dunlun, had a solemn expression, as if he were handling a matter of great importance concerning the national dignity.

First.

“This servant is 12 and a half years old and four feet tall.”

"It is inconsistent with the rites of Zhou, so it shall be withdrawn."

"Yes."

next.

“This servant is 15 years old and five feet tall.”

"Remove armor."

"Yes."

The person in charge took out a set of ancestral wooden rulers and carefully measured seven key data points to ensure a perfect fit.

"It conforms to the rites of Zhou, so keep it."

The maid's face lit up with joy.

next.

"This servant is 22 years old, and..."

"It is inconsistent with the rites of Zhou, so it shall be withdrawn."

The person in charge acted strictly according to the Zhou rites. After a rigorous selection process, he discovered that only 4 out of the 50 dancers kept by the Kong family met the Zhou rites, which made him frown.

"Each generation is worse than the last."

"We must expand the scope. Any household in Qufu with a gate that is more than 8 feet wide and has an unmarried daughter is welcome to come."

"Yes."

……

The chief of protocol was stationed in the front yard, arranging the arrangements.

People kept coming to him for instructions, and he answered them all fluently, just like a president.

The servants were busy.

The masters are also very busy.

The women applied makeup in front of the mirror, while the men practiced their personal etiquette and greetings for the audience with the emperor.

unconsciously.

The rooster crowed, and the sun came out!
The battle to welcome the emperor at the Confucius Mansion has entered its most intense phase, and even the most composed chief of protocol is struggling to cope.

"Reporting~ The head chef requests reinforcements of 2 Shandong cuisine chefs, 3 Huaiyang cuisine chefs, 5 chopping chefs, and 22 serving maids."

"Report! The Master of Ceremonies requests reinforcements of 350 zhang of red silk and 11 strongmen."

"Report! Steward Dunlun requests reinforcements of 4 boxes of face powder, 2 boxes of jewelry, and 10 boxes of clothing."

"Report! The priest requests four additional painters as reinforcements."

"Report~"

Manpower is critically low! The Confucius Mansion is in dire need of assistance!
……

The chief of protocol gritted his teeth, stamped his foot, and personally approached the Duke Yansheng.

The Duke Yansheng was reasonable and understanding. Apart from the proper masters, everyone in the entire household was under the command of the head official, and those who disobeyed could be expelled from the household.

The decisive battle in Qufu!

Let's start with the Confucius Mansion.

The chief steward, with wisps of white smoke rising from his forehead, held a copy of "Records of Receiving Emperors by Successive Dukes of Yansheng" and continuously issued orders to ensure that everyone was operating efficiently.

Qufu.

Horse-riding servants sounded gongs throughout the city.

"With the arrival of the Grand Secretary, everyone, regardless of rank or age, must come out. The streets must be spotless and the doorways must be clean."

As the sage said, "Is it not delightful to have friends coming from afar?"

"Hurry, hurry, hurry."

The entire city was engrossed in cleaning.

In Qufu Prefecture, the imperial surname is Kong, and the words of the Duke Yansheng are the imperial edict for everyone.

……

outside the city.

Jiang Qingyun stepped out of the tent and looked at the billowing smoke and dust in Qufu with great confusion.

What are the people of Qufu up to?

“We just sent men into the city to check, and they are cleaning up.”

"is it?"

"Yes."

"What a strange thing."

Soon~
More people have arrived in the city.

"The Duke of Yansheng requests the Grand Secretary to grant him one more day."

What is he going to do?

"The Duke Yansheng said that he wanted to welcome the Grand Secretary with the most perfect Zhou rites, thus firing the first shot in promoting the original teachings of Confucius and Mencius."

"alright."

Jiang Qingyun didn't think much of it and marched at full speed. His soldiers and horses were exhausted, so they could rest for another day.

……

A day is very short. For the 36-person protocol team at the Confucius Mansion, this day was exceptionally short. They had no rest or sleep, working like donkeys pulling a millstone.

The preparations for receiving the emperor were completed in one day and two nights.

It relies on human effort!
It's a test of loyalty!
It's all about the underlying culture!
Apart from the Confucius Mansion and the Imperial Household Department, no other institution in the world could handle such a complex workload.

It's all thanks to ginseng that it's surviving.

It was obvious to the naked eye that the person in charge had lost weight.

The Confucius Mansion was brightly decorated and filled with joy.

However, the situation in Qufu is still not ideal.

The uneven ground cannot be fixed.

The chief steward gritted his teeth and decided to lay a red carpet from the city gate all the way to the Confucius Mansion and then to the Confucius Temple, to ensure that the Grand Secretary's boots would not get dusty when he entered the city.

"Where are the welcoming crowds?"

"Here it is."

The chief official was instantly enraged when he saw a group of emaciated people with dull eyes.

"You are smearing the reputation of the Duke Yansheng!"

"I am terrified. Please give me your instructions, Master?"

"Go find some young people, or if that doesn't work, use face powder and lard. I'm telling you, if you can't do it within an hour, I'll accuse you of practicing Confucianism against Mencius!"

The chief steward didn't actually know what crime it was, but since the Duke of Yansheng had mentioned it three times in two days, it must be a very serious crime.

Half an hour later~
The enraged servants roared at the crowd of people.

"Don't you poor wretch have a single piece of clothing in your home that isn't patched?"

The crowd knelt down in unison, heads drooping, silent. Although their faces were painted with face powder and their mouths smeared with lard, the patches on their clothes couldn't be hidden.

No way!

To prevent the Grand Secretary from being saddened by seeing the poor, the Confucius family urgently allocated a batch of new clothes.

……

1659.
May 4th.

The sun was shining brightly, and the sky was cloudless.

The Confucius Mansion has finally completed its preparations for receiving the emperor; everything is ready.

Yanshenggong Mansion.

A servant hurried into the courtyard.

"Chief Steward, the Confucius Temple is asking where to hang the portrait?"

"The head steward?"

Without any response, the gaunt and emaciated head steward quietly slumped in his chair, a smile still on his lips, a calligraphy brush still clutched in his hand.

Upon hearing the news, Zhang, who rushed over, glanced at it only once before loudly announcing it.

"The person in charge is asleep."

"You, help your father back to rest. After the emperor is received, you will take over your father's position, and in recognition of your merits, your father will be first."

"Madam Xie, Father, let's go back to sleep."

The son quickly helped his deceased father up and hurriedly got out of everyone's sight.

It was a minor incident and didn't affect the overall situation.

With the Grand Secretary about to enter the city, even death is not permitted at such a joyous occasion.

……

The city gate.

A red carpet stretched half a mile outside the city.

Jiang Qingyun, clad in golden armor, led his fierce army into the small city of Qufu. Or rather, the Grand Secretary himself had arrived in his loyal city of Qufu.

The streets were filled with welcoming crowds, who shouted, "Isn't it a joy to have friends coming from afar?"

Jiang Qingyun nodded slightly.

Everything I saw along the way was clean, tidy, and orderly.

The streets are covered with famous quotes from sages, all of which are catchy and easy to remember.

"Duke Yansheng"

"The minister is here."

"I think Qufu is doing a good job. The city is clean, the people are prosperous, and the culture is in place."

"You flatter me, Your Excellency. This is precisely a manifestation of Your Excellency's advocacy of the New Life Movement."

"Ok?"

"The New Life Movement advocates for everything to be new, but for ideas to be old, aiming to regress Confucian and Mencian thought by 2000 years and revive traditional Confucianism. These are all my presumptuous speculations, and I humbly request the Grand Secretary's correction."

"In a few days, go and discuss the theory with Minister Huang."

"Please enlighten me, Grand Secretary."

"You'll find out then. For now, let's go and offer sacrifices to Confucius."

……

How can one visit Qufu without paying homage at the Temple of Confucius?
The magnificent Confucius Temple.

Jiang Qingyun was so shocked that he couldn't move after stepping through the gate with his left foot.

Directly in front stands a stone tablet with ten bright red characters engraved on it: "If Jiang Ziya had not been born, the world would have remained in darkness forever!"

(End of this chapter)