Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

Wen Huanzhang took his wife and children to visit the Wangchuan construction site and then spent a few days sightseeing in Ba, before leisurely returning to Luoyang.

Chapter 3502 Luoyang City

Before the imperial court completes the relocation of the capital, the retired emperor needs to remain in the Luoyang Imperial Palace.

This was also Wen Huanzhang's first time entering.

The thought that human bones had been used to plaster the palace walls made him feel disgusted.

They found Emperor Huizong of Song even more incomprehensible. He had no intention of moving the capital, so why did he have to rebuild the Luoyang Palace?

Perhaps it was for the renovation of the Ming Dynasty!

As for the claim that the Song Dynasty imperial palace contained mercury, which led to a decline in the number of male heirs.

That's pure nonsense; there's no source for it at all.

Throughout history, imperial palaces have contained large quantities of mercury, primarily used for gilding artifacts.

Gilded utensils have extremely high chemical stability; you can even use them to boil water for drinking.

Wen Huanzhang took a map of the Luoyang imperial city and, with his wife and children, rode around in a carriage for a whole day before he could barely get familiar with it.

Wen Huanzhang was standing on the eastern city wall of the imperial city, with a walled city called Dongcheng beneath his feet.

Such a large city was used exclusively by the crown prince for his residence and official business during the Tang Dynasty.

This is what a real Eastern Palace should be like; it's almost half the size of the Kaifeng Imperial Palace!

However, the western city where the other princes and princesses lived had already been demolished during the reign of Zhao Kuangyin.

The city of Yaoyi in the north was also demolished, leaving only the city of Yuanbi, which was used to garrison troops.

It's good to keep this thing in one place, so that the palace guards don't have nowhere to live and have to walk from their homes to the capital to work every day.

Apart from these two isolated cities, Zhao Kuangyin demolished all the other isolated cities.

The outer city walls between the imperial city and the palace in the Tang Dynasty allowed for secret movement and troop deployment, and were mainly used to prevent palace coups.

There was no way around it; palace coups in the Tang Dynasty were as common as eating and drinking.

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang even built all the princes' palaces within the city walls.

In reality, it's residential surveillance, but they claim it's for easy control.

Overall, Wen Huanzhang was very satisfied.

Wen Huanzhang summoned Bai Sheng and asked, "When do they say Tokyo will move the capital?"

Bai Sheng replied, "The first group to arrive consisted of eunuchs, female officials, palace maids, and imperial guards. They were responsible for tidying up and organizing the various rooms."

"The second group that came were officials of arts and crafts, historians, astronomers and so on, who brought treasures and books from the imperial city of Kaifeng."

"The third group that came was a group of officials from the national treasury and granaries, who brought a lot of supplies including grain and money."

"Only after everything was prepared did His Majesty move the capital with his civil and military officials."

"That's quite a thorough consideration," Wen Huanzhang nodded approvingly.

Bai Sheng said, "I also summoned wealthy farmers outside Luoyang and told them to plant more vegetables and fruits and raise more pigs, sheep, chickens and ducks this year."

"Once the imperial court moves the capital here, there won't be a shortage of meat and vegetables."

Wen Huanzhang praised, "Excellent."

Bai Sheng added, "The experimental fields of the Agricultural Encouragement Office are also ready, consisting of land from the relocated clans."

Half of the experimental fields of the Agricultural Promotion Bureau in Kaifeng would be sold to nearby farmers, and the other half would be assigned to the Henan Provincial Agricultural Promotion Bureau after the capital was moved.

Upon hearing that the experimental fields in Luoyang were ready, Wen Huanzhang was even more delighted.

He then asked, "How is the reform of merging the poll tax into the land tax and the reform of the official service system progressing in Henan Province?"

Bai Shengdao said, "It's finished."

Wen Huanzhang praised him a few more times and bestowed two colored coins upon him.

Bai Sheng took his leave from the Eastern Palace, feeling extremely refreshed.

He has made contributions to the reform of a province and helped to organize the relocation of the capital. Next, he will at least be promoted to the position of Left Vice Minister, and if there is a vacancy, he may even be directly appointed as Minister.

He returned home happily, but his wife greeted him with a solemn expression, saying, "We just received news from our hometown that my uncle (father-in-law) has passed away."

Bai Sheng's smile froze instantly.

.....

Great court meeting.

Zhao Yuan specifically asked the Minister of Rites, "Why is the mourning period for a parent three years?"

Hu Anguo replied, "It wasn't three years, but twenty-seven months."

"On the first anniversary of the death of one's parents, a filial son should hold a small memorial service in the following month."

"On the second anniversary of the death of one's parents, a filial son should hold a grand memorial service in the following month."

“Then, a month later, a ceremony to remove the mourning clothes was held.”

"A total of twenty-seven months, and then the mourning period will end."

Zhao Yuan then asked, "What is the Lesser Auspicious Sacrifice like?"

Hu Anguo replied, "A filial son can gradually remove his mourning clothes and put on auspicious clothes."

"After Xiao Xiang, filial sons may eat fruits and vegetables."

Zhao Yuan asked again, "What is the Great Auspicious Sacrifice like?"

Hu Anguo replied, "After the Great Auspiciousness, filial sons may consume condiments such as soy sauce and vinegar."

Zhao Yuan suddenly sat up straight and asked, "So, it means that on the first anniversary of their parents' death, a filial son can eat fruits and vegetables; and on the second anniversary of their parents' death, a filial son can add seasonings to his food."

Hu Anguo said, "Indeed."

Zhao Yuan glanced at his ministers and said, "Among you, some have been in mourning for their parents."

"Who strictly followed the rules of etiquette without transgressing them in the slightest?"

"If anyone is willing, please step forward, and I will reward them handsomely!"

The ministers looked at each other, but none of them dared to step forward.

What age is it?

How could one possibly strictly adhere to that kind of etiquette?

One should not eat vegetables and fruits for a year, and should not eat soy sauce, vinegar, or other condiments for two years.

Putting aside whether they can control their mouths, even a filial son's body can't take it!

Even the most filial son would at most abstain from meat and fish during the mourning period.

Chapter 3503 Troublesome Etiquette

At this moment, anyone who dares to stand up and claim that they are strictly observing mourning attire will inevitably become the target of public criticism.

Who knows, one day, a friend or neighbor might spread the word that this person ate vegetables while in mourning.

At that point, whether one is filial or not will no longer matter; what will be considered a grave crime is deceiving the emperor!

Zhao Yuan questioned, "Since you don't follow the proper etiquette, what's the point of mourning? What's the point of observing mourning?"

The courtiers were unable to answer.

After a long silence in the court, Prime Minister Zhai Ruwen stood up, holding his official tablet, and stepped forward: "Your Majesty, etiquette is nothing but sentiment. Times change, and customs also change."

"Some of the ancient rituals are no longer appropriate in today's society."

"For example, both the former Song Dynasty and the present dynasty have reformed their systems, and subjects only need to observe mourning for their monarch for twenty-seven days."

"Replacing the moon with the sun would benefit the country and its people."

"it is good!"

Zhao Yuan immediately praised, "From now on, officials will only need to observe a 27-day mourning period instead of a 27-month mourning period."

Hu Anguo said, "Only a monarch, the ruler of the world, can replace the moon with the sun."

“A subject must not do such a thing; it would be an overstepping of his bounds.”

Zhao Yuan was too lazy to argue, and changed his words, saying, "Then the ministers shall use months instead of years. One month after the death of parents, a minor memorial service shall be held."

"Two months after the death of one's parents, a grand memorial service is held."

"After a one-day interval, the medication can be discontinued."

"In other words, the period for officials to return home for mourning is set at two months and two days."

The courtiers looked at the emperor, unsure how to refute him.

They've been tricked by the emperor!

Because it is impossible for all officials to strictly adhere to the proper etiquette when they are in mourning, the conclusion was drawn that funeral rites could be reformed.

Who dares to say it can't be changed? Given the emperor's personality, if any official who said that were to die, the emperor would probably send officials to keep a close watch on him.

You're going to observe proper etiquette, right?

So you can't reform it?

Then you should behave yourself and not eat fruits and vegetables for a year, and not eat any seasonings for two years.

The person supervising you lives in your house and watches you eat every day. Let's see how long you can hold out!

So, this thing can be modified.

Since it can be changed, then the emperor has the final say.

The Minister of Rites said that officials cannot be like the emperor, and the emperor has already made a compromise, so what is there to refute?

Moreover, the emperor insisted on reforming the mourning period, and officials were able to avoid being accused of being unfilial when implementing it.

Since they wouldn't be branded as unfilial, who would be willing to delay for three years?

The ministers actually wanted to make changes, but they just couldn't bring themselves to say it.

With the emperor taking the blame, they readily accepted it.

Zhao Yuan made the decision: "From today onwards, any official who needs to observe the mourning period shall be exempt from this restriction."

"Not counting the time spent traveling back and forth, the mourning period only lasts two months and two days from the day I go home and put on my mourning clothes."

"Your parents have passed away, so you must be feeling down. You can rest for a while longer."

"Two months and two days are for mourning, and the remaining twenty-odd days are for rest and relaxation. Once three months have elapsed, you can return to the capital to report to the Ministry of Personnel."

"If you are busy with official duties, you do not need to rest and can return after the mourning period is over."

"Who still objects?"

No one objected, but it was inconvenient to say that His Majesty was wise.

The courtiers stared at each other, dumbfounded, all standing or sitting there like fools.

Zhao Yuan added, "Bai Sheng, the Left Provincial Administration Commissioner of Henan, has made outstanding contributions."

"His father was also a virtuous man who made contributions to the country and was posthumously awarded the title of Tongyi Dafu (a fourth-rank official)."

Only then did the ministers realize that Bai Sheng's father had died.

Although it was a pretext to promote the reform of mourning for parents, the officials still gained a new understanding of Bai Sheng.

Although this person has always served as a local official, he has always been favored by the emperor. We must never offend him in the future.

.....

Bai Sheng received an assignment to represent the retired emperor, the retired empress, and the emperor to go to Shangbai Village in Xixiang County to offer condolences to the late Bai family.

By the way, convey the imperial edict posthumously conferring honors: the tomb of Old Master Bai can be built to the scale of a fourth-rank official.

In addition, Bai Erlang was serving as the governor in Japan, and Zhao Yuan directly ordered him not to return.

Bai Sheng still has a month's vacation left, which he can use to repair his parents' graves.