The end of the sixth year of the Qingli period arrived not long after this heavy rain.

This year, God was kind to us at the end of the year. It snowed in Hebei, but Henan only had freezing rain.

Further south, areas such as Hubei, Hunan, and Zhejiang are sunny and windy, not to mention Guangdong, where the temperature is warm enough for people to wear short sleeves.

This is also clear evidence that the climate is gradually warming up after the third Little Ice Age.

At least until the arrival of the fourth Little Ice Age in the middle and late Ming Dynasty, the Song Dynasty enjoyed a period of development with good weather and no major disasters for three or four hundred years.

Not long after the rain stopped, the New Year arrived.

Although the rain has stopped recently, the weather is still gloomy. It was cloudy even at noon. It was not until New Year's Eve that it cleared up a little.

Emperor Zhao Zhen of the Song Dynasty held a grand sacrificial ceremony on the 30th day.

According to convention, the Song Dynasty had arranged for the country to celebrate a few days before the New Year, with streets and alleys decorated with lights and lanterns to welcome the New Year.

Then on New Year’s Eve, fireworks are set up on the city wall to share the joy with the people. The whole city is filled with the sound of firecrackers, and people celebrate the New Year in a lively and lively manner.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, there is a grand ancestor worship ceremony, which includes worshiping heaven and earth, worshiping ancestors and other activities.

Zhao Jun has participated in the ceremony every year in recent years, following the emperor and civil and military officials to burn incense to the ancestors of the Zhao family. This shows that the descendants of the Zhao family have not lost their filial piety.

But this year is different. The sacrifice has been changed to the 30th day, and there is another arrangement for the first day of the new year.

Rumors have also spread from the court recently.

It was said that the steam locomotive was finally officially allowed to run, and the emperor attached great importance to this matter. Therefore, he decided to go out of the palace to watch the trial run on the first day of the Lunar New Year.

This news was not only known to the entire court, but also to envoys from other countries.

Because a few days before the New Year, officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the imperial court had already informed them that they should come to participate on the first day of the Lunar New Year.

The first day of the Lunar New Year is actually the time for all parties to express their congratulations to the Emperor of the Song Dynasty. Every year at the end of the sacrificial activities on the first day of the Lunar New Year, envoys from all parties come to congratulate the emperor.

Unexpectedly, this year the process was changed and he was directly involved in another matter, which surprised many foreign envoys.

But they have no ability to change and can only accept it.

As for the court, opposition voices were raised years ago.

It was not that he opposed the train's trial run, but that he opposed Zhao Zhen leaving the palace to watch the ceremony.

Many officials said that the emperor was the most important person in the country and needed to stay in the palace to ensure peace in the country, and he could not leave the palace without permission.

In history, Zhao Zhen believed this statement.

Moreover, he had not left the palace for more than 40 years in history and was firmly imprisoned in this deep-walled compound, unable to leave.

But no one can stop him now.

Because in the past, it was always the bureaucrats headed by the prime minister who dissuaded people.

Now the prime minister has changed sides, and most of the senior bureaucrats under him have been replaced by the prime minister's people.

The court formation, which was originally divided into cliques and factions and operated independently, would sometimes become an ironclad entity, and a few dissenting voices would naturally not cause any waves.

In the midst of this torrent, the seventh year of the Qingli period arrived.

At four o'clock in the morning on the first day of the Lunar New Year in the seventh year of the Qingli period, Zhao Zhen got up early and began to dress up.

Don’t think that the emperor doesn’t take good care of himself. In fact, as an emperor, he pays more attention to his image, so he has to dress neatly and meticulously every day.

It takes almost an hour just to comb the hair, wipe it clean and put on the hat.

In fact, it is not necessary to be so troublesome normally.

It was just the last morning court session. The sky was still dark during the court session, and candles were lit in the room. It was difficult to see the emperor clearly if you looked up, so there was no need to wash up every day.

What's more, today is the first day of the Lunar New Year, and there is no need to attend the morning court.

But today Zhao Zhen took special care of it. The palace maids and eunuchs came and went to tidy him up, making him clean.

It was not only because he wanted to witness the birth of the Song Dynasty's steam locomotive with his own eyes, but also because this was the first time since Zhao Zhen was born that he left the palace and saw the outside world.

I have to say.

Sometimes being an emperor is also a sad thing.

It is even more tragic when the emperor is like Zhao Zhen.

Historical records show that after he was born, his father Zhao Heng ordered him to be taken away from his biological mother, Li Chenfei, and handed over to Empress Liu for upbringing.

Later, even after Liu E died of illness, he never left the palace after he ascended the throne.

It is rather sad that an emperor wasted decades in that small palace, never went out to see the outside world, and only heard about the lives of the people from other people's mouths.

certainly.

From the perspective of future generations, there is no need to feel pity for an emperor who lives a life of luxury.

But for Zhao Zhen himself, he thought today was an extremely important day, both in terms of leaving the city and the importance of the train to the Song Dynasty.

"Sir, all the officials have arrived."

At the beginning of the morning, around seven o'clock, just as the sky was getting light, Wang Shouzhong came to report to Zhao Zhen.

At this time, Zhao Zhen had just finished washing and dressing up, and put on a grand fiery red dragon robe.

In addition to him, Empress Cao also wore a hibiscus crown, phoenix hairpin, and step-shaking hairpin, and wore the queen's attire of a wide-sleeved skirt.

"Let's go."

When Zhao Zhen heard Wang Shouzhong's words, he took a deep breath and walked out of the newly built palace in the back garden with Queen Cao.

It rained a few days ago, and the ground was dry, except for the dew in the grass in the backyard that still looked a little wet this morning.

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!