Chapter 852 Uproar
"roll!"
A loud roar shook the entire Su Mansion.
Su Xuanming stood up and left without even looking back.
Uncle Su was gasping for breath, his face was blue and black.
"What's wrong with you? Why don't you invite Dalang to have a meal?" Mrs. Su hurried in and asked anxiously.
"What are you eating! You, Gu, are not worthy of eating our Su family's food."
Mrs. Su: "What nonsense are you talking about? How can there be a person named Gu here?"
"Humph, Su Xuanming should be called Gu Xuanming from now on."
"What?!"
Su Xuanming wanted to change his surname, which caused an uproar in the entire Kyoto.
In this land, the patriarchal system is the most basic and core system.
A man's surname change involves the patriarchal system, household registration management and legal procedures. It is an extremely serious and difficult matter and not something that can be changed casually by an individual.
Based on past experience, there are three situations.
The first is to change the surname by inheritance. Men are adopted by uncles and aunts in the same clan who have no children.
In this case, a family agreement must be signed first, and the biological parents and adoptive parents must reach a written agreement under the witness of the clan elders.
Then, the ancestors will be worshipped and the matter will need to be registered with the government. This situation also requires the witness of the village head and other grassroots management personnel.
The second situation of changing surname is when the emperor grants the surname.
This is a special honor. In order to commend meritorious officials or for special reasons, such as the surrender of minority leaders, the emperor would issue an edict to grant the national surname or other surnames.
This was the highest level of surname change, with the emperor issuing a direct edict, the Ministry of Rites responsible for implementation, and notifying local authorities to change the household registration.
The last type is extremely rare and only appears once every few hundred years.
That is, in extreme cases where one needs to hide one's identity for serious reasons, such as escaping from a major vendetta or being involved in a major unjust case, the surname change would only be allowed after the local officials reported it and the court gave special approval.
The procedure is extremely complicated, requires sufficient evidence, has a very low success rate, and is accompanied by strict confidentiality requirements.
For people like Su Xuanming, who do not fall into the above three situations and want to change their surnames purely out of personal wishes, there are clear regulations in the "Zhou Xing Tong" of the Zhou Dynasty.
This behavior is disrespectful to ancestors and clan leaders, and is an act of forgetting one's roots and ancestors, and will be severely punished.
Depending on the severity of the crime, they will be punished with caning or imprisonment. At the same time, they must be forced to restore their original surnames, and be deprived of their qualifications for imperial examinations and for holding official positions.
Those who supported Su Xuanming and those who opposed Su Xuanming were arguing fiercely in the Fuquan Teahouse.
"But Su Xuanming just wants to take his mother's surname."
"That won't work either. Marquis Yongchang didn't marry into the family, so how can Su Xuanming take his mother's surname?"
"This is a special case. Duke Yun is not an ordinary person. His family really has a throne to inherit."
The women in the private room nodded repeatedly: "Of course. Not to mention the throne to inherit, even if there is a title to inherit, you have to choose someone with the same surname as yourself."
The people of the Great Zhou attached great importance to surnames and clans. If there were wealthy people in the clan, they would buy clan land for the clan and cultivate people with the same surname.
Some people thought that it was understandable for Su Xuanming to change his surname: "Think of it this way, the emperor's surname is Gu, and the late queen's surname is Su. If you were a prince, would you choose the surname Gu or Su?"
I knock!
Is this even a question?!
Why should someone named Su take over the kingdom that belongs to the Gu family?
Those who opposed it cursed: "Absurd! This is a disgrace to the ancestors of the Su family! How can you abandon your ancestors for the sake of fame and wealth?"
Many people keep their mouths shut. Although they say this, when great wealth and honor really fall on their heads, what’s the big deal about recognizing one’s parents?
Some clever person came up with a sentence that ended the discussion completely: "Normally, after Yun Guogong Gu Nanxi married Yongchang Hou, she should have taken her husband's surname, which is Su."
The entire teahouse was silent.
Warrior, you are really brave. You actually dare to ask Yun Guogong Gu Nanxi to change his surname.
Let's skip this topic. Let's take a look at what kind of drama is popular today? Is it excerpts or shadow puppetry?
However, some caring people silently kept this sentence in their hearts.
…
After dropping a big bomb, Su Xuanming pretended nothing happened and went to work as usual.
Yulang walked out of the cell and took out a handkerchief to wipe the blood off his hands.
The Jinyiwei following behind him was holding a stack of blood-stained transcripts, and his eyes kept glancing at Su Xuanming unconsciously.
Yu Lang dragged a chair and sat in front of Su Xuanming: "Should I call you Su Xuanming or Gu Xuanming?"
"You can call me Centurion."
"Tsk, you're really addicted to power." Yu Lang propped up his chin with his hand and looked Su Xuanming up and down. "I have to say, you act like a man by doing this."
What surname the children have is a very important matter.
If the children don't take the lead, then Gu Nanxi will have to do it.
Fortunately, Su Xuanming is still filial and knows how to share his mother's worries.
"However, if you do this, you will become the target of public criticism. The Qingliu will not support you, and the clan forces will also criticize you."
Yu Lang was enjoying the fun and said, "You've made yourself a target, but it will be a bargain for your brothers and sisters. Aren't you afraid of being a wedding dress for others?"
As long as Su Xuanming completes the surname change, it will be a natural thing for Su Erlang and Su Yunyan to change their surnames.
It can be said that they got a great bargain.
Su Xuanming put down his pen helplessly: "Uncle, can you please stop disturbing me while I'm working?"
"Answer my question first."
"Some things need to be done, so I do them. Just as the national surname must be Gu. As for those clear streams, those who can be used by me are talents. Those who cannot be used by me are no different from the flowers and grass on the roadside."
"Domineering! You keep busy." Yulang walked out of Jinyiwei leisurely, with the corners of his mouth raised high.
The future eldest prince finally looks like a prince.
After Gu Nanxi learned about this, she did not make any statement. But this silence itself was a kind of support.
"Yunzhou Weekly" did not mention this matter at all yesterday and adopted a cold attitude.
Uncle Su didn't believe that Su Xuanming would really dare to do such a evil thing and change his surname at will.
So, he publicized the Su family's ancestor worship on a large scale, and the preparations were extremely grand. He strictly followed the Zhou rites and Zhu Xi's family rites, bathed and changed clothes three days in advance, did not drink alcohol, did not eat meat, and did not visit funerals or inquire about illnesses.
Pigs and sheep were bought as tribute.
All the elderly people in the Su family who were over 70 years old were invited.
Everything was done to put pressure on Su Xuanming and Gu Nanxi to see if he dared not to come.
When the day came, Uncle Su dressed properly, started burning incense, poured wine on the ground, and kowtowed to invite the ancestors to come.
After taking this step, the Su family members all glanced towards the gate.
The next step will be the three offering ceremonies. Will Su Dalang come?
Uncle Su had a serious face, offered wine and read the prayer. This was the first offering.
Next comes the second offering, in which the wife or the second son offers wine.
The last step is the final offering, where the descendants or clan members offer wine again.
Until this step was completed, there was still no sign of Su Xuanming at the scene.
The Su family's hearts sank to the bottom.
Is it because of the wind and rain? I feel a little disappointed.
I want to raise a duckling, but I'm afraid it will poop a lot and it will smell bad.
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