Chapter 2: Patriarchal system and feudal system
After King Wu died, Ji Yun succeeded to the throne and was named King Kang.
The king's uncle Ji Zhao was appointed as the regent, and Taigong Wang was appointed as the assistant minister. Two of the three highest officials of the emperor were already in office.
The whole world was looking to Haojing. Ji Zhao's first edict was to require all the ministers and nobles of Bang Zhou to come to Haojing to pay homage to the emperor and discuss important matters.
No matter whether it was the ministers in the royal capital or the nobles in the far east, they all came to Haojing for their own ulterior motives to pay homage to an eight-year-old emperor.
The inns in Haojing City that accommodated these princes and dukes were more lively than ever before.
Ji Zhao had sent people from the Guanyi to teach the vassal states the etiquette of Zhou early on. All of them were formulated by him personally, and were complicated and solemn. He wanted to make everyone in the world understand through a court worship that the Zhou emperor was the true common ruler of the world, and definitely not the leader of the vassal states of the Xia and Shang dynasties.
Son of God, with noble bloodline, sacred and inviolable!
Everyone was talking about Ji Zhao. He was not an unknown person. King Wu once praised him as "the son of unicorn". The current etiquette and clan system of Zhou were also formulated by him. It is said that he also assisted in military affairs during King Wu's conquest of King Zhou, but he was rarely seen in public.
Those who knew him thought that he might become the head of the royal family. No one would have thought that King Wu would entrust his young son to him before his death and give him such great power to act on behalf of the king.
Ji Zhao didn't care about the disturbance outside the palace. He carefully arranged the emperor's crown for King Kang, his face full of kindness. As a regent who would return power in the future, maintaining a good relationship with the emperor was the most important thing. He was just a child now, but one day he would be the king of the world.
"Your Majesty, this is your first time in front of the princes. You must remain calm. Don't worry. No matter what happens, I will protect you until you grow up."
Listening to Ji Zhao's comfort, King Kang's somewhat nervous mood calmed down a little, and he said crisply: "Uncle Wang, I understand."
It was almost time, Ji Zhao and King Kang, surrounded by guards and palace maids, arrived at the sacrificial site. The princes who came to pay homage had been waiting for nearly a quarter of an hour.
When the two men appeared, everyone stood up and saluted. Ji Zhao carried King Kang to the high throne, then stood beside King Kang with armor on his back and sword in hand, facing the princes.
Ji Zhao acted on behalf of the king, and the prime minister as regent presided over the ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven, and also offered sacrifices to the ancestral temples, gods of mountains and rivers. The princes who came to pay homage presented gifts to the emperor to express their loyalty and paid homage to each other. The princes had never experienced such a complicated process. These rituals everywhere demonstrated the hierarchy between the emperor and the princes.
After all the ceremonies were over, the princes came to the palace for a banquet and the real talks finally began.
After three rounds of drinking, Ji Zhao put down the drinking vessel in his hand, and the princes who had been paying attention to him knelt down one after another.
Ji Zhao looked around the room, and said with a worried look on his face: "Those who came here are clansmen, nobles, and meritorious officials. Heaven favored the Zhou Dynasty, and the Zhou people got the Mandate of Heaven, while the Mandate of Heaven of the Shang Dynasty fell. Under the leadership of the previous king, we killed the tyrant King Zhou of Shang, and now we have gained the world, but will the Mandate of Heaven remain unchanged forever?
I am very worried!
The former king once told me that if we want the Mandate of Heaven to continue, we must build a new capital between Yi and Luo.
Hearing what Ji Zhao said, some people in the hall couldn't help but change their expressions. Yiluo is in the heart of the east, and building a capital there is naturally to guard against the old subordinates of the Shang Dynasty.
Ji Zhao looked at the expressions of the people in the field calmly and continued, "The barbarians from all directions are constantly pouring into our land, and there are always people rebelling in the occupied land.
I am afraid that even if we build a new city, we still cannot ensure that the Mandate of Heaven will last forever."
As he spoke, he sighed repeatedly, as if he had already thought of the day when Bang Zhou would lose his destiny.
Barbarians have always been a major problem threatening all countries. The demise of the Shang Dynasty was due to the Dongyi Rebellion.
Tai Gong Wang, who was kneeling in the first row of people, stood up and said, "We were originally minor officials in Xiqi. Because our predecessor received the mandate of heaven, we were able to follow him to conquer the land blessed by heaven and serve the supreme emperor.
Since the late king has appointed the Prime Minister as regent, everything in Bangzhou is under your control, and all we can do is obey your orders."
Some clan members and meritorious officials also stood up and said, “The Prime Minister is the brother of the late king, his bloodline is so noble!
You are in charge of the state of Zhou, how can we not obey your orders?
I only hope that destiny will always favor our state, and that we will forever guard the emperor from generation to generation, just like the stars in the sky surrounding the moon. "
No matter what everyone thinks in their hearts, at least here they are all loyal subjects.
Ji Zhao smiled and said, "Tai Gong is the greatest contributor to the establishment of Zhou. The former king once said to me that he wanted to share wealth and honor with you.
Your ancestors once assisted Emperor Yu of Xia and were granted the land of Lu. They were ancient nobles. The former king gave you the land of Qi as a fiefdom so that you could worship your ancestors.
When Bang Zhou conquered the world, the former king granted me the fertile land because of my bloodline.
What an honor it is for the two of us to be able to protect the royal territory!
While I was happy, I thought about the fact that my relatives and nobles still had no land to live on. All of you are descendants of the Three Kings and Five Emperors and cannot worship your ancestors. Isn't this against the rites and laws of the Zhou Dynasty?
There is no one to resist the barbarians in all directions, and the fertile land has no king. The emperor has to face the barbarians who lead beasts to eat people directly. Isn't this a shame for us officials?
The Shang Dynasty did this and thus lost the Mandate of Heaven. Shouldn't we avoid this?
Although Bang Zhou was a state passed down from ancient times, its mission was to establish a new system.
I have discussed with the previous king, and you are all ministers of noble blood, and your bloodline has been passed down from the time of the Three Kings and Five Emperors.
The previous king decided to divide the land among the nobles to establish their own states, so that you can worship your ancestors. At the same time, you can resist the invasion of barbarians and serve as a barrier to protect the emperor. What an honor it is. "
Both the Xia and Shang dynasties had distributed land to meritorious officials. In the eyes of everyone, this was a new beginning. They thought that the Zhou Dynasty would be different, but it turned out to be the same old thing.
Thinking of this, many people have put their minds at ease and even started to calculate where they can get the land.
Ji Zhao naturally knew what they were thinking and just sneered in his heart. Naturally, the land would not be divided from the royal capital. Accepting the land meant accepting the new ritual and music system, and the righteousness of the ritual and music system was a magical weapon that could achieve great results with little effort.
As long as the emperor controls 30% of the power in the world, he can gain the submission of the entire system of princes. This is completely different from the county system of later generations.
As long as the emperor does not commit suicide, this system can at least guarantee the emperor's authority for four hundred years!
At present, there are two most fertile lands in the world. One is around Haojing, where the Zhou people have been cultivating for thousands of years. It is densely populated and is the basic base of the Zhou Dynasty.
One is between Yi and Luo, but since a new capital needs to be built there, it is naturally impossible to seal off the entire area.
A trusted relative like Ji Zhao could be granted a fiefdom on the banks of the Luo River, but most people here probably wouldn't receive such treatment.
Even Taigong Wang, the most important ally of the Ji clan, was sealed in Qi. Although the land there was fertile, it was full of Dongyi people and was quite dangerous.
Before everyone could react, Taigong Wang, with tears in his eyes, knelt down and said, "The reason why Bang Zhou was able to gain the world is all thanks to the previous king who received the mandate of heaven. I have only made a small contribution, but the previous king has bestowed such a great grace on me. I only wish to be a vassal of the emperor for generations to come."
Most people have already started to wonder what benefits Ji Zhao gave to Taigong Wang to make him cooperate so well. If the two of them had not discussed it before, they would not believe it even if they were beaten to death.
After King Wu's death, Tai Gong is now the top military figure in Bang Zhou, and there is the Jiang clan behind him. This kind of ally is worth any price except the throne.
A legitimate daughter of the Jiang surname Lu family will become the wife of Ji Zhao, another legitimate daughter will become the queen of Bang Zhou, and a royal princess will become the wife of Qi. The Jiang surname will be intermarried with the emperor from generation to generation.
Qi and Luo will be Haojing's most important allies in the east. In Ji Zhao's system design, rituals, music, conquests and wars are decided by the emperor, while Qi and Luo hold the power of conquest. They jointly shoulder the important task of suppressing the eastern states that are close to the Shang Dynasty and the Dongyi tribes.
Although many people secretly criticized it, no one would speak out against it in this situation.
Facing the army that had just defeated the Shang Dynasty, the Zhou army was currently at its strongest stage and was not something that some other countries could contend with.
"We, the ministers, are willing to serve as the emperor's vassal for generations to come."
Ji Zhao laughed loudly and said, "You are all loyal subjects of our Zhou State. The Mandate of Heaven will be bestowed upon the Emperor. I have pondered over this matter and realized that only by taking the patriarchal system and the feudal system as the foundation can we ensure that the princes will always respect the Emperor and that our Zhou State will always enjoy the Mandate of Heaven."
This time, before Taigong came forward, a ruler from the old site of Yinxu stood up and asked, "Grand Prime Minister, I understand the division of fiefs, but I wonder what this clan law is?"
"The so-called patriarchal system is the most fundamental inheritance method of our Zhou Dynasty and the foundation of our Zhou Dynasty's rituals and music.
The wives of the nobles are all noble ladies of the princes, and the legitimate sons are the heirs given by God to inherit your status.
The Xia and Shang dynasties were once dynasties that received the Mandate of Heaven, but they ignored the will of Heaven and passed the throne from elder brother to younger brother, and from father to son, repeatedly. Isn’t this disrespectful to Heaven?”
Although there were many princes in the palace who inherited their brothers' status, they naturally wanted to pass the status to their sons. Ji Zhao's policy was just what they wanted, and with the emperor's endorsement, the elders in the clan had nothing to say.
"My Lords, the Emperor is a man favored by Heaven. Heaven has granted all the lands to the Emperor to rule. The Emperor has granted lands to his relatives and meritorious officials to shepherd the people. What an honor it is!"
Without Ji Zhao's explanation, they also knew what an honorable thing this was. To obtain land, become a noble, and restore the ancestral cause, this was the common idea of everyone in this era.
The feudal system was very suitable for the economic foundation and social reality of this era.
"The previous king and I had discussed granting meritorious officials the five ranks of duke, marquis, earl, viscount and baron. After the previous king passed away, I decided to grant land to the princes of the world according to the five ranks of blood relationship and meritorious service. Duke is the largest, earl is the middle, and viscount and baron are the smallest.
Use ministers, officials and scholars to serve the emperor and the princes.
The emperor treats the three dukes as the same as the dukes, the ministers as the same as the earls, and the officials as the same as the sons and sons. From this example, under the etiquette system, the ministers have different ranks. Those with merits are promoted to higher ranks and given lands, while those with faults are stripped of their titles and expelled from their countries, in order to demonstrate the emperor's majesty!"
This time, Ji Zhao completely shocked all the ministers in the hall. The status among the princes has always been based on strength, and they are extremely independent.
Now Ji Zhao wants to break this convention. He wants to take back power. Once this is achieved, the disputes among the princes will have to depend on the emperor's mood. Even the party with stronger national power will suffer in silence if it cannot please the emperor.
Even Ji Zhao's adopted son didn't know that his father wanted to do this. After all, their Luo Kingdom would also be one of the princes in the future!
Seeing that no one responded this time, Tai Gong stood up again and asked, "Grandmaster, I wonder what the connection is between these five ranks of nobility and the land granted?"
After Taigong Wang asked this question, the shocked people in the hall came to their senses a little. Anyway, they could not resist for the time being, so they might as well estimate how much land they could get and what title they could be awarded. These two things determined the future status of the family.
"The fields of the emperor are a thousand li square, the fields of dukes and marquises are a hundred li square, the fields of earls are seventy li square, the fields of sons and barons are fifty li square. Fields with less than fifty li square are vassals of the princes."
Where did all this land come from? This question arose in everyone's mind. With so many people here, even if all of them were made princes, they could divide up the kingdom in an instant.
But soon someone guessed Ji Zhao's intention from the State of Qi to which Taigong Wang was granted.
What a dog!
This was what most people thought, to divide up the land that did not belong to them. Although they were unhappy, they also knew that Ji Zhao would never dare to cheat so many people at the same time, and there would definitely be an explanation later.
While everyone was still in shock, Ji Zhao continued to explain his policies to the world calmly.
"Yao, Shun, Yu and Tang were all great kings with great merits. Heaven did not allow their ancestral temples to be destroyed. The emperor treated their descendants with the etiquette of guests and conferred on them the title of duke, allowing them to worship their ancestors and preserve the ancestral temples of the ancestors. The ancestors would protect the emperor.
Guan, Cai, Zhao, Taigong, etc., were either brothers of the previous king or meritorious officials of the Zhou Dynasty. It would be unreasonable not to grant them the title of marquis.
The titles and lands of Earl, Viscount and Baron were rewards given to meritorious officials. The emperor cared for his meritorious officials and their descendants.
The king is the great clan of the world, but he cares for all the smaller clans. Shouldn't we be loyal to the emperor with our lives?"
Everyone thought Ji Zhao's words were reasonable. This was an era where blood ties determined everything, and it was normal for clan members to occupy high positions.
The most surprised were the descendants of Yao, Shun and Yu. Although they knew that the so-called duke was just a tablet that was highly respected, they were already weak and of low status, and in the new order, they could obtain a political status far beyond their previous one.
[Ding~
By establishing the patriarchal system and the feudal system, you have greatly influenced the course of history. Your luck points have increased by 5,000, and you have obtained an item - the Heavenly Stage Sitianjiantai.
It was another heavenly item, and it was an item like the Sitianjiantai that could protect a country's fortune for a hundred years. Ji Zhao was shocked. Is this the feeling of a perfect start?
Title!
land!
Patriarchal system!
Ji Zhao used titles to define the status of all his subjects, used land to control the strength and role of the princes, and used clan system to control the inheritance within the princes' clans.
Compared with the tribal leader like the Shang king, the power of the Zhou emperor was greatly enhanced. As long as the emperor's majesty remained and order was not collapsed, the emperor could exclude a certain prince from the political system by depriving him of his title and let the world attack him together.
But so far, this system is beneficial to everyone except a few countries that already have land.
Especially for the clan members with the surname Ji, clan system is the core. It is obvious that Ji Zhao wants to reuse the clan members. Although they and their descendants will never have the hope of becoming the emperor again, these illusory things are not as important as the tangible benefits in front of them.
————
King Su is like the sky. He observed the shortcomings of the ancient Yu Dynasty and the disharmony of the Xia and Shang Dynasties. He created rituals and music, saying that the world should be unified. He said that the writing system should be unified, the wheels should be unified, and the utensils, music, clothing, food, and houses should all be the same. The world should be one and the nine provinces should be unified. This is the beginning! - "Records of the Grand Historian: Annals of Zhou"
The internal signing has been passed, so you can invest with confidence.
(End of this chapter)
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