Chapter 60: Grand Court Meeting
Soon, New Year's Day is coming, and the new year is about to begin.
The first day of the first lunar month in the eighteenth year of Zhenguan is an important day for the people of the whole country of the Tang Dynasty. For the
civil and military officials of the Manchu court, this day is the day for them to pay New Year's greetings to the highest leader of the empire and summarize the annual meeting. For
the envoys of the vassal states, this day is the day for them to pay tribute to the suzerain state.
At dawn, the north gate of the Taiji Palace was already crowded with people, and long teams gathered from all directions.
The royal relatives of the Tang Dynasty, the three provinces and six ministries and various government offices, the envoys sent by the local governments, and the envoys sent to the Tang Dynasty from various vassal states would all gather in front of the gate of this palace on this day.
In the Tang Dynasty, officials of all ranks went to court on horseback. Senior officials were followed by two servants who
held lanterns for their masters in the night. Lower-ranking officials had limited salaries and could not afford servants, so they had to walk alone in the night with lanterns in their hands.
People attending the grand court meeting set out from their residences and headed towards the Taiji Palace, slowly forming teams. The long team was like a winding fire dragon, heading towards the Taiji Palace.
According to the rules and regulations, officials of the Tang Empire must go to court on time. No matter who they were, if they dared to be late, they would be severely punished. At the least, they would be fined one month's salary, and at the most serious, they would lose their official position.
Even the crown prince, who was the heir to the throne, was no exception and dared not be late without reason!
Officials who were far away from the palace had to get up earlier than others to wash and dress before going to court.
At five o'clock in the morning, Li Chengqian was called out from his warm bed by the eunuchs, and put on court clothes with the help of the maids.
Crown Prince Li Chengqian, Prince Jin Li Zhi and the young prince stood in front, and behind them were neatly arranged according to their ranks, waiting for the palace gate to open.
At dawn, after the imperial guards checked the door, they opened the palace gate, and the officials, led by the ceremonial officers, walked through the palace gate to the Taiji Hall.
At each palace gate, the imperial guards would carefully check the identity of each official, and all officials who went to court must be registered to facilitate the imperial guards' verification.
The book records the official's name, position, age, height and physical characteristics to prevent impersonation.
"Remonstrance Doctor Chu Suiliang..."
When verifying the identity, the leading imperial guard will check the book in his hand and call out the names of the officials who will attend the court one by one.
The named official steps forward, opens his arms, and waits for the imperial guards to search him. After the search, the official can cross the palace gate in front of him.
After a series of strict confirmations, he can finally arrive at the Taiji Hall to wait for the emperor to attend the court.
The Taiji Hall is lined with chariots, soldiers, guards, flags, and rituals. At this time, the ceremonial officer shouts "Qian".
The civil and military officials then march forward in an orderly manner and line up in shifts from east to west in front of the Taiji Hall.
According to the etiquette, civil and military officials must first go to the front hall of the Taiji Hall and wait, and the emperor will finally arrive at the Taiji Hall.
"Your Majesty has arrived!" With the voice of the eunuch supervisor, the New Year's Day court meeting officially began.
The supreme emperor of the empire, His Majesty Li Er, walked slowly from outside the Taiji Hall to the sound of festive drums and music, accompanied by eunuchs and riding in a sedan chair. His Majesty Li Er was dressed in a royal robe and arrived at the hall.
The ranking of the court meeting was also very particular. Civil
officials above the third rank were located on the right side facing the emperor, followed by Confucius' descendants Baoshenghou, and on the left were military generals above the third rank.
The envoys from the local areas were on the left and right sides of the civil and military officials, and the higher the rank, the higher the ranking.
Then came the officials below the third rank and the envoys from the vassal states, and the last were the royal family members.
Crown Prince Li Chengqian, Prince of Jin Li Zhi, and the princes who had not yet been enfeoffed, as well as the civil and military officials, immediately knelt and said, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!"
"My dear ministers, please stand
up!" Li Er looked around at the ministers and said. After the crown prince and others kowtowed three times, they stood up.
"I, your son, respectfully congratulate you, father, on the New Year's Day!" As the crown prince, Li Chengqian was the first to present a congratulatory message and New Year's gift.
Then it was Li Chengqian's younger brothers, the princes of the Tang Dynasty, who came forward to present a congratulatory message and gift.
The dukes and other royal relatives came forward one by one to present congratulatory messages and gifts.
After the civil and military officials in the court finished their congratulatory messages and gifts, it was the time for the Minister of the Central Secretariat Yang Shidao to present the congratulatory messages from the local areas. Only then could the envoys come forward to pay homage and see the
emperor's face. Next, the Imperial Court Assistant Minister reported auspicious signs, and then the Minister of Revenue reported the tributes from various states. The Minister of Rites
reported the tributes from various tribes, and so on. The envoys from various countries brought up the treasures presented to the emperor.
For these foreign envoys, the grand court meeting was a great opportunity to see the emperor up close.
The many rituals of congratulations from all directions lasted for a long time. The congratulations from all nations were not only a beautiful blessing for the New Year.
It was also a demonstration of the supremacy of the imperial power, the control of the central government over the local governments, and the intimidation of the Celestial Empire over foreign nations.
Li Er had been the emperor for more than ten years and was already familiar with the etiquette procedures of the Grand Court Meeting, and was very adept at handling it.
Simply put, the first step of the Grand Court Meeting was that as the emperor, His Majesty Li Er could accept gifts from his subjects, local governments, and envoys openly and without pressure.
And it was mandatory to accept gifts! Anyone who did not give gifts had bad intentions!
The gifts offered by local governments were related to the wealth of the local governments. Rich places naturally offered valuable things, while poor places could only offer cheap gifts.
Li Chengqian discovered that
the gifts presented by the envoys from the local areas were really bizarre!
Not to mention the rich areas, everyone presented nothing but gold and silver treasures, which was the same every year, without any novelty.
The gifts presented by the envoys from the poor areas were really varied. Some sent calligraphy and paintings from the governors or governors, and some even sent a duck directly.
Giving gifts is to show the respect of civil and military officials, local governments and vassal states to the emperor of the empire! This is just a prelude to the grand court meeting.
After receiving the gifts, the emperor first thanked everyone and rewarded foreign envoys to show his favor!
Then it was the annual summary of the envoys, reporting to the court the GDP and fiscal revenue in the jurisdiction of the past year.
The imperial court will consider your political performance in the past year to decide whether you are a competent local official.
In the Han Dynasty, the top or second-in-command of these local prefectures and counties would bring their account books to the prime minister's residence to report their local "political performance"! This is called reporting on the account, and these people are called reporting officials.
During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, reporting on the account was changed to reporting on the court, and reporting officials were also called reporting officials. Local officials no longer had to report to the prime minister's residence, but went to the Ministry of Personnel.
The annual summary report is also an important part of the grand court meeting. The emperor will also select several local reporting officials during the grand court meeting and personally inspect and evaluate them.
At the same time, they will also be asked about the local management situation. The officials being asked must answer truthfully and must not deceive the emperor.
The grand court meeting lasts for a long time!
After the grand court meeting is over, it is time to wait for the banquet hosted by the emperor in the evening. At that time, everyone will gather together to eat, drink, and watch singing and dancing.