As emperor, Zhu Yunying wasn't really concerned about whether he had harmed Ru Chang, nor did he feel that some of his actions were unscrupulous. This was perfectly normal; having received the emperor's bounty, it was natural to share his burdens—it was simply what he was supposed to do.
After instructing Ru Chang on some matters, Wang Chengen also received some secret orders. This eunuch, naturally, now needed to instruct his subordinates, such as the chief and deputy chiefs, to carry out the tasks assigned by the Emperor without any mishaps.
Zhu Yunying wouldn't care too much about these things; doing everything himself wasn't his style, and he would just delegate some tasks.
Zhu Yunying had considerable confidence in his subordinates. Especially Wang Chengen and his ilk, who were undoubtedly his confidants, quite capable, reliable, and incredibly loyal.
Zhu Yunying felt he really needed to seriously consider the Grand Secretaries of the Inner Cabinet. However, these matters required careful consideration. It wouldn't be a good thing if, shortly after Zhu Yuanzhang abolished the position of Chancellor, someone were to create a Grand Secretary or similar position to check imperial power. But given the current situation, even if a Grand Secretary existed, their power wouldn't be very significant.
It's best to avoid having a chief minister like Zhang Juzheng appear. The position of a Grand Secretary in the Cabinet should be slightly stronger than that of the secretariat, but only slightly stronger; they shouldn't have too much real power.
Zhu Yunying felt that many things needed to be carefully considered, and he wasn't in a hurry at all, as he had other things to do.
The most important thing for Zhu Yunying now, and the most practical thing to do, is to enjoy the New Year in a down-to-earth manner. Moreover, as an emperor, he can't afford to be idle at such a time; he still has many political activities to attend to.
Zhu Yunying was well aware of this. He knew he still had many things to do, and that the emperor couldn't act arbitrarily. He was also aware that he still needed to shoulder the responsibilities that lay ahead.
Old Zhu is now truly 'retired,' and can now openly and legitimately shirk many responsibilities. For example, he no longer needs to concern himself with these trivial matters. Previously, Xu Miaoqing might not have been able to directly manage palace affairs, but now that she is the Empress, she naturally handles them.
As for his beloved grandson, Old Zhu felt that there were some things he didn't need to say much about and could simply leave to his grandson to handle. For example, for large banquets or certain customs, Old Zhu didn't need to get involved; his grandson's involvement was sufficient.
The Laba Festival is very important. Not to mention the royal family, ordinary people would also prepare ingredients to make Laba porridge. Emperor Zhu Yunying, of course, also needed to do something special. Of course, Xu Miaoqing was often the one to do it at this time.
After the Laba Festival comes the Kitchen God Festival, which is also a very important festival. Following that, of course, is Lunar New Year's Eve.
However, such matters held little significance for Zhu Yunying or for many of his civil and military officials. The reason was that Zhu was an extremely diligent man; he never granted himself holidays, and consequently, his officials also received none.
The Spring Festival holiday was only one day long each year, which Zhu Yuanzhang felt was sufficient. This caused many complaints from his officials, and Zhu Yuanzhang relented somewhat amidst these grumblings. Later, he changed the Spring Festival holiday to three days, which was quite "preferential" for his civil and military officials.
During the Spring Festival, officials, both civil and military, had no time to socialize. Even the three-day holiday was anything but leisurely. Visiting superiors or receiving audiences from subordinates were minor matters. The main issue was that during this Spring Festival, they still had to pay homage to the emperor. For these people, there was truly no opportunity for rest.
Zhu Yunying didn't have much time to rest either, mainly because there were just too many things to do. In some situations, it was inevitable that only Zhu Yunying could personally intervene, as this was the only way to achieve any real political effect, which was what an emperor should do.
The entire imperial city looked quite nice, decorated with red and colorful ornaments everywhere, increasingly exuding the atmosphere of the Spring Festival. Zhu Yunying was quite satisfied with this festive atmosphere, and felt happy and looking forward to it. This was exactly how it should be; this was what the New Year should be like.
Of course, at such times, there are bound to be some rituals, which Zhu Yunying was already quite used to. Not to mention ancestral worship, the emperor or crown prince also needed to perform sacrifices on certain solar terms each year. In fact, the empress was no exception; none of the necessary sacrifices could be omitted.
In the "Imperial Ancestral Instructions of the Ming Dynasty," Emperor Zhu clearly stated: "When offering sacrifices to Heaven and Earth, to the gods of the land and grain, and to the ancestral temples, sincerity will move the spirits; negligence will bring calamity. Therefore, during sacrifices, one must be extremely sincere and not be negligent in the slightest. As for the gods of wind, clouds, rain, mountains, and rivers, one must also respectfully and carefully perform the sacrifices oneself and not send officials to perform them on one's behalf."
With an extremely diligent founding emperor like Zhu Yuanzhang, it would be incredibly difficult and unrealistic for his successor, Zhu Yunying, to slack off. Even if he wanted to be lazy, he should have clearly distinguished between what tasks he could and couldn't be lazy about.
Xu Miaoqing was also very busy at this time, but she was always busy arranging the palace, which was the Empress's prerogative. Even some of Emperor Zhu's concubines were following Xu Miaoqing's orders. This made Xu Miaoqing look refreshed and energetic, and she seemed to enjoy her status and busy schedule.
"Your Majesty, I have come to pay my respects." Upon seeing Zhu Yunying return, Xu Miaoqing immediately greeted him with a smile.
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