In the twenty-ninth year, the New Year's flavor of the forty-ninth city has been strong and cannot be opened; The various yamen in Beijing City have long been sealed, but the most powerful person in this empire has no blessing of rest. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

North Street, Fuzheng Xuan's Prince's Mansion.

After dinner, Guan Zhuofan met with Xu Silin, the minister to Japan who had returned to China to report on his work, in the study.

Xu Silin arrived in Tianjin near noon, got off the boat, changed to the nearest train, and arrived in Beijing about a quarter of a minute in the afternoon. As soon as I got out of the Zhengyangmen Railway Station, I rushed to the Forbidden City, and finally rushed to the palace gate before the key, handed the invitation in front of the palace gate, and then immediately drove towards the auxiliary government palace in the north street of the inner north to post it.

After making an appointment to report on the time, Xu Silin returned to his home in Beijing, changed into his clothes, cleaned the dust, ate something indiscriminately, roughly filled his stomach, and then dressed in a solemn manner and went to the North Street of Chaonei again.

Originally, Guan Zhuofan, as the auxiliary prince, no matter how much he manages every day on weekdays, at the end of the year, it is time to breathe; As a minister abroad, Xu Silin, at the end of the year, and the royal family, the government, and all kinds of giants and talents in the country, also have a lot of necessary entertainment, Xu Silin returned to China at this point to report on his work, explaining: The things he wants to report to the auxiliary king are not only important, but also urgent, and it is not suitable to say it after the year.

The auxiliary king was very modest, stood and received the "national gift" from Minister Xu, and then the two sat down separately.

After the maid who served the tea withdrew, Xu Silin said with a smile: "Lord Wang, Beijing is becoming more and more prosperous, and it is becoming more and more lively!" Every time I return to China, I feel that it is more prosperous and lively than the last time I returned to China! ”

"Really?" Guan Zhuofan smiled, "I saw Tian'er staying in Beijing, but I didn't pay much attention to it." ”

"That's the prince 'in this mountain'!" Xu Silin said, "I'm different -- I'm from Japan. Although I, as a minister to Japan, spent most of my time in Edo and Kyoto, two of the most prosperous places in Japan, when I returned to Beijing, I felt like I had moved from the countryside to the city! ”

Guan Zhuofan laughed.

"Lord Wang," Xu Silin's tone was mixed with undisguised excitement, "I think this prosperous era is really coming!" ”

"Shengshi?"

"yes!" Xu Silin said, "Even the concubines in the family will say this!" As soon as I got home, she told me that Ming'er was in the thirtieth year of the Chinese New Year's Eve, and I heard that the palace was going to hold a lobby meeting with the number one Tianzi, saying that the 'four major Hui classes' all entered the palace to "worship in the inner court", and all the famous characters in the four and nine cities had to perform on stage, opening the gong at the beginning, stopping the gong at the beginning, and singing for six hours! ”

After a slight pause, "She was very envious, and said, such a church meeting, resting on her, can listen to it once, this life will not be in vain!" He also said, "Where did you think about such a congregation?" Isn't that something that can only happen in times of peace and prosperity? ”

Xu Silin's serious home is in Shanghai, and after becoming a minister to Japan, the head of Beijing can't help but have a home, and the hostess of the family is an aunt wife who marries here.

"The whole momentum of the country," Guan Zhuofan said calmly, "is indeed going up, but there is still a long way to go before the 'peaceful and prosperous era'!" What the people say, it's the people's business, let's be ourselves, Zisui, this 'heart', can be clear - there is a long way to go! ”

Xu Silin hurriedly bowed and said solemnly: "Yes!" Follow the teachings of the king! Si Lin didn't dare to slack off for a moment! ”

After a pause, "However, the country is thriving, and the people feel it - their lives are getting better and better!" Moreover, according to my management, this kind of 'Chinese New Year's Eve church meeting', whether in the palace or outside the palace, as long as financial resources allow, you may wish to hold a few more, which will greatly help the morale of the people." ”

Guan Zhuofan's heart moved, and a few words popped up in his mind, "Spring Festival Gala".

He nodded, "Yes." ”

"My little concubine," Xu Silin said, "I originally thought that when I entered the palace tomorrow, the lobby of the first Tianzi would be able to bow to its prosperity, and I was very envious, I said, the play was sung in the Changyin Pavilion of Ningshou Palace, that was the inner court, we were in the outer court, irrelevant, she immediately sighed, sorry for me, I said, what I attended was the banquet gift given by the emperor to the foreign vassal and the Mongolian princes to come to the court, and it was also a very prosperous moment!" ”

This "feast gift for foreign vassals and Mongolian princes to come to the dynasty" can indeed be regarded as "extremely prosperous".

The banquet was held in the Baohe Palace, however, starting from the Zhonghe Hall in the south, it was full of "great music": under the north eaves of the Zhonghe Palace, Chen Dan's Majesty was happy, and Dan's Majesty was happy; Under the eaves in front of the Baohe Palace, Chen Zhonghe Shaole, Zhonghe Qingle. The north and south echo, the bell and music sound in unison, very magnificent.

In the east corner outside the hall, there are pipes, team dances, acrobatics, and hundreds of operas, which are very lively.

In the middle of the site in the south of the temple, a yellow tent was erected, and there was a reverse altar in it, that is, an earthen platform, on which were placed with valuable utensils such as honorable and lord.

In the palace, there is a royal feast in front of the throne, and the throne is left and right for His Majesty - that is, at the bottom of the steps, there are the ministers of the back, the ministers of traction, the ministers of the guard, and the official seats of the notes; Then there was the seat of the guests of the feast, the princes of the foreign domains, and the civil and military dignitaries who accompanied the feast.

The seats in the hall are full, out of the palace gate, the Dan Majesty in front of the palace also has a seat, the guests are Taiji, and the banquet is accompanied by the guards, sorted by grade.

Under the east eaves of the hall is the official seat of the Imperial Court.

On both sides of the rhubarb tent in the center of the venue, on the left side is the so-called "Minister of Dancing with Qinglong" - that is, the nominal chief producer and chief director of the "Banquet Gift"; On the right is the Interior Minister's Seat.

At noon, in the emperor's palace, the "feast ceremony" officially began, and the process was as follows - Yan ceremony, music, tea, jue, wine, food, music and dance, acrobatics, and opera.

The process was very long, and after the feast, thanksgiving, and going back to their respective homes, it was about four o'clock in the afternoon.

Because the emperor and Guan Zhuofan were going to participate in this "feast ceremony", although the opera of Changyin Pavilion was started at the beginning, for most of the day, this "No. 1 Son of Heaven" hall meeting not only did not do the business of foreign officials, but also did not do the affairs of the emperor's two in-laws -- they had to wait for this "feast gift" to end, and the two in-laws could go to the next venue.

Before that, no matter how lively Changyin Pavilion was, it was only a matter for the women of the inner court.

"That's right," Guan Zhuofan said with a smile, "Speaking of this 'feast gift', you are the first time to participate, I want to mention you - the whole ceremony is basically 'etiquette', and you can't really eat anything at all, so before you go out, you must eat a little bit to lay the foundation." ”

After a slight pause, "The first time I participated in this ceremony - it was still a matter of Tongzhi for three years, I had no experience, and on the way home, I kept listening to my stomach 'growling'. ”

Xu Silin was stunned for a moment, then smiled "haha", and quickly owed again, "Yes!" Thank you for the mention! ”

"Okay," Guan Zhuofan said, "let's talk about Japan." ”

Xu Silin replied "yes" first, and then the smile on his face disappeared.

"The situation in Japan...... Not good. ”

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