The site of worshiping heaven is Yizhang Temple of Heaven, which is located in Nangong, covering an area of 344 mu. There are two layers of altar walls outside, forming inner and outer altars.
The building in the middle of the altar is called Xueyuan Palace, with blue glazed tiles, supported by eighteen large golden nanmu pillars, and the pillars are golden murals.
Right in front of the gate is a burnt wood stove, which is used to burn sacrificial offerings.
Ji Yang had already come to the fasting palace in the Temple of Heaven to fast five days before offering sacrifices to heaven. Chen He took care of the government affairs of the court, Jiang Yunqing and Ji Chen also came, and Concubine Li took charge of the affairs of the harem.
Everything in the fasting palace is simple, a bowl of white rice porridge in the morning, clear soup with little water, and no drop of oil in the meal.
Today, Ji Yang drank a bowl of porridge without changing his expression, Jiang Yunqing really felt that he was insane.
In order to live forever, people who usually drink and talk can endure it.
How can there be immortality in the world
It's all a pretense to deceive people!
"Chen'er, drink up the porridge." Jiang Yun called Ji Chen softly.
"My son doesn't want to drink it anymore, it doesn't taste good at all." Ji Chen sat on the side with his head downcast, pursing his mouth.
After all, it is a child, eating these few days is simply unbearable for him, staying in the fasting palace all day, there is no fun at all.
"Tomorrow is the day to sacrifice to heaven." Jiang Yunqing reminded, beckoning, "Come here quickly."
As she said, she had to carefully observe Ji Yang's expression, lest he show dissatisfaction.
Ji Chen is not an unruly and self-willed child, but he has been bored for the past few days.
"We have to wait until tomorrow, I don't want to drink porridge anymore, and I still have to be hungry in the middle of the night." After Ji Chen finished speaking, he propped his chin to look at Ji Yang, dragging his voice, "Father, I don't want to stay here anymore. "
I can't ride horses and shoot arrows, and I can't listen to music. I can only watch some boring things, and I have to listen to my mother's recitation of Buddhist scriptures.
"Chen'er, don't be so rude." Jiang Yun lightly thumped his heart. According to Ji Yang's emphasis on the matter of offering sacrifices to heaven, he was afraid that he might be angry, and his voice was slightly lowered, "Come here, Queen Mother."
"No problem." Ji Yang raised his hand to stop him, and then looked at Ji Chen, "If I remember correctly, the emperor himself asked to come?"
Ji Chen lowered his head and said after a while, "But I don't want to stay anymore."
"Is there any reason to give up halfway in doing things? What's more, this is a sacrifice to the heavens and a prayer for the people of the world." Ji Yang said to him slowly without reproach.
Hearing this, Ji Chen buried his head even lower, "I know I was wrong."
Jiang Yun let go of his hanging heart, and said, "Your Majesty, Ji Chen was confused for a while, so it must be..."
Before he finished speaking, Ji Yang raised his hand, and she stopped talking, only to see him looking at Ji Chen, "Come to my side."
Ji Chen held his head up, with an anxious expression on his face, but he didn't dare to be negligent, and walked towards Ji Yang's side bravely, calling out timidly, "Royal Father."
Jiang Yunqing looked worried, and Liu Mei also frowned.
"What did you say to me a few days ago? Do you still remember?" Ji Yang asked.
"My son..." he faltered.
"Speak louder!" Ji Yang's eyes suddenly became sharp, staring at him.
Jiang Yunqing was also taken aback, her heart was pounding, but she didn't dare to add fuel to the fire.
Ji Chen straightened his back, raised his voice, and clenched his fists tightly, "I said that I will come together with my father, queen, and queen to pray for the people, and hope that the people all over the world can live and work in peace and be free from the suffering of being displaced."
"A gentleman says that four horses are hard to chase, and now you mean to return to the palace alone?" Ji Yang threw out another sentence.
Ji Chen shook his head violently.
"Speak." Ji Yang narrowed his eyes.
"I don't have it. I want to be here with my father and queen. I know my mistake, so I ask my father to punish me." He said as he knelt down with guilt on his face.
Jiang Yunqing looked at this scene in shock, and his first reaction was to kneel down, "The concubine can't teach me, I beg the emperor to spare Chen'er this time."
In fact, she scolded Ji Yang severely from the bottom of her heart.
Still caring about the common people, following the guise of the common people, practicing alchemy, extremely stupid, putting on a show, pitiful her son, who was taught to be stupefied, should not get close to him, and can also restore their mother and child's purity.
"The queen is not wrong, Chen'er is still young, so she can understand." Ji Yang stepped forward to help her, and then looked at Ji Chen, "You are the prince, so you have the responsibility to bear, from the moment you were born , there is a heavy burden on your shoulders that you can't shake off, don't be like today, do you understand?"
"I understand." Ji Chen responded.
"Get up."
"Thank you, father."
…
Jiang Yunqing also restrained his expression, sat upright, looked at Ji Chen from time to time, and saw him sitting in a well-behaved manner, drinking porridge seriously.
She glanced at Ji Yang again from the corner of her eye, her eyes flickered, what burden can't be shaken? If a prince emerges from Concubine Li's belly, Ji Chen should be thinking about how to become mediocre and seek self-protection.
One set of high-sounding words.
She knows Ji Yang's hypocrisy better than anyone else.
the next day.
Before dawn, the lights were already lit outside the Temple of Heaven. The palace maids and eunuchs came and went carrying offerings. They were busy for a while, and the soldiers surrounded the Temple of Heaven in full suit.
"I heard that there is a plague in the northwest."
"At this juncture, what kind of heaven is the emperor still offering sacrifices to?"
"Why."
…
A group of veterans gathered together, looked at each other and sighed, then looked at the unprecedented large formation and shook their heads.
"It's because of the riots in the northwest that we have to offer sacrifices to the heavens and pray for blessings. Master Yiyi came out of the mountain in person to protect the common people in the world." Chen He walked by, glanced at several ministers, and said in a raised voice.
"The national treasury is empty, and there is a lack of supplies in the northwest. Now is not the time to worship the heavens." A minister looked at him sternly and stared.
"Hasn't General Jiang already set off for the northwest? The supplies have been sent, and I believe it will be resolved soon." Chen He said with a smile that was not a smile.
"you… "
"Master He, forget it."
He Yan was held back. After all, Chen He was in the limelight, and if he secretly retaliated against him, the gain would outweigh the loss.
Seeing that they were daring to speak out, Chen He raised his head a little higher.
"The emperor is here."
"The empress is here."
"The eldest prince is here."
The eunuch's sharp voice came, and all civil and military officials knelt down one after another.
Ji Yang walked up the steps, followed by Jiang Yunqing and Ji Chen, who were also dressed in full costumes today.
Walking to the top floor, Ji Yang turned around, looked down, and said forcefully, "Everyone loves you."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
The ministers are in the center of the inner altar, in front of it is a dharma altar, on which are placed various tributes and props and charms, and in front of it stands a mage wearing a coat.
"Today is an auspicious day that is rarely seen in a hundred years. A translator with superb Taoism will definitely pray to God to bless the people and the Northwest to tide over the difficulties..." Ji Yang said on the top, and finally said, "Next, let's start Bar."
As soon as the words were finished, the music played outside, and the atmosphere suddenly became dignified. The mage turned around, picked up the sword on the altar, and swung it.
In the next moment, there was a spell in his hand, and he was chanting a spell in his mouth. After a while, the sword kept trembling.
"Certainly!"
He attached two fingers to the blade of the sword, and the incantation speeded up, and soon, the sky was clear just now, dark clouds slowly drifted in, and there was a flash of lightning and thunder in the sky.
The ministers panicked and looked at each other in disbelief, "This..."
Afterwards, the mage followed the sword in a circle, pointed in a direction, and walked forward several steps quickly, "The east gate is facing north, and it is irradiated with purple-red light, which is good luck."
"The east gate faces north?"
"What is that place?"
"Good luck."
…
After being so fooled just now, the ministers were a little convinced, and they were discussing in whispers, Ji Yang also looked at the father-in-law next to him, "Where is that place?"
"Go back to the emperor, the east gate faces north, that's Zihe Palace." Eunuch A Fu narrowed his eyes with a smile, and cleared his throat, "That's the eldest prince's bedroom."
As soon as this statement came out, the voices of the court officials became louder, and some looked satisfied. As the first prince, the old school of ministers still supported him. There were many ministers who proposed to make the eldest prince the crown prince.
The corners of Chen He's mouth were originally raised, but when he heard these words, his smile froze at the corners of his mouth. He gave the mage a hard look, and kept trying to wink.
The mage understood, turned over again holding the wooden sword, turned around in circles again, and burned a talisman, and followed it.
Immediately afterwards, two fingers circled around the sword, and he pointed again at the wooden sword. He raised his voice, "The blessed person is a woman, with a beautiful face and a beautiful life, and she is a person of great fortune."
Ah Fu walked to Ji Yang's side again, and said with a smile, "Your Majesty, isn't that the empress?"
Jiang Yunqing: "..."
He Yan came out and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, I implore the Empress to protect the people in the northwest to tide over the difficulties, and protect the people all over the world to live and work in peace and contentment."
After the words fell, he knelt down.
"May the empress protect the people in the northwest to tide over the difficulties, and protect the people in the world to live and work in peace and contentment." The surrounding ministers also knelt down and said in unison.
Jiang Yun froze on the spot, and put on such a big hat for her.
As for Chen He, he was so angry that he wanted to rush up and strangle the mage to death. Was he working so hard to make wedding dresses for others
The mage's forehead was constantly sweating, and he was shaking the sword in his hand. Just about to speak, Ji Yang stood up suddenly, "What are you all doing?"
Seeing that his face was dark, Jiang Yun also knelt down. Chen He looked around and quickly knelt down, gnashing his teeth, his veins twitching violently.
Ji Yang looked around for a week, with a loud voice, "The empress is the mother of a country, she has one heart with me, and she will naturally protect the people. The purple red light refers to the Zihe Palace, which is the palace of the eldest prince. The emperor has always cared about the people, so naturally he will protect the people." Sincerely praying for the people, you are offering sacrifices to the heavens, what are you doing? Get up!"
After the words fell, he looked at the mage, "Master Yiyi, when will you start praying?"
"Go back to the emperor, it will be done right away." The mage wiped his sweat, his voice was a little trembling, and he swung his sword a few more times, so he could only bite the bullet and continue burning the talismans.
After a long while, I began to kneel down and pray for blessings.
Ji Yang was kneeling in front, Jiang Yunqing and Ji Chen were behind, followed by civil and military officials.
When burning incense, Ji Yang also pulled Ji Chen forward, took him to kneel down together, taught him very patiently, and finally inserted the incense into the incense burner for Jiang Yunqing.
After offering sacrifices to heaven, rumors in the palace suddenly changed direction.
The empress is a person of great blessing, and she is instructed by the heaven to protect the people of the world. The eldest prince is the crown prince chosen by the heaven, protected by the gods, and cannot be violated.