Chapter 604: The Old Emperor's Thoughts

The vast and mighty birthday celebration procession walked through this immense Imperial City, which stretched out as far as the eye could see.

In the Longyan Dynasty.

Jinghua was merely the Capital.

The true Imperial City was this Imperial Palace, which the Longyan Dynasty had expanded and renovated countless times.

Yes.

This place was practically a city in its own right.

How large was the Longyan Imperial City? According to the calculations of a past life, it occupied a total area of one million square meters! The building area was approximately two hundred thousand square meters! There were over one hundred palaces of various sizes and nearly twenty thousand rooms. The walls of the Imperial City were a full fifteen meters high, and outside the Imperial City, there was a moat fifty-two meters wide. The buildings within the Imperial City were divided into two parts: the Outer Court and the Inner Court. The center of the Outer Court consisted of the Taihe Hall, the Baohe Hall, and the Zhonghe Hall, collectively known as the Three Great Halls, where the nation held grand ceremonies.

The place where everyone was headed.

Was the Huanggan Hall, not far from the Baohe Hall.

The Baohe Hall meant that only by keeping one's mind focused and maintaining harmony within the universe could one attain blessings, longevity, and peace for the world. The plaque on the Baohe Hall read "The Emperor Establishes the Ultimate." The classic source: "The Great Plan" by Jizi, "The Emperor establishes his ultimate."

Only until one truly entered the Imperial City could people realize that the thousands of years of foundation of the Longyan Dynasty were not just an empty reputation.

Especially for that group of barbarians; when they saw the supernatural craftsmanship of the buildings in this Imperial City and the exquisite sculptures they had never seen before, their hearts were undoubtedly shaken.

Only upon reaching this point did they feel the greatness of this Celestial Empire and their own insignificance.

In this Imperial City, there were treasures everywhere, things worth more than a thousand pieces of gold everywhere!

For example, in the middle of the stairs behind the Baohe Hall, there was an Imperial Road stone carved with clouds, dragons, seawater, and cliffs, which people called the Cloud Dragon Stone Carving. This was the largest stone carving in the Imperial City, sixteen point five seven meters long, three point zero seven meters wide, one point seven zero meters thick, and weighed two hundred and fifty tons.

The pattern depicted nine swimming dragons playing with pearls amidst cliffs, seawater, and flowing clouds; their forms were full of movement, vibrant with life, and lifelike.

The carving art of the Longyan Dynasty was vividly displayed here, making people gasp in admiration.

The stone material for the Cloud Dragon Stone Carving was produced in Dashiwo, in the western suburbs of the Capital. At that time, transporting such a heavy boulder to Jinghua required over ten thousand laborers, using the method of dragging it on a land-ship. For this reason, a well was dug every mile along the route to provide drinking water for the laborers. The journey of over one hundred miles from the western suburbs to Jinghua took nearly a month. Although this method of transport was arduous and difficult, under the level of productivity at that time, it displayed the talent and wisdom of the laborers.

For example, the Thousand Dragons Spitting Water.

The "thousand dragons" referred to the more than one thousand stone-carved dragon heads protruding from under the balusters. Whenever it rained, rainwater was discharged from the dragon mouths, organically combining the practical function of diverting rainwater with the aesthetic function of architectural art. The spectacular scene of the Thousand Dragons Spitting Water originated from the three-tiered base upon which the Taihe, Zhonghe, and Baohe Halls stood. The "Three Terraces" covered an area of about two thousand five hundred square meters and were built from large blocks of white marble. Each level of the base was carved with a Sumeru Base around its perimeter. On the Sumeru Base, large rectangular stone strips were placed horizontally, known as the Earth Sill.

Between the Earth Sills stood balusters, and between the balusters were installed railings. Beneath them, drainage channels were chiseled. Each baluster had a stone-carved dragon head extending from beneath it; the entire "Three Terraces" had a total of one thousand one hundred and forty-two dragon heads. Except for the dragon heads protruding from the corners of each level of the base, the other dragon heads had circular holes drilled between their lips, connecting to the channels beneath the balusters.

Because the surface was designed to be higher in the middle than at the edges, whenever it rained, the rainwater falling on the surface of the "Three Terraces" naturally flowed to the lower edges and was discharged from the dragon mouths, forming the wonder of "Thousand Dragons Spitting Water"!

Supernatural craftsmanship!

Throughout the entire Imperial City, such rare and precious sights were countless.

Liu Zheng was also overwhelmed by the sight. He could not help but marvel in his heart.

Although this feudal dynasty was criticized for its system, to some extent, without the extravagance and debauchery of these royals, it would have been difficult to leave behind such a variety of treasures for future generations under those production conditions.

Whenever the royal family had a major event, it was at the Baohe Hall.

This included the Emperor changing clothes before grand ceremonies, and the investiture of the Empress or the Crown Prince, where the Emperor would receive congratulations in this hall.

Every year on New Year's Eve and the Lantern Festival, the Emperor would also host banquets here for Feudatory Kings, dukes, and first or second-rank officials, a scene that was very spectacular.

Even the Emperor's grand wedding would be held here.

As for the Huanggan Hall, it was a hall dedicated to the daily veneration of the "Imperial Heaven God" and the spirit tablets of the Emperor's ancestors. In the Imperial City, it belonged to the category of the Prayer for Grain Altar. The Prayer for Grain Altar was the place for holding the grand ceremony of praying for grain in the first month of spring. The main buildings included the Prayer for Year Hall, the Huanggan Hall, the East and West Side Halls, the Prayer for Year Gate, the Divine Kitchen, the Sacrificial Pavilion, and the Long Corridor. Ancillary buildings included the Inner and Outer Walls, the Ceremonial Platform, and the Danbi Bridge. Heaven Gates were set up in the southeast, southwest, northeast, and northwest of the inner altar wall, the Prayer for Grain Altar Gate was set up in the west outer altar wall, and the Seven Star Stones were located in the eastern part of the inner altar.

Every year before the Emperor went to the Prayer for Grain Altar to offer sacrifices, he would bathe and change clothes in the nearby Baohe Hall.

A hip-roof style hall, covered with blue glazed tiles, with a white marble balustrade base underneath. It was located near the Baohe Hall.

For the Christmas Ceremony, everything for the sacrifice had been prepared here long ago.

That ancient, weathered, and solemn Huanggan Hall was connected by precious glazed doors. In the Longyan Dynasty, sacrifices to Heaven had to be conducted before dawn. But for ancestral sacrifices, it only needed to be done before noon.

The procedure.

Was still agonizingly tedious.

Under the scorching sun, so many people stood in line obediently, following the chanting of the ritual officials, kneeling and bowing, then standing up, then standing up, then kneeling and bowing.

At this moment, they missed the "snow in June" of Prefect Liu immensely...

Under the direction of these ritual officials, they invited the spirits, performed rites, lined up, and arranged themselves into a Square Formation, making preparations for the Emperor's sacrifice.

"Ah ah ah ah, it hurts me to death, it hurts me to death!"

At this moment.

Xie Tianyao in the Baohe Hall clutched his head in agony.

Grand Eunuch Lao Zhou was almost crying, and the imperial physicians nearby also began to bustle about.

He was just changing into his Imperial Robe, why was he having another episode? And what worried Grand Eunuch Lao Zhou was that the frequency of the Emperor's episodes had been increasing lately.

"Quick, quick, quick, the Immortal Pill, the Immortal Pill!"

After swallowing a few more Immortal Pills, Xie Tianyao's dark, bruised complexion slowly began to flush with color again.

"Emperor..."

Grand Eunuch Lao Zhou trembled with fear.

Xie Tianyao, having regained his composure, said coldly: "What, does even Lao Zhou think that I am about to kick the bucket?"

Grand Eunuch Lao Zhou was so scared he immediately knelt on the ground: "This old servant would not dare, this old servant would not dare!"

Xie Tianyao gave a self-deprecating laugh: "What is there not to dare? Look at that bunch of barbarians outside; this time, they can't wait to eat me alive! Those savages from the Grassland, and those short runts from the Wa nation, what are they saying to me? Hmm?"

"Want to marry the Longyang Princess? A marriage alliance?"

"Hahahaha!"

"Do they even deserve it?"

A thick murderous intent flashed in Xie Tianyao's eyes.

Grand Eunuch Lao Zhou was drenched in cold sweat, not knowing what to say.

Xie Tianyao looked at him with amusement: "Why don't you tell me, wouldn't it be better to betroth Chan'er to Prefect Liu?"

Grand Eunuch Lao Zhou was shocked: "Emperor, this old servant does not dare to comment on such matters..."

Served by a group of eunuchs, the Imperial Robe was finally put on. The Imperial Robe was the formal attire the Emperor wore specifically at national sacrificial sites. On Xie Tianyao's Imperial Robe were embroidered four five-clawed golden dragons facing forward, with the sun and moon embroidered on the shoulders. Unlike the bright yellow of the Emperor's usual court dress, the main color of the Imperial Robe was stone-cyan, which was not flashy but solemn, showing humanity's reverence for Heaven.

Grand Eunuch Zhou hurriedly brought over a cup of tea.

Because the sacrificial ceremony that followed was simply unbearable. He was terrified that Xie Tianyao's body might not be able to hold up.

Xie Tianyao took a sip of tea and smiled indifferently: "In terms of merit, if the Governor Liu wants to marry, it would be difficult for Me not to grant the marriage."

Grand Eunuch Zhou nodded.

Speaking of the young talents of this Longyan Dynasty at this time, where else could there be anyone more outstanding than this Governor Liu?

Not to mention the two had long been in love with each other.

If the marriage were granted, it might well be a beautiful story.

A look of craftiness flashed in Xie Tianyao's eyes: "However, just giving My Chan'er to him like this, I always feel it is a bit too easy for this brat..."

"Ah?"

Grand Eunuch Zhou was stunned.

What was the old emperor planning to do now?