Why is the emperor busy plowing in spring?

"The season of the year lies in spring", and emperors of all dynasties attached great importance to agricultural production. Beginning of spring welcomes the Spring Festival and prays for a bumper harvest, which must be attended by all the people from the emperor down to the common people. In the Zhou Dynasty, on that day in beginning of spring, the emperor personally led the vassal doctors to the eastern suburbs to welcome the Spring Festival. After the Spring Festival, the ancient king would lead hundreds of officials out of the palace and personally go to his "one acre and three points" to loosen the soil to show that he attached importance to agriculture, advised crops and hoped for a good harvest. The emperor ploughed in spring, which is called "pro-farming". There was once a New Year's picture called "The Emperor's Ploughing Map", which showed an emperor wearing a crown and a dragon robe, while plowing, holding a plow handle, followed by a minister, carrying a bamboo basket in one hand and sowing seeds in the other. The leader was a Qipin county magistrate wearing a robe, and there was a queen and maid-in-waiting carrying a basket to deliver food in the distance. Therefore, there is a jingle in the painting: "On February 2, the dragon looked up, the emperor plowed the fields and drove the cows, and the official empress always delivered meals. The courtiers lost their species, and Xia Geng led the world in spring, and the crops were abundant in autumn and autumn. " During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the ceremony of offering sacrifices to farmers was very complete. Every year, the emperor went to the Xiannongtan to worship the Xiannongtan, and then went to the pro-cultivated land in front of the viewing platform for demonstration farming, completing the whole process of worshipping the Xiannongtan. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the land cultivated by the emperor was concentrated from "thousand acres" in the Zhou Dynasty to one acre and three points. Don't underestimate this acre of land, this is the emperor's "private land." During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, every year on the first day of the lunar calendar, the emperor led hundreds of officials to the Xiannong altar to worship the Xiannong God. Then he took off his clothes in the clothing hall and put on his pro-agriculture clothes. He went to an acre of land in front of the farm to cultivate the land himself to show his pro-agriculture. When the emperor finished ploughing, he boarded the viewing platform and watched the ministers plough. The tradition of offering sacrifices to farmers and farming can be traced back to the Zhou Dynasty, but it is not held every year. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, offering sacrifices to farmers became an important national ceremony. Every year in mid-spring, the emperor leads hundreds of officials to the Xiannong altar to worship the Xiannong God and cultivate it himself. The emperor did not plow the fields like ordinary farmers, but practiced a strict system. Ming system is the emperor's right hand plowing, left hand whipping, plowing back and forth four times; The clearing system was changed to plowing the land three times back and forth, and then boarded the viewing platform from the west stage, and retired from the east stage after the viewing platform ended. With such complicated etiquette, this is no longer cultivated land, but more like a performance. According to Wan Bu Za Zhu, Ming Taizu once "reclaimed land in Ditan". At that time, Wanping and Daxing counties under the jurisdiction of Shuntianfu began to prepare for various matters one month before the ceremony after being instructed by the emperor to cultivate themselves one day. For example, first of all, we should find dozens of respected and experienced old farmers for etiquette training, and at the same time prepare cows and related farm tools. In addition, prepare a shed of about 1000 square meters. The soil cultivated by the emperor can't be used casually. It must be carefully screened with reeds and covered with fertile soil. In order to appear solemn and formal, on the day of the official celebration, the "ladies" in the workshop department will dress up as the God of Lei Yutian, while other children will dress up as peasant women and sing carols to celebrate world peace. Others are holding farm tools on both sides, waiting for the arrival of the holy driving. When the emperor holds the yellow dragon velvet whip in his left hand and the golden dragon plow in his right hand, there will be two "driving officials" and two old farmers helping the plow to make three trips back and forth, and the ceremony of "pushing three times and three times" will be completed. Then, the emperor will climb the "observation deck" of the shed, sit and watch the ministers plow the fields, the officials in Shuntianfu plant seeds, and then the old farmers will lead the cows to cover the soil. In this way, the annual holy drive tillage is really completed. Old farmers and children who can be honored to help the emperor complete the pro-agriculture work will benefit from it. For example, everyone present will get two steamed buns and two pounds of meat from the emperor. When the emperor began to drive back to the palace, people surrounded him with farm tools and walked towards the meridian gate. The old farmers each got two pieces of cloth, while others waited for one. Shuntianfu officials recorded that the emperor used 89.5 taels of silver for spring ploughing, which was paid by Wanping and Daxing counties. From the beginning of Yongzheng in Qing Dynasty, before plowing, the emperor always thought of practicing in the cultivated land in front of Fengze Garden in Xiyuan (now Zhongnanhai) to avoid being unfamiliar and making jokes. Other procedures are not much different from those of the Ming Dynasty, and they are also pro-agriculture ceremonies of "pushing three times and three times".