The capital city of Tianqi was structured with a tripartite design comprising the palace city, the imperial city, and the outer city. The three concentric rings, symmetrical layout, and orderly wards had been planned by famous scholars of the previous dynasty in accordance with the positions of the celestial bodies, embodying the heaven-sent mandate of monarchy through the unity of man and nature.
The capital featured Eastern and Western markets. The wards of the Eastern Market were inhabited by imperial relatives, nobles, and high-ranking officials, while the Western Market housed merchants and artisans. The outer city was home to ordinary commoners.
On the twentieth day of the fourth month in the thirty-seventh year of the Tianqi reign, on Shangmen Street in Jing'an Ward, the Yan Estate—belonging to the Left Prime Minister—was bedecked with towering red silks and thronged with visitors. Countless high-ranking officials and dignitaries, accompanied by their wives, arrived bearing gift boxes to offer their congratulations.
Chapter 327