Chapter 174 Talent Selection Ceremony, Praise and Criticism

In the Huangji Palace.

Civil and military officials, all in official uniforms, stood in attendance as usual, quietly waiting for the emperor.

The tribute students who were taking the exam had been led by the officials of the Ministry of Rites to the Danchi of the main hall, where they were lined up in the east and west rows, facing north. The Danchi was the steps outside the hall, and they were all waiting outside the examination room.

As for the location of the examination, the Guanglu Temple had already prepared the examination tables in the two wings yesterday, waiting for the emperor to come and go through the formalities, and then the tribute students could take the exam.

The sun gradually rose.

At some point, the Honglu Temple suddenly sang that the emperor was ascending the throne.

Immediately following was the sound of three whip cracks.

The emperor is coming!

Everyone was immediately startled and perked up.

As expected, the emperor came out in casual clothes, surrounded by a group of eunuchs and ceremonial officials, after much anticipation.

The tribute students were asked to keep their heads down and not look, but few of them could remain calm.

Except for those who had seen the emperor a few days ago, most of the other tribute students were secretly looking at the emperor out of the corner of their eyes.

Only when the emperor's back disappeared did the tribute students lower their eyes again.

The Palace Examination Ceremony is a grand ceremony for selecting talents. All grand ceremonies have their own regulations, and all civil and military officials have to kowtow to each other.

Therefore, when Zhu Yijun walked into the Huangji Hall, all the civil and military officials immediately knelt down.

Zhu Yijun walked up the steps leisurely and took his seat slowly: "All the ministers, please stand up and serve."

All the officials expressed their gratitude and stood up and returned to their shifts.

Afterwards, the officiating official brought the essay table to the center of the hall and respectfully invited candidates to write their essays.

The eunuch handed the proposal to the official of the Ministry of Rites and placed it on the desk.

Deacon Wang Xilie was shocked when he saw the essay topic Zhang Hong placed on the table.

These are clearly not the questions posed by the Ministry of Rites!
He glanced at the emperor quietly, only to see that the emperor had a blank expression on his face, as if he knew nothing.

At this time, the officials of the Honglu Temple had already begun to allow the tribute students to enter the palace. Wang Xilie felt that he was in a dilemma and had no way out.

If it were the previous emperor, he would have probably wanted to smash his head against the throne and die by now.

However, the emperor is not a reckless person.

Wang Xilie’s mind raced, but he finally sighed.

He held the proposal high, slowly descended from the left steps, and according to the ceremonial procedure, placed the proposal in the middle of the imperial road.

The tribute students lowered their heads, followed the officials from the Honglu Temple in a hurry, and entered one after another.

"Examinees should perform five bows and three kowtows!"

The official of the Honglu Temple praised.

The tribute students and others were not panicked. They bowed their hands and kowtowed four times, then bowed once and kowtowed three times.

Zhu Yijun raised his hand to indicate that he was exempt from the formalities, and slowly began to speak: "I am young when I ascend the throne, and I have not yet understood the principles. I will follow the will of my father, teach and befriend the wise, and read diligently every day. I will consult the ministers on all matters, both big and small, and work hard in the palace day and night without taking any time off. I also hope to achieve what is praised in poetry and books, and not to lose the great tradition of my two ancestors and eight clans."

This is the starting point of the policy question, which is basically the same.

Anyway, the emperor wants the country to be well off, but he has his own shortcomings, so he wants to seek advice from wise men.

As the emperor opened his mouth, Wang Xilie raised his proposal to the east of Danchi, his eyes on his nose and his nose on his heart.

Zhu Yijun spoke slowly and calmly, "I believe that the ruler of the country should promote civilization and bring order to the country. There are many policies, but the most important one is to focus on agriculture. The Book of Documents says that if you know that farming will be difficult, you can have an easy life."

"I have read with respect the edict of my great ancestor Emperor Gaozu on the land loan and the instruction of Emperor Chengzu Wen on the basics, and I know how the king's cause was established and how difficult it is to make the people's livelihood."

"Today, people who cry out in hunger and cold are not only found in remote and poor areas, but also in large cities and counties."

"Many people in all directions have lost their land, and not all of them have returned to farming."

“How can we make everyone work hard and not lose their jobs?”

The most important thing in politics is farming. This is what was said in both the Book of Documents and the ancestral teachings of the Ming Dynasty. But our dynasty is not doing a good job in this regard. The people have lost their land and cannot get enough food. The emperor is very worried. What do you think we should do?

When the ministers from the Cabinet, Ministry of Rites, and Hanlin Academy heard this, they all looked up.

This... There is no such thing in the policy paper issued by the Ministry of Rites, right?
Zhu Dashou, the Left Vice Minister of Rites, knew this best. He couldn't help but secretly reach out his hand and poke Ma Ziqiang who was standing in front of him.

The latter just kept his head down and said nothing while Zhu Dashou made his little moves.

Cabinet member Lu Diaoyang looked at Zhang Juzheng with some surprise, with a questioning look in his eyes.

The latter thought for a moment and nodded slowly.

Although the emperor did not greet the Prime Minister, the Prime Minister still tacitly supported the emperor.

As soon as Zhang Juzheng heard what the emperor said, he immediately understood the context and realized what this question was paving the way for.

During the Jiajing period, financial resources were scarce, and the major issues discussed in the palace examinations were often about taxes, laws, and money.

During the Longqing period, the Tatars frequently invaded the border, so the most important policy question in the palace examination was naturally about military training and preparations.

Now that the emperor has elevated the emphasis on agriculture to the top of the political agenda, it is self-evident what the purpose is - this is to prepare public opinion for land measurement, and at the same time to select talents for it!
This is much more practical than the pretentious test questions set by the Ministry of Rites.

In this case, since it is in line with the direction of the new policy, there is naturally no reason for the cabinet to dismantle the emperor's platform.

As for setting the test questions without the permission of the Ministry of Rites, it is actually a trivial matter for the cabinet.

"You scholars have learned the art of the ancient sages and understand the affairs of the present age. You should weigh the opinions of many people for me, and study their purpose. You should know what to start with when establishing a government. There may be differences between ancient and modern times, and different paths to be established and maintained. You should make it clear in detail to support my intention of being cautious and sincere at the beginning, without any vagueness or evasion."

Zhu Yijun ended with a fixed sentence, allowing the tribute students to speak freely and not to be afraid of saying the wrong thing, and that the emperor had a broad mind.

Then it was the turn of the officials from the Ministry of Rites to assign the questions. The candidates knelt in line to receive the questions and kowtowed before taking the test.

The ceremony also ended.

After the officials from the Honglu Temple finished their ceremony, the emperor and all the civil and military officials left the hall together.

……

The paths of taking the imperial examination and pursuing academic study are different.

Some words can be said, but you can't really fool yourself, otherwise the palace examination will not be ranked based on policy essays.

Understanding the examiner’s psychology is the first priority in taking the imperial examination.

In the past, it was not so bad. The rankings of the palace examination were often arranged by the cabinet. The first place would have the paper read by the chief assistant, the second place would be read by the second assistant, the third place would be read by a group of assistants, the first place in the second class would be read by the minister of rites, and so on. This was to prevent the emperor from not being able to read out the good and bad, or even not recognizing rare characters, and making a fool of himself.

In this way, candidates only need to refer to the collected works of the cabinet and the nine ministers, as well as their governing tendencies, to answer the questions in a targeted manner.

But this year's science is obviously different.

Ever since the emperor's identity as the master of Confucian classics was revealed five days ago, the candidates have had a lot to consider.

Would an emperor with the master's level allow the Ministry of Rites and the examiners to draft the rankings?
To take a step back, if the examinees assume that the emperor intervened, then how can the examinees get a glimpse into the emperor's governing tendencies if there is no collection of his essays?

Taking a step back, how much scope could the emperor have to intervene? Did he make a single decision, or did he compromise with the opinions of many people? Did he personally review the case with three people or more than four hundred people?

It is because of these off-field factors.

This determined a major characteristic of the palace examination: background was very important.

Putting aside the differences in perspective brought about by education level and family background, the people who had witnessed the emperor debate five days ago had a level of understanding of the emperor that was simply incomparable to that of the tribute students who had been studying behind closed doors for a month.

Sun Jigao had already reviewed the emperor on that day of the debate.

He was sitting at the desk at this moment. He thought for a moment and then immediately started writing.

"I respectfully believe that the Emperor, with his divine virtue, has received the gift of the calendar. He is sincere in entertaining the Emperor and respectful in governing the people. The officials and common people of the world are all eagerly watching and waiting, hoping to benefit from the reform..."

Every word in the policy paper is important.

At the beginning of the country, it was stipulated that policy essays must be straightforward and limited to no more than one thousand words.

While there is a clear lower word limit, the upper word limit is also determined by the length of the article.

So Sun Jigao started by combining the routine opening praise of the emperor with the main theme of his article.

The phrase "reform" fully demonstrates his understanding of the emperor.

At the same time, on the basis of the reform, he began to discuss the key of "focusing on agriculture".

at the same time.

Li Kun sat quietly for a long while without even starting to write.

Not for any other reason, just to recall the emperor's words and actions during the debate that day.

When he saw the emperor attending the ceremony that day, he realized belatedly why someone had specially invited him to attend the ceremony.

Although I don’t know who has such great powers and is willing to show mercy.

But since he has already seized the opportunity, the only thing he can do is to make use of it in the palace examination.

As for paying off the debt? We'll talk about it later.

Thinking of this, Li Kun finally started to pick up the pen and dip it in ink.

"I replied, Your Majesty, you have not yet seen the truth, and you have specially sent me to the court to ask questions about the strategy of maintaining domestic stability and strengthening the foundation."

"Su Shi once said, 'The king asks for it with a name, and the minister responds with reality.' Now that Your Majesty asks for it with reality, how dare I not respond with all my heart?"

"..."

It was also a routine act to praise the emperor.

However, after discussing the general outline of the entire text, Li Kun did not continue to dwell on classics, ancestral teachings, and the emperor, but began to discuss the major drawbacks of the current situation.

"Now if the emperor truly wishes to lead the people of the world to work hard on their roots, there is no other way but to curb annexation and promote land reclamation."

"If people don't eat all day, they will be hungry. Now, some people take advantage of their little skills and leave their farmland without thinking. Do people all feel unhappy about their lives? It's just that the land is being taken over..."

There are different ways to answer each policy essay.

While demonstrating political insight, it is also a way to fight for one's status.

Li Kun is old, already 39 this year, so he only asks for a second-class ranking.

The second-class officials are of the seventh rank and are granted the status of Jinshi. The third-class officials are of the eighth rank and are granted the status of Tong Jinshi. According to the current performance evaluation system, the first level requires three years of polishing, which is very important.

As for the first place, he didn't dare to think about it.

However, Li Kun didn't dare to think about it, but Li Sancai dared to think about it.

The first-class Hanlin editors and compilers have three fewer years of training than the Shujishi.

As for why he dares to think so?
After all, he is a child of a powerful compound and always understands the emperor better than outsiders.

He went through his mind all the summary of the emperor that his father had relayed to him, and combined with the two times he had met the emperor and the emperor's style of behavior, he gradually came up with a picture of the emperor's temperament.

After a while, Li Sancai slowly put down his pen.

"I replied, "Our great ancestor, Emperor Gao, once said in his edict that if we want to ensure an inexhaustible source of wealth, a prosperous country, and the enjoyment of the gods and spirits, we must rely on agriculture. Your Majesty's words are great, and they clearly show your sincere intention to attach importance to agriculture!"

"Emperor Chengzu Wen was committed to the basics and had instructions. He first mentioned the difficulties that Taizu encountered in starting his business, and then mentioned the sage kings and foolish rulers in ancient times, as a warning. These are wise instructions, and they reflect the earnest intention of passing on knowledge to future generations." He first listed the ancestral instructions mentioned by the emperor, giving a brief outline and showing his knowledge reserves at the same time.

But then the pen turned and fell on the emperor.

"I have heard from the Book of Documents that Heaven sends down people to be their rulers and teachers, and that they should serve the Heaven and bring peace to the four directions. Therefore, we know that when Heaven creates people, the responsibility of controlling and shaping them lies with the ruler; and when the ruler governs the people, the way of raising and protecting them is to follow the way of Heaven."

Heaven and earth gave birth to the people in order to take care of them, and this responsibility happens to fall on the shoulders of the monarch alone.

"The throne that the emperor occupies is not his, but was passed down from the Taizu Gaohuangdi. The Taizu Gaohuangdi is not him, but was created by Fengyang himself."

"The Yuan government was corrupt, greedy and greedy, and the petty people were arbitrary and demanded tyranny. The people could not bear it and entrusted their lives to Taizu. Taizu then raised his sword and swept away the filth. He received the great treasure from heaven and was able to pass it on to the emperor."

"When the Hu Yuan Dynasty was prosperous, its territory was vast and its soldiers and horses were strong, no less than the world today, but Taizu conquered it with a commoner's strength, as if he had crushed dry trees and rotten wood. Why?"

"Taxes are high, and people are displaced; currency is corrupt, and people are unemployed!"

How did the current emperor come to the throne? It was the responsibility entrusted to him by Emperor Taizu Gao from generation to generation.

How did Emperor Taizu Gao come to the throne? The former Yuan Dynasty was brutal and despised by the people, so the people entrusted the mandate of heaven to Emperor Taizu.

"Your Majesty has said that many people have lost their land and not all of them have returned to farming. This is your Majesty's destiny and you must take it seriously!"

"..."

"So, now we should focus on agriculture; resettling the landless people may not necessarily mean opening up commerce. If agriculture and commerce flourish together, the dilemma will be solved!"

The rubbing sounds of people's clothes and the sound of test papers flipping through the pages mixed together, making the hall seem even quieter.

Hai Rui sat in an inconspicuous corner.

Write in a very precise manner.

Although he was already a high-ranking official in red robes, he came here only to change his background. Even if he was the last one, it would not affect his ability to pave the way for becoming one of the Nine Ministers.

But Hai Rui still tried his best to write down his answer.

"I answer, the land of the military camps has been lost by the rich and powerful, the lakes and mountains are controlled by the powerful, the treacherous and the wealthy are deceiving and hiding, and the idlers are helping the tyrants. Your Majesty calls them the people who cry out in hunger and cold."

"I have personally seen that farmers in Hainan counties lost their meager fields due to natural disasters and man-made disasters, and lost their rent due to bone marrow drying up, so they only picked water chestnuts from the lake. However, water chestnuts are sharp, which often injure their fingers, causing continuous bleeding and making their faces emaciated and looking like ghosts. When I left Hainan, the lake had also been annexed by the rich and powerful, and the monthly rent for those who picked water chestnuts was two taels and four cents."

"..."

"Therefore, the most urgent task now is to regulate the existing fields, measure the acres and correct the boundaries..."

Hainan is similar to Yunnan, both are considered remote and poor places in the imperial examination world.

Hai Rui, who was born as a juren in Hainan, did not have much time to study the classics in depth after becoming an official, and those gorgeous words are almost never seen in his writings.

He simply gave a realistic answer from the perspective of many years of working at the grassroots level.

Time passes gradually.

Ink stains covered the test papers.

……

The tribute students answered questions in the hall.

Most court officials returned to their respective offices to work.

Only the emperor, the chief minister and the deputy chief minister were walking on the platform outside the Huangji Palace, discussing something.

"In the eighth year of Tianshun, the cabinet officials were ordered to work with the two ministries of civil affairs and rituals to set the examination questions and select Shujishi."

"In the sixth year of the Hongzhi reign, it was approved that in each subject, candidates under the age of 40 were required to record at least 15 ancient Chinese articles they had written on weekdays and submit them to the Ministry of Rites within one month."

"After the Ministry of Rites has reviewed the papers, they will be numbered and sent to the Hanlin Academy for review. Those who are acceptable in both literature and science will have their papers marked and covered with their names, and then sealed and sent to the Cabinet for examination as usual."

Gao Yi gave the emperor a brief introduction to the process of selecting Shujishi.

The general requirements are: young; good at writing Qingci; and passed the independent selection examinations organized by the Cabinet, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of Rites.

Zhu Yijun asked curiously, "You usually write fifteen classical essays? What if you usually write less than fifteen?"

Since it is said to be ancient Chinese, it definitely cannot be poetry.

When it comes to fu, I may not write so many words on a normal day.

Gao Yi patiently explained, "So the Ministry of Rites set a time limit of one month for all the Jinshi to complete the fifteen ancient essays."

Zhu Yijun suddenly realized that he had to rush to finish the manuscript.

It’s good to rush to finish the manuscript.

He nodded and motioned Gao Yi to continue: "What happens after you are selected as a Shujishi?"

Gao Yi followed the emperor, pacing slowly: "Send them to the Hanlin Academy, and order the academicians and other officials to teach them. Those who have completed their studies will be promoted to Hanlin officials, the second-class officials will be promoted to editors, and the third-class officials will be promoted to reviewers, and they will continue their studies."

"The rest are concurrently appointed as officials of the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Internal Affairs."

Zhu Yijun said "Oh".

He immediately shook his head, looked back at Zhang Juzheng, and said thoughtfully: "Gentlemen, selecting Shujishi is to reserve talents for cabinet ministers, there is nothing wrong with this."

"However, there are more than 400 Jinshi candidates in this exam. The additional 100 candidates will be selected based on today's examination system and tomorrow's land measurement system to fill the positions of officials in prefectures and counties and the backbone of the three ministries in various provinces."

"If all of them were to study in the Hanlin Academy, I'm afraid it would still not be enough to fill the vacancies in the ministries, offices, prefectures and counties."

We have been working together for quite some time.

Now when the emperor raised his butt, the two ministers could tell at a glance whether he was pooping or peeing.

The two looked at each other.

Zhang Juzheng shook his head helplessly: "If Your Majesty wants to demote the Shujishi to the provincial capitals, prefectures and counties, and just ask the cabinet to reason privately, it is really difficult for us old bones like me."

Listen to the strings and the sound.

The emperor's words clearly showed that he wanted to send the Shujishi to the local areas for training.

Zhang Juzheng shook his head and refused without any hesitation, and was almost saying the word "unrealistic" out loud.

Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Juzheng curiously: "What the Prime Minister means is that the cabinet can't make the decision? Then should I call the Grand Master of the Imperial Clan?"

Zhang Juzheng stopped the emperor from sending someone to invite Ma Ziqiang, and said helplessly: "If the Grand Master of the Imperial Clan is involved in this matter, I'm afraid he will have to retire even if he doesn't want to."

The three of them walked to the railing and stood by it.

Gao Yi pondered for a moment and added tactfully: "Your Majesty, this matter cannot be accomplished with just an imperial decree."

"Throwing the Shujishi away to the ground... is really too humiliating. I'm afraid something bad will happen."

Zhang Juzheng was even more direct: "If you humiliate the Shujishi like this, resigning from your post is a minor matter. I am afraid that you will inevitably fight for the ground with your head, and your blood will be splattered in the Huangji Palace."

"When that happens, there will be a huge upheaval, and there will definitely be another chaos."

Confucian scholars value dignity the most.

It would be fine to send fellow Jinshi who are over 40 years old to be county magistrates, but do you want to send such arrogant and outstanding contemporary heroes as Shujishi to local positions?
Isn't that a blatant manifestation of the New Dynasty's harsh treatment of Confucian scholars?
It will cause mass incidents.

Nowadays, officials often say, "I am transferred to another position because I am not used to the local climate," or "Huizhou is cold and harsh, which is not the precedent of the court to treat Confucian scholars well."

Under such circumstances, if the emperor wanted to establish the system of appointing scholars from prefectures and counties, it would be too difficult for the Cabinet and the Ministry of Rites.

Zhang Juzheng no longer cared about poking holes in his back, but he was afraid that the overall situation would be disrupted - these people were his real core.

As long as the emperor, the chief minister and the second chief minister can reach a consensus, it can be said that they have the final say on the court affairs. But now, facing such matters that involve the basic situation, they have to be extremely cautious.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yijun held onto the railing with both hands, put his feet on the bottom, and swayed his body back and forth: "It's not necessary to send all of them to the prefecture."

Halfway through the sentence.

Zhang Juzheng frowned, held the emperor's waist, and interrupted, "Your Majesty, please pay attention to your manners."

Zhu Yijun stood up straight with embarrassment.

He coughed lightly and continued, "What I mean is that, on a voluntary basis, those Hanlin editors and Shujishi who voluntarily request to go to the local areas can be given preferential treatment in their official careers."

This is the lure of profit.

Gao Yi sighed when he heard this.

He shook his head and explained to the emperor who was not familiar with the ecology of Confucianism: "Your Majesty, among scholars, reputation is the foundation. Not having Shujishi will damage the foundation just to reduce the number of years of hard work."

To know which is more important, official career or fame, one only needs to look at how many court officials dream of being caned in court.

The small favors granted by the emperor were not enough to make the Shujishi "unsociable".

Zhu Yijun thought for a moment and asked the two ministers seriously, "Will it be much better if someone takes the lead?"

The two ministers were stunned.

After looking at each other, they nodded one after another.

Zhu Yijun smiled with relief: "Then you two gentlemen may wish to draw up a charter first. As for the matter of the Shujishi, I will do some 'ideological work' for them then."

There are still people who owe him money, and the king and father want to collect the debt, so he has to pay it back.

It will be easier to deal with if there is someone in front of you - whether there is a precedent in the Qing Dynasty or not, the political resistance is incomparable.

It is imperative that the Shujishi go to the local areas, even if it is just a formality in the early stage.

The two were accustomed to the emperor's strange wording.

Gao Yi couldn't help but remind him: "Your Majesty, please make sure that the selection is fair."

Zhu Yijun nodded perfunctorily.

What does it mean to pay attention to fairness? The top scorer was chosen by the emperor!
Legal and reasonable!
Seeing the emperor's expression, Zhang Juzheng suddenly said, "If that's the case, Your Majesty will have to ask about it from time to time. Otherwise, some of the scholars may have to serve as officials in local areas for more than ten years."

Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Juzheng with satisfaction - old Zhang always had a long-term view of things.

He knew very well about the situation where selected students were sent to remote areas and not transferred back to the core area as promised for more than ten years.

If there is no noble person above who remembers you, no matter you are a scholar, a master or a doctor, you will be demoted, and no one will say a word.

Zhang Juzheng was reminding himself that if he let the cabinet or the six ministries take charge, they would inevitably become tools to distinguish between party affiliation and intimacy - after all, the Shujishi were candidates for prime minister, and who returned to the court and who continued to stay in the local area would make a world of difference in their official careers.

Therefore, it would be best for the emperor to intervene in this matter personally.

Zhu Yijun immediately stated: "Of course, the Shujishi will report directly to me, and their performance over the years will be reviewed by me and the cabinet before being assessed and graded."

Since he is already prepared to take power, there is no need to hide this matter.

Zhang Juzheng nodded in approval of the emperor's diligence.

Together with Gao Yi, he performed the ceremony: "We will work with the Ministry of Rites later to draft the rules."

Naturally, Zhu Yijun kept saying a bunch of words like hard work, effort, and stress.

The two ministers bowed and withdrew.

Only Zhu Yijun was left, with his arms resting on the railing, his face supported by his hands, gazing out in a trance.

It took him a while to come back to his senses.

He extended his hand and beckoned Li Jin over: "Li Daban, after the palace examination is over, go give Li Kun a copy of "Lü's Township Agreement" and let him study it carefully."

(End of this chapter)