Chapter 1184 Meeting in Rongcheng

By the end of the year, preparations for sending troops were in full swing, and the capital's abnormal prosperity gradually returned to normal.

But for the winter market, the hottest thing is the hot sales of charcoal fires and clothes and quilts.

Especially the various furs from the Northeast, including mink, fox, beaver, and even bearskin coats, are very popular among everyone.

Jiang Liu'er, wearing a coat, slowly stepped into a clothing store, somewhat hesitantly.

Behind him, a girl said with a smile: "What are you afraid of? Just come in!"

With that said, she strode forward.

Only then did Jiang Liuer enter.

As the emperor's chessman, he had been awaiting imperial edicts for many years. His annual salary of two hundred yuan allowed him to live comfortably, but it was difficult for him to be extravagant.

"Fortunately, there is a rich girl!" He looked at Fang Baihua's figure and smiled helplessly for a moment.

The waiter bowed and smiled, constantly measuring the size: "Sir, if you want cotton-padded clothes, it will be ready in three days. Leave your address and they will be delivered to your door then!"

"Choose good cotton, and the fabric must also be made of satin." Fang Baihua ordered without hesitation, with excitement on her face.

"It's too expensive!" Jiang Liu'er said hurriedly.

"That's not okay. In a few days, you will be giving lessons to the princes. How can you not behave properly?"

Fang Baihua said casually: "When you have free time on weekdays, you can teach the princes and nobles a thing or two. It is much higher than the salary, but you know how to study chess records."

As a chess player, Jiang Liuer's status is not low. After all, he is someone who can occasionally meet the emperor.

Therefore, Fang Baihua will be engaged to Jiang Liu'er in the middle of the year and will get married next year. This is a great event.

No matter how much Fang Baihua fiddled with his shoes, socks, and clothes, Jiang Liuer just stood there motionless.

He ignores all ordinary matters and only likes to play chess.

The same is true. As a young man, he has always been a leader in chess, and this year he finally got his reward and became the prince's chess master.

Even if there is only one class in three days, it is still a great improvement and is even more recognized.

After cutting to size and getting a few pairs of shoes and socks, Fang Baihua blushed slightly and said, "I'm better than you, but my craftsmanship can't embarrass me in front of the prince."

The two of them were walking on the street and felt a little uncomfortable seeing the bustling scene.

After returning home, I breathed a sigh of relief.

"By the way, Zhixing Academy said that the chief can see you if he is free in the afternoon."

"Very good!"

After lunch, he exercised for a while and walked to the street corner to hail a rickshaw: "Go to Zhixing Academy!"

Two quarters of an hour later, Jiang Liuer paid a cent and arrived at Zhixing Academy.

Zhixing Academy, a college in the capital, is under the control of the county government, but it has great freedom. It is one of the four major academies in the capital, and the last one is also a scholar.

It was founded by Gu Yanwu, a giant in Qin learning, and was the first academies in the capital.

The huge archway made him sigh with relief.

"arrive!"

After passing the gatehouse, Jiang Liuer started walking around the college.

Zhixing College is located outside the city, so it covers an area of ​​more than 100 acres and has more than 200 buildings. It is the main place for scholars in Gyeonggi to study.

Since there is no need to study the eight-part essay after taking the examination, you need to study it again for the provincial examination and the general examination in order to pass the examination.

Even though Jiang Liu'er didn't know much about this, he also knew that the provincial examinations were mostly about astronomy, geography, arithmetic, farming, etc. Without the guidance of a teacher, it was impossible to study on his own.

"The way to control chaos in the world is to be a noble gentry. Therefore, as the teacher has said, there are people with fields stretching across the country, but those who do not have enough rice per household to fight for stones; there are those who are poor and have no standing grain, but there are people who have more than tens of stones per household!"

"This is a result of the accumulated shortcomings of the previous three hundred years of Ming Dynasty!"

In the pavilion, a stove was burning, and a group of scholars in monk's robes began to argue.

A scholar whose clothes turned white from washing raised his head and said.

"Absurd, that's just an inducement." Another scholar wearing a felt hat immediately refuted:

"In the Northern Song Dynasty and the Southern Song Dynasty, there was no restriction on annexation. The so-called thousand-year farmland had eight hundred owners. And due to annexation, Jiangnan had farm skins and farm bones. Even if the people lost their cultivated land, they could still become tenant farmers and fill their stomachs!"

"Therefore, land annexation is the most superficial level. The Chongzhen Dynasty fell on finance and taxation. Naturally, it must focus on commerce and develop commerce, so that it can collect taxes widely and enrich the national treasury without abusing the people!"

Suddenly, someone laughed again:

"Brother Bochang, your views are from the Fujian school, mixed with a little bit of the Beijing school."

"In my opinion, the governance of a country depends on the administration of officials. Officials can govern the country and collect taxes. Otherwise, given the situation in the Song Dynasty, it would be more than just mediocre. Wouldn't it be easy to unify the world?"

"It was only sixty years after the founding of the Northern Song Dynasty that it already suffered from three redundancies, and had to carry out Fan Chongyang's Reform and Wang Anshi's Reform."

"And how to govern officials? Be cautious and independent, develop a conscience, and use supervision to eliminate beetles. Therefore, during the Hongwu period, when the north was broken, it was possible to conduct several northern expeditions and force Mongolia to be divided into two."

Several people around looked at the excitement and chimed in a few words from time to time. The scene was extremely lively.

Seeing these students warming themselves over the fire, drinking tea, and debating, Jiang Liuer couldn't be more envious.

"Is this Qin Xue?"

Moving his steps, he arrived at the mountain chief's courtyard.

Li Baiquan, the mountain director of Zhixing Academy, is a short, fat old man. He is a direct disciple of Gu Yanwu. He was once a doctor at the Imperial College. Later, he served as the enlightenment teacher for the princes for several years before he retired to the mountain director.

Because they knew each other in the palace.

"Want to enroll in Qi?" Li Baiquan narrowed his eyes.

"Yes!" Jiang Liu'er said truthfully: "I have fallen into decline in my family. I have only studied for a few years and know that the mountain leader has good academic skills, so I came here because of his fame."

"Do you know Qin Xue?" Li Baiquan nodded.

"It is said that Mr. Tinglin gained something from his many years of studying Qin Sheng..." Jiang Liu'er said slowly.

"Yes and no!"

Li Baiquan said in a deep voice: "The Qin School founded by Mr. Xinxing was born out of Xinxue and Neo-Confucianism. Today it is also called Beijing School, and many schools in the world are also collectively called Qin School."

"The five major factions in the world are integrated with each other. There is one among you, and we learn from each other's strengths and weaknesses, so we gradually identify with Qin Xue."

"The Beijing faction emphasizes the simultaneous development of agriculture and commerce, restricts the right-wing gentry, opposes empty talk, and emphasizes practical application of the world; the Fujian faction comes from coastal areas such as Fujian and Zhejiang, and emphasizes commerce, especially maritime commerce."

"They believe that land annexation is a terminal disease that cannot be cured. Anyway, the land in the world is vast and there is a need for it. Even if there is a drought or flood, it can be purchased from foreign countries through sea trade, or even the people can be relocated to open up wasteland."

"The third is the Anhui School, also called the Jiangnan School. In the old days of Southern Zhili, they emphasized tolerance, equalization of land, equalization of taxes, no lenient treatment under the king's laws, learning the essence of Western learning, and opposing empty talk."

"The fourth is the school of history, which pays attention to the study of ancient knowledge and experience, is keen on reading history, uses history as a mirror, considers the profits and losses of national affairs, puts the people first, and implements frivolous corvee and small taxes."

"Finally, there is the Shendu School, which is most like the Xinxue School. It emphasizes that those who are important officials must be cautious and independent, must have a conscience, and study things to gain knowledge..."

"These five factions are available in the academy, it's up to you to choose!"

"Chief Shan, I think the Beijing faction is good!" Jiang Liu'er said cautiously.

"Don't look at me!" Li Baiquan said casually: "These five factions are not distinct, they just have different emphasis. They are all the key points of dealing with people and being an official."

Even so, Jiang Liuer still chose a gentleman from Beijing, which made the latter very satisfied.

After he left, Li Baiquan showed a satisfied smile.

Jiang Liu'er was waiting for the imperial edict. Not only could he meet the emperor, but he would also give lessons to the princes. This was a good situation to expand the influence of the Beijing faction.

"Chief Shan, the examiner for next year's Shuntian Prefecture rural examination hasn't come out yet!"

After a while, the prison guard came quickly with a serious look on his face:

"For many years, important places in Gyeonggi Province have been served as ministers of the Hanlin Academy. Now, there are only three ministers of the Hanlin Academy who have high qualifications, knowledge, and abilities!"

"And there is only one person who belongs to our Beijing-inclined faction!"

Although the Hanlin Academy's path to promotion was abolished, it is still a key stepping stone for the promotion of Jinshi.

After all, most of the examiners and angels in various places are drawn from the Hanlin Academy, and they are all good jobs.

For Zhixing Academy, which is an important place in the capital, the preference of the examiner of the rural examination determines the preference for recruiting candidates, so there is no room for sloppiness.

The five schools of Qin studies are not a harmonious group. This involves a struggle for academic orthodoxy and a struggle for the right to speak.

For example, the Beijing faction advocated the restriction of powerful right-wingers, while the Fujian faction opposed it with a clear-cut stance, advocating the emphasis on commerce and the widespread collection of commercial taxes.

In addition, the Beijing school advocates the theory of "one husband", which is not only about being a monarch, but also governing the family, the people, and the industry, all of which require public governance, limited power, and decentralization of power.

However, the Jiangnan faction secretly opposed it, saying that government by the masses was unreasonable and would not last long.

Similarly, the Jiangnan faction advocated the equalization of land and tax policies, but they were also denounced by the Beijing faction.

The consensus reached by the five schools on Qin studies is only three points: pro-business, anti-empty talk, and anti-eight-legged stereotypes.

Although the Beijing school is now the dominant one with the support of the emperor, other schools are not weak either.

Naturally, the imperial examination became the decisive factor.

Once students from the Beijing School make up the majority in the officialdom, wouldn't it be natural for the Beijing School to merge with the Qin School?
To be continued...