Throughout history, there has always been a strange cycle of three hundred years of kings rising. This is the law of dynasty cycles.
In the early years of the dynasty, the countryside was deserted and the population was sparse. The court encouraged farming and mulberry farming to make a living with the people.
The middle period of the dynasty: the market is prosperous, the population is large, conflicts are hidden, and those in power are arrogant and extravagant.
At the end of the dynasty: land annexation was serious, various conflicts intensified, and the world was in chaos.
The history of the old dynasties all followed a similar process: prosperity, stagnation, and decline, and were replaced by new dynasties.
Its rise and fall are also sudden.
Relying on just one sage emperor will not be able to save the situation in the final stage, let alone the true sage who has yet to be seen.
So how to break the dynasty cycle law and cycle theory? Do you rely on persimmon oil to cook it?
Li Zicheng didn't know.
But he knew that in this land, the kind-hearted people were the most tolerant, and they were even so strong that they had no nerves.
As long as they have food to eat, they will not rebel.
An agricultural society naturally depends on the land for food. Therefore, solving the land problem can appease the small people, which is the so-called he who wins the hearts of the people wins the world.
Li Zicheng looked at the circle of scholars and said, "I still say the same thing. The imperial court must either let the common people have food or kill them all, otherwise the rogue bandits will not be eradicated."
"Even if the bandits are destroyed, where will the slaves be established outside the customs?"
"The slave chief raised his army with thirteen suits of armor, fought for more than thirty years, and founded the country. The situation in Liaodong is corrupt. Does the court have any countermeasures?"
"In the Battle of Sarhu eleven years ago, the imperial court claimed to have assembled an army of 470,000, but the result was a complete defeat."
"Four years ago, Huang Taiji succeeded to the throne. Three years ago, he forced North Korea to claim his brother and pay tribute. Two years ago, he began to conquer Mongolia. Now, he broke through the border and invaded the capital, which lasted for six or seven months. Have they all been driven out now?"
This series of conquests by the Tatars were carried out in confrontation with the Liaoxi Army of the Ming Dynasty, the Dongjiang Army, as well as Goryeo, Mongolia, other Jurchens and other forces... To put it bluntly, the slaves had one arm and two legs tied,
He defeated them one by one.
"Look carefully at the court newspaper. How many slave soldiers died? How many Ming soldiers died? How heartbroken!"
"If a slave can come once, he can come a second time, a third time, or even countless times. Every time a slave is plundered, his strength increases by one point. One will decrease and the other will increase. Think about it carefully."
Li Zhensheng broke into a cold sweat and said tremblingly: "So... so..."
Li Zicheng said categorically: "The Ming Dynasty is in danger!"
"Clang!"
The tea cup fell from Ai Yuchu's hand.
He hurriedly asked, "Brother Li, is this your family's opinion, or is it a divination..."
Li Zicheng picked up the tea cup and took a sip, "In August, Governor Yuan will be executed by Ling Chi; in December, he will be ordered to distribute additional land tax and increase the acres by three centimeters. Whether it is yes or no will be revealed by then."
"Boom!"
Ai Taizheng, who saw the semi-immortal for the first time, slipped out of his chair and sat down on the ground.
There was silence in the house for a while, except for the sound of the Wuding River outside the west corner building.
Li Zhensheng wiped his cold sweat and said, "Brother, be careful what you say!"
Li Zicheng put down his tea cup and said, "We are all our own people, so it doesn't matter. You must not spread the word. If someone leaks the secret, his life will be shortened by at least fifty years."
Ai Yuchu licked his lips and said, "Brother Li, according to what you said, in the future..."
Li Zicheng shook his head, "It can't be said. I want to live for a few more years. You just need to remember the teachings of the saints, 'The people are the most important, the country is the second most important, and the king is the least important.' As for the future, there are only four words that can be said in a thousand words.
It’s all about human effort!”
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, which meant that there was still room for improvement.
National affairs are too heavy, so it is not advisable to comment too much, lest you get into trouble.
Just as Feng Qilong arrived, everyone picked up some Fengyue and started chatting.
Ai Taizheng saw the true appearance of the half-immortal this time, so he inevitably had to ask about his future.
Li Zicheng pretended to make some calculations, "Brother Ai is a great talent. Needless to say, he will go to Shanxi Pianguan in two years to become a fellow scholar. It's a pity that you don't know how to work in a camp. In the future..."
Feng Qilong responded: "The future will depend on your destiny. Those who understand current affairs are heroes, otherwise why would the noble man support you? Brother Li, am I right?"
Ai Yuchu and Li Zhensheng both laughed.
Ai Taizheng said confusedly: "Your support?"
Li Zicheng smiled and said, "Let's see."
Ai Yuchu mentioned that there have been many bandits in Shaanxi recently and the roads in Shanxi are not clean. He planned to go to Beijing in advance to wait for spring.
Li Zicheng said it would not be too late to leave on August 15th, and drew a route map for him, "Follow this."
The half-immortal's advice is of course foolproof.
Ai Yuchu was hesitant and hesitant again, wondering whether he could really be a top-ranked scholar with a Jinshi background, and whether it was possible for him to work hard and become the top pick or the second overall pick.
That's not easy. Xiao Ai can be domineering and domineering in Mizhi, but when he comes to the emperor's feet, he will be a fool.
The number one candidate in the same subject examination was originally Wu Weiye, but because Chen Yutai was an in-law of the examiner Zhou Yanru and paid bribes to pass the examination, he lost the first place. Lao Wu had to settle for second place. What about Ai Yuchu, who came from nowhere.
Li Zicheng smiled evilly.
Ai Yuchu's anus tightened.
He quickly apologized, "I'm sorry for my mistake."
How can you question a half-immortal? The previous edict of Ai Zhao to his father has obviously come true.
Li Zicheng thought about it for a moment and sighed, "Natural disasters and man-made disasters mean that the people are in dire straits and the people are suffering..."
Ai Yuchu couldn't help but why did Mi Banxian suddenly talk about this? It was such a disgrace to the scenery.
Li Zicheng continued: "Brother Ai, let's set up two porridge sheds in the city, and provide one hundred dan of grain..."
"..." Ai Yuchu shouted in his heart, it's bitter!
"...Relieve the hungry and benefit the country. If our fellow villagers can live a few more days, you can also accumulate merit..."
"..." Ai Yuchu secretly complained, hungry people have nothing to do with my football!
Li Zicheng suddenly came closer and whispered: "I can reveal the test questions to you, but they must not be passed on to others! Do it!"
Ai Yuchu was startled and immediately knelt down on the ground and swore to the sky:
"If you disobey Mr. Ai Yuchu's instructions and teach Ai Yuchu that thousands of arrows will pierce his heart, he will be destroyed by heaven and earth, his tongue will be pulled out and he will be sent to hell, and he will never be reincarnated..."
This scene shocked Li Zhensheng and others.
What's all this fuss about? Why did you suddenly kneel down?
Li Zicheng took a sip of tea first, then nodded and said: "Get up."
Ai Yuchu kowtowed three times, "I will provide two hundred shi of food for disaster relief!"
He did not sit down after standing up, but waited beside Li Banxian.
Li Zicheng nodded, "My good deeds have benefited all people, and I will take the lead in setting up a monument for you in the Confucian Temple to commemorate your merits."
In the verandah of the Confucian Temple is the "Inscription on the Construction of the Important Castle in Mizhi County" written in the 27th year of the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty. The person who wrote the inscription was the first Jinshi in Mizhi, the grandfather of Ai Yuchu.
After the inscription narrates the beginning and end of the city building, there is another sentence: "Yi Yongweizilai, the name given by the Celestial Empire is Dashun City."
Ai Yuchu said quickly: "I don't dare, I don't dare, it's all thanks to the teacher's suggestion, in the name of Mr. Shu."
Li Zhensheng and the other three people stared at each other, their minds filled with confusion. But they could probably guess what benefits the half-immortal must have given Ai Yuchu.
Feng Qilong gritted his teeth and said, "It is my duty to care for the old and the weak. My younger brother is from a poor family, so I am happy to donate ten taels of silver."
Li Zhensheng and Ai Taizheng followed suit, each giving ten liang.
Li Zicheng stood up and shook his head towards Ai Yuchuyi, "Follow me."
…
The examination is held in the capital, basically every three years, in February of the following year after the provincial examination.
The exam is divided into three sessions.
In the first session, candidates will do four essays and five scriptures.
It goes without saying that the Four Books need to be memorized fluently, and the Five Classics "Poetry", "Book", "Li", "Yi" and "Spring and Autumn" do not need to be examined in full.
Students only need to specialize in one of the Five Classics, and they can apply for whichever one they are proficient in.
Their choice of He Jing as their main classic is often related to the influence of their family studies, teachers, county schools, and government schools.
The number of people studying "Shi", "Yi", and "Shu" is far greater than that of "Book of Rites" and "Spring and Autumn". This is because the number of words and difficulty level of the first three are simpler than those of the latter two.
Especially in "Spring and Autumn", it is easy to mess up if you are not careful, and students often give up because of the difficulty.
Unless you know in advance which sutra the examiner is studying, it is possible to transfer to "Spring and Autumn" from other subjects in order to gain appreciation.
Because the quality of the essay depends largely on the taste of the examiner. If he says you can do it, then you can do it.
The second exam is "Lun", "Edict", and "Judgment".
Although the "Lun" questions are also taken from the Four Books and Five Classics, there is no requirement to use eight-part essays to answer them, so you can use them freely.
"Edicts and imperial edicts" require scholars to imitate the words and deeds of their superiors and write corresponding imperial edicts, imperial edicts, and imperial edicts. Generally, they are Han imperial edicts, Tang imperial edicts, and Song imperial edicts.
For example, "Imitating the Tang Dynasty and using Zhang Jiuling as Zhongshu Linggao", "Imulating the Song Dynasty ministers He Xiaozong to make a chart of respecting heaven" and so on.
"Judgment" examines students' familiarity with legal provisions such as the "Da Ming Code".
The third exam is "Ce Question".
"Cewen" gives you a piece of material, starting with "ask". After reading it, write your own answer and understanding.
There was once an extremely difficult question in the third exam of the Hongzhi Year, and only Tang Bohu and Xu Jing could answer it in that year's examination.
As a result, some reports of envy and jealousy arose, and it was suspected that the examiner had leaked the questions to the two of them.
In the end, the examiner and others were imprisoned, and Tang Bohu was sentenced to a lifetime ban from participating in the imperial examination.
As for whether it was really cheating, it's hard to say.
Because the most important thing in the skill test is the eight-part essay in the first session, policy questions don’t take up a big part, and it’s just the icing on the cake at most.
…
Li Zicheng wrote down the examination questions for the four years of Chongzhen one by one and gave them to Ai Yuchu.
In fact, even if you know the test questions, you may not be able to pass high school.
Because the selection criteria are mainly based on the examiner's mood. If he doesn't like it and says you can't do it, you can't do it.
"Burn after reading. Remember, remember!"
"Thank you sir."
Ai Yuchu took the piece of paper with both hands, pressed it to the bottom, and then carefully put the priceless treasure into his arms. This chapter has been completed!