The palace examination has just ended, and this year's martial arts examinations have begun to be held in some places.
The martial arts examination system of the Ming Dynasty has long been established. The rule during the Zhengde period is: Military examination candidates are allocated quotas in various places.
The first is the pro-military system. There are martial arts schools in both capitals. There are a large number of low-level general banners, small banner officers, and Shanren who have not yet grown up to join the Guards Army. All the rest are eligible to participate. The martial arts schools in the two capitals have five places.
Ten; other in-service chief flag officers, minor flag officers, Shiren, and Shiyu who are not enrolled in school, a total of twenty places for martial arts candidates.
Then there are the north and south Zhili governors, the special Liaodong, Wanquan, and Liangdu divisions, plus the Xingdu division in Shanxi, which is closest to the border, all have thirty places. The remaining provinces and other special Xingdu divisions and left-behind divisions have quotas
Ranging from ten to twenty.
Finally, there are the civilians, Sheren is the child of an officer, and Sheyu is the other men in the military family. The civilians refer to people other than the military. There are 20 people from the North and South Zhili provinces who participate in the military examinations with such status.
The quota for martial arts examinations is ten for each of the other provinces.
Preparations for the martial arts examination take time, and the first to take action are naturally the pro-military system in Beijing, which was the first to know the news, and nearby places such as Beizhili, Shandong, Shanxi, Liaodong, and Hebei.
Zhang Fujing was very aware of the emperor's ambition to expand the territory in the future, which had already "ruined" the Kong family in Qufu, and now he seemed even more "barbaric".
"Sun Wu, Sun Bin, Wu Qi, Tian Dan, Meng Tian, Peng Yue, Chen Tang, Zhuge Liang, Tai Shi Ci, Yu Jin, Wang Meng, Li Ji, Qin Qiong, Cheng Zhijie, Xin Qiji..." Zhang Fujing rattled off these names, and then in Shandong
The newly-established provincial council said, "I have been in Shandong for more than a year, and I deeply feel that the people of Shandong really understand the righteousness, are brave in public battles, and timid in private fights! Such outstanding people and places coincide with the great times, and they are heroes.
It’s time to come out in large numbers!”
After a pause, he said: "Today is not what it used to be. The military system is changing. Which of the martial arts examinations, martial arts Jinshi, and martial arts champions is not more promising than before, and the ancestors are honored? This year's rural examination Enke, the generals of the generals of Shandong Province are competing.
Are you willing to be lonely? Your Majesty’s heavenly grace and edict must be announced to all guards, prefectures and counties. Regardless of the rest, as long as you pass the martial arts examination, you will lose your halberd in the general test. Shandong Camp General, Public Security Bureau, and this Governor
There will also be at least fifteen official positions left, ranging from seventh grade to fifth grade!"
Qi Jingtong's eyes lit up when he heard this.
Although Zhang Fuking does not have the power to directly appoint high-ranking officials, low-ranking officials can be considered very secure as long as he and Zhang Fuking recommend them together.
Shandong was the second province to implement the new law on a trial basis. The Guard Office was diverted to the two systems of recruiting soldiers, the Shandong Battalion and the Public Security Department. Shandong was also the first batch.
Rewards from high-ranking officials and generous salaries are for them a favor and a good tool to win people's hearts.
As long as you succeed in the martial arts examination in Shandong Province, that is a very good starting point. If you pass the martial arts examination again, it will be even more extraordinary. And if you win the first place in the palace examination, you will be favored by the emperor, and you will be given a banquet by Wuying Palace!
After the meeting, officials at all levels were asked to divide the military and civilian lines to publicize and get people to sign up.
Are Shandong folk customs tough?
It cannot be said simply. Zhang Fuking is right in what he said. Shandong is a place where culture and education are prosperous. In fact, the people are very polite and obedient. Therefore, the culture of loyalty is also very strong. If it is for public service, Shandong people are not afraid of war.
.
As long as the emperor and the court widened the path for joining the army, there would be a large number of lower-level officers, soldiers and people willing to give it a try.
But joining the army means you have military status.
Propaganda in the military system is easy to say, but propaganda directed at ordinary people still faces considerable suspicion.
"Don't you get Enke every year in the rural examinations now? Being a soldier is a good way out. You haven't seen a scholar. If you want to be an official, you can go to the county. If you don't want to be an official, you can also be a rural sage!"
When his half-grown son came home excitedly to talk about this, the old father became very angry: "If you pass the exam, every generation of men in your family will have to join the army! Why do your majesty and Zhang Dutai have such high expectations?"
Reward? You have to work hard! I still hope that you will continue the family lineage, so you don’t die outside one day!"
"...You can go to the county Sheriff's Department."
"Don't listen to those nonsense! It's so easy to be an official? What kind of connections does our family have? What does it matter? To put it nicely, aren't we just the head clerk in the county government? Listen to me! In front of the county master, there are thousands of talented people.
Master Hu has face! Master Qianhu, that’s the fifth grade!”
After so many years of emphasizing culture over martial arts, this kind of scene has been staged in countless places.
Young people are passionate and old people have more experience.
The rural examination for ordinary people was organized by the Chief Envoy. The Shandong Chief Envoy arranged for people to be busy with this matter. But the time came on the fifth day of April, and it was only more than a month before the martial arts examination was held.
The registration situation is still not optimistic.
We still have to leave time for the examination organization and candidates to arrive in Jinan. The actual registration time is less than twenty days.
"There are only more than ten people in Fantai, and the least is only five people. Instead of choosing one from a thousand, is it possible that our ten places are only selected from the total of more than a hundred people?"
It can be seen from the fact that only dozens of people can be selected for each subject in the Ming Dynasty. Military examinations have always been unpopular. They are basically some officers and soldiers in the guard system who are motivated or want to be gilded.
Only then will I go and participate.
Now even though very attractive rewards are offered, in the face of the similarly "expanded" recruitment of civil and martial arts exams, they are still discriminated against.
Everything is of inferior quality, only reading is good. This concept has existed for so long, how can it be so easy to change?
"...There are still more than twenty days to draft the document for each prefecture and county. Each county shall have no less than twenty members, and each prefecture shall have no less than thirty members."
They can only give up the mission. Even if they recruit some people to make up the numbers, they don't want to make the scene of the provincial martial arts examination too ugly. In Beijing, the left governor of the Zuo Army Governor's Office in charge of Shandong Dusi is Cui Yuan.
He is the consort, the Marquis of Jingshan, and more importantly, a counselor, the most important official representing the military among the counselors, and a loyal emperor who will never change his stance!
In the Shandong Martial Arts Examination Enke, the Zuojun Governor's Office will send a second-grade Governor General to come and take charge of the examination!
The martial arts examination does not require the status of a scholar like the civil examination. If, in addition to the officers and soldiers of the guard station, only a few hundred people from the entire Shandong Province take the examination, wouldn't it be ugly?
The person in charge of this matter, Fan Taisheng, was very worried: "If the counties randomly recruit people to make up the numbers, then the soldiers and horses will not be familiar with each other, and the situation will be even more ugly."
"...The governor has granted fifteen official positions! These stupid people!"
The Chief Envoy Si Yamenli didn't know how to solve this problem. He was worried when the secretary walked into the official hall and said: "Master Fantai, the new issue of "Ming Pao" has been delivered."
"Set it aside for now."
"Master Fantai." The clerk did not move his feet. "The results of the palace examination are out. The number one winner is Changzhou Tang Shunzhi. In the newspaper, there are articles about number one, number two, and third place. In addition, there is also a piece of news. In February next year, the system will be held.
Ke. To stabilize the country and the people, and to stabilize the country with military strategy. The leader of each branch... Feng Bo!"
"What?" Shandong Zuobuzheng's beard trembled, and he stood up forgetfully, "Uncle Feng? Show it to me!"
He wasn't that anxious to care about who the top pick was.
However, it is really shocking that a system of manufacturing subjects should be opened, and the leaders of these two subjects should be granted the title of earl.
The new newspaper was in his hands. After he opened it, his eyes were first attracted by the imperial exam questions on the front page.
After taking a closer look, he couldn't help but take a breath: "...It's so difficult?"
The political leader also leaned his head over, looking equally shocked.
The format of the imperial examination questions has changed!
He was also a Jinshi, so he naturally took part in the imperial examination.
When he saw such a form of imperial examination questions, especially the amount of information in the questions and the difficulty of the answers, he, who had already been promoted to the third level of political participation, couldn't help but be stunned.
If he was asked to answer the question in the palace examination...
"Tang Shunzhi from Changzhou? Who is he?"
He muttered to himself.
If you can win the first prize in this subject, you must read carefully the articles about the first prize, the second prize, and the top prize.
Such a topic is closely related to the new law and is already a very specific government matter. Since such a topic has been raised, the policies of these three people must be extremely brilliant, and may even represent the direction of many subsequent reforms related to the money law.
The two of them forgot for a moment that it was difficult to register for the martial arts examination. They also forgot to read the news about Uncle Feng's examination. They also forgot to arrange for the people below to use this news to attract more people to sign up.
"...This person, this person..." Ambassador Zuo was already reading Tang Shunzhi's article on a certain page at the back. As he looked at it, he could only mutter in surprise.
"What a talented Prime Minister!" Shenzheng praised, and then commented with his own eyes, "Although he has not taken the new study exam, this person is actually selected as the number one scholar by His Majesty because he understands the new study!"
Ambassador Zuo nodded solemnly.
Since we want to promote new learning, what better sign is there than the number one scholar?
But not only that, Tang Shunzhi's policy is indeed quite insightful.
"...the three coins are running in parallel until the value of the banknotes gradually stabilizes. The silver coins are cast as treasures to avoid the fire of weighing and exchange. The new banknotes replace the old banknotes and are used as banknotes..." Zuo Buzheng fell into deep thought.
Of course, I already had the banknotes.
Bao banknotes were originally of large denominations, but later gradually depreciated.
But it is quite difficult to turn a worthless treasure into the most valuable banknote.
Tang Shunzhi gave a way to gradually change this: First, let today's treasure money really buy things, and it is necessary things. For example, since the popularity of iron farm tools needs to be subsidized, it is better to include this cost in today's treasure money.
In terms of recycling banknotes, people can directly use the banknotes to buy iron farm tools sold by government organizations. Such as Huimin Pharmacy, primary and secondary college tuition fees, and many other good government policies that benefit the people in the future.
The court will naturally bear a huge cost, but banknotes cannot be discarded lightly, as waste will cause chaos. First, a large number of old banknotes will be recovered, and then new banknotes will be printed. Finally, some old banknotes can be redeemed for new Tongbao and Yinbao, while the new banknotes
Use it directly as the largest bank check.
For this reason, since the imperial court has established eighteen enterprises, in order to facilitate the exchange of money, and to avoid the waste and waiting pains in sending money, why not follow the example of private banks and set up official treasure houses in each government?
"...It's so bold..." Shenzheng lamented, "Business associations and banks in various places should not be underestimated. Replacing them with official banks is, after all, a scholar's opinion."
The Chief Envoy Zuo glanced at him and said calmly: "Businessmen? Officials and gentry? Who dares to say anything now? Who can say anything? After the tax department is established, if taxes are collected and transported by official villages, where will the merchants' money come from?
Is it more convenient to pay?”
"...I can't believe it."
"If you really want to change the old banknotes into new banknotes, the court must establish trust." Zuo Bu's political envoy still had more experience, "What's more, isn't there a local sage?"
I was stunned when I participated in politics.
Yes, there are local sages. After being elected by the government and appointed by His Majesty, they can always respond.
This is a slow process after all.
"...This policy article is really solid..." Governor Zuo quickly scanned it from the beginning again, "I selected him as the number one scholar because every word in this line of writing is true. Although the national policy is discussed, it is just like the policy.
The question is general, start with the details, and there are specific and feasible methods."
"...Lord Fantai, the leader of the manufacturing department, Uncle Feng..."
The clerk came to remind me so rudely because he knew what the yamen was worried about recently.
The Chief Envoy Zuo then woke up as if from a dream: "Yes, yes, yes! Just wait and see if I can survive!"
He turned back to the front page. This news was on the front page, along with the results of the palace examination.
There are two news articles on the front page, "The results of the imperial examination are released, Tang Shunzhi of Changzhou is rated as the number one scholar, and five hundred Jinshi enter the palace for a banquet", and "The imperial imperial edict system will be held in February of the sixth year of Jiajing, and the emperor has promised that the leaders of the two subjects will be awarded the title of earl."
Now, the shock of being crowned an earl came to their hearts again.
Ding Guoan Civil Affairs Department, Jingguo Military Strategy Department.
One article, one weapon.
There are no subjects that test knowledge and literary talents.
What is important now is the qualifications to take the exam.
During the Song Dynasty, there were nine major systems subjects, three of which were open to civilians, namely Gaoduoqiuyuan Section, Sunken Caoze Section, and Maocaiyi Section. The other six subjects were open to people with official status, respectively.
They are: a virtuous and upright person who can speak out and give advice; a broad-minded and knowledgeable person can be found in the education and culture department; a talented and knowledgeable person can be in the physical and practical department; a person who has a detailed understanding of official principles can go to the political department; he can understand the secrets, strategies, and operations and make decisive decisions; and he can send military plans and talents to the border department.
Later, the qualification to take the examination was changed to require two ministers as recommenders.
This time, there are only two subjects in the six-year Jiajing period. Only people with official status are allowed to participate. Only those with a sixth grade and below are allowed to participate. They are limited to those under thirty-five years old. A total of three senior and fourth grades are required. Recommended by the above officials.
This means that a large number of county magistrates in the Ming Dynasty can also participate if they are recommended.
But correspondingly, each recommender can only recommend up to two people to participate. There are only so many officials of the fourth rank and above in the Ming Dynasty, which has determined the total number of participants for this examination.
The content of the exam is also as difficult as the exam system in the Song Dynasty.
The first step is still to enter the paper. You must submit 50 daily policy essays. This is the first screening. Only those who pass will be allowed to enter Beijing to participate in the policy examination.
This policy test will be conducted by the counselors of the National Policy Conference, and the test will take place in the National Policy Hall. During the five hours of test time a day, a total of five policy essays must be completed.
This one has also been passed, which is the imperial examination. The emperor will only ask one question, but it must be completed in person in the Qianqing Palace. After completion, there will be a performance link. The emperor will ask three questions in person and must answer them immediately.
The governor of Shandong Zuo murmured: "This count... is not easy to get..."
To be qualified to take the exam, it means that the recommended person has good interpersonal skills and can be appreciated by at least three high-ranking officials.
Being able to pass the examination test shows that they do not rely solely on their interpersonal skills. The recommender must be dignified and above the fourth grade, and you cannot randomly recommend a trusted person to slap yourself in the face in front of the emperor.
As for the policy test, it is directly the twenty-four most important ministers of the Ming Dynasty taking the exam together. If you can pass this test, even if you fail to pass the last test, you will be appreciated by at least several counselors, and your official career will be prosperous in the future. Next words.
The last level of the Imperial Examination involves answering policy questions as well as giving correct presentations. The second best thing is to win the title of Chief Imperial Officer. It is certain that the Emperor will be favored. In the future, writers will serve as ministers and assistants, and warriors will be hereditary as marquises and dukes. They will only have to make new achievements. .
"...The Ladder of Qingyun!" Participating in politics saw an opportunity.
Neither of them is qualified to take the exam, but they are qualified for recommendation.
They looked at each other, and then their eyes lit up and they felt a little more emotional.
"With the implementation of the new law, if the county magistrate and below want to climb the ladder, how dare they neglect it this year?" Shen Zhengtang said, "The time has come to serve your life!"
The responsibility of implementing the new law first rests on the heads of provincial officials. If local governments and counties are not enterprising, they will definitely do it half-heartedly and offend as few people as possible.
But the temptation to first gain the favor of a senior official, and then gain the favor of a counselor, and maybe even soar into the sky is too great.
The provincial officials have a new tool in their hands: do you want to work hard? I don’t recommend it to you!
If we take the performance of this year’s implementation of the new law and the actual implementation of His Majesty’s concerns as the starting point, then even if the person recommended cannot pass the first hurdle, he or she will still have merit!
"Wonderful." Chief Zuo's thoughts suddenly opened up and he felt comfortable.
Of the two people I can recommend, one is a seed player and the other is a reward for meritorious officials. This principle must be unified!
It is easy to count the people above the fourth rank in Shandong Province. Add them all together, how many places can be recommended?
He burst out laughing: "The Governor will definitely convene another provincial meeting. Don't be in a hurry. Let's discuss everything!"
He was not in a hurry, and the newspaper did not avoid anyone.
After half a year, the new printing press was gradually being built, and the "Ming Pao" was getting better and better, and more and more copies were printed. Those who made a living in the handwriting business felt that business was gradually becoming difficult.
But the Ming Pao, which was shipped to Shandong in just five days, has caused a stir among Shandong officials and people.
On the one hand, it was the difficulty of the imperial examination questions, and the many discussions brought about by the direct discussion of Qian Law. On the other hand, it was the glory of the new scholars, especially the discussions on Tang Shunzhi, the number one scholar, Tang Shu, the second best scholar, and Shenzhong, the king of flowers.
"If it were previous years, I'm afraid the number one scholar would be Wang Shenzhong! Look at his literary talent!"
"It's only because of his literary talent that he was chosen as Tanhualang, right? Among the top three, there must be someone with better literary talent."
"That's wrong! Do you really think that the number one scholar can't write colorful articles?"
"Tang Shunzhi, Tang Shu, there are two people with the surname Tang in the first three square meters of the first armor! My Tang family is very popular!"
"...A person from Changzhou Prefecture and a person from Huai'an Prefecture are both from Nanzhili. What is their connection with the Qiu Tang family in Qinnan?"
"The ancestors are naturally from the same clan! My Nanqiu Tang family is also the Tang family from Qingzhou who moved to Linzi. I don't know how many Tang families from Shandong moved south in the past!"
In the official circles, everyone looked at the news about the system with dry mouths.
Those who are in the sixth grade and below are eligible to participate.
This sixth rank is very subtle. The magistrates of the Ming Dynasty are all of the sixth rank. Among new scholars, even the number one scholar will not be awarded more than the sixth rank at the beginning.
Now some people know that there is actually no chance, but after all, it is an opportunity for their policies to reach the central government and be seen by important officials in the court. Those who are ambitious and want to make progress are eager to try.
There are also some county magistrates and lower-ranking officials who do not expect this at all, but they do not lack political wisdom.
After seeing this news, I just sighed repeatedly: "It's so painful!"
The Shangguan had another whip in his hand.
Not doing a good job? Being perfunctory?
Can.
But during the performance appraisal, I will be given a word about not being enterprising enough.
Just because you don't want to fly to the sky doesn't mean you will be satisfied with only climbing to the sixth level in your life.
Nowadays, the provincial examination of Enke is held every year, and there are bound to be more and more candidates who are promoted to the second place and those who are promoted to the second place.
What if the good official position of the sixth rank cannot be kept and is moved to another poor yamen?
The news continued to spread southward, and when they arrived in Huai'an, Liu Tianhe was naturally very happy, but at the same time he was a little sad: Suddenly he was ranked second in high school, how could he easily invite Tang Shu to the Hedao Yamen?
The news spread to Nanjing again, and Nan Zhili won the top two, occupying ten seats in the first class, and the situation of Nan Zhili being the most cultural and educational has not changed. However, Xu Jie, who was a doctor in the Nanjing Ministry of Civil Affairs, felt disappointed: because of Yan Song
Thanks to his promotion, he was promoted too quickly. He kind of wished that he was still the county magistrate of the sixth grade.
The news spread to the east of Nanjing and to Changzhou Prefecture in the northwest of Hangzhou. The glory of the number one scholar really ignited the Changzhou Prefecture. And Wujin County, where Tang Shunzhi was born and raised, was decorated with lanterns, colors, gongs and drums. Tang Shunzhi's father, an old judge, wept with joy, and the governor of Changzhou and Wujin
The county magistrate is still congratulating: "Tang Weng, it's still early! I have read the Xiongwen of the Number One Scholar, and with my talents, I will win the first place in the system next year and be made a count. It is also very promising! At this time next year, I am afraid that I will be a count here.
It’s an old house, and Tang Weng also needs a gift!”
When the news reached Hangzhou, Yan Song was thinking about who to recommend and who to support.
The news has reached Fujian, where registration for the martial arts provincial examination is being organized.
A Tanhualang came out of Quanzhou Prefecture, and Gong Yongqing was also ranked among the top and twenty-fourth. Yu Dayou was happy while staring at the words "Jingguo Wuluoke".
There are so many policies and essays to write in order to prepare subjects, but in the end they are still Confucian generals. How many military generals can take the exam?
This might be his best chance!
People like Tang Shunzhi, Tang Shu, and Wang Shenzhong naturally aimed at establishing national security and civil affairs.
As for the Dingguowu strategy subject, the test must be on the art of war and strategy. How many of these "literary stars" are good at these?
Among Zhao Benjia, as a descendant of the royal family of Zhao and Song Dynasty, he felt more favorable when he saw that Zhu Houcong followed the Song Dynasty and opened a new system of education. At the same time, he also focused more on the special training of Yu Dayou.
"This is your best opportunity. After being granted the title of Uncle, the general's position will never be lowered! I have learned all my life from my teacher, and I hope you will pass on the mantle and return to the country again!"
At this time in Beijing, Tang Shunzhi had just arrived at the Ministry of War to report.
In order to prepare for the exam, top students in this subject did not go back to their hometown to enjoy the glory or get married like some people in the former department did.
Tang Shunzhi was appointed as the head of the Ministry of War and was promoted to the sixth rank.
The reason why he went to the Ministry of War was very simple: Wang Shouren was the Minister of the Ministry of War, and he was also one of the people who studied the new learning most deeply.
Wang Shouren also had great military exploits, as well as good literary and military skills.
"Don't delay your errands." Wang Shouren solemnly told him, "Near the water, if the errands are done, you will be able to understand the military affairs of the Ming Dynasty."
"Your Majesty, please take note!"
"Are you really willing to take the Jingguo Martial Arts Examination?" Wang Shouren asked this question because Fei Hong was itching to see Tang Shunzhi's imperial examination policy and he greatly hoped that Tang Shunzhi would develop in the direction of civil affairs in the future.
Tang Shunzhi sighed: "The official policy document did not mention the shortage of silver in the Ming Dynasty. If we want to set up a bank, how can we not have millions of taels of silver treasures stored in various places for withdrawal? If we want to solve the problem of the shortage of silver, I'm afraid
They want to expand the territory and find silver mountains. Since Your Majesty said that the strategy of Baozhuang is very good and it is named after a bank, how can I not solve this problem?"
Wang Shouren felt relieved and nodded: "Then it will be once every five days, and come to my house after duty."
"Students thank you for your generous teachings!"
Yu Dayou, who was far away in Quanzhou, didn't know that Jinke No. 1 Scholar had become his competitor.
However, the martial arts examination and the examination in February of the following year have ignited the emotions of low-ranking officials, low-level generals and even folk warriors in the Ming Dynasty.
After Zhu Houcong listened to Zhang Bor's report in the Yangxin Hall, he nodded happily: "Anyone who is a hero, come here! I have always liked heroes and heroes in my life!"
Zhang Boring and Huang Jin felt a little strange, because when His Majesty said these words, he deliberately adjusted his tone and tone for some reason, and then laughed to himself.
Zhu Houcong felt the happiness of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty who said in the history books that "all the heroes in the world have fallen into my trap."
Everything in the Ming Dynasty is now new, and Zhu Houcong still has a big blueprint in mind, but what he lacks is a steady stream of talents and new blood.