Chapter 242 Discussion on the Imperial Examination
"Writing poetry? No way!" Faced with the inexplicable request from his second uncle Yu Wenshiji, Yuwen Xiaomagan'er refused neatly and said, "If you want someone to write poetry, go to those talented people! I think Niu Hong
That old man is quite talented, ask him to do it for you!"
After saying this lightly, Yu Wen Xiao Ma Gan'er ignored the weird look on his second uncle's face, as if he had eaten a dead child, and went straight out of the house and headed for the Zuo Wei Army camp.
After patrolling all over the military camp, he led a group of personal guards to patrol the capital city of Jiangsu in a show of force. It seemed that no suspicious elements were found. Yuwen Xiao Ma Gan'er was about to lead the troops back to the camp when suddenly Xiao Huangmen came.
Report that His Majesty Yang Guang has summoned me.
Although he was a little confused, Yuwen Xiao Ma Gan'er hurriedly followed the small yellow gate to the palace.
"Young lady Yuwen, do you think it would be feasible if I implemented the imperial examination now?"
When Yuwen Xiaomagan'er arrived at the palace, Yang Guang immediately waved away the guards and asked furtively.
"Uh, well..." After hesitating for a moment, Yuwen Xiaomagan'er hesitated and said, "Your Majesty, I am just a left-guard general. It seems that government affairs are not matters that I can discuss without permission?
For this kind of matter, Your Majesty should ask for the opinions of the left and right servants and the old man Niu, the Minister of Civil Affairs!"
"Stop talking nonsense! I know you have a lot of clever ideas, so I'm asking you to just tell me how to deal with it!" Yang Guang glared, and at this moment, Yang Guang seemed a bit domineering and arrogant.
It is said that Yuwen Xiaomagan'er has many evil ideas. This was what Yang Guang's father Yang Jian told Yang Guang before he died. Moreover, Yang Jian also told Yang Guang that if he has any difficult decisions in the future, he might as well listen to it.
That little guy’s opinion!
It was precisely because of such a relationship that when Princess Leping asked Yuwen Xiao Ma Gan'er for an official position, Yang Guang generously gave Yu Wen Xiao Ma Gan'er the position of General of the Left Guard.
Subsequently, Yuwen Xiaomagan's series of actions also confirmed the wisdom and accuracy of Yang Jian's last words.
At present, the imperial examination that Yang Guang wanted to do was really not supported by anyone in the civil and military circles of the court. With no choice, Yang Guang took Yuwen Xiaomagan'er as the last straw to save his life.
He glanced at Yang Guang secretly and found that this guy was serious and didn't seem to be testing him. Yuwen Xiaomagan'er then calmed down and said, "Your Majesty, in my opinion, it seems that there is still a lot to be done!
"
"Oh? Tell me about it?"
"Last time, the court officials impeached me, saying that my establishment of a righteous school was against the holy teachings. From my point of view, those corrupt Confucians seemed to be targeting me more than the righteous school. From this point of view, they still
I don’t think this free school run by the minister can threaten the fundamental interests of these aristocratic families.”
"So, in my opinion, I am afraid that the quality of students in this righteousness study is far inferior to that of the children of aristocratic families, and they probably cannot compete with them. Therefore, I think that we need to add more firepower to this righteousness study!"
It’s best to first create a group of students with excellent academic performance!”
"Moreover, this imperial examination is still a preliminary idea, and there are still many institutional details to be perfected. Otherwise, once those aristocratic families react, it is very likely that they will work together to monopolize the imperial examination, so
, Children from poor families still have no chance to stand out! Your Majesty must be on guard against this!"
"Yeah! What Yuwen Xiao Aiqing said makes sense!" Hearing this, Yang Guang twirled his beard and nodded repeatedly. Suddenly he remembered something, and Yang Guangxun immediately said, "Well, Yu Wen Xiao Aiqing, that volunteer student in your family
, how is it going now?"
"Uh, um..." He scratched his head in embarrassment, and after a long while, Yuwen Xiaomagan'er finally said, "Your Majesty, I'm just responsible for providing money and effort to buy land and build houses for this volunteer study. As for the specifics,
Her Highness Princess Leping is in charge of running the school. I saw that Her Highness the Princess was having a lot of fun, so I didn’t ask any more questions!”….
"Uh..." Upon hearing this, Yang Guang's face was so wonderful, it simply changed back and forth from red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple.
How could this kid be so pinched? He actually left such an important matter to a woman to "play" with! This is really, um, out of line!
However, this also shows that this little fool really doesn't have any messy thoughts. At least, he doesn't want to take this opportunity to win people's hearts!
After thinking for a long time, Yang Guang said in a deep voice, "Well, as for this matter, after you return to Beijing, you have to work on it seriously and get some results from this volunteer study as soon as possible!"
"Also, how should this imperial examination system be improved? What clues do you have in mind?"
"Your Majesty, um, it seems that this imperial examination matter is not under my control?"
"Stop talking nonsense, I said I'll let you take care of it, so I'll let you take care of it. Is it possible that you still have any objections?"
"Uh..., I have no objection, little minister!"
Faced with Yang Guang's arrogant power, Yuwen Xiaomagan'er gave in immediately.
His eyes chattered twice, and Yuwen Xiaomagan'er quickly spoke again, "Your Majesty, I feel that there is actually a person who is more suitable than me to come forward to take part in this imperial examination!"
"Oh? Is there such a person in our Sui Dynasty? Who is it?"
"That one is Qian Zuopushe, Duke of Qi, Gao Jiong, and Prime Minister Gao Lao!"
"Oh..., this man is a bit troublesome! Not to mention whether he is willing to serve as an official again, you must know that at the beginning, his third son Gao Biaoren married Yang Yong's daughter Ya! So, you
got it!"
"Besides, it was your grandfather who moved this Gao Qiu down in the first place. No, it must have been your kid's idea? Aren't you afraid that Old Man Gao will hold a grudge after knowing the truth and take the opportunity to put on your shoes?"
While talking, Yang Guang looked Yuwen Xiaomagan'er up and down with a bit of amusement in his eyes.
"Your Majesty, your Majesty only asked who can come out to preside over this imperial examination. I just answered truthfully. It is said that you should not avoid enemies in external examinations, and you should not avoid relatives in internal examinations. This is the truth! I just feel that if that high official
If Old Man Jiong is willing to come forward, the resistance to His Majesty's implementation of the imperial examination will be much smaller. As for the personal honor and disgrace of the minister, well, the minister has not considered it!"
"As for the issue of Gao Jiong's third son, I think that Yang Yong has become a thing of the past. Even if he still has his heir, he can no longer pose a threat to your majesty. Even if there are still people with different ambitions, they can't escape even if they want to come.
In the palm of His Majesty’s hand!”
"As for the old man Gao Jiong himself, it is even more unworthy! How could he, an old bureaucrat, be willing to retire to the mountains and forests? What's more, if he rejects His Majesty's kindness this time, then his sons will be in trouble in the future.
I’m afraid I’ll never get ahead again! So, even if it’s just for the sake of his sons, I shouldn’t refuse His Majesty’s kindness!”
"Well, what Yuwen Xiaoai said makes sense! In this case, I will give you a decree to summon that old man Gao to serve as an official!"