After Zhang Yue took Wang Anshi's calligraphy off the shelves in Taixue, Wang Anshi not only did not think that his calligraphy was wrong, but also found a very meaningful thing for the rest of his life.
That means re-editing the words.
Many scholars followed Wang Anshi to Zhongshan to ask for advice on calligraphy.
Wang Anshi taught happily, speaking orally and drawing by hand, and often used it at will, which was more than ten times more than what was written in words. Students came to Jiangning in an endless stream to ask for advice.
Of course, for those who oppose Wang Anshi, Lao Wang has begun to make false claims again.
But Wang Anshi just has a breath. The more you tell me, the more you tell me, the more I will write to you to see who is the truth.
So he slept in Dinglin Temple. He placed an inkstone in front of the bed in the Zen room, a lantern in front of the inkstone, and then covered the windows on all sides to prevent any light from coming in.
Someone passed a letter to Wang Anshi. Wang Anshi opened the cover and took a look at who wrote it, then threw it aside and fell asleep on the Zen bed.
Halfway through his sleep, Wang Anshi got up to write and talk again. Apart from sleeping, he wrote and talked every day. Even in his sleep, Wang Anshi was mumbling words and finalizing the manuscript.
After waking up, Wang Anshi started writing. Sometimes he couldn't write the numbers, so he lay down on the Zen bed and fell asleep again.
Wang Anshi not only wanted to write, but also to integrate all the places that critics thought he had elaborated on, and to make them consistent and form a "righteousness".
This is used to govern the theories in his word theory.
While Wang Anshi was writing, he chewed Echeveria to help him think. Wang Anshi often had more than a hundred Echeveria seeds on his desk. Sometimes he didn't know when Echeveria had finished eating, so he touched it on the table and took out his fingers.
I just chewed it, and finally I bit my finger and it bled, but I didn't even notice it.
Wang Anshi had such an undying spirit in his pursuit of scholarship.
Because he wanted to fight Zhang Yue, Wang Anshi also let go of the emotion of having nothing to do after retiring from a high position for a long time, as well as the pain caused to him by years of official purges.
The whole person regained his fighting spirit in Jiangning, determined to compete with Zhang Yue in this academic battle.
Wang Anshi continued to promote his theoretical ideas, and even used "Zhuo" to forcefully interpret Buddhist scriptures. As a result, he was criticized by his close friend, the monk Faxiu.
On this day, Wang Anshi left the Zen temple and rode a black donkey back to Banshan Garden. He took only a dozen sesame cakes with him and was accompanied by an old soldier. He had just picked up the letter he had read on the way and read it again when he saw something in the Di newspaper.
After learning the 'test method', I couldn't help but be amazed.
Wang Anshi couldn't help but be shocked, sitting in the stone forest of Zhongshan Mountain, meditating for a long time when he suddenly heard someone shouting.
"Prime Minister, Prime Minister!"
Wang Anshi opened his eyes and saw that it was his former subordinate Pu Zongmeng.
Wang Anshi looked at Pu Zongmeng and said very happily: "Isn't it true that it will arrive tomorrow?"
Pu Zongmeng said: "Zong Meng hurried a few steps on the way to meet the Prime Minister. When he reached the middle of the mountain, he found out that the Prime Minister was in the Zen Temple on the mountain, so he was in a hurry and came to look for the Prime Minister."
"The prime minister has not been seen for many years, but he looks very energetic. This makes Zong Meng feel relieved."
Of course Wang Anshi looked very good, which was very different from when he first retreated to Zhongshan. When he heard this, he was overjoyed and stood up from the stone and said: "Very good, I will buy you a few bottles of wine!"
Pu Zongmeng sighed with emotion: "The Prime Minister doesn't drink, but he always knows that I am a good drinker."
Wang Anshi: "One of my principles is kindness and the other is thrift. But when friends come from far away, how can we be rigid?"
Pu Zongmeng was dejected. As an official, he was firstly fond of killing, secondly, he was addicted to wine and sex, and thirdly, he was extravagant. Wang Anshi also had some advice. Pu Zongmengxi did not think so, and this time he wanted to become a Hanlin scholar and move into the second palace.
As a result, Zhang Yue took the imperial censor's letter and questioned him: "I heard that when you were a prefect, you had to cook ten sheep and ten dolphins every day, and you would light three hundred candles a night when you returned to the county residence!"
"The county official said that the people are overwhelmed and wants you to reduce the number of workers. You said in awe, do you want me to sit in a dark room and endure hunger?"
"You have been extravagant since you arrived in the capital. Not only do you take a bath every day, but you also have a small face wash, a big face wash, a small foot wash, a big foot wash, a small bath, and a big bath."
"If you don't use a maid to count the number of people in each bath, you don't have to count the five dendrobiums in the soup. If you just boil water and chop wood, you won't know how much will be wasted!"
"How can you rectify the world's atmosphere if you are used? How can you set an example for the world's officials?"
In the past, officials used to take a bath once every ten days because boiling water and chopping wood was very troublesome. Especially in a place like Bianjing where there are no forests, sometimes it would take a man a day to chop a load of wood.
So firewood is very expensive.
Bathing every day is definitely a very luxurious thing. Pu Zongmeng not only bathed, but also washed his hands, laughed and washed his feet. Such luxury caused a bad influence among officials and people.
When Pu Zongmeng saw Zhang Yue's criticism, he left sadly. During this restructuring, many officials who had previously been subordinate to him were promoted, but Pu Zongmeng did not move at all.
He knew that there was no chance of promotion under Zhang Yue, so he went out. This time he passed by Jiangning and saw Wang Anshi who was about to take office.
Seeing that Wang Anshi also criticized him for being extravagant, Pu Zongmeng was also depressed.
The two were walking and chatting. Pu Zongmeng talked about restructuring and wanted to hear Wang Anshi's words to test his tone and explain Zhang Yue's rejection and attack on New Party officials after Zhang Yue became prime minister. However, Wang Anshi did not say anything. Instead, he picked up the Di newspaper and asked.
Said: "Do you know this test method?"
Pu Zongmeng said: "It happened to be the time when Zongmeng came out of Beijing to make a judgment."
"In the past, when the imperial court was restructured, a separate government office was established. For example, before..."
Wang Anshi said: "You speak in three words."
"He is the Prime Minister. In the past, the three departments were in charge of finance and there were more than a thousand officials. They were actually under the control of the public servants. Xue Xiang once served as the three envoys, but later they all opposed the Prime Minister. Later, he had no choice but to set up Sinong Temple to take charge of Chang Ping's plans.
, but Lu Huiqing still had no choice but to set fire to three divisions together with Zhang Dun."
The efficiency of the yamen is extremely slow, and it is no longer a matter of one or two days to carry out reforms.
The consistent experience of the Song Dynasty was to establish a new department to take over the original department.
For example, the three divisions were used to bypass the household department, and later the three divisions were bypassed and the Sinong Temple was used to collect young crops and a piece of the income from the labor exemption money.
It's like you, Wang Anshi, can't control this department, so you just set up a new department to replace him. This way you can avoid the risky option of offending people by laying off people, and at least keep your official positions.
This is why the Song Dynasty had so many redundant officials and so many yamen.
What is the difference between Yuanfeng's reform and Xining's reform?
At that time, Wang Anshi was mainly looking for money. The national treasury was out of money, so he used "financial management" to raise money from the private sector.
The purpose of Yuanfeng's restructuring was to avoid multiple branches of government affairs and low efficiency, and finally achieve the unity of name and reality.
Wang Anshi said: "It has been half a year since the restructuring, and many yamen have been merged. Is it possible that the imperial court is still as blocked as ever?"
Pu Zongmeng said: "Yes, this is the result of many years of old habits. Many old people in the yamen will inevitably neglect things. Even if there are provincial officials in this matter, they will do so."
In short, if you want special channels to be opened for you in the officialdom, you have to use "favors" in exchange for it. It is common for officials to even have petty feuds, make things difficult for each other, and get stuck in each other's processes.
If you go to urge me and say 'consider', it doesn't mean that I won't do it for you, it's just that I'm considering it. As for when I will consider it, it depends on my mood and your attitude.
Therefore, if you become an official and want to do something through normal channels, you will have to face the situation of asking for help, running for connections, and wasting words. Therefore, no one in the government should be an official.
This is not to mention ordinary officials, even officials from the two provinces under Zhongshu's sect are like this.
That's why there is a method to pass the examination.
Success in the exam is not about performance, but about responsibility.
Performance is how much work an official does within a specified time.
Responsibilities are specific to things, and everything must be completed within the specified time. Once something is completed, it will be written off the book.
In this way, there are two copies of the book. The superiors will assess the subordinates, and if they complete one task, they will cancel the other. They will be assessed every month. If they are completed, they will be rewarded with promotions. If they are not completed, they will be punished.
Every process has a deadline, otherwise everyone will delay it for ten days and a half, and you don't know which link you are stuck in, and finally the government order can be smoothed.
This was the case when Wang Anshi's reform could not be implemented until the Third Division, so those officials tried their best to fight with the imperial court.
Wang Anshi asked Puzong Mengdao: "If this test was completed, would Lu Huiqing still want to burn the third division?"
Pu Zongmeng said: "It is unknown."
"It is difficult to move things forward in the officialdom. The first is official corruption, the second is official disengagement, and the third is official idleness."
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"Official corruption requires money, official disengagement leads to laxity, and finally there are idle officials. There are many officials like this in the imperial court, and they also waste the most salary. If there is a method, it would be good to let these officials do some things."
Wang Anshi said: "Yes, the examination method can rectify the administration of officials, but the most important thing is to be good at employing people. It must be a two-pronged approach."
"Congratulations, Prime Minister!" Pu Zongmeng was secretly disappointed when he saw that Wang Anshi had no intention of opposing Zhang Yue, but he was not in a position to express his attitude.
Pu Zongmeng finally tried and said: "But Prime Minister, I think if this method is implemented, the officialdom will not be rebellious. Besides, it is not a once and for all thing to pass the test. The officials here are all cunning, so there may not be any way to deal with them."
Wang Anshi said: "This is his decision."
Pu Zongmeng weighed it up and said: "Zongmeng is worried that Zhang Duzhi is using the power of rewards and punishments in the name of passing the examination to eliminate dissidents on a large scale and establish a private party. This is his real intention."
Wang Anshi said: "Although the rule of the world in these years is not lenient, it is not harsh either. It shouldn't be like this!"
Pu Zongmeng said: "Prime Minister, I think Zhang Duzhi is trying to do something wrong. He only has one year to rule the country. There is no guarantee that he will not do something."
"Only the Prime Minister can control him in this world today!"
Wang Anshi glanced at Pu Zongmeng and thought to himself, how could you not be trying to make a fool of yourself? Wang Anshi, Yuan Jiang and Chen Shengzhi opposed Zhang Yue's recruitment law at the beginning, but now he no longer has the energy to do so.
Wang Anshi smiled and motioned to Pu Zongmeng to sit on the stone with him.
"I'm old." Wang Anshi finally answered Pu Zongmeng. At this moment, the birds were singing in the forest of Zhongshan Mountain, and the afternoon sunlight penetrated through the forest leaves and fell on the ground.
Pu Zongmeng was always very proud and couldn't stand a little sunshine, so he immediately held an umbrella for him, which also covered Wang Anshi's ray of sunshine.
Wang Anshi waved his hand to show no need, and then said: "We are riding a donkey in the wilds of Zhongshan Mountain."
"Follow the veterans or go on your own journey."
"He will be reincarnated as a cow one day,"
"A ray of sunshine accompanies my plowing!"
Seeing this, everyone was very ashamed. Wang Anshi's words seemed to say that you were blocking me.
They immediately removed the umbrella for Wang Anshi. Pu Zongmeng thought to himself, "The prime minister actually compares himself to an old cow and will only covet this ray of sunshine in the next life. I am really ashamed of myself for being so broad-minded."
…
While Zhang Yue, who was in Zhongshu Province, was dealing with government affairs, he read the improved version of the calligraphy presented by Cai Bian to Wang Anshi, and looked speechless after reading it.
In his opinion, it would be good if Lao Wang wrote a book about the characters, Shuowen Jiezi, but he had to put a bunch of 'principles' into it, and mixed in a lot of Buddhist and Lao thoughts to confirm his statement.
This is not good.
He immediately ordered someone to send some turtle shells with strange characters written on them to Cai Bian and asked him to send them to Wang Anshi. Maybe Wang Anshi would not study the characters tirelessly.
This incident also taught Zhang Yue a truth: you are in the wrong direction, and the harder you work, the bigger your mistakes will be.
So why does the Book of Doctrine refer to the category of the Four Books?
What exactly is ‘middle’?
Choice is more important than hard work. If you choose the wrong direction, everything will be in vain.
The more Zhang thought of this and looked at the increasing number of official documents on his desk, he became more and more confused.
Wang Anshi's calligraphy is quite beautiful, citing scriptures and classics, and citing side affairs, which made me fish for a long time without realizing it.
So much official documents piled up like mountains.
However, he also understands that as an official, no one wants to be lazy and take advantage of the situation. This is human nature. He, Zhang Yue, is also a master of taking advantage of the situation. He does not want to push people too hard when doing this method.
But he couldn't explain it.
Wang Anshi and Xining's reform focused on financial management, while his Yuanfeng reform focused on improving efficiency. Although the merger of yamen eliminated the shortcomings of multiple branches of government, it prevented the officials below from passing the buck.
But after the restructuring, government efficiency has not improved.
The officials below were either lazy, greedy, or mediocre, and the imperial decrees could not be implemented at the lower levels. Zhang Yue had no way to explain it, so his Yuanfeng restructuring became a failure.
In order to reduce the time and effort involved in getting stuck, we must use the examination method to promote it.
Clean up the atmosphere in the officialdom and make officials focus on performance.
Therefore, there is often a saying in TV dramas: Can you bear the responsibility for delaying Mr. So-and-so?
The officials below were obedient as soon as they heard it. When officials did something, they had to kowtow all the way, let alone the common people.
Therefore, the examination method must be implemented.
It's just that the Ming Dynasty's examination method took Qiangu as a consideration, while Zhang Yue's was based on responsibility.
Thinking of this, Zhang Yue had almost finished dealing with Zhongshu, when Han Zhongyan came in to see him.
Zhang Yue said: "From now on, we will use the Zhongshu official system to define the department in detail and agree on the specific regulations for the examination. You will take over this power and become an official in the world!"
Han Zhongyan was pleased that this was a matter of great power, and then asked: "What should we do if we are officials who do not do well in the examination?"
Zhang Yue said: "Everything must be abolished!"
Han Zhongyan laughed loudly and said: "Come on, come on, it's such a refreshing thing."
Zhang Yue said slowly: "However, the rules should not be too strict in the first year. We should give the officials below a chance to breathe and adapt, and then we can gradually implement them step by step."
Han Zhongyan asked: "Will the officials who were abolished be replaced from Imperial College?"
Zhang Yue said: "Li Qingchen and I will discuss this matter slowly. You can handle your own affairs."