Father can be an enemy country

Chapter 1411 A Centennial Plan
Zhu Zhen finally looked at Huang Guan.

Unlike his peers who served as local officials, Huang Guan served as the Yunnan Prefecture Confucianist Supervisor, a position responsible for managing schools and education.

Huang Guan has been running schools over the years, but they are not traditional prefectural or county schools, because there are no students of school age in Yunnan, and no one would attend such schools even if they were established.

But this was not a bad thing, as Huang Guan could start from the very beginning. During his tenure, he established a three-year primary school in Kunming, Fumin, and Yiliang counties of Yunnan Prefecture, and in Songmeng, Kunyang, Jinning, and Anning prefectures, enrolling children under ten years old.

Moreover, the primary school tuition is free, and the school also provides a lunch. Such good treatment is not because Huang Guan has too much money to spend, but because if it were not so, no one would send their children to school.

Unlike the Jiangnan, Shandong, Fujian and Guangdong regions where literature flourished and education was valued, the people in Yunnan were mostly soldiers, craftsmen, or even exiled prisoners. There was no one who could read for several generations. So in the eyes of ordinary people, what was the point of studying? It was better to do some odd jobs to earn some money for the family.

It is all thanks to that free lunch that people are willing to send their children to school, saving the family a meal, and it is also good if they can learn a few words at the same time.

However, in the past two years, many parents have changed their minds. Seeing that their children can write and calculate in school, they can find a leisurely job of copying and writing when they go out to work. So they support their children to continue their studies and strive to learn more skills so that they can become accountants in the future, which will not require hard labor and can earn more money.

"Now the first batch of primary school students have graduated. The corresponding middle school has also been prepared. The middle school is a two-year system..." Huang Guan said about his plan.

"There aren't many people willing to go to middle school, right?" Zhu Zhen asked. After all, three years is enough time for a child to master the most basic reading, writing and calculation skills.

"There are indeed not many. Less than one in ten are willing to continue their studies. A middle school in Kunming can accommodate them all." Huang Guan's mouth was full of bitterness. He felt that his achievements were insignificant compared to those of his fellow students.

"It's already a lot." Zhu Zhen encouraged Huang Guan, "Don't be discouraged. It's not your fault that your parents don't want you to continue studying. It's the whole society's problem. After finishing elementary school, you'll be 13 or 14 years old. You'll be a semi-laborer who can earn money for the family. Who would be willing to pay for your meal?"

"Yes." Huang Guan nodded. "I have visited many families like this, hoping that they can let their children continue to study, but they all said that their families are too poor to make ends meet, and they can't let their children grow up like that and sit there doing nothing."

"As an official, I have no other choice but to spend money to buy back a few outstanding students from their families and bring them back to school." Huang Guan said with a bitter smile, "But the students are also poor, and even if they are made of iron, how many nails can they hammer?"

"How much does it cost to redeem a student?" Zhu Zhen asked.

"Five taels of silver is about right." Huang Guan replied, "Young men are only paid half of their wages, so they can only earn about six taels a year. But parents are not completely unreasonable, so they will give students a small amount."

"I see. I paid for this money, but you can't say it's redeeming the child, that's too ugly." Zhu Zhen said, "Let's call it a scholarship. After graduating from elementary school, those who can get into middle school will have a scholarship. When they reach high school, the amount will increase to ten taels!"

"Thank you, Your Highness..." Huang Guan was so moved that tears came down his face. He knelt down and said, "I kowtow to Your Highness on behalf of those children who have lost their education."

"Don't try that." Zhu Zhen waved his hand and said with a smile: "They are all my subjects. If they learn good skills and use them for my benefit, I will still make money in the end!"

"But I and my children will still be extremely grateful to Your Highness." Huang Guan still kowtowed to Zhu Zhen stubbornly.

"Get up, continue to follow your plan, and the next step is to prepare for the establishment of Kunming High School! Don't worry, the funds will be sufficient! I still say that education is the foundation of a century-long plan, and no matter how poor we are, we cannot be poor in education!" Zhu Zhen raised his voice.

"Yes." Huang Guan was deeply encouraged. He wiped away his tears and nodded heavily, "The student plan for high school is also two years. So a ten-year-old child can take the college entrance examination after seven years of enrollment." "Are you talking about the Imperial University in Nanjing?" Zhu Zhen asked.

"Of course." Huang Guandian nodded, not thinking that there was anything wrong with his idea at all.

"..." Zhu Zhen was speechless. These damn academic gods never understood that the things they took for granted were things that ordinary people could not accomplish no matter how hard they tried.

Just like when Jordan taught Kwame Brown how to shoot without being blocked, he said: 'After you jump, wait for the person who blocks you to fall before shooting, and there will be no problem.'

Don't even think about it, how can a mortal jump and then fall like a flying man...

~~
"We in Kunming still have a weak foundation," said Ma Sheng from Dongyang, who could empathize with ordinary people and understood what the prince meant. "We are afraid that we will not be able to compete with the candidates from the mainland. We will not be able to pass the exam even if we try our best... a few."

Zhu Zhen nodded and said, "That's right. After all, only a few people can get into Nanjing. But we can build our own university in Yunnan. Doesn't it mean that the talents trained by local universities are not talents?"

"That's definitely not the case. Our students are trained according to the path of Guozi University since childhood, with particular emphasis on science, mathematics and math. They will definitely be useful talents in the future!" Huang Guan is confident about this.

"Right, that's enough! Work hard, this is our fundamental plan!" Zhu Zhen encouraged Huang Guan again:

"Always remember that education is the foundation and talent is the future. Whether Yunnan can catch up with Jiangnan is not up to our generation to decide. It depends on whether the younger generations can continue to give strong support."

"Whether the younger generations can be helpful depends on how well we run our education!" Huang Guan raised his head and said generously: "I will dedicate my life to the education cause of Kunming!"

"Hey, how can Kunming alone be enough? You will be in charge of the education of the whole Yunnan in the future..." Zhu Zhen was talking when he saw Deng Duo and his men coming over. He thought Tie Xuan had arrived, so he stopped talking.

But when I saw the man walking out from under the shade of the tree, a salted egg sparkling in the sun, I realized it was not Tie Xuan, but a fat monk.

Zhu Zhen frowned slightly and said, "Hey, why is it him?"

Then he said to Huang Guan and the other two, "You should leave first. This evil monk is too evil. I'm afraid he will lead you astray."

Huang Guan and the other two hurriedly stood up and left the pavilion. When they met the monk, they couldn't help but look at him.

This monk who looked like Maitreya from a distance actually had a pair of scary triangular eyes and deep wrinkles on his cheeks. He looked like a sick tiger, which was really frightening.

The monk smiled and saluted them, and the three of them politely returned the greeting, and the two sides passed each other.

(End of this chapter)