At the end of Qin, I became a son of the plane

Chapter 401, Recommendation of Successor and Dahan's First High School Entrance Examination

The tenth year of the Han calendar, June 10th.

The emperor appointed the Internal History Order Ye Teng to dig the Ye Canal. After years of hard work and great merit, he was granted the title of Che Hou and his fiefdom was increased by 1,000 households.

As soon as this imperial edict was issued, it caused a sensation in the whole Guanzhong. No matter whether it was the title of Marquis or the fief of a thousand households, they were nothing to the Han Dynasty.

But the emperor rewarded Ye Teng at this critical moment. Does this mean that the emperor recognized Ye Teng as the second prime minister of the Han Dynasty?

The gossip party and high-ranking Han officials in Chang'an City checked Ye Teng's resume and found that Ye Teng also defected to the emperor at the beginning of the establishment of the Han Dynasty. He was also a veteran meritorious official. He stayed with the emperor for more than a year. Later, he became the prefect of Kuaiji County. Because of his outstanding political achievements, he was promoted to the Minister of Internal Affairs, one of the Nine Ministers.

Although the Nanjun meritorious officials were not welcomed because of Gong Ao, if the emperor was Ye Teng's backer, then everything would not be a problem. Moreover, according to the emperor's habit of employing people, he preferred a doer like Ye Teng.

It can even be said that each of the first few candidates for prime minister of the Han Dynasty was a practical man and made outstanding contributions.

On the contrary, although Chen Gang, Chen Chui, and Wu Guang were the emperor's friends in need, and it was Chen Gang who helped arrange the emperor's household registration, these people's talents were far inferior to those of the previous candidates for prime minister. Even the grassroots officials in Chang'an City knew that these veterans were just running mates for the prime minister this time.

Now that the emperor has sent out such a signal, for many people this means that the emperor recognizes Ye Teng as the second prime minister of the Han Dynasty!
For a time, the entire Han court had a louder voice for Ye Teng to become the second prime minister. Guanzhong was Ye Teng's base camp, and many Han officials in Guanzhong unconsciously moved closer to him.

On June 16th, at Xiao He's residence, Cao Shen, Zhou Bo and several other fellow villagers from Pei County met for the first time after the open selection of the prime minister.

In fact, Zhou Bo had not seen Xiao He and Cao Shen since last year. There was no particular reason, as they had become competitors at that time.

Everyone in the world knew when Prime Minister Zhou Zhang would retire, and officials who wanted to become Prime Minister had already calculated the date and made preparations. At that time, Zhou Bo regarded Xiao He and Cao Shen as his competitors, so he distanced himself from them. But now that Ye Teng had appeared and they had a common enemy, Zhou Bo took the initiative to come to Xiao He's residence.

Zhou Bo sneered and said, "We have been preparing for the position of Prime Minister for so long, but we didn't expect Ye Teng to attack us at the end of the game."

Zhou Bo thought that he had offended the entire Han official group for the position of prime minister and almost fled overseas. Even if the tax reform was successful by chance, even his family's few acres of land and several shops would be made public.

He paid such a huge price to make himself one of the top candidates, but now Ye Teng suddenly appeared. This was something he found hard to accept.

Cao Shen said calmly: "Ye Teng's political achievements are outstanding, but my brothers are not bad either. Based on our abilities, my brothers will not lose to Ye Teng. Why do you care about these things?"

Cao Shen was an extremely talented person in both civil and military affairs. He was not afraid of direct competition with anyone. In his opinion, the emperor rewarded Ye Teng without any other thoughts, but simply because of Ye Qu's contribution. And Ye Qu happened to be built at this time, which was obviously Ye Teng's accurate timing. However, the emperor would definitely not appoint Ye Teng as prime minister because of this matter.

Xiao He shook his head and said, "It's the same whether Ye Teng is there or not. You two have forgotten that our backgrounds have determined that Ye Teng is not our competitor."

"Background?" Cao Shen immediately realized the seriousness of the matter.

Zhou Bo's expression also changed drastically and he said, "We are all from Pei County."

There was nothing wrong with their background. On the contrary, it gave them a sense of righteousness. They joined the Han army with Liu Bang and were smoothly integrated into the Han system.

But now they are running for the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty, and the problem of the Three Dukes of the Han Dynasty is big. Even for the balance of the court, it is impossible for the emperor to allow all three of them from Pei County to become the Three Dukes of the Han Dynasty. Even the elders of Chen County only occupy two seats in the Three Dukes of the Han Dynasty. How can they be qualified to be compared with the elders of Chen County?

Xiao He said calmly: "The biggest possibility is that one of the three of us can become the Third Duke."

Zhou Boyu said angrily: "After all this trouble, the biggest enemy of us brothers is still our own people. What a shame!"

Xiao He said calmly, "This is the emperor's benevolence. Among the nine ministers, my brothers and I occupy three seats. This is already in addition to the elders of Chen County. We have the most people in Pei County. If it weren't for the emperor's large-scale mobilization of princes, we would not be able to covet the position of prime minister, and even among the nine ministers, it would be difficult for us to have a share. Now we are competing for the position of prime minister. What qualifications do we have to be dissatisfied? We should just do our own things and wait for the emperor's appointment."

For a moment, Zhou Bo was speechless. When the country was founded, he and Cao Shen were only earls. Xiao He was even worse off and only got a nominal title of viscount as a reward for his hard work. There were dozens of meritorious officials ahead of them. If the emperor had not been enfeoffing meritorious officials, they could only be prefects with a salary of two thousand stones at most.

Because according to this ranking of merit and seniority, each of the elders of Chen County had greater merit and seniority than them, and if the elders of Chen County were not given fiefs, it would be difficult for them to even ascend to the position of Nine Ministers.

But things in the world are so wonderful, most of the meritorious officials who ranked before them were granted fiefs, but they, the viscounts and earls, came to the fore and even had the opportunity to fight for the position of ruling the world. Thinking of this, Zhou Bo also felt that some of them were not satisfied.

But thinking that the position of prime minister was only one step away from them, it now seemed that this step was so close yet so far away. Although he had the support of the fake prime minister Chen Ping, behind Xiao He was the prime minister Zhou Zhang. It was unclear whether he could ascend to the position of one of the Three Dukes, but it was highly likely that Xiao He would be the one.

Zhou Bo was so angry that he didn't know how to vent, so he could only sigh and leave.

Seeing Zhou Bo leaving in anger, Cao Shen said, "Why did you say that? If he fails when the emperor appoints him, he will at most think that he is inferior to others in skills. But now you are disappointing him in advance."

Xiao He was speechless.

When Xiao He and other fellow villagers from Pei County gathered.

Not far from them, in Shusun Tong's mansion, he also gathered with his teacher and uncle.

Shusun Tong was somewhat disappointed and said, "There are many people in the world discussing the selection of prime ministers, but no one thought of my disciples and my uncle. My disciples and my uncle are also one of the Nine Ministers, but now they have been forgotten by the whole world."

Every scholar has a dream of ruling the world. Although Shusun Tong was a more realistic person, he was also one of the Nine Ministers and was only one step away from becoming the prime minister.

But this step was so far away. The people of Guanzhong discussed so many candidates, even the local governor was discussed, but he and Fusheng never appeared in the discussion of Guanzhong tea drinkers. This made Shusun Tong feel a little humiliated. Even if there were only a few people discussing it, it would be better than being so transparent.

Kong Yu asked, "Do you know how to organize the people to repair water conservancy projects?"

Shusun Tong shook his head.

Kong Yu continued, "Can you organize the people to repair thousands of miles of track without making any mistakes?"

Shusun Tong smiled bitterly and said, "I don't have this experience."

Kong Yu asked, "Can you bring hundreds of millions of acres of irrigated land to the Han Dynasty?"

Shusun Tong said helplessly: "I don't know how to farm, but these tedious tasks can be handed over to the farmers, and I can coordinate and command them."

Kong Yu said, "You also admit that you are not as good as the farmers. Then why didn't the emperor let the merchants and farmers handle this matter, but let you take charge?"

Kong Yu continued, "The emperor is a pragmatic person, and you have never entered his sight. Becoming one of the Nine Ministers is your limit."

He knew that his student would never be in the emperor's eyes, so he did not recommend Shusun Tong to the emperor, because he knew that it would be useless to recommend him. There were too many capable officials in the Han Dynasty, and none of them could match his disciple. It was better not to recommend him and become an invisible person.

Kong Yu broke Shusun Tong's fantasy. He understood the etiquette of various countries in the past three dynasties, and was best at formulating etiquette systems. Shusun Tong originally thought that after the establishment of the Han Dynasty, most of the meritorious officials were peasants, and the emperor needed him to formulate various etiquette to maintain the imperial power system.

As a result, the emperor immediately overturned the etiquette system of three generations. He hated all the cumbersome and meaningless etiquette. The Han Dynasty had been established for ten years, but the emperor had never thought of formulating an etiquette system to regulate the levels of various classes.

Shusun Tong could feel that the emperor actually liked the current chaotic situation more, and everything he had learned throughout his life had become almost useless in the Han Dynasty.

Fu Sheng said: "We should focus on doing well in the first high school entrance examination. We don't have a chance this time, but it doesn't mean that we Confucian scholars have no chance." Yes, the imperial examination has been going on for almost ten years, and Xu Fan found that the imperial examination has begun to fail to adapt to the current situation of the Han Dynasty. In the history of the imperial examinations, even during the Song and Ming dynasties when the number of people was the largest, officials were selected, while the Han Dynasty directly selected minor officials with a salary of around 100 stones. The selection systems of both sides were completely different from the beginning.

There were many scholars who passed the Han Dynasty imperial examinations, but their official positions were low, so they had to start from the grassroots level and become clerks. However, the imperial examinations in the Song and Ming dynasties in history could be considered as a test to become an official in one step. As long as one passed the examination, he would become an official of the ruling class, so there is a saying that goes "fish leaping over the dragon gate."

Although the imperial examinations of the Han Dynasty offered many opportunities, they also brought a problem: low cost-effectiveness. Scholars had to travel a long distance to the city of Chang'an, but after passing the examinations they could only become minor clerks, which was costly and had low returns.

When the country was first founded, the Han Dynasty had a high admission rate and fast promotion, which was acceptable to everyone. But now the Han Dynasty has a complete Han official system, and more and more people are taking the imperial examinations. It is impossible to be promoted to a county magistrate in one year or a 2000-shi prefect in two years as before, and sometimes you can't even pass the exam.

As a result, the cost of the imperial examinations was prohibitive for many ordinary families. In this era, long-distance travel was much more expensive than in later generations. One imperial examination might use up several years' savings, and the difficulty of the examinations increased sharply. Even small landlord families could hardly afford such consumption.

After learning about this situation, Xu Fan planned to follow the example of later generations and delegate the imperial examination to the county level. If there was a shortage of minor officials in the local area, they would report it, and then the imperial school officials would go to the local area to preside over the examination, just like the boy's examination in the imperial examination in later generations. After the examination, they would directly serve as officials in the local area.

Of course, another system also needed to be improved, that is, the academic system of the Han Dynasty. Since most of the academic institutions were in Chang'an City, most of the students enrolled in the Han Dynasty's academic institutions were from Guanzhong.

A large proportion of the students in the academy entered the Han officialdom, or got a golden collar job in this era.

It can be said that in this era, as long as one was admitted to a university, his status and treatment would be higher than those of a minor official who passed the imperial examination. There were already many complaints among the people of the Han Dynasty, who believed that the court was too biased towards Guanzhong, especially the old Han bases in Chu.

In this case, Xu Fan had to consider the period of educational equality, otherwise, in a few years, most of the officials in the Han Dynasty would be from Guanzhong. This situation was obviously not conducive to the Han Dynasty's rule over the world.

So he planned to learn from the advanced experience of later generations and organize a nationwide high school entrance examination. He would allocate a certain number of students to each county according to the proportion of the population. Even the princes from all directions would have quotas. Xu Fan could only try his best to be fair and just to ensure that all forces of the Han Dynasty could enter the officialdom of the Han Dynasty and become the upper class of the Han Dynasty.

The time for the first high school entrance examination of the Han Dynasty was set after the autumn harvest.

The 15th day of the seventh month in the 10th year of the Han calendar. Jianzhang Palace.

After the court meeting, Xu Fan deliberately left behind Prime Minister Zhou Zhang, Acting Prime Minister Zhang Liang, Chen Ping, and Imperial Censor Chen Lin.

Xu Fan looked at them and said, "This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Han Dynasty. After the Sages' Meeting and the Princes' Conference, the Three Dukes of the Han Dynasty will be officially replaced."

"We are friends in need. You can raise any ideas you have now. Whether you want the etiquette of three requests and three resignations, or the honor of not bowing when entering the court, not naming when praising or bowing, or the honor of wearing a sword and shoes when entering the palace, or the honor of being a vassal state, you can raise them now."

Zhou Zhang smiled and said, "Forget about these cumbersome etiquettes. The three requests and three refusal are to show the monarch's love for talents and the importance he places on his subjects. This is a legacy of the Zhou rituals of the old times. However, my Han is the Han of all people in the world, and I am also the master of the Han. What's the big deal about keeping myself?

Let's start abolishing this outdated etiquette from us. As for the vassal states, forget it. The Han Dynasty is my vassal state."

Xu Fan thought for a moment and said, "Then let's give the Prime Minister an additional 100 households, so that he can receive an annual salary of million coins. This can be regarded as a reward from the people of the Han Dynasty for his hard work over the years. If the Prime Minister is willing to teach and educate people, he can stay in Chang'an and become a principal. I will then give him the title of Grand Tutor."

Zhou Zhang thought about Xu Fan's proposal and did not refuse, saying: "I do want to record my experience in governing the country over the years and pass it on to future generations."

He came from the Huang-Lao school, so he has achieved merit and virtue. If he can then leave his words behind, his life will be complete.

Then Xu Fan looked at Zhang Liang.

Zhang Liang said: "I want to reestablish the Kingdom of Han, which can be regarded as fulfilling my promise to my father and brother."

Zhang Liang's father died in the war of unification of Qin, and Zhang Liang's two elder brothers also died in the campaign to restore the Kingdom of Han, so reviving the Kingdom of Han was also one of Zhang Liang's obsessions.

If it were the Han Dynasty in history, Zhang Liang would not have made such a suggestion, but the situation in the Han Dynasty is different now. There are more than 400 vassal states, and establishing another Han state is nothing.

Xu Fan said: "Zifang can go to the South China Sea to enclose land and establish the Kingdom of Korea. The imperial court will provide a 10,000-stone sea ship and 100 million coins of goods to support Zifang in establishing a country."

Zhang Liang smiled and said, "I thank your Majesty."

Then Xu Fan looked at Chen Ping.

Chen Ping said: "I went through hardships when I was young. Now I am old and do not want to suffer the hardships of pioneering again. I just want to stay in Guanzhong to spend my remaining years."

Xu Fan said: "I will confer upon the fake prime minister a title of 10,000 households, an annual salary of one million, and the title of Grand Tutor. The fake prime minister can stay in Chang'an City and provide advice on my administration."

Chen Ping said happily: "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Finally, Xu Fan looked at Chen Lin.

Chen Lin smiled calmly and said, "Your Majesty, please give all my achievements to Ah Sheng. I don't want to leave Chang'an either."

Xu Fan nodded and said, "I confer the title of Duke of Luzon on Chen Sheng. From now on, the entire Luzon Island will be Chen Sheng's fiefdom. My lord, I confer the title of Grand Protector on you. My lord, you will stay in Chang'an City to live out your remaining years."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

After Xu Fan finished talking about the treatment of Zhou Zhang and others, he continued to ask: "Do you have anyone to elect and recommend to me the successor to your position?"

Zhou Zhang thought for a moment and said, "Xiao He, the left chief of the Tongzheng Department, is experienced in politics, thoughtful, and well-versed in laws and decrees of past dynasties. He also studied Huang-Lao. He can continue my policies as the prime minister of the Han Dynasty. In addition, Cao Shen, the right chief of the Tongzheng Department, is both civil and military, and can also be a prime minister. The Minister of Agriculture is a businessman and farmer, down-to-earth, and willing to go deep into the countryside. He is a rare agricultural technical talent in our Han Dynasty. He can be called a fake prime minister."

Then Xu Fan looked at Chen Ping, Chen Lin and others.

Chen Ping said: "Tax Supervisor Zhou Bo is simple and resolute, a capable Han official. He can promote the policies of the Han Dynasty as prime minister."

Chen Lin thought for a moment and said, "I recommend Wu Guang, Chen Gang, Chen Chui and other old brothers. They have made contributions and worked hard over the years. Most importantly, these old brothers are loyal to Your Majesty. With them, Your Majesty can sit in the court."

Zhang Liang thought for a moment and said, "Then I will recommend Ye Nei Shi. Your Majesty is also aware of Ye Nei Shi's contributions, so I will not say more."

After hearing Zhou Zhang and his companions nod their heads, Xu Fan began to think about which people should be promoted to the positions and how the positions of the Nine Ministers should be adjusted.

October 10th, the tenth year of the Han calendar.

This year, the imperial examination system of the Han Dynasty underwent a major change. The assessment of Han officials and minor officials with a rank of 100 stones was delegated to the county level.

At the same time, the Han Dynasty began its first national high school entrance examination, which was presided over by Fu Sheng, the director of the Han Dynasty's Education Department. Those with excellent results could be admitted to 15 academies of the Han Dynasty, including the Mozi Academy and the Luban Academy. The total number of enrollments in the Han Dynasty's academies was as high as 2, which were allocated according to population among the 50 counties of the Han Dynasty. At the same time, the 400 princes of the Han Dynasty were allocated 2000 places.

The sensation this caused even exceeded that of the imperial examinations in the Han Dynasty. After all, the number of imperial examinations is getting smaller and smaller, but the academy is recruiting 2 people at one time. Compared with the increasingly fewer imperial examinations, taking an examination in an academy is simply a bright road.

The most important thing is that after graduating from the Han Dynasty's institutions, there is no need to worry about not being able to find a job. Whether they go to the various princes of the Han Dynasty, or the local counties, court offices, and workshops, there is no shortage of jobs for them, and the salaries are extremely high.

The first high school entrance examination has become an opportunity for all families of all classes in the Han Dynasty to change their destiny. More than 100,000 students have entered the examination room, and they will compete for less than 20,000 places.

(End of this chapter)