Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

The study of grain fighting, the study of imperial examinations, and the study of division of subjects.

The three definitions of science agreed upon with Zhang Pu made Zhu Youjian quite happy——

Young people like Zhang Pu are still smart, unlike Qian Qianyi, who got stuck after getting the eight words "managing the world for practical use and seeking truth from facts."

Today, Qian Qianyi is busy adding punctuation marks to the Four Books and Zhu Xi's annotations to the Four Books, extending Zhu Xi's "investigation of things to gain knowledge" to practical learning.

Qian Qianyi also pretended to have forgotten about the matter of lowering the questions of Mingfa and Mingshu in the provincial examination and not mentioning it again——

Obviously, Qian Qianyi felt that he was safe and was unwilling to do such controversial things.

What this person is more concerned about is competing with Liu Zongzhou for the right to interpret the Four Books and Five Classics.

Regarding matters related to the Mingfa and Mingshu departments, they selectively ignored them.

Zhu Youjian was working hard because Qian Qianyi, and there was still a troublesome thing he needed to do later. When it comes to matters involving Mingfa and Mingshuang, Qian Qianyi should not be harshly criticized.

Now after communicating with Zhang Pu, I still feel that it is more appropriate to let this young man come up with ideas.

With Zhang Pu's prestige among the students, he was more suitable to promote this matter.

So after Zhu Youjian and Zhang Pu discussed scientific matters, they asked Zhang Pu through the subject of scientific basic mathematics:
"Is there any way Zhang Qing can promote science among students?"

"Science is based on mathematics. How can we include questions from the mathematics and law subjects in the provincial examination?"

Zhang Pu was shocked when he first heard this. Because he has been working hard on the Four Books and Five Classics for these years and has not paid attention to other knowledge at all.

Even last year when the imperial court decided to hold Mingfa and Mingshu, it did not change his mind at all.

If the emperor had not asked him to study science under Xu Guangqi, he would not have planned to participate in the Ming Dynasty.

Now that the emperor asked about this matter, he was surprised and felt very embarrassed at the same time:

"If I object to this matter, His Majesty may think that I cannot use it based on the importance he attaches to science. 』

"Furthermore, the matter of becoming a disciple of Mr. Xu Ge may have gone wrong!" 』

The emperor arranged for him to become a disciple of Xu Guangqi, so that he could learn Western learning from Xu Guangqi and integrate into Ming Dynasty science.

If he objects to the inclusion of Mingmao subjects in the provincial examination, it means that he does not agree with science in his heart. How can the emperor support him?

This was unacceptable to Zhang Pu. Because he now needs to apprentice with Xu Guangqi to improve his status.

Unlike in history, when Zhang Pu became a Jinshi and then became a disciple of Xu Guangqi, today's Zhang Pu is just a student. Although there are some talents and names, compared with Xu Guangqi's identity, there is a huge difference.

Not to mention that Xu Guangqi was worshiped as a bachelor by Zhu Youjian early, which is infinitely higher than his status in history.

Zhang Pu urgently needed to study under Xu Guangqi and improve his status.

It can even be said that as long as the news about his apprenticeship with Xu Guangqi is reported back, his uncle Zhang Fuzhi will send the slaves who insulted him to him if he is wise.

This is a very important thing for Zhang Pu.

Unwilling to miss this opportunity, he began to think about how to add Mingfa and Mingshu subjects to the provincial examination as requested by the emperor.

Thinking of the settings of the Mingfa and Mingshu departments, as well as the proportion of Jinshi in each subject determined during the Juren meeting, Zhang Pu tried to say:
"Students think that if they want to add law and calculation subjects to the provincial examination, the most convenient way is to expand enrollment."

"We can double the number of candidates and share it with the Mingfa Department and the Mingshuang Department."

"In this way, the original exam does not need to be changed. Just like the proficiency test, two more exams can be added."

Zhu Youjian had never thought of this method. Because he only remembered being able to separate subjects in the examination and had never heard that the provincial examination could also be divided into subjects, he never thought of coming here.

But after hearing Zhang Pu's proposal, he felt that it could indeed be done. If you think of a candidate as a master's or doctorate, it does need to be divided into disciplines.

However, Zhu Youjian was very cautious about doubling the number of candidates. Because the Ming Dynasty gave many preferential treatment to the people who were elected, and he also opened the qualifications for people to be elected officials some time ago.

Doubling the number of candidates will cause too many changes and needs to be carefully considered.

After thinking about it, Zhu Youjian said:
"Increasing the number of candidates requires long-term planning."

"But you can spread the word, and there will definitely be more etiquette, law, and calculation questions in the future provincial examinations."

My goal is still to increase the number of etiquette questions.

Zhang Pu became anxious after hearing this and said hurriedly:
"Your Majesty, if you want to win the hearts of scholars, you must increase the number of candidates."

"Your Majesty, does he know how many students there are today and what is their condition?"

Zhu Youjian really didn't know about this. He only knew that the students in the Ming Dynasty liked to make trouble. Dong Qichang's house was burned down by the students who stirred up public opinion and incited the people. Not much is known about why they were causing trouble.

Now that he heard that Zhang Pu wanted to explain this matter, Zhu Youjian immediately listened carefully and said seriously:

"Please ask Zhang Qing to clear up the confusion!"

Seeing that the emperor valued it so much, Zhang Pu asked himself for advice. He was very excited and felt that the emperor was a wise king who was good at accepting advice. He said in a deep voice:

"The prosperity of the imperial examinations in the Ming Dynasty has never been seen before in history."

"Jinshi takes one subject every three years, and each subject is worth two to three hundred. In thirty years, it is two to three thousand."

"One subject is held every three years, and the total number of candidates in each province is more than 1,400 people. In thirty years, it is more than 14,000 people."

"The county examination and the government examination are taken every year, and the college examination is taken twice every three years. About 30,000 to 40,000 talents are admitted each time. After thirty years of accumulation, there are more than 600,000."

"In addition to passing the imperial examinations, these scholars can only rely on their status to enter and exit the public sector and gain a place in the countryside."

"It's true that the imperial court employs too few candidates, and they have no way out!"

Scholars can be said to be at the bottom of the Ming Dynasty's imperial examination system. But they also have some privileges and may get the opportunity to serve as officials.

It's just that this opportunity is really rare, and most talents don't get it. Many scholars could neither pass the examination nor become officials. Many people are unwilling to engage in industry and commerce, and can only rely on their status as scholars to find a place in the countryside. Some of them have been studying in county schools, government schools, or as students. Therefore, the word "shengyuan" has become a synonym for scholar.

There are many of these angry members who like to make trouble. When they gather together, they can even influence the public opinion of the entire Ming Dynasty.

Zhang Pu proposed to increase the number of candidates for election because of this consideration——

He wanted the students of Ming Dynasty to have more opportunities and seek benefits for these students.

Zhu Youjian listened to Zhang Pu's statement and was surprised by the number of famous scholars in the Ming Dynasty. He also roughly understood why the students in the Ming Dynasty liked to make trouble and had huge influence.

Because from his perspective, these students are unemployed college students, even masters and doctors.

How can such a senior intellectual not complain about being unemployed?

The commotion they cause among the people will also be huge.

Therefore, after Zhu Youjian listened to Zhang Pu's words, he calculated in his mind and said:

"Listen to what you said, the chance of a scholar being promoted to a scholar is now less than three percent."

"The chance of being promoted to Jinshi is probably 10 to 20%."

"No wonder there is a saying in the world that gold is used to promote people and silver is used to promote scholars."

"There is indeed a huge gap between the two. We should recruit more candidates."

After agreeing with Zhang Pu's suggestion, Zhu Youjian did not plan to expand the number of students according to the method he said. The method of directly doubling the number of students was really too rough.

Thinking of the tax sharing system being implemented by the Ministry of Household Affairs and the increasing debt collection, Zhu Youjian said:
"The increase in the number of people to be elected should be considered in the long term based on population, taxation, and tax payment conditions."

"I will let the ministers discuss it carefully and find a good solution."

"The additional quotas can be allocated to the Mingfa and Mingshu departments."

"Zhang Qing can let this news out to the outside world in the future."

Linking the number of candidates to the population tax was something Zhu Youjian thought of when preparing for the National Assembly. Later generations of Congress usually had the House of Representatives and the Senate. The seats in the House of Representatives were based on population.

Zhu Youjian included taxation and tax payment status, hoping that local officials and people would pay taxes more actively——

At least officials who default on tax payments cannot be scolded, while officials who actively collect taxes are scolded.

Now that there is no Congress, but the number of candidates needs to be increased, he wants to try this method in various places first.

Zhang Pu had never heard of this, but thinking about Suzhou's taxes, he thought this was a good thing. At least there will be a lot more places in Jiangnan.

So he hurriedly agreed with this matter and planned to publicize it when he returned. This kind of policy that is beneficial to Jiangnan must be approved by the court.

After roughly proposing this idea, Zhu Youjian asked Zhang Pu to spread the word and discuss it in newspapers.

Then he mentioned the way out he had arranged for the students:
"I have said before when regulating the levels of officials that those with the title of scholar can be directly awarded to fifth-level officials."

"In the future, the levels of officials in various places will be standardized. I will issue a special decree to encourage scholars to become officials."

"If they can pass the etiquette, law, and calculation exam, they can become officials after becoming ninth-level officials."

As he said that, Zhu Youjian thought of Zhang Pu's current identity as a Tai student, and said:
"Nowadays, Taisheng students have four ways to pay tribute to the officials, and they also donate money to be imprisoned."

"But I don't want to do anything about donating money for regular prisons. I will definitely control the number of people."

"These vacant places will need to be increased to allow all students to take the exam and the best ones will be admitted."

This is the college entrance examination, or postgraduate entrance examination, that he arranged for the members of the Ming Dynasty. Let these people have another way out besides taking the exam. So as not to have nothing to do and make trouble in the countryside.

As for what future these people will have after graduation. The civilian officers of the Ministry of War, as well as the four eunuchs outside the palace and the imperial hospital, have been recruiting imperial students.

As long as they are willing to do it, there is a high probability that they will have an official career.

Zhang Pu naturally looked down upon these solutions. But he had to agree that this was a way out. For many scholars who failed to pass the examination, they had the opportunity to obtain official status.

So what he is worried about is not that there are no people taking the exams, but that there are too many people taking the exams and the capital will be too busy:

"There are 500,000 to 600,000 talented people in the world. Even if one-tenth of them take the exam, there are still 50,000 to 600,000."

“Students are worried that the capital cannot afford it, and that Taixue will not be able to recruit many more students!”

This is indeed a problem. After Zhu Youjian considered it, he decided to divert the distribution to various places, saying:
"Nanjing Taixue can also expand its enrollment."

"There are also Beijing Normal School, Tianjin Naval Academy, Jinyiwei Safety School, Neifu Supervisor Industrial and Commercial School, Shaofu Temple Literature and Thought School, and the Foreign Language School of the General Administration of Translation and Interpretation. They will all recruit students together and hold joint examinations."

"These schools are all university halls, and the students can be called university students, similar to Tai students."

"After graduation, I will have the opportunity to serve in various government offices."

"If you can still pass the etiquette, law, and calculation exam after graduation, you can start from the ninth rank."

He released all the various schools he had set up before.

This not only gives students a way out, but also solves the problem of insufficient students in these schools.

As for whether the students are willing to go to these schools, it depends on their choice——

If you don't want to go even if you are given a way out, then you deserve it.

Listening to the emperor's actions, Zhang Pu felt that the emperor was really considering the students and giving them a way out. This made him feel filled with emotion:

Having such a good emperor is a blessing for members of the Ming Dynasty, but it can also be called unfortunate for people like him.

Since all the students were busy taking exams, naturally not many people were free to make trouble. A student leader like him no longer has the status he had before.

However, considering the emperor's regard for him, Zhang Pu did not miss his status as the so-called leader of the students.

If possible, he would even like to serve as an official in the imperial court and truly become a minister.

So he took the initiative to cooperate and help the emperor perfect this idea.

At Zhang Pu's suggestion, Zhu Youjian decided to ask each province to conduct a preliminary selection of students participating in the joint examination. In addition, various yamen universities were established in Nanjing, and each province was allowed to establish one.

Well-known academies in various places can also obtain the status of a university after offering professional subjects and obtaining approval from the Education Department of the Ministry of Rites.

Together with the schools in the capital, they will recruit students from all over the country.

Although the opening of these schools is mainly to provide students with a way out. However, the construction of various professional disciplines also has the intention of promoting science. Zhu Youjian asked Zhang Pu to use "Journal of Daming Dynasty" to guide the discipline construction of various schools. Let the scientific "study of disciplines" gradually take root in the hearts of the people.

After all these were agreed upon, Zhu Youjian finally mentioned the matter of Guanglu Temple and said:

"I have arranged some public opinion monitors to supervise and report on the Guanglu Temple case."

"Zhang Qing can also join Ming Pao after it is established."

"I will ask the Internal Affairs Supervisor to arrange for a chamberlain to join Ming Pao. If Zhang Qing encounters any difficulties, he can be asked to come forward."

When Zhang Pu heard this, he was both worried and happy. What worries him is that the eunuch arranged by the emperor is messing around, but he is happy that with the existence of this eunuch, he can communicate with the emperor more conveniently.

After the various yamen know that "Ming Pao" has internal eunuchs, they will respect him more.

So after thinking about it, he acquiesced in this matter.

With a bunch of tasks assigned by the emperor, he finally left the palace.

After leaving the palace, Zhang Pu thought of what happened after entering the palace, and he felt as if he was in another world.

After being interviewed by the emperor, he knew that his future path was completely different from what he had imagined before.

But he was not dissatisfied with it, but was very happy. Decided to do these things according to the emperor's instructions.

As a student leader and a genius in social activities who had already formed a society, Zhang Pu naturally would not do these things alone. He decided to gather his friends and do it together.

At this time, Zhang Cai was waiting anxiously in the Imperial Academy after learning that he had entered the palace.

It wasn't until Zhang Pu came back that he breathed a sigh of relief and said:
"Brother Tianru, just be fine!"

"Fortunately, the country is now in power. If Wei Ni was in power two years ago, Brother Yu would be really worried that you would not be able to get out!"

Thinking about what happened two years ago, I still feel scared.

Wei Zhongxian's cruelty to the scholars was so cruel!

When Zhang Pu heard what he said, he also thought of what he and the emperor had mentioned about Chen Zilong's father. He told Zhang Cai about it and said:

"Your Majesty has a benevolent heart and things like that will never happen again in the future."

Then he said to Zhang Cai:
"But what you said was fine is completely wrong!"

“I went in with nothing and came out with a lot to do.”

"The Holy Emperor likes to employ people, and he likes to arrange things for the people he values. I can see it today."

"The things His Majesty has arranged for me to do will take me more than a few months to finish!"

After briefly talking to Zhang Cai, Zhang Cai was so surprised when he heard that the emperor's arrangements included apprenticeships, running newspapers, promoting science, promoting the establishment of university halls, recruiting more people, etc.

He really didn't expect that the emperor would discuss these matters with a prince. Moreover, Zhang Pu even declined the opportunity to become an official.

This made him only sigh:

"Heaven is as talented as a brother, but a foolish brother is far behind!"

"I wish I could reach thousands of miles with my tail!"

He stayed in Taixue and worked with Zhang Pu. (End of chapter)