Rule the Ming Dynasty Alone

After the Qionglin Banquet, 600 new scholars entered Honglu Temple for "pre-job training", mainly to learn official etiquette such as various court gatherings and sacrifices.

Compared with the previous distribution model of new scholars, the imperial examination and appointment system of the Ming Dynasty has undergone great reforms.

In one fell swoop, Hongzhi Chao broke with the traditional method of appointment based solely on imperial examination results and personal background. Instead, he adopted a dual examination of imperial examination results and interviews to identify more outstanding talents.

Li Wei got up early today, bought sesame cakes and pickles from a street stall, walked through the busy Chang'an streets, and then came to the solemn and mysterious Xijiang Rice Lane.

The towering courtyard walls and the majestic stone lions in front of the door all made him feel an unprecedented pressure. It was also the place he longed to join.

If you can enter these yamen and serve, not only will you be ahead of other new scholars, but you will also be able to better contribute to the construction of the Ming Dynasty.

Finally, he came to the destination of his trip, a government office with a brand new plaque "Foreign Affairs Department".

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is now one of the twelve ministries of the Ming Dynasty. Its main responsibility is to liaise with overseas governor-general offices. It must not only serve the overseas governor-general offices, but also restrain some inappropriate behaviors of the governor-general offices.

This is a yamen in a new field, but it is also the place where Li Wei longs to work.

For him, he has the opportunity to take a boat overseas to see the vast world, and he can also work in Beijing to take care of his family. It can be said that he kills two birds with one stone.

Li Wei took a deep breath and stepped into the Yamen of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

I thought I had arrived early enough, but when I entered the courtyard, I discovered that there was already a team of dozens of people lined up here, all of whom had come to attend interviews with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Although everyone is of the same age, they are actually competing with each other now, so they no longer care about the polite etiquette of official circles, but queue up nervously to wait for the interview.

"I'm so nervous!"

"I'm also nervous and want to change clothes again!"

"Who wouldn't be nervous about this kind of thing? Just relax!"

…

The relationship between the few new scholars is quite good. Although they came to the Foreign Affairs Department together to face each other, they encouraged each other, but the tension was lingering.

"The Master has arrived. The interview has officially begun. All candidates whose names are called should come to me!" A middle-aged man wearing a sixth-grade official uniform appeared in front of them and announced in a businesslike manner.

Li Wei's palms were sweating unconsciously. He looked around and found that the previous interviewers seemed calm and leisurely, and even seemed confident of winning, which made him feel even more nervous.

Their right to stay or stay depends entirely on the yamen they interview for, but these yamen are bound to engage in malpractice for personal gain, and the admission quota may have been predetermined by the previous new scholars through their relationships.

"Will we, the top three, only go through a formality?"

"If you think so, you will be failing His Majesty!"

"Your Majesty avoids falsehood and is truthful. What he wants is someone who wants to do things. Even if someone like Chen Kuan is the second best, he will not be able to help the Ming Dynasty at all!"

…

As more and more new candidates came out after their interviews, everyone observed their reactions and saw some clues. Everyone agreed that the top three candidates were not just going through the motions.

As for whether there are a large number of appointed personnel here, it is unknown.

For example, there have been rumors that Tang Yin, the number one scholar, befriended the wealthy Xu Jing and bought the examination questions from Song Cheng. Until now, some people think that there is an inside story, but more and more evidence shows that this is indeed malicious slander.

Li Wei felt even more nervous because he was not only a top-ranking scholar, but also had no family background. He would definitely be a remote county magistrate or a government official in the future.

"Li Wei!"

Finally, it was his turn for the interview.

In the eyes of other interviewers, Li Wei walked towards the interview hall nervously.

In order to relieve his tension, he raised his heart, reached out and pinched his thigh flesh hard, diverting his attention through the physical pain.

Following an official into the room, I saw several interviewers sitting upright with blazing eyes, and sitting in the middle was naturally Liu Zhang, the new local uncle of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"Li Wei, if you follow a general and are ordered to go to a large tribe on a certain island. After this general rules this tribe, he wants to stay here and make himself king. What should you do?" Liu Zhang, the new uncle of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was blind. Lift, the question is asked by the subordinate officer next to you.

Liu Zhang's attention at the moment was not on Li Wei, but on the sudden thought of his luck in life.

Although he did not actually rebel against the court, he eventually chose to resign from the court and already had the idea of ​​moving his family to the American continent. Therefore, Hongzhi was very kind to him by not pursuing him and retaining his title.

He also realized his political mistakes, so he took the initiative to promote potatoes, sweet potatoes and corn in the following years. In addition, he actually secretly brought back some golden potato seeds, which made a great contribution to the entire China.

It was originally his act of atonement, but unexpectedly gained the emperor's attention.

The imperial court established a new Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Emperor Hongzhi suddenly summoned him to the palace for an interview. Since he really wanted to work for the Ming Dynasty, the emperor handed over the newly established yamen to him.

Today, the Foreign Affairs Department he is in charge of, like other ministerial-level yamen, screens the new candidates who come for interviews so as to retain the talents he thinks are the most suitable.

Of course, although he, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, has absolute power over personnel, he knows that this is the emperor's trust in them, so he aims to pick the best talents.

As for those who want to use connections, they are directly rejected. This is not only basic loyalty to the emperor, but also the inevitable way for his Ministry of Foreign Affairs to stand out in the competition among various departments.

Since the emperor gave him a chance to start over, he must not only manage the Ministry of Foreign Affairs well, but also strive to become a famous minister who helps Emperor Hongzhi create a new prosperous era.

Li Wei didn't even think about it, and immediately gave the answer: "I follow it!"

Huh?

When several examiners heard this answer, they couldn't help but look at Li Wei in surprise. None of the candidates in front of them dared to give such a treasonous answer.

"Why is that?" Liu Zhang slowly raised his head and looked at the unremarkable young man in front of him seriously.

As if encouraged, Li Wei answered with certainty: "If we stand up against each other, he will only use us as a sacrifice! His Majesty taught: Empty talk ruins the country, but hard work makes it prosperous. If you ignore the birth of a traitor in the Ming Dynasty for a little personal reputation, that is disloyalty! Even if you die, you should die for a good cause, rather than encountering a traitor and not thinking about getting rid of him for the emperor."

"So, you followed the traitor, which was really a temporary measure?" The Minister of Foreign Affairs next to him heard the implication and smiled slightly.

Li Wei seemed to be offended by this question, and he immediately stopped being nervous and talked freely: "Of course it is an expedient measure! The emperor is concerned about the people of the world, and the people live and work in peace and contentment. The country is even more powerful and strong, which is a situation that has not been seen for thousands of years! The thief ignored the emperor and the country because of one person's selfishness. This thief should be eliminated as soon as possible!... The thieves can gather for a while, but they will have gaps over time. At that time, we can win over the useful people and then kill them to eliminate this harm for the Ming Dynasty... Anyone involved in the case will not turn back until death, and the nine clans will be killed!" This place seemed to have become Li Wei's home court. In the eyes of other examiners, he stood in the hall and talked freely. Perhaps he had a firm heart to respect the emperor, or perhaps he hated such traitors, so he performed exceptionally well in this interview. In the end, after he finished answering, he won a lot of applause. After the interview, Li Wei walked out of the gate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and at this moment he seemed to be dreaming. When a ray of sunlight fell on his face, he seemed to have a new understanding. He looked up in the direction of the Forbidden City and saw the towering city wall.

Although he was an inconspicuous one among the 600 new scholars, he respected the current Emperor Hongzhi from the bottom of his heart and could not tolerate the thieves betraying the Ming Dynasty.

Although he had not experienced the Kaiyuan Prosperity and had not seen the Renzong Prosperity, he saw with his own eyes that the villagers who were starving were getting better and better.

If China really had a prosperous era, he thought it was the Hongzhi Prosperity in front of him. Because in this prosperous era, not only did the people's lives get better and better, but the country became stronger and stronger, and the Ming Dynasty was slowly becoming a world empire.

The interview was still in full swing, and Li Wei was not an exception.

These 600 new scholars witnessed the rise of the Hongzhi Dynasty and saw a thriving empire. So many of them were loyal fans of Emperor Hongzhi, and they all had a determination to do practical things for the country.

It is the reform of the Hongzhi Dynasty that now every new Jinshi has the opportunity to stay in the central government to work. They can choose a central government for an interview to show their expertise and appearance.

This is a blessing for most new Jinshi. The worst result for them is to be sent to the local areas according to convention, but now they have the opportunity to stay in the central government, at least they want to be familiar with the bigwigs in the capital.

In the next three days, some people passed the interview smoothly, some people failed repeatedly, and some people who only knew Zhihu were sent to the local areas to serve as non-county magistrates.

The talent selection in the 12th year of Hongzhi was over, and these best scholars in the Ming Dynasty were about to be sent to various places to become the new seeds of the Ming Dynasty's second entrepreneurship.

The suburbs of the capital in April seemed like a palette of nature.

The spring breeze blew gently, and the tender green leaves swayed gently, as if telling the story of spring. The golden rapeseed flowers in the fields formed a golden ocean, the winding river could see fish happily shuttling around, and a few butterflies dancing in the wild flowers... This place contrasted with the blue sky and white clouds, forming a beautiful pastoral painting.

With the end of the term of office of the new Jinshi, the officials who received the commission will go to various places to take up their posts.

Tang Yin was very handsome in a white dress. After receiving the entry fee from the court, he spent money to buy two good horses and prepared to take up his post with his old slave.

Although he was the top scholar, the Hanlin Academy was no longer the Hanlin Academy known as the cradle of the prime minister in the past, and now it has declined under the suppression of Emperor Hongzhi.

He was assigned to the Governor-General's Office of the Indian Ocean controlled by Wang Zhi, and served as the Tongpan of the Governor-General's Office of the Indian Ocean, so he needed to go from the capital to the Governor-General's Office of India to take up his post.

Since the Ming-Myanmar Highway had been repaired, Tang Yin planned to go southwest along the post road to the Governor-General's Office of India located at the port of Baigu.

Although the journey is long, the Ming Dynasty is not only invincible in the navy, but also the local army is getting stronger and stronger. If the robbers dare to rob officials, the local army will quickly suppress them, so Tang Yin's trip will not be too dangerous.

Under the warm spring sun, the suburbs of the capital are full of vitality.

Zhu Yunming, wearing a brocade robe and a high crown, came to the Ten-mile Pavilion with a few friends to wait. Wine and drinks have been prepared in the pavilion to see off his close friend Tang Yin.

"Thank you all, brothers!" Tang Yin has become more mature and steady, and he bowed to Zhu Yunming who came to see him off.

Zhu Yunming raised his glass to toast Tang Yin, and his words seemed sincere: "Brother Bohu, the journey is long, I wish you a safe journey and make achievements as soon as possible."

"No! You can't take credit when you go to the Indian Ocean, and everything should be stable!" Tang Yin thought of the emperor's advice to him and shook his head bitterly.

Among the several overseas governors-general, the Indian Ocean Governor's Office led by Wang Zhi is the most aggressive and aggressive government office, and the army under his command is a fierce army.

Under the leadership of Da Gama, the Indian Ocean Governor's Office is sailing westward along the road Da Gama came from. The latest developments have already grasped the west coast of the Indian Ocean, and it looks like it is going to attack Western Europe.

Although it was Wang Yue who was conferred the title that year, everyone knows that it was actually Wang Zhi who first came up with the idea of ​​raiding Weininghai. Wang Zhi is a real military madman.

Now Wang Zhi is the Governor-General of the Indian Ocean, and he has the absolute trust of the emperor.

In recent years, the Indian Governor-General's Office has provided food, soldiers and weapons to the court. Wang Zhi is simply the biological son of Emperor Hongzhi.

Of course, although Wang Zhi is very crazy in military actions, he is absolutely loyal to the emperor. He just heard that the Indian princess was beautiful and snatched the princess away.

Today, Emperor Hongzhi is a man of great talent and strategy. Although he was the first to propose the strategic concept of a military power, he has never been a war maniac, so it is obvious that he wants to suppress Wang Zhi's restless heart.

After all, the Ming Dynasty has not yet reached the period of unrestrained expansion, and now the main focus is still on developing the country.

Zhu Yunming naturally knew that Wang Zhi was a war maniac, and he seemed to understand very well: "I heard that Governor Wang once again petitioned to go west, or to appoint him as the governor of the east coast of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, but was rejected by the emperor!" "European countries are now plagued by the morning glory epidemic, and there is neither gold nor silver, nor dry food, and even furs are not abundant here! Your Majesty has long-term plans, and now is not the time to enter!" Tang Yin entered the new role well and bowed in the direction of Beijing. Or he was about to go to the Indian Ocean, so his mood was obviously different. What he thought about was not how much territory he occupied, but how many resources he would bring back to the Ming Dynasty. He was obviously more pragmatic in his heart. Zhu Yunming looked at this good friend who was ten years younger than him with great satisfaction, and clearly felt the changes in Tang Yin. Not only did he lose his original frivolousness, but he was also obviously more mature and wise. The emperor sent Tang Yin to Wang Zhi, maybe he really wanted to promote a perfect match of civil and military affairs, so that the Ming Dynasty could completely control the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean. Zhu Yunming was in a good mood and decided to write: "We are separated today. I don't know when we will meet again. I will write a poem for you to practice for you!" As he spoke, his pen tip moved on the white rice paper and wrote a poem that will be passed down to future generations: "The willow branches do not break the plum blossoms, but take the old things to the West Sea. The white snow and yellow clouds confuse the wild geese, and the sail will be in India tomorrow." (End of this chapter)