Istanbul is far away from the Ming Dynasty, so it will take a long time for Chen Zizhuang and Richelieu to return. When they were on the road, the wheel of the times had entered 1628, and the Ming Dynasty had also entered the decade of the Apocalypse.

This year’s Lantern Festival in Beijing is particularly lively.

On the one hand, this is the tenth year since he ascended the throne. According to the Chinese custom of celebrating the fifth small celebration and the tenth major celebration. Although the emperor was not in the capital during the Spring Festival this year, Zhu Youxiao, the supervisor of the country, still set the tone:

This year’s Lantern Festival will be more lively.

On the other hand, this year is the last year of the old-style imperial examination.

Although he has been fine-tuning the imperial examination for more than ten years since he became the supervisor of the country, today, the proportion of eight-legged essay in the imperial examination is getting smaller and smaller. But in any case, the examination in the tenth year of Tianqi,

It is still a purely liberal arts exam: poetry and poetry, production, and policy theory. Even though there is a lot of data in the large sections of policy theory, it is ready-made and only needs analysis, not calculation.

According to the emperor's previous regulations, starting from the imperial examination in the eleventh year of the Apocalypse, the content of the imperial examination will undergo revolutionary changes: the craftsmanship will be completely gone, poetry, lyrics, and poetry will only account for 10% of the marks, policy theory will account for 50%, and the remaining

The remaining 40% was handed over to the executive examination. The provincial examinations in the next twelve years and the general examinations in the thirteenth year all used this new examination method and scoring standard.

Thanks to the developed printing and publishing industries in the Ming Dynasty, scholars from all over the country had already received the simulation test papers for the professional tests intentionally released by the royal family. Then the scholars were surprised to find that not to mention the math questions that confused everyone

Life is worse than death. Even ordinary liberal arts questions give them a headache.

For example, there are many questions about 'synonyms' in the practical test: this actually tests whether the candidate has an accurate grasp of the meaning of each word, and whether he can accurately write official documents when he becomes a civil servant - this is a purely liberal arts question, right?

But traditional candidates who have only read the Four Books and Five Classics all their lives cannot guarantee a high accuracy when answering such questions.

For another example, in order to test the breadth of candidates' knowledge and ensure that candidates will not make common sense jokes after becoming civil servants. There are many questions in the practical test that examine common sense of life, world history, Chinese geography, etc. Such questions make it difficult for them to make common sense jokes.

Those traditional scholars who had no fingers in the sun and no ears to hear what was going on outside the window were all at a loss.

So, what else is there to say? If you are not a Jinshi this year, you will probably not be a Jinshi in your lifetime: Don’t expect to have an official career in overseas vassal states. In that week, Tang, Fu, and Guangxi were the first to become vassals overseas.

The vassal state was even more radical than the Ming Dynasty itself. It had launched the practice test as early as a year ago - who wanted it to have fewer scholars and less burdens?

As for the other vassal states? Come on, it is said that except for the Qin State on Luzon Island, which has the former Spanish Governor's Palace to live in, and barely has some reputation, the kings of other vassal states do not live in a decent place.

Who is willing to go to those wild places as a last resort?

Therefore, in the tenth year of the Apocalypse, Beijing had an influx of more than 10,000 candidates: those who had been successful in the examination but failed repeatedly, those who had been successful and were enjoying themselves in the countryside, together with the more than 1,000 newly elected candidates in the provincial examination last year

, all came to Beijing to seek this last chance.

The economy of the Ming Dynasty at this time was still dominated by agriculture. Although industry and other things were developing rapidly, the accumulation of wealth still needed a considerable amount of time. The secondary industry had not yet taken an absolute advantage, and the tertiary industry had not yet begun to exert its strength.

time. Therefore, Zhu Youdong has never taken the tourism industry seriously in the more than ten years he has been in charge of the country. Naturally, the number of restaurants and inns in Beijing is extremely limited.

During the general examination in previous years, the number of candidates who came to Beijing for reference was usually no more than two or three thousand. It was crowded here and there, and some candidates were in Beijing to visit relatives and friends, so it was always possible to arrange it. But this year, there was an influx of people.

So many people come - Juren are called masters in the countryside. Generally speaking, except for a very small number of Juren, most Juren will bring a large number of followers with them when they come to Beijing. More than 10,000 Juren coming to Beijing often means that in a short period of time, Beijing

The temporary population in the city has increased by at least 40,000 to 50,000! The population of Beijing in the Ming Dynasty will only be over 800,000!

As a result, during the entire Spring Festival, restaurants, inns, temples, Taoist temples, and even many residential buildings that were specifically open to the public were all crowded.

On the day of the Lantern Festival, the imperial court launched an unprecedented large-scale lantern festival, and the Guards Division participated in the continuous fireworks display. Hundreds of thousands of residents throughout Beijing poured into the streets, which directly caused a series of traffic jams.

Shoulders, sweating like rain.

But in this night when the whole city is immersed in the hustle and bustle, in the Nanyue Authentic Restaurant near Chaoyang Gate, on the sixth floor of the Accord, it is a rare place to find tranquility amidst the hustle and bustle.

"Hey, it's really thanks to His Highness Jian Guo. If it weren't for His Highness Jian Guo, I wouldn't have been able to book the authentic Accord in Southern Guangdong during the Lantern Festival."

"Hahaha, brother-in-law, it's a family dinner now, let's not talk about prison. As for the Accord here being difficult to book, hey, this is the property of my Zhu family. Even if I don't show up, as my sister

It’s not difficult to book the face, right?”

"Well, I know this. The deeds of Zhu Yunkeng, Zhu Shengmiao and his son have been publicized and reported by the six major newspapers. As for your sister, haha, the eldest princess of the Ming Dynasty was dazzled and found a poor man like me. It's nothing

Card face."

After many years of operation, the restaurant Nanyue Zhengzong has been renovated: reinforced concrete pillars are decorated with wood grain materials. The entire restaurant has been transformed from a two-story building into a twenty-meter-high six-story building.

The building, in the east part of the city, is very distinctive. It is precisely because of this that the three rooms on the sixth floor are particularly difficult to book: the scenery is unique.

At this time, in one of the six-story elegant rooms, there were two couples, Zhu Youxiao, Zhang Yan, Lu Xiangsheng, and Zhu Huijuan.

"Sister, brother-in-law, younger brother and sister, here's a toast to you."

"My sister and I are pregnant. Please sit down quickly. No need to be polite."

"Haha, yes. In our family, the Emperor, Youji, and Youmo are in Nanyang at the moment. The Emperor's brother should be celebrating the New Year in Chengdu. The Queen Mother is with her sisters-in-law in the palace. You are in Baoding.

There are a few cases, not to mention the prosecution. Hey, with such a big family, only the four of us can sneak out to enjoy the Lantern Festival."

"Speaking of this." Lu Xiangsheng lowered his voice and said, "I heard that His Highness King Xin is in danger in Huai'an. I don't know..."

"It is indeed dangerous." Zhu Youxiao replied with a solemn expression: "I have already asked Commander Li of the Guards Division and Tian Ergeng of the Jinyi Guards to send a team of elites south. I think the Emperor's side will also let Dongchang

Send more manpower."

"Hey! People who are celebrating the Chinese New Year, why are you talking about these things? What's wrong with the men of our Zhu family facing some difficulties?"

"Hahaha, that's what my sister said. Speaking of which, I would like to ask my sister, how is the progress of the man-made fibers in your textile materials laboratory?"

"It's okay. I just completed the experiment of mixing sugarcane bagasse, wood and cotton yarn before drawing it. The quality of the newly obtained fiber is much rougher than that of pure cotton yarn, but the advantage is that the cost has been reduced by at least 30%, and the thermal insulation effect is pretty good."

"Hey, this is very good. If the price of clothing for people in the Ming Dynasty can be reduced by 30%, then my sister will really benefit all people."

"It's not just that." Lu Xiangsheng took over and said: "Nowadays, a large number of people abandon their land and enter factories. The number of sericulture, cotton and linen cultivation is declining, so on the one hand, the production capacity of yarn mills is constantly expanding. On the other hand,

The production capacity of raw materials is insufficient. If Madam’s research can be successful, it’s hard to say that the yarn mills and garment factories in Ming Dynasty will experience another surge in growth.”

"Yes, food, clothing, housing and transportation are the basics of human beings. In recent years, droughts in the north have become worse day by day, and floods in the south have not diminished at all. If it were not for the granary of Nanyang, my Ming Dynasty would not be hungry, but the price of food

It is impossible to maintain the low level of one silver dollar and two stone meters. Now, the food problem has been solved, but clothing has become a problem again... Hey, I have been working as a prisoner for the past two years, and I feel that it is better than working in the shipyard.

It’s been hard work for ten years, I don’t know how my brother has survived these ten years.”

"My eldest brother is my eldest brother. My father passed away early in the past. If it weren't for my eldest brother, we might not be alive today."

"My sister is right, come and give me a drink from a distance."

When the two pairs of four people started to toast frequently, there was a knock on the door.

"What's the matter?"

Amidst the clattering sound, a guard walked in: "Your Highnesses, a guest has booked the Accord next door and would like to come up."

"What does Gudang do? The Lantern Festival is all about having fun with the people. Gu and the eldest princess don't eat in the palace, just to see the fireworks among the people. Naturally, they are allowed to come up, and you can't stop them.

"

"yes."

After a while, a burst of words came from the Accord next door. Zhu Huijuan put her fingers on her lips nervously, and Zhu Youxiao smiled heartily, put down the bowl and chopsticks, and began to listen.

.

When Lu Xiangsheng saw the two brothers and sisters, he could only shake his head and smile bitterly: These two royal children are really good students of the emperor. They seize every opportunity to listen to the voices of the people - but they can book the Accord here during the Lantern Festival.

, how can he be an ordinary person?

"Everyone, please take a seat. This time, if Mr. Yuan Ge hadn't come forward, we wouldn't have been able to book this Accord. It should be noted that in the first year of Tianqi, the first number one scholar appointed by the emperor, Chen Zizhuang and Chen Jisheng,

It was here that we defeated the clan and became famous all over the world."

"Hahaha, brother Yun is so talented, and Mr. Yuan Ge rewards those who are behind, so we all benefit from it."

"Well, everyone, although I and Yuan Ge are from the same hometown, Yuan Ge cannot meet with us before the examination, so please bear with me."

"Where, after we finish the test, no matter whether we win or not, we must go to see Mr. Yuan Ge. When the time comes, please ask Brother Yu to lead the way."

After Zhu Youxiao and Zhu Huijuan listened for a while against the wall, their expressions gradually became serious.

The total area on the sixth floor of Nanyue Zhengzong is very small, so the area of ​​the three Accords is not large. There are only four people in the Accord next door.
Chapter completed!