Unlike the imperial examinations in the mainland, the Naadam Conference in Chahar covers an extremely large area, no less than a hundred acres.
Placed in the open air, it is like hunting.
Among the many herdsmen, there are those who wear mink and sheepskin. Of course, if they are rich, they will naturally wear cloth, silk, etc. Although the styles are the same, the patterns are different.
Of course, it is precisely because of the complexity that vendors selling various horses, saddles, bows and arrows are also out incessantly, for fear of missing this good opportunity.
The two kings of Qin and Qi looked at such a scene, full of exotic customs, and their faces were full of curiosity.
The green grass has long been trampled by horses, and any fine stones have been picked up. Huge yurts occupy the entire land.
In the middle, there is a large square platform with a semicircular shape, similar to the Roman Colosseum and similar to the Fujian earth buildings.
On the ground, there is an earthen platform about half a foot high, with turf on it, and circles with a diameter of one foot drawn on it. It is obvious that today is a wrestling match.
Because it was built with adobe bricks, it was simple and convenient, and it was also convenient for the nobles to watch.
Ordinary herdsmen can only sit on the ground and look up, and some can only see the target.
"What a beautiful scenery——"
King Qi sat high on a soft couch, and the palace maid beside him was soft, waxy and tender. Her green and green hands occasionally handed me fruits and snacks, which were three feet high from the ground, giving him a unique feeling.
Looking up, the faces of many Mongolians appeared one by one.
Ordinary Mongolians still wear Mongolian robes, with some embroidery added at most, while most Mongolian nobles wear compact Han robes with official hats symbolizing their status, which looks particularly funny.
In the Chahar Alliance at that time, the status of the Mongolian nobles was divided into three levels, with Tabu Nang at the bottom, Taiji as the backbone, and the county king at the top.
Naturally, he will be rewarded with clothes and crowns.
"Be quiet--"
The King of Qin stroked his forehead, saying there was nothing he could do to his younger brother.
"It's so high, they can't hear it."
King Qi said casually.
Sun Changzhou, who was sitting next to him, felt tired again.
I was ignored again.
"Pah, pah, pah—"
Governor Sun was too lazy to pay attention to the two princes. He clapped his hands, turned to his men and said, "Take out all the rewards."
Then, dozens of soldiers carried twenty wooden boxes.
A large number of silver coins, exposed to the sun.
Many Mongolians breathed quickly and stared closely.
With years of border trade, silver dollars, as the best currency, are also highly trusted and have become the first currency in the hearts of herdsmen.
Immediately, a person came on stage and spoke first in Chinese, and then repeated in Mongolian: "Today at the Naadam Conference, there will be archery, horse racing, and wrestling. Anyone who gets into the top 100 will be rewarded with ten dollars."
"Today's wrestling match, the rules are as follows. As long as you win three matches in the ring, you will advance."
Many Mongolians couldn't hear clearly, and there were hundreds of big men in the audience. The transmission was conducted at the same time. It repeated back and forth for a quarter of an hour.
Most Mongolians understand.
"Wrestling?" King Qi muttered: "What's the use of wrestling on the battlefield?"
"Your Highness, wrestling may seem useless, but in fact it is extremely important."
At this time, Sun Changzhou couldn't help but said: "Not to mention, wrestling can cultivate the strength and skills of soldiers. Let's mention it on the battlefield. Generally, both sides wear heavy armor on the battlefield. Swords cannot penetrate and pierce, and even more so when punching and kicking.
It’s all in vain.”
"At this time, if you have mastered the wrestling skills, it will be very difficult to get up under heavy armor."
Hearing such words, King Qin was thoughtful.
Although on the surface Annan is hot and humid, and armor is a burden and wrestling is useless, but the terrain of Annan is rugged and the soldiers have flexible skills, which is quite important.
King Qi sneered and said: "Governor, these words can only deceive children. If there is any armor on the grassland, it can only be thrown by Han people."
"In my opinion, wrestling requires a flexible body that is suitable for jumping over the Great Wall."
"Although during the Yongle and Hongwu years, the imperial court extensively built the Great Wall, there are still many places that are difficult to reach and are dilapidated. It is not difficult to climb over."
King Qin glanced at King Qi thoughtfully. He felt that his younger brother was thinking very fast.
Sun Changzhou smiled and said: "What Your Highness said makes sense."
With that said, the wrestling match began.
After some shouting, two big men hesitantly came to the stage.
The two of them were naked and wearing tight-fitting trousers. They bent over and hugged each other. The person on the left put his right hand around the other person's waist and his left hand tightly grasped the other person's crotch. The person on the right used both hands to hold each other's waist and legs respectively.
According to Mongolian rules, the opponent must land on his shoulders to win.
Of course, in this competition, this time we have to wrestle within the prescribed white circle. If the opponent comes out of the circle or lands on his shoulders, he will be considered a loser.
"Who else?"
"Bang -" Suddenly, dust flew everywhere, but in the blink of an eye, another strong man was thrown to the ground and emerged from the lime circle.
The winner raised his head and roared, and his voice shook the sky.
The nearby audience applauded.
The opponent got up, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and left reluctantly.
He did not choose to give up, because this was an arena match, and he only needed to defend for three games, and then fight again in another arena.
On the high platform, the King of Qi, the King of Qin, and a large number of Mongolian nobles watched the wrestling scene so intense that their blood boiled for a moment.
"Very good." King Qin rarely spoke, his face full of excitement: "I think he will be more popular in the army."
"Cuju is still more beautiful." King Qi curled his lips.
The wrestling match on the first day was a climax that was dizzying.
By dusk, a total of eight thousand people participated, and two thousand people were chosen.
The next day, all the qualified contestants began to compete one-on-one. In the afternoon, about 500 people were selected.
On the third day, they continued to catch each other, and at noon, the top 100 people were decided.
At this time, these 100 people will start the ring competition, and the person who holds the ring the most times will win the championship.
If the games are the same, it will naturally be a competition.
Still in the stands, the horse racing competition is simple. Ten horses form a group and circle three times, and the fastest one advances.
Another three days.
Archery is also simpler, shoot three times in a row, and advance through the tenth ring.
In the finals, it's a moving target.
Ten days go by in a blink of an eye.
This is indeed a feast of joy for all Chahar people.
However, for King Qin and King Qi, this was the best time to select talents.
"The imperial court asked us to only select a hundred people each, and it didn't say we wouldn't be allowed to select those who failed."
King Qi laughed softly.
"That's right." King Qin agreed: "But, my brother, do you have so much money and food to supply it?"
Upon hearing this, King Qi was speechless and his face changed drastically.
In fact, in order to encourage the princes to join the vassal and enable them to establish the vassal state faster, the officials of the royal palace were basically recruited by themselves.
However, in order to prevent the prince from wasting the court's money, food and personnel without limit, the number of guards was limited to 300.
The number of civil servants was two hundred.
These people are all well-established, and their salaries are provided by the Ministry of Household Affairs, which saves them from the expense of recruiting minions.
Compared with the King of Qin, the disadvantage of the King of Qi is obvious, because the King of Qin owns Saigon.
In other words, Zhu Jing must be happy to recruit a large number of soldiers openly and rely on the army.
"Hey, I still let you, brother, take advantage."
King Qi said speechlessly.
Under the bright sunshine, Selenge stood straight, holding the newly awarded bronze medal in his hand and holding ten silver coins in his arms. It felt like a dream.
Using his most proud archery skills, after several days of competition, he finally became the "Batur" of the Naadam Conference.
That is, the meaning of warrior.
Ten yuan can buy six or seven lambs, and after a few years, it can bring about earth-shaking changes in the family's life.
The lamb becomes a big sheep, the big sheep gives birth to little lambs, and within a few years you can become a wealthy person.
More importantly, he can become an official.
As soon as he received the reward, a group of relatives and friends gathered around him, full of envy and jealousy.
"Se Lengge, we are Anda, you are rich, don't forget me——"
"I'm your cousin, Selenge!"
"I also have a sister. Don't you like the one with a big butt the most? She is your type."
"One is not enough, I also have a sister——"
For a time, crowds of all kinds of people surrounded it, unable to move.
At this time, suddenly there was an army wearing armor, obviously Han Chinese.
"His Royal Highness King Qi is looking for you——"
The leading man spoke.
In an instant, everyone dispersed, their eyes full of respect.
King Qi, this is the legendary Khan who is as valuable as Chahar Khan and the son of Chuluo Khan.
Se Lengge was also shocked, and he walked forward unconsciously.
After a while, he saw the tender-faced King Qi.
He is even younger than his son.
But the skin is extremely smooth, and the delicate silk and satin would probably cost the whole family even if they couldn't afford it.
Selenge quickly knelt down and said, "Your Highness, King Qi."
"Serenge, right?"
King Qi said softly: "I heard that you are ranked fifty-sixth in wrestling. That's good. I admire you very much."
"Do you want to come with me?"
Selenge hesitated.
I am someone who wants to be an official.
"If you are not in the top ten, you cannot go to the capital. You can only stay in Chahar as an official. If you die, you will be an official with thousands of households."
King Qi ignored his expression and continued: "If you follow me, you will get two hundred yuan as a settlement fee, and you will be awarded the seventh rank of Yingzheng immediately. In addition, you will have the opportunity to make contributions."
"Tabu Nang, Taiji, even the prince will have the opportunity to obtain it."
In fact, at the beginning, the court was prepared to directly grant these Mongolian scholars the low-level title of Tabu Nang, but considering the mentality of the Mongolian nobles, they did not mess with it.
Two hundred yuan, a good seventh-level business, a bright future.
This all seduce his mind.
"I'm willing to go -" Selenge agreed without hesitation.
"Just, Your Majesty, can my family come with us?"
"certainly."
When King Qin recruited people, he was even more straightforward: "I have a territory in the south. As long as you follow me, you can become a hereditary noble."
"Tabu Nang is nothing at all."
It took several days, but both of them had recruited enough people, but King Qin still didn't stop, constantly sending people around to recruit the losers.
In a short period of time, he recruited more than 400 people. For a while, Sun Changzhou sighed:
"Is Your Highness planning to wrap up Chahar?"
There are more than 300,000 people in Chahar. Even if it is the Naadam Conference that is held every three years, those are the only people who come to count.
What King Qin took away was the essence.
When King Qin heard this, he said softly: "Don't worry, I have to do it."
"In two years' time, the fourth brother and the fifth brother will also get married, and they will inevitably come to select people. I want to make the first move."
Sun Changzhou was stunned. These words were true and he could not refute them at all.
Before leaving, King Qi whispered: "Chahar has Naadam, so Suiyuan should also have it, right?"
"There are only 200,000 people in Suiyuan, which is quite a bit less."
King Qin nodded: "Indeed, Suiyuan is going to do it too."
A Naadam Conference is like an imperial examination selection for the Mongolians, once they have crossed the gate of wealth.
For the King of Qi and the King of Qin, this was an important way to select talents and fill the vassal state.
For the Ming Dynasty, the Naadam Conference would allow the entire Chahar elite to be selected from among the people and weaken the resistance of the nobility.
At the same time, the pro-Ming sect can also be cultivated on a large scale.
Moreover, as a time traveler, Zhu Yixi still prefers ordinary people at the bottom to wooing the upper-class nobles.
Taking control of the vitality of the Mongolian Plateau, we gradually eliminated slavery and transformed it into a great unity.
Carrying a large number of talents, the two kings of Qin and Qi slowly entered Shuntian Mansion.
At this time, when they were about to return to Beijing, they reached the top in an instant.
The two kings were astonished and asked what was going on.
It turns out that the imperial court issued an edict allowing people to travel freely to and from the vassal states (limited to Qin and Qi).
In other words, this eliminates the checkpoints and allows the vassal state to freely gather and recruit talents. It is equivalent to giving the two vassal kings a legal recruitment order.
The two vassal kings were very happy.
Wanping County, attached to Guozhong.
Gu Yuan put on a robe that he thought was the cleanest, even though it was patched and washed white; the cloth shoes on his feet were neat, and the square scarf on his head was neat.
Unfortunately, his back was slightly arched and turned into a hunchback, which made the whole body disharmonious and destroyed his own style.
Since the birth of the imperial examination, I have never heard of a Jinshi with a hunchback.
Therefore, even though he did brilliantly in the county examination, his future was immediately cut off when he met the county magistrate.
Without it, the most important thing about being an official is official prestige and good appearance, which can arouse the minimum respect from the people.
In this uncertain future, even if he gets married and has children, he is still unwilling to give up.
I originally thought that with the arrival of the new dynasty, there would be some opportunities, but the result remained as usual.
At this time, there was a sudden rumor that the Qi and Qin vassals were recruiting talents in an eclectic way, which aroused his interest.
His wife was an ordinary person. Seeing him like this, she cried and said, "That's thousands of miles away. If you are really chosen, what will happen to us orphans and widowed mothers?"
"If I don't become that official, what can I do?"
Gu Yuan closed his eyes, as if every word was stained with blood: "Then my more than ten years of studying hard in the cold window were in vain?"