Zongxue, this is an institution established during the Wanli period.
As early as the Jiajing period, there were more than 100,000 clans in the country, and the imperial court spent millions of stones on food every year, which was a heavy burden.
After Jiajing ascended the throne, he carried out reforms. For the clans below the county prince, the 64% tax was implemented, that is, 60% of the grain and 40% of the treasure money.
Moreover, the clan was forcibly restricted from taking concubines, and the succession was prohibited. In other words, unless you had a son, your brothers, nephews, and nephews could not inherit the title.
During the Wanli period, they continued their efforts, established religious schools, and allowed clans below the level of the county king to take the imperial examination.
But this kind of thing is about doing one's best and obeying destiny. It has no coercive effect at all. In the past few decades, there has not been a single Jinshi.
After Zhu Yixi established the new dynasty, he remained as casual about religious studies as ever.
After all, as long as you are motivated, you don't need anyone to chase you in order to learn.
"The royal family's regulations only lasted for a few decades, so they are naturally inferior to those of the people." King Qi said softly: "I think that although civil servants can be minions, they are less friendly than my own family."
"If we use more distant sects, it will be more suitable and smoother."
"I can't just promote people regardless of the situation, right? Now it's different from the past. The rules of the court have been established..."
Although rules are meant to be broken, with the new dynasty and new atmosphere, Zhu Yixi does not want to break the new rules that have been established for a long time.
Seeing this, King Qi thought of a good idea: "Father, I heard that in Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang and other places, no matter how good the conditions are, not many literati want to take office."
"Since there are so many official vacancies, why not give this to the clan?"
"What do you mean?" the emperor asked curiously.
"Just like the imperial examination, holding a clan imperial examination, Enke, and the appointment of officials will be the vacancies at the border. When the time comes, we will kill two birds with one stone..."
King Qi said cautiously.
The emperor stroked his beard and fell into thinking.
There is no doubt that compared to the real examination, this imperial examination within the clan is much less difficult and the chances are high.
The emperor was quite happy with this.
Because when he got here, he suddenly remembered, isn't this equivalent to another road?
Just like the Manchu Qing Dynasty, the reason why civil servants were trained like dogs was because in addition to recruiting people to govern the country, they also had disciples from the Eight Banners.
In other words, if the literati stopped playing and went on strike, the emperor would still have another choice.
In this case, the emperor would be invincible and aloof.
At this time, Zhu Yixi remembered this and smiled: "Your suggestion is a good one, I have adopted it——"
"Father is wise——" King Qi praised.
So, after some investigation, the emperor ordered Jilin, Anxi, and Liaodong to come up with ten county magistrates, twenty general magistrates, and county magistrates to hold this intra-clan imperial examination.
As soon as the Zongren Mansion released the news, it immediately caused an uproar in the capital.
Regardless of the public opinions, the clan members were filled with surprises.
The residence of Zhou Xian, the Shaoqing of the Zongren Mansion.
At this time, after hearing about this, Zhou Xian couldn't wait to return home, and he could almost be said to be ecstatic:
"Princess, I'm so happy, so happy——"
Taking three steps and two steps, he came to the courtyard and saw Princess Changping who was reading a book in the shade. His voice unconsciously slowed down a lot.
The whole person was leaning lazily on the desk, with one arm stretched out, turning the pages of the book. His smooth face showed an entranced look, and his delicate facial features looked particularly beautiful.
Glancing sideways, the slightly plump upper body is now clearly revealed, and its graceful arc is almost intoxicating.
"Consort, what's the matter?"
Zhu Yasuo turned her head slightly and turned back the pages of the book, with a little doubt on her face.
She understood that Zhou Xian had always been a calm and calm person, and if he was like this today, something big must have happened.
"The Holy One has issued an edict that a clan examination will be held to award official vacancies such as the county magistrate and county magistrate."
Zhou Xian couldn't wait to say: "In this way, you can become an official directly without crossing the threshold of Jinshi. This is really a great joy for us Jia'er."
When Princess Changping heard this, a look of surprise appeared on her calm face.
Qi Jia'er is her eldest son Zhou Jia, who is now eighteen years old. He just passed the college examination last year and became a scholar.
I wanted to make persistent efforts and respond to Qiu Wei in one fell swoop, but is it so easy to lift someone up?
Shuntian Prefecture expanded to include more than 20 counties and two to three million people. The number of candidates for the imperial examination was only 120, but the number of talents competing for it exceeded 5,000.
In other words, it is one out of thirty, and one can imagine the difficulty.
After passing the exam, Zhou Jia's confidence was dampened. Although he was still preparing for the exam, he had to wait three years.
How many three years can there be in life?
In this case, Zhou Xian originally wanted him to enter the Imperial College and become a prison student, so that he could directly participate in the examination.
But now, there is a better opportunity in front of you, who doesn't want to seize it?
"If I take the exam as a scholar, I'm afraid it will be difficult to advance in the officialdom in the future." Princess Changping showed some hesitation.
"Princess, you are worrying too much. Do you think that just because of his status as the princess's son, there is no discussion?"
Zhou Xian showed a proud smile: "As far as I know, this is a clan examination, not only to give those clan members a way out, but actually to find the personal emperor's minions."
"In other words, the emperor wants to have a few more agreeable and considerate people in the court. If he can choose them at this time, he will definitely have a bright future."
"Not only is the emperor protecting him, but we are also here. My father still has some connections. Plus, as a young minister, I will surely rise to prominence after some smooth communication."
Princess Changping finally showed a relaxed smile: "In this way, as a scholar, wouldn't Jia'er be a sure winner?"
"There are no great talents in the clan, so it must be stable."
The couple was very happy that their son had a way out, and it was a bright road.
The sun is rising in the east, and the grass leaves are still stained with dewdrops from last night. The sunlight has not completely dispelled the mist in the sky. The air in the morning is relatively humid, and the red sun is extremely bright on the horizon.
In a township outside Xuanwu County, crowds of people were crowded, and people from all over the country began to go to the market.
At the edge, a simple wooden stage was built, which was used for singing opera in the countryside.
There were many benches standing on both sides, and there was a lot of noise nearby. Many people stretched their necks and looked up.
Suddenly, someone held a gong and struck a sound: "Today's song, the emperor marched to Sichuan."
Wow, I instantly remembered a round of applause.
Then, I saw a big man with a face full of concern for the country and the people, and he sang:
"Today I heard that the bandits from the West entered Sichuan and put my sons in a sea of fire. As a general of the Ming Dynasty, can I just ignore it?"
"General, we cannot send troops without permission from the court -"
"It's ridiculous. Now the imperial court has too much time to take care of itself, and tens of millions of people are in dire straits. How can it care so much?"
The big man who plays the emperor has a burly figure, good facial features, and is wearing a costume, not to mention very impressive.
The audience in the audience applauded.
Zhu Chengyun, on the other hand, sat bored and felt uninterested in this.
This kind of folk singing opera is said to be organized by the imperial court. Every time they go to the market, they will come and sing a few songs. It can be said that they work hard regardless of rain or shine.
But the common people are also happy. Apart from making people, going to the theater is the cheapest thing on weekdays, not to mention the free theater provided by the government.
When the singing gets popular, the people in the audience will throw away copper coins, or meat, rabbits, etc., and ask the troupe to beat their teeth as a sacrifice.
In this case, the opera singer became more and more energetic.
Because they received money and food from the court, the money was extra income, so they were naturally very happy.
Zhu Chengyun, on the other hand, was bored.
He has watched this kind of play several times and can memorize it by heart.
There is no such thing, because he is the one who arranges the opera.
As descendants of the clan, the emperor relaxed the ban and allowed them to freely engage in business and politics, which can be said to have loosened their ties.
In this case, Zhu Chengyun found a good job in the court because he had studied for several years, which was regarded as eating royal food.
Write a play.
If you are not a person who reads, you will not be able to write at all.
The play was written by him and arranged by him. It can be said that it has been chewed back and forth until it is chewed to pieces and has no flavor at all.
Emperor Shaowu fought for four or five years. Although there were many things to write about, there were also many opera troupes in the world who could not stand them!
In the Ministry of Rites, there were dozens of opera troupes like his, some of whom traveled around Shuntian Prefecture and others in various provinces to spread and sing such plays.
Of course, Gyeonggi is the focus and has an educational effect, so it is a frequent place to visit, with people running there almost every day.
"I heard that Your Majesty once went to Chengde and met with the Mongolian kings there. It can also be written into the play——"
After a whole day, it wasn't until the sun set in the west that the whole market dispersed and they headed back home.
The county is not far away. It is twenty miles away and can be reached in half an hour by driving an ox cart or a donkey cart.
The goods were unloaded in the yamen. Zhu Chengyun had been tired for a day. He was just about to take a rest when he was disturbed:
"Brother, your good luck has come, you are lucky to be an official."
A black-faced man rudely barged in and slammed the dilapidated wooden door, making Zhu Chengyun tremble with fear.
"Be careful, it's troublesome to repair this door." Zhu Chengyun shook his head and said disdainfully: "I haven't even been selected as a scholar, how can I be an official?"
"Hey, didn't I come to tell you?"
The black-faced man was unambiguous. He sat down on the wooden chair, picked up the hawthorn on the table and put it in his mouth:
"The emperor still cares about us after all and has not forgotten us. This is a good thing——"
As he spoke, he recounted the clan examination in detail, and finally concluded: "I asked someone to ask. There are at most 1,800 clan members in the entire capital, and most of them are illiterate.
one."
"Brother Yun, you have a great chance!"
Zhu Chengyun shivered, his lips turned white, and then his cheeks suddenly became bloodshot, the whites of his eyes rolled up, and he fainted.
Obviously, for him, such an opportunity is no less than a carp leaping over the dragon's gate.
After waking up, he muttered repeatedly: "Holy grace is revealed, Holy grace is revealed -"
The entire clan in the capital was like adding cold water to a hot oil pan, and it started to boil all of a sudden.
The clan relatives here include Yi Bin who took the clan daughter and his son.
Many onlookers were extremely sad.
The emperor openly gave his clan members the opportunity to serve as officials, which is really enviable.
During this commotion, a certain civil servant quietly entered the capital.
The wheels of the carriage were turning, but there were not many bumps on the flat road. Zhu Yiquan sat in it, feeling the ground that was unique to the capital city.
He is from Xi'an Prefecture, comes from a clan, and won the imperial examination.
Later, as the emperor went south, he sought a position as a magistrate in Huguang.
Later, as the emperor ascended the throne, he continued to be promoted, from prefect, to inspector, to chief envoy, and finally to governor of Jiangsu.
Then he was transferred to governor of Anhui and then governor of Yingtian. Finally, when he was about sixty years old, the imperial court summoned him to Beijing to prepare to appoint or remove him as governor of Shuntian.
If nothing else happens, he will remain in this position for the rest of his life.
The reason is very simple, because he was born in Juren.
Even if the emperor takes care of him again and again, it is not easy to raise someone to be the governor of Shuntian. Basically, he is a top match.
"Compared to Jiangnan, the capital has a different flavor."
Zhu Yiquan felt the dryness of his skin, couldn't help but smile, and replenished his skin with water.
The son on the side said softly: "Father, fallen leaves have returned to their roots. Now that His Majesty has settled in the capital, our family is no exception. I think the capital will be good."
"Look at how prosperous and fun it is here!"
Zhu Yiquan snorted softly: "I am old and I don't know how to restrain myself. I do whatever I want all day long."
Soon, he got off the carriage.
In the capital, he had already bought a house.
As soon as he took a breath, Zhu Yiquan hurried to the Yongshou County Prince's Mansion to pay homage to the titular sect leader.
The old prince has been dead for seven or eight years, but now Prince Yongshou is calm and does not act like a sect leader. Instead, he is flattering in his words.
Obviously, he also heard something about Zhu Yiquan.
Later, Zhu Yiquan visited Zhu Mou, the second assistant to the cabinet.
The reason is very simple, because it was Zhu Mou who recommended him during the shogunate period, and he was appointed to a county. From then on, he rose through the ranks and reached his current position.
"Yiquan, it's hard for you to come all the way here!"
Zhu Mou chuckled and seemed to feel much more relaxed.
"Now that the imperial court is changing with each passing day, my little hard work is nothing."
Zhu Yiquan sighed: "It takes only a few hours to travel three hundred miles from Tianjin to Beijing. After all, the world is completely different."
"Now above the imperial court, you are the one among the clan members. The two of us have the highest official position. As officials in the capital, the most important thing is to be cautious..."
Zhu Mou spoke softly, and Zhu Yiquan couldn't help but nod in agreement.
After leaving, Zhu Yiquan looked thoughtful.
Obviously, being a clan member and taking charge of the capital is not as easy as imagined.
The next day, Zhu Yiquan came to Yuquan Mountain to meet the emperor.
Zhu Yixi was quite patient with this pure clan official.
I asked around and talked about Xi'an Mansion and official roads.
The two were talking and laughing when suddenly, they heard the sound of footsteps, and then they saw a eunuch coming in a hurry: