There are three points in the imperial examination, and each of the three categories, rich, middle and poor, will get a quota.
The eight rich provinces are Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Shandong and Guangdong.
In addition, it also covers Beijing and Nanjing.
The central provinces are six, Hebei, Henan, Shanxi, Sichuan, Chongqing and Liaodong.
The poor provinces are Guangxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, Fujian, Anxi, Gansu, Shaanxi, Ningxia, Suiyuan, Chahar, Jilin, and Heilongjiang.
People at that time collectively called it the Two Beijings, Two Mongolians, Two Generals and Twenty-Two Provinces.
Compared with the two capitals and thirteen provinces in the pre-Ming Dynasty, it was theoretically nearly doubled in size.
In addition, the newly established Mobei Governor's Mansion was not included in the calculation because its time was too short.
Among the imperial examination quotas, the eight rich provinces competed for 200 places, the six middle provinces competed for 120 people, and the twelve poor provinces competed for 80 people.
The twelve rookies pecked each other, changing the previous mode of accompanying each other, and almost everyone was attracted to it.
Among them, Fujian has 30 places, Shaanxi has 22, Yunnan has 10, and Guangxi has 8.
Gansu and Guizhou each have two people, and the remaining six provinces each have one person, which is a big gain.
Chahar, Ningxia, Suiyuan, Jilin, Heilongjiang, and Anxi have achieved zero breakthroughs, which is an unimaginable encouragement to local scholars.
For example, in Zhejiang, in the early Ming Dynasty and the Song Dynasty, the industry was not prosperous. However, in the reign of Emperor Yingzong, Shang Ren was promoted to the third place in the Three Yuan Dynasty, which greatly boosted the morale of the province. Zhejiang Jinshi began to have a spurt and jumped to the top three.
Therefore, if Jinshi can emerge from these border areas, the encouragement for the future will be unlimited. This is also the original intention of the emperor to reclassify the quotas.
Of course, it is undeniable that the emperor played a part in it.
At this time, Huiyuan was located in Xia Yuan, Dantu County, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province.
For a time, the guild halls in Beijing were bursting with firecrackers and beaming with joy, so that the number of banquets continued to expand, and many tributes had to take on debts to treat guests.
Zhang Yingxi is smiling brightly, and he is on the imperial list at the age of thirty, which is not too late for him at all.
The Jiangnan Guild Hall was extremely lively at this time. There were a hundred people from Anhui, Jiangsu, and Nanjing, sixty from Jiangsu, thirty-five from Anhui, and five from Nanjing.
A quarter of the Jinshi were from Southern Zhili, which is an exaggeration.
Zhang Ying looked at the several layers of firecrackers laid out in front of the guild hall, which were several times the number of other guild halls. He was filled with emotion for a moment. Fortunately, Nanzhili was divided into three, otherwise the public opinion would have been unstoppable.
But when he thought about it carefully, it was appropriate for Nanzhili to do this.
Although northern Anhui and northern Jiangsu have been devastated by war, the essence of southern Jiangsu and southern Anhui has been preserved.
After more than ten years of peaceful development, coupled with the regulation of the Huaihe River, the Huaihai Plain has revived again, and the population has increased significantly.
"How can the imperial court survive with such a huge thing?"
Zhang Ying held her head high and felt happy in her heart. If she had competed with Jiangsu for those 135 people, Anhui would have been crushed and divided well.
The guild hall was very popular, and wealthy businessmen from the capital also came there one after another, especially the Huizhou merchants. The carriages were flowing like water, blocking the alley, making it very lively.
Huizhou merchant tycoon Chen Su was riding in a carriage, and his handsome horses were used to pull the carriage, which made the people passing by dumbfounded.
But he sat in the carriage, opened the window, looked at the equally lively Shaanxi Guild Hall, and said:
"Shaanxi has taken advantage of it. Twenty-two people are taller than Shandong. It deserves to be an imperial hometown!"
To be honest, as an Anhui native, he was particularly dissatisfied with Anhui being classified as a wealthy province and competing with Jiangsu and other places.
Anhui is so poor. Except for Huaibei, it's almost all mountainous. It's too much to pay 30% of the tax.
Shaanxi is inseparable from it, and has directly turned into a poor province. It has taken advantage of taxation and imperial examinations, which makes people envious and jealous.
"I, Anhui, am also the hometown of the emperor!"
He shook his head and made up his mind.
Anhui must be separated from a rich province, at least it must be a central province, so as to reduce the burden on the people.
Who knows, Shandong, Hunan and other places also want to escape from the sea of suffering and return to the scope of the central province, and they start to make noises one by one.
There are more than twenty guild halls in the capital, and at this lively moment, they can no longer stand the loneliness.
"Are you from Jiangsu again?"
In the mansion, Yu Chenglong couldn't help but frown when he heard Huiyuan's place of origin.
The number one scholar in Shaowu's 16th year was also from Jiangsu, so he wanted to win the championship!
But he shook his head again.
The emperor will not sit idly by and do nothing. The existence of the palace examination is for balance.
The number of places in the joint examination is to balance the poor and rich provinces, while the number of places in the imperial examination is related to the future of scholars.
There is no cabinet except Hanlin. This has been a tradition for many years, and it is the imperial court's compensation for Jiangnan and other places.
If you suffer a loss in terms of quota, you will make up for it in terms of ranking. It is impossible to take advantage of everything.
Being born in the same family as Jinshi and Jinshi, just a few words represent a huge difference in future.
With the Jinshi in the eight ministries watching the government, the shujishi directly served as the daily minister, or as the secretary in the cabinet, doing miscellaneous tasks for the cabinet elders.
It's not on the same level at all.
However, Jiangsu went too far. The reference candidate was only 370 people, and 60 people were directly selected, with a ratio of one out of six.
However, four hundred people were admitted to the general examination, but only one out of twenty was chosen.
"Jiangsu should be split up!"
Yu Chenglong sighed, and then ordered his family to pack their bags and prepare to go south.
He couldn't wait until the palace examination began.
Yu Chenglong was still quite wary about shipping, so he took the canal when going south.
After 70% of food was transported by sea, the thousands of miles of canals became a paradise for civilian ships, and supplies from the south and specialties along the river were continuously transported northward.
On the surface, the canal connects the north and the south, but in fact, more goods are transported from the north than from the south, and goods from the south account for 80%.
There are millions of people in Beijing, 200,000 troops in the capital, and a huge group of nobles and officials, creating a strong consumption capacity.
He stood on the deck and looked at the various ships like ants, feeling filled with emotions.
When he took a boat from Beijing to Hangzhou, Yu Chenglong learned about the list of Ding Weike's Jinshi in the 19th year of Shaowu's reign.
The number one scholar is Dong Na, a native of Shandong Plain.
Second on the list is Miao Tong, a native of Suzhou, Jiangsu.
The third flower is Zhang Huaichen, a native of Fengxiang, Shaanxi.
The list of remaining Jinshi was sent to all prefectures and counties in official documents, and the Ming Dynasty Gazette published it clearly on both sides, which can be said to be extremely detailed.
"Appease Shandong!"
Yu Chenglong shook his head and continued heading south.
At this time, if he chooses to go by land via Fujian to Guangdong and Guangxi, it will take more than a month, while the sea route only takes three to five days.
If you have a family certificate, naturally you can only choose to take a sea boat.
When we arrived in Guangzhou, we saw numerous sails on the sea, the bustle of the docks hit our hearts, and the heat wave hit us.
As soon as we got off the ship, the governor of Guangdong, the chief envoy, the inspector, the academic administrator, the general soldier, the prefect of Guangzhou, etc. all came to greet him with a very respectful attitude.
Although both the governor and the governor-general were of the second rank, the governor-general held the title of Youdu Censor, which made him one step higher.
It goes without saying that I should be welcomed.
Although Yu Chenglong was an upright official, he had to obey the rules in the officialdom.
Xijiang Tower is adjacent to the Pearl River Estuary. You can see patches of white sails when you look up. The location is excellent.
In addition to high-ranking officials, there were also some local gentry present, which meant that the officials and the people were enjoying themselves together.
The group of people came and went, and the atmosphere gradually became harmonious.
Yu Chenglong couldn't help but feel a little drunk, his cheeks were slightly red and the corners of his mouth were raised.
The Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi was in charge of southern Xinjiang and could be described as the real official of the feudal frontier.
"Huang Gong, please—" Yu Chenglong raised his glass and toasted to an old man with a gray beard.
Huang Jin, a native of Raoping, Chaozhou, became a Jinshi of Renxu in the second year of Tianqi (1622). He successively served as Minister of Rites and Minister of Personnel, and then retired to Nanjing to serve as Minister of Rites.
When Emperor Shaowu ascended the throne and appointed old ministers, Huang Jin was recommended, but he gave up due to his old age, and his reputation became even higher.
Now in his 70s and 80s, he is a clean and self-sufficient person, has high moral standards and is respected by everyone in Guangdong.
"Governor Xian please——"
Huang Jin drank a glass of wine tremblingly, but did not put down the glass. Instead, he raised his head and asked stubbornly:
"I dare to ask Governor Xian, Lianzhou Prefecture is our old land in Guangdong, why was it transferred to Guangxi?"
"Is there any legal basis?"
The old man was trembling and his chest was heaving, obviously he was very angry.
Being defeated by an entire army, Yu Chenglong was angry, but he could only say in a friendly manner: "Huang Gong, Gui Province is exhausted and civil unrest is widespread. The land tax is not enough to quell the chaos, so Guangdong's money and grain need to be used."
"But when we call it every year, when will it end?"
"Therefore, the imperial court decided that it would be better to teach them to fish than to teach them to fish. After Lianzhou Prefecture was transferred to Guangxi, the imperial court opened a port in Qinzhou and set up a customs to make it self-sufficient in money and food."
"This is a good strategy for long-term peace and stability!"
"Having said that, it is too unfair to me in Guangdong." Huang Jin's tone was weaker, but still not strong enough.
Yu Chenglong sighed in his heart, this group of people brought the old man out to be the vanguard. The older he gets, the more stubborn he becomes. How can he be persuaded?
With that said, Yu Chenglong stepped forward directly: "Huang Gong, although Guangdong has suffered a slight loss, the benefits outweigh the disadvantages for the country. You have served the court all your life. Although you are older now, you should sacrifice your private life for the public good.
yes."
"Those scofflaws only have their own province in front of them. How can they know the difficulties of the imperial court? The imperial court has its own opinions. I think with your vision, you can't fail to see it, right?"
Huang Jin retreated as soon as moral pressure came on.
Simply because he was old, Yu Chenglong didn't dare to pursue him at all, but instead comforted him in a pleasant voice.
A conflict was resolved in this way.
The next day, Yu Chenglong mobilized the Guangdong treasury and was shocked by its scale.
Guangdong's reserves can reach 900,000 yuan each year, and now the inventory has reached 1.3 million yuan. This is the accumulation of the chief ministers over the years.
Warehouses in various counties also mostly have surpluses and rarely have deficits.
If Guangdong exerts all its efforts, it will be enough to support an army of 30,000 soldiers for half a year.
Since he had enough money and food, Yu Chenglong focused more on the army.
Guangdong Province has ten prefectures and seventy-five counties, with a population of nearly 8 million.
The patrol camp has about 20,000 soldiers and horses.
The three thousand Beijing Battalion under the jurisdiction of the Guangdong General Army was led south from Beijing. It is the most important mobile force and the decisive force in Guangdong Province.
Guangxi's population is only about three million, less than half that of Guangdong. Taxation is barely self-sufficient, but if there is civil unrest, it will exceed expenditures and must be allocated from Guangdong.
"Difficult, difficult, difficult——"
He sighed.
Suddenly, the housekeeper came in a hurry and said at a loss: "Sir, something bad has happened. The scholars from Guangzhou City have surrounded the inn."
There is only the governor's office in Guangzhou, and the office of the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi is also in Wuzhou, which is the boundary of Guangxi, which fully illustrates the focus of the work of the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi.
"Why is this?" Yu Chenglong said solemnly.
"There have been rumors among the people these days that it was you who told the court to transfer Lianzhou Prefecture to Guangxi, but the scholars just listened and believed..."
"Nonsense——"
Yu Chenglong said in a loud voice, his guess is really accurate, who is leaking the news?
For a moment, he had a headache.
…
The morning fog had not yet dissipated, and Luanping City seemed to have just woken up. The city gate was opened, and merchants coming north from Gubeikou entered in a swarm, waking up the entire city.
Luanping County is located in Chahar. This newly built city on the grassland was built in less than ten years. Compared with some thousand-year-old ancient cities in the mainland, it can be said to be very short.
Although Chahar is at the same level as the province, it is equivalent to a government. Its number of scholars is only thirty, slightly more than the twenty of the big government, and its number of candidates is only ten.
As the number of scholars increases, the number of candidates for candidates is also increasing, and will eventually increase to thirty.
In such a large Chahar, the total number of scholars in the past ten years is only sixty, and the number of scholars is thirty.
"Good news, good news, the master of your house, Zhong Tao Wenjun, ranked among the top 108 in Ding Weike in the 19th year of high school Shaowu, and was granted the same background as a Jinshi——"
When the official document from the capital hit Chahar, a team of yamen servants came out of the county government office, each carrying official silk and red flowers, playing suonas and drums, not to mention how festive it was.
For a time, the entire Luanping City was boiling.
The vendors stopped doing business, pedestrians forgot their purpose, and the merchants shook their heads and followed the team to a house.
"Good news, good news, the master of your house, Zhong Tao Wenjun, ranked among the top 108 in Ding Weike in the 19th year of high school Shaowu, and was granted the same background as a Jinshi——"
The high-pitched shouts of the government officials disturbed the whole street.
The neighbors all looked at it and were very happy.
"Kacha—"
As soon as the owner opened the door, the neighbors worked together to tear down the door, like a hungry tiger pouncing on food, fast and hard.
This is called changing the name of the court.
After the old gate is demolished, a new gate tower will be built and a Jinshi plaque will be hung to show off.
Even vermilion flagpoles were erected on both sides of the gate.
After Zhongfu was astonished, he immediately prepared several baskets of copper coins and squandered them as if they didn't need any money. The neighbors grabbed them one after another in order to be happy.
The team that announced the good news naturally had silver coins in hand, not copper coins.
After a while, the magistrate, riding a carriage, also came over:
"The birth of Wenquxing in your mansion is a blessing to me, Luanping."
After saying this, the yamen servant brought a wooden holder, a small cylinder with five fingers long, which contained a silver round happy coin wrapped in red paper.
"This is fifty yuan of silver dollars. It's a token of appreciation from the county government. In addition, I'm afraid Chifeng will also receive a reward..."
"Your husband is the first Jinshi since the establishment of Chahar. This is the result of God's mercy and His Majesty's gift."
"Such a happy event is enough for hundreds of thousands of Han and Mongolian people in Chahar to celebrate together. The governor can give at least two hundred silver coins as a reward."
When everyone heard that there would be so much money, they were instantly in an uproar.
The Han people taught their children not to mention reading, and even some Mongolians who were watching the fun were moved.
"Abu (father), I also want to take the imperial examination." The thin boy was full of hope.
"Enhe, only Naadam will be the real hero." The big man lectured.
"However, if you are not good at riding a horse or shooting an arrow, you will definitely not be able to compete with those warriors. It is not bad to pass the Jinshi examination!"
The big man looked at the plate of silver coins with uncontrollable longing in his heart.
Not so much in Naadam.
Seeing everyone's gaze, the magistrate smiled casually:
"The book has its own beauty like jade, and the book has its own golden house.
Whether they are Mongolians or Han people, they are all citizens of the Ming Dynasty. Only by studying diligently can we shine."
"The county hopes that the second Jinshi gate tower will still be in Luanping."