Han Shizu

Firecrackers sounded everywhere in Luoyang City, and fireworks bloomed in the night sky. Under the bright fireworks, it was a prosperous night scene in the capital.

Last year, due to the national mourning and the ban on entertainment, the Mid-Autumn Festival basically stopped. Regarding this, the scholars and the people felt somewhat regretful, if not resentful. After all, the Mid-Autumn Festival was one of the five major festivals of the Han Empire, and it was also one of the few common people of the Han Dynasty throughout the year. Days where you can relax are very popular and are valued by both the government and the public.

(Yuanxi, Jiaqing, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and Winter Solstice are the five major festivals of the Han Dynasty. The emperor and his ministers celebrate together, and the whole country rejoices)
There was so much regret last year, but there is some joy this autumn. In addition, this is the first Mid-Autumn Festival after the new emperor ascended the throne. Therefore, it is the consensus between the government and the public to enjoy the golden autumn of the month. Emperor Liu Yang has repeatedly advocated frugality and combated extravagance. He also relaxed, agreed to hold the Mid-Autumn Festival celebration, and decided to hold an imperial banquet in Qianyuan Hall.

In addition, the examination, grading, and admission of the modern civil examination system were also completed before the Mid-Autumn Festival, which added to the joy. Liu Yang also decided to hand-pick the number one scholar in the Qianyuan Hall.

Between the palace walls, the Qianyuan Hall, reflected brightly by the lights, is like a crystal palace, and the dark night cannot cover up its shining light. Compared with the hustle and bustle of the market, this place is just as lively, but it is more restricted by strict palace rules. The people here are also the powerful class of the Han Dynasty, and lastly the elite of the empire. They are all high-quality groups, and they follow etiquette and rules. The most basic behavioral cognition.

Grandness is the appearance, solemnity is the etiquette. A band of several hundred musicians performed court music skillfully, performing a long song of the prosperous times. This kind of atmosphere makes everyone intoxicated, and everyone has a happy but polite smile on their face.

Even Liu Yang, who was sitting high on the dragon bed, could not help but be deeply affected. Such a situation was not uncommon in the Kaibao era, but the position of viewing the scenery was changed, and he became a lone traveler on the supreme throne. Liu Yang tried to understand how Emperor Shizu felt when he was in power, but in the end he failed. He was completely unable to be as calm and stern as the imperial examination.

"Jinshi Xuan Xinke comes to the palace to have an audience!" Accompanied by Zheng Yuan's sonorous announcement, the atmosphere in the entire Qianyuan Palace suddenly changed. All the guests stopped their glasses and turned their gazes towards the palace door.

Under the gazes of the dignitaries who were either curious, amused or scrutinizing, 205 new scholars, guided by the chamberlain, carefully and respectfully entered the Qianyuan Hall and set foot on the ground of the most majestic and magnificent palace of the Han Dynasty.

Due to the particularity of the period, the number of candidates for this subject in the first year of Yongxi's reign exceeded 4500, which can be said to be the largest number since the founding of the People's Republic of China.

At the same time, it is also the largest number of admissions in each subject. After strict review and approval process, and after being submitted to Liu Yang for approval, a total of 205 people are planned to be admitted to the Jinshi.

Among them, the Jinshi department is naturally the largest, with 88 people, 18 people in the Ming Dynasty, 32 people in the Ming Dynasty, 15 people in the history department, 20 people in the agriculture department, 12 people in the medical department, 12 people in the arithmetic department, and 8 people in the engineering department.

Compared with previous years, the admission quota has increased by almost [-]%. Judging from the number of admissions in each subject, the status of Mingfa has been consolidated in the imperial examination, and its importance is second only to the Jinshi subject. Mingjing and History subjects have their own Surprisingly, the number of people enrolled in the four major junior college subjects of agriculture, medicine, arithmetic, and engineering also broke history.

Under the political influence of the Kaibao era for 30 years, many scholars have chosen the four subjects of agriculture, medicine, arithmetic, and engineering in their studies and examinations. After all, the pressure of competition is relatively small, and both left and right are using it to gain admission to official positions. threshold.

However, this situation has changed now, because there are too many smart people and too many people who hold the same idea. The result is that even the four major engineering disciplines have become a situation where thousands of troops are crossing a single-plank bridge. The fierce competition is evident.

Of course, in this situation, the most valuable thing is not how many engineering scholars are admitted to each subject, but the new ways of studying and self-cultivation that have been formed in Han society and among the scholars behind this trend. , the law of government.

Although the original intention of many people was still to be ingratiating in order to become officials and make a difference, after it became large-scale, it almost promoted an ideological change. For example, the Xiangjiang School, which has landed in Luoyang, can also be regarded as a product of this trend of thought.

This is probably a less obvious merit left by Emperor Shizu to the people of the Han Dynasty. He once had a pragmatic spirit in his bones, and even went as far as going too far. Many bureaucrats who are only pragmatic and not moral have appeared. To this day, Criticized by people.

Of course, with the passing of the Kaibao era, Emperor Shizu's repressive power gradually disappeared. Some opponents, including those who could not understand this trend, began to raise their heads. They did not dare to directly criticize Shizu's government, but they used indirect ways and insinuations. , they are very good at it.

This autumn examination has been targeted. During the preparation period for the National College Entrance Examination, officials have repeatedly proposed that the number of students admitted to the four subjects of agriculture, medicine, computing, and engineering should be reduced or even cancelled.

The reason is also very simple, because many corrupt officials in the Kaibao era were from these four disciplines (although there were more people from other backgrounds). At the same time, the four disciplines were filled with a large number of opportunistic and ungrateful people. Such people are "little people" who will only destroy the fine and upright atmosphere of the Han Dynasty. They are not suitable for being officials, let alone educating and managing the common people.
Of course, those who put forward these opinions are traditional Confucian and Taoist priests, but the fundamental reason is that the four major majors are actually taking food from their bowls and compressing their living space.

In fact, as of the first year of Yongxi's reign, those old Confucian scholars and Taoists who insist on tradition and maintain old rituals are only competitive in the Ming Dynasty. For this reason, they have to make some changes that keep pace with the times, that is, Shi Ke , and it is not entirely under their control. After Xiangjiang University entered Beijing, these people were the first to be approved...

Regarding their proposals on the reform of the imperial examination system, Emperor Liu Yang had a clear and resolute attitude, rejecting them with almost no hesitation.

Liu Yang only mentioned two points. One is, do you dare to violate the "ancestral teachings"? You must know that the regulations on scientific examinations, especially the methods and ideas for selecting materials, were incorporated into the ancestral system by Emperor Shizu. The appearance of the Han Dynasty's scientific examination field and off-site can all be explained in the ancestral system formulated by him. , this autumn’s system is just a continuation of its system.

Secondly, if officials are pragmatic and short on virtue, then we should reform them from this aspect. Education and encouragement of officials are also part of the government's administration.

As for officials who have committed crimes, whether it is corruption, favoritism or other crimes, they are bound by the Han legal system and have supervision and management. If they are tempted to focus on the imperial examination, they are going in the opposite direction, betraying the ancestors and breaking the system, and it is a fool's act.

The Qianyuan Hall is indeed magnificent, and it is hard to describe it in grand and shocking terms. At least for the moment, with the hall full of guests, waiters, and guards, it is still more than enough to introduce more than 200 Jinshi at once.

The scholars filed into the hall in order, all with solemn expressions and precise movements. The rules were their first lesson after jumping over the dragon gate, and they learned them very well.

Perhaps contrary to what many people imagine, there are almost no young and handsome scholars and talents among new scholars. If you want to find them, you may have to listen to the storytellers in the wells of Gyeonggi City.

Dahan has always faced an "aging" trend in opening courses to obtain scholars. This subject in the palace is probably the "oldest" subject in history, with the majority being over 30 years old, followed by those over 40 years old. .

Especially for medicine, agriculture, and engineering, which are three subjects that require sufficient experience, there are many people with gray beards and hair, and those with ridged faces and rough skin are even less elegant. It is these three disciplines that make fun of doctors, farmers, and craftsmen. Even though in fact, those who are qualified in three subjects are also practicing the way of saints. Among them, those who have learned a lot and are rich in five things are not necessarily weaker than those who are erudite scholars.

As for the undergraduate, the youngest person was actually a scholar from Suzhou, Jiangnan Province, Ding Wei, who was 28 years old. Seeing the Jinshi scholars who were bowing solemnly, Liu Yang decided not to praise them as "young heroes". And looking around, in the hall, there are not many people who are interested in this year's Jinshi, and some are slightly ridiculing. Of course, there are also some old scholars from the Third Hall and the Hanlin Academy, whose expressions are even more exciting.
The new scholars, of course, did not dare to look around in this hall, but they were somewhat aware of the strange atmosphere. The eyes of some dignitaries did not restrain themselves, and they all "trembled" and could only hold on.

The twenty waiters were divided into two waves, one delivering bowls and the other pouring wine. They neatly and calmly poured wine for more than 200 new scholars.

Afterwards, Liu Yangfang picked up his wine glass, looked around, and said loudly: "Everyone raises a glass and joins me in paying respects to the undergraduate scholars!"

"Please, Your Majesty!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

The two groups of people and the two voices were both uniform and shocking. The echoes in the hall continued to impact everyone's hearts. In such an atmosphere, everyone instinctively showed awe.

After finishing the drink, the glass was stopped and the waiter poured the wine. Everything was so orderly. After a rustling sound, the hall became quiet again.

Liu Yang looked down at the awe-stricken Jinshi scholars and called out their names. He first shouted: "Bian Ding!"

"Your Majesty is here!" A middle-aged man came out calmly and bowed to His Majesty.

Liu Yang looked at him carefully and said with a smile: "Your father Bian Gong is Qianyou's meritorious service and the pillar of the country. Today's success can be regarded as complementing each other. I only hope that you will be self-disciplined and will not lose the reputation of your late father!"

"Yes! I will uphold my father's ambition, serve the country with all my heart, and be unswervingly determined!" Facing the emperor's gentle encouragement, Bian Ding seemed very excited and immediately swore.

Bian Ding was the son of Bian Guichen, an old minister of Qianyou. Bian Guichen was the son of Lailai, and almost 30 years had passed since his death. For an individual and a family, 30 years is enough time for a sea of ​​changes to occur, and in the past thirty years, the Bian family has been in decline.

And Bian Ding has been determined to revive his family business since he was young. He studied hard for many years and worked as a local official for nearly ten years. Now being admitted as a Jinshi is nothing, but he was personally recognized by the emperor and mentioned his long-forgotten father. , how can you not be grateful and excited? After all, there is hope for the revitalization of the Bian family.
"Ding Wei!" Liu Yang called again.

Soon, a handsome young man stood out from the team. He couldn't restrain his excitement in his words: "I'm here!"

Liu Yang glanced at Ding Wei and had to say that this appearance was not very pleasing to the eye at first sight. However, Liu Yang said calmly: "You are the youngest among the undergraduates, but your articles are the most daring! Let me ask you, why are you, a southern scholar who grew up in Suzhou, so concerned about the northwest frontier affairs? With such an understanding, can you speak clearly and logically?"

Facing the emperor's inquiry, Ding Wei tried his best to suppress the excitement in his heart and responded solemnly: "Your Majesty, when I was weak, I traveled with three or five friends to the northwest Daozhou, visiting the geography and people, and gained a lot. The memory is still fresh, so I dare to talk about irrelevant things!"

The strategies and practices of the Jinshi Department this time all have issues related to side affairs. Liu Yang obviously read Ding Wei's article, so he asked this question.

"Isn't the study tour easy?" Liu Yang asked.

"Your Majesty, not only was it not easy, it was also dangerous and almost cost me my life."

"Thousands of miles of study tour experience is very rare!" Liu Yang nodded and said: "If I become an official in the future, I hope I can calm down and serve the country and benefit the people!"

"Yes! I will remember your Majesty's teachings!" Ding Wei responded quickly.

"Sun He?" Looking up, Liu Yang called out another person.

Right next to Ding Wei, a middle-aged man with an elegant demeanor stood up and behaved more calmly: "I'm here!"

Liu Yang said: "There are many talented people in this generation, but few are outstanding. I heard that you can recognize phonology at the age of ten, and you can quote scriptures when writing articles at the age of 15?"

When asked, Sun He seemed very humble: "Your Majesty's compliments are false, but I don't dare to accept them. When I write articles, I still want to learn. As for managing the world and achieving affairs, I am like a young boy."

Hearing his words, Liu Yang smiled and said nothing. After pondering for a while, he stood up slowly, walked to the throne, and said solemnly: "The two hundred and five Jinshi here are all talents carefully selected by the imperial court. In the future, you will definitely serve as officials, educate the people, govern, and enforce the law. For those who manage money or even join the military, I have only one piece of advice for you: put what you have learned into practice, serve the country and the people, and don’t live up to the hardships you endured in the first place.”

"I sincerely follow His Majesty's teachings!" Everyone worshiped in unison.

Liu Yang returned to the throne, glanced at Zheng Yuan, and said softly: "Announce the edict!"

Soon, the list of Jinke's first-class players was officially announced. After a while, Ding Wei was ranked second, and Sun He was ranked number one!

Moreover, there are really many talents in this class. In addition to these three people, there are also Qian Ruoshui, Yu Xianke, Hong Zhan, Zeng Hui, Zhou Yi, etc.