My Pen Pal Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 83 Xu Da scolded the old man in public!
Inside the Fengtian Hall, as usual, ministers entered the hall one after another, and then exchanged greetings in groups of three or five before His Majesty arrived.

However, Yang Siyi felt that the atmosphere today was somewhat unusual. Many people in the Ministry of Rites looked at him with inexplicably cold eyes.

Seeing Li Min coming, the two looked at each other, nodded, and then stood in their seats.

At this time, the eunuch's unique feminine and sharp voice came from the hall.

"Your Majesty is here!"

Zhu Yuanzhang walked slowly along the ceremonial carriage and sat on the dragon throne. Civil and military officials kowtowed to him one after another.

"Long live your majesty!"

"Everyone loves you."

Zhu Yuanzhang sat upright on the dragon throne, looking very majestic.

Ministers from various ministries submitted memorials one after another, all of which were about court affairs that required discussion by all officials or approval by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Then, Zhu Yuanzhang turned his attention to Yang Siyi.

Yang Siyi understood, took a deep breath, took a step forward with the tablet in hand and said:

“Your Majesty, I have heard that the industry of the Ming Dynasty is developing rapidly and all industries are thriving, but the inheritance of craftsmen’s skills is often insufficient and skilled workers are hard to find.

"I now boldly ask Your Majesty to allow the establishment of a technical school to train craftsmen and impart skills to make up for the lack of talent. I hope Your Majesty will grant my request to help the Ming Dynasty's industry take off!"

After saying this, Yang Siyi handed in the memorial amid an uproar among the ministers.

"Has Yang Siyi gone crazy setting up a government school for craftsmen?"

"As a scholar, it is ridiculous to think about such absurd things!"

"It's an insult to politeness!"

Yang Siyi remained calm when he heard the sarcastic remarks from the ministers. He was mentally prepared for everything that happened.

A hint of coldness flashed across Zhao Mao's eyes. You still want to run a technical official school? I'm afraid that by then, you, Yang Siyi, won't be able to protect yourself!

Zhu Yuanzhang waved his hand, signaling everyone to be quiet, "My dear ministers, what do you think of what Minister Yang has said?"

Zhao Mao turned around and winked at Qian Hongming, the chief academic officer of the Imperial College. Qian Hongming understood and stood up and took a step forward.

"Your Majesty, I heard that the Minister of Finance Yang Siyi wants to bring craftsmen into the official school to study together with scholars and Confucian scholars. This absurd proposal is truly treasonous and tarnishes the teachings of the sages!"

Qian Hongming turned his head and looked at Yang Siyi. Although Yang Siyi's rank was much higher than his, he still looked fearless as if he was not afraid of his superiors.

"Since ancient times, studying and learning have been the exclusive domain of scholars and Confucianists, with the goal of cultivating oneself, managing the family, governing the country and bringing peace to the world, inheriting the wisdom of the ancient sages and promoting the great principles of Confucianism.

Although the skills of craftsmen have their uses, they are ultimately inferior skills. How can they be compared with the practical learning of the world? If they are allowed to be in the same class with scholars, it will surely blaspheme the dignity of sacred learning and humiliate the wisdom of the ancient sages! "

Qian Hongming's words made a lot of sense and many civil officials agreed with him. How could the skills of craftsmen be compared with Confucianism?
Yang Siyi had such a crazy idea that he tried to allow such a low-level craftsman to enter the official school?

Why don’t you take a piss and look at yourself to see how much you weigh?

"Therefore, I strongly oppose Yang Siyi's absurd proposal! I hope Your Majesty will be discerning and stick to the Confucian way, and not allow the teachings of the sages to be tarnished."

At the end of his speech, Qian Hongming actually knelt down and kowtowed heavily to the ground!

"I beg Your Majesty to think twice and not let such absurd ideas succeed!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the whole room was in an uproar, and many civil officials seconded his opinion.

"Qian Jijiu, well said, well said!"

"How can such a lowly way of doing things be accepted by the upper class?"

Everyone has studied hard for many years and fought their way through the huge crowds of people taking the imperial examinations. If craftsmen can also study in official schools, then what is the point of their hard work in taking the imperial examinations?
Wouldn't it make the world laugh at him? Zhu Yuanzhang frowned, his face expressionless, no one knew what he was thinking.

Yang Siyi looked at Li Min, only to see that Li Min remained calm and looked as if it had nothing to do with her.

Zhiyuan is a very patient person.

Although Qian Hongming was openly and covertly mocking himself for insulting the teachings of the sages, Yang Siyi remained calm and watched the situation develop.

At this moment, the nobles who had been watching the show started to move.

Li Wenzhong quietly pushed Xu Da, and just as Xu Da was about to scold him, he heard Zhu Yuanzhang say:
"Oh? Could it be that Duke Xu has other opinions on the establishment of an official school for craftsmen? I am all ears."

Well, this is forcing the issue.

But who is Xu Da? His face is already thicker than the city wall.

He calmly straightened his official uniform, cleared his throat, and then looked at Qian Hongming slowly and said:

"Your Majesty, I have to say a few fair words!
"Mr. Qian, you are too disrespectful to the craftsmen! Craftsmen are the treasures of our Ming Dynasty. Without them, you scholars would not even have a bowl to eat!"

As soon as these words were spoken, all the nobles burst into laughter, and Zhu Yuanzhang's frown relaxed.

The group of civil officials glared at Xu Da and his men. If they had not been unable to defeat them, they would have started a fight in the morning.

Xu Da became even more proud and glanced at Li Wenzhong with a beaming smile.

"Master Qian, look at this court, from chopsticks to this palace, which one is not made by craftsmen?
Without craftsmen, what sedan chairs would you scholars ride in? What would soldiers take to the battlefield? Not to mention that all the things you spend money on in your houses were made by craftsmen!

The skills of the craftsmen are the foundation of the country. How can we say that they are inferior in skills? I beg Your Majesty to understand this!"

Seeing Qian Hongming glaring at him with eyes that seemed to be spitting fire, Xu Da decided to go all out.

"Master Qian, please don't look at me like that, or you'll get sick from anger. Hey, if you have the guts, go make yourself a bowl and eat!"

Although Qian Hongming was a fourth-rank chief academician, he was also the head of the Imperial College. In the hearts of Confucian scholars, he had a very high status. All the talented people in the world were proud to be his disciples.

At this moment, he was so angry at Xu Da's words that the beard on his face was trembling. He was like a scholar meeting a soldier and he couldn't explain himself even if he was right.

"Humph, you are just a warrior, how can you know the depth of knowledge? I am a Confucian student, how can I bother to compete with you rough people? You should know your own limitations and stop talking nonsense!"

Xu Da went even further and pointed at Qian Hongming and said, "Look, Qian Jijiu is anxious! He is anxious!"

A group of nobles and generals burst into laughter. Qian Hongming was so angry that he trembled. He snorted and simply ignored Xu Da, closing his eyes to rest and seek some peace and quiet.

Zhu Yuanzhang also found it funny. Xu Da was really good at making jokes and he helped Yang Siyi out of trouble in time.

Yang Siyi cheered in his heart, fortunately the nobles were on his side, otherwise, when it came to using twisted logic to argue against the truth, no one would be able to match these nobles!

Seeing that the situation was gradually getting out of control, Zhao Mao gave a wink to Sun Yuanliang, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

Sun Yuanliang understood, walked out from the crowd of ministers, and said word by word:

"Your Majesty, I have something important to report!"

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Sun Yuanliang with a sharp gaze. After a while, he slowly said, "Minister Sun, if you have anything important to say, please speak frankly."

Sun Yuanliang held the tablet in his hand, glanced at Yang Siyi, and then said loudly:
"Your Majesty, I want to impeach the Minister of Revenue, Yang Siyi!"

When these words were spoken, many ministers were shocked. Sun Yuanliang actually wanted to impeach his immediate superior?
At this court meeting, first Yang Siyi proposed to build an official school for craftsmen, and then his subordinate Sun Yuanliang wanted to impeach him. It was getting more and more exciting!

Only Zhao Mao, Hou Xiangbai and others had a cold light in their eyes.

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(End of this chapter)