Ming Dynasty: Domination of the World from the Imperial Examination

Chapter 7: The rotten scholar-official class!
Qinhuai River.

Xia Zhibai has found a place to live.

He sat alone by the window of the guest room, looking at the willow trees swaying in the wind not far away and listening to the rustling of the wind all around him. In the brothel not far away, the sounds of singing and dancing soon drowned out the wind.

Just checked in less than half an hour ago.

He saw many candidates taking the exam entering the nearby brothels.

His rapid decline reminded him of a text he had learned in the past, "Fan Jin Zhongju".

After passing the imperial examination, Fan Jin learned how to navigate official circles and social circles almost without any instruction. He was also very skilled in enjoying the money, house, land, and servants that came with his success.

Xia Zhibai sometimes had to admit it.

It seems that this has always been the case for Chinese scholars.

The so-called officials and gentry are a group of people who, once they have made a social leap, immediately and skillfully join the rentier class.

They can suck the blood, sweat and fat of the people with peace of mind, without the slightest thought of seeking benefits for the people. They become officials just to get rich, to be slaves of the imperial power, and to ennoble their wives and children.

These officials are what the emperor calls the ministers of the country, the honest and powerful officials sought after by the people, and the so-called princes of the local areas.

The literati and gentry of the Han and Tang dynasties still retained a bit of literati romance. As the restrictions on the eight-legged essay for selecting officials became more stringent in the Ming Dynasty, the literati and gentry in the world and the class that emerged from the eight-legged essay would become completely rotten on top of the already corrupt scholar class.

It sucks!

Xia Zhibai took a sip of the hot soup.

In just half an hour, he saw Huang Zicheng, Lian Zining and others chatting and laughing, and were surrounded by people as they entered.

The number of candidates entering this time is not that large. Only those who are extremely confident in themselves or have no certainty at all will go. Once the government announces the list of successful candidates, the number of candidates lingering among them will reach its peak.

Among these people there are those who are being flattered, those who go there on their own initiative, those who just follow the crowd, and those who actively participate in it and try to curry favor with the flatterers.

Xia Zhibai said: "Today's emperor values ​​heroes, and the literature of the ages teaches you that all things are inferior, and only reading is superior since ancient times."

"The Scholars is really well written."

"On this soil of old ideas, everything in the world is rotten to the core."

"Talented people fell into desolation, virtuous people were flattered, and villains prospered. Wu Jingzi saw the filth and rottenness of the eight-legged essay in the literati circle, and also saw through the decadent end of the eight-legged essay selection and the heyday of the gentry bureaucracy."

"It's just that he couldn't think of a solution, so he ended up fabricating the so-called downgraded selection of officials, which means he could only hope for the self-awakening of the wise monarch."

"But is it possible?"

Xia Zhibai withdrew his gaze and tightened his grip on the teacup.

History has already given the answer.

impossible.

The corrupt and filthy environment only made them more callous, cruel and cold-blooded. Finally, they were forced to make changes under the threat of foreign guns and cannons.

But the cost is too high!
What he said before was actually said to himself: Don't give the world to people you hate.

Zhu Yuanzhang was great.

But what he did was far from enough, and the world demanded much more from him than he did in his own time.

Zhu Yuanzhang, an emperor who came from a grassroots background, should have been the most compassionate person to the people, but after he took the throne, he had changed.

He became the biggest bureaucrat in the world.

Relying on the emperor's own awakening to change the corrupt status quo in the world is completely self-deception.

What the emperor always wants are slaves.

Anyone with a bit of backbone would not think of becoming a slave. Even in this old society full of slavery, one should still stick to one's principles.

Finish the tea.

Xia Zhibai was also a little tired.

He stood up from his seat and walked towards his bed, humming the poem written at the end of The Scholars. "I remember that time, I loved Qinhuai, and occasionally left my hometown to go to the queen of Meigenye, and whistled proudly several times."

"."

The next day, Wenhua Hall.

After a series of sealed examinations, the test papers of Xia Zhibai and others were sent here for review by the ministers arranged by Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Yuanzhang obviously attached great importance to this imperial examination. He specially appointed Zhu Biao as the chief examiner and Li Shanchang as the vice president. He also selected officials from the six ministries to participate in the marking.

The specifications are very high.

In the Wenhua Hall, Guo Chong and Wu Gongda sat in the same row. Both of them were Jinshi in the fourth year of Hongwu, Guo was the second place and Wu was the third place.

Currently, one of them is the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and the other is the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. This time, Zhu Biao specially called them over to participate in the marking of the imperial examination papers.

Now Zhu Biao's future.

The two of them rarely talked about the imperial examinations of that year, and their eyes were full of sighs.

Wu Gongda said with emotion: "Brother Zixiang, in our imperial examination, you ranked first in the provincial examination and also ranked first in the palace examination. Back then, we all thought you would be the first number one scholar in the Ming Dynasty."

"But the candlelight is not beautiful."

Guo Chong shook his head, his eyes full of sighs.

At that time, he considered himself to be knowledgeable and talented in writing, and therefore was extremely conceited. From the beginning of the imperial examination, he always regarded himself as the number one, and he won many debates with other candidates, and never took other people into consideration.

He even boasted that the top spot was in his pocket.

Especially since he ranked first in the subsequent joint examination and palace examination, he thought he had secured the top spot. However, the emperor said that he did not have a good appearance and only gave him the second place.

Let Wu Bozong become the top scholar.

He was resentful for a long time back then, but looking back now, he can only sigh that fortune and curse are inseparable. If he had really become the top scholar back then, he would probably have an even more fiery temper than Wu Bozong.

As the top scholar in the imperial examination, Wu Bozong was promoted to the Grand Secretary of Wuying Palace in just over ten years.

However, due to his strong character, he offended Hu Weiyong. After Hu Weiyong's downfall, he rose rapidly to the top, but he became complacent and began to indulge his family members in favoritism.

He was eventually implicated and died in Yunnan.

Because of his appearance, he was neglected by the current emperor, and because of some minor complaints at the time, his promotion speed was not fast enough.

This allowed him to avoid being involved in those political turmoil in the court. Now, he has finally reaped the rewards of his hard work and has been promoted steadily, and is still highly regarded by His Highness.

Wu Gongda said: "The southern part of the country is very powerful in this imperial examination, and the three people named 'Huang Lianhua' are the most outstanding. Before the examination even started, people in Yingtian Prefecture were already praising them, saying that these three people would occupy the top place."

Guo Chong sneered and said indifferently: "Since the establishment of the imperial examination in our dynasty, the selection of the top scholar has not been based simply on literary talent."

"Otherwise, I wouldn't have finished second that year."

"They thought that by creating momentum in the city, they would be looked up to by others and gain some fame for themselves. However, being too arrogant would only make people feel that they are difficult to control, and would only backfire."

Wu Gongda smiled and shook his head, saying, "Brother Zixiang, I am speechless."

"But I heard another piece of news last night. It seems that there is also an outstanding person in the north who is interested in competing with these three for the top spot."

"It's just that this person is even more frivolous than you were back then. Some of the things he said even shocked me when I heard them."

Guo Chong frowned, a hint of doubt in his eyes. Could there be anyone more arrogant than he was back then?
He couldn't believe it.

He had considered himself the top scorer from the very beginning and even wrote a poem in advance to express his joy. However, it was because he was too arrogant that he was eventually ranked lower.

Guo Chong asked curiously, "What did this person say?"

Just as Wu Gongda was about to speak, he heard footsteps outside the hall. He swallowed the words that were about to come out of his mouth and stood up to greet them.

Crown Prince Zhu Biao is here.

(End of this chapter)