I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 261 The Ming people underestimated us again
Zhang Juzheng thought for a while and decided to tell the truth.

"Master, I have speculated, but I am still unsure of how His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will deal with this matter.

Your Highness will definitely survey the land. Gao Xinzheng is brave and willing to take on the task. Your Highness will be happy to see it succeed, so he strongly supports him.

But because land surveying is about weighing the pros and cons, scholars all over the world study hard for twenty years and then work hard for decades before they get a job. Are they all doing this for the country and the people, and realizing the teachings of the saints?

Not entirely. Nine out of ten scholars seek wealth and glory, land, privileges, and a legacy for their descendants. Uncle Da knows this, so does my mentor and Your Highness.

Your Highness will not be so reckless as to survey the land and abolish all old practices, which will shake the foundation and stir up public outcry among scholars and lead to great changes. "

Xu Jie thought for a while and agreed with Zhang Juzheng's statement, "The prince takes one step and looks ten steps ahead. Now, more than half of the prince's party are Jinshi graduates, and if you add the Juren and Xiucai graduates, eight or nine out of ten are. The scholars all read the books of sages, have teachers and classmates, and if one prospers, all prosper, and if one suffers, all suffer.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would not be so reckless, and my Xu family is not one that can be defeated by a mere prefect kneeling in front of the gate!"

Xu Jie found his confidence again.

I am not Yan Song, and my Dalang is not Yan Shifan!

The Xu family is not the Yan family!
Zhang Juzheng nodded in agreement with Xu Jie, and suddenly he felt a chill in his heart and remembered something.

Yi Nian Tang, the Lecture Hall, and the training class for civil servants recruited from the Imperial College in Beijing and Nanjing as well as local scholars. Since the establishment of the Propaganda Bureau, these measures have been accelerated under the leadership of Li Zhi.

Leaving aside the Yinian Hall and the training institute, the training classes are divided into four subjects: finance and taxation, construction, agriculture, and industry and commerce. Each subject recruits two classes each year, with more than a hundred students in each class, and every class is always full.

The road to the imperial examination is now extremely difficult, and there are many scholars in the world waiting to enter the officialdom and show their ambitions. The "study class" set up by the prince's confidant guarantees teaching, learning and assignment, which is a rare shortcut to the end of the world.

In the previous period, some people disliked it as a miscellaneous subject, not a formal subject. But when the first period graduated, the positions of county magistrate, chief clerk, Maritime Customs Bureau, Inter-county Trade Bureau, Salt Administration Bureau, and Customs Regulation Bureau were all "fat jobs".

The salary was set according to the imperial court's regulations, and the various allowances were generous, so the family's food and drink were guaranteed, and there was still a little more. They didn't have to be like those poor officials in the capital, who had to hang themselves or beg for food if the Ministry of Revenue was slightly reduced.

You studied hard for twenty years and passed the imperial examination, and this is all you achieved?
I bother!

It’s not as affordable as a training class!

As a result, the number of people signing up for the training classes increased suddenly, and the intensity of the examination became comparable to that of the provincial examination.

Zhang Juzheng calculated that the training class could "train" 800 "clerks" who met the Crown Prince's ideals in one year.

What about two years, three years, or five years?

They are called clerks, but when these clerks are trained, it is not impossible for them to become county magistrates, prefectural magistrates, and provincial governors. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is capable of such a thing.

Jinshi can become an official and Hanlin can serve in the cabinet because it is the imperial decree.

Once His Royal Highness the Crown Prince finds another way and opens up a new channel for recruiting talents, and is no longer constrained by scholars and Confucian scholars, my dear teacher, do you think His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will let the Xu family go easily like he did this time?
Zhang Juzheng kept these in his heart and dared not say them out loud.

As a close minister to the crown prince, he knew many things so clearly.

He knew even more clearly that the prince trusted him and was willing to let him know these things. Once he turned around and told this information to his mentor, the prince would be very angry and the consequences would be serious.

No one knows who is the spy from the Eastern Depot or the Wing Guard Division around my mentor Xu Jie.

Zhang Juzheng thought for a moment and said, "Master, I still feel that since this has happened, it is not important to find out who is behind this.

Of course, my dear teacher, not only you will track down this boy, but His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will also track down this boy. I believe that there will be news soon.

My dear teacher, the most urgent thing now is to eliminate the consequences and seek forgiveness from His Highness."

Xu Jie squinted his eyes and looked at Zhang Juzheng. His face looked calm, but his heart was turbulent.

This disciple of mine was drifting further and further away from me, and he had completely stood on the side of the prince.

It was normal. He needed a big tree like himself to protect him from the wind and rain. Now he has grown into a big tree, and a group of people have gathered around him to protect them from the wind and rain.

Perhaps in the future, his descendants will need him to protect them from the wind and rain.

I beg for your forgiveness, Your Highness. It may sound harsh, but it hits the nail on the head.

If the Xu family's affairs are not brought to the table and investigated seriously, they will only be punished with three cups of wine; if the prince really insists on having his own way and supports Hai Rui in investigating the matter thoroughly, the Xu family will not be able to end it without losing several lives.

"Uncle, you are a close minister of the crown prince and you know his temper. How do you think we can seek his forgiveness?" Xu Jie asked slowly. Zhang Juzheng was stunned for a moment and replied hesitantly: "Master, I can't think of a proper solution for the time being. Please let me think about it carefully after I go back."

Xu Jie stared at Zhang Juzheng and said meaningfully: "Once this matter is over, I am afraid I will not be able to stay in the cabinet. Gao Xinzheng will definitely gain momentum and join the cabinet.

Uncle, you and I both know Gao Xinzheng's temper. Can he allow you to be ahead of him?"

Zhang Juzheng looked serious, bowed and replied: "Please give me some advice, Master."

"Uncle, you no longer need my guidance. Your wisdom and ability are far superior to mine. What you lack now is wings. Only when your wings are fully grown can you confront Gao Xinzheng.

Why is Gao Xinzheng so flamboyant? It's because he has many disciples, many old officials, and many wings! You passed the imperial examination later than him, and you are a low-key person. You are not as flamboyant as him, and you don't have as many wings as him.

"One hero needs three helpers. When there are more people, even the voices will be much louder when quarreling in the court."

At the end, Xu Jie was all smiles. Zhang Juzheng was also all smiles.

The two looked at each other and smiled, and the teacher and students were in great joy.

"I will remember your teachings, my teacher. When I return, I will make plans for you so that you can get out of this vortex."

"Okay, okay, I'll leave everything to you."

"Teacher, your words are too kind."

Xu Jie sent Zhang Juzheng to the backyard entrance. Looking at his gradually disappearing figure, he couldn't help but narrow his eyes, his gaze focused and bright.

After waiting for a while, Xu Kun, who had escorted him to the mansion, came back.

"Father!"

"Second brother, you must strive to be better in the future. If you pass the imperial examination, you must ensure that your grandchildren pass the examination. Otherwise, the Xu family's prosperity and wealth will not be passed down for three generations."

Xu Kun's face changed. Zhang Juzheng is not only a cabinet minister and a close minister to the crown prince, but also your successor. Can't you trust him?
"Father, is Uncle Zhang older than him?"

“People’s hearts are no longer the same as they used to be!

Don't count on Uncle Zhang too much for this matter, he has his own thoughts now. Saving our Xu Mansion is just a side job."

Xu Jie said this coldly, and then ordered: "Go, invite your second uncle, Zhao Jin, and Dong Chuance."

"Yes!"

In the northwest corner of Ganghwa Island, the King of Korea, Yi Sun, and more than 400 North Korean yangban officials were rudely "driven" by the Marine Corps to a nearby high platform to watch the battle.

King Lee Sun and his ministers were devastated. What was so good about this war?

We are all disciples of the holy religion who read the books of sages. We seldom get involved in such fighting, killing, tyranny and cruelty. Forcing us to watch the battle is really a loss to the elegant and Confucian spirit of the Great Ming Dynasty.

However, the Marine Corps, which followed the order, did not care about the complaints of the Korean monarch and his ministers.

Lee Sun, who was sitting on the sedan chair, was still better off. The Marine Corps soldiers just urged the Korean porters to hurry up.

Those Korean yangban officials who dared to talk back were hit on the head with several scabbards; those who tried to escape secretly were blocked and whipped. These officials rolled on the ground, which made the Korean porters and servants nearby very happy.

Dozens of other yangban officials who had been hiding in various places and unwilling to watch the battle were driven here with bruised faces and noses. Among them were three great Korean scholars who had vowed to never submit.

Others were curious, why did he come along, didn't he vow to die rather than obey?

The Ming officers and soldiers said that all those who did not come would have their rations stopped immediately.

How poisonous!

Now the Korean officials and civilians on Ganghwa Island, from Lee Sun to the porters, are all relying on food rations from the Ming Dynasty Consulate on Ganghwa Island to survive. If the food rations are stopped immediately, people will starve to death!
Don’t think that others will help you. Everyone is short of food and hungry, so who will save money to help you?

Ugh!
Integrity! Character!
Many Korean officials who were watching could not help but stamp their feet in hatred. You great scholars and celebrities should not accept food given out of pity. Let a few of you starve to death so that the Ming people will know that among our Korean scholars there are those who would rather break than bend.

such a pity!
How hateful! The Ming people look down on us again!

(End of this chapter)