Water Margin begins as a captain in Yanggu County

Chapter 401 Is Your Majesty really serious?

The busyness in the capital continued. Su Wu had originally planned to go to Yanyun ahead of schedule, but in the midst of all the hustle and bustle, the time for his journey north was delayed day by day...

The imperial court gradually got back on track, and at least the affairs of various departments and government offices were gradually straightened out.

Qin Hui also returned. The Imperial Censor became Li Gang, while Qin Hui became the Vice Chancellor, a promotion. Like Zhao Sicheng, he became the Vice Chancellor.

It was because of this that Qin Hui did a really good job in Jinghu. In less than two months, he had investigated almost all the high-ranking families in Jinghu.

It's obvious that Qin Hui is very good at understanding the emperor's intentions, so his promotion is only right.

Without serving as a vice prime minister, Qin Hui wouldn't be qualified to be the most treacherous minister.

The news of the special imperial examination spread like wildfire throughout Bianjing (Kaifeng) and numerous academies.

In the normal imperial examination system, it was generally held once every three years. In the past, it was held once every two years, and there were even instances of it being held twice a year, but those were things of a long time ago.

To be honest, although the imperial examination system originated in the Sui and Tang dynasties, it was not until the Song dynasty that it gradually became the main channel for the court to select officials.

Now, it has gradually become extremely mature and perfected, and the imperial examination held once every three years is a long time that scholars can hardly wait for...

Therefore, the special imperial examination was an unexpected and great joy for all scholars!

The number of students signing up was endless.

Those who had previously cursed Su Wu as a traitor were now crowding outside the registration areas of government offices or schools!
Let it be Great Yan then. Whose imperial examination isn't an imperial examination?

Who didn't take the imperial examination to become an official?
Among all those former officials of the Song Dynasty, I didn't see any of them retire and return to their hometowns because of the change of dynasty. Aren't they all still doing their official duties in the government offices?

If they can make Great Yan, then who can't make Great Yan?

The imperial court also officially promulgated the new era name, Zhengyuan.

Su Wu even did some private calculations. The first year of the founding of the Great Yan Dynasty was the same as the first year of the Jingkang era of the Great Song Dynasty, which was 1126.

Logically speaking, this year's leap eleventh month corresponds to January of 1127, when the Jurchens besieged Bianjing for the second time, marking the end of the Northern Song Dynasty.

However, the country perished a few months earlier than expected.

On the eighth day of the ninth month of the first year of the Zhengyuan era, the Kaifeng Prefecture held the provincial examination, with four examination sites.

In other prefectures and counties across the country, the earliest arrivals will likely be at the end of September, while the latest will be in October. In more remote areas, it may be as late as the end of October, depending on the situation in each region.

For the prefectural examinations, those in Kaifeng and the capital region are usually held around the end of September. For other prefectures, the examinations are held as early as the beginning of October or as late as the end of October, not to mention the most remote ones.

However, the imperial examinations in the capital were traditionally held in the spring. This year, the special examinations will inevitably begin in the intercalary eleventh month, at the latest by the end of the intercalary eleventh month.

In this way, there is a whole month in December to review the papers, and there is even a formality called the palace examination, just in time for the results to be announced in the spring.

The candidates also had a tight schedule. Once they passed the prefectural exam, they had to immediately travel to the capital. They had a little over a month, or at most two months, to get to the capital and then take the exam.

In the Song Dynasty, the title of Juren was a one-time one. If you passed the Juren exam this time but failed the Jinshi exam, your next attempt would not count and you would have to take the exam again.

Su Wu planned to follow this model, becoming a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examinations) in one go, and then directly participating in the prefectural-level examinations in the future.

Another point is the reform of the Imperial Academy and the National Academy. In the past, students who graduated from these schools were directly qualified to become officials.

Su Wu decided to give them an additional test; they would still have to participate in the imperial examinations.

From now on, the admission qualifications for the Imperial Academy and the National Academy will also need to be re-evaluated, and a new set of regulations will be needed. The only solution is still examination.

Su Wu's mind was filled with nothing but exams, exams, exams, and the matter of establishing official schools had to be done.

In the past, there were county schools, prefectural schools, and government schools. If these schools wanted to expand their scale, they had to take entrance exams, one exam per level. As a result, the Imperial Academy and the National Academy could only recruit students from the prefectural schools throughout the country.

To put it simply, county schools were like "junior high schools," prefectural schools were like "senior high schools," and imperial academies and national schools were like "universities."

In the future, the Imperial Academy and the National Academy could be further divided into many more colleges, with varying levels of education and different disciplines, thus creating various "universities".

Going forward, we will also need to establish township schools and village schools...

This system needs to be extended further, and it's up to Su Wu to gradually implement it, including matters concerning money and provisions.

In truth, universal education is the foundation of a nation, and also the foundation for developing productive forces.

If Su Wu could truly popularize this school system during his decades of service, he would die without regrets. This achievement alone would be enough to make him famous for all time.

The grand plan is here, waiting for Su Wu to start implementing it year by year, beginning next year, and promoting it year by year.

Furthermore, the construction of the school system was directly incorporated into the performance evaluation of local officials. Those who built good schools could be promoted, while those who built poor schools could not be promoted, or even be demoted or directly dismissed.

This grand plan, this broad framework, is being written on Su Wu's desk again. This is not something that can be accomplished in three or five years; it will require at least twenty years of continuous progress, along with one-year plans, three-year plans, five-year plans, and so on.

A1!

I place it at the very front of my desk every day, and take it out to look at it from time to time, so as to reflect on myself!

Finally, on the second day of the ninth month, before the examinations in Kaifeng Prefecture even began, Su Wu, having made all the necessary arrangements, was about to set off for the expedition.

The main army will not move for some time, but Su Wu went ahead with three thousand cavalrymen, heading straight for Yanyun.

Six days after Su Wu left, the provincial examinations for the capital region and Kaifeng Prefecture began, which could also be called county examinations, with various counties taking the tests.

The essay questions for the capital region were standardized, thanks to the personal oversight of Zhao Sicheng. However, the questions for other prefectures were drafted by each prefecture itself, which was a common practice in this era.

The policy essay question also contained Zhao Sicheng's "ingenious idea," which asked: "From our ancestors four thousand years ago, what is the essence of family, country, and society?"

In fact, intelligent people will understand that what is being discussed is the state of our nation and the state of our ancestors over the past four thousand years.

It is no longer the state or society of any particular family or household.

The test left the candidates scratching their heads in frustration...

In fact, it is also about deconstructing loyalty to the monarch, or rather, separating the monarch from the country.

Before the Han Dynasty, this wasn't really a topic, but after the Han Dynasty, it became one, though it remained a clash of ideas within Confucianism...

Unsurprisingly, within Confucianism itself, there are many sayings that express these principles...

After the exams were over, the grading process proceeded smoothly and efficiently; the system of the Song Dynasty was truly remarkable…

If someone like Wu Yong were to reorganize the workforce to do these things, who knows how many mistakes would occur...

Some say that the Northern Song Dynasty in history died suddenly, and there is some truth to that.

Without the Jurchens, the Northern Song Dynasty might have been able to patch things up and survive for another one or two hundred years...

It's like the Ming Dynasty; its decadence started long ago, but it could remain idle for a very long time, until Li Zicheng emerged...

What Su Wu is thinking about now is how to avoid the predicament of the Song and Ming dynasties, and the predicament of the Han dynasty. In the Eastern Han dynasty, the emperors died young, or even as children, leading to the weakness of the central government and the rise of powerful local governments. This was mainly due to the rise of local magnates.

The Tang Dynasty's predicament stemmed primarily from the regional military governors.

The predicament of the Song and Ming dynasties lay with the scholar-officials.

According to Su Wu, the reason why the scholar-officials were a problem was the monopoly on the right to education.

In fact, some emperors did try to rebel, though it may not have been obvious, they did actually do it.

For example, Emperor Renzong of Song resisted by constantly changing prime ministers, sometimes changing one every one or two years during his reign.

But no matter how many people are changed, it's still the same group of people, in different clusters and gangs.

Therefore, popularizing education is of paramount importance.

From the emperor's perspective, this means taking Emperor Renzong's approach to a higher level, increasing competition, giving the emperor more initiative, and expanding the range of talent to be selected.

Su Wu believed that as long as the later emperors were not truly foolish, they could find outstanding individuals among them and find new sources of strength.

While it certainly can't truly solve the problem, at least it provides a new idea and a new approach to solving it.

After the capital region finished its examinations, the examinations for all the prefectures and counties across the country began.

Su Wu has arrived in Yanjing City.

Along the way, Su Wu also sent people to various prefectures to inquire about the registration status of the special imperial examination...

As long as everyone in the world takes the imperial examinations to become a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest level of the imperial examinations) of the Great Yan Dynasty, then the world will be at peace.

Whether Su Wu is in Bianjing or not is irrelevant...

Even in Yanjing City, scholars were eagerly signing up. Su Wu went to see for himself and couldn't help but smile.

The Liao Dynasty once said: "Our cultural relics are as refined as those of the Chinese."

In recent years, there have actually been quite a few scholars in Yanyun, and the level of these scholars is actually quite high... Su Wu also hopes that some scholars from Yanyun will stand out.

It also reminds me of the Northern and Southern Examination Scandals during the Ming Dynasty. After the rule of the Jin and Yuan dynasties, not a single scholar from the north could pass the examinations...

The impact of these events was enormous, lasting for centuries to come. Even decades into the new era, the Jiangnan and Zhejiang regions still held an advantage in education…

If we trace the root cause back to the Song dynasty, then the Song dynasty was at fault! If we trace it back even further, we find that the Jin dynasty under Sima Qian was also somewhat guilty.

In fact, the Jiangnan region, especially Hangzhou, has countless immigrants from Henan and Hebei!

Now, thanks to Su Wu, Song's grave crime has been avoided.

At this moment, the competition among scholars in Henan, Hebei, Shandong, Shaanxi, and even the Guanzhong Plain of Shaanxi, is still very fierce...

Even in Yanyun, there will surely be several people who pass the exam...

If we bring Yelü Dashi back for another test, he might pass again.

It's a pity that Yelü Dashi has gone far away...

Otherwise, Yelü Dashi and Su Wu would definitely give him important positions!
In October, the millet in Yanyun will be ripe, and the millet harvest will begin in Yanyun in October...

Then, we will start planting winter wheat, which will be harvested around June next year.

Of course, there's also the issue of land rotation...

Su Wu was waiting until the millet was harvested and grain was stored in granaries in various places before the army could move again, which would take until at least late October.

This is the method of farming and warfare in the Central Plains, and it cannot be changed...

Su Wu also knew that the Jurchens would probably start their operation in early October, while Yan and Yun were still busy harvesting grain. They would likely start harvesting millet around mid-October.

The Jurchens were taking a risk, simultaneously collecting grain and preparing for battle. Just when their supplies were running low, new grain would arrive.

Why did the Jurchens dare to take such a risk? Their territory was small, transportation was convenient, and they had few people to feed.

Why couldn't Su Wu take the risk?

Firstly, the territory was too large; secondly, the transportation distance to Linhuang Prefecture was too far; and thirdly, Su Wu had too many people to feed, so the number of laborers who had to eat over such a long transportation distance was countless.

Inside Yanjing City, he watched the military intelligence reports continuously sent by Wu Jie from Linhuang Prefecture.

Su Wu frowned repeatedly; he needed to find a way to break the deadlock.

If they can't break the deadlock, then they can only let Wu Jie hold out for at least twenty days, or even a month.

Historically, the Central Plains dynasties never truly stationed troops on the grasslands; they would always return after a battle. Su Wu had never delved into the reasons behind this.

Only now that he has encountered it himself do he realize how fraught with difficulties it is.

If Yan Yun had stored grain, things would be a little better, and there would be more options for maneuver. But the previous expeditions to the grasslands, Yan Yun, Jingdong, and Hedong had been repeatedly launched by Su Wu...

They even sent Wu Yong and Wu Song to forcefully "rob" the warehouses of various prefectures and cities.

This year, the Yan-Yun and He-Dong regions have reached their limit, and Jingdong still has to support the Tokyo court's finances—there's no other way...

The massive transfer from the south was an enormous undertaking, and for the newly established nation, it was simply too much to handle at such a young age.

If it were next year, and we delayed it for a year, allowing Su Wu a year to work diligently and prepare for war, it wouldn't be so difficult.

But Linhuang Prefecture cannot afford to lose this year, otherwise the grasslands will immediately fall into chaos, and next year will be even more troublesome...

Although Su Wu had been in Yanyun for quite some time, he was still frowning and constantly scratching his head.

Su Wu could probably guess how the Jurchen leaders discussed these matters...

It's no surprise that Su Wu had just usurped the throne, and he must have faced numerous difficulties. In several major battles, Su Wu relied solely on his own strength to conquer from Jingdong to Yanyun, and then "seize" Hedong...

The many prefectures and counties in the north that border the Great Jin Dynasty are already at their last gasp.

At this moment, Su Wu must have been in a situation where even a skilled cook cannot cook without rice. In any case, he had to wait until the grain was in the official granaries and the laborers could be mobilized before a large-scale army could march to Linhuang Prefecture...

At this critical moment, we must seize the time and take Linhuang Prefecture in one fell swoop to open the road for the Jin cavalry to head west to the grasslands.

The Jurchen people were a truly powerful and capable group in this era.

Su Wu was in Yanjing City when he received several letters from the King of Shiwei, which made him extremely anxious.

Every letter asked, "When will Su Wu's army arrive?"

Another letter arrived, with similar content. The Shiwei tribe of the Black Cart was also busy fattening up their livestock for winter and harvesting hay.

But there was an even new development: Jurchen cavalry appeared on their territory, killing a few herders and robbing some livestock from time to time. Although the losses were small, it foreshadowed an impending storm.

The Shiwei cavalry were utterly powerless against the Jurchen cavalry.

Sometimes, seven or eight Jurchen cavalrymen could even chase down and kill a group of dozens of Shiwei herdsmen...

How could the King of Shiwei not be anxious?
It was late at night, and Su Wu was still in front of the map, his head throbbing with pain.

When Su Wu wrote to Wu Jie, he said nothing more than this: "No matter what, defend the city."

Wu Jie replied, also saying that he would live and die with the city.

News also came from Yue Fei's side, saying that no matter what, 10,000 cavalry would definitely arrive to provide support.

Su Wu also needed to reply to Yue Fei, saying that reinforcements had arrived, but they must not engage in battle rashly; the main strategy should be to maneuver and hold out. If things got too difficult, they could retreat directly to Datong or Yanyun...

Su Wu feared that Yue Fei might have the will to fight to the death, just like last time, charging forward even if it meant fighting to the last man.

Last time, doing it this way worked.

This time, however, it's not possible.

Su Wu didn't sleep, and Wu Yong, who was beside him, also stayed up, advising, "Your Majesty, it's getting late. Why don't you go to bed early tonight? That way, you might have a clearer mind tomorrow and come up with a good plan..."

Zhu Wu, the "confidential secretary" temporarily seconded to Su Wu's side, also spoke up to advise: "Your Majesty's health is precious, you should not use him in this way!"

Su Wu sighed, his eyes still fixed on the map...

The delays weren't solely due to the need to harvest the grain; Lingzhen's production and transportation also required time...

Su Wu suddenly spoke up: "Have the troops stationed in the capital region send another two thousand cavalry over..."

Su Wu now dares not ask for large numbers of troops, only two thousand at a time.

Why? It's still a food problem.

When they set off, they had to prepare food. When they arrived in Yanjing, they still needed to eat. The food that one horse ate was equivalent to the rations of more than a dozen people.

He had already brought three thousand riders, almost ten thousand horses, so how could he dare to be extravagant?
Bianjing, with its well-developed waterways and land routes, was the center of the world. Even though its grain reserves were limited, people there could still eat every day. The Bian River docks were constantly filled with large ships, both official and merchant vessels, coming and going in an endless stream. Merchants, in particular, had the keenest sense of opportunity...

Yanjing is different...

Wu Yong immediately asked, "Does Your Majesty have some plan in mind?"

Su Wu shook his head: "I don't know either, I can't explain it... But having five thousand cavalry by my side for now will be useful for any future plans. Three thousand cavalry is still too few..."

Wu Yong nodded, secretly calculating how much food he would need to prepare for another two thousand cavalrymen...

If that's not enough, there's no other place to rely on but JD.com...

As for JD.com, there's still room for profit. As long as Su Wu's previous plans were well-executed, after obtaining the money looted by the Jurchens in Bianjing, he could use it to buy supplies all over the place, sending them to JD.com by river and sea...

But now they can't squeeze any more money out of them. The main problem is that the deficit in the imperial court in Bianjing this year is just too big. They can't let the country stop functioning, they can't let all the officials, clerks, and runners in the country take out loans to work, and they certainly can't let all the old soldiers go hungry...

Of course, next year will be better!

It is also said that there is a difference between money and food. Money is easy to talk about, but food, for a country with more than 100 million people, if it runs out this year, it will starve. It has to grow food every year.

Another aspect of Su Wu's work was to curb the soaring price of grain throughout the land. An increase was inevitable, but it couldn't be allowed to skyrocket...

The Song Dynasty was already in a precarious state regarding food security, which is why Su Wu insisted on migrating to other lands to develop them...

Suddenly, Su Wu's eyes, which had been fixed on the map, snapped open. He turned around and exclaimed excitedly, "Xu Zhen really has a solution to break this deadlock!"

Wu Yong and Zhu Wu were both startled. Wu Yong immediately asked, "Your Majesty, is it true?"

Su Wu hesitated for a moment in silence, then looked at the map and nodded: "It's true!"

(End of this chapter)