Han officials

Chapter 176 You Sing, I Take the Stage [4K]

Wei Zhe actually had the idea of building a college for a long time.

What is the most important thing in the 21st century? Talent!

The same is true of the most important things in the second century.

Without talents, or without sufficient talents, all great plans will be in vain.

And the most troublesome thing is that the talent training cycle is quite long.

It takes ten years to grow a tree and a hundred years to cultivate a person. Cultivating talents is much more troublesome than farming.

If he doesn't prepare early, when the time comes, Wei Zhe will have no choice but to cooperate with the aristocratic families.

This was true of Cao Cao, and even more so of Cao Pi.

During Liu Hong's reign, he did establish the Hongdu School, but it eventually came to nothing.

After all, when truly talented people are ashamed to study at Hongdu Gate, it is useless even if they are disciples of the emperor.

The label of a flatterer or villain is enough to dissuade 70% to 80% of young scholars.

Of course, this is also because Hongdu School lacks famous teachers and scholars.

The emperor is only the foundation of power, but cannot be the foundation of thought.

Most people who think that they can solve everything by sitting on the throne are too superstitious about power.

If the position of the emperor was really that useful, the Han Dynasty would not have been usurped by Wang Mang.

It should be noted that even Emperor Guangwu, the founding emperor, did not convene the White Tiger Temple Conference until the time of his grandson Emperor Zhang.

It took three generations of emperors to unify the imperial power from the physical to the ideological level.

That’s right, it’s about unifying thoughts.

This term is not only understood by modern politicians, but our ancestors were already very good at it two thousand years ago.

For example, the Baihutongyi (White Tiger Principles) issued during the reign of Emperor Zhang of the Han Dynasty unified cognition and stipulated official ideology:

That is to blend the theory of prophecies and divinations with Confucian classics and theologize Confucianism.

It was also because of this meeting that the Modern Text Confucianism surpassed the Old Text Confucianism and occupied the position of official learning for more than a hundred years.

This meeting also clearly affirmed that "the ruler is the leader of the ministers" is the first of the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues.

From political systems to moral concepts, everything was clearly defined at the Baihuguan Conference.

Although the theologization of Confucianism was seen as a bad move by later generations, it must be admitted that Emperor Zhang of Han was a true emperor.

If Liu Hong had the same prestige as Emperor Zhang of Han, he would not have been unable to establish the Hongdu School.

Wei Zhe naturally doesn't want to repeat the mistakes of others, as he has learned from their mistakes before.

Inside the pavilion, Wei Zhe gazed at the ancient pine trees not far away and said slowly, "Counties have their own schools, and prefectures have their own schools. Youzhou should also have a place for education. In my opinion, this academy can fill the gap."

Hearing this, Guo Yuan understood that Wei Zhe had made up his mind.

So Guo Yuan immediately changed his attitude and began to think about how to implement it.

After a long while, Guo Yuan said solemnly, "If that's the case, this academy will definitely cost a lot."

In front of Wei Zhe, Guo Yuan didn't mince words and said directly, "Official schools in our prefectures and counties are not flourishing. Besides the lack of famous teachers, the shortage of money and grain is also a chronic problem. If you want to make academies flourish, you must ensure that there is no shortage of money and grain."

This is not because Guo Yuan is taking the opportunity to ask for money to do things, but because this is the national situation.

Private schools in China have been developing rapidly since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, and have become quite complete today.

For example, private schools now have a unified teaching system according to different ages and levels.

Among them, "Shuguan" was the place for enlightenment education in the Han Dynasty. The teachers were called "Shushi" and they were mainly responsible for training students in literacy and writing.

This type of library is generally small in scale. Most of the time, the calligraphers set up their own teaching rooms in their own residences, and students from nearby villages would come to the library to study. The number of students varied, from a few to a hundred or even several thousand.

During the reign of Emperor Zhang of Han, he proposed "atheism" and wrote "Lun Heng". When Wang Chong was eight years old and studying at the Kuaiji Academy, there were more than a hundred children in the academy, which shows the prosperity of private schools.

However, wealthy families usually hire calligraphy teachers to teach at home, which is called "family school".

In this regard, even the emperor's children received their enlightenment education through "family schools".

But no matter what kind of library it is, the calligraphy teachers provide students with basic training in reading and writing.

After completing their elementary education, students enter "village schools" to study Confucian classics.

The teachers in the "village school" are generally called "private school teachers" or "filial piety teachers".

Because they mainly teach Confucian classics such as "The Book of Filial Piety" and "The Analects of Confucius".

The teaching requirements at this stage are to have a "rough understanding of the text and meaning" of the scriptures, which can be regarded as shaping students' three views.

It can be said that the vast majority of literate people in the Han Dynasty only received this level of education at most.

Only a small number of young people from wealthy families or with extraordinary talents will continue to study.

For example, Fan Sheng "mastered the Analects of Confucius and the Book of Filial Piety at the age of nine, and when he grew up, he studied the Liangqiu Yi and the Laozi."

Deng Yu "could recite poems at the age of thirteen, was proficient in the Analects, was well versed in the Book of Documents at the age of thirteen, and mastered the Book of Songs at the age of sixteen."

Therefore, in today's world, those who can receive higher education are either rich or talented.

For this reason, higher education in the Han Dynasty was relatively high-end.

Great scholars who gave lectures would usually set up "Jinglu" or "Jingshe" in their hometowns or wealthy counties. Through lectures, they would attract a large number of students to attend their classes, and then select the best ones to be their disciples.

It doesn’t matter if the students are not outstanding, as long as their families are wealthy, they can lower the standards.

Therefore, the academies where great scholars gave lectures were often able to raise a large amount of funds to provide food and accommodation for the students.

For example, when Lu Zhi established the "Jingshe" on Gaoshi Mountain outside Luoyang City, this was the case.

Gongsun Zan, Liu Bei, Liu Deran and others had to pay the "school selection fee" to become Lu Zhi's registered disciples.

However, this is not necessary for students from poor families but with great talent.

Not only do they not have to pay tuition fees to study, they can become a disciple by just bringing two pieces of bacon, and they also get free food and accommodation.

Under such circumstances, it would be a miracle if government schools could outperform private schools.

While official schools could not even fully promote county schools and prefecture schools, private schools already had systematic educational models such as "shuguan", "xiangshu" and "jinglu".

If this continues, it is no wonder that "learning is among the people".

But then again, some of the advantages of private schools can also be learned from by official schools.

Especially now that he is short of money and food, it is a good time to raise funds from the public.

Thinking of this, Wei Zhe immediately said with a smile: "The money and grain issue is easy to handle!"

Guo Yuan was confused when he heard this, but he soon understood what Wei Zhe was planning. ...

The next day, Liaodong County School.

Gong Jia, dressed in gorgeous clothes, was still not serious. He didn't come back from outside until it was almost evening.

Looking at his weak appearance, you can tell that he must have done something bad.

However, just as he pulled Wei Ming to share his experience of visiting the widow's house last night, he saw that he was in a daze.

Seeing this, Gong Jia was very surprised.

"You, a nerd, actually get dazed?"

"Stop making noise!" Wei Ming was too lazy to pay attention to him and continued to concentrate on thinking.

But considering the friendship between fellow townsmen, he finally gave Gong Jia some advice.

Wei Ming said seriously, "The teachers in the county school may be leaving."

As soon as these words came out, Gong Jia's first thought was that his good days were over.

After all, there were no great scholars in Liaodong County School, and his father would certainly not allow him to stay there any longer.

Before he could even pause in his grief, Gong Jia couldn't help but ask curiously, "Why is this happening all of a sudden? Wasn't it said a few days ago that Censor Yuan saved ancient books from the flames during a time of crisis? I remember Duke Zheng bursting into tears of joy upon hearing that."

Even though Gong Jia was uneducated, he could see how much the gentlemen valued the Luoyang collection of books.

In his opinion, as long as this batch of Luoyang books stayed in Liaodong, these great scholars would never leave.

However, after hearing Gong Jia's doubts, Wei Ming said helplessly: "Yes, the gentlemen will not leave Liaodong, but... they may not leave the county school!"

After saying this, under Gong Jia's surprised gaze, Wei Ming sighed and said, "It is rumored that the prince intends to build a library to house the Luoyang collection and appoint Lord Cai as the keeper of the library. Do you understand now?"

"What do you understand?" Gong Jia's eyes were still so pure and innocent.

Wei Ming: “…”

Seeing this, Wei Ming, unable to get angry, sighed softly and could only explain bluntly, "The academy's collection of books was undoubtedly established at the time, so there was a constant stream of scholars and literati seeking to serve as copyists and staff members. There was even a traffic jam outside the Duke's residence today. Rumors say that wealthy families from Zhuo and Yuyang counties are also rushing here. It's said that Duke Zheng and Master Bing are already sorting out the collection at the academy, which is why they haven't been seen at the county school these past few days."

After hearing what he said, Gong Jia suddenly understood.

Then he also began to frown: "What should we do?"

Wei Ming shook his head upon hearing this. "I don't know. Rumor has it that the Lord intends to select the best scholars from the county to join the academy and help the teachers organize the book collection... but I don't know if this is true or not."

To be honest, if this is true, Wei Ming would be willing to study at the academy even if it means living ten years less.

After all, the Luoyang collection of books is as vast as mountains and seas. I’m afraid even the Imperial College doesn’t have such teaching conditions?

At least the students of the Imperial Academy did not have this opportunity. Only some great scholars and ministers could browse the books in the palace collections such as the Eastern Palace.

To put it bluntly, if someone can really read through all these books, he must be a great talent.

The reason is simple: I am knowledgeable and experienced!

You should know that the collection of books from Luoyang that Wei Zhe brought back included not only classics of sages, but also countless memorials, maps, household registers, and local reports.

All these things are the embodiment of the saying "A scholar knows everything about the world without leaving home."

However, Gong Jia did not learn much from the classics of the sage, but he was proficient in various unorthodox ways.

After thinking hard for a moment, he immediately wrote a letter home.

Nothing else, just some gold coins so that he can get into the academy.

However, this time Gong Jia's wishful thinking failed.

……

In fact, after the news that Wei Zhe brought back a collection of books from Luoyang spread, people from all over Youzhou had been eagerly waiting for it.

Needless to say, Yuan Jun is now touted by the scholars in Youzhou as a figure like "Fu Sheng".

The so-called Fu Sheng was a doctor from Qin.

It is said that in the 213th year of the reign of Emperor Qin Shi Huang ( BC), an order was issued to ban books and confiscate private collections of books. At that time, in order to protect the "Book of Documents", Fu Sheng hid it in the wall of his house and took it out in the early Han Dynasty, thus allowing this classic to avoid the disaster of war and be passed down.

Although there are countless sage books in all parts of the world except Luoyang, Yuanjun may not be able to compare with Fusheng.

But who could blame him for the huge number of books he saved this time? Many of them were rare copies, ancient books, and secret collections.

Under such circumstances, one can imagine how high the praise Yuan Jun received was.

It can be said that even if Yuan Jun died suddenly now, Daifang Yuanshi would still be able to join the aristocratic family by relying on his legacy.

If Yuan Jun is like this, let alone Wei Zhe.

So when Wei Zhe's idea of a college became known, not only Youzhou, but even the gentry in Jizhou were tempted.

Goods and grain were transported to Liaodong in truckloads, and some were even shipped directly by sea.

After all, everyone who is interested knows that the value of this Liaodong Academy is probably higher than that of the Imperial College.

No, the Imperial Academy had long been in decline and was no longer the highest institution of learning in the Han Dynasty.

Therefore, even if the Imperial College still existed, Liaodong Academy, with its collections of books in Dongguan, Biyong, Lanting, Shishi, Xuanming, and Hongdu, would still be the world's number one institution of learning. Moreover, it now has great scholars such as Cai Yong and Zheng Xuan teaching there.

Under such circumstances, a wealthy man like Gong Jia from Yuyang really couldn't afford the "school selection fee".

Even if Wei Zhe doubled the number of places in the academy, Gong Jia's chances of getting in would be very slim.

Let’s put it this way. Due to Liaodong’s unique geographical advantages, academies have become a secluded holy place in the eyes of many people. After all, not only can they avoid war, but they can also study in depth in the mountains of books and oceans of learning. For some literati, this is simply a paradise on earth.

Therefore, there are not only scholars who want to study, but also many literati who want to join the academy and become teachers.

Families in Jizhou and Youzhou even regarded the academy as a backup for the continuation of their family line, and many of them sent their second sons here.

In just one month, Wei Zhe almost raised all the educational funds for the academy.

No, to be precise, the education funds for the four counties of Liaodong are almost collected.

So Wei Zhe simply imitated the current private school system and implemented it in the Liaodong military farms.

Libraries, township schools, and county schools, one level at a time, all provide food and accommodation for students.

Of course, they are screened through various stages and only those with potential are selected to study in the academy.

After all, there are more than just the Four Books and Five Classics in the academy now, there are also many real archival files.

In this case, the lower limit of any student who studies hard will basically not be too low.

When Wei Zhe chose the site, he placed the academy in a fortress on the bank of Liaoshui River and at the foot of Dongshan Mountain.

So after a while, Youzhou and even Jizhou began to call it "Dongshan Academy"...

(End of this chapter)