No war in the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 24 Changes in Peach Blossom Spring
Su Ze's guess was correct. It was indeed Ouyang Xiu who rushed to see Su Ze immediately after receiving the petition sent by the emperor.

After this conversation with Su Ze, Ouyang Xiu felt that Su Ze was indeed talented. His views on the Northwest War were actually consistent with those of Fan Zhongyan, whom he admired the most. Su Ze even proposed the idea of ​​military reform before Fan Zhongyan.

Ouyang Xiu picked up the wine gourd and said to Su Ze:

"Xiu can't wait to serve in the same court as Su Lang!"

Su Ze sighed and said:

"Master Ouyang, please don't make fun of me. Passing the imperial examination is so difficult. I'm not good at poetry and prose, so I'm afraid I'll be in trouble this time."

Ouyang Xiu frowned. In fact, his road to the imperial examination was also a bit "bumpy".

Ouyang Xiu was known as a child prodigy when he was young, but he failed the Ministry of Rites examination on his first try after passing it at the age of 20.

Later, Ouyang Xiu studied for another two years before he passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi at the age of 22.

Of course, this "bump" was what Ouyang Xiu himself felt. To be able to pass the imperial examination at the age of 22 was already a genius among geniuses. But after all, a child prodigy like him had to take the exam twice, and Su Ze said that he was not good at poetry and prose, which indeed put him at a great disadvantage in the Ministry of Rites examination that valued poetry and prose.

Ouyang Xiu patted Su Ze on the shoulder and said:

"Fan Xiwen also said that our dynasty's imperial examination placed too much emphasis on poetry and prose, burying many talented people. If Su Lang fails this year, he shouldn't be discouraged. The imperial examination system might be able to change."

Su Ze glanced at Ouyang Xiu. It seemed that Fan Zhongyan and other members of the Qingli New Party had already planned to reform the imperial examination system. However, Fan Zhongyan had not yet come to power, so these were just topics of discussion within the New Party.

It is obvious that Ouyang Xiu also supported the reform of the imperial examination system.

Ouyang Xiu didn't know that Su Ze knew the future development trend, but it was not convenient to talk about such a major matter as the reform of the imperial examination directly, so he could only pat his shoulder again and said:

"With Su Lang's talent, if you fail the imperial examination this year, Xiu will recommend you to the government."

"Although the imperial examination is the official path to officialdom, there are many ministers who are not Jinshi graduates. Besides, one can also serve as an official first and then take the imperial examination."

Su Ze also knew that Ouyang Xiu was telling the truth. In the early and middle period of the Northern Song Dynasty, the imperial examination system had not yet reached the point of absolute rule. Some people who entered the official career through recommendation or favor could even become prime ministers.

Even shortly afterwards, there was the example of Di Qing, who was originally exiled to the army for committing a crime, but eventually became the Privy Councilor.

Moreover, officials could also take the imperial examinations. For example, Han Jiang, who ranked third in Wang Anshi's exam, had already become an official through imperial favor, but he still took the Ministry of Rites exam and obtained the title of Jinshi.

When Ouyang Xiu said he wanted to recommend Su Ze, he was not just saying it casually. As a Hanlin scholar and a high-ranking official in both systems, he could indeed directly ask the emperor for favors to recommend talents.

Su Ze also felt warm in his heart. Ouyang Xiu was indeed as described in history books, a generous elder who liked to support the younger generation. Many young scholars followed him, not only because of his outstanding literary talent, but also because of his character of loving talents.

Su Ze thanked Ouyang Xiu and continued:

"Master Ouyang, I'd like to take the Ministry of Rites exam first."

Ouyang Xiu was even more satisfied. He pulled Su Ze and said:

"I'll send over some collected works tomorrow. Su Lang, stay home and prepare for the exam. With your talent, as long as you can pass the Ministry of Rites test, you'll definitely have no problem passing the Palace Examination!"

The main content of the palace examination was policy essays, and the emperor personally graded the papers. Ouyang Xiu knew that Su Ze had already won the emperor's favor, and as long as he passed the Ministry of Rites examination, he would not be dismissed from the palace examination.

Su Ze once again expressed his gratitude to Ouyang Xiu. Although printing technology had developed at that time, books were still precious. Ouyang Xiu was able to have such literary talent when he was ten years old. He obtained a copy of the "Collection of Changli Master's Works" from the Li family in Suizhou.

Ouyang Xiu was truly worthy of the title of a gentleman of the Qingli period, as he gave him his precious collection of essays as a gift upon their first meeting.

After talking for a while, Ouyang Xiu reluctantly said goodbye.

Looking at the wine gourds left in the small courtyard, Su Ze couldn't help but shake his head. Although the ideals of the Qingli gentlemen like Ouyang Xiu were good, they were too unrestrained and started drinking early in the morning. No wonder the conservatives found fault with them after the Qingli administration began.

Ouyang Xiu was the worst of all the worst. His "On Factions" written in anger completely angered the emperor who was most afraid of court officials forming factions, and ultimately led to the failure of the New Deal of Qingli.

To put it bluntly, the top-down reforms of the Northern Song Dynasty were too dependent on the emperor's support.

The reforms carried out by Renzong and later Shenzong were all for the purpose of centralizing power. Once the reforms infringed upon the imperial power, they could not continue.

Su Ze looked at the word "Fan" on the wine gourd. Is this the wine from Fanlou?
All the wines in the Song Dynasty were government-run and under the jurisdiction of the Salt and Iron Administration under the Three Departments.

In the city of Bianjing, government-run liquor stores were called Zhengdian. The "Dongjing Menghualu" mentioned that there were 72 Zhengdian in the city of Bianjing.

Among them, Fanlou is the first of these 72 official stores, and Fanlou’s wine is also the most famous in Bianjing City.

Su Ze opened the wine gourd, and a melodious aroma of wine wafted out of the gourd. This should be Fanlou’s most famous wine, "Meishou".

It is said that this wine is only supplied to the powerful officials. Although Su Zeyuan once wandered around the restaurants in Bianjing City, he had never been to Fanlou, let alone drank this Meishou.

Su Ze looked at the wine gourd and wondered if he could make money by brewing wine from Peach Blossom Land?

But he quickly shook his head.

The liquor tax in the Song Dynasty was quite high. Take Fanlou for example. It paid 2,000 coins in liquor tax to the government every day. With such a heavy liquor tax, the more it sold, the greater the loss. In the past few years, it was on the verge of bankruptcy due to the arrears of liquor tax.

Later, Emperor Renzong ordered a tax cut for Fanlou and granted Fanlou the wholesale qualification to distribute wine to other foot shops, which finally reversed Fanlou's losses.

Anyway, most of the regular restaurants in Bianjing City don’t make money from selling alcohol. Their main source of income comes from dishes and entertainment performances.

Su Ze closed the gate and was finally able to return to the house. He placed his hand on "Peach Blossom Spring" and entered the Peach Blossom Spring again.

After a dizzy spell, Su Ze saw Peach Blossom Spring again, and it had undergone earth-shaking changes.

Next to Anong's fertile fields, two more plots of land were reclaimed, and two Nong Yun boys were working hard in the fields.

Next to Taohuawu, an antique octagonal pavilion stands out, and Ayuan, a traveling boy with a backpack on his back, is packing his luggage.

Not far away, next to a newly dug ditch, there was a crude workshop where a craftsman named Azhi was fermenting grass and wood into pulp for making paper.

Next to the workshop is a chicken coop surrounded by a fence. A group of chicks are chirping. Nong Yun, a boy, dances with the guillotine quickly, chops the grass into pieces, puts it into a feeding bowl, and then spreads it into the chicken coop.

Seeing such an idyllic scene, it really feels like the Peach Blossom Spring.

(End of this chapter)