Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 291: New Craftsman Law, Hongwu Examination [Please Subscribe]

After the promulgation of the "New Law on the Classification and Evaluation of Craftsmen in the Ming Dynasty", Liu Kuan naturally heard some criticisms from the court and the public, but he did not care much.

Now is the early Ming Dynasty, the Hongwu period, not the middle and late Ming Dynasty.

If he wants to get things done, the most important thing is to gain Zhu's trust and support. Criticisms from both the government and the public will not affect the overall situation.

Moreover, the relevant imperial edict has been issued, and this matter is like an arrow shot from a bow, and there is no turning back.

What he and Tiangong Institute need to do is to implement this matter well and avoid making major mistakes that give others an excuse to attack the new policy.

The new craftsman law will still be piloted within Zhili first. After sufficient experience has been accumulated and a group of qualified officials have been trained, it will be promoted to other provinces.

Most of the officials in the Tiangong Academy were practical people. No one cared about the criticism from the court or the public. Instead, under the leadership of Liu Kuan, they earnestly implemented the new craftsman method.

The biggest difficulty of this matter itself is to re-evaluate the grades of existing craftsmen.

Liu Kuan was not in a hurry. To be on the safe side, he decided to conduct a trial in Zhili first, and then used Yingtian Prefecture as the first demonstration administrative region to re-evaluate the craftsmen's grades...
Yingtian Engineering.

I have holidays these days.

Because this place is designated as a craftsman rating site, the current resident craftsmen and shift craftsmen in Tianfu will be rated.

Hong Daxuan, Wang Tiezhu and other craftsmen from the Miscellaneous Construction Bureau also came in batches to participate in the evaluation under the arrangement of the officials above.

At this time, Hong Daxuan and others were listening to an official from the Tiangong Academy explaining the assessment method in front of the school bulletin board.

"Firstly, apprentices don't need to be assessed. They just need to be led by a master who holds a certified intermediate craftsman or above to report to the authorities."

"The assessment for lower, middle, and upper craftsmen is based solely on their craftsmanship. During the assessment, the examiner will ask you to select one item from your respective trades. You will then complete your work under the supervision of the examiner, who will then evaluate and grade it."

"After the grade is determined based on the score of the work, if you are dissatisfied, you will have one chance to appeal and retake the exam - remember, only one chance."

"And if you appeal, the assessment will re-grade your work based on the second attempt. In other words, if your second attempt isn't as good as your first, your grade might even be lowered, so be careful when appealing!"

At this time, an old craftsman with gray hair couldn't help asking: "How are the craftsman levels assessed?"

"Don't worry, sir. I was just about to say this." The official patiently explained, "The examinations for Master Craftsman, Master Craftsman, Grand Master, and Grand Grand Master are divided into two parts. One is a theoretical examination, also known as a literary examination; the other is a technical examination that examines actual craftsmanship, also known as a technical examination..."

Before the clerk finished speaking, the old craftsman became anxious again, "Civilized examination? What is this literary examination? Is it asking people to write an essay?"

Although interrupted, the official was not angry and continued to explain patiently: "You need to write an article, answer questions, draw pictures, etc..."

Upon hearing this, the old craftsman's expression changed drastically. He then sat down on the ground, muttering, "It's over. I've never been to school. I've been a carpenter all my life, but I can only write my own name and recognize some numbers and carpentry-related words. How can I write an article?"

"During this re-evaluation, won't I be demoted from Master Craftsman to Senior Craftsman? How shameful, how shameful, wuwu..."

As he said this, the old craftsman burst into tears.

Seeing this, another younger official nearby hurried over to help the old craftsman to his feet, saying, "Don't worry, old man. Just listen to us. Our Tiangong Academy has taken your situation into consideration and has a special regulation."

When the old craftsman heard this, he stopped crying for a moment and asked, "What are the rules?"

The young official said, "Those who have been previously evaluated as master craftsmen do not need to take the literary examination. They only need to pass the technical examination to be promoted to master craftsmen. Those who have been evaluated as master craftsmen also only need to pass the technical examination to be promoted to master craftsmen."

"Also, you look to be over fifty, right?"

The old craftsman nodded. "Yes, I'm fifty-eight. What's the problem? Could it be that because of my age, the government no longer recognizes me as a master craftsman?"

As he spoke, the old craftsman became worried again.

His worries are not without reason.

Craftsmen make a living by their skills, and many industries require strength, eyesight, energy, etc. In short, as they get older, their skills are likely to decline due to the decline in physical fitness, and they will be disliked by the government.

A few years ago, many veteran craftsmen saw their salaries reduced due to a decline in their skills. Some ended up relying on their sons and apprentices for support, and the government would not care about them.

So, after hearing the old craftsman's question, the older craftsmen around him all looked over with concern.

The young official said loudly, "Don't worry, our Ming Dynasty will do its best to support even ordinary widows, widowers, orphans, and the elderly, let alone someone as capable as you."

"Therefore, according to the new regulations of our Tiangong Academy, all master craftsmen and master craftsmen over the age of fifty only need to be evaluated once, and their subsidies will be based on this evaluation in the future."

"Even if you are too old to walk in the future, as long as you are still alive, you will always receive this subsidy. If you can be awarded the title of Grand Master Craftsman, you will also receive an annual salary, which will be paid until you die."

The old craftsman was stunned for a few breaths before he reacted. He said in disbelief, "You mean, even if I'm too old to move, the court will still give me a subsidy?"

"Yes."

The old craftsman was puzzled, "I can't even move, so I definitely can't work or serve the court. How dare the court still give me a subsidy?"

The young official smiled and said, "It's called a subsidy, but in fact it's just a pension given by the court in recognition of your many years of service to the Ming Dynasty."

"Master, you didn't lie to me, did you?"

"I'm just an ordinary clerk, not an official. What I just said is indeed the new craftsman regulations issued by the Tiangong Academy. There is absolutely no falsehood - His Majesty has issued an imperial edict, how can it be false?" "The emperor wrote it in the imperial edict?" The old craftsman was stunned at first, but then he believed it. He looked up at the sky, tears in his eyes and sighed, "We craftsmen have not only waited for the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, but also for a better life. God is really merciful!"

After understanding what was said, the other craftsmen around started to discuss it excitedly.

"Is the imperial court really willing to subsidize our retirement funds?"

"That's probably true, but you have to be at least a master craftsman, which is equivalent to the master craftsman before. There are so many craftsmen, how many of them can be rated as master craftsmen?"

"That gives us more motivation."

"Yes, it's much better to us than before."

"This craftsman requires a written exam. It seems we'll have to find a way to learn to read and write. Otherwise, it would be a shame if we could acquire the skills to become a craftsman but fail the written exam."

"We may not be over fifty, but we are old enough. How can we learn to read and write? Even if we want to learn, we can't find a place to learn."

"···"

The official who was giving the lecture heard the artisans discussing literacy and said with a smile, "It's a good thing for everyone to be interested in learning to read and write. The science and technology master said that if artisans could learn to read and write and learn arithmetic, they would be of greater use to the country. Therefore, I strongly support this idea."

"After the reassessment of the craftsmen's grades, the Tiangong Academy will open literacy classes for adult craftsmen in various locations, teaching them free literacy, math, and drawing."

"So, you don't have to worry about not having a place to study. Just wait for the news and sign up."

Upon hearing this, the craftsmen became excited again.

"Is such a good thing possible?"

"Teach us to read and write for free? That's not a scam, is it?"

"What Uncle Tech said should be true."

"Ever since the Lord of Science and Technology came to the capital, the lives of our craftsmen have been getting better and better."

"···"

Afterwards, under the organization of officials, these craftsmen signed up to participate in the grade assessment.

While the craftsman grade assessment in Yingtian Prefecture and engineering studies in various places were in full swing, the third spring examination of the Ming Dynasty also began (the first was in the fourth year of Hongwu).

The Spring Examination is the imperial examination, which has three sessions, starting on February 9th, February 12th, and February 15th respectively. Each session lasts for three days, which means that the examination will last for nine consecutive days.

For the candidates, this is not only a contest of knowledge, but also a comprehensive test of many aspects such as physical fitness, willpower, etc.

If there were people among these candidates who traveled from the middle and late Ming Dynasty, they would find that the content of the examination at this time was very different from that of the middle and late Ming Dynasty.

Firstly, the imperial examinations during the Hongwu period were somewhat different from those later ones. For example, after the three examinations during the Hongwu period, there were also tests on riding, archery, calligraphy, and law.

That is, horsemanship, archery, calligraphy, and law, emphasizing the selection of practical talents who are both civil and military.

In addition, during the Hongwu period, the first examination only tested one question each on the Five Classics and the Four Books, but later on, for some reason, it became three questions on the Five Classics and four questions on the Four Books. It can be said that the weight of Confucian classics increased greatly.

The second is the many changes brought about by Liu Kuan's arrival.

For example, in addition to one article on the meaning of the classics (eight-part essay) in the first exam, the number of articles on the meaning of the Four Books has increased to three, and a math test is also required on the third day!

In addition to the writing of various official documents such as judgments, edicts, decrees, and memorials, the second round also required a paper related to natural sciences (the spring examination in the 16th year of Hongwu was an optional examination).

In addition to three policy questions, the third round will also include practical questions on agriculture, law, manufacturing (industry), commerce, etc.

After three rounds, the additional test of "Riding and Archery Laws" still exists.

If the imperial examinations during the Hongwu Dynasty in history selected people who were both civil and military, then the imperial examinations during the Hongwu Dynasty today select people who are both civil and military!

Time flies, and it is the afternoon of February 17th.

Before sunset, the gate of the Imperial Examination Hall finally opened.

The candidates filed out, and some relatives, friends and servants who were waiting outside the examination hall came forward to greet them and ask them questions.

It would have been fine if they hadn't asked, but once they did, many candidates burst into tears.

"This year's math is too difficult. I couldn't figure out the answers to several questions, so I just wrote them down randomly. Wow~"

"The natural science questions were also difficult. I couldn't even understand the meaning of two of them. How could I answer them?"

"Alas, I must have failed the exam this time. There is no hope of passing the imperial examination."

"···"

　First update.

　　
　　
　
(End of this chapter)