The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 234 Laws for Citizens to Enter Officialdom
At the grand court assembly the following day, while most of the court officials were in a daze, the ministers of the six ministries jointly submitted a memorial requesting the issuance of a decree for those from humble backgrounds, opening up political resources to scholars from poor families, so that more geniuses who were buried due to a lack of learning resources could rise above their circumstances and serve the court.

Although most people did not know what had happened, they all knew that Jian Yi, the Minister of Personnel, and others had lost. They were filled with endless curiosity but could not understand why.

The imperial court has adopted a policy of channeling resources to the poor, but how much and how to channel them remains a subject of debate. The disputes over the past three years have completely altered the original policy ideas.

The emperor entrusted the matter to Zheng Huan, the Minister of Rites, Li Xianmu, the Minister of Revenue, and the cabinet. This move further convinced the court and the public that the passage of the decree on the rule of the poor was not a political compromise, but a great victory for the School of Mind, because the matter was completely dominated by the School of Mind.

Several days later, news of the events in Nanjing finally reached the capital and spread rapidly throughout the city. By then, most people realized why the court had suddenly made such a dramatic turn of events.

Something that had been discussed for two or three years without a decision was suddenly settled.

……

Ministry of Rites.

Li Xianmu and Zheng Huan were drinking tea in the Imperial Study while discussing the task assigned by the Emperor.

“To channel resources to underprivileged families, we need a simple plan. Mingda, you must already have a general idea.”

Having thought about it for so many years, Li Xianmu naturally had a complete plan. He slowly said, "We have said before that the resources for the imperial examinations are limited to those who pass the provincial examinations, and those who pass the metropolitan examinations certainly cannot be opened up. In terms of the imperial examinations, we will proceed according to our previous plan."

I think that besides the imperial examinations, the main issue was the academies. They needed to select truly exceptionally talented individuals from among the poor students in each province, and then the imperial court would roughly cover their tuition and living expenses. Most people couldn't continue their studies mainly because they didn't have the money.

Zheng Huan hesitated and said, "But wouldn't that lead to excessive spending by the court? After all, no one knows how many half-grown boys will eat their fathers out of house and home. Besides, these children are the labor force in their families. If we ask them not to farm, their families might not agree."

Zheng Huan was speaking the truth. It was absolutely impossible to implement compulsory education in the Ming Dynasty. Without the development of productivity and the liberation of the population from the constraints of the land, China would forever remain a fragile small-scale peasant economy. Any superstructure that was not compatible with this small-scale peasant economy would be nothing but castles in the air.

Even in modern China, after compulsory education was made universal, many families still had to let their children drop out of school because they could not afford it, let alone in the Ming Dynasty.

Li Xianmu also felt a bit heavy-hearted and said in a deep voice, "I know what you're saying. We're not gods, and we can't really save every genius from the mud."

We simply want to give hope to underprivileged scholars across the world.

Therefore, the assessments need to be more rigorous. For example, if someone enrolls this month and can only memorize one university-level book, then a month later, they must memorize the entire Analects of Confucius with an accuracy rate of over 80%. This is how we select truly exceptional geniuses.

Zheng Huan was somewhat shocked. "Mingda, according to your thinking, very few people can pass this test. Someone with this kind of talent should be able to get into the top few of the second class in the imperial examination, or even the first class, right?"

“No matter how many people there are, the court cannot afford to support them all, so we must select the best of the best.” Li Xianmu slowly clenched his fist. “We are selecting geniuses. Those mediocre poor students will never pass the imperial examination even if they study all their lives. Rather than wasting their time, they should recognize their mediocrity early on and find another way to make a living.”

Zheng Huan sighed upon hearing this, "You're right. Those who spend their whole lives studying and only end up as a student or a scholar, only bring trouble to their families. They might as well become a private tutor early on, at least they can make a living."

Li Xianmu nodded, then hesitated and asked, "Do you think the regulations for commoners should be made open to some minor officials?"

Subordinate!

Zheng Huan's expression turned serious. In the Ming Dynasty, clerks were a rather unique group of people, and anything related to them should not be underestimated.

In modern terms, in a county, apart from the secretary, the county head, and a very few other officials, everyone else is a clerk.

These clerks have held power for generations and wield considerable influence in the county. Even most county magistrates have to be mindful of their wishes, otherwise they risk being betrayed and killed by these clerks.

From the perspective of the Ming Dynasty government, the officials and clerks were discriminated against out of jealousy. Zhu Yuanzhang explicitly stated: "When the imperial examination was first established, all those whose writing was fluent and logical were pre-selected to encourage them through their writing. However, the officials and clerks were corrupt and were not allowed to take the exam."

Zhu Yuanzhang, who had lived at the bottom of society for twenty years, described the clerks as having wicked hearts and did not allow them to enter officialdom. This assessment can be said to be quite accurate. Throughout history, there have been no good people among the hereditary county officials.

However, it is rare to see a situation as bad as that of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Li Qi and Li Xianmu discussed this issue and believed that the key was the lack of supervision. The Ming Dynasty had strict supervision over officials, but weak supervision over the officials who actually controlled the empire.

“The position of clerk is a lowly one. Once you become a clerk, all hope is lost. Many scholars would never be willing to become clerks.”

This is the strange thing: those who clearly hold real power at the grassroots level, most of whom are local tyrants, are actually at the very bottom of society, on par with prostitutes, actors, and beggars. This conflict in status inevitably leads to distorted results. "What if we open up the examination qualifications to these people?" Li Xianmu asked solemnly. "The clerks do not study the way of the sages, so their minds are corrupt."

Moreover, many of them came from local powerful families, and the imperial court was very worried that these people would not only control the counties but also have power in the imperial court, which would eventually lead to uncontrollable consequences.

If we select officials from humble backgrounds, those with impeccable family records, and then allow them to continue taking the imperial examinations for five to ten years, wouldn't that bring about a significant change?

"hiss."

Zheng Huan gasped, "Although what you said makes sense, I think it's very difficult. It's an ancestral rule of the Ming Dynasty that clerks are not allowed to take the imperial examinations. Even if a clerk is promoted through the law of commoners, His Majesty will most likely not allow it."

"His Majesty is different now. All of the policies of the late Emperor can be said to have been changed."

After Zhu Di ascended the throne, the legal basis changed, and his governing philosophy naturally changed as well.

"This matter is truly of great importance. We should communicate with His Majesty. Regarding the laws, the first two points can be roughly settled, and His Majesty will not object. Otherwise, shall we go to the palace now?"

“Yes, the two of us will enter the palace together.”

……

When Li Xianmu, the Minister of Revenue, and Zheng Huan, the Minister of Rites, entered the palace together, most people immediately knew that this must be due to the promotion of the law on the treatment of commoners, or even that it had already been decided, and that they were now entering the palace to report to the emperor.

However, since the two had not left the palace by noon, many people knew that this matter was not so simple. When the two stayed in the palace until evening, they finally left the palace with smiles on their faces. Most people became curious about what they had talked about that could last all day.

After leaving the palace, the two walked to the carriage. Zheng Huan looked at the tall palace gate and city tower and finally couldn't help but say, "I didn't expect it to go so smoothly. His Majesty's attitude is much better than I imagined."

"Perhaps His Majesty dislikes clerks too much, so sending scholars to teach these corrupt clerks a lesson is not unreasonable."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Huan laughed, his words filled with disdain for the clerks. "In the past, there were only a handful of scholars in the county. This time, the number of scholars in the county will surely increase greatly, and the county will surely be restored to order."

Li Xianmu was not so optimistic. As long as the current system still lacks supervision, it will inevitably become corrupt again. However, if supervisory officials are sent to the counties, they must be paid by the imperial court and cannot be allowed to live off the local government. After all, whoever pays their salary determines who they serve.

Supervisory officials must be at least of the seventh rank, otherwise they cannot effectively supervise the situation, which would be too much of a financial burden on the imperial court.

……

The next day.

The true and complete version of the "Law on Citizens Entering Officialdom" was issued from the palace. It was first promulgated by the Ministry of Rites, which was the main department in charge of this matter. Then it was promulgated to the Six Ministries and other departments, and subsequently distributed to the prefectures and counties of the two capitals and thirteen provinces.

Almost everyone who saw the details was shocked. No one expected that this decree would touch upon the bureaucratic system that had been in place for fifty years in the Ming Dynasty!
What is most shocking is that, for such a major matter, the emperor did not summon his ministers to the palace to discuss it.

Now that the imperial seal has been placed on top, it's all too late.

Even the most obtuse person knows that this decree will profoundly change the entire Ming Dynasty!
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The law on allowing poor families to enter officialdom contained three specific provisions: "Each province shall open up the quota of candidates for the provincial examination to poor families; a special class for prodigies shall be set up in the provinces, prefectures and counties to select geniuses; and poor families who pass the county examination shall be allowed to serve as clerks first, and within five years they may participate in the provincial examination and within ten years they may participate in the imperial examination."

The essence of these three decrees is to reduce the difficulty of education for talented children from poor families by improving their material conditions, so that more children from poor families can stand out in the imperial examinations.

In the process of implementing the law on people from humble backgrounds, the hereditary status of clerks was broken, and a large number of educated people entered the clerk class, which effectively revitalized the stagnant grassroots.

Of course, due to the limited development of productivity during the Yongle period, this decree, which clearly had the characteristics of compulsory education and poverty alleviation, could not truly solve the problems of the Ming Dynasty's imperial examination system. However, the humanistic spirit it contained is still worthy of praise.

We can see that even in the feudal autocratic era hundreds of years ago, there were a group of far-sighted officials who strived to promote social fairness—a precious legacy of spirit! —From *A Study of the Imperial Examination System in the Ming Dynasty*

(End of this chapter)