The imperial examination to be an official, focusing on policy questions, was Zhu Youtang's final decision.
The students were still alright. They only complained a few times in the first few days, and then gradually returned to silence.
The imperial court had never said anything about reforming the imperial examinations. They had only changed the focus of the examination papers from the eight-part essay in the first round to the policy theory in the third round.
Zhu Youtang's move was exquisite and almost perfect to prevent bookworms who were proficient in eight-part essays from entering the Ming Dynasty's officialdom.
However, his words made the officials of the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Academy scratch their heads.
The Spring Quarter Examinations were held during the Lantern Festival, and there were as many as ten thousand candidates from the two capitals and thirteen provinces.
And the marking officer had to use two days to screen out the available talents from these ten thousand papers.
In the past, they felt relaxed. As long as they looked at whether the eight-part essay was in line with the rules and whether the questions were accurate, they could almost determine the fate of the exam.
However, things were different now.
A solid policy theory was placed in front of him, and Zhu Youtang personally came up with a question: How to make the country rich?
The students answered all kinds of questions, and the examiners were also very tired.
If the mediocre were screened out and given to Zhu Youtang, the official career of these examiners would come to an end.
One had to know that most of these examiners were from the Imperial Academy.
In the Ming Dynasty, only the Imperial Academy could enter the cabinet. In other words, those who could enter the cabinet had all studied in the Imperial Academy.
In other words, this batch of examiners from the Hanlin Academy had a high chance of entering the cabinet in the future. How could they not take this examination seriously?
Thus, for the next two days, the examination hall was filled with the sound of people flipping through exam papers from morning till night.
The examiner of the Imperial Academy was exhausted, but he did not dare to rest.
……
Zhu Youtang naturally did not have to do things himself.
There were too many government affairs in the Ming Dynasty. Zhu Youtang would personally check the approval of the ceremony supervisor every day, which was already considered very diligent.
Two days later, 320 Jinshi names were sent to Zhu Youtang's case.
Out of the ten thousand students, nine out of ten were eliminated. Those who made it out of the encirclement were all talents among talents.
The Imperial Academy did not disappoint Zhu Youtang.
The policy theories of these candidates were all in line with the main idea. There was no false imagination, nor was there any exaggeration in the air.
They were all based on the national conditions of the Ming Dynasty and wrote a thesis that was most beneficial to the Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Youtang nodded repeatedly.
"Let the Ministry of Rites determine the rankings according to this list. Who is the chief officer who organized the marking this time?”
Zhang Min quickly replied,"Replying to the Emperor, it's Yang Tinghe, the Imperial Academy's leader."”
Zhu Youtang put down the test paper and said to Zhang Min,"Let him come and see me."
After a while.
Yang Tinghe rushed over and bowed his head.”
Zhu Youtang casually said,"The Hanlin Academy has contributed greatly to this review. The Xianzong Record hasn't been revised yet, so you should organize it."”
Yang Tinghe was so excited that his heart was still trembling and his face was flushed.
He also studied national history!
What kind of glory was this!
He was just a seventh-grade Hanlin cultivator, what did he have to do! Today, not only did he meet Tian Yan, but he was also favored by the Emperor!
Yang Tinghe clenched his fists tightly, his eyes emitting a wolf-like green light.
The current Yang Tinghe had yet to become the famous Great Ming's chief assistant.
Yang Tinghe of the later generations was known for his integrity and honesty. He was more or less influenced by Emperor Hongzhi's words today!
The Emperor has treated me so well, how can I not dare to do my best until I die!
Writing history in the Ming Dynasty was a very glorious thing. For example, Li Dongyang, Liu Jian, and others were all writing the History of the Yuan Dynasty.
The Ming Record was a detailed reflection of the emperors, culture, official positions, and national conditions of the past dynasties. It could allow future generations to understand this glorious dynasty to the greatest extent.
Different from the History of the Ming Dynasty, this kind of historical data was generally compiled by the later dynasty. There were many false records, but the records were compiled by the people of the current dynasty. All kinds of historical data were relevant to the current era. The historical significance was self-evident!
……
Zhu Youtang rubbed his tired eyebrows. Just as he was about to summon Consort Ning, Minister of War Liu Daxia rushed over.
"Your humble subject pays his respects to the Emperor."
"Get up, dear minister. What's the matter?"
Liu Daxia said excitedly,""Replying to the Emperor, Qi Jingtong captured a group of pirates in the Malacca Strait and seized a batch of gold, silver, and jewelry from their ships.”
In Malacca, the Ming people were still used to calling it Malacca.
"Oh?"
Zhu Youtang relaxed his brows.”
Batches of gold, silver, and jewelry were moved to Yangxin Palace Hall. Zhu Youtang praised them and asked Liu Daxia to fill the national treasury.
A small group of pirates could own two million taels of gold, silver, and jewelry. The benefits of the sea were extremely rich!
Zhu Youtang was even more determined. One day, he would definitely sail the Ming Dynasty's ships to South America. That group of people had yet to develop. After colonizing and ruling, all kinds of treasures could be pulled to the Ming Dynasty to strengthen the country.
Just as Zhu Youtang was thinking this.
"Wait!"
He narrowed his eyes and saw the most inconspicuous potatoes and sweet potatoes in the box.
"Good stuff!"
Liu Daxia scratched his head." Your Majesty, I heard Qi Jingtong say that this thing is edible. What's so good about it?"”
"What if we can plant it on a large scale?" Zhu Youtang asked.”
Liu Daxia shook his head." It definitely can't compare to the rice and wheat of the Ming Dynasty. These Hong Yi devils eat some random things. Their lives are very short!"”
Liu Daxia's tone was filled with disdain.
In the past, people of the Ming Dynasty were in awe of the overseas.
However, after Zhu Youtang launched a naval battle along the coast of Guangdong and Guangxi, it made the people of the Ming Dynasty suddenly realize that the group of people overseas seemed to be so weak!
Of course, everyone knew that the reason why Great Ming had such a strong sense of pride, from the officials down to the people, was because of the revival of Hongzhi and the rise of Great Ming!
Who wouldn't be proud to have such a powerful country backing them?
Zhu Youtang smiled." You, ah, you. There are some things that are useful to the Ming Dynasty. You still have to be humble. If you blindly exclude outsiders, you will fall into the predicament of self-treasuring. To get rid of the dross and extract the essence should be the breadth of mind that our country should have."”
Liu Daxia smiled guiltily.”
Zhu Youtang waved his hand." Alright, try to get the Ministry of War to open up an experimental field and plant it. Then, promote it to the whole country, especially the northern border!"”
Liu Daxia hurriedly said,"Your Majesty, let's leave this matter to the Ministry of Works. They are more skilled."”
Zhu Youtang was stunned. You don't want this credit?
"Alright," he nodded.
These two crops were not afraid of the cold and heat, and their maturity period was very short. As long as they were planted on a large scale, the country would relieve a large number of hungry people.
"This lowly subject obeys the decree!"
Liu Daxia left, but he still had some doubts in his heart.
What good stuff could these foreign things have? They were all trash!
However, since Zhu Youtang had said so, he did not dare to refute. He could only whisper a few words in his heart and did not care much.
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