bookrandom Chapter 1281: Competition for Talent
Chapter 1281: Competition for Talent
Chapter 1281: Competition for Talent
"We need methods to govern, and we also need people to govern!" Cai Que said to his confidants including Xiang Qi, Huang Yan, and Xing Shu.
"In the current officialdom, the morals of the scholars are extremely corrupt. There are many people who are mediocre and obedient. Even if there are one or two talented officials, they are corrupt and pervert the law."
"I have been really saddened by this over the years. The reason why Wang Jinggong's reform has not been successful is that the officialdom is depressed and weak and cannot be revived. Many talented people would rather follow Sima Guang than support the reform. There are also many factions within the reform faction, so it is impossible to be of one mind."
"So I ask you to look for students in the Imperial College who are loyal, upright, brave and courageous, and serve as our assistants in the future. Only in this way can we reform politics and bring the court back to life!"
Xing Shu said, "What Zuo Cheng said is very true. I think the key to reform is not how to reform, but whether the people can be informed. No matter how good the imperial decree is, it must rely on the bureaucrats. Unfortunately, too many local officials pretend to obey the imperial decree but actually disobey it."
Cai knew it clearly.
Both Zhang Yue and himself wanted to select officials from among the students of the Imperial College, so conflicts between the two were inevitable.
The competition for talent between the two sides will be fierce, but what strategy will be adopted?
Huang Yan said: "Study hard and then become an official. This is a tradition passed down from the saints."
"The purpose of entering the Imperial College is to become an official. We can use the selection as a means."
Cai Que said: "We also need to examine their character!"
Xing Shu said: "That makes sense, but there are only so many officials."
Xiang Qi said: "The Imperial College has become a place to recruit talents from all over the world. We must be the first to get there! We can't lag behind others! Everyone knows that Lord Cai will be the right prime minister. I don't believe there are people who are so ignorant of the overall situation."
"For those who don't know the current situation and don't stand up to us, we will suppress them for the rest of their lives."
Xing Shu, Huang Yan was hesitant to speak after hearing this.
Xiang Qi said: "We can only suppress him and prevent him from getting ahead. What can we do to him? If we don't clearly distinguish between rewards and punishments, there will be no benefits for those who approach us."
Huang Yan said: "Will it be narrow-minded?"
Xiang Qi glanced at Huang Yan and said, "It was the same when Princess Jing was in the Imperial College. Just now, it was said that those who excel in learning will become officials. I think that's right. In the future, all the middle school principals, school registrars, and dormitory heads of the Imperial College will be employed if they are attached to me."
"Those who don't follow me will be dismissed."
Originally, Wang Anshi controlled the students in the Imperial College through direct lectures.
Even the Vice-Chancellor Yuan Jiang had to bribe Zhi Jiang in order to get his clan grandson Yuan Bohu to be his concubine.
Later, during the Yu Fan case, Gong Yuan (Wang Anshi's student), Shen Zhu (Wang Anshi's nephew), Shen Jichang (Wang Anshi's brother-in-law), and Ye Tao (Wang Anshi's nephew-in-law) were all dismissed from their positions at the Imperial College for accepting money from students.
The atmosphere of the Imperial College during the Xining period really made the students compete with each other.
After Zhang Yue became prime minister, he recommended the inner students to the teaching assistants, and the power of the upper students was greatly weakened.
In terms of moral character, the recommendation was made by the schoolmaster, school recorder, dormitory head, direct lecturer and assistant teacher. At the same time, the internal examination of the Imperial College was strictly implemented, and officials were transferred from outside to conduct the assessment, rather than internal assessment.
The atmosphere in the Imperial College became solemn.
Now the proposal to Xiang Qi has been approved by Cai Que.
After the meeting, Xing Shu said, "They don't even examine moral character. If not everyone can enter, then no one can enter. How can you say that?"
Xiang Qi said: "First recruit the people, then correct them subtly."
"There is no good in the world if you don't benefit yourself first and then benefit others. Who will do it?"
Xing Shu said: "Zhang Gong's words in the Imperial College, 'make the best wishes, make the middle connections, and enjoy the lowest blessings' are deeply rooted in the hearts of the people in the Imperial College. All the members of Zhang's party in the Imperial College are like this."
"To blindly win over scholars with the slogan 'those who excel in learning will become officials' will corrupt the character of scholars. For example, during the Xining period, scholars returned to the path of competition."
Xiang Qi said angrily: "Brother He Shu, don't you forget why we came to Zuo Cheng's door?"
"I have offended Shen Kuo. You were born under the tutelage of Zhang Gong, but you followed Sima Guang and betrayed your family. What kind of scholarly spirit are you talking about in front of me?"
Xing Shu sighed. When he saw Zhang Yue being attacked by both the New Party and the Old Party, he felt that Zhang Yue was not a man capable of great things. He was afraid that following the other party would be disadvantageous in his career, so he left him early. Who knew...
If you take one wrong step, all of them will go wrong.
Xing Shu sighed and finally fell silent.
Xiang Qi sneered and strode away.
Xiang Qi was thinking about many things on his way back home on horseback when he passed by the dock of Bian Jing.
Xiang Qi suddenly stopped and threw the whip to his follower, then sat down at the dock and watched the coolies unloading cargo from the grain boats on the Bian River.
He just mocked others, but wasn't he the same?
When they were classmates at the Imperial College, he only regarded Zhang Yue as his younger brother, whose family background was even worse than his. When he talked to Zhang Yue, he always had a condescending attitude and even said some pretentious words.
But what's wrong with that?
Xiang Qi also came from a poor family, and he knew best what life was like at the bottom of society.
When you live at the bottom of society, you must not keep a low profile. Once you keep a low profile, someone will come to bully you. So no matter how good your inner self is, you must protect your face. This is something Xiang Qi has understood since he was a child. When he went to study, his family would rather the whole family starve for three days than not buy him a decent set of clothes.
Because his parents told him that others may not notice if you are hungry, but they can tell at a glance if your clothes are torn.
So many people say that people with the seventh character are not good, but when have they ever understood themselves?
After Xiang Qi passed the imperial examination, he was eager to find a good marriage, which was a change of heart for him. However, after so many years of marriage, his in-laws and his wife never looked down on him from the bottom of their hearts.
During those years, when his classmates at the Imperial College had things to do, he was busy running around to take care of them, but few of them took his kindness to heart.
My classmates only know Zhang Yue, Huang Lu, and Han Zhongyan, because they hold high official positions, while I myself hold a low position. Even if I treat others well, others will not take me to heart. Instead, they will think that I am trying to curry favor with them or have ulterior motives towards them.
Xiang Qi's self-esteem was greatly hurt by being rejected by others, so he hated these things deeply. He also hated Zhang Yue, Han Zhongyan and others.
Han Zhongyan is fine, his Han family is a famous family, and his father is a prime minister. What is Zhang Yue? He remembered that on the day when Zhang Yue was appointed Duke of the State, he personally went to congratulate him, but Zhang Yue neglected him.
He also knew that too many people came to Zhang Yue's house and he could not receive them all at once. But he was angry because few officials present that day knew that he, Xiang Qi, was Zhang Yue's classmate and roommate! After becoming rich and famous, do you, Zhang Yue, look down on others like this?
Xiang Qi watched the coolies on the docks bragging and chatting while taking a break, and he sneered and said sarcastically: "What good words do these coolies have?"
"It's as if these officers know you."
"You think you know them just because you happened to have a meal with them a few tables away? You call them brothers, are you worthy? Why don't you take a piss and see who you think you are?"
Several coolies were furious when they heard this, but they dared not say anything.
Xiang Qi yelled, "What are you looking at? Beat these people up!"
After saying that, he walked up to the seven or so people, picked up sticks and beat the coolies up.
After seeing so many people rolling on the ground begging for mercy, Xiang Qi finally let out a sigh of relief.
……
In Liangyuan now.
Han Zhongyan and Huang Lu were eating a big pot of mutton, while someone was warming the wine and someone was adding firewood to the fire.
Eating a pot of mutton in the courtyard on a cold day is a real pleasure.
The two talked and laughed.
After eating a large piece of fat and tender mutton, Han Zhongyan drank a bowl of slightly warm old wine and burped with great satisfaction.
Han Zhongyan said: "After the decision is made to govern the country by righteousness, rather than by people, the country will be governed by justice."
"Finally, we are on the right track and know how to rely on brothers like us."
Huang Lu said: "When Fan Wencheng launched the reform, he did it in a hurry. By the time he thought of winning over officials and scholars from the public who supported the reform, it was already too late."
"The later Qingli period of promoting education was a move to retreat and build a network."
"After that, the imperial court vigorously established schools all over the country, and established county schools and state schools, which was to select talents from the people and break the monopoly of local tyrants on talents. Thinking back to that time, Duzhi and I benefited from this, and were able to enter the county school and study at the Imperial College, and later have such a place."
"Well said!" Han Zhongyan raised his glass and clinked it with Huang Lu's, "Thanks to Mr. Fan Wencheng, my brothers and I have been classmates in the Imperial College for several years."
Huang Lu said: "After that, Wang Jinggong carried out reforms and promoted education during the Xining period. The number of students at the Imperial Academy increased to 2,400. He wrote the New Interpretation of the Three Classics as a guide for the reforms. From then on, the Imperial Academy only taught Zhouli and Zishuo from the New Interpretation of the Three Classics."
"After the Yuanfeng Administration of Zhang Gong, the "Zi Shuo" was deleted, and the "Zhou Li Xin Yi" was retained for the new interpretations of the Three Classics, while it was supplemented with "Taixue" and "Zhongyong". At the same time, "Mencius" was upgraded to a concurrent classic. In this way, new materials were created."
"But I am worried that since we have decided to govern the country with 'righteousness', this will definitely be bad for the 'Zhang Party' in the court, because this move is equivalent to a faction within a faction. This will cause divisions within us, and even disintegration."
Han Zhongyan said: "If they want to split and disintegrate, then so be it. I don't think it's a big deal. Since we want to do big things, we should rather have fewer people than less qualified ones."
"In the end, everything is done for the sake of restructuring."
"Wang Jinggong's reform doesn't count. Duzhi's reform has only taken its first step here. Without good talents to help, how can we achieve great things?"
Huang Lu said: "I understand, but there are still many people in the government who oppose the reform, and even more officials below are secretly disobeying it."
"Everyone thinks that the Tanguts have been annihilated, the court's urgent needs have been resolved, and the treasury is now relatively full. Why do we need to continue with the reform? If we talk about reform now, I'm afraid people will not accept it!"
Han Zhongyan drank a large bowl of mutton soup and said with a smile: "What's so confusing about this?"
"Let me tell you something. We can only borrow money when we have money. When we are healthy, we should take care of our bodies."
“Don’t wait until you’re at the end of your rope.”
"Restructuring is just like a daily routine. Only by torturing yourself more often can you avoid trouble."
“We must treat illness before it occurs and stop major chaos before it starts.”
"After a serious illness like that, even if you hire a miracle doctor to revive the patient, he will only be half dead. This is the same as a good warrior without great achievements."
Huang Lu was surprised and impressed when he heard this, and said to Han Zhongyan: "Of course, Master Pu, what you said today made me look at you in a new light!"
"Why haven't you said such insightful words before?"
Han Zhongyan picked up a piece of mutton with an expressionless face and said, "My father was still alive at that time, so there were too many things I couldn't say to others!"