As the middle capital where Gyeonggi is located, in addition to Qinghe Academy, there are more than ten academies, except for these academies, there are also the highest institutions of learning and educational administration institutions set up by the state, Guozijian, which is different from the old time when there are two prisons in the north and south, and now the Ming Dynasty has two prisons in the north and south, but also in the middle of the capital Guozijian, and at this time, there are more than 15,000 people in the inner prison of one capital, two capitals and three Guozijian, and the grand occasion can be described as unprecedented. Coupled with the major academies, Daming at this time can be said to have the largest higher education system in the world.

Although there is still a certain gap between this higher education system and later universities, after ten years of continuous admiration for practical learning, the proportion of Confucian education in Guozijian and various academies is getting smaller and smaller, and more is practical learning, of course, Guozijian and the Chinese Studies Department in the academy are an exception. The doctors and students there still studied and studied Confucian writings, and tried to find the "true Confucianism" in the Confucian classics in order to restore the Confucian nature.

Of course, more students are immersed in practical learning, but because the level of practical education in local schools and local academies is uneven, tens of thousands of students come to Zhongdu every year to study in the preparatory schools here to make up for the gap in practical learning.

Among the many preparatory schools in Zhongdu, Zhitong School is not famous, it is just a very ordinary preparatory school, but in Zhongdu, he should be the cheapest school, of course, the environment here is also very average. First of all, he is about ten miles away from the Zhongdu Royal Library, and eight miles away from Qinghe Academy, which means that students have to walk for half an hour if they want to go to the library to read books. Second, unlike other schools, which have dormitories for four or even two people, the dormitory at Chi Tat School is a 12-person dormitory – a small barracks that was later sold to run a school. It's all because it's simple, and that's why the school fees are low.

The low cost of this place has attracted a lot of poor children, and because of this, even if you stop here, you can see that their family background is generally very ordinary, just like the students in this classroom, most of them wear washed white student shirts.

Although their family backgrounds are average, they are generally very hard-working, and even on their days off, they often study their schoolwork.

It's been a whole year since he came to middle school, shaking his neck that was a little sour and swollen, Lin Boqin looked at the classmates around him, they were still busy with their schoolwork.

"How's it going, are you watching?"

Lin Boqin said to the classmates around him.

"Let's go and try the academy or the Guozijian exam?"

"Not yet......"

No one echoed him. Everyone knows in their hearts that they will have to take at least one year of tuition before they can be admitted, after all, the competition has become increasingly fierce in the past two years, and after they came to Zhongdu, they found that they were so backward in terms of practical learning.

And Lin Boqin himself is the most dangerous one. His arithmetic grades were the worst among his classmates. And arithmetic is the basis of practical learning.

"It's just going to get used to the environment. If you can't pass the test, you won't be able to pass the test. ”

Lin Boqin is still lobbying around. That's what Zhao Yu really said.

"I think you can't go, you're most afraid of your big brother."

"Don't be afraid at all!"

Zhao Yuzhen retorted. The reason why he was able to come out to study was entirely funded by his eldest brother, who hoped that he could be admitted to the academy, after all, the Zhao family did not have any family business for him to inherit, although it seemed strict, but it was quite tolerant to him.

The entrance exam for the college is held in November every year, and the entrance examination is in February of the following year, and if you pass the entrance examination, you can return to your hometown for the Chinese New Year.

Zhao Yuzhen discussed this matter with his eldest brother when he went home.

"Are you confident that you will be admitted?"

Zhao Yupu asked. As a junior officer in the army, one of his basic tenets is not to fight if you can't win. When facing an opponent who can't win, you must at least work hard to find a way to drag it out to a draw, otherwise don't do it.

"Try it!"

"Anyone who wants to rely on luck will suffer a big loss in the end."

Zhao Yupu said.

Soldiers never pay attention to luck, Zhao Yupu didn't believe it, but he didn't object.

"If you want to try it, let's try it."

For Zhao Yuzhen, what worries him the most is the tuition fee. It takes a considerable amount of tuition to enter the university to become a bachelor's degree, and it is obviously unrealistic to rely on the eldest brother's little money, and his salary has to support his family, which is not enough to pay his tuition in full.

"I want to apply for a scholarship from the Inspirational Society."

Zhao Yuzhen has thought about this more than once, he wants to become His Majesty's sponsored student. The "Inspirational Society" is a foundation founded by His Majesty the Emperor to support poor students, and every year it will sponsor poor students across the country, and thousands of students enter the academy under the emperor's financial support every year, and the quota is allocated according to the county government. This also means that he has a good chance of "winning".

There should be a chance!

Zhao Yuzhen was thinking like this. However, the more important issue is that passing the entrance examination of the academy is the prerequisite for everything, and he must study hard. After all, if you don't get good results, it's all just talk.

Every year in October, when students are immersed in hard work, everyone is preparing for the college entrance exams in early November.

Compared with many classmates, Lin Boqin's luck seems to be very good, he went to take the college exam with the mood of giving it a try, and he was easily admitted.

"I thought I was too bad at math to pass the exam, but I didn't expect me to be admitted! That's really good, and from today onwards, I'll be able to squeeze into Shilin! ”

Entering the academy means that he becomes a "bachelor", and this is also a requirement for "Shilin" in the sixth year of Xingqian, which is equivalent to the "Jinshi" in the old days. Of course, Zhao Yuzhen was also admitted. It's just that they didn't get into Qinghe Academy, or Guozijian. For example, Lin Boqin was admitted to the Geography School, which was funded by the Royal Geographical Society to cultivate talents in geography and other fields. And Zhao Yuzhen was admitted to a traffic school, which is a place to learn transportation.

In the evening, there was the sound of boots outside the door, as long as he heard the sound of boots, he knew that Zhao Yupu was back, he was in the army for sixteen years in Yongli, and after several promotions, he is now in the position of army non-commissioned officer, and the reason why he can't become an officer is precisely because he has not been admitted to the army academy many times, which is also the shock in his heart, and because of this, he hopes that his younger brother can be admitted to the academy, so that he will not be affected in the future because of his low knowledge like now.

Hearing the sound of his brother's boots, Zhao Yu Zhenzhi hurriedly ran out of the door, and bowed respectfully after standing up.

"Big brother, you're back."

"How's it going?"

Zhao Yupu is still a little worried in the end. After all, he himself suffered from a lack of knowledge, and he was naturally full of expectations for this younger brother.

"Chingon was admitted."

Zhao Yuzhen first talked about Lin Boqin, and then reported to his eldest brother that he had also been admitted.

"Traffic School ......"

After a moment of silence, Zhao Yupu said.

"This is a school that was established just three years ago, it was built by researching roads, and many of the teachers are from the military, so the future prospects of the students who graduated from that school should be good."

In the past few years, with the development of society, many specialized schools have emerged under the demand for professional talents in the society, and navigation schools and transportation schools have emerged in this period. Not only have such schools sprung up, but some seowon have even reproduced subjects that were beyond the imagination of students in the past, such as applied chemistry and silk science.

As a soldier, he naturally knows something about traffic schools. After all, Daming's original traffic engineering was all set up in military schools. Maybe he didn't go to a military school, but he had an engineer officer by his side. The traffic section for civilian road construction is always established on the basis of the engineering section.

In fact, this is also a kind of technology diffusion. Many of the skills of the Ming Dynasty originally came from the military, and the military was often more active in learning from the outside world. In the wake of the war, they took the initiative to learn engineering disciplines such as surveying, geography, and road construction from the West, and eventually but in addition to their own engineering.

In the past few years, due to the needs of the people, these disciplines have begun to spread from the military to the people, and new engineering specialties have been formed in the people.

"Yuzhen, go, let your sister-in-law buy some food, and get some wine, the two of us will drink today."

Zhao Yupu said after taking off his cowhide military boots. The younger brother was admitted to the academy, which should be celebrated, after all, from now on, the younger brother will have a good future.

Lin Boqin and Zhao Yuzhen didn't drink alcohol, but on this day, they both drank with Zhao Yupu.

After being a little drunk, the three of them talked more.

"Brother Zhao, in this world."

Lin Boqin asked.

"Who do you think is the most remarkable?"

"Why do you ask?"

Zhao Yupu asked rhetorically with some incomprehension.

"Where do I start?"

Brother Zhao's rhetorical question caught Lin Boqin a little off guard. He was just looking for a topic to talk about for dinner.

"Oh, just talking about it."

Hearing him ask, Zhao Yupu groaned.

"Is that the one who is alive now?"

"It's better to be alive. If you live, you may have the opportunity to visit it in the future. ”

"Who is the most remarkable, I don't know, maybe in my opinion, the most amazing person in the world today should be His Majesty the Emperor."

Putting down the chopsticks, Zhao Yupu Zhengse said.

"Think about it, His Majesty the Emperor was living in the people back then, without the slightest thing, and as the master wandered around the rivers and lakes, the embarrassment during this period was probably only slightly stronger than that of a beggar......

When he mentioned His Majesty, his tone was extremely respectful, and his expression became very serious. Obviously, this respect comes from the bones.

"Emperor Gao is also a beggar!"

Zhao Yuzhen interjected on the side.

"Yes, when Emperor Gao raised his army, Meng Yuan's momentum had declined. However, when His Majesty the Emperor raised the army, the Jiannu momentum was flourishing, and the Yongli Imperial Court even had to flee to Burma at that time, and was even more likely to be killed by the Burmese. ”

Zhao Yupu's answer was expected by Zhao Yuzhen and Lin Boqin, after all, as a soldier, his admiration for His Majesty the Emperor can be said to have reached the extreme, after all, they are all ministers of the dragon, and their fates have changed because of His Majesty the Emperor. In this case, how could they not respect His Majesty?

"Besides, throughout the ages, how many emperors have been able to care for the people like Your Majesty, just like you get scholarships, which are all the silver that His Majesty the Emperor took out of his inner treasury, as well as libraries in various places."

And Zhao Yupu's admiration for His Majesty the Emperor has become stronger and stronger as he grows older, even in his later years, he is loyal to the Emperor, although as a non-commissioned officer of the army, he has never been able to see His Majesty in his life, even if he looks at His Majesty from a distance, but that kind of loyalty is unswerving.

"Alright, I wish you ......"

Looking at the two of them, Zhao Yupu picked up his wine glass and said.

"In school, you will succeed in your studies and have a bright future!"

He drank a lot of wine that night, and Zhao Yupu wanted to be happy, because he saw the future in his younger brother and saw the future of the Zhao family, and from now on the Zhao family could be regarded as scholars. According to the laws of the imperial court, his younger brother will definitely leave home and stand on his own in the future. But in any case, the Zhao family is no longer the Zhao family of the past.

"Oh, I really didn't expect that."

When Zhao Yuzhen walked out of the house, he looked at the shop on the side of the road.

"It's really nice to think that we all got in."

Somewhat drunk, he looked at his friend and said.

"Why don't we go have another drink?"

"Okay, let's go have two more drinks."

Although the street lights are a little dim, they can illuminate the whole street, and it is late at night, but there are still many pedestrians on the street. Many shops on the side of the road were still open, and the two went to a stall on the side of the road, and then asked for two dishes and a pot of wine.

Even though they hadn't drunk much in the past, the two of them were in a good mood and drank there. Different from the previous restraint in Zhao Yupu, the two of them were completely relaxed at this time, and they talked freely about their future there, discussing what kind of people they would meet and what kind of industry they would engage in after they arrived at school.

For the Ming students at this time, they all know very well that they entered the academy, called the past to leap over the dragon gate, and passed the Jinshi examination, from then on, even if they can't soar, at least they can have no worries about food and clothing.

For many children from poor families, this is often their only chance to change their fate, and it is precisely because of this desire that they will study hard in the preparatory school, and now their hard work has finally paid off.

The night slowly deepened, and Zhao Yupu, who was already drunk, pointed to the distance, then turned his head and said to his friends beside him,

"You fancy the capital, so many dignitaries and dignitaries I dare to say that in the future in those dignitaries and dignitaries where they live, there will definitely be a place for you and me, as long as we study hard in school, I believe that there will be a day, do you believe it?"