There is a minister's dining room outside the cabinet duty room. Since the Yongle period, the elders of the Ming Dynasty have been on duty in the cabinet, and the meals have been solved in the minister's dining room.

Chen Di's diet is very simple on weekdays. Today, I asked the cook to make more than a dozen dishes. Because he wants to feast on that old foodie - Hu Yuanchun, the new head of the examination department under the Ministry of Rites and the head of Xingming Academy!

As soon as Hu Yuanchun entered the minister's dining room, he sat down and picked up chopsticks: "It's still you kid thinking about the old man and me!" There are chickens, ducks and fish at this table! ”

Now when the Manchu Dynasty civil and military see Chen Di, they all have to call him respectfully: "Zhenguo Gong" or "Grandpa", only Hu Yuanchun, the old man, still opens his mouth "You kid" and closes his mouth "You kid". After all, Hu Yuanchun and Chen Di are old friends who met in prison.

Chen Di dragged the text and said, "You old thing is really a starving ghost!" ”

Hu Yuanchun munched on a duck leg and said: "In the previous life, the hungry ghost survived, and in this life, I have to be a full ghost!" ”

Hu Yuanchun swept up the clouds and ate a table of dishes. After eating, he wiped his mouth: "Your kid is now the prince of Zhenguo, holding the authority of the imperial court, and he is busy like a donkey all day long, why do you suddenly have time to invite me to dinner?"

Chen Di said: "You old fox is not stupid. After the meal, it's time to talk to you about business! ”

Hu Yuanchun said: "If I'm not mistaken, you kid wants to reform the imperial examination system, right?" ”

Chen Di was taken aback: "You old fox is like a god!" How did you guess? ”

Hu Yuanchun replied: "You kid has changed the civil and military official system, tax system, and military system of the Ming Dynasty, and the next step will definitely be to reform the imperial examination system." Do you still have to guess? ”

Chen Di nodded: "That's right." You, the head of the examination, are not in vain, to reform the imperial examination system, you have to play as a striker! ”

Hu Yuanchun restrained his smile: "Chen Di, Chen Di, aren't you afraid that when you go to the West Heaven in a hundred years, Grandpa Tai, Grandpa Cheng-the ancestors of the Ming Dynasty will peel you and cramp?" ”

Chen Di raised his glass: "If the people of Daming can live a good life, and the people of Daming are rich and strong, even if they go to the Western Heaven, what if they are skinned and cramped by their grandfather?" ”

Hu Yuanchun said: "It's a joke to say that the skin is cramped. After a hundred years, you will definitely be infamous through the ages. ”

Chen Di asked, "How do you say this?" ”

Hu Yuanchun replied: "The reforms you have implemented have not only changed my ancestral system of the Ming Dynasty. You have changed the thousand-year-old system of my Chinese clan since the Qin and Han dynasties! For example, the gentry and the imperial family do not pay food, such as the nine-grade eighteen-level system, oh, and the respect for Confucianism and the imperial examination system. These systems have been around for thousands of years! You have changed all these systems, yes, it can indeed make the Ming Dynasty strong and the people rich. But you are also harming the interests of those who read! Since ancient times, scholars have not been offended! Because they have a pen! Thousands of years later, the princes will all be stored in dry graves, but the articles they wrote will be passed down to the world! You just wait for the stench to last for 10,000 years! ”

Chen Di waved his hand: "The things after 10,000 years are too far away from me, and there is a saying that 10,000 years is too long, just seize the day." I can only see what is happening now. Let's talk about reforming the imperial examination system. I also agree with this truth. But what do you want to learn? If a sour eight-share article can be exchanged for an official and a half-job, then Daming's official position is too worthless! The court of the Ming Dynasty does not need a group of rotten Confucians! In the future, the palace examination, the general examination, and the township examination may not be revoked. But the Jinshi who have been admitted layer by layer cannot be awarded an official position immediately! Must enter Xingming College for further study! Learn economic, military, and political knowledge that can be applied to the world! Only after graduating from Xingming Academy can you be awarded an official position! ”

Hu Yuanchun said: "Let the Jinshi enter Xingming Academy?" Can you graduate from Xingming College before you can be awarded an official position? Then wouldn't I, the head of Xingming Academy, become a shadow minister? ”

Chen Di said: "That's right! Old man, your responsibilities in the future can be described as heavy as Mount Tai! Don't be sorry for the table I just treated! ”

Hu Yuanchun said: "In this way, the head of Xingming Academy can be said to be powerful!" All the scholars in the world want to become officials, and they must be nodded by the head of Xingming Academy! I am a person who is about to enter the earth, and I have long seen through the life and death of wealth and nobility, and I will not use power to be greedy. But aren't you afraid that after me, you will look away and appoint a greedy head? ”

Chen Di said: "No! Power must be locked in a cage. I will ask the Ministry of Supervision to send inspectors to Xingming College to supervise the head of Xingming College! ”

Hu Yuanchun said: "Okay, I will sacrifice my life to accompany the gentleman and be a pioneer in reforming the imperial examination system!" ”

Chen Di asked again: "By the way, have you properly placed all the scholars that Madeira brought back from the West this time in Xingming Academy?" ”

Hu Yuanchun said: "Properly placed!" I have also set up a Western language department to arrange for students to learn Western languages! To say that the knowledge studied by these scholars is really varied, but each of them is very practical! Let's just say that John, who studied analytic geometry, collected the astrological charts collected by Qin Tianjian in the past hundred years, and in his hands it took a few hours to summarize and draw the astrological charts! ”

Chen Di said: "That's nature, and analytic geometry is the basis of astronomy." In the future, whether it is a Western scholar or a student of our Ming Dynasty, once there is a major academic achievement, you, the head of Xingming Academy, must report it to me as soon as possible! ”

Hu Yuanchun wiped his beard and said, "Abide by the constitutional decree of the town and the country." ”

Chen Di said: "The Ministry of Rites has newly established a subordinate Ministry of Foreign Affairs. You have recruited a group of students from Xingming Academy who have already learned Western languages to enrich the Ministry of Foreign Affairs! Madeira was about to lead the fleet back to the Western Ocean again, so let these new officials follow him back to the Western Ocean and send envoys to the Western countries! ”

Hu Yuanchun said: "Okay! I'll do it when I get back. ”

Chen Di said again: "After talking about Xingming Academy, let's talk about the examination department!" I am going to use the money from the treasury to start a school in the provinces. If the people of the Ming Dynasty want to live a good life, they must be reasonable! To be sensible, you must be literate! In the future, every county in Daming must open ten righteous schools! Let the children of those poor families study in Yixue for free! When you go to Yixue to study, not only do you not charge any fees, but you also have to manage food and housing! ”

Hu Yuanchun was so shocked that his mouth grew up: "Every county... Ten schools of righteousness? If I'm not mistaken, there are two capitals and 13 provinces in the Ming Dynasty, with a total of more than 1,400 counties. Isn't this about opening 14,000 righteous schools? How much money does it cost? ”

Chen Di said: "I estimated it. According to the scale of 500 students, each school cost about 1,000 taels of silver, from the materials for building the house, to the remuneration of the teacher, to the food provided for the poor children. ”

Hu Yuanchun almost dropped his jaw in shock: "One thousand taels, fourteen thousand is fourteen million taels!" How much silver did the Ming Dynasty earn in a year? Don't be crazy, are you? ”

Chen Di said: "The new policy has been implemented in all provinces. The treasury will slowly fill up! Don't forget, the property of Yan Song's father and son was confiscated, and a total of 14 million taels of silver were obtained. This money was just used to open more than 10,000 righteous schools! All in all, a 100-year plan, education-oriented! Only the people of the Ming Dynasty are literate and reasonable, and the Ming Dynasty can prosper! ”