Brother Song Taizu

Chapter 44 Imperial Examination Reform
Zhao Kuangyin and all the prime ministers in the palace were all confused for a moment, and even wondered if they had heard wrongly.

Why is it that after being scolded by others, you still say that they are right?There's nothing wrong with these three kings' minds, right?

"Brother, oh no, in the official family, I think that the reason why the examiners and supervisors will criticize me for participating in the imperial examination is not because of my brother, but because of the imperial examination."

"You are criticizing the imperial examination?"

I was thinking to my third brother, did you secretly drink last night?

"Exactly, the officials, as well as the prime ministers, since the end of the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, the reason why the world has been in chaos, the people's livelihood has been miserable, and the dynasties have been constantly changing, is precisely because of the lack of prime ministers."

"What does it mean to be without form?"

"It's just because the warriors are in power in the court. Although there is a prime minister in the court, the prime minister has no military merit or limited ability, so he cannot suppress the arrogant soldiers and generals in the court. Therefore, the warriors do not take the prime minister seriously, because the prime minister If the power is not solid, the monarch’s power will be unstable.”

"The reason why the power of the prime minister is unstable is that the kings in the past dynasties only focused on military affairs and not on civil governance. The key to civil governance lies in the selection of talents, and the way to select talents should be in the imperial examination."

"My brother believes that the previous kings did not pay enough attention to the imperial examination, because it is not fair at all. The people recommended by the prefects in various places are often just a bunch of people, and the people who are elected through the imperial examination are sometimes just one person. The form, let alone the line of writing.”

"I think that the candidates are not criticizing me, but that they don't believe that the imperial examination is fair. I'm afraid that even if I do get admitted to the Jinshi, those who failed will not be convinced. , then, what’s the point of me taking this imperial examination?”

"So for the sake of the fairness of the imperial examination and the weight of the Jinshi I take, I boldly ask the government to reform the imperial examination. First, from now on, the imperial court will no longer accept 'public recommendations'. Second, starting from this imperial examination, the imperial court will not Use the 'Xingjuan' method again!"

Hearing this, all the officials couldn't help but be dumbfounded, and even Zhao Kuangyin himself couldn't help being a little surprised.

After thinking for a while, he said: "Is this exam going to abolish the line test method, or will it be the next one?"

Zhao Guangmei said matter-of-factly: "Of course it's the beginning of this year. Brother, do you think that with my talent, I still need to rely on 'running papers' to become a Jinshi? What's the difference between this and cheating?"

The so-called line test paper means that the prime minister can find a certain candidate alone after the imperial examination, and then give him a set of test papers that are different from others. As long as the prime minister who wrote the questions thinks that the candidate answered well, then this will Even if a candidate fails to make sense in the formal imperial examination, he can still be awarded the Jinshi.

In theory, if the prime minister asks a candidate, what is one plus one, and you answer three, congratulations, you are a Jinshi.

To be honest, until this moment, Zhao Kuangyin still didn't believe that Zhao Guangmei could really pass the Jinshi examination. If he didn't pass the examination and was squeezed out, Zhao Kuangyin really planned to let Zhao Guangmei take the exam.

Anyway, this world belongs to their old Zhao family. They can play whatever they want. Besides, this thing of Xingjuan is based on reputation rather than achievements. In this world, when it comes to fame, how many people can compare to this? What about the three great kings who destroyed the Northern Han Dynasty?
The ministers were also secretly frightened. To be honest, they actually didn't care that much whether Zhao Guangmei could pass the Jinshi examination. To them, this thing was just a small bet between the two brothers, a small game. The word "Jinshi" was very important to them. It's nothing to say.

But everyone knows that Zhao Guangmei wants to fight for the reserve, and he is fighting openly. Doesn't he need to win over hundreds of officials to fight for the reserve?
To put it bluntly, the power of public recommendation is actually a variant of the Eastern Han Dynasty's inspection method. And the so-called "xingjuan" is essentially a right of public recommendation. It is a welfare for high-ranking officials!
You, Zhao Guangmei, come up and chop off the heads of all the officials with a stick. How can you be so competitive about the throne? !
Zhao Kuangyin took a deep look at Zhao Guangmei, then nodded and said: "Lao San... you are so magnanimous, that's right." He originally planned to abolish these two systems that seriously hindered the fairness of the examination. Originally, he also thought that this matter should be What should I do to offend as few people as possible? Unexpectedly, Zhao Guangmei took the opportunity of her own criticism to raise it.

I have to say that this is really an extremely suitable time.

"My dear brother, I would like to ask you again. The imperial examination will be conducted using the name-blinding and paper-copying methods. That is, during the imperial examination, personal information such as the candidate's name, place of origin, etc. must be sealed first. At the same time, after the examination, someone will be asked to find a blank piece of paper and write it down. The questions answered by the candidates must be transcribed again, which is a form of malpractice for personal gain.”

"My dear brother, I would like to ask you again. All the articles that have passed the examination, whether they are poems, policies, or theories, should be published widely. At the same time, they should be written in the imperial newspaper and spread throughout the country, so that they can be read by the candidates and the people of the world. For example, Those who use the Yu to make up the numbers and those who are not satisfied with the terminology can submit a letter of objection."

"I think that if this is not the case, it is not enough to prove my innocence. At the same time, if it is not the case, it cannot prove fairness. If the imperial examination is unfair, how can I serve the public by taking an official position? If I cannot serve the public by taking an official position, how can a prime minister serve the public? Therefore, I My brother believes that officials should implement these three strategies and teach them with correct texts. Only in this way can we protect the Zhao and Song Dynasty and continue for a long time."

When Zhao Kuangyin heard this, he couldn't help but praise: "Based on what you said today, it is already a good policy statement. Since you are so confident, then I will rely on you. From now on, in the imperial examination of the Song Dynasty, there will be no public recommendation or no recommendation." All exam papers must be copied and copied, and all articles and poems written by those named on the gold list must be posted to show fairness."

"Thank you bro."

Zhao Guangmei smiled and clasped her fists as a salute, but said: "This is what I went to court for today. Now that it's all said and done, I won't delay you talking about national affairs. I'm leaving first to review my homework. .”

After saying that, he pulled Li Chuyun over again: "This position is still for you."

Then he really ignored the half-way meeting and left happily.

Even Zhao Kuangyin couldn't help laughing and scolding when he saw this: "This kid is still so unruly."

…………

Within a day or two, the news of Zhao Guangmei's advice to reform the imperial examination spread to at least all the examinees and supervisors in the capital through his own intentional dissemination.

Candidates who can scold him behind his back must be the kind of people with no family background. But no one dares to scold him anymore. If you want to say that you failed in the exam before, you can also say that you are not appreciating your talent. This time, It seems there is nothing left to say.

However, it doesn't seem to matter how much these people think of him. Most people just don't mention him.

Some people may even occasionally add a few words when chatting: "My generation has been living in poverty for ten years, but for others, they are just playing games. If we really take the job fairly, how could he win?"

(End of this chapter)