a bowl of rice

When the imperial edict to study and observe politics arrived, Lu Jianbai was having a small gathering with several of his classmates.

Everyone was shocked to hear that all new scholars had to go to the "Jing'e Academy" to continue their studies and observe politics for a year.

"Jing'e Courtyard? Where is this?"

"According to convention, you and I should have been appointed to various ministries or sent to prefectures and counties. Why do we need to study for another year?"

"Could it be that... Your Majesty has other intentions?"

Lu Jianbai's heart also moved. He recalled the meaningful look the empress had given him during the Qionglin Banquet, and vaguely felt that this was no ordinary arrangement.

Full of doubts, Lu Jianbai and his five hundred classmates arrived at Jing'e Academy in the suburbs of Beijing. They saw a continuous network of buildings, resembling a small town, with lecture halls, libraries, dining halls, and even training grounds. Its layout was surprisingly more grand than that of the Imperial College.

What’s even more strange is that there is not a single servant in the courtyard, and all chores are handled by the scholars themselves.

After settling down, a eunuch came to announce the decree.

The decree clarified that, in the past, successful Jinshi candidates were directly appointed to official positions, possessing only a knowledge of sage texts but no practical experience in government, thus serving no real benefit to the state or its people. Starting in the Taichu era, all Jinshi candidates were required to undergo a year of observation and study, during which they would rotate through the six ministries and departments. His Majesty would also personally monitor their studies and conduct monthly policy consultations.

The purpose is to make them familiar with the national politics and people's sentiments, and not to be empty talkers.

"You should study for the sake of the country. After one year, I will give you the actual teaching."

The decree further stated that within this year, a stipend would be paid every month, and hundreds of rooms in Jing'e Courtyard would be available for living, and all daily necessities would be arranged by the court.

Some people privately complained that this was unnecessary and would hinder their future. However, Lu Jianbai thought this was a good idea. Recalling the emperor's pragmatic questions during the palace examination, he understood clearly: the emperor wanted officials who could get things done.

He moved in calmly and peacefully.

The next day, the first policy question was distributed to everyone.

It was not an article on the interpretation of classics, but a copy of a memorial from the magistrate of a certain place. The county claimed that the area under its jurisdiction had suffered a disaster, and because of the tax exemption granted by Your Majesty upon your accession to the throne, the treasury was short of money and grain, and the county magistrate earnestly requested the court to allocate funds for relief.

Your Majesty wrote in red ink at the end: "How should this matter be handled? What are your thoughts on this memorial?"

For a moment, there was a lot of discussion in Jing'e Courtyard.

Some people advocated allocating funds immediately to save the people in dire straits; some questioned the truth of the county magistrate's words and believed that the court should not be trusted; others quoted classics and discussed the essence of disaster relief.

Lu Jianbai pondered the report for a long time. He recalled that when he was a student, he had also heard about the long-standing malpractice of local officials who shirked responsibility and only cared about asking for favors from their superiors.

Until late at night, he picked up his pen under the lamp and wrote down his own views:

"I believe this county magistrate is a mediocre official who only knows how to adhere to dogma and is inflexible. The memorials from the prefectures and counties to the imperial court, and then the imperial decree for the disbursement, take at least a month to process. Why should the victims wait?"

"If I were a county magistrate, I would consult with the local farmers on a regular basis to predict the weather. If I foresee a disaster, I would start preparing for it early. Even if the county is short of money, I could inform the local wealthy, explain the benefits and risks, and encourage them to donate money and grain. Otherwise, I could negotiate loans from neighboring prefectures that were not affected by the disaster. This is better than waiting for the imperial court's order and letting the people suffer..."

The memorial was submitted and returned a few days later.

Ning Lingyi's red comment was clearly visible, with only one word: "Yes."

Soon after, a new question followed: "If this law is implemented and all prefectures and counties follow suit, and the people-friendly officials serve for three years and leave at the end of their term, causing the county government to be heavily in debt, how will it be repaid? Who will bear the responsibility?"

Lu Jianbai's hand paused as he wrote. He realized that his previous ideas were too idealistic. As expected, being too aggressive would bring new problems.

He pondered for several days and then took up his pen again: "I think it might be wise to strictly check the debts incurred by officials when they leave office. If the debt exceeds the norm or if it cannot be repaid, they should not be promoted, or even be held accountable to serve as a warning to others."

This time, the approval came a little slowly.

A few days later, the memorial was returned again. Ning Lingyi's comment was longer, written in a calm voice: "You can think this way today because you are in the capital. If one day you were to become a local official, faced with the hungry victims and the stretched treasury, your mindset would likely be completely different. The court wants to centralize power to prevent local governments from becoming too powerful, while the prefectures and counties want flexibility to address urgent needs. This is an eternal dilemma."

"Governance is not just a matter of talking on paper. It involves countless difficulties. I hope you will not forget your original intention today."

Late at night, under the lamp, Lu Jianbai read these lines of red comments over and over again. He felt that every word was of great significance, and that they contained a sincerity and expectation, which made him feel overwhelmed with emotion and a great sense of responsibility.

In a flash, autumn goes and autumn comes again.

After a year, Lu Jianbai had grown accustomed to living in Jing'e Courtyard. He first observed government affairs at the Ministry of Revenue, understanding the circulation of taxes and levies, and then studied at the Ministry of Works, realizing that water conservancy and agriculture were the foundation of a country.

During his time observing government affairs at the Ministry of Rites, he participated in organizing the first batch of women's literacy classes, which was one of His Majesty's new policies, allowing women in the community to read and understand.

At first he did not understand the intention, until he saw with his own eyes that those women, after learning to read, could not only manage household accounts and teach children, but also help the village with paperwork. Only then did he understand the deep meaning of His Majesty.

He increasingly understood the profound meaning of His Majesty's establishment of this institute.

On the eve of graduation, he solemnly submitted a memorial requesting to be transferred to a remote post as an official close to the people, so that he could truly experience what His Majesty had said about the "countless difficulties."

The imperial edict finally came down, appointing him as the magistrate of a certain place.

Before leaving, he was packing his luggage at home when a eunuch quietly arrived, holding a red sandalwood food box.

"Lord Lu, His Majesty knows that you will be taking up your new post today, and has specially gifted you a food box as a farewell gift."

Lu Jianbai took it respectfully, opened the lid of the box, and was stunned. There was no delicacies in the box, only a bowl of steaming white rice.

The eunuch whispered, "This rice was planted by Your Majesty in his spare time in the palace, and he personally harvested and threshed it. Your Majesty said that even though she had to go through so much hardship to get this bowl of rice, the people of the world have to go through a hundred times more hardships than Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will not forget the hardships of the people."

The people of the world have a hard time getting a bowl of rice, which is a hundred times more difficult than your Majesty's...

In an instant, Lu Jianbai was overwhelmed with emotions. Your Majesty, why would you do this? Your Majesty clearly, clearly...

Lu Jianbai fell to the ground and cried bitterly. He picked up the bowl of still warm rice and swallowed it mouthful by mouthful with his tears.

A bowl of rice is worth a thousand gold coins. It carries the expectations of the king and the sufferings of the people. The people are the foundation of the country. I will never forget these four words in my life.

*

Lu Jianbai arrived at his post with great enthusiasm, only then did he realize the weight of the title "county magistrate".

This remote county town is actually full of official corruption.

The county magistrate is a smiling tiger, submissive on the surface, but he keeps the key accounts strictly confidential; the chief clerk is a veteran, who always makes excuses when encountering problems; the third shift of yamen runners are even more lazy, and if they are not urged by the higher authorities, they will even do their daily street patrols perfunctorily.

His job as a county magistrate is really difficult.

When it was time to collect taxes and grain, the petty officials agreed on the surface, but secretly colluded with local tycoons to shift the burden onto the common people; when it came to promoting education, the common people were either too poor to care about other things or had bad habits that made it difficult to change, and thus did not understand the words of the sages he mentioned.

He remembered the female education he had learned from his time at Jing'e Academy, and he opened a female literacy class next to the county school. However, he was strongly opposed by local gentry, who said it was "corrupting morals."

When it comes to mediating disputes, everyone sticks to their own opinions. He is busy until late at night every day, exhausted by paperwork, but always feels overwhelmed.

One day, he recalled what he had learned while observing politics at the Ministry of Works, and looked through agricultural books, and he believed he had found a way to improve the sowing of a local crop.

He was very excited and went to the countryside in person, gathered the villagers together, and explained in detail the advantages of the new law.

An old farmer squatted on the edge of a field and muttered after a long while, "Master, you're right. But our ancestors have been planting this way for generations. If we change and it doesn't work, will our whole family be left with nothing for the whole year?"

No matter how Lu Jianbai tried to persuade, or even made promises, he was mostly responded with silence.

In the end, only a few families reluctantly agreed to try planting a small plot of land.

It's harvest time, but the weather is not good and it's been raining for days.

The fields that tried the new method actually produced less than in previous years.

For a time, complaints arose everywhere.

Old man Zhang and several other farmers knelt outside the county government office, begging the magistrate for a life. Even more scoundrels joined the crowd, stirring up trouble and shouting that the county magistrate had ruined the harvest and demanding compensation for the losses.

That night, the cold moon hung alone.

Lu Jianbai sat alone in the back court. The wine jug on the table was empty. The sound of night watchmen beating outside the window made him feel even more lonely.

His eyes were hazy with drunkenness, and he recalled his lofty ambitions when he left Beijing, the bowl of white rice, and the earnest instructions from His Majesty.

He asked himself: "I've tried my best, working day and night, not daring to slack off for even a moment, so why do I still encounter obstacles everywhere, and why is everything so difficult? Why is it that my sincere service to the people doesn't earn me the slightest understanding, but instead ends up in this situation?"

He picked up a pen to write his resignation, but the tip of the pen hovered above the paper and he couldn't put it down.

His Majesty's eyes seemed to be looking at him right in front of him. Finally, he crumpled the paper into a ball, threw it on the ground, and cried bitterly at his desk.

When I woke up the next day, I had a splitting headache.

He looked at the sun still rising outside the window, and remembered that His Majesty had once said "a thousand difficulties and countless difficulties". In the end, he spread out the letter paper, wrote down everything that had happened since he took office, sealed it, and sent it to the capital in the form of a secret memorial.

Once the messenger left, there was no news.

Local government remained complex, and the challenges and isolation he faced continued unabated. Lu Jianbai, through the daily grind, seemed to have gradually lost his scholarly arrogance. He no longer pressed for quick results, but instead observed and learned silently, a look of forbearance growing between his brows.

Two or three months later, His Majesty's reply finally arrived.

"Some people think that with a sincere heart, they can rule for the people and eliminate the accumulated evils. But that is not true, that is not true."

"To accomplish real things and relieve the suffering of the people, perhaps you need to be more discerning and cunning than corrupt officials, so that you can see through their tricks and protect the people's wealth; you need to be more stubborn than the old farmers in the fields, so that you can resist being swayed by rumors and find methods that truly benefit agriculture; you need to be more comprehensive and more adept at weighing all parties than the shrewd businessmen, so that you can accomplish good things and ensure that your policies are implemented."

"For example, there's no need to force women to learn to read. First, let the girls from the gentry benefit. They'll convince their fathers and brothers. Once they see the real benefits, the resistance will naturally dissipate."

"In this world, being an official is easiest, as you can just go along with the crowd. It's also the hardest, because you've chosen a path that's swimming against the current. If you relax even a little today, you might immediately have a few extra quid. But if you hold on until the very end, you'll be truly governing for the people."

"The road ahead is long. I hope you will continue to work hard. In difficult times, your original intention will be more apparent."

He read it over and over again, clutching the letter, and burst into tears.

After crying, he wiped his tears and decided to continue his job as an official.

Since that day, Lu Jianbai seemed like a different person.

He took the initiative to invite the county magistrate to drink, and they did not talk about official business, but only about local customs and people; he asked the chief clerk about the origin of the old rules and asked how to do better.

In promoting literacy among women, he followed the advice of His Majesty and first invited several wives and daughters of gentry to the yamen to listen to lectures. With their help, the process went much more smoothly.

He remained incorruptible, but he had learned how to use tactics to enforce his policies and strike a balance between the various parties. He was no longer aloof and talkative, but had learned to listen and negotiate.

Do some real, practical work.

Many years later, the newly appointed Prime Minister Lu Jianbai, with gray hair on his temples, stood in the court, presiding over the new session of the women's department. He reviewed his half-life journey from a scholar to a frontier official, and then to the person in charge of the central government, and faced countless praises.

He could only sigh deeply and say, "It was your Majesty's bowl of white rice that brought me to where I am today."

A bowl of white rice actually produced a pillar of strength.

Ning Lingyi's deal was extremely profitable.