“Ru, there’s no need for such formalities. Please rise.” Zhu Yunying smiled and raised his hand, then said to Wang Chengen, “Bring Ru a chair over so we can sit and chat.”

Ru Chang's heart pounded. He was indeed a veteran minister from the time the Emperor was still a prince, and had been the Emperor's childhood companion. But Ru Chang knew in his heart that the Emperor had always been a very opinionated person. To say how close they were, Ru Chang himself couldn't be sure.

Perhaps it was her diligence and some ability, or maybe it was because she had worked hard even if she hadn't achieved great things. Actually, it's not possible that the current emperor was still thinking about old feelings, or that he was intentionally or unintentionally establishing Ru Chang as a role model of a certain type.

Zhu Yunying didn't know what Ru Chang was thinking; he only knew that Ru Chang was sitting upright. There was nothing he could do about it. Even in the past, many nobles and officials wouldn't sit slouching in front of Zhu Yunying. They would lightly touch half their bottom to the chair, fully focused, ready to jump up and reply at any moment—the routine was already well-known.

Indeed, greater care and caution are needed, given the current emperor's changed status. Before him stands His Majesty the Emperor, not His Highness the Crown Prince; this is a fundamental difference. The heir apparent and the monarch are essentially two different concepts. After all, even the most favored heir apparent may not successfully ascend the throne.

Moreover, because she knew the Emperor so well, Ru Chang was very worried that under the Emperor's amiable demeanor, it would be an impossible task. Or to put it bluntly, the Emperor was asking him, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and the Emperor's most trusted confidant, to offend someone.

"The imperial examination is in February. Has Ru, my companion, made any preparations?" Zhu Yunying asked with a gentle smile, appearing to take the examination very seriously. "The selection of talents cannot be taken lightly. The Ming Dynasty is becoming stronger day by day, all thanks to the wisdom of the Retired Emperor and the assistance of his ministers. Now, we should also put our heart into the selection of talents through the imperial examination. The Ming Dynasty needs more talents."

Ru Chang immediately stood up and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, rest assured, we dare not slack off."

"I trust Ru to be my study companion," Zhu Yunying smiled and continued in a gentle tone, "but does Ru know why this year's imperial examination is divided into two lists, one for the North and one for the South?"

Ru Changtai knew that the current emperor, who was previously the crown prince, had proposed the Northern and Southern Examinations, which had caused a great uproar in the court. Not only in the court, but also among the common people, especially the scholars in the south, there was much discussion about this matter, and there was no shortage of dissatisfaction. It would be fair to say that some people were making irresponsible remarks about politics, and there were even those who cursed the crown prince.

After all, the South has a strong literary tradition, and most of the civil officials in the court today come from the South, especially the Jiangnan region, where civil officials are densely packed, almost occupying half of the Ming Dynasty's civil service system.

"Your Majesty is a man of great talent and ambition. However, the academic atmosphere in the North is not strong, and the students of the North are indeed unable to compete with the scholars of the South." Ru Chang was very fond of this. At that time, many ministers were demoted, and Ru Chang remembered it vividly. "The people of the North yearn to return home. Your Majesty is giving the students of the North a chance."

Zhu Yunying smiled and waved his hand, saying, "Let's not talk about such formalities. I know that if the students from the North and the scholars from the South take the same exam, I'm afraid more than 80% of the successful candidates in a single exam will be from the South. I want to win over the hearts of the students from the North, but these are just some underhanded tricks, not the proper way."

This is definitely not the right path; it's practically a deliberate attempt to lower the exam difficulty for students in the North. The main issue is that the academic performance of students in the North is currently not good enough, so they have to be given a chance. Students in the South will have to endure this for now, and perhaps for a long time to come.

Ru Chang seemed to understand and asked, "Your Highness, are the number of successful candidates from the North and South examinations roughly equal?"

Zhu Yunying smiled and waved his hand, saying earnestly, "That's not necessary. Scholars from the North are indeed not as talented as those from the South. To save face, we've allocated 30% of the spots to scholars from the North. And remember this: even if none of the top three scholars are from the North..."

Ru Chang immediately understood that the current emperor needed some students from the north to pass the imperial examinations, but he also knew that the talents of students from the north were limited.

Therefore, some places were allocated, but it wouldn't be completely 'fair'. While winning over the hearts of the students from the north, Zhu Yunying would also put pressure on them.

This isn't the Yuan Dynasty anymore, so forget about herding sheep. Study hard and don't let the southerners look down on you!