Zhu Youxiao's idea was similar to that of Lindan Batur. He also wanted to "pacify the country" and placed more importance on pacifying Liaodong.
This "internal peace" does not have the smoke of gunpowder and the roar of killing on the battlefield, but its complexity is greater than the strategic planning and intrigue in war.
Moreover, this "internal pacification" campaign will determine whether the Ming Dynasty will revive its national strength or continue to decline.
If they failed, even if they defeated the Jiannu, there would be other new forces that would become powerful enemies of the Ming Dynasty.
This is how the world is. Competition between countries is inevitable and extremely cruel.
Even if the Ming Dynasty had not been destroyed by foreign enemies and could not "maintain peace within the country", under the harsh environment of the Little Ice Age, a change of dynasty would have been an outcome that Zhu Youxiao was unwilling to accept.
Therefore, promoting benefits and eliminating disadvantages, reforming and making progress were the tasks that Zhu Youxiao devoted the most attention and energy to.
In the reform, the most difficult part is not the promulgation of policies and the introduction of measures, but people's traditional thinking habits.
The martial arts school was established and the new school began to recruit students for training, but what made Zhu Youxiao dissatisfied was that there were too few people accepting these programs.
The army needed artillery instructors and artillerymen; the court needed economic and technical personnel. These all needed to be based on literacy and arithmetic, or in other words, training from among the educated was the quickest and easiest way.
But as for those scholars, if we look at the proportion of their total number, we can describe them as having very few responses.
The idea of emphasizing civil affairs over military affairs and respecting the official path of imperial examinations was an obstacle that made Zhu Youxiao very headache and angry.
The preferential treatment given to students was already being cancelled in an attempt to force them to become professionals and officials needed by the court. However, it seemed that the effect was not very significant.
However, abolishing the imperial examination system was impossible, at least not within a few years, so Zhu Youxiao remained calm about it.
"Isn't it a bit hasty to abolish the Imperial College?" Zhu Youxiao seemed to be talking to himself, but also spoke as if asking for advice.
Ni Wenhuan, the imperial pen holder, was startled. He glanced at the emperor and found that he was not angry, so he felt relieved.
After thinking for a moment, Ni Wenhuan cautiously suggested, "Your Majesty, if you suddenly abolish the Imperial College, I'm afraid it will shock the government and the people."
Zhu Youxiao turned to look at Ni Wenhuan and asked thoughtfully, "I am worried about the small number of new students. Does Mr. Ni have any good suggestions?"
Ni Wenhuan bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I suggest that we increase the size of the imperial examination or the Ministry of Personnel examination, select students from the Imperial College and appoint them to official positions. Then, they will be sent to study in the new school, which can be called observing government. If they do not obey the court's assignments, their student status will be revoked."
Zhu Youxiao blinked his eyes, smiled, and said, "Mr. Ni, this is a very good idea."
In ancient times, scholars who wanted to excel had to take the imperial examinations to enter the officialdom. To achieve good results in the examinations, key schools and renowned teachers were crucial. The highest institution of learning at the time was the Imperial College.
Studying at the Imperial College also required an exam, which was equivalent to taking the entrance exam for a key high school. However, only students with exceptional performance in the Imperial College could directly become officials through channels such as the imperial court exam or the Ministry of Personnel exam.
For most students of the Imperial College, if they want to obtain fame and fortune, they still have to take the imperial examination.
Ni Wenhuan's move was equivalent to allowing students to become officials without having to take the imperial examination. Of course, to obtain an official position, they had to first enter the new school, whether for internship or to observe politics, but in any case, it achieved Zhu Youxiao's goal.
Zhu Youxiao previously adopted a voluntary principle for the admission of students, and the conditions for admission to the military academy were very loose, as long as one was physically strong; however, the new school had only been open for a short time, and the students' future was not yet certain.
Ni Wenhuan's suggestion reminded Zhu Youxiao that granting official positions to students was one tactic. Wouldn't it be more influential and tempting to grant official positions to new students as well?
While both were for becoming an official, the official path of the imperial examination certainly made one's status more special, but only a very small number of people could pass. For many scholars, settling for the next best thing should be acceptable, right?
Zhu Youxiao nodded slightly, feeling that such analysis and judgment were very reliable. However, the effect would be even better if it were supplemented with a public opinion offensive.
Turning to Ni Wenhuan, Zhu Youxiao said, "Learn the arts of civil and martial arts, and serve the imperial family. More articles like this should be published in the latest issues of 'Da Ming Forum' to discourage those scholars from talking big all day long and doing practical work. The court needs us, the country needs us. If we don't serve now, when will we?"
"Yes, I obey your order." Ni Wenhuan bowed and replied.
Zhu Youxiao thought for a moment and said, "Let's make up some more stories. Let's say there are scholars who study hard for ten or even dozens of years but can't become officials. They don't even have any skills. They can't even support themselves or their parents. They are just good-for-nothings, worse than beggars."
Ni Wenhuan blinked his eyes, thinking that it was a bit bad to curse people like that?
Zhu Youxiao hadn't finished speaking when he continued, echoing his disdain for certain scholars: "With their brilliant writings and profound knowledge, can they really govern a region or stabilize the country with just this kind of knowledge? They're all so self-centered and think they're great, but they're actually nothing."
Ni Wenhuan swallowed his saliva and decided to artistically add the swear words "Wansui" when publishing. Otherwise...
After Zhu Youxiao finished scolding him, he felt much better. He then said to Ni Wenhuan, "Besides this, there are also the issues of increasing business taxes and blurring the lines between officials and businessmen. These should also be explained and exposed. You should also carefully review the submissions and identify useful people among them."
Ni Wenhuan bowed and accepted the order, feeling very happy.
Of course, the purpose of discovering useful people is to replace oneself, but the purpose is not to demote or dismiss them, but to promote them like Wei Guangwei.
Although he was the emperor's personal penman and a trusted minister, how could he compare to being a frontier governor?
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
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