The sky was getting light, and the sun was rising in the east, casting a fiery red light on the earth.
The capital, which had slept all night, seemed to have just awakened. Countless people came out of their homes, some pushing carts, others carrying loads, and began a new day.
From time to time, groups of scholars would appear on the streets, and many carriages of nobles would rumble by.
These people gathered in groups, and from time to time they would burst into laughter, and some would even quarrel, but they were all heading towards the same place.
Among the crowd, you can occasionally see warriors, holding knives or carrying swords, walking forward step by step.
Many people are full of hope, with feelings about the future in their hearts, and their steps are very firm.
On a road, a carriage that looked somewhat unusual was moving slowly forward.
The carriage was surrounded by a group of fully armed guards in black. They wore uniform leather armor and were all carrying various swords and guns, and some even carried crossbows.
You can tell at a glance that this group of people are extraordinary.
The curtain of the carriage was gently lifted, and Zhu Youxiao looked at the crowd moving forward with a thoughtful expression.
Glancing at the old man who was leaving in the same carriage with him, Zhu Youxiao said with a smile, "My dear, there's no need to be so nervous. I just came out to take a look. I want to see the prosperity of my Ming Dynasty. My dear, just accompany me."
"Your Majesty, the capital is already in chaos, and today is the day of the Royal Academy examination, so there will be a complicated flow of people. If anything happens, how can I bear the responsibility?" Xu Guangqi said with a sad face.
How did I meet such a Majesty?
Zhu Youxiao smiled and said in a soothing tone, "It is I who want to leave the palace. How can I blame you? Besides, this capital is the capital of the Ming Dynasty. How could such a thing happen under the feet of the emperor?"
Zhu Youxiao waved his hand and said, "I asked you to accompany me today because I wanted you to take a look. After all, this is the first time the Imperial Academy is holding an exam, and I don't know how it will go. If it doesn't go well, I'm afraid there will be trouble again in the future."
Hearing his Majesty say this, Xu Guangqi's expression suddenly became serious.
The Royal Academy was their foundation. Although Han Yu had intervened and installed Feng Congwu as the chief priest, the Royal Academy was still under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Rites, and the Minister of Rites, Shen Tingyun, was one of their own.
In other words, Feng Congwu's arrival at the Imperial Academy was at most a nuisance to His Majesty. Therefore, the Imperial Academy remained theirs.
Now hearing what His Majesty said, Xu Guangqi couldn't help but feel nervous.
After all, the Royal Academy is their foundation, and they have even formulated a development strategy.
In their vision, they wanted to make the academies in the capital bigger and stronger, and then open royal academies throughout the thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty.
Every time it opened in a place, all other academies in the area were closed. If you wanted to study in an academy, you could only go to the Imperial Academy of the Ministry of Rites.
Under such circumstances, one can cultivate one's own personnel to a great extent and also cut off the traditional master-apprentice relationship.
The master-disciple relationship in official circles has now reached a very perverted level. The network of relationships established through this relationship has become the biggest aid to forming cliques and pursuing personal interests.
The Royal Academy is different. The teachers of the Royal Academy will stay in the academy forever.
Officials who came out of the Royal Academy would, to some extent, form factions similar to those of their peers, but their power would be much smaller.
What's more, there are more branches of the Royal Academy, so it is not so easy to divide them into factions.
Of course, there may also be regional clustering, but that kind of limitation is much stronger.
Putting aside other things, for Xu Guangqi, the fact that it was beneficial for him to train the younger generation was the important reason why he could not give up the Royal Academy.
Now that His Majesty had said so, Xu Guangqi had a responsibility. He had to shoulder the responsibility and let His Majesty know how much benefit the Royal Academy had brought and how much effort they had put into it.
Xu Guangqi then said, "Your Majesty, look at the scholars on the street. Each one is full of hope, all heading towards the Imperial Academy. This shows that the Imperial Academy is very popular. This proves that your Majesty's actions are extremely wise."
Zhu Youxiao glanced at Xu Guangqi and was unmoved by his flattering remarks.
Zhu Youxiao nodded gently and said, "I just remembered another thing. I seem to have underestimated the appeal of the Royal Academy to warriors. Look at the streets here, there are so many warriors."
Zhu Youxiao really didn't expect this. He had originally thought about setting up a military academy, but now was not the time.
Unexpectedly, a royal academy was established this time, and countless warriors flocked to it, which made Zhu Youxiao somewhat happy.
If there are more warriors among the graduates, it is not a bad thing for me, it may even be a good thing.
Xu Guangqi carefully observed his Majesty, not daring to miss even the slightest change in his expression. He wanted to see whether the Majesty was satisfied or dissatisfied with the fact that a military man was taking the imperial examination.
Seeing the smile on His Majesty's face, Xu Guangqi knew that His Majesty was very satisfied with this, so he felt relieved, and at the same time he had an idea in his mind.
Xu Guangqi smiled and said, "It's clear that the military also has their hearts set on the Ming Dynasty. As for why they came to the Imperial Academy to take the exam, I believe it has something to do with the relatively narrow path to advancement for military men."
Zhu Youxiao was stunned for a moment, then asked, "Then my dear, please tell me in detail."
Although Zhu Youxiao had some ideas in his mind, they were not clear, not distinct, and even a little vague.
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