By September, autumn was deepening and Guanyun City was becoming more and more lively.
Emperor Dezong reformed the imperial examination this year, abolishing the centuries-old recommendation system and adopting the imperial examination system to recruit talents.
This is naturally a great thing for the students of the Wu Dynasty.
Also because this year is the first year of the official implementation of the imperial examination, the Hanlin Academy requested the emperor's decree that all students this year can participate in the joint examination without having to be a scholar or a juren - the previous three-level imperial examination system was in name only, and looking at the entire Wu Dynasty, there were few serious scholars or juren. Wen Canghai thought that this would definitely not work.
When Fu Xiaoguan heard this, he thought it made sense, so this unique imperial examination was decided. Fu Xiaoguan also postponed the examination originally scheduled for September 8th to October 8th.
It's too hasty.
We need to give more time to the students and the Hanlin Academy.
"This is what I think..." Fu Xiaoguan rubbed his hands in embarrassment. The Hanlin Academy received a list of applicants from all over the country, as many as 180,000 people!
This made Fu Xiaoguan drop his jaw in shock. It reminded him of the scene in his previous life when the college entrance examination was resumed in the first year. The scene was so similar.
But at that time, examination halls were set up all over the country, and now... we are careless. With so many people pouring into Guanyun City, where can we find a place big enough to accommodate 180,000 candidates?
"How about holding the exam outdoors in Liluoyuan? Ask the Ministry of Works to quickly get some wooden planks so everyone can sit on the floor? We can make the exam shorter so we can finish it in one day, how about that?"
Not to mention Wen Canghai, even Zhuo Yixing, Nangong Yiyu and Meng Changping didn't know how to deal with this mess.
In the past, scientific expeditions were just a formality, with no more than a thousand participants.
This reform has now resulted in 180,000 candidates being selected!
Zhuo and his group of three looked at each other, what else could they do?
Wen Changhai shook his head. "It's late autumn now, and the cold dew is very heavy. The fallen leaves are all grass. How can I concentrate on the exam with so much dew? It's better to..."
His eyes lit up. "Why not set up the examination room above Hanling Temple? The same place where the literary gathering took place back then?"
Yes, the square there is extremely wide and flat. "Then it's settled. We'll hold it at Hanling Temple. But the exam will start later, and it'll take quite some time to walk from Guanyun City to Hanling Temple. Also, we need to solve the lunch problem for the candidates. I remember there are many rooms up there. We can use them as kitchens for now. Food for 180,000 people... you can ask the imperial kitchen. I don't know how to prepare it."
Well, the first time is always a little sloppy.
"With 180,000 candidates, the elimination rate is definitely sky-high. So, tomorrow we'll post a notice. All unsuccessful candidates who have a skill or are interested in scientific research can apply for a position at the Academy of Sciences."
Today's Academy of Sciences has expanded more than ten times compared to its former location in Xishan, but Fu Xiaoguan believes that there is still a serious shortage of talent.
This is related to education. There was no such education in the past. The name of the Academy of Sciences sounds high-sounding, but it is actually composed of a group of craftsmen.
They may be very confident in their craft and may also be innovative, but they have low cultural level and have no systematic learning at all.
They mostly improved on the original basis, such as the second-generation breech-loading flintlock rifle that is now equipped to the troops.
The accumulation of scientific theoretical knowledge is a long process, and even if Fu Xiaoguan has great abilities, he is powerless to do anything about it.
The matter of the Autumn Examination was thus settled. Wen Changhai left the Imperial Study to proceed with the implementation of the matter. Zhuo Yixing then asked a question that he was quite worried about:
"Your Majesty, for the past two months, the Sitong Bank has been printing banknotes through four printing factories day and night without stopping. If this continues...will it cause prices in the Wu Dynasty to soar?"
"Don't worry, the Wu Dynasty's economy is recovering, and the market demand for currency is increasing. The existing currency stock cannot keep up with economic growth. Prices will show signs of a slow rise for a short period of time, but there is no need to worry. Moderate inflation is beneficial to the current Wu Dynasty's economy. Besides... I'm not printing money indiscriminately."
The silver notes of all countries are based on gold. The amount of silver notes a country can print is determined by how much gold it reserves. This is the basic consensus reached by all countries today, because there have been many painful lessons in history where the indiscriminate printing of silver notes eventually led to currency collapse and the destruction of the country.
"Also, Yu Wendao once sent me a letter saying that the Yu Dynasty had a lot of commodities like minerals, timber, tung oil, and cotton. So I asked the Commercial Bureau in the border town to buy all of these commodities. This requires a large amount of silver notes."
"I'm currently discussing a bilateral trade agreement with Fan Tianning, the thirteenth prince of the Fan Kingdom. We've basically reached a consensus, but Fan Kingdom wants to buy red cannons and flintlock rifles, which I'm still considering."
"If this agreement is signed, we will export large quantities of white salt, steel ingots, firearms, and so on to the Fan Kingdom. In return, the Fan Kingdom will export jade, minerals, and timber to our dynasty."
Fu Xiaoguan stood up and paced back and forth in the imperial study. "My intention is to sell the red cannon and flintlock rifles to the Fan Kingdom. Of course, I'm selling the first generation. Our Academy is currently researching the third generation of firearms. I've already informed Qin Chengye of the direction of our research."
"In the future, we will use a lot of ore and wood. Resources will only become more expensive. If we can buy them, we will have to reduce domestic mining accordingly."
"Steelmaking and ironmaking are extremely polluting to the environment, so the road leading to the Six Northern States must be repaired as soon as possible. The Six Northern States will be planned to be the Wu Dynasty's heavy industrial base. Even this scientific research institute will have to be relocated to the Six Northern States in the future."
"Has the Ministry of Chancellery sent anyone to explore the southern coast for ports?"
Meng Changping shook his head. "The Ministry of Works hasn't received any news yet. The kind of seaport Your Majesty needs may not be easy to find."
"That's fine. Tell them to keep searching. They must find at least two such harbors along our coastline."
After a pause, Fu Xiaoguan continued, "Tell the Jiangcheng Shipyard that I will need at least five Dreadnought-class battleships by August next year."
"Your Majesty, are you really going to go to sea?"
"It's not really a trip to the sea, but I have to go and take down Ueno."
"Where's Ueno?"
Fu Xiaoguan raised his lip. "It's right at the mouth of the Yangtze River. It's a good natural harbor. After we take it, we'll build docks and shipyards there. So the Jiangcheng Shipyard has to build commercial cargo ships as soon as possible to transport supplies to Ueno."
Is this going to extend its tentacles into the sea?
Zhuo Yihang frowned slightly and whispered, "The three major clans in China, the Chen, Zhou, and Lu, are migrating to the Yu Dynasty. Is Your Majesty really going to let them leave?"
He added, "Even if Your Majesty is merciful and lets them go, shouldn't you also leave behind the family fortune they've accumulated over hundreds of years?"
Fu Xiaoguan smiled meaningfully, "Let it rain if it wants to and let my mother marry if she wants to. Let them do as they please."
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