Established a millennium family since King Wu defeated Zhou

Chapter 884: The big event of the imperial examination (damn it, it’s really burned out, it needs some passion)
In the Tai Chi Hall, the light is shining, making it very bright.

Li Shimin sat in the middle, and the other prime ministers sat on both sides according to their order. Luo Xuanchen sat in the third position on the right hand, because he was the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, the third rank, the same level as Zhongshu Ling and the servant, but because He is not a third-ranking official, so he is ranked fifth in the political hall according to his official position.

The ranking of prime ministers is Shangshu Zuopushe, Shangshu Youpuse, Zhongshu Ling, and Shizhong. The lowest official position in the Zhengshi Hall is Wei Zheng.

Luo Xuanye holds the official position of Zuopushe, the Chancellor of the School, so although he is a military commander and does not participate in the affairs of the Political Affairs Hall, when the Political Affairs Hall collectively confronts the emperor, he is there, and he still sits in the first position.

Among the three brothers Luo Xuanchen, Luo Xuanye, and Luo Xuanling, if we simply talk about the power in their hands, as the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Luo Xuanchen is now the biggest, even better than Luo Xuanye.

This is the prime minister in peacetime!

As for Luo Xuanyun, who once followed Dou Jiande, he is still idle at home and is a white man. Luo Xuanye is waiting for an opportunity when the Tang Dynasty is engaged in foreign wars, and then recommends Li Shimin to serve as an official, and then he rises to the top with his military exploits.

Today, the emperor and his ministers are playing against each other. Li Shimin is a king who knows how to delegate power. Not only does he not hold power alone, he even thinks that it is wrong for a king to take all power and exhaust himself to death.

When he governs the country, the most common thing he does is to go to Lingtian Pavilion to discuss with Luo Su, and then convenes the prime ministers to discuss the country's major affairs. After making a decision, he goes ahead with it.

He asked Prime Minister Feng Deyi to recommend talents, but the result made Li Shimin very dissatisfied. Feng Deyi was very perfunctory about the matter, and some humorously said that there were no talents.

After Li Shimin dismissed Feng Deyi, he asked everyone in a deep voice: "Everyone talks about how they can recruit all the great talents in the world to the imperial court. Without talents, the Tang Dynasty cannot prosper.

Upon seeing this, Li Shimin pointed directly at Fang Xuanling and said: "You said, this is related to the important affairs of the country. I think what the Minister of Civil Affairs said is very reasonable. You have always been resourceful, and now you are opposed. There must be a reason. If you don't say it, you will Suspended and returned to his home to think about the past behind closed doors."

Li Shimin actually hired people based on recommendations. Basically, the important ministers around him recommended that someone was talented. He called him in and asked, and it turned out that he was talented, and then he gave him an official position.

in case.

Feng Deyi never expected that he would be dismissed from the prime minister because of such an incident. He was about to speak when he saw Li Shimin's majestic eyes looking over. He paused and returned to the table, "I would like to remember that your Majesty words.”

Fang Xuanling sighed and said: "What Luo Shangshu said is certainly quite reasonable.

In fact, during the inspection and promotion system, recommended officials are subject to assessment, and they are not used directly without recommendation.

No one in this world can be perfect.

As soon as Luo Xuanchen said it, everyone knew what it was.

After the state examination is over, he will either take the Taoist examination, or go directly to Chang'an to take the official examination.

You, Feng Deyi, have never protested once in court since you started the army in Jinyang. Isn't this your shortcoming?

The Tang Dynasty is now an era of aristocratic clans. It is not simply because the system does not allow civilians to serve as officials, but these clans are indeed at their peak. They have money to cultivate, and there are really batches of talents emerging.

This is a system that will subvert all current models!

After Luo Xuanchen finished speaking, there was silence in the hall.

Luo Xuanchen said loudly: "All previous systems for selecting talents were recruited or recommended by the imperial court from top to bottom. No one has ever allowed people from all over the world to volunteer to participate in the assessment!

Seeing that Li Shimin was really angry, Feng Deyi quickly explained: "Your Majesty, there are indeed no great talents in the world who can be perfect. Those people recommended by the prefectures and counties are really unsightly. Naturally, I cannot treat them." Present it to His Majesty."

Li Shimin immediately rebuked: "There are no talented people in the world? Then where did you get promoted from?"

"Luo Shangshu, isn't this imperial examination system inferior to the nine-rank system? At least the Zhongzheng officials of the ninth-rank system are appointed by the imperial court."

Because of his origin, Li Shimin not only involved people from Long, but also placed people from Shandong in high regard. Therefore, there are already many people from non-rich families in the court, such as Qin Qiong and Yuchi Gong.

"Yes, please give Luo Shangshu some clarification. The inspection and examination system is a bit backward nowadays."

Everyone's eyes fell on Fang Xuanling, but Fang Xuanling looked at Du Ruhui and others, hesitating and speechless.

I studied all systems since ancient times and finally discovered a fatal problem! "

Luo Xuanchen left his seat, came to the middle of the hall, pondered for a while, and said loudly: "Your Majesty, the former Han Dynasty and the former Sui Dynasty both had a system of electing scholars by subject. Regarding the policy, I think it can be modified as a talent selection system for our dynasty. "

In fact, what Luo Xuanchen said later is easy to understand, but the key is to allow civilians to sign up for the exam on their own, which directly skips the need for recommendation. This is not to say that recommendation is not good, but many talented people cannot be found because they can’t be found. Recommended channels, but can only be frustrated.

Fang Xuanling reacted and almost immediately bowed down and said: "Your Majesty, what Luo Shangshu said is reasonable, but it should not be implemented directly!"

Li Shimin's anger subsided slightly when he heard this, but he was still very angry and said: "As a prime minister, you don't even understand the principle of taking advantage of others.

The power of recommending officials under the imperial examination system is in the hands of officials under the monarch, while the power of selecting officials in the nine-grade system is in the hands of the court. This is an obvious improvement.

Since ancient times, official selection has been nothing more than those few paths, recommendation, recommendation, and recommendation. Whether it is the imperial examination system or the nine-grade system, it is a recommendation system. It is nothing more than the expansion of the scope of recommended candidates, from nobles to civilians.

Finally, selecting talents from these people to serve as officials, isn't this extremely superior to the previous selection method? "

If I don't use you because of your shortcomings, is that right?
It is precisely because there are no perfect people in this world that I let you all serve as prime ministers together. You can bring into play each other's strengths. Those who are good at making plans and those who are good at making decisions. Wei Zheng can always take advantage of the current situation, so I made him a critic and minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs. He is dignified and good at looking at people, so he is asked to evaluate officials.

The best among them are then allowed to take the exam in their state.

Luo Xuanchen's voice rose, and his emotions were filled with excitement. Everyone in the hall could clearly feel it. Li Shimin was aroused with great interest. He couldn't help but hold on to the armrest, leaned forward, and asked curiously Said: "Xuanchen, what's the problem? Say it quickly."

The atmosphere in Taiji Hall suddenly became solemn. This was the first prime minister to be dismissed in the Zhenguan Dynasty, which fully demonstrated the majesty of the emperor.

Xuanchen, you are in charge of the Ministry of Personnel, please tell me. "

Everyone came to their senses and regained their consciousness from the extreme shock. Li Shimin directly threw his forward body back into the soft cushion of the seat, "Xuanling, tell me why you object."

I mean what if!
Now there are more than a hundred states and thousands of counties in the world. If the court sets up an official in each county, it will be like offering wine.

Luo Xuanchen caught everyone's eyes and said, "His Majesty just said, take the essence and discard the dross. Since I became the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, I have been thinking about how to make the country win the world's scholars.

It seems that Youpushe needs to take a rest and think about how to do things in the future. "

This was a rather unremarkable system in the Sui Dynasty. Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui and others all knew that this system in the former Sui Dynasty was no different from the system in the Han Dynasty and since the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Senior officials were required to recommend candidates to take the exam. There were only a dozen Jinshis produced in total.

Why do you need me to explain such a simple truth?

Every one, three, or five years, we gather together the scholars and talented people in the county, and the Ministry of Officials prepares some classics and meaning exams, and we let them sign up on their own, so that there will not be any Omission.

But if this method is really adopted, the so-called assessment is nothing more than Confucianism, Taoism, arithmetic, laws, arithmetic, and policy discussions on current affairs. Those who can read books in the world and understand these are those from wealthy and noble families.

I am not considered a commoner by birth, and my father was a former Sui official. However, it is not easy for me to study. If I were asked to write those Confucian classics now, I would be far inferior to the princes in the political affairs hall.

Once this method is started, all the high-ranking nobles in Shandong and the nobles in the south of the Yangtze River have no other abilities, but they have generally read a few books. There are no great talents in the clan, and those who are literate and judge the meaning of the scriptures are corrupt Confucian scholars. A wise man is like a crucian carp crossing a river.

This kind of exam will definitely be controlled by these noble families. Those civilians who have strategies in mind but are subject to basic restrictions such as scriptures, arithmetic, and laws will really have no chance of getting ahead. "

After Fang Xuanling finished speaking, she lay down in the palace and waited quietly for Li Shimin's reaction.

Now everyone knew why Fang Xuanling didn't want to talk about it just now. In this palace, people like Luo Xuanye, Luo Xuanchen, Du Ruhui, Xiao Yu, Feng Deyi, and Changsun Wuji were all from noble families, and they were from the noble families under Li Shimin. There are really too many, and since Wei Zheng is of low origin, these words really offend people.

After Fang Xuanling finished speaking, Li Shimin was thoughtful, but hesitated to speak, and finally said: "This is the end of today's political affairs hall meeting. I am a little tired. Please step aside first."

Everyone knew that the emperor wanted to think about it, and was probably going to ask the imperial master for his opinion, so they all resigned.

After everyone dispersed, Fang Xuanling walked to Luo Xuanye and Luo Xuanchen and said with a wry smile: "Prince, Luo Shangshu, what happened today was really not my intention."

Luo Xuanchen didn't care, but said with a smile: "Xiang Fang is loyal to the country, what's wrong with that?
However, Fang Xiang was indeed wrong in this matter. The establishment of the system was forward-looking, and the common people in this world were not as miserable as Fang Xiang thought. The situation that Fang Xiang expected would not always happen. "

Fang Xuanling sighed and said, "I hope so. Your Majesty should have gone to see the Imperial Preceptor. I don't know what the Imperial Preceptor will say."

Luo Xuanchen smiled slightly when he heard this, and Fang Xuanling immediately reacted, a little disbelieving, dumbfounded, and was about to ask, but Luo Xuanchen turned around and walked away.

Luo Xuanye also left the palace.

……

After leaving Taiji Hall, Li Shimin rushed straight to Lingtian Pavilion to find Luo Su without even eating.

The incident between Luo Xuanchen and Fang Xuanling left him with no other thoughts at all. He had a hunch that this would be one of the major events that would have a profound impact on the Tang Dynasty.

After entering Lingtian Pavilion, Li Shimin saw Luo Su playing chess with him leisurely.

"Emperor."

"Mr. Wen."

Li Shimin sat down opposite Luo Su. Luo Su poured a cup of tea for him and pushed him over. Then while playing chess, he asked: "The emperor is here, but what do you want?"

Li Shimin didn't waste any nonsense and immediately told Luo Su what happened in Tai Chi Hall. After hearing this, Luo Su chuckled and asked, "What did you think about that day?"

Li Shimin frowned and said, "Although what Fang Xuanling said is more serious, I think what Luo Xuanchen said is more reasonable. My intuition tells me that this is a good thing."

Luo Su chuckled and said: "This is a good thing. What Fang Xuanling said was a bit serious and what Luo Xuanchen said was a bit idealistic, so there was a dispute.

More than a thousand years ago, bamboo slips were used to make books. At that time, it was definitely not possible to use this method to select officials. Now with paper, it is possible.

In particular, the price of paper is much lower than before. If the cost of books can be reduced and books become more abundant, then the imperial examination system will be greatly developed.

So you see, some systems are inherently flawed, but some systems are due to the lack of something. The key to the imperial examination system does not lie in the elites and civilians, but in the books.

Whether civilians can read books, even if civilians have less time to study than nobles and are not good at reading, the thousands-fold difference in quantity is enough to smooth out these gaps.

Of course, the problem mentioned by Fang Xuanling definitely exists. In the early days, there were probably more clans, but as time goes by, there will definitely be more civilians, which will eventually crush the clans in numbers.

Just like how the scholar class crushed the old nobles, just like how the scholar class crushed the old aristocrats, once the number increased, many things were doomed. Luo Su's explanation was clear and concise, which suddenly made Li Shimin realize it. He asked: "Then how can the cost of books be reduced?" "

Luo Su pressed a sunspot and said with a smile: "What a coincidence, there really is one.

Now that the cost of paper has gradually decreased, if you want to do it, the emperor, you can mobilize the power of the court and build some large workshops.

As for workers, women can be allowed to do these jobs that are time-consuming but relatively low in physical strength. There are half of the women in the world. These talents must be fully mobilized.

The cost of books is high, mainly because the cost of copying books is very high. Now there is a woodblock printing technology that can print books in large quantities. I asked Luo to improve several editions, and now the effect is much better than hand-copied books. The words are clear, saving you the effort of handwriting.

Commonly used books, such as classics, can be printed in hundreds or thousands, and the cost of books has been reduced to the extreme. "

God willing!

Li Shimin felt that this must be favored by King Su, because he obtained the imperial examination system and printing technology at the same time. If this is not favored by God, what is it?
After listening to Luo Su's words, Li Shimin stood up and walked to the door of Lingtian Pavilion. Looking at the sunshine outside, he felt warm, just like the hot blood bursting out from his agitated heart.

"National Master, it seems that I am going to accomplish another major event that will affect future generations."

Li Shimin stood in front of the door, the light shone on his face, and he whispered.

Luo Su said with emotion: "Yes, at this crossroads of hundreds of years of chaos, everything you do will affect future generations.

Whether it is good or bad, whether you will become a model for all future kings, or whether you will become a negative example like Emperor Yang Guang of Sui Dynasty, it all depends on you.

This is your fate.

This is your luck.

This is your stress, too.

In the land of Zhuxia, whenever there is such a critical moment, a holy king will always appear. In this era, it is you. "

Almost every time Luo Su and Li Shimin met, they would hear the word "sage king", and he used these two words to demand of himself all the time.

"When the emperor talks about the books, there will be no more objections in the political hall.

However, this imperial examination system is not that simple. If the emperor wants to hold another political meeting to discuss this matter, he might as well ask them some questions.

These are all questions that have come to my mind for now. "

After Li Shimin left, Luo Su sat quietly in front of the chessboard, staring at the black and white stones on it, "This is another big event, it will bring some heritage to the family.

However, this imperial examination system has some big problems, and it conflicts with my major policies.

The next big thing is the Fubing system. The Fubing system is not suitable for conquering the barbarians, but it is still very useful for attacking the Turks and guarding the Central Plains. "

……

Luo Xuanchen was called into Lingtian Pavilion by Luo Su.

He guessed that it was because of the imperial examination system, so he waited quietly for his ancestor to speak. Luo Su looked at Luo Xuanchen, "Famous prime ministers in history all have their own political achievements. You propose an improved imperial examination system. This will make your name in history.

With your talent, it is indeed not easy to get to this point. Tell me what you think. "

Luo Xuanchen knew that this policy would definitely be approved by Luo Su. He said excitedly: "Ancestor, when I was studying, I have been thinking about one thing, that is, from ancient times to the present, power It is moving downwards little by little, but most power transfers are carried out passively.

So I was thinking about whether the imperial court could take the lead in delegating power to the lowest level. So after reading countless books and examining the flaws of various systems, I finally found this system that could ensure that power was transferred down to the lowest level.

I not only have the current system, I also have an advanced version and the final version of the imperial examination system, but this first step is already a creation, so there is no need to implement the subsequent ones, which is inappropriate. "

Luo Su looked at him with admiration and a little pity. Luo Xuanchen was a little baffled by this look. He couldn't help but ask: "Ancestor, what's the matter with you looking at me like this? Not good enough to tell me?"

After hearing this, Luo Su touched his head and said with emotion: "Your policy is groundbreaking.

It stands to reason that the world may be gradually moving from aristocratic politics to civilian politics. This process may last a hundred or two hundred years, but the future is foreseeable.

But unfortunately, what I am about to do will cause your efforts to suffer a major blow. "

what?
Luo Xuanchen asked in surprise: "Ancestor, does what I did conflict with your plan?"

Luo Su touched his head and said warmly: "You didn't do anything wrong. You did something right. I was going against the trend of history, but this was what had to be done. You just happened to hit it.

We still don't know how far the Tang Dynasty can go. The Winter Turks will be a good test object to test the Tang Dynasty's army. "

Luo Xuanchen couldn't understand, and Luo Su never explained it clearly to him, because everything was just an idea. Luo Su would never talk nonsense when the time was not ripe. He always followed the trend, just like the advent of engraving and printing. , only when he could solve the book problem would he clearly tell Li Shimin that the imperial examination system was feasible.

……

It's still the Tai Chi Hall, it's still Li Shimin and all the prime ministers, but the atmosphere today is a little different. Everyone knows why the emperor called them here.

Sure enough, Li Shimin's first sentence was to set the tone of the meeting, "After my thinking, the suggestion of the Minister of Civil Affairs is very correct. With this imperial examination system covering the whole world, I can get talents from all over the world."

As for Zhongshu Ling's concerns, I believe that it is beneficial to the country only if we demote talented people in an eclectic way. As long as they have talent, I can use it regardless of whether they are aristocratic families or ordinary people.

Moreover, I do not just select officials from the imperial examinations. If I find that there are talents among the people, I will still promote them. If the ministers have talents who recommend to me, I will also use them.

Zhong Shuling's worries are somewhat unfounded. "

The Emperor has said this. Even if this matter is completely settled, in fact, it will not have a particularly great impact on them. As Li Shimin said, they do not use this method to enter the officialdom.

They all follow the path of Renzi. The so-called Renzi is like the son of Luo Xuanye. Because of Luo Xuanye, there are now regular officials of the fourth rank. This represents their close relationship with the royal family and their merit. size.

"Your Majesty Fu Wei is wise and mighty!"

Everyone said in unison.

After everyone had finished speaking, Li Shimin said again: "However, I have some problems regarding this matter, and I need all the ministers to discuss it together and come up with some solutions.

The first and most critical one is how to ensure the fairness of the exam. If officials can manipulate it to make their own people win, then the exam will become a joke.

I remember that there is no law in this area in the department. Dear ministers, please add it to the Zhenguan Law as soon as possible. I think this matter is related to the national plan. If there is a cheater, he should be punished with death. But how is the sentence specific? I still need to discuss it with the ministers. "

Li Shimin didn't say anything, but everyone really wouldn't have imagined that it would be terrible if the officials could have a hand in this. The official department is right under the emperor's nose, and maybe the emperor can still control it, but what about the prefectures and counties?

These people here are all smart people. Who doesn't know that most of the things in those states and counties are not known to the court at all.

We can only send out various inspection envoys in turn, but the state level may be able to control it a little, but it is too difficult for the county to control it.

Seeing that everyone is silent, it is not possible to come up with a complete charter in a short while. After all, this is a major event involving the world.

Li Shimin asked again: "There is also a very critical question, what to test, the imperial examination, how to divide the subjects, according to the names of the Sui Dynasty, Ming Jing and Jinshi, or according to the Han Dynasty's scholar and filial piety."

After hearing this, Luo Xuanye pondered for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, why don't you change your name.

People in this world always value creation. Some people only have a name, but they take all the credit for a great achievement.

If we use these names that have already existed, I'm afraid it won't reflect our Datang New Deal.

In the eyes of some unlearned people in later generations, they thought that the imperial examination system existed in ancient times and was not an original creation of the Tang Dynasty.

Especially Jinshi and Mingjing, these were both names used by the Sui Dynasty. If the Tang Dynasty reused them, some people might think that this was due to the Sui Dynasty.

I think it is unfair to Your Majesty. "

Li Shimin smiled casually when he heard this and said: "It doesn't matter, I am eight out of twenty this year, and I still have countless time to create achievements, so why not give some to them?"
Don't pay attention to the gossips of idle people, they can't be true or false. It's up to you to decide who is higher or lower between Baosui and the Tang Dynasty. As for those stupid people, who will care? "

Li Shimin's mentality is very good.

Of course, Luo Xuanchen had thought about this issue, and he immediately said: "Your Majesty, I think we should offer more subjects. Since the ultimate goal is to screen officials and introduce those talented people into the officialdom, then naturally we must take these tests The content of being an official.

Take the six departments of Shangshu Province as an example. The Ministry of Household Affairs needs arithmetic, the Ministry of Industry needs astronomy and geography, the Ministry of Punishment needs laws and regulations, and the Ministry of Rites needs classics. The Ministry of War does not talk about it, and the Ministry of Personnel does not talk about it. In addition to literary talent, policy theory, etc., the most difficult Jinshi subjects , you can take all the exams, or you can just take the classics like Ming Jing Ke, Ming Suan Ke, Ming Lv Ke, etc.

This is the statement I made before. Please take a look at it. "

Li Shimin took it and saw that there were a lot of words written on it. He only read it briefly and knew that Luo Xuanchen had put a lot of thought into it.

Li Shimin smiled slightly, "It seems that Aiqing is indeed well prepared. I think it's very good, so I will follow Aiqing's method.

This is a great gift that I and other ministers have prepared for the scholars of the world in the first year of Zhenguan. It will be promulgated before next month. "

"Follow the order!"

----

By the grace of King Su, the blessed one from the apocalypse, the emperor of all the peoples of Xia, and the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, the edict says:
A husband who selects talents and appoints them is the cardinal of the country; a man who selects scholars from the vast sea is the rock of the country.

I see that there are many talented people in the world, and there is an urgent need to open channels and divert water to nourish the temples. Therefore, I want to innovate, inspire the great dynasty, establish the code of the imperial examination, and promote culture and education in the great world.

On the day after the edict is issued, in the Tang Dynasty, those of noble and low status, and people of Xiayi, but who have talent, virtue, brilliance, and profound knowledge, can put their names in the county and write in the state to show their talents and not become pearls. In the dust, the virtuous people left behind in the wilderness, good men are galloping, literature and education educate the people, so that all the heroes gather together, each showing their great ability, jointly contributing to the great cause of the great dynasty, and permanently consolidating the country and the country.

The imperial edict was issued to move to prefectures and counties, and the Xian envoy heard about it. ——"Edict to open the imperial examination to all people in the world"

(End of this chapter)