"Old man, how is the harvest in the fields this year?"
In Renhe County, Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province in the early Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang and his guards passed by a field and saw an old farmer working in the field. He couldn't help squatting down and talking to him with a smile.
He said he came back to rest, but as a character who has to worry about everything, how could he really not care about anything.
Seeing that there was nothing major going on in the court and that there was still a prince supervising the country, he took some officials directly out of Nanjing.
They walked all the way and looked at each other. They had been walking for three months and made a big circle. Now they were on their way back to Nanjing.
"The imperial court is kind and God has opened my eyes. The weather has been smooth and the harvest has been good every year for the past two years. It is only in the past few years that I have really started to have enough food in my life!" The old man's face was full of grooves, and he talked about a good harvest. At this time, the wrinkles on his face rippled, obviously he was really happy.
Zhu Yuanzhang can naturally feel this.
So he was also very happy.
Sitting directly on the field ridge, he took a gourd of wine from the guard behind him and said with a smile: "Old man, let's take a break and come over to taste the rice wine we brewed. I'll also ask you some of the recent policies of the imperial court."
The old man hesitated for a moment. Seeing that there were familiar people in the fields around him, he smiled cheerfully and walked over to Zhu Yuanzhang.
The two sat side by side on the ridge of the field.
The old man took a sip of rice wine, with a look of enjoyment on his face, and then said: "We don't understand the court's policies or anything, but I just feel that these years are not as difficult as the previous years."
"Without the military disaster, there are fewer bandits and bullies."
"Last year our eldest son married a daughter-in-law from the Li family in the next village. This year we have a fat grandson."
"We feel like this life is getting more and more exciting!"
"How many sons does the old man have?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked with a smile.
"There are two of us. The eldest son is doing farm work with us at home, and the second son is restless. He heard that there was a soap workshop opened in the county, so he ran to work."
"Two hundred and sixty treasure bills a month, including food and accommodation!" the old man said proudly.
"This is good!"
Zhu Yuanzhang also praised: "Whether farming or working, we are all producers. Scholars, farmers, industry and commerce, farmers and workers are all professions that can truly contribute to the country and provide assistance to the development of the country."
"Without people like you, how could our country develop well?"
"Why does this man sound so loud when he speaks? Is he an official?" The old man looked suspicious.
To be honest, although he was in awe of being an official, he was not afraid of it, because the Hongwu Emperor was now in power, even though the Ming Dynasty had only just passed ten years.
But the era of unscrupulous officials and their misdeeds is over.
He had personally witnessed several officials being arrested and beheaded for taking bribes and being harsh on the people.
As a common man who farmed the land honestly, he would naturally not be afraid of a passing official.
If this official dares to bully him, he will go to the Yushi Yamen to file a complaint.
Those censors went to the countryside every three days and advertised everywhere that they were personally appointed by Emperor Hongwu to deal with official corruption, bribery and lawlessness.
They were also encouraged to file a lawsuit against the authorities.
I heard that a citizen from a neighboring county went to the Yushi Yamen to sue the county magistrate.
When Zhu Yuanzhang saw the old man's eyes flickering, he knew that this honest-looking old man might have already guessed his identity.
Of course he didn't care either.
He smiled and continued to ask: "I heard that the imperial court recently set up a social school where children can study for free. Do many people in our village go to the social school to study?"
The old man suddenly laughed when he heard this: "In the past two years, everyone has become richer, and they don't lack the strength of their children. They all hope that their children will study and practice well, so there are indeed many people going to social schools to study."
"After all, in the future, let's not talk about taking the exam for the number one scholar. Even if you can take the exam for a scholar, you will be a proud ancestor!"
"When my grandson grows up, he will be sent to a social school to study."
"I, Lao Zhang, must cultivate a seed of reading in my lifetime, otherwise I will die with my eyes closed."
The expression on the old man's face was extremely serious when he said the last sentence.
"I hope you can get what you want, brother!"
"In the future, the eldest grandson can become a general or prime minister!" Zhu Yuanzhang understood the old man's thoughts very well. After all, who doesn't want his descendants to be more capable than himself!
To lower the threshold for studying in the Ming Dynasty, so that poor people in the world could afford to read and start school, this was the fundamental purpose of Zhu Yuanzhang's establishment of the social studies system.
Sociology was proposed by Zhu Yuanzhang last year and was quickly spread throughout the Ming Dynasty.
Institutionally, it is a government-run private school. The government is responsible for recruiting teachers and paying teachers. The responsibility of teachers is to recruit local children of appropriate age to enter social schools to read and study for free.
Even in order for these teachers to teach students seriously, Zhu Yuanzhang also asked the Ministry of Rites to formulate strict rules and regulations, such as setting targets based on the actual local conditions, how many children must be taught from social studies within three years, if the target is not reached, then I can only wait to be expelled from the ranks of national civil servants!
After more than a year of development, today's sociology has been able to cover nearly 80% of villages and small towns in the country. It will become the most basic enlightenment education institution in the Ming Dynasty and will continue to provide county schools, government schools, and Taoism. Talent.
Eventually, these talents will be brought to the imperial court through the imperial examination and used by the imperial court.
Of course, this alone is not enough!
These are not very different from the original historical sociological system.
Zhu Yuanzhang basically copied it without any changes.
But nowadays, Zhu Yuanzhang has a broader vision. Educational institutions are related to the foundation of the country. Naturally, he is not satisfied with this.
But now that the country's power is limited, we can only introduce the social studies system first.
In the future, when the country becomes stronger, he will continue to deepen the reform of educational institutions.
For example, Zhu Yuanzhang will definitely set up a martial arts subject in social studies in the future.
The future of the Ming Dynasty must be both civil and military.
But now is far from the time. There is a saying that the poor are poor in culture and rich in martial arts. If you want to practice martial arts, you need to eat a lot of meat, and you also need various medicinal baths to replenish the body's deficiencies. This is not the case for poor people who have just met their food and clothing problems. The people can afford it.
"Hold on!"
"The Ming Dynasty is getting stronger day by day, and there will always come a day!" He thought to himself.
"Old man, let me ask you again, have you done anything bad as an official here..." Zhu Yuanzhang asked again.
The two of them sat there chatting, very speculatively, for nearly half an hour before they knew it.
Finally, Zhu Yuanzhang felt that time was almost up, got up and left.
"Oh, your wine!" The old man shouted from behind.
"Give it to you, brother!"
Zhu Yuanzhang laughed and waved his hand, and with his royal guards and fast horses, he quickly disappeared at the end of the road.
