In fact, Kong Zheng and others did not reject Su Yonglin's statements.
This is because since the Tang and Song Dynasties, the ancient people’s shady and cunning thoughts since the Han Dynasty and the Taoist scheming thoughts have been curbed and criticized to a certain extent.
The Song Dynasty played a great role in correcting this phenomenon.
This is true. The Song Dynasty played a greater role in this regard than the Tang Dynasty, as evidenced by the appearance of three of the four great inventions during this period.
The Song Dynasty government not only did not regard craftsmanship as simple "wonderful skills" and banned them like previous rulers, but on the contrary, it also established a reward system for outstanding scientific and technological inventions.
As a result, craftsmen were motivated to develop techniques and tools. The number of inventions and creations in the Song Dynasty was unprecedented, as was the sophistication of their thinking.
Moreover, people with outstanding talents in the field of science and technology are usually included in the list of "geniuses and talents" and can be directly selected into government agencies. For example, Feng Jisheng of the Song Dynasty improved the gunpowder method, and the court rewarded him with clothes and silk.
The Song government not only selected talents from the private sector, but also took the initiative to cultivate talents. For example, the Song government would set up vocational colleges in the central government, including medical schools, arithmetic schools, astronomy and calendar schools, martial arts schools, etc., all of which were affiliated with the Imperial College.
In addition, the people of the Song Dynasty also created a scholarship system for outstanding students. For example, medical students were given five to fifteen thousand dollars each according to their upper, middle, and lower grades.
This brought tangible benefits to the people who devoted themselves to the ranks of technological inventions, and naturally encouraged more and more people to join the ranks of scientific and technological inventions, which promoted the scientific and technological development of the Song Dynasty both subjectively and objectively.
Although this approach was relatively crude and not systematic, it was still of great help to the Song government in improving its national strength.
Su Yonglin once thought about why the Song Dynasty did this and why many of the policies of the Song Dynasty were so different from previous dynasties. After thinking about it, he felt that the main reason was because the Sixteen States of Yanyun were lost and could not be regained. superior.
After losing the Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures, Hebei was undefendable and could not be recaptured militarily. The resulting huge national defense pressure forced the Song government to find breakthrough points in the economic and technological fields.
Zhao Guangyi interrupted the possibility of the Song people rising on the traditional path. The successors could do nothing to the Liao State and could only relax various restrictions and find various ways to fill the gaps and try to make up for the huge national defense pressure of the Song Dynasty.
Relaxing commercial restrictions, relaxing technological restrictions, and trying to find something that can change the status quo. The large number of inventions and equipment of firearms in the Song Dynasty may be the response strategy of the Song government to make up for the lack of cavalry power.
However, this was not an active pursuit of development, but a passive self-salvation. The rulers of the Song Dynasty did not develop for the sake of development, but rather had the Manchu style of "learning from the foreigners to develop skills to control the foreigners".
Therefore, the Song government encouraged technological development but did not form a large-scale and systematic system. It did not help the Song Dynasty achieve industrial upgrading and technological take-off. It did not break through the technological shackles of the medieval era, so it did not really change their situation of poverty and weakness.
Song Dynasty gradually exhausted its vitality and energy amidst the intensifying internal strife, and eventually led to its destruction.
However, their approach objectively laid the foundation of public opinion and custom for Su Yonglin's promotion of engineering scholars.
This is because the people of the Song Dynasty had far less rigid views on strange skills and tricks than their predecessors, and their views on craftsmen and technology tended to be more rational. Both the official and the private sector held a tolerant and open attitude towards science and technology and did not restrict it.
Zhu Xi, a Neo-Confucian master with a poor reputation, advocated that natural science knowledge such as agricultural technology, medicine, and various industries also had "truth", and believed that natural science and the knowledge of becoming a saint, becoming a virtuous person, and governing a country were all correct ways. .
This is enough to prove that people in this era tend to have a positive view of science and technology.
This is extremely beneficial to Su Yonglin, and it is much better than the era of Ming and Qing Dynasties that comprehensively suppressed science and technology.
Therefore, when Su Yonglin put forward the request to attach importance to the development of science and technology, the Ministry of Rites did not object or raise any objections. They thought it was just a repeat of the same old tune, but they did not expect that Su Yonglin wanted to take the situation one step further.
Get a bachelor's degree in engineering.
Talents who master science and technology should be allowed to directly enter the imperial court through the imperial examination, serve the Ming Empire, contribute their talents and exquisite thinking, and promote the Ming Dynasty's technology to embark on the road of systematic industrialization and take-off.
This is crucial to Su Yonglin's overall plan.
Regarding Su Yonglin's idea, the officials of the Ministry of Rites had different attitudes.
Kong Zheng and Zhou Jiang found it difficult to accept that technical talents could pass the imperial examination and become true "scholars", thus gaining the same status as them.
Yelujin, the right minister, clearly expressed his support for the emperor's approach, believing that this was an "initiative" that was beneficial to the country and should be implemented.
Kong Zheng and Zhou Jiang were annoyed, but they did not dare to blatantly refute Yelujin in front of the emperor. They could only watch Yelujin talk about the importance of craftsmen to the country.
Su Yonglin was very happy, praised Yelujin, and immediately announced that Yelujin, the right minister of the Ministry of Rites, would be directly responsible for the work of the Scientific Examination Department of the Ministry of Rites, and would be responsible for escorting the holding of the new imperial examination.
"Your Majesty Yelujin, take your orders!"
Yelujin was overjoyed and immediately took over the authority entrusted to him by the emperor. However, Kong Zheng and Zhou Jiang were stunned for a while before they realized that the emperor had caught them off guard under their noses and used the sand mixed in with them. On.
Kong Zheng wanted to persuade him again, but Su Yonglin didn't give him a chance and continued to talk about his reform plan.
He believed that governing a country not only requires great principles such as the Five Classics and ways to behave in the world, but also requires the courage and discipline to exhaust all principles in the world.
Not only should we cultivate our moral character and improve our moral standards, but we should also understand the truth of the world.
What is the truth of the world?
Arithmetic, astronomy, geography, these are all ways to explore the truth in the world. They can not only help government affairs, but also military affairs. If we can recruit the best talents in the country, we will definitely make important contributions to national security. contribute.
Therefore, Su Yonglin hoped to collectively call this type of knowledge [exhausting the truth of the world] [Neo-Confucianism], and open [Science] to recruit scholars.
In addition, national laws are crucial to the development of the country. The imperial court is currently lacking a large number of legal talents, so it can also set up a separate [Law Department] to recruit scholars.
"In this way, the original Confucian classics, policy theory examination can be classified as [liberal arts], alongside engineering, science, and law, as the four subjects of the imperial examination in the Ming Dynasty. For now, the imperial examination should be based on the four subjects to obtain scholars. good."
Su Yonglin raised four fingers in front of the officials of the Ministry of Rites and told them all about his plan.
Looking at their surprised or surprised faces, he felt that his approach must be correct, so it was imperative to select talents by subject this time, and it would never change because of anything.
Kong Zheng looked at Su Yonglin's determined expression and suddenly realized that Su Yonglin might have been planning this day a long time ago.
This kind of detailed plan cannot be accomplished overnight. It must be the final conclusion reached after a long period of investigation and planning. Su Yonglin must be surrounded by a group of interest groups that support his approach.
After countless discussions, they came up with this result, brainstormed, criticized the imperial examination system of the Song Dynasty, and then carried out a wave of reorganization.
They assisted Su Yonglin and tried their best to promote this reform, because this reform was indeed of great benefit to them.
As for who these people are...
Isn't it obvious?
Except for the civil servants of the Shandong clan, almost everyone else will be the beneficiary of this policy, because as long as they do not just test the meaning of the Five Classics, the advantages of Shandong scholars will be dragged down indefinitely until they are no longer obvious. The point of advantage.
The Han people in Yanyun, the Khitans, Xiren and Bohai people in Yanyun, as well as the group of mud-legged people under Su Yonglin, they are all beneficiaries, and they can all obtain certain benefits from the new imperial examination rules. .
A world in which no one was injured except the Shandong generals was born.
