The strange movement in the river, although it was not a small matter, did not make the court unduly nervous. The news of Li Shouzhen's rebellion has not yet arrived. From top to bottom in Tokyo, everything is as usual, and it is more orderly than before, and the government is in order. As the saying goes, loose on the outside and tight on the inside.
Liu Chengyou was as stable as ever and managed politics as usual.
"Your Majesty, in all prefectures of Henan, except for Pu, Yun, Deng, Xiang, and Anshu prefectures, all local arms workshops have been abolished. The Ordnance Supervisor has recruited more than 400 skilled craftsmen from each state to serve as reserves, and the preparation materials are being delivered one after another. After entering the capital, there are now reserves in the treasury, which can be used by the workshops for two months."
After spending more than two months, the disposal of the weapons workshops in the Central Plains region has achieved some results, and the progress is already fast. But judging from the results, they are all states and towns where the central radiation control is strong enough, as well as people like Zheng, Ru, Hua, Yan, Xu, etc. who are more submissive to the court. Even so, they do not just bow their heads and obey orders. Coupled with Wang Zhang's always rough and tough execution methods, it is almost certain that there is a lot of local resentment over this matter.
"Pass an edict to reaffirm the court's original intention and attitude in doing this, and inform all states to change the weapons workshops to make civilian weapons. If any craftsmen are dismissed, the government should compensate them appropriately!" After thinking for a while, Liu Chengyou ordered.
"Yes!" Wang Zhang responded.
It can be seen from his expression that he is not particularly concerned about this, or he knows the possible results. Even after this regulation, there is no way that local privately produced weapons can really be banned. If you have the intention, you can continue to secretly make weapons. Only if the imperial court strictly enforces its authority and gradually implements strict measures will it be effective. Previously, Wang Zhang agreed with Liu Chengyou's idea of "strike" and saw the benefits. Now, with the help of craftsmen, he has harvested a large amount of iron, tin, leather and other production materials, and his goal has been achieved.
Doesn’t Liu Chengyou know this? Of course, it has been considered. Just like other policy ideas, it must be gradually implemented and the system set. Later, this will be the basis for settling accounts after the fall.
"For other towns, suspend this matter!" Liu Chengyou said again.
"Yes!" Wang Zhang responded again. It is also clear that the court will go all out to deal with Hezhong next, so it will not "tease" the place in such small details for the time being.
"In addition, there are many types of crossbows, armors, knives, guns and other weapons used in the army, with different standards. I would like to start rectification. Based on the practical weapons of the Forbidden Army, we should make special standards and abolish miscellaneous ordnance!" Wang Zhang reported again.
This is a way to integrate resources, save resources and improve efficiency, and is also beneficial to military training, logistics and other aspects. This proposal was deeply in Liu Chengyou's heart, and he agreed after only a slight change of thought.
After Wang Zhang withdrew, not long after, Zhao Shanjiao and Tao Gu were summoned and entered the palace hand in hand. Even in front of Liu Chengyou, one could detect the discord between the two, a feeling of secret rivalry. Especially for Tao Gu, according to his expectations and his relationship with Liu Chengyou, Zhizhiju's job was considered stable. However, Zhao turned his back and actually submitted a memorial and made a suggestion that he ignored. The "name-unknown school entrance exam".
"How are the preparations going to make the move?" Liu Chengyou asked directly, ignoring the differences between Tao and Zhao. He just wanted to get things done.
"Your Majesty, the preparations have been made in accordance with the regulations. The Gongyuan Academy has been reorganized and repaired. The examiners have been selected from the three halls and the Imperial Academy. The escort officers and soldiers are selected by the imperial army. The examination regulations and procedures have been announced for those who come to Beijing to take the exam... .." Zhao Shanggao said like a treasure trove of treasures, showing a capable performance.
After finishing his words, Tao Gu also followed up and said: "Your Majesty, the rules and regulations listed in the previous article mostly refer to the Tang Dynasty system. However, after consultation and implementation by ministers and others, it is still too complicated. Your Majesty reopened the system and wanted to urgently use talents, so this When it comes to the system of promotion, ministers and other officials must make arrangements and be concise in order to achieve practical results and select talents for the imperial court."
Obviously, Tao Gu was well aware of Liu Chengyou's preferences and knew that he was dissatisfied with many redundant things in the court, so his words and actions followed Liu Chengyou's temper intentionally or unintentionally. After hearing what he said, Liu Chengyou nodded with satisfaction: "Not bad."
"How many candidates are there who have registered at Shangshu Province?" Liu Chengyou asked, looking at Zhao Shangguan.
Speaking of this matter, Zhao Shanggao showed a hint of embarrassment on his face, lowered his voice, lowered his head and replied: "There are a total of 189 people taking the exams in various subjects. More than half of them are Jinshi subjects and Mingjing subjects. Of......"
"So few!" Liu Chengyou was really surprised, with a bit of puzzled anger.
To be fair, this event has been prepared for so long. Not to mention the large number of people gathered, it should be quite lively. The emperor personally issued an edict to launch the examination, but only a few people took the exam.
At this time, Tao Gu came out and said: "Your Majesty, according to the regulations, scholars who are taking the examination must take the interpretation test at the local level. After passing the examination, they will obtain the official interpretation and submit it to the minister, and then take the provincial examination. However, because of the previous Due to the war, the local examinations were abolished, and there were not many people who obtained the interpretation, so many talented people were not qualified to take the examination."
"I hope the country can restart the selection process and relax the conditions appropriately, but Zhao Zhiju refused." Tao Gu glanced sideways at Zhao Shangshang and began to give him eye drops in person.
Hearing this, Liu Chengyou's tone became stern: "I am eager for talents and open a system for selection. It is an enke and an extraordinary system. Why is the selection still limited to the stereotypes? In extraordinary times, there is an extraordinary system. How can we make the world talented? Restricted by a letter of explanation? Let go of the restrictions!"
After listening to what Liu Chengyou said, Zhao turned over and immediately replied: "Your Majesty, the selection of national talents should be done at all levels, and there should be rules for selection. How can we do whatever we want? If there are no restrictions, there may be people who are cheating. Mixed in.”
Hearing Zhao's answer, Liu Chengyou had not yet responded, but Tao Gu curled his lips and said with cupped hands: "Your Majesty, I have heard that there are many officials in the local area who act recklessly and accept bribes, and they can't figure it out without trying it themselves. These nonsense tricks are just a few. Seniors, but they also have interpretations..."
"Those are the minority after all." Zhao Shanggao retorted with a bad look on his face.
"Among the scholars who reported it, most of the interpretations they received were issued by the previous dynasty..." Tao Gu said gloomily: "What's more, His Majesty personally held the exam, and there were less than two hundred people who took the exam, so shabby. , have you ever thought about the reputation of Your Majesty and the imperial court? If the news spread, wouldn’t it make the world feel that the imperial court is unpopular with scholars?”
"The imperial court selects talented people who want to serve as officials and govern the people. If they are not talented and virtuous, they would rather not do it!" Zhao Shanggao's beard twitched.
Seeing that the two of them were about to quarrel in front of the emperor, Liu Chengyou raised his hand to stop the dispute, his face was serious, he thought about it for a while, raised his eyes and said: "The words of the two ministers are reasonable, and the rules must be established, but I ask for talents. Thirst, you should break the stereotype. In this way, this is the first time for the country to hold an exam. It is a special case. Scholars of the right age can take the exam regardless of their qualifications and no need to read the book. "
"In order to avoid cheating, we can organize Hanlin and Liubu Langguan to conduct a preliminary screening before taking the main examination. In addition, we must strictly control the school examinations and be strict in what we do!"
Although Liu Chengyou's tone was calm, there was no doubt about it. Tao Gu immediately responded: "Yes! Your Majesty is wise."
Zhao Shangguan was stunned for a moment and could only say helplessly: "I obey your order!"
"When is the test date scheduled?"
Zhao Shangjiao replied: "It was originally scheduled for the 20th of this month, but now..."
"Delay one month to August 14th, before the Mid-Autumn Festival! The deadline for filing at the Chancellery is August 9th!" Liu Chengyou ordered directly.
"yes!"
The two of them responded at the same time, knowing that after Liu Chengyou's change, the Minister of Rites and the two of them would be busy again.
However, compared to Zhao Shanggao who was a little depressed, Tao Gu seemed much more relaxed and even a little proud. At least this time, Zhao Shanggiao was defeated by the emperor.
Rolling his eyes, Tao Gu took the initiative and said: "Your Majesty, under this edict, the number of scholars in the world will definitely increase exponentially, and more invigilators will be needed. In addition, I see that among the scholars who have arrived in Tokyo, there are many poor people. It’s hard to have enough food and clothing. If we delay it for another month, I’m afraid it won’t be possible to live in Tokyo!”
"Tao Qing is very concerned!" Liu Chengyou nodded and said directly: "Those who have reported to the minister can go to Kaifeng Mansion to receive money and food with the official certificate issued. Please follow Hou Yi to distribute it as appropriate!"
"Your Majesty is kind!" Tao Gu immediately complimented.
With this move, Liu Chengyou could win the hearts of scholars. As Tao Gu who made suggestions, he could also improve his reputation. Coupled with his status as a fellow intellectual, he could almost imagine the benefits he could get from it.
