I'm sure of the prosperous age of Kangxi and Qianlong!

Chapter 468: Selling the Country in the Imperial Examination
Only three days after the results were released, the palace examination began immediately.

The time is very tight, because the release of the rankings has been delayed for too long, it has reached September directly, and winter will begin in January.

Including Wu Jingzi and Pu Zheng, there were a total of 270 three new officers. Before dawn, they hurriedly got up and went to the Forbidden City to wait for the imperial examination.

Under the guidance of officials from the Ministry of Rites, a group of scholars quickly lined up and entered the Forbidden City.

Looking at the majestic imperial city in front of him, Wu Jingzi in the crowd couldn't help but feel awe: "It's true that the founding of the country was like a prosperous era, and the emperor of the Ming Dynasty is high in the temple. Scholars of our generation should join the imperial court to assist and leave a name in history!"

This is not Wu Jingzi's idea alone, but the majority of Xinke Gongshi present have this idea. The reason is that the imperial court issued a decree to open official residences a few days ago, allowing them, Xinke Gongshi, to move in in advance and stay temporarily.

Being able to live in an official residence not only makes food and other items cheaper, but also eliminates the need for accommodation fees. This is good news for most candidates.

After all, Nanjing is now the capital of the Ming Dynasty, and its consumption level is beyond the reach of even the rich and wealthy in the countryside.

Zhu Yijiong opened the official residence in advance because the results were released too late this year.

This may make it difficult for many candidates who are not well-off to stay in Nanjing for a long time. Fortunately, they are merciful.

Of course, it’s just this one time, and everything will follow the rules next time.

First, he must have a formal official status, and second, he must be a Beijing official.Otherwise, they won't be able to live in official residences and will have to find a place to live on their own.

"The emperor ascends to the palace!"

After waiting for a long time, a guard in front of the palace finally shouted loudly.

The tributes from the north and the south were quickly divided into two distinct rows, and then lined up to go to the hall.

In this scientific examination, the overall number of tribute scholars from the North List is still less than that from the South List, but this is because the proportion of northern provinces is too low. Just this barely balanced admission ratio has already made many southern scholars, The officials felt it was unfair.

But no matter how unfair it was, it was useless. The emperor was determined to balance the northern and southern forces in the court. He could not make the imperial examination fair just to take care of the emotions of one or two southerners.

Otherwise, even the four northern provinces of Shaanxi, Gansu and Shanhe might not be able to win over the Jiangnan scholars, especially the Jiangxi scholars.

"Meet Your Majesty!"

270 The three tribute men bowed their hands in unison.

Zhu Yijiong followed the procedure and said: "No courtesy, please sit down!"

The 270 three tributes then took their seats according to their rankings and prepared for the palace examination.

Your Highness, the examiners from the Ministry of Etiquette, who had been prepared for a long time, saw that the time was almost up, and immediately stepped forward to hand out the palace examination papers one by one.

Wu Jingzi got the test paper, quickly went through the test questions, and then frowned: "On the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, I will prepare tributes from all over the world." Zhi said: "I respectfully accept the destiny of God. I am a Chinese barbarian, and you are already many years old!" Today's current situation is different from that of previous dynasties. To the west of Europe, there are barbarians who invade the country and use their naval forces to plunder the wealth in the four seas. To the east across the sea, there is also a vast continent, which is vast and sparsely populated. France, the Netherlands, Britain and France all occupy huge territories. To the north there is the cold Rakshasa country, which is ambitious and has its troops reaching the North Sea. This is a major change that has not been seen in a thousand years. Ming China is in this situation , how should we deal with ourselves?" Now, it is no longer a few years ago. First, Fan Shouyi's "Jianjianlu", and then edited by Fan Shouyi and a group of old people from the Qing Dynasty restored a new version of "Kun Yu Ten Thousand Kingdoms Complete Map" to complete the work. The territorial power of some European countries has changed.

Among those who came to Beijing to take the imperial examination, there may be some who have never read it, but those who can pass the imperial examination must have read it thoroughly, otherwise they will not even be able to pass the examination.

Wu Jingzi frowned, not because he couldn't understand what it said, but because he was thinking about the emperor's intention in asking this question.

The emperor was asking Xinke Gongshi how China should develop in the world in the future.

This is normal. Policies have always followed current events. Lao Zhu asked how to defeat the Northern Yuan Dynasty. Then the number one scholar proposed the Tuntian Guards Station, which was gradually encroached on. Although it was bankrupt in the end, the subsequent emperors basically encountered rebellions. , just ask why it’s ordinary, and if you’re short of money, ask how to make money.

Only the palace examination in the late Northern Song Dynasty was really powerful. Song Huizong actually asked the candidates how to practice Taoism?

Wu Jingzi was still thinking. After Pu Zheng read the test questions, he started to write excitedly without thinking: "I am right: I am ignorant in intelligence and have little knowledge, and I am not qualified to ask a big question. However, I have looked through the ancient and modern history books and seen such things as Korea, Guangnan has been a land of China since ancient times, so how can it be an independent country now? And since the founding of North Korea, it has been repeatedly bullied by other countries. The country is weak, the people are poor, and life is difficult. Why is this? Only North Korea is a hypocrite, treacherous..."

"I also heard that the Xuanwei Department in the old port of Nanyang and the official factory in Sumatra... are all part of our Ming Dynasty, but now they are stolen by foreigners. This is tolerable, but what is intolerable..."

"The Jurchens who established the state in Liaodong abandoned the Ming Dynasty and established their own rule. They should be punished and their land should be returned..."

Pu Zheng was not only betraying his country in the previous memorial, he was also planning to betray his country in order to seek glory in the imperial examination. Not only was he selling his own country, he was also selling the country of his good friend Ruan Fuyue.

This is not over yet. After three years of further study, Pu Zheng's writing style is obviously more sophisticated and more radical than before.

Not only does it quote scriptures throughout the article, but it also intersperses with praise and support for the current affairs and people's livelihood of the Ming Dynasty and the New Dynasty. It also highlights the topic in the last paragraph, clearly stating that both Korea and Annan should belong to China, as evidenced by history.

The old port of Xuanwei in Southeast Asia, Batavia and Malacca, which is now controlled by the Dutch, the Philippines south of Luzon, Mongolia in the north, the entire Liaodong area, etc., all belong to China. They should send troops to take them back and not leave them alone. outer.

Judging from the surface alone, Pu Zheng has indeed worked hard to study the situation in China and the world. Even today, there are still many stubborn Ming Dynasty scholars. Even Pu Zheng’s Xuanwei Department in Old Port is nowhere to be found. Don't know, never even heard of it.

Moreover, although Pu Zheng wrote very radically, he was surprisingly consistent with Zhu Yijiong's thoughts.

Now, his ranking should be pretty good. Even if he doesn't get into the top three, he won't be in the bottom six.

While Pu Zheng was writing quickly, Wu Jingzi's reaction was a few beats slow. However, after recalling the policies of overseas vassals in previous monthly reports, he finally came to his senses: "I am correct: in the whole world, there is nothing but royal territory. I have heard that the Constitution says that everything the sun and moon shine upon is the territory of our Ming Dynasty..."

While Wu Jingzi was writing, many tributes also clarified their thoughts and began to write hard.Many others are still meditating, as if wondering how to write.

After all, the emperor's question was too big, and even seriously exceeded the outline. It had to be answered cleverly with the least amount of words, and it had to be in line with the emperor's answer.

However, among these scholars who can pass the imperial examination, at least most of them are familiar with new learning, as well as court newspapers, monthly newspapers, and overseas vassal affairs. They do not have a complete understanding of overseas countries and the current affairs of the court, at least they do not strangeness.

As long as you think about it carefully, you can immediately guess what the emperor wants to ask... or rather, what the emperor wants to hear.

(End of this chapter)