Emperor Ming Dynasty

In the twenty years after Shaowu's reign, countless nobles were born in the huge imperial court.

Among them, although there are some camps such as Shaanxi, Huguang, officers and soldiers, bandits and soldiers, there are only three real categories.

One is Shao Wu Yuancong. To put it bluntly, he followed the emperor from Shaanxi to Huguang, and then became a group of people in the world. Regardless of the region, background, etc., they accounted for [-]% of the nobles.

Secondly, the former Ming dynasty has become noble, represented by the Duke of Dingguo and the Duke of Guizhou, including some [-] or so nobles of the former dynasty who died for their country and were posthumously granted titles.

Finally, there is the surrender group.

Famous names include the Prince of Ryukyu in Xiantu, the Zheng, Mo, and Ruan clans of Annan, the Bukhara royal family, and the newly arrived Brunei royal family.

What he did was nothing more than bringing peace to the feudal country.

The three major groups formed a huge camp of nobles and nobles. When the country was founded, they could even compete with the cabinet.

You must know that at that time, both Zhao Shu and Yan Chongxin were knighted nobles, and their bodies were different.

The Yuancong faction was powerful, and the Jiangchen faction was rich and powerful. However, the former dynasty faction was short of money and people, and there was no one to serve as a pillar in the court.

You know, the Duke of Guizhou is now a relative, and he is no longer qualified to sit in Yunnan. He can only be trapped in the capital. His previous wealth has been confiscated, and he can only live on the land rewarded by the emperor.

Other nobles even specially raised manors to breed horses in order to ride horses, but they could only keep a few horses in the stables.

The treatment is as good as heaven and earth.

That's all. For Dingguo Duke's mansion, since Wei Guogong was deposed, it still had to take care of these distant relatives, and the family became increasingly poor.

Xu Yanzong and Zhang Chengzhi actually only dared to order food and drinks for five yuan a table in an ordinary restaurant.

"It's best to be a princess."

Zhang Chengzhi solemnly said: "I heard that the dowry of Princess Guangping was 30 yuan. She is just an adopted daughter. If she were a biological princess, [-] to [-] yuan would not be enough to buy her."

"It will be considered developed by then."

Xu Yanzong shook his head: "What I brought is a dowry. If I use it, I have to ask for help for everything. What prestige does the family have?"

He was too embarrassed to say the rest.

Regardless of the 300-year-old majesty of Dingguo Palace, the emperor may not be able to appreciate it.

Those Shao Wuyuan servants are still there, so we have to find them for marriage.

Any marquis or earl, who doesn’t have thousands of hectares of land?

No matter how bitterly cold it is in Liaodong, one harvest per year is still an incredible figure.

Thinking of this, Xu Yanzong felt envious.

In the past, in order to open up Liaodong, the imperial court exchanged one for two, exchanged for three, and even exchanged one for five in Jilin, placing a large amount of land in the northeastern region.

As a result, the entire Gyeonggi region naturally became cheerful, and at the same time the nobles' fields expanded several times.

With the continuous development of Northeast China, the gap between Gyeonggi and Liaodong has been reduced to almost the same. Now it seems that it is already a big profit.

It's a pity that Dingguo's government could not benefit from such a good thing, because they didn't have much land at that time.

It was first expropriated by the Manchus and then the imperial court, and all of it was distributed to the people and soldiers, and the land deeds did not count.

"Mom, if I had known this, I might as well have gone to the feudal kingdom!"

"Confused!" Xu Yanzong angrily yelled: "One official in the Ming Dynasty is worth ten thousand taels of gold in the vassal state."

"However, since the land is not enough, we can run more business routes."

After saying that, the two of them thought carefully about it and went to visit King Xiang.

At this time, the Prince Xiang's Mansion was full of guests.

Without it, it is because the Kingdom of Hunan has been conquered. It will not take two or three years. When the prime minister sent by the imperial court will govern the Kingdom of Xiang, the King of Xiang will be able to declare a vassal state.

It is easy to control a country.

Who wouldn’t fawn over such a future leader of a country?

Among the group of guests, Xu Yanzong was the most prominent.

As King Xiang grew older, his appearance became quite powerful, with a rough voice, bright eyes, and a round face.

At first glance, he looks like a military commander.

Xu Yanzong thought it was very suitable.

After all, there will be a vassal in the future, and there will be many times when he will lead troops to fight. A powerful vassal king should be there.

Faced with the visit of these two distinguished nobles, King Xiang became more serious: "Brother Shi's visit is really brilliant!"

"Your Highness, you're welcome! You don't mind our nagging..."

Xu Yanzong and Zhang Chengping humbly agreed and waited aside.

Neither the lord of the vassal state nor the prince could withstand them.

After chatting for a while, King Xiang felt incredible: "Dingguo Duke's government is sending his children to Xiang Kingdom?"

"You know, although Brunei has many scenic spots and a lot of fields, it is still a desolate place with flowers, plants and trees everywhere. It is not a good place to live..."

"If you don't tell me, I will be beaten back..."

Xu Yanzong solemnly said: "The founding of Pingfan is the national policy of the imperial court. How can our Xu family dare to fall behind?"

"Besides, Your Highness has a great reputation. If I serve under your command, he will naturally not humiliate us, and he will even use the light to glorify our clan!"

Zhang Chengzhi also agreed to this matter by raising younger brothers on behalf of several of his concubines.

It is a good thing to spread branches and leaves for the family. The family can also save some expenses. By the way, it can be said to kill three birds with one stone by currying favor with the King of Xiang.

King Xiang expressed his understanding and approval for the following of the noble disciples, especially Dingguofu.

The other nobles are just fine, but the Duke of Dingguo is just a strong man on the outside, so it's not surprising.

For Xiang State, no matter how useless these noble sons are, they are still better than nothing.

After chatting for a while, the two of them said goodbye.

When King Xiang saw this, he went directly into the palace and talked about the matter:

"Father, I don't know how many of those nobles are suffering, trapped in the ways of concubines, and have to succumb. Rather than letting them live in intoxication in the capital, it is better to go to Xiang with me and make contributions!"

"Why, are you sure those dudes can do it?"

Zhu Yixi laughed.

As the saying goes, a dragon gives birth to nine sons, all of whom are different. There are many noble wives and concubines, so naturally there are many children born, and there are also many who are left to eat and die.

And as time goes by, the number of troops in the martial arts hall is getting smaller and smaller.

No way, that's human nature.

Everybody likes to lie down and enjoy the happiness instead of working hard and eating nothing but dust.

This is also the reason why the nobles cannot continue.

You must know that studying is hard, and after ten years of hard work, there are scholars all over the world, who are constantly gaining honors every year. While the imperial examinations continue to flourish, they also import a steady stream of talents to the imperial court.

It is ten times and a hundred times more noble.

Under such circumstances, no matter which dynasty it is, the prosperity of civilization and the decline of military power are inevitable.

However, the imperial examination is a way of balance and the key to the circulation of upper and lower classes, and it cannot be abolished at all.

As a result, the civil and military checks and balances designed by Zhu Yuanzhang at the beginning went bankrupt over time, and the Tumu Fortress change only accelerated its pace. "Father, the story of Meng's mother's three moves has a lot of influence. Those dandy children in the capital will naturally have a lot of fun playing horses and cockfights. Once they go to Nanyang, they will definitely be reborn."

"Just like the army, the frontier army is stronger than the Beijing camp. The reason is that it is tempered by wind and snow, and the environment changes people..."

King Xiang said in a deep voice.

In fact, he didn't continue to say what he said next, but you can guess it.

Those who can adapt will naturally continue, while those who cannot adapt will naturally be eliminated.

The probability of elimination is high, but the rewards are also many.

Hunan is short of talents and is not stingy about trial and error.

"Very good, I agree."

Zhu Yixi nodded: "It would be good to let them go to Nanyang to establish branches. By then, their results will surpass those of the Ming Dynasty!"

In fact, Zhu Yixi had another plan in mind.

In today's imperial court, there are a huge group of nobles, including no less than [-] princes and uncles. Although they will still contribute to the imperial court at this time, I think they will become blood-sucking insects attached to the body in the near future, sucking more. Out less.

In this case, it is better to reduce it as soon as possible.

Just like the Kong family.

In order to establish a vassal state, the Confucian system is naturally inevitable, so whether it is the Liao State, Zhao State, Wei State or the Yue State, there will be Kong family members to support them, and they will continuously branch into the vassal state and establish an orthodoxy.

Not only was it building a vassal state, but it was also reducing the power of the Kong family.

And this, honorable men can do it too!

Even if they are concubines, if they are forced to leave home and go south, they will definitely support dozens of guards or some supplies, which will naturally reduce their strength.

Thinking of this, Zhu Yixi thought of the Mongolian eldest son's Western Expedition, which has the same purpose but the same purpose.

When the time comes, a system will be formed, and people will continue to go abroad, and then feed back to the Ming Dynasty. For the honorary system, the advantages will outweigh the disadvantages!
……

At this time, as the weather gets warmer, the second dragon raises its head in February, and spring has officially arrived.

Scholars from all over the world gathered in Beijing to participate in the triennial examination.

Liu Jiao was carrying a slightly shabby bookcase with a rather reserved look on his face.

He looked up at the crowds of people, almost as far as the eye could see. The huge words "Chongwenmen" on the top of the city made him stunned.

He pinched his face, and the pain hit his face, making him feel that this was reality.

"What's wrong?" asked the companion on the side.

"This is Beijing?" Liu Jiao asked in surprise.

"Of course, we have been traveling by sea for several months, and naturally we are in Beijing!" The companion nodded, his face full of excitement.

Liu Jiao looked at the team leader's determined and excited expression and felt that it was true.

Their team, numbering in the hundreds, all came from the Qin State, the first vassal of the Ming Dynasty.

Liu Jiao was different from some of the Qin scholars in that he was born as a commoner.

In other words, most of the Jinshi who came to Beijing to take the examination were from aristocratic families or local wealthy families, while he was just a commoner.

Before King Qin arrived in Hanoi, he didn't even have his own surname.

Only the wealthy and aristocratic families who are qualified to study can have a surname, even a given name, and a nickname. This is their exclusive privilege.

As for the common people, they can only bury their heads in the fields and make themselves rich.

Confucius's idea of ​​education without discrimination was a monopoly in Annan. Scholars studied for generations, and thus became officials for generations, and their families were prosperous and wealthy for generations.

If nothing unexpected happens, this situation will continue for hundreds of more years. Annan's imperial examination, like North Korea, has become a competition for a small number of people.

But when the King of Qin came, he issued the "Order on Granting Surnames", which was arranged in the order of "Emperor Ming Qian Family Surnames": Zhu Feng Tianyun, rich in all directions, holy gods in civil and military affairs, Tao and Tang Dynasty...

In addition to the Zhu family, a large number of ordinary people drew lots and had their own surnames.

Of course, those local aristocratic families already have their own surnames, so there is no need to change them.

(The reason why Vietnam is full of Nguyen is actually because of the French registration. Vietnamese people naturally like the Nguyen family)
As a result, he, whose original name only had the character "jiao", got the surname Liu, and his family's surname was Liu from then on.

Because of the proximity to the water, the imperial court set up social schools in Jiaozhou Prefecture, Gyeonggi Province, and invited scholars to educate them, thus cultivating a large number of Mongolian children.

At the same time, the land granting order allowed his family to be allocated land for the first time, so that it was expected to provide for his education.

Liu Jiao, who was just a student who accompanied him to school, was able to enroll in school by chance, and then rose up from a scholar, to a scholar, and now to a Jinshi.

Now, we have crossed thousands of miles of sea territory and arrived at the center of the world - Beijing City.

According to common sense, it is enough to be a Jinshi in the Qin examination, but it is better than the Ming Dynasty examination.

Rumor has it in the official circles that he is a Jinshi among Jinshi. Once he becomes Chinese, he will immediately become the prime minister Miaozi, or, he must be the prime minister.

Who doesn’t want to continue working hard, compete with people all over the world, and make great strides in the officialdom?

"The road is so wide!"

"It's really spectacular to go left and right without interfering with each other. Why doesn't Hanoi implement it?"

"The women of the Ming Dynasty are quite fair, tsk tsk, as tender as tofu. I also want to marry a woman of the Ming Dynasty..."

The group of people were waiting to enter the city from the countryside. They couldn't restrain their excitement. They looked around randomly and stopped when they encountered novel designations.

Liu Jiao swallowed his saliva and stopped looking at the fair and tender woman. Instead, he focused his attention on the newsboy hawking along the street.

"The Mobei rebel bandits were wiped out. Suiyuan killed more than 7000 people and captured [-] people——"

Taking out a copper round, he resisted and bought it.

He is quite comfortable with Mandarin.

After all, when it comes to reading, it is twice as difficult as the students of the Ming Dynasty to read the text in a rhythmic way.

"There are tens of thousands of frontier troops and millions of detainees. The imperial court is really rich!"

After sighing, everyone's carriage stopped at the door of Prince Qin's Mansion.

The servants who responded had already gone out to greet him.

The Minister of Rites, who led them to Beijing to take the exam, said loudly:
"When you go to Beijing to take the exam, you are not only shouldering the mission of the family, but also carrying the expectations of the king and the vassal. You must go all out and get the ranking."

"In order to take care of you, Your Highness has specially asked people to vacate Prince Qin's Mansion so that you can stay there without being disturbed."

The huge and extravagant palace of Prince Qin almost shocked their jaws, and at the same time they felt the full affection of Prince Qin.

Everyone was moved and moved forward.

As time passed, the scholars of Qin learned about the competitive pressure of this examination.

When the Ming Dynasty added vassal states, 6000 scholars signed up. At the same time, the vassal states included Korea, Japan, Qin, and Qi, with a total of more than [-] scholars.

They will go all out to compete for ranking and bring glory to the vassal country.

With such a huge number, the pressure is evident.

Liu Jiao secretly swore that he would never let down this surname or the King of Qin.

(End of this chapter)