New Shun 1730

If you take off your pants and fart, you usually write down what your great-grandfather, grandfather, and father did. Liu Yu almost didn't recognize the four characters "Xiyi Guogong".

After filling in his name, place of origin, achievements, and origin, he stretched out his hand and pressed his joints. As soon as the rattling sound stopped, he picked up his pen and scratched fiercely on the blank test paper.

This is not a live composition.

This is memorization and dictation.

…………

In the evening of the second day, in Tianyou Hall, the copied papers had already been delivered.

As a force that the emperor must master, the emperor always takes time to read all the papers in person during the autumn exam every three years.

The honorary guards are hereditary nobles, that is, they are familiar with some things about Jingying and Suwei, and when it is time to attack the nobles, they can attack the nobles. The previous generations were still usable, but by Liu Yu's generation they were basically useless.

The top three ranked in the Wude Palace examination are more similar to the Langguan of the Han Dynasty. As a talent reserve around the emperor, they are called Dragon Guards.

It is not the same as the Xunwei who is almost hereditary as the eldest son, nor is it the same as the Jinshi who passed the imperial examination.

The top three are awarded to the Dragon Guards. The top three are ranked third, the second and third are selected from the third, and a few more are selected from the subsequent rankings.

In fact, they were Lang Guan during the Han Dynasty, but the number was much rarer, and the selection method was not hereditary or recommendation but examination.

In the Han Dynasty, people such as Huo Qubing and Zhang Qian also started as Lang Guan. After passing the imperial examination, they were classified as "lucky ministers", a despised level within the bureaucracy.

The difference is that in the Han Dynasty, Langguan was either appointed by the nobles or recommended, and there were a large number of them.

Whether Lang Guan can be used during the Han Dynasty depends more on luck. If you are unlucky, you may be a lieutenant all your life.

For example, Yan Si, a Lang Guan during the Han Dynasty, was still a Lang Guan when he was over seventy. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty accidentally discovered him one day and asked him. Yan Si said, I am good at martial arts, but during the reign of Emperor Wen, I liked educated people; I was ugly, but during the reign of Emperor Jing, I liked handsome people; when it was finally your majesty's turn to ascend the throne, your majesty also liked young people like the champion. People, and I am old...

These dragon guards in Dashun don't have to worry about this. They have selected three, five, six or seven in three years, and they can basically be used.

When it comes to government affairs, don’t be clear about one thing, but be right and wrong.

Langguan, hereditary princes, and civil servants from Wude Palace formed a stable triangle.

The Langguan of the Butoku Palace was an extension of the imperial power. They were somewhat similar to the eunuchs of the previous dynasties, but they were not given permanent bonds.

I usually get along with the emperor day and night. If the emperor trusts me and I think I have talents, I can be released, airborne and mixed with sand, or directly carry out the emperor's will.

Most of those who can get into the upper house are the descendants of soldiers from the frontier army, the children of decorated veteran generals, and the children of the old fifth battalion soldiers from Juntianfu.

Dashun cannot afford to carry out nationwide education reform.

And it’s easy to stir up a hornet’s nest.

However, the educational reform within the basic plan had been settled as early as the time of Emperor Taizong.

Opening of camp schools, compulsory enrollment, layer-by-layer examinations, and complex three-level examinations are different from those noble children who go to the Wude Palace to study in order not to know shit but are destined to be officials. Most of the people who pass the examination can be regarded as outstanding people. .

The imperial palace of the previous dynasty, the enclosure of the Tartars, the melee massacres, the plowing of the courts in Liaodong, and the purges of the old nobles of the previous dynasty provided Dashun with enough land to ensure the placement of these basic Panfu soldiers.

The content of the examination and the imperial examination were completely misaligned, and the imperial power deliberately instigated it, ensuring the gap between them.

Part of the land after the former emperor's estate and the land encircled by the Tartars was used to implement land equalization and a twenty-year land transfer system to ensure that internal annexation was strictly prohibited. The annual investment of one million taels ensured the number of scholars in the basic market.

These people have the opportunity to become Langguan and hold power, and the entire class will not be reduced to military serfs of the previous dynasty.

Working with the nobles to suppress the civil servants in the imperial examination, at least it ensured that military generals would not kowtow to civil servants like the third grandson.

The reverse checks and balances of civil servants and nobles through the imperial examinations ensured that these good men and noble officials would not become Mamluks, Yenicherries or generals of the Han Dynasty.

Only three or five are selected every three years to serve as the Langguanlong Imperial Guard, and the civil servants can accept it, which is what Li Gan and Liu Yu said are "justified".

He is the emperor, not the chief. Once the imperial examination is opened, it is impossible to let anyone pass. All the procedures must be completed.

It can be regarded as an institutional guarantee, but in fact it is of no use: an emperor like Chongzhen who came to power halfway will kill ministers like he kills dogs. If the emperor really uses people at will, he actually has no power to stop it. It is just a kind of self-deception that both parties think is useful.

This is the stable pattern of government affairs left by Emperor Taizong, and it is also a place where civil servants in the imperial examination cannot reach out anyway. Therefore, the emperor must pay attention to the policy selection after the major examination.

The overall Confucian cultural level of Butoku Palace is very sparse.

Most of the writing is mediocre, and even the slightest words about justice, political integrity, and the like can be ridiculed as nonsense by officials and even scholars.

In order to prevent the emperor from approving the handwriting when he saw it, the papers were always copied by someone from the writing room and then delivered.

This is not to prevent cheating. This kind of selection itself is cheating by the imperial power. It is just to prevent the emperor from choosing "Lang Guan" instead of choosing "Ci Chen" because of the good handwriting.

In addition, being selected as the Dragon Ban is directly to the third level, from the third level, which is too high. The veterans in the Tianyou Palace must be selected together for the decision-making and selection. The most important thing is knowledge and talent.

As soon as the paper was delivered, almost everyone could guess which article was Liu Yu's with just a few glances.

It was like a crow among pigeons, a lamb among black pigs, and the whole style was completely different from the writing of others.

The whole Tianyou Hall was silent, including Li Gan, who was carefully reading the historical policy essay written by Liu Yu on the "Western Regions Issue".

It was nearly 6,000 words, and it was several feet long.

It was not to say that no one had written such a long essay before. The bottom line of the policy essay was 200 words. If it was more than 200 words, no one would care if you wrote a Jin Ping Mei before the dark.

The reason why it was obvious that this was Liu Yu's was because there were several appendices and charts at the end. The people present could not think of anyone else who could come up with such a weird thing except Liu Yu.

There was basically no controversy about the content of the historical essay in the front.

First, the Mongolian issue was discussed. Because of the Mongolian Code, the Yellow Sect became the ethnic religion of Mongolia, so the snow mountain must be controlled, otherwise Mongolia would not be stable.

If the snow mountain is to be controlled, the Hexi Corridor, Qinghai, and the Western Regions must be in hand. Only the Western Regions can threaten the religious holy land of the snow mountain.

Then it was demonstrated that the rise of the Xiongnu, Mongolia, and the Later Jin could not rely on nomadic water and grass alone. It was necessary to occupy farmland to have the ability to make enough armor, muskets, and cannons, so that it could really threaten the rule of the Central Plains.

The Junggar tribe occupied the Western Regions, where there were many cities and many handicrafts.

The Western Regions have been a place where the East and the West meet since ancient times. The Junggar tribe can get muskets and cannons from Persia, Mughal, Rakshasa and other countries.

Therefore, the Junggar tribe is stronger than the Khalkha tribe trapped in the Mongolian Plateau.

Now the Rakshasa has risen in the north. If the Junggar tribe is allowed to toss in the northwest, and if the Rakshasa supports the Junggar tribe in the future, then the risk to the country is still very large.

In southern India, there are also infiltrations from France, England, and Lebanon. If India is infiltrated one day, the Western Regions will become a bridgehead against Westerners and a barrier to defend the Snow Mountain Holy Land and control Mongolia.

If the Junggar tribe can be split, three-quarters of the Mongolian tribes will be in the hands of the Guochao.

In this way, as the real overlord of the Mongolian tribes, it can take the opportunity to lure the Kalmyks in Luocha, and disrupt the Luocha people in the future, becoming an important card in the future diplomacy with the Luocha people.

Of course, it is just a card, but it cannot really support the independence of the Kalmyks.

Because the two countries must divide the Mongolian heritage at the same time, and the Mongolian tribes cannot have an independent political entity again, which will make the surrendered Mongolian tribes centrifugal.

But if it is operated well and the degree is mastered, it can be enough to disgust the Luocha people.

In summary, the Western Regions must be taken back no matter what.

After demonstrating the necessity of taking back the Western Regions, he patted the emperor's ass.

It is said that the emperor is wise and brave, far-sighted, and has the ability to overcome all objections... In short, all kinds of praise words are used. The previous northern expedition to Russia made the Khalkha tribe choose the right side in the dilemma, opening up another route for the future recovery of the Western Regions.

On the one hand, the Mongolian tribes of the Khalkha tribe can be used as cannon fodder, and on the other hand, the threat of the Junggar tribe made the Khalkha tribe have to pinch their noses and contribute manpower to build post stations.

Once the post stations and military stations are built, the army can be advanced along the Hexi Corridor to march into the Western Regions, and the elite troops can go straight to the northern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains from the Mongolian road to disrupt its core areas and turn defense into offense. This is the wisdom of Emperor Wu of Han: If the enemy can go, I can also go.

If it only goes here, this is a qualified policy paper.

The writing is grand, well-reasoned, and rigorous.

Based on this, it can be selected as the leader among the group of people in the Wude Palace.

However...

It is only 1,200 words here.

The real thing is still behind.

The subsequent twist was really big, which made everyone present, including the emperor, confused.

I wonder if it is a dog's tail, a sable, or a superfluous addition?

Or is it a phoenix's head and a leopard's tail, a finishing touch?

After these 1,200 words, the text changed its tone, using a story of carving a boat to find a sword, and jumped directly to a deeper level.

It was this jump that made everyone present sure that this was Liu Yu's policy paper.

Because he jumped out of the traditional concept of the world, and looked at it from a larger perspective, expanding the concept of the world to 80,000 miles around.

Looking at the issue of the Western Regions from the perspective of a larger world led to a completely unexpected conclusion.

From the Mongol expedition to the west to the rise of the Ottoman Empire, to Columbus's discovery of the New World, and the Spanish opening up the American silver mines, it was said that the Ming Dynasty led to a large influx of silver, and the excessive issuance of paper money led to the loss of credit currency, which led to the official use of silver as currency during the Longqing period of the previous dynasty.

Later, the Single Whip Law confirmed the legal tender status of silver. However, after its promotion, it encountered the Thirty Years' War in Europe and Japan's isolation.

The Celestial Empire was short of silver and relied entirely on silver from Europe and Japan. The change in tax law led to extremely low grain prices in many places during the harvest, but silver was required to pay taxes, which further increased the burden on the bottom...

This is only less than 300 words, but it encapsulates the grandeur of the previous 300 years.

Including Li Gan, all the examiners had a coherent mentality of shock, suspicion, and sudden enlightenment after reading this.

They never thought about why silver became currency, but just took it for granted that silver was naturally currency.

They were born like this.

Their fathers and grandfathers were born like this.

It was as natural as wearing gauze when it's hot and wearing fur when it's cold.

After reading these three hundred words, they realized that even the things they took for granted were not so natural, but due to various factors.

If the Ottoman Empire had not risen, perhaps Europeans would not have made great voyages.

If Spain had not discovered the Great Silver Mountain in South America, the amount of silver would not be enough for the vast country to complete the monetization of silver. Without enough silver, they could only find a way to use Jiaozi paper money.

These factors led to silver becoming the currency after the Longqing period.

The subsequent Thirty Years' War and Japan's isolation were a point they had never expected. No one would have thought that a war 40,000 miles away would affect China.

Almost just this sentence deepened the impression that Liu Yu wanted to instill in these people: the concept of the world has changed.

The real world is 80,000 miles around.

It is no longer the previous nine states plus tribute vassal states.

External changes can also greatly affect the stability of the Celestial Empire's rule.

Only when the concept of the world is different from before, the subsequent saying of carving a boat to seek a sword can stand.

But no one continued to read, and stopped reading this.

Some frowned and pondered the logic, while others took a deep breath and secretly recognized the connection.

They knew that silver mines were scarce in this dynasty.

Before silver, copper coins and paper money were legal tender, and they also knew that.

It seemed that everything said above was really the case.

The concept of the world is no longer the world of the past.

The west wind can also bring east rain.

The shock brought by these three hundred words is too great.

I don’t want to believe it.

But I have to believe it.

Li Gan put down the paper and asked everyone to stop first. He couldn’t help asking: "Do you think that Liu... uh, the silver that this examinee said makes sense?"

The emperor can be sure that this was written by Liu Yu, and everyone present can also be sure that this was written by Liu Yu, but it’s not easy to say it at this time.

Several ministers looked at each other for a long while before they said, "Maybe it makes sense. The Celestial Empire has been short of silver since ancient times, and now copper coins are also short of them, so Jiaozi was mostly used before the Ming Dynasty. Before the Song Dynasty, as this person said, the population was small, the business was not widespread, and more millet was collected as tax, so the currency was enough. After that, the population increased, the trade was intertwined, and silver was collected as tax. If there was not enough silver, it would definitely not be possible to make money."

"Japan has a lot of silver, and according to what he said, America in the West has a big silver mountain. The Celestial Empire has rich and exquisite products, all of which can be exchanged for silver, so the influx of silver, and enough silver can be used to make money."

"But what he said about Japan's isolation and the dispute between the old and new religions in the West, can actually affect the Celestial Empire? This... no one has ever talked about this before. It sounds reasonable, but is it really so?"

Those who pay attention to quoting classics find it difficult to understand for a while, as if the saints have never talked about this matter.

But these short three hundred words are clear and logical, and it is really difficult to refute.

While everyone was still thinking about this, Zuo Pingzhang frowned and said, "Your Majesty, if this is true, there will be a big problem."

"So much silver has flowed into the Celestial Empire, which can make the Celestial Empire use silver as a tax currency. Whether it comes from Japan or the West, it must be exchanged for silver and go through customs."

"From the opening of the port in Longqing in the previous dynasty to the Jiashen year, it has only been 80 years... so much silver has flowed in, and it has to pay taxes when entering the port."

"What about this tax? Why haven't you seen it?"

This sentence made everyone present dumbfounded.

Li Gan also frowned and thought: Yes! What about the tax?

Since this silver has flowed in from outside, it is so much that the Celestial Empire can use silver as a tax currency. With such a large amount, what about the customs tax?

The customs duties of the previous dynasty did not collect so much.

Or, Liu Yu's inference is wrong.

The Celestial Empire has had silver since ancient times, but the predecessors were stupid and did not know how to use silver and copper coins, and had to use Jiaozi to make up for the lack of currency.

Or...it's the taxation that's the big problem.