Ming Dynasty: The Crocodile King of Han Prince Zhu Gaoxu's Family

Chapter 447 Godson
The following evening, Zhu Zhanhe and his son Zhu Qiyu were in the Qianqing Palace, reviewing the results of the palace examinations for students of the Imperial Academy and the Military Academy, as reported by the Grand Secretariat.

"Father, there are a total of 120 candidates from the Imperial Academy in this palace examination."

Among them, three were awarded the title of Jinshi (进士) in the first class of the imperial examination.
Thirty people were granted the title of Jinshi (进士) in the second class of the imperial examination.

Sixty-nine people were granted the title of Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the third class.
"It can be said that this palace examination result completely encompasses all 120 scholars who participated in the palace examination." Zhu Qiyu looked at the palace examination results of the students of the Imperial Academy in his hand and said to his father, Emperor Longwu, with a heavy expression.

Clearly, Zhu Qiyu was very dissatisfied with the results of the palace examination! Looking at his son's serious face, Emperor Longwu sighed inwardly before speaking.

"Yu'er, I know how you feel right now, but no matter what we do, we have to take it slowly."

Currently, our Dragon Kingdom has only been established for a short time, and there are not many scholars available.

Moreover, in most parts of my Dragon Kingdom, even the language has not been unified, and some people cannot even speak Chinese, let alone let their young people participate in scientific expeditions.

The scholars taking the exams today are mostly Han Chinese who originally migrated from Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, or other places like Annam, where local clans were among the first to adopt Han culture.

As for the fact that the number of scholars taking the imperial examinations in other places is scarce, that is a reality. In fact, places like Persia do not have a single scholar at all.

Father knows you're worried that these people might form a faction and thus influence the government.

But this is reality! This is the outcome that my son and I must face right now!
To break this situation, it is necessary to strengthen the promotion of comprehensive Sinicization throughout the entire Dragon Kingdom. Zhu Zhanhe was well aware of what his son was worried about after seeing the list of successful candidates in the palace examination. However, the Dragon Kingdom was a vast multi-ethnic country, and given the reality, Zhu Zhanhe could only choose to prioritize development and then find ways to maintain a balance later.

"Your subject understands." Zhu Qiyu's face was heavy after hearing his father, Emperor Longwu's, words. At this moment, he could feel the immense pressure his father was under!
"Tell me about the admission situation of the students to the Military Academy." Seeing his son's somewhat downcast mood, Emperor Longwu continued to inquire about the results of the palace examination for the students of the Military Academy.

"Replying to Your Majesty, the situation of the students in the Military Academy is similar to that of the heirs of the Imperial Academy. Most of the students' registered residences are in the former Guangdong and Guangxi, Yunnan, and Annam." Zhu Qiyu carefully reviewed the admission information of the Military Academy students in the palace examination in his hand, and then replied to his father, Emperor Longwu, in a deep voice.

After listening to his son's words, Zhu Zhanhe knew that his son's thinking had become dull and he was getting stuck on a rut. Immediately, he decided to give his son some pointers on his way of thinking.

"Yu'er, as those in power, we shouldn't just look at the surface of things, or only one aspect of them."

"Father, let me ask you, what is the ratio of sons of powerful families to sons of commoners among the candidates who passed the Imperial Examination at the Martial Arts Academy?" Zhu Zhanhe changed his perspective and asked his son softly.

"Hmm~?" Upon hearing his father's question, Zhu Qiyu was taken aback for a moment, then immediately opened the memorial again to read it. He even carefully reviewed the list of scholars in the top three of the Imperial Academy's examination list again.

After staring intently for a moment, Zhu Qiyu finally raised his head.

"In response to Father Emperor, among the twenty outstanding students of the Military Academy, the proportions of students from powerful and wealthy families and those from humble backgrounds are evenly split."
"Of the more than one hundred students who made it into the top three ranks of the Imperial Academy, those from powerful and influential families accounted for more than 70%!" Zhu Qiyu replied to his father, Emperor Longwu, with a shocked expression after confirming the list in his hand.

"This is it.

Yu'er, you must remember: the way of an emperor lies in balance!
As those in power, we must not only curry favor with the powerful and wealthy, but also leave opportunities for advancement for students from impoverished backgrounds.

The fact that 70% of the students at the Imperial Academy are from powerful and wealthy families illustrates that while the vast majority of the population in our Dragon Kingdom may have a chance to rise in society, that chance is slim. This is because most of those opportunities are controlled by the powerful and wealthy!
As those in power, our task is to break this deadlock. To do so, we must ensure that the proportion of children from humble backgrounds and those from privileged backgrounds is roughly equal. In fact, it wouldn't be a problem if the privileged class comprised 60%. This way, those in power will have capable personnel and can effectively check the decadent behavior of the privileged.
At the same time, since ancient times, the one with the strongest army and the most powerful horses is king! Only by firmly grasping military power can the emperor have a voice and supreme authority!

Half of the students in the Military Academy come from impoverished backgrounds; they represent the hearts and minds of the people of my Dragon Kingdom, and also an opportunity for us in power to control the world! Therefore, in order to divide the scholars, and even to divide military power, I bestowed upon the most outstanding students among them swords and tablets! In this way, I have both won over a minority and gained legitimacy and a sense of righteousness!
"With legitimacy and righteousness, military power, and a group of loyal scholars, those in power can govern the country effectively." Zhu Zhanhe earnestly educated his son about the balance between the poor and the powerful.

"Go and bring over the first and second stacks of memorials on the table." After saying this, Zhu Zhanhe looked at his son, who was deep in thought, and then asked Zhu Qiyu to bring over the memorials on the table.

"Yes~" After hearing his father, Emperor Longwu's words, Zhu Qiyu did not hesitate. He went directly to the table, looked at the table full of memorials, and moved the first and second stacks of memorials to his father.

"Open it and take a look." Zhu Zhanhe continued to have his son open the folded document and look at its contents.

Next, Zhu Qiyu, following his father's instructions, opened one of the documents in the first stack to examine it.

The moment Zhu Qiyu opened the memorial, he froze on the spot. The reason was simple: this memorial contained someone else's red robe! Zhu Qiyu was absolutely certain that the handwriting in this memorial was definitely not his father's!
"This is why I established the Grand Council."

The officials in the Grand Council had no real power, but they had the right to wear red robes.

As for the memorials submitted by the court officials, I let them read them first. After they have read them, they should write down the opinions of the Grand Councilors, and then submit the memorials to me for review.

"Yu'er, this is also a tactic your father used to divide the civil officials by employing the Grand Council." Zhu Zhanhe briefly explained the role of the Grand Council to his son, and also recounted his plan to use it to sow discord among the civil officials.

"Take a look at another stack of memorials," Zhu Zhanhe said, pointing to another stack of memorials and continuing to have his son look at the contents of another stack of memorials.

"Ah!" After reading another stack of memorials, Zhu Qiyu was still shocked.

"It looks like the contents are quite surprising, aren't they?" Zhu Zhanhe couldn't help but tease his son, seeing his shocked expression.

"Father, this..." Zhu Qiyu held the memorial in disbelief, looking at his father's majestic face with utter astonishment.

"The memorials here are those submitted to me periodically by local officials after I granted them the authority to submit secret memorials."

These memorials were delivered directly to your father by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, bypassing the Six Ministries, the Grand Secretariat, and the Military Council.

The court officials all know that your father has granted certain individuals the authority to submit secret memorials in various regions and even within the military camps. However, they do not know who exactly these individuals are!
"Yu'er, this is also a means of dividing and even controlling the court officials!" Looking at his son's blank expression, Zhu Zhanhe continued to demonstrate to his son his methods of controlling the court officials.

"Furthermore, your mother trained so many young women for the imperial concubine selection. Do you really think that all of those young women were trained by your mother for your father and me?!"

Undeniably, some of them were indeed concubines cultivated for your father, me;
However, another portion was prepared by your mother through training by the palace maids, and then used to bestow marriages upon court officials!

Especially now, these outstanding students from the Imperial Academy and the Military Academy who have passed the palace examination.

For some of the outstanding, unmarried, and eligible students among them, your mother will still ask your father to arrange marriages for them!
This is also a tactic to win over and divide the court officials. It's even a means of monitoring them and cultivating the next generation of capable individuals!

"Even more so, Yu'er, these are all political resources that your mother has accumulated for you!" Zhu Zhanhe continued to explain to his son the purpose of Empress Xia's bestowal of marriages upon the court officials!

(End of this chapter)