Zhu Yuanzhang Returns from Modern Times

Chapter 187 Zhu Yuanzhang's true intentions revealed!
"From this day forward, I, the Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty, will be the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy!"

On the square inside the Imperial Academy, Zhu Yuanzhang raised his voice and addressed the many teachers and students gathered there.

He was carrying a wooden megaphone in his hand.

Even before this, the news that the emperor himself would serve as the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy had already spread.

Many students at the Imperial Academy received this news and discussed it enthusiastically.

But at this moment, they heard the emperor announce this matter to them personally in front of so many people.

Many students of the Imperial Academy couldn't help but rejoice.

The thousands of teachers and students who had gathered together did not whisper among themselves.

But at this moment, after Zhu Yuanzhang said these words, a joyful murmur arose.

Zhu Yuanzhang saw the joy of the many students and was equally delighted.

Judging from the students' reactions, he, the emperor, is quite popular.

His appointment as the headmaster of the Imperial Academy was welcomed by many students.

Many people still care about the title of being a disciple of the emperor.

"To be honest, I didn't initially intend to become the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy."

But what we never expected was that there were so many beasts in human form and heart in the Imperial Academy!

There are so many damned people!
How could you distort our meaning like this!
Such utter depravity and inhumanity! Shameless and unworthy of being a teacher! Harming countless students!

Hearing the emperor bring up the matter, and recalling the recent deaths of his classmates, he felt a surge of emotion.

During this period, the academic workload and other strict requirements intensified.

And the things that Jin Wenzheng and his group did, as announced by the imperial court.

Some felt a pang of sympathy, while others were furious.

Some people wished they could go out right now and spit a few mouthfuls of phlegm on the skin of Jin Wenzheng, Wei Chao, and the others.

I've never seen such a scoundrel before.

The students, who had previously trusted and respected Jin Wenzheng and others, felt even more complicated, angry, sad, and incredulous.

"Now, all those bastards have been killed!"
These bastards deserved to die!
Sending them to teach at the Imperial Academy was an immense honor for them.

Heaven, Earth, Ruler, Parents, and Teacher – what a great responsibility and what a great trust this is!
But these are the things they do!
You are all talents we selected from all over the country.

They are the reserve talents of our Great Ming Dynasty, the pillars of the future.

You talented people, we will not allow you to be harmed by these shameless people!
Although such a shameless person has been punished, we are still uneasy about this precedent.

We fear that some beasts might again harbor wicked intentions towards the talents and hopes of our Great Ming!
They want to harm me!

So after much thought, we feel it would be better for us, the emperor, to serve as the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy.

Let's see which other scoundrels are so audacious as to commit further beastly acts to harm the students of our Great Ming Dynasty!

"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"

"The Grand Master is wise!"

Zhu Yuanzhang's words stirred the emotions of many students, who couldn't help but shout out.

They are truly blessed to have such a ruler!

His Majesty has demonstrated to the world through his actions just how important the Imperial Academy is.

His Majesty attaches great importance to the Imperial Academy.

With His Majesty personally overseeing the situation, let's see which scoundrels dare to distort the truth and confuse right and wrong!
His Majesty, with his supreme position and countless affairs to attend to, has done such a thing for these students, showing such concern for their lives.

How lucky they are!
"You all know this Xuecheng, right?"

That's right, his name isn't Wu Xing, nor is it Wu Kun; he's our third son, the Prince of Jin of our Great Ming Dynasty!
We were also sent to the Imperial Academy to see what the Imperial Academy was like and to help us manage it!
Now that we've seen the true colors of those people, we're extremely grateful that we sent our son here.

Otherwise, we would truly be deceived by these shameless scoundrels.

I wonder how badly these scoundrels will ruin our national education!
How horribly have they ravaged the talents of my Great Ming Dynasty!

He continued to serve as the assistant director of the Imperial Academy.

When we're not around, let him help us study the Imperial Academy more.

Let's see if anyone dares to do this lawless thing again!

As Zhu Yuanzhang spoke, he pointed to Prince Jin, Zhu Gang, who was sitting not far from him and introduced him.

Upon hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's words, countless teachers and students turned their gazes toward Prince Jin, Zhu Gang.

Your Majesty has great foresight!

Many people felt that their feelings were quite strange.

They actually spent so much time with His Highness Prince Jin at the Imperial Academy!

Those students, especially those taught by His Highness Prince Jin, had a particularly strange feeling.

It turns out that Mr. Wu, who taught them before, was actually His Majesty's own son!

Even His Majesty's own son is so accomplished in arithmetic that he has condescended to come here and teach them arithmetic.

Visible arithmetic, indeed a positive graph!
As expected, His Majesty values ​​this highly; I should study arithmetic even better from now on!
“You, Director Song, must be respected as always from now on.”

He did a very good job as the chief priest.

It was because we wanted to become the chief priest that we removed him from that position and made him the director of studies.

It's not that we're refusing to let him be the chief priest because he did something wrong; we need to make that clear to everyone.

Zhu Yuanzhang knew that Song Ne had stepped down from his position as Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, and even if he himself took over as Chancellor, he would have to make certain things clear.

This will inevitably cause some people to have reservations about Song Ne.

This will affect Song Ne's prestige in domestic academia and will be detrimental to her future work in domestic academia.

Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang had to make some things clear at this time.

“I know that many of you feel that Director Song is too strict and has formulated a series of academic rules.”

Scholarship is like military command.

We've made this clear to you today.

Strictly governing the Imperial Academy was an instruction we gave.

Do you know why a beggar like me was able to fight my way out of that chaotic world?
One of the most important reasons is that we pay attention to military regulations and discipline, strictly enforce military law, and restrain our soldiers.

They are encouraged to fight desperately in battle, but not to disturb the people in peacetime.

Zhang Shicheng, Chen Youliang, and others are far inferior to us in this respect alone.

So they died, and we survived.

Not only did we survive, we also founded the Ming Dynasty and became emperor!

Do you know why students from your Imperial Academy can be directly appointed to official positions without going through the imperial examinations?

It was because of you, Song Siye, that after becoming the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, a series of strict regulations were established to strictly discipline you and urge you to learn your skills.

Those who could graduate from the Imperial Academy were all truly talented and learned.

He can be entrusted with important responsibilities.

That's why you were able to be granted official positions!
We need people with real talent and skills; we're pragmatic and don't like empty talk.

These strict rules are a major guarantee that you can learn skills.

Many people are inherently lazy.

We know that, apart from a few abnormal individuals, most people don't want to deliberately suffer.

In many things, even when we know something is right, it's difficult to consistently hold ourselves to the same high standards.

Most of them only work hard for two or three days, and then quickly become lazy again...

After a while, I'll work harder for another two or three days.

There aren't many people who can be diligent and eager to learn without needing anyone to urge them on.

Upon hearing Zhu Yuanzhang say these words, many students looked surprised, and for a moment they felt that the emperor had become their mouthpiece.

The description of someone who strives hard for two or three days but quickly becomes complacent is absolutely accurate!

That perfectly reflects their true mindset.

"Therefore, at this time, the role of school rules and strict discipline becomes apparent."

You need them to help you overcome laziness.

Make the most of these next few years to learn new skills.

If you don't learn your skills properly, how can you become an official?
How can we entrust so many important responsibilities to you?

Therefore, the rules and regulations of the Imperial Academy will remain strict.

We still need to have your Director Song crack down on this!
Don't delude yourself into thinking you can enjoy a life of luxury.

You have come to the Imperial Academy to learn skills.

This isn't a place for you to enjoy yourself.

If you're after pleasure, then don't even step through the gates of the Imperial Academy!

Zhu Yuanzhang's voice became somewhat stern.

His words commanded respect from many students.

"Of course, there were indeed some unreasonable aspects to the Imperial Academy in the past."

For example, food should be rationed. Regardless of a person's size, appetite, or whether they are full or not, everyone should receive the same amount of food.

For example, they might deliberately make the food taste bad.

This is to temper one's will.

These things seem somewhat unreasonable to us.

Therefore, after I became the Grand Master of the Imperial Academy, this matter will immediately undergo a change.

From now on, food will be available in an open manner.

If you're still hungry, you can go back for more, and if you can't finish your food, you can get a smaller portion.

But we have one requirement: only take as much as you can eat.

Leftovers are absolutely not allowed!

We should remember how hard it is to come by every grain of rice and every bowl of porridge!
If someone can't eat that much but wants to eat more and take more than they can eat, they will waste food.

Then we need to make an example of them!

Waste is shameful, especially the waste of food!
"They're truly inhuman!"

Most of the people present could understand what the emperor was saying.

Wasting food is indeed shameful!
Considering the current emperor's early experiences, it's not surprising to hear these things from him.

Many people were overjoyed by it.

Great! I can finally eat my fill from now on!

Putting aside the Imperial Academy, the food in the past was not only unpalatable in terms of taste, but also in terms of portion control.

The meals at the Imperial Academy were completely free, provided by the imperial court. To be honest, the emperor really took good care of these students.

The fact that everyone gets the same amount of food regardless of their appetite is a bit uncomfortable.

People with large appetites are truly going hungry at every meal.

"From now on, the food must be delicious; we can't deliberately make it taste bad."

Chefs, you need to improve your culinary skills!
Try to make the food as delicious and palatable as possible.

"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"

"Long live the Grand Master!"

Some people couldn't help but scream wildly in their hearts.

It's a common understanding that the food at the Imperial Academy is really bad.

Hearing the emperor say these words in person was the best news they could have received.

"The food standards at the Imperial Academy should also be improved; for example, meat should be provided at least once every three days."

Every two days, each student must receive a hard-boiled egg.

"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"

"Long live your Majesty!"

Upon hearing the emperor's promise in public, the many students present could no longer contain themselves and cheered loudly.

It was incredibly exciting.

Your Majesty is truly a good Your Majesty!

We get meat every three days, and every other day we each get a boiled egg.

Compared to what they had eaten before, this was heavenly!

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled as he looked at everyone's reactions.

Improving meals and increasing nutrition are necessary.

The curriculum at the Imperial Academy was very demanding, and many students worked very hard.

Eating foods that lack oil and nutrition can easily wear down your health.

The reason why Zhu Yuanzhang said to provide students with boiled eggs, instead of cooking them into dishes, frying them, or making egg drop soup, is that...

That too was due to his considerations.

If the cook doesn't steal, the harvest won't be good.

Even if he himself gave strict orders to keep a close watch on the cooks at the Imperial Academy.

They will also be unable to resist petty theft, especially eggs, which will inevitably become their primary targets.

Using eggs in cooking, with so many students, using only a few dozen less eggs per meal is a piece of cake for them.

How can we better prevent cooks from tampering with eggs?
The best way is to boil them directly, one hard-boiled egg for each person.

Eggs are a precious commodity, and nowadays they are a delicious treat.

Many families would be reluctant to eat an egg they had.

They were counting on exchanging eggs for needles, thread, salt, and other small items.

It's fair to say that many families rely on chicken butts for a living.

To a large extent, eggs can be used as currency.

Even in modern times, according to Zhu Yuanzhang's understanding, there were still many places in the 1990s where people could barter for goods with eggs.

This shows just how precious eggs are.

It's understandable why these students were so excited when they heard they would get a boiled egg every two days.

"The dormitory conditions at our Imperial Academy also need to be improved. Next, we plan to select a new site to build a new Imperial Academy."

This new Imperial Academy will be at least four times larger than the current one.

There has been a significant improvement in accommodation, teaching facilities, and other aspects.

From now on, we'll have bunk beds with desks underneath, creating six-person dorm rooms.

The school will build more toilets and shower facilities…

Zhu Yuanzhang had been thinking about expanding the Imperial Academy for some time.

After he expanded the enrollment, the Imperial Academy itself was not a very large place.

The place housed over 6,000 teachers and students, plus some people who did odd jobs; it was truly overcrowded.

Not to mention, he plans to develop the Imperial Academy into a comprehensive, top-tier institution of learning in the country.

In the future, we will also need to establish corresponding laboratories, research departments, and so on.

The current Imperial Academy is truly insufficient.

Building new schools is imperative.

Once the new college is built, the old college will not be left idle either.

We can have some of the teachers and students teach here, making the best use of resources.

Wastefulness is not his style.

The already excited students became even more excited after hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's words. Almost every one of them had a gleam in their eyes.

What a wise and benevolent ruler!
This is a wise and benevolent ruler!
After what happened today, anyone who says that His Majesty is stingy or cruel will be the first to object!
Such a wise and virtuous ruler values ​​these students so much, places such importance on education, and treats them so well!

What kind of tyrannical ruler would do such a thing?
"Through our investigation, we learned that Jin Wenzheng and other scoundrels actually distorted the school's intentions and persecuted students."

For example, students who don't do well in their studies and fail exams might be relegated to jobs like feeding pigs, farming, or carrying manure.

We'll explain this to you here today.

That's pure bullshit!
What was our original intention in establishing agronomy?
There are quite a few people who can't distinguish between the five grains.

And in the future, many of you will become officials.

Our Great Ming Dynasty is a major agricultural country. Countless people have supported our vast nation by farming.

Agriculture is a major issue, concerning the national economy and people's livelihood. If officials don't understand these things, how can they manage the local area well?

How will you govern the country well when you hold a high position in the future?

That's why we've sent you here to learn these things, so you can gain some understanding of agricultural planting and animal husbandry.

We provide you with free food and drink every day, and free accommodation.

We have invited so many knowledgeable people to impart their knowledge to you so that you can learn great skills.

We want you to become pillars of the nation, useful talents.

We've spent so much money and effort training you.

So you'd be carrying manure and feeding pigs for the rest of your lives, wouldn't that be a waste?

Putting everything else aside, just looking at the numbers, it's a huge loss!

Remember, never believe such rumors again!

If anyone says these things to you again, or uses them to threaten you, tell the school administrator directly and let him handle it.

Hearing Zhu Yuanzhang's words, many students were overjoyed and relieved.

"Your Majesty, is it true that those who do not study well will no longer be able to become officials or repeat their studies, but will only be punished by becoming clerks?"

A moment later, someone mustered up the courage to raise their hand and looked at Zhu Yuanzhang with a restrained expression as they asked him a question.

This person was none other than the student from Jin Wenzheng's class before.

Jin Wenzheng wanted to use this reason to drive him to suicide.

"Some of this statement is true, but some of it is not."

Upon seeing this student ask this question, many people seemed to perk up.

Zhu Yuanzhang knew that this matter concerned the hearts of many people.

He then solemnly replied, "Students who fail to meet the academic requirements when moving from second to third grade or from third to fourth grade can repeat a year if they wish."

We will give you this opportunity.

After all, it's easy to underperform during exams.

Upon hearing this, many people breathed a sigh of relief once again.

If I can repeat a year, then I'll be at ease.

But only half of my heart is at ease.

Judging from His Majesty's words, those who fail the exam after a year of retaking it will definitely be punished by being demoted to minor official positions...

"After repeating the year, his grades were still unsatisfactory, so he was assigned to be a clerk by the imperial court."

It should be noted that this is not a punishment of being demoted to a minor official position.

Clerks were also a respectable profession.

Those who became officials at the Imperial Academy were different from ordinary officials.

Those who graduate from the Imperial Academy and become clerks, if they do well, can be promoted from clerks to officials. You need to remember this.

It doesn't mean that becoming a clerk means you'll be a clerk forever.

This boundary cannot be broken.

And you should not feel inferior or humiliated by becoming officials.

If you don't want to become a clerk, you should study hard.

Now that you've become an official, you should be ashamed and strive to do better. If you do your job well, we'll promote you later.

Learning is not everything, and poor academic performance does not mean poor performance in handling government affairs in the future.

As long as you're willing to put your heart into it, you can achieve results.
Don't think that officials are inferior; they are not inferior at all.

Officials are the ones who truly interact with the many people below them.

most important.

Many policies require the work of grassroots officials.

Every word and action of the people, in their eyes, actually represents the imperial court.

Whether the court is wise and whether it can win the love and support of the people is reflected in how its officials treat the people.

Governing a country is about governing its officials; this is no empty saying.

We'll explain all this to you clearly, and you should keep it firmly in mind!

Zhu Yuanzhang said these words with particular solemnity.

After giving the students some time to react, the case of Zhu Yuanzhang took a breather.

We're preparing to give all the students another big surprise, to set off another raging fire.

"Starting next month, students attending the Imperial Academy will no longer have their families exempt from taxes!"

(End of this chapter)