1848 Great Qing Charcoal Burners

Chapter 348 Grace
"Greetings, Your Highness the Northern King. May Your Highness live a thousand years!"

Liu Qixian, Pang Gongzhao, Zhao Xiulian, and others filed into the hall and bowed to Peng Gang.

Peng Gang gestured for them to stand up: "Get up, all of you."

After they got up, Peng Gang made appointments for them.

Liu Qixian will temporarily serve as the deputy examiner, working with Liu Rong to assist Liu Bingwen in completing this scientific examination.

Serving as the deputy examiner for the first Northern Examination meant that he could take on the first batch of Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) from the Northern Palace as his students.

With the establishment of the Northern Palace, many local official positions were vacant, and the first batch of Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) were sure to be appointed to important posts.

The quality of these students is self-evident.

Furthermore, being able to work with Liu Bingwen, Peng Gang's teacher, is itself a great honor.

Liu Qixian happily accepted the task.

Pang Gongzhao served as the magistrate of Baling County, the seat of Yuezhou Prefecture.

The position of the county magistrate attached to the city wall is more important and has a better career prospect than that of an ordinary county magistrate. The rank of the magistrate is half a level higher than that of an ordinary county magistrate.

Peng Gang appointed Pang Gongzhao as the magistrate of Baling County, which was actually a promotion of half a rank for Pang Gongzhao.

During the Qing Dynasty, counties were classified according to four characteristics: strategic location (important transportation hub), complex affairs (busy affairs), tax arrears (lacking off taxes), and difficult to govern (fierce and unruly local customs). Almost without exception, the counties attached to the capital were either the most important or least important of these four categories.

The magistrate of an ordinary county is the local official in charge of the people. Since the emperor is far away, he has a lot of autonomy and is basically a local emperor. Except that the position cannot be inherited, he is no different from a minor lord in medieval Europe during his tenure.

The magistrate of the county attached to the city had a large number of superiors: the prefect, the provincial governor, the provincial judge, the governor, the governor-general, and other high-ranking officials. These officials could all interfere with the work of the magistrate of the county attached to the city.

Any decision made by the magistrate of the county seat, whether it was adjudicating cases, collecting taxes, or undertaking construction projects, was subject to interference and scrutiny from higher authorities. He was more like a servant carrying out his duties than a powerful and authoritative ruler of the county.

Therefore, being the magistrate of a county attached to the capital is a real test of one's abilities. Although working under the watchful eye of one's superiors makes it easier to get promoted and recommended, it is an excellent stepping stone for advancement.

However, if anything goes wrong, the county magistrate of the surrounding county, due to his low rank and limited influence, will be the first to be blamed by his superiors.

Therefore, there are sayings in officialdom: those who were not virtuous in their previous life become county magistrates in this life; those who did evil in their previous life become county magistrates attached to the capital; and those who committed heinous crimes become county magistrates attached to the provincial capital.

However, Peng Gang has not yet appointed a prefect, only a county magistrate. The position of county magistrate in the attached county is still highly coveted.

Of the county magistrates currently appointed by Peng Gang, Guo Kuntao, the magistrate of Jiangxia County, which is located near the capital of Hubei Province, has the highest position; Wang Dalei, the magistrate of Hanyang County in Hanyang Prefecture, is next; and Wang Xutao, the magistrate of Huanggang County in Huangzhou Prefecture, is next.

Pang Gongzhao had been frequently visiting Guo Kuntao's residence these past few days and had gained a preliminary understanding of the officialdom in the Northern Palace. He hurriedly expressed his gratitude and accepted Peng Gang's appointment, receiving the official robes and seal bestowed upon him by Peng Gang.

As for Zhao Xiulian, although he was not an official, he was just a secretary.

However, Zhao Xiulian played a significant role in Pang Gongzhao's decision to voluntarily serve Pingjiang County, and his contribution was substantial.

Considering that Zhao Xiulian was a seasoned legal expert well-versed in criminal law, and exactly the kind of professional talent Peng Gang urgently needed, he appointed Zhao Xiulian as the chief criminal law lecturer at the Wuchang Administrative School, responsible for teaching criminal law to the students of the Wuchang Administrative School.

During the Qing Dynasty, the county magistrate was nominally in charge of the county's power, but the actual operation of the county depended on the secretary. It was common for officials and their servants to be in charge and for the secretary to be the head of the household.

In the specific and practical execution of grassroots administrative affairs, the experience and ability of the clerks usually far exceeded that of their county magistrates.

Liu Rong, the principal of the administrative school, once served as a secretary to Zhu Sunyi, the magistrate of Xiangxiang County. In essence, Liu Rong had also worked as a secretary.

Most of the lecturers at the Wuchang Administrative School under Liu Rong's command were former secretaries.

These people were either secretaries captured by Peng Gang from the conquered prefectures and counties, or secretaries who voluntarily joined him. The most famous of them was Chen Kerang, the chief money and grain lecturer and the chief advisor to Yang Xun, the magistrate of Huangmei County.

Peng Gang appointed Bi Liuqi, Pang Gongzhao, and Zhao Xiulian, and then summoned Guo Kuntao, the magistrate of Jiangxia County.

Jiangxia County has completed its land reform. Counties that have completed land reform enjoy a tax exemption policy for a whole year.

Jiangxia County, as the first county to be fully staffed with county magistrates, registrars, and four departments and one team of primary and secondary grassroots officials, was also the first county to be fully staffed with county magistrates, registrars, and primary and secondary grassroots officials. Moreover, the quality of grassroots officials in Jiangxia County was significantly better than that in other counties.

Therefore, Guo Kuntao's task is not too heavy at present. Peng Gang asked Guo Kuntao to be responsible for settling the scholars who have arrived in Wuchang and are preparing for the exam.

Most of the specific tasks related to receiving, settling in, and registering the scientific expedition members fell on Guo Kuntao's shoulders.

Before long, Guo Kuntao, the magistrate of Jiangxia County, hurriedly arrived at the Northern Prince's Mansion. Upon entering the West Flower Hall, he immediately bowed to Peng Gang: "This humble official, Guo Kuntao, pays his respects to Your Highness the Northern Prince."

"No need for formalities, please sit." Peng Gang gestured to the chair below him, and after Guo Kuntao carefully sat down, he got straight to the point and asked.

"With the imperial examinations approaching, scholars from all over the country are gathering in Wuchang. What is the current situation? How many candidates have already arrived in Wuchang? Have their places of origin been clearly counted?"

Guo Kuntao was clearly prepared for this. He took out a register from his sleeve, presented it with both hands, and replied clearly, "Your Highness, as of yesterday, a total of 837 candidates have arrived in Wuchang and registered at the prefectural and county schools. I have already preliminarily clarified their place of origin."

"Go on," Peng Gang said, leaning forward slightly to signal Guo Kuntao to continue.

"The scholars who came to take the exam this time are mainly from Hubei Province, accounting for nearly 60%. Although some areas of Hunan Province have only recently been incorporated, many Hunan scholars are already serving under Your Highness. With the prestigious reputations of Mr. Zuo and Mr. Liu, the response from Hunan scholars has also been quite enthusiastic, accounting for more than 30%. The rest come from the two neighboring provinces of Jiangxi and Anhui," Guo Kuntao replied.

Peng Gang nodded slightly; the proportion was roughly in line with his expectations.

Hubei is Peng Gang's base of operations, and scholars in southeastern Hubei have an advantage in accessing the region.

As for Hunan, most of the civil officials under Peng Gang's command came from Hunan. Peng Gang was one of the three outstanding figures from Hunan, which could indeed attract some of the relatives and friends of some of his civil officials in their hometowns, as well as the families of Zuo Zongtang and Liu Rong.

Of course, Peng Gang also has to thank Zeng Guofan for bringing him to where he is today.

Zeng Guofan had previously established a judicial bureau in Changsha. Adhering to the principle of "better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free," he punished scholars. Some Hunan scholars who had served Peng Gang, along with their close friends and distant relatives, were implicated and purged.

Although later even Luo Bingzhang and Zhang Liangji felt that Zeng Guofan's judicial bureau was going too far, under pressure they transferred Zeng Guofan to Hengzhou Prefecture, letting him go to southern Hunan to cause trouble.

However, the negative impact of Zeng Guofan's actions on the scholars of northern Hunan was difficult to erase.

Many scholars from northern Hunan, especially those from Xiangyin, Yiyang, Yuanjiang and other places newly occupied by Peng Gang, were worried that the judicial bureau would move back to Changsha. So they made up their minds and came to Wuchang to prepare to participate in the Wuchang imperial examination.

The arrival of scholars from Jiangxi and Anhui shows that Peng Gang's appeal has begun to radiate beyond Hunan and other regions.

Although few people came, and most of them were speculators, it was still a good thing.

"Which county had the most enthusiastic scholars?" Peng Gang pressed.

Guo Kuntao opened the register, glanced at it briefly, and reported, "Your Highness, as of now, the county with the most participants is Hanyang County in Hanyang Prefecture, followed by..." He paused, then said with a hint of surprise, "Huangmei County in Huangzhou Prefecture, and then Jiangxia County."

"Huangmei County?" Peng Gang raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, feeling quite surprised.

When the Taiping army attacked the three towns of Wuhan, Peng Gang occupied the two cities of Hanyang and Hankou on the north bank of the Yangtze River.

When the Taiping army marched eastward, they took a large number of people from Jiangxia County, but failed to take a single person or woman from Hanyang, which was under the actual control of Peng Gang.

The Hanyang militia was the only one that Peng Gang eliminated during the Qingtian period; the total population did not decrease significantly.

Given that Hanyang was ruled for a long time and was a large county with a population that was slightly less important than Jiangxia County, it is reasonable and expected that it had the most scholars.

Huangmei County is located on the eastern edge of Hubei Province, bordering Anhui and Jiangxi provinces. It was the outermost part of Peng Gang's sphere of influence and a relatively weak area of ​​control.

Previously, Peng Gang had focused his efforts on the three towns of Wuhan and the surrounding counties and prefectures, and had not paid much attention to peripheral counties like Huangmei, only requiring that they not cause trouble and affect the local garrison.

Logically, scholars from such regions should have a weaker sense of identification with and loyalty to the new regime, with most remaining observers. The fact that over 140 people had traveled to the provincial capital more than a month before the exams was a far greater surprise than Peng Gang had anticipated.

"So many scholars have come from Huangmei County?" Peng Gang asked with interest. "I've heard that Huangmei County isn't very known for its literary culture. There must be another reason for this?"

When Peng Gang inquired, Guo Kuntao replied, "Your Highness is wise. Although Huangmei is considered a place of culture and education, in previous years, the number of people going to the provincial capital to take the imperial examinations was never this large. As far as I know, the reason so many scholars have come this time is thanks to Yang Xun, the magistrate of Huangmei County."

"Yang Xun?" Yang Xun had served as the magistrate of Guiping County in Xunzhou Prefecture, Guangxi, and was the first incumbent magistrate to voluntarily serve Peng Gang. Peng Gang had a deep impression of Yang Xun.

Although Peng Gang's requirements for selecting officials were low—those who were literate and knowledgeable in literature could be registered and granted the right to take the exam—the fact that Huangmei County alone could attract hundreds of scholars to Wuchang to take the exam shows that Yang Xun, the magistrate of Huangmei County, had put in a great deal of effort in this matter.

"Exactly." Guo Kuntao's tone also carried a hint of admiration for his fellow Hunanese.

"According to the scholars from Huangmei, since His Highness issued the edict to hold the imperial examinations, Yang Xun has worked tirelessly, traveling to various village schools, academies, and the homes of scholars in the county to persuade them to come to Wuchang to take the exams. Many scholars from poor families or those who had doubts were persuaded by him one by one, and he even provided them with travel expenses and food before they finally decided to come to Wuchang to take the exams. Yang Xun even personally explained the books compiled by His Highness to the scholars in the county."

Peng Gang listened quietly. So far, only about 800 candidates had arrived in Wuchang. It was no easy feat for Yang Xun to persuade more than 140 candidates to come to Wuchang to take the exam in such a short time.

Yang Xun is not only a pragmatic person, but also a capable and efficient individual who knows how to adapt to changing circumstances.

"These scholars have come from afar, which is no easy feat. I hereby issue this decree," Peng Gang nodded and said. "Issu examination admission tickets to all registered candidates in advance. With these tickets, they can stay free of charge in the former Wuchang Prefectural School, Jiangxia County School, and adjacent vacant official residences. If there are not enough official residences, nearby private residences will be rented. Free food and lodging will be provided until the end of the examination. All expenses will be covered by the Imperial Treasury."

"Your Highness is benevolent! On behalf of the scholars, we kowtow in gratitude for Your Highness's grace!" Guo Kuntao quickly rose and bowed deeply.

Peng Gang gestured for Guo Kuntao to sit down and continued, "In addition, the libraries of Wuchang Prefectural School and Jiangxia County School must be open day and night. All the books needed for this imperial examination, especially the mathematics textbooks, geography and historical records I compiled, as well as books on agriculture, finance, and criminal law, must be prepared in sufficient quantities for the scholars to read and copy for free. This will allow them to prepare at the last minute and still be more efficient."

In counties where land reform had been completed, Peng Gang ordered local military and political officials to distribute such books to local scholars free of charge. In particular, Peng Gang's own mathematical textbooks and geography guides had already been printed and distributed in large quantities by the printing house in Wuchang.

As for the counties that did not complete land reform, especially the areas recently occupied by the Western Expedition, they were not so lucky, as they had not previously come into contact with these books.

Although the first Northern Examination was unfair to scholars from other places, Peng Gang still tried his best to narrow the gap.

At least it allows talented readers to access these books at a lower cost, so they can answer exam questions and not be at a loss for words.

"Understood, this matter has been arranged." Guo Kuntao nodded in response.

Guo Kuntao was aware of this matter and had already prepared enough books at the Wuchang Prefectural School and Jiangxia County School to give to students who came to register for the exam.

"There's one more thing," Peng Gang suddenly said, remembering something.

"I have heard that many scholars, especially those from other places, have never been exposed to these books before. With the exams approaching, many of them are studying late into the night to prepare for the exams. However, the candlelight is dim at night, which may hurt their eyes and make it inconvenient to study for long periods of time."

Peng Gang paused for a moment, then instructed, "The Qichang and Liming trading companies sent me 120 barrels of the finest whale oil. The oil is clear, flammable, and produces little smoke. Go to the treasury and fetch 40 barrels, then distribute them to the prefectural and county schools, as well as the official residences where scholars reside, specifically for nighttime reading. Make sure the scholars have a bright and clean study environment; this is a token of my appreciation."

In the early 1850s, although the technology to extract kerosene from crude oil already existed.

However, due to limited crude oil production and extraction costs, kerosene was not yet popular worldwide at this time.

Whale oil remains the dominant fuel for high-end lighting.

Before the advent of the oil age, whales played an unexpected but crucial role in the early industrialization process, and it is no exaggeration to say that whale oil was the lubricant and source of light for the Industrial Revolution.

The operation of machinery cannot be separated from the lubrication of whale oil. Biological lubricants extracted from whales are currently the best mechanical lubricants.

Whales are truly a treasure trove. Their baleen is a superior raw material for products such as women's corsets, umbrella frames, fishing rods, and whips. Whale bones can be used to make various tools and ornaments. The ambergris from the intestines of sperm whales is a top-grade fragrance, priceless.

After a century of intensive fishing during the early stages of industrialization, whales were now on the verge of extinction.

Sperm whales have become very rare in traditional, easily accessible fishing grounds (such as near the equator in the Pacific Ocean).

Traditional whaling powers like Britain and the United States, especially the American whaling fleet, are now even venturing to remote waters near Japan and the North Pacific to search for whale pods.

Peng Gang learned from conversations with Masali and Kim Neng-hyung that many American whaling ships were currently encountering shipwrecks off the coast of Japan, and the crew members who went ashore to survive were detained by the Japanese authorities.

They learned from Dutch people who had good relations with the Edo Shogunate that many American sailors detained by the Edo Shogunate had been killed by the Japanese. Washington was considering a "friendly" diplomatic visit to Japan to intimidate the Edo Shogunate authorities, establish formal diplomatic relations with them, rescue the sailors, and clear the way for future American whaling in the waters near Japan.

The fact that a second-largest power would intervene at the national level to protect an industry demonstrates the importance and immense profits that whaling is to the United States.

The whale oil for lighting that was given to Peng Gang by Russell & Co. and Liming & Co. was whale brain oil extracted from the head of a sperm whale. It is a wax ester that is clear at room temperature and burns very brightly with little smoke.

This oil was extremely precious; aside from providing nighttime lighting at the Northern Prince's residence, Peng Gang only provided ten barrels to each of the three schools in Wuchang.

On a personal level, only Zuo Zongtang, Peng Gang's grandfather-in-law Wang Quan, and Luo Dagang have received the honor of being personally presented with whale oil by Peng Gang.

Guo Kuntao once received ten catties of whale oil from Zuo Zongtang, and the oil was indeed very effective.

Peng Gang was willing to spend so much whale oil specifically for scholars to study at night; his love for talent and respect for scholars is truly admirable.

His voice was tinged with excitement: "Your Highness's compassion for scholars will surely inspire all the learners in the land to be grateful and serve you with utmost loyalty! I will go and do it right away, and I will make sure that Your Highness's kindness is known to every student taking the exam!"

"Currently, this oil is not circulating in the private sector in the three towns of Wuhan, and I do not want to hear anyone say that they have found this oil being sold in the private market," Peng Gang warned.

"If even a single drop of oil spills, Your Highness may dispose of it as you see fit," Guo Kuntao assured Peng Gang.

Peng Gang nodded: "Go ahead and handle it properly, making sure no one is disappointed."

Guo Kuntao bowed and stepped back, his steps hurried, already planning how to implement Peng Gang's favors as quickly and effectively as possible.

(End of this chapter)