Ming Dynasty 1627

Chapter 149 Shi Kefa's First Trial of the Trade
After a glass of light wine, everyone gently put down their glasses. Though not yet fully intoxicated, the atmosphere was already pleasantly tipsy.

"Good! Good! Good!"

Zhang Mingzhen clapped his hands suddenly, the sound like a booming bell, breaking the silence.

"Truly the greatest and most magnificent work of its time!"

His eyes shone, as if he had personally witnessed the tumultuous storm that had swept through the Imperial Palace.

Sitting opposite him, Zhang Pu smiled gently and took over the conversation.

"Indeed. Based solely on historical records, plus investigations into midwives and coffin shops in the capital, one can deduce the fundamental cycle of order and chaos in China's two-thousand-year dynasties."

"With such keen insight and keen observation, these 'Five Masters of Governance' are truly extraordinary."

His words were full of praise, but his gaze subtly swept over everyone present, observing their reactions.

"Hmph, extraordinary?"

A cold laugh broke through the silence; it was Zhang Cai, known for her outspokenness.

He curled his lip and said bluntly, "This idea was clearly given by His Majesty. The five of them were just following orders and implementing His Majesty's plan. How can they be hailed as the 'Five Men of Statecraft'? I think they are unworthy of the title."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere suddenly became tense.

"That is incorrect."

A steady voice rang out, and everyone looked in the direction of the voice. It was Shi Kefa who was speaking.

He was only twenty-five years old at the time. Although he was short and stocky with a dark complexion, he had a resolute air about him.

Shi Kefa was from Henan. Because his ancestors were granted the title of centurion of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he was registered in the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Therefore, the provincial examination was held in Shuntian Prefecture.

He witnessed the entire process of the new emperor's ascension to the throne and the ensuing upheaval in the capital.

He cupped his hands in greeting and said slowly, "Those five people didn't entirely get a bargain."

"You may not know that during the first daily lecture, His Majesty asked, 'How did Confucius achieve benevolence?'"

"The gentlemen present all spoke at length about the profound meanings of Neo-Confucianism and the School of Mind, seemingly citing classical texts, but in reality they were merely using the topic to express their own sectarian views."

"Only those three were able to transcend the limitations of reason and mind, and truly partially answer Your Majesty's question, which is why they have caught Your Majesty's eye."

"This insight and courage alone are beyond the reach of ordinary people."

Xia Yunyi listened with great interest and eagerly asked, "Have any of the strategies of these three men been circulated? We would like to read them as well."

Shi Kefa shook his head, a complex expression on his face.

"No. His Majesty personally ordered that all the proposals submitted by these three men be burned."

"What?" Everyone was shocked.

Shi Kefa cupped his hands in a gesture of respect towards the capital and said:

His Majesty only said, "The young people are young and impetuous, and their reasoning is not yet clear, but their intentions are good. In order to avoid causing trouble, it is better to destroy the writings first. It will not be too late for them to expound their own reasoning after they have experienced the world."

Silence fell over the pavilion for a moment.

Xia Yunyi sighed deeply, his face full of admiration: "Your Majesty's concern for his subjects is so profound... truly benevolent."

Everyone felt a surge of warmth in their hearts, and without prior arrangement, they cupped their hands in the direction of the capital and said in unison, "Your Majesty is benevolent."

After a brief silence, Jiang Can pressed on, "What about Zhang Zhiji, the son of the Duke of Yingguo, and Luo Yangxing, the son of the former commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard? One is a nobleman, and the other is a general of the Han Dynasty. Why are they also involved in this investigation?"

Shi Kefa could not answer this question.

At this moment, Li Ruolian spoke up. As a local strongman in the capital, although he had only just returned to the city, his information network was far more extensive than that of these scholars from other places.

"I know a little about this from some local friends."

He put down his wine glass and said, "Zhang Zhiji and Luo Yangxing were not selected out of thin air."

"They each submitted two official documents, namely 'Memorial on Gambling in the Capital' and 'Memorial on Thieves in the Capital'."

"Although these two official documents were not implemented in the first phase of the new policies in the capital, the thoroughness of the investigation and the rigor of the arguments make them excellent documents for governing the country."

"However, these two articles were rarely copied and circulated, and were far less well-known than Xue Guoguan's 'Memorial on Road Repair'."

"However, my elder brother is in the Hanlin Academy and was fortunate enough to copy a copy. I have read it, and I will bring it to the next gathering so that everyone can enjoy it together."

Hearing this, Zhang Cai was extremely embarrassed.

He stood up, and solemnly cupped his hands in greeting to the crowd.

"I was shallow. I dared to make unwarranted comments about others based on this one-sided view. This is my fault."

He admitted his mistake very quickly and calmly. Seeing this, the crowd not only did not laugh at him, but instead respected him even more.

A minor argument thus vanished without a trace.

The group chatted for a while longer, exchanging bits and pieces of information and reviewing the various measures taken by the new emperor since his ascension to the throne.

From the first lecture, "Why Confucius Adopted Benevolence," to the second lecture, "What Was the Problem of the Ming Dynasty," and now to this lecture, "The Cycle of Order and Chaos in China Over Two Thousand Years," a clear narrative gradually emerges before everyone's eyes.

Why would this young king ask a question when he has some doubt in his heart?

It's clear that from the very beginning, he harbored a grand vision.

Every step he takes now is simply a way of guiding and showcasing the grand vision in his heart to the world.

Jiang Can had just arrived in Beijing and this was the first time he had heard such a complete narrative. He couldn't help but exclaim in amazement:
“When a sage plans for a country, it is like a skilled chess player who makes a move without making a sound, yet the wind and thunder have already moved.”

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement, completely disregarding the meeting agenda, and picked up their glasses to raise another toast.

Zhang Pu listened calmly, raising his wine glass in response, but his gaze swept across everyone's faces.

That's enough, we'll get off track if we keep talking.

He coughed lightly, bringing the topic back on track.

"Gentlemen, let's put aside our idle chatter and proceed according to the rules."

"As Your Majesty has said, to answer the questions of our time, we must first clarify them. Do any of you have any insights into this 'question of humanity and the land'?"

Upon hearing this, the pavilion fell silent once more.

All eyes met in the air, filled with excitement, contemplation, and eager anticipation.

A moment later, Shi Kefa stood up first and bowed to the crowd.

"Let me take the first sip!"

After saying that, he took out a book from his pocket and showed it to everyone.

The pages were already curled at the edges, and the cover had five large characters written on it: "Huangming Gongju Kao".

Everyone was immediately puzzled.

Almost every scholar present had a copy of this book.

But what does it have to do with the "question of man and place"?
The book records nothing more than the origins of the imperial examination system, the list of successful candidates in previous dynasties, and the number of participants in each metropolitan examination...

and many more? !
How many people took the imperial examination?!
Several quick-thinking individuals had their pupils constrict sharply, realizing what was happening almost instantly.

Only Zhang Mingzhen and Li Ruolian, both of whom were military graduates, were unfamiliar with the book and remained completely bewildered.

Upon seeing this, Shi Kefa laughed heartily.

He opened the book, pulled out a neatly folded sheet of Xuan paper from between the pages, and then spread it out on the stone table with a "whoosh".

"Gentlemen, please come and take a look!"

It was a line graph that the students had been copying and passing around among themselves over the past few days.

Although the graph was novel, the principle behind it was simple and easy to understand. However, it was the first time they had ever seen a self-made line graph.

The horizontal axis represents the "year of the imperial examination" and the vertical axis represents the "number of participants in the metropolitan examination". A winding ink line clearly outlines the slow changes in the number of participants in the metropolitan examination over the more than two hundred years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty.

This is precisely what Shi Kefa created – “Trend Chart of the Number of Candidates for the Imperial Examination in the Ming Dynasty”!
Zhang Cai was the first to look at the whole picture, but he frowned and immediately raised a question.

“No, Brother Xianzhi, your trend does not entirely align with His Majesty’s projections of population growth.”

"According to Your Majesty, since the founding of the nation, the population has increased at least threefold, and the growth rate has accelerated as time has progressed."

“But in your chart… the growth was extremely rapid in the early days of the founding of the nation, but in the middle and later stages, the growth slowed down.”

Zhang Pu shook his head and said:
"This data is correct."

"Because the number of people admitted to the provincial examinations each year was fixed, it was not entirely synchronized with population growth!"

“At the beginning of the dynasty, the war had just ended and the people’s hearts were not yet won over, so the number of people taking the exams increased rapidly.”

"But...but this quota has indeed been increasing gradually! I hadn't noticed it before, but now it seems..."

He looked up at the crowd, his voice brimming with barely suppressed fervor:
"This quota seems inconsistent with the rate of population growth!"

Xia Yunyi clapped his hands excitedly and continued:

"That's right! From the mid-period of the dynasty to the present, although the quota for the number of successful candidates in the imperial examinations has increased, it has ultimately been a slow process."

"Now that the speed of population growth has been demonstrated, the increase in the number of test takers is far too...slow."

Xia Yunyi was so excited that his lips trembled and he could barely speak. He had passed the imperial examination in the 46th year of the Wanli reign, when he was only twenty-two years old and full of vigor.

However, in the following 47th year of the Wanli reign, the 2nd year of the Tianqi reign, and the 5th year of the Tianqi reign, he failed the imperial examinations for three consecutive years.

Sometimes, in the dead of night, Xia Yunyi couldn't help but doubt himself, wondering if he would ever have another chance like this in his life...

The rest of the people present were all intelligent people carefully selected by Zhang Pu. At this point, who could not see the key hidden in the matter?
In the end, it was the outspoken Zhang Cai who revealed the secret.

"The number of places available for the provincial and metropolitan examinations is far from keeping up with the population growth!"

He paused, his voice unconsciously rising in pitch, trembling slightly.

"There are not too many scholars and officials in this world... but rather, there are too few!"

The pavilion was deathly silent.

The sounds of birdsong, the lapping of the lake against the shore, and the heavy breathing of the crowd mingled together.

Everyone stared at each other, their gazes burning, wanting to say something, yet unable to utter a single word.

An incredibly tempting yet incredibly dangerous idea was growing wildly in everyone's mind.

In the end, Xia Yunyi, who had failed the imperial examinations three times, spoke first with a trembling voice: "Then...then should we...submit a memorial to the emperor?"

"We must submit a memorial! We definitely must submit a memorial!" Zhang Cai nodded immediately, but then shook his head. "But not now. This alone is too weak."

He turned to Shi Kefa and said urgently, "Brother Xianzhi, the 'Preface to the Provincial Examinations' records the number of successful candidates from each province over the years. If this can be added, the data will be more detailed. I brought this book to the capital and will send it to you later!"

Zhang Pu pondered for a moment, then slowly shook his head.

"No, that's still not enough."

"With rampant corruption among officials and a depleted treasury, where would the court find the funds to allocate for increasing the number of official positions?"

"Besides, who can guarantee that having more officials is necessarily a good thing? At the beginning of our dynasty, we learned from the lessons of the excessive number of officials in the former Song dynasty!"

"To increase the number of officials, we must first address the problems of bureaucracy, then the problems of finance and taxation, and finally, we must find a way to solve the problem of redundant officials. Which of these three mountains is so easy to move?"

His words left everyone speechless.

Indeed, the problem of excessive officials disturbing the people and the drawbacks of redundant officials have always been a common opinion among scholars and are considered politically correct.

Xia Yunyi's newly ignited hope was instantly extinguished, and he said regretfully, "Then... is this matter just going to be left like this?"

Zhang Pu looked at the different expressions on everyone's faces—some were thoughtful, some regretful, and some, like Zhang Mingzhen and Li Ruolian, were nervous, holding their breath and not daring to speak.

In his heart, however, a flame was burning fiercely.

The united will is usable!

Such a momentous event, such a crucial time, is the perfect opportunity for me, Zhang Pu, to rise to power!
His mind raced, and he had already made up his mind; he was about to speak.

Shi Kefa, however, spoke first, passionately declaring, "Why not submit a memorial?!"

"With more people, there must be more land; this is the strategy of conquest!"

"With more people, there should also be more officials; this is the principle of good upbringing!"

"Since the principle is correct, why should we worry too much? We scholars study the classics, what are we learning? Isn't it to act in accordance with reason?"

His words reignited the enthusiasm of the crowd.

"Absolutely! Absolutely!" Xia Yunyi echoed excitedly, "Just act according to reason! Xianzhi, I am willing to co-sign this with you!"

"I do too!"

"Count me in!"

Everyone responded enthusiastically, and the atmosphere, which had just calmed down, became enthusiastic again.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Pu thought to himself, "This is bad," and quickly spoke up.

"Please calm down, everyone! Please calm down!"

He raised his hand, made a few light taps, and waited until everyone quieted down before slowly saying, "I'm not saying that we shouldn't submit memorials. It's just..."

He changed the subject.

"Those who aspire to great things do not contend for the benefits of a small corner, but rather for the overall situation. If one submits a memorial merely to gain an additional official position, it is for personal gain, not for the public good, and will surely become the target of public criticism!"

These words, like a morning bell and evening drum, calmed everyone down.

Yes, if they only talk about increasing official positions without offering solutions, how are they any different from a group of greedy people who are eager for official positions?
Zhang Cai was the most anxious and asked, "Then what do you plan to do?!"

Zhang Pu smiled slightly and said confidently, "If we are to submit a memorial, we cannot just answer the questions about officials, but must also answer His Majesty's 'questions of the times'!"

"In the past, there were the 'Five Masters of Governance,' who wrote the 'First Great Essay on Governance in Ancient and Modern Times,' which set the standard for the world."

"Why can't we, the later generations, emulate them and write a magnificent essay to answer the questions of the world?!"

He looked around at the crowd, his voice filled with a seductive power.

"At that time, we will jointly sign this document and present it to His Majesty. The matter of increasing official rank is merely one of the many countermeasures outlined in the document!"

"If His Majesty is furious because of this, we can take the blame with other strategies, which will not show that our motives are impure."

"If Your Majesty is pleased with the other proposals, then the policy of supplementing officials will seem even more logical and timely!"

As he watched the crowd's eyes grow brighter and brighter, he finally revealed his ultimate goal.

"There are still nearly six months until next year's imperial examination. Gentlemen, are you willing to join me, Zhang Pu, in this grand undertaking and accomplish this great task?"

"Count me in!"

"I am one too!"

The group exchanged glances, and without further hesitation, raised their right hands.

Zhang Pu nodded in satisfaction, then looked at Li Ruolian and Zhang Mingzhen: "Gentlemen, the strategy of conquest and expansion still needs the insight of you two military officers, and you should also participate."

Li Ruolian and Zhang Mingzhen exchanged a glance, their blood boiling, and they also raised their right hands heavily.

Seeing that he had finally turned the situation around, Zhang Pu secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

He cleared his throat and said, "Alright! Then let's discuss how to divide the work for this great piece of writing. Everyone, please share your thoughts on how to interpret the question about people and place."

Li Ruolian was the first to speak: "I can lead the campaign against Liaodong. The Complete Records of Liaodong contains information on the amount of land in Liaodong. I can go and calculate how much land can be used to support the people after the Liaodong rebellion is quelled."

Zhang Mingzhen followed up: "Going south from Jiangnan, there is a large island called Dongfan. I have relatives who have traveled there by boat. You can write to them and ask how much land the island has and how many people it can accommodate."

Shi Kefa said, “I will make up for the number of provincial examinations later. In addition, I am from Henan, where much land is abandoned. In fact, there is more land than people. If you want to talk about the strategies for utilizing the land resources of the Central Plains, I can lead the discussion.”

Xia Yunyi said, "The late Vice Minister of Rites, Xuanhu, tried planting sweet potatoes in Huating and did various things to increase production. He wrote a book about various methods to increase production and farmland. I have read it and know a little about it. I can take charge of increasing farmland production!"

The remaining people also spoke up.

Xu Qia said, “If you want to acquire land, besides expanding outwards, there is also space in the corners of the Central Plains. In ancient times, Jiangnan was nothing but a wild and uncivilized land, but now it has become a land of fish and rice. Perhaps the same can be done in Yunnan and Guizhou. I can go and find some scholars from Yunnan and Guizhou to ask them how this can be done!”

Zhang Pu nodded and said, “I will go with you on the search. We can take this opportunity to find out the land and population situation in the hometowns of scholars from all over the country who have come to the capital, and see where there are many people and little land, and where there are few people and much land.”

Zhang Cai said, "Then I will go and take charge of the affairs in the Northwest. Vice Minister Sun said that if chaos were to break out in the world, it would surely begin in Shaanxi. I will go and find some scholars from Shaanxi in the capital to find out the truth!"

All eyes immediately turned to Jiang Can at the end.

He remained calm and, after a moment's consideration, said, "My father once served as a county magistrate in Fujian and has some knowledge of the countries in the southeast. I will take charge of the affairs in the southeast."

"Excellent, excellent!" Zhang Pu clapped his hands, full of vigor. "From now on, we will meet every ten days to exchange information. If any of you have any urgent matters to attend to, you can come to the Suzhou Guild Hall to find me!"

At this moment, Shi Kefa suddenly laughed and said, "Let's talk about this in ten days! Now, I'd like to ask you all to judge whether this chart of mine can be exchanged for a few drinks!"

Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter and exclaimed in unison, "We deserve a big toast!"

With the division of labor settled, everyone was filled with pride and no longer held back. They gradually became unrestrained and threw all rules and regulations to the winds.

As they drank one cup of wine after another, the conversation gradually shifted from land, officialdom, and the imperial examinations to conquest and expansion.

One said he would lead an army of 100,000 to wipe out the Jurchens; another said he would drink from the Western Sea and reclaim the Hetao region.

Even more extreme, when Shi Kefa was drunk and half-mad, he shouted that he wanted to annex Dali.

This caused everyone to burst into laughter, saying that the Dali Yuan Dynasty had already fallen, and Brother Xianzhi should wake up.

In the midst of their revelry and conviviality, Zhang Cai, in high spirits, simply removed his shirt, revealing his bare arms. He picked up two bamboo chopsticks, tapped them against the stone railing of the pavilion, and began to sing loudly:

"My hair stands on end in anger, as I lean against the railing, the rain has just stopped..."

At first, he was the only one singing, and his voice sounded somewhat out of place amidst the noise.

But after only two lines, Zhang Pu joined in the chorus, followed by Xia Yunyi, Jiang Can… Finally, the entire assembly of scholars, some banging on tables, others shaking their wine bowls, mingled together in accents from all corners of the country:
"Thirty years of fame are but dust, eight thousand miles of journey are but clouds and moon. Don't wait till your hair turns grey and you are filled with regret!"

"The shame of Jingkang remains unavenged. The hatred of the subjects, when will it end! I will drive my chariot, and shatter the Helan Mountains. With lofty ambition, I will feast on the flesh of the barbarians when hungry, and laughingly drink their blood when thirsty. I will wait to start anew, to reclaim our lost lands, and return to the imperial palace!"

The stirring song echoed across the lakeside, startling the roosting birds into flight, and its sound carried far and wide.

The singing even drifted into the nearby Tsinghua University campus, immediately causing several nobles to frown.

Li Guorui, son of the Marquis of Wuqing, turned to look at the steward:

"Go and see where this bird came from, disturbing our peace and quiet!"

(End of this chapter)