Ming Dynasty 1627

Chapter 65 No one can touch my great sword!

Inside the main room, a young eunuch had already served tea.

Zhu Youjian picked up the teacup and took a small sip.

Gao Shiming hurried in and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, the exam papers have been distributed."

"Hmm," Zhu Youjian responded, then asked, "What do they teach every day in the Inner Academy?"

Gao Shiming quickly replied:
"Your Majesty, the younger ones should first learn some 'Hundred Family Surnames' and 'Thousand Character Classic' as their enlightenment."

"After their initial education, they will study the Four Books, including the Great Learning and the Analects. They will also learn some poems from the Thousand Family Poems and the Prodigy Poems."

"Once you have mastered the basics, you will be taught some practical skills in the various palace offices, which is called 'judging and imitating'."

"In addition, the 'Record of Loyalty and Mirror' and the 'Inner Decree' must be recited aloud and kept in mind."

Zhu Youjian was somewhat surprised upon hearing this: "Does not teaching any skills count?"

"Your Majesty, we will teach some simple addition and subtraction, and we will also teach you to memorize the multiplication table, but the more advanced ones will not be taught in the regular lessons. If you have the capacity, you may study them on your own."

Zhu Youjian nodded and breathed a sigh of relief.

It seems the math problem I set for myself last night wasn't too difficult.

After all, classic problems like "boiling and releasing water at the same time" and "I and Xiaoming walking towards each other" were not included.

He tapped his fingers lightly on the table, but something else came to mind.

When he was looking through the list of dismissed officials from Tianqi Portal yesterday, he actually saw two familiar names—Hou Ke and Ding Qianxue.

It was the young eunuch Ma Wenke who mentioned him as Wei Zhongxian's tutor in the Inner Academy, after he was ordered to commit suicide on the day he ascended the throne.

He then looked up the corresponding version and realized that he had misheard the name that day.

It was Hou Ke, not "Hou Ke". More importantly, this Mr. Hou Ke was actually the younger brother of Hou Xun of the Donglin Party.

Thinking of this, Zhu Youjian scanned the room and suddenly realized something was wrong.

"Why are the scholars from the Hanlin Academy not present today?"

Gao Shiming hesitated for a moment, but still replied seriously:

"Your Majesty, in fact, there are no more scholars of poetry in the Imperial Academy."

Zhu Youjian's fingers, which were tapping the table, stopped.

He raised his head and stared sharply at Gao Shiming.

"I remember that the Inner Academy usually has four to six Hanlin lecturers who take turns teaching. Why do you say there are no Hanlin scholars?"

Gao Shiming cupped his hands in reply:
“Since the reign of Emperor Taichang, the teachers of the Inner Academy have either sought other positions or been dismissed from their posts and left idle. Despite the additions and subtractions, the number is always insufficient.”

"Since the beginning of August this year, when the last teacher, Yang Shifang, was dismissed from his post, the Inner Study Hall... has been without a teacher."

"At that time, the late emperor was seriously ill, so the matter of appointing a replacement teacher was delayed."

Zhu Youjian raised an eyebrow, feeling increasingly uneasy.

According to the original host's memories, there were always two hundred eunuchs reading in the Inner Study Hall.

If there are vacancies in the twelve directorates, four departments, and eight bureaus of the palace, outstanding graduates from the Inner Academy will be selected first.

Even if some "senior eunuchs" were illiterate, they would have to come to the Inner Study Hall for further study before they could be promoted.

In a sense, the Inner Study Hall was like the "Whampoa Military Academy" of the inner court.

How could such an important place have fallen to the point where there is only one lecturer left, or even no lecturer at all now?

Zhu Youjian looked at Gao Shiming, but saw him standing there with his head down, not saying a word.

Suddenly, two sentences from the many manuscripts I read yesterday flashed into my mind.

“Shen once taught at the Inner Study Hall, and both Jinzhong and Liu Chao treated him with the respect due to a disciple.”

"As a result, Vice Censor-in-Chief Yang Lian was furious and submitted a memorial. Zhongxian was afraid and asked Han Kuang for a solution, but Han Kuang did not respond."

Jinzhong—Isn't Li Jinzhong the same name Wei Zhongxian used during the Wanli era?
Now I understand!
Gao Shiming was a student in the Imperial Academy in the 26th year of the Wanli reign. His teachers in that class included Han Kuang and Shen.

What Gao Shiming didn't mention was that Wei Zhongxian was also a "transfer student" in his class or in the period before or after.

This is why there is the saying that "Jin Zhong" and Liu Chao both treated him with the respect due to a disciple.

Later, Shen became the founding leader of the eunuch faction, while Han Kuang became the leader of the Donglin Party.

What does this mean?
The Inner Study Hall is a crucial location within the passageway connecting the inner and outer courts. A single piece of evidence is insufficient; further verification is necessary.

Thinking of this, he asked directly, "Are there any precedents of someone who became a cabinet minister after studying at the Imperial Academy?"

—Your Majesty is indeed meticulous and perceptive.

Gao Shiming sighed inwardly, but since he didn't want to hide it anyway, he spoke frankly:
"Your Majesty, the Hanlin scholars selected by the Inner Study are all the best of the best, and most of them are editors or probationary officials. Therefore, many of them will enter the cabinet in the future."

"Such were Wang Jiaping, Zhao Zhigao, and Shen Li during the Wanli era, but the most famous one should be Xu Jie, the Grand Secretary."

Gao Shiming omitted some details, believing that the emperor would be able to appreciate the meaning behind it himself.

He thought for a moment, then added:
"In fact, among the Hanlin scholars throughout history, there were those who avoided mentioning eunuchs, did not want to be involved, and tried their best to leave; and there were those who devoted themselves to teaching and imparting benevolent and virtuous teachings."

Zhu Youjian nodded, thinking to himself that he had just realized it.

In ancient times, among personal relationships, those between teachers and students were the most important, aside from blood ties.

Even when brothers have differing political views and turn against each other, it is rare to see teachers and students turn against each other.

Even when these eunuchs were to enter the palace, they had to arrange for connections like their grandfathers or uncles. How much more so would they arrange for a legitimate teacher-student relationship like that in the Inner Academy?
This is a proper gift of tuition that was presented!
So perhaps there's another possibility behind the dismissal of all the instructors over the past few years.

Wei Zhongxian was afraid that another Feng Bao would emerge, joining forces with a "Zhang Juzheng" in the outer court, which would shake his foundation.

Zhu Youjian's eyes deepened.

Furthermore, Wei Zhongxian had actually studied at the Inner Academy...

So, is he really illiterate?
Zhu Youjian recalled the day he ascended the throne and asked Wei Zhongxian to write down the list; the old man's face showed an innate honesty and simplicity.

"—This old servant is actually illiterate..."

A deep chill instantly ran down Zhu Youjian's spine.

So, was this old eunuch still pretending even when he was closest to death?

Zhu Youjian let out a long sigh of relief, putting aside for the time being this question that would never have an answer.

Now, the more important question for him is:

Should we reopen this passage between the inner and outer courts?

He quickly weighed the pros and cons in his mind.

He quickly made up his mind and decisively gave the order:
"From now on, the affairs of the Inner Study Hall shall be handled in this manner."

"Firstly, you can find some old students in the capital who have failed the imperial examinations for many years to fill the positions of calligraphy teachers, and the tuition fees should be generous."

"Secondly, all books used in the Inner Study will be punctuated from now on, so that the teacher will no longer need to punctuate them."

"Thirdly, you should go outside the palace and invite a few accountants who are skilled in arithmetic. From now on, account book clearing and practical arithmetic will also be included as regular courses in the Inner Academy."

"Fourth, from now on, the Inner Academy will hold small-scale training sessions every ten days and large-scale training sessions every month, one day apart from the training sessions of the Brave Guard Battalion. I will personally come to the large-scale training sessions."

He paused, then finally said, "As for the matter of appointing a new scholar to the Hanlin Academy... let's discuss it later."

Whether these civil officials wanted to cultivate relationships with close attendants to consolidate their power, or genuinely wanted to educate the eunuchs to mitigate their harm, it was all a matter of debate.

It doesn't matter anymore.

The eunuch must become the purest and most loyal sword in his hand—a sword that obeys only his will!

No one is allowed to get their hands on it!

　"The Record of Loyal Mirrors" is a biography of a good eunuch from a Confucian perspective.

　　The "Inner Orders" are the rules and regulations of the palace. They are called "inner" because they are managed by the empress.

　　-
　　The 99-day counter existed as early as the Qin Dynasty; please see the bonus chapter.
　　-
　　I'll include the list of lecturers from Taichang to Tianqi in the previous chapter of "The Inner Academy - The Highest Institution of Learning in the Ming Dynasty".

　　I found it quite interesting to see that all 14 of them had resigned (for various reasons).

　　The conspiracy theories in the book are just my wild guesses, without any actual evidence. Maybe if Apocalypse lived another year, he would have replaced the new people in the incarnation.

　　Furthermore, it doesn't seem very reasonable for Wei Zhongxian to be wary of eunuchs. Let's just assume the protagonist is having a brain fart and thinking the wrong thing.

　　-
　　Shen Chang taught at the Imperial Academy, and both Jin Zhong and Liu Chao treated him with the respect due to a disciple. — *Ming Ji*, Volume 50, *Xizong Ji* (Part 1)

　　Therefore, Vice Censor-in-Chief Yang Lian was furious and submitted a memorial. Wei Zhongxian was afraid and sought help from Han Kuang, but was not granted an audience. —Ming History, Volume 305. This refers to Yang Lian's attack on Wei Zhongxian with twenty-four charges. It was after this incident that the Donglin faction was purged, and Wei Zhongxian officially seized power.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)