Hot flashes

Some people were stunned, some people's faces changed, and some people looked at Zhou Heng in disbelief, as if they were looking at a madman.

"The imperial examination?" someone murmured. "Not considering family background? Only talent and learning? What about the sons of aristocratic families?"

Zhou Heng looked at him.

"Children of prominent families can also take the exam," he said. "If they pass, they become officials. If they don't, they go back to school, just like everyone else."

The man opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a word.

Shen Yu finally moved.

He turned his head and looked at Zhou Heng. Something was churning in his eyes.

"Lord Zhou," he said, "the imperial examination system for selecting officials is unprecedented. Do you know how many things will need to be changed?"

Zhou Heng met his gaze.

"I know," he said.

Shen Yu remained silent.

Zhou Heng looked at him.

"Prime Minister Shen," he said, "you asked me, 'When the powerful families fall, who will the common people rely on?' Now I will answer you."

He paused.

"Rely on the imperial court. Rely on an imperial court that does not discriminate based on social status but only on talent and learning. Rely on an imperial court that allows those from humble backgrounds to enter with dignity."

The hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Xiao Jue sat on the throne, looking at Zhou Heng with a deep gaze.

Then he looked at everyone in the hall.

"What do you all think?"

No one speaks.

Xiao Jue waited for a while.

"Since no one is speaking," he said, "let's discuss it for now. The imperial examinations can't be decided in a day. Zhou Heng, write down your thoughts in a memorial and submit it."

Zhou Heng kowtowed.

"I obey your decree."

After the court session ended, Zhou Heng was blocked outside the palace.

A dozen or so people surrounded him, some questioning him, some offering advice, some making sarcastic remarks, and some speaking in a sarcastic tone. Zhou Heng stood there, listening to them all, without refuting them.

After most of the people had left, he noticed Shen Yu standing under the eaves, looking at him.

Zhou Heng walked over.

The two looked at each other, neither of them speaking.

After a long while, Shen Yu spoke.

"Lord Zhou," he said, "do you know what you just did?"

Zhou Heng nodded.

"I know."

Shen Yu looked at him with a complicated expression.

"The imperial examination system," he said, "severed the roots of aristocratic families."

Zhou Heng remained silent.

Shen Yu stared at him for a long time.

Then he turned and left.

He took a few steps and then stopped.

"Lord Zhou," he said, "take care."

he's gone.

Zhou Heng stood there, watching the figure disappear at the end of the corridor.

On the third day of the eighth lunar month, Zhou Heng submitted his memorial.

The document is short, just over three thousand characters long, but it clearly outlines the procedures for selecting officials through the imperial examinations—the division of subjects, the setting of questions, the examination venue, the grading of papers, and the admission of candidates, each with its own basis.

The document concluded with the sentence: "If this law is implemented, after three years, children from humble backgrounds will be able to enter the imperial court, and children from noble families will face no obstacles. Talent will be the sole criterion for advancement, and the world will be served for all."

Xiao Jue read it and wrote three words: "Discuss politics."

The discussion of politics was to entrust the matter to the court officials.

This discussion sparked a massive uproar.

On the fifth day of the eighth lunar month, the first refutation was presented.

The person who wrote the memorial was Zhao Gong, the Vice Minister of Rites. His wording was very polite, so polite that it seemed as if he was genuinely considering the interests of the court.

He said that the imperial examination system for selecting officials was "unprecedented in history and would be difficult to implement," and that poor scholars "were born in the countryside and raised in the alleys, and did not know etiquette or laws. If they were suddenly appointed to official positions, it would probably harm the country."

Finally, he asked, "Even scions of noble families, with generations of officials and a long tradition of scholarship, must pass examinations to be granted official positions; yet scions of poor families, without any connections or background, can be ranked alongside noble families simply by passing the examinations—is this fair?"

Zhou Heng was in his office in the cabinet when he saw this sentence. He read the memorial from beginning to end, put it down, and said nothing.

Chen Jing leaned closer and whispered, "Lord Zhou, what Zhao Xun said..."

Zhou Heng shook his head.

"Don't worry about it," he said.

Chen Jing wanted to say something more, but seeing that he was unwilling to talk more, he had no choice but to leave.

But this is just the beginning.

On the seventh day of the eighth month, the second memorial was submitted. This time it was from the Censorate, surnamed Du, an old censor known for his outspokenness.

His wording was much stronger than Zhao Xun's. He directly said that the imperial examination system "disrespected aristocratic families and despised social status," and that Zhou Heng "used his humble origins to carry out policies that harmed the country, and his heart deserved to be punished."

On the ninth day of the eighth lunar month, the third, fourth, and fifth fold pleas flew into the palace like snowflakes.

Some impeached Zhou Heng, some refuted the imperial examination system, some cited classical texts to say that "ancient systems cannot be abolished," and some wept as they said that "the laws of our ancestors cannot be changed."

On August 11th, at the court assembly, someone finally confronted them directly.

It was Xu Jing, the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy.

Xu Jing, the famously kind-hearted man who never gets involved in factional struggles.

He stood on the throne, holding a scepter, his voice not loud, yet clearly reaching everyone's ears.

"I have heard that Zhou Heng proposed the imperial examination system for selecting officials, but I do not understand it. The imperial examination system does not consider family background, but only talent and learning—may I ask you, Lord Zhou, what exactly constitutes talent and learning?"

Zhou Heng stepped forward and looked at him.

"A talented scholar is well-versed in classics and history, understands principles, is skilled in writing, and has insightful views."

Xu Jing nodded.

"Very well. Well-versed in classics and history, insightful, capable in writing, and discerning. Then, I shall ask you, Lord Zhou, where do you acquire these abilities?"

Zhou Heng remained silent.

Xu Jing answered for him: "It comes from books. It comes from teachers. It comes from the accumulated education over time."

He paused.

"But where do books come from? Where do teachers come from? Where do upbringing come from?"

He turned around and looked at everyone in the hall.

"Books are collected by aristocratic families. Teachers are hired by aristocratic families. Education is passed down by aristocratic families. Children from poor families can't even get enough to eat, so where do they get books to read? Where do they get teachers to teach them? Where do they get education to pass on?"

The hall fell silent for a moment.

Xu Jing continued, "Lord Zhou said that only talent should be promoted, and the world should be for all. But those poor students have no chance to show their 'talent' at all. They toil in the fields from a young age, and work in the fields as adults. They've never been to school or even touched a book—what are they supposed to use to pass the exams, Lord Zhou?"

Zhou Heng spoke.

"Master Xu," he said, "I know all that you're saying."

Xu Jing was taken aback.

Zhou Heng continued, "Children from poor families have no books to read, no teachers to instruct them, and no upbringing to pass on. But why is that?"

He paused.

"It's because the books were hidden away by the aristocratic families. The teachers were invited away by the aristocratic families. Education was monopolized by the aristocratic families. Children from poor families are not born to toil in the fields for a living; they simply don't have the opportunity."

His voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear.

"What the imperial examination system should do is give them this opportunity."

Xu Jing's expression changed slightly.

Zhou Heng looked at him.

"Master Xu, you just said that children from poor families have no opportunities. But have you ever considered who took those opportunities away?"

The hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Xu Jing opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.

Xiao Jue sat on the throne and finally spoke.

That's enough.

Two words, and the court fell silent.

Xiao Jue's gaze swept across the faces of those people one by one.

"The matter of the imperial examinations cannot be decided in a day. If we are going to discuss it, let's discuss it properly. No more impeachment memorials are allowed."

He paused.

"Anyone who submits another document will be sent to the place where apologies are submitted."

No one dared to speak again.