[Lightscreen]
[The number of key officials who entered office through recommendation was roughly equal to that of the military merit nobles.
Considering that the Hu Weiyong Case erupted in the thirteenth year of Hongwu, and that the imperial examinations were reopened in the sixteenth year, it can reasonably be inferred that most of the officials who entered office through recommendation did so within the first thirteen years of Hongwu.
In the middle period of the imperial era, the greatest difference between recommendation and the imperial examination was that the power of recommendation lay in the hands of the central administration rather than the emperor, and the administrative affairs of the central government were coordinated by the chancellor.
In simple terms, beginning in the sixth year of Hongwu, the person who could determine an official's future was the chancellor rather than the emperor. Within the Central Secretariat, where the Left and Right Chancellors were supposed to check each other, Wang Guangyang had already been sent away by Old Zhu.
The objective result was that from the sixth year of Hongwu onward, Hu Weiyong ruled alone. Judging from the data above, Little Hu also did not hesitate to use his authority to promote a new interest group whose numbers were almost equal to those of the meritorious nobles.
Under such circumstances, if Little Hu did not attempt something, that would have been the truly strange thing. And thus the Hu Weiyong Case eventually came to pass.
As for why the imperial examination system finally returned in the sixteenth year of Hongwu, the reason was not only Hu Weiyong's downfall. Another factor was that Zhu Yuanzhang finally came to clearly understand the distinction between officials and clerks. This point was stated plainly in the opening words of the palace examination in the eighteenth year of Hongwu:
"If those with ability are entrusted with matters close to the heart, they may outwardly comply yet harbor strange intentions. If those with virtue are granted rank and stipend, they may accomplish nothing. If one cannot restrain oneself, what remedy remains if matters continue thus?"
Between the two results of "strange intentions" and "accomplishing nothing," Old Zhu ultimately made clear his standard for employing men, which was "self-restraint."
In other words, Old Zhu had finally stopped expecting the jinshi to possess the talents to govern the state and secure the realm. If they at least understood moral shame and could restrain themselves, that would already be a blessing for the Great Ming.]
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Inside Huagai Hall, Zhu Biao felt somewhat confused.
Turning his head, he saw that his mother remained silent. The fourth brother hiding behind her had his brows twisted into a tight knot. The fifth brother had not even lifted his head. As for the second, third, and sixth brothers, their eyes were filled with nothing but innocent bewilderment.
Thus Zhu Biao, still puzzled by the words on the light screen, looked toward the present Emperor of the Great Ming.
The anger that had been on his father's face earlier had faded, replaced by a trace of contemplation. His brows were not knotted like those of the fourth prince. Instead there seemed to be a hint of sudden understanding.
"What, confused?" Zhu Yuanzhang asked with a teasing smile as he looked at his eldest son.
"Your son…" Zhu Biao hesitated.
As crown prince, the education he had received could be described as the most attentive care possible. In matters of learning, every one of his teachers had been a great scholar of the age.
He had recited the Confucian classics, studied Neo-Confucian teachings to understand principle, taken the ancient sages as his models, and followed the example of benevolent men and men of resolve.
Yet the meaning of official service taught to him in those texts was entirely different from what the light screen now described.
At this moment the ruler and ministers in Huagai Hall were all properly seated. Zhu Biao's chair, as crown prince, was placed close beside Zhu Yuanzhang's. The Ming emperor simply turned his body slightly and said:
"Biao'er, do you know Zhang Hengqu?"
Zhu Biao nodded and answered honestly.
"Master Hengqu's four sentences are brief in wording yet vast in meaning. They express what ought to be sought for ten thousand generations."
Zhu Yuanzhang sighed softly and nodded.
"What ought to be sought for ten thousand generations, yet unable to govern even one place in the present age."
The words sounded somewhat harsh. But Zhu Biao knew his father clearly had more to say, so he did not argue and simply leaned forward to listen.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Yuanzhang laughed first.
"These later generations judge how I acted and what kind of man I was by looking at past events. Even if they are correct only half the time, to think that such words are displayed on the light screen before the ancient worthy rulers…"
He did not finish the sentence. But Zhu Biao could guess that whatever followed would not have been pleasant. So he quickly spoke to comfort him.
"Father, the matter concerning Hu that the light screen speaks of was last year's case. Now it is the beginning of the fourteenth year. Once that case has passed and the matters it mentions are presented again, they will all be things the Great Ming can foresee. They will all be things father has not yet done. Naturally the present situation need not repeat itself."
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded, and his expression relaxed somewhat.
"Let us return to Zhang Hengqu. What that young fellow says is not wrong. This is the first time your father has been emperor, yet I cannot behave like the debauched rulers of the Mongol Yuan. So I could only figure things out myself."
"When the examinations were first opened, I thought perhaps I might select a Zhuge Wuhou from among the policy essays. But after choosing the jinshi, I finally understood why it is said that in a thousand years none could equal Zhuge Wuhou."
"Since there was no Zhuge Wuhou, I still hoped that men like Wei Zheng, Chu Suiliang, or Ma Zhou might at least be found after some searching. Yet there were none either."
As he spoke, Zhu Biao saw his father clap his hands and spread them apart. Though he was smiling, there was a trace of loneliness on his face.
"None at all. So your father no longer sought worthy assistants. If someone understood reason, knew righteousness, was loyal to the ruler, and served the people, I would certainly employ him heavily. But then it turned out that those who understood matters did not know loyalty to the ruler and service to the people, while those who were loyal and upright did not know how to handle affairs."
"Now it seems that even what your father asked for was too much. If those selected can simply be loyal to the court, and toward the people neither care nor cause harm, that is already enough."
Listening to this, Zhu Biao felt that his father had begun to suffer from the same problem as the young man on the light screen. He had said they would speak of Master Hengqu, yet he had named a whole series of worthy ministers from the Han and Tang.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Yuanzhang changed the topic again.
"Thus, looking again now, even Master Zhang Hengqu's four sentences are beyond what your father dares to hope for. If someday scholars truly restrain themselves according to those words… perhaps… the world will belong to the public, not to me."
To Zhu Biao, his father's words carried too much pessimism. He frowned slightly and advised:
"Father, the Mongol Yuan still exists, and the restoration of China has not yet reached twenty years. The Way of culture was long neglected and the hearts of men are not as they were of old. Wicked doctrines nourish treacherous men, all because the civil way has not flourished."
"Now the civil way is only beginning to rise. If it continues without interruption, even the stubborn can be transformed. Once those who grow up under the cultural wind of the Great Ming become numerous, they will sweep away corruption and reveal the proper Way, just as the later generations hope."
Hearing this, the Ming emperor glared at him.
"Is that not simply the six words 'promote civil governance and spread education'? Why say it in such a complicated way?"
Zhu Biao rolled his eyes and could not be bothered to care about his father's slightly wounded pride. Instead he continued:
"Then, father, those men promoted by Hu Weiyong…"
At this point Zhu Yuanzhang hesitated.
Among everything the light screen had said earlier, what pleased him most was the idea that an emperor should not expect his ministers to be grateful for imperial favor. As long as they did not feel gratitude toward anyone else, that alone would already be enough.
After the Hu Weiyong affair began last year, although many people were implicated, the higher their positions, the more carefully their cases had to be examined.
The result was that among those currently handling affairs in the Six Ministries, many had risen between the sixth and twelfth years of Hongwu.
Among them, were there any who secretly remembered Hu Weiyong's favor? No one knew.
Were there any who had formed hidden factions because they had been recommended by Hu Weiyong? No one knew either.
Thinking of this, Zhu Yuanzhang felt somewhat discouraged. In the end he turned his gaze back to his eldest son.
Though his father said nothing, Zhu Biao understood immediately.
"Your son can handle the matter of reopening the imperial examinations. However, such a matter must ultimately be proclaimed to the realm. That cannot be done without father."
These words made Zhu Yuanzhang laugh at once. Yet he soon muttered under his breath:
"Biao'er drafting the edict would not be impossible…"