Volume 2: Soaring! The Overlord of the Region Chapter 391: Candidates from Guangdong
The time came to 1619, and the Ming Dynasty officially changed its era name to Tianqi in this year.
On the sixth day of the first lunar month of the first year of the Tianqi reign, the air in Beijing was still filled with the flavor of the New Year. However, people who had spent the previous few days at home celebrating the New Year had now left their homes. As a result, the entire city of Beijing seemed extremely noisy and bustling. In the streets and alleys, there were blessings of prosperity and New Year everywhere.
Around 11 o'clock in the morning of that day, on a street near Chaoyang Gate on the east side of the capital, a dozen young men dressed in scholar's clothes were walking together.
Among the two leading scholars, one had fair complexion, delicate features, and a light-colored beard. The other had a dark complexion, prominent cheekbones, and a sunken nose, which made his nostrils look like they were pointing upwards.
"This is it, my dear brothers. The Cantonese cuisine here is authentic. I ate here yesterday, and I think the roast goose and braised dishes in this restaurant really have the taste of my South Guangdong." The handsome man breathed a sigh of relief after recognizing the sign, and then called out to his companions to follow.
The dark-skinned man was also somewhat happy when he saw the store: "Hahaha, if it's true as Brother Yuansu said, then we're in for a treat! Oh. Although the sea routes are now open, it only takes more than half a month to get from Guangzhou to Tianjin Port by boat. But here in the capital, there's really nothing to eat. My mouth is almost bland."
"Hahaha, what Brother Jisheng said really speaks for what we are thinking."
As this group of people walked along the way, they spoke various vernacular dialects as well as Mandarin with a distinct Cantonese accent, which made the well-informed people in the capital recognize that these were the candidates who were taking part in the imperial examination of the Guangdong Provincial Government this year.
The two leading candidates in this group, the one called Jisheng, was Chen Zizhuang, the champion of the Guangdong provincial examination last year, who was only 23 years old this year. The one called Yuansuxiong was Yuan Chonghuan, who was already 35 years old this year.
There is no doubt that the two of them were able to become the leaders of the Guangdong candidates. The former was naturally because of his academic status, and the latter, well, was mainly because of his age.
Generally speaking, there is a feeling among friends at daily gatherings: the person whose workplace is farthest from the gathering place is often the first to arrive. The person who lives closer to the gathering place arrives later. This common sense is also reflected in the time when scholars from all over the country arrive in Beijing - it is only the beginning of the first lunar month, and there is still nearly a month before the start of the imperial examination, but most of the scholars from Guangdong Province have already arrived.
"Hey, dear guests, judging from your accents, are you from Guangdong? Our restaurant's Cantonese cuisine is the most authentic. Please come in quickly."
"Haha, Xiao Er brother, if you dare to hang a plaque saying 'Authentic Nanyue', you have to show some real stuff. Otherwise, we Cantonese people won't recognize it."
"Of course, of course. Please take a seat, gentlemen. How about Chaozhou stewed dishes first? Then, roast goose or Feichatian duck?"
"Let's have roast goose, and a grouper. Well, the weather is very cold, let's have some hot pot with beef meatballs and lettuce."
"Okay, dear guests, it's fortunate that the weather has been cold recently, so the grouper can be preserved. In summer, we have less fish and seafood. Well, what else do you want to order? We have Shunde red rice wine, Meixian pearl red, and Foshan jade iced wine."
"Oh, we have all of these. Your store is truly amazing. I'll give you a pound each of red rice wine and jade iced soy sauce. We'll talk later if you're not satisfied."
"Okay, please wait a moment, dear guests. The hot dishes will be served soon, and the cold dishes and drinks will be here soon!"
Soon, all kinds of dishes and drinks were served. The Guangdong scholars finally had authentic hometown dishes thousands of miles away in the capital. For a moment, they couldn't help but feel happy and ate with relish.
After filling their stomachs and drinking three rounds of wine, everyone started talking.
"Brother Yuan Yuan, how did you find this store?"
"Oh, didn't His Royal Highness the Prince of Gui organize a poetry gathering yesterday? In such a cold day, is it possible to go outing in the wild? So it was held in the Prince of Gui's Mansion. When it was time to eat, His Royal Highness heard that I was from Guangdong, so he specially sent someone to order a Cantonese dish. When I tasted it, I was surprised that it tasted so authentic. So naturally I had to ask about it."
"Oh, I see. Today we have this good fortune, all thanks to Brother Yuan Yuan."
"Brother Yuansuan's contribution to the guidance is self-evident. I think His Royal Highness Prince Gui's courtesy to the wise is really admirable. Tsk, tsk, tsk, he even ordered a Cantonese dish just for Brother Yuansuan. This prince really deserves to be called a wise king!"
"Brother Yuansu, where will His Royal Highness Prince Gui's fiefdom be in the future?"
Hearing this question, Yuan Chonghuan gave an unfathomable smile.
Nowadays, the Zhou Fan and Tang Fan followed Zhou's example of enfeoffment in the Indochina Peninsula. With the publicity of the six major newspapers, at least among the scholars in the country, it has spread. Although limited by Zhu Youdong's order, the two vassals cannot openly advertise in newspapers to recruit scholars to work in the Zhou Kingdom and Tang Kingdom in the south. But the circle of scholars is so small, and the news spread quickly.
The policy of Zhou State is the best now: Juren who have never officially served in the court. And Jinshi and Juren who have retired for five years. Anyone who is willing to work in Zhou State can start as a prefect of a county. And how many prefecture positions are there in Zhou State? Only fifteen. What if there are really talented people? His Royal Highness the King of Zhou said that the positions of the chief historian of the kingdom and the six ministers are all vacant! Even those scholars who have not been promoted for many years can go to Zhou State and be county magistrates, censors of education, etc., and they can choose any position!
What about the Tang Dynasty? It was a little more reserved, and there was also a test for the crown prince. But basically, if a scholar went there, he could become an official to some extent. If a juren went there, he could at least become a county magistrate.
In addition to Zhou Fan and Tang Fan, there are now Fu Fan and Gui Fan who are also working hard to win over scholars from all over the country - everyone is not a fool, there is no doubt that after Japan is defeated, these two will most likely go there to establish a country (the scholars do not know that Zhu Youdong has already included southern Korea in the new fiefdom).
Originally, the Tang and Zhou kingdoms, which were founded in the Indochina Peninsula, were not very popular among the scholars of the Ming Dynasty: "Southern is the southernmost!" Didn't you hear about Prime Minister Zhuge's expedition to Nanzhong in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms? It was simply a desolate place, filled with miasma and various plagues. Who would be willing to go there if they had a choice?
It is worth considering Fukuhan and Katsura, two vassal states that will be established in Japan in the future: It is said that Japan has admired Chinese culture since the Sui and Tang dynasties. When Taizu of this dynasty founded the country, many rare Tang and Song dynasty books were returned to China from Japan. The climate and culture there are closer to China than the barbarians in the Indochina Peninsula. Therefore, if you really want to seek an official position in a foreign vassal state, Fukuhan and Katsura are the first choice.
Yuan Chonghuan was 35 years old this year. Although he always boasted a lot, he knew in his heart that it was difficult for him to pass the imperial examination. Even if he passed, he would probably only be a third-class Jinshi. At such an old age, a third-class Jinshi, plus there was no such thing as the Guangdong Party in the court, so his future career would probably end at the fifth rank, right?
Therefore, while taking the imperial examination, should we also appropriately consider the Fu and Gui clans?
However, after arriving in the capital, he discovered that compared with the Zhou and Tang vassals, the Fu vassal state had completely different policies: Prince Fu was in Luoyang, Concubine Zheng and Zheng's relatives were in the capital, and they did not neglect scholars. In addition to scholars, they also vigorously recruited all kinds of skilled craftsmen, experienced officials, retired veterans, and even accountants from various shops - this made Yuan Chonghuan uncomfortable.
So, when Prince Fu's uncle Zheng Guotai called for a gathering of scholars from all over the country to come to Beijing a few days ago, he did not go. But when the Gui clan invited many scholars from Guangdong Province to attend this time, he took the initiative to go when many scholars were still hesitating.
After he arrived, he was very satisfied with His Royal Highness the Prince of Gui's courtesy to the wise and virtuous: he was the only Cantonese scholar in the room. When His Royal Highness the Prince of Gui knew about it, he immediately sent someone to order a Cantonese meal - which scholar doesn't want his talent to be appreciated by the superior? Which scholar doesn't want to be treated like the three visits to the thatched cottage? And His Royal Highness the Prince of Gui really treated him like a pusher, right?
