Chapter 653 Chapter 652 Anxiety

On the second day, Wei Guangde came to the Ministry of Rites to take over official duties.

In the lobby, he casually picked up the first book on the pile of documents lying beside him, flipped through it and looked at it. Then he nodded, picked up the seal of the Ministry of Etiquette next to him and stamped it directly on it.

The document was reported from below, and the opinions of the former Zuo Chunfang Zuozhongyun Guo Xiyan and the family of Wu Yu, the head of the Ministry of Rites, on the preferential treatment given by the new dynasty have been verified.

Guo Xiyan, courtesy name Zhongyu, was a native of Fengcheng County, Nanchang Prefecture, Jiangxi Province. In the 39th year of Jiajing's reign, he wrote a letter proposing to appoint the crown prince but disobeyed the imperial decree and was ordered to be executed by Emperor Shizong of the Ming Dynasty.

Wei Guangde was not in the capital when he was killed, but after he came back, he also learned the cause and effect. It was because of his low evaluation by the Beijing police that he resented his fellow villager Yan Song, and later wrote a big-character poster to "frame him."

But no matter what, Guo Xiyan supported King Yu's ascension to the throne, so he should be compensated according to the "Jiajing Legacy Edict" drafted by Xu Jie.

According to the court's policy, this time the local prefectures and counties investigated the situation of the Guo family to determine who in the family enjoyed the protection.

In fact, his performance had made King Yu worried for a while, and perhaps it was because of this that he was deeply impressed.

Shortly after Emperor Longqing ascended the throne, he was posthumously named Shaoqing of Guanglu Temple.

The Guo family reported that Guo Xiyan's son Guo Yu, in accordance with the rules previously set by the court, had his son Guo Yu as the son of the country.

Wu Yu, the head of the Ministry of Rites, had an earlier incident. He was fighting for the title of Shizong's father in the early Jiajing period and died under the imperial staff.

As for whether Wu Yu should receive preferential treatment, there was a dispute in the Ministry of Rites last year. After all, it involved a dispute over the "national foundation". In the end, it was approved by Emperor Longqing.

After all, it was the title given to Emperor Longqing's grandfather. Most officials in the Ministry of Rites did not support the preferential treatment of Wu Yu, fearing that it would cause the emperor's dissatisfaction.

However, although Wu Yu also received preferential treatment, his conviction was not overturned, and naturally he was not pursued.

According to Emperor Longqing's comments, "Although Yu was guilty, he did not deserve to die under the imperial staff."

These were actually decided before Wei Guangde came to the Ministry of Rites, but each family needed to confirm who would enter the Imperial Academy, which was considered half-foot in officialdom.

Naturally, Wei Guangde didn't bother to take care of what was decided. He just stamped it and sent it, and someone sent a reply to let the two of them go to jail.

After that, Wei Guangde continued to process the documents left over from the past two days.

Time flies, and a few days pass. Emperor Longqing returns to the capital. Officials in the capital, led by Li Chunfang, greet him and the capital returns to its original appearance.

After Wei Guangde was in the Ministry of Rites, he was naturally responsible for the subsequent palace examinations.

But there are rules, and Wei Guangde doesn't want to ask too many questions. He just needs to nod his approval when he submits the report.

"Master, there is news from the Ministry of War about the general named Li Chengliang you asked me to pay attention to."

On this day, Wei Guangde was reading official documents in the duty room. Lu Bu came in and reported in a low voice.

"What news?"

Wei Guangde put down the documents in his hand, raised his head and asked.

"Wei Xue, the governor of Liaodong, once promoted the impeachment of Li Chengliang, the general of the Dangerous Mountains, as the deputy commander-in-chief. He was still in charge of the affairs of the generals. The commander of the army was brave enough to wear the crown, and he was arrested by the censor."

Lu Bu replied softly.

"Dai Guan? What did he do?"

Wei Guangde said strangely that although he did not know this person, the situation in Liaodong was complicated, but Wei Guangde had the impression when he read miscellaneous books in the late Ming Dynasty.

Many of those who were impeached in Liaodong were dedicated to serving the imperial court, while most of those who were promoted and made fortunes in Liaodong were officials for their families. Therefore, in the late Ming Dynasty, Liaodong was almost a team of warlords who listened to orders but not propaganda.

And Li Chengliang seems to be one of the representatives.

Wei Guangde naturally became interested in Dai Guan, who was replaced by Li Chengliang, and wanted to ask what happened.

"It seems that Governor Wei discovered that this person was secretly trading iron tools with the Jurchens, and that he was also deducting military pay."

Lu Bu only paid attention to Li Chengliang and didn't pay much attention to Dai Guan, so naturally he could only make a general statement.

When Wei Guangde heard that he was trading iron weapons, he instantly lost interest in him.

Not to mention, at this time, it was actually forbidden for those generals to trade some prohibited items with outsiders.

With such a status as military generals, most of them have little pursuits, so similar to eunuchs, most of them like yellow and white things.

Everyone likes yellow and white things, but some are found and punished, while others live a peaceful life.

It is common in border towns to use their power to divert materials and make profits.

"What does the Ministry of War mean?"

Wei Guangde asked casually.

"The Ministry of War has no objections and should report this matter soon."

Lu Bu replied.

"Well, I understand. Pay more attention to this person in the future."

Wei Guangde gave an order and then lowered his head to read the document.

Two days later, in the Huangji Hall, Emperor Longqing passed the decree and installed the prince Zhu Yijun as the crown prince. He ordered Duke Zhu Xizhong to be the chief envoy, and Xu Jie, a bachelor of Chijie, to be the deputy envoy. He held the book and paid homage to the Wenhua Hall.

In the side hall of Wenhua Hall, Wei Guangde watched Feng Bao instruct Zhu Yijun to kneel down. Xu Jie opened the book and read aloud: "The foundation of all nations belongs to Yuan Liang. The weight of the master vessel belongs to the eldest son. I respectfully honor Jing Ming." The picture of Si Fu Pi is far away from the past, and the early writings are closely related to the inheritance of the ancestors. The marriage follows the order of heaven and the official Chu Weizier. Yuanzi's daily expression is pure and the sky is unique and auspicious, and Hongzhu shines brightly. As a talisman, Yu Delong Tower promised to cooperate with the successor and leave, and it was awarded to you with a treasure to establish him as the crown prince in the East Palace."

Zhu Yijun was still young and actually didn't understand what this was doing at this time, but he also knew that what he was reading was a reward given to him by his father.

Although he was a little surprised as to why it wasn't jewelry, jade or anything fun, he still knelt down to listen and then stood up to thank him and took the treasure book handed over by Xu Jie.

But he was still a child after all, and he couldn't help but turn the treasure book over and over to play with it.

When the enthronement ceremony ended and all the officials left the Wenhua Hall, Zhu Yijun saw Wei Guangde walking out, and hurriedly ran to him and grabbed his sleeve.

When Wei Guangde bent down, he whispered to him: "Master Wei, did my father give me this thing so that I could learn to read?"

At this time, Feng Bao had caught up and wanted to take the prince away. Wei Guangde smiled at him, waved his hand, and then whispered a few words in Zhu Yijun's ear.

"Ah? Really?"

Zhu Yijun was shocked when he heard it and asked in a lost voice.

Wei Guangde smiled and nodded, pointing to the officials who were leaving in front and said: "They will accompany you."

"But I don't like them. They only teach me to do this and that, but I can't play. Only the big companion can accompany me, and he will listen to how I play."

Zhu Yijun said with some entanglement on his little face.

"Then you have to think of a way to make them all listen to you."

When Wei Guangde heard the second half of Zhu Yijun's words, he suddenly felt that Feng Bao seemed to be too indulgent to the prince.

When Zhu Yijun was lost in thought, Wei Guangde pulled Feng Bao aside and whispered: "Eunuch Feng, the prince can play as he pleases, but he should be taught some of the things in the inner study hall first, and he can't be allowed to do everything according to his wishes. It's not good to be too indulgent."

"Hey, Lord Wei, didn't you say that the prince should be allowed to play before he got married, and not to suppress him?

You don't know that the queen often comes here and punishes the prince when she sees him playing. I can only take him away from people to play happily for a while."

Wei Guangde doesn't think that a child who is only three or four years old should learn any rules. No matter how old the child is, he should play to his heart's content.

When he was in Prince Yu's mansion, Zhu Yijun, who was only two years old, was a person who couldn't sit still. He liked to run around in the mansion. You could often see Feng Bao hunched over and chasing after him.

"Is that so? Then I'll find a chance to talk to His Majesty. It's best to set a time every day for the prince to play to his heart's content. At other times, he still has to abide by the rules and can't let him develop the habit of playing away from others."

Wei Guangde thought to himself that he had to go back and talk to Emperor Longqing about this.

In fact, it would be best if his parents could play with Zhu Yijun at this time, but Emperor Longqing definitely didn't have the time. He might as well invite a few beauties over. As for Concubine Li, she had just given birth to a prince, so she probably didn't have time to care about the prince.

Seeing that most people had left, Wei Guangde said to Feng Bao again: "Eunuch Feng, you take the prince back. The prince is naughty, so you just need to pay more attention to his safety.

I still have to go back to Huangji Palace, there is an imperial decree there."

Wei Guangde hurried out of Wenhua Palace and rushed to Huangji Palace. When he was almost there, he finally caught up with others.

Today is the day for the prince to be enthroned. In addition to granting the prince the imperial seal, the "World Edict" must be issued, which is actually a notice drafted by the Hanlin Academy to inform the subjects of the world.

Kneeling in Huangji Palace, Wei Guangde heard the voice of the imperial decree being read out.

"I believe that since ancient times, emperors have served the emperor and the people and thought about the eternal plan. They all respected the establishment of a good and well-prepared successor, so as to strengthen the foundation of the country and win the hearts of the people. When I succeeded to the throne, the civil and military officials immediately asked me to establish a successor. I did not agree because my son was still young. Now the ritual officials have reviewed the previous dynasty's rules and regulations and have repeatedly asked for advice. They all agree that it is difficult to refuse. Therefore, I have chosen an auspicious day and reported it to the heaven and earth, the ancestral temples and the country, and granted him the title of crown prince.

If the relatives of the princes, generals, and lieutenants in various places are careful to cultivate themselves, love to learn, filial to their parents and respect their elders, and are good at family and family, and are able to inspire the world, they can be allowed to go to the governors. Officials reported the facts and rewarded them.

The successive dynasties saw that the descendants of the princess were ambitious scholars, and promised to let one of their sons study in the academy.

Before March 11, the second year of Longqing, all officials, soldiers and civilians who committed crimes, except those who were really sentenced to death, missed opportunities for the ten evils, took bribes and tortured, and secretly lived in the capital to spy on the money and grain, and assisted in fraud and embezzlement, were not pardoned. The rest, whether discovered or not, whether already punished or not, were pardoned. Anyone who dared to report the amnesty before the amnesty would be punished for his crime.

After that, the regulations of reducing and exempting money and grain taxes, preferential exemptions, etc. were enacted in various places to create a sense of joy for the whole world.

Wei Guangde had read the imperial edict beforehand and knew that the old pedants in the Hanlin Academy had written thousands of words, so he just had to lower his head and listen.

Just when he felt his knees aching, he finally heard the last word read out.

"Announce the imperial edict to the whole world, and let everyone know."

"Your Highness obeys your order."

Xu Jie's old voice sounded, and then all the officials shouted: "Long live the emperor."

On that day, the whole capital was full of jubilation, which was deliberately created by the dignitaries in the capital, and also because the people were excited by the reduction of taxes and grain and the amnesty.

This atmosphere, as the imperial edict spread from the capital to other prefectures and counties, will be gradually immersed in all parts of the Ming Dynasty in the next ten days.

Afterwards, the imperial edict for the imperial examination was finally issued, and Xu Jie, the Grand Secretary of Jianji Hall, Chen Yiqin, the Grand Secretary of Wuying Hall, Zhang Juzheng, the Grand Secretary of Wuying Hall, Yang Bo, the Minister of Personnel, Lei Li, the Minister of Works, Ma Sen, the Minister of Revenue, Huo Ji, the Minister of War, Wang Ting, Wei Guangde, the Left Censor-in-Chief, Yin Shizhen, Li Bangzhen, and Zhu Dashou were appointed as the examiners.

As for Li Chunfang, he was not among the examiners because he fell ill in the past few days.

The imperial examination was not only a test of the candidates' knowledge and physical condition, but also a test of the examiners.

The only change was that after the decree was issued, Grand Secretary Chen Yiqin requested to recuse himself because his son was also participating in the palace examination. After Emperor Longqing rejected this petition, Chen Yiqin submitted another petition to resign, and the emperor granted his request.

In the second year of Longqing's reign, the question set by Emperor Longqing was, as expected, "I believe that the ruler of the world should promote civilization and bring order. There are many policies, but the most important ones are to focus on agriculture, manage the military, and improve preparations."

This question requires candidates to discuss the strategy of governing the country from the two aspects of "agriculture" and "military preparations".

Obviously, although Emperor Longqing still insisted on "agriculture as the basis", he seemed to attach more importance to military preparations, and the Shizhou tragedy had a huge impact on him.

As for the ranking of the palace examination, it was still based on the unspoken rules of the examiners, mostly based on the results of the joint examination, and the ranking was arranged, and some of the answer papers were presented to the emperor for his review.

For the question of "the way to defend the country from the outside and maintain peace at home", in fact, let alone the tribute students, even if they were tested in the court, the answers would be varied.

More than ten papers were drawn from the top rankings, and several were drawn from the top three. A total of seventeen papers were submitted, and Xu Jie led all the examiners to deliver them to Zhongji Hall.

However, what everyone was worried about still happened. Emperor Longqing was not satisfied with the examination papers after reading them, and he was unable to decide on the top candidate.

After a long time, Emperor Longqing finally said: "Bring the papers with the front papers to me, I will take a look."

Obviously, the emperor did not agree with the rankings decided by the examiners, and everyone's eyes fell on Xu Jie involuntarily.

Wei Guangde and Yin Shizeng just looked at each other quietly, and they could see each other's helplessness.

The imperial examination also tested policy essays. In fact, Huang Fengxiang, Zhao Zhigao and others wrote very well, at least Wei Guangde thought it was okay.

It is not known whether Emperor Longqing's actions were directed at Xu Jie or slapped him in the face.

After all, Li Chunfang, the chief examiner of the imperial examination, was not here, and the deputy examiner was still among the examiners.

Soon, an eunuch brought the palace examination papers, and Emperor Longqing actually flipped through them himself, and did not let Xu Jie choose, but read them one by one.

The examination papers were arranged according to the ranking. The Emperor Longqing's view made Wei Guangde secretly relieved. He just hoped that he could find a paper he liked as soon as possible.

I dare not imagine how much of a blow it would be for him and Li Chunfang if they could not find a qualified top-ranking paper after reading all the more than 300 examination papers.

Well, from this moment on, Wei Guangde inevitably developed a fear of the examination supervisor.

When he took the examination before, he just hoped that his paper could pass and be selected.

Unexpectedly, now his position has been reversed, and he is still nervous when he becomes the person marking the papers.

"Huh?"

After flipping through several examination papers, Emperor Longqing seemed to see a suitable paper, and he couldn't help but read it in his mouth: "I heard that the ruler of the world must be both peaceful and rebellious before he can achieve the best governance of the world, and must be clear and decisive before he can achieve real achievements in the world."

"This is it, open the sealed."

After reading the whole paper, Emperor Longqing finally spoke.

The seal was opened, and Luo Wanhua, who was originally ranked 15th in the second class, became the top scholar in the Wuchen year of the Longqing reign. (End of this chapter)