The Prosperous Era of Longwan

"And we, who study and understand etiquette, are just for the sake of taking the imperial examination and serving as officials, and for the sake of being in high positions and enjoying ourselves without caring about the fate of the people."

After Wei Guangde expressed his intention to ask the court to downgrade the banquet, he looked around the crowd to see their reactions.

For such a thing, he is definitely not qualified as a junior Jinshi. In Wei Guangde's opinion, at least 2/3 of the new Jinshi must agree.

Democracy is important.

Wei Guangde was not disappointed. The Jinshi had not yet entered the officialdom, so naturally they were not affected by the bad atmosphere in the officialdom. Their eyes lit up after hearing Wei Guangde's thoughts.

Indeed, Ron's En Banquet is of very high standard, and a lot of money is spent each time it is held. Rumor has it that it costs as much as a thousand taels each time.

As for asking Jinshi to donate money to the disaster area?

Sorry, in this day and age, more people are actually donating money to help local people in need, but there is no awareness of providing help to other provinces.

Yes, in this era, the concept of rurality is very important.

After becoming an official or getting rich, it is an obligation to provide some help to the children of the clan, villagers and elders, such as building bridges and paving roads, and everyone can accept this.

But when it comes to Jinshi from Jiangxi and Fujian spending money to donate to the victims of Shanxi and Shaanxi disasters, everyone would never think about it.

Should I donate?

Should donate.

Who should donate?

Naturally, they are the gentry of Shanxi and Shaanxi.

Of course, in the view of the Jinshi, since the imperial court has insufficient state resources, it is also appropriate to streamline some unnecessary expenses.

For them, the Honor Banquet is more about glory. After all, it is the highest-level banquet for the imperial examination.

It really doesn't matter whether the banquet is filled with wine or water, delicacies or porridge.

"Okay, I support it."

"Yes, I think that's good too."

The first person to react was Guo Dong, the person who spoke first. He was from Shanxi, and he was a little bit weird about Wei Guangde's rumored identity. However, at this time, he was also the first to speak out in support, even though he arrived in the capital early. He didn't see the tragedy in his hometown with his own eyes, but he could see a lot between the lines in the letters home.

The second person to speak out in support was He Bangli. At this time, he had already stood up and recited loudly to other contemporaries: "The master has said, Zigong said, if you can benefit the people by giving generously to the people, how can it be called benevolence?" Zi Gong said .What is the matter of benevolence? It must be holy. Yao and Shun were as ill as others. The benevolent ones. If you want to establish yourself, you can establish others. If you want to reach yourself, you can reach others. If you can draw examples from others, it can be called the recipe of benevolence.

We are all disciples of the saint. When the people are suffering, we should adhere to the words of our ancestors and help the people. "

As he finished speaking, the Jinshi from Shanxi at Guo Dong's table stood up to agree, and then the Jinshi from Jiangxi and Fujian also stood up to support Wei Guangde's opinion.

Wei Guangde saw that everyone's attention was turned to him, and he immediately stood up and bowed to the Jinshi, saying: "Sima Xianggong of the previous dynasty once wrote "Exercise Frugalness to Show Kang". It was when Guangde was young when he saw this article, But it was also very touching.

Frugality is the common virtue; extravagance is the greatest evil.

At a time when the country is running out of resources, we must not only learn from Sima Xianggong to be gentle, courteous and upright, but we should also learn from him to be thrifty and not fond of luxury. "

After saying this, Wei Guangde paused for a moment before continuing: "It's just that, as the book says, 'What you give cannot be violated', the Ron'en Banquet can be held as usual, but the level of the dishes can be lowered or even plain steamed buns. What we want is The honor of the banquet given by the emperor is a recognition of our ten years of hardship."

After finishing speaking, Wei Guangde looked at the dozens of Jinshi people upstairs and said, "This honor banquet is the emperor's commendation to the three hundred Jinshi. We cannot represent it, so I intend to look for more people of the same year immediately. With affection, I I don’t think anyone will object to it.”

"Well, let's go find other people and talk about the Shanshan disaster. I think they will understand."

Xia Kefan also said.

Immediately, everyone went downstairs and talked about the matter with the Jinshi downstairs. They heard that the damage caused by the Shanshan earthquake was so huge, hundreds of thousands of people died as a result, and countless people were displaced due to the disaster, so they agreed immediately.

Soon, nearly 100 new scholars in the restaurant were divided into several groups by Wei Guangde.

As a successor, Wei Guangde was the highest ranked among these Jinshi. At least until people found Zhu Dashou, Tao Dalin and Jinda, everyone naturally took him as the leader.

Wei Guangde took some Jinshi from Jiangxi, Shanxi and Fujian to the Yamen of the Ministry of Rites, because the Ron'en Banquet was organized by the Ministry of Rites, and so far they did not know who Emperor Jiajing had ordered to host tomorrow's Ron'en Banquet on his behalf. At this time I could only find the Ministry of Rites to express my feelings.

Others went along the street to look for other people of the same year. There were also three routes to Zhejiang, South Zhili and Jiangxi guild halls respectively, looking for the top three candidates for this palace examination.

Speaking of which, Wei Guangde only thought after mentioning this matter that such an operation seemed to be conducive to his accumulation of prestige in the same year. Wei Guangde really didn't think about it at first.

Naturally, he hoped that he would not be able to find the top pick and the second pick, but Wei Guangde couldn't tell it openly, and he had to take the initiative to talk about it, otherwise he would be hated by others afterwards.

There must be some nerds who can get Jinshi, but they are in the minority after all, and others will surely react afterwards.

Therefore, Wei Guangde did not intend to leave this excuse. No matter how you put it, it was him who proposed and advocated it. Naturally, he would take the lead in allocating manpower to find the same year and the petition.

Soon, the manpower was properly allocated, and Wei Guangde took Lao Kan, Guo Dong and other Jinshi directly to the Rites Yamen, while Xia Kefan and others looked for people everywhere.

The ceremony of praising officials in the Royal Street has just been completed. After the imperial list was hung, the main officials of the Ministry of Etiquette are gathering in the main hall to arrange the honor banquet for tomorrow. Not only is the Minister Wang Yongbin present, but also the left minister Wu Shan. These two naturally have the right to speak in the Ministry of Etiquette. people.

Wang Yongbin is already old, and his health has not been good these years. He has already been promoted to an official position, but Emperor Jiajing has been delaying the approval. It is not known whether he wants to wait until he completes the imperial examination ceremony before approving him.

Wu Shan is even more interesting. The year before last, he was still the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Rites, and later he was transferred to the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Personnel. During this palace examination ceremony, he was sent to the Ministry of Rites by Emperor Jiajing to assist Wang Yongbin in handling government affairs.

In fact, anyone with a discerning eye can see that Wu Shan should be the person chosen by Emperor Jiajing to succeed him as the Minister of Guests and Guests.

Wu Shan was also born in the Hanlin Academy and served successively as editor of the Hanlin Academy, Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Rites, and Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Personnel. It can be said that he is walking on the standard path from the Hanlin to the cabinet, so although he is still a member of the Ministry of Personnel at the moment, people in the Ministry of Personnel regard him as But he was submissive.

At this time, the two of them, together with the left and right ministers, were asking the ministers of the Ritual System and Fine Food Department of the Qing Dynasty about the preparations for Rong'en's banquet tomorrow.

Soon, a clerk rushed to the door and asked to be let in, informing him that important matters were reported.

Wang Yongbin was a little tired now. After all, he was getting older. This time it was also because of the talent promotion ceremony that was held every three years. He just returned to the Yamen office. After being busy for so long, he felt a little unbearable.

Seeing this, Wu Shan quickly called the clerk in to report the incident.

When the clerk entered the door, he hurriedly bowed and saluted: "I have met the eldest uncle, and I have met several adults."

"If anything happens, tell me quickly."

Wu Shan immediately answered and said that he should finish the work as soon as possible so that Wang Yongbin and Wang Shangshu could go back to rest first.

"Report to your lord, there are hundreds of Jinshi gathered outside, saying that they want to meet with the great uncle to express their feelings. I don't dare to hide it, so I can only report it immediately."

The clerk saw the two doctors retreating to the side and knew that matters were being discussed here, so he immediately reported the matter.

"Hundreds of Jinshi?"

At this time, both Wang Yongbin and Wu Shan, who were already exhausted, as well as the ministers on the left and right, were all surprised and couldn't open their mouths from ear to ear.

The grand ceremony of passing on the name and the official praise ceremony in the Royal Street had just been held today. If anything went wrong during the process, these new scholars would be dissatisfied.

To be honest, officials are most afraid of things like this.

Of course, the other party is a Jinshi. In fact, he already has an official status and has a lot of control. In fact, what they are most afraid of offending is the Imperial College and the bunch of scholar candidates.

There were hundreds of people, which was a lot of people, and the crowd was furious. If they were not comforted, something big would happen.

"Where are the people?"

Wu Shan asked immediately.

"I asked them to enter the gate and wait outside the second gate."

The clerk hurriedly bowed again.

"You handled it well. Did they say anything happened?"

Wu Shan continued to ask.

"No, they just said they wanted to meet with Uncle Zong to express their feelings, and there were Jinshis coming. When I came in to report, several more Jinshis ran through the gate."

The clerk replied hurriedly.

"Who is the leader? Is it Zhu Dashou or Jinda?"

In Wu Shan's opinion, the person who can call for the new Jinshi is either the number one scholar in this palace examination, or the third-highest-ranking scholar.

Speaking of which, Jinda, as Huiyuan, should have been the most powerful contender for the top spot. As for why he failed in the palace examination, Wu Shan still knew very well.

In fact, he is the same type of person as Jinda. Wu Shan is from Gao'an, Jiangxi. Although he and Yan Ge are fellow villagers, they have different political opinions.

Wu Shan couldn't stand Yan Shifan's cunning, selfish and greedy ways, so when Yan Song wanted to marry him, Wu Shan flatly refused, and there was a gap between the two families.

At this time, what Wu Shan was actually most afraid of was Jinda's dissatisfaction with losing the title of No. 1 pick. Although it was not shown in the passing ceremony, he was just afraid of it.

He had participated in all the ceremonies from the palace examination to the official praise in the imperial court, so as far as he knew, there was nothing inappropriate. It was difficult for him to understand why the Jinshi came to the yamen of the Ministry of Rites to cause trouble.

"Your Majesty, I learned that the person leading the charge is Wei Guangde, the number one in the second class."

The clerk said hurriedly.

Before he came, he knew that the matter was serious, so he asked for the details before coming in to report, but he did not ask the Jinshi why they came here.

"Wei Guangde?"

Wu Shan frowned when he heard this name.

Naturally, he had seen this person before. He had gone to the Jiangxi Guild Hall on the 29th of the twelfth lunar month last year. At that time, Wei Guangde came up to him and said something like saying that he had admired his name for a long time.

To be honest, Wei Guangde didn't have a very good impression on Wu Shan. The main reason was that at that time, he kept flattering them, Jiangxi officials in the court, which made Wu Shan feel that this person was a bit swaying.

As for the changes in rankings in the general examination and palace examination, he also heard from his colleagues that it seemed to be the result of Jinshang Qiangang's arbitrary decision. He didn't know how this man's tail wagged his way to Emperor Jiajing.

He turned his head and exchanged a few words with Wang Yongbin, the Minister of Rites, in a low voice. What else could he do? Naturally, he couldn't avoid it. At least he had to clarify the matter first.

Immediately, Wang Yongbin spoke in an old voice: "Go and let Wei Guangde in."

The clerk agreed and was about to turn around and go out when Wu Shan said again: "Ask who their leaders are and let them come in too."

In Wu Shan's view, Wei Guangde was only sixteen or seventeen years old, and he was still a young man. Logically speaking, he shouldn't have such appeal, and he was probably being used as a gunman.

Call the leaders in and see who is causing trouble.

Although Wu Shan didn't like Wei Guangde, he couldn't let others harm his fellow villagers in front of him, let alone a teenager who had just entered officialdom.

The dangers of officialdom are not just casual remarks.

Many times if you don't pay attention, it may be just a very inconspicuous thing. If you offend someone without even realizing it, it will cause you to pay serious consequences.

When the clerk came out to the second gate, he noticed that there seemed to be a lot of people. He quickly asked around and learned that he was the only one who went in to report that at that time, two more groups of about ten Jinshi entered the gate.

The junior official came to Wei Guangde and bowed and said: "Excuse me, sir, what are you going to tell the eldest uncle this time? The eldest uncle has already allowed you to come in, but there are so many people."

As he spoke, the clerk looked at the large group of people behind Wei Guangde. Before he finished speaking, his meaning was very clear. It was impossible for them all to go in.

Wei Guangde naturally knew what the junior official meant.

In fact, Wei Guangde had already thought about it when he came. The gate of the Ministry of Rites was easy to enter, but if he saw the eldest uncle, it would be impossible for everyone to go in. Only a few representatives would come out.

In Wei Guangde's mind, in addition to the fact that he must go, Guo Dong also took him with him, He Bangli also went in, and Lao Kan followed.

As for the three in First A, if we find them and can make it in time, it would actually be better to let them take the lead.

This is also the rule in the examination room. Generally, the person with the highest ranking takes the lead.

If those three people didn't arrive in time, they would have to take action on their own.

Wei Guangde felt that it didn't matter if he came out like this. As long as he didn't go too far and didn't annoy the person in Xiyuan, nothing else mattered.

Turning back to the Jinshi, Wei Guangde explained what he meant, and everyone naturally understood the reason.

Wei Guangde, who is currently the highest ranked in the palace examination here, can naturally represent them. Guo Dong is from Shanxi, and He Bangli also knows a lot of information, so it is natural for them to enter.

In fact, it would be best if there are Jinshi from Shaanxi, after all, they must know more information.

It's a pity that the two who passed the Shaanxi exam this year have not arrived yet.

In the eyes of the Jinshi, they had been taught by saints and knew what the petition was about, so they naturally had no choice but to come to help.

Soon, everyone else expressed their agreement with Wei Guangde's proposal and asked the people named by Wei Guangde to meet Uncle Da Zong on their behalf.

In fact, many people feel regretful, not only because they haven't seen the No. 2 pick and No. 3 overall pick come to boost the momentum, but it's also a pity that they are not familiar with this legend and can't follow them.

"Greetings to the eldest uncle, my lords."

Wei Guangde led several people and followed the minor officials into the main hall, and unexpectedly saw Wu Shan, the left minister of the Ministry of Personnel, also there. Although he felt strange, he did not show it, but bowed to the adults in the hall.