Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 289: Fight for Confucianism! Good Days for Craftsmen [Please Subscribe]

The two of them went to the second floor of the teahouse and asked for a private room. They ordered a pot of good tea and two plates of snacks, and chatted while eating.

After some communication, they found that their levels of mathematics and natural sciences were similar. After chatting for a while, they were only slightly helpful, so they changed the topic.

Huang Zicheng asked, "Brother Qi, have you read the 'Career for Talents' issued by the Prince of Yan's Mansion?"

Qi Tai nodded and said, "I saw it."

"What do you think?"

Qi Tai said, "The Prince of Yan is recruiting people to establish a vassal state overseas. I just want to pass the imperial examination and enter the official career as soon as possible. I have no intention of going overseas. I read the "Recruitment Order" out of curiosity, not any other thoughts."

Huang Zicheng took a sip of tea and said, "What if the exams don't go well and I fail the imperial examination?"

"There's more than one chance to take the imperial examination. If you don't pass this year, you can just take it again in three years."

Huang Zicheng shook his head. "Brother Qi, have you ever considered that the exam three years from now might have a heavier weight on mathematics and natural sciences, and the questions might be more difficult. Maybe it will be even harder to pass then."

Qi Tai was silent for a moment.

Since the advent of the Xianqiao and the railway, the emperor has attached more and more importance to mathematics and natural sciences. Even the status of craftsmen has been significantly improved. On the contrary, Confucianism has been declining.

He understood that the proportion of mathematics and natural science class hours in official schools at all levels was indeed increasing year by year. The Imperial College had even added sub-subjects of natural science, including physics, chemistry, and biology in addition to astronomy and geography.

From this we can see that even if the imperial court does not "emphasize science and suppress Confucianism" in the future, it is possible that natural science will be elevated to a position of equal importance with Confucianism.

Mathematics is the mother of science and will also be given great attention.

Qi Tai had to admit that what Huang Zicheng said might come true.

Huang Zicheng then added, "As the saying goes, 'Learn the civil and martial arts, and serve the emperor.' We have been studying Confucianism since childhood. If we cannot enter the officialdom and display our knowledge and ambitions, then wouldn't studying Confucianism become just a self-entertainment, just like in the Yuan Dynasty?"

"Therefore, I have made up my mind. If I fail this year's imperial examination, I will apply to the Prince of Yan's mansion and follow him overseas to establish a vassal state. In the vassal state, I will put my knowledge to use and realize my ambitions."

Qi Tai frowned and said, "It's hard to return from overseas, not to mention that the Prince of Yan's Palace's "Recruitment Order" also places great emphasis on craftsmen."

"From this, it can be seen that the Prince of Yan has most likely been influenced by the Lord of Science and Technology and will place greater emphasis on mathematics and natural sciences in his vassal states. I'm afraid that even if you, Zicheng (named Xi, known by your pen name), submit to the Prince of Yan, you may not be given a high position."

Huang Zicheng smiled and said, "Even if the King of Yan values ​​science over Confucianism, he will definitely need a group of Confucian scholars if he wants to establish a country overseas."

"Nowadays, scholars all fear going abroad. If I had gone there early, how could I not have been valued?"

"When I achieve a high position in the Yan Clan in the future, even if I can't change the King of Yan's mindset of prioritizing the imperial examinations over Confucianism, I can at least influence his crown prince, or even his grandson."

Qi Tai was stunned after hearing this, then stood up and bowed, saying, "I didn't expect Zicheng to have such far-reaching ambitions. To continue the prominent position of Confucianism, he is willing to go overseas. It is truly admirable!"

Huang Zicheng stood up and moved away, saying with a wry smile, "It's just a helpless move. If Confucianism still had a future in the Ming Dynasty, I wouldn't have resorted to such a desperate measure."

Qi Tai sipped his tea as if drinking wine, then said, "We can't let the court continue this mess—the Confucian content in the imperial examinations has been cut again and again. In just a few years, only half of it remains."

"If we, the disciples of Confucianism, do not resist, I am afraid that in a few decades, there will be no Confucian scholars left in the world, and we will not know about benevolence, righteousness, morality, propriety, justice, integrity and shame."

"Instead, it's full of people who delve into the devious ways of mathematics and natural science. Confucian scholars who teach people virtue are no longer respected by the world, and instead, they admire craftsmen who use strange and cunning skills to make a profit."

"By then, the world might be turned upside down, morals might be corrupted, morality might be gone, and it might even be worse than the Hu Yuan Dynasty!"

Qi Tai became more and more excited as he spoke, and his voice became louder and louder.

The more Huang Zicheng listened, the more he felt something was wrong, and in the end, sweat even broke out on his forehead.

Seeing that many people were already looking over from outside the box, he quickly pulled Qi Tai by the arm and whispered, "Brother Qi, be careful with your words—if you criticize the government like this, you might get arrested by the Imperial Guards."

Although the Jinyiwei of this time and space acted much more low-key under the instructions of Old Zhu, they handled many cases over the years and their reputation spread among the people - with mixed reviews.

Most of those brought down by the Jinyiwei were corrupt officials and powerful gentry, so the people applauded, but they had already become "notorious" among the gentry and some scholars.

Qi Tai came to his senses after being called by Huang Zicheng. He sighed first, then bowed and said, "I lost my composure just now. Zicheng, please forgive me for laughing."

Huang Zicheng waved his hand and said, "It's okay, but Brother Qi, please don't say these things outside anymore."

Qi Tai nodded on the surface, but was thinking in his heart: Huang Zicheng was willing to go overseas to continue the prominent status of Confucianism. I, Qi Tai, have studied Confucianism for nearly 30 years. Why can't I fight for Confucianism?
The longer this matter is put off, the harder it will be to do.

This year’s Spring Examination may be the best opportunity!

Thinking of this, Qi Tai's eyes showed determination, and he drank the tea as wine in one gulp...

···
Liu Kuan started working at the Tiangong Academy as soon as all the court departments opened their offices on the eighth day of the first lunar month.

Last year, Tiangong Institute’s trial operation of engineering in Zhili was quite successful. This year, Liu Kuan is preparing to launch the second major event of Tiangong Institute - to reform the craftsmen’s grading and evaluation system!

Liu Kuan had been thinking and planning about this matter since last year.

The main purpose is to understand the actual situation of the original craftsman system of the Ming Dynasty and avoid being affected by some misunderstandings of later generations.

After more than half a year of investigation and consideration, Liu Kuan, with the assistance of his colleagues from the Tiangong Academy, had developed a system of craftsmen suitable for the current situation of the Ming Dynasty last winter. After the court opened on the eighth day of the first lunar month, he submitted a written memorial to the cabinet, which went through the cabinet process.

It was said to be a formality, but because the reform of the craftsman system involved some fundamental policies of the Ming Dynasty's governance, the cabinet also discussed it seriously.

Although the cabinet ministers all knew that Liu Kuan must have had the support of Zhu Yuanzhang for daring to submit this memorial, they still questioned some of the reform policies and summoned Liu Kuan for repeated questioning, seemingly intending to delay time.

It was not until after the Lantern Festival that Zhu Yuanzhang sent people to inquire, and the cabinet reluctantly gave some opinions and presented the memorial to the emperor.

Zhu Yuanzhang had already understood the contents of the memorial, so he naturally did not question anything and directly approved it.

Afterwards, Liu Kuan used the second half of the first lunar month to prepare for the implementation of this major reform.

On the second day of the second month, the day when the dragon raises its head, the imperial court promulgated the "New Law for the Classification and Evaluation of Craftsmen in the Ming Dynasty", which shocked the court and the public.

As the news spread in all directions, the discussion became even more heated than the Prince of Yan's plan to establish a government office and establish a fiefdom overseas...

outer city.

In Shitiaoli, there is a miscellaneous workshop.

Most of the people living here are resident craftsmen under the jurisdiction of the Miscellaneous Construction Bureau under the Ministry of Works.

Speaking of which, there were many craftsmen under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Works of the Ming Dynasty in the capital. Because craftsmen worked for the court and were considered to be serving, they only received a small subsidy, and most of the craftsmen had a hard life.

But if you ask which department under the Ministry of Works has the hardest time for craftsmen, it must be the Miscellaneous Construction Bureau.

The Miscellaneous Construction Bureau nominally does some miscellaneous work that is difficult to define. Logically speaking, even if the pay is poor, there shouldn't be much work to do.

The fact is just the opposite, because the subordinate offices of the Ministry of Works were relatively streamlined before, and only eight clearly divided departments, namely the Construction Office, Wensi Academy, Leather Works Bureau, Baoyuan Bureau, Pigment Bureau, Military Equipment Bureau, Weaving and Dyeing Office, and Saddle and Bridle Bureau, directly managed the craftsmen.

Anything that cannot be assigned to these eight yamen will be taken over by the Miscellaneous Construction Bureau.

Therefore, the Miscellaneous Works Bureau had the most work and managed the most craftsmen, but the craftsmen were treated the worst - if any craftsman in one of the eight bureaus with clearly defined divisions of labor offended an official, he would most likely be sent to the Miscellaneous Works Bureau.

The life of the craftsmen in the miscellaneous construction bureau was very hard, which can be seen from the houses in the miscellaneous construction workshops where these craftsmen used to live.

Most of them were adobe and thatched houses, with almost no stone or wood buildings. There were even some shacks - because the Miscellaneous Construction Bureau not only had resident craftsmen, but also shift workers. If there were too many shift workers coming to Beijing, some would be assigned to live in the shacks.

But the above is all from a few years ago.

Since the advent of Xianqiao and the railway, the imperial court has attached more and more importance to craftsmen and has improved their treatment.

Take the carpenter Hong Daxuan as an example. At the beginning of the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, he was rated as a middle-level craftsman by the Ministry of Works. Later, because he offended a minor official, he was not only transferred to the Miscellaneous Construction Bureau and limited to being a wheelwright, but his rank was also delayed in being promoted.

Before, his subsidy could barely support two or three people. He relied on various jobs he took on during his rest time and his wife washing clothes for others, and the family was able to barely survive in the capital.

But because his family was too poor and he was a resident craftsman in a miscellaneous construction bureau, his son was still unable to get married when he was twenty-two years old.

However, in recent years, the subsidies for craftsmen in the Miscellaneous Works Bureau have been repeatedly increased, and are already two or three times what they were back then.

Moreover, the common people in the capital were richer than they had been a few years ago, so there was more work for carpenters, and it was easier for him to make money during his rest time.

The most important thing was that after several rounds of reorganization of the officials and craftsmen in the Miscellaneous Construction Bureau, no one would bother or oppress an honest man like him anymore, and his family's life became better and better.

Last year, they even demolished the main adobe and thatched house and rebuilt three brick and wood houses.

Although the family savings were almost drained, Hong Daxuan felt that life was getting better and better. He planned to save money for another two to three years so that he could marry his son.

Hong Daxuan was a very good carpenter, and he made wheels especially well. He was considered the best in the Miscellaneous Workshop, so he was considered a celebrity in the Miscellaneous Workshop.

He was carrying a fish home and many people greeted him along the way.

"Master Hong has finished work?"

"It's time to get off work."

"Oh, Master Hong bought a fish. Did he pick up some money on the road?"

"Look at what you're saying. Do we have to pick up money to buy fish? Fish isn't expensive. Don't look at how big this fish is. It's only a dozen coins. It can feed my family for two meals."

"Xiao Li, don't be so jealous. Master Hong and his team inspected a batch of wheels a few days ago, and all of them were rated excellent, ranking first. He even got a hundred coins as a reward."

"Really? Master Hong is going to get another reward? Awesome!"

"It happened several days ago."

Hong Daxuan dealt with the conversations of acquaintances along the way and soon arrived at the entrance of his alley, where he saw several people chatting excitedly in the sun.

Seeing him approach, Wang Tiezhu, who was about the same age as him, said, "Old Hong, I heard that the court is going to re-evaluate the grades of craftsmen. You happen to be working in the government office this week, so you should have heard your superiors announce this matter. What's the situation?"

　First update.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)