I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

At the end of September, the autumn wind was slightly cool.

Along the streets of the capital, the trees gradually changed from lush green to pale yellow.

The task of eliminating redundant officials and positions in local prefectures and states is gradually coming to an end, and the process is going much more smoothly than Shen Nian had imagined.

At the same time, maritime trade flourished.

Outside the four major seaports, boats travel for thousands of miles, with hundreds of vessels vying for position.

In the teahouses and taverns of the capital, there were frequent tales of small merchants who suddenly became rich through maritime trade, and more and more exotic goods from the sea appeared on the stalls under Zhengyang Gate.

The circulation of silver increased significantly in the streets and alleys, and the number of people doing business also increased significantly.

Even some impoverished scholars who used to only work as scribes are now happily running small businesses near the Confucian Temple.

Doing business.

In the past two years, this has become a trend in Beijing.

Some people do business to support their families, while others simply treat it as a form of leisure. However, with the wave of reform, people's mobility has accelerated and consumption has soared. Almost everyone who does business can make money now.

Also.

After Feng Bao ordered a group of close eunuchs to supervise Zhang Cheng and other eunuchs who were selecting concubines, the latter became much more restrained. No eunuch dared to prohibit people from getting married or forcibly conscript women from the common people to become concubines.

The people gradually stopped discussing the matter.

Only occasionally, when young scholars saw instances of officials bullying the people, would they think of an official named Yao Bin.

……

On the first day of the tenth month, the Imperial Astronomical Bureau presented the "Datong Calendar" of the tenth year of the Wanli reign.

Emperor Wanli first bestowed the book upon civil and military officials in the capital, and then issued an edict ordering local governments to distribute it level by level to inform the people, so that the book could guide agricultural activities and regulate the seasons.

Almanacs could only be printed by the Imperial Astronomical Bureau; anyone who forged them was guilty of treason.

……

It was the third day of the tenth lunar month, around noon.

Shen Nian and Zhangwu Earl Yang Bing were summoned to the Wenhua Hall by the young Wanli Emperor.

The fact that he was summoned at the same time as Zhangwubo is most likely because of the Jingwu Academy incident.

Both of them are currently the deputy chief instructors of the Jingwu Academy, and the local garrison had already sent qualified soldiers to the capital ten months ago.

Shen Nian has been busy with cabinet affairs and has not paid attention to the selection of new soldiers in the past two days. It is all in the hands of Zhangwu Earl Yang Bing.

In the main hall.

After Shen Nian and Zhangwu Earl Yang Bing bowed to the young Wanli Emperor, Yang Bing knelt on the ground again.

"Your Majesty, I am guilty, I am incompetent, I have failed Your Majesty's expectations! I have been studying for several days, but I still cannot come up with a plan for selecting the second batch of students for the Jingwu Academy!"

"I don't blame you. This kind of thing should be done by Minister Shen. Get up and tell Minister Shen what the current situation is," said the young Wanli Emperor with a smile.

"I obey!"

Yang Bing stood up and began to describe the current situation of Jingwu Academy.

By September 25, all one thousand soldiers selected by local guards and approved by senior students (instructors) of the Jingwu Academy had arrived in the capital.

According to the pre-established regulations, a maximum of five hundred soldiers will be able to become the second cohort of students at the Jingwu Academy.

Shen Nian was busy with official duties.

The newly appointed deputy chief instructor of Jingwu Academy, Yang Bing, volunteered to Emperor Wanli, saying that he could come up with a plan for selecting students, which would then be submitted to Emperor Wanli and Shen Nian for review.

Initially, Yang Bing wanted to imitate Shen Nian's selection method from last time.

During daily drills, examine the soldiers' character and habits, and eliminate those who are lazy in training, love to complain, are aggressive, have a withdrawn personality, lack management talent, and are unlikely to become generals.

But he didn't expect that the soldiers all knew the selection method from last time.

They were extremely serious during the drills, and their training was orderly and punctual. Their bedding, shoes, and clothes were arranged perfectly.

Even when using the toilet, they are prepared to assemble and practice at any time.

Every moment at the Jingwu Academy will be treated as an assessment.

In order to become "the emperor's personal guards," they all learned about the selection process from the previous one and underwent special training.

Subsequently.

Yang Bing prepared to examine their military strength and strategies, but found that their abilities were almost equal.

Yang Bing was unsure how to choose, so he could only report his predicament to the head instructor of Jingwu Academy—Xiao Wanli.

Upon hearing this, Shen Nian roughly understood the situation of the thousand soldiers.

When the Jingwu Academy began its first enrollment, many soldiers were unaware of the situation.

Some even thought that after graduation they might have to stand guard for the young Wanli Emperor at the foot of the city wall, so they did not participate or were deliberately eliminated.

In particular, some sons of military officers and garrison officers could become officials through military examinations or hereditary appointments, which is why they did not come last time.

After two years, soldiers across the land realized that becoming a student of the Jingwu Academy was the best shortcut for martial artists to rise to the rank of general in the army, so they all signed up.

These soldiers had almost identical experiences.

Having spent at least three years in the military, possessing a basic understanding of literature and military strategy, and with above-average martial arts skills, coupled with deliberate training to become a student of the Elite Martial Arts Academy, their overall strength appeared almost identical, making it impossible for Yang Bing to choose between them.

He has the ability to eliminate 100 out of 1,000 people, but he doesn't know how to eliminate half of them.

Shen Nian thought for a moment, then cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, please allow me to go to the Jingwu Academy tomorrow to learn more about it, and then formulate a selection plan as soon as possible."

"Alright, thank you for your hard work, Shen Qing!"

Emperor Wanli loved hearing Shen Nian say these kinds of things.

Shen Nian's confident tone made him feel that there was nothing to worry about from now on.

As the saying goes: the more outstanding the ministers, the easier the emperor's life is.

The young Wanli Emperor hoped that after he assumed personal rule, Shen Nian would be able to control the drafting of all memorials in the cabinet. He only needed to control Shen Nian, and after reviewing the drafts, he could simply nod or approve them, and the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty would be able to operate normally.

This is also the main reason why he feels he can't live without Shen Nian.

Currently, no official in the court can replace Shen Nian, including his chief minister and teacher Zhang Juzheng.

……

On the fourth day of the tenth lunar month, in the afternoon, the autumn sun shone brightly.

Shen Nian and Zhang Wubo arrived at Jingwu Academy together, and all the instructors and a thousand prospective students were very excited.

From the words of many new instructors (and old students), the prospective students knew that Shen Nian was the true controller of the Jingwu Academy, and as the Minister of War, he determined everyone's future.

Therefore, they hoped to leave a good impression on Shen Nian and make her remember them.

However, Shen Nian did not go to see the thousand prospective students.

He simply met with a group of instructors, inquired about their overall impressions of the thousand prospective cadets, then reviewed their military registration information, and instructed Wang Jia, a secretary in the Imperial Secretariat, to organize this information based on commonalities.

……

Near dusk.

Shen Nian left Jingwu Academy together with Zhangwubo Yang Bing.

On the carriage.

Zhangwu Earl Yang Bing smiled and said, "Grand Secretary Shen, the overall strength of this batch of soldiers is similar, and half of them are sons of military officers from the garrisons, so it is indeed difficult to select. If you have no idea for the time being, you can visit the Five Military Commissions. Perhaps we meritorious officials can provide you with some ideas!"

As a representative of meritorious officials, Yang Bing knew that by cultivating a good relationship with Shen Nian, meritorious officials could gain real power among military officers in the future.

Therefore, he held Shen Nian in very high esteem.

“It is indeed a difficult choice. I need to think about it carefully. If the Earl of Zhangwu has any ideas, he can come to me at any time!” Shen Nian said gently.

"Definitely! Definitely!" replied Yang Bing, the Earl of Zhangwu.

...The following morning, the Cabinet was on duty.

Just as Shen Nian sat down at the table, Wang Jia, the Imperial Secretary, quickly walked over.

He placed a document with charts and graphs in front of Shen Nian and said, "Just as the Grand Secretary predicted, among the thousand prospective trainees, six hundred and twenty-five are either from military families or from families of military officers in the garrison, while the rest are low-ranking soldiers without any background."

Shen Nian opened the document, and after looking at the charts, she couldn't help but frown.

His worst fears have come true!
The original intention of Jingwu Academy was to provide more children from lower-class military families with a way out, to change their fate through their abilities, and to break the monopoly of military officers from military families in the army.

Shen Nian once counted the first batch of students at Jingwu Academy, and only 10% of them came from military families.

That's why it accounted for 10% at the time.

This is because the sons of these military families are more adept at participating in the military examinations, and can also be granted official positions through hereditary privilege.

They may be born to be military officers.

Now, military families have set their sights on the Jingwu Academy. If they start to exert their influence, the third cohort of students at the Jingwu Academy may all come from military families.

In terms of military examinations, literary talent, understanding of military strategy, and interpersonal skills in officialdom, lower-ranking soldiers are absolutely no match for these second-generation military officers.

However, Shen Nian was somewhat resistant to the second generation of martial arts practitioners.

The second generation of military officers are indoctrinated by their families from a young age, and their eyes are filled with the interests of their families. If they are trained to become generals, they will inevitably prioritize the interests of their families.

Thus, the role of Jingwu Academy in breaking the monopoly was greatly weakened.

Furthermore, for the Ming Dynasty, the system of military families had already developed to a certain scale and could not be expanded further, so that the emperor's personal guards would also be entirely composed of second-generation military officers.

Shen Nian hoped to cultivate generals and commanders from among the lowest-ranking soldiers.

These soldiers would fight desperately to achieve merit and be grateful for the court's training. They were relatively more loyal and willing to risk their lives to protect the Ming Dynasty.

In this way, even the lowest-ranking soldiers could see the hope of leaping over the dragon gate and breaking the monopoly of military officer families.

In addition, Shen Nian has discovered from the teaching practice of the first batch of students that lower-level soldiers are easier to train than second-generation military personnel, and their potential is also higher.

Just as it's easier for him to create a masterpiece by drawing on a clean, white sheet of paper than on a sheet covered in doodles.

Shen Nian murmured, "We can't ignore the second generation of military personnel, but we can't select too many. I should think of a selection method that is more beneficial to outstanding soldiers at the grassroots level."

Then, Shen Nian leaned back in the large chair, slowly closed her eyes, and began to think seriously.

About ten breaths later.

Shen Nian slowly opened her eyes, a smile appearing on her face.

"Have it!"

Shen Nian picked up the brush beside her, preparing to write a selection strategy, but then paused and put the brush down again.

It wasn't that the strategy itself was flawed.

However, if he were to present it to the young Wanli Emperor today, it would be too efficient and somewhat hurt Yang Bing's pride.

Furthermore, if he continued to perform so exceptionally well, he would likely be responsible for all matters of state, causing the young Wanli Emperor and the entire court to develop a dependency on Shen Nian.

Shen Nian decided to postpone it for a day, think about the details again, and start writing again tomorrow.

……

The next day, it was nearly noon.

Cabinet value.

Just as Shen Nian finished writing the selection plan for the Jingwu Academy students, Earl Zhangwu Yang Bing arrived.

"Elder Shen, is there any progress? Is there anything I can do?" Yang Bing was quite eager, just to secure his position as the deputy head instructor of the Jingwu Academy.

Shen Nian stood up, blew on the ink to dry it, picked up the document, and said, "Lord Zhangwu, I just finished writing it and was just about to let you take a look!"

"Huh? It's already written? That's incredibly fast!" Yang Bing exclaimed in disbelief.

What seemed like a thorny and unsolvable problem to him appeared effortless and easy to Shen Nian, like cutting melons and vegetables.

Yang Bing took the document and began to read it carefully.

After a cup of tea.

Yang Bing looked at Shen Nian and said, "Grand Secretary Shen, you are the one who understands the current military situation and what kind of generals His Majesty needs. I have no objection to this 'civilian selection and military selection' method, but isn't setting up the military selection in this way too crazy? Is it really allowed to have casualties, as the article says?"

Shen Nian straightened his chest.

"Only in this way can we see who has more willpower! Aren't the local garrisons all learning from the martial arts academy's selection methods? I hope they can try out this martial arts selection method!"

"I think...this plan is feasible, and I have no objections!"

“Alright, then we’ll go and report to His Majesty this afternoon!” Shen Nian said.

Yang Bing nodded, muttering to himself: This is something no civil official could come up with; he's practically the King of Hell himself. If he were in charge of military training, I'm afraid no one in the capital would dare to become a soldier!
……

In the afternoon, Shen Nian and Earl Zhangwu Yang Bing arrived at Wenhua Hall.

Shen Nian presented his draft of the strategies for selecting civil and military officials for the young Wanli Emperor to review.

The general content of this strategy is as follows:

Shen Nian believes that the current thousand prospective students are already the best of the best, and it would be difficult to screen them through ordinary means.

There are two key points to consider when judging whether a soldier has the talent to become a general or whether he is worth training at the martial arts academy.

First, the ability to plan and make decisions; second, an iron will.

Being able to plan and make decisions means being able to think continuously and make good decisions.

This ability is something a soldier has accumulated over many years, and it is also a crucial ability that determines how far he can go in the army. To assess this ability, one must pass a written examination.

The so-called "examination papers" refers to examination papers.

This civil service examination differs from the military examination, which tests analytical strategies for border defense. The civil service examination does not have fixed answers; it tests cognition and decision-making ability. The chief examiner for the civil service examination is the young Wanli Emperor, who will grade the papers and determine their merits. As for the questions, Shen Nian has only provided examples and has not yet fully formulated them.

The so-called martial arts selection is a test of physical strength and willpower.

Shen Nian improved Qi Jiguang's heavy armor raid training method, preparing to have a thousand prospective trainees participate in a "devilish training that allows for mortality".

The specific training methods were written down in the document by Shen Nian. They were extremely cruel and difficult to pass unless one was physically strong and had a strong will.

After discussing the methods of selecting civil and military officials, Shen Nian spoke frankly, saying:

The second cohort of students at Jingwu Academy had too many "second-generation martial artists." If the academy's student body is monopolized by these children in the future, it will follow the old path of the "military examination" system and will not be able to cultivate the generals and commanders that the Ming Dynasty needs in the future, who will have a strong sense of national responsibility.

Obvious.

The children of military officers are better at literary studies because they grow up surrounded by military books.

Lower-ranking soldiers are more skilled in martial arts.

Because they knew that if they were eliminated, they would lose a chance to defy fate, their wives and children would not receive preferential treatment, and their future might only be limited to the position of general.

They need to work hard to make a living, so they will have more willpower.

If some low-ranking soldiers don't have the courage to fight to become students of the Elite Martial Arts Academy, then they are not worth training!
Shen Nian suggested making the essay exam questions more difficult.

Only exceptionally outstanding and decisive candidates will be selected; all others will be eliminated.

Most of them had other paths to officialdom, so they were subject to stricter requirements.

Those who excel in martial arts can still be selected even if their academic performance is poor, because soldiers with strong willpower can learn anything quickly and only need the training of the martial arts academy.

After understanding Shen Nian's deeper meaning, Emperor Wanli said, "Minister Shen understands my intentions best. We shall proceed according to this plan. I will participate in both the civil and military selections."

Emperor Wanli admired this strategy.

On the one hand, he wanted to cultivate generals who were absolutely loyal to him and relied on him, rather than generals for military families. He knew better than anyone that the lower-ranking soldiers were the easiest to control and the easiest to be grateful to.

On the other hand, it's because he can decide the number of candidates who pass the selection, giving him a sense of participation.

If he could truly select one or two exceptional military talents, rare indeed, they would undoubtedly become his "own people," greatly benefiting his future rule. (End of Chapter)