Chapter 2563
"My lords, although our country, Haihan, has followed the imperial examination system of the previous dynasty, the new dynasty should have a new atmosphere. If it remains unchanged, how can it reflect a new policy that is different from the previous dynasty?"
Bai Letong said loudly: "The science, industry, and sea control advocated by our country, Haihan... are not mentioned at all in these current test questions. Do you think the executive committee will be satisfied with such a set of test questions after reading it?" < br>
A thin old man in black clothes next to him responded: "Master Bai, don't be so excited. Since we have accepted the appointment of the new dynasty, we will naturally make good plans for the imperial examination of the new dynasty. As I said yesterday, the situation in Zhejiang has been initially determined, but People's hearts are not yet stable, and this imperial examination is a good opportunity for the new dynasty to recruit talents. If the questions are changed too much and exceed the scope of what the candidates can learn, then not only will the purpose of the imperial examination be achieved, but it will also make the people panic. I have doubts about the imperial court. Therefore, in my opinion, we should put safety first and continue the old system this year. It won’t be too late to switch to the new Haihan system for the next imperial examination!”
This thin old man is Peng Yushan, the former inspector of Zhejiang Province. He is a fifth-rank official. He also has another position, that is, Zhejiang Admiral Xuedao, which is to supervise school education and various cultural and academic related matters in Zhejiang. affairs.
Before Haihan took over Zhejiang, Peng Yushan was the official in charge of organizing the Zhejiang rural examination. Shi Diwen also took a fancy to this person's professional experience, so he retained him and appointed him as the chief officer of the rural trial office.
Peng Yushan presided over the organization work and test question plan of this provincial examination. However, the new Mr. Bai is a special envoy sent by Sanya. As the saying goes, when a Beijing official goes on a tour, he meets the third-level official. Therefore, Peng Yushan did not dare to neglect the questions raised by Bai Letong and had to speak softly. explain to him.
But Peng Yushan's remarks are not much different from the explanation Bai Letong heard yesterday. After all, he just wanted to emphasize the word "stable" and refused to make major changes in the question plan. .
An old man in white clothes next to him continued what Peng Yushan said: "Sir Bai, the changes you advocate are indeed reasonable, but please think carefully about the students who participated in the provincial examination this time and what they have done in the past three years. The preparations are all based on the old system. Now that things are approaching and the exam is about to start in dozens of days, we have decided to change the exam content. How can the students prepare for it after ten years of hard study? Just to take the exam this time, I hope Mr. Bai can be considerate of the people’s sentiments!”
This old man in white is a famous literary figure in Hangzhou named Lu Qiu. This man also served in the government in his early years, and later left his job to open a Baiyun Academy. Over the years, he also trained many scholars and scholars. Lu Qiu was well-known in the local area, so when the township trial office was established, Peng Yushan recommended him to Shi Diwen, and he was also recruited to be responsible for setting questions and marking examination papers in the township trial office.
Since Lu Qiu was introduced by Peng Yushan, it can be seen that the two have a good relationship, so it is not surprising that he talks to Peng Yushan.
Bai Letong waved his hands and said: "You are talking as if I am completely out of touch! I don't know that it is difficult for students to study hard and they need to pass the provincial examination to get the opportunity to show their talents. But my suggestion is not to overthrow all the examination question plans. Again, I just hope that you can make some adjustments to the test questions based on the current affairs of the new dynasty.”
Bai Letong felt that his demands were not excessive. He changed some test questions, promoted the new dynasty and new policies, and also asked candidates to write some political essays. In fact, the difficulty level would not change much. He didn't understand how these old scholars could be so stubborn and refused to give in at all. Of course, Bai Letong couldn't get angry with these people. Firstly, although these people refused to agree with his suggestions, their attitudes were quite mild and they did not argue with him. Secondly, there were indeed many things to do in this township. It's something Bai Letong can't operate, so we have to rely on this group of people.
Another point is that these people are quite prestigious among the literati groups in Zhejiang. If they do not get their support, even if the test questions are forcibly changed, it will be difficult to get the approval of the majority of students participating in the provincial examination. It would be half the result with half the effort.
Regarding these situations, Shi Diwen actually mentioned it to him when he was in Shiyuan yesterday. Shi Diwen hopes that Bai Letong will actively participate, but he should not rush to play a leading role. This is understandable. After all, Bai Letong is not familiar with the situation in Zhejiang, and it is difficult for him to preside over the organization of the provincial examination alone.
But these people have been unwilling to let go. Bai Letong thinks that this is obviously because he is not worthy enough. It is estimated that Shi Diwen will have to speak personally to make them change their attitude. However, judging from the current situation, Shi Diwen seems to have no such plan and still agrees with the existing plan of the township trial.
Although Bai Letong didn't go out to do things much, he was not bad at it. The more these people persisted, the more he felt that there were some factors that he hadn't noticed yet. Otherwise, these people are obviously very respectful to me, so why not give in a little bit, give yourself a face, and change a few test questions at will, so that everyone can communicate more easily.
Bai Letong felt that of course these old foxes would not understand this truth, but they persisted in their opinions and kept saying that they wanted to consider the hundreds of candidates in Zhejiang, showing a firm and unyielding bottom line. Are these people really so bottom-lined? Bai Letong doesn't think so.
These people were all officials from the previous dynasty and celebrities in the literary world. If they really had a bottom line, how could they have switched to Haihan's sect so quickly? Is it true that I shamelessly accepted the job of running the rural examination just to organize a scientific examination for the majority of literati?
Thinking of this, an idea suddenly came to Bai Letong's mind - these people are both organizers and question makers. After the provincial examination, they will probably have to mark the papers and select talents. In this way, if they want to arrange some doorways, wouldn't it be easy?
The more Bai Letong thought about it, the more he felt that this was a possibility. Perhaps these people had already made arrangements and were waiting for the provincial examination to start. But unexpectedly, Cheng Yaojin suddenly appeared halfway and asked for changes in the content of the test questions. If they have something to worry about, they will naturally try their best to avoid such extraneous things.
Thinking of this, Bai Letong spoke again: "Everyone, there are still dozens of days before the exam starts. Whether it is re-writing the questions or changing some of the questions, there is still enough time to prepare. We can definitely Prepare two sets of questions, one according to your original plan, and one modified according to my wishes, and then report it to Sanya and let the executive committee decide. Whichever set should be used at that time, what do you think? "< br>
(End of chapter)