Chapter 971
Persuaded
Pan Yun frowned: "I am just like Grand Secretary Yu and other ministers in the court who are eager to improve the administration, but we are struggling to find a solution."
Hu Yuanjie: "To find a solution, we must first find the cause of the problem. Does the Grand Preceptor want to start with the governance of the bureaucracy?"
Pan Yun shook his head: "Throughout history, reforms have always started with taxation, followed by land reform, and then with governance. Every reform has been bloody and bloody. Whether it succeeds or fails, bloodshed is inevitable. I was thinking, is there another way to reduce bloodshed and sacrifice?"
Hu Yuanjie stroked his beard and said, "That's why the Grand Preceptor is cracking down hard on the Ministry of Works, but no matter where you start, you can't avoid the issue of official corruption."
Pan Yun nodded, then stared intently at him: "Your Excellency has served as Minister of Rites for many years. Do you have a way to ensure that talented people go where they belong?"
"What about the redundant staff?" Hu Yuanjie laughed. "I thought the Grand Preceptor would ask how to deal with the redundant staff first."
Pan Yun: "In my opinion, apart from those who are paid without working, there are no useless people in the court. The so-called redundant officials are just talented people who are not being used where they should be. At the very least, they can go to the official fields or the imperial estates to farm. Surely they can't even work in the fields?"
Upon hearing this, Hu Yuanjie stroked his beard and laughed heartily, saying happily, "That's right, that's right! There are only talented people who aren't being used in the right places, not redundant staff."
After laughing, Hu Yuanjie sighed: "Unfortunately, there aren't many people in the world who think like you. Those who become redundant officials are not capable of enduring hardship. If you put them in positions where they are capable, they definitely won't go. If they don't go, the redundant positions will be eliminated, and they will force people who are more capable and more suitable for high positions to do low-level work. In the long run, it's better to keep them on a salary."
Pan Yun raised an eyebrow: "So, the imperial court simply won't support them?"
Hu Yuanjie looked up at her, and the two looked at each other. He saw domineering and persistent in her eyes, while she was embraced by the gentle and kind nature in his eyes.
Hu Yuanjie smiled slightly and said, "Then cut it."
He laughed and said, "There are 360 professions, and becoming an official is not the only path. There are many other ways to go besides officialdom."
Pan Jun smiled and said happily, "I think so too."
She ate the remaining half of the osmanthus cake.
Hu Yuanjie went to get a teacup and teapot to pour her tea: "Did the Imperial Advisor come all this way just to gossip about this matter?"
He said, "Perhaps you should go east and ask the Ministry of Personnel next door about this matter?"
The problem of redundant staff is the Ministry of Personnel's business; what does it have to do with the Ministry of Rites?
Pan Yun took a sip of tea and shook her head: "No, I came here to seek advice on talent cultivation and basic education."
Hu Yuanjie paused in his tea-pouring, silently put down the teapot, sat down quietly, and raised his hand, saying, "Please speak, Grand Preceptor."
Pan Yun was curious as to why, after seventy years, the literacy rate in the Ming Dynasty was still so low.
Talent cultivation is inseparable from basic education, so if she wants to get the talent she needs, she must improve literacy rates, regardless of gender.
In some fields, girls' creativity is in no way inferior to that of boys. Only by developing creativity in both areas can we maximize the cultivation of the talent we need.
Hu Yuanjie sighed slightly and said, "In the early years of Hongwu, the country was in ruins and needed to be rebuilt. At that time, Emperor Taizu wished that all the people in the country could be literate and serve the country. So he ordered local governments to open many community schools. However, due to financial difficulties and the laxity of officials, most of the community schools fell into disrepair. Only a small number of them were able to continue to this day because the local government and gentry had purchased permanent land in cooperation in the early days of their establishment."
Pan Yun asked, "How much funding is allocated to community schools each year?" Community schools were schools outside of the Imperial Academy and prefectural schools (i.e., state schools, state schools, and county schools). They were mainly for basic education and were located in counties, townships, and villages.
Hu Yuanjie paused for a moment and then shook his head: "Currently, the funds allocated by the Ministry of Rites for promoting education are mainly allocated to the Imperial Academy, prefectural schools, state schools, and county schools. Students at all levels are exempt from tuition fees and are also given stipends. The local governments are responsible for part of the travel expenses for candidates to travel to the capital for the imperial examinations, and the Ministry of Rites has to bear part of the expenses. The national treasury is in dire straits. Where can we find the money to give to community schools?"
"No matter how poor we are, we can't be poor in education; and no matter how poor we are in education, we can't be poor in basic education," Pan Yun said, frowning.
According to Hu Yuanjie, the money allocated to schools at all levels each year varies from high to low.
The Imperial Academy, the Prefectural Academy, the State Academy, and the County Academy—it is clear that the lower-level institutions of learning are the ones that need the most financial support.
Pan Yun stared intently at Hu Yuanjie and said, "Lord Hu, shouldn't we focus on basic education and revitalize community schools?"
Hu Yuanjie sighed, rubbing her forehead in exasperation: "What a pity I have no money!"
Pan Yun grasped his hand and looked at him warmly: "I believe you can do it, sir. As long as you are willing to work hard, there is nothing in this world that is impossible!"
In another timeline, the literacy rate in the late Qing Dynasty was still lower than that of the Ming Dynasty. During the War of Resistance against Japan and the War of Liberation, and a series of other wars, primary schools and literacy classes...
Even if someone is in their thirties or forties, the Great Ancestor could still get them into school to learn to read and write, and in the process, they could learn a lot of general knowledge. Why can't we do that now?
Pan Yun shook Hu Yuanjie's hand: "Where there's a will, there's a way!"
Hu Yuanjie looked at the hand being held, then glanced at Pan Yun, whose eyes were shining, and couldn't help but laugh: "Grand Preceptor, why don't you first go to the Ministry of Personnel to resolve the issue of redundant staff?"
Pan Yun winked at him: "Isn't this a good idea? The two things can be solved by combining them into one."
Hu Yuanjie's smile slowly faded, and he gradually became serious.
The two talked in private for a long time inside the house, and Pan Yun did not leave the public housing until the orange-red sunset covered the walls.
Hu Yuanjie sat motionless in the chair until dusk fell, the room darkened, and there was no sound outside. Only then did he move his stiff body and slowly get up.
Hu Yuanjie walked out of the office and looked at the empty Ministry of Rites. He couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle: "Getting old, why is my perception of time fading?"
He turned around, pulled the creaking door shut, locked it, and then walked out with his hands behind his back.
The palace roads in the imperial city were deserted. Only the guards in the distance turned their heads to look when they heard the sound, but when they saw that it was people from the Ministry of Rites, they looked away again.
Hu Yuanjie stared intently at the palace gate not far away, and after a long while, he turned and left, murmuring, "So young...so good."
On the 12th day of the eighth month of the first year of the Jingtai reign, during the grand court assembly, Hu Ying, the Minister of Rites, submitted a memorial reiterating the importance of community schools in enlightening the people and cultivating talents for the country, and hoped that the court could increase its support for community schools.
Almost immediately after he finished speaking, Chen Xun, the Minister of Revenue, objected, citing the simple reason that the national treasury had no money.
Anyway, he's broke now no matter what suggestions anyone makes. His biggest hope is that people will suggest more policies to increase revenue and reduce expenditure, instead of always trying to cut off funding. (End of Chapter)