Chapter 27 The first quarter

One day in the fifteenth year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty (AD 1536), an exam was being held in Jiangling, the prefecture of Jingzhou (now Jiangling, Hubei), and there were many candidates standing in the hall.The prefect Li Shiao had a dream the night before, in which God asked him to hand over a jade seal [xixi] to a boy.During the roll call, Li Shiao held the roster and was the first to call out: "Zhang Baigui!"Li Shiao was secretly pleasantly surprised, isn't this the boy he saw in his dream!So, let him come to the desk on the steps.The magistrate said: "Bai Gui, it's not enough for a name. You can change your name to Juzheng." During the exam, Juzheng was quick in thinking and coped with it fluently.At this time, it happened that Tian Xu, Xuezheng of Huguang (now Hunan and Hubei provinces), arrived in Jiangling.Li Zhifu told him that there is a child prodigy in the county who writes good articles.Tian Xu asked Zhang Juzheng to be called immediately, and had an on-the-spot interview with the topic "Nanjun Qitong Fu".Zhang Juzheng picked up the pen, thought for a moment, and then wrote like flying, without any modification, and a literary Fu was quickly written.After reading it, Xuezheng and Zhifu praised it very much.Zhang Juzheng passed the government examination, made up the students of the government, and became a scholar (that is, students, students).Since then, 12-year-old Zhang Juzheng has become famous as "Jingzhou Zhang Xiucai".

Zhang Juzheng, courtesy name Shuda and nickname Taiyue, was born in Jiangling County, Hubei Province in May of the fourth year of Jiajing (AD 1525).The ancestors of the Zhang family can be traced back to the end of Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of Ming Dynasty. The name of the first ancestor was Zhang Fu (also known as Guan Bao). Li has military merits, and he was appointed to Guizhou (now Zigui, Hubei Province) and hereditary thousands of households in Changning.When it came to Zhang Juzheng's great-grandfather Zhang Cheng, his family moved from Guizhou to Jiangling to settle down.Zhang Juzheng's father, Zhang Wenming, was admitted as a scholar when he was young, but he was not admitted in several provincial examinations (that is, provincial examinations).From then on, he gave up the idea of ​​taking the imperial examination, and taught his children at home for the rest of his life.In Zhang Juzheng's childhood, his family was not rich.Later, he once recalled: "The servant was born in the cold, not the old clothes of the nobles (that is, the aristocratic family)." ("Zhang Jiangling Letters") Fifteen "Answer to Lianxian Wang Fengzhou Eight") "Yu Shao is bitter and poor , The family is exhausted and the stone is taken care of." ("The Complete Works of Zhang Jiangling Xuenongyuan") But this did not affect Zhang Juzheng's growth.He has been smart and clever since he was a child, and he likes to read.At the age of five, he learned to read ancient Chinese sentences, and his memory is excellent. When he was 10 years old, he was already well-known in the government because he could understand the principles of the Six Classics and his articles were eloquent.

In the 16th year of Jiajing (1537 A.D.), 13-year-old Zhang Juzheng came to Wuchang from Jingzhou to take part in the provincial examination for juren.His answer sheet was approved by the examiners, especially Huguang Observation Commissioner Chen Shu strongly advocated his admission.Gu Lin, who was known as one of the "Three Heroes of Jinling" at that time, served as the governor of Huguang. He knew that Zhang Juzheng was young and talented, and he would definitely be a pillar of the country in the future.As soon as I met him, "Xu Yiguo is a scholar, and I call him a little friend", and said to the chief envoy and the inspector envoys: "This son is a general and talented." Zhao Linyang") However, he also considered that it is too early for a 13-year-old child to enter an official career, which is not good for future growth.Gu Lin said bluntly to Feng Yushi, the invigilator: "Zhang Ruzi (Juzheng) was granted by heaven, even if he was in the court as early as, it is appropriate. However, I thought that if you are old, you will never know what you will achieve in the future!" "("Complete Works of Zhang Jiangling·Zhang Wenzhong Gong Xingshi") Feng Yushi agreed with the governor's opinion and did not admit Zhang Juzheng.This incident left a deep impression on Zhang Juzheng's mind.

In the 19th year of Jiajing (AD 1540), 16-year-old Zhang Juzheng took the provincial examination again.This time he was named on the list and won the Juren.Zhang Juzheng made a special trip to Anlu to visit his mentor Gu Lin who was overseeing the work there.Seeing Zhang Juzheng, Gu Lin was very happy. He took off his rhinoceros belt and gave it to him, saying: "In the future, you will wear a jade belt, and the rhinoceros belt will not restrain you." One word, delayed you for three years." "The reason why I did this is that I hope you have lofty aspirations, learn from Yi Yin, be Yan Yuan, and don't just be proud of being a scholar who became famous at a young age." The two talked for a long time, and Zhang Juzheng remembered each of them in his heart.

When Zhang Juzheng was 23 years old, that is, the 26th year of Jiajing (AD 1547), he entered Beijing for the second time, passed the general examination, and then participated in the palace examination. official.In the early days of Zhu Di, Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty, half of the seven members of the cabinet were not members of the Hanlin, and all kinds of people who edited the Hanlin participated.From the second year of Tianshun (1458 A.D.) in Zhu Qizhen, Emperor Yingzong, it was stipulated that non-jinshi should not be admitted to the Hanlin, and non-Hanlin should not be included in the cabinet.And Shujishi is the ladder for Jinshi's first official career, and everyone regards him as "Prince Chu".Zhang Juzheng ranks among the prime ministers, and he has shown a broad prospect of entering the cabinet and becoming the chief assistant.

In the Hanlin Academy, most of the new scholars are keen on studying poetry and Fu, and work hard on words and rhetoric. Only a small number of people seek national allusions and are familiar with the regulations of the state.Zhang Juzheng belongs to the latter.Taking advantage of the unique conditions in the courtyard, he read a lot of secret collections that are not easy to see outside, and studied the rules and regulations.After the expiration of the three-year period of Shujishi, Zhang Juzheng was appointed as the editor of the Imperial Academy (Zheng Qipin) in the 28th year of Jiajing (1549 A.D.).At that time, Xu Jie, a university scholar, was in power in the imperial court. Seeing that Juzheng was "shenyiyuanzhong" and "knowledgeable and upright", he praised him as a loyal minister and a pillar of talent for the country.As an editor for four years, the term of office has expired.Zhang Juzheng saw that the power minister Yan Song [Song Song] and other traitors [Ning Ning] were in power, and justice was difficult to do, so in the 33rd year of Jiajing (1554 A.D.), he asked for leave and went back to Jiangling to recuperate.He cleared several acres of land in his hometown, planted bamboo and trees, and repaired several houses. Sometimes he did not leave the house, and he was in the reading garden; , to observe climate change.Whenever the five grains are plentiful [renren] and the yellow clouds cover the ridges, men, women, old and young are joyful.Once the times are not good, women and children become beggars, and officials are urging taxes to be collected, and the houses cry constantly at night.After three years of idle life, Juzheng was deeply aware of the hardships of farmers, so he named his small garden "Xuenong Garden".He realized that "agriculture, livelihood and people are the foundation." "Governing the world and the country is also based on strength, suppressing floating and heavy valleys, and then turning them into prosperity" ("Zhang Jiangling Complete Works·Xue Nong Yuan Ji").During Zhang Juzheng's recuperation period, he kept exploring strategies to get rid of current disadvantages by "extensively recording his books and mastering the affairs of the world".

In the autumn of the thirty-sixth year of Jiajing (AD 1557), Zhang Juzheng arrived in the capital to sell his vacation, and then returned to the Imperial Academy.We have seen that the overall political situation has not improved, but on the contrary has a tendency to deteriorate further.Ten miles away from Beijing, there are hundreds of big "thieves" in groups, official corruption is rampant, and the resentment of the common people is increasing day by day.He strongly realized: "It is necessary to have an upright and magnificent man who breaks the norm and sweeps away the clarification, which is not enough to eliminate the world's troubles." ("Zhang Jiangling Letters" fifteen "Answer to Geng Chutong") "Scholar" compared himself, eager to try, trying to realize his long-cherished political wish.