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«——【Preamble】】 ——»
Whether it is in film and television dramas or many literary works, most people's first reaction to Xiucai is the image of a "poor" and "pedantic" poor scholar, and many people think that Xiucai is equivalent to today's college students.
As the so-called "knowledge changes fate", whether in ancient or modern times, everyone wants to achieve the purpose of changing the class through reading, and now countless students change their fate by studying hard to take exams, and the ancients were also the same.
But in fact, the "gold content" of ancient Xiucai is far from today's undergraduate degree, but more about achieving class leaps, and even his privileges...
What is the status of "Xiucai" in ancient times? Is it really as unbearable as everyone remembers, and what does it mean when it is put into the current Xiucai's success?
«——【What is Xiucai?·】——»
From Mr. Lu Xun's pen to "The History of Confucianism", and then to the image of Lu Xiucai in the film and television drama "Wulin Gaiden", most people can be said to be very familiar with "Xiucai".
But in fact, in ancient times, Xiucai was not called so at the beginning, but "Maocai", with the development of the times and social ups and downs, to the Sui Dynasty, Xiucai became the highest education, but it also became very difficult to get Xiucai.
At that time, there were even fewer people who could be called "Xiucai", but the change of the dynastic system made the "gold content" of Xiucai continue to decrease, and even to the verge of abolition.
Since then, Xiucai has become a general term for poor scholars, and until the Song Dynasty, anyone who passed the exam could become Xiucai regardless of whether they became famous or not.
For example, Wang Lun, the "white-clothed showman", was born in this period, and with the evolution and development of history, it was not until the Ming and Qing dynasties that Xiucai evolved into a "scholar".
So was it difficult to become a showman in ancient times?
«——【·Strict Hierarchy·】——»
In ancient times, all dynasties and generations actually had strict class hierarchies, and it can be said that it was "as difficult as climbing to the sky" for most people to leap from the most ordinary people to achieve a leap into the hierarchy.
In ancient times, people pursued "Shinong Industry and Commerce", the so-called officials referred to by scholars, in ancient times, officials could be regarded as the highest level of people, who had an official, as the so-called "one person got the Tao chicken dog ascended to heaven".
In ancient times, the status of peasants was not too low, but in the feudal era, peasants were still the ones who could not have enough to eat.
Workers and people who have a skill and live by craft, such as carpenters and blacksmiths, all belong to "workers", and the last merchant refers to a businessman.
In ancient times, the status of merchants was at the very end, but to some extent their wealth was comparable to that of officials, so this can also explain why every family made every effort to train a scholar to push up to a high position.
As peasants, although their status in the class seems to be very high, the actual life is just not enough to eat, and most people can barely make ends meet by working diligently every day.
In the aristocratic class, in order to maintain the authority of themselves and their families, the society pursued a "hereditary system", which was inherited by immediate relatives, but this inheritance system always had serious drawbacks.
After several eras of evolution and accumulation, there was a serious and distinct class division in the whole society, and during the Han Dynasty, the rulers implemented the "probation system" in order to select talents.
In fact, it is to select mass officials from a certain end for their own use, but in the end, the opportunity for such a method to really bring class leapfrogging to the common people can be said to be very small, and most of the real power is still in the hands of the official eunuchs.
Perhaps the original intention of the probationary system is good, but in the implementation of this system, the existing drawbacks cannot be completely ignored and solved, and the most serious drawback is that the selection of talents is carried out by local officials themselves.
In this case, whether the candidate can leap into the dragon gate and achieve class leapfrogging is actually the decision of the local governor, so corruption and bribery during this period are also very common.
After all, after the rich family realizes financial freedom, they all want to mix up an official and a half-job, after all, in ancient times, under the social atmosphere of "the official level crushes people to death", one person as an official will inevitably benefit the whole family.
The implementation of such an unhealthy atmosphere was inevitably spurned by more and more people, and it was not until the implementation of the imperial examination system that the so-called social atmosphere was changed in the slightest.
«——[The Origin of Xiucai]——»
In the Sui Dynasty, in order to select officials, the emperor selected capable and talented people for himself to expand his court, and the imperial examination system came into being under such demand.
In the Tang Dynasty, in order to fight against the chaebol official family, the imperial examination system was also continuously improved and expanded, and finally after the baptism and practical application of several dynasties, the imperial examination system became the most important way to select talents and officials in ancient times.
The imperial examination system selected a large number of useful people for the royal family, and "Xiucai" was completely born.
You must know that in ancient times, the process of taking the imperial examination was very cumbersome and complicated, and the examination was even more rigorous, and the imperial court attached great importance to it, just as the current college entrance examination is as important.
Countless students have participated in the imperial examination just to change their destiny after studying hard through the cold window, and the imperial examination is also divided into academician township examination and meeting examination.
Only after these three tests can the final talented person accept the test of the final emperor, and this is also the last and most important step of the imperial examination - the palace examination.
If after the palace examination, someone stands out from the examination and is appreciated by the emperor, then the next fate of this person will be completely rewritten as an official, which is why many people in ancient times chose to study to rewrite their own destiny.
However, in ancient times, not all scholars were eligible to take the examination, and before taking the college examination, these scholars also needed to take the county-level examination and the government examination organized by the local government.
These two items are also the most preliminary selection of scholars with good moral character in order to participate in the next imperial examination, and after the end of the academy examination, the scholars who pass the test will also be rewarded and appreciated by the imperial court, and this group of people can be called "Xiucai".
After becoming a Xiucai, with the identity of the body, these scholars can continue to take the exam to achieve the leap on the arcade, although it sounds very simple, but in ancient times it was very difficult to change their fate through the imperial examination.
Countless scholars have gone from black hair to white hair, and they have never been able to pass the examination in their lives, so they can only do nothing in the position for a lifetime with the title of Xiucai.
But this does not mean that Xiucai is useless and looked down upon, even the most inconspicuous Xiucai had a certain privilege and status in ancient times.
«——【·Xiucai Gold Content·】——»
Becoming a showman can be regarded as stepping into the officialdom, and the next thing to watch is your own hard work and luck, but many film and television dramas actually have misunderstandings about Xiucai.
In many film and television dramas, the image of Xiucai is often poor, pedantic and dead-brained, which also makes everyone feel that Xiucai is not very good, but in ancient times, for many ordinary families, it was also a glorious event to burn incense and worship Buddha if someone in the family could be admitted to Xiucai.
It can be said that in ancient times, the gold content of Xiucai was still very high, just like the status of students of Tsinghua University and Peking University today, and with the evolution of the times and the development of dynasties, Xiucai has gradually become the lowest threshold for gaining fame.
But this does not mean that the show is the most useless, and it is also immature now, and saying that becoming a show talent is equivalent to taking the high school entrance examination, although it is not very important, but this step is also essential.
And after becoming Xiucai, the local government will also give a part of the living subsidy, and if Xiucai has land in his name, he can also be exempted from paying taxes to the government, and he does not even need to serve.
It is precisely because of this that in ancient times, many people would use the examination to avoid paying taxes, and becoming a Xiucai also has a certain privilege in politics.
As we all know, in ancient times, there was a very strict hierarchical division, and if you met an official as a common person, you had to bow down and bow down, whether it was a big official or a small person.
Therefore, once they become Xiucai, to a certain extent, they also have a certain right of exemption, and they do not need to bow down in front of officials, and the identity of Xiucai can also exempt them from certain criminal laws, and they can also be punished lightly for certain big mistakes and repeat offenses.
After all, it was a literati used by the imperial court, so in the case of some talents, the local government did not dare to act rashly, for fear of violating the laws and regulations on the literati class.
And after becoming a showman, there are more ways to make a living than other ordinary people, the first is to go up the exam and eventually become an official, but if you don't pass the exam, don't worry.
The unsuccessful Xiucai can actually enter the government and take the position of the local master to participate in important matters and governance, if he is not willing to become a person in the officialdom to work hard, just for a certain position and a place.
Xiucai can also become a famous person by virtue of the fame he has obtained at the time, or Xiucai can also enter a private school to become a teacher and enjoy the respect of the students.
Nowadays, in modern society, the importance of education is gradually increasing, after all, if you want to gain a foothold in today's society, academic qualifications are the first stepping stone.
Most people may think that if they rely on their talents, they are at least a talent show in ancient times, but in fact, it is very difficult to complete the identity transformation through the exam in ancient times.
After all, the scope of the imperial examination is very extensive, but from the most basic Four Books and Five Classics to many difficult historical allusions, these are all things that readers need to overcome one by one.
According to historical records, among the 450,000 people who participated in the imperial examination in the Qing Dynasty alone, only more than 10,000 people were finally on the list.
If it is converted to today's proportion, becoming a Xiucai is equivalent to taking the college entrance examination and being admitted to a double first-class university, and it is difficult to convert such a ratio today.
It can be seen that education is so important for the rise and fall of a country and nation, and we cannot change our own life destiny without enough strength.
«——【·Conclusion·】——»
After some understanding, it is not difficult to find that "Xiucai" is actually not as unbearable as some film and television dramas, literary works and everyone's stereotype, on the contrary, to be able to become a Xiucai in ancient times, it must have been through hard work and countless efforts to usher in the final change.
Reading must be the most unstoppable thing in this life, and now Xiucai has withdrawn from the stage of history with the ups and downs of the times, but his impact on today's education system can be said to be very far-reaching.