How did the Ming Dynasty court appease candidates who failed the imperial examination

How did the Ming Dynasty court appease candidates who failed the imperial examination? Below, the History Encyclopedia editor will bring you a detailed article introduction.
The imperial examination system had already reached perfection by the time of the Ming Dynasty. The scale of the imperial examination is unprecedentedly prosperous and the competition is fierce. In the Ming Dynasty imperial examination, there were a large number of unsuccessful candidates. They devoted their entire lives and energy to the path of entering the imperial examination system, but due to the randomness of the examination and their limited knowledge and cultural level, they were only unsuccessful throughout their lives. A large number of unsuccessful individuals will inevitably feel dissatisfied and have a series of demands for the government. If the problem of falling behind cannot be handled properly, it will inevitably bring very serious problems.
1、 The negative impact of a large number of unsuccessful candidates in the imperial examination system
According to records, Huang Chao rose up in anger and resistance due to repeated failures in the imperial examination. Like Huang Chao, there were also many unsuccessful candidates in the imperial examination in his rebellion army, but due to the lack of good appeasement measures by the authorities, he embarked on the path of resisting the government, causing great harm to the authorities.
At the beginning of the Song Dynasty, a system of palace examination and dismissal was implemented. According to statistics, the number of people who were dismissed during the palace examination accounted for about 30% -80% of the total number, indicating the high number of people who were dismissed and causing extremely serious consequences. As recorded by Pan Zimu, a native of the Southern Song Dynasty, in his book “Record of Yuanhai”, “Since our ancestors, there have been scholars who passed the provincial examination and went to the palace examination, but there were still those who were dismissed. In the palace examination of distant scholars, they were poor and unable to return, often losing their homes and dying in the water.” Against this backdrop, scholars were unwilling to accept this and, in anger, embarked on the path of departing from their homeland and opposing the court.
Faced with this situation, the rulers of the Song Dynasty had to change this policy, thus giving rise to the system of palace examination without dismissal. The massive displaced group is inevitably dissatisfied with the status quo, so they begin to seek a special way to vent their dissatisfaction and ultimately embark on the path of rebellion. There are countless events like this, and the literati class of the Ming Dynasty had a clear understanding of this situation.
In addition to the annual tribute and imperial examination, various means should be taken to make the best use of talents in the world, so as to promote the prosperity of the entire country, continuously develop various undertakings, and maintain the long-term stability of the entire country. Among all types of talents in the Ming Dynasty, those who failed the imperial examination had the highest proportion. Under this influence, rulers will inevitably attach great importance to the marginalized groups, and will pay even more attention to pacifying them.
In summary, with the continuous increase in the number of candidates for the imperial examination, township examination, and scientific examination in the Ming Dynasty, and the increasingly fixed admission quotas for various levels of examinations, the failure rate of various levels of examinations in the Ming Dynasty remained high. And this situation will inevitably cause a series of impacts. Firstly, although a high failure rate may lead to the selection of a large number of outstanding talents, it may also result in the omission of a significant number of talented individuals. Secondly, a large number of fallen soldiers may become dissatisfied, develop a resistance mentality, and then rebel against the government. Thirdly, the large number of disadvantaged groups may also bring about a series of social problems. Therefore, based on the lessons learned from previous generations, combined with the development of the imperial examination system and social conditions, the Ming government introduced corresponding policies to appease candidates at all levels of examinations.
2、 The policy of failing the imperial examination in the Ming Dynasty
1. Becoming a lifelong honor through successful candidates
During the Tang and Song dynasties, the term “juren” referred to candidates who obtained local imperial examinations and rushed to the capital to participate in the Ministry of Rites examination, while during the Yuan dynasty, it was a general term for candidates who were recommended for the imperial examination. However, whether it was the Juren of the Tang and Song dynasties or the Juren of the Yuan dynasty, they did not have a “background”, so naturally there was no mention of fame or achievements. In the Ming Dynasty, after passing the provincial examination, Chinese scholars who passed the imperial examination were called “juren”. At this time, the identity of juren underwent a huge change, not only becoming a lifelong merit, but also obtaining “birth” and possessing the qualifications for preliminary selection of officials.
As a basic participant in the imperial examination, even if one fails, they can still maintain their status as a juren. This is not only a commendation from the Ming government for those who pass the township examination, but also a consolation and preferential treatment from the Ming government for those who fail the imperial examination. In the Ming Dynasty, once one became a juren, their identity and status would undergo significant changes. After passing the national civil service examination, he rose to fame like a rising star, enjoying luxury in clothing, food, housing, and transportation. The gentry and wealthy competed to marry him, and local officials were polite and courteous. Compared to being a student, his identity and status underwent a tremendous transformation.
As the late Ming Dynasty literati Ai Nanying once said, “Every time one tries, those who have been listed in the book of sages, although they are ignorant, mediocre, and ignorant, still have to compete with the officials of the county. They have been studying for more than 20 years… They do not have to associate with those who are ignorant, mediocre, and ignorant. They enter the ranks of officials, join the ranks, and leave the ranks.” From this, it can be seen that there is a great difference in the status and treatment of students and scholars. The attitude of local officials towards Juren and students is vastly different. They treat Juren with a polite and courteous demeanor; Waiting for students is like a long-standing feud. From this, it can be seen that the status of juren was highly respected in the Ming Dynasty, which fully demonstrates the government’s emphasis on the juren group. From the perspective of ranking, it also reflects the Ming government’s emphasis on those who failed the imperial examination.
2. Vice ranking candidate appointed as a teaching position
With the increase in the number of candidates taking the imperial examination and the fixed number of admission quotas, there are a large number of successful candidates who have not been admitted after the examination. In order to encourage unsuccessful candidates and ensure that there are no omissions in talent selection, the Ming government added a supplementary list in addition to the official list. Candidates who ranked on the supplementary list were also known as “reserve list candidates” or “second list candidates”. Due to his good performance in the imperial examination and high level of education, the Ming government appointed deputy candidates to serve as instructors for various prefectural, state, and county schools. The policy of allowing candidates to pass the imperial examination to become teachers was promulgated during the Hongwu period.
For example, in the early years of the Hongwu reign, Confucian scholars were appointed as students; by the 16th year, they were appointed as candidates for the imperial examination and those who passed the imperial examination. Zhang Boying was also appointed as a candidate for the imperial examination. He was recommended by the Jiangxi township, and next year, he was recommended by the Ministry of Rites and passed the imperial examination. He was appointed as the magistrate of Yangshan County, Guangdong Province. Liu Tianxi was also appointed as the magistrate of Yangshan County, Guangdong Province. He said that since the 16th year of the Hongwu reign (1383), the Ming government has begun to select candidates for the imperial examination as deputy candidates to serve as instructors for prefectural, prefectural, and county schools.
In the 30th year of the Hongwu reign (1397), the Ministry of Rites issued a teaching edict and guidance to the candidates on the second list of candidates. Those who were not willing to sign the edict before the age of thirty were required to listen. This example meant that there were clear regulations on the age at which candidates on the second list of candidates in the imperial examination could become teachers. Later, Yongle was appointed as a teacher and instructor in preparation for the selection of candidates for the imperial examination; In the fifth year of the Xuande reign (1430), he submitted a report to the Ministry of Personnel and appointed 689 candidates, including Hu Zhi, as deputy candidates for the imperial examination. They were appointed as academic officials, teachers, and instructors; In the fourth year of the Zhengtong reign (1439), there were 233 candidates who had reached the age of 25 or above in the imperial examination and were selected as candidates for the middle and deputy positions. They were requested to be sent to the Ministry of Personnel to be removed from their teaching positions; In the 23rd year of the Chenghua reign (1487), those who passed the imperial examination on the deputy list were imprisoned for three years. Those who were over thirty years old were not imprisoned, and those who were over twenty-five years old in the new subject were ordered to take up teaching positions
From this, it can be seen that since the 16th year of the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty (1383), it has become a common practice and standard for the Ming government to select and appoint teachers from various prefectures, states, and counties through the examination and examination. This policy greatly affected those who failed the imperial examination, not only effectively alleviating the contradiction of failure after the examination, but also making a huge contribution to the development of Ming Dynasty prefectural, state, and county schools, becoming an important way out for those who failed the examination.
3. If you fail the imperial examination, you will become a teacher
In the Ming Dynasty, the instructors of prefectural, state, and county schools were generally appointed by the deputy candidates of the imperial examination. However, due to the low rank and difficulty in promotion of instructors in prefectural, state, and county schools, most of the vice ranked candidates were unwilling to serve. Therefore, the Ming government selected them from the list of unsuccessful candidates to meet the needs of instructors in prefectural, state, and county schools.
The scale of candidates who are willing to pass the imperial examination for teaching positions has been expanding year by year, but the number of instructors in various prefectures, states, and counties is limited. During the Jiajing period, there was a situation where candidates who failed the imperial examination were required to seek favor and be taught. The Ming government also established regulations regarding the teaching of candidates who failed the imperial examination and were required to seek favor and be taught. “Those who were required to seek favor and be taught during the imperial examination and were sent to the court for examination by the Ministry of Rites will be selected and removed by the Ministry of Consultation. In the old tradition, the first step was to study and correct them, and the second step was to provide guidance, all of which will be based on actual teaching
To become a successful candidate in the imperial examination, one must first seek a teaching position through begging for mercy. After passing the imperial examination conducted by the Ministry of Rites, corresponding teaching positions will be awarded based on their academic performance. In the forty fourth year of the Wanli reign (1616), the Ming government stipulated that “from now on, the quota for the number of successful candidates in the imperial examination shall be set at three hundred, and it shall remain a permanent quota.” This example illustrates the increasingly severe situation where the number of successful candidates in the imperial examination and the number of instructors in various prefectures, states, and counties tend to reach the full quota. The Ming government also made corresponding regulations for the quota of successful candidates in the imperial examination, setting it at three hundred and making it a permanent quota.
The teaching position for those who failed the imperial examination in the Ming Dynasty was a appeasement policy issued by the Ming government to demonstrate its emphasis on those who failed the examination. With the increasing number of unsuccessful candidates in the imperial examination and the shortage of official positions, there has been a bottleneck in obtaining the qualification for selecting officials through studying in prison. Therefore, more and more unsuccessful candidates want to obtain their qualifications through exams by teaching them.
However, due to the limited number of instructors in various prefectures, states, and counties, under the enormous pressure of teaching, the policy of teaching after passing the imperial examination for successful candidates has gradually been improved. From the initial policy of no quota or superiority, to the later period of the Ming Dynasty, where quotas were set for candidates and positions were determined by grades. In the case of appeasing the unsuccessful candidates in the imperial examination, this policy is gradually being improved.
The appeasement of unsuccessful candidates after the imperial examination has been present since the introduction of the policy of failing the imperial examination. This group of people has always received preferential treatment and care from the government due to their high cultural literacy and personal qualities. On the basis of the previous generation, the Ming government further appeased and favored those who failed the imperial examination, which can be said to have developed the policy of imperial examination failure to the extreme. Policies such as achieving great success in the imperial examination, teaching those who failed the imperial examination, allowing them to participate in the imperial examination continuously, and teaching those who failed the imperial examination were introduced. Under the influence of these policies, the Ming government recruited a large number of “leftover talents”, allowing a large number of unsuccessful candidates to enter the Ming government and become part of the ruling class, greatly maintaining the stability and stability of the Ming government.