But it took him another two attempts over a seven-year span before he passed the third stage
jin-shi (chin-shih; doctorate) exam in 1604. At the age of 42, he was finally qualified for higher government positions.
Xu was born into a family whose finances were in disarray. Although his grandfather had amassed a small fortune through commercial dealings, the Xu family estate had been plundered by the Japanese pirates who had raided the Shanghai area from 1551 to 1557. Division of family properties with relatives led to further impoverishment. Xu's father engaged in both farming and teaching to make ends meet, while his grandmother and mother augmented income with spinning and weaving. Out of sheer necessity, Xu combined his preparations for the civil service examinations with jobs in farming and handicraft. Rumors of renewed Japanese pirate raids also drove him to pay attention to military affairs and to study the problems of maritime defense. He became aware that the Ming dynasty was ten times weaker militarily than the Song (Sung or Soong) dynasty (960-1279) which had been conquered by the Mongols. The question of how to make the dynasty prosperous and strong absorbed a great deal of his thinking.
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