Because Confucianism arranged classes according to moral criteria rather than economic criteria, even a poor shenshi enjoyed enormous status and respect among the lower classes, so their position as higher-level shenshi probably helped gain cooperation. Shenshi held. Shenshi were members of the gentry in their own right, as well, with the wealth, honor, and tax-exempt status due their position. Shenshi handled taxes for the central government, as well, which helped supplement their income. One could say that our country does engage in a meritocracy similar to the shenshi system. Our children all go to public schools. Though our schools' educational systems are supposed to be locally based, in reality we have a common national standard, especially in specific subjects, including nationalized textbooks. Public school teachers are specifically instructed to create good, obedient citizens (witness the whole Thanksgiving...

Those who test well then are paid to go to on further education. Corporations and government then hire those who do well at college. Some say we live in a corporatocracy already. If you do not subscribe to that theory, then you could view the federal and state civil service exams as not unlike China's shenshi system. Federal hiring standards are still referred to as a "competitive examinations" of knowledge, skills, and experience. For good college students, graduate exams (administered by private corporations), admit high-scoring students to further study, like the shenshi. Being a doctoral student used to be a good guarantee of good employment, usually through a state university, which again, is similar to the shenshi system.
Because our system respects wealth instead of knowledge, and because our wealthy are fairly entrenched, the actual shenshi system could not work here, however.