Shenxi was a little confused, after all, she had only lived in ancient times for a little over two months, less than three months.

Having traveled through time, I've been trying to adapt to this era and grasp its rules.

She felt that she hadn't made much of a difference to the marriage law; she hadn't advocated for free love between men and women, nor for freedom of marriage.

I'm afraid the public won't be able to accept it all at once.

The only changes are that parents cannot force their children to get married, and in the event of a divorce, the woman can receive custody of the children and a portion of the compensation, while the man cannot unilaterally abandon her.

Could it be that such a simple change has offended the public?

She's already being quite gentle, like boiling a frog in lukewarm water.

They were thinking of waiting until the public accepted these ideas before introducing freedom of love, freedom of marriage, and even freedom of reproduction.

Given the current situation, the documents of the new marriage law are being withheld and not issued. Could it be that both the government and the people are resisting it?

Shenxi asked, "Xiuwen, could it be that the new marriage law will have a huge impact on ordinary people, which is why you are being treated this way?"

Qi Xiuwen exclaimed, "The commander is indeed intelligent."

“Today, those in power in various places are still men. These new marriage systems have a significant impact on men and will naturally be resisted by those in power from top to bottom.”

Shen Xi was furious. It wasn't that she didn't want to put some capable women in power, but where could she find women who could take the reins?

Even some capable women, due to opposition from their families, dare not show their faces and take charge of a region.

This can be seen from the exam itself; out of more than a hundred candidates, only three were women.

Even if these three women are placed in important positions, surrounded by so many men, their role is truly negligible.

Although a single spark can start a prairie fire, she still needs to protect that spark.

The call to action over two months has not changed many attitudes, especially regarding the status of women, which has remained largely unchanged.

Ah, the task ahead is arduous and the road is long!

"Go to each village and investigate, see where anyone dares to withhold documents!"

At Shen Xi's command, Zheng Hongfang immediately sent people to investigate.

Chen Xi snorted: "The village chiefs of each village should be reappointed."

Zheng Hongfang nodded in understanding: "After this round of recruitment for grassroots civil servants is completed, the selection of village chiefs and officials at all levels will take place."

Shen Xi finally calmed down: "These people all have to go to the county to take the exam. I will personally supervise the exam. Officials from every township, including village chiefs, will have to go to the county to take the exam."

"Only those who pass the exam can be assigned positions, and all officials must be appointed from other regions!"

In Shenxi, the village chief is also an official, the lowest-ranking one, but he is most closely related to people's livelihood and cannot be ignored!

Zheng Hongfang strongly agreed: "The leader's strategy is good, to prevent local power from becoming so great in the future."

Appointing officials to different locations and rotating them every few years prevents officials from accumulating power and becoming difficult to manage in local areas.

Every official who wants to succeed in the bureaucracy must start from the lowest level.

How can one be a good official if one does not understand the lives of people at the grassroots level?

The investigation was carried out quickly, with teams working at breakneck speed. Those in the vicinity were investigated that same day. Those further away are estimated to be investigated by tomorrow.

Nine times out of ten, this document was never issued.

Zheng Hongfang looked ashamed: "I have failed in my duty, please punish me, sir!"

Chenxi sighed: "This is not your fault. You have done a very good job. I saw that the town's documents were posted very well, and the surrounding villages are doing a good job as well. You have not been here long. In the future, you should select some capable people to assist you in your work."

"Yes, thank you, Commander!"

The reason there are so many mistakes is because there are too few capable people.

More than half of the township officials are still the same ones, and many of their ingrained habits are hard to change.

A gradual blood transfusion is needed, which requires the injection of fresh blood!

We need to accelerate the development of talent.

If there isn't enough local talent, we should recruit from other places whenever possible.

After all, the world is in chaos these days, and many talented people are in distress. Attracting talent is the right way.

Chenxi is focusing on the second and third rounds of the exams for all the candidates tomorrow, hoping to find some people with real talent.

Ge Congshan has already been arranged by her; someone will take them out for a stroll anytime, and they can see whatever they want.

Before Qi Xiuwen and Zheng Hongfang could leave, Chen Xi took out the album again, turned to the page about cotton, and said, "Xiuyan said that she once saw this at the Wang family's house in the county town. It's called Baidiezi, and it's said to be a precious flower and plant that only nobles would grow."

Shen Xi glanced at Xing Xiuyan, who nodded: "What the young master of the Wang family said is true. We've been envious of him for a long time."

"But I noticed that Lord Ge didn't recognize it. You must know that Lord Ge is a nobleman with close ties to the Third Prince. If it really were a precious flower or plant kept by a nobleman, he couldn't possibly not know it."

"Then the Wang family must be lying," Xing Xiuyan said angrily.

Shenxi shook his head and said, "The Wang family may not be lying. This is a rare item here. We've asked more than one person, and we've even published a catalog and posted it in the county and towns, but no one has responded. It must be quite precious."

"It's just that these aren't the flowers and plants that our noble people here cultivate!"

Qi Xiuwen couldn't help but ask, "Could it be flowers and plants cultivated by nobles in other regions?"

Shenxi agreed, saying, "It's possible that it's popular among a few local tycoons in remote areas, border nobles, or various regions."

The nobles in the interior looked down on the nobles in remote areas and the local tycoons, feeling that they were not worthy of respect.

So what the Wang family said wasn't wrong; it's very likely that they were raised by nobles in remote border areas, since white berries are indeed rare in the interior.

I wonder how many wealthy people in mainland China are raising cotton; Zang Huatian has not received any news about it.

Cotton is absolutely a revolutionary species.

With it, people will no longer suffer from the cold; with it, the textile industry will make great progress; with it, clothing will become more and more diverse.

Therefore, Shenxi had already sent people to inquire about the Wang family's courtyard, but no news has come yet.

Shenxi said to Qi Xiuwen, "Our county suffered a turmoil, and not many of those local tyrants and powerful families are left. However, we still need to inquire carefully to see if any families are still growing this, and where they obtained it from."

The wealthy and powerful families disdain such a small reward, especially since they haven't yet figured out the leader's temperament, so they naturally won't offer their treasures casually.

Qi Xiuwen respectfully obeyed.

Shenxi then said to Zheng Hongfang, "You should first thoroughly investigate Qiaozhen. Finding Bai Diezi is one thing, but you must plug all the loopholes. I don't have many capable people I trust, but you are one of them. I believe you can do these things well."

Zheng Hongfang was extremely grateful: "Thank you for your trust, Chief!"

"Also, tomorrow is the actual recruitment day, so you'd better keep a close eye on things. Anyone who dares to disrupt it will be severely punished."

"Yes, sir."

Zheng Hongfang responded very solemnly, and then reported, "Ge Sishu from Lingtou Township is making quite a fuss!"