This method is incredibly profound; it is by no means a simple trick to fool people!
The people below the court were shocked, but the person on the dragon throne was indifferent, showing an uninterested expression, and then spoke impatiently.
"So what? What good will it do me? What good will it do for the court if things are done your way? Pshaw!"
Sure enough, as soon as these words were spoken, all the officials stared wide-eyed at the emperor on the dragon throne.
His incompetence far exceeded everyone's imagination!
This method is almost flawless and can be described as outstanding.
This foolish emperor actually denied it outright?
Sima Lie and Weng Tonghe, who had just been extremely nervous, immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
fine!
They forgot that the person in power was a tyrant! A fool!
It's such a pity about Song Zhenglian. His loyalty was misplaced, and his passion was suddenly cut short by despair!
Does a foolish emperor care about the fairness of the imperial examination? Obviously not. He only cares about whether he has enough money in his pocket for his own amusement the next day!
At that very moment, Song Zhenglian, following the emperor's instructions, made a further mention.
"No! Your Majesty! If we reform according to this method, it will be of immense benefit to you!"
Qin Yu cooperated perfectly, hurling insults at them.
"What good is this for me? Are you trying to fool me into thinking I don't understand your reform methods?"
"No! Because this requires standardized printing and copying, which consumes a lot of manpower and resources, so it's reasonable for the imperial court to charge an application fee when holding the imperial examinations in the future, right?"
"I have done a quick count, and the total cost, including the exam paper fee and service fee, is eight taels of silver."
"Eight ounces!!!"
Qin Yu feigned greed, his eyes gleaming, and cried out in surprise.
Other officials naturally thought the emperor's reaction was perfectly normal, as his greed and lustful nature were already deeply ingrained in people's minds.
Only Song Zhenglian, who was talking to him, knew that he was acting, and his lips twitched suddenly.
Putting everything else aside, the emperor's acting skills are truly terrifying.
With his ten fingers spread, the emperor on the dragon throne began to calculate, unconsciously making sounds as he spoke.
"Eight taels of silver per person, and hundreds of thousands of candidates from all over the country travel to the capital for the imperial examinations every year—isn't that what they mean?" At this point, the emperor raised his head, beaming with joy, and exclaimed, "Doesn't that mean I can collect eight or nine hundred thousand taels of silver every year just by lying down and collecting these registration fees!"
Song Zhenglian bowed slightly, "Indeed! This is precisely the reform method that I specially researched for Your Majesty."
"Very good! Very good! Since we're going to charge an application fee, then we'll relax the restrictions on the imperial examinations from now on. All the hundreds of millions of citizens of our Great Xia, as long as they are individuals, will be allowed to come to the capital to apply for the examinations!"
This was actually part of Qin Yu's plan.
In today's world, education is a real luxury for ordinary people.
The cost of learning was extremely high, far exceeding the various schools that were ubiquitous in later generations. And most importantly, the imperial examinations were subject to strict identity restrictions.
On this vast land, there are still a considerable number of bankrupt farmers who, in order to survive, have no choice but to sell themselves into serfdom. These people do not even have the qualifications to take scientific research, which is equivalent to being deprived of their right to education for life!
At the same time, below them are the miserable and struggling lower classes, while above them is education completely monopolized by academic cliques.
For generations, they controlled the imperial examinations, used the knowledge to gain official positions and wealth, and forever suppressed the poor peasants at the bottom of society.
Qin Yu brought this up in order to break the monopoly on education, attract more talent, and accelerate the effort towards educational equity.
Eight taels of silver was nothing more than a drop in the ocean for scholarly families, but for tenant farmers and serfs it was an astronomical sum!
Of course, Qin Yu is only taking this opportunity to suggest that as long as the policy is relaxed, money and other things will be easier to handle in the future!
If things don't work out in the future, we can just cancel the registration fee.
In short, Qin Yu deeply understood the importance of education to a country. The most important thing for a country to become rich and powerful is education. No matter how poor the court was, he would never neglect education.
He'll do anything to raise that money from now on, even if it means selling everything he owns!
The emotions of the officials in the room were like a rollercoaster ride!
Sima Lie and Weng Tonghe, in particular, froze their mocking expressions instantly!
OK!
Song Zhenglian actually came up with such a terrifying way to amass wealth!
Eight taels of silver directly blocked the path to advancement for ordinary people. Any far-sighted emperor would probably not have agreed to that.
However, the method proposed by Song Zhenglian was exactly what the tyrannical emperor wanted!
He doesn't care about any of that at all!
The emperor on the dragon throne stood up excitedly and pointed at Song Zhenglian, praising him lavishly.
"Excellent, Minister Song! You truly know how to share my burdens and solve my problems; you are the most capable minister of our Great Xia!"
"A reward is a must! Reward Scholar Song with a thousand taels of silver and a hundred bolts of silk!"
"Furthermore, from now on you will be the deputy examiner! You will assist Grand Secretary Weng in organizing this imperial examination!"
A thousand taels of silver!
When has this emperor ever been so generous? Usually, he just rewards people with worthless government bonds or a paltry hundred taels of silver.
It seems he was genuinely pleased with the solution Song Zhenglian offered!
When Weng Tonghe heard this decision, he was so angry he almost cried out!
He glared fiercely at Song Zhenglian, who was kneeling down to express his gratitude, and cursed inwardly.
What makes you think you can be on equal footing with me, a mere poor and insignificant official?
This isn't the end of it. He and Song Zhenglian already had a major conflict, and Song will definitely continue to oppose him in the future!
After these twists and turns, Anfu finally announced the end of the court session.
After leaving the court, Weng Tonghe immediately followed Sima Lie.
"Prime Minister! Prime Minister!"
"Who knew that Song would actually come up with a plan! You saw his reaction just now, he was incredibly arrogant. I urge the Prime Minister to take action and eliminate this guy!"
To be honest, Sima Lie was also somewhat shocked by what happened today, but he was more concerned about the war on the front lines in Youzhou.
Listening to Weng Tonghe's constant complaints, Sima Lie just felt incredibly annoyed.
"Do you think I don't hate him? But what can I do now?"
If he could, he would have done it already!
But right now there's no way to kill Song Zhenglian!
This person is very famous in the literary circles of Daxia and has a very high status among the candidates. He just made a name for himself, and the emperor still remembers it. How can he take action against him?
"Just bear with it. In the end, he's just a deputy examiner. The emperor just said he's only there to assist you."
"Just do as we plan, continue recruiting according to the list, what trouble can he possibly cause?"
Sima Lie's words were certainly not without reason, but Weng Tonghe shook his head and sighed, giving a bitter smile.
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