Hutuli had not yet anticipated the immense impact the system of female officials would have on the Qing Dynasty and even the entire country, but Hongyan had already foreseen it.
Honestly, he supported his mother.
As my father once said, "In this world, those who are capable should be employed."
This ability should be given to individuals regardless of age, experience, or gender. Whether male or female, as long as they possess genuine talent and learning, a truly wise ruler will naturally give them an opportunity to demonstrate it.
Moreover, with his mother and sister by his side, and having met Mengguqing, the first female prince of Mongolia, Hongyan had no doubt that women lacked this ability.
It's just unknown whether this path will be successful.
Changning had naturally considered the issues that Hongyan was looking for, but she felt that they shouldn't give up just because they were too difficult.
She consulted many ancient books and found that there was indeed a system of female officials in ancient China, but most of them were in the harem. Starting from the Northern Wei Dynasty, the system of concubines and female officials was separated, and they were responsible for managing the harem.
During the reign of Emperor Wen of Sui, the Six Departments, Six Offices, and Six Codes were established.
Later dynasties added twenty-four departments, such as the Palace Attendant.
However, this is slightly different from the female official system that Changning wanted.
She wanted not only female officials in the harem, but also female officials in the imperial court.
This would enable women to read and write, take examinations, and participate in politics.
To truly improve women's dignity in terms of social status.
Of course, there are definitely huge obstacles to this at present.
Therefore, Changning thought of proceeding step by step, first restoring the female officials in the Forbidden City, and slowly and subtly changing people's thinking.
Moreover, she is the mother of the nation and the Empress of the Qing Dynasty, so it is only natural for her to handle this matter.
Once the system of female officials is in place, women's education and martial arts will be promoted comprehensively, girls' schools will be established, women will be allowed to engage in commerce, and finally, the imperial examinations will be permitted.
This could take many years.
However, Changning felt he could afford to wait.
For this reason, she even made a special trip to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
Previously, Emperor Yinzhen had decreed that as long as it was the Empress, there was no need to announce her arrival at any time; she could simply be invited in.
However, Changning still asked Su Peisheng, "Is His Majesty currently seeing any ministers?"
Upon seeing Changning, Su Peisheng bowed his head and stood respectfully waiting from afar. He hurriedly stepped forward and said with a smile, "No, no, His Majesty was just mentioning you! He said you haven't been to the Hall of Mental Cultivation for four or five days. He wondered if something had been holding you back, and even sent us servants to look for you!"
Changning smiled slightly, feeling a little more relaxed.
Upon entering the hall, as expected, Yinzhen was sitting alone on the dragon throne, seemingly reading memorials. When he saw Changning enter, he exclaimed with delight, "You've finally arrived! You've been slacking off for four or five days. I'm punishing you to grind ink. If you had come any later, the ink in Yangxin Hall would have dried up completely."
Changning couldn't help but chuckle, and Su Peisheng also chuckled. Seeing that his two masters were sticking together again, he wisely withdrew.
"The Imperial Household Department has sent two more bolts of Moonbeam Brocade. We've only gotten this much in the last four months. I was thinking of making you a dress with various crafts on it. What do you think?"
Changning, of course, trusted Yinzhen's aesthetic sense and nodded.
Seeing that she was satisfied, Yinzhen smiled again: "The glass doors and windows you mentioned last time are finished now, but the installation time hasn't been set yet. How about you stay with me in the Hall of Mental Cultivation for the next couple of days?"
"Live in the Hall of Mental Cultivation?" Changning was slightly surprised for a moment, but then she thought that as the Empress, it was only natural for her to live with the Emperor. So she readily agreed, "Alright, I'll have Chuixue and Zhuiyu go back and pack some things for me."
Yinzhen held her hand and said tenderly, "What are you packing for? Just leave the backups you want here."
Changning glanced at him sideways and laughed, "That won't do. I've been busy writing memorials these past two days."
"Write a memorial?" Yinzhen was completely bewildered. "What's wrong? Has something major happened in the harem?"
Changning then shared his thoughts.
“I’m thinking of reinstating the system of female officials in the palace. The palace staff is becoming increasingly redundant, including eunuchs, maids, and some who haven’t been released yet. This is a good opportunity to purge a group of them and select some talented and capable ones.”
Yinzhen's first reaction was: "What has the Imperial Household Department done?"
After all, this matter was of utmost importance, equivalent to the restructuring of many official positions within the inner court, especially since the Imperial Household Department was highly lucrative and involved a great deal of influence from the Eight Banners.
"That's not it. It's just that many nannies or palace maids are clearly capable of doing these things, but they are hampered by the lack of corresponding ranks, which inevitably leads to unrest among them."
Yinzhen understood that Changning didn't want to target the Imperial Household Department, but rather wanted to get a rank for the maids and servants and improve their status.
After thinking about it for a while, Yinzhen felt that it was not impossible.
The system of female officials has existed since ancient times, but it was abolished before the Qing Dynasty to strengthen control over the inner palace, and the Imperial Household Department took over its management.
Over the years, the Imperial Household Department has become a mixed bag, with various factions entrenched in one place. Although the head of the Imperial Household Department was a minister he had recently promoted, the minister had mentioned to him more than once the dirty deeds within the department, which were truly troublesome.
If we could take this opportunity to thoroughly clean up our personnel, remove those who are secretly enriching themselves without knowing who their masters are, and then select some talented people, with the female officials and the Imperial Household Department checking and balancing each other, it would be better.
So he agreed without hesitation, and praised Changning for being intelligent and kind-hearted, taking national affairs as her own responsibility, and simply a wise empress.
Although Changning knew that Yinzhen probably wouldn't object to her, she didn't expect him to agree so readily and even receive a wave of praise. She was a little proud, so she continued, "Besides the female officials in the Forbidden City, I also want to issue decrees to allow women to study, establish girls' schools, and set up maternity and orphanages to take in homeless women and children and teach them skills such as weaving or cooking to make a living."
Yinzhen raised an eyebrow: "Anything else?"
"This is only temporary. I hope that in the future women will also be able to read and write, ride horses and shoot arrows, take the imperial examinations to enter officialdom, and participate in politics."
After saying that, Changning practically said that she wanted women to have equal status with men.
Yinzhen pondered for a moment: "I know what you mean, but this matter is by no means something that can be accomplished in a day. At present, the Fourteenth Prince is still fighting against the Japanese pirates, and in the northwest, Nian Gengyao is locked in a stalemate with the Dzungars. The Qing Dynasty is currently developing its national strength, thinking about increasing tax revenue, replenishing the national treasury, and supporting military supplies."
"Given the current conditions of the Qing Dynasty, it is not yet suitable to expand women's political participation. However, I promise you, when peace and prosperity prevail, it will certainly be accomplished!"
Changning nodded. She believed that Yinzhen would not make empty promises and could understand that this matter was of utmost importance, and the most urgent task was still the war.
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