As for those small villages, they need to be popularized little by little.
Building schools, boosting the economy, and changing mindsets are not things that can be accomplished overnight.
Wei Wangqing said in a deep voice, "I understand. It certainly won't stay like this forever."
Perhaps because the topic was too heavy, Wei Wangqing unconsciously used the self-reference he used when facing civil and military officials in the court.
Wuchen said, "I believe you."
Perhaps noticing the somewhat tense atmosphere, Wu Changming brightened things up by saying, "There are still good aspects too. For example, many merchants are now feeling proud and successful. Many businesses outside are praising His Majesty and are willing to do good deeds to help others."
Wei Wangqing remained noncommittal; she still had much to do.
There are many areas where Great Wei can improve, and Great Wei can become even better.
However, there are many things in modern times that she cannot use here. Everything develops for a reason, and Wei Wangqing does not want to force things to grow faster than they should.
Of course, the most important reason is...
She won't!
Yes, in modern times she only enjoys the high technology, she doesn't know how to make it at all. Just like she can watch TV, but has no idea how TVs are made, and she can eat potatoes, but doesn't know where potatoes come from.
Tears streaming down my face, even if I knew how, I doubt there would be any materials here.
The meal was spent contemplating future plans for the Great Wei.
That evening, Wei Wangqing's mood improved somewhat only after seeing the carefree smiles of her two children.
The next day, Wu Changming and Wuchen left without a sound.
In the imperial court.
The group of ministers were shocked by the Queen's proposal. It was so sudden that they were completely unprepared.
A group of people instinctively wanted to refute this.
Among them, the most vehement reactions came from those who came from humble backgrounds and passed the imperial examinations. However, such officials were few in number and mostly at the bottom, so few people paid attention to them.
So what exactly did Wei Wangqing say?
Wei Wangqing thought about it all night. If he wanted those farmers to consider other issues such as raising children or cultural education, it would be based on the premise that they could have enough to eat and wear.
This is the most important thing.
If they can keep themselves fed and clothed, they will naturally have a long-term source of income.
Wei Wangqing thought of bows and arrows. She planned to start with bows and arrows so that they would no longer be controlled by the imperial court, but could be made available to the common people.
Firstly, it allows for hunting. This means that almost every family can eat meat, so how could life not be good? Any surplus can be sold. It also greatly reduces the probability of hunters dying or getting injured. Nowadays, it's mostly women who go out hunting. If something happens to them in the mountains, their whole family will be ruined.
With bows and arrows, they could hunt from a distance, greatly reducing casualties. Moreover, in this situation, if war were to break out, the Great Wei could at least achieve a state of universal conscription.
The sale of bows and arrows by merchants at low prices can also stimulate the economy.
Wei Wangqing also planned to increase the wages for military service. After all, the wages were not commensurate with the labor. Wei Wangqing felt that in this era, going to military service almost always cost him half his life, which was very harmful to his health, and the meager wages were especially insufficient. This would also alleviate the burden on ordinary families.
As for the meager compensation given after someone died, well, Wei Wangqing didn't even want to say anything more about it. People who would even covet such a small amount of money are truly inhuman, and she would never let them live.
On the other hand, Wei Wangqing plans to reduce the taxes levied on farmers, as the land taxes they bear are a significant burden. Wei Wangqing will not only exempt them completely, but will also reduce them substantially.
Therefore, they had to add it back from another source, and Wei Wangqing planned to start with the aristocratic families.
To be honest, she felt that the treatment for scientific expeditions was far too good.
She always felt that these were all squeezed out of ordinary people.
Putting aside everything else, the exemption from forced labor alone is enough to illustrate how arduous forced labor is.
The exemption from land tax on dozens of acres of land allowed scholars and officials to profit from it, and many farmers would sell themselves into slavery just to reduce their land tax.
Isn't it ridiculous? Selling oneself just to avoid paying exorbitant land taxes.
Therefore, Wei Wangqing planned to adjust the system, but only those who passed the county-level examination would not have those privileges, while those who passed the provincial-level examination and the imperial examination could have their family members exempted from labor service and land tax.
It's impossible to profit from others' opportunities.
Therefore, these events caused a great uproar in the imperial court.
The sudden introduction of so many policies caught many ministers off guard.
This is a sign that things are about to change!
Prince An looked at the Empress with approval, believing that a good emperor is one who cares about his people.
The cunning and shrewd old ministers remained silent, after all, this was a good thing for the country and its people, and no one could say that the Empress was wrong. Besides, it wasn't their interests that were being harmed.
With powerful families backing them, why would they care about the meager benefits offered by the imperial examinations?
To put it bluntly, the amount of money they casually spend on a meal is more than the taxes those farmers pay in their entire lives.
On the contrary, those scholars from poor families were more concerned about these benefits.
But would someone who has reached this point really care about a little bit of tax revenue?
The students who truly cared about these benefits had not yet become officials and had no chance to even meet the Empress, so naturally they had no right to refuse.
On the contrary, regarding the matter of bows and arrows, many ministers came forward to object, saying, "Your Majesty, if such a weapon were to fall into the hands of the common people, there is no doubt that some people would use it to harm others, as it would be quite lethal!"
Prince An looked at the Empress, wanting to see how she would respond.
"What can be used to kill is never a weapon, but the human heart."
"If those people really have malicious intentions, nothing can stop them. They can use a knife or even a sharp stone from the roadside to kill someone, can't they?"
"Those who truly know how to use them will only treat bows and arrows as their livelihood and protect them carefully."
The minister was speechless upon hearing this.
It's unclear who started it, but soon a large group of people knelt down and shouted in unison, "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"
Even those who were unwilling to accept defeat, seeing that the situation was hopeless, could only kneel down and prostrate themselves on the ground.
Today's events greatly shocked the officials. It seemed that no one had expected the Empress to have grown up so quickly and was now almost capable of handling things on her own.
These policies were comprehensive, and they were almost impossible to find any loopholes. Even if there were, the Empress had already covered them up.
When this news reached the prefectures and counties, the people knelt down and cheered, "Long live the Emperor!"
In the past, no emperor had ever been willing to look down on these poor people; they always looked down on everyone from their high positions.
And now, what have they heard?
Promote the use of bows and arrows! Reduce taxes! Increase wages for laborers!
They actually had this day!
Good days are not far away.
At this moment, all the people who received the news couldn't help but think of this.
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