"Take a look at these."
"What's this?"
"According to the percentage system you mentioned, the results of the examinations at the Academy of Natural History are quite good. I plan to send out two sets of blueprints for them to study, and have the Imperial Household Department cooperate in the process."
Youqing told Kangxi that he didn't think there was anything wrong with letting these people study it, but he had some objections to having the Imperial Household Department cooperate.
"The Imperial Household Department is responsible for the royal family's clothing, food, housing and transportation. Although there are skilled craftsmen in it, the environment of the Imperial Household Department is too complicated and may not be suitable for dealing with the Academy of Natural History."
To put it bluntly, the Imperial Household Department is a place that "tempers" people, and most of the people there are shrewd and worldly-wise. Although the Academy of Sciences is relatively small, the young Qing had high hopes for it, regarding it as the cradle of future science.
Getting too involved with the Imperial Household Department might not be a good thing.
"So what are your plans?"
"Why not search for talented people more widely? The world is vast, and there are plenty of skilled craftsmen."
Kangxi naturally knew this, but the world was too vast, and while there were places to return to, they were also very difficult to find.
Finding someone is a very time-consuming task.
"It doesn't matter if it takes a little more effort. The Imperial Household Department is involved in too many things, so the Academy of Natural Sciences can only be controlled by ourselves."
The young Qing emperors placed even greater emphasis on the Imperial Academy of Natural History than the Kangxi Emperor.
She saw a future that Kangxi never saw. No matter how far-sighted Kangxi was, he could not have predicted what the future would look like. Although he had begun to pay attention to the development of science and technology, he did not feel the great charm of science and technology.
Seeing how much importance Youqing attached to it, Kangxi thought it was a good idea.
"Then I will send someone to search for them."
Youqing shook her head: "I'll handle this. Yan Yuege has already opened branches in every prefecture of the Qing Dynasty. I will have people recruit suitable people in the name of Yan Yuege."
"You don't intend to let the Academy of Natural History have any deep connection with the officials in the imperial court at all!"
Youqing thought this was a good idea.
In the future, most scientists will be devoted to research. Although they will have a good relationship with the government, they will clearly be part of two different systems. In contrast, in ancient times, most scholars aimed to become officials.
The decision to classify the Gewu Academy as a government agency was largely a last resort.
Otherwise, if people have studied for so many years and are not allowed to become officials, why would they risk their lives for you?
Even so, Youqing tried her best to treat the two separately, and in the end, they were completely independent.
"Okay, you take care of this."
Subsequently, Yan Yuege workshops in various parts of the Qing Dynasty received orders to hold competitions to select skilled craftsmen, preferably those with quick thinking.
The competition offered substantial prize money: one hundred taels of silver for first place, eighty taels for second place, and fifty taels for third place.
In addition, there are ten ingenuity awards and ten encouragement awards, each with a prize of thirty taels of silver.
Finally, all winners will be able to travel to Beijing in October to participate in the finals, and Yan Yuege will cover their travel expenses.
Furthermore, the winner of the final competition in the capital city will be rewarded with one thousand taels of silver and a three-courtyard mansion in the capital.
The second-place winner will receive 800 taels of silver and a two-courtyard house.
The third place winner will receive 500 taels of silver and a mansion with one courtyard.
There are also awards for ingenuity and encouragement; anyone who wins an award will receive a reward of 300 taels of silver.
Furthermore, if these award winners are willing to stay in the capital, each of them will receive a two-courtyard house, a settlement allowance of one hundred taels of silver, and a respectable opportunity to work in a government office.
The social hierarchy is: scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants. Craftsmen belong to the artisan class, earning their living through their skills. If they can get a job in the government, it can be said that they have changed their social class.
Not to mention there are also houses and money as rewards.
Yan Yue Pavilion is not short of money, but with so many prefectures across the country, there are also the travel expenses and rewards involved in holding such an event.
All in all, this is a considerable expense.
"Master, this is the budget I have calculated. We need to prepare at least one million taels."
With the recent rise in housing prices in Beijing, the cost of traveling from remote areas to the capital is considerable. Aside from other expenses, the cost of transportation, food, and other necessities along the way is substantial.
The selection process still involved choosing people from across the entire Qing Dynasty, and the total number was still quite alarming.
She can come up with one million taels, but there's no need to deal with transporting the silver.
"Calculate the amount of silver needed by each prefecture and deduct it directly from the local prefecture's treasury. When issuing the order, add a sentence: 'The candidates sent to the capital to participate in the competition at the end of the year are utterly disappointing. I, the manager of the prefecture, will send a suitable person to serve.'"
Youqing, the manager of Yanyuege, uses a profit-sharing system. The more money Yanyuege earns, the more the manager receives.
The shopkeepers throughout the Qing Dynasty did not want to be replaced.
Doing this was also to express Youqing's emphasis on this matter, and to prevent them from thinking that the emperor was far away and not taking it seriously. After all, Yan Yue Pavilion is, to put it bluntly, a business run by women. Holding a competition among artisans is indeed a bit of a frivolous thing to do, and there will definitely be some people who are unwilling to do so.
"Yes, Master." Cheng Ying knew how much money the manager of Yan Yue Pavilion could make; if he couldn't take the job, it would be almost like taking his life.
Youqing felt that wasn't enough and continued, "By the way, if the people who send us win awards, the more people who win awards and the higher the rankings, the manager will receive the same reward. Also, the lives of the people in the capital have been getting better and better in recent years, and Yan Yue Pavilion may not open any new stores. If you perform well, you can be transferred directly to the capital to be the manager."
There must be both punishment and reward. With both punishment and reward, Youqing was determined to find some useful people.
"Yes, Master, I will take care of it right away."
Youqing's instructions were spread throughout the entire Qing Dynasty as quickly as possible.
"Have you heard? It's that skill competition that Yan Yue Pavilion is going to hold soon."
"Of course I've heard. My mother is kicking herself lately. She's been saying that an old neighbor of mine was incredibly skilled at carpentry, almost like Lu Ban reincarnated. She also said I was smart and that she could have learned from me since I was little and even try my luck. If I were lucky enough to go to the capital, not only would I receive a reward, but I'd also have the opportunity to enter the government. And all my future children would be born in the capital! My mother keeps saying she regrets it and has been talking about it every day for the past few days. Can you believe I've heard about it?"
"Yes, if I had the chance, I would like to try it, but unfortunately, I don't have the ability."
Someone nearby, who was listening to their conversation, couldn't help but join in.
For ordinary people, ten taels of silver is enough for a whole family to live on for a year. In a farming family, ten taels of silver would also be enough for a year.
The reward money offered by Yan Yuege was truly enviable.
So, people from all over the country, as long as they had some skills, wanted to give it a try. After layers of screening, those who were just there to join in the fun were eliminated. In this way, there were quite a few people.
The branches of Yan Yuege in various places naturally did their best for You Qing, after all, it concerned their own future. In this way, a grand skills competition was launched in various places, becoming a hot topic at the time.
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