Volume One, Chapter Eleven: That Man

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Xiao An also looked toward Li Xian. He only knew that gentle measures needed to be taken, but the specifics of those measures eluded him. The teacher was a man of great wisdom; surely he knew what to do. What he had just said was merely a repetition of something the teacher had once mentioned.

Li Xian smiled faintly and said, “Actually, resolving this situation is quite simple. The court only needs to issue a policy to adjust the noble ranks in the Great Qian Dynasty—abolish the lower ranks to reduce financial pressure and recover future funds. From then on, any merit or noble title inheritance must not exceed three generations! Of course, this isn’t a blunt cutoff; within those three generations, the rank will gradually be lowered by one level each generation until it completely disappears over fifty years. This is like slow cooking over low heat. Let me quickly calculate the numbers for you, and you’ll see just how terrifying the accumulation of these inherited titles among the clans really is...”

After a moment, Li Xian briefly ran through the figures with Gong Xinyi. If a dynasty enjoys peaceful weather and favorable rains, by the later stages, the annual expenditure on stipends for nobles could reach a staggering million taels of silver, while the treasury income amounts to only a few million taels.

This shocked Gong Xinyi—the treasury’s expenditure on clans was so vast? Moreover... it kept increasing year by year.

“That’s the terrifying aspect of these clans. Additionally, in the three countries of Great Qian, Great Qi, and Great Chu, the current method for selecting officials, although it includes the pathway of earning merit through examinations, still fails to truly empower talented individuals. The mainstream is still nepotism, with power concentrated in the hands of clan ministers, right?” Li Xian smiled and said.

Gong Xinyi nodded, saying, “Grandfather said the left and right prime ministers of Great Qian are from two different clans that hold the greatest power.”

Li Xian nodded knowingly. He was well aware of how terrifying these clan members could be.

When the court enjoys prosperity and vigorous development, these clans cling tighter like barnacles, feeding off the court like a sea turtle, sucking its blood without giving anything back. Eventually, even a healthy adult sea turtle becomes riddled with wounds, and the dynasty inevitably heads toward its end.

It could be said that without these parasitic clans, a dynasty could live at least a hundred years longer—an undeniable fact.

Gong Xinyi blinked, looking at Li Xian. Could it be... that Father still had a way? If things continued as they were, she felt her mother’s Great Qian would indeed be in grave danger.

“It’s simple: the selection method urgently needs a grand imperial examination system. Make the imperial exams the sole method to select officials, without exception. Only then can the shackles of the clans be broken—that’s all there is to it!” Li Xian declared decisively.

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“Abolish the lower noble ranks and reduce the levels within three generations?”

In the Great Qian Imperial Palace, the Empress’s pupils suddenly contracted upon receiving her daughter’s letter. The daughter had done the math using that method, and the treasury’s expenditures were indeed terrifying. If left unchecked, it could consume over half of the entire treasury’s expenses in the future, dragging down the entire Great Qian!

As for Li Xian’s metaphor of slowly boiling the frog, it made perfect sense.

Previously, she had wanted to cut everything off at once. Although it didn’t target the two largest clans, it still met with resistance, causing some damage to Great Qian’s national power.

“As for promoting the imperial exams, could it be time to reform the selection system...” The Empress murmured to herself for a moment.

After a long silence, she took up her brush again and wrote another question: “How to handle the vassal states hoarding armies and acting independently? How should the imperial exam system be formulated? Are there specific rules, and what are the selection standards?”

She then sent the pigeon off with the letter.

Gong Yuyan’s eyes flickered. That man... was indeed no ordinary figure!

Unconsciously, Gong Yuyan had completely handed over these questions to Li Xian of the Li family village.

“Vassal states hoarding armies? That problem is much simpler than dealing with clans. After all, the court doesn’t need to maintain the vassals. Issuing a set of ‘Tui’en’ (Granting Grace) decrees can slowly dismantle their power!”

“As for the imperial exam system, Father will write a simple draft now, but only for your grandfather’s eyes. Don’t show it to anyone else; it’s very dangerous, understand?” Li Xian looked seriously at his daughter, Gong Xinyi.

He didn’t want to incur the wrath of the Great Qian clans over these contents. If that happened, there’d be no chance to cry for help.

He had recently planned to buy a house in the Great Qian capital to save up for his wife, but if he was arrested the moment he arrived in the capital, it would be a huge loss.

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“Father, Grandfather will surely understand; don’t worry! By the way... what exactly is this ‘Tui’en’ decree?”

“The ‘Tui’en’ decree is actually quite simple. It’s a way to grant rewards while secretly weakening the vassals’ power. It’s also a kind of conciliatory strategy—using their strength against them...”

Another day passed...

“The local exams, provincial exams, and palace exams correspond to Jiyuan, Shengyuan, and Zhuangyuan titles respectively. Afterwards, the palace exam determines the top three ranks: Zhuangyuan, Bangyan, and Tanhua. This is quite similar to the Great Qian’s talent selection, moving from small to large, but the process and content are much more refined. Compared to Great Qian’s current system, this is more substantial, while Great Qian’s is just a bare framework... But this provincial exam—could it be today’s prefectural exam? Why call it ‘province’?”

The Empress mumbled to herself.

Great Qian’s administrative divisions are counties and townships, but Li Xian’s draft mentioned provinces, counties, and townships, which was no real problem.

As for the rest...

“Great Qian’s talent selection system has some shadows of the imperial exam, but the dominant methods remain the ‘recommendation system’ and ‘hereditary system’—inheritance and clan member recommendations. This results in Great Qian’s entire governance having no cold-door (poor) officials at the top ranks, no aristocrats at the lower ranks, and a seriously monopolized official class!”

Gong Yuyan clenched her fists and murmured, “If this continues, Great Qian will slide into a phase of ritual collapse and musical decay. Within a few decades, it will be doomed. Not to mention the watchful eyes of Great Qi and Great Chu—this stage could come even sooner...”

She took a deep breath, her face grave.

It was precisely because she saw this that she wanted to reverse the tide. But only when the time came would she realize how difficult the process was.

The frog in the water wouldn’t let her perform surgery on its bones; any slight movement would cause resistance. It was truly impossible to touch those clans.

Then, Gong Yuyan continued reading...

“Madam, the imperial exam system I mentioned above can be expanded with additional subjects as needed, such as calligraphy, essays, policy questions, military exams, poetry, mathematics, and so on. This allows for a comprehensive and holistic assessment of talent, with specialists recruited by category. Especially for poor but outstanding students who excel in certain subjects, special care should be given...”

Gong Yuyan raised an eyebrow. This young man even tries to gain an advantage by his form of address!