Li Rong's words stunned Pei Wenxuan. Li Rong looked at the young man kneeling in front of her and slowly said, "Get up. If you and I are monarch and subject, you can kneel to me. If you treat me as your wife, you don't have to do this. I know you don't want to argue with me, but I don't need you to be so patient. "
"I'm not an ignorant teenage girl." Li Rong poured herself a cup of tea. "I won't change my mind just because you kneel to me. It will only make me feel like you're forcing me."
Pei Wenxuan heard this and was at a loss. After hesitating for a long time, Li Rong looked up at him. "What, do you still need me to help you?"
Pei Wenxuan finally stood up. Li Rong patted her side and said softly, "Sit."
Pei Wenxuan complied and sat beside Li Rong. Li Rong leaned back in the rocking chair and slowly rocked it. "You think I won't agree to you doing this. Do you know why I won't agree?"
"This time, His Majesty's final intention is to set a quota."
"Quota?"
Li Rong looked up. Pei Wenxuan didn't hide it from her and told her the truth. "From this year onwards, the number of people recommended by the aristocratic families must be set. Or the examinees who graduated from the imperial examinations must all have a place to go and train here for at least a year before they are transferred from the civil service to the various ministries. "
The biggest problem with the imperial examinations was that if Li Ming didn't keep an eye on them, the commoners wouldn't be able to reach positions of power.
Da Xia's commoners included two types of people. For example, the Pei Family, the Qin Family, these low-level aristocratic families, and the ordinary families that weren't even listed in the clan genealogy.
The so-called aristocratic families in Da Xia were based on whether they were listed in the "clan genealogy" or not.
The clan genealogy was revised once every few hundred years to record the most recognized aristocratic families. The clan genealogy also divided these aristocratic families into first, second, and third class. The aristocratic families of different classes intermarried. If there was a higher class, it would be a great honor.
All the clans were proud of marrying into a first-rate aristocratic family. As for the children of first-class aristocratic families, even if they remained single for their entire lives, they would never marry into a lower class aristocratic family.
This marriage method, which had existed for hundreds of years among the common people, established the absolute right of speech of the aristocratic families in the imperial court. Back then, in order to balance the original aristocrats, the Li family married the Fanyang Shangguan Clan in Youzhou and brought the last of the eight major families into Huajing as a way to balance the major families in the south.
However, three generations later, the Shangguan Clan had entrenched themselves in the imperial court. They were inextricably linked with other aristocratic families to counter the imperial power. Li Ming then realized the drawbacks of using aristocratic families to balance aristocratic families. Therefore, he restarted the imperial examination system based on the previous dynasty's experience. He wanted to use this method to balance the imperial court without being restricted by aristocratic families to select talents.
Li Ming forcefully opened the imperial examinations, but the aristocratic families also had their own methods. Not to mention whether these ordinary children of humble families could pass the imperial examinations, even if they did, the official positions of the hundreds of examinees every year were handled by the Ministry of Appointments. They were all placed in positions that were difficult, tiring, and had no future.
It was difficult to participate in the examinations, difficult to pass the examinations, difficult to become an official after passing the examinations, and difficult to be promoted after being assigned.
If Pei Wenxuan did not have Pei Lizhi's backing, how could he have become the top scholar?
If Cui Yulang did not receive the appreciation of the nobles for his poetry, his exam papers would not have reached Li Ming's hands.
This year's imperial examinations were given to Pei Wenxuan and the court examinations were to be the norm. This was to solve the problem of the imperial examinations.
The restriction of the number of people recommended by the aristocratic families and the unification of where the examinees would go in their first year was to solve the problem of the difficulty of becoming an official.
After listening to Pei Wenxuan's words, Li Rong thought for a moment and understood where the examinees would go after the examinations, "So, the place these examinees will go in their first year, is it the cabinet?"
When the lecture hall was burned down, Li Ming immediately set up a temporary lecture hall called the cabinet.
At that time, they only thought that Li Ming did it so that the memorials would not be controlled by the aristocratic families and reach his hands. But now that Li Ming made this request, Li Rong understood, "Did Imperial Father already plan for this?"
"Your Highness, before His Majesty allowed you to set up the Inspection Department, he prepared the land, soldiers, and money for the Inspection Department for many years. If you did not set up the Inspection Department, he would have let Consort Rou set it up sooner or later. You gave him the opportunity to set up the Inspection Department. With His Majesty's temperament, it is impossible for him to change the system on a whim. "
"The fire in the lecture hall was the opportunity for him to set up the cabinet. The cabinet was set up to pave the way for the reformation of the imperial examinations. "
Li Rong listened and did not say anything.
She suddenly realized that she did not understand Li Ming. Just like in the past, she did not understand Li Chuan.
It was just that in the imperial family, everyone wore a mask. Li Ming and Li Chuan also did not truly understand her.
"You think that I will not agree to the reformation."
Li Rong thought for a while and slowly spoke. Pei Wenxuan did not answer. Li Rong smiled, "I also do not agree."
"But this matter will not be changed by Your Highness's will. If it is not this time, then it will be the next time. " Pei Wenxuan looked up at him, "This is the Emperor's will. Even if His Majesty dies today, any ambitious monarch would pick up His Majesty's situation today."
Just like Li Chuan in her previous life.
When he sat on Li Ming's throne and looked down on the country, he would find that he was just the next Li Ming.
Li Rong sat and did not say anything. She felt as if she was sitting on a carriage that was running forward. She could not stop and could only watch as the carriage fell off the cliff, drenched in blood.
Pei Wenxuan looked at Li Rong in a daze. He felt a bit uncomfortable.
In her previous life, he would have already quarreled with her.
He hated her stubbornness and her prejudice against the poor. The most hateful thing was that he liked her. He liked this person, but she looked down on him.
But now he did not want to quarrel. It was not easy for them to get to where they were today. He did not want to argue with her over such a small matter.
So he could only explain after a short silence: "Rongrong, I know that you feel that the imperial examinations will not select any good talents. But you have to think about it. In my previous life, many people around me were from the poor. They were also very good, right? Aristocratic families do have their strength of character. The education they received was not something that could be learned by reading a few books. So the system still exists. "
"Although bloodline is important, … … we are all human." Pei Wenxuan forced a smile, "Look at me. I came from a poor background. Isn't it … … quite good?"
When Li Rong heard Pei Wenxuan say this, she slowly turned her head.
Her eyes were very bright. When the moonlight fell into her amber eyes, it was like a quiet stream flowing.
She half leaned on her body and slowly got up. Then her lips fell on his lips.
Pei Wenxuan was stunned. He heard Li Rong softly comforting him: "Don't be sad."
It was a light kiss, as if it was just to comfort him. She pulled back and leaned on the reclining chair. She gently said: "Wenxuan, I don't care about these things. If I did, I wouldn't have liked you in the past."
Pei Wenxuan looked at Li Rong lying on the rocking chair. The rocking chair swayed back and forth. She looked at the scattered moonlight and slowly said: "Everyone told me that bloodline and family name are important. But I don't know why, when I saw you in the past, I didn't think about whether you came from a poor family or an aristocratic family. I just thought, this person is really good looking."
"Your Highness … …" Pei Wenxuan said in a hoarse voice. He didn't know what to say.
"In the past, I always quarreled with you. You always thought that I was biased because I cared about family background. In fact, the one who cared about family background was you."
"In the past, I didn't agree with your reform because I thought the imperial examination system was too rigid. You also saw that in my previous life, even with the imperial examination system, there were more children from aristocratic families who passed. But later, as I got older, I slowly changed my mind. Aristocratic families seem to be more outstanding because they have more resources. It doesn't mean that they are better or worse. So later, when you were promoting schools in various places, I supported you. Now, I don't agree with your reform because it's too rushed. "
"Wenxuan," Li Rong looked up, "Imperial Father doesn't have many years left, but you are still young. If Consort Rou didn't come today, what would you do? "
Pei Wenxuan didn't know what to say. Li Rong said with certainty: "You originally planned to accept the case yourself, right?"
"If you divorced me, I wouldn't be implicated if anything happened. So, you came up with two plans. If Consort Rou accepted the case, it would be the best. If Consort Rou didn't, then you would accept the case. At that time, Imperial Father would support you. If you succeeded, then everyone would be happy. But what if you didn't? "
"In your previous life, you and the Chuan'er had a hard time reforming the system. Don't you know? Why do you think I didn't want you to touch the aristocratic families? Because after every reform, there would be turbulence. The turbulence between you and me was the life and death of the chuan'er. Have you ever thought about what would happen to the common people? "
"During the years when the Chuan'er was reformed, there were riots everywhere. The imperial court fought again and again. You and I spent more than 20 years recuperating. But during the turbulence, how did the common people live? Don't you know?"
"Your Highness, it won't be like this now," Pei Wenxuan frowned, "Back then, His Highness the Crown Prince was too anxious, so I put the matter on hold until today to slowly push it forward."
"What if you push the aristocratic families too far and they rebel?"
Li Rong stared at Pei Wenxuan. Pei Wenxuan was silent. After a long time, he slowly said: "Your Highness, in this world, there is no change without a price. But if we don't change, will the common people's lives be better? "
"If they rebel, the common people will suffer. But if the soldiers in the north don't have enough money, won't the common people and the soldiers who died in battle suffer? In the south, there is no money for disaster relief and river construction. Won't the disaster victims suffer? The common people at the bottom are born as slaves. They can't do business or become officials. They can only farm and be enslaved by the aristocratic families for generations. Won't they suffer? "
"You and your father are so alike." Li Rong laughed mockingly, "It's a pity that your father left early. Otherwise, when he saw you, he would be very happy."
Pei Wenxuan couldn't speak. She vaguely felt that there was a bit of moisture in this person's eyes, but it dissipated.
The two people quietly looked at each other. Li Rong looked at the person in front of her. Her heart trembled slightly: "I don't want to be your mother."
"Your Highness won't be my mother."
Pei Wenxuan laughed: "Whether it succeeds or not, this is paving the way for the Crown Prince. His Majesty and the aristocratic families will be weakened. The Crown Prince has Qin Lin's military power. When he ascends the throne, Your Highness …"
Before he finished speaking, Li Rong slapped Pei Wenxuan's face.
The sound of the slap echoed in the room. Li Rong stared at him: "Who are you to me?"
"Are you my strategist or my loyalist?"
Pei Wenxuan's face was slapped to the side. He didn't dare to look at her, so he didn't move.
"Is your life so cheap? If you don't care about your life, why are you my husband? "
"Rongrong," Pei Wenxuan said in a hoarse voice, "nothing will happen."
"Regardless of whether something will happen or not, before you take the risk, did you ask me?" Li Rong looked at him and stood up. She looked down at the young man in front of her: "In your heart, do you think that I don't care about your life, or do you think that your life and death has nothing to do with me?"
Pei Wenxuan didn't speak. Li Rong's tone softened: "Have you heard a story?"
Pei Wenxuan moved and looked up at her. Li Rong laughed: "In the east of the city, there was a family. A husband and wife were childhood sweethearts. They loved each other very much. After many hardships and experiencing life and death, they finally got together. But later, her husband liked fighting cocks. He took more than half of the family's money and secretly bought a fighting cocks. Guess what happened? "
Pei Wenxuan didn't speak. He understood Li Rong's meaning, but he didn't dare to answer. Li Rong chuckled: "That woman divorced her husband."
The couple had been in love for more than ten years. They didn't separate in life and death, but in the end, they were separated because of a fighting cocks.
The most erosive thing was never the wind and waves, but the little things in life that converged into a river.
"Pei Wenxuan," Li Rong looked at him, "your life doesn't belong to you alone. You are my husband and the father of my future child. Even if it's for my sake, you should tell me. If you can't do it … "
Li Rong couldn't continue speaking. Pei Wenxuan looked at her. He was clearly looking up at this person, but at that moment, he felt that she lowered her head.
He never thought that this person would lower her head for him. Even at this moment, her words were carefully restrained, and she didn't hurt him like before.
He suddenly realized that she had changed and matured. They knew each other's weak spots and used to mercilessly poke at each other. But now, she had learned to restrain herself. She wouldn't even say the words "break up".
Pei Wenxuan stood up and reached out to hold her in his arms.
Li Rong wanted to resist, but the moment his warmth invaded her, she felt her eyes sting. She tried her best not to cry over such a small matter. She gritted her teeth and allowed him to pull her into his embrace.
"It's my fault." Pei Wenxuan said in a low voice, "In the future, I won't make decisions on my own. I'll discuss everything with you. We'll discuss it together."
Li Rong didn't speak. Pei Wenxuan lowered his head and kissed her forehead. His voice was gentle: "I didn't expect my Highness to be so good. I was narrow-minded. Your Highness, please forgive me."
"Clever words."
Li Rong scolded him in a low voice.
Pei Wenxuan smiled. He tidied her clothes and said gently: "Your Highness, shall I send you back?"
Li Rong was stunned. She looked up at him. She thought, according to Pei Wenxuan's character, he would ask her to stay the night.
She had already thought of how to refuse, but Pei Wenxuan took the initiative to send her back.
Before Li Rong could react, Pei Wenxuan took a coat from the side and gently put it on her. After tidying her clothes, he took a lamp, took her hand, and pushed the door open. As if nothing had happened, he asked her softly: "Your Highness, where did you come from tonight?"
"Next door." Li Rong was pulled out by him. She whispered: "I bought it."
When Pei Wenxuan heard this, he couldn't help but laugh. But he was afraid that she would be angry, so he didn't say anything. He only stopped smiling.
It was almost April, and the night wind was still a little cold. She put on Pei Wenxuan's coat and walked with him in the long corridor.
Pei Wenxuan blocked the wind for her and illuminated the path to the courtyard. The mansion hadn't been completely renovated, and there were many places that hadn't been lit. Li Rong was afraid that Pei Wenxuan wouldn't know the way, so she said: "There's a ladder in the backyard. I'll climb from there."
"Your Highness has worked hard."
Pei Wenxuan's heart felt like it was soaked in the most comfortable warm water. Even his whole body couldn't help but warm up.
The two walked side by side. Pei Wenxuan looked like he was protecting a child. Li Rong was silent for a long time, then slowly said: "You won't ask me to stay?"
"I want to," Pei Wenxuan smiled: "But I made a mistake tonight. If I ask Your Highness to stay, I'm afraid that Your Highness will think that I'm trying to cover up those things. What's under the bed is a matter of elegance. It shouldn't be mixed in with these things. "
When Li Rong heard this, she turned her head to look at him. His white coat outlined his tall and slender figure in the night. A gentleman like pine and bamboo, full of a loose and elegant aura.
Li Rong couldn't help but stare blankly for a moment. Pei Wenxuan's appearance, no matter how many years he looked at it, he wouldn't lose his beauty.
Pei Wenxuan didn't notice Li Rong's absent-mindedness. He continued: "In the future, I will inform Your Highness of everything in advance and discuss it with Your Highness. If Your Highness is willing, Your Highness can also tell me your plans. Your Highness is right. Your Highness and I are already husband and wife. It's different from my previous life. Everything should be discussed. I'm not Your Highness's ally. I'm Your Highness's husband and the father of Your Highness's child. "
As Pei Wenxuan spoke, he turned his head and met Li Rong's gaze. He smiled and said: "I haven't properly learned these things yet. I hope that Your Highness can teach me more."
When Li Rong saw his smile and heard his identity, she didn't know why, but she felt her face heat up. She turned her head and responded in a low voice to hide her embarrassment.
Pei Wenxuan sensed that she seemed to be a bit shy. Although he didn't know why, he also felt that she was very cute. He didn't expose her and considerately turned his eyes to look at the road ahead with a smile.
When he reached the backyard, he saw a ladder set up by the wall. Pei Wenxuan and Li Rong went up together. He put down the ladder and held it, protecting Li Rong as she climbed up.
Li Rong climbed two steps and turned her head again.
At this time, she was a bit taller than Pei Wenxuan. She called out: "Pei Wenxuan."
Pei Wenxuan raised his head and looked at her in confusion. He softly said: "En?"
At that moment, Li Rong suddenly lowered her head and kissed him. Before Pei Wenxuan could react, she nimbly climbed up and waved her hand: "Let's go."
Pei Wenxuan raised his head and looked at the girl who disappeared over the wall. He couldn't help but raise his hand to touch his lips.
After a moment, he slowly smiled.
He was a bit impatient.
He should plan earlier and marry this person back home.
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