frightfiction Chapter 646 The Scholar Takes the Imperial Examination
Chapter 646 The Scholar Takes the Imperial Examination
Zhuge Liang immediately perked up, leaned forward instinctively, and said with a smile, "Tell me in detail."
He genuinely didn't want to argue with Cao Wei. What's the point of arguing with a bunch of people whose skin is thicker than a city wall and who treat insults as praise? You can insult them and they won't feel a thing, but if they insult you, they can make you furious. Isn't that just asking for trouble?
Moreover, his verbal sparring with Cao Pi would only attract more attention from the people, allowing them to sit back and watch the show with peace of mind.
But don't forget that the people of the Central Plains were under the rule of Cao Wei, and the information they received was mainly based on Cao Wei's public opinion. If they continued to argue, Liu Bei's reputation in the Central Plains would not improve, but would be further amplified by Cao Wei's repeated propaganda, making the people of the Central Plains think that Liu Bei was a tyrant.
Zhuge Liang waged a public opinion war to restore Liu Bei's reputation among the people of the Central Plains, not to engage in mindless mudslinging with Cao Wei. Therefore, he was extremely interested in Guan Xing's so-called methods for handling public relations crises.
Guan Xing said, "The solution is simple. Although Cao Pi promulgated the Temporary Tax Law and improved people's livelihood by squeezing the top powerful families, the essence of the Nine-Rank System has not changed."
"On the surface, this Provisional Tax Law harms the top aristocratic families and benefits the common people. The aristocratic families are willing to bleed to oppose His Majesty and will not resist Cao Pi. The common people will naturally support Cao Pi after gaining benefits. But don't forget the poor families who are stuck between the aristocratic families and the common people. This force should not be underestimated."
"The top aristocratic families are so powerful that they won't die even if they suffer a huge loss, but what about those small families that are barely surviving? How many days can they hold on?"
"Even if Cao Pi establishes a reasonable tax system that won't drive small families to their deaths, don't forget that people are ambitious. People from humble backgrounds also want to climb the social ladder, but the existence of the Nine-Rank System makes it extremely difficult for them to rise. In the end, money isn't important; official position and status are. Top aristocratic families can still occupy important positions like the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers even without money. No matter how hard the children from humble backgrounds try, they can't get promoted or rise to the top. How can they not feel resentful over time?"
"Therefore, we must focus our efforts on the imperial examination system and vigorously promote its impact on Cao Wei's Nine-Rank System. This is Cao Wei's real Achilles' heel."
The current imperial examination system in the Han Dynasty can only be considered a pseudo-imperial examination. One must first be recommended as a filial and incorruptible official to qualify for the examination. This is equivalent to adding a screening process to the previous recommendation system. However, this small process is also a huge improvement, as it filters out the useless members of the aristocratic families, giving those from humble backgrounds a chance to rise to prominence.
Cao Wei did not even have such a selection process. Over time, how could those poor families in the Central Plains who pursued progress but had no way to rise not feel resentful?
Guan Xing said, "Therefore, we must vigorously promote the imperial examination system and shift the focus of both sides from exposing each other's dirty secrets to the imperial examination system. This is the lifeblood of the Central Plains gentry. The Central Plains gentry can cut their losses in terms of money, but they will never back down on this matter. If we make a move, they will definitely respond. In this way, the focus will naturally shift to them, and the Cao Wei Propaganda Department will no longer have time to smear His Majesty and us."
"In addition, there is another benefit: once the commoners in Cao Wei launch an attack on the Nine-Rank System, class contradictions will arise within Cao Wei. At that time, how much power will Cao Pi's hard-earned Provisional Tax Law still have?"
Zhuge Liang, imagining the clash between the Nine-Rank System and the Imperial Examination System within Cao Wei, excitedly asked, "What do you plan to do?"
Guan Xing snapped his fingers and said, "This can't be explained in a few words. Give me three days and I'll show you the results, but you'll have to lend me some pens."
Zhuge Liang pointed at the writing brush on the table and asked in astonishment, "What do you need this for?"
Guan Xing hurriedly slapped his forehead and explained, "It's not about the pen, it's about people who can write articles. We need people with good writing skills, the more the better."
Zhuge Liang laughed and said, "Alright, you can freely select officials from the Prime Minister's office, and you can also select officials from other government offices. Just take whoever you want without asking me for permission."
"Now let's talk about the second thing: how do you plan to resolve this economic blockade?"
Guan Xing laughed and said, "That makes things even easier. Nobody does a losing business, but plenty of people do business that could cost them their lives. And the more severe the blockade, the higher the prices of goods will be. If we can't go by land, we'll go by sea. There's a thousand-mile coastline from the mouth of the Yangtze River to Yuguan. I don't believe Cao Wei can completely block it."
The sea was the hardest-hit area for smuggling, and Cao Wei's pitiful naval power was practically useless against the Han navy.
Moreover, a land blockade cannot be completely airtight; as long as the money is right, bribing checkpoint sentries is a piece of cake.
This matter doesn't require special handling. Just give the merchants a few pointers, and profit-driven businessmen will use all sorts of means to tear Cao Wei's blockade to shreds.
Moreover, sea travel requires ships, and merchants who want to make money from the sea have to buy ships, which is a good opportunity for their shipyards to make a fortune.
As for the Han Dynasty, they had no intention of blockading it at all. On the contrary, they would provide convenience to welcome merchants from Cao Wei, since the Han Dynasty had a trade surplus with Cao Wei.
Zhuge Liang nodded and said, "Leave this to me. You focus on the public opinion counterattack."
"Yes..." Guan Xing stood up and bowed, then turned to Jiang Wan and said, "Doctor Jiang, I'm entrusting the task of gathering the writers to you. I'll go back and prepare first. Gather the people and wait for my message in the school's conference room."
Jiang Wan, who was currently serving as a court official and concurrently as the Eastern Clerk of the Prime Minister's Office, bowed and said, "Very well."
Guan Xing left the Prime Minister's residence and returned to his school office. He sat at his desk and wrote for nearly two hours. After finishing the draft, he rushed to the conference room and found Jiang Wan, Dong Yun, and more than a dozen other officials there. He hurriedly threw the draft at them and said, "This is the outline I wrote. Your task is to write this outline into a vernacular novel for me, the kind that anyone who can read can understand. Then print countless copies and send them to Cao Wei."
Jiang Wan and Dong Yun took the outline and were immediately stunned. What was all this?
The novel Jiang Wan is holding is called "A Chinese Ghost Story". It tells the story of a scholar named Ning Caichen who, while traveling to the capital for the imperial examination, stays overnight at Lanruo Temple and encounters the female ghost Nie Xiaoqian. The two fall in love and embark on a tragic love story between a human and a ghost.
Dong Yun is holding a copy of "The Romance of the Western Chamber," which tells the story of scholar Zhang Junrui who stays at Yepu Temple on his way to take the imperial examination and falls in love at first sight with Cui Yingying, the daughter of a high-ranking official.
There are others, more than a dozen novel outlines, all following the same formula: a scholar on his way to the capital for the imperial examination is pursued by beautiful women of high status, such as female ghosts, fox spirits, noble ladies, and princesses of the court.
The most absurd one is "The Lotus Lantern," which tells the melodramatic love story of a scholar named Liu Yanchang who falls in love at first sight with the Third Holy Mother, the niece of the Jade Emperor and the younger sister of Erlang Shen, the God of Justice, while passing through Mount Hua on his way to take the imperial examination. After giving birth to a son, he is imprisoned under Mount Hua by Erlang Shen.
What the hell is this? Do they really think all these beautiful women with both good family backgrounds and good looks are blind?
Jiang Wan said speechlessly, "Lord Shence, aren't we promoting the imperial examination system to Cao Wei? What's the point of you writing this?"
Guan Xing smiled and said, "Publicity and promotion require strategy. It needs to be done gradually and subtly. We need to use entertainment to first make the scholars in the Central Plains aware of the imperial examination system. Once they have this awareness, they will naturally begin to think about it more deeply."
"Therefore, the strategy of publicity is always to attract attention first and then attract the heart. If you can't even attract the eyes, who will care about your heart?"
"If you don't believe me, try writing an article that directly promotes the imperial examination system, telling them how advanced it is and how backward the Nine-Rank System is. See if anyone will pay attention to you."