Do you know: I am Qi Heng

"The reason I say most of them, rather than all of them, is that some laws were modified or abolished at that time. However, since it was the beginning of the country, there were no so-called ancestral words, so there was no resistance and no deliberate record. Most people just didn't know about it."

Qi Heng pursed his lips and said, "In my opinion, laws are like clothes. At the beginning of a country, everything is in ruins and needs to be rebuilt, just like a baby."

But children grow up, and when their clothes no longer fit, they have to be replaced.

Many people are unwilling to change because they believe that maintaining the status quo is the only way to preserve the benefits they have already gained.

While change may bring more gains, it may also jeopardize the benefits already obtained.

Therefore, the more people have, the less willing they are to change.

Those who have nothing, though desperately wanting change, have no right to speak out.

"good!"

Su Shi nodded in agreement and asked, "Then do you think Wang Duzhi will be effective in going to the local areas?"

"No, if the laws and regulations haven't changed, the administration hasn't improved, and there's a lack of people who are truly doing things, how can even the best policies be effective if they can't be effectively implemented?" Qi Heng said.

Su Shi remained silent for a long time before saying, "Is it impossible for reforms to succeed?"

"No, it's just that we haven't thought of it yet, so we need more like-minded people to work together to find a way for the future of the Great Zhou!" Qi Heng said solemnly.

In fact, he knew the problem: the biggest problem with feudal dynasties was that officials relied too heavily on local gentry and landlords.

Officials and gentry landlords were not in the same social class. Although many officials came from prominent local families, they entered a different social class after they became officials.

Because their goals are different now.

The gentry and landlords were concerned with more land and money, although they were also very concerned with acquiring power.

But officials have already entered the circle of power, and their goal is even greater power.

However, the imperial court's control over local areas was limited to the county level, and below that, local powerful families governed themselves.

Local powerful clans and their elders wielded far greater influence in towns and villages than the imperial court.

Some dare to violate the laws of the imperial court, but dare not violate the laws of their clan.

The clan even had its own punishment hall, where they handled matters themselves.

Take the drowning in a pig cage as an example; it was a form of private punishment in the countryside. Even in the Ming and Qing dynasties, when the laws and regulations were more stringent, the imperial court's laws for adultery mostly resulted in beatings and imprisonment, with the death penalty only being imposed in serious cases.

However, the government tacitly approved of this practice.

A major reason is that officials are too dependent on local gentry and landlords.

As mentioned earlier, the imperial court had two strict requirements for officials: collecting taxes and maintaining local stability.

Local taxes were collected primarily from the gentry and landlords, who owned vast amounts of land.

Secondly, many people became their tenant farmers, and they had a great influence in the local area.

Once officials offend them, they will use various excuses to delay tax collection by the government.

They can even incite the people to create chaos.

Some might say that this is almost tantamount to rebellion, so why not just take action against them directly?

That won't work, because there's a lack of sufficient evidence.

Moreover, local officials don't have that much authority; they need to report to the imperial court.

But if this were to be reported to the imperial court, the official's future would be ruined.

This would highlight the official's incompetence.

Because of the local officials' dependence on the local gentry and landlords, the first thing they did after taking office was to curry favor with them.

For officials, as long as they can ensure sufficient tax revenue and local stability, they will be transferred elsewhere even if they don't get promoted after a few years. There's no need for them to compete with those gentry and landlords.

In order for the government's policies to be implemented, officials must be freed from this dependence.

However, the fact that imperial power did not extend to the countryside plunged the matter into a vicious cycle.

When officials can break free from their dependence on local gentry and landlords, strictly implement the imperial decrees, and still achieve political achievements and promotions, how can they not be concerned?

Solving this problem is not something that one person or a group of people can do; it requires the support of a very decisive emperor.

Therefore, Qi Heng did not speak out, but waited for the right opportunity.

After escorting Su Shi home, Qi Heng went home himself.

For the next few days, Qi Heng did not go out, but he had Buwei keep an eye on the news from the outside world.

Wang Anshi still proposed reforms during the morning court session, which caused a great uproar.

The opposition from the conservatives and the silence from the reformers disheartened him.

If it weren't for Qi Heng's persuasion that day, he would have chosen to resign directly.

However, due to Qi Heng's persuasion, although he was disheartened, he proposed not to resign from his official post.

Instead, they requested that it be released externally.

The emperor was also somewhat exasperated by Wang Anshi, and thus agreed.

Wang Anshi was demoted to the position of prefect of Tongzhou.

After Wang Anshi left the capital, the results of the Kaifeng Prefecture provincial examination were released.

Qi Heng ranked thirty-fifth, Sheng Changbai twenty-first, and Sheng Changfeng one hundred and seventh.

Princess Pingning was overjoyed when her son passed the imperial examination and wept with joy. She not only made arrangements for ancestral worship but also held a grand banquet to celebrate.

Finally, after being persuaded by Qi Heng, he gave up the idea.

As news of Qi Heng's success in the imperial examination spread, more and more noble ladies came to visit the Qi family.

These wealthy women brought their daughters, who were about to come of age, with them when they arrived at the door; their purpose was self-evident.

A family with a daughter will attract a hundred suitors.

In matters of marriage, even if the woman's social status is lower than the man's, she would never take the initiative to propose a marriage alliance.

However, she could subtly imply that if the man was interested, he could ask a matchmaker to arrange the marriage.

The Qi family is close to the royal family. If the emperor had no son, it would be fine, but now that the emperor has a son in his old age, the close relationship between the Qi family and the royal family can continue.

Moreover, Qi Heng lived up to expectations, and despite only passing the provincial examination, he obtained the title of Juren.

However, in the actual imperial examination system, those who passed the provincial examination were already qualified to become officials.

It's just that the Great Zhou Dynasty has too many officials, so the court simply won't grant official positions to those who have passed the imperial examinations.

However, given the Qi family's social standing and their relationship with the imperial family, the title of Juren (举人) was essentially no different from that of Jinshi (进士).

Qi Heng is promising, the Qi family is of high social standing, and they have close ties with the royal family, making him the top choice for marriage alliances among the upper echelons of Bianjing.

Although Princess Pingning still hoped that Qi Heng would pass the imperial examination with flying colors, she was not in a hurry to have him get married.

However, not being in a hurry and not considering it are two different things. In the past few days, Princess Pingning and Qi Xuan have been discussing eligible women from various families more often during meals.

Qi Heng was forced to confront his marital problems.

Marriage is a major life event, decided by parents and arranged by matchmakers.

As children, we can only obey; we have no right to interfere.

However, Qi Heng did not want an arranged marriage. Although free love was unrealistic, he was unwilling to marry a woman he knew nothing about.

Over the years, Qi Heng has visited some families with his mother and gotten to know some so-called ladies from prominent families, but they were all too pretentious.

Despite his young age, he speaks and acts very formally, like a little adult.

Although he seemed very mature, in Qi Heng's eyes, it was more like a maturity that had been deliberately cultivated.

The thought of being with someone who was in the prime of her life but acted like she was in her fifties or sixties sent chills down his spine.