On the third day after the first time, Todd, who was among the kings, summoned Mary, who was sitting at home two kilometers away, and the two entered the soul space together.
With the help of supernatural powers, Mary began to gradually help Todd eliminate Clarence's useless memories. The original tens of thousands of fragments were reduced to about seven thousand.
While Todd was delighted, he also discovered a problem - Mary really loves coffee. Once she drinks it, she will drink one cup after another... Fortunately, this is a virtual world, so there is no need to worry about caffeine addiction and obesity.
On the other hand, he also slowly learned that as long as the opening time of the soul space is controlled within six hours, the level of fatigue can be effectively reduced.
After the second meeting in the soul space, Todd opened his eyes, ordered a cup of wormwood tea, and took a nap.
Just after lunch, the guard reported that Emerson had arrived.
This old man, who was nearly fifty years old, began to adjust and improve the administrative system of the Muxi Kingdom with an almost crazy enthusiasm.
The commissioner jurisdiction system under the Tyro Republic that Todd originally borrowed seemed a bit backward and out of touch, whether it was dealing with the increasingly large population or the numerous trivial matters in the kingdom.
Emerson took centralization as the basis of the political framework and planned to discuss the future direction of development with the king.
Rubbing his forehead with his hands, Todd motioned for Emerson to sit down.
The old man fell backwards into the sofa, as if his body was sinking into soft clouds. With a surprised look on his face, he turned around and touched the soft cushions under him.
"There is a professor of mechanics at Muxi College. He hired several foreign experts to invent a spring coiling machine based on the technology of the printing press." Todd patted the armrest of the chair and said with a smile: "Muxi Bank
He was given a low-interest loan to produce spring furniture."
Emerson nodded, put the report in his arms on the desk, and went straight to the topic: "In terms of the independence of the political system, Muxi Kingdom has a unique advantage. First, there is no check and balance from the aristocracy; second, there is no need to consider it.
The interference of church forces. But in the future, it will be a huge problem to distinguish the boundaries between royal power and civil rights."
Todd put his arms on the table and looked at Emerson's report, which was marked.
"Your Majesty, if the royal power is too great and the royal power is too small, it will essentially cause a crisis due to dictatorship." Emerson pointed to the writing on the paper with his pen: "But if the royal power is too great and the royal power is too small, it will create factional forces."
The rise of the government has led to the emergence of a privileged class and ultimately led to a situation of segregation of power."
Todd said thoughtfully: "So the key question is to find a way to reasonably decentralize power?"
"It can be said that in the final analysis, the crux of the problem lies in the selection method of officials. The appointment of general officials mostly has two methods: recruitment and recommendation. The former is mostly directly designated by the king, while the latter is recommended by factions or families.
Or noble children." Emerson looked at
The position on the paper frowned: "For the Muxi Kingdom, it is not feasible to recommend this path. It will only provide an excuse for the factions to grow, but it will not benefit the people. The only remaining method is the king's recruitment.
Yes, it is in your name to issue job invitations to those talented people."
After pondering for a moment, Todd expressed his concerns: "There are two questions. First, how can I know that the person I invited is talented? There are so many people who are seeking fame and reputation. If an ordinary person is placed in a high position,
Wouldn't there be chaos? Secondly, there are so many people in Muxi City, and most of the people with real talents and knowledge keep a low profile, and it is not easy to find them. From this point of view, the recruitment method is not very good."
Emerson sighed and was speechless for a moment.
"Is there any way to select talents while balancing royal power and civil rights?"
Todd tapped the knuckles of his fingers on the table and began to think quietly. An idea flashed in his mind: "Why don't we take the exam?"
"take an exam?!"
Emerson was stunned.
Later, he said to Todd in an uncertain tone: "Your Majesty, are you talking about exams like those in the academy? It's like the exams that professors use test papers to examine students' homework?!"
Todd compared it in his mind and nodded in agreement with the other party's statement.
Emerson shook his head desperately: "This is unreasonable, this is unreasonable! Using a piece of paper to decide officials' choices is simply making fun of the fate of the kingdom! How could there be such a crazy idea in the world?!"
Todd was not in a hurry to refute the other party. He recalled in his mind a popular science article he had read in his previous life.
The imperial examination system in ancient China began in the Tang Dynasty and ended in the Qing Dynasty, with a history of more than 1,300 years.
In the past, in the West, in the mid-16th century, monks introduced the imperial examination system to Europe through travel notes.
The discovery of the imperial examination system was a great shock to the Western feudal hierarchical society at the end of the 16th century. At the same time, it also played a decisive role in promoting the Western civil service system in the next three hundred years.
"Emerson, think about it. Only those who are well-educated can pass the kingdom's exams, become officials, and participate in the management of government affairs. Anyone, regardless of whether his family background is prominent or not, regardless of whether he is rich or not, has a strong academic record.
Even with hard work, he can enter the upper class of society. Doesn't this in itself mean a healthy mechanism of equality and competition? Isn't this the best way to decentralize power among the people and avoid factional conflicts?!"
The old man lowered his head, thought carefully for a long time, and finally raised his head and said: "It seems...it's not a bad thing..."
Todd continued to analyze the feasibility of holding official selection examinations in Muxi City: "First of all, due to the popularity of dramas and novels, the literacy rate in the city is not low; secondly, the gathering of scholars also provides the best candidates for the examination; thirdly,
, the invention of the printing press reduced the cost of test papers and made large-scale examinations a reality; finally, most positions in the kingdom were basically vacant."
Emerson raised his head and asked: "One more question, who will issue the test papers?"
Todd touched the bridge of his nose: "I'll do it myself. It's still not appropriate to let other people write this kind of thing."
Emerson nodded.
Indeed, if anyone other than the king takes on the important task of creating examination questions, it will arouse doubts and opposition from other factions.
"One more thing. There are so many vacant positions that require different types of test papers for official selection. Will producing so many test papers at the same time put too much pressure on His Majesty?"
Todd waved his hand and explained with a smile: "For the initial official examination, you can start with one position. If it is found to be feasible, then promote it. This method is also called a pilot."
Emerson looked at the king and sighed: "Your Majesty, sometimes I really can't see you clearly. Call you stupid, your wisdom is sometimes unmatched; call you wise, I heard others say
Some of your past actions were really... really unreasonable..."
Todd responded with a wry smile: "People are always making progress."