Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1235 Civil Service System
"So, in your opinion, which aspect do you think is better to start from?" Charles II asked, his brow furrowed.

“I suggest we start from two points,” Prince Hui said confidently. “First, we should establish a cabinet to serve as a buffer between Your Majesty and the National Assembly, and use this to win over the centrists among the nobles and appropriately cede power to them.”

In response, Wang Zihui explained that currently, all the noble factions want to win over Charles II, and they also have their own conflicts. In addition, according to the British political system, the king and Parliament jointly govern. Once a fierce conflict occurs between the two sides, either the king will order the dissolution of Parliament, or the nobles in Parliament will confront the king in order to protect themselves, thus breaking out into a struggle.

The example of Charles I illustrates this point. In order to enhance the king's authority and address religious issues, Charles I clashed fiercely with Parliament, ultimately dissolving Parliament twice and using royal power to directly force the nobles to submit.

However, the nobles were unwilling to submit to this, and even more unwilling for Charles I's actions to succeed. This eventually led to a civil war, which plunged the country into chaos. In the end, Charles I was defeated in the civil war and went to the guillotine. Charles II and his relatives fled England in disarray. Cromwell, an ambitious man, emerged out of nowhere, stealing the fruits of the republic and transforming himself into a so-called Lord Protector, but in reality a dictator.

If Britain had continued with this system, no one could guarantee that a conflict between the King and Parliament wouldn't have arisen again when Charles II implemented reforms. If this happened again, there could only be one winner: either the King or Parliament; there was no third option.

Given this, it would be better to establish a cabinet similar to that of the Ming Dynasty between the king and parliament. Once this cabinet system is established, there will be a buffer between the king and parliament. Moreover, since the cabinet is a government department, the decisions made by the king through the cabinet are also government decisions. In this way, the king becomes a participant who personally intervenes and transforms into a referee, implementing policies by controlling the cabinet. If a conflict breaks out between the cabinet and parliament, the king, as a third party, will have room to maneuver. He can either support the cabinet or choose to support parliament in reorganizing the cabinet, thus avoiding the awkward situation of being caught in the middle of chaos.

Prince Hui also told Charles II that the nobles all had their own selfish motives, and these motives presented an opportunity to exploit. Furthermore, the British government structure was already relatively sound, and the foundation for establishing a cabinet existed. By using the cabinet system as bait to win over some nobles and appropriately exchanging power, the king would only need the power to appoint and dismiss cabinet members. This way, the cabinet wouldn't become too powerful, and the king could use it to maneuver with various parties to achieve his goals.

"cabinet……?"

Charles II pondered deeply. The Ming Dynasty had a cabinet system, and having spent several years there, he was familiar with it and understood its advantages. However, he also considered that the Ming cabinet system wasn't without its flaws. To check the cabinet, the Ming emperors had previously supported the establishment of the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs by eunuchs, a means of restraining the cabinet, fearing that its power would become too great and the civil officials too powerful, thus undermining the emperor's authority.

Thinking about this, Charles II couldn't help but raise his own question, asking whether such a problem would arise if a cabinet system were implemented in England.

Upon hearing this, Wang Zihui immediately smiled.

"Your Majesty need not worry. I have also considered these situations, but I believe they are not a problem for Your Majesty."

"Why is that?" Charles II asked, puzzled.

“This is naturally because Britain is fundamentally different from the Ming Dynasty,” Wang Zihui said. “The Ming Dynasty has been implementing the imperial examination system for nearly a thousand years. The scholar class, or civil service class, has long replaced the original aristocratic class. After the Tumu Crisis, the noble class in the Ming Dynasty was in decline. In addition, the Ming Dynasty’s guard against and restrictions on the imperial family made the civil service class in the Ming Dynasty more and more powerful.”

"But the Ming Dynasty is different now. The current emperor has also realized these things. After ascending the throne, he made many changes, such as restoring the treatment of meritorious nobles, raising the status of military generals, and winning over the imperial family and carrying out feudalization in foreign countries. These are all means to limit the civil service group. As a result, the authority of the Ming cabinet is not as great as before. The emperor holds the power, and the government comes from above. The cabinet has returned to its original scope of authority."

"As for Britain, it goes without saying that its political system is nothing more than an aristocratic system with the added influence of religion. At present, Britain has no civil service system at all. Whether in Parliament or in the court, who among those holding positions at all levels does not have the status of a noble or clergyman? Their background determines their political foundation, so it is impossible for them to form a situation where the civil service class of the Ming Dynasty is dominant."

"Moreover, Your Majesty is currently considering how to establish this civil service system in Britain. Before this system is established, the cabinet will still be controlled by nobles. Their interests and needs are different, and Your Majesty can maneuver among them with ease as long as you can win them over and divide them. In addition, there is Parliament. Once the cabinet is established, Parliament will also become a sharp weapon in Your Majesty's hands. In this way, Parliament's actions against Your Majesty will be greatly reduced. On the contrary, in order to counter the cabinet, many people in Parliament will inevitably try to win Your Majesty over and cater to Your Majesty's preferences, which will be more beneficial to Your Majesty."

"That's right!" Charles II clapped his hands and immediately laughed. He had truly been blinded by his own narrow perspective, so focused on the Ming Dynasty's political system that he had forgotten that the British political system was fundamentally different from that of the Ming. In the Ming Dynasty, the concern was the excessive power of the civil service, and the emperor used this to his advantage by supporting nobles and military leaders. But in England, the power lay with the nobility and clergy; the civil service was practically nonexistent, so there was no real constraint.
Instead, what Charles II needs to do now is to implement a system in England similar to the Ming Dynasty's imperial examination system, thereby gradually replacing the current government, which is controlled by the aristocracy and clergy, with a civil service system. Only by establishing a civil service system and opening up channels for the lower classes to move up can the privileged system of the aristocracy and clergy be completely broken, thus changing the entire country.

"I understand the reasons for establishing a cabinet. I will push for this after my coronation. It's a good thing, and once it's proposed, I doubt anyone will object," Charles II said confidently. He knew all too well the greed of those nobles. The cabinet's power was far greater than that of ordinary ministers, and once a cabinet system was established, it would be tantamount to the king voluntarily relinquishing power to the cabinet—something the nobles had always dreamed of. From their own interests, how could they possibly object?
But the nobles didn't know that once the cabinet was established, it was like setting up a target. On the surface, they gained power, but in reality, they also shielded the king from all sides from open and covert attacks. Moreover, the king transformed from a participant into a referee, gaining the ability to attack or defend, and his room for maneuver suddenly increased significantly.

"Besides the cabinet matter, the second thing you want to talk about should be the civil service system, right?" Charles II asked with a smile.

"Your Majesty is wise!" Prince Hui said with admiration, subtly flattering the emperor: "Your Majesty thought of this matter before I even mentioned it. I admire you immensely."

"Hahaha! No, no, not at all. If you hadn't mentioned it just now, I wouldn't have remembered it at all." Charles II laughed and waved his hand, then asked how the civil service system should be established more appropriately.

Prince Hui had already considered this matter and immediately told Charles II that the establishment of the civil service system should not be rushed and should be carried out from top to bottom. Charles II could start from the perspective of considering the sons of nobles, taking into account the uneven quality among many noble sons and the status of collateral relatives.

In the European countries, the nobility was the foundation of the kingdom. The kingdom was ruled jointly by the nobility and the king. In other words, the king was the highest nobility, and the nobles below the king were all interest groups formed around the king, thus forming the kingdom system.

As time went on, the succession of nobles could not remain unchanged. In addition, due to the special nature of the noble inheritance system, only the eldest son could inherit the title, while the second son or collateral relatives had no right to inherit the title. This often resulted in the second son and collateral relatives of high-ranking nobles only being able to inherit low-ranking titles, while the second son and collateral relatives of low-ranking nobles did not even have a title and eventually became commoners.

Among the heirs to the title, there weren't many who were truly capable; most were just playboys. They were skilled in eating, drinking, and having fun, but had little ability to govern. Yet, simply because they inherited their titles, they became high-ranking nobles, which caused much controversy within the nobility, and even led to strong resentment among some of their family members.

Therefore, if the civil service system is to be implemented in Britain, it is best to start with these groups. This would reduce the obstacles encountered and would also gain the support of the vast majority of nobles and their children. Even if a few people oppose it, it would be of no use.

Furthermore, universities have always existed in Britain. The oldest university in Britain is Oxford University, founded in 1096, which has a history of nearly 600 years. Cambridge University, which was founded slightly later, is only thirteen years later than Oxford. In addition, there are the University of St Andrews, founded in 1413, the University of Glasgow, founded in 1451, the University of Aberdeen, founded in 1495, and the University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, among others.

These universities have a long history, but they were not originally intended to train civil servants and scholars. Instead, they were institutions with a strong religious and aristocratic character, and the education they received consisted mainly of aristocratic courses, apart from religion. It was not until after the European Renaissance that these universities began to offer courses in sociology and modern science, but these were still not considered mainstream disciplines.

Moreover, apart from clergy, the students admitted to the university were all children of nobles; commoners had no chance of entering university. For example, the famous Newton was a commoner on the surface, but he was actually of noble birth because his mother was a noblewoman with a title. Otherwise, Newton would not have been able to study at Cambridge and achieve his later brilliant accomplishments.

Wang Zihui suggested using these universities as a foundation, adding some necessary disciplines, and then establishing a civil service examination system similar to the Ming Dynasty's imperial examination to provide a pathway for lower-ranking nobles and their sons who had no chance of obtaining a title, so that they could enter government departments through the civil service system and obtain positions and promotions.

This would secure the absolute support of the aristocratic system, while also allowing the king to designate a few places in these institutions specifically for commoners, thus demonstrating his "benevolence" and care for his subjects. Because these places would be limited, and considering the high cost of university education for commoners, these places would often be reserved for wealthy merchants, preventing opposition from the aristocracy and ensuring the smooth implementation of the policy.

Once this is accomplished, the royal family can use this opportunity to establish new academies specifically for lower-ranking nobles and commoners, thereby cultivating potential civil service talent. If it takes several years, or even a decade or more, for these individuals to gradually become necessary and enter government service through civil service examinations, and as their numbers increase over several decades, they can gradually replace the various levels of official positions currently controlled entirely by the aristocracy, thus establishing the British civil service system and breaking the current aristocratic monopoly.

(End of this chapter)