The rebellious grandson of Emperor Zhenguan of the Tang Dynasty: Please, Your Majesty, be called Cro

"Your Highness, the Emperor's Grandson, the Emperor's Grandson..."

"Li Xiang!"

Seeing Li Xiang leading a group of impoverished scholars forward at a brisk pace, with no intention of stopping, Sun Fujia felt a surge of anger and, in his haste, called out his full name.

"Um?"

Li Xiang paused ahead and turned around.

"Minister Sun, the case is now very complex. If we want to investigate it thoroughly, we must act quickly and not delay for even a moment."

He smiled and looked at the anxious Sun Fujia: "Why did you stop me in such a hurry? Is there some advice or teaching you something?"

Sun Fujia looked at his self-righteous appearance and was both angry and speechless.

She quickly stepped forward and pulled him back, whispering her advice:

"Your Highness, now that we have obtained the confession of Chancellor Kong, this case can be closed here. We must not continue to investigate further."

"The key to success is knowing when to stop. This matter has reached its best possible conclusion."

"If we continue to persist, things will escalate too much."

"I'm afraid that going too far will backfire!"

"Hmm? Too much of a good thing?" Li Xiang asked innocently. "Why do you say that?"

"You!" Sun Fujia was speechless for a moment.

He could no longer be so secretive. He took a deep breath and explained to Li Xiang in detail: "Your Highness, you must know that the ice on the river does not freeze in a day; and the formation of a mountain by accumulating soil does not happen in a moment."

"Powerful families have controlled the selection of officials for centuries. This is a chronic disease! Do they think the imperial grandson can thaw the frozen river and level the hills in a single day?"

"Now that the problems of the Imperial Academy are clear, it is the perfect time to report this to His Majesty. This will put the aristocratic families in the wrong, and His Majesty will then be able to issue an edict granting more places to commoners in a just and legitimate manner. The powerful families will not dare to object."

"But if we insist on pursuing this matter relentlessly, how could those powerful clans be easily dealt with?"

"They will definitely unite to suppress those from humble backgrounds! What power do these students from poor families have? How can they compare to the accumulated strength of these aristocratic families over hundreds of years... hundreds of years of foundation!"

"At that time, I'm afraid even His Majesty will find it difficult to mediate. Even this quota that could have been won will be lost."

"Tolerance is for the sake of the nation; tolerance is for the sake of the nation. Taking a step back now will allow us to achieve great things in the future!"

The elderly Temple Minister, well past sixty, tugged at Li Xiang's sleeve, earnestly and sincerely persuading him.

"Tolerate for the sake of the country? To take a step back?" Li Xiang curled his lip. "Old Minister, I'm sorry, but this matter cannot be tolerated or backed down from."

"What's this talk of forbearance for the sake of the country and taking a step back? I only know this: if you endure it for a while, you'll only get angrier; if you take a step back, you'll only lose out!"

Not to mention that he initially intended to make a big scene to anger Li Er.

Even if all this trouble only secured a few spots that should have been rightfully theirs for students from poor families, how could Li Xiang be content with that?

"Take a look at this list of successful candidates for this year's imperial examination: Zheng Jingzhi, from the Zheng family of Xingyang; Cui Zonggu, from the Cui family of Qinghe; Lu Chan, from the Lu family of Fanyang..." Li Xiang took out the copied list from his bosom and held it up in front of Sun Fujia to read aloud.

"Among the members of the Wang family from Taiyuan alone, there are as many as five who passed the imperial examinations... I remember that Wang Shidan, the Assistant Minister of Personnel, was from the Wang family of Taiyuan?"

"Tsk tsk, not hiding it at all. They're not even pretending anymore. Of the more than one hundred people who passed the exam, six or seven out of every ten come from the five surnames and seven prominent families, and the rest mostly come from second-tier aristocratic families such as the Wei family of Jingzhao, the Yang family of Hongnong, and the Pei family of Hedong."

"Those from impoverished families who can't be called 'herself'—at most, there are only three or five of them!"

"Of these hundred-plus people who are going to serve as officials and govern the people, how many of them truly have the ability to bring benefits to the people and the world?"

If at first he was just trying to stir up trouble, then when Song Shenzhi and others compiled this list, Li Xiang was truly shocked by the extent of the corruption in the Tang Dynasty's imperial examination system.

The list was almost entirely composed of the surnames Cui, Lu, Zheng, and Wang. After seeing so many, he almost didn't recognize those four surnames anymore.

Moreover, of these hundred-plus people, only one, "Wang Xuance," was someone he barely remembered and who might later go down in history.

He comes from a poor family.

How incompetent must the talents selected through the imperial examinations have been? Just how shameless did Emperor Taizong have to utter the phrase, "All the talents in the world are now within my grasp"?

Is what he's holding a treasure trove of talent, or a chamber pot overflowing with excrement?

Both were decadent and corrupt feudal dynasties, but if the Song and Ming dynasties were too corrupt in their imperial examinations, they at least had to save face and put on a show of investigating and giving an explanation.

The Tang Dynasty is quite something; they're openly engaging in favoritism and corruption, abusing their power for personal gain, yet they all think they should know their limits and tolerate each other for the sake of the country.

Should we be satisfied with just allowing a few more spots for aristocratic families?

fart!

"Then, in the Crown Prince's opinion, what exactly do you intend to do?" Sun Fujia was nearly jumping up and down with impatience as Li Xiang persisted. "Do you really want to ruin this excellent situation before you're willing to give up?"

"Is this what you call a great situation? It doesn't even qualify as a breakthrough!" Li Xiang said decisively.

"These insects, simply because of their noble birth, want to occupy the imperial examinations and usurp official positions? How can such a list convince the public?"

"The imperial examination system should be reformed, and it should be re-examined!"

"You...you want to abolish all these people who passed the exam?" Sun Fujia almost thought he had misheard.

Even Song Shenzhi and Dong Jiming, who were standing by and silently listening to the conversation between Sun Fujia and Li Xiang, were stunned.

"Your...Your Highness?" Dong Jiming hesitated. "In that case..."

"Isn't that a bit too radical?"

Most of the people on this list come from the five surnames and seven prominent families!

Dynasties come and go, but powerful families remain! The Tang Dynasty has only lasted for two generations, while the five surnames and seven clans have already witnessed countless dynasties.

The grandson of the emperor actually wanted to make everyone who passed the imperial examination retake the test, and to spit out the examination slots that the five noble families and seven prominent clans had already swallowed...

What's the difference between this and grabbing the hair of the five surnames and seven noble families and slapping their faces in the street?

"Is it radical? It's just asking them to retake the test based on their own abilities," Li Xiang said.

"If we really want to investigate, we should recall all those who have passed the exam in previous years and have them retake the test—but asking these few hundred people to retake the test is already giving them a lot of face."

"Furthermore, the imperial examination system also has major drawbacks. Those selected by it lack the talent to serve as officials, as evidenced by the testimony of the late Master Kong." Li Xiang's lips curled into a malicious and mischievous smile.

"This shows that the imperial examination system for selecting officials was fundamentally flawed!"

"Since the Imperial Academy cannot escape blame for this matter, the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Rites naturally cannot remain unscathed either."

"The imperial examination system must be reformed! The methods for selecting officials through the imperial examination system must be innovated!"

"How the imperial examination system selects officials is an old system established during the Sui Dynasty. It has always been the same, so it is deeply rooted..." Dong Jiming murmured in disbelief, shocked by Li Xiang's grand plan.

"So the Sui Dynasty perished!" Li Xiang interrupted bluntly.

He raised his voice, addressing Sun Fujia, Dong Jiming, and everyone else, and said with great emotion:

"I, Li Xiang, only want this Tang Dynasty to accomplish three things!"

"Fair, fair, damn it, fair!"

"That's all!!"