Sky Curtain: My Great Qin must have an aircraft carrier!

Actually, everyone needs to understand one thing: most of the ancient history we usually read was recorded by officials from aristocratic families.

The author's perspective naturally excludes ordinary people; how could they possibly speak for the peasants?

Moreover, peasant uprisings are nothing new; Huang Chao's ability to leave his mark suggests he was quite ruthless.

First, we need to understand what a prestigious family is.

Nobility has been common throughout history. By continuously accumulating power, families have gradually grown stronger, and this is what is known as aristocratic families.

The most powerful aspect of aristocratic families is that they monopolize knowledge and the right to interpret it.

When the emperor needed officials to perform his duties, he could only select talented people from aristocratic families, because others were illiterate!

With the addition of the recommendation system and the Nine-Rank System, a three-in-one cycle of scholars, officials, and landlords was formed.

This cycle began in the Western Han Dynasty and continued into the Northern and Southern Dynasties without much change.

The terrifying influence of powerful clans in the imperial court posed a significant threat to imperial power, prompting countless emperors to consider how to counter these clans.

"Yeah, how exactly do we deal with those guys?"

Liu Xiu stood up from the couch, his heart filled with a mixture of excitement and frustration.

He knew all too well just how powerful aristocratic families were.

When the country had just been unified, he ordered a thorough investigation of land and a clear census of the population in order to increase the country's revenue.

Shortly after the order was issued, Chenliu County sent a letter: Yingchuan and Hongnong can be questioned, but Henan and Nanyang cannot.

When Liu Xiu saw the letter, he was so angry that he almost drew his sword and killed the messenger.

Under heaven, all land belongs to the king; on the shores of the earth, all people are subjects of the king!

He conquered the country inch by inch; what piece of land in the world can't he ask for?

Enraged, Liu Xiu immediately ordered a thorough investigation and executed more than a dozen prefects in one fell swoop.

As a result, powerful landlords across the country turned against them, and armed rebellions broke out everywhere.

Liu Xiu killed countless people, causing rivers of blood to flow, but even so, he still couldn't suppress the powerful clans.

What method did later generations use to solve this age-old problem?

It wasn't until the Northern and Southern Dynasties period that a completely new system for selecting officials began to emerge.

During the Sui Dynasty, Emperor Wen of Sui, Yang Jian, recognized the power of the aristocratic families and resolved to curb their influence.

He integrated the previous dynasty's official selection system, abolished the Nine-Rank System, and adopted an examination system to select talents.

Later, Emperor Yang of Sui established the Jinshi examination, marking the formal birth of the imperial examination system.

Under the sky, the eyes of impoverished scholars from all dynasties shone brightly.

Can one become an official without regard to family background or recommendation, and only need to pass an exam?

Isn't that just appointing people based solely on their talent?

They knew they couldn't compete with those aristocratic families in terms of knowledge, but at least they had a chance!

Under the previous recommendation system or the Nine-Rank System, even the most talented people from poor families could only serve as staff members.

They wished they could be reborn into the Sui Dynasty right now, stand proudly in the imperial court, and tell the world that even those from humble backgrounds can become noble!

At the same time, the barrage of comments reappeared.

(Yang Guang did not keep his name secret at that time, so his influence on the aristocratic families was negligible.)

(Everything needs to develop. The Industrial Revolution didn't happen overnight; it took hundreds of years of preparation.)

(The imperial examination system was better implemented in the Song Dynasty. Although its military prowess was poor, its civil administration was impeccable.)

(The main factor was papermaking, which drove up the price of books to rock bottom, thus breaking the monopoly of the aristocratic families.)

(Besides papermaking, there were also anti-cheating measures such as anonymizing names, copying, and locking the examination hall. Furthermore, people from all walks of life, including workers and farmers, could participate in the imperial examinations. We should thank Zhao Er for this.)

"Have you written everything down?"

Li Shimin was so excited that he clenched his fist and asked the painter beside him in a low voice.

"I've written it all down, word for word!"

The artist's voice was hoarse, and he was so excited that he could hardly contain himself.

He was excited, not because the content was so shocking, but because of the sentence "Workers, farmers and all sorts of people can also participate in the imperial examinations".

An ordinary craftsman like him belonged to the lowest social class and, in theory, would never have had the chance to rise above his station in his entire life.

But Tianmu said that in the Song Dynasty of later generations, people from all walks of life, including workers and farmers, could participate in the imperial examinations.

Even someone like him is qualified to compete for the purple robe and gold belt in the imperial court!

Princess Changle sat on Li Shimin's lap and reached out to tug at his collar.

"Dad, what's making you so happy?"

"Isn't that wicked man named Huang Chao coming to kill us anymore?"

Li Shimin gently pinched his daughter's soft cheek, let out a long sigh, and the gloom between his brows vanished.

"With these rules in the sky, that guy named Huang Chao shouldn't appear."

From the phrase "failed candidate," Li Shimin had already vaguely guessed why Huang Chao had rebelled.

If you apply the rules of the Song Dynasty and still fail the exam, it means you haven't mastered the skills.

The court gave you a chance, but you were useless. What face do you have to rebel?

Li Shimin thought it over and over and decided to summon all his ministers to discuss the details of implementing the imperial examination system to prevent cheating.

-

Inside the Xianyang Palace, the bronze crane-shaped incense burner emitted wisps of sandalwood fragrance.

Ying Zheng looked at the sky, placed his hands on the imperial desk, and his heart began to pound.

This method used by later generations is truly ingenious.

The previously promoted phonetic symbols led to an explosive increase in the number of literate people in the general public.

Ying Zheng was originally troubled about how to select the talents he needed, and the imperial examination system was a godsend.

The imperial court would set out questions based on the type of official it needed.

Those who manage to break through the encirclement may not be the best talents, but they certainly won't be too bad.

The only slightly troublesome issue is that the Qin Dynasty does not yet have any good paper.

Ying Zheng looked relaxed and waved his hand: "Order the Imperial Household Department to do everything in their power to make paper for me! Until paper is made, the imperial examinations will have to proceed with bamboo slips!"

"Yes, sir." Li Si bowed and accepted the order, his mood becoming increasingly cheerful.

With this selection system in place, the future of the Qin Dynasty can be described as bright.

The emergence of the imperial examination system gave students from poor families the opportunity to transcend social classes.

Huang Chao naturally saw this path as well, and pondered that he should take the proper route of the imperial examination to bring glory to his ancestors.

"Finally, it's this person's turn?"

The heads of the various powerful families all stared wide-eyed, eager to see just how capable Huang Chao really was.

Who has the audacity to kill off a powerful family to the point of extinction?

Many people have a misunderstanding about Huang Chao, thinking that he rebelled because he was so poor that he couldn't afford to eat and couldn't survive.

In fact, Huang Chao came from a family of salt smugglers, so he was very wealthy, but he had no social standing.

Huang Chao studied and practiced martial arts from a young age. He was a good writer and his poetry was also quite decent.

Feeling confident in his own abilities, Huang Chao embarked on the path of the imperial examination.

But what he didn't expect was that the imperial examinations in the late Tang Dynasty were completely unfair.

Families from prominent families could get full marks by simply submitting a note; those with connections took up the majority of the spots.

Huang Chao was the son of a salt merchant. Let alone a note, the examiners would frown as soon as they saw his place of origin.

Huang Chao didn't take his first failure seriously. He comforted himself by saying that he wasn't good enough and went back to study hard.

Even the dumbest person, after failing the exam three times in a row, should start to figure things out.

Actually, Huang Chao hadn't given up by this point, so he went to participate in the martial arts examination and achieved good results again.

However, his appearance did not meet the examiner's aesthetic standards, and he was ultimately rejected.

Li Shimin, who was chatting with Wei Zheng, stared blankly at this sight, his mind buzzing.

"They're taking the military exam, why the hell do you care about their looks? Do you think you can judge a war by its appearance?!"

Li Shimin cursed, expressing his despair for the late Tang Dynasty, believing it was truly beyond saving.

Judging from his previous poems, Huang Chao was not bad at writing, and at least he had high aspirations.

So this person, who was both scholarly and martial, and could have been a general, was rejected by the examiners!

Even if you really look down on others, at least offer them a minor official position to appease them!

Using length as a reason is humiliating to others, isn't it?

Li Shimin was panting heavily, his back soaked with cold sweat.

This ruthless person, who is capable, wealthy, and well-connected, was driven to a desperate situation.

Then the only option left is to unleash a furious rage and slaughter all the powerful clans in the land!