If you die, I will be able to inherit your cultivation.

Su Mingyue nodded, indicating her agreement with Zhou Ming's statement.

She tapped her fingers lightly twice on the dragon table, then raised her eyes, her gaze falling on Zhou Ming's face:

"Then how will you ensure the stability of the rear?"

Zhou Ming glanced at Su Mingyue, picked up the newly replaced teacup from Chunlan, took a sip, and said unhurriedly:

"That depends on whether Miss has the courage. I do have a few ideas."

Su Mingyue stared at him, leaning slightly forward, her phoenix eyes revealing a mixture of scrutiny and curiosity:

"Tell me more about it."

She really wanted to see what unexpected things Zhou Ming, who had risen from kitchen manager to his current position, still had in his belly.

"Young Miss, the new dynasty has just been established, and everything is in need of rebuilding. Moreover, we are in a chaotic world. I believe that in times of chaos, severe punishments should be used."

Zhou Ming raised his first finger. "So the first step is to revise the laws and abolish all the old laws of the Great Xia Dynasty. We will reorganize the household registers and implement a system of mutual responsibility among the ten or five households."

Su Mingyue nodded slightly; this was exactly what he had in mind.

She had long intended to revise the laws. The old laws of the Great Xia Dynasty had been in use for hundreds of years and were already corrupt and rotten. Local officials arbitrarily misinterpreted them, and powerful families treated them as nothing.

But the phrase "compiling household registers and holding people in groups of ten or five" that Zhou Ming mentioned was a new term she had never heard before.

She frowned slightly and asked, "What is 'joint liability'?"

"It means re-registering the entire population, with five households forming a 'wu' and ten households forming a 'shi'."

"If one family commits a crime, the other nine families will be held jointly liable if they do not report it."

Zhou Ming's voice was not loud, but each word was clear.

"Those who report wrongdoing will be rewarded as if they had beheaded an enemy. Those who conceal wrongdoing will be punished as if they had surrendered to the enemy."

"In this way, the people will keep an eye on each other, and the wicked will have nowhere to hide."

"Miss, think about it. The reason why those powerful families can run rampant in Youzhou is because of their intricate network of relationships among the villagers."

"Once the system of collective responsibility is established, this net will collapse on its own."

Su Mingyue frowned and pondered for a long while.

She mentally rehearsed the system several times, considering everything from the public's mindset to the local officials' ability to implement it.

From the population distribution of various counties in Youzhou to the clan roots of aristocratic families in the countryside.

After a long while, she slowly nodded: "Continue."

"The second step is to severely punish minor offenses, using punishment to eliminate punishment." Zhou Ming put down his teacup.

"For example, minor crimes like petty theft can be punished severely. It's not just about being locked up in jail for a few days and then being released; it's about being caned in the street so that everyone can see it."

"When the common people know that even minor offenses are punished so severely, naturally no one will dare to commit serious crimes."

"When no one commits crimes, punishment can be discontinued. This is the principle of eliminating punishment through punishment."

Su Mingyue frowned again.

Born into a noble family, she received Confucian education from a young age and instinctively resisted the idea of ​​"punishing minor offenses severely."

But then I thought about it again. Those scions of powerful families have been committing all sorts of evil deeds in Youzhou for so many years. When have they ever put the law in their eyes?

How can we keep these people in check without severe punishment? She remained silent for a moment, then finally nodded.

"The third step, and the most important one." Zhou Ming raised his third finger, his tone suddenly becoming more serious.

"Abolish hereditary titles and stipends, and implement merit-based ranks."

"What? Abolish hereditary titles and stipends?" Su Mingyue's pupils contracted sharply, and her fingers on the dragon table clenched involuntarily.

Even someone as composed as her, who could remain unmoved even if Mount Tai collapsed before her, could no longer stay calm upon hearing these four words.

This is no small matter.

Hereditary nobility and emoluments have been the fundamental system for maintaining the order of aristocratic families in the Great Xia Dynasty for six hundred years. From the founding emperor Liu Jun to the present, no emperor has ever dared to cross this red line.

Once it's started, there's no turning back.

How will those powerful families who have attached themselves to the new dynasty retaliate?

Will those old nobles who are still watching rise up immediately?

The new dynasty has only just ascended the throne, and its foundation is not yet stable. Can it withstand such turmoil?

She raised her eyes, her gaze fixed on Zhou Ming's face, trying to read even the slightest hint of a joke in his eyes.

But Zhou Ming's eyes were clear and resolute, even more so than when he had just spoken of the mutual punishment of the Wu people.

"Young Miss," Zhou Ming met her gaze, his tone calm yet firm.

"The soldiers who are fighting alongside you now are all from ordinary families."

"Every time they went to the battlefield, they were driven there by the supervising officers."

It wasn't because they were afraid of death, but because they knew in their hearts that even if they won, the gold, silver, and fields would have nothing to do with them.

Even if they lose, they'll be the ones who die.

"After conquering cities and occupying land, all the gold, silver and land obtained were divided up by powerful families."

"Ordinary soldiers fight to the death, but in the end they can't even get an acre of barren land."

"Young Miss, you've fought your way through the battlefield; you know better than I how many battles an army like this can win."

Su Mingyue did not answer, but gripped the dragon table even tighter.

Zhou Ming continued, "The abolition of hereditary titles and ranks and the implementation of merit-based ranks are meant to inform these aristocratic families."

"From now on, those without military merit shall not be included in the register of imperial relatives."

"For example, if a duke's descendants do not fight on the battlefield or kill people, they can only remain as commoners."

"Conversely, an ordinary soldier who beheads three enemies can be promoted to a noble rank and receive an official position and a fief."

"The doors to the social ladder are open to everyone."

"Think about it, from now on, when the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty go to the battlefield, will they still need the military supervisor to whip them and push them forward? They will only be afraid that there aren't enough enemies to kill."

Zhou Ming stopped there.

The Qian Yuan Hall became extremely quiet, with only the occasional crackling of candle flames on the dragon table.

Chunlan tiptoed in and brought in two fresh cups of tea. Seeing that one of the two men was deep in thought and the other was sitting silently, she tactfully withdrew.

Su Mingyue remained silent for a long time.

Zhou Ming's words had a significant impact on her.

Rationally, she understood the value of this plan better than anyone else.

The reason why Youzhou was able to rise in just two years was that it broke the monopoly of aristocratic families on military power, giving soldiers from humble backgrounds a path to advancement.

Zhou Ming was simply extending this logic from the military to the entire society.

From an emotional perspective, abolishing hereditary titles and stipends meant offending a large number of the old nobles who supported her ascension to the throne.

The Su family was the largest aristocratic family in Youzhou. Her father, Su Yongning, was the hereditary Marquis of Yongning, and her maternal grandfather, Su Mubai, was a duke during the Zhengde reign.

If she implements this policy, the first thing she will do is to strip the Su family of their own hereditary titles.

This kind of boldness cannot be acquired simply by sitting on the dragon throne and issuing a few imperial edicts.

Only she and Zhou Ming remained in the empty Qian Yuan Hall.

She was deep in thought, her brows furrowed, her gaze fixed on the cup of tea on the dragon table that was gradually going cold.

Zhou Ming didn't urge her, but just sat quietly to the side, occasionally picking up his teacup and taking a sip.

After an unknown amount of time, Chunlan quietly entered again and whispered, "Your Majesty, it's time for your meal."