We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

Upon hearing this, Wen Zaiyin frowned, stroking his beard as he pondered deeply.

If you have ten candles, blow out four, and the remaining six are completely burned out, then what's left is...

He went through the process several times and felt that the logic was correct, but seeing His Majesty's barely suppressed smile, he felt that there must be something fishy going on.

After a moment's thought, Wen Zaiyin finally gave up struggling and cupped his hands, saying, "This old minister is dull-witted and really cannot think of an answer other than 'six branches.' I beg Your Majesty to enlighten me."

Li Che laughed heartily, a sly glint in his eyes: "Old Wen, how can you not see clearly? There are four branches!"

"Four branches?" Wen Zaiyin asked in astonishment. "Your Majesty, how was this calculated?"

"Four candles were blown out, while the other six were still burning, so they burned out completely," Li Che patiently explained. "In the end, what was left were the four that were blown out, weren't they?"

Wen Zaiyin stood there, speechless, unable to find a way to refute.

This answer... came from this angle?

Isn't this sophistry?

He couldn't help but feel ashamed and annoyed, feeling that his rigorous scholarship had been mocked: "Your Majesty! The imperial examination is a major event for selecting talents for the country. Are these trick questions not child's play?"

Li Che, however, was not annoyed at all, and still wore an inscrutable smile: "Old Wen, don't be impatient. There's no rush to draw a conclusion. Let's wait and see."

Helpless, Wen Zaiyin could only suppress his frustration and move on to the next question.

There's a folk saying, "A dog faces east, its tail west." Is it the same for horses? A horse walked out of its stable, neighed loudly to the east, then turned and galloped off. It then turned right and galloped again, before turning left and taking a nap. It then walked a few steps west and began grazing on the grass. What direction is the horse's tail pointing now?

After reading the question, Wen Zaiyin felt a chill run down his spine.

He dared not delay, and immediately began to simulate the horse's movements in his mind, gesturing with his fingers in the air and muttering to himself: "Neighing east... Turning around means heading west? Right turn... No, left turn... Roll over... The direction has changed..."

He counted on his fingers again and again, repeatedly verifying the sequence of actions.

Finally, the answer was given unequivocally: "East! Your Majesty, there is no mistake this time, the direction should be east!"

Li Che clapped his hands, his laughter becoming even more hearty: "Wrong! Elder Wen, you're wrong again!"

Wen Zaiyin's face instantly flushed with embarrassment, and he almost blurted out, "How is that possible! This old minister has deduced it step by step..."

“Old Wen, Old Wen,” Li Che interrupted him, “you were blinded by those fancy moves. Let it run east, west, north, and south, tumbling and galloping, when did the horse’s tail ever point in another direction?”

"You've been to the battlefield too. A horse's tail isn't like a dog's; it always hangs down, doesn't it?!"

"..."

Wen Zaiyin was completely speechless, feeling a surge of frustration stuck in his chest.

He silently lowered his head, not wanting to argue any further, and turned his gaze to the next question:

The father and grandfather are 84 years old combined. Given that the father is 45, how old is the grandfather?

Almost instantly, Wen Zaiyin produced the number thirty-nine.

But as soon as he calculated the answer, he forcibly pressed it down.

absurd!

My father is forty-five, so how could my grandfather only be thirty-nine?

Thinking back on the painful lessons learned from the previous two questions, this must be another carefully disguised trap question!

He racked his brains, trying to find the hidden answer in the question, but he couldn't get it right.

When his head started to throb, Wen Zaiyin finally gave up and pleaded with Yi Che with a bitter face: "Your Majesty, this old minister is truly powerless. Please reveal the answer."

Li Che, however, looked even more bewildered than him: "This problem is easy. It's just a thirty-nine-year-old problem. It's the simplest math problem. How could Master Wen not be able to solve it?"

Wen Zaiyin finally couldn't contain himself any longer, and his voice rose slightly: "Your Majesty! How can a grandfather be younger than a father? This is a violation of moral principles!"

Li Che suddenly realized, and spread his hands innocently, saying, "The question only says 'father and grandfather,' but it doesn't specify that it's 'my' father and 'my' grandfather. Why can't it be 'my' father plus 'someone else's' grandfather?"

Wen Zaiyin was completely exasperated, feeling that all the logical reasoning he had learned in his life had become pale and powerless in the face of these tricky and ridiculous questions.

He took a deep breath and asked seriously, "Your Majesty, please forgive my bluntness, but these kinds of questions are just playing with words and setting up semantic traps. What benefit do they have in testing the students' true talents and learning?"

The joking expression on Li Che's face gradually faded, and he gently shook his head, saying, "Old Wen, don't underestimate these questions."

"They do not test the memorization of scriptures, but rather the candidate's quick wit and way of thinking."

Wen Zaiyin looked puzzled: "Way of thinking?"

“Exactly,” Li Che explained. “These kinds of questions may seem tricky and unreasonable, but upon closer examination, they have their own inherent logic.”

"The key is whether candidates can break free from their ingrained, rigid thinking habits, avoid being misled by appearances, and examine issues from a higher level."

"When they become officials in a region, the unexpected situations and complex interpersonal relationships they encounter will be even more complicated. If they only follow the established procedures and stick to the rules, how can they cope with them effectively?"

"I intend to use these questions to select some unconventional and adaptable talents."

"Even if they can't answer, they should know that things in this world don't always follow the rules of books; there will always be some unexpected events."

In fact, the questions Li Che set were not riddles, but rather original questions from later civil service examinations.

It may seem abstract, but it tests a candidate's ability to see through appearances to the essence of things.

Upon hearing this, Wen Zaiyin pondered for a moment, and a look of realization gradually appeared on his face.

He bowed deeply: "Your Majesty's thoughts are profound and far-sighted. This old minister is in awe. Originally, this old minister was thinking that perhaps I could share Your Majesty's burden in the affairs of the imperial examination."

"Now it seems that I really can't keep up with His Majesty's pace."

Upon hearing this, Li Che was slightly taken aback, keenly noticing the unusual tone in his words: "Didn't I send you to lead the drafting of the new law? What, is there a problem with the drafting of the new law?"

Wen Zaiyin shook his head, took out a booklet from his sleeve, a thin booklet of only a dozen pages, and presented it with both hands: "This old minister was just about to report to Your Majesty that the drafting of the new laws has taken initial shape. This is a partial draft. Please take a look."

Li Che took the booklet, gently squeezed it, and his brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.

But he didn't speak immediately; instead, he quickly flipped through the pages.

He looked very carefully, and the more he looked, the deeper his brows furrowed.

A moment later, he raised his head and looked sharply at Moon Jae-in:

"No, Mr. Wen."

Wen Zaiyin was slightly taken aback, seemingly not expecting the emperor to deny it so decisively.

He couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty, these regulations were formulated by us after thoroughly studying the old laws of the Great Qing Dynasty, discarding the dross and retaining the essence, and revising them with reference to the regulations of the previous dynasty... I wonder if Your Majesty finds anything wrong with them?"

“Nowhere will do, especially since the legal provisions are not specific enough and are too vague,” Li Che said with certainty.

He casually flipped to a page and pointed to one of them: "For example, this 'crime of arrogance'."

"What is meant by 'arrogance'? The law states that disrespecting imperial edicts, behaving improperly in front of the emperor, and privately criticizing the government... Can all these behaviors be encompassed by the single crime of 'arrogance'?"

"In my opinion, they are different in nature and severity, and can be listed as different crimes with different penalties."

He picked up the thin booklet, weighed it in his hand, and shook his head at its lightness: "I think it's not thick enough, far from enough."

"If legislation is so vague and ambiguous, it leaves a large gray area for interpretation, which will inevitably be exploited by those with ulterior motives in the future."

"In the future, some people will use this to distort the law and frame honest and upright people. This trend must not be allowed to continue!"

"A perfect law should be as detailed and comprehensive as possible."

“Every legal provision must clearly point to a specific behavior, define the boundary between crime and non-crime, and stipulate the corresponding punishment.”

"Only in this way can officials strictly adhere to the law when judging cases in the future, minimizing the arbitrariness of rule by man and eliminating the abuse of power for personal gain!"

In fact, this crime of arrogance is a typical 'catch-all' crime.

What is a "catch-all crime"? It is a colloquial term for a crime whose elements are somewhat open-ended, such as the "hooliganism" crime of the last century.

The sentencing criteria for this crime are extremely broad, and any kind of criminal can be convicted, with the charges being vague.

Wen Zaiyin understood that His Majesty intended to separate the power of judgment from the individual 'interpretation of power' of officials and firmly lock it within the detailed legal provisions.

The improvement of laws is essentially about constraining and regulating the power of officials.

Only in this way can officials avoid becoming powerful figures who hold the power of life and death over the people, and instead allow the law to replace some of the positions currently held by officials.

Having figured this out, a wry smile appeared on his face: "Your Majesty's words are truly insightful, and this old minister also feels enlightened."

"However... I am getting old and my thinking is probably rigid. I really have no clue how to construct such a precise and complex legal system."

"Your Majesty, perhaps... you should send this old minister back to the Grand Secretariat or the Ministry of Rites?"

Li Che looked at him, slowly shook his head, and said in an unquestionable tone: "Wenqing, do you no longer want to be involved in legislative matters?"

“It’s not that I don’t want to,” Wen Zaiyin quickly explained, “but I’m just afraid that my knowledge is too limited and I might fail His Majesty’s expectations and delay important matters of the court.”

Li Che interrupted him, dropping a bombshell decision: "Old Wen, you should think this through. If you decide to take charge of compiling this brand-new legal code, you can no longer return to other departments."

Wen Zaiyin suddenly looked up, his eyes filled with surprise and confusion: "Your Majesty, why is this?"

Li Che met his gaze and spoke clearly, word by word:

"Because I am preparing to establish a Legislative Affairs Commission, and to completely separate the power to determine and amend laws from the functions of the various departments of the court."