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

The so-called policy questions were set by the emperor on current affairs such as governance, people's livelihood and economy, and candidates were required to put forward their solutions.

In the early days, there were no format restrictions for policy questions; all that was required was to clearly state one's own viewpoint.

As the imperial examination system developed, policy questions gradually evolved into an examination style that combined the interpretation of classical texts with analysis of current affairs.

The first imperial examination in Daqing was naturally not too complicated; Li Che only raised one key question.

One of the issues he cares about most.

Zhang Qian noticed that the last page of the exam paper contained only a few lines of text, followed by a large blank space:

I have heard the sage say: "The people are the most important, the state is next, and the ruler is the least important."

Now, in this great empire, I reign supreme, with powerful and influential families assisting in governing, and the common people forming the foundation of the nation.

However, a vast territory cannot be governed by one person; a nation of immense importance cannot be shouldered by one clan.

Although I reside in the highest palace, I actually govern with scholars and share the joys and sorrows of the people.

The ruler is like the North Star, which resides in its place while all the other stars revolve around it; the people are like the flowing rivers and seas, which are carried by boats; and the scholars are like the pillars that support the grand mansion.

The three elements rely on each other, like a tripod standing upright; the absence of any one of them could lead to collapse.

Now I ask you students:

How can a ruler maintain his power without losing the hearts of the people? How can the people live in peace without resentment towards the court? How can scholars assist in governance without abusing their power for personal gain?

How can we weigh the power of these three factors, reconcile their benefits, and ensure smooth communication between superiors and subordinates, so that they can work together as easily as the limbs of a hand.

The emperor's power must be clearly manifest and not concealed, the people's voices must be resounding and not suppressed, and the literary and cultural traditions must be majestic and not presumptuous. Only then can great prosperity be expected, and peace and tranquility be guaranteed for generations to come.

This is the format of policy questions. It is a question asked in the name of the emperor. It may seem like a long and eloquent two hundred words, but in reality, it is just asking one question.

Where should the relationship and status of the ruler, ministers, and people be placed in order to ensure peace and prosperity for the country?

When this question came into view, Lin Qingyuan's usual calm smile vanished instantly.

He realized that despite his many high regard for the new emperor, he had ultimately underestimated him.

If the previous questions revealed His Majesty's unconventional approach to selecting talent...

But this question before him truly touched the deepest recesses of the young emperor's heart.

The emperor, officials, and the people together constitute the realm of Daqing.

How to weigh their weights, reconcile their interests, and maintain their balance is the ultimate problem that emperors and generals throughout history have struggled to solve.

Even his learned master could not provide a perfect answer.

For the first time, Lin Qingyuan felt the weight of his pen and dared not easily put pen to paper.

Instead, he seemed to be in deep meditation, as if transformed into a sculpture, his deep eyes filled with turbulent thoughts.

He mentally deduced the rise and fall of dynasties throughout history, weighed the gains and losses of all parties, and tried to outline a simple and feasible path.

Even a well-developed hypothesis is extremely difficult to come up with.

Time passed in silence, and after an unknown amount of time, he finally picked up the pen, which seemed to weigh an immense weight, with utmost care.

Dipping his brush in thick ink, he wrote the first character on the pristine white scroll.

. . . . . .

Coincidentally, Zhang Qian was also stunned when he saw this question.

The emperor, the officials, and the common people? How could a peasant boy understand these grand principles of the court?

He had never met the monarch, neither the late emperor nor the current emperor; to him they were merely distant and vague shadows.

But he was all too familiar with the distinction between 'officials' and 'commoners'.

The so-called "people" are the masses like him and his father.

The people are the ones who toil in the fields, working from dawn till dusk; the people are the ones who sweat profusely building cities and roads; and the people are the ones who defend the borders and fight bloody battles.

He was from a farming family, and he saw things more clearly than anyone else.

The foundation of Daqing was built by the blood, sweat and toil of countless ordinary people like my father, who were as insignificant as dust.

They give the most, but often receive the least.

And what about 'officials'?

Zhang Qian had met many officials, from village clerks to prefectural magistrates.

They are high above, possessing power and wealth that ordinary people can hardly attain.

But what is their role?

Zhang Qian tried hard to recall, but what came to mind was the extravagant luxury of the rich and powerful, and the awe that forced the common people to kneel on the ground when officials' processions passed by.

But if you ask these people what benefits the person they are kneeling to has brought to their lives, what exactly?

I'm afraid no one can answer that.

In his limited understanding, the purpose of officials should be to maintain the operation of the country and benefit the people.

In reality, they are also maintaining something.

However, what they maintained was not the Great Qing Empire, but their own bureaucratic system.

Building bridges and roads is for political performance evaluation, and encouraging agriculture and sericulture is also for political performance records.

"An official who is the father and mother of the people? Ha!"

Zhang Qian let out a bitter, cold laugh in his heart.

Who are the 'parents' and who are the 'children' who need to be cared for, those officials and powerful figures who prey on the local people and those who work hard to support them?

Zhang Qian felt a surge of pent-up frustration churning in his chest.

All he knew was that the world shouldn't be like this!

As the sage clearly said, "The people are the most important, the state is next, and the ruler is the least important!"

Even a monarch should value the people, let alone officials and their families who depend on the monarch's power and live off the people's wealth!

Thinking of this, Zhang Qian's pent-up feelings and experiences from many years instantly found an outlet.

Without further hesitation, inspiration flowed like a spring, and he picked up his pen to write.

His brushstrokes flowed like dragons and snakes, eloquent and unrestrained, without any hesitation.

He poured all his feelings of injustice, anger, and hope as a member of the lower class into his writing.

When he wrote about the most indignant and poignant parts, tears welled up uncontrollably in his eyes.

A few teardrops 'plop' fell next to the ink that was not yet dry, spreading faint damp marks on the scroll.

When he finished writing the last word, he was surprised to find that he had written it in one go without pausing or making a single mistake.

However, when he saw the obvious tear stains on the paper, he was struck dumb and turned deathly pale.

Oh no! I left a stain on the exam paper!

clang--

Before he could recover from his regret, the gong signaling the end of the exam had already sounded.

"Everyone stop writing!" the instructor shouted.

Zhang Qian dared not make any further moves and remained frozen in place.

The examiner stepped forward to collect the papers. As he approached the examinee, he immediately noticed the tear stains on the paper and frowned slightly.

She glanced at Zhang Qian again and saw that he was wearing a faded coarse cloth shirt, with a dark and thin face, but his eyes, which had just shed tears, were slightly shining.

The examiner's heart skipped a beat, and he sighed inwardly, but ultimately said nothing.

As usual, they simply took away the tear-stained exam paper and mixed it into the other files.

Normally, a soiled or damaged exam paper would be enough to disqualify a student from taking the exam.

However, the degree of leniency is often determined by the examiner.

Zhang Qian's tear stains fell on the edge of the blank space, but did not blur the writing, perhaps there was still a glimmer of hope.

However, this chance of survival can only be decided by the important figures who are grading the papers.

Although the examiner sympathized with the student, all he could do was hand in the paper.

Seeing the exam papers being taken away, Zhang Qian finally felt a little relieved.

But he was still terrified and slumped in his seat as if he had collapsed.

Only when the examiner loudly reminded him did he sway to his feet and walk out of the examination room with the crowd.

Thus, the first imperial examination of the new Daqing Dynasty, consisting of both sessions, came to an end.