vncnus Page 117
Page 117
Yang Hao then realized that one of his hands was still running through her hair...
He quickly let go, feeling quite embarrassed.
......
Sonia had been watching him the whole time. She had been watching him ever since she had put him to sleep.
Was it because she had become his puppet? Or was it something else? Sonia always felt that he had a strange attraction for her.
It wasn't because he found pleasure in touching his own hair. Rather, it was because he was willing to understand himself. He didn't truly treat himself like a puppet, used only when needed and neglected when not.
He wants to understand me. And he doesn't mind understanding my nightmares. Sonia thought to herself, looking at Yang Hao's face.
"Let's get ready. His Majesty will probably want to discuss our future plans with me during dinner," he said, somewhat embarrassed, as he tried to get out of bed. "And I also need to check on your room, Sonia..."
"Hmm? I don't need a room. I can sleep in the chair." Sonia rejected Yang Hao's suggestion without even thinking.
This left him stunned for a while before he finally uttered a surprised "Eh?"
“I can sleep on the chair in your room,” Sonia tilted her head and answered calmly.
"Um... could you tell me why?"
"The reason is that if even I can't protect you at all times, then your safety cannot be guaranteed."
"Ah...that's true, we're not at home anymore."
He looked very troubled, but in the end he accepted Sonia's suggestion—after all, she was right. If he didn't even have a single guard by his side, then not only would the Emperor's wishes not be considered, but he himself could easily die in an unclear situation if something unexpected happened later.
Instead of getting anxious about sharing a room with a beautiful woman, it's better to focus on the work ahead. If nothing unexpected happens, before the actual barbecue at the Imperial Council begins, Yang Hao will likely have to endure the condemnations of the council members while simultaneously pinpointing the location of the fuel stockpiles...
...
Sigh, I guess I'll just have to bear it. Anyway, whoever curses me the most, I'll bury those high-energy stones under their butt. A bunch of dying people, they're almost dead, what's wrong with letting them curse a few times?
Thinking this, Yang Hao relaxed. He led Sonia out of his temporary bedroom and headed to the palace dining room for dinner, intending to check on the guards afterward. As they walked, he confirmed the upcoming itinerary with Sonia:
“Sonia, you should come with me tomorrow. But the Imperial Council… sigh, we'll probably just be sitting somewhere killing time. After the meeting, we need to contact the fire department and the police station… after that, we need to contact His Majesty the Emperor's engineering team… finally, we need to figure out what kind of high-energy incendiary material would be best, and we also need to find enough things to produce a lot of smoke… oh right, Rabi and the others have arrived at Kos village, I still need to make some arrangements tonight…”
“Mr. Yang Hao, you have far too many work commitments. You should reduce your workload.”
"Haha, don't be fooled by the large amount of work scheduled. Most of it can actually be completed on the same day. It's just that the transportation of high-energy incendiary materials and some [reasonable] road closures will be a bit troublesome... Oh, right, I might need your juniors' help then—after all, you're all so strong, you'd be perfect for helping me move some things and walk those paths that are only suitable for one person to walk."
"Is that so? I understand. But I'd like to ask, sir, what are you planning to move?"
"explosive."
"I understand."
Simply put, Yang Hao's idea of "burning down the council" requires a lot of resources to prepare.
The Emperor has already provided the necessary resources, including connections and military support. However, Yang Hao has yet to even consider using the high-energy combustibles and smoke-generating materials to burn down the council.
After all, he needs to see how effective some things actually are. If he thinks something can beat someone to a pulp with a single punch, but it turns out to be just a soft, fluffy punch, that wouldn't be fun.
Moreover, after confirming the actual effects of each material, Yang Hao also had to arrange the tragic deaths of those councilors.
He prepared the following, but not limited to, possible scenarios for them: being burned to death, being choked to death by thick smoke, or being killed by explosives falling from the sky.
If they were burned to death, there's not much to say; a charred corpse, who could recognize who it is? Then, we can place the arsonist among the charred bodies, and theoretically, no one should suspect Yang Hao. Theoretically.
The fate of those who choked to death by smoke is uncertain. After all, their bodies are relatively intact and can still be buried. In some places, Originium Arts that can manipulate corpses might even be able to pull them up and reuse them—so Yang Hao's insurance policy for this is the explosive device hidden in the ceiling.
The explosives that fall last will blast all the corpses into pieces, and will also kill the councilors who are struggling to survive with Originium Arts. It can be said that Yang Hao has already arranged everything for them afterward.
The fact that this all-inclusive service couldn't collect a single penny from customers was making Yang Hao somewhat dissatisfied. He was considering whether to take this opportunity to "borrow" money from those dying councilors, to "repay" them in two years—after all, they'll all be dead by then, so it's only natural that I don't repay them, isn't it?
Okay, I'll try it later.
He licked his lips and rubbed his fingers together excitedly.
Lady Sonia, who was following behind him, simply tilted her head and noticed that in the two mirrors facing each other in the palace corridor, Head Maid Monica was standing in the mirror world looking at them.
chapter Five
That evening, His Majesty the Emperor dined with Yang Hao as usual. However, this time they did not discuss work-related matters, but rather important political issues.
"What do you think should happen to Ursus after we end the civil war and intervene in the conflict between Casimir and Colombia?"
Perhaps this was a test from His Majesty the Emperor for Yang Hao—although Yang Hao couldn't understand why His Majesty would give him a test that resembled educating an "heir," he still obediently ate his meal, and, missing Koschke, Monica, and the little pony's pert bottom, he gave a solid answer:
"The answer is to recuperate, cultivate the land to enhance national strength, develop science and technology, and strive to become the dominant power in this land."
"I understand the first three things you mentioned, but what do you mean by 'one-man rule'?" Her Majesty Catherine blinked. She understood the first three things Yang Hao said, but the last one? One-man rule? Are you talking about the courthouses in Yan Kingdom? I remember, it's something like a courtroom?
She used the act of eating meat to mask her confusion. However, she noticed that the biggest obstacle preventing her from bringing this delectable man into her court was Lady Sonia, who, while ostensibly eating, was actually watching the lurking serpent scales all around her...
This guy is incredibly perceptive. She sighed, then silently swallowed what was in her mouth.
"That means becoming the world's number one military power."
Yang Hao seemed oblivious to the undercurrents swirling within the private restaurant. He simply enjoyed the delicious royal food while freely expressing his personal insights to His Majesty the Emperor. He appeared to be thoroughly enjoying royal life, which Catherine saw as an opportunity to exploit.
“But Ursus is now the world’s number one military power.” Her mood improved slightly, and she smiled as she continued to ask.
"So what I mean is actually very simple—to become the number one military power in the world that all other countries combined cannot defeat."
Then, under Her Majesty Catherine's surprised gaze, Yang Hao paused for a moment before explaining to her the plan he had thought of in his dream—except that he slightly changed the core of that dream, replacing the Dukedom of Koschie with Ursus.
The most important reason for this plan is still the near-absolute control over the territory that relies on Yang Hao's [Puppet Stage] ability. Only under his control can Ursus unleash unprecedented vitality and cohesion. He knows that the numerous social contradictions within Ursus cannot be completely resolved through war; these contradictions, when considered collectively, are essentially what is known as [class contradictions].
As class contradictions are almost impossible to eradicate, Yang Hao's solution was to transform them into a driving force for development. To be precise, he wanted to allow these class contradictions to circulate endlessly within the Ursus Empire, and then give them an outlet for their frustrations.
Only after the class contradictions have been largely shifted can the Ursus Empire transform these contradictions into a driving force for development. Then, with the help of a period of stability, it can begin to develop slowly—developing technology, developing industry, and most importantly, increasing its population.
"Ultimately, back then, our most important task was to increase the population. Now, the economic crisis has caused a severe decline in Ursus's population, and considering that people's desire to have children is not strong during an economic crisis, we will face a population gap in the future."
"I've also considered this, but the solution I've come up with is to open up immigration policies. After all, in the case of a population gap, immigration is an option if we want to restore the workforce as quickly as possible during that period."
"But that's not a long-term solution. We can't be sure whether the immigrants are capable people or just paid slackers. So if we want to fundamentally restore the Ursus Empire's population, which has declined due to the economic crisis, the civil war, and the support for Kazimir, what we need to do is to rekindle the people's desire to have children."
"...What are your thoughts?"
"Infrastructure."
Even animals know that if the current environment is unsuitable for reproduction, they should avoid having children. Similarly, the people of Ursus are well aware that the current situation is not conducive to having children. Therefore, even if the Ursus Empire forces them to have children after the war ends, it will be futile—everyone has ways to avoid having children. Even if you increase the "single tax" and make those who don't want children pay more money, what difference will it make? This isn't just a matter of money; the environment doesn't allow them to do so, and naturally, they won't.
Therefore, the most important task in getting them to willingly have children is to change their harsh environment so that the improved environment can inspire their desire to reproduce.
Infrastructure construction is the most important work in improving the environment.
"Simply put, we need to build new residential areas, new hospitals, factories and schools—these things can improve the lives of the lower and middle classes, giving them jobs, comfort and hope."
Only when people have hope for the future, a foundation for real life, and a stable job will they be willing to build families, raise children, and then be willing to fight for their families while also fighting for the Ursus Empire.
If this continues, the population can gradually increase. Although it will take quite some time to return to previous fertility rates, at least we will have the confidence to steadily improve our population situation, and then we can consider development issues.
"But that's easier said than done... as you know. I've tried your economic policies, but as expected, without your help..."
"Your Majesty Catherine? Did Kosichek tell you?"
"No, I guessed it. After all, to make five million people in four cities of an entire duchy believe in your [Duke's Coins] in a single day... I certainly don't believe that it's the result of your [day and night hard work]. Your ability is very special, but don't worry, I don't know the whole story about you."
"Why do I get the feeling that you want to eat me right now?"
"hehe."
Oh no, I got too excited. Empress Catherine used the act of drinking water to calm herself down. She felt she was so excited she practically had the word "cannibalism" written all over her face.
Fortunately, Mr. Yang Hao seemed to be joking. He didn't realize that Her Majesty Catherine was planning something terrible. He was now so engrossed in his plans for the future that he simply remained silent for a while before continuing to explain his ideas to Her Majesty Catherine.
"Those tasks that are difficult for ordinary people to complete, I can do. But that's a topic for later—in short, after solving the population problem, development will be our biggest concern. After all, a strong youth makes a strong nation, and a weak youth makes a weak nation. As the future backbone and foundation of the Ursus Empire, the education they receive will determine the future direction and development of this vast empire."
“I understand. But basic education has been monopolized by the aristocracy. I tried to promote literacy for children under the age of 12 in Saint-Junburg, but I failed.”
Ekaterina sighed, quite troubled by the situation. After all, although the nobles who were hindering her had almost no real power, they were still an important part of the Ursus Empire's population. If Ekaterina didn't consider the feelings of those nobles under the parliamentary system, then the chaos within the empire would once again erupt.
How did he solve that problem in the Duchy of Kosiché? Ekaterina recalled what she had heard during her incognito visit, and her lips twitched involuntarily: Slaughtering over 30 minor nobles down to only 3—that's something that could be done within a duchy… but within the entire Ursus Empire…
Without his assistance, this would likely be a massive project lasting over 50 years—and even then, it might not be effective. Those nobles, bishops, and landowners would simply be existing under different names. His help is absolutely essential to solving this problem.
“This is not your fault, Ekaterina. After all, nobles are indeed a troublesome force, and you were not a dictator before—I suppose your policies will be much easier to implement once you become a dictator.”
While noticing Catherine's distress, Yang Hao remained oblivious to the increasingly dangerous look in the mother bear's eyes, a look so dangerous that even Lady Sonia, who had long since stopped eating, was becoming restless. He simply comforted Catherine, making her feel at ease, which in turn improved his standing in Her Majesty's eyes—whether he liked it or not, his actions had indeed brought about this consequence.
"Hehe, that's for the future. Let's talk about development and education now."
"Then I'll continue..."
Yang Hao then skipped over the question of "how to stop the nobles from monopolizing education" and began to talk about the impact of basic education on Ursus youth, which was an immeasurable positive influence.
"First is the improvement of literacy rate—literacy rate is a good issue. After all, only those who can read will be better able to perform factory work after the industrial changes brought about by our rapidly developing technology. Moreover, when our most basic population can read, we can take basic education a step further and teach them more specialized knowledge."
“More specialized knowledge? I see... Are you planning to include vocational skills such as [doctor] in basic education? I heard that Victoria has already started doing that.”
"Hehe, professional skills like medicine still need to be learned in a specialized school. In addition to learning to read and write in Ursus, we need to add mathematics as a basic course at the beginning."
"Not just in writing, but you also intend for them to be able to take on accounting jobs in the future?"
"To be precise, it means equipping everyone with basic accounting skills—or rather, basic accounting skills. At the very least, they need to know how to do arithmetic."
While most people only need to know basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, and understand the rules of buying low and selling high, mathematical skills are essential if Yang Hao intends to rapidly develop Ursus's industry and technology and create more technology-based jobs. Therefore, it's necessary for more Ursus residents to understand mathematical operations.
After all, it seems that Word documents don't exist yet... Even if they did, in this era, most business calculations are still manually entered. Furthermore, technological advancements rely on the development of mathematics—after all, how can you understand complex physics formulas if you don't even know basic math?
Therefore, incorporating mathematics into basic education can be seen as simultaneously improving the well-being of the people of the Ursus Empire, providing new talent for the empire's commerce, and opening up new possibilities for future scientific research. This is also what Yang Hao hopes to see.
With basic Chinese and mathematics now incorporated into basic education, Yang Hao is now considering policies related to vocational schools.
"Vocational schools...you mean, people who want to study medicine will have to go to medical schools. And similarly, people who want to join the military will have to go to officer training schools...or something like that?"
“Exactly! Your Majesty Catherine, you're not as pedantic as I thought! I thought I'd have to spend hours explaining this to you. But let's get back to the point—in short, the establishment of these schools will ensure the progress of the professionalization of our doctors and various workers in the future.”
After all, a doctor with basic medical knowledge will always have a better grasp of the field than a layperson, no matter where they are. Furthermore, once we establish relevant schools, students who want to study medicine but don't know where to start will have a clear direction to strive for. However, if we start establishing more schools, it will inevitably lead to a hierarchy among similar institutions. This is a good thing for us because it allows us to establish a new system that ensures better students have access to better educational resources, preventing a waste of those resources.
“I understand what you mean. To use the soldiers in the current palace as an analogy, the weakest and least talented recruits can only stay in the regular army, while talented soldiers can join special units. Those who are both talented and achieve good results can become my personal guards or inner circle. If we were to apply this to the school system…”
"It means that students with better grades can choose the schools they want to attend based on their own wishes—I call this the college entrance examination system."
Yang Hao was particularly excited when he introduced this part.
Completely unaware, His Majesty the Emperor's gaze towards him had gone beyond simply intending to devour him.
Chapter Six
The college entrance examination system—how should I put it?
Although in Yang Hao's hometown, the college entrance examination system is still not considered "completely fair" by those who have experienced it, strictly speaking, absolute fairness does not exist in the world. Therefore, the college entrance examination, as a roughly fair system that provides a path to advancement for students from underprivileged backgrounds, is constantly improving, is functioning, and is indeed effective—and that is enough.
While directly copying the college entrance examination system to this world wouldn't be impossible, Yang Hao, considering the terrible social environment and disgustingly low educational environment of this world, decided to slightly modify the system to ensure its better effectiveness in this world.
"In general, in my vision, the college entrance examination system in the future within the Ursus Empire should be divided into three batches—one is the college entrance examination system for nobles, the second is the college entrance examination system for the middle and lower classes, and the last is the college entrance examination system for the infected."
"Why should nobles be given a separate category?"
"Because we need to plunder talent from other countries, Your Majesty. Moreover, the talent from other countries is mostly from the nobility. If we don't give them some preferential treatment, how can we win over their talent pool and prevent their countries from experiencing a talent shortage?"
Firstly, regarding the aristocratic college entrance examination system, this was a plan devised by Yang Hao specifically to plunder the talent pool of other countries. Its essence is to plunder from abroad through specialized aristocratic schools and preferential policies.
There's not much to say about that. After all, humans are creatures that always strive to climb higher. Even foreign nobles, if offered enough by the Ursus Empire, would be willing to give up their family businesses in their homeland and do their utmost to secure a high-class job within the Ursus Empire to build a new family.
But while it sounds easy, it's certainly difficult to implement. For example, how to promote it externally? For example, how many subjects should be included in the scoring standards for the aristocratic college entrance examination, abbreviated as the "Noble Examination"? And so on. This system still needs to be discussed between Yang Hao and His Majesty the Emperor's ministers in the future to arrive at a satisfactory result.
If everything goes smoothly, after the "Noble Examination" system has been in place for about 50 years, the Ursus Empire should be able to use its advanced college entrance examination system to recruit a large number of potential talents from other countries and enrich its human resources pool.
However, the human resources available to [Guizhou Examination Center] are still limited. Yang Hao's main focus must remain on two things: the regular college entrance examination for the lower and middle classes and the college entrance examination for those infected.
"The college entrance examination system targeting the lower and middle classes will be our core focus, the area where we must devote the most energy. After all, aside from the highest-ranking nobles and the lowest-ranking infected, the largest number in our empire are the lower and middle-class commoners—and even if only one genius is produced out of every 100,000 people, with such a large population base, they can still provide enough geniuses for our human resource pool! We need to prioritize allocating enough support to the [middle school entrance examination]."
“I understand your thinking. But even among the lower and middle classes, there are many classes and groups... How about this, we set up a bonus policy for special groups? For example, the children of soldiers enjoy some preferential treatment, the children of scholars also enjoy the same, and those who died for their country enjoy more preferential treatment, while also having their children's school fees reduced.”
"Your Majesty Catherine, you are a genius! I never even told you..."
"...Why do I feel like you've taken these things into account as well?"
"Haha. In short, preferential policies are necessary, but more importantly, we must try our best to ensure the fairness of the high school entrance examination."
Leaving aside why Her Majesty Catherine's ideas are always so ahead of their time, even to the point that as soon as Yang Hao proposed the college entrance examination, she astutely brought up the "preferential examination policy for special groups"—in short, Yang Hao's biggest concern regarding the "middle school entrance examination" is "fairness."
While all three examination systems are fair, they differ from the "Examination for the Nobles," which, in a sense, allows for turning a blind eye and appropriately lenient treatment based on connections with foreign nobles to absorb future talent; and they differ from the "Examination for the Infected," which is only taken by those who have no other choice but to take it for a better life...
The high school entrance examination (Zhongkao) is the most complex and largest examination in terms of the number of people, groups, and even social classes it accommodates. If even the relative fairness of the Zhongkao cannot be achieved, then the college entrance examination (Gaokao) system proposed by Yang Hao will become a joke, a complete joke.
But ensuring fairness is another matter entirely. After all, he has already tolerated the unfairness of educational resources [and it is indeed unsolvable], and there will certainly be many controversial aspects among the remaining [unfairness].
The most typical controversy is whether the so-called "preferential policies for children of martyrs" are fair. Yang Hao believes it is definitely fair. His father sacrificed his life for the country, and as the child of a martyr, enjoying certain preferential policies is absolutely right.
To put it another way, is it fair or unfair that officials use nepotism to give their children extra points in school admissions? Of course it's unfair! It should even be punished.