I traveled back to the Qin Dynasty, and the First Emperor begged me to become his empress.

Chapter 176 Discussing the Establishment of a Technical College

Upon hearing the ministers' objections, the King of Qin frowned, sighed, and asked, "In that case, what good ideas do you gentlemen have for addressing the current shortage of talent in our Great Qin?"

For a moment, everyone in the hall looked at each other, none daring to speak first. Seeing this, the King of Qin sighed helplessly again and slowly said, "How could I not know that if this academy were to be established, it would inevitably create enmity with the various schools of thought? However, the vast territory of my Great Qin urgently needs a large number of talented people to govern it! Some people are good at fighting on the battlefield, but lack the ability to manage; others can only talk about theory, but are helpless when it comes to putting it into practice. Not to mention the intricate economic affairs, among all the civil and military officials, only Jia Yang is proficient in them. Does that mean that Jia Yang will have to personally manage all the affairs of the economic zone in the future?"

When the King of Qin raised the question of the economic zone design, the court fell into a deathly silence. Indeed, for these high-ranking ministers, the economic zone was something they had never heard of or seen before! Not only that, but even the related systems and laws were completely absent.

If asked to relinquish their current important positions and take charge of managing this uncertain economic zone, almost no one would willingly accept. While the economic zone appears to have an extremely attractive future on the surface, the problem is that they have absolutely no experience in this area!

How could one possibly envision scenes beyond the reach of one's understanding through mere imagination? Therefore, faced with this hot potato of an economic zone, not a single official in the court was willing to take it on. Everyone knew perfectly well that mishandling this matter would lead to serious consequences that no one could easily afford.

In this oppressive atmosphere, everyone chose to remain silent, fearing that a single wrong word would bring trouble upon themselves. However, someone eventually broke the silence.

Wang Wan took a deep breath, steeled himself, and stepped forward to speak to the King of Qin: "Your Majesty, I have a plan. The court can select intelligent children and send them to various families for education. After completing their studies, the children will not be employed by just one family, but will serve in all walks of life in Qin. Furthermore, the court can stipulate that each family must receive a certain number of students each year, and the court will provide subsidies for their household expenses."

After hearing this, everyone fell into deep thought. Li Si slowly spoke: "Lord Wei Liao's plan is ingenious, but I'm afraid the various families still won't agree. After all, how could they easily reveal their unique skills? Moreover, once these children enter each family to learn, when they grow up, their feelings for each family will inevitably surpass their feelings for the court. Therefore, in the end, the court's money will be used to cultivate talents for each family, rather than to cultivate talents for the Qin Dynasty."

Wei Liao stepped forward and said, “Li Tingwei’s words are reasonable. I believe we should try to negotiate with the various schools of thought and promise them generous rewards. For example, we could offer considerable salaries to scholars dedicated to this field; at the same time, we could stipulate that whenever one of the various schools of thought is willing to serve as a teacher, he or she would be rewarded with a certain amount of gold and silver, as well as several acres of fertile land. In this way, we might be able to attract some insightful people to participate in the construction and management of the economic zone.”

Li Si shook his head slightly and said with a solemn expression, "Your Majesty, although this plan can solve the immediate crisis, it is ultimately only a temporary measure and certainly not a good strategy for long-term stability!"

However, upon hearing this, the King of Qin's eyes suddenly lit up, and he excitedly retorted, "I don't think so! This plan is brilliant! If the various schools of thought refuse to agree, I can issue another edict to inform the world. Even if only one or two schools express their agreement first, then my Great Qin can gradually demonstrate to the other schools of thought the many benefits of establishing an academy. At that time, many scholars from the various schools of thought will surely weigh the pros and cons and willingly join hands with us."

After listening to the King of Qin's words, the ministers all nodded in agreement. At this moment, Meng Yi stepped forward, clasped his hands in a salute, and said, "Your Majesty, this humble general believes that we should first try to persuade the Mohists. The Mohists are of paramount importance to our Great Qin. Whether it is carpentry, blacksmithing, or other exquisite mechanical arts, they are all indispensable to the development and growth of our Great Qin. Moreover, the Qin Mohists of today have parted ways with the Mohists of the past, and they need the strong support of the court even more. In this way, negotiations between the two sides will inevitably become much easier."

Immediately afterward, Wang Wan echoed, "General Meng is absolutely right. I wholeheartedly agree. This plan is indeed feasible." A murmur of discussion arose immediately.

After a moment's thought, Li Si said slowly, "Your Majesty, I believe that besides the Mohists, the Agriculturalists are equally crucial to the current situation. Princess Jiayang's vigorous promotion of composting methods and the widespread use of the curved plow has earned the gratitude and goodwill of many members of the Agriculturalists towards our Great Qin. Furthermore, unlike the other schools of thought, the Agriculturalists' goal is simply to ensure that everyone in the world can have enough to eat, which does not conflict with our intention to establish an academy."

Upon hearing this, Wang Wan looked puzzled and asked, "But do we really intend to teach the people how to farm?"

The King of Qin nodded slightly, responding in agreement: "What Jiayang said is true; planting crops also requires skill and methods. Li Si's suggestion is excellent!"

At this moment, Meng Yi interjected, "In addition, I believe that physicians are also an indispensable part. After all, many of the Imperial Physicians in our dynasty possess profound medical skills and can go to the academy to serve as teachers."

Wei Liao shook his head and expressed his opinion: "As for military strategists, their knowledge is profound and involves military secrets, so it is really not appropriate to teach them publicly in academies."

Li Si then added, "As for the planning and arrangements regarding the economic zones, I'm afraid we'll still need Princess Jiayang's advice to resolve them properly."

Upon hearing this, the King of Qin nodded in approval again and decisively ordered, "Very well, let it be decided then. After you all return home, you should all begin preparing for the relevant matters. Wang Wan and Meng Yi, set off immediately to visit the leader of the Mohist school; Li Si will be responsible for persuading the Agriculturalists; Feng Quji should find the Imperial Physician as soon as possible to discuss this matter together. Once everything is ready, report back to me." Everyone acknowledged the order in unison.

The King of Qin added, "The most important thing is the selection of students. We must be strict in our selection and not allow people from other countries to infiltrate the program."

The crowd bowed in unison and said, "We obey your command." They then took their leave and began to go about their separate tasks.