At this time, in the East Continent Garden, the East Continent Empire Emperor Fang Mingzhou was hosting a banquet for officials from various departments of the Prime Minister's Office on this important New Year's Day.
This tradition had been going on for four years.
Those who could attend the banquet came from the empire's ten provinces and overseas colonies; they were officials who had performed outstandingly in their respective regions in the previous year.
Initially, Fang Mingzhou painstakingly cultivated his officials, and the entire promotion process was based on information from the library.
Similarly, the supervision system, which was independent of the Prime Minister's Office, hung over all officials like the Sword of Damocles.
Governance was a top priority in any era, and Fang Mingzhou did not want to follow the example of the current Mao Xiong Country (Russia).
"Congratulations, Your Majesty, congratulations, Your Majesty."
The East Continent Royal Family had only appeared for a few years, so how to ensure the inheritance of the East Continent Royal Family was the primary concern.
With the arrival of the new century, the Empress was found to be pregnant, which meant that the empire's continuation was no longer a worry.
"Your Majesty, some officials below have submitted a petition requesting a general amnesty."
Clearly, Prime Minister Ouyang Geng could not make a decision on such a matter, so he chose to bring it up on this auspicious day.
"General amnesty?" Fang Mingzhou scoffed, saying, "The royal family's succession is certainly worth celebrating, but what does it have to do with a general amnesty?"
"What, do those pedantic people still believe in the divine right of kings? If the emperor makes a mistake, he issues a self-reproach edict, and if there's something to celebrate, there's a general amnesty."
"What, do they think this is a few hundred years ago? Do monarchs need to act according to their ideas?"
"General amnesty? Then can our East Continent's judicial system be abolished?"
"My Judicial Minister, since the establishment of our East Continent, have there been many wrongful convictions?"
Judicial Minister Zhang Kangren quickly stepped forward and said with a smile, "Our Judicial Department spent three years and invested tens of thousands of manpower to largely clear up the wrongful convictions across the country."
"The Judicial Department dares not say there are no wrongful convictions, but in any place, as long as the common people have objections to a case, they can appeal."
Zhang Kangren said proudly. The Prime Minister's Office reports were broad and comprehensive, and with the East Continent Empire being so vast, many trivial matters could not be reflected in the reports.
Prime Minister Ouyang Geng smiled and nodded, saying, "Your Majesty, we also have to thank those great powers. If it weren't for them, perhaps these conservative forces would be even more troublesome now."
Everyone nodded. Back then, Fang Mingzhou deliberately left the south ununified for two years, precisely to use external forces to break down those conservative forces.
For thousands of years, these scholar-officials were accustomed to dictating, and when the monarch governed by merely presiding, they could do as they pleased.
"Education cannot stop. More than 80% of our national population is illiterate."
"The strength of the East Continent Empire cannot rely solely on a small group of people. Human power is limited; no matter how clever, it's still only one mind."
Initially, Fang Mingzhou took over education, considering the Prime Minister's Office's financial shortage. He understood that education was a long-term plan.
By the time it was needed, it would be too late to implement it.
Implementing free compulsory education meant Fang Mingzhou had to spend over fifty million blue coins on education each year. If Emperor Fang hadn't been digging for gold all over the world, he might not have been able to sustain it.
Moreover, Fang Mingzhou also knew that education could not be entirely Westernized. While traditional education and national studies had elements that constrained thought, he believed in discarding the dross and taking the essence.
Otherwise, that kind of exquisite egoism would run rampant, leading to a restless society and a lack of morality, which was not what Fang Mingzhou wanted to see.
Fang Mingzhou's decision to have the East Continent Royal Family take over education had, unintentionally, laid a solid foundation for the stability of the East Continent Royal Family.
This land has always valued education. It's not that people didn't know the benefits of education; it was more often because they were poor.
On their first day of school, the children who entered the campus because of free education knelt and kowtowed deeply before Fang Mingzhou's portrait, in front of their parents and teachers.
They shouted "Long live!", wiped away their tears, and called themselves "sons of the Son of Heaven," as an opportunity to change their fate was thus presented to them for free.
This was just the beginning. Given time, Fang Mingzhou dared not imagine what kind of prestige the East Continent Royal Family would achieve.
This also made Emperor Fang truly feel the meaning of the phrase "He who wins the hearts of the people wins the world."
Moreover, Education Minister Li Enfu not only tacitly allowed this behavior to exist but also continuously strengthened it.
Today, the ministers from various departments of the East Continent Empire came to the East Continent Garden also to report on their year's work.
Some things were not suitable for the general public, and many things, if spoken, would only cause panic.
Ouyang Geng, as Prime Minister, was the first to stand up.
"Your Majesty, we have achieved our initial goal of ensuring that the people of this land do not go hungry."
Only Prime Minister Ouyang Geng knew how much was sacrificed for this goal.
If His Majesty hadn't taken over the most expensive education and heavy industry, even with a few more years, he probably wouldn't have been able to achieve it.
"Zhao Ting, you've worked hard."
"Haha, Your Majesty, do you remember the first time I asked about your aspirations? Your Majesty did not have grand ambitions."
"You simply told me to let the people of this land live stable lives."
Fang Mingzhou was suddenly transported back to his days in the Maple Leaf Country camp a few years ago.
"Your Majesty, our most difficult times are behind us. From today onward, our East Continent will begin its great rejuvenation."
Everyone became excited. Prime Minister Ouyang Geng was right; this era belonged to the East Continent Empire.
"Everyone speak up, both the good and the bad. That way, we'll know where to direct our efforts."
Everyone knew that Fang Mingzhou hated it when people only reported good news and hid bad news, so the annual reports were always frank.
"First, the first problem our East Continent must face is the Mao Xiong Country (Russia) to the north."
"The railway that runs through their frozen, high-altitude lands is nearing completion. We estimate it will be finished in at most one year."
Everyone frowned. If this railway were completed, it would mean the beginning of a new round of war between East Continent and the Mao Xiong Country (Russia) to the north.
"Your Majesty, should we find an opportunity to destroy them?"
Chief of the General Staff Zhang Shun, as the military's top figure, understood better than anyone.
"Destroy them? If we don't let them build the railway, are we going to wait until we take over the north and then pay to build it ourselves?"
Fang Mingzhou's words made everyone laugh. It seemed His Majesty was full of confidence in this war.
Ouyang Geng also nodded. Four years ago, the East Continent Empire could defeat it the first time. Now that East Continent was even stronger, it naturally did not fear this Mao Xiong Country (Russia).
"Your Majesty, the Mao Xiong Country (Russia)'s navy is currently under construction. If a real war begins, I believe Nicholas II will definitely wait for their navy."
"Without two years, their more than fifty capital ships simply cannot be completed. If they were to truly sail to our Far East, it would probably be three years from now."
Naval Minister Sun Fu said.
"Moreover, Your Majesty, our East Continent Empire's navy is no longer what it once was."