The Host is Clearly A Scumbag (Quick Travel)

Seeing Li Sheng couldn't keep up with his quick explanation, Mingting spent the entire afternoon patiently explaining the idea to him.

First, the court would establish factories in regions with developed textile industries, hiring female workers.

They would work eight hours a day, with four days off per month, and improve their welfare benefits. This was the first step.

Once the regulations were standardized, market prices stabilized, and public acceptance grew, the spinning machines could then be introduced to private enterprises.

With state-owned textile factories as a benchmark, private factories would not be allowed to exploit female workers. Otherwise, regulatory agencies would impose high taxes, fines, or even force them to shut down.

Moreover, with state-owned factories setting an example, with offering better wages and benefits, more women would prefer working there.

This would further solidify the dominance of state-owned enterprises, allowing them to employ more workers, produce more fabrics and yarn, and generate profits far beyond what private enterprises could achieve.

This would strengthen the position of state-owned enterprises, filling the national treasury while the court simply reaped the rewards.

As women began creating economic value, which is comparable to men, common people would see that women could also earn money.

Gradually, this would reduce the preference for sons over daughters, decreasing instances of female infanticide and abandonment.

With a more balanced gender ratio, the number of single men would also decrease, contributing to greater social stability.

To support his argument, Mingting cited several examples from previous dynasties.

During dynastic transitions, wars often claimed the lives of many young men. In the early years of a new dynasty, women usually outnumbered men, leading to greater social stability.

But then, the population grew and son preference intensified, especially in poorer regions, with families kept having more children, while favoring boys to secure more labor.

However, the grain yield per hectare in the field is only so much.

In times of famine, if crop production plummeted and large numbers of young men struggled to feed themselves while also being unable to find wives, the surplus of unmarried men would have only two paths.

First, they could become monks.

Since temples were tax-exempt, able-bodied men abandoning productive labor to join monasteries would lead to the rise of Buddhism.

As people turned to worship and faith, religious institutions would amass wealth and influence, while the loss of labor would cripple production. Tax revenues would shrink, emptying the national treasury and creating a vicious cycle.

Another is that too many single men gathering together could easily stir up trouble.

Biologically, men are inherently more aggressive than women.

When basic survival needs go unmet and physiological desires remain unfulfilled, resentment among unmarried men would grow. Many would turn to alcoholism, gambling, brawling, or even banditry, worsening public security and eventually sparking rebellions.

Therefore, improving women's status could shift the mindset of son preference, balance gender ratios, and stabilize the nation.

Mingting was skilled at fooling… cough, persuasion. Even when his audience was the Crown Prince, he could leave them dazed.

After Mingting brainwashing him for an afternoon, Li Sheng found Mingting's reasoning convincing.

"I never realized that elevating women's status could have so many benefits."

This was the first time Li Sheng had encountered such ideas.

He was still young, so he was more receptive to new concepts. Mingting had also backed his arguments with ample evidence, making them logical and well-supported. Thus, the Crown Prince quickly accepted the conclusion.

Since he had already done enough convincing for the day, Mingting didn't push further.

After all, Li Sheng was only the Crown Prince, and there was the Emperor standing behind him.

And Emperor Li was not so easily swayed.

Mingting only hoped that the shadow guards, who had been hiding in the dark, would relay the idea of state-owned and private-owned factories to the Emperor, particularly the emphasis on hiring female workers to gradually improve women's status.

After all, this is a feudal dynasty. If changes were too radical, the patriarchal system would forcefully suppress them

Throughout history, radical reforms never ended well. So Mingting planned to lay the groundwork slowly, like boiling a frog in warm water.

Mingting refused to believe that after fifty years of effort, society wouldn't change!

For now, planting this seed in the Crown Prince's mind was enough. After all, one day, it would grow into a towering tree!

"Big Brother, you could start by researching historical records. Facts speak louder than theories."

"Studying history illuminates wisdom. The tragedies of history repeat endlessly, but no one truly take notice of it. This is a very sad point."

Li Sheng took Ming Ting's words to heart. Upon returning to the palace, he immediately went to the archives to search for historical records from past dynasties.

What he found shocked him.

Many uprisings and rebellions began with groups of unmarried men gathering to gamble, brawl, and cause chaos.

And there's no need to not talk about the distant past. In the late years of the previous dynasty, gangs of single men formed persistent armed rebellions, which lasted for more than ten years and posed a severe threat to national stability. The court had to expend enormous resources to suppress them...

Case after case left Li Sheng deeply unsettled.

His tutors had always attributed the fall of the previous dynasty to the tyranny of the last Emperor, which led to the people's miserable lives, but the current Li Sheng felt their explanations were incomplete.

Had it not been for Ming Ting's insights this afternoon, he would never have realized how complex the collapse of a dynasty could be.

However, Mingting did not tell Li Sheng that there were actually many factors for the fall of a dynasty, and gender imbalance wasn't the sole cause.

Li Sheng sorted out the results of his investigation and handed them over to Emperor Li.

Emperor Li was also surprised after reading it.

Even though he had learned about the chat between Mingting and Li Sheng from the shadow guards, nothing was as striking as seeing the data laid out plainly.

He never imagined that the fall of a dynasty could indeed be analyzed from the perspective of gender imbalance.

"Was this Mingting's idea again? And did you gather all this research yourself?"

"Father, Brother Ting said this is called 'boldly hypothesizing, carefully verifying'. Everything must be backed by evidence, and theory must align with practice. One cannot argue without proof."

Without realizing it, Li Sheng repeated the very words Mingting often told him.

Seeing how much the Crown Prince had matured through these experiences, Emperor Li felt gratified. He believed letting Li Sheng associate with Mingting had been the right decision.

He then inquired in detail about the state-owned and private enterprises, and the Crown Prince eagerly explained Mingting's original words and his own understanding.

Emperor Li approached the issue more pragmatically. The state could establish textile factories, but it could also venture into other industries.

Essential goods related to national welfare and strategic reserves should be controlled by the state, not left in the hands of aristocratic families. Otherwise, the imperial power would be weakened.

The Crown Prince's grasp of state-owned and private enterprises was thorough, and he even had his own insights, which pleased Emperor Li.

A ruler should be open to advice yet maintain clear judgment, forming unique perspectives and analyzing pros and cons from a position of authority. That was what a true monarch should do.

"Well done, Sheng'er! You've made great progress recently!" (T/N: Adding 'er to someone's name is like adding -chan in Japanese.)

Emperor Li kept the Crown Prince's findings, "You should continue to get along well with Mingting and see what else is he thinking about."

"Father, the way you say that makes it sound like I'm some spy you planted beside Brother Ting." Li Sheng was not happy when he heard Emperor Li's words.

"Brother Ting never hides anything from me, and I enjoy his company!"

"Fine, fine! You two are close. It was my mistake. Go on, then!"

After sending Li Sheng away, Emperor Li summoned Su Hengzhong and relayed Mingting's ideas to him.

"Mingting is good, but it's a pity that I don't have a princess marry him off to…"

'This…'

Su Hengzhong's sense of crisis flared.

'Is the Emperor trying to steal my future son-in-law?'

'No, absolutely not!'