In fact, Teomir's views at this time were shared by many.

Not just outside the Holy Alliance, even within it, many people thought the same.

The reason is quite simple.

People cannot imagine things they haven't seen; they can only infer from what they know.

Just like how the Imperial People had never seen spring guns before, so they first thought spring guns were thunder rods, then magic crossbows.

It wasn't until eight years after the Holy Alliance was established that the Imperial People gradually understood the true mechanism of mountain copper springs and spring guns.

For most Imperial People, common sense dictates that a country's literate population should not be too large nor too small.

Too few can't govern a country, too many can easily lead to rebellion.

Take, for example, the Blood Winter Rebellion that besieged Huaqiu City in the past.

After reviewing the events, the Falan Kingdom determined that the incident occurred because a large number of literate artisans and low-ranking monks joined in.

Otherwise, with that group of peasants, they wouldn't even know where the capital was, let alone about the subsequent negotiations.

Horn created so many literate people but couldn't provide enough jobs, which would inevitably lead to dissatisfaction.

The stupidity of peasants is useful.

The monopoly of knowledge by a small number of people is inevitable.

What Horn did was advance in defiance of the rules.

"That's what you all think, right?"

Faced with Jia Li and Jeanne, Horn asked with a smile as he picked up a piece of brown sauce-braised meat with his fork.

Jeanne shook her head: "Who said that? Although studying is painful, stupidity is also painful. At least the former lets you understand why you suffer."

Jia Li nodded without reservation: "It's right for a small group of people to hold the most advanced knowledge. Opening primary schools is just to extract elites from the uneducated masses."

Horn swallowed the brown sauce-braised meat, which tasted somewhat like braised pork: "You're overthinking, and you're overestimating me. I am not that noble, nor that cold-blooded.

Everything is done for one reason, which is that, concerning future needs, the literate population is insufficient."

"So many people and still insufficient?" Jeanne was puzzled.

Horn shook his head while chewing the black pork in his mouth.

Take England, the first country to spontaneously complete the industrial revolution, as an example: during a century of industrialization, the urbanization rate soared from 20% to 50%.

The current Holy Alliance consists of the New Five Counties Military District, Shattered Stone Plain Military District, Thousand River Valley Papal Territories, and Black Snake Bay Federation.

While the current population statistics are incomplete, they undoubtedly exceed tens of millions.

With the present population size of the Holy Alliance, taking into account the extremely high birth and population growth rates, an average of 20,000 to 30,000 agricultural people need to transition to industrial personnel annually.

Annually, 12,000 low-literacy individuals barely meet this requirement, as many of them have no desire to become industrial personnel.

Horn can't emulate England or Germany by implementing enclosure acts and poorhouses to force peasants into cities.

Hence, he can only rely on this simple method to entice more people to become industrial personnel.

"12,000 people are still not enough?"

"Of course not, when more complex machines are produced, requiring more sophisticated operations, their value will be evident."

Picking up a sausage, Horn grunted at the two Saintesses.

He was accustomed to such doubts from others below him, having encountered them many times before.

Germany, back then, managed to swiftly complete industrialization and lead the electrical revolution thanks to the high-level literate population brought about by compulsory education.

Although spring machines are yet to be invented, there are already signs.

Especially from Angel, Horn has acquired quite a few significant things that require detailed discussions with a certain underground red dragon lady.

The current issue related to Angel is unknown to both Jeanne and Jia Li.

Presently, this top-secret project is known only by Wolf Woman Hilov.

Jia Li and Jeanne tacitly avoided asking about it, instead raising another topic: "Didn't you say that with our long lifespans, we can take our time?"

In fact, the construction of these primary schools was funded by Horn squeezing out 30,000 pounds of gold during the most difficult times of war.

Once the situation stabilized, an additional 20,000 pounds of gold was allocated for repairs and backpaying teachers' salaries.

Many retired veterans were assigned as primary school teachers.

Horn chuckled silently.

At the current population growth rate, if industrialization isn't completed quickly, the Holy Alliance will fall into the Malthusian Trap before they die.

Avoiding this topic, Horn picked up a napkin and wiped his mouth: "Let's not talk about this anymore. How did you find today's Central Conference? I'm considering gradually lifting the Prohibition Order."

"I also think it needs to be gradually lifted," Jia Li sighed, "Luckily, the drunkenness trend has improved a lot recently."

Horn smiled as he pinched her cheek: "Thanks to the Trinity Education Team held by your Purification Court everywhere, helping a bunch of gamblers and drunkards reform."

Jia Li turned aside, enveloping Horn's fingers with her mouth, her soft tongue rubbing against the flesh of his fingers.

Jeanne quickly reached out, pinching Jia Li's chin and extracting Horn's fingers: "Shameless!"

Jia Li easily pulled away: "Shameless what? Papa and I have played worse than this; don't cross the line."

"Am I crossing the line?" Jeanne blushed instantly.

Horn hurriedly stopped them: "We're eating in the Papal dining room, do you want everyone to see?"

The two Saintesses glared at each other for a while before Jeanne reluctantly withdrew her hands, while Jia Li made faces at Jeanne, signaling with her fingers for a meeting at the octagonal cage at nine.

Jeanne, however, ran her thumb across her throat.

Horn pretended not to see the petty actions between the two; he did not want to get burned.

"Let me finish speaking first. This constant noise prevents the key points from being communicated."

Seeing the two stop, Horn continued with his "sermon."

The Holy Alliance has basically completed the early germination of the agricultural revolution over eight years. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Accurately speaking, due to Horn's knowledge and experience from another world, the agricultural revolution of the Holy Alliance almost never took the wrong path.

In just eight years, by a stroke of luck, the Holy Alliance, especially the Thousand River Valley Region, had preliminarily completed the germination period of technology, entering a rapid transformation period.

Based on current statistics from the Holy Alliance, each agricultural family produces enough grain to feed seven to eight families.

If they complete the intensive production of large mule and horse farms, one farming family could support more than a dozen urban families.

So it's evident that over four years, the newborn birth rate of the Holy Alliance has reached an astounding 5%, with nearly 200,000 newborns born in the entire year of 1452 alone.

Thanks to Horn's establishment of clinics in every Priest Town, the infant mortality rate before the age of one dropped from an absurd 40% to about 25%.

Over the four years, the number of children born locally in Thousand River Valley increased by more than 300,000.

As for the commodity rate of grain, it had reached about 70%, meaning that after deducting rations and seed grain, 70% of the grain was sold for money.

In other words, the production model of agriculture had shifted from self-sufficiency to commodity production.

It just so happened that they were lucky a few years ago when they hit the jackpot with grain export dividends.

Now, as the situation gradually stabilizes following the Battle of Windmill Land, the grain market is beginning to stabilize, with dividends gradually fading.

Thus, a large amount of surplus grain is bound to be unsellable, leading to a plummet in grain prices.

As a matter of fact, the Holy Alliance is still buying at previous grain prices, and while it's not to say it's losing money, they've come close to the true market price now.

So Horn considered gradually lifting the Prohibition Order to consume excess grain and complete the transition.

From low-value-added agricultural planting to medium-value-added agricultural product processing, ultimately heading toward initial industrial commodity production.

By then, the wild horse of industrialization will urgently gallop, leading a large population toward cities.

A plethora of new luxuries will emerge, and past luxuries will become ordinary consumer goods, even daily necessities.

Only the resource concentration brought by industrialization can surpass the old relations of production and productivity, climbing out of the Malthusian Trap.

"So the first step is not to build factories but to build artisanal workshops that match the current situation." Horn presented a list, "I've outlined several workshops urgently needed by the Holy Alliance, which represents the future development direction."

Jia Li took the list and found that the first three items were "Steel," "Glass," and "Potions."

"Do you understand what I mean?"

Jia Li nodded: "Rest assured, the bait has been set, waiting for the big fish to bite."