The draft proposal to abolish slavery sparked considerable controversy in the Grand Secretariat. Some officials even leaked it, stirring up opposition to Fang Yun on the Discourse Ranking and among the populace.
But Fang Yun immediately cited the disclosure of state secrets to force the officials who had leaked the information to resign.
Then Fang Yun appealed to their emotions and reason, presenting all manner of evidence to demonstrate the importance of abolishing slavery. He even enlisted the help of the Hall of Punishment and the Crafts Hall, finally securing the agreement of the Grand Secretariat's officials. They first repealed the relevant laws, then enacted new ones and began abolishing slavery.
The earlier Anti-Thug Campaign had enjoyed the backing of existing laws and occupied the moral high ground. Abolishing slavery was an entirely different matter.
Thus, many lineages once again joined forces in opposition. But they had all grown wiser: rather than block government offices as they had last time, they persistently sought out officials everywhere to lobby them.
The lineages' opposition was less fierce this time, but it still posed a considerable obstacle to abolishing slavery.
Even when the Five Great Families declared their support and took the lead in dismissing their household slaves or changing their employment contracts, it did little good.
Fang Yun played the same old trick, having the Council of Governance issue a decree announcing that, effective immediately, six major Prefectural Councils of Governance would be established in the capital, Xiang Prefecture, Jiangzhou, Mi Prefecture, Yan Prefecture, and Dongyun Prefecture, and recruitment of Prefectural Council Scholars would begin.
Fang Yun did not even need to say that Prefectural Council Scholars had to support abolishing slavery. Some lineages that had originally opposed it abruptly changed sides and threw their weight behind abolition. The very next day