The Southern Elites

For centuries the southern Empire has been richer and more populous than the north. It is in the south that many of the richest and most influential families have their roots, and it is in the south that the vast majority of the highest scoring in the Imperial Examinations are selected.\nour ruler worries that the southern families have an undue influence due to the many southerners in the Palatial administration. In the past quotas have been used to ensure that some part of those who pass the examinations originate from the north. Such quotas would, however, risk to undermine our entire system of merit as the guiding principle.