Chapter 7065 Decent

Chapter 7065 Decent
Just as some things are about people, different people will have different results with the same thing. This is not something that is deliberately difficult, but something that is inherent in people and must be considered when dealing with things.

Almost every time someone says they're talking about the issue, not the person, they're implying that they're not only targeting the issue but also the person. Often, the same issue can lead to different solutions and different outcomes, depending on individual abilities, status, and background.

Chen Xi doesn't like to talk about this, but this time he has to let Jiangdong and the Yuan family know that he has no intention of targeting them, but when this iron fist comes down, their own physical condition will determine their own state. If we only look at the situation, the respect shown by Sun Ce and Zhou Yu is far less than that shown by Xun Chen and Chunyu Qiong.

However, if we take into account their status, position, value, background, etc., the respect shown by Sun Ce and Zhou Yu far exceeded that of Xun Chen and Chunyu Qiong.

When humans encounter a stranger, they judge them by their appearance before understanding them, and only after becoming familiar with them will they use their abilities to deal with them.

This is why physical appearance and demeanor must come before abilities, because they can be very helpful. At least for most normal people, this approach has a significant advantage.

But once you truly understand and enter the circle, what matters is ability and value. Without a doubt, if you put the value and ability of Jiangdong and the respect shown today together with the respect and value shown by the Yuan family on the scale, Sun Ce and Zhou Yu are far superior to the two who are currently kneeling before His Majesty and trying their best to provide emotional value to Liu Bei.

Indeed, in Chen Xi's eyes, the main purpose of the people from the Yuan family was to provide emotional value. As for other values, they could be assumed to be non-existent. To be honest, those dozen tons of gold a year were not as fast as the gold notes Chen Xi handwrote.

After all, a dozen tons of gold certainly wouldn't cripple the economic system Chen Xi had built, so discussing it was meaningless to Chen Xi. Of course, it could be used as ballast or reserves, but the problem was that these values ​​only had meaning in Chen Xi's hands.

Without Chen Xi's reputation amplifying effect, these dozen tons of gold would be nothing special.

"Actually, it's good for you to see. I usually don't like to speak so bluntly, and I try my best to save face for everyone. But at this moment, if I don't speak up, I'm afraid you still won't understand." Chen Xi looked at Zhou Yu with a hint of weariness.

“I can’t describe the situation in Jiangdong. When you met me in Qingzhou in the fifth year of Yuanfeng, I hoped that you would build a lasting legacy. I also told you that the development in Southeast Asia might not be beneficial to the Han Dynasty, but it would definitely be beneficial to China, just like the Chu Kingdom back then.” Chen Xi looked at Zhou Yu very seriously. “Then you guys gave me a really big laugh.”

Chen Xi didn't like the overbearing team atmosphere in Jiangdong. In Chen Xi's plan, after Jiangdong had eliminated Serian, they should unite and do everything they could, like the Yuan family, to achieve military and economic independence, and then loudly challenge the Han Dynasty.

After all, Jiangdong at that time truly had the capability and foundation, and being far from the emperor's reach, it was beyond anyone's control. With Sun Ce and Zhou Yu supporting it, and Chen Xi willing to turn a blind eye, there was a real possibility that Jiangdong could become the Chu state during the Eastern Zhou period.

Ultimately, as long as Chen Xi lets things run their course and lets a little benefit slip through his fingers, Jiangdong will remain united and focus on cultivating their inner strength, giving them a clear first-mover advantage.

But before Liu Ye could even begin to fear Jiangdong, the Jiangdong forces began internal strife. First, they went to Australia to mine iron ore and clashed with the kangaroos. Later, because there were so many iron ore mines, the Jiangdong families sent a group of people ashore to fight the kangaroos.

As a result, the incident of betraying teammates occurred smoothly afterward.

Although Chen Xi also acknowledged that Zhu Huan's own brainlessness contributed to his downfall, it would have been a miracle if the Jiangdong aristocratic families hadn't dragged him down with them.

Chen Xi was truly impressed by this. It was an Australian iron ore mine, a genuine open-pit mine. The Jiangdong families could easily have enough to divide up their own territory, or even not. Everyone could just start digging freely and everyone would make a profit. After all, it was an open-pit mine, and finding anything meant making money. Moreover, there was no need to sift the ore, as the iron content of the found ore was already over 65%.

Iron ore with an iron content of around 35% requires that very complicated screening process. If it's naturally over 65%, you don't need it at all; you can just throw it into the blast furnace.

As a result, despite having such superior innate advantages, they were completely outmaneuvered by the powerful families of Jiangdong.

Kangaroo hunting? Chen Xi chuckled. If Zhou Yu's fleet hadn't been able to deliver the iron ore on time and in the required quantity, Chen Xi would probably have sent someone over to find out what was going on. The open-pit iron mine was now unable to be mined and could only meet the quota. Chen Xi really thought it was outrageous.

Even if a few intelligent kangaroos have emerged that can eat iron to enhance their strength, most kangaroos cannot stay here for long. As a result, the current reality is that a huge number of large kangaroos are in that desolate mining area. Can you guess how this happened?

Of course, the Jiangdong family spent a lot of effort to get the giant kangaroo to help guard their property and prevent others from stealing it!
The logic is like the bloodline lock in Africa: if I can't mine it, neither can you. There are tons of kangaroos here. Even though I can't mine this high-quality iron ore, I'm sure I haven't lost. But if there aren't these tons of kangaroos, wouldn't the assets of my Zhou, Zhang, Gu, Zhu, and Xu families be stolen? Wouldn't that be a complete loss?
As for why Zhou Yu was able to obtain iron ore on time and in the required quantity, surely no one would actually try to stop Chen Xi's supplies. That's not how you seek death. Besides, the giant kangaroos are indeed ferocious, but no matter how useless the Jiangdong aristocratic families are, as long as each person is willing to contribute a little effort, they can certainly drive the giant kangaroos away, if not kill them all.

Therefore, Zhou Yu can always meet the iron ore quota that Chen Xi sets for him, because it is something that no one can interfere with and everyone can accomplish. It's just a pity about Jiangdong!

I don't know what these people are thinking. Maybe they really enjoy this kind of atmosphere where they share hardships but never enjoy the good times. After winning, they become selfish, suspicious of each other, and try every means to leech off their teammates. Scheming and backstabbing are almost instinctive for them!
All he does is engage in things that harm others without benefiting himself, to the point that Chen Xi has given up on Jiangdong. Sumatra is fine, once it's built, it'll be a pretty good place.

"I explained this to you before; this is just how things are here." When Zhou Yu heard Chen Xi begin to talk about the root cause of Jiangdong, his previously somewhat suppressed mood returned to normal. Having been used to this environment, Zhou Yu felt completely at ease.

Incidentally, this is also why Zhou Yu habitually tests Chen Xi's condition. In such a strange place as Jiangdong, Zhou Yu is no longer just staring into the abyss; he's been immersed in it for so long that he's unable to recognize his own problems in many of his actions.

It is very difficult for people to realize that a certain instinct ingrained in their bones may be a wrong behavior!

For example, when it comes to backstabbing and intrigue, Zhou Yu's act of digging 200% definitely falls into that category! Zhou Yu didn't treat anyone in Jiangdong except Sun Ce as a human being at all. Of course, Chen Xi guessed that the other people in Jiangdong didn't treat anyone except himself as a human being either. That's just how things are in this place, you have to get used to it.

“No, Gongjin, many of your actions seem quite abstract to me,” Chen Xi said wearily. “There are many things you could have just said directly, but you insisted on trying to unite people.”

Chen Xi was trying to persuade him earnestly, but he couldn't keep up. After all, preaching too much was pointless, so he stopped talking.

"In short, I've said everything I needed to say, and you've met everyone you needed to meet. Now you can think about it yourself. I really don't want to engage in any backstabbing with you. We're clearly on the same side, but we've ended up acting like enemies. Aren't you guys afraid of getting into trouble?" Chen Xi paused mid-sentence and then summarized for Zhou Yu.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yu seemed to be deep in thought, realizing some of his own problems. However, he had been swimming in the cesspool for too long, and he had become accustomed to the Jiangdong style of play—no matter how strong his teammates were, even if they were superhuman, he would first test their reaction, and maybe then he would have a chance, right?

At this moment, Liu Bei had already stepped down from the throne and picked up the petition urging him to ascend the throne presented by Xun Chen. The yellowed text and black characters conveyed a simple and sincere emotion. Liu Bei's ambiguous smile disappeared. Although he had no intention of ascending the throne this time, he did intend to give these people a warning. Sun Ce and Zhou Yu were still useful, so he would just make a few jokes and offer them seats and wine.

However, Liu Bei had no intention of letting the Yuan family off easily. After all, he had seen their disrespect in certain aspects. This time, Jia Xu had given him a plan, and Liu Bei thought he could also take the opportunity to slap the Yuan family a couple of times, making them stand firm and reflect on their actions.

The memorial, written with such deep emotion, actually made Liu Bei, who had just enjoyed the imperial majesty and was preparing to ruthlessly punish the Yuan family, somewhat emotional.

"The Marquis of Anguo is indeed an elder statesman." Liu Bei sighed slightly as he put away the memorial, then looked at Xun Chen, "How is Yuan Xiansi doing lately?"

What's wrong with calling someone by their name, like Marquis of Ye or Duke of Zhong? The King of Jin is asking you a question!
"Our lord has been busy dealing with Rome lately and is unable to come to Chang'an. Only the two of us can come to report on our duties." Upon hearing Liu Bei's words, Xun Chen's worries dissipated by half, and he quickly bowed his head in reply.

At this point, all grandeur and charisma are useless; they are here to report on their duties and work. There are no merits or hardships to speak of; they are simply here to report on the progress the Han Dynasty has made in Eastern Europe over the years.

"There are some things to take care of after the New Year, so you should stay in Chang'an." Liu Bei looked at the extremely respectful Xun Chen, paused for a moment, and then slowly spoke. In that instant, Xun Chen felt the pressure on his shoulders increase countless times.

More importantly, even a wise man like Xun Chen couldn't understand why Liu Bei would suddenly want to keep him in Chang'an.

Whether it was to imprison him to intimidate the other warlords, or because there was some dirty work that the Yuan family needed to handle, Xun Chen knew nothing and hadn't even received a whisper of it.

Regardless of what it was about, since Liu Bei had spoken, Xun Chen had no choice but to stay.

"Thank you for your appreciation, Prince Jin," Xun Chen quickly replied.

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei chuckled twice. As he turned to leave, he gave Chen Xi a wicked smile. Chen Xi chuckled dryly. He knew this was a preparation Liu Bei had made for him in advance. After all, Chen Xi was going to conduct a test, and Chang'an would inevitably be short-handed. He had previously mentioned that he would draw ministers from various warlords to Chang'an to help him out.

Incidentally, this process of assisting others is also a way of revealing our true strength and letting these people understand the real power of the Han Dynasty. Compared to relying on words to restrain people, it is better to let things teach them. For example, Chen Xi feels that Zhou Yu is learning much more seriously this time.

Even if there are still some rebellious behaviors, at least they have gradually found their place.

This is a good thing, very good!

Having known Zhou Yu for so many years, Chen Xi had a high opinion of him and hoped that Zhou Yu would continue to live a carefree life without crossing any lines, even if he occasionally made a sarcastic remark.

However, precisely because he held Zhou Yu in high regard and knew of Zhou Yu's abilities, Chen Xi felt that given Zhou Yu's previous inability to maintain a proper mindset, he might cause a major incident if he acted impulsively at some point.

"Please take a seat." Liu Bei sat back in the main seat and addressed Xun Chen and Chunyu Qiong. Yuan Da's letter urging him to take the throne had successfully made Liu Bei reconsider some of his ideas and saved the Yuan family. After all, Liu Bei was only acting on a whim this time, intending to give the Yuan family a few kicks and teach them a lesson so that they would realize their true position!

Indeed, whether the Yuan family of the Eastern European country that entered the Roman Senate is still part of the Han dynasty is questionable. Liu Bei is not worried about Yuan Tan, as that guy would not defect to Rome. However, Yuan Tan is just an individual, not a class or group.

The Han Dynasty was ultimately farther from the Yuan family than Rome was. The Slavs of Eastern Europe were already inclined towards Rome. The Han Dynasty allowed Rome to bestow titles upon the Yuan family because of Rome's strength and the fact that the country was still in turmoil due to locust plagues. However, this did not mean that the danger of Rome bestowing titles upon the Yuan family was not apparent.

The possibility of joining Rome is not nonexistent. Even if one does not join Rome, but merely relies on geographical advantages to remain aloof, it is still unacceptable within the Han Dynasty.

You must be clear about which side you are on!

Anyone who dares to be ambiguous on this matter must be executed.

While the Yuan family's current stance may seem clear, the intelligence from the foreign vassal states presented by Guo Jia is enough to prove many things. After reaching an agreement with Rome and becoming dukes of Eastern Europe, the Yuan family has naturally been influenced by the messages coming from Rome.

Leaving aside other issues, the very issue of marriage alliances is a major problem.

These are all things that need to be considered. Yuan Tan is the representative of the Zhong clan's Eastern European feudal group, but when people's thoughts change, a second possibility may arise. After all, the Western winds of Rome can be used, and they have been quite effective.

After Chunyu Qiong sat down, he instantly returned to normal and began pouring wine for Liu Bei's generals and officers. Although the two sides had seen each other on the battlefield, Chunyu Qiong was more experienced and had more face. At least when Chunyu Qiong poured wine for Guan Yu, Guan Yu did not refuse. This was the benefit of seniority. Since he recognized that the Han lineage was not broken, he had to recognize the Han officials.

Chunyu Qiong bowed to Liu Bei, saying that he was a qualified old minister of the Han Dynasty, at least in terms of seniority. So the other party eagerly poured wine for Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun and others without any regard for his reputation. Although the men felt that the other party was being somewhat obsequious, they did not refuse to drink.

Especially after Chunyu Qiong, a seasoned drinker, drank a few cups and warmed up the atmosphere, he began to reminisce about the past and even flattered the people around him, and soon the atmosphere was no longer so awkward.

Even though Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and the others knew that Chunyu Qiong was actively flattering them, his fluent and unpretentious words still dispelled much of their wariness.

After all, Chunyu Qiong wasn't just praising someone indiscriminately; he had the qualifications to back it up, and he hadn't disgraced anyone in his life, so he deserved the title of a trustworthy person. Therefore, they quickly became friends.

"Tsk." Zhou Yu sighed twice. Neither he nor Sun Ce had this ability, because neither of them knew how to praise others; usually, it was others who praised them.

"What are you tsk about? Go over and offer them a toast." Chen Xi gave Zhou Yu a look. Although Sun Ce was with Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and others, while Zhou Yu was sitting with the civil officials, the effect of Zhou Yu offering a toast was far better than Sun Ce having a drinking contest.

"Me?" Zhou Yu asked, pointing to his own nose.

"Nonsense, if you don't go, I will?" Chen Xi said irritably. "This is no longer about giving you a chance, it's a win-win opportunity, go now."

Zhou Yu was probably quite shocked today, because he actually followed Chen Xi's instructions and went over to pour a cup of wine for Guan Yu, who was sitting in the head seat.

At this moment, Chen Xi clearly saw Guan Yu, whose face had always been cold and who rarely smiled even at this time, forcefully pull up a smile to show goodwill. Then, he picked up the wine cup with both hands and drank it all in one gulp. Clearly, in Guan Yu's mind, he still recognized Zhou Yu as before, even though Guan Yu actually felt that Zhou Yu was sometimes quite abstract.

Liu Bei was somewhat pleased to see this scene. Just as Chen Xi had said before, no matter how much respect and sincerity the Yuan family showed, it was far less than the cup of wine that Zhou Yu, who did not offer a toast, offered to Guan Yu. Liu Bei would probably think of this scene from time to time in the future.

"See, it's that simple. The problem that the Yuan family has to go to great lengths to solve, you only need to bow and offer them a cup of wine." Chen Xi said with a hint of teasing as he looked at Zhou Yu, who had returned to his seat and was deep in thought.

　Lying flat
　　(End of this chapter)