Chapter 7141 Gifts

Chapter 7141 Gifts
To be fair, they are indeed from respectable families. Even if they were hooligans in previous years, they have all basically reached the point where they own houses and land and can support themselves.

Chen Xi has his own understanding of society, which is why he can accept that someone is wielding a knife on the street and a group of people rush in and beat the wielder to death on the spot. He can also accept that there are local criminal gangs that control local resources and exploit people.

These can all be considered normal mismanagement and the natural tendency of humans to stick together, but starvation is something that Chen Xi believes should never happen under any circumstances.

To put it this way, if you encounter thugs on the road and get hacked to death, as long as the country punishes the thugs, the people can accept this reality. But if the people starve to death, no matter what you chant, they will still die!
Therefore, since the Taishan era, Chen Xi has been working hard to ensure that everyone has a place to live, food to eat, and clothes to wear. As for other things, they are secondary. Even if one of these three things had to be given up, it would definitely be transportation, because without transportation, people can walk.

But if the other three things are gone, people will lose even their last shred of dignity and their last chance to survive. So over the years, Chen Xi has kept a close eye on the domestic food, clothing, housing and transportation, and even, when necessary, recruited some groups that exploited loopholes or even broke the law to fill certain gaps.

So even today, when Liu Bei says that all the men under his command are from good families, Chen Xi not only agrees but also nods with a smile, because this is Chen Xi's achievement!

"Indeed, by now, the officers and soldiers under our command are all from good families." Liu Bei stroked his beard and said with a hint of pride. In the past, even during the Han Dynasty, the number of people from good families was not large. But now, according to the classification, even in poor areas, people from good families definitely make up the majority, since the state has indeed built houses and allocated land for them.

Especially for soldiers, while there might be some loopholes among ordinary local people, there would absolutely be no situation where soldiers have no place to live or no land to cultivate.

After all, anyone with a brain knows that military power is the backbone of a country. As long as the military has not collapsed, even if some unexpected events occur, some potentially dangerous methods can be used to forcibly resolve the situation first.

"Don't worry, things will get even better in the future," Chen Xi said with a smile. "The Wan family has completed the generator, so there's hope for long-distance communication now, instead of the current situation where only very precious information can be communicated over long distances through special channels."

"Long-distance communication?" A whole host of ways to use such a thing had already popped into Liu Bei's mind. After all these years, Liu Bei was no longer the novice he once was, and he had a deeper understanding of how to improve the efficiency of information transmission.

"Yes, it shouldn't be long. If Marquis Mendeting is willing to stay in Chang'an, the time it takes to complete this technology should be even shorter." Chen Xi nodded. Once a stable power supply is available, many things related to electricity can be forcibly ignited.

Considering that Wang Yuan of the Kuaiji Wang clan provided Li You with a wired telegraph to deceive him, it is only a matter of time before the telegraph is upgraded after a stable current is available. Of course, even if it is just a simple matter of time, if no one takes the initiative to tackle this aspect, the time required will not be too short.

However, considering the efficiency of information transmission, and the communication secrets that Chen Xi has been working on, things related to telegrams will definitely be put on the plan. After all, the Han Dynasty's communication technology is indeed in a state of having no way out. Once a new possibility is available, it will definitely be tested repeatedly.

Of course, even if wireless telegraphy couldn't be developed, with a stable power supply now available, wired telegraphy could still become widespread. The only problem would be a significant increase in the demand for pure copper. As for the issue of drawing pure copper wire, that wasn't a problem for the Han Dynasty.

Regarding insulation, the distance is too long, which is indeed a bit difficult, but it can still be overcome to some extent. If it really doesn't work, we can only get some rubber or something similar from South America. But thinking about it, it's about right. At this stage, the Han Dynasty has indeed developed to the point where it needs rubber.

Of course, if there's really no hope for rubber production in South America, meaning the local rubber trees are still in their primitive, untamed stage and the yield is extremely low, then Chen Xi can only get some oil and slowly distill it to make some asphalt. Anyway, it's for insulation, so asphalt is fine, and the cost isn't too high. As for the difficulty in getting oil, there are plenty of places with open-pit oil seepage in the current Han Dynasty's territory; it just depends on whether it's worth mining.

"Zhongwei." Liu Bei glanced at Wan Zhen, who was chatting with someone to the side. How to put it? Liu Bei completely understood why Wan Zhen became the Marquis of Mendeting. After all, he was a truly capable person. He had concocted the God-Slaying Spear, completed the Star Positioning Technique, created the generator, and optimized various etching processes. Without a doubt, he was a top-notch talent.

In addition, Wan Zhen's ancestors were founding marquises, which were legitimate nobles and members of the imperial family. Liu Bei had a natural affinity for the Wan family and thus paid attention to Wan Zhen. However, what puzzled Liu Bei about Wan Zhen's current situation was: if you are so powerful, why are you not at home?
That's right, Wan Zhen never goes home, not even if it means death. In fact, at this grand court assembly, if it weren't for Wan Zhen's grandfather holding his hand and begging him, Wan Zhen would have returned, signed in, and then disappeared somewhere.

“Yes, if it were him, hanging out with a bunch of guys from different disciplines, he’d probably be able to get the thing I was talking about working out in a few years.” Chen Xi glanced at Wan Zhen, who was explaining to Yang Dao how to tell which fish were related. To be honest, there aren’t many people in the world who can do that, and Wan Zhen happens to be one of them.

All I can say is that the Tongbo Wanwu thing is truly incredible.

"Speaking of which, why is he never home? And it seems he's not married either," Liu Bei said, looking at Wan Zhen with some curiosity. Of course, the last part was a telepathic message.

"Because I was confined to my home since I was little, and there was only one other person my age. As for marriage, it's not that I haven't been married, but my family has been arranging marriages for me since I was very young. However, I couldn't have children, so now I have a physiological aversion to women." Chen Xi explained simply. As for whether it was true or not, that's what Wan Zhen said. He said that his family had been finding all sorts of girls for him since he was twelve years old.

“I once asked him if he had any ideals, and he said he hoped to become an eagle, soaring in the sky, until one day he could no longer fly and fell to his death.” Chen Xi said helplessly. In essence, Wan Zhen was almost insane. For more than 20 years, he had not stepped out of the Wan family’s house.

Wan Zhen was not the legitimate son of the Marquis of Mendeting, but only two children remained in the Wan family's generation: Wan Peng and Wan Zhen from a remote collateral branch. For the Wan family, Wan Zhen was the last backup for the Marquis of Mendeting lineage. Once Wan Peng was gone, Wan Zhen had to take his place.

Therefore, Wan Zhen must not go out when Wan Peng goes out.

So ever since Wan Zhen became self-aware, he has never stepped out of the Wan family home. When Wan Zhen's grandfather passed away, he asked Wan Zhen if he hated them. Wan Zhen thought for a moment and said he did not hate them.

Perhaps it's because I truly don't hate, or perhaps it's because I understand too much that I've let go.

After all, Wan Zhen had said that his grandfather and uncle had been very good to him. When he was young, he had a fever once, and his grandfather stayed up all night, wiping him down and brewing medicine for him. He didn't sleep for several days and nights. He almost didn't make it through the ordeal. His grandfather kowtowed and burned incense day and night. In the end, it was probably God's blessing that he survived.

For a long time afterward, he drank a certain medicine that was said to be very effective. But after Wan Zhen stepped out of his home and gained the talent to understand everything and the ability to identify herbs, he realized that the herbs were actually meaningless. What was meaningful was the dregs after the medicine was boiled and dumped in front of the ancestral hall, where his grandfathers and uncles would trample on them. Well, this was actually useless, but Wan Zhen thought it was useful.

In short, Wan Zhen's past was quite tragic. When he was over thirty and had given up on the idea of ​​leaving home, he received the news that he could go out. He timidly stepped out of the main gate of the Wan family for the first time, and then he could never go back.

More than thirty years of study, coupled with his remarkable talent, were enough for Wan Zhen to awaken his spiritual gifts. But the real awakening came when he let go of the shackles of his mind and truly realized that he had stepped out of his home and had gained freedom.

"So even if he really has that ability, he can't stay in one place for too long. He will wander outside the Wan family until he dies." Chen Xi explained simply, giving Liu Bei a general understanding of Wan Zhen's situation.

"No wonder the younger generation of the major families couldn't escape the control of the older generation while they were still alive. This kind of method..." Liu Bei's expression was complicated. No wonder so many talented people, knowing that their choices were wrong, still ended up on that path.

“Because people have a conscience.” Chen Xi sighed and said, “If it really comes down to so-called constraints and rules, then when the next generation becomes strong enough to tear apart these constraints and dismantle these rules, where will the older generation have a chance to survive? The major families have also given their hearts to their core elites. If they really rely on their seniority, who will tolerate it?”

The elders of the great families are well aware that they will eventually grow old and the future will inevitably belong to the next generation. Although the next generation may not understand what they do at first, they will gradually come to understand as they get older. Humans are social animals after all, and they need love, recognition, and support. If these enlightened elders can provide these, the next generation will not cut ties with them unless absolutely necessary.

After all, once you cut off these things, you'll basically be living in seclusion, and those who live in seclusion are either saints or beasts.

Clearly, most people are neither saints nor beasts, so they like to huddle together and perform impressive feats in front of their elders to broaden their horizons. The praise and recognition from these elders not only satisfy their own vanity and self-esteem but also further strengthen the bond between them.

People always need to believe in something, and the family provides this trust relationship, so it will naturally continue. Even if some behaviors affect the trust to some extent, as long as it has not crossed the line, most people can accept and tolerate it.

"Do you think Zijing was like that back then?" Liu Bei suddenly asked.

Chen Xi was silent for a moment after hearing this, then sighed, "Yes."

"Without my grandmother, I would not be where I am today." This is Lu Su's reality. From the moment Lu Su's grandmother learned that Liu Bei had sent someone to invite Lu Su to Mount Tai to broaden his horizons and not waste his precious time at home, she gave Lu Su a truly promising future. Then, under the instigation of his in-laws, Lu Su's grandmother encouraged him to try other possibilities, which ultimately led to his defeat, loss of his position as one of the Three Dukes, and exile to the Ganges River.

It can be said that Lu Su's entire life was actually closely related to his grandmother.

"Sigh." Liu Bei sighed, then hesitated several times before stopping, but Chen Xi ultimately did not speak. On the matter of Lu Su, Chen Xi would not take back his word.

"Sigh!" Liu Bei shook his head, then left without saying anything more.

Chen Xi sighed softly. Lu Su had deliberately chosen that path. If he really didn't want it, he could have simply told Chen Xi in private, "Are those problems problems?" No.

Seeing Liu Bei leave, Chen Xi opened the sword case and looked at the sword that Liu Bei had had decorated in advance. Well, the aesthetics were just average, too simple and elegant. Liu Tong was a common person, the kind of person who liked bright things, and he had no interest in such simple and elegant sword sheaths.

"Hey, this sword is pretty good." Chen Deng, carrying the gift he was going to present to Liu Tong, glanced at the sword in Chen Xi's sword case and casually remarked.

"The Shu brocade is quite nice." Upon hearing this, Chen Xi closed the sword case and glanced at Chen Deng's gift. As the governor of Yizhou, a true official of two thousand shi (a unit of grain), he brought Liu Tong a specialty of Shu, Shu brocade.

"The best quality batch." As he spoke, Chen Deng adjusted the angle of the silk handkerchief. In the warm winter light, it shone brightly, even showing a hint of seven-colored radiance, which made Chen Xi beside him somewhat dazzled, and he couldn't help but squint his eyes.

Chen Xi didn't know what he felt, but the eyes of Pomponi and Duke Canassis, who were attending the Han court assembly as high-ranking Roman envoys, lit up after they fiddled with this thing. Sure enough, there are different levels of tribute items, right?
Then the two walked over quite naturally, and when Chen Deng saw this scene, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly. Damn it, a couple of years ago, because of other things, Liao Li, the governor of Jingzhou, seized the opportunity, and the mere Jingzhou brocade actually stepped on the head of their Shu brocade. Isn't this like shitting on my head? Damn it, I've recovered this year, I'll show you why Shu brocade is a high-end tribute!
Chen Deng did it on purpose, just to attract the Romans' attention. He even specially selected the best pieces to bring to Chang'an, just to show off at the grand court assembly. Jing brocade is awesome, right? Fine, I'll show you why Shu brocade has been second to none for thousands of years!
You want to steal my market share? Come on, give it back.

"Lord Chen, Governor Chen." Ganassis and Pomponi came over and bowed to the two men. Chen Xi glanced at Chen Deng and knew what he wanted to do, but competition was a good thing.

"Greetings, Duke. Greetings, Treasurer." Chen Xi nodded slightly. Rome owed them a lot of favors last year, so they gave Liu Bei and Chen Xi the title of Honorary Elder. At the time, Chen Xi mocked Rome, saying they should just give them single-digit citizen numbers. Then, for some reason, Rome actually gave one person a laurel wreath with the rank of Consul and two people the title of Vice Consul.

When these three titles were delivered, Chen Xi was speechless. But Rome still stood tall on the earth, and he had to accept the honorary titles given to him. Although Chen Xi knew that these things were actually useless, he had to accept the face given by the other party.

"Is this Shu brocade?" Ganassis reached out, wanting to touch it. After all, the quality looked incredible. After Parthia was destroyed, Rome was able to use affordable silk. Because of this, Ganassis, a duke from the eastern border region, had a more accurate understanding of silk.

“Yes, Shu brocade.” Chen Deng closed the box naturally. “I’m sorry, Your Grace, this is the New Year’s gift I need to present to the Heavenly Maiden this year. If you like it, I have some more that I can give you. But if you want to purchase in large quantities, you can send someone over to discuss it later.”

Although he was there to participate in the grand court assembly, Chen Deng was still happy to earn some extra money for the locals. What's more, that bastard Liao Li actually stepped on their Shu brocade to get to the top. Well, although I, Chen Deng, am not a native of Sichuan, I am the governor of Yizhou, and I have to stand up for the people of Sichuan!

We, the people of central Sichuan, must earn this money!
“I’ll always be interested in these kinds of things,” Ganassis said with a smile. “Actually, I also brought a gift for Your Highness this time.”

The Romans had been living under the Han dynasty for a long time and knew about festivals and such, so Ganassis was prepared when they came. Besides, what's a few stones? We have plenty!
As they were talking, Ganassis opened the box he had brought, which contained a piece of carved white jade. To be fair, everyone present had seen top-quality jade, but the Romans' carving skills were truly astounding; at least Chen Deng's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

"Not bad, right? I had a professional sculptor do it. The item itself wasn't expensive, but it took a lot of work to get someone to sculpt something like this. Luckily, I made it in time," Ganassis said with a hint of pride.

"Incredible skill," Chen Deng said, unable to hide his astonishment.

“Indeed, this sculptor must have some kind of spiritual talent,” Chen Xi said with emotion. This kind of thing would normally take thousands of years to achieve, but it has been achieved now. No wonder it’s Rome.

That jade carving looks about like this.