Chapter 26

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"Indeed, apart from the glory left by my ancestors, I had nothing not long ago. Now I have five thousand elite soldiers, the prestige of a feudal lord, and the foundation to support the Han dynasty!" Liu Bei's expression, which had been somewhat dim, gradually became more animated as he spoke, his eyes shining as he looked at Chen Xi.

"Yes, I have so much now, but it's still not enough, far from enough. Even compared to some powerful families, apart from prestige, I am still far behind!" Chen Xi's face was tinged with a cold smile. Liu Bei was too naive, too inexperienced!

"Please instruct me, sir." Liu Bei straightened up and said solemnly. This was the first time he had spoken to Chen Xi so formally since Liu Bei had been elevated to the rank of a feudal lord.

"There's no need for such formality." Chen Xi waved his hand. "Prestige seems very important, as if it can bring many things, but it is intangible. Only strength is the most important!"

"During the reign of Duke Xiao of Qin, Qin was so weak that the feudal lords did not even invite them to their alliances, and no talented people from across the land would come to Western Qin. But when Shang Yang entered Qin, he defeated the elite soldiers of Wei in the west, establishing a powerful army for Western Qin. From then on, the world called them tyrants! After that, many talented people came to Xianyang! The feudal lords of Guandong feared Qin like tigers!" Chen Xi's face showed a hint of fervor.

"In the struggle for supremacy among the feudal lords, they sought substance, not fame. For three hundred years of the Spring and Autumn period, there was no righteousness, only profit!" Chen Xi sneered repeatedly. In times of chaos, what was being contested had been written in history for a thousand years.

Liu Bei was silent, slowly closing his eyes. When he opened them again, there was no trace of hesitation. "Zichuan, to be honest, I never thought anyone could see things so clearly, so clearly!"

"There's nothing to it. These things are very simple. As a ruler, one can lack the art of imperial governance, but there is one thing that must be mastered: how to gain power. When one's power is strong enough, all the rules will change according to the ruler's words and actions." Chen Xi's face had a hint of allure. "A ruler who relies on the art of imperial governance to control his subordinates is not up to the task. A true ruler has no interest in such things!"

"Zi... Zichuan." Liu Bei looked at Chen Xi with a stiff expression, as if he had been frightened. The art of imperial governance, to have it revealed so casually, and with such disdain.

"Lord Xuande, what are you afraid of?" Chen Xi asked calmly. "If it were truly as the jade seal says, 'ordained by heaven, long-lived and prosperous,' how could the chaos of Dong Zhuo have happened? It can only be said that the mandate was originally from the people, but later it was lost, and in the end, it was destroyed by the people. The people are like water, the ruler is like a boat. Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it. This is the unchanging cycle of history."

Chen Xi's words echoed in Liu Bei's mind like the morning bell and the evening drum. Many questions he had been unable to understand before became clear. He had seen the people eating their children during famine years, the debauchery of the high families in Luoyang, the soldiers fighting to the death for a full meal, and the music and revelry in the generals' camps. These things had happened right before his eyes.

"Zichuan, never say such things again!" Liu Bei, regaining his composure, looked deeply at Chen Xi and said solemnly.

"What did I say?" Chen Xi burped. "Lord Xuande, if you have any questions, you can ask now."

"How to take control of Taishan Commandery, how to become stronger, how to... sweep away the chaos!" Liu Bei clenched his teeth.

Chen Xi smiled slightly. "Sweeping away the chaos is not something that can be achieved now. Before that, the focus should be on becoming strong, strong enough. Taishan Commandery is a good place, and Qingzhou is a good place. With three million bandits, about thirty to forty percent are young and strong. Taking control of these people, with a bit of training, even if they cannot become as powerful as Western Qin, they can still watch the world's turmoil like the state of Qi."

"Indeed, it is a good place, but it will be very difficult to pacify." Liu Bei sighed.

"On the contrary, it is not very difficult to pacify them. As long as Lord Xuande can persuade Tao Gongzu to lend grain, taking control of Taishan Commandery, and then swallowing Qingzhou, will not be too difficult. If those people had a way out, they would not become bandits. The most important point is that, apart from Bingzhou and the already shattered Qingzhou by the Yellow Turbans and bandits, the powerful families and aristocrats in other places are not something Lord Xuande can handle." Chen Xi narrowed his eyes. He was very clear about the general direction of handling Qingzhou, and even the general direction of handling the thirteen commanderies of the Han dynasty!

"Since Zichuan has such confidence, I am willing to give it a try!" Liu Bei made up his mind almost immediately after hearing Chen Xi's words. His thirty years of experience made him clearly understand one thing: in this era, the power of the aristocrats and powerful families was very strong, strong enough to influence the imperial power, far beyond what a small feudal lord like him could touch. Pulling one hair could move the whole body, and if he inadvertently provoked the enmity of the aristocrats and powerful families, his future path would be difficult.

"Alright, let's give it a try. We must try to know. Who would have known that Xiang Yu could defeat Zhang Han before he did? We must try to find out."

"Aristocrats, powerful families, sigh..." Liu Bei sighed, not knowing what he was thinking.

"These people are the foundation. Although there are indeed some scoundrels among them, it cannot be denied that nine out of ten of the Han's elite come from this class. Before we have an absolute advantage, it is best not to think about dealing with this class." Chen Xi shook his head. To be honest, he did not have much ill will toward the aristocrats and powerful families. After all, in this era, apart from land consolidation, this class was beneficial to the entire country.

The most basic management relied on these powerful families rooted in the land. It was undeniable that there were indeed some scoundrels among them, but to generalize and condemn them all was clearly more wrong. If these aristocrats and powerful families were truly eradicated and a new system established, Chen Xi would have a headache just thinking about it.

Therefore, Chen Xi could only think of limiting and pulling some, and striking down others. If he really wanted to eliminate the aristocrats and powerful families, Chen Xi felt he should start with his own family, as there were also things he did not like about the Chen family.

Since he could not set an example, Chen Xi abandoned the idea of confronting the aristocrats. However, to prevent the aristocrats and powerful families from taking control of Liu Bei's fate while he was still weak, forcing him to take drastic measures in the end, Chen Xi chose Qingzhou, where the aristocrats and powerful families had been largely eliminated!

This is why, when Liu Bei asked his questions, Chen Xi almost never hesitated, because even if Kong Rong and Tao Qian did not recommend him, after the campaign to support the emperor, Chen Xi would have Liu Bei submit a petition to become the governor of Qingzhou! Naturally, all the questions had been considered long ago!

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