Mythical Three Kingdoms

”Zhongda, take it in, everything you’ve learned will be tested there. What you need now is more than just accumulation, remember to refine and extract the essence,” Chen Xi said earnestly to Sima Yi. ”The path of a polymath is tough, make your choice carefully.”

”Alright,” Sima Yi replied firmly.

”Don’t let the sharpness of your youth be dulled, even if you can’t catch up with Kongming, never doubt yourself. As long as you relentlessly pursue what’s ahead, Kongming may not always surpass you,” Chen Xi advised while scrutinizing Sima Yi.

Indeed, setbacks can aid growth, but how costly are these setbacks, and how many truly know? People often say those with easy sailing lack resilience, yet they overlook that those who ride the waves straight to the skies, with no hindrance, are often far more confident than those who weather constant challenges.

Success and failure are often split by a thread of confidence. Those who have yet to suffer defeat possess an unwavering, storm-piercing confidence, which is enough to help them easily climb treacherous peaks.

On the other hand, for those who face repeated setbacks, those same peaks could become new impediments, blocking their success. The strong get stronger, the weak get weaker; even with a resolute heart, ten consecutive defeats waste precious time, even if there’s resolve to fight again.

Chen Xi spoke in a volume that wasn’t exactly quiet, and Zhuge Liang, not far away, also heard it clearly.

Sima Yi might not yet comprehend the meaning of these words, but Zhuge Liang immediately understood that this message was meant for him.

”Never mind, I’ll keep Zhongda hanging, and when he’s about to break, I’ll give him a chance to surpass me. However, if Zhongda never truly achieves it, then don’t blame me for being ruthless,” Zhuge Liang thought silently.

”Yes, I will,” Sima Yi nodded.

Chen Xi gestured for Sima Yi to leave. He was indifferent to Cao Cao and the others hearing about his plan to send Sima Yi to suppress the Western Regions; in the current situation, having more or fewer talents like Sima Yi and Zhuge Liang didn’t make much difference.

”Shiyuan, Ziming, any issues?” Chen Xi turned his head and asked Pang Tong and Lyu Meng, who were quite far away.

Upon hearing this, both shook their heads. Chen Xi answered questions with clear ideas and contexts, so many problems were evident under this mode of thought, allowing Pang Tong and Lyu Meng to solve them themselves, hence, they were now more in a phase of digesting all they had learned.

”Kongming, you should have no issues; even if there are any, you’d think them through yourself. My answers aren’t suitable for you at this point,” Chen Xi asked Zhuge Liang.

”Yes.” Zhuge Liang nodded.

Chen Xi sighed; Zhuge Liang had already moved ahead of many, beginning to ponder his own principles of governance. At this stage, as Chen Xi had previously mentioned, words couldn’t sway him; only facts could forcibly reshape his ideas.

”What about you, Boyan?” Chen Xi turned to Lul Xun, feeling indifferent as he was his apprentice, letting him choose his learning freely, never intending to groom Lul Xun into a polymath like Zhuge Liang.

Lul Xun pondered briefly and decided against asking any further questions, as the remaining ones were not suitable to inquire about here.

”Finally done answering,” Chen Xi stretched lazily, then buried his head in the horse’s mane, ”Don’t seek me unless it’s significant, I need a rest; I’ve been utterly drained these past days!”

Xun Yu and the others shook their heads, but Pang Tong and the rest had listened to the inquiries and Chen Xi’s responses over the past days, and Chen Xi’s capability to provide answers was indeed impressive.

However, before Chen Xi could settle down, Zhou Yu, who hadn’t sought him out for enlightenment during this period, finally came looking.

Single-handedly lifting Chen Xi who was lying down, Zhou Yu looked at Chen Xi with a calm expression.

”You! Why didn’t you ask earlier? Why wait until I’m down to inquire? You’re bound to get hit,” Chen Xi shouted angrily, but it was pointless; the military generals simply ignored the scuffle between Chen Xi and Zhou Yu.

There’s no helping it; every era is this pragmatic. Chen Xi and Zhou Yu stood as two peak figures during this period, similar in age, Chen Xi even if younger than Zhou Yu, not by much. One specializes in military affairs, the other in civil governance, and both had been tested by reality.

After handling matters in the Northern Frontier, the military generals would treat Zhou Yu respectfully before considering confrontation, especially now before everyone returned home, Zhou Yu, for some circumstances, still ranked as Commander-in-chief, hence their altercation was entirely overlooked.

”Questioning was very important, and some words might seem highly disrespectful; however, given the current magnitude, respect hardly matters now,” Zhou Yu spoke calmly.

Chen Xi, upon hearing the words, was momentarily taken aback from his previous irritability and adjusted his expression, ”You want to ask how to arrange things afterward, right?”

”Yes, how about the Emperor, how about the country?” Zhou Yu asked straightforwardly.

”Hmm, hmm, before discussing this issue, let me first tell you some relevant things. Once we have this foundation, we can discuss how the Emperor and the country should proceed.” Chen Xi nodded and then slowly began to speak.

”Listening attentively.” Zhou Yu nodded, and almost all other civil officials ceased their idle chatter, turning their attention to Chen Xi and Zhou Yu. Because what was about to be discussed was something that even they had to take seriously. Although this was merely the opinion of Chen Xi alone, no one could deny that Chen Xi now possessed the ability to influence the country’s direction.

”What follows is just a personal opinion; I will not put forth any recommendations, just narrate. Also, whoever is a descendant of the Shii family, please show some face, either don’t record it or embellish it a bit with graceful words.” Chen Xi sighed and said, knowing that among this group, there were definitely descendants of the Shii family, although those collecting materials did not reveal their identities, making it really hard to guess.

No one paid any attention to Chen Xi; he knew that regardless of what he said, the descendants of the Shii family who collected materials, wouldn’t pay attention to him. Those who documented history before the Eastern and Western Jin were quite reliable, whether they were collecting materials or writing the history themselves.

”First, let me talk about the governmental systems, which mainly divide into two: Monarchy and Republicanism. As for the monarchies, everyone knows we currently have one: a single national leader with absolute or nominal power.” Chen Xi said calmly.

In that instant, Liu Bei and Cao Cao understood what absolute and nominal power meant, while others showed thoughtful expressions.

”Republicanism, we rarely encounter, but there are records, roughly a thousand years ago, the Zhou Zhao Republican system was a representative of it.” Chen Xi continued calmly, while some people began whispering, yet Chen Xi gave them no chance to speak and continued his narration.

”We are considered to have a long-term monarchy, and it is an absolute monarchy. Most of our past Emperors belonged to the absolute monarchy, which can be extended to limited monarchy.” Chen Xi spoke without much change in his expression.

Liu Bei and Cao Cao showed thoughtful expressions; compared to the current situation of absolute monarchy, Liu Xie almost made them despair. However, the extended limited monarchy immediately sparked their interest; to them, it seemed like a system that retained the Emperor while allowing them to act freely, fulfilling their needs without violating their conscience.

Similarly, all civil officials also guessed the core of this system from the word ’limited,’ and thus became interested in this system.

”Limited monarchy can be divided into hierarchical monarchy and constitutional monarchy; hierarchical monarchy actually doesn’t quite fit our situation. This system is considered a transition from feudal fragmentation to centralized royal power but holds great reference value.” Chen Xi began to introduce this system in detail as he spoke.

However, speaking of it, Chen Xi did conduct certain research on this system because it’s inevitable to conduct enfeoffment after breaking through the Empire Ultimate Wall. The drawbacks of the feudal system are very obvious; the Emperor rules at a distance, making it easy for powers to grow.

Chen Xi once thought of constructing an economic integration between the upper and middle levels to form a semi-feudal, semi-hierarchical monarchy balance, but found that this system requires slightly high social and economic demands, which Chen Xi then discarded.

Others listened to Chen Xi’s explanation and also thought about it. After all, this system is a historical reality. Even though Xun Yu and others had some doubts, they couldn’t find any loopholes within it. No matter how talented one is, it’s ultimately difficult to surpass the times.

”Next is the constitutional monarchy, which can be divided into two: one where the monarch manages affairs, and one where the monarch does not manage affairs.” Chen Xi briefly mentioned, then explained each system in detail. Everyone showed thoughtful expressions, as these systems appeared feasible, with clearly defined advantages.

However, Chen Xi did not give these people a chance to interrupt, analyzing each kind of governmental system’s pros and cons one by one, leaving the listeners shocked and nervous.

”With monarchy systems discussed, now it’s the turn for republican systems.” Chen Xi rattled off all kinds of republican systems that appeared in history and that he could recall.

Of course, compared to monarchy, Chen Xi implicitly resisted republicanism. In this era, the Central Plains had not yet reached the stage for republican systems to flourish. This period’s parliamentary republican system, counted backwards; Rome played it best but ultimately had to change to an imperial system due to the country’s increased governing scope. Republicanism in this era hasn’t reached its blooming point.

”Basically, that’s all the types that can be covered; these governmental systems have all been used. I won’t make any evaluations; I’ve explained the advantages and disadvantages of each governmental system. On this matter, if you have any questions, please don’t ask me; you can just think about them yourself.” Chen Xi, upon finishing, directly blocked any ideas others had of inquiring further.

Actually, at this point, even someone as wise as Xun Yu felt dizzy; these governmental systems might not be suitable for every era, but these systems, and the sub-systems Chen Xi incidentally mentioned, made people clearly feel a sense of progress.

This is Chen Xi’s most astonishing aspect: I do not explain, I do not evaluate, I only narrate. Whether what I say is right or wrong, do not debate with me; if you think it’s wrong, just think for yourself. Anyway, whatever you say, I will just smile; if you wish to argue, I won’t respond.

In short, I will speak and you will listen, whatever questions you have, keep them to yourself; right or wrong is not important, and whether it’s applicable or not is not important either.

What’s important is, that within it you can clearly feel this is the direction for governmental systems to advance. It might not fit now, but in terms of height, it truly surpassed the entire era, with an air of grandeur beyond the era bringing a natural sense of foresight.