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Chapter 740: Postpone, Focus on Medical Development
🕑 Added 2024-10-08 07:35:39 +0000 UTCChen Xi nearly spat out his tea. Li You was thinking too deeply and too meticulously, directly pointing out the biggest issues with the proposed measures. It was clear that Li You had already figured out that all the land in Taishan, and most of the land in Qing and Xu provinces, was under government control.
"Are you also going to ask if adopted children should inherit the land? Or if a citizen without children designates an heir, should that heir inherit the property? And by the way, if the house is damaged, should the government repair it or should the citizens?" Chen Xi looked at Li You, exasperated.
"It seems Zichuan had already planned these things years ago. The title of 'planning ahead' is no joke," Li You said, nodding at Chen Xi. "In that case, there's no need for me to ask further."
"I did have such thoughts back then, but I didn’t have enough time to delve into these matters, and more importantly, I haven’t implemented them yet. You’ve brought up these issues too early." Chen Xi sighed, resting his hand on his forehead before picking up his teacup.
"So, it’s not finished?" Li You asked, slightly taken aback.
"Do you think I’m some kind of divine being? It’s not that exaggerated. I haven’t even started on this yet. If it hadn’t been brought up today, I probably wouldn’t have mentioned it until after we secured the North. By then, with Zijing back, we could have slowly worked it out." Chen Xi lowered his hand, picking up his tea.
Li You nodded, acknowledging that he understood. At the same time, Chen Xi admitting he hadn’t completed this plan made Li You feel a surprising sense of relief—it reminded him that Chen Xi was human, not a god.
"Let Boren handle this matter for now. As for the issues Wenyou raised, we’ll take our time. While the world is in chaos, let’s quickly bring as much land under state control as possible. Of course, private ownership should be allowed; making everything uniform generally doesn’t lead to good outcomes." Chen Xi set the general tone for the discussion.
"Ensuring social security will require significant effort and will be quite costly," Li You nodded, accepting the basic direction Chen Xi had set. "But it’s a necessary course."
Li You, despite his occasional obsession with certain administrative details, was certainly capable of functioning as a capable chancellor, so he quickly came to terms with the situation.
The others in the room also began to grasp what Chen Xi was suggesting, although the issues seemed distant.
"I never expected you to have foreseen so far ahead," Jia Xu said, stroking his beard with a touch of sentimentality. When he had first arrived in Taishan, Chen Xi’s youthful face contrasted with the far-sighted wisdom he displayed, which earned Jia Xu’s admiration.
"This is what I excel at. When it comes to development, as long as the people handling the details are competent, governing the nation is not as difficult as it seems," Chen Xi said with a hint of pride.
There was no need for Chen Xi to be modest when it came to internal affairs. Everyone knew how incredibly skilled he was in this area, and the results spoke for themselves.
"Let’s set this matter aside for now. Zichuan, you and Wenru should discuss it further. When Zijing returns to Taishan, the three of you can research it more thoroughly. If others feel it’s necessary, they can also contribute suggestions." Seeing that Chen Xi had made up his mind, Liu Bei made the final decision.
Liu Bei, though not as clever as the others, had been through the early days of Taishan’s development and could guess what Chen Xi intended. He understood that now wasn’t the right time to fully implement such plans.
"Yes, Wenru, I’ll need your assistance when the time comes," Chen Xi said, turning to Li You.
"I can’t say whether this will be beneficial in the long run, but based on the current situation, while it may increase the state’s burden, it will also greatly enhance stability. Besides..." Li You muttered, half to himself.
"We don’t know what the future holds, so let’s focus on the present. Our goal is to lay down a solid path for those who come after us. If they stray, it’s not our fault. At least, I don’t see this as a burden." Chen Xi shook his head slightly, looking at Li You with confidence.
"That’s true. As long as you’re alive, money will never be an issue for the state. The treasury will always be full whenever you want to do something," Li You said, his tone a mix of admiration and reflection.
"Hahaha, you two can stop flattering each other now. Let’s get things wrapped up—Wenhe is about to fall asleep." Seeing that Chen Xi and Li You were about to continue their conversation, Liu Bei cut them off with a laugh.
"Let’s finish up quickly and head home. I’m planning to reopen the earliest government and private kilns in Taishan, aside from those being used to rebuild Fenggao," Chen Xi said, glancing at Jia Xu, who was pretending to sleep.
"Are you planning to start producing glassware again?" Jia Xu asked, raising his head to look at Chen Xi. After a moment of consideration, he continued, "Are you preparing to stockpile these items for post-war recovery? Normally, these wouldn’t be considered essential."
"It’s not about stockpiling; it’s just about reopening the kilns," Chen Xi replied, hiding his expression behind a fan. "Both medical and astronomical research have reached a certain level, and they’ll soon require this material. Unfortunately, we don’t have much large, colorless crystal available."
"Medicine requires this?" Li You asked, puzzled, unable to see the connection between medicine and glass.
"Yes, it’s needed. Initially, it wasn’t necessary, but now it is. Hua Tuo’s research has advanced to a frightening depth, and he’ll soon need to delve even deeper," Chen Xi said with a wry smile. It was a pity that the technology wasn’t yet advanced enough to produce optical glass; they would have to rely on colorless crystals for now.
"At this point, no one will consider excellent physicians as mere craftsmen. In our state, the best physicians are treated on par with scholars. This proposal can be approved," Jia Xu said after some thought. If it benefited medical research, it was worthwhile.
"The issue is that training a doctor is more difficult than training a scholar. Fortunately, Hua Tuo has been standardizing medical prescriptions," Chen Xi said, helplessly. "In any case, reopen the kilns and start producing some glassware. It will greatly aid both medical and astronomical research."
"This proposal is approved. Additionally, let each department report what they need, and we’ll fire up the kilns to produce everything in one go," Liu Bei said, nodding. Then, thinking of Gan Shi and the soon-to-depart Zhang Shi, he couldn’t help but hatch some plans.
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