I have lived forever since the end of Qin Dynasty

Chapter 350 Chen Luo’s plan. Have you found your father’s brother’s bloodline?

"Okay, okay." Guo Xie responded happily, "Actually, Xiaoxu has already told me your idea. It's very bold. I wonder, Boyu, do you have anything to add?"

The word "building momentum" sounds simple, but when it comes to specific implementation, it is far less easy than it seems.

Ordinary people call for friends, and at most twenty or thirty people can be found, which is not even a large gathering. It can be easily solved by the county captain and his servants.

This is also the reason why local clan forces in ancient times had a deep foundation for survival.

You must know that except for the powerful people in the family, who dare not offend outsiders, ordinary people with a small number of people in the family have no ability to withstand pressure from the government and local gangsters.

Moreover, someone in your generation has reached a high position and can protect the family. Is it possible that there will be people who are successful in every generation?
  Therefore, the existence of clan seems reasonable.

Local clans often have relatives and friends, ranging from hundreds to thousands.

Where such a group of people exists, they can be considered a huge force. In order to maintain stability, the government would never dare to target groups like them. Therefore, some orphans, widowed mothers, and weak families can rely on them to better manage their affairs. survive.

Moreover, there are dozens or even hundreds of people in each generation of a clan. Judging from the success rate alone, the chance of finding something in the rough is greater than that of a small family with six or seven people in a generation.

But if local clans want to build momentum, they usually only bring in three to five hundred people.

When a riot occurs on such a scale, the local county government cannot suppress it, so the county magistrate often chooses to compromise.

However, if you zoom in to the county level, if there are three to five hundred people without soldiers and armor, they will definitely not be noticeable. If they really want to be dealt with seriously, they can be suppressed easily.

And what they have to deal with now is Liu Duan, a prince.

Chen Luo rubbed his chin and said clearly: "Mr. Guo, can you...well, how many people can be mobilized to cooperate with this plan?"

I originally wanted to say incitement, but they are obviously on the side of justice, so mobilization is more appropriate.

But he didn't get too hung up on the minutiae of his sentences.

Now I have a relatively complete plan in my mind, and I can make adjustments at any time according to the actual situation.

Even if Guo Xie can only mobilize thousands of people to cooperate, Chen Luo still has a way, but the effect will be rougher and not so smooth.

After thinking for a while, Guo Xie replied, "Here in Guanzhong, I can find one or two thousand people, and in Luoyang and Sanhe areas, I can find four to five thousand people. As for Qidi, I can probably find Guanzhong." It’s about the middle of the Three Rivers area.”

Don't underestimate the influence of the Mohist family.

Mohist disciples have been deeply involved in grassroots work, promoting agricultural tools and teaching for a long time. Many local people have been helped by Mohists for two or three generations.

Therefore, they saw the real benefits and gathered into a group of believers.

Although these people have not officially joined the Mohist family, they will try their best to meet the reasonable requirements of Mohist disciples.

Of course, Mohist disciples will basically not ask for anything from ordinary people.

They can be self-sufficient by relying on trade with caravans, not to mention that the food and clothing of Mohist disciples are very simple.

It's just that having a good reputation among the people is not a bad thing.

If a Han commoner is asked to choose between two similar products, he will definitely choose the one related to the Mohist family, because the concept that "a product produced by the Mohist family must be a high-quality product" has been subtly rooted in people's hearts.

As one of the four talkers of the Mohist family, Guo Xie's actual power was second only to Chen Lu, Marquis of Taikang. It was no problem to mobilize three to five thousand people with the help of his influence.

"About three thousand people." Chen Luo nodded thoughtfully, "That's enough."

After a pause, he whispered his plan.

As time passed bit by bit, Guo Xie's expression became more and more exciting.

Li Xu looked at Chen Luo with a bit of surprise.

I didn’t expect that this guy has such a dark heart!

After half an hour passed, Guo Xie exclaimed: "Bo Yu's plan is so perfect. It's like wearing thick clothes to use a bucket to catch the honeycomb under the eaves. There is no omission, so I don't have any ideas." Views."

"I think so too." Li Xu added, slightly showing his presence.

So Guo Xie finally made the decision: "I will write a letter right away and start promoting Boyu's plan."

……

Chu land, Yangxia.

A luxurious but low-key mansion stands in the center of the city. The dark-colored courtyard walls are extremely well maintained and covered with a layer of glazed tiles newly developed by the Mohists. But other than that, the overall decoration is integrated with the surrounding environment. If there were not the soldiers with serious faces and armored guards at the entrance of the mansion, no one would think it was anything special.

But as long as they see the plaque hanging on it, no one dares to look down upon it.

Even if the county guard comes to pay homage, he will bow respectfully to the plaque given by the late emperor with a humble expression.

This is the Yangxia Hou Mansion.

Today, the main and side doors of the prince's mansion were rarely opened, and there were servants sweeping the streets to greet them. This was a treatment that princes usually received when they came to visit.

However, when they saw the carriage parked in front of the Hou Mansion, pedestrians on the road put away their curiosity.

It turned out that it was Marquis Taikang who returned home, which was nothing to be surprised about.

Inside the Hou Mansion.

When Chen Lu saw his eldest nephew who came to greet him, he returned the courtesy and said, "Ren Yue, you don't need to be polite. This time I rushed back without saying hello a few days in advance, which makes you look hasty."

"Uncle, Yangxia has always been your home. You can come back at any time. There is no need to greet you in advance. However, if the arrangements are not made properly, it is my nephew's problem." Chen Qian shook his head, then took a step forward. "I'll help you walk. You decide what you want to eat for lunch. My nephew will arrange it."

"Okay." Chen Lu smiled happily, "But I came here specially this time because I have something important to discuss with your father, so I won't be in a hurry for lunch."

"Huh? Okay." Chen Qian was slightly confused, but didn't ask any more questions.

If it was really an ordinary matter, then there was no need for Chen Lu to come from Taikang and make such a trip in person.

As the acting head of the Yangxia Hou Mansion, I can also know what happened after my father and uncle discussed it.

He helped Chen Lu pass through the front yard gate, then walked through several corridors and came to Chen Zhi's door.

"Aru, you're here."

"Yes, there are some things that I need to discuss with you, brother." Chen Lu responded, and then breathed out, "I came to visit you by the way."

"Then I won't disturb your chat with my father. I'll ask the servant to bring two cups of tea." Chen Qian helped Chen Lu sit down and then left. Chen Zhi straightened himself up from the couch, waved his hand and said, "Go, my cup of tea needs to be lighter."

After Chen Qian left the room, he looked at Chen Lu again with squinted eyes, "You came all the way here this time, it must be something big, right? By the way, how are your eyes lately?"

Chen Lu sighed, "It's a little worse. I can barely see the words when reading, let alone doing work. My hands are steady, but my eyes can't see the specific position and it's easy to destroy the utensils."

"That's all. You've been thinking about crafts all your life since you were five years old. Now that you're old, it's time to rest." Chen Zhi comforted him, and then sighed, "On the contrary, it's quite difficult for me to even get out of bed and walk. It's not like you." I was able to ride a horse-drawn carriage all the way from Taikang. I really don’t know how my father and my father-in-law could still go on horseback at this age."

"Yes." Chen Lu reluctantly agreed, "I always thought that my father was a civil servant. Now think about it, there is no such a strong civil servant as my father in ancient and modern times."

As soon as the two old men started to reminisce about each other, they couldn't stop talking about it and actually forgot about the main business.

It wasn't until the servant brought the tea into the house that Chen Lu came back to his senses and said, "Brother, I came to see you this time mainly for two things."

"Is it about the Mo family?" Chen Zhi guessed with a smile.

"One thing is about the Mo family, and the other is related to the will left by my father."

"It's related to the will..." Chen Zhi's expression suddenly became serious, "Are you saying that uncle's bloodline has been found?"

The contents of the will that my father left back then mainly dealt with the issue of distribution, and there were no problems.

However, the taxes of two thousand of them have been managed by themselves. In fact, it is said that the descendants of the uncle Chen Huai were found and handed over to them.

When he wrote the letter to Emperor Xiaojing, he approved such behavior.

The only problem is that the descendants of uncle Chen Huai have not been found, so this clause has not taken effect.

Originally, Chen Zhi thought it could only become his father's regret. Unexpectedly, at his old age, new changes suddenly occurred.

"That's right." Chen Lu nodded, paused, and then spoke slowly, "To be honest, I also think it's very magical. Uncle Weng told me this in a letter. The specific situation is that he met a young man in Chang'an. , found that the other person's appearance was very similar to my father, asked about the other person's family background, and found that he fled from Chu to Jing in the late Qin Dynasty, and later moved to Shu County, and..."

According to the memory that his son read to him, he repeated it to the letter, then took out Guo Xie's letter and handed it to his brother.

"What a coincidence." After listening to his brother's description and reading the letter himself, Chen Zhi felt that things were magical. "Can you please invite that young man to Yangxia to verify it? If the situation is true, then I will take care of it." Those two thousand households can be handed over safely."

Two thousand households may not have been so conspicuous in the early Han Dynasty.

But in the entire Wen and Jing dynasties combined, there were only twenty Chehous who were enfeoffed. The emergence of a Chehou with two thousand households was very eye-catching.

And it cannot be ruled out that someone is playing a trick. Seeing that he has become an old guy, he wants to come and claim the two thousand households.

Therefore, it would be safest to let that person come to Yangxia and let him and his younger brother investigate through the method left by his father.

Chen Lu shook his head and said, "I'm afraid it won't be possible in a short time."

"Why? Does that person have a guilty conscience?" Chen Zhi frowned. His guess was rather malicious, but it was not unreasonable.

If it were an ordinary person who knew that he might inherit the title of two thousand households, he would have come over a long time ago. How could he procrastinate?
  Unless there is something wrong in your heart.

What's more, the person to recognize the ancestor and return to the clan is Yangxia Chen, so there is no need to worry about encountering traps and scams.

Regarding this, Chen Zhi is very confident.

The Yangxia Chen family has a good reputation, and almost all of it is a good name. The label of "trustworthy" is basically slapped on the foreheads of the Chen family's children.

Of course, it is not easy to achieve this.

The illustrious reputation left by my father will gradually pass over time, and if any of the children in the family make mistakes, the reputation will be greatly damaged.

Therefore, in these years, running the family by myself has been like walking on thin ice.

For example, if a younger member of the family wants to become an official and seeks family recommendation, Chen Zhi will not mindlessly agree to the request just because of his blood relationship.

Quite the opposite.

He will conduct a strict all-round inspection of those disciples. If the other disciples cannot meet his standards, Chen Zhi will bluntly reject the request for recommendation and suggest that the other disciples stay within the family, be responsible for managing the affairs of Yangxia, and train them first a period of time.

After all, after the family members become officials, they represent the entire Yangxia.

Chen Zhi had great confidence in the character of his family members. He knew that they would not be corrupt during their official career, and he had the confidence to refuse to join in with those treacherous people.

To do this can be said to be honest and upright, and of course it can be called an honest official.

But as an official, you also need good officials who can benefit the local people.

The children of the family who do not have sufficient ability will not be able to make convincing achievements, but will live up to the world's expectations of the Yangxia Chen family.

My father's achievements have attracted the attention of the world, and the world's demands for Chen are naturally rising.

Generally speaking, if an official does two or three practical things during his term of office, he will be praised by the people, but if it is a descendant of the Chen family, the people will take it for granted.

Such "double standards" stem from their trust and admiration for the Yangxia Chen family.

For Chen Zhi, this is pressure and also his motivation to manage the family.

At the beginning of the founding of the Han Dynasty, was the reputation of the Xiao family in Fudi lower than that of the Chen family in Yangxia?

During the Wen and Jing dynasties, was the influence of the Zhou family in Jiangdi inferior to that of the Chen family in Yangxia?
  of course not.

However, Xiao Lu, the second generation Hou Hou, relied on the legacy left by his father's generation and finally sat in the high position of Jiuqing, but he had no matching achievements.

Therefore, most of the holy family left by Xiao He was wasted on him.

Looking back at my father's behavior, because he, the eldest son, needed to worry about the family, and his brother had no interest in politics, neither of them went to Chang'an to serve as officials.

Although this will reduce the Yangxia Chen family's influence in the center of the court, it will not lose its reputation due to mediocrity.

As for the Zhou family in Jiangdi, they also enjoyed a long period of prosperity.

Father and son Zhou Bo and Zhou Yafu both played a unique role in the critical period of the current situation, so they had a relatively transcendent status in the court.

However, because of their background as military generals, they themselves are not sensitive to political trends, and rarely restrain the arrogant behavior of their tribesmen.

In Chen Zhi's view, this is completely a negative example of ensuring the continuation of the family.

Seeing that his brother was thinking so much, Chen Lu smiled bitterly, "Brother, you really think too much. The other party really has something serious to do, and this serious matter is the second thing I came to tell you."

(End of this chapter)