People in the Three Kingdoms: Starting from Preaching

Chapter 452 I am very dissatisfied

Xu Chen looked at the young man and frowned: "You are still young, why don't you go to school? Don't you know that studying is the way to succeed? Is there no middle school in Wuqing?"

The boy didn't dare to think about talking to Xu Chen. His face flushed red, and he stammered for a long time before answering: "The county had a middle school two years ago."

Xu Chen smiled and said, "If that's the case, why don't you continue learning?"

The young man touched his head and smiled naively: "During the Han Dynasty, my father was injured in the military service against the Wuhuan. He couldn't do heavy work, and our family was in a difficult situation. Now that I'm grown up, I should contribute to the family. Anyway, I'm not a good student, so there's nothing wrong with earning money early."

Xu Chen nodded, sighed slightly in his heart, and after thinking for a while, he said: "Young people have a future only if they study. If you are willing, there may be some good jobs in the county. I can introduce you to some. Working part-time while studying is also a way out. If you can enter university in the future, your future will be bright."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present was envious and jealous of the young man. They only hated themselves for not being as young as him, otherwise this good thing might have happened to them.

Who would dare to think of having the prime minister personally introduce a job?

The boy's eyes lit up, and he was obviously moved. But after a moment of silence, his eyes dimmed again: "I'd rather not study. I have several younger brothers and sisters at home. If I continue to study, they won't be able to study. It's the same if I work hard to support them to go to school and make a name for themselves."

Having said that, although the boy tried hard to pretend that he didn't care, Xu Chen still saw regret in the depths of his eyes.

But now he couldn't say anything more, so he could only sigh and say, "You don't need to study, but it's not suitable for you to work at the dock at your age. I will ask someone to find you a better job in the county, so that you don't have to work so hard."

Xu Chen was helpless. He couldn't provide direct funding for this kind of problem. He didn't want to help a specific person, but the hard-working groups in front of him. What was needed was the improvement of the system and productivity.

If there were more schools, if middle schools were also included in compulsory education, if tuition fees were directly waived, perhaps we could gradually eliminate the number of young people like this. Unfortunately, even if these things can be achieved in the future, it is not possible now.

Looking at the somewhat bewildered young man, Xu Chen patted his shoulder and said with a smile: "How much money can you make working here for a day?"

The young man said, "There is a lot of work at the docks. As long as you work hard, you can easily earn 20 or 30 bucks a day."

Xu Chen nodded and said, "Is it enough to cover the household expenses?"

The young man laughed and said, "It's certainly not enough to rely on just me. My father and mother can still do some work. We are living a decent life now, much better than when we were in the Han Dynasty."

After exchanging greetings with a group of dock workers, Xu Chen led the officials away. However, at this time, he did not feel at ease.

He actually knew the people's livelihood situation very well, and today's inquiries only confirmed what he knew.

Even in Xuanxia, ​​the people's lives were only slightly better. The current situation was at most a return to the situation during the stability of the Han Dynasty, but it was far from being wealthy.

Of course, for the common people, this is almost the upper limit of their lives. It can’t be much better, so even if life is hard, they are still happy.

No matter what, at least they don't have to be oppressed by the nobles above them, nor do they have to pay miscellaneous taxes and perform labor. Every household has production, and with such basic conditions, as long as they manage it slowly, their lives will gradually get better.

Otherwise, they would not have such respect and admiration for Xu Chen and the Yellow Turbans.

Only Xu Chen knew that what the people thought was the upper limit was actually a very low starting point.

Xu Chen walked silently, and under the leadership of Ma Yan, he boarded a medium-sized ship docked at the port. He didn't speak, and the officials behind him didn't dare to speak either. Everyone saw the conversation just now, and they were a little nervous at this time.

Today he was supposed to inspect the navy, and no one expected Xu Chen to do this out of the blue. This sudden understanding of the people's sentiments was just an ordinary thing for Xu Chen, but it was very torturous for the local officials.

Just now, if these dock workers had said something bad, it would have been a disaster for them.

Fortunately, what the young man said was not too serious, but the local officials still couldn't feel at ease. After all, they didn't know whether the situation here was satisfactory in Xu Chen's opinion.

Just when everyone was feeling nervous, Xu Chen, who was standing on the bow overlooking the dock, suddenly turned around, which made everyone's heart jump.

They had a premonition that the Prime Minister seemed to have something to say.

Xu Chen turned around and looked at the group of officials accompanying him. After searching for a while, he found that they were all unfamiliar faces.

Now Xuanxia's plate has become bigger, with many officials from top to bottom. Xu Chen can't figure out who the grassroots officials are. Since he can't recognize them, he doesn't recognize them.

Xu Chen asked directly: "Who is the Wuqing County Magistrate?"

As soon as these words were spoken, all the officials turned to look at one person. It was a middle-aged man, the Wuqing County Magistrate that Xu Chen was asking about.

All of a sudden, the Wuqing County Magistrate was sweating profusely. At this moment, he had the urge to flee, but he had no choice but to move forward.

He bowed to Xu Chen, tried to calm down, and said, "My Lord, I am the Magistrate of Wuqing County."

Xu Chen glanced at him and said calmly: "Wuqing Port is doing pretty well. I am satisfied with it, but..."

The Wuqing County Magistrate had just breathed a sigh of relief, but this "but" immediately made him worried.

"However, this is not enough. A 16-year-old boy should not be working at the docks. This only shows that there are too few factories and businesses in Wuqing.

Wuqing Port is the largest port distribution center in Xuanxia, ​​but in its current state, this achievement is not good enough. "

As soon as he finished speaking, the face of the Wuqing County Magistrate froze. He felt that his future was probably over. Although Xu Chen's evaluation was very restrained, it could still determine his fate.

He said with some shame and some discomfort: "I didn't do enough. I will work harder in the future!"

Xu Chen nodded, and when he spoke again, he didn't just look at him, but glanced at everyone, then turned around and continued to look into the distance and speak.

"Xuanxia's cause is about to succeed, but I hope you understand that this is not the end, but the beginning. Xuanxia's people's livelihood may be better than that of the Han Dynasty, but this is still not enough. If you think that this is enough and are satisfied with it, then I will be dissatisfied."

When everyone heard this, they were all shocked. They suddenly realized that Xu Chen's warning to the county magistrate was fake and his real intention was to warn them.

No one dared not to take Xu Chen's words to heart. This warning made everyone remember one thing.

Can't be lazy.
(End of this chapter)