Chapter 1117: Proactively Stepping Out

Chen Xi wholeheartedly supported the suggestion of having Yuan Shu's health examined. After all, Yuan Shu was already forty years old and only had one son—there was clearly a problem with his health.

While it wasn’t necessarily a scheme against Sun Ce, if Yuan Shu were to have another son, even if Sun Ce didn’t make a move, the people under him, especially Yuan Shu’s loyal followers, would certainly start to waver. Chen Xi was curious to see how Sun Ce would handle such a situation.

Sun Ce was known for his loyalty, something Chen Xi was well aware of, but that loyalty wouldn’t be of much use. For a ruler, situations where "I do not kill my brother, but my brother dies because of me" were all too common. Ministers often pressure monarchs into taking certain actions due to the prevailing circumstances, and this has happened far too many times in history.

Even if the idea had come from the ruler himself, once they reach a certain point, even the monarch has no choice but to follow the tide and continue moving forward.

"Meeting Doctor Hua would be good," Yuan Shu had no objections at all. As for the rivalry between Liu Bei and Sun Ce, what did that have to do with him? He had already stepped down from power, and even if the world became unified, he would just retire as a simple farmer. Yuan Shu did not believe anyone would come to kill him.

Afterward, Yuan Shu brought up issues related to the development of the northern lands. Although Yuan Shu wasn’t entirely useless, it was clear that he still had some understanding of how to manage the people under his control. Perhaps it was a skill inherent to the noble families of the time.

Chen Xi patiently answered Yuan Shu's questions one by one. It was evident that Yuan Shu had a deep love for the land, and he had given a lot of thought to various aspects of land management.

In this era, agriculture was indeed the foundation of the nation, so much so that even someone like Yuan Shu, often regarded as an idle dandy, had personally farmed before. In fact, every spring, the emperor himself had to ceremonially plow the fields. It wasn’t entirely unreasonable that Yuan Shu would know a thing or two about farming.

"As expected, you've prepared everything in advance. Truly worthy of your reputation as someone who plans ahead, Chen Zichuan," Yuan Shu said in a flat tone but with a clear sense of admiration. "It seems the fertile lands of this world are not limited to just the Central Plains. Xuande, do you know what the noble families are up to these days?"

Liu Bei shook his head. He was pleased to hear Yuan Shu praise Chen Xi, but when it came to the noble families, he really had no idea what they were doing.

"After I returned from the north, the more perceptive noble families have already begun sending people to explore lands beyond the Central Plains. Perhaps fertile lands aren’t limited to the Central Plains," Yuan Shu said with a strange smile, glancing at Chen Xi.

"That's a good thing," Liu Bei replied with a smile. "If they can find other fertile lands, it will give us new directions to move toward in the future."

"Chen Zichuan probably understands what this means better than anyone. The Liu family hasn’t experienced what we did in the last era, so they don’t understand the significance," Yuan Shu said, his smile turning sly.

Liu Bei was momentarily confused and turned to look at Chen Xi. Chen Xi sighed and explained, "In the previous era, they were part of the nobility. Stepping out like this means they are ready to establish their own fiefdoms. As members of the nobility, if they conquer non-royal lands and report back, they’ll be granted those lands as their fiefdoms."

"This..." Liu Bei was stunned.

"This might actually be a good development," Chen Xi smiled. "After all, once they see the fertile lands in the northeast, they might start thinking that other regions could have similar fertile areas. Letting them explore the world on their own isn’t a bad thing."

"Tell those families that if they find good places, we will support them," Liu Bei said decisively after exchanging a glance with Chen Xi. This way, they could all work together toward a common goal.

"They probably won't want to rely on your help," Yuan Shu sneered. Right now, they were merely sending scouts, and results were still far off. Even if they encountered difficulties, the noble families would likely try to solve them on their own. After all, Liu Bei was a formidable power.

"Then just tell them that I hope they’ll surprise us," Chen Xi said casually. He was genuinely curious to see how far these noble families could go.

While Yuan Shu, Liu Bei, and Chen Xi were chatting, in Yi Province, the Wu family, leading the Southern Silk Road expedition, was preparing to set out. If the world was not limited to the Central Plains, and Liu Bei was so powerful, why not go out and explore?

The noble families weren’t afraid of losing people or money. What they feared was having no path to follow. Although venturing beyond the Central Plains wasn’t something they’d done much before, they didn’t mind spending some money and lives to explore. After all, what if they struck gold?

"Gongjin, why are your family and the Gu family organizing an overseas expedition?" Sun Ce asked curiously as he looked at Zhou Yu.

"Gan Xingba (Gan Ning) has sailed out of the Yangtze multiple times without heading north, which means there must be large islands to the south. How can we let Gan Xingba monopolize the wealth of the seas?" Zhou Yu replied proudly.

However, after half a day at sea, the large ship, built for river navigation, capsized in the winds. Fortunately, they weren’t far from shore, and the crew swam back. Zhou Yu, feeling embarrassed, prepared for another attempt.

At this point, most of the noble families were in a state of restlessness. After Yuan Shu confirmed the fertility of the northern lands, all the families began developing their own plans.

The more capable families were already planning to organize expeditions beyond the Central Plains after the New Year. The fertile lands in the northeast had shown them the way—perhaps the Central Plains weren’t the most bountiful lands in the world after all!

Some families that had originally planned to relocate people to develop the northeast began making contingency plans. While they couldn’t forget the promises they’d made to Chen Xi, creating a collective stronghold in the northeast was of significant importance.

Still, the wisdom of the noble families dictated that having multiple backup plans was essential. Now that they had evidence, searching for a secure fallback base became a priority. They couldn’t leave their fates in the hands of others; it was time to find a place of their own.

With these thoughts in mind, noble families across the country became noticeably busier during the New Year festivities. They formed alliances, combed through ancient texts, sought out old maps, and discreetly probed each other for information. In short, the noble families were starting to stir.

When Chen Xi received news of this, a satisfied smile appeared on his face. The noble families were finally taking the initiative to do what he had always wanted them to do, without him needing to spell it out.

By this point, even the Cao and Xiahou families couldn’t stop their own clansmen from making their own choices. Although these movements were still small, they would inevitably grow into a wildfire.

As long as one of these noble families succeeded, the drive to venture beyond the Central Plains and explore the world would be ignited. And as for the possibility of total failure, well... even if they were destined to fail, Chen Xi would ensure that a few of them succeeded.

After all, there’s nothing more exhilarating than successfully staking a claim in a new world. For the noble families to take action, relying solely on military pressure wasn’t enough. They needed to be motivated to act on their own, and it was time to dangle those tempting fruits in front of them.

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