Chapter 575

Brother Li...... what do you mean, my lord?

After leaving the Duke of Wei's mansion, Zhang Wenguan found it hard to believe, saying, "My lord's meaning is to have us abandon this portion of the attracted crowd, right?"

But our commercial street mostly relies on these students to support it.

If we abandon them, then why did my lord earlier strive to build that commercial street? You know, to build that street initially, we expended considerable manpower and material resources.....

Li Yifu pondered and said, "My lord's meaning is already quite clear: nothing more than to have us focus our attention on handicrafts, develop more in that area, rather than cling to the many students attracted by the library."

But I also don't understand; if we abandon this portion of students, it will surely slow the development of Weinan County.

In that case, not only will the county's tax revenue decrease, but the income of some people engaged in petty trade will also plummet—isn't that deviating from my lord's original intention?

The two of them thought left and right, but they simply couldn't figure out what Chen Yan really meant.

After all, the library was originally established by Chen Yan himself, and he had once said he would use it to divert traffic and spur the county's development.

Chen Yan should have long known he wouldn't stay long, that he would surely leave Weinan County and return to Chang'an. Moreover, given the current circumstances of the imperial examinations, building a library to educate commoners' sons is already the prevailing trend.

Chen Yan is not a short-sighted person.

Given all these reasons, why would he spend huge sums to build a commercial street before leaving?

Old Dai, what do you think?

Li Yifu turned his head and asked.

Dai Zhide said, "I have a vague guess, but I'm not certain; I'd be embarrassed to blurt it out. However, since we don't understand, we might as well ask someone who does."

Let's go, to my uncle's house; he has recently been appointed Secretariat Director, his duties are relatively light, and he is ailing, so he should be at home now.

Li Yifu and Zhang Wenguan looked at each other, silently sighing that having someone behind them is good.

When encountering a problem they don't understand, they simply ask the bigwig behind them.

No wonder that in the past, Du Gou and Fang Yizhi, when facing the Wei clan that possessed Lady Wei Guifei, never backed down.

Not long after, the three arrived at the Dai residence.

After all, many meritorious nobles in Chang'an live in the same ward, and Chen Yan's home is not far from Dai Zhou's.

Entering the mansion, Dai Zhide, familiar with the route, asked the servants where Dai Zhou was, then hurried straight to the study.

They found Dai Zhou reclining in a rocking chair, eyes closed, nurturing his spirit.

Uncle......

Before arriving, he had been full of vigor, but after arriving, Dai Zhide suddenly wilted, his tone weakening somewhat.

Dai Zhou slightly lifted his eyelids, glanced at his own nephew, and at the two persons behind him bowing in salute:

How did you all end up running to Chang'an? Have you encountered some problem you can't solve?

Given Chen Zi An's current status, plus the fact that before leaving Weinan County you publicly uttered harsh words, surely no one would give you trouble, right?

Dai Zhide gave an embarrassed smile and said, "Uncle, indeed no one dares to give us trouble; we've merely encountered some things we don't understand and wanted to come ask for your advice."

Dai Zhou was taken aback, then became more serious, saying, "Alright, go ahead and speak."

Immediately afterward, the three took turns speaking, laying out the current situation in Weinan County.

After hearing everything, Dai Zhou narrowed his eyes and sternly said, "What? You want to obstruct the library's expansion, to obstruct the prevailing trend?"

"No, no!" Dai Zhide gave a bitter smile, wondering how Chen Yan and Dai Zhou could have the same reaction.

Uncle, we are young but not foolish; we know this matter must not be defied, we merely want to find a solution that won't slow Weinan County's development.

That's best. Dai Zhou then relaxed, reclining again, and said, "Please sit, and speak slowly."

Did you go look for Chen Zi An?

Replying to Lord Dai, we indeed first went to see Minister Chen. Li Yifu hesitated and said, "But my lord's words we don't quite understand; he told us that Weinan County's original positioning was that of an industrial county."

But if we lose the students drawn in by the library, the commercial street that Minister Chen poured huge resources into before his departure would likely fall into disuse, so we truly don't understand.

What else did he say? Dai Zhou looked at the three young men before him and let out a slight sigh.

Indeed, Chen Yan is the only one; these young people may perform outstandingly, but their experience is ultimately too limited.

Their vision is not far-reaching enough.

Clearly it's a simple problem, yet they insist on making it complicated.

Dai Zhide felt somewhat ashamed and said, "Minister Chen seems disappointed in us, frankly telling us to continue training in Weinan County for two years, and when we have made it into an handicrafts‑based county, that will be the time we officially enter the Chang'an court."

He's already being quite polite, giving you face!

Dai Zhou snorted coldly; he was never one to mince words, and with a stern face he said, "You are my nephew, and the other two are juniors we value, so I'll just speak plainly."

If I were to evaluate you, it would be two words—stupid and clumsy!

The three remained silent, having no desire to refute.

They are people who can see themselves clearly, knowing that sometimes, being scolded by someone is a good thing.

Scolding you is because they care about you.

If they didn't care, who would bother to attend to you?

Even glancing at you once more feels like bad luck.

I ask you, when did Chen Yan go to Weinan County, and what was the situation there when he arrived? Dai Zhou posed a question.

Li Yifu hurriedly replied, "Minister Chen went to Weinan County in the fourth year of the Zhenguan era; at that time the county's populace was not well off, corrupt officials ran rampant, bandits nested, and the people had long been oppressed."

Exactly, that's the crux! Dai Zhou said lightly, "Although Weinan County was near Chang'an and backed by the Wei River, due to various reasons the people's livelihood was quite difficult."

So to develop Weinan County, besides relying on its own advantages, we also needed to draw on external strength—thus the library came into being.

But after these two years of development, the living standards of Weinan County's populace have gradually risen, and given the prevailing trend, the library is no longer a help.

If Chen Yan wanted to rely on the library indefinitely, why did he initially set your future development direction as an industrial county? Have you considered that?

After hearing Dai Zhou's words, the three gradually felt a glimmer of understanding.

Dai Zhide hurriedly asked, "So, uncle, should we now abandon those students drawn in by the library?"

Why are you still clinging to that damn library? Dai Zhou couldn't hold back and snapped, "Without the library, can Weinan County not survive?"

Then I ask you, is it workshops or libraries that ninety percent of Weinan County residents' income relies on?