Chapter 2372 - 2096: Five Millennia of the Great Power

Zhou Yu heard these words and remained silent for a long time, attempting several times to ask about the true nature of the rivals, but hesitated each time. He knew very well that if Chen Xi could speak to this extent, it really meant they were not considered adversaries. This already involved the core aspect of Liu Bei’s side.

Chen Xi looked at Zhou Yu with disappointment. If Zhou Yu were not so clever, and had a bit of Sunx Ce’s impulsiveness, speaking before thinking, and directly asked what kind of enemies they were, where they came from, and what kind of strength they had, Chen Xi would have definitely replied on the spot.

Unfortunately, Zhou Yu was too smart, smart enough to cease asking questions immediately, showing absolutely no intention to continue inquiring. Naturally, Chen Xi would not reveal these matters on his own.

Jia Xu, Li Youu, Guo Jia, Fa Zheng, Lub Su, Liu Ye—they were all watching intently. There were things that Chen Xi could not speak of at this moment, as they pertained to the legal status of victor and vanquished, or simply put, the relationship between master and subordinate.

Although Chen Xi felt that such matters would not have a significant impact, surrendering before fighting compared to surrendering on the battlefield, given the absolute advantage now, the result would be similar. However, people in this era paid great attention to these things, so Chen Xi needed to think it over.

If Zhou Yu had asked, Chen Xi would have spoken plainly. With Chen Xi’s current status, revealing the truth would be straightforward, but since Zhou Yu did not ask, Chen Xi could not proactively divulge it.

"Thank you." Zhou Yu turned and returned to his seat. As he sat down, he transmitted his voice to Chen Xi, "Regardless of others’ issues, you, sitting in a high position, truly hold public interest in mind. Perhaps it should be said that you have consistently upheld justice, planning for the country, the nation, for Huaxia?"

Chen Xi opened his mouth but said nothing. Indeed, he had provided the people with a path for advancement, given the Feudal Lords the capability to fulfill their ideals, offered civil and military senior ministers the chance to match the sages, provided the aristocratic families an opportunity to complete their Ancient Oath and restore ancient glory. This was the path he pointed out.

Was it just public interest? Chen Xi remained somewhat silent. No, from the very beginning, he harbored not public interest but private interest. Huaxia Civilization standing proudly atop the world, from the perspective of Huaxia Civilization, might be public interest; from the world’s perspective, it was purely private interest.

Yet this private interest occupied one-fifth of the world’s morality, bearing the justice that countless people have continued from ancient times to the present, from the beginning to the end. From legality to morality in this world, only we qualify to span human history through civilization!

My personal view, thus!

The great nation of five thousand years, civilizations worldwide rise and fall, countless chess players have emerged and replaced one another in the five thousand years of the game, from the past to the present, extending further into the future; the only ones remaining on the chessboard are China.

Five thousand years ago, Ancient Egypt, along with other ancient civilizations and us, faced the divine flood on this world’s chessboard, leaving countless myths. But now, where are they?

Five thousand years ago, civilizations like us as chess players. Tell me, where did they go?

Four thousand years ago, the Mesopotamian Civilization, along with us, practiced the human law of the cosmos, creating writing, using Bronze Ware to inscribe the beginnings of their respective civilizations, leaving numerous legends. But now, where are they?

Four thousand years ago, civilizations like us as chess players. Tell me, where did they go?

Three thousand years ago, the philosophers of Ancient Greece, the poets of the Aegean Sea, along with our sages, used words to express the philosophy of the world, laying the cultural foundation for posterity, leaving a dazzling civilization. But now, where are they?

Three thousand years ago, civilizations like us as chess players. Tell me, where did they go?

Two thousand years ago, the conquerors of Ancient Rome, and the Han Dynasty’s chariots, pursued far off the beaten paths, madly using martial force to establish future territories, leaving behind expansive lands for future generations, leaving history books that could never fully tell their strength. But now, where are they?

Two thousand years ago, civilizations like us as chess players. Tell me, where did they go?

One thousand years ago, the rulers of Arabia and the emperors of the Prosperous Tang possessed endless treasures and captivatingly prosperous territories, dazzling civilization, even hinted at through historical texts, the remaining treasures glimpsed, the former glory barely visible. But now, where are they?

One thousand years ago, civilizations like us as chess players. Tell me, where did they go?

Even to the time when Chen Xi left, the ones seated upon the chessboard were still us. The former opponents had already become the dust of history. The chessboard turns, only we remain seated upon the throne!

"Yes, I am completely of public interest, standing on the world’s peak overlooking them. Only we have the qualification, because today, aside from us, all have witnessed the beginning of history, all others are dead! Only we have truly borne the weight of civilization!" Chen Xi murmured with a soft smile, raising his glass in a self-talk.

"If we are not qualified, then no one in this world qualifies to lift the crown, the peak and trough of history, the passage of time, today’s opponents on the chessboard might not exist tomorrow, yet only we endure through eternity." Chen Xi smiled silently.

Rather than letting the predestined vanquished dogs stand at the peak barking madly, it would be better if those civilizations had never emerged from the beginning.

After all, their future is destined to vanish, while the Huaxia Civilization has always existed. In that case, wouldn’t it be better to directly merge the Huaxia Civilization with the history of human civilization!

[Thinking about it this way, I’m not only motivated by public interest, but it should even be said that my ideals have never changed from beginning to end. Hmm, it might make it easier for future arts students when studying history.] Chen Xi’s lips curved upwards. Since the future was completely played to collapse, there weren’t many times when Chen Xi felt this good.

"Zichuan, you seem to be in a good mood." Liu Bei asked with a smile.

"Yes, because there is absolute justice." Chen Xi said with a faint air of arrogance, "We are justice!"

Liu Bei looked at Chen Xi in confusion, unable to understand what Chen Xi meant by that. What does it mean to say we are justice, as if at the beginning we weren’t justice? The classic militarist regime, conquering other countries, isn’t that injustice?

What a joke, in classic militarism, conquering other countries is called following the way of nature, like a fierce tiger chasing a deer, survival of the fittest, a tiger eating a deer, that’s surely justice!

A deer being eaten by a tiger, isn’t that natural! How can it be called injustice? Losers end up with nothing; isn’t that the natural course of things? Justice, well, the winner is the embodiment of justice, and if you lose, everything is nonsense.

Chen Xi was too lazy to deal with Liu Bei’s standard classic militarism mindset. After Zhou Yu’s retort, knowing that he wasn’t driven by selfish interests, he indeed found absolute justice.

When dealing with barbarians, Hu People, and such, Chen Xi always held the view that if they could be subdued, then subdue them; if not, and if they were killed, Chen Xi wouldn’t pursue it too much.

From the beginning, Chen Xi’s definition of intelligent life was civilization. Intelligent beings who did not carry the weight of civilization were never regarded by Chen Xi as the same kind of being.

Barbarism, killing, looting, and other traits imprinted in a race’s bones, akin to beasts, Chen Xi would not intentionally slaughter, but as someone who is not a Holy Mother, after certain things have happened, he wouldn’t specifically repent or think he did wrong.

Pests are pests; Chen Xi simply disdains to explain.

However, for intelligent life possessing civilization, Chen Xi was actually not inclined to destroy them, which is where ideals and morality conflict.

Just as Cao Cao chose to break through the moral bottom line to achieve his ideals, and Liu Bei would rather stick to the bottom line and abandon his ideals, never agreeing with wrongdoings, Chen Xi, after sweeping through all the enemies in the Central Plains, also faced this level of questioning between ideals and morality.

Relatively speaking, Chen Xi’s ideals are very clear: the Huaxia Civilization standing proudly at the pinnacle of the world, establishing a Greater Han Cultural Sphere, allowing this civilization to continue forever along with human civilization.

As an exchange, this ideal roughly means wiping out many surrounding civilizations, and intelligent life capable of carrying civilization all has its own highlights.

The martial conquest of classical militarism, meaning the extinction of so many civilizations, in fact, brought Chen Xi a strong sense of moral guilt, but the choice was already evident. Even without Zhou Yu’s words, Chen Xi had made the choice: moral guilt was not as important as ideals.

Though Zhou Yu’s retort made Chen Xi realize that his so-called moral guilt actually didn’t exist, he should stand at the highest point of justice and morality, questioning other civilizations.

In reality, Chen Xi already came to realize he was not some good-natured person. As someone who could break moral boundaries for his ideals, from any perspective, he didn’t count as a good person, or rather, pure good and evil were hard to describe for him.

[No wonder, at that time I had already guessed Wen Ru and Wen He had killed probably over three hundred thousand, and I actually glossed over it simply. Perhaps for someone who already prepared mentally to break moral boundaries, the deaths of tens of thousands were merely numbers. Surely once the boundaries were broken through, many things became more casual.] Chen Xi held the wine cup, his mouth slightly bitter.

[I should say recently many things have been somewhat skewed. Indeed, if one’s stance is not correct, or if the path is not right, one’s actions will surely be in error. But luckily, since they will eventually disappear, it’s expected that they disappear by my hand.] Chen Xi thought silently.

"Zichuan, you seem to be in a good mood?" Li Youu transmitted his voice to Chen Xi.

"I suddenly want to talk to you about the casualties of exterminating the aristocratic family." Chen Xi transmitted his voice grimly to Li Youu.

Li Youu decisively disappeared, without any further words.

Chen Xi silently shook his head, not pursuing further, just carefully reviewing the events that happened over this period. Although many things had been a bit extreme, fortunately, he awakened fairly early; otherwise, constantly breaking through his own boundaries would eventually lead to problems.