Chapter 1219: Qu Qi's Upcoming Departure

Liu Yan, with his somewhat slow reactions, finally responded after a brief pause. "At most, within ten days, the Li family from Yizhou will arrive, along with Zhao Yi from Jingyang, Ba Hao from Shangdi, and Zheng Ning from Shanyang."

Although these names weren't widely known, Liu Yan was confident that they were highly capable individuals. When it came to assigning people to handle these official tasks, Liu Yan was always reliable.

"You handle the accommodations for these people. I've noticed that you've been spending less money since last year, but you don't need to save money for us in these matters," Chen Xi suddenly recalled the financial summary from earlier.

"It's nothing. With the Lord's growing influence and my reputation rising, combined with my generous spending in the past few years, I no longer need to invest as much as before to invite others," Liu Yan replied with slight helplessness. After all, scholars are also people, bound by human desires and emotions.

In the past, when Liu Yan invited people, they honored his invitation, so he had to prepare lavishly. Now, when Liu Yan extended an invitation, it was considered an honor for the recipient, allowing him to be more casual, and people even praised his laid-back approach.

What used to require careful accommodation now simply needed a relaxed atmosphere, which worked well. Liu Yan was wise enough to know his boundaries and treated others graciously, ensuring his reputation steadily rose among the scholarly circles.

For instance, when Liu Yan invited reclusive figures like Zhao Yi, Ba Hao, and Zheng Ning, they accepted without hesitation. By now, Liu Yan was essentially the leading figure among scholars. When he invited others, it was as though he was lowering himself to honor them.

"Now that I’ve built enough goodwill, I rarely need to use money. My influence is enough to sway most scholars. Though they might only point out problems and offer opinions, it’s easy to get them involved in identifying issues," Liu Yan said with a faint smile. His social capital had grown valuable.

"Excellent work. I’ve allocated the same budget for you as last year. You should gather some people to help spread the word about Hanmo's agricultural advancements, ensuring every corner of the Han Empire is aware of it. As for dealing with the aristocratic families, Hanmo and I will handle that," Chen Xi said, clearly satisfied with Liu Yan’s performance. This was the kind of talent he needed!

"I’ve already assembled a group. Chen Kongzhang is ready as well. We’ll recall the scholars who have been observing the common people's lives under our Lord’s rule. A spring banquet will suffice," Liu Yan nodded, noting that organizing such events was now routine for him.

By this point, Chen Xi had a pretty good understanding of the so-called scholars of the late Han period. They were essentially public intellectuals, experts at finding fault and discussing lofty ideas like philosophy, literature, and criticizing societal issues—but they didn’t offer solutions.

If they were capable of solving problems, they would’ve entered officialdom long ago. Among scholars, only a handful could truly discover and resolve issues, while most were just skilled at rhetoric.

Still, what might be considered "trash" in one area could be a valuable resource in another. With a prominent figure like Liu Yan leading the way, half of the scholars spent their time praising the people's welfare under Liu Bei’s rule, while the other half sought out problems to address.

One thing worth noting about the scholars of this era was their obsession with reputation. Once they had promised Liu Yan to observe the state of affairs, they would meticulously report any issues they discovered. If any local official tried to cover up problems, the scholars would expose them.

Scholars held their reputation above all else, often valuing it more than their own lives. Bribing them was impossible, and threatening them was futile. Many of them would rather lose their lives than tarnish their name. They were, in many ways, bound by their own pursuit of fame.

Thus, sending scholars to inspect and critique the governance of various regions proved highly effective. Scholars sought to connect with higher officials or prominent figures rather than lower-ranking ones, and Liu Yan provided them with opportunities to gain prestige among the common people.

Though they couldn’t solve the problems they identified, they ensured those problems were reported, and someone else would fix them. Because of this, scholars under Liu Yan’s guidance earned a positive reputation among the people in Liu Bei’s domain.

For the common folk, it seemed that problems only got solved after the arrival of these scholars. As a result, the people grew fond of the scholars, who rode in carriages and wore traditional Confucian robes.

However, while nine out of ten scholars outwardly rejected mingling with commoners, they secretly enjoyed the praise and adulation. Though they claimed disdain for associating with the lower classes, they secretly reveled in the honor and recognition they received from the people.

Whether it was out of a sense of honor or a desire for validation, these scholars often did their job well. Although their attitudes might have been strange, they never exploited the common people after giving their word. While they might look down on the people, their behavior remained ethical in that regard.

"I’ll leave it to you then. Hanmo, have you finished writing everything down?" Chen Xi turned to Qu Qi. Soon, Qu Qi would be departing to travel across the empire, spreading knowledge far and wide.

"I’ve already compiled all the data from my planting experiments and recorded the results of my research. I only hope that you, Zichuan, can publish it in at least 100,000 copies, ensuring every village in the Han Empire has access to it," Qu Qi replied, his expression calm and determined as he looked at Chen Xi.

If this could be accomplished, Qu Qi believed that even if his descendants were mediocre, as long as his family didn’t bring shame upon themselves, his name would guarantee that the Qu family would thrive for a thousand years. After all, food was eternal!

"That... won’t be possible just yet," Chen Xi replied with a wry smile. Not only would printing 100,000 copies be a challenge, but distributing them would also be problematic, and then there was the issue of literacy. Just because a book was printed didn’t mean it could be distributed or read.

The literacy rate in this era was abysmally low. Excluding aristocratic families, the illiteracy rate was probably around 99.99%.

"I’ve had all the relevant plants illustrated by skilled artists, so even if people can’t read, they’ll be able to learn by looking at the pictures," Qu Qi said proudly. He had worked tirelessly to ensure that his findings would help people grow enough food to support the empire's efforts against the northern tribes.

"The problem is, I don’t have the capacity to distribute them everywhere. Right now, we can only afford about 5,000 copies. I’ll provide 2,000 to Yuan Gonglu, 2,000 to Cao Mengde, and 1,000 to Liu Jiyu. For the sake of the Han Empire’s people, I’m willing to foot the bill myself," Chen Xi said, feigning a pained expression.

"...," Qu Qi was left speechless but could only accept this compromise, realizing he had been overly ambitious.

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