Mythic version of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 7314 Foresight

Chapter 7314 Foresight

Because of her intellectual talent, Liu Tong has a very deep understanding of Chen Xi. Therefore, she knows very well which of Chen Xi's evaluations of people are genuine and which are actually perfunctory.

Liu Tong had never had the chance to meet Pompiñus. Although Pompiñus had mentioned many times in his New Year's greetings that he wanted to come to Chang'an to see Chen Xi, he had never been able to come to the Han Dynasty from Rome and meet the person he most wanted to see.

But Chen Xi spoke highly of this man—one of the moral, conscientious, and capable pillars of the Roman Empire, one of the most important pillars of the Roman Empire. Without Pompiñus, the Roman Empire would just be running headlong down the road to its doom.

In short, Liu Tong had never met this person, but based on Chen Xi's evaluation, Liu Tong could sense that this person was a domestic affairs genius second only to Chen Xi. More importantly, this person was moral and conscientious. That's right, besides his exaggerated abilities, morality and conscience were also very important.

After all, it is not difficult for such a large country to find people with extraordinary abilities, but it is not easy to find an elite who has extraordinary abilities, can also uphold his bottom line, knows what he is doing, and firmly stands on the bottom line of the country. Because many times, when you reach that level, it is easy for so-called "unavoidable" sacrifices to occur. Of course, they will not be sacrificed, but some people will be sacrificed.

Pompiannis's existence firmly held Rome's ground, preventing the Roman Empire from spiraling into ruin. Now, Pompiannis is dead.

"Sigh, I was just saying that before, I didn't expect him to pass away so soon." Chen Xi said with a complicated expression. He originally thought that Pompiñus could have lasted for a while longer. After all, the Roman Empire was a top empire and had a lot of rare treasures. After trying back and forth, even if Pompiñus's lifespan had come to an end, he could at least have lasted for a while longer. But, it was so unexpected.

"Logically speaking, the Roman Empire must have quite a few things that can prolong life, so how could this be?" Liu Tong asked with some doubt. As the regent princess, Liu Tong at least knew how many strange and wonderful things the Han Dynasty had in its treasury. If they were to use them to prolong life, there were plenty of ways to buy time. Even if the Roman Empire was not as powerful as the Han Dynasty with Chen Xi, it shouldn't have let such an important figure die like this.

"It was due to various factors," Chen Xi said without elaborating. He had known for a long time that Pompiannis was destined to die because he had too many enemies. Although Pompiannis was very strong and had indeed brought a lot of benefits to the Roman Empire, he had also offended quite a few people.

Even from the perspective of the nation, with Caesar and Severus present, these people would not dare to mess with Pompiñus or carry out assassinations. However, if they delayed Pompiñus's death until he could no longer hold on, it would be a way to resolve the problem.

In other words, if we can't afford to mess with you, Pompiannis, can't we just watch you die when you're about to die?

"What do you mean?" Liu Tong's eyes lit up. As soon as he said that, he could feel the hidden dangers lurking behind him.

“Pompianus has offended too many people. After all, he comes from the Claudius family, but the fact that the Claudius family was nationalized during the nationalization process was actually very offensive to many people,” Chen Xi sighed and said. “Of course, we have to admit that this was the right thing to do, but there are some things in this world that cannot be done just because they are right.”

If Pompiannis were thirty years old now, this matter would eventually be accomplished, given his circumstances and the realities of Rome. No one would assassinate Pompiannis; at most, they would sabotage him. But youth is an asset. Delaying things is the foundation for persuading others, and ability is the basis for convincing them. Even if they are sabotaged, it's just a waste of time; it will happen sooner or later.

Because, in essence, during the nationalization process and the acquisition of the Claudius family, the Roman Empire was behind Pompiannis. Even if the members of the Claudius family had some resentment, they would not show it, or at least not cause too much trouble.

After all, there are quite a few smart people in this family. The elites sitting in the front row of the Roman Senate all have intricate connections with the Claudius family, so they know what to do. However, just like Chen Xi's comment on the Han family, I don't doubt the intelligence of the Han family, I only worry about their greed.

There's not much to say. The Claudius family is definitely in the same situation. Being blinded by greed is an inevitable choice. They didn't even intend for Pompiñus to actually die; they just wanted to stall for time and let him think things through. The problem is that Pompiñus himself is prolonging his life through various means of the Roman Empire. If you stall here or there, or if something goes wrong at any stage, it might just explode.

From the very beginning, when Chen Xi learned that Pompiñus was going to push forward the nationalization process and take over all of Claudius's family's assets, he knew that this guy was definitely going to die. It's just that he died too quickly. There are also geniuses in the Claudius family!

“Pompianus died of old age. To be honest, if he hadn’t been in a state of prolonging his life, he wouldn’t have met this end,” Chen Xi sighed. “Next, the Roman Empire…”

"So you're saying there's no way to investigate this matter?" Liu Tong asked with some doubt.

“It’s impossible to investigate. Pompiñus should have been finished around the first year of the Yuanfeng era. He only managed to hold on until now thanks to various means of the Roman Empire. So, the only way to prove that he died on that day was through the fluctuation of a secret technique.” Chen Xi said helplessly. “Moreover, we don’t even know what happened to the faction in the Roman Senate that had a deep grudge against Pompiñus.”

"A deep-seated grudge?" Liu Tong was stunned for a moment upon hearing this. How could there be a deep-seated grudge?

"The Roman Empire's internal struggles over its policies and the foundation of the state, coupled with its non-dictatorial system, resulted in a lack of unity in the Senate. Even the Claudius family was not united on this issue, but Pompiñus forcibly suppressed it. But with his death, the political situation ends," Chen Xi said with a hint of helplessness, as if he had witnessed history. "And now that he's dead, those people will definitely retaliate."

Pompiannis was very capable, but he couldn't kill all his political enemies, especially those senators who were only on different sides but were also considering Rome's interests. In this world, not everyone who stands against you is your enemy; it could be that their justice conflicts with yours. And clearly, this is the situation in the Roman Senate now.

"The Roman Empire has a very difficult position to explain, namely, whose empire was the Roman Empire?" Chen Xi looked at Liu Tong very seriously and said, "This question also existed in the Han Dynasty, but it wasn't as acute in the Han Dynasty; at least it could be whitewashed. But in Rome..."

The Roman Empire was the empire of the Claudius family, the Roman Empire was the Roman Empire of its citizens, and the Roman Empire was simply the Roman Empire. Pompiñus broke the first one, but the direction he took was not that the Roman Empire was the empire of Roman citizens, but rather that the Roman Empire was simply the Roman Empire.

In other words, when breaking down the first concept, Pompiannis referenced the situation of the Han Dynasty and also wanted to achieve ideological and conceptual unification, that is, to completely incorporate the European barbarians into Rome and prevent them from remaining outside the Roman Empire.

By now, all the Roman elites had realized that if they continued down the path of Roman citizenship, they would eventually reach a dead end. Therefore, they needed to explore a more stable path, and the existence of the Han Dynasty gave them the opportunity to cross the river by feeling for stones.

That's why we're making this attempt now. However, there's a lot of resistance along the way. Most members of the Claudius family can accept that the Roman Empire is an empire of Roman citizens, but they absolutely cannot accept that the Roman Empire is just the Roman Empire itself!

Moreover, many other elders, knights, and citizens also stood on the opposite side of this matter. However, Pompiñus tried his best to bribe them and push forward little by little, blurring the concept by relying on industrial output. But one cannot expect others to be fools.

After so much time, it's impossible that no one could have seen through Pompiannis's true thoughts. It's inevitable that there would be undercurrents within the Claudius family because of this. These things are unavoidable. In Chen Xi's view, Pompiannis's death is not the end. In fact, it may only be the beginning. The Roman Empire will inevitably head down a different path.

"I see. But thinking about it carefully, it is indeed a problem." Liu Tong listened to Chen Xi's explanation. With her intelligence, she could fully understand it. So after listening, she also felt a sense of helplessness. Indeed, every family has its own problems.

"That's all fine, but Pompiñus's passing is more like a beginning. First of all, I admire Pompiñus. The fact that he could copy my homework to this level is truly remarkable. Moreover, his morals were impeccable, and more importantly, he was very intelligent." Chen Xi said with a touch of emotion, showing his respect for the top powerhouse of this era.

Since Chen Xi's arrival, he has been too lazy to count the number of powerful figures who have copied his work. There were some in Rome, some in Kushan, and some in the Han Dynasty, but the only one who truly copied something was Pompiñus. The others either couldn't control their greed, couldn't suppress their followers, or were blinded by their own "power" and then plunged into the abyss one by one.

Only Pompiñus, even though he didn't understand, adhered to his bottom line and never crossed it. He steadily walked for more than ten years, which was very impressive. Just this kind of self-control was enough for Chen Xi to praise.

After all, there are just too many temptations in this world. To be able to stick to one's principles and not act recklessly in a position like Pompiñus's is, frankly, very difficult. Even when faced with pressure from the senators, Pompiñus would never try anything that might be dangerous.

This is why Pompiñus served as the Roman treasurer for over a decade, using economic methods from two thousand years later, without causing any chaos.

There was only one such person. The fact that Rome's successors were less capable than Pompiannis was one aspect, but their morality and self-control were another.

"Is Pomponi the successor?" Liu Tong asked Chen Xi with a somewhat strange look.

“Yes, he is a genius, a genius with a peculiar perspective, but also one suited for economics. However, the difference between him and Pompiñus is probably like that between Boyan and Kongming—a slight difference, but the difference in their performance is huge.” Chen Xi nodded, acknowledging Pompiñus’s abilities. Pompiñus did indeed have a good son, a good son who could inherit his family business, but that was in the past.

In official history, Pomponi took over the position of treasurer after Pompianus' death and managed Rome very well. Although Severus' expansion of the army and the war between Rome and the European barbarians had exhausted Pomponi, he did indeed support Rome's finances and prevented the Roman Empire from collapsing under Severus's turmoil.

From a certain perspective, he could be considered one of the top financial officials. After all, his abilities were slightly weaker than his father's, but his moral standards were also lower. In a normal feudal era, morality and ability would complement each other, and he could perform at a level similar to his father's.

But that was the feudal era. In the current version, to be honest, being less capable is only one aspect; being less morally upright is truly fatal. To be honest, after learning of Pompiannis's death and Pomponi's impending appointment as treasurer, Chen Xi had a feeling that Rome was heading down the path of a flesh-and-blood factory and crony capitalism.

"In that case, it's not bad. At least there's still one person who can support Rome in the overall situation." Liu Tong didn't understand Chen Xi's melancholy. Instead, he even teased Rome about their bad luck. So what if they almost did? As long as it didn't explode, it's fine. Even if they didn't have Zhuge Liang, Lu Xun is still good. He's a top-tier elite, right? Although it would be best to have Chen Xi, they don't have him. Having someone of Lu Xun's level is already pretty good.

“Normally speaking, it’s actually quite good. As a treasurer, Pomponi is top-notch in terms of ability. Even among the three existing empires, excluding me, he should be in the top five or top three. It would be difficult for the Roman Empire to find a more suitable candidate.” Chen Xi said with a somewhat complicated expression. The biggest problem for the Roman Empire right now is that it has no choice.

The position of treasurer was a truly powerful one in Rome, or to put it more directly, in any era, the person in charge of money was a true power. Therefore, there was no such thing as the previous treasurer being able to directly nominate his own son. Even the emperor in Rome needed to be nominated. So after Pompiñus died, there were several candidates for the position of treasurer, and each of them was quite capable.

However, after Pompianus' death, Pomponius no longer concealed his brilliance, defeating all the candidates and securing the position of treasurer with overwhelming strength.

In other words, this wasn't about inheriting one's father's job; it was simply that the Roman Empire couldn't find a better treasurer than Pomponius. Even if he was slightly weaker than Pomponius, Pomponius was young. If he had lived to his father's age, he might have been just as capable. In official history, he was slightly weaker because he was killed by Caracalla before he reached the appropriate age.

If he hadn't been ruined and had just persevered, his skill level might not have been weaker than his father's. So, in terms of potential, Pomponi was definitely among the top in his time. But that was in the feudal era. Rome's current economic structure is not entirely the same as that of the feudal era.

What Rome needs now is not a treasurer with top-notch economic intelligence, but a treasurer with sufficient morality and decent competence, because the former, given the legacy left by Pompiñus, will definitely create a British-style, enhanced version of the supreme exploiter!

"Huh?" Liu Tong was almost puzzled. Does this mean that although Pomponi is the most outstanding, he is not the most suitable candidate?

“The things we were talking about before that are correct will soon appear in the Roman Empire, and the development speed of the Roman Empire will explode.” Chen Xi said with a look of amusement. “But it’s hard to say how long this can last. It’s possible that the Roman Empire will be overthrown by barbarians. However, it should be stable in the short term.”

In the short term, it would certainly be stable, because Roman citizens would reap huge benefits from this round of exploitation, and with these benefits, they could keep the barbarians firmly under control. But how long it could last depended on the morality of the Roman Empire. However, capitalism is immoral, especially since Pompony was determined to follow feudal crony capitalism, so it was inevitable that it would become increasingly corrupt.

In other words, at the beginning, the bottom line could be maintained. Citizens and Roman senators sat on the same chair, eating barbarians together, and then eating barbarians to their hearts' content. Everyone enjoyed themselves. At that time, citizens were determined to protect their own lives. However, as time went by, the distribution of benefits gradually solidified, and it was necessary to create new sources of profit growth. And what was the most suitable source of profit growth? Of course, it was the Roman citizens.

At this point, even if the Roman citizens didn't discover it early on, they would eventually, and the final outcome would be self-evident. The Roman Empire could withstand the onslaught of barbarians, but it absolutely could not withstand the onslaught of citizens plus barbarians. At that time, even if the Roman Empire was not overthrown, it would be severely weakened.

"What happened in Xuzhou is just a microcosm of the future Rome. Moreover, Xuzhou still has a little morality because of my existence, but if it were the future Rome, it would truly have no morality. Pomponi was alright when his father was alive, but after his father passed away, the speed at which his morality declined depended on the development of reality, and the reality that followed..." Chen Xi was somewhat at a loss for words.

It can only be said that Rome's feudal crony capitalism welcomed the "big brother" they needed, and then went all the way down the wrong path.

Silently without saying a word