It had been three hours since the great houses of Europe had concluded their yearly meeting, and China already knew that something important had happened. The reason was surprisingly simple, because the great houses practically announced the existence of their meetings to the rest of the world every year. The digital skies above Europe suddenly went under lock and key as the continent's best hackers made absolutely certain that nobody could spy on what was happening inside the protected areas. That told every major intelligence agency in the world that the great houses were meeting, even if nobody had any idea what was actually being discussed.
The problem was that the great houses were not the only mysterious factions in Europe. The trade families were even more difficult to understand because they were not particularly sociable and had spent centuries carefully controlling what information about themselves became public. Chinese intelligence agencies had spent enormous amounts of time trying to learn more about them since their existence had become known. They had discovered surprisingly little, because there had been practically no reliable information about most of the trade families before the Second World War. The fact that so little information existed about families that had apparently influenced European history for centuries told the Chinese government everything it needed to know about how seriously those families had taken secrecy.
Meanwhile, President Wan Gengxin sat in his presidential office and stared at the reports spread across his desk. He was thinking about the European Union's movements for the coming year when a knock sounded against his door. "Good afternoon, sir," said Hu Guanyu, Minister of Foreign Affairs, as he entered the office with an electronic tablet in his hands. The expression on his face told Wan Gengxin that whatever was on that tablet was important.
"My office received an electronic file from one of the European great houses," Hu Guanyu explained. "It concerns one of the proposals they discussed during their meeting, and they want to know whether we are willing to use it as the basis for reopening the Silk Road." He paused for a moment before adding that the proposal itself had been presented as a gesture of goodwill toward China. Wan Gengxin immediately understood why the message had been sent directly to them.
"I assume you have already called the other elders together to discuss this proposal?" asked Wan Gengxin. He did not bother hiding the seriousness in his voice because this was not something that could be handled by a single ministry. The proposal touched economics, politics, national security, and even the relationship between ordinary citizens and powerful organizations. Hu Guanyu nodded immediately.
"Yes, sir, that has already been arranged," he replied. "The proposal itself is something we overlooked, and several ministries have already begun preparing their opinions." Wan Gengxin frowned slightly at that admission because he disliked the idea that something important had escaped the attention of so many departments. "Good," he said as he stood up. "Then let us get to the meeting room before I become even more annoyed."
The atmosphere inside the meeting room became noticeably heavier when Wan Gengxin entered. Several ministers were already seated around the large table, while others appeared through secure holographic connections. "How could we have missed something like this?" Wan Gengxin asked angrily as he took his seat. He had read the proposal on the way there, and despite his irritation, he found the underlying idea extremely interesting.
The problem was that accepting the proposal without preparation could create a disaster. China had spent the last fifty years dealing with the division between government officials and ordinary citizens, and the arrival of mana had made that problem considerably worse. Before the expansion of the Earth, their cameras and technology had helped maintain oversight, but much of that infrastructure had become unreliable. Cities that had once been filled with surveillance systems were now filled with people willing to look the other way for money, and the National Commission of Supervision had been working overtime to contain the problem.
The situation had become especially frustrating because corruption had never been completely eliminated. Now, however, the new circumstances had created opportunities for corrupt officials that had not existed before. Wan Gengxin knew that public trust could collapse quickly if citizens began believing that officials could simply sell their authority to the highest bidder. He therefore had little patience for anything that could make the problem worse.
"Well, sir, that is partly because knowledge was never something our people lacked," said Yu Dong, the Minister of Technology. He looked genuinely uncomfortable as he considered the proposal. "The idea that someone could deliberately withhold knowledge or a breathing method in order to exploit the people working beneath them simply does not fit comfortably into our worldview."
Wan Gengxin stared at him for a moment before slowly nodding. "So we assumed that because knowledge was generally available, nobody would think about restricting it as a form of leverage." He leaned back in his chair, his expression becoming increasingly irritated. "Then we need to expand our think tanks if something this important can simply fall outside our considerations."
"Yes, sir," several ministers replied at once. Their voices were serious, and nobody attempted to argue with him. Wan Gengxin looked around the room before returning his attention to the proposal. The mistake had already happened, so there was little point wasting time complaining about it.
"Now we need to adapt the proposal to our own laws and culture," said Wan Gengxin. "The basic idea is good, and I think we can incorporate parts of it into the announcement for our next campaign against corruption." A faint smile appeared on his face. It was not a comforting smile, because everyone in the room understood exactly what kind of campaign the president had in mind. If powerful organizations were going to exploit people through knowledge, then the government was going to make certain that doing so became extremely painful.
"Yes, sir," said Xian Mu, the military representative. "The military is ready if it becomes necessary." The statement carried considerably more weight than it would have before the arrival of mana. The army was no longer simply a conventional institution, because the existence of powerful individuals and the System had changed how military strength was measured. Raising the military was therefore always a serious decision.
"Good," said Wan Gengxin. "We may need it." He sighed and rubbed his forehead before continuing. "It seems they have finally remembered that we exist." There was clear annoyance in his voice, but beneath it was something else. China had spent years rebuilding itself while dealing with the consequences of the Earth's expansion, and now Europe was suddenly approaching them with proposals that could reshape their economy.
"Sir, I agree with your concerns, but may I ask about the Silk Road proposal first?" asked Gu Kang. As Governor of the Chinese Central Bank, he had enormous influence over the country's economy. "Personally, I am strongly in favor of reopening it because reconnecting with the European market could do considerable good for our economy."
Gu Kang had another reason for supporting the proposal. The European merit system would place large amounts of money inside participating banks, and the Chinese Central Bank stood to benefit enormously if China adopted the same model. He could already see the possibilities. If Europe and China established similar systems, almost every other major country would eventually have an excuse to adopt them as well.
That was the real opportunity in Gu Kang's eyes. The other major powers would not be able to resist a financial system that promised such enormous reserves of stable capital. Once enough countries adopted it, those reserves would become part of the foundation of their economies. Changing the system afterward would become extremely difficult because nobody would want to risk destabilizing something that had become so important.
"Of course you think reopening the Silk Road is a good idea," said Yan Wen, Minister of National Security. He folded his arms and frowned at Gu Kang. "But then we have to deal with all the spies and foreign agents who will enter the country." His expression hardened. "They will be much harder to identify this time, especially now that the old systems we relied upon are no longer reliable."
"That may be true," Gu Kang replied, "but we cannot become isolationist simply because opening our borders creates security problems." He leaned forward as he spoke, his voice becoming firmer. "Isolation will eventually lead to stagnation, and our economy desperately needs more movement."
He explained that international trade could serve as a kick-start for domestic trade as well. At the moment, much of China's economic activity remained contained within individual provinces because transportation and communication between them had become considerably more difficult. That created a serious problem for innovation because researchers, engineers, and craftsmen were increasingly separated from one another. If goods and people could move more freely again, the entire country would benefit.
"I agree that reopening the Silk Road could do us a great deal of good," said Yu Dong. He glanced toward Yan Wen before continuing. "And if your concern is spies, then use checkpoints." He shrugged slightly. "We do not have to choose between completely opening the country and completely closing it."