Chapter 655
What the Devers advocated at the conference, "Let's have an academic debate, not unreasonable abuse." This made the scholars even more vigilant. In the subsequent speeches and seminars, although there were fierce debates, everyone controlled their emotions well.
Among them, the debate between Plato and Democritus' disciple, Thanstrian, was the most eye-catching.
This was because Thanstrian inherited Democritus' ideology. He believed that democracy was the most ideal form of government, and that other forms of government were undesirable. Living in a democracy, even in poverty, was better than enjoying wealth under an autocratic system.
But he also emphasized that for a democratic country to function well, the role of the legal system must be emphasized. A well-governed city-state could not be without perfect laws. Because human nature was always seeking benefits and avoiding harm, and always trying to seek benefits outside the law, making the people obey the law was to protect the safety and lives of the citizens. And persuading the people to obey the law was the long-term task of a city-state …
His philosophy was exactly the opposite of Plato's political philosophy.
Plato advocated the rule of the world by the wise and admired the rule of kings. He hoped to use the concept of good to guide the people, and cultivating the virtues of the citizens was the foundation of a country.
He was especially opposed to democracy, believing that democracy indulged people's desires, degenerated the youth of the city-state, and cultivated ambitious and ignorant arrogant people.
The result of this debate was Plato's victory. Plato was knowledgeable and quick-witted, and he had lived in the city of Athens for decades, where everyone was known to be good at debating. He had long developed a superb debating ability, and how could Thanstrian, who came from the remote town of Aldera, be compared to him? Moreover, Plato used his mother state, the best democratic city-state in the Mediterranean – Athens as an example, listing all kinds of shortcomings and foolishness, which made the audience feel the same, so it was reasonable for Thanstrian to lose.
However, the Diónia audience, who had the concept of law-abiding deeply agreed with Thanstrian's emphasis on "the law is to ensure the good functioning of the city-state", because it was precisely the strict laws that Diónia used to ensure the stability and unity of the entire kingdom.
… …
The Greek Scholar Conference, which had lasted for nearly a month, finally came to an end.
During their stay in Turi, the famous scholars from all over the Mediterranean Sea not only had academic exchanges, but also, under the careful care of the academy and the full support of the City Hall of Turi, they had tasted the delicious food of Turi City, soaked in the hot spring, watched the intense ball games, went to the hospital to check their health status, and appreciated the culture of the alien race … It could be said that they had gained a lot.
In addition, the Diónia Academy also collected the speeches of the scholars and compiled them into a book, named the Selected Works of the Hellenic Scholars Conference. Several hundred copies were made and distributed throughout Greece.
The scholars, who had gained both fame and fortune, returned with satisfaction. In the days that followed, whenever they talked to someone about the matter, they would always praise the academic atmosphere in the Kingdom of Diónia and the enthusiasm and richness of the people. As a result, more scholars from the city-states began to inquire if Diónia would hold another Scholars' Conference. When will it be held?
Only when the members of the Pythagorean School of Thought returned to Tarantum, they quarreled over Fostuccada's speech, which led to conflict and eventually division.
Some of them left Tarantum and went to the Eastern Mediterranean.
The other group, led by Lúxis, stayed in Tarantum, thinking about how to perfect the philosophy of the Pythagorean School of Thought and integrate these unnatural numbers into it. But that was for later.
Among the well-known scholars, there were two who did not leave.
One of them was Hippocrates. Although he was already an old man, the rich creative ideas and advanced theories in medicine at the School of Medicine of Diónia surprised him. A short month was not enough for him to understand, let alone learn, so he was willing to stay and guard this treasure mountain until he fully understood and mastered it, completely solving the many puzzles he had about medicine in his life.
Of course, the Devers supported this. They gladly allowed him to stay in the academy and hang the title of a teacher. They even gave him the title of "Honorary Citizen of Diónia" in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the cause of medicine in his life.
The other scholar was Plato. He asked the Devers to fulfill their promise and sent someone to bring him to understand the political system of the Kingdom of Diónia.
… …
On this day, the court clerk, Henepolis, led Plato and the two students, Vesippus and Aurelias, to the examination center for the kingdom's reserve officials in the outer city south of Turín.
This center was originally near the Victory Square, but with the expansion of the kingdom's territory, the number of people who needed to be assessed increased, and the examination venue could no longer accommodate them. Since the land in the inner city of Turín was limited, it could not be further expanded, so it was moved to the outer city.
Henepolis explained as he walked in front.
Plato listened carefully, and at the same time, he looked at the building that did not exist in other Greek cities. It occupied a large area and was surrounded by thick stone walls that were more than three meters high. It was impossible to see what was going on inside from the outside.
The few of them walked around the periphery of the building for a long time before they saw the main entrance in the distance.
Plato noticed that the bustling crowd and bustling noise that were common in other urban areas of Turín could hardly be seen in this place. Even if there were many pedestrians passing by, they tried to keep quiet and whisper. This might have something to do with the special patrol team that patrolled the area, but it might also have something to do with the quality of the Turín people. They tried not to disturb the citizens who might be participating in the examination in the center.
"There's a temple there!" Aurelias pointed to the distance and said in surprise.
"That's the Temple of Hades." Henepolis explained with a smile, "There's an advantage to having the examination center next to it. Hades is very observant and abhors evil. Any citizen who wants to cheat in the examination has to think about it carefully. In the end, they can't escape his fair punishment."
Plato fell into deep thought. In the process of visiting various departments of Turín for the past few days, he could find traces of Hades's direct and indirect presence. This God who was in charge of the Underworld had become a watchdog that was engraved in the hearts of the people, forcing them to restrain their actions at all times. This made him fall into deep thought.
When they arrived at the entrance of the examination center, there was a towering statue standing five meters in front of the entrance. The statue was of a tall and strong man. He had a determined expression on his face, holding a flame in his hand and stepping on an auspicious cloud as he rushed down.
"Why is there a statue of Prometheus here?" Aurelias asked curiously.
Henepolis pointed to both sides of the entrance and gestured for him to look. There were two lines of words carved on both sides. Those who are willing to be the people's servants and sacrifice for the people, please enter this door. Those who want to use their power to earn wealth and oppress the people, get lost. It was signed by Devers.
When they thought of the story of Prometheus risking the great danger of being punished by Zeus to steal the Heavenly Fire to benefit mankind, the three of them immediately understood the King's intention.
Plato could not help but exclaim, "This is moral education! Don't be fooled by the fact that Diónia emphasizes on restraining the people by law. But in fact, this city is always subtly teaching the people to do good! "
As soon as Plato's voice fell, the guard came up and warned them, "This is an important place of the Kingdom, please do not make any noise!"
Plato expressed his apology.
Henepolis showed his waist token and the warrant written by Devers, then led Plato and the others into the courtyard.
There were no ponds, fountains, gardens, pavilions, or any other pleasing buildings or sceneries in the vast examination center. There were only a dozen buildings that looked like storage warehouses in the port, as well as pieces of flat and compacted land. Some of the empty land had some equipment placed on it.
There was only a building that looked like a temple standing a hundred meters in front of them. It was quite imposing, and it added a little bit of color to the entire examination center.
"Every year, Diónia selects civil servants through an examination. The examination will be held in October, because it is the slack season, and the citizens have enough time to prepare. At the beginning of the year, the chief officials of each city and department will report the number of civil servants needed and the number of vacancies to the Kingdom's Civil Servant Management Committee based on the situation under their jurisdiction. His Majesty and several lords of the committee will discuss and determine the number of civil servants to be selected for the examination this year, as well as the specific examination time. After that, the list will be distributed to each department, and the city hall will notify the citizens of the Kingdom in the form of an announcement.
Those who are willing to participate will pay attention to this news and be prepared in advance. Before coming to Turín for the examination, they must first obtain a certificate from the city hall of their residence to confirm their citizenship, and that they must be a law-abiding citizen with good behavior … "Henepolis explained as he walked.
"What if someone from the local City Hall accepted a bribe and hid his criminal record?" Aurelias asked. Even in Athens, there would be wealthy citizens in the suburbs who bribed the officials of Demo every year to report less of their property in order to pay less tax. Moreover, for a country as vast as the Kingdom of Diónia, they were very interested in how to strengthen the supervision of the officials in the remote areas.
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