Since the 37th Constitutional Era, the Federation had already undergone many political structural reforms. Although there were not many changes in essence, there would always be a distinction between the old and the new. The last major reform in the Federation had occurred over 600 years ago. People were also used to calling the recent Federation the New Federation. However, regardless of whether it was in the history textbooks of the New or Old Federation schools, the description of the history of human civilization before the Constitutional Era was always rather vague. Perhaps it was because it was too long ago and there was no detailed historical information. Perhaps it was because the Federation's educators believed that the citizens, who were bathed in the glory of democracy and freedom, should look more toward the beautiful future and not reminisce about the imperial era that was actually not beautiful due to the aesthetic illusion created by the difference in time.
It was precisely because of this reason that, other than those specialized historians, there were not many Federation citizens who still cared about the imperial society from tens of thousands of years ago. Although the history textbooks had taught these things, not many people could remember that the last imperial family had the surname Yun.
Therefore, when Xu Le blurted out the origins of the Tai family, Tai Zhiyuan could not help but be a little surprised. He smiled and praised his historical knowledge. Xu Le was immersed in shock and did not hear the other's praise. He only subconsciously recalled those years in the Donglin Region, those days when Uncle Feng Yu had made him soak in the library and read books every day.
The history of the imperial court was too long ago. However, the seven great families of the Federation were deeply engraved in the minds of all Federation citizens. Even though Xu Le had been far away in the remote Donglin Region back then, he still knew that the Federation had seven extremely influential families. These families' industries were distributed in various areas of the Federation, secretly influencing the entire Federation's energy development, finance, welfare, and employment.
No matter how the President of the Federation changed or how the election of members of parliament was repeated, it would not affect the status of these seven great families in the Federation. Just like a certain proverb said, "The Federation is the seven great families."
Perhaps this sentence was a bit exaggerated, but no one could ignore the shadows of these seven families in the history of the Federation civilization. The most frightening thing was that no one knew how large the shadows of these seven families were.
In the early years of the Constitutional Era, every once in a while, the Federation government would have a president or a powerful management committee that was deeply trusted by the people. These political figures would always try to, with the support of the people and the media, completely separate the Federation from the influence of the seven families. However, no matter what kind of laws and presidential orders those successful presidents and powerful management committees passed, it was still impossible to find out the true strength of the seven families.
The Citizen's Property Declaration Act, the Corporations' Property Transparency Act, the Anti-Monopoly Law, the Anti-Monopoly Law Amendment Bill … Countless laws and regulations did not play their role in the face of the silence of these families.
The Federation of that era was equivalent to a battlefield where the government and the seven families fought desperately. Three presidents were killed by assassinations, and the truth was still not found out. Under the strict control of the government, the seven families also lost a lot of benefits. It was said that one family almost lost its inheritance and was destroyed …
However, apart from the bloodshed, in the eyes of historians, the life-and-death struggles of those years were not necessarily without any benefits. The federal government's control of the seven major families had, to a large extent, perfected the legal structure of the federation, and the seven major families' counteraction against the federal government had also prevented the emergence of an overly powerful government.
As the era progressed, the seven families were part of the Federation and could not fight like this forever. The huge industries hidden in the society of the seven families could only be sustained in a relatively long-term and stable social structure. They could not openly choose to stand on the opposite side of the government and the people.
And those politicians who needed votes also began to realize that if they could obtain the support of the seven families, then their future political path would be very smooth.
Both sides had needs, so under the subtle influence of benefits, the Federation began to develop in a different direction. The politicians began to secretly seek the help of the seven families, and the seven families began to choose their own political partners, using the family's own strength to help these partners obtain the votes of the citizens of the Federation …
They could only be partners, and the politicians could not completely become the spokespersons of the seven families. Because the politicians who lost the necessity of their independent existence would inevitably yield to the pressure of the seven families, and the natural desire of the seven families' huge wealth would turn these politicians into their tools for profit, which would inevitably violate the rights and interests of the majority of ordinary citizens in the short term … The social unrest that followed was a terrible result that anyone with foresight in the Federation, and even the seven families themselves, did not want to see.
This was an instinctive choice to live together, but to forcibly suppress these collusion within the bottom line that the Federation citizens could bear. And because of the tacit understanding between the Federation government and the seven families that had never been seen on paper, the seven families had always maintained a somewhat mysterious and lofty image in the hearts of the Federation citizens.
The human heart had always had a natural desire for the strong, and the existence of the seven families just so happened to satisfy this psychological need of the Federation citizens, just so happened to offset some of the citizens' dissatisfaction with certain unfairness in society.
It had to be said that the media played a very important role in this. Whether or not the mysterious and lofty seven families had done anything that specifically harmed ordinary citizens, no one knew, right?
All of this only changed slightly with the appearance of the scholar George Carlin. The anti-government forces that had bitterly held on in the S2 mountains suddenly found a political program that was more suitable for the needs of the Federation citizens. They pointed the spearhead of their struggle at the relationship between the Federation government and the seven families, and from George Carlin's teachings, they put forward the part that they needed the most. They demanded that the politicians of the Federation and the seven families that were never willing to appear in front of the Federation citizens return the wealth that had been exploited from the hands of ordinary citizens for countless years. They demanded that the seven families must pay the true price for the damage they had done to the democracy and freedom of the Federation throughout history …
The anti-government forces gradually gave up on the use of force. The moderate faction led by Senator Macklin held the banner of George Carlin and successfully influenced the four mountainous regions of the S2 region, and set off a huge wave in the hearts of the young Federation citizens.
However … this was still not enough to threaten the status of the seven great families in the Federation. These seven families were even very happy to see the existence of Senator Macklin. This was because as long as any conflict entered the path of an election, it was a process that could be controlled, influenced, or at least negotiated. As for the thoughts that were prevalent among the young people, the seven families weren't afraid of them. Young people were always hot-blooded. When they left school and entered society, they entered various companies and government departments. They naturally understood how difficult and unrewarding it was to vainly go against the historical traditions of the Federation.
The Seven Great Families had existed coldly and tyrannically every day since the birth of the Federation. Furthermore, they had grown stronger with each passing day. If someone were to say that they had already controlled most of the lifelines of the Federation, it would not be considered an exaggeration. Moreover, it seemed that they would continue to exist until the day the Federation came to an end. This fact couldn't help but shock people.
…
…
The reason why the seven families were so mysterious was because the lives of the truly important people had never appeared in any news or documentary. They only existed in imagination and on the Federation's television channels, and only existed in Evergreen City's film reels. There was also no scholar or government organization that could truly investigate which family controlled which part of the Federation's industry.
There was only one exception, and that was the Zhong family of the West Woods. Because the Zhong family's fourth military region had guarded the edge of the universe for generations for the Federation, it had long been exposed to the public due to an accident at the beginning of the first constitutional era. It couldn't hide its enormous figure.
On the contrary, the names of the seven families weren't much of a secret. Even Xu Le could easily name the inherited surnames of six of the families.
Among the seven families, there was only one family that was truly low-key and mysterious, and that was the Tai family. Not many people knew that this Tai family was actually the descendant of the royal family that ruled the entire human society a long time ago.
When Xu Le heard Tai Zhiyuan admit … that he was the successor of the Tai family, he couldn't help but be momentarily stunned. For a long time, he couldn't speak. This identity wasn't the son of a rich family or the son of a politician. Instead, it represented a kind of history, a kind of omnipresent influence. The successor of the seven families, if placed in ancient times, would at least be considered a king …
After being in shock for so long, Xu Le slowly came back to his senses. The first thing he thought of was a question. He stared blankly at the pale youth on the sofa and muttered, "Why did you tell me?"
Why did Tai Zhiyuan tell him his true identity? This was Xu Le's first question after he recovered from the shock. If the other party was the bright moon hanging high in the night sky, then he was at most an inconspicuous osmanthus tree by the Rose River. The two of them were not people of the same world. Even if they had gotten along like ordinary friends a few days ago, once the other party's identity was revealed, it was like a gap between the two of them, and no matter what, it was impossible to fill the gap.
"You're a very good friend."
From the moment Tai Zhiyuan revealed his identity, he had been calmly and attentively observing Xu Le's expression. He was very satisfied that he didn't see any reaction in Xu Le's eyes that he didn't like. He admired this friend of his even more for being able to recover from the shock so quickly and talk to him like a normal person.
"I used to have friends, but after they knew my identity, they didn't have the courage to get along with me like friends. They either left quietly or became people like Youzi … I think if we continue to be friends, one day, you will also face this dilemma," Tai Zhiyuan smiled gently and said, "If that's the case, I might as well tell you in advance."
The reason why Xu Le recovered so quickly was because of his experience over the years.
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