Lu Chen asked curiously, "Didn't the people of Fragrance City say these were all brilliant talents, with the skills of mid-rank craftsmen?"
Li Chen smiled faintly. "Mid-rank craftsmen? From what I saw, they did have some skill, but every one of them danced deftly with long sleeves and excelled at cultivating connections. They weren't the sort I admired."
"Besides, the craftsman titles circulating among the public aren't recognized by the Creation Sect. The more outrageous ones even dare to claim to be high-rank craftsmen with nothing more than an apprentice's skills. It's hardly unprecedented. In the end, cultivation still sets the limits on titles. Without reaching Foundation Establishment, they wouldn't dare call themselves master artisans."
Lu Chen felt embarrassed. He was precisely one of those publicly recognized master artisans, and his title did not carry much weight either. He had merely been fortunate enough to cultivate to the Foundation Establishment Realm.
Discussing this subject with Li Chen was practically asking to be put in his place. He could only look elsewhere and change the subject. "It seems you don't like them, Employer."
Li Chen gave him a look that was almost a smile. Only after a long while did he ask, "Suppose there were an ideal world where everyone was born free, selfless, and sincere, and labor and its fruits were distributed entirely according to the collective interest. What would happen?"
Lu Chen thought it over. "What they've learned would probably be utterly useless!"
Aristocratic clans and powerful households mostly subscribed to the notion that those who labored with their minds governed others, while those who labored with their hands were governed.
It was not that they lacked knowledge and skill in productive labor, but judged solely on production, they were not necessarily outstanding or superior.
If they truly were