The younger brother of the First Emperor

Chapter 344: Dinghai is closed to the country, Xunzi's worries

The weather gradually became hot and humid, and King Zheng of Qin and the Lord of Chang'an were very restless.

The steam from the rushing canal water could not calm the two of them down, and the slight chill of the spring night was even less so.

The sun sets in the west, the moonlight descends, and a large tent located on a high mountain is brightly lit.

Lu Gou Jian opened the tent and came in from outside, holding an iron rod in his hand.

Sitting in the host seat, Ying Chengjiao, who was representing the State of Qin in hosting a banquet for the State of Zheng, raised one hand in the air, indicating that Lu Gou Jian should send the iron rod to the State of Zheng.

"Return the item to its original owner." Chang'an Jun said solemnly.

Zheng Guo's hands trembled a little as he took the iron rod. This item was of unparalleled importance to their lineage.

In the past, there was this precious iron that was passed down by King Yu, and their lineage was the orthodox one in controlling floods. It was said that this was the water measuring device that King Yu used to measure the four seas and nine states, and it was the only object that could prove their identity.

Originally, it was like this.

After that... Zheng Guo stood up and tapped the ground heavily with his iron rod. His dark face, which was much older than six years ago, was full of wine:

"Young Master is truly a trustworthy person!"

Ying Chengjiao bowed and praised sincerely:

"Sir, you are truly a god."

Zheng Guo shook his empty left hand, feeling only slightly proud. He had heard too much praise today, and he was tired of the praise from the Qin people in Guanzhong.

Next, he wanted people all over the world to praise him and let all nations know what a great thing Zheng Guo had done!
A sage does not seek fame, but Zheng Guo is not a sage.

At an old age, his cock is not as hard as when he was young, and his teeth are not as good as when he was young. All his desires have faded, and now all he cares about is fame.

"My lord, does Qin mind if I spread the name of Zhengguo Canal among other countries?" Zheng Guo asked politely.

If you care about the name of this canal, Prince Chengjiao can just break his promise and make a profit. Since Prince Chengjiao and King Zheng of Qin agreed to name this canal Zhengguo Canal, why would you care at this time?
Of course.

Young Master Cheng Jiao seemed stumped by this question. He put down his cup and chopsticks and could not eat.

Zheng Guo was puzzled and had a bad feeling in his heart, thinking, is there anything so difficult to answer?

The boy raised his head, as if he had made up his mind:
"Duke Zheng, you cannot leave Qin."

At an old age, Zheng Guo had seen how mean and ungrateful the Qin State was, and had heard about the methods used by Qin kings of all generations.

The old man sat down slowly, poured himself a drink, wiped his mouth, and asked with a mocking smile:

"The King of Qin wants to kill me?"

He believed that the idea of ​​killing him was definitely not from the young man in front of him.

The young man smiled bitterly, walked up to Zheng Guo with a full bottle of wine, and bowed to toast:
"Duke Zheng is joking. Why would the king want to kill him?"

Lowering the rim of the wine bottle and clinking the bottles together, the young man explained:
“If other nations knew about this canal, they would all rise up and attack our Great Qin.

"So, our country will close its doors to the outside world, block the news, and only allow people to come in, but not out.

"People in every county, city, and village in the country should abide by the law, stay where they are, and not leave their hometowns."

Zheng Guo suddenly realized.

A person will pay attention to things at a higher level depending on his position.

Zheng Guo was only concerned about his own reputation and the orthodoxy of his hydraulic engineering. After his vanity wore off, he wanted the people of Guanzhong to no longer suffer.

He had never thought about what kind of changes this canal water would bring to the Qin State and the world if it was made public.

At the beginning, he was personally received by the King of Han and was given the plan to weaken Qin.

The five great powers joined forces to pressure Qin, not to provide benefits to Qin, but to bring Qin down.

The old plumber sighed:
“It should be so.

"The country is judging the mind of a gentleman with the heart of a villain."

It is not the right time to be called a water engineer.

After the banquet, Ying Chengjiao, who was drunk, had no desire to sleep. King Zheng of Qin, who was persuaded by his brother not to be a bad guy, had even less desire to sleep.

The two brothers sat in a room, still unable to calm down from their excitement.

"Brother, store up food and slowly become king. Be patient, you must be patient, don't be impatient." The young man was a little drunk and spoke incoherently.

"I'm a little anxious." Qin Wang Zheng looked at his brother Zui Zi and said with a smile: "Fuqiu Bo, can you bring Xunzi back quickly? I can't help it."

----

Lanling County, lecture hall in the backyard of the county government office.

Inside the hall, more than twenty disciples sat upright, with bamboo slips on the desk slightly reflecting the sunlight coming in through the window lattices.

Xunzi stroked his gray beard and gently ran his fingers over the two spread-out bamboo slips, "Encouraging Learning" and "On Rites".

Although his voice was a little hoarse, every word was clear:
“The greatest fault of human beings is that they are blinded by one-sided views and fail to see the true truth.”

Fu Qiubo knelt in the front row, moving the brush in his hand quickly across the bamboo slips, recording every word the teacher said.

He hasn't heard the teachings of his teacher for a long time.

"Yang Zhu only saw desires, Mozi only saw practicality, Shen Dao only saw laws, none of them could see the complete Tao." Xunzi's eyes swept across the disciples in the hall, and when he mentioned the "complete Tao", he drew a circle in the air with his finger.

Mao Heng raised his hand:
"Master, how can we avoid being deceived?"

Xunzi nodded slightly. Although this disciple was not very intelligent, he was able to speak frankly and ask questions.

"The mind must be empty, focused, and quiet." Xunzi said slowly, holding up three fingers in turn: "It's not that the mind cannot hold things, but one must know how to empty them. It's not that one cannot think about many things, but one must know how to focus. It's not that one cannot move, but one must know how to calm down and think."

Chen Xiao, who was sitting in the back row, frowned.

When he was at the Jixia Academy, in addition to his teachers' classes, the subject he attended most was Taoism.

After raising his hand to indicate, and getting Xunzi's nod of approval, Chen Xiao said:

"Master, what you said sounds a bit like Laozi's 'reach the utmost emptiness, maintain profound stillness'.

"I don't know if the two mean the same thing."

The hall suddenly became quiet, and several disciples secretly exchanged glances - Senior brother, you are so bold to ask, the teacher has never had a good impression of Taoism.

They clearly remembered that when their teacher was the chief priest of the Jixia Academy, the Taoist master Wei Mouzi repeatedly asked their teacher to summon students from the academy to listen to Taoist lectures, but their teacher firmly and sternly refused every time.

Xunzi on the podium frowned, his face unhappy, and tapped his fingers heavily on the table:

“I only know how to be still, not how to move.

“I only know emptiness, not reality.

"The emptiness and tranquility I speak of is for the purpose of understanding propriety and justice and seeing things clearly.

"It's not like the Taoism taught by Laozi, which just sits there and stares blankly!"

Fu Qiubo's pen tip paused on the bamboo slip, and the ink spread out in a small area.

He looked up and saw the sharp light flashing in his teacher's eyes, just like when he was young.

Taoism is one of the doctrines that Xunzi criticized most deeply.

After the lecture, the disciples left the lecture hall in twos and threes.

Fuqiu Bo, who had returned from Qin, stayed behind to sort out the scattered bamboo slips and tied up these priceless treasures in order. After a while, he walked out of the lecture hall holding the bamboo slips.

I saw the teacher sitting alone on a stone bench in the yard, staring at the setting sun in a daze.

As the early summer evening breeze blew by, a few ginkgo leaves danced on the branches.

Fu Qiubo walked back into the house quietly, took out a thick cloth coat, and returned to the yard.

"Teacher, the weather is getting cold, put on some more clothes." He draped the clothes on Xunzi's shoulders, and his fingers touched the teacher's thin shoulder bones, and his heart ached.

The commander is over 70 years old. Although he is in good spirits, his health is obviously not as good as before.

Xunzi seemed not to notice, his eyes still fixed on the setting sun in the distance.

Fu Qiubo stood quietly by the side, watching the sunset dye his teacher's white hair into gold.

"Bo," Xunzi suddenly said, his voice even hoarser than in the lecture hall, "What do you think of Li Si and Han Fei?"

Fu Qiubo was stunned. He didn't expect that his master, who had always avoided talking about the purpose of his return, would suddenly mention his two junior brothers today.

When he left Qin, Li Si had become the Minister of Justice, the nominal second-in-command of the Supreme Court but the actual number one, and was highly valued by King Zheng of Qin.

Han Fei... I heard that he was not favored by the King of Han because of his stuttering. However, Junior Brother Han's articles have been circulated in various countries and his reputation has become more and more famous.

"Li Si is smart and clever, and Han Fei has profound thoughts." Fu Qiubo answered cautiously and placed the bamboo slips on the stone table beside him.

Xunzi shook his head and finally turned to look at his eldest disciple, who looked very much like the Taoist disciples he hated:
"Uncle, I am very happy about your transformation. You no longer want to escape from the world and have learned the ways of the world.

“But don’t use this technique today.

“Smart, profound, that’s all superficial.

"What I'm asking is the foundation of their knowledge and the essence of their character."

Fu Qiubo pursed his lips, knowing that the teacher didn't want any polite words.

He recalled his two junior brothers, mainly Li Si, after all, he saw him almost every day in Qin State.

After pondering for a moment, he slowly said:

"Junior Brother Li's learning places too much emphasis on 'power' and disregards 'propriety and righteousness'."

Xunzi's eyes lit up slightly, motioning him to continue.

Encouraged by his teacher, Fu Qiubo recalled the image of his sharp-tongued junior fellow apprentice. He said as he recalled:
"When he was at the Jixia Academy, he always said he wanted to emulate the emperor of his time, but he regarded the political tactics of Shang Yang and Shen Buhai as treasures.

"The teacher said 'propriety is the foundation of law', but he only remembered 'law is the beginning of governing the country'.

"He was impatient and eloquent. Whenever he discussed politics, he would say, 'Govern the country in whatever way is convenient. Don't worry about the ancient ways.'

"This is completely contrary to our teacher's teaching of 'following the example of the previous kings'."

Xunzi closed his eyes and sighed deeply:

"Li Si is very talented, but his mind has gone astray.

"If I come to power in the future, I will definitely rule the country with harsh laws and punishments. I'm afraid I will become mean and ungrateful."

Fu Qiubo nodded, wanting to say something but stopping himself. Junior Brother Li from Qin State had already shown signs of this.

Let's talk about Junior Brother Han, Fu Qiubo thought, and a stuttering Korean prince appeared in front of him:

"Junior Brother Han is proficient in 'political tactics', but lacks 'virtue'.

"Although he stutters, he thinks very deeply."

Fu Qiubo remembered that Junior Brother Han liked to think on his own and would always write and draw in a corner:

"The teacher said 'change human nature through education', but he only focused on the point that 'human nature is evil'.

"He wrote "Five Vermin" and "Solitary Wrath", saying that the monarch should use punishment and political tactics to control his subjects.

"I have read his article, and I have to admit that it is very convincing, but..."

"But he has fallen into the trap of Shen Buhai and Shang Yang." Xunzi took over the conversation, with deep regret in his voice: "Han Fei's talent could have inherited Confucianism. Unfortunately, he believed too much in 'power' and believed that the monarch only needed power and tactics, not moral cultivation."

Fu Qiubo said softly:

"The teacher said, 'Human nature is evil, and kindness is the result of education.'

"Han Fei only remembered the first half of the sentence and missed the second half."

Xunzi smiled bitterly, and the wrinkles on his face deepened:

"Yeah, they both went to extremes.

"Li Si only cares about 'laws', Han Fei only cares about 'political tactics'.

"They all forgot what I said: 'We must use both propriety and political tactics, and take into account both the kingly way and the hegemonic way.'"

As the sky gradually darkened, Fu Qiubo lit the oil lamp on the stone table. The weak flame flickered in the autumn wind, illuminating the faces of the master and the disciple.

"Master, what will happen if Li Si and Han Fei really come to power in the future?" Fu Qiubo poured Xunzi a cup of warm millet wine and asked carefully.

Xunzi took the wine glass but did not drink it immediately. He stared at the swaying liquid in the glass and remained silent for a long time.

"Li Si will definitely use laws as a limit to regulate the world and act in a domineering way." Xunzi finally spoke, his voice low and firm: "Acting in a domineering way is the fastest and unhindered. Maybe it can really help unify the world. But his way of governing the country must be very harsh, and the common people can't bear it."

After a pause, a trace of worry flashed in his eyes:
“He is impatient and power-hungry, and he has always been competing with Han Fei.

"He was narrow-minded. He was unhappy because Han Fei was called "son" first, so he gave him the nickname "son without a son".

"With this kind of personality, if he doesn't succeed, he will die.

"After success, one must also die for the good."

Fu Qiubo took a deep breath. He didn't expect the teacher to be so harsh in his evaluation of Li Si. The word "ren" here is not a compliment, but can be understood as - not a good death.

"Han Fei..." Xunzi paused again and said regretfully, "He would definitely use his theory of political strategy to persuade the King of Han, but the King of Han would not listen to him. His book is very well written and will surely be passed down to future generations. It's a pity that he didn't meet a wise ruler and was born in a country of tactics. But fortune and misfortune are interdependent, and it is not necessarily a bad thing for him to assist a mediocre King of Han. With his talent, if he meets a wise ruler, he can become a great counselor. If he meets a tyrant, it will harm himself instead. He is too superstitious about tactics."

A gust of summer wind blew by, and the flame of the oil lamp shook violently. Fu Qiubo stretched out his hand to protect the lamp, with a myriad of thoughts in his mind.

"It's a pity that neither of them has learned all of their master's knowledge." Fu Qiubo sighed.

Xunzi looked up at the night sky, where the stars were already beginning to twinkle:
“Confucianism is divided into eight schools, and Mohism is divided into three branches.

"I'm afraid my knowledge will be torn into pieces by them..."

After saying this, he slowly poured the remaining wine in the glass onto the ground in the yard, and the clear wine seeped into the soil.

Fu Qiubo looked at his teacher's profile, and saw deep worry and helplessness in those eyes that had seen the world.

He knew that his teacher was not only feeling sorry for the two disciples who had strayed from the right path, but was also worried about the future of Confucianism and the future of the world.

As the night deepens, the ginkgo trees cast mottled shadows in the moonlight.

Xunzi was still sitting on the stone bench, as if he had merged into one with the summer night.

Fu Qiubo stood quietly by the side, watching his master's thoughts and waiting for more crucial words.

I don’t know how long.

"Bo, a hypocrite, how... Looking at him, can he keep pretending?"

(End of this chapter)