On benevolence, virtue, and poetry, in the smoke-filled room, Confucius asked questions and answers with everyone one by one.

During this period, although Kong Qiu always had a kind and kind smile on his face, after a few exchanges with him, a thin layer of sweat oozed from the foreheads and hairlines of the five new disciples, including me. is not powerful, it is a person like Kongqiu!

"Yes, who is sitting in the school today?" Kongqiu's gaze swept faintly over everyone's faces.

"Before noon, Zixia will talk about poetry, and after noon, Zhong Gong will discuss politics with his disciples." Duanmuci, who was kneeling on the wall, raised his hand and replied respectfully.

"Oh, Bu Shang (1) is also a Wei man, he is about the same age as several of you, and he has some insight into poetry. Let's go, let's go to the academy and have a look! Kongqiu picked up the black lacquer cane on the ground and stood up tremblingly.

I got up and wanted to step forward to help, but I didn't expect that Wuxian rushed to Kong Qiu with an arrow step, and raised his hand to salute: "Confucius, I have doubts in my heart, and I hope that Master will solve your doubts." ”

Everyone in the room was shocked.

Confucius's expression was calm, he put down his crutches, sat down, and bowed back to Wuxian.

What's wrong with shirtless? Last night, he swore that he was not interested in studying from Kongqiu, so why did he look rare and serious at this time?

Wuxian sat upright in front of Kongqiu, and a pair of eyes looked directly at Kongqiu: "Master Zeng Yun, 'the people can make it but not know' (2)? ”

"Yes, yes." Confucius nodded in response.

"The Jin people cast the punishment tripod and let the people know the law. The master once said that Jin Qi will die? ”

"Yes, yes."

"Didn't the Master's intention mean that if a ruler wants to rule a country for a long time, he must deceive and fool the people, so that they do not know? If you don't know, you can not notice, and if you don't observe, you can not be chaotic. When the Master traveled around the world, he used to say that he wanted to educate the peoples, but was it just a lie? ”

As soon as Wu Xian's words came out, I seemed to see a cold Qingfeng sword coming out of his sheath, and the tip of the sword pointed directly at Kongqiu.

"Who is the son? Dare to be so disrespectful to the Master! One of the guards sitting at the bottom left of the shirtless glared angrily, and his hands propped up his body sharply.

I don't know where Wuxian learned about Kongqiu's remarks, but the sentence just now, "The people can make it but not know it." "It is said that the monarch rules over the people and drives them to do things, and there is no need to tell them why they do it. This sentence naturally reminds me of what Kong Qiu said when the Jin Kingdom cast the Punishment Ding - "Jin Qi is dead!" Miscalculated. ”

Confucius said that when the people understood the norms of criminal law, they lost the reverence for the nobility when "the punishment is unknowable and unpredictable". When these two things are taken together, it will indeed make people suspect that although Kong Qiu preaches to love the people and teach the people on weekdays, in fact, what he advocates is to fool the people, so that the people do not know, do not notice, and do not mess up.

Hey, it's no wonder that the man said that he was disrespectful. The first time he visited Kongqiu, he actually turned around and scolded Kongqiu for hypocrisy.

However, Kong Qiu listened to his words without the slightest annoyance, he smiled and stopped the angry guard, turned to Wu Xian and said slowly: "The wisdom of the world is divided into high and low, if the superior must first become a household name every time he governs, and forcing the illiterate people to know the reason and meaning behind each decree will not only have no good effect, but will confuse the ears and eyes of the people and confuse their minds." Qiu thought that if he wanted to know the people, he must first educate them with etiquette and music, so that they would know how to learn. In time, if the farmer who cultivates the land and the woodcutter who cuts wood can think in his heart about the way to govern a country like you. Naqiu believed that even if no one told them the meaning behind the decree, they themselves would be able to understand everything and talk about politics. ”

"The master is saying that as long as the people learn etiquette, they can also become officials, and discuss politics in the same room as the superiors?" The defender who was excited about his words and deeds couldn't help but take a few steps forward.

"Yes, yes." Kong Qiu nodded his head.

"Why did the master say that Jin was going to die again?" Wuxian thought for a moment and asked again.

"Of course, teaching the people to know the law will not lead to the destruction of the country, and the struggle of the Qing clan will not lead to the death of Jin. When Qiu said this, the Jin State was in the midst of civil strife in Liuqing, and the people were struggling to make a living. Ding is the important weapon of the country, Zhao Ying cast Fan Xuanzi's "Book of Punishment" on the bronze tripod, which means that the Jin State put the criminal law above etiquette and morality. The people in power do not exercise virtue but use criminal law to threaten Li Shu, which is the way to destroy the country. ”

"The way to the country?" The indifference in Wuxian's eyes finally rippled because of Kong Qiu's words.

"Does the master mean that virtue is better than punishment?" I asked.

"Yes, yes."

But the disciples heard that there is a distinction between leniency and severity. Governing the country with morality, propriety, and righteousness is bound to be 'politically lenient', and governing the country with criminal law is inevitably 'politically violent'. In the past, Zheng Guozi's doctor first cast a criminal book, so that the people knew the law, and Zheng people lived and worked in peace and contentment, and wrote poems to praise him. After his death, the doctor You Ji ruled the Zheng State with virtue and leniency, but it made Zheng Guo bandits rampant, and Li Shu complained. From this point of view, isn't violent government superior to lenient government, and criminal rule superior to polite rule? ”

"Definitely." Kong Qiu shook his head and smiled, "The politics of the child is different from the politics of the six kings. Although the doctor also cast the penal book, he used punishment to supplement the rule of virtue. The child doctor is benevolent and loves the people, and it is Zheng Xing. If the rulers do not rule by virtue and abuse criminal responsibility, it will only shake the foundation of the state. ”

"For example, Qi Guo? Qi Jun was unkind and used torture to cause the Chen family to rebel against the country? ”

The foundation of a nation is the people of a nation. There was a lot of torture in the Qi country, and when Qi Jinggong was in power, there were more people selling fake feet than shoes in the Qi market. People would have their legs and feet cut off if they didn't pay taxes, and it was from that time that the Chen family showed kindness to the people everywhere, so that the people of the public office later turned against each other.

"Yes, yes." Kong Qiu glanced at Duanmu Ci, nodded and smiled, "If the government is lenient, the people will be slow, and if it is slow, it will be fierce." If you are fierce, the people will be disabled, and if you are disabled, you will be lenient. Leniency and fierceness are mutually beneficial, and the government is peaceful. ”

It turns out that there is such a complex and ingenious reason for the monarch's governance......

Kong Qiu's words seemed to open an unknown window in my heart, and I asked again without thinking: "Master, the day before yesterday, the disciple and the righteous brother passed through Feiyi, and Feiyi was also rampant with banditry, and one out of twenty people died on the road in January. In such a situation, can we still practice leniency and govern the city with courtesy? ”

"The troubles of Feiyi are all caused by harsh government, and if you want to get rid of it, you must first abolish it."

"What the master is referring to, but what Ji Sun's 'use of land' did in the city?"

Kong Qiu smiled slightly. At this time, the four guards present asked Kong Qiu about the land endowment promulgated by the Jisun clan. Kong Qiu patiently explained, and everyone discussed fiercely, except for Wuxian, who frowned from beginning to end. He sat in front of Conchus, in the midst of the crowd, but he did not seem to hear us at all.

In the interval between everyone's discussions, he suddenly raised his hand and said to Duanmu: "Ci, go to the shelf and take the third volume of "Music Notes" down." ”

"No!" Duanmu Ci hurriedly got up, stood on the low table and took the scroll that Kong Qiu wanted.

Kong Qiu opened the scroll and glanced at it, and then handed the bamboo slip to Wuxian's hand: "Etiquette and people's hearts, music and people's voices, government to act, punishment to prevent it." Lile criminal government, four up to the next without disobedience, then the royal road is prepared. If you are not in a hurry to return to Jin, you may wish to stay and read this book, which may inspire you. ”

Confucius invites shirtless? I turned my head to look at Wuxian, who took the bamboo slip sneeringly, but remained silent for a long time.

"Both of your brothers are from Jin, and Ranqiu has never set foot in the Jin Kingdom in his life. Back then, Jin Qing Zhao Ying once asked someone to hire me to Jin, and Qiu was happy to go. When the car went to the Yellow River, he suddenly heard that Zhao Ying had killed two virtuous doctors in China, and finally transferred the car to the east, but never entered the Jin. If you are willing, you can come to my house every day, and we will discuss the politics of the Jin Kingdom. ”

Kong Qiu invited him to discuss politics without mercy, and everyone showed envy.

Shirtless holding a book in his hand, he simply looked at the smiling old man in front of him.

After a while, he suddenly put down the bamboo slip and stood up, knelt down and bowed deeply with an extremely solemn expression: "Xie Fuzi!" ”

Kong Qiu was overjoyed, he leaned forward and smiled and helped Wuxi: "I am very happy today." Let's go, you all follow me to the backyard school to have a look! ”

"Master, let the disciples take them, right? You've had a headache these days, so stay in the house and rest! Hearing this, Duanmu Ci hurriedly helped Kong Qiu to stand up.

"Don't help me, I've already drunk the medicine this morning, it's okay." Kongqiu waved his hand and walked towards the door on crutches. After taking two steps, he suddenly stopped again, turned his head to Duanmu Ci and said, "Ci, today is the medicine that Bu Shang fried for me, what about it?" I haven't seen him in two days. ”

"Ziyuan suffered a little cold when he was proofreading the Book of Changes the night before, and he was afraid that he would give his illness to his master, so he read at home to recuperate."

"Hey, the night is cold, and he is weak. When you go back later, bring back my blue-colored robe, and tell him to go to bed early every day, and stop staying up late to read. ”

"No, the disciple has written it down." Duanmu Ci trotted two steps to keep up with Kongqiu's pace.

Kongqiu's left leg seems to be sick, and when he walks, the sole of his left foot is not as solid as his right foot, and his knee is slightly stiff. But despite this, Duanmu Ci tried to support him several times, but he deliberately avoided him. The old master walked tremblingly down the steps on crutches, and Duanmuci's right hand hung empty on his back, always ready to support the stubborn old man.

"Tomorrow, you're going to come to the school to listen to the preaching?" I leaned over to Shirtless and asked softly.

"Well, I still have some questions I would like to hear from Confucius." Wuxian looked at the bamboo slip in his hand and nodded slightly.

I looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to us, so I stood on tiptoe and laughed in Wuxian's ear: "Hongyun'er, how do I remember that someone told me this morning that he was too lazy to listen to Kongqiu's nonsense curses?" ”

Wushirt twisted it around my waist and chuckled, "Morning is morning, now is now." I'll accompany you to the study, and you're not happy anymore? ”

"Don't dare, don't dare, you can make up ten pieces of jerky tomorrow and give them to the master, and then call me senior brother." I'm afraid that Wuxian will screw me again, and before I finish speaking, people have already run away.

"Okay, you girl......" jumped to my side in two steps.

"Shhhh ”

Wuxian pinched his lips and raised an eyebrow at me, and I smiled down and tugged at his sleeve to catch up with Kongqiu's group.

remark

(1) Bu Shang: The word Zi Xia, known as Bu Zi, one of the ten philosophers of Confucius. In his later years, he taught in the Xihe area of the Wei Kingdom, founded the "Xihe School", and cultivated a large number of thinkers and writers. Li Kui, an important representative of the Legalist family, and Wu Qi, an important representative of the military family, are all his disciples.

(2) "The people can make it happen, but they can't know it" is from the Analects of Tabor. This is a controversial sentence because different sentences can have different meanings.

Author's note: The first day of the Lunar New Year was spent at Confucius's house, wonderful!

sanjiangge