Chapter 343: Suffering is not worth singing praises
"No matter how hard you try, if you still wear linen clothes and eat coarse rice, you will lose the motivation to make progress. If people do not make progress, the world will not be able to make progress. You should know this truth. Zhuangzi said that Mohism is the opposite of the world, and this is true."
Such a result was expected by scientists and he was not surprised.
He and Ying Chengjiao had known each other for a long time. Their similar interests and his ability to count billions of dollars made him a retainer of Ying Chengjiao.
The master's ideas have always been different from his.
If the two had the same opinions and ideas, he would not be the leader of the Mohist school.
He knew long ago that when Ying Chengjiao saw the situation in Yiyang, he would never let him take charge of Handi. The reason why he took the initiative to ask Ying Chengjiao for Handi was to retreat in order to advance.
It’s fine if you don’t give the land to Han, but you can’t take Yiyang back, right?
"Your Majesty's words are always reasonable."
The scientist's face was indifferent.
The scientist was in a bad mood as the ideals and beliefs he had worked hard for all his life were attacked in such a way and he was not allowed to stay in Yiyang.
"It sounds like you are unwilling to say this."
Ying Chengjiao stroked the horse's head, and the horse lowered its head, snorted, and butted Ying Chengjiao.
"If you have any different opinions, just speak them out. If you don't explain the truth, it won't make it clear. If you don't argue for the truth, it won't make it clear."
He lowered his head and smiled bitterly.
"As long as one is human, there is no one who is infallible. Everyone makes mistakes. Before the result comes out, no one can guarantee that they are right. The King of Qi said that those who can point out the mistakes of others to their faces will be rewarded, and Cheng Jiao can do it.
"For so many years, I have always wanted to change the world with my thoughts as the foundation. My thoughts are clear and my actions are self-evident. In the end, I was extremely wrong. I can only verify my thoughts with my actions, observe the governance of hundreds of schools of thought and eliminate the dross while retaining the essence. You and I will open up the road ahead together."
Develop together... The scientist chewed on these four words silently, and the coldness on his face became much less.
"I think the actual situation is exactly the opposite of what your Majesty said. It is precisely because the Mohists have always prohibited extravagant living and refused to enjoy that they, the Mohists, can make rapid progress."
Ying Chengjiao was speechless.
In the past, he was always called a brat, or called himself a brat. Today, he wanted to call the scientist a brat.
"Boy, are you talking human language?
"Qin wanted a larger territory, so it prepared its troops to conquer the six states. Qi wanted to stay in a corner, so it surrendered, and the rich land of the East China Sea became part of Qin.
"Isn't it that the difference in the outcomes of the two countries is due to the fact that Qin had a desire for a better life, while Qi did not?
"Now you are saying that banning extravagant lifestyles and refusing enjoyment will allow Mohists to make rapid progress. Are you serious?
"I asked you to give me advice and point out my mistakes, not to talk nonsense and treat me like a fool."
The scientist's eyes were solemn, and he looked at Ying Chengjiao with the same look as he looked at a fool.
Each thought the other was stupid.
"Qin was able to unify the world because it was located in the far west, close to the Hu people and the Rongdi people, and their lives were difficult. Qi was destroyed because it was rich. From top to bottom, from the king to the people, everyone was eroded by wealth. This is why Qin was able to destroy Qi. Your Majesty, you are talking nonsense.
"King Jichang of the Western Zhou Dynasty wrote the Book of Changes while in prison. Confucius wrote the Spring and Autumn Annals while in distress. Qu Yuan wrote Li Sao after being exiled. Zuo Qiuming wrote Discourses of the States after losing his eyesight. Sun Bin wrote The Art of War after his kneecaps were cut off. Jie Ba was summoned to the Qin State by force, and he wrote Difficulties in Talking about Difficulties and Frustrations of Being Alone. The three hundred poems in the Book of Songs were all written by saints out of anger.
“Only when people’s lives are not abundant and rich can they devote their energy to the right path.
"Su Qin said, 'If I had two hectares of land in Luoyang, how could it be equal to the seals of the six kingdoms?' Mencius also said, 'When Heaven is about to confer a great responsibility on a man, it will first test his mind and will, exhaust his muscles and bones, deprive him of all poverty, and make him feel frustrated. This is to stimulate his heart and harden his nature, and increase his ability to do what he could not do before.'
"Your Majesty, why don't you understand the truth that one is born in adversity and dies in comfort? Only in poverty can one achieve something. A life of wealth will only wear down one's will!"
Ying Chengjiao was silent.
His expression looked very unhappy, as if someone had touched a sore spot and he had no words to refute.
He led the horse silently and walked step by step, very slowly.
After saying a lot in one breath, the scientist, who was satisfied, followed Ying Chengjiao silently, with a grim look on his face.
Because Ying Chengjiao didn't ask him to stay, he had to follow Ying Chengjiao back to Xinzheng to continue his research.
The scientist likes handicrafts and being a Qin Mo, but he wants the Mohist doctrine to flourish. There is no disciple who does not want his own doctrine to flourish, even selfless scientists are no exception.
If we can carry forward the teachings of Mohism, and people in the world benefit each other and love each other, this will be a prosperous age.
"Master, please go back."
Ying Chengjiao suddenly said, jumped on the horse, and rode away so fast that the scientists couldn't react.
The horse's hooves kicked up half a foot of mud, and some of the flying dust fell on the scientist's linen clothes.
The fields were covered with sparse weeds, and grass debris was floating in the air caught in the soil.
The setting sun was very big and red, falling from the sky onto the mountain.
In the eyes of scientists, Ying Chengjiao's figure became smaller and smaller, and he went towards the sun that was no longer dazzling, as if he was rushing into the sun.
The speed of the horse is astonishingly fast, it should be the fastest speed.
"I was wrong?"
The scientist stood there blankly, staring at the thin back of his master until he could no longer see him.
"Did I say something too harsh just now, or... am I really doing something wrong?"
The scientist was originally Qin Mo. When he met Ying Chengjiao, Ying Chengjiao was not yet Lord Chang'an, but Master Chengjiao.
When he was still a child, Master Cheng Jiao especially liked to look for Qin Mo. At first, the scientist was very bothered by it because he was not in the mood to play with the child.
Later they found out that this Young Master Cheng Jiao didn't make any noise, but just watched them work eagerly. This gave them a slightly better impression, but they still regarded him as just a royal young man who was not doing his job properly.
——A prince of the royal family should manage government affairs and participate in state affairs, instead of watching the craftsmen. This is not what a prince of the royal family should do.
What really changed the scientists', and even the entire late Qin Dynasty's, view of Master Cheng Jiao was that Prime Minister Fan Ju once ordered Qin Mo to work with farmers to increase land production.
——Qin’s attack on the six states required huge amounts of food, but food was never enough.
Qin Mo, the farmer tried very hard and tried every possible means but failed.
For thousands of years, the amount of grain that land can produce is limited, so it is impossible to increase production at will.
Ying Chengjiao, who often hung out with Qin Mo, put forward a suggestion that seemed ridiculous at the time - burying dirty things such as feces and urine in the soil would increase grain production.
Qin Mo, the farmers are all speechless about this Master Cheng Jiao. Food is what we eat to survive, how can the land where food is grown be mixed with filth like feces?
It's disgusting just to think about it. How can we eat this? How can this possibly increase food production?
No one did it.
So, Ying Chengjiao called his grandfather, King Zhaoxiang of Qin, Yingji. Yingji, who loved Ying Chengjiao very much, glared at him and issued a royal decree to ask for Qin Mo. Nongjia followed his great-grandson's order and did so.
The king's order had been given, and no matter how reluctant the farmers were, Qin Mo had no choice but to use the manure to irrigate the fields and grow crops.
The next year, grain production increased.
Qin Mo, a farmer, was amazed by Ying Chengjiao from then on. Some people in the farmer family even thought that Master Chengjiao was the reincarnation of Houji, the god of agriculture.
At this time, no one complained about spreading manure to grow crops, and no one refused to eat them.
Everyone just thought it smelled really good.
There is no order of precedence in learning; the wisest can be the teacher.
After this incident, the scientist who was the leader of Qin Mo kept following Ying Chengjiao like a follower.
Under Ying Chengjiao's verbal attack, scientists used their outstanding hands-on ability to create things such as colored glaze, curved plows, water wheels, and textile machines, which truly raised the economy of the Qin Empire to a higher level.
When it comes to supporting Ying Chengjiao, scientists are definitely in the first echelon.
Ying Chengjiao did not reveal his true face in Yiyang City today. If he took off his bamboo hat, these Mohist disciples who were willing to live in poverty would flock to him, gather around him, and look at him with eyes that respected him more than a scientist.
A scientist who does not believe in heaven, earth, ghosts or gods, in order to lead the disciples of Mohism and the poor people.
In Yi Yang County, Ying Chengjiao was promoted as the emperor.
In the Mohist philosophy, the emperor represents heaven to govern the world and is extremely important in Mohism.
In Mozi's view, monarchs and ministers are created for the benefit of the people. They are established from the masses to restrain the people. The meaning of their existence is to safeguard the interests of the majority of the people.
But in order to achieve effective governance of the social state, the relationship between the monarch and his subjects is not so democratic.
When hearing about good and bad things, report them to your superior. You must approve of everything your superior thinks is right. You must disapprove of everything your superior thinks is wrong.
The emperor is the God on earth. What he says is absolute authority. What he thinks is right is right, and what he thinks is wrong is wrong. All his subjects have to do is agree with him. Subjects must be absolutely obedient to the emperor.
Even he, the great leader of the Mohist school, was a minister and had to obey the emperor.
What the ministers have to do is to convey the emperor's orders to the people and then report the people's various situations to the emperor, so that the emperor can govern the entire country reasonably and promote benefits and eliminate disadvantages.
This is because the Mohists believed that in order to realize the interests of the vast majority of the people, the absolute authority of the emperor must be established. The emperor is the same as heaven, and the emperor issues orders on behalf of heaven. The people can only obey the emperor. This is Mozi's idea of "shangtong".
In fact, the "great master" of the Mohist school is a reduced version of the "Son of Heaven" - Mohists must obey the great master.
The Mohist system was organized according to this model.
Founder Mozi believed that this form was necessary in order to achieve the greatest good.
Scientists think so too.
If that were all, the Mohists seemed to lick the monarch more than the Legalists, and the Mohists should not be defined as speaking for the people.
The difference between Mohism and Legalism is that Legalism is to make laws for the monarch to govern the people, while Mohism is to establish the Son of Heaven for the people. The reason why Mozi uses the Son of Heaven instead of the monarch is to restrict the monarch.
——Floods, droughts, and all natural disasters are the result of God’s wrath and are a sign that the emperor is doing something wrong.
Mozi left such a back door to limit the power of the monarch.
But even so, when the leader of the Mohist school proposed someone as the emperor, even if that person was a beggar, he would be able to command the entire Mohist school immediately.
And he is the emperor who can make the current Mohist leader trust him wholeheartedly and the entire Mohist school serve him.
The First Emperor, who sat high on the throne, could not do it, so he could only follow him since childhood and become the Prince Chengjiao, who is now the Lord of Chang'an.
A scientist who has experienced many ups and downs with Ying Chengjiao, a scientist who can chat with Ying Chengjiao all night long about his vision for the future, and a scientist who can let Ying Chengjiao give him one of the three only pistols in the world for self-defense.
Able to perceive most of Ying Chengjiao's emotions and understand most of Ying Chengjiao's thoughts.
Please go back, great man… the scientist muttered to himself. What he sensed from these four words was alienation.
"According to your temper, if you are angry and embarrassed by what I said, you should tell me to go back..."
The scientist looked at the direction where his master left for a long time, until the sky gradually darkened and the moon and stars became dim.
…
"Master Juzi, why are you here so late?"
The two guards in front of Yiyang city gate said with concern.
It was the person before them who gave them a purpose in life - to rescue brothers and sisters like them. They were no longer living just for the sake of living, like the walking dead.
"Nothing, nothing..."
The scientist forced a smile and walked into Yiyang City under the worried gazes of the two guards.
"Master Juzi, how should this place be built?"
Someone pointed at the beams of the house and asked about it. The scientist explained while he worked with the person to put up the beams and fix them .
"Master Juzi, can heaven really know everything?"
Someone held up "Mozi Tianzhi" and asked questions, and the scientist explained it carefully.
"Yes, if someone does something evil, no one sees, no one hears, no one notices, but the heaven will know it immediately. The heaven can see everything in the world and knows everything that people do. The heaven has its will and punishes the good and punishes the evil."
Scientists do not believe in heaven, earth, ghosts or gods.
But in this era without strong constraints, he must use these to make the people feel cautious and at ease.
The scientist then taught the students who chose farming how to fertilize the soil, and taught the students who chose military strategy how to defend a city.
Lying on the bed, the scientist who had just finished his busy work looked dull again. He didn't know what he had done wrong.
"Or maybe the master is wrong..."
Ying Chengjiao did not return to Xinzheng. He galloped on his horse across the vast plains, expressing his depression.
He didn't expect that the scientists who he thought were closest to him and had the most similar ideas had the same idea.
"Did Confucius want to be afflicted? Did Qu Yuan want to be exiled? Did Zuo Qiuming want to be blind? Did Sun Bin want to be punished with the punishment of tin? If we tell them that by enduring all these hardships, they will succeed, will they accept it?
“Why attribute all this to suffering! If they could, would they choose such suffering? What a fucked up statement!
“Suffering is not worth singing about, and poverty is not worth persisting in!”
Ying Chengjiao was breathing rapidly. He was very angry, angry that it was a scientist who said these words.
