Master Kong Zhongni

Chapter 20
Yang Hu personally helped Confucius into the carriage, and then sat beside him.

After the two boarded the carriage, the driver waved the whip and the rein and pulled them slowly towards the Duke's Palace of the State of Lu.

Yang Hu complimented with a smile: "My virtue is low and my talents are insufficient, so I have always longed to be assisted by talented people to govern the country with me. Now that you are willing to become an official, Zhong Ni, then those treacherous and arrogant folks will stop. And I dare not act recklessly in the state of Lu."

Confucius replied: "If you want to make the traitors disappear, can I really rely on my own strength to achieve it? Although Confucius has little knowledge, he still hopes to share his views."

Yang Hu sat upright and said with a solemn expression: "Please advise."

Confucius said: "I heard that the Marquis of Qi likes to let the women in the palace wear men's clothes. After the news spread, the women of Qi State followed suit one after another. For a while, Linzi, the capital of Qi State, was full of men's clothes. woman.

Standing on the streets of Linzi and looking around, I can't tell the difference between men and women.

Qihou was very angry when he knew it. He ordered: If you meet a woman in men's clothing on the street, you should tear her clothes and her belt!

But even though Qihou's order is so strict, the trend of women disguised as men cannot be banned, and it will intensify instead.

Yanzi went to visit Qihou and advised him: You allow the ladies in the palace to wear men's clothes, but you don't allow the women outside the palace to wear men's clothes. This is like hanging a sheep's head on the palace gate, but selling horse meat!If you want to ban this trend, you only need to prohibit women in the palace from wearing men's clothing.

Qi Hou adopted Yan Zi's suggestion. As a result, within a month, there were no more women in Qi State wearing men's clothes. "

When Confucius said this, he paused again, and then added: "You want to eliminate the treacherous and sycophants of Lu State, this is actually the same as Qihou's behavior of wanting to ban women disguised as men!
If you really want to do this, you just need to get rid of those treacherous people who are showing off their power in the court of Lu State. How can I, Kong Qiu, help me? "

Yang Hu was momentarily at a loss for words.

Because many of the treacherous people in the court that Confucius talked about were his henchmen.

So what Confucius said are those treacherous people?Or is it him, Yang Hu himself?
However, Yang Hu has been scolded a lot during this time, and Confucius' insinuating cursing is quite nice.

Besides, even Marquis Qi would be bullied by Yan Zi, but Yang Hu would not break his defense just by saying a few words.

Yang Hu replied with a smile: "You are right. Now the temples of Lu State are full of smog. It's just that I have no one to use, so I have to give in to those villains. But now that I have you, I will continue Don't worry about these things anymore.

I heard that you adhere to the principle of teaching without discrimination. In recent years, you have set up education and recruited more disciples. All the disciples you educate are talents with excellent character and learning.

Now that I am in charge of state affairs, I should naturally select talents for the country, and your disciple is also in my consideration.

I was about to discuss this issue with you, but I didn't expect you to speak first.That being the case, I would like to hear what you, a teacher, think about your students. "

Confucius didn't expect Yang Hu to use his students, so he asked, "I have many students. I don't know which one you are going to ask?"

Yang Hu originally planned to ask Zaiyu directly, but he changed his mind. Although Zaiyu was well-known among the disciples of Confucianism, he was not famous enough for him to be the first to ask.

If he was the first to ask about Jae Yu, it would definitely arouse Confucius' suspicion, and then expose the relationship between the two.

So Yang Hu had an idea and planned to ask Zilu about it.

"Do you think Zilu is benevolent?"

Confucius shook his head: "I don't know."

Yang Hu was surprised: "As a teacher, how can you not know the behavior of the students?"

Confucius replied: "This man Zhong You, a great country with a thousand soldiers and chariots, can let him be in charge of military affairs. As for whether he has benevolence or not, I don't know."

"I see."

Yang Hu suddenly realized.

After arguing for a long time, Confucius didn't dare to judge the students, but he didn't dare to lightly say whether the students were benevolent or not.

In Confucius' view, benevolence and virtue are obviously more valuable than talent and learning, and of course they cannot be judged arbitrarily.

But Yang Hu doesn't care whether a person is benevolent or not, as long as he can be used by me, he is a talent.

As for why Yang Hu asked questions about benevolence, it was just to take care of Confucius' emotions and prevent himself from being criticized by Lu's moral public opinion again.

Yang Hu asked, "Then what do you think of Ziyou?"

Confucius replied, "Ah Qiu, a city with a thousand households and a fief of a doctor with a hundred military vehicles can be managed by him. As for whether he has benevolence or not, I don't know."

Having laid the groundwork for the two, Yang Hu felt that the time was ripe, so he directly took out the talented person in his mind to ask questions.

"Then what do you think of me?"

Unexpectedly, Confucius was silent for a rare moment when he heard the word 'Zi Wo'.

He recalled Jae Yu's speech in the academy today, and said with a light smile.

"Ah Yu, when the country is peaceful and happy, you can let him ride a light cart and carry a banner to go to all parts of the country to convey the orders of the monarch.

When the country is in crisis, he can also be asked to bring gifts to other countries for assistance.

Even if he can't complete the task, even if he encounters the threat of death, he will never let the integrity of the country be humiliated.

As for whether he is benevolent or not, I don't know. "

Yang Hu got the answer he wanted, laughed loudly and said, "Your students are really useful talents! I know what to do."

--------

The moon just climbed the branch.

Zaiyu pushed open the door of Zigong's house and walked out.

He walked forward while supporting the wall while holding his stomach and hiccupping.

Today Master was invited by Yang Hu to go to the palace early in the morning, so after a group of Confucian disciples studied by themselves for a period of time, they gave themselves an early dismissal from school.

As usual, he and Yan Hui went to Zigong's house for a hearty meal.

As for Zigong, the kid fell asleep as soon as he got home, and couldn't wake up no matter how much he screamed.

After Zai Yu pointed out a few words about the papermaking process, he devoted himself wholeheartedly to the cooking business, and when he came back to his senses, the sun had already set.

His home is not too far from Zigong's home, but this section of the road made Zaiyu feel like walking through mountains and rivers.

As soon as he reached the door of the house, Zai Yu saw a person waiting there.

"Who are you?"

Hearing the question, the man turned his head and saw Jai Yu, and immediately put on a joyful smile.

"You're finally back. Don't you remember me? I was the one who helped you pass the message to Yoko!"

　In order to find the right you, I choose to fight to the end.

　　——Excerpt from "Zaiyu's Diary"

　　
　
(End of this chapter)