The Six Arts of the Gentleman in the Bright Moon of Qin Dynasty

Chapter 1225 The So-Called Pure Stream

These are all hidden benefits. The real, visible benefit is that the Yan family's Yushan Academy can recruit students throughout the Chu region and southern China without restriction.

Although there were no explicit laws restricting the number of disciples that various schools of thought could accept, if they did accept more than a certain number of disciples, they would inevitably be targeted by the Shadow Guards, the Net, and local officials.

The government has many ways to prevent you from recruiting disciples and followers.

"Qin is really willing to spend!" Li Mu and Lian Po exclaimed.

No wonder the Yan family was able to emerge; this is an opportunity that any of the Hundred Schools of Thought would be begging for.

"So what are Qin's requirements for the Yan family?" Li Mu and Lian Po were even more curious.

The Qin state was not a charitable organization; it was impossible for the Yan family to simply send out some of their sons, shout a few times, and expect to reap such a huge benefit for free.

"Integrate the literary scene in the South, so that there is only one voice in the entire literary world in the South, and that is the voice of the Qin Emperor!" the Yan family head said solemnly.

"Understood!"

"No wonder!"

Li Mu and Lian Po nodded. No wonder Qin offered such a high price. This might not be too difficult for the Yan family, but the key was to make them abandon their arrogance as scholars and be willing to become Qin's dogs. This was much more difficult than integrating the literary world in the south.

If word gets out, the Yan family will likely be scorned by the entire Confucian school and scholarly community.

"Don't you two gentlemen think that the Yan family has lost its integrity?" the head of the Yan family asked Lian Po and Li Mu.

He was also prepared for Lian Po and Li Mu to leave the Yan family as a result.

After all, Lian Po and Li Mu were both such proud people, and they were willing to come to the Yan family because they valued the pride of the Yan family.

“If I were young, I would definitely cut ties with you and sever all ties, but now…” Lian Po shook his head. Having seen many storms and upheavals, he knew that sometimes a family had no choice but to bow its head if it wanted to survive.

Moreover, the current situation in the world has changed; the world has been unified.

Regardless of whether the various schools of thought and scholars acknowledged Qin as the legitimate dynasty, Qin was already the sole monarchy in the entire world.

Moreover, the Qin state gained its power and strength through its own efforts, rather than by taking the Zhou dynasty's rule through underhanded means.

Even without the Qin state and Ying Zheng, the chaos of war in the world might have continued for who knows how long.

Therefore, rather than letting the world fall into war, it is better to support the Qin state, so that the world can get back on track as soon as possible and the people can live in peace and prosperity.

"If we don't step forward, the land of Chu will be wiped out by Fusu!" the head of the Yan family sighed.

Fusu was truly ruthless; he killed those who did not cooperate, those who hesitated, and those who were indecisive, not to mention those who openly rebelled.

If the Yan family doesn't step forward, the Chu region will truly be wiped out.

Although the Yan family also felt that these people deserved it, the Yan family had been operating in the Chu region for hundreds of years and had intricate kinship ties with the nobles of Chu. If they did not stand up and make a statement, they would be implicated sooner or later.

“Most importantly, when Fusu first arrived, we were the ones who built up his momentum!” The head of the Yan family shrugged.

It wasn't that they wanted to stand up, but that they had no choice but to.

Because of Fusu's relationship with Yan Yan, they helped him build momentum, praising Fusu to the skies, which made the nobles of Chu accept Fusu's rule and welcome his arrival.

Now that Fusu is killing indiscriminately, the nobles dare not challenge Qin, but they still need someone to vent their anger on, and the Yan family has become that easy target. Therefore, whether the Yan family stands up or not, they have already placed themselves on the opposite side of the nobles in Chu.

"..." Li Mu and Lian Po exchanged a glance. This was just like a recommendation. If the person being recommended caused trouble, the recommender would naturally be implicated.

Many renowned teachers know that their disciples are prone to causing trouble, but their talents are too great, so they are reluctant not to teach them. Therefore, when their disciples graduate, they will say to them, "If you cause trouble in the future, do not mention my name."

“But by doing this, you are essentially putting yourselves in direct opposition to all the nobles and most of the scholars!” Li Mu said worriedly.

After all, they had studied diligently at Yushan Academy for many years and had been taken care of by the academy, so they naturally owed a debt of gratitude.

"Gentlemen, you're overthinking it!" The head of the Yan family shook his head.

"The nobles and scholars of the world do not actually not want to submit to Qin or insist on standing against Qin, but because of their so-called 'honorable reputation,' they have no choice but to stand against Qin."

"Now that the Yan family has taken the initiative to step forward, it is as if we have given all the nobles and upright officials a way out."

“As long as the Yan family stands up, they can stand on the moral high ground and point fingers at the Yan family, saying, ‘Look, this is a dog of Qin.’ Then they will quickly submit to Qin. With just one more word, the Yan family will have no choice but to bow their heads. What can we do?”

Li Mu and Lian Po exchanged another glance, thinking, "You guys from the 'pure stream' really know how to have fun."

However, they had seen this kind of thing many times before, and things were bound to be as the Yan family head said.

This is similar to their battles. If they are in dire straits and no one leads the counterattack, the army will immediately collapse like a house of cards. But once a fierce general leads the charge, there will be many followers.

However, these scholars and nobles played an even more elaborate game. Although their actions were completely honest, they would stand on a moral high ground to condemn others and claim that they were forced into it.

"You're really good at this!" Lian Po remarked.

"The Confucian temples and Mencius' mansions are all the same. They're all waiting for us to step forward, then they'll expel us from Confucianism, saying we're unworthy to be Confucian scholars, and then they'll turn around and bow down!" the Yan family head said sarcastically.

Throwing money quickly? Who can compare to those Confucian scholars?

He didn't want to say where Qin got so many scholars capable of governing local areas.

"The Yan family's reputation is going to be ruined!" Li Mu was still a little worried.

"The Emperor said that once I have achieved fame and success, my descendants will naturally debate the scriptures for me," the Yan family head said nonchalantly, bowing to the north.

He couldn't see clearly the difference between temporary fame and lasting fame before, but after meeting Li Si, he compromised. After compromising, he realized... the benefits of siding with Qin were so great.

If they were to gain the support of the Qin state, with the Yan family and disciples of the Yushan Academy spread throughout the world, and even the history books compiled by their disciples, wouldn't they have complete control over how the history was written?

Therefore, there's no need to worry about temporary gains or losses. Those people can only verbally criticize them. Once they see the Yan family and Yushan Academy grow and prosper, everyone will only envy that they weren't the first to stand up.

Self-interest is the root of everything.

"If needed, just say the word. We still have some disciples and students!" Lian Po also spoke up.

As two famous generals of the Zhao state, although they had retired for many years, they still had many disciples, students, and former comrades, many of whom held high positions.

"Don't worry, I won't hesitate to ask if you need anything!" The Yan family head replied with a smile.

Of course, he didn't think that time would come, after all, he knew very well what kind of people these "pure stream" people were.

(End of this chapter)