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Chapter 1580 Adventurer’s Paradise (Second update, please subscribe)

As soon as he thought about it, Li Yian felt disgust and fear in his heart.

What is the source of his fear?
It comes precisely from the understanding of "The Book of Lord Shang".

Once upon a time, he was full of endless yearning and even admiration for Shang Yang.

But after he read the book carefully with an adoring attitude, all that was left was fear.

Because in that game, the only person who can be called a human being is the monarch. Others, including Shang Yang himself, are just talking tools.

After Shang Yang, except for the King of Qin, no one else in the entire empire was worthy of being called a human being.

Under the Qin system that countless people longed for, the emperor was the master, the officials were slaves, the army were shepherd dogs, and the people were livestock.

As for the so-called promotion channels that only existed under the Qin system, it is a false proposition, because many people only know about the Qin’s military merit awards. They don’t know that before the Qin implemented this system, the Warring States period had already been “the prime minister must rise from the state, and the brave general must rise from the ranks”.

For example, Wei was the first to implement the rule of "food for labor and salary for merit". Zhao established the rule of "those with great merit are honored", and Yan implemented the rule of "no prince should be granted an official title without merit". Han promoted the system of "appointing officials according to merit and rank".

The core of Shang Yang's reform was to block the upward channels for the people. Ensuring that the people never had upward channels was the core factor for his reform to continue.

Everyone in Qin was a criminal. This was the impression that other countries had of Qin at that time - that everyone in Qin was a criminal.

The so-called military merit awards are rewards, but rewards are accompanied by punishments. The reason why reforms in various countries cannot be sustained is not because there are no rewards, but because there is no mechanism to clear the rewards.

The Book of Lord Shang says: "A king punishes nine and rewards one; a strong state punishes seven and rewards three; a weak state punishes five and rewards five."

That is to say, if you want your country to be strong, you need to create seven prisoners in order to reward three people; if you want to build a kingdom, you need to create nine prisoners in order to reward one person.

In order to achieve this goal, the Qin State implemented extremely strict laws, and almost everyone would break the law at any time and anywhere.

Even if you just stood there and looked around while working in the fields, you would be punished and become a prisoner. Then, the king would show mercy and give you a chance to atone for your sins, which was to join the army and make meritorious contributions.

This is also why, when Liu Bang entered Xianyang later, his three rules made the so-called old Qin people swear to follow him until death.

Because before that, apart from the emperor, there were only two kinds of people in the Qin State: prisoners who were serving hard labor and prisoners who were about to serve hard labor.

Because of the system of collective responsibility. If one person commits a crime, the whole family will be held responsible. If one family commits a crime, all nine families will be held responsible. If one family commits a crime, all nine families will be held responsible. If one person ...

In the end, the whole country was imprisoned.

Then, at the end of the Qin Dynasty, a very magical phenomenon appeared. Chen Sheng and Wu Guang, who started the uprising, were prisoners. The prisoners who were originally building the Great Wall were going to be beheaded because of the heavy rain, so they had no choice but to start the uprising. Liu Bang also started his career by releasing prisoners.

Faced with the uprising, the Qin State could only mobilize prisoners to organize an army.

So the question is, where did the Qin army go?

This seems to be an unsolved mystery, so much so that people have all kinds of opinions, even saying that the Qin army is in the north and the Qin army is in Baiyue. But the problem is that the soldiers of these two armies are precisely prisoners.

In fact, the reason couldn't be simpler. Under the Qin system, everyone was a prisoner, and fighting was their only chance to make merit and atone for their sins!

If this is a way to rise, then it is a very easy way to rise. And if you rise today, you will be beaten back to your original state tomorrow because you or your relatives or neighbors have committed crimes, and become a prisoner again.

This was also the reason why the second emperor of Qin fell. After the unification of the six kingdoms, there was no more war, and no more opportunities for prisoners to redeem themselves by making meritorious deeds.

It was under the harsh laws and the practice of informing on others in order to avoid being punished that the entire Qin State became a huge prison.

Finally, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang, both prisoners, gave a gentle push, allowing prisoners all over the world to see another possibility.

The Qin Dynasty perished in the second generation.

Where did the so-called valiant old Qin go? They all contributed to the demise of the second emperor.

No one dared to do that later.

Later, the Han Dynasty practiced military merit, but it was abolished before Liu Bang died because there were only rewards but no punishments. In other words, there was no punishment of "nine punishments and one reward".

The nine punishments and one reward can continuously reset everyone's merits. In this way, the reward mechanism can be continuously implemented.

Otherwise, after a few victories, the whole country would be filled with military officers and nobles, and the system of awarding titles based on military merit would naturally no longer be possible.

"…So, we need punishment! Only punishment is the root of everything, the basis of everything. But without this basis, Shang Yang's reform will fail!"

Listening to Li Yian's explanation, Margaret even trembled slightly with fear. She said:

“This book is horrible.”

As she said this, her shoulders were even shaking involuntarily, and she felt an unprecedented fear.

"What is scary is never the book, but the human heart. What is even scarier is... there will be many people who agree with these views, who agree with Shang Yang! They agree with everything he did, and even worship him, and even think that his so-called "law" is fair and advanced. The core of not caring about the law is to turn everyone into a prisoner, and then grant you a chance to atone for your sins by doing meritorious service.

In order to avoid violating the law of impunity, everyone, whether ordinary people or high-ranking officials, became submissive, cautious, and numb. "

Li Yian said with emotion:

"So, how to systematically and fundamentally remove the shackles that Shang Yang put on people's minds is what we have been doing."

He elevated the royal power to an inappropriately high level, and degraded the rights of the people to an inappropriately low level.

Many people blame the demise of the Hundred Schools of Thought due to Emperor Wu of Han's policy of promoting Confucianism as the only doctrine in the world. In fact, the demise of the Hundred Schools of Thought was precisely the core of Shang Yang's Reforms and was the inevitable result of his fooling the people.

The so-called Confucianism chosen by Emperor Wu of Han was in fact never Confucianism, but the Legalism advocated by Dong Zhongshu under the guise of Confucianism.

This is why we should be Confucian on the outside and Legalist on the inside, and take all the bad from them.

There is a reason why the world's population has been halved.

It was also from that time that the ideological shackles became heavier day by day. Eventually, people were domesticated and turned into tools under the manipulation of the five arts of controlling people.

After thinking for a while, Margaret said:
"I see. Is this why the Biography of Knights-Errant is included in the textbooks?"

"Haha, yes, that's the reason, because a hero is a humble gentleman who uses violence to eliminate injustice."

Unlike some people who advocate Shang Yang, the history books here not only directly point out the crimes of Shang Yang, but also highly praise the knights and scholars in the history books.

"The reason why Sima Gong wrote a separate biography for him was to express his belief that "one must keep one's word, one must fulfill one's deed, and one must be sincere in one's promise"; his determination to help those in need even at the cost of his own life; and his courage to fight against injustice without fear of the powerful.

Sima Gong hoped that this chivalrous spirit could be passed on, but this spirit is exactly what all rulers throughout history fear the most, so they will do everything possible to stigmatize this chivalrous spirit and suppress it.

The "Biographies of Knights and Assassins" has thus become a swan song. As for this kind of chivalrous spirit, it is not advocated, encouraged, and even needs to be suppressed.

Because the rulers want to maintain their rule, they need sheep that obey them, not chivalrous men who care about their country and the world.”

While expressing his feelings, Li Yian sighed helplessly and said in a sarcastic tone:
"But they are always so naive. You can't expect ordinary people to not fight back when they see bad guys, and to be able to resist invaders."

So... many people who understood and those who didn't understand were relieved at this moment, because all they needed was to obey.

All that is needed is indifference!

And this explains a lot of things.

Looking at her lover with a frown on his face, Margaret nestled in his arms, spread his frown with her fingers and said:

“Look, now you’ve changed them, haven’t you?
Even in the face of death, in the face of such danger, he was fearless. The spirit of chivalry has long been engraved in their hearts, don’t you think so? "

His wife's comfort made Li Yian's frown relax. He nodded and said:
"Yes, the lost spirit is reviving little by little."

Will the lost spirit be fully resurrected in their hearts?
In fact, what is needed is not the spirit of chivalry, but the spirit of freedom without shackles, only in this way can people's creativity be fully utilized. After all, whether now or in the future, what is needed to win this competition is innovation!
This kind of innovation is not just in science, but also in other aspects and fields.

In fact, what does he want to see deep down in his heart?

It is the Hundred Schools of Thought in the Pre-Qin Period!

Li Yian had no answer in his heart, but after watching the news on TV he understood that perhaps he was reviving little by little.

Just as he was sighing, the phone beside him rang. Li Yian picked up the phone and listened to the report from the other end. He frowned and said:

"What's going on? Why did you take so long to report it? What news are you waiting for? The most important thing now is to save lives."

After hanging up the phone, Li Yian looked at Margaret beside him and said:
"Something happened in Saigon. Our people were kidnapped."

Margaret was shocked by Li Yian's words and asked in a lost voice:

"What should we do? Who is the kidnapper? What are we doing in Saigon? Hasn't the National Tourism Administration marked it as a high-risk area?"

Saigon was already marked as a high-risk area two years ago. After all, it was in turmoil. Going to Saigon was not only a threat from guerrillas, but now there was also political turmoil. Since Wu Tingyan was overthrown, there have been successive coups in the area.

Under such circumstances, the National Tourism Administration has issued alarms time and time again, warning everyone that it is a high-risk area.

But even so, it cannot stop people from visiting Saigon.

After all, to a certain extent, it is a paradise for men.

"What would a freshly graduated college student do? He must be visiting the local area."

Li Yian answered directly.

"Of course, the most important thing now is to rescue him as soon as possible. As for other issues, I won't consider them for now."

When talking about rescue, Li Yian frowned, with a hint of anger in his expression.

In addition to anger, Li Yian felt more confused.

Because he found it hard to imagine that someone would dare to mess with his own people!

Don't they know what a SEA passport means?

Although there is no such sentence written on the back of the passport, everyone knows over the years that SEA is extremely concerned about the overseas rights and interests of its citizens.

And he is also famous for protecting his own people.

Even if a citizen of SEA breaks local laws overseas, the local representative will do everything possible to help him escape punishment.

The reason is simple. Among the duties of SEA foreign affairs officers, protecting their own citizens is their top priority.

If you don't show favoritism to your own people, how can you show favoritism to foreigners?

Therefore, even if they favor their own citizens and eventually lead to protests from other countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will approve of their actions.

Moreover, Li Yian mentioned on many occasions how Li Guoren had defended him in the beginning, of course, selectively ignoring the part in the middle.

Tell all foreign affairs officials from personal experience - what should they do?
It is also because of this that there is a tradition of protecting one's shortcomings.

Over time, countries will be able to accept SEA's practice of protecting its own shortcomings.

After all, some things can be accepted once you get used to them.

Because of this, Li Yian never thought that anyone would dare to kidnap his people.

But now this kind of thing happened.

Although he was puzzled, Li Yian once again emphasized:

"The most important thing now is to rescue him safely."

……

Saigon.

After entering the new year, the situation in Saigon became more turbulent and the shadow of war loomed over the entire country.

At the same time, with the large-scale influx of US troops, Saigon showed a kind of abnormal prosperity. As an important place for US troops to rest and entertain during holidays, the capital Saigon was a good place for US soldiers to have fun every night.

These American troops became the target of the guerrillas. They often appeared in the city, attacking American troops and American institutions. Even the embassies of some countries became the targets of the North Vietnamese suicide squads.

However, even so, Saigon was still extremely prosperous. It was full of lights and wine. Under the bright neon lights, women twisted their graceful bodies, while American soldiers, stimulated by alcohol, waved dollars in their hands, losing themselves in women, alcohol and drugs.

In a sense, this place is a paradise.

“This is a paradise where nothing is forbidden.”

Standing by the window on the second floor, watching the men and women swaying their bodies to the music on the dance floor, Ding Renjun said:

"Here, as long as you have money, you can enjoy everything in the world. There are no taboos. All your desires, even the dark side of your heart, can be satisfied."

Ding Renjun, holding a thick cigar in his mouth, cast his eyes towards one of the tables and said:

"Look, the young people at that table are most likely college students from a university in Chang'an or elites from a financial institution.

They come here from thousands of miles away just to enjoy life.”

For many young people in SEA, Saigon is like their paradise in life. They can enjoy everything here with very little money.

Therefore, every weekend, there are always many young people who come here at the risk of their lives and squander their youth.

Or just enjoy the beauty of life here.

"They are just a group of young people who don't know the dangers of the world."

Walking up to Ding Renjun, Ma Youfu said:

"I really envy them. They live in a peaceful time and have no idea of ​​the dangers of the world. Isn't this kind of peaceful time what we longed for in the past?"

Only those who have experienced war and turmoil will know how precious peace and order are, but sometimes they lose something as a result.

Ding Renjun smiled at his friend's words and said:
"Peaceful times are good, but you can't make any money."

Pointing at the dance hall downstairs with his hand holding a cigar, Ding Renjun said with a smile.

“If you want to make money, you have to go to places like this, because it’s chaotic enough, so there are all kinds of opportunities.

In times of peace, there are too few opportunities and too many rules.”

While feeling emotional, I just looked at the dance hall downstairs. People were twisting their waists there, some were having fun and enjoying themselves.

“But here, there are more opportunities because of the chaos.”

In this adventurer's paradise, he earned wealth that he could never imagine in his lifetime.

This was exactly why he came here in the first place!
(End of this chapter)