The Moon in the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 83 Theory of the Five Elements (Please read)
But before Zou Yan could reply, Ying Zheng continued, "It's just that, Mr. Zou Yan, I don't agree with one thing. Maybe you have gone astray."

Zou Yan frowned slightly and said, "Why do you say that, Your Highness?"

Ying Zheng chuckled: "Don't be anxious, sir. The mutual generation and mutual restraint of the five elements is highly recognized, and the five virtues are also recognized. However, the five virtues will not overcome each other, but only generate each other."

Zou Yan was stunned and asked hurriedly: "Your Highness, please explain in detail."

"Teacher once said that the five virtues are invincible, namely, Yu is earth, Xia is wood, Yin is gold, and Zhou is fire. The one who replaces fire must be water, and the number will move to earth. This is a big mistake. The virtues of the world can only generate each other, how can they overcome each other? Wouldn't that mean that rituals and music are broken, benevolence and righteousness are lost, and the country is taken by force? Where is the virtue?"

"If virtue is not there, what is the point of talking about the flow of virtue?"

"So it is right that the five virtues coexist."

"Tao is heaven and earth, which give rise to yin and yang. Yin and yang combine to form the three talents, which are heaven, earth and man. They are the Three Emperors. Yin and yang give rise to the five elements. This is the beginning of the five elements."

"The land and the people are based on earth, and yellow is the color of earth. It is located in the center, so Xuanyuan is the most virtuous and is named after the color yellow, the Yellow Emperor. The Yellow Emperor is the origin of the five virtues, not Dayu."

"After Huangdi came Emperor Zhuanxu, who was Huangdi's grandson. Huangdi rode a dragon to heaven. Emperor Zhuanxu established the calendar and defeated Gonggong. He was honored as the common leader for his virtue. It was the virtue of earth giving birth to gold. So it is a big mistake to say that the five virtues overcome each other. It is the five elements that give birth to each other."

"Further down, Emperor Ku has the virtue of water, Emperor Yao has the virtue of wood, Emperor Shun has the virtue of fire, and King Yu has the virtue of earth. Emperor Zhuanxu passed the throne to Emperor Ku, Emperor Ku passed the throne to Emperor Yao, Emperor Yao passed the throne to Emperor Shun, and Emperor Shun passed the throne to King Yu. This is all passed down through bloodlines and abdication. This is exactly the mutual generation of the five virtues."

"The heaven and earth exist forever, and destiny is endless. People are born from the heaven and earth. As the human race becomes stronger, its destiny will naturally increase. The previous dynasty lost its destiny, not because its destiny ended, but because its destiny became stronger and rotated. The previous dynasty was unable to bear a stronger destiny, so naturally the destiny rotated to the monarch who could bear this stronger destiny."

Zou Yan felt that it made so much sense!
Just as he was about to admire, he suddenly thought of a big question and asked, "That's not right. Emperor Ku is the wood virtue, how can he be the water virtue?"

Ying Zheng laughed and said, "This worldly people misunderstand. Emperor Ku divided the seasons into four parts, which made the people have good weather and good harvests. How can this be the virtue of wood? Water is the source of life. Emperor Ku governed like water, which must be the virtue of water."

"It is easy to tell that Emperor Yao established the solar terms calendar and the people lived and farmed in peace. This is the true virtue of wood."

"Emperor Shun was as benevolent as heaven, as wise as gods. He was like the sun when approached and like clouds when viewed from afar. He was rich but not arrogant, noble but not uncomfortable. He wore yellow clothes, rode a red carriage and a white horse. One can tell at a glance that he was of the virtue of fire. And look at King Yu, who controlled floods and ruled the world. Earth conquers water, so he must be of the virtue of earth, for only fire can give birth to earth."

Zou Yan nodded heavily and clapped his hands in admiration: "That's right, the Five Emperors are just a reincarnation."

Zou Yan then said excitedly: "So, Xia is the virtue of earth, Shang is the virtue of gold, Zhou is the virtue of water, and the next one to replace water must be wood."

At this point, Zou Yan thought to himself: "Wood is the east, could it be Qi? Qi only had two cities left but was able to restore its country, and it was always rich and was once called the Eastern Emperor. Yes, Qi is right."

Seeing Zou Yan lost in thought, Ying Zheng was afraid that he might think of something else, so he quickly said, "And from what I think, all kinds of virtues are not simply based on the four directions. People are not plants or trees, and they can live in all directions. Therefore, we should look at the administrative virtues of the country. For example, our Great Qin is mainly based on farming and warfare, with farming as the first priority. It is also surrounded by mountains and rivers. Great Qin is the wood virtue."

When Ying Zheng said this, his meaning was already obvious.

Zou Yan came back to his senses at this time and smiled, "Your Highness, what you said makes sense. I have benefited a lot from it. It is true that I have been stuck in a dead end and have gone astray. The virtues of the world are indeed the mutual generation of the five elements, not the victory of the five elements." "As for the virtues of the Qin Dynasty and even the virtues of the vassal states, I dare not speak nonsense. Please forgive me, Your Highness."

Ying Zheng smiled and said, "Sir, you are very talented. With your knowledge, you should know the will of heaven. I have received secrets from heaven many times. The daughter of Shennong, the goddess Jingwei, appeared in my dream. The wood virtue is prosperous. The Great Qin must be the wood virtue."

When Zou Yan heard this, he felt that it made sense. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had an extraordinary appearance, noble features, and had been blessed by heaven several times, so it was impossible for him to fake it. He had never heard of someone who had faked it several times. Moreover, these were not some empty things. What he brought out were things that would truly benefit the world. These things could not be faked.

If the dream of Emperor Shennong is true, then the Qin State was truly prosperous in the virtue of wood.

Zou Yan smiled and said, "Your Highness, what you said makes sense. Please allow me to go back and think about it. I have learned a lot today."

Ying Zheng laughed and said, "Sir, what are you talking about? How can I say I am learning from you? I am just discussing this. How can I give you any advice when you are so talented? I just have a little understanding of your principles."

Zou Yan was very pleased. The humble manner of the Crown Prince was truly worthy of a king, no less than that of King Zhao of Yan.

Ying Zheng continued, "If you think what I am thinking makes sense, you can go back and study it carefully. I am waiting for you at any time. Your Majesty is eager to recruit talented people. If you are interested in joining Qin, your Majesty will be overjoyed and will honor you and use you."

Zou Yan replied: "I thank the king and His Highness very much, but I am too old to be of such high rank."

Ying Zheng said: "As long as you are willing, the Qin will not force you to do so. Even if you just want to settle down in the Qin, the Qin will be more than happy."

"Sir, you can go back and study the theory of the mutual generation of the five virtues. The people of the world are in urgent need of your great theory. Your reputation is well-known throughout the world. If you are interested, I am willing to help you write and publish a book. Your talent will educate the world, which is a great merit."

Zou Yan was quite excited by these words. He thought his theory was the most suitable for spreading. He would not mind being too famous. Fame meant influence, and having great influence would make it easier to get things done.

But there is no rush. What His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said today makes some sense. It is easier for ordinary people, and most importantly, the king to accept. I need to go back and study and revise the theory.

Zou Yan said, "I would like to thank Your Highness first, but I have benefited a lot today, and some of my theories need to be revised and improved. I will discuss this with Your Highness in detail after I write a new book."

He smiled again and said, "Speaking of which, the punctuation marks that Your Highness created are indeed perfect and convenient for readers all over the world."

Ying Zheng said modestly: "No, it's just a slight improvement, this is just a small trick."

"Sir, if you say so, I feel relieved and will wait for good news."

After Zou Yan left, Ying Zheng thought: "No one can give up easily after a lifetime of hard work. This theory of Yin and Yang and the Five Virtues is Zou Yan's life's hard work, and he cannot ignore it."

　(The five elements overcome each other, which means the five elements restrain each other. The theory of the five elements and the five virtues has its own interpretation. In today's era, it is not worth talking about. It was originally made up by the feudal ruling class to claim the Mandate of Heaven. Sometimes they are mutually beneficial, sometimes they are mutually restraining, and sometimes they are difficult to resolve, so they directly kicked out a certain dynasty or a certain king. Especially in the Han Dynasty, it changed several times, which is really ridiculous. The theory of the five virtues was originally to serve the feudal ruling class, so the author of this article gave it free rein.)
　　
　
(End of this chapter)