Yefutidaolu

Chapter 358 Human Nature

"I'm all ears." Xia Youdu bowed slightly.

Gao Jian asked, "Xia Youdu, do you think kindness, evil, ruthlessness, gentleness, irritability, and calmness are all human traits?"

Xia Youdu was slightly taken aback: "Isn't it human nature?" She was indeed confused.

In her view, the downfall of the Wei and Wang families was the result of the "evil" nature of humanity—greed, suspicion, and selfishness—being ignited by the lure of enormous profits.

What Gao Jian did was simply to precisely pluck that string.

"What is human nature?" Gao Jian asked again.

Xia Youdu certainly has the answer.

As a true successor of the Netherworld, she was well-versed in various scriptures, and naturally had her own views on human nature.
So she blurted out, “Of course, this is human nature. Young master, human nature is inherently complex and difficult to define; it is neither purely good nor purely evil, but rather a mixture of both. As the ancient sages said, benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom are the four virtues inherent in human beings; however, humans are born with desires, a love of profit and a hatred of evil. If these desires are indulged without restraint, they will inevitably lead to strife and violence. Both of these reside within the heart. Human nature is like an abyss, unfathomable, containing both the light of compassion and benevolence and the darkness of greed and violence. What you have done, young master, is merely… to understand the latter and to guide it accordingly.”

After she finished speaking, she held her breath slightly, awaiting a insightful response. This was the most classical and explanatory answer she could give.

She gathered her thoughts and continued, "Compassion is a virtue possessed by all; shame is a virtue possessed by all; respect is a virtue possessed by all; and the ability to distinguish right from wrong is a virtue possessed by all. Compassion is benevolence; shame is a virtue; respect is a virtue; and the ability to distinguish right from wrong is a virtue. Benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom are not instilled from the outside; they are inherent within us, we simply do not think about them."

"Human nature is inherently good, that's all."

"However, even with good roots, there are also evil roots. Human nature is inherently inclined to seek profit. When this is followed, contention arises and yielding disappears. Human nature is inherently inclined to hate evil. When this is followed, cruelty arises and loyalty disappears. Human nature is inherently inclined to desire sights and sounds and to enjoy sensual pleasures. When this is followed, licentiousness arises and propriety and reason disappear. Therefore, following human nature and indulging human desires will inevitably lead to contention, transgression of boundaries and disorder, and ultimately to violence."

"Humans are inherently good and evil, and each person changes accordingly; that's all there is to it."

Isn't this the best interpretation? Kindness, evil, ruthlessness, gentleness, irritability, calmness... all these seemingly contradictory traits are rooted in the complex soil of human nature.

Seeing good deeds is a testament to the light of humanity; witnessing evil deeds is a lament for the darkness of humanity.

Such is human nature. What Gao Jian did was simply to discern the most easily ignited and destructive part of human nature—the evil nature of seeking advantage and avoiding harm, selfishness, suspicion, and distrust—and to detonate it.

Gao Jian listened quietly.

After listening, he asked, "Then do you know? Good seeds? Evil desires? They are all false, they don't exist."

Xia Youdu frowned.

"You say human nature is complex, containing opposites such as good and evil. Then let me ask you, when Fang Jun whipped his servant to death because he coveted your beauty, was the 'evil' surging in his heart something he was born with, something inherently called 'evil,' that suddenly awakened at that moment? Or was it a habit and a sense of entitlement he had developed over a long period of time as the eldest son, spoiled by his family, with unchecked power and boundless desires?"

"When the Wei family elder saw the forged 'secret meeting' that showed the Wang family was planning to attack them, was the suspicion and murderous intent that erupted in his heart the demon called 'suspicion' that jumped out from the depths of his soul? Or was it a judgment he made based on his understanding of the Wang family's past behavior, his anxiety about the current distribution of huge interests, and the 'coincidence' of the timing of the appearance of that 'evidence', which he believed best served his own and his family's interests?"

"When the Liu family expressed their gratitude to me, were their smiles a genuine expression of their 'kindness'? Or were they simply because I 'helped' them eliminate a major threat and satisfied their expansionist desires, and they felt it was worthwhile to maintain a relationship with me, a 'useful person,' through smiles and flattery?"

As he said this, Gao Jian looked up at the horizon: "Kindness? Evil? Ruthlessness? Gentleness? These words are just labels that later generations put on to describe the results of actions and the feelings of the observers, not the true nature of things."

"To attribute everything to human nature, to lament the darkness and light of human nature after these things happen, is irresponsible and misses the point."

Xia Youdu's gaze involuntarily fell on Gao Jian's back.

Ultimately, human nature depends on the environment in which it is placed, the shaping process it undergoes, and the circumstances and choices it faces.

"Fang Jun's 'evil' is the result of his status as the eldest son of the Fang family, the family's pampering and indulgence, and his lack of effective self-discipline and moral education over a long period of time."

"The suspicion of the Wei family elders is the result of the combined effects of the fragile alliance between the two families, the lure of huge interests, and the 'poison' that I cleverly put into the cup through you."

"The smiles of the Liu family members are the 'expressions' that best reflect their survival and expansion instincts when their interests are satisfied, and are most in line with the current situation."

"Even your current confusion and doubts about my theories are the result of your educational background in the realm of the living and the dead, what you have seen and heard during your time with me, and your own thirst for knowledge in trying to understand the world."

"The 'compassion,' 'shame,' 'profit,' and 'dislike' that you speak of... these things that you call 'human nature' are results, not causes." Gao Jian paused, as if organizing his thoughts: "To reduce them to 'the complexity of human nature' is as shallow as seeing water flowing downhill and saying that water has a 'downward tendency'."

Xia Youdu remained silent, simply listening, but her eyes clearly flickered with something.

"Good and evil are merely labels used to describe behavior and choices. They are not the 'sex' that humans are born with, but rather survival strategies that people have to or subconsciously adopt in order to survive, to live better, or simply to avoid worse outcomes under specific environments, specific rules, and specific pressures."

"Just like a wolf preying on a sheep, would you say that the wolf is inherently evil? No, it is simply hungry and needs to survive. When a flock of sheep scatters and flees when a wolf comes, even pushing their companions into the wolf's jaws, would you say that the sheep are inherently cowardly and selfish? No, they simply want to live, or to ensure the survival of their offspring. On the scales of life and death, the labels of 'good' and 'evil' are as light as a feather."

“The Fang family, the Liu family, the Wei family, the Wang family…” Gao Jian’s gaze swept across the distant flames of war. “What are they fighting for? Resources, space for survival and development, and the right to ensure their families’ continuation on this cruel land! Fang Jun is violent because, under the family rules, he believes that killing an insignificant servant will not have consequences, and can even vent his emotions and maintain his ‘authority’—this is the survival strategy he considers effective in the Fang family environment. Fang Qian is conservative and conciliatory because he knows that the family is unstable internally and surrounded by powerful enemies externally, and any radical ‘decisive killing’ could accelerate the collapse—this is the survival strategy he, as the head of the family, chose in that position, which he believes is the safest.” "The Liu family made their move to reap the rewards because the Fang family revealed a fatal weakness. The enormous wealth was within reach, easily attainable! If they didn't take it, it might fall into the hands of other families, and they themselves would suffer the consequences—this was a choice forced upon them by the circumstances of the world! The Wei and Wang families swore an alliance and then betrayed each other because that wealth was too vast, so vast that any 'trust' would become fragile and vulnerable! They suspected and schemed against each other not because they were born with the evil seed of 'betrayal,' but because this is the way of the world! Resources are limited, and people's hearts are unpredictable. Strike first, or suffer the consequences! This is a law etched into the bones of everyone on this land through countless bloody lessons!"

Gao Jian's voice gradually turned cold: "You say I stirred up the evil in human nature? You're wrong. This is just the rule that this 'world' operates under—scarce resources, supremacy of strength, survival of the fittest, and a chain of suspicion! All I did was give this rule a gentle push."

"I exposed the Fang family's 'failure to manage their subordinates' to their servants, and I showed the Liu family the Fang family the fatal flaw of being 'outwardly strong but inwardly weak,' as well as the insane wealth that followed the annexation—the world has taught them that opportunities are fleeting, and those who do not seize them perish! I provided the Wei and Wang families with seemingly irrefutable 'evidence' for their pre-existing suspicions based on enormous interests and past conflicts—the rules of the world have long taught them that allies are only temporary, interests are eternal, and those who act first live, those who act later die!"

"Good and evil are just froth. What sinks to the bottom is the cold reality—such is the world, and survival is difficult. Every person, every family, is desperately searching for a place not to be crushed in this huge, cold millstone. The so-called 'evil of human nature' is nothing more than the blood foam that inevitably splashes out when this cold millstone turns."

"So," Gao Jian looked at Xia Youdu, whose worldview seemed to have been turned upside down, and asked calmly, "Do you still think it's a problem with 'human nature' itself? Or is it the world that forces people to make such choices, struggle so much, and oppress each other so much...?"

Xia Youdu opened her mouth, but couldn't say a word.

In the distance, the roaring sounds of the Wei and Wang families fighting each other sounded like the muffled thud of a giant millstone turning.

And she, and Gao Jian, were merely on this millstone, pushing the grinding wheel, whether actively or passively.

The fading embers and thick smoke from the mutual slaughter between the Wei and Wang families served as a vivid backdrop to this scene.

The sound was no longer the simple roar of battle, but had completely transformed into the suffocating wail of the giant "millstone of worldly affairs" turning.

Whether she and Gao Jian acted voluntarily or passively, they were merely tiny beings on this millstone, either pushing the grinding wheel or about to be crushed.

"So you see, the reason it's like this is because of the state of the world," Gao Jian sighed.

That's how the world is, and that's how people are.

The essence of human nature is not an abstraction inherent in any single individual; in its reality, it is the sum total of all social relations.

Human sociality encompasses all the characteristics that have been formed throughout the long history of social practice.

Human nature is not innate, but gradually formed and developed through long-term social practice. As society develops and people gain more experience, their social nature also changes.

Ultimately, human nature is formed in the struggle against the outside world and in the transformation of nature, and all human behaviors are carried out on the basis of the satisfaction of natural needs.

Therefore, humans are a product of both natural and social development, and an organic unity of social and natural attributes.

Human nature is social; whether good or evil, it cannot be separated from society, and they are inextricably linked.

Goodness arises from society, and evil arises from society—the kind of society a person belongs to determines the kind of human nature they possess.

"Society" is a product of the entire world system, meaning that the state of society determines the laws of social development, which are independent of human will.

Therefore, a corrupt world is a breeding ground for the "evil" in human nature, and a time when the "good" in human nature is suppressed to the point that it cannot survive.

If the world is peaceful and prosperous, people will naturally be honest and upright, society will naturally develop healthily, and human nature will be inclined towards goodness.

"Human nature is never an abstract concept inherent in an individual. In its reality, it is the sum total of all social relations! It is this giant net woven from blood ties, interests, power, class, culture, etc. that binds everyone tightly within it, shaping their thoughts, desires, and behaviors. In the struggles, compromises, and conflicts that people undergo after birth, they are constantly shaped, distorted, and solidified."

Xia Youdu felt a wave of dizziness: "Is it all the world's fault? Don't people themselves... have any faults at all? Are they all just victims under this millstone, unable to control their own lives?"

If everything is the fault of the world, then wouldn't Fang Jun's tyranny, the Prince of Wei's suspicion, and the Liu family's greed all have excuses? What about her own struggles and choices?
Gao Jian replied matter-of-factly, “Being influenced by the world and shaped by the environment is only human nature. But to blame everything on the world and comfortably drift along with it, or even actively embrace the darkness, is the biggest mistake! The world is like this, so are you? Don't you have any opinions of your own? Won't you resist the world?”

"Resist?" Xia Youdu was completely confused. Gao Jian's train of thought jumped too quickly, and she couldn't keep up.

Gao Jian's voice suddenly rose: "It's actually very simple! Since this world forces people to become ghosts, forces people to tear each other apart, and forces kindness to have nowhere to hide... then why can't people turn the tables and force this world to become something else?!"

"Change...the world?" Xia Youdu murmured, her heart feeling as if it had been struck by a heavy hammer! The power and ambition contained in those four words far exceeded her previous imagination!

Gao Jian did not answer immediately, but simply looked away, interrupted the conversation, and dusted himself off, his movements casual and composed.

"gone."

"The four pillars of the North have perished, and the dust has settled. It's time to return to the realm of the living and the dead to report back."

(End of this chapter)