The Three Kingdoms: Hindsight is 20/20, and the Three Revivals of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 53 The Han dynasty had its own system, which was originally a mixture of hegemonic and benevolent rule; Liu Bei understood this.

"Ha ha ha ha--"

When Xu Shu brought back the grain, weapons, able-bodied men, and old soldiers that Zang Ba had gifted him, Liu Bei, Zhuge Liang, and the others all laughed heartily.

Even Guan Yu, who was usually stern and unsmiling, had a smile on his lips.

Zhang Fei exclaimed, "Brother, we can't be biased! Zang Ba, the Chancellor of Langya, has already given gifts. How can we not give gifts to Wu Dun, the Prefect of Licheng, Yin Li, the Prefect of Dongguan, Sun Guan, the Chancellor of Beihai, and Sun Kang, the Prefect of Chengyang?"

Although Zhang Fei's words made sense, Liu Bei always prioritized benevolence and righteousness.

He couldn't help but gently scold, "Third brother, you mustn't be rude! We are heading north for the sake of the country and its people. I already feel unworthy to receive the gifts from Minister Zang for the sake of the country and its people. How can I ask Wu Dun and the others for more? Don't mention it again!"

Zhang Fei's enthusiasm was dampened, and he muttered dejectedly, "To say that Zang Ba presented the gift for the sake of the country and the state is just my elder brother giving Zang Ba face; Zang Ba is loyal to Cao Cao, not the Han Dynasty, so how can he be related to the country and the state?"

"In my opinion, such people are no different from bandits. Why should they be polite when they ask bandits for grain and weapons?"

Rough words are not rough.

Although Zang Ba was the Chancellor of Langya and Wu Dun and others also became prefects and chancellors, it was an established fact that Zang Ba and others came from bandit backgrounds and were loyal to Cao Cao.

For Zhang Fei, scholars were worthy of respect, while bandits were not.

If it weren't for his lack of strength, Zhang Fei would have preferred to launch a "bandit suppression" campaign: defeat the bandits, seize their grain to feed the army, please the court, please the people, and it would be a matter of course.

See this.

Zhuge Liang advised him: "Since the time of Duke Xiang of Song, popular opinion has been that the military prowess of a true king is useless to later generations. Considering the lesson of Duke Xiang of Song, later generations generally believe that one cannot establish oneself in the world without cunning and deception."

"I believe that Duke Xiang of Song did not possess the virtues and cultivation of a benevolent person, yet he suddenly stole the reputation of benevolence to deceive future generations. He had no real righteous army but wanted to use the name of a righteous army. How could he not fail?"

"However, historical books like the Spring and Autumn Annals do not correct this, but only blame Duke Xiang of Song for his lack of foresight and insufficient precautions, which led to his death and the loss of his state. They only consider the appearance and not the essence, which misleads later generations."

"General, you possess the virtue of benevolence and righteousness, and you establish yourself in the world based on benevolence and righteousness. If you can restore order to the chaotic world, then people who pursue benevolence and righteousness will follow your example, and the army of a king can be used for future generations."

"If this is true, future generations will no longer have evil like Cao Cao who slaughtered people in Xuzhou and still managed to dominate a region. People will all emulate the general and restore order to the chaotic world with benevolence and righteousness. Even if dynasties change, the killing will be reduced."

"General, you are not Duke Xiang of Song. You do not need to emulate Duke Xiang's foolish benevolence."

Zhuge Liang did not directly refute Liu Bei's benevolence and righteousness.

Instead, based on the concept of benevolence and righteousness, taking Duke Xiang of Song as an example, the benevolence and righteousness of Duke Xiang of Song are belittled as foolish benevolence and righteousness, and elevated to the point that as long as Liu Bei can "restore the chaotic world with the substance of benevolence and righteousness", then later generations will emulate Liu Bei's benevolence and righteousness.

At the same time, the example of Cao Cao's massacre of Xuzhou is used to express the view that if later generations follow the "benevolence and righteousness of Liu Bei," they can reduce the killing in war and bring blessings to future generations.

Most importantly: Liu Bei must restore order to the chaotic world!

Only by restoring order to the chaotic world can Liu Bei's benevolence and righteousness become a model for educating future generations!
The main reason why Liu Xiu's oath at the Luo River was revered by scholars as the most sublime oath is that Liu Xiu revived the Han Dynasty!

The main reason why Sima Yi's oath at the Luo River was so repulsive to scholars was that Sima Yi and his descendants usurped the Wei throne and established the Jin dynasty. Even if Sima Yi and his descendants had not usurped the Wei throne and established the Jin dynasty, given Cao Shuang's deceitful and domineering behavior towards the young emperor, Sima Yi, despite breaking the oath at the Luo River, would still be considered someone who "disregarded personal honor and disgrace, and was willing to go through fire and water for the Cao family for generations."

Liu Bei's eyes turned serious.

Liu Bei was not one to stick to his principles.

Liu Bei's understanding of benevolence and righteousness has changed over the years.

As a poor student who had once been a market vendor selling mats and shoes in Zhuojun, a leader of wandering knights, and a leader of righteous soldiers, Liu Bei could not have learned the meaning of benevolence and righteousness from books on his own, much less have known what benevolence and righteousness meant from the beginning.

His standards of speech and conduct were influenced by his mentor Lu Zhi, his close friend Qian Zhao, his classmate Gongsun Zan, Liu Yu, the governor of Youzhou, Tian Kai, the governor of Qingzhou, Kong Rong, the chancellor of Beihai, and Zheng Xuan, a famous scholar from Dongzhou.

Only through continuous learning and improvement can Liu Bei, a man of virtue and wisdom, be righteous and benevolent, benevolent and wise today.

Some have summarized that Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were able to become Liu Bei's right-hand men because Guan Yu learned Liu Bei's kindness to his soldiers and Zhang Fei learned Liu Bei's respect for scholars. However, because Liu Bei's understanding of benevolence and righteousness was constantly evolving, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei failed to keep up. As a result, Guan Yu developed the habit of treating his soldiers well but not respecting scholars, while Zhang Fei developed the habit of respecting scholars but not caring for commoners.

After meeting Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, and Xu Shu, Liu Bei's understanding of benevolence and righteousness deepened.

Therefore, after hearing Zhuge Liang's advice, Liu Bei had a new realization: as long as one has the essence of benevolence and righteousness, even if one acts cunningly, one will not lose the essence of benevolence and righteousness.

As recorded in historical records, when Emperor Xuan of Han reprimanded the crown prince for his overly close relationship with Confucian scholars, he said: "The Han dynasty has its own system, which is a mixture of the ways of the hegemon and the king. Why should we rely solely on moral teachings and adopt the policies of the Zhou dynasty?"
"The strategist is right!"

Liu Bei agreed with Zhuge Liang's advice and also agreed with Zhang Fei's statement: "Zang Ba, the Chancellor of Langya, has already given gifts. How can Wu Dun, the Prefect of Licheng, Yin Li, the Prefect of Dongguan, Sun Guan, the Chancellor of Beihai, and Sun Kang, the Prefect of Chengyang, not give gifts?"

Zhang Fei's dejection vanished instantly, replaced by a boastful declaration: "Brother, I'll go find Wu Dun and the others! They'll definitely need just as many supplies as Zhuge Liang and Xu Yun!"

But as soon as he said that, Zhang Fei felt Liu Bei's sharp gaze and shrank back again.

Wu Dun and the others were not scholars, so Liu Bei dared not let Zhang Fei go to Wu Dun and the others alone to ask for supplies. If a conflict broke out, it would be a small matter if Liu Bei did not get the supplies, but a big matter if it involved tens of thousands of scholars.

You can't expect Wu Dun and his gang, who are bandits from Mount Tai, to talk about benevolence and righteousness with tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians after being provoked by Zhang Fei.
at this time.

Mi Zhu volunteered, saying, "When I was in the East Sea, I had some old friendship with Wu Dun. I am willing to go to Licheng."

Zhang Fei grinned and chimed in, "Zizhong is going to Licheng, how can he go without fierce warriors to protect him? Brother, I'll go with Zizhong! Brother, I promise I'll listen to Zizhong!"

Liu Bei looked helplessly at Mi Zhu.

Only after Mi Zhu agreed did he agree to let Zhang Fei go with him.

Fearing that Zhang Fei might cause trouble, Liu Bei once again instructed and promised: "If Wu Dun is willing to give gifts, you two can go directly north to Dongguan, Chengyang, and the southern part of Beihai Kingdom to persuade Yin Li, Sun Kang, and Sun Guan."

"You must remember this: never resort to violence! It's easy for you to vent your anger, but I'll have to apologize, otherwise tens of thousands of people will suffer because of me."

Zhang Fei repeatedly assured him, "Don't worry, brother! I definitely won't resort to violence!"

　Please vote for me and read it later
　　
　
(End of this chapter)