A live-streamed Chinese language lesson under the sky—the ancients were taken aback.

Ying Zheng looked at the four characters "The Sage Has No Name" and fell silent.

He unified the six kingdoms, and inscribed his achievements on stone tablets; the inscriptions on the Langya Terrace all describe his monumental accomplishments.

He sought immortality and sent Xu Fu to sea in search of immortals.

He built the Lishan Mausoleum, hoping to have his name engraved in eternity.

But the heavens told him that his empire would only last fifteen years.

The perfect man has no self, the divine man has no merit, and the sage has no name.

These three sentences were like three needles, piercing the deepest part of his heart.

He is not a saint, he is an emperor.

An emperor cannot be without merit or fame.

He can't.

Chang'an, Taiji Hall.

Li Shimin was arguing with Wei Zheng.

To be precise, it was Wei Zheng who was submitting his memorial, and Li Shimin who was being patient.

Today's case concerns Pei Rengui, the magistrate of Hu County, who privately employed his gatekeeper. This lowly magistrate had his gatekeeper chop firewood for his family. When Wei Zheng learned of this, he wrote a lengthy memorial of eight hundred words, saying that although this matter was small, it concerned the governance of officials, the hearts of the people, and the safety of the nation. His Majesty must investigate it carefully and take it seriously.

Li Shimin listened patiently until the end, and was about to say "Granted" when dawn broke.

"In the Northern Ocean there is a fish, its name is Kun. Kun is so large that no one knows how many thousands of miles it spans. It transforms into a bird, its name is Peng..."

The enormous bird flew out from the sea of ​​clouds, and Wei Zheng's voice abruptly stopped.

Both of them looked up at the same time.

Li Shimin watched for a while, then suddenly laughed.

"Minister Wei, look at this estate. People say, 'What do these two insects know?' Look at it, doesn't it resemble you? You look at me like you look at a roc, always feeling that I'm flying too high and too far, about to crash. You're like that cicada..."

He didn't finish speaking.

Because Wei Zheng's face had already hardened, and his expression clearly said: Your Majesty, if you continue to joke about this old minister, tomorrow's memorials will be doubled.

Li Shimin wisely shut his mouth, but a smile still lingered on his lips.

Later, Zhi Wubu Yan spoke of "the perfect man has no self, the divine man has no merit, the sage has no name," and that Zhuangzi would rather wallow in the mud than go to the temple, and that true freedom is "having nothing to rely on."

Li Shimin's smile gradually faded.

"Sages are nameless." He murmured these four words, then shook his head.

"I cannot do it."

Wei Zheng turned to look at him.

Li Shimin did not look at Wei Zheng.

He gazed at the sky, his voice soft, as if talking to himself.

"I killed my brothers and seized the throne. I did these things not for fame or glory, or at least not entirely. But I know that future generations will not only look at my Zhenguan era, they will look at the Xuanwu Gate Incident."

Wei Zheng was silent for a moment, then said, "Your Majesty cares about the opinions of future generations."

Li Shimin remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

Wei Zheng said, "Your Majesty cares about the evaluation of future generations, which is not what Zhuangzi meant by 'the sage has no name,' but Your Majesty cares about the lives of the people, which is something even better than being a 'sage.'"

Li Shimin turned to look at him, somewhat surprised.

Wei Zheng bowed slightly, expressionless, and said, "Your subject takes his leave."

He turned and left.

As Li Shimin watched Wei Zheng's retreating figure, he suddenly felt that the old stubborn man's words today seemed to have a bit more warmth than usual.

The voice of speaking freely rang out once again.

"Students, I know that many of you think Zhuangzi is mysterious, hard to understand, and far removed from life."

But I want to say one thing: Zhuangzi's philosophy was never about escaping the world, but about finding inner freedom amidst numerous constraints.

He paused for a moment, then his tone became more sincere.

"There is something very special about Chinese philosophy."

Western philosophy, starting from ancient Greece, has been asking the question: What is the world?

Thales said the world was made of water, Heraclitus said the world was made of fire, and Democritus said the world was made of atoms.

They are studying the objective world.

"But Chinese philosophy, starting from the pre-Qin period, has been exploring another question: how should one live?"

The scene shifts, revealing a list of names of pre-Qin philosophers: Confucius, Mencius, Mozi, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Fei… Each name represents a reflection on the meaning of life and social order.

Confucius's answer is benevolence, propriety, and the proper relationships between ruler and subject, father and son.

Mozi's answer was universal love, non-aggression, meritocracy, and frugality.

Mencius's answer was that human nature is good, benevolent governance, and a righteous spirit.

Han Fei's answer was the rule of law, tactics, and rewards and punishments.

Lao Tzu's answer is Tao, nature, and non-action.

"And Zhuangzi's answer..." Zhiwu paused for a moment, "was carefree wandering."

"Every answer is a tributary of the great river of Chinese philosophy."

They interact, complement each other, and question each other, ultimately forming a unique way of thinking.

Chinese people's contemplation of life is never isolated.

We always consider humanity within the context of the universe, society, and history.

"Therefore, there has always been a powerful force for self-settlement in Chinese philosophy."

What is self-sufficiency? It is finding inner peace and strength even in chaotic times, in adversity, and in times of hardship.

He opened his textbook and turned to the last few pages of "Free and Easy Wandering".

"Zhuangzi's philosophy of carefree wandering is precisely the most unique of all these philosophical paths."

He did not provide specific moral guidelines like Confucius, nor did he offer a rigorous institutional design like Han Fei, nor did he loudly advocate universal love and non-aggression like Mozi.

He was simply telling a story about a fish turning into a bird, about a flock of small birds mocking a large bird, about a carefree state of being indifferent to fame and fortune, and in harmony with the natural order of the universe.

He closed his textbook, his tone becoming calm and resolute.

"He spoke so softly, as softly as a feather, but that feather landed on the hearts of all who read it, and it hasn't fallen to the ground in 2,300 years."

[If it hasn't been implemented in 2,300 years, then it wasn't meant to be implemented, and there will never be an answer.]

That's so well said!

Suddenly, I realized that "Free and Easy Wandering" wasn't so difficult after all. It's not about memorizing it, but about thinking about it—thinking about whether you want to be a cicada or a roc.

……

"So, let's go back to the question we started with." Knowing Everything reopened the textbook. "What exactly was Zhuangzi trying to say? 'In the Northern Darkness there is a fish, which transforms into a Peng bird, soaring ninety thousand miles high.' What was he talking about?"

He held up one finger.

He was saying that the world is bigger than we think.

You may think that the pond is the whole world, but beyond the pond are rivers, beyond the rivers are the sea, beyond the sea is the sky, and beyond the sky is the infinite universe.

Don't let the elm and oak trees in front of you define the boundaries of your view of the world.

He raised his second finger.

He was saying, "Don't be bound by worldly standards."

Fame, fortune, and power are what most people pursue, but they are not the only way to live.

You can choose not to follow it, you can choose to see different things, and take a different path.

He raised his third finger.

He was saying that true freedom is not about doing whatever you want, but about not being bound by external evaluations and internal biases.

You don't need others to say you're good, nor do you need to think you're amazing.

You are you, living freely and naturally in accordance with the original state of heaven and earth.

This is the carefree state of "being without dependence" that Zhuangzi spoke of.

He lowered his hand and smiled slightly.

"Two thousand three hundred years have passed, time flies, but everyone who reads 'Free and Easy Wandering' will be struck by that sea of ​​clouds and that roc at some point, and will begin to ask themselves at some point, 'Can I also fly once?'"

The light from the sky gradually receded.

The vast expanse of blue sky slowly shrank, eventually turning into darkness.

The sea of ​​clouds disappeared, and so did the roc.

Only a few scattered stars remained in the vast night sky.