Chapter 237: His Majesty’s Will

Fang Jifan found it incredible.

If his brain illness had not acted up, then… he remembered he had not had deep conversations with Wang Shouren.

These days, his disciples spent all day at the Hanlin Academy. At night, they hurried to the Western Hills. Early the next morning, they boarded their sedan chairs, took naps inside, and went straight to their duties at the Hanlin Academy! They had very little time to communicate.

But seeing how tearfully grateful Wang Shouren was, Fang Jifan felt truly confused.

At that moment, Wang Shouren still had tears in his eyes and sighed emotionally. He said, “At first, this disciple could not understand why Mentor wanted us to come to the Western Hills to teach. This disciple had complaints about Mentor. This disciple thought, we were already exhausted from working all day at the Hanlin Academy, yet we had to travel back and forth like this just to teach a group of children. It was a terrible waste of our talents.”

“But today, this disciple suddenly realized Mentor’s deep intentions. Mentor wanted to teach this disciple a crucial principle. This disciple had already grasped the concepts of ‘The Great Way is Simple’ and ‘Unity of Knowledge and Action’ from Mentor. However, one thing remained unclear. Could one truly pursue the Great Way just by understanding ‘The Great Way is Simple’ and ‘Unity of Knowledge and Action’?”

“No. Before ‘The Great Way is Simple’ and ‘Unity of Knowledge and Action,’ there was another principle. This… was the essence of Mentor’s teachings.”

Fang Jifan’s small frame trembled. “Go on,” he said.

“Empathy!” Wang Shouren spoke the four words seriously, a sharp light suddenly shining in his eyes.

“What is the Way? The Way of the Sages lies in Benevolent Governance. To implement Benevolent Governance and pursue the great order of the world, one must achieve the Unity of Knowledge and Action. But how does one gain knowledge? The so-called knowledge does not make the principles of the Sages more complex. Rather, it penetrates to the essence of the Way of the Sages, simplifying it. This is ‘The Great Way is Simple.’ But why should a person pursue Benevolent Governance? If one does not pursue Benevolent Governance, then what use are ‘The Great Way is Simple’ and ‘Unity of Knowledge and Action’?”

“This is what Mentor wanted this disciple to comprehend—the Heart of Empathy. The purpose of pursuing Benevolent Governance is for the people. Therefore, the people are the foundation. But if Scholars do not understand the people, their so-called Benevolent Governance is just empty talk, sitting around discussing the Way.”

Fang Jifan’s body trembled again. Damn, you can theorize about this too, and do it so systematically?

Indeed, there was a reason why a Sage like Wang Shouren appeared only once in hundreds of years. He could always analyze anything into points one, two, three, four, five, and six. Then he would contemplate, oh, for now he was just pondering randomly, then he would analyze, and finally summarize it all into a theory.

It was… amazing.

Wang Shouren continued, “This disciple came to the Western Hills and taught the children. This disciple also interacted with the miners and farmers of the Western Hills. Only then did this disciple realize that what they truly pursued was not some peaceful golden age, nor some Benevolent Governance, nor the Sages’ great order of the world. They did not think about those things. What they saw was whether they could eat an extra piece of meat today, or whether they could buy a new set of clothes for their wives and children tomorrow. We often say that the so-called great order means no one picks up lost items on the road and doors are not bolted at night. This disciple used to deeply believe that.”

“But now, this disciple knows… it was wrong, completely wrong. The essence of the great order of the world lies in addressing the urgent needs of the people, thinking what the people think. The outcome that Scholars desire is not the outcome the common people desire. The great order that Scholars pursue stems more from their own needs rather than the true needs of the common people.”

“This disciple then thought further. When this disciple was studying, this disciple also thought that if the people could all reach a state where no one picked up lost items on the road and doors were not bolted at night, that would be the great order of the world. But later, this disciple understood that this was merely the great order as this disciple envisioned it. Because this disciple had never experienced hunger, this disciple naturally did not think that the great order should mean everyone had enough to eat. Because this disciple had never suffered from cold, this disciple did not think that the common people having new clothes to wear constituted the great order.”

“In the past, if someone had told this disciple that the essence of Benevolent Governance was simply having enough to eat and clothes to wear, this disciple would have felt contempt, thinking it was too vulgar. But now, this disciple understands that the truly shallow and vulgar one was this disciple himself. Because this disciple had a full belly and new clothes, this disciple ignored the simplest needs of the common people, yet prattled on about Benevolent Governance. Wasn’t that completely missing the point?”

“The Sages said that one must rectify the heart and make the will sincere before one can regulate the family, govern the state, and pacify the world. But how does one rectify the heart? How does one make the will sincere? Now… this disciple understands. Rectifying the heart and making the will sincere means having Empathy. Only by truly interacting with the most ordinary common people could one understand their urgency, know their needs, comprehend the hardships of the people, and thus understand what Benevolent Governance truly is.”

“Therefore, before Unity of Knowledge and Action, one must understand The Great Way is Simple. But before The Great Way is Simple, one must first have a Heart of Empathy. Only then could one implement Benevolent Governance… Now, this disciple finally knows why Mentor did not want us to waste our time at the Hanlin Academy, being aloof and lofty, calling ourselves the Qingliu Faction. Mentor painstakingly ordered us to come to the Western Hills after our duties to truly experience the hardships of the common people. This was what Mentor wanted us to comprehend for ourselves.”

“…” Fang Jifan’s small frame trembled again. He felt a pain in his kidney. If this continued, could he possibly suffer from kidney deficiency?

Tang Yin, who was listening nearby, already had a look of shame on his face.

So that was it. Junior Disciple Wang’s understanding was truly extraordinary. Why hadn’t he thought of it himself? He thought he had some talent and intelligence, yet he failed to grasp Mentor’s deep intentions.

With a heart full of shame, he quickly knelt and bowed to Fang Jifan. He said, “Mentor, this disciple deserves death ten thousand times. This disciple actually did not understand the key principle that Mentor intended…”

Fang Jifan thought to himself, Actually… your Mentor didn’t grasp this key principle either, uh, probably not many people could comprehend it so easily. So, don’t feel ashamed.

“Good!” Well, his face was already thick enough. He had done so many shameless things that he naturally felt no psychological pressure. Fang Jifan slightly lifted his chin and looked at the roof beams. “Oh, work hard.”

Heart of Empathy?

Damn, why didn’t I think of that? Hmm, what you said… was really good.

…

An urgent dispatch had already been hurriedly delivered into Xiao Jing’s hands.

It was an urgent report from Guizhou, sent by Yang Xiong, the Eunuch Official from Guizhou, via express courier.

“Regional Military Commander Fang Jinglong defied the orders of the Provincial Governor, launched an attack without authorization, and put Guiyang in danger?”

Xiao Jing narrowed his eyes, frowned lightly, and paced back and forth.

That Fang father and son were really something. They truly had guts of a bear and a leopard, one after the other.

What kind of play was this?

After pondering it carefully, Xiao Jing could not figure it out.

“Godfather, should we…” The Young Eunuch following beside him looked at Xiao Jing with a smile.

“Should we report it to His Majesty immediately?” Xiao Jing also looked at the young eunuch with a smile.

“Naturally, everything is up to Godfather’s decision?”

“You.” Xiao Jing shook his head and said, “Look, you also know to let me decide. But the same matter, what the person above you thinks is always hard to predict. You think you’ve guessed what I’m thinking? Come, tell me.”

The young eunuch originally wanted to shake his head, but seeing Xiao Jing’s expression turn stern, he hurriedly said, trembling with fear, “Fang Jifan doesn’t show you much respect. Your servant was thinking, isn’t this a good opportunity? Godfather could take this chance to see His Majesty…”

“You really are clever. You guessed correctly.” Xiao Jing looked at him approvingly. “You really are the worm in my belly. Having a son like you, I am very pleased.”

Xiao Jing smiled, but suddenly, his smile turned sinister. “But your stupidity lies in the fact that in this world, I am not the one who decides. You guessed what I think, but above me, there is still His Majesty. You did not consider His Majesty’s thoughts, but I must.”

“Your servant deserves death ten thousand times.” The young eunuch was so scared he dared not breathe loudly.

Xiao Jing lazily raised his eyelids. “What does His Majesty think? Fang Jifan presented the Sweet Potato and rendered great service. The Regional Military Commander disobeyed orders—this matter could be called ‘a general in the field need not follow all orders from the sovereign.’ It could also be called ‘plotting treason.’ It could be ‘fulfilling one’s duty,’ or it could be ‘harboring ill intentions.’ What do you think, how would His Majesty view it?”

The young eunuch clearly did not dare to guess recklessly anymore. He said timidly, “Godfather… your servant… your servant does not know.”

“That’s why you’re stupid. If I were to deliver such news, and His Majesty was displeased, he would only vent his anger on me. But when he calmed down and remembered the Fang Family had served the Great Ming for generations and rendered great merits to the court, once his anger subsided, it would be as if nothing happened. At most, an Imperial Edict would be sent, severely reprimanding him, scolding that Fang Jinglong into obediently submitting a memorial to beg for punishment. But what is a scolding? I see it clearly now. That Fang father and son, one has a thicker face than the other. For them, it’s nothing. Isn’t it said that with thick skin, nothing in the world is difficult?”

“You see, no matter what, I lose. They get scolded, His Majesty treats them as officials. Officials get scolded, that’s all, because they are still needed. But I am a servant. Servants serve people. If an official gets scolded and annoys the ruler, at most they are summoned to the palace for an audience. But if a servant like me annoys His Majesty and he kicks me aside, I can no longer serve His Majesty. Then… what am I?”

Xiao Jing gave the young eunuch a mocking glance, snorted coldly, and continued, “You stupid dog, always giving terrible advice. This urgent dispatch, even if it is to be reported, it should not be me who reports it. Doesn’t the Brocade Guard have informants? Won’t the Ministry of War submit a memorial? Won’t they report it too?”

“Understood.” The young eunuch forced a smile. “Your servant understands. This urgent dispatch never existed.”

“Hmm.” Xiao Jing nodded thoughtfully. “Let me teach you a principle.”

The young eunuch quickly said respectfully, “Please instruct, Godfather.”

“A servant must not have a heart. Without a heart, there are no preferences. Without preferences, one can follow freely. What is following freely? It means… whatever His Majesty likes, we like. Whoever His Majesty wants to be close to, we must be close to. Whoever His Majesty wants dead, even if that person is your own father, you must be the first to rush forward and strangle him!”