The decoration inside the house is very simple, and the furniture looks old. It is obvious that Ma Guodong's family has lived here for many years. However, the house is kept spotless and the objects are arranged neatly. When it comes to objects, there are actually not many objects, mainly books.

There are two simple bookshelves on both sides of the sofa, and the TV cabinet is also filled with neat books. The whole living room is filled with a strong aroma of books.

"The mountain people are coming".

Ma Guodong walked out of the study with a smile on his face and an open book in his hand.

Lu Shanmin quickly stood up and said, "Hello, old professor."

"Sit, sit, sit, this is not in class."

Grandma Chen walked out of the kitchen carrying a plate of washed fruits and said with a kind face: "Mountain people, don't be cautious when you get here. What professors don't teach? We are just two empty nesters." As she spoke, she put the fruit plate away

On the coffee table, "It doesn't matter what kind of professor he is, he sounds very powerful. Other professors are all over the world and welcome distinguished guests every day, but we are the only one here."

Ma Guodong coughed twice in embarrassment, "Don't listen to your nonsense, Grandma Chen. There are many people coming to see me, but they are not here to discuss knowledge. They are all businessmen who want to use my reputation to make money for them. I am too lazy."

Meet them”.

Grandma Chen smiled and said to Lu Shanmin, "You guys chat slowly, I'll buy some food and try Grandma Chen's cooking in the evening."

"Thank you, Grandma Chen." Lu Shanmin nodded and said.

"Let's go and sit in my study." Ma Guodong stood up and walked towards the study.

When he walked into the study, Lu Shanmin was stunned. The study, which was about thirty square meters, had bookshelves on all four walls except for one window.

Ma Guodong said with some pride: "Hey, this is my life savings."

Lu Shanmin couldn't help but stroke the antique bookshelf and look at the book. This was the first time in his life that he had seen so many books.

"Do you like these books?"

Lu Shanmin nodded and shook his head. In fact, for him, he didn't have much desire to study. It was just because Bai Ling was admitted to college that he developed a potential curiosity for scholars. Later, because of Zhang Li

The long-term plan proposed and the promise that Zeng Yaqian would work hard to become a person with enough capital to become her friend gave rise to the idea of ​​studying hard.

"Old professor, have you read all these books?"

"Well, I've probably seen them all."

Lu Shanmin looked at the room full of books and marveled, "How much time do you have to spend reading books?"

Ma Guodong nodded, "It took almost a lifetime."

"Ah? Then you spend your whole life reading books, do you still have time to do other things?"

Ma Guodong was stunned for a moment. He was an economist and a teacher. It was natural for him to spend time on books. He had never thought about spending his time elsewhere. Lu Shanmin's question actually made him a little confused.

Don't know how to answer.

Ma Guodong coughed dryly and said, "The book has its own Yan Ruyu, and the book has its own golden house. Haven't you heard of it?"

Lu Shanmin nodded in confusion.

"Old professor, I have finished reading the two books you gave me."

Ma Guodong sat on the Taishi chair behind the desk, nodded with satisfaction, pointed to the stool next to him, "Sit down and talk."

Lu Shanmin sat on the stool, "Adam Smith's economics is based on the premise of selfishness and absolute egoism of human nature. Isn't this contrary to the original goodness of human nature?"

Ma Guodong originally thought that Lu Shanmin would put forward some specific economic principles, but he did not expect that such a question would be raised.

"What you are talking about no longer belongs to the category of economics, but to the category of philosophy. Traditional Chinese Confucianism pays more attention to moral guidance and often avoids talking about the weaknesses of human nature. Economics is not the study of what a person should be.

Instead, we study what kind of economic behavior a person will make. Although many people are secretive about the selfishness of human nature, in fact, human nature is selfish, and there is nothing shameful about it."

Lu Shanmin frowned, "You mean, from an economic point of view, human nature is inherently selfish."

Ma Guodong nodded, "Many people talk about selfless dedication, especially some Taoists, and even try to change the selfishness of human nature into selfless dedication. This is completely deceiving and is very ridiculous."

Lu Shanmin asked in confusion, "But there are indeed many selfless people in this world. There are not so many entrepreneurs and rich people who donate money every year. There are also some city people who give up their superior living environment and go to remote mountainous areas to support education.

For example, the party secretary and head of our village often spend their own money to help the lonely elderly people in the village. Their humanity is full of selflessness."

Ma Guodong shook his head and said: "Entrepreneurs donate money to expand the company's reputation, gain the favor of the public, and seek greater benefits. Most of the people you mentioned who go to teach are not really to improve the quality of life in remote mountainous areas.

To improve the education level of a region, it is simply impossible to rely on a few teachers who volunteer to teach. This requires intervention at the national level. They go to teach more to realize their own ideals and values.

, essentially for themselves. As for your party secretary and village chief, it is their responsibility to help the lonely and widowed elderly. They do this so that they can better meet the burdens on their shoulders. So what you said is selfless, in fact, it is essentially

The starting point is precisely selfishness.”

"Ah"? Lu Shanmin stared at Ma Guodong in disbelief, "Then is it selfish for you to teach me economics without asking for anything in return?"

Ma Guodong nodded, "I am a teacher, and my responsibility is to cultivate talents, but I have never taught a decent student in my life. I feel very ashamed and uneasy. I am not teaching you without asking for anything in return. I am teaching you."

Seeking peace of mind is essentially selfish."

Lu Shanmin lowered his head in disappointment. What he had learned from his grandfather since he was a child was the principles of benevolence and righteousness from Confucius and Mencius, which emphasize that human nature is inherently good. In the morning, Zuoqiu told himself that human nature is neither good nor evil. Now that Leng Buding heard the old professor's words, he felt that he was telling himself again.

Human nature is inherently evil. For him, who had received education from Confucius and Mencius for twenty years, he was once again shocked. But he felt that what the old professor said was very reasonable, but he didn't know how to refute it.

"According to what you say, there are no good people in this world"?

Ma Guodong chuckled and said, "You, like most people, your thinking is fixed by the traditional standards of good and bad. Who says that being selfish means you are not a good person. To put it more seriously, if there is no selfish mentality of the working people who want to stand up and become the masters

, can we have such a good society today, can we have China's re-emergence today? To put it more seriously, without the selfish mentality of migrant workers across the country who want to make money in the East China Sea, would the high-rise buildings in the East China Sea be able to rise from the ground?

Some babies know how to hold on to the bottle right after they are born. If anyone snatches their things, they will cry loudly. This is also a sign of self-interest. Are newborn babies also bad people? It is understandable to think about yourself.

Why do we have to separate black and white on the main line?"

Lu Shanmin said oh and felt a little more relaxed, "It turns out that human nature is not divided into black and white."

Ma Guodong nodded, "As long as you realize that human nature is inherently gray, you won't care so much about good and bad."

After figuring this out, Lu Shanmin smiled easily and said, "Old professor, I have another question to ask you."

"Well, you ask."

"Economics is a subject that studies how to make money and how to spend it, and economists are experts in it. Why have I never heard of an economist who founded a large enterprise, or who in economics can become a

Rich man."

"Hiss" Ma Guodong took a breath, why did this kid always ask such sharp questions. This question was a big slap in the face for an economist like him.

Seeing that Ma Guodong's face was not very good, Lu Shanmin said sheepishly: "Isn't this question a bit abrupt?"

Ma Guodong coughed dryly, "What economists do is to summarize the economic phenomena that have occurred, find patterns from them, and provide references for economic development. We are all academics. How many academics have you seen?

The people are rich people." He paused and then said: "Of course, we can also be regarded as an afterthought. It's okay to play around with words, but we still lack the courage to go to the market to fight with real swords and guns. We are scholars.

, he’s just such a pissy person, he blows so hard with his mouth, not many people dare to do it seriously.”

With a chuckle, Ma Guodong continued: "You just asked me how I would have time to do other things after reading so many books in my life. It really made me wake up from a dream. After reading books all my life and teaching others what to do, I can actually do it myself.

Shao. Mountain people, so I hope you don’t study hard, don’t focus on books, try your best to verify what you have learned in action, and in turn improve your learned knowledge, knowledge and actions.

"If you lack knowledge, you can't do it. If you lack knowledge, how can you know?"

Lu Shanmin nodded, and then asked the old professor about a series of economic theories that he did not understand, such as 'Consumption Theory' and 'Value Theory'. Ma Guodong explained everything he knew.

After teaching at the Finance College for so many years, this is the most heartfelt lecture Ma Guodong has ever given. Often when Lu Shanmin raises a question, he will explain it so that Lu Shanmin can learn more relevant knowledge. Both the teacher and the student listen attentively.

, one by one, the entire afternoon passed quickly. It was not until Grandma Chen urged them two or three times to finish their meal that the two of them walked out of the study with satisfaction.

Ma Guodong had the habit of going downstairs for a walk after dinner, and the two of them walked in the quiet community. Ma Guodong said meaningfully: "Not long ago, Zeng Yaqian's grandfather had tea with me."

Lu Shanmin frowned slightly, thinking of the man in the trench coat last night.

Ma Guodong smiled and said, "Zeng Guoqiang was unreasonable when he was young, but as he gets older, his temper has changed a lot."
Chapter completed!