The outline of Xiongguan appeared in his sight, and Sun Wu breathed a sigh of relief, but did not relax his vigilance.
Those who have traveled a hundred miles are only half a mile away. Although they will be able to get out of the customs immediately, there is no guarantee that they will not fall at the last step.
After all, if someone sees their movements, the most dangerous thing is to wait and see in front of the gate.
"Those kings of small countries are focused on profit, are short-sighted, and don't know how to guard the gates. What they have to worry about is Jin Qi, cough cough!"
Wu Zixu's weak voice sounded.
His personal force was stronger than that of Sun Wu, and his injuries were more serious, but his tone was contemptuous.
He looked down upon even half of these kings who were separatist in the Chu region.
"wrong!"
However, the next moment, Sun Wu glanced at Hangu Pass, his face darkened, and he turned around to retreat.
"Wait a minute, you two!"
The breeze blew, and a tall man in Confucian robes blocked the way. It was Zilu. The carriage appeared. Confucius opened the curtain and walked down: "Wu Xiangguo, General Sun, you are polite!"
"Kong Lingyin!"
Sun Wu nodded slightly. It was not surprising that Confucius could see their whereabouts. Wu Zixu sneered and said: "It seems that you are here to avenge the King of Chu. Come on, take my head and go and receive the reward yourself!"
"
"The father was punished and the son took revenge. It is a courtesy and sincerity that moved heaven. What crime is there?"
Confucius shook his head: "However, filial piety leads to relatives, loyalty leads to country, and it is not virtuous to kill a country by hating one person. I hope Wu Xiangguo can return to the capital of Ying and save the Chu country from danger!"
"Immoral? Danger?"
Wu Zixu laughed, and the laughter was full of ridicule: "You don't care about the changes in the world and the fighting between countries. You only talk about the so-called benevolence, virtue, filial piety and righteousness, and have brought the Chu country to a place of eternal destruction. Now you come to invite me?"
Confucius explained: "Confucianism and Taoism adhere to benevolent governance and govern the country with etiquette, so that superiors and inferiors have their own support. The king, ministers, father and son are in order, the ministers respect the king like a father, and the king loves the people like sons. Although the Chu country is in crisis now, it is
The pain before stabilization will eventually lead to great prosperity."
Wu Zixu sneered.
Confucius knew that he didn't believe it, so he added: "Although the king is now ruling less than a thousand miles, he has the same heart from top to bottom, and has the heart of benevolence and the desire to strengthen the country. If he can conquer the lost territory in this way, the Chu will be strong. If Wu Xiangguo is willing to come,
I will help you, and I am willing to give up my position as Commander Yin to you!"
Wu Zixu was a little moved.
The position of Ling Yin is inferior to one person and superior to ten thousand people. Did Confucius really give up the position just as he said?
With his personality, he is definitely not aimless, he is really dedicated to revitalizing the great state of Chu.
As for the sworn hatred between his father and his father, the King of Chu would not let it go. He would just wait until the Chu Dynasty prospered before putting an end to it.
Wu Zixu was silent for a while, but Sun Wu said: "Your Excellency is wrong in inverting the relationship between virtue and politics. Virtue should be the cultivation of the ruler, but it cannot be relied upon for the survival of the political system, nor can it be the only criterion!"
Confucius raised his eyebrows: "I would like to hear the details!"
"You have trained all the officials of the Chu State to be humble gentlemen, but you can't win the war at all, and you can't restrain their greed and selfish desires for a long time. Now that the Chu State is in chaos, those nobles and ministers will inevitably perish. If you cooperate with everything, they will inevitably return to their old ways when the old land is recovered!"
Sun Wudao: "No matter what kind of political theory, it is impossible to implement it in chaos. If you want to implement it in a country, you must first eradicate dissidents in the country and unify the order. If you want to implement it in the world, you must be strong."
Unify the political power by force, otherwise it will be all in vain!"
If you want to rule a country, you must first pacify it!
If you want to rule the world, you must first bring peace to the world!
This is the military strategist!
"What the general said makes sense!"
Confucius nodded and said: "However, the brightness of heaven and earth is greater than that of the sun and the moon, and the principles of human nature are greater than governing the world. If there is no way to govern the world, and no benevolence to regulate it, and just attack blindly, the king will inevitably become a tyrant and the government will become a tyranny!
"
Sun Wu raised his eyebrows slightly and became interested: "What you said is not unreasonable..."
The two discussed the Confucian path of military strategism, and the discussion became more and more passionate. Wu Zixu was able to add a few words at first, but soon he could only stay aside to accompany Zi Lu.
To put it simply, Confucius must first establish moral policies and etiquette, convince people with virtue, and bind people with etiquette. Even if fighting is inevitable in the process, he must at least set rules to ensure that after victory, he will obtain the correct fruits;
Sun Wu firmly believed that there is no gentleman in war, and only by using all possible means to win the battle. According to the gentleman's set of benevolence and righteousness, a general cannot win a war, and the so-called virtuous government cannot be implemented.
Both make sense.
The so-called system is not perfect in the first place, it will not be in the era of thousands of years from now, and I am afraid it will not be there in tens of thousands of years.
Confucius and Sun Wu debated fiercely, and while they were talking, they each drew their swords from their scabbards, spread out their swordsmanship, and exchanged blows.
Confucius wanted to prove that a gentleman can be upright and win the battle without any conspiracy;
Sun Wu wanted to prove that soldiers can achieve victory by combining right and wrong, and that the combination of right and strange is the way to win.
"As expected, this is the appearance of a saint!"
Two breaths soared into the sky, and at Hangu Pass not far away, Yin Xi was overjoyed. He straightened his clothes and went down to the tower to see the two saints in person and ask for advice.
At this moment, another green bull came slowly on the official road in the distance.
On top of the green ox, an old man with white beard and hair was sitting, taking a nap.
Behind the green ox, there was a stunningly beautiful female Taoist priest, a hundred feet away, following leisurely.
Confucius and Sun Wu fought fiercely, and the civil and military atmosphere arose and spread to all directions. However, when he threw himself beside the old man, the water was calm and failed to stir up any ripples.
"Lao Dan(dān)?"
Confucius put away his sword and stopped fighting, and stepped forward to salute and greet him. Sun Wu's eyes also moved.
This old man, Qingniu, is Lao Tzu, the founder of Taoism.
When he was young, he was the keeper of the library of Emperor Zhou, that is, an official who managed the collection of books. Therefore, he was well-read. Later, he was marginalized by the powerful and was removed from his position. He traveled to the state of Lu and met Confucius. Confucius was seventeen years old at that time.
Ask courtesy to Lao Tzu.
Confucius had great respect for Lao Tzu's erudition, but Sun Wu was not interested in it.
He had heard of Lao Tzu's teachings, which are as mysterious as they are profound. They should follow nature and govern by doing nothing.
What is governance by doing nothing?
To put it bluntly, with the division of family, country, and world, there are all kinds of contradictions caused by it. Today's chaos is unbearable. If you want to solve the problem, you simply don't need the country and the group. It is based on the nature of all things, and its light,
With its dust, it is like water in a river, it does not need human force to guide it, it flows naturally.
This is obviously even more unfeasible.
"The classics of statecraft are vast and profound. What you and I say is neither right nor wrong..."
When Confucius asked whether he or Sun Wu was right or wrong, Lao Tzu opened his eyes, his peaceful eyes filled with insights about the world and all things, and smiled and said: "I am just seeking the Tao!"
Confucius and Sun Wu's eyes flashed, and they saluted with their swords: "I hope you can give me some advice!"
I nodded and took a pole from the bullock cart.
The sword light reappeared, and this time there was an additional participant in the battle, an old man who never attacked, but was able to calm civil and military conflicts.
Yin Xi arrived in a hurry, and Xiao Meng stopped to watch the battle. In the King's City, the twelve volumes of Tianshu suspended above Gu Cheng's head turned into a stream of light, shuttled through the void, and came to the sky above Hangu Pass to participate in this great humanitarian event!