In this world, there is no sword sharper than knowledge. In other words, without the knowledge to create this sword, it is impossible to create this sword.
"Those who are sincere and unmoved will not exist; those who are not sincere will not be moved! This is what Mencius, the Confucian and Taoist sage, said. Please remember that those who treat others with sincerity will be treated with sincerity. And Tao
I am the true deity of my body, and my body is the Buddhist temple of the Tao. The more adversity I find myself in, the more I must strengthen my sincerity. This is true for people, and so is the country. Songyin firmly believes that if everyone in prison can cultivate their character,
Good virtues, the most sincere way, coupled with the wise and good governance of His Majesty the Emperor, His Highness the Shogun, the elders of the shogunate, the elders, and the ministers of the court, and even the pursuit of ashigaru, as well as the loyalty of the adults responsible for guarding us, we will be able to overcome the national crisis, and everyone will be able to overcome the national crisis.
Zhao Zhao!"
In prison.
Yoshida Shoin had no consciousness of being a death row prisoner, and still regarded this place as a private school for imparting knowledge. He would stand at the door of the cell every day after breakfast and before dinner, speaking in a long and elegant voice about his academic opinions.
Of course he would always be scolded by the guards at first, but after all, he was a big shot who received special care from the shogunate. His status was much higher than that of the prison chiefs who were from Ashigaru. In this era of strict hierarchy, no one dared to take it easy.
Using violence, especially when Katsura Kogoro broke the wrist of the guy who tried to push Yoshida Shoin without receiving any punishment from the shogunate, everyone including the prisoner knew that there were two untouchables inside.
people.
But after just one day, Yoshida Shoin gained the respect of everyone in the prison. When he was giving lectures, even some of the jail guards in charge of guarding would secretly come to listen and learn. You know, with their status as low-level people,
, how difficult it is to hear this valuable knowledge!
Just like swordsmanship, the higher the level of knowledge, the more it is monopolized in the hands of a very small number of people. Yoshida Shoin, who has more than ten books at this time, is one of the very few among the very few. For those who desire
The allure of those who break away from the shackles of fate and break through the barriers of class is no less than the peerless swordsmanship of Kongshan Ryu and Feiten Yuken Ryu.
Moreover, the knowledge Yoshida Shoin described was not the profound Chinese poems and songs that the ministers of Kyoto talked about, but incisive insights into worldly affairs and cultural accomplishments, which could truly illuminate the future for chaotic minds.
"Teacher Songyin, please tell me more about "Mencius"" "Yes, teacher, what you said last time, 'Yao's time, Yu's eighth year' or something like that, I'm stupid and didn't fully understand" "Hey, pig
Taro, I know you are outside. Did you remember the last time I asked you to help bring in paper and pen? If you dare to forget this tomorrow, I will not be able to spare you when I come out." "Shut up! How can I do this in front of the teacher?
"So vulgar" "Baga! Do you still want to fight in prison again?"...
The cell was full of people and noisy, Yoshida Shoin coughed lightly, as if pressing the mute button, all the sounds disappeared instantly, and they waited quietly for him to speak.
"In this case, let's postpone dinner. In the past few days, Songyin has explained a lot of principles in "Mencius" to everyone, but Mencius himself also said, "It is better to have no books than to believe in all the books." Moreover, Mencius was from the state of Zou.
, but he was keen to lobby King Xuan of Qi and King Hui of Liang. This was not a wise move to abandon his country of birth to serve the king of another country. It was like leaving a poor family and recognizing the rich man next door as his father. Songyin thought it was inappropriate; but this was the Spring and Autumn Period of China.
Lobbyists should have the right righteousness, so it does not harm Mencius' wisdom. However, the largest number of people in Japan are those who have received salaries in the world. They must not imitate them. They should share the same interests with the country. How can you be wise and protect yourself by avoiding disaster? Even if the master has made a mistake, he should die to remonstrate with him.
It shows his great intention, just as Dong Zhongshu said, 'Justify your justice without seeking its benefits, and understand your way without considering its merits'..."
"Okay!" A loud shout accompanied by several rounds of applause came from outside the cell, interrupting Yoshida Shoin's small class.
Seeing Yoshida Shoin frowning and saying nothing, the unruly prisoners immediately began to curse at the people outside the door, and all kinds of slang and dialects spewed out. It seems that the teachings in the past few days have not completely changed their nature.
If the power of knowledge is infinite, then the power of habit may be the only obstacle that forces its entropy to decrease...
"Shut up, everyone! Anyone who dares to speak foul language again will be shot to death!" A cold voice with murderous intent instantly silenced the cell again.
At this time, the cell door was kicked open, and an old man in gorgeous clothes walked in surrounded by several well-dressed and fully armed bannermen. Just looking at his majestic posture, you knew that this person's status must be of great importance!
Katsura Kogoro, who was sitting cross-legged, opened his eyes, and at first glance he saw the orange patterns embroidered with gold foil on the front of the old man's shoulders. He couldn't help but blurt out: "Ii Naoki!"
"How brave! How dare you call the elder by his name? As a warrior, you should have disembowelment to apologize for your contempt for your Majesty!"
"Hmph, thanks to Elder Ii, I, Kogoro, am no longer a samurai. Now I am just a ronin who has escaped from the feudal domain." "Baga!"
Katsura Kogoro was not afraid, but glared at Ii Naoki with an angry look on his face. Just when the scolding Hatamoto couldn't help but prepare to draw his sword and kill Katsura Kogoro on the spot, Ii Naoki stopped him.
The second shogunate, who made the world's fallen people change their expressions upon hearing this, did not get angry. Instead, he said rather gently: "Kogoro of the Katsura family, among the young people I know, you are one of the best in terms of character and martial arts."
You are an outstanding person. I have a good relationship with your master, Saito Zendo. For the sake of his request, I decided to spare you once. If you stay in Choshu Domain and engage in your little tricks, I can still do it.
Turn a blind eye and let you gather those clowns, but..."
Ii Naoki's voice suddenly became fierce, and he suddenly changed from a gentle old man to a fierce tiger in the mountains: "Don't think that I don't know your plans! At this critical moment of signing a contract with the Americans, anyone who dares to destroy the country will be killed by me.
, and leave no one behind!”
"Bah! You regard betraying your country as an honor, the Tora Iie of the shogunate? Hahaha... In front of the Americans, you are just a monkey jumping up and down. The shogunate boss? You are the crown prince."
"Whether you should sign or not? With your intelligence and the wisdom of the people next to you, you must know better than 90% of the people in the world. Don't use your slogans to fool idiots as your purpose. You should know that if I firmly refuse to sign this piece of paper,
Contract, it is the Tokugawa shogunate who suffers, the millions of people in Edo, and the people of all Japan! The only ones who benefit are you rebels who clamor day and night to overthrow. I am right? You don’t have to worry about angering me.
You will die soon." Ii Naobi was not angry when faced with Katsura Kogoro's sarcasm. Instead, he saw through the other person's intention at a glance and said slowly.
In this verbal confrontation, Katsura Kogoro was completely defeated.
For a political giant who has dominated the world for more than two hundred years, how could Ii Naobi's political wisdom be something that Katsura Kogoro could compete with at this time? If it were the guy who became Kido Takayoshi twenty years later, he might be able to expose Ii on the spot.
Directly address the inaccuracies in what he said.
Seeing that Katsura Kogoro was slumped and silent, he turned to Yoshida Shoin who had been looking at him with a smile. This was not an easy person to deal with like Kogoro. Ii Naomi said slowly: "The famous Yoshida Shoin, you don't have to die.
"
Yoshida Shoin said softly: "Thank you for your love, sir. But too many people live like dead people, and some people die as if they were alive. So, what is the difference between life and death? Mencius said: Life is what I want; righteousness.
, that’s what I want. You can’t have both, you have to sacrifice your life for righteousness.”
This kind of indifferent aura that belongs to a wise man who has seen through everything is far more frightening to his opponents than relying on his power and position to show off. Naoki Ii has rarely encountered such a situation, even his most promising subordinates and juniors, the third highest figure in the shogunate, Mr.
Naka Abe Masahiro doesn't have the pressure on him from the people in front of him.
"I just heard you talk about loyalty. You said that you want to 'share the same stakes with the country'. How can you avoid disaster and protect yourself wisely?' Why don't you want to be loyal to the country, but instead hang out with traitors all day long? Is your loyalty just that?
Is it just talk?"
"I am a minister of the Maori family, so I will never forget to serve the Maori family day and night."
"The Mori family is also a vassal of the shogunate!"
"The elder is wrong, very wrong! The Maori family are the ministers of the emperor, and the shogunate is just the superior colleague of the Maori family. He is the brother, not the king! It is natural to talk about respect and admiration for the brother, but only for the king.
Let’s talk!”
"You... are arrogant! Even your lord, Mori Jinqin, would not dare to speak to me like this!" Ii Naobi was rendered speechless by Yoshida Shoin. He finally tore off the mask of the wise elder and roared violently.
.
"Please forgive me for being rude." Yoshida Shoin bowed deeply and saluted with impeccable etiquette.
Ii Naomi took a few breaths and snorted coldly: "Whoever I want to die will die, and whoever I want to live will have to live. Record! After being interrogated by me personally, Yoshida Shoin was ignorant of foreigners, but he was ignorant, and
If you plead guilty sincerely, you can be imprisoned and tried; Katsura Kogoro instigates others to sabotage state affairs, which is an unpardonable crime. After signing a treaty with the Americans, he will be executed at a chosen date! Make a note of it and announce it to the world when you go out, do you understand?" "Ha! Subordinates
clear!"
As soon as these words came out, even the calm Yoshida Shoin couldn't help but change his expression. Katsura Kogoro even banged the cell door furiously and shouted: "Old thief Ii, you are despicable! If you have the ability, kill me now!"
"You can't die now, otherwise how can your comrades rescue you? If I'm right, your cheap teacher Sorayama Kazuha will definitely come to Edo, and you will see each other for the last time, but I have sworn that,
His body will be hung at Sakurada Gate for a hundred days, and you will definitely not be able to bury him together."
"How can I, Katsura Kogoro, be a person who is greedy for life and afraid of death? I'm afraid you won't be able to wait until that day."
"Oh? Are you planning to commit suicide? I can give you a knife now, but...in order to avoid leaking the news of your death and ruining my plan, everyone here" Ii Naobi circled his fingers, not only all the prisoners in the prison, but also
Yoshida Shoin and the Ashigaru prisoners were not left behind, "They will all be buried with you! You'd better think carefully,"
Under Kogoro's hateful gaze, Ii Naobi, who had won the game, laughed loudly. He walked up the steps and left the place in a good mood. He turned around and gave a special instruction: "Try to satisfy them with food and drink. After all, they can barely be considered meritorious."
In the shogunate, my Ii family has never neglected the meritorious officials, hahahaha..."
This is the mercy that belongs only to the victor.