Chapter 1307 - 320: Fall_9

Chapter 1307: Chapter 320: Fall_9

The man asked again:

"But they still want to fight. They think that not fighting means giving up a golden opportunity and believe they will be mocked by history books as foolish people."

"Indeed."

"Can you make them not fight?"

Zhong Wenhao, upon hearing this,

fell silent,

and after a long silence,

nodded,

then smiled once more,

and said:

"I can."

......

"At this moment, Qian State must march north to relieve Chu State from siege. One must be aware that if the lips are gone, the teeth will feel cold. If Qian stands by and watches Chu State being breached, Qian will be isolated and helpless in the east.

By then, the Yan will have conquered two states, and with their momentum, will attack Qian; Qian will be in grave danger.

Secondly, all manpower and resources of the Yan are concentrated on invading Chu; their homeland must be empty. When our army marches north, the Barbarians will surely respond, and Yan State will find itself caught in a pincer attack. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"

In the classroom,

Yao Zizhan listened to the insights of a student from the Li family in Wei Town and nodded with satisfaction.

Most of these students come from the military families along the three borders. Although they inevitably possess some habits of young scions, they largely carry the ethos of their family.

"Excellent, very good. Does anyone else want to speak? If you speak well, I will write it into the memorandum for the officials to see, letting them know that the descendants of Qian’s border military families are not just famous in vain."

At this moment, a student sitting at the back stood up.

His surname is Shi, named Shi Kai, and his father is the Transport Envoy in Chen Town, thus making him a civil official’s son, not from a military family.

"Shi Kai, please, speak."

"Yes, Teacher."

Shi Kai respectfully bowed to Yao Zizhan,

and then,

turned to face Li Chengmi, who had spoken earlier,

and said:

"Brother Li previously mentioned, if I heard correctly, Brother Li said, ’At this moment, it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Qian State’?"

"Yes." Li Chengmi nodded, having just received recognition from Master Yao, he replied self-satisfiedly, "Does Brother Shi have objections?"

Shi Kai also nodded and said:

"I have objections. I don’t consider Brother Li’s words correct."

"Oh, please enlighten us."

"A hundred years ago, there was an opportunity better than the current one."

"......" Li Chengmi.

"......" Yao Zizhan.

In the classroom, everyone stopped their actions due to these words.

If the current situation is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,

then what about a hundred years ago,

when Yan people fought with Barbarians on the desert edge till brains were spilling out?

It must be known that back then, it was at the peak of Barbarian power, their King’s Tent and their Golden Family were still the supreme rulers of the desert!

Li Chengmi’s face turned red with embarrassment,

pointed at Shi Kai,

and said:

"You... you dare... you can’t..."

Shi Kai didn’t look at Li Chengmi anymore but instead turned and bowed to Master Yao,

asked:

"The wisdom of saints taught by the teacher, to act righteously, always stays in the student’s mind, and is often reflected upon after the lessons.

However, the student has a doubt and hopes Master Yao will enlighten me."

"Speak freely," Yao Zizhan smiled as he stroked his beard.

"The teacher once taught us that Xia and foreign states must be clearly distinguished, and the ethos of Spring and Autumn must be upheld.

So I ask the teacher, why as Brother Li mentioned earlier, does Qian State need to rely on Barbarians when marching north?

It is well known that eight hundred years ago, the Marquis of Yan carried the decree of the Xia emperor to open the borders for Zhuxia, thereby establishing Yan;

Whereas, our Qian, founded by Mao Tzedong, declared at the peak of East Mountain that the fate of Qian State inherits the orthodox lineage of Xia.

The student is confused,

As the argument goes, legally and from the standpoint of orthodoxy, both Yan and Qian originated from Xia, belonging to the states of Zhuxia.

Yet, what has this to do with the Barbarians?

Qian State and Yan going to war is akin to brothers fighting within the family.

Since when do Barbarians also belong to Zhuxia?

What Brother Li said earlier, about allying with Barbarians to attack Yan, how is this any different from bringing external thieves into the family?"

Everyone present fell silent once again.

The reason is simple,

Qian is a nation that values culture, has a magnificent cultural heritage, and the most splendid moral literature, boasting of being the true land of etiquette, revered by all nations.

However, a hundred years ago, some actions by their ancestors were difficult to clear away.

A hundred years ago, when Yan people and Barbarians were in a bloody battle, Emperor Taizong indeed marched north.

But unfortunately,

the Marquis of Yan, Chu, and Jin, were true recipients of the Xia emperor’s decree to open the borders, whereas Qian State, with Zhao Family’s illegitimate ascension, summoned a massive group of literati to help rewrite ancestral history, claiming that Zhao Family, eight hundred years ago, was likewise a key minister under the Xia emperor, equal to the position of those three marquises.

But everyone knows that the founding Emperor of the current dynasty was the foster brother of the previous dynasty’s emperor, originating from a military household in the imperial capital.

Nevertheless, the official narrative claims so, and thus everybody acknowledges it, hence eight hundred years ago, it was one family, but this contradicts Emperor Taizong’s actions and the current matters being discussed.

Yao Zizhan smiled and said;

"Let the teacher ask you."

"Please, teacher."

"If your mother is seriously ill, and your neighbor has the medicine that could save her, but the neighbor is unwilling to give it to you, would you steal it?"

"Yes."

"The act of theft is despised by virtuous men."

"But my mother is of great importance, and I am willing to bear this bad name."

"Indeed."

Shi Kai opened his mouth; he understood Master Yao’s meaning perfectly clearly, it was an emergency — sitting idle as Yan State destroys Chu would mean Qian is next in line.

When one’s own state is nearly about to fall, how can one still dwell on righteousness or legality?

Shi Kai bowed deeply and said:

"The disciple accepts the lesson."

Yao Zizhan secretly breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that he had resorted to sophistry to answer the question earlier, which was not quite fitting.

Luckily,

at this time, a servant came in with an urgent military report.

Yao Zizhan, as if granted a reprieve, left the classroom and headed straight to the signing room in the front courtyard.

......

Inside the signing room,

the servant looked at Yao Zizhan as he slumped into his chair, silent for a long time, and asked with concern:

"Master, what exactly happened?"

Yao Zizhan glanced at the servant,

sighed deeply,

sipped his lips,

and said:

"Zhong Wenhao suddenly suffered an attack of hysteria last night and passed away this morning."