Spring and Autumn I Am King

"Ximen Bao said, 'A man must have a son, and a son must have parents. They kill each other because they love their relatives and friends, and they kill the judge because they are executed by the judge. Is that right? This move will bring chaos to the country'... Ximen Bao said. It means not knowing etiquette. The hatred mentioned in etiquette refers to those who suffer injustice, cry out in grief but cannot file a complaint, such as the death of Wu Zixu.

"In the time of Zong Zhou, Zhou Gong wrote "Zhou Li", considering this situation, he stipulated: 'Anyone who takes revenge is written by the scholar, and he is innocent of killing'. Accepted, Wu Feng killed with a knife. He did not forget his father's hatred, filial piety; did not fear death, righteousness; murdered but did not escape, took the initiative to surrender, and believed. To be an enemy? Ximen Bao said that he should be severely punished, this is not justice, but abusing the criminal law regardless of the right and wrong! The words from the bottom of my heart, I hope you will investigate..."

"This ram is tall and capable."

After reading "The Refutation of Revenge", Zhao Wuxi shook his head helplessly, Gongyang Gaoneng refuted Ximen Leopard's opinions one by one, and finally expounded in conclusion: "The father was killed innocently, and the son took revenge. It's a matter of course. The father was killed for breaking the law, and the son took revenge. This is an illegal act. Such revenge is unethical and should be prohibited."

In this way, Gongyang Gao put the particularity of Wu Feng's revenge in front of the world by citing the scriptures, and finally did not forget to question the Dali Temple, "If it weren't for the fact that the national law could not take revenge for Wu Feng, how could Wu Feng keep it private? Vengeance? Wu Feng is the backbone of the country, and Yu Zhao has merit. If he wants to pay for his life for a foreign traitor who has done many evils, it goes against the hearts of the people. The kid really doesn't know what the justice of this sentence is?"

As soon as this discussion came out, the situation that had been moved back a little by the trend of Mingfa was once again guided by the theory of revenge. Although Ximen Bao and others also sent a counterattack later, this was already a tear within the school. Stubbornly believes that Wu Feng is innocent...

Up to now, this case is no longer an ordinary criminal case, but has become a contest between jurisprudence and "people's will".

With the development of the situation, even Zhao State officials themselves began to fall into self-contradiction. Dali Temple insisted on severe punishment according to the law, but separated by a wall, Taichang Temple, which specializes in etiquette education, jumped first.

Taichang Gongxi Chi of Taichang Temple was a disciple of Confucianism, and his views on revenge were exactly the same as Confucius and Gongyanggao. So when Dali Temple was stubborn, he entered the palace to complain to Zhao Wuxi.

"If you don't care and kill Wu Feng hastily, it will be equivalent to denying the filial piety that Zhao Guo has preached for more than ten years. I don't know how to promote education in the future."

Gong Xichi was not the only one who came to Zhao Wuxi to state his opinion. Prince Heng was also disturbed by the storms in Yecheng these days. He couldn't sleep well. Entering the palace, I want to know how my father will deal with this matter.

But Zhao Wuxi was still not in a hurry, but asked Zhao Heng to accompany him and stroll around the Changle Palace.

"Prince, what's your opinion on this matter?"

The father and son walked side by side, but Zhao Heng was still half a body behind. Hearing Zhao Wuxi's question, he answered cautiously:

"The boy thinks that the laws of the state should not be taken lightly. Gently spared Wu Feng may make the people of Yecheng happy, but once it starts, it will be like an ant's nest on the embankment, and it will not stop."

Zhao Wuxi glanced at him: "Is this your opinion, or Zixia's opinion?"

Zhao Heng lowered his head: "It's the boy's opinion. Master, he... Although the master said that he should take a break from illness, he actually supports the forgiveness of Wu Feng..."

This was expected by Zhao Wuxi. Speaking of which, Zixia is also a strange person. Although he did not invest in Confucianism as in history, he adhered to the concept of "excellence in learning leads to officialdom, and excellence in officialdom leads to learning". Walking between the court and the school. He was a cadre in the dynasty, and he learned from the strengths of many families academically. Not only did he learn divination and the study of objects well, but he was especially proficient in Confucianism and Buddhism. , the most powerful competitor of the Linzhang Xue Gong Festival Wine.

It was precisely because of his miscellaneous attitude that Zhao Wuxi let the crown prince study with Zixia.

But in this matter, Zixia can't get rid of it, because Gong Yangyu has also studied with Zixia for a period of time after he came to the Academy. His idea of ​​revenge is not influenced by Zixia. Zhao Wuxi absolutely did not believe it.

For this reason, when Gongyanggao came to the cusp of the storm, even though Zixia had sympathy for Wu Feng's revenge case, he rationally chose to avoid calling himself sick and locked himself at home instead of hitting the gun like Gong Xichi did. come up.

And Prince Heng was able to get out of Zixia's influence and have his own independent opinion on this matter, Zhao Wuxi was very pleased.

"The school is divided into two factions, scolding day and night, and the public opinion is more like a boil, I hope Wu Feng is innocent. All parties in the court began to hold back and came to the front with their banners lit up one after another. This farce of disputes between legal principles and people's hearts , it's almost time for the end. Since the power of Dali Temple alone, this matter can't be settled, and the public office has to enter..."

Prince Heng was very happy. In his heart, as long as his father made a move, nothing could be solved.

But maybe he was trying to test him, but Zhao Wuxi didn't do what he wanted to do, but stopped and pointed to the rocker in front of Changxin Palace that Zhao Heng played with when he was young and said, "I still remember this thing. Is it?"

...

The rocker is a favorite toy for children. The middle of the board is fixed with something, and the two ends can be lifted up and down. Zhao Heng remembers that when he was very young, he liked playing here with his brothers and sisters very much, but as he gets older, he is about to move out of Changle Palace. , to live in the East Palace, this toy has been covered with dust for a long time, but Le Lingzi has never been removed.

Today, Zhao Wuxi pointed at the rocker and made an analogy.

"Sometimes, legal principles and public opinion often contradict people's hearts, and it is difficult to distinguish right from wrong."

He pointed to one end and said, "The situation in this Wu Feng revenge case is like a rocker, one side is the law, the other side is the people's hearts, one is changing, one is high and one is low. Heng, you say, as a Office, where should you stand?"

After all, Zhao Heng is only a 16-year-old young man, and he hesitated: "On the side of the law, the severe sentence will make Zhao Guo lose a pillar of talent, and Sun Wuzi can't explain it, and it will make the people of Yecheng lose. Chilling. Standing on the side of the people's hearts, light sentences will make it difficult to implement the law, and omissions will result from this. It's difficult, it's really difficult..."

"What if you had to choose a side?"

Zhao Heng gritted his teeth: "The boy will still choose to support the national law!"

Zhao Wuxi showed a relieved smile. This is the difference between the second son and the eldest son. If Zhao Cao was here, I am afraid that he could not wait to go off the court to intercede for Wu Feng.

But although Zhao Heng chose the Fa side and had already reached the passing line set by Zhao Wuxi, it was still far from enough to be a monarch who could defend.

He mentioned Zhao Heng: "This case is by no means simple, and many things need to be considered; but it is not difficult to say it is difficult, the key is to figure out what position the office stands on in this matter. superior?"

Zhao Wuxi asked Zhao Heng to be by his side, and said slowly: "Heng, let me tell you a story for my father... Outside Kyushu, there is a Seven Kingdoms similar to the Central Plains, known as the Seven Heroes of the Warring States Period, and the seven heroes are all kings. I hope It can annex the world, and the westernmost country is called the Yong Kingdom..."

...

"The Yong Kingdom is the most powerful because of the reforms, the law is the only one, the military merits are awarded to the fields, and it is based on farming and warfare, so it is the most powerful. Once, the King Zhaoxiang of the Yong Kingdom fell ill, and the people around the capital of the country bought cows to sacrifice to the gods. Every family prayed for him. Some officials told King Zhaoxiang about this, but King Zhaoxiang was furious and ordered that every family who prayed for themselves should be punished with two armors..."

"Then why did King Zhaoxiang do this?" Crown Prince Heng Daqi, according to common sense, shouldn't he be happy and thank those people?

Zhao Wuxi said: "King Zhaoxiang's reason is that the law stipulates that only when sacrificing land and sacrificial offerings can large sacrifices be performed. Although these people have good intentions, they violate the laws of Yong Kingdom. No reward, but severe punishment! He said, the widow would rather abandon benevolence than disregard the law! So people everywhere were punished, and in the future, even if King Zhaoxiang died of illness, they would not shed a single tear."

Zhao Heng remained silent, but Zhao Wuxi continued to speak: "A few years later, Yong Kingdom encountered severe famine, and another minister asked King Zhaoxiang to say: 'The plants, vegetables, dates, and chestnuts in the royal family's five gardens are sufficient for To feed the people, please open up your majesty and give the people a way to live'."

Prince Heng said: "This is a reasonable and reasonable approach."

Zhao Wuchun smiled: "However, King Zhaoxiang disagreed. He said that the decree of our Yong Kingdom is to allow people to be rewarded for meritorious deeds and punished for their crimes. Now, if the vegetables and fruits in Wuyuan are opened, they will be awarded regardless of merit or demerit. Let the people be rewarded. Let the people be rewarded regardless of merit or deeds, that is the way to make the country chaotic. It is better to let the people die and make the country stable... So in the twelfth lunar month of winter, Zhaoxiang The king closed the courtyard tightly and let the people starve to death outside."

"This, this is also inevitable..."

With such a ruthless manner, Prince Heng's teeth were already shivering.

"Heng, tell me, is it worth it if you are like this King Zhaoxiang, in order to maintain legal principles, and completely stand on the opposite side of the people's hearts?"

Zhao Heng said: "Then King Zhaoxiang did this to uphold the law, but his actions were too cruel and he didn't hide it at all. The people were afraid that they would never love him again, and instead would have resentment... Can you ask me? If I ask, what happened to Yong Kingdom after that?"

Zhao Wuxi closed his eyes and said indifferently: "After King Zhaoxiang, the Yong Kingdom has produced several generations of sage kings and worked hard to rule. In the end, his great-grandson, Longfen VI, Yu Lie, took advantage of strict discipline and powerful The army swept the other six countries, unified the world, and established the Yong Dynasty."

Zhao Heng breathed a sigh of relief: "At least the result is good."

"Okay? Not necessarily. The Zulong who ruled the world also inherited the tradition of King Zhaoxiang that regards the law as the lifeblood of the country. No matter how strict the law is, it must be implemented. Very light crimes will also He was sentenced to a heavy sentence. The life of the common people was not much better than when the countries were in melee. There were prisoners serving hard labor everywhere in the world. Therefore, the remnants of the Six Kingdoms, and even the people of the Yong Kingdom themselves, all adopted this law, together with the law. Zulong, the incarnation of the law, is regarded as a tyranny and a domineering husband... After Zulong's death, his successors were even more cruel and inhumane than him, so the people were desperate, and they rose up one after another, claiming 'Is there a seed for princes and generals?' , it took a group of common people of Qianshou three to five years to overthrow the mighty Yong Dynasty..."

The reversal was so sudden that Zhao Heng was stunned.

From the mere land ~www.readwn.com~ to the trend of Wancheng, the order of the eight states and the dynasties are in the same row for more than a hundred years; then the family of the *, Weihan is the palace; one husband is in trouble and seven temples, dead people Hand, for the world laughing, why?

This question is also what Zhao Wuxi wants Zhao Heng to understand. Is it easy to attack and defend without benevolence and righteousness? This is the biased view of Confucian scholars, but if it is understood from another direction, there is no problem.

"Being strong because of cruelty, and dying because of cruelty, this is the end of the extreme when focusing on the law and not the people's people. Remember this lesson."

"Wei, the kid remembers it." Zhao Heng nodded quickly.

Zhao Wuxi paused, allowing Zhao Heng to digest it a little, and then started to tell the next story without stopping:

"After Guan China was destroyed by the remnants of the Six Kingdoms, a new dynasty was re-established in the ruins, named Dahan..."

ps: King Zhao of Qin was ill, the people bought cattle and the family prayed for the king. When Gongsun Shu came out to see him, people greeted the king and said, "The people are all buying cattle to pray for the king." The king said: "The second best of Zi's people"...——"Han Feizi: The Foreign Minister's Talk on the Lower Right No. 35"