Chapter 4855 The Intention of a Drunkard

Chapter 4855 The Intention of a Drunkard
Yin alone cannot produce life, Yang alone cannot grow; this is the way of heaven.

The rejection of all schools of thought and the promotion of Confucianism alone played a decisive role in the unification of the culture at a certain moment, and its historical achievements cannot be erased. However, blindly indulging in, relying on, or even favoring Confucianism's "self-centeredness" will form shackles on social development. Confucianism will strangle all other doctrines in their infancy and seal the entire society in place to facilitate its rule.

The reason why Confucianism was able to stand out during the "Hundred Schools of Thought" was not only because it was beneficial to the ruling class, but also because of the excellence of its doctrines. However, after thousands of years of development, the core of "Confucianism" has long been changed from being inclusive and keeping pace with the times to "ruling for the sake of ruling", and willingly becoming the running dogs of the ruling class, because they themselves have become the ruling class...

Fortunately, in this era, Confucian scholars have not been imprisoned or blocked by Confucianism. They are still watching the world, their blood has not cooled, and their thoughts are still pursuing progress. They will not regard anything outside of Confucianism as "heresy"...

The Confucians of this era were powerful and proud. They welcomed challenges from "heretics" and would either subdue, absorb, or destroy them until they were the only ones left between heaven and earth.

Yan Silu stood in front of the crusher for a long time, not knowing whether he was observing why the corn kernels turned into grits when poured into the crusher and came out from the bottom hole, or thinking about Fang Jun's words. After a long time, he nodded, pointed to the bags full of corn grits piled on the side, and said to a servant behind him: "Carry a bag, and eat this when we go back tonight."

When people are young, they do not know what propriety, righteousness, integrity and shame are, and are often shameless; when people get old, they have already understood propriety, righteousness, integrity and shame, and become even more shameless; as long as they live in the middle age, they will take propriety, righteousness, integrity and shame too seriously and would rather suffer a loss than lose face.

The old man thought the corn grits were very good so he took them without asking Fang Jun for them, and he didn't care whether Fang Jun gave them to him or not.

"At seventy, I can follow my heart's desire without breaking the rules." This does not mean that I don't follow the rules, but that the rules are in my heart and no one thinks that I don't follow the rules. This is the realm of life...

Of course Fang Jun would not refuse. To have someone like Yan Silu come to their house and take away a bag of corn was something that all the nobles in Chang'an City were dreaming of, so he quickly called the other servants of the Yan family and asked them to take a few more bags.

However, when he helped the old man out of the rice mill, he still reminded him, "Corn is hard in texture, and it's hard to soften even if you cook it for a long time. You must not eat too much since your stomach function is not good. Just try it. You should eat more easily digestible food. Otherwise, if you have problems because of eating corn grits, I will become a sinner of the Tang Dynasty and be condemned by Confucian scholars all over the world!"

"Haha, you Fang Er are also afraid?"

The snow was still flying in the sky, but there was no wind in the mountains and it was not cold at all. The old man was in high spirits. He waved his hand to let the ox cart follow behind, and he walked slowly along the mountain road with the support of Fang Jun.

Fang Jun hadn't walked freely in the mountains like this for a long time. He felt the cool air and the vast snow, which was very comfortable. "Whether you are afraid or not depends on your heart. When you have no guilt in your heart, you can still talk and laugh calmly even if thousands of people point fingers at you. But if you have done something wrong and feel guilty, you will naturally be three points lower than others and feel sad in your heart."

"Hmm? Despite his young age, his realm is actually quite high."

Yan Silu turned his head and glanced at him, a little surprised: "Your father is good at strategy, but because of his rigorous nature, he is good at planning without decision, and his realm is just so-so. You are better than your father. You can find a new way and pursue the way of the world with strange skills and tricks. You are also inclusive and open-minded. You deserve the praise of a contemporary hero."

"Oh, it's fine if you say this here, but please don't say it in front of others. I will be ashamed of myself."

"You are also modest? You have many advantages."

"I am not being modest. I have only made some progress in the study of nature, which is far from the true 'study of things to gain knowledge'. In terms of Confucianism, I am not even a 'latecomer'. My life is limited, but my knowledge is limitless. I must keep learning until I die."

Yan Silu was more and more surprised, and simply stopped walking: "You have also studied "Zhuangzi"? Great. But there is one thing that puzzles me. My father once said, 'Teach a wife when she first comes, and teach a child when she is an infant.' It means that educating children should start from when they are infants. At that time, infants have no sense of autonomy. As long as they are guided by correct ideas, they can easily become talents. If they are educated after they grow up, their ideas will often contradict each other and they will be rebellious. By then, it will be too late. But you were naive and uneducated when you were young, and you were rebellious and dull when you were young. But when you became an adult, you suddenly changed and were completely different from before. What methods did your father use to teach you to walk on the right path, have a pure heart, and love the people like your own children?"

Yan Silu was puzzled by Fang Jun's life trajectory. It is not uncommon for a prodigal son to return, but the fact that "gold is priceless" means that the probability of this happening is extremely low. Moreover, Fang Erbangchui and

The name "Pest of Chang'an" was well-known to the people. He was also concerned about the child because he and Fang Xuanling had been colleagues. He felt that the child was definitely useless and would never have any future.

The Yan family is not only the best in the world in Confucian attainments, but also has unparalleled experience in education. After all, they are the first family in the world to have the "family motto". How could a child who was identified as "waste" by them turn the tide and turn waste into treasure?
But the facts made him strongly doubt the education method he had learned all his life. This "waste" child not only "turned waste into treasure", but also became a shining, unique and rare treasure...

He felt that there must be something unknown happening, which led to Fang Jun's completely different life trajectory.

Fang Jun chuckled when he heard this. This was not the first time someone had asked him this question. What else could he say?

"I was originally a bright pearl, locked up by dust for a long time. One day, the dust was gone and the light was born, illuminating the mountains and rivers... Perhaps my mind was previously obscured by dust, and suddenly one day, by chance, I became enlightened..."

"Ha ha……"

Yan Silu glanced at Fang Jun and said, "These four Buddhist verses are quite good. Where did you hear them from?"

"If I say that I heard it in my dream, would you believe me?"

Yan Silu was annoyed. He patted Fang Jun on the back of his head and said in dissatisfaction, "You bastard, you are trying to make fun of me, right? Do you believe that when your father comes back to Chang'an one day, I will file a complaint and let your father punish you according to the family rules?"

Fang Jun laughed: "I'm sorry to disappoint you. In our family, my mother is more powerful than the family rules..."

"Hey! You bastard, you're making up stories about your own mother, right?"

As he said this he laughed. "The Prime Minister Fang is afraid of his wife" is not a sarcastic remark nowadays but a compliment. Who wouldn't want a virtuous wife who is a lady from an aristocratic family, good at managing the household and sticks to principles?

She was a remarkable woman who was highly praised and respected by Emperor Taizong...

The old man and the young walked along the mountain road for a while. Although Yan Silu was in good spirits, he was too old and weak after all. He stopped panting after a few steps, waved to the back to let the ox cart come up, and then said to Fang Jun: "Okay, it's boring to accompany an old man like me. I have to go back, otherwise those evil people at home will probably leave the city to look for me again."

I wonder how shocked outsiders would be to hear that the Yan Shigu brothers were called "evil obstacles"...

Fang Jun said respectfully, "Why don't you come to the manor for a stroll in your spare time? It's snowing today and it's a bad day. If it's good weather and a market day, the manor will be very lively and there will be everything to eat and play."

Yan Silu clapped his hands and smiled, "I am an old man with too much negative energy. I like lively places the most. Let's go for a stroll when the weather is good."

The ox cart arrived, and Fang Jun helped Yan Silu and others into the carriage. The old man waved to Fang Jun casually as a farewell. The ox cart turned around on the road and slowly moved down the mountain.

Fang Jun bowed and saluted by the roadside until the ox cart turned a corner and disappeared into the snow and wind, and then he straightened up.

The guards brought the horses, Fang Jun grabbed the reins and jumped on the horses, and went straight into the farm through the falling snow. He called the steward Lu Cheng over and asked him about the selection of corn seeds. Seeing that everything was arranged perfectly and the selected seeds had been stored in the cellar, he felt relieved.

Due to the lack of scientific means, seeds cannot be cultivated artificially, so we can only adopt the most traditional, primitive but effective method - selecting the best from the best. If the seeds are reproduced from generation to generation, there is a high probability that genetic mutations will occur, making them more productive and more disease-resistant.

After noon, Fang Jun, wearing a fur coat and a sable hat, rode a horse and led his dog to the mountains to hunt some deer and rabbits. He came back to skin and bone them and stewed them in a big pot. He gathered together with his bodyguards without any barriers and had a good drink. He lay on the warm kang and took a nap. He packed up until the evening and returned to Chang'an City in the increasingly heavy snow and wind.

After entering the city, he did not go home, but went directly to the palace.

In the imperial study, the emperor and his ministers sat opposite each other.

Looking at Fang Jun's ears that were red from the cold, Li Chengqian frowned and said, "You are not young anymore, and you are an important official in the court. You should know that a gentleman should not stand under a dangerous wall. How can you travel in the wind and snow? What if something unexpected happens?"

Riding a horse on a snowy day is the most dangerous. The snow on the road is trampled by horses and carriages and is as hard as ice, making it easy to slip. The falling snow also covers the potholes on the road, making it very likely that the warhorse will stumble. Once you fall off the horse while riding, the worst possible outcome is broken bones or even death.

So most people travel by car on snowy days instead of riding horses...

Fang Jun smiled and said, "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I will pay attention to it in the future. However, I ran into Yan Silu on the way out of the city to Lishan Farm today..."

"Yan Silu?"

Li Chengqian was slightly stunned, and exchanged glances with Fang Jun. He understood, and then sighed, "How could they possibly invite this person? Why did the Yan Clan of Langya have to get involved in this?"