Home Categories Chinese history Yi Zhongtian History of China 06·A hundred schools of thought contend

Chapter 31 Chapter Six System and Human Nature

Han Fei was killed by his classmates. His classmate is Li Si. Both Li Si and Han Fei were students of Xunzi, just as Pang Juan and Sun Bin were both students of Mr. Guigu.Moreover, just like Li Si was jealous of Han Fei later, Pang Juan was also jealous of Sun Bin.As a result, it was Pang Juan who designed to frame this classmate and made him suffer the punishment of bin (cutting off his feet). He lost his real name and was called Sun bin. Sun Bin, who survived the catastrophe, fled secretly to Qi State and became the aide of Qi general Tian Ji.In 341 B.C., Sun Bin defeated Pang Juan, the general of Wei, in Maling. Prince Wei was captured, and Pang Juan committed suicide.Shang Yang saw that the state of Wei had been severely damaged, so he also took advantage of the fire to loot. In the second year, he defeated Prince Wei and forced the state of Wei to move its capital to Daliang.

At this time, Wei Jun was King Hui of Liang.King Liang Hui was defeated by Sun Bin once and Shang Yang twice.Mencius talked about benevolence and righteousness to him, but of course he wouldn't listen. Han Fei was worse than Sun Bin. Unlike Sun Bin, Han Fei was born in a Korean royal family.It is a pity that South Korea was dying at that time.His claim cannot be used by King Han.Qin Wang Yingzheng couldn't put it down after reading his works.So Ying Zheng sent troops to attack South Korea, and he had to see Han Fei.The king of Han was frightened, so he quickly sent Han Fei as envoy to Qin.

Li Si became nervous. At this time, Li Si was already Ying Zheng's guest secretary.He knew that his talent was not as good as Han Fei's, so he said to Ying Zheng: This man is the son of South Korea, will he help Qin State wholeheartedly?Could it be a South Korean undercover agent? Ying Zheng was used to being domineering, so he sent Han Fei to prison without thinking. In fact, Ying Zheng had no intention of killing, but Li Si was ruthless.He immediately sent someone to deliver the poison to Han Fei.Han Fei wanted to explain to the King of Qin, but he was not allowed to approve it. He had to drink medicine and died at the age of forty-seven.

Sima Qian was very moved by this.Sima Qian said, why couldn't Han Fei save himself?He has written "Said Difficulty" (Speaking and reading is like tax)! Indeed, Han Fei should know that people are unreliable. Such as Mi Zixia and Wei Linggong. Mi Zixia is Wei Linggong's male favorite.When the two were in good friends, they once shared the same peach. At that time, the Hunjun also said: Mi Zixia loves me, and I can't bear to eat good things.When Mi Zixia got old and his color faded, Wei Linggong said: Mi Zixia is a bastard, and he gave the leftovers to the widow. Man, how can you be reliable?

There is another story, which is also told in "Say Difficulty". The story says that once Zheng Wugong asked his ministers: I want to use troops, which country can I attack?A certain doctor said: Hu Guo.Zheng Wugong was furious: nonsense!Hu Guo is a brother, you said you can attack him, what do you mean? So Zheng Wugong killed the doctor. Hu Guo was very happy and felt that Zheng Wugong was a buddy.Unexpectedly, as soon as Hu Guo relaxed his vigilance, Zheng Wugong made a move and took it down in one fell swoop.It turned out that his anger and killing were all smokescreens. This is called brotherhood.

It seems that classmates are unreliable, brothers are unreliable, and rulers and ministers are also unreliable, even if the rulers and ministers are lovers. What about couples? Also unreliable.Han Fei said that there was a couple praying in Weiguo.The wife said, I hope we are safe and sound, and there is a hundred cloth coins.My husband said, you are really honest, why do you want to be so little?My wife said, one hundred cloth coins is enough for us to spend.You earn a lot of money, why don't you use it to beg your concubine? Husband and wife are unreliable, what about parents? Also unreliable.Han Fei said that the common people celebrate when they give birth to boys, and kill them when they give birth to girls, because boys are laborers and girls are losers.Aren't parents also "treating each other with a calculating heart" to their children?

So Han Fei said, don't trust people. Han Fei even said: The trouble with being a master lies in trusting people.Especially those "lords of ten thousand chariots, kings of a thousand chariots" must never trust their queens and princes, because they all hope that you will die early. Is that right? yes.The reason is simple: men are "fifty and their lust has not been resolved", and women "30 and their beauty has faded".So the queen will fall out of favor after thirty.If the queen mother falls out of favor, the prince will be hard to protect.The position of crown prince is likely to belong to the new favorite.

Obviously, only when the king dies, the mother is the queen mother, and the son is the new king, can one sit back and relax.If God doesn't have eyes, you have to do it yourself.The queen and the prince are close by the king's side, so it is very convenient to do some tricks. So Han Fei sighed and said—— If the closeness of the wife and the closeness of the son are still untrustworthy, then there is no one else who can be trusted! What a Han Fei!Monarchs, fathers and sons, brothers, husbands and wives, the most important interpersonal relationships of Confucianism, in his eyes and writing, have become naked, bloody interests and calculations, without the slightest beauty and warmth.The veil of tenderness was ruthlessly torn away, and what was revealed was intrigue, stealing, sword shadow, life and death.

This is really facing the bleak life! In history, it seems that no one has spoken out the evil of human nature so bluntly, and said it so quietly, so it is only natural, without any regard for the psychological reaction of the people who hear it. This is a kind of coldness that comes from reality. Truth is the most powerful.Therefore, in the face of Han Fei's heavy sternness, Confucius' kindness, Mozi's persistence, and Zhuangzi's romance all lost their weight at once.In fact, after reading "Han Feizi", don't you think it's a bit pedantic to self-restraint and reverence?Don't you think it's a bit hypocritical to love the world together?Don't you feel free and easy?

Perhaps, only Lao Tzu's words still have some meaning: The world is not benevolent, and treats everything as a straw dog. What is the philosophy of a humble dog? How do we know the good and evil of human nature?
Notes:
Press "Left Key ←" to return to the previous chapter; Press "Right Key →" to enter the next chapter; Press "Space Bar" to scroll down.
Chapters
Chapters
Setting
Setting
Add
Return
Book