“Your words make sense. We all know that the importance of The Holy Land lies not in its location in the ancient land, but in its connection to other secret places. Although there are rumors this year that changes have occurred in The Holy Land due to the movement of the God of Literature, even the greatest changes may not necessarily bring us together.”
Several Presented Scholars sighed and drank a few more cups.
Li Fanming glanced at the wine cup in front of Fang Yun and asked, “Why don’t you drink?”
“I’ll drink when I’ve recovered,” Fang Yun replied with a smile.
“That makes sense.”
Fang Yun remained seated in his wheelchair, and everyone still thought his injuries had not healed.
Soon, Niu Shan called Fang Yun aside and whispered, “Your Majesty, I had Niu He keep an eye on Xun Ye, but shortly after sunset, Xun Ye suddenly left using a rapid travel poem and entered the fog. Niu He couldn’t catch up, and it took a long time for Xun Ye to return.”
Fang Yun said, “Xun Ye just said in the language of our race that he wanted to find us, but it was too dangerous, so he came back.”
“I see, that’s good. But I always feel that he is not a good person, even more cunning than the Blood Demon Barbarian.”
“I understand,” Fang Yun said.
“You continue your conversation, I won’t disturb you anymore.” Niu Shan left, always touching the Swallowed Lake Pearl that Fang Yun had given him, reluctant to let go.
As the night deepened, everyone gradually dispersed, and Fang Yun called out to Shi Tang.
“Brother Shi Tang, I have a favor to ask,” Fang Yun said.
“Please speak,” Shi Tang replied politely.
“Your family is a great family of the Qin Dao, not only are they masters of the Qin Dao and Music Dao, but in order to be more proficient in the Qin Dao, everyone is a Qin maker. I wonder if you brought any Qin lacquer?”
Shi Tang looked at Fang Yun in surprise and asked, “Do you want me to make Thunderstone Lacquer? I heard that your Treasures of Literature Qin is only an Imperial Scholar’s treasure. If you apply Thunderstone Lacquer to it, it can greatly enhance the power of the War Song, but… won’t it be too wasteful?”
Fang Yun said, “This is a four-layer ancient Qin, stronger than the ordinary Hanlin Scholar’s treasure. It can be used from Presented Scholar to Imperial Scholar, and then to Hanlin Scholar. The road ahead is full of dangers. I have six pieces of Thunderstone, and it’s not a waste to use one now.”
Shi Tang nodded and said, “That’s true. You are not a descendant of All the Saints’ prominent families. Your path to the Saints is full of thorns. You can’t save at this time. As a member of the Shi family, I naturally carry tools for making and repairing Qin. I will now make Thunderstone Lacquer and then apply it to your Treasures of Literature Qin. Can I take a look at your Treasures of Literature Qin?”
“Please look.” Fang Yun took out the Zhen Dan Qin from The Drinking Pearl of the River and handed it to Shi Tang.
Shi Tang carefully took the Zhen Dan and after a careful look, he couldn’t help but praise, “What a good Qin! The body of the Qin is upright and handsome, and the mountains are majestic. It must be the work of the Shi family in the Ling Mountain. Let me take a closer look before I mix the Qin lacquer.”
“Please,” Fang Yun said politely.
Shi Tang opened the body of the Qin, saw the four dragon horns underneath, was dumbfounded, and finally laughed and said, “If I’m not mistaken, these dragon horns are from the Qingjiang Dragon King, right?”
“Exactly.”
“What a luxury that makes people speechless!” Shi Tang laughed and looked carefully for a long time, then took out a piece of paper to write and draw, and finally asked Fang Yun about his future direction in the Qin Dao and some questions. Then he took out a balance and Qin lacquer materials.
Soon, Shi Tang said, “The dragon’s chant is high and loud, its horn powder and bone powder are excellent materials for Qin lacquer, but unfortunately, I only have the bone powder and horn powder of the pseudo-dragon of the Demon General at this moment, which is a bit inferior when mixed with Thunderstone. If some of the four dragon horn pads are ground off, it will affect the sound of the Qin, and it is not convenient to take the dragon horn powder.”
“When the Qin maker helped me cut the dragon horn, some dragon horn powder was left over. See if it’s enough. I also have a dragon rib that I exchanged today. You can grind some more. It’s my thanks to you.” Fang Yun handed over the little dragon horn powder and a dragon rib.
Shi Tang took a careful look and was delighted, “It’s enough, the big thing can be done!”
Soon, Shi Tang poured more than twenty kinds of powders, pastes, liquids and other state materials into a stone mortar and carefully ground them after mixing.
Shi Tang ground very finely, even finer than grinding ink.
Shi Tang was handsome and elegant, nearly thirty years old, and was a person fully cultivated by the Shi family. If it weren’t for The Holy Land, he would have passed the Imperial Scholar examination and had the talent of a national champion. He had once killed a thousand barbarians with his Qin, and was quite famous.
Fang Yun waited quietly.
The night in The Holy Land was beautiful, with moonlight shining on the white fog in the distance, full of mystery.
After a while, Shi Tang suddenly asked out of the blue, “What is etiquette and music?”
Fang Yun blinked and slowly said, “Etiquette originally refers to the etiquette followed by the nobles of the Zhou Dynasty, and music originally refers to the music and dance of the Zhou Dynasty. When etiquette and music are combined, on a small scale, it is the etiquette of the nobles of the Zhou Dynasty, on a medium scale, it is the system of the Zhou Dynasty, and on a large scale, it is the etiquette and law of the world.”
“How can we see the prosperity of etiquette and music?”
“Confucius said: If the name is not correct, then the words will not be smooth, if the words are not smooth, then things will not be accomplished, if things are not accomplished, then etiquette and music will not flourish. If things are accomplished, words are smooth, and the name is correct, then we can see the prosperity of etiquette and music. Etiquette and music are the forms of benevolence and righteousness. The king is the king, the minister is the minister, this is the prosperity of etiquette and music. The country is prosperous and the people are at peace, this is the prosperity of etiquette and music. Having enough food and drink is the prosperity of etiquette and music. The sound of reading is the prosperity of etiquette and music. The unity of the soldiers is the prosperity of etiquette and music. Everywhere in the world, we can see the prosperity of etiquette and music.”
A hint of surprise flashed in Shi Tang’s eyes. It was not difficult for a Presented Scholar to say that the king is the king, the minister is the minister, and the country is prosperous and the people are at peace, which is the great prosperity of etiquette and music. But when it comes to everywhere in the world, it has already broken away from the cage of the classics of All the Saints, and has its own views, from “learning the words of the sage” to “learning for practical use”.Shi Tang nodded and said, “Child Scholars and Accomplished Scholars study the words of the Saints, Presented Scholars and Imperial Scholars compose articles, Hanlin Scholars and Grand Academicians govern the nation, and Great Scholars comprehend the Path of the Saints. You are still young and your literary rank is still low, so you can compete in poetry; when you become an Imperial Scholar, a Hanlin Scholar, or a Grand Academician, you will need to strive for the human race, and you will not be worried. But if you become a Great Scholar, you will have to respect rites and music, understand benevolence and righteousness, and strive for the Path of the Saints. By then, every step will be difficult.”
“I am prepared.” Fang Yun had always been focusing on studying the classics of All the Saints, constantly reading books from the strange world to enrich himself, preparing for the path of the Great Scholar and even further. Because of his continuous efforts and honing these days, he vaguely had a direction, but it was not clear.
The dispute of thoughts and the contention of the Path of the Saints, even the Grand Academician could only barely touch, while Child Scholars, Accomplished Scholars, Presented Scholars, Imperial Scholars, and Hanlin Scholars could only accumulate and prepare, striving to participate in the future.
Not to mention how terrifying the contention of the Semi-Saints is, the power scattered from the contention of several Great Scholars alone is enough to level a state.
The words of the Great Scholars, profound in meaning, also have great power and capability.
Below the Grand Academician, let alone participating, they don’t even have the qualifications and strength to listen. If Fang Yun now contends with the Great Scholars from a distance, even if he is correct, even if he is thousands of miles away, he will be shaken to death by the powerful force of the Great Scholars.
From beginning to end, Fang Yun was very clear, so even if he knew countless profound insights and remarks, he kept them in his heart. He could dabble in poetry and prose, chess, calligraphy and painting, and all kinds of arts, but he would never delve into the core and essence of the world’s power, let alone contend.
A very harsh “rite” derived from the rules, systems, and laws is enough to crush any challenger.
Shi Tang slowly said, “If you go a few steps further, there will inevitably be people who will use ‘rites’ to balance you and even hit you. Confucius listened to the ‘Shao’ music for three months without knowing the taste of meat, and rites and music are one. You understand the way of the piano, you can understand the ‘Book of Music’ through the piano, and then enter the rites through the music, so you can stand on the invincible ground.”
Fang Yun solemnly saluted, this must be the family tradition of the Shi family, because the ancestor of the Shi family was Confucius’s ancient piano teacher, and rites and music are one, it can be said that he is half of Confucius’s rites teacher, the family tradition of the Shi family is not weaker than those ordinary Semi-Saint families, after all, “rites” is the Path of the Saints second only to benevolence and righteousness.
Fang Yun saluted and said, “Thank you, Brother Shi Tang, for your guidance. I almost went astray. Fortunately, I learned the way of the piano early. Today I know the subtlety of the piano.”
“The Path of the Saints is tortuous. If Confucius was not disappointed in Duke Ding of Lu, gave up the position of Lu’s prime minister, and traveled around the countries, how could he be canonized as a saint?”
Fang Yun said, “At that time, people were ignorant. Some people said that Confucius was not diligent in his four bodies and did not distinguish the five grains. They mocked Confucius for not being able to work and not understanding the most basic common sense. Confucius didn’t care, but some people mistakenly believed that the person was correct, but they didn’t know that Confucius not only worked hard in his early years and deeply understood the hardships of the people, but also made brilliant achievements in his adulthood, whether in politics, diplomacy or military affairs. Confucius’s three achievements are well known to all.”
“Even before Confucius was canonized as a saint, he was a hero of his generation.” Shi Tang admired him immensely.
When Confucius was in his thirties, he was responsible for the accounts and livestock of one of the three major families in Lu, the Ji family, and was quite successful. Later, the famous “Chicken Fight Change” occurred, and the three families of the Ji family even attacked the monarch of Lu, Duke Zhao. Confucius indignantly left the Ji family and left Lu.
Later, Confucius returned to Lu, first serving as the head of a county, “Zhongdu Zai”, with outstanding political achievements. In just one year, he was promoted to a small official in charge of Lu’s civil engineering, assisting the Grand Marshal in charge of Lu’s civil engineering. After another year, Confucius was promoted from a small official to the Grand Marshal, becoming the highest official in charge of Lu’s judiciary. Because of his brilliant achievements, the final actual power was equivalent to that of a prime minister, which can be said to be the second person in the country. This is Confucius’s first achievement in politics.
Because Confucius understood rites and music, when he was the Grand Marshal, he was responsible for presiding over the alliance of the monarchs of Qi and Lu, that is, diplomatic affairs. Qi was strong and Lu was weak. During the alliance, Duke Jing of Qi even attempted to let soldiers carry out a surprise attack under the guise of singing and dancing, intending to capture Duke Ding of Lu as a hostage.
Confucius stood up and stood in front of Duke Ding of Lu, scolding that this dance was not in accordance with the rites and music, and with his righteousness, he stopped the soldiers from launching a surprise attack, bought time, and forced Duke Jing of Qi to recall the soldiers. Later, Confucius saw through the covenant of Qi and recovered the lost land for Lu through diplomatic means. This alliance fully demonstrated Confucius’s great wisdom and courage, which was the second achievement.
The third achievement is the famous “Fall of the Three Cities”, also known as “Destruction of the Three Cities” or “Demolition of the Three Cities”. At that time, the vassals of the three major families of Lu controlled three military forces and did evil. Confucius offered a strategy and fought against the three families’ vassals, successfully destroying one city first.
Later, the other two vassals rebelled, scaring the monarch and other officials to flee in panic, while Confucius calmly commanded the battle and finally won the battle. This is the military achievement.
Although Confucius had three achievements, he left in anger because Duke Ding of Lu was fooled by a beauty and neglected state affairs, and began to travel around the countries.
Confucius was never a dreamer, but a real doer. Later, he widely recruited disciples to realize his ideals and finally left his name for all ages.
So those who truly understand the history of Confucius, although they know that Confucius has flaws, never deny his ability.
After Fang Yun came to the Holy Origin Mainland, he read more about the experiences of Confucius and other sages, and he understood more and more the extraordinary of the sages.
Before long, the Thunderstone Lacquer was finely ground. The inside of the stone mortar seemed to have transformed into a world of thunderous light, yet the lightning was incredibly gentle, and the sound of thunder was as soft as a puppy’s bark. (To be continued.)