manynovel Chapter 1160 Shang Fang’s Sword
Chapter 1160 Shang Fang’s Sword
Chapter 1160 Shang Fang’s Sword
Inside the Zizheng Hall.
It was a scene of mutual understanding and joy between the ruler and his subjects.
Li Xian stood silently by the side, watching the emperor and his ministers having a heart-to-heart talk.
The emperor sighed, "Since ancient times, it has been difficult for soldiers to travel a long distance, but I am speaking the truth. I think what Xu Xi and Lu Dazhong just said about the construction of Hengshan is indeed promising."
"Why do you insist on not doing it, and build Lanhui, Tiandu Mountain, and Pingxia City? It is indeed a waste of energy and time."
Zhang Yue saw that the emperor still supported Yokoyama Jinzhu in his heart, but this time he chose to support himself in front of the emperor.
why?
Zhang Yue speculated that it might be because the reason why the court trusted Zeng Guofan more after Zeng Guofan and Zuo Zongtang fell out was similar?
Zhang Yue has always speculated about others intellectually, but emotionally he is more willing to believe in the friendship between the ruler and his subjects, where they are open-hearted, willing to share clothes and food with each other.
"Why doesn't Zhang Qing say anything?"
Zhang Yue said solemnly: "Your Majesty, I will do my best to repay your kindness. How dare I hide it?"
Zhang Yue thought, because I came here from another time, if I continue to build, the battle of Yongle City will be repeated. However, Zhang Yue certainly cannot tell the emperor this reason, so he must think of another excuse.
Zhang Yue recalled a joke he had seen in later times, so he said, "Your Majesty, I used the analogy of the butcher Ding butchering an ox. How did Zhuangzi explain why the butcher Ding was so good at butchering an ox?"
The official smiled and said, "It's not that practice makes perfect, so I can do it with ease."
The story of the butchering of an ox by the butcher is well known to everyone, but most people attribute the butcher's skill to the saying "practice makes perfect".
Zhang Yue said: "Your Majesty, Lord Huiwen asked Cook Ding why he was so skilled, but Cook Ding said, 'What I like is the Tao, which is better than skills.'"
"And what is the way of cooking?"
"A bad chef uses a knife to chop the bones of an ox. He is so busy and sweaty that he has to change his knife every month. A good chef uses his knife to cut tendons, bones and meat. Although it is much easier, he still has to change his knife every month."
"But the butcher's knife has not become dull after 19 years. It is still as good as if it was bought new 19 years ago. Why is that? Because there are gaps in the bones of the cow, which are more than enough to accommodate the blade. This is called ease."
"Whenever the chef came across a place where the tendons and bones intertwined, he would do it very carefully. When he made the last cut, the beef would be untied. Every time this happened, I would hold the knife and look around, feeling very satisfied. I would wipe the knife clean and put it away."
Neither the emperor nor Li Xian understood what was going on. There was nothing different about what Zhang Yue said.
Zhang Yue said: "Your Majesty, the most important thing when butchering an ox is not the butcher, but the blade!"
"The blade of a knife is like a person's body and mind. A bad cook would chop an ox bone with a knife, and although he succeeded, the blade would also be damaged. A better cook would chop an ox tendon, but the blade would also be damaged little by little without him noticing. Only a good cook could use a knife for 19 years without damaging it."
After hearing Zhang Yue's words, the emperor and Li Xian beside him were both shocked, as if they had understood something.
There are too many things in life that we have to do, and we always put ourselves in a difficult position for some reason. For example, we have to do a job that we don’t like in order to make a living.
Even though he is a very annoying boss, I have to greet him with a smile every day.
This is just like a knife chopping cow bones. In order to make a living and have enough food, one is wasting one's body and mind every day.
There are also people who give compliments against their will in order to please their girlfriends.
In order to flatter the leader, some people say things against their will.
This is like using a knife to cut beef tendon. It seems that you gain immediate benefits, but your body and mind are also being damaged unknowingly.
It is said that those who try too hard cannot go far, but the story of butchering an ox tells us that not only can we not go far, we cannot even reach a higher level (with ease).
Zhang Yue said: "Your Majesty, Zhuangzi included the story of the butchering of an ox in the chapter on health preservation to tell people how to use it to preserve health. He used this chapter to tell people to nourish themselves. We must learn to be kind to ourselves and protect our hearts like we protect the blade of a knife."
"If we use this metaphor to describe how to govern a country, officials often say that they must 'make the people suffer'. It seems that the country cannot be governed well if the people don't suffer."
"I don't know why the policy of governing the country must sacrifice the people. Can the country be governed well if the people suffer?"
The official felt ashamed when he heard this.
The emperor recalled the dispute between him and Zhang Yue over whether to benefit the country or the people.
This is just like if you suppress yourself all day long, can you really do a job you hate well?
Can you really make the annoying Party A feel comfortable by flattering him all day long?
"The way of butchering an ox that Cook Ding talked about is the way of [non-action]."
The official said, "Yes, Laozi and Zhuangzi talked about non-action. However, except for Huang Lao in the early Han Dynasty, all dynasties did not use non-action to govern the country. Why is that?"
"I think this doctrine of inaction is profound, but not down to earth."
Zhang Yue said: "Your Majesty, you are truly wise and intelligent, and you can draw inferences from one example. In my humble opinion, if you have done something, you should be held accountable, and if you have done nothing, you should seek the truth."
"There are strong and weak people in the world. This is not about strong or weak in fate, but a metaphor from the minister."
"The stronger a person is, the more he will be defeated. The more he fights with others, the more ferocious he will be. He loves to compete and profit. Even if others don't allow him to do something, he will do it anyway. Such people can turn the tide and save a building from collapse. Therefore, the stronger a person is, the more he will succeed."
The official nodded and said, "Indeed."
"People with weak bodies do not like to fight with others. They often give in when encountering problems and worry about gains and losses over trivial matters. Therefore, people with weak bodies do nothing."
For example, whenever there is a major exam, some people can always perform at 120% of their abilities, while others can only perform at 80%.
In competitive matches or games, some people face challenges head-on and become more courageous as the battle goes on, becoming stronger the stronger the enemy, while others fear failure and lose their momentum before they even engage the enemy.
In fact, it is human nature to fear competition and difficulties. A strong person is like a person with a good blade in his hand. A cow bone can be broken into pieces with one blade. The more challenges there are, the better.
But 90% of people are weak.
Severe internal friction, wanting to win but afraid of losing, worrying about gains and losses, being thin-skinned, and avoiding conflicts are all habits of many people.
In fact, ordinary people don’t need to envy those who are physically strong. They can still succeed by treating themselves well and taking good care of their body and mind.
Zhang Yue said, "Your Majesty, when Wu Zhou conquered the Khitan, the Tang army was defeated in three battles, and lost more than 100,000 soldiers in one battle. But Empress Wu made a last-ditch effort to conquer the Khitan. I would like to ask if Your Majesty would do this?"
This is how Wu Zetian conquered the Khitan: she was defeated over and over again, but she kept fighting.
They were defeated three times, but they continued to fight even if they lost hundreds of thousands of soldiers each time, until the Khitan Empire was destroyed.
"Emperor Wu of Han conquered the Xiongnu. The people fled, the registered population was reduced by half, countless people died, and it took several battles to succeed. Your Majesty, can we follow their example?"
What Zhang Yue meant was that we are "cowards", not the Han and Tang dynasties.
Of course, to use the words of the literati of the Song Dynasty, we "Dasong" have institutional advantages, but we just don't have as much land as the Han and Tang dynasties.
For a powerful ruler like Wu Zetian or Emperor Wu of Han, if you don't submit, I will beat you until you submit, no matter how great the cost.
This is the same as a strong person.
But we in the Song Dynasty cannot do that. In history, after the five-pronged attack on Xia failed, the emperor wanted to launch another large-scale attack on Dangxiang. Li Shunju inspected Shaanxi and reported back that they could not fight anymore, as Guanzhong would be in chaos if they did.
The government immediately suspended the plan upon hearing this.
The institutional advantage of the Song Dynasty was its internal stability. Generally speaking, there were no rebellions by military generals, usurpation of power by civil officials, or disorderly politics by relatives of the emperor and eunuchs like in the Han and Tang dynasties. Power was transferred smoothly from generation to generation without any unexpected problems. However, it could not be as strong externally as the Han and Tang dynasties.
If it was Wu Zetian or Emperor Wu of Han, wouldn't it just be fighting the Tanguts? If they were defeated once, they would fight again and keep fighting.
If 100,000 soldiers are not enough, then 200,000. If 200,000 are not enough, then 300,000. If 300,000 are not enough, then 500,000. No matter how many people die or how much it costs, we must defeat you. We must not only defeat you until you surrender, but also until you die.
If anyone dares to oppose, I will release Junchen and Zhang Tang to bite you to death.
It is obvious that the Song Dynasty is not good enough! Cai Que, Zhang Tang and Lai Junchen are all considered three-good students.
The emperor was the same. After the two previous expeditions against Xia failed, the emperor was so angry that he fell ill. If it were Emperor Wu of Han or Empress Wu Zetian, these powerful rulers would never torture themselves, but only torture others.
Internal friction is a common problem.
Therefore, the Song Dynasty could not afford to experience a defeat like the Battle of Yongle City.
Once a company fails, it will take several years to recover, and the company may even be forced to abandon its strategic goals.
When ordinary people encounter major failures, they tend to give up instead of persisting.
So it's not that the idea of building Hengshan is bad, but that the risk and profit of this plan are equally considerable. If you were Emperor Wu of Han, Wu Zetian would do this. If it doesn't work once, try again.
But you are not. Now that we have finally won the Lanzhou victory and the whole country has developed the confidence to use military force abroad, we cannot afford to mess around like this.
Faith is more precious than gold.
This is the same as ordinary people. Once they encounter setbacks and difficulties, they think about giving up. Don't feel ashamed or like a failure. In fact, everyone is the same.
It is definitely more difficult for ordinary people to succeed, but can they choose not to chop beef bones or tendons? Instead, they should work towards the direction of "being able to do things with ease".
Therefore, the way of butchering the ox is not to make things difficult for yourself or to compromise yourself, but to gain the joy of success again and again from butchering the ox.
Stick to low goals and simple and easy things to nourish your confidence and cognition.
It is said that persistence is more important than hard work.
But how to persist?
It means to be kind to yourself, nourish your body and mind, keep doing things that have positive feedback, and finally accumulate small victories into big ones.
"Your Majesty, everyone is afraid of losing, not to mention the people's hearts and minds. I want to do something that is "easy to handle" instead of overcoming this difficulty. Although the Lanhui and Tiandu Mountain route are time-consuming and labor-intensive, they are almost certain to win."
"On the contrary, even if we succeed in building Hengshan, it will not be enough to defeat the Tanguts, but if we fail, all our previous efforts will be wasted."
As Zhang Yue spoke, he became frightened. To be honest, he had never thought about it so carefully before.
Zhang Yue thought for a while and continued, "What I am worried about is not the present, but the future."
"And the same is true for ruling the country. Your Majesty should share more joy with the people, let the country benefit more and keep more wealth for the people. Not only will the country not be weak, but the people will be rich and the country will also be rich."
“Those who govern a country should not regard enriching the country and enriching the people as two different things, but rather as one thing.”
After listening to Zhang Yue's words, the hall fell into silence.
At this time, Li Xian stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, what the History Museum said is all true and insightful. It is a good strategy for governing the country and ensuring the people's safety. I ask Your Majesty to accept it."
The emperor thought for a moment after hearing this, and then said to Zhang Yue: "I have entrusted the military and national affairs to you, just let it go, why do you have to say more now?"
After hearing this, Zhang Yue felt as if he had a precious sword in his hand.