If you don't give up, I'd like to be your adoptive father.

Chapter 1468 The Direction of the Great Way

"The king is supreme, how can he be controlled by anyone? Who can control the king? If someone can control the king, then the king is no longer a king."

The one who controls him is the king, who has been given a different title.

As a result, the monarch is still called a monarch, and those who govern him are called 'subjects'. Isn't this a reversal of the natural order?

"Without even the most basic order, the country will only become more chaotic." Meng Yi was agitated.

Li Si's expression changed, and he wanted to explain urgently: I never thought of controlling Hu Hai. At most, I only wanted to strengthen the power of the prime minister and become a powerful minister.

But I became a powerful minister for the good of the Qin Dynasty!

Even a great emperor like the former emperor ruined the country; Hu Hai is like the "King Zhou of Qin," and if he is allowed to "fully display his talents," the entire Qin Dynasty will be doomed!

But if he says that, wouldn't he be supporting Grand Tutor Yu?
He doesn't support her! He believes he can be a powerful minister, but also believes no one can control a monarch.

It can only be that the monarch uses power to control the officials and the law to control the people, possessing supreme authority. But isn't that a contradiction?
Grand Tutor Yu laughed and said, "The one who governs a monarch does not necessarily have to be a specific person, much less a specific subject."

It could be a fabricated concept.

The rules of the demonic path allow old demons to refine each other. Confucianism can refine Legalism, and Legalism can also refine Confucianism.

How did Confucianism 'control' the monarch? Why did the late emperor order the massacre of Confucian scholars?

Feng Quji immediately said: "Confucian scholars use the past to satirize the present, first defining ancient monarchs as perfect sages."

Sages are naturally right in everything they do.

Then compare the actions of ancient sage rulers with the policies of the current emperor.

Since ancient monarchs were considered perfect sages, the former emperors whose actions differed from those of sages were naturally not sages.

If someone is not a saint, then they are wrong, or they are a tyrant.

However, their definition of ancient sage rulers is not the truth, but rather their own idea.

Many of the things that ancient monarchs did never actually happen; they were all fabrications.

They actually wanted the emperor to listen to them and become the person they wanted him to be.

At this point, the old prime minister's face showed a thoughtful expression.

Grand Tutor Yu said, "Confucianism can create sage rulers, and so can Legalism."

To understand what a sage ruler of Legalism should be like, one can refer to the Qin Dynasty.

Why did the Qin Dynasty lose its Mandate of Heaven? The former emperor was not lacking in wisdom and bravery, but he lacked 'benevolence'.

However, the concept of 'benevolence' has very obvious Confucian characteristics. Studying Confucianism does not mean copying Confucian theories.

Moreover, the Confucian concept of "benevolence" is only superficial; it sounds nice but doesn't delve into the fundamentals.

Some 'benevolent rulers' are not benevolent at all.

The Legalists were able to grasp the essence of 'benevolence' before the Confucians could.

Li Si asked in confusion, "Isn't benevolence just benevolence? What other essence does it have?"

Grand Tutor Yu sighed, "Suppose the late emperor listened to advice. Someone told him that the people were exhausted and needed rest so that the country could develop healthily. If the late emperor listened, reduced taxes and levies, stopped the turmoil, and let the people live a few good years, would that be considered benevolent?"

“This is certainly benevolence, the great benevolence advocated by Confucianism!” Li Si said.

Although he was a leading figure in Legalism, he was also a direct disciple of the great Confucian scholar Xunzi and understood Confucianism.

Or perhaps it's because he understood Confucianism too well and saw through it that he turned to the more promising Legalism.

There are many "unorthodox sages" similar to him, such as Wu Qi, the military strategist. He also first studied Confucianism, then switched to military strategy, and later studied Legalism, integrating the three schools of thought. He was invincible in leading troops into battle and his governance of the country was no less than that of Guan Zhong.

"This is not benevolence. The late emperor listened to advice because further turmoil would lead to the downfall of the country, not because he truly had pity and compassion for the people."

Legalists can bypass the concept of 'benevolence' and directly grasp its essence—love for the people and ensuring their well-being.

The concept of "ancient Legalist sage rulers" with "love for the people" as the primary standard was established, and these ancient sage rulers then governed the current monarch.

Only by learning from the ancient sage rulers can a monarch be worthy of possessing supreme authority.

"If one becomes a benevolent and wise ruler who loves his people, and then governs them with laws, naturally there will be no problems."

Meng Yi frowned and said, "So, the new Legalism that the Grand Tutor mentioned is essentially just an additional process of 'educating the monarch'? In the past, monarchs also had Grand Tutors to teach them."

The Grand Tutor would teach the king how to be a qualified monarch.

In the past, some people taught the monarch to "love the people," but they did not attach as much importance to it as the Grand Tutor.

"We can simply change the way we teach."

Li Si slowly shook his head and said, "General Meng only saw the surface. I'm afraid what the Grand Tutor really wants to say is that the law should not be centered on the monarch, but on the people."

With the people at the core, the law exists to ensure that the monarch cannot exploit the people, and that the monarch's power cannot infringe upon the people's rights.

Grand Tutor Yu nodded and said, "If we go a step further, it means putting the people first. It means changing from 'the law originates from the ruler' to 'the law reflects the will of the people.'"

The goal has shifted from sacrificing the rights of all people to establish supreme power for one person, to ensuring that every citizen can live like a human being and possess the basic rights of a 'human being.'

“Alas, Grand Tutor, you are completely delusional!” Li Si said with a complicated expression: “The Legalist school’s ‘magic power’ has ‘power’ coming first.”

The monarch possesses supreme power.

This is not just empty talk, but a fact that has naturally occurred.

A monarch is born with power, then masters the art of controlling people, and finally, the law is born.

The order cannot be reversed.

Grand Tutor Yu laughed and said, "You are talking about the reality of the past, while I am talking about the present, the future, and destiny."

The general trend of human development is to balance power.

To balance the power between the monarch and his ministers, the court and the common people, and the nobility and the common folk.

The monarch and the powerful were naturally dissatisfied, but destiny lies in the hearts of the people.

The general trend of humanity has never been in the hands of monarchs and famous ministers, but rather in the hands of the people you despise.

The late emperor was great and wise, possessing the greatest wealth and the strongest army, yet he perished after only two generations due to going against the will of the people.

Is it to cling to supreme power or to perish and destroy one's country? No matter how great a monarch is, he is still human, and humans fear death. The key is, it's useless not to die, because when a person dies, everything is in vain, and the dead cannot participate in the power struggle.

Therefore, the monarch would eventually compromise, and thus the mandate of heaven to depose the human emperor and establish a new Son of Heaven was born.

Li Si understood and grasped the meaning, so he was shocked and remained silent for a long time.

Feng Quji understood, but didn't grasp the essence. He felt that every word Grand Tutor Yu said made sense, yet the whole thing seemed absurd.

So, he worriedly digressed from the main point and said, "This great calamity of heaven and earth is about eliminating the Human Emperor and establishing a new Son of Heaven! Judging from the Grand Tutor's words, Fuqiu Gong and his group will definitely succeed?"

Grand Tutor Yu countered, "Are we trying to salvage the destiny of the Great Qin, or are we striving to help Hu Hai become a great being like the former emperor, someone who can make the Heavenly Emperor suffer but remain helpless?"
Originally, the "great mandate" of Heaven required the Qin Dynasty to perish in order to be fulfilled, hence the "smaller mandate" of the Qin Dynasty's demise after two generations.

Now that the Qin Dynasty is taking the initiative to change, as long as it becomes the embodiment of the "Great Mandate of Heaven," it will be able to alter the lesser Mandate of Heaven, which was destined to perish after only two generations.

Feng Quji's expression softened as he said, "The process of demoting the Human Emperor to the Son of Heaven began during the time of Grand Tutor Meng. At that time, the court officials also strongly supported it. However, the Jade Emperor refused and ignored us."

"What does it have to do with the Jade Emperor that the emperor becomes the 'Son of Heaven'? The Son of Heaven is the son of the Heavenly Emperor, while the Jade Emperor is at most a 'father figure'."

Once the Qin Dynasty regains the hearts of the people and is bolstered by their faith, it will come back to life, and the Second Emperor, Huhai, will be the 'Son of Heaven.' Without needing to ask anyone, the emperor can simply offer a sacrifice to Heaven and declare—'I am the Son of Heaven,' and the matter will be settled," said Grand Tutor Yu.

Feng Quji became conflicted again, "Are we ultimately on the same path as Fuqiu Gong and the others?"

Grand Master Yu said, "Fuqiu Gong and his group of quasi-Great Luo Immortals only know that the Mandate of Heaven to 'suppress the Human Emperor and establish the Son of Heaven' has been born, but they don't bother to figure out how the Mandate of Heaven came about. They only focus on stimulating the potential of the heroes of China."

It's just like a farmer who wants a good harvest but only cares about pruning and trimming the crops, making them look beautiful, but is unwilling to put in the effort to transport manure to the fields to increase soil fertility.

We are different from them; we focus on the people's hearts and are on the right path.

However, Fuqiu Gong and his companions went astray.

Li Si exclaimed, "The Grand Tutor's 'New Legalist Theory' is truly astounding."

The Grand Tutor's Legalist theory was based on the idea that the Mandate of Heaven resided in the hearts of the people, and that changes in the people's hearts could immediately make the monarch feel the great terror of death and the destruction of the country.

The law is not a prophecy or a prediction. The law must be fulfilled immediately.

The process of transforming public opinion into destiny is too slow and can only serve as a warning.

A monarch is born with the power of life and death.

Individual citizens cannot directly control destiny or bring down divine punishment.

In a specific matter, a monarch will not immediately feel the immense terror of death and national annihilation that comes from going against the will of the people. But a monarch can immediately cause the death and extermination of his people and their entire clan.

Therefore, even if my Great Qin Dynasty truly perished after only two generations, even if all subsequent dynasties and emperors took this as a warning and believed that the will of the people could change destiny.

Future rulers will at most put on a show, merely refraining from endlessly exploiting the people.

Meng Yi said, "The Grand Tutor didn't say that the people should be the core of the law immediately. First, use the 'ancient sage rulers' to restrain the monarch. In the future, well, I feel that what the Grand Tutor said about balancing the power dynamics is probably true."

Even the more distant future is completely unimaginable to me.

As long as a monarch exists, what right do the people have to make the monarch 'fear him at all times'?
If the common people could command the constant reverence of the ruler, then the ruler himself would cease to exist.

Clearly, Meng Yi, like Li Si, truly listened to and fully understood Grand Tutor Yu's words.

Grand Tutor Yu thought about it carefully before saying, "If it were a world without the power of immortal magic, the 'future' that General Meng mentioned would be infinitely distant and completely unimaginable."

In her previous life, if there had been no foreign invasion, the Central Plains dynasty would have overthrown the monarch's "mandate of heaven" simply by changing its own course. Anyway, she was somewhat desperate and couldn't see a future.

“But in our Pangu world, there are immortal techniques and the power of miracles!” Grand Tutor Yu’s voice rose unconsciously, and he became inexplicably excited. He said, “I once saw the power of the human king. It was like an object that could be held and played with.”

What does it mean that the authority is real and not false?
It can be released like grain from a granary, distributed to all people!

Li Si frowned, wanting to say, "Grand Tutor, have you lost your mind? The Emperor's power belongs to the Emperor. If the Emperor is not as foolish as you, why would he distribute power to the people like food?"
Even if you are incredibly powerful, and you can tame the Human Emperor like you tamed Hu Hai, what about the next generation of Human Emperors?

Protecting one's own interests from infringement is both an instinct and something your "new Legalism" advocates.

Even an emperor should protect his own legitimate interests!
Even assuming you are an immortal who can eternally suppress the Qin Dynasty and subdue generations of Qin emperors, you yourself said that the Human Emperor's authority must be diminished, and everyone will become a "Son of Heaven" in the future. Where would you get the authority of the Human Emperor to distribute to the people?

He didn't say anything because he had now figured out Grand Tutor Yu's new Legalist philosophy, and instead, he was completely calm and rational, with a pure and clear mind.

—Grand Tutor Yu was just talking nonsense, discussing metaphysics and Taoism with me; he didn't really intend to implement reforms immediately.

Since it's just a discussion, and her points are quite reasonable, from which I've also benefited a lot, let's let her have some fun!

Well, the excitement on Grand Tutor Yu's face was quite obvious.

Because she seems to have found her own direction in the "Grand Tutor's Way".

Before she became Grand Tutor, she could kill anything that bothered her with a single sword stroke.

After becoming the Grand Tutor, when faced with the dilemma of guiding the direction of the dynasty and then humanity, she could not draw her sword and kill indiscriminately.

For example, in the underworld, she felt uncomfortable seeing the privileges that nobles had regarding cause and effect.

For example, because of the story of Li Shimin being toyed with by minor ghosts and gods during the Journey to the West, she predicted that after the Human Emperor was stripped of his power, the Son of Heaven would become a plaything of the gods and immortals, and the human way would be suppressed by the way of gods and immortals, which made her feel uncomfortable.

For example, once she truly understood the extravagance and tyranny of the emperor's rule, and the lives of the common people in the Central Plains, she began to feel uneasy about the supreme power of the emperor.

As a wandering swordsman, Xiaoyu rarely gave these questions serious consideration.

Because it has nothing to do with her. At most, if she happens to run into someone, she might just stab that person who annoyed her to death.

After becoming Grand Tutor, Grand Tutor Yu cannot simply enjoy privileges without bearing responsibilities.

Once you have a sense of responsibility, you'll start to think more deeply.

Once she starts thinking deeply, she gets a headache and feels overwhelmed because she can't find a solution to the problem, and she lacks the power to change the world.

This world belongs to the Three Pure Ones!

With a group of Grand Luo Golden Immortals under the command of the Three Pure Ones acting as his henchmen, she is currently competing with "mere" Quasi-Grand Luo Immortals. How could she be qualified to challenge the world rules set by the Three Pure Ones?

After chatting with Li Si for a while, Grand Tutor Yu seemed to see a light ahead, like someone who had walked a dark road for a long time.

Even if the Three Pure Ones are powerful, they cannot completely control humanity, but the power of humanity can write rules.

"The direction of the Immortal Path is not yet fully determined. However, the direction of the Human Path has been felt first."

However, this road seems to be very difficult to travel.

"Alas, the great path is arduous; no matter what path one chooses, every step is difficult, and there are no shortcuts!" Grand Tutor Yu sighed with deep emotion.

(End of this chapter)