Jinting Han people

Chapter 57: The Confusion of Making Friends (4k, plus more)
Many years later, when Liu Xian looked back on the time between his coming-of-age marriage and his entry into officialdom, he found it both laughable and sad.

Because he didn't have any ambitious goals at the time. To put it bluntly, he just wanted to find some new friends with similar interests. However, for quite a while, the people he met were disappointing.

The source is the disenchantment with past friends.

To put it bluntly, his previous good impression of Shi Chao and others came from the generosity of these noble gentlemen.

After all, in this era when the aristocracy was at its peak, how could a county marquis or a county duke be stingy with money?

They may appear to be equal, friendly, and generous to their friends of the same background, but in fact, they are deeply indifferent to ordinary people who are obviously of lower background than them.

Not only do they find it difficult to empathize, they are even unable to realize that the common people are the same kind of creatures as them. Their tears are no saltier than those of ordinary people, their blood is no more colorful than that of ordinary people, and their bones are no ironier than those of ordinary people.

Only when the day comes that everyone draws their swords and fights each other will they repent and be unable to cry.

Later, when he went to the Shiping Prince's Palace as a companion, Liu Xian initially had some hope.

Sima Wei was indeed a benevolent and charitable prince who could win the hearts of the people. If he could use his position as a tutor in the palace as a medium to make friends with some new people who were interested in learning, it would be a good choice.

But unfortunately, the first time he entered the Shiping Palace, he felt the atmosphere of power struggle that was difficult to conceal:
A small faction had already formed around Sima Wei, headed by the Chief Clerk Gongsun Hong and the Sheren Qi Sheng. Even though Sima Yan was not dead yet, they were already impatiently preparing for the future power struggle.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with this; struggle is a life-or-death struggle, and those who are prepared often prevail over those who are unprepared. Although Liu Xian initially set a goal for himself to live in seclusion, once he entered the officialdom, he found it normal to be forced to do things against his will.

Therefore, when Liu Xian heard Qi Sheng's sudden encouragement to Sima Wei in the previous article, he knew that he had been involved in the vortex of party struggle and had to express his position:

"Your Highness is a man of genius and wisdom, a leader of the royal family. The fate of the country depends on you. If there is a real crisis in the court, who else can resolve the crisis but Your Highness?"

After saying this, Liu Xian officially joined the Shiping King's party.

It can be said that I have joined, but in fact there is nothing wrong.

After all, the current emperor, Sima Yan, was still alive, and Sima Wei was only seventeen. He didn't even have a serious political enemy, so what could he do? Qi Sheng and the others had made a big show of it, but in reality, they had very few people they could use. All they could do now was to make more friends with scholars and prepare for future struggles.

On the other hand, although the Shiping King's faction was small, it had its fair share of flaws. As soon as Liu Xian joined, he was immediately ostracized by the elders.

Qi Sheng, seeing Liu Xian's lively conversation with Sima Wei and his erudition, feared his position would be replaced by Liu Xian. Therefore, after recruiting Liu Xian, he treated him as a cold project, saying nothing to him, asking him to do nothing, and even eliminating any private communication. Liu Xian was reduced to a mere study companion, and it was unclear why he was forced to express his opinion.

So in the following days, after Liu Xian met another study companion, Wang Cui, and became familiar with Wang's tutor Liu Song, he returned to his idle state.

At this time, Liu Xian missed little Ruan Gong especially.

When Liu Xian followed Little Ruan Gong, although he was grateful for his guidance and kindness, he still didn't understand his words and actions from the bottom of his heart:

Why didn't Mr. Ruan, with all his talent and learning, choose to live in seclusion in the mountains and forests instead of pursuing a career in government? Even if promotion in the officialdom was difficult, doing something that would benefit the country and the people would be better than sleeping soundly on a bamboo couch.

But now that Liu Xian had only just begun his official career, he already understood how Young Ruan Gong felt:

For a person, the officialdom is a huge melting pot. Once you step into it, you can easily lose control of yourself. Not to mention doing anything that benefits the people, even keeping yourself clean is extremely difficult. In contrast, living in seclusion in the mountains and enjoying the scenery, although you may not achieve any great achievements, at least you can have a clear conscience.

Thinking of this, Liu Xian wrote a letter to Xiao Ruan Gong, talking about what he had seen and heard in recent days, as well as the questions in his mind.

He raised three main questions in his letter:
If you meet someone you don't want to make friends with, but have to flatter them, how should you get along with them and maintain the manner of a gentleman?
If you encounter a situation where human life is disregarded and you are unable to stop it, how can you strike a balance between not losing your conscience and not endangering yourself?

Also, what methods and where can I make friends with like-minded people?
After Liu Xian finished writing the letter, he went to Ruanzhuang specifically and asked Ruan Fu to pass it to Mr. Ruan.

Coincidentally, Liu Xian is now serving as the tutor of Prince Shiping, and young Ruan Gong is serving as the prefect of Shiping County.

Shiping County, formerly the Huaili and Wugong areas of Guanzhong, bordered Hanzhong, Chang'an, and Chencang. Liu Xian had always wanted to visit there. After all, after reading history books, he had heard countless legends about it: Han Xin's secret passage through Chencang, Feng Yi's battle with the Red Eyebrows, Ma Chao's surprise attack on Cao Cao, Zhuge Liang's autumn wind at Wuzhangyuan...

These legendary chapters seemed to be closely related to himself, but due to his status, he could not leave the capital and had no chance to see the land and scenery where they took place. This always made Liu Xian feel regretful.

About a month later, that is, in May, Ji Mao, Liu Xian received a reply from Xiao Ruan Gong.

When his disciple wrote to him, Mr. Ruan seemed very happy in the letter.

He first comforted Liu Xian and said that there are always many stages in life when one does nothing. Even your great-grandfather Liu Bei once lamented the regrowth of thigh flesh, not to mention Emperor Gaozu, who was still a pavilion chief in the Qin Dynasty until he was in his forties.

This stage is called dormancy and accumulation. As long as you always keep your ambition in mind, there will always be a day when you will shine.

Then he changed the subject and began to talk about his life as the prefect of Shiping.

Even after becoming a prefect, Little Ruan Gong, as always, would take a lot of time to travel and enjoy the scenery under his rule:
The Qinling Mountains are winding, with cliffs thousands of feet high, green pines and strange rocks standing on the snow, majestic and imposing.
The Wei River flows on and on, with reeds lining its banks. In autumn, birds fly in a riot of colour, like heavy snow.
He also visited Wuzhangyuan, where remains of an ancient battlefield remain, and climbed Mount Taibai, where white clouds surrounded the mountainside and one could not see the bottom of the mountain when looking down.

Among all these sights, the one that impressed Mr. Ruan the most was Maoling.

Maoling is the mausoleum of Emperor Wu of Han. It's said that a unicorn was once sighted here. But when Mr. Ruan visited, it was just a hill covered in weeds. Nearby tombs include those of Huo Qubing, Wei Qing, and Lady Li. Much of the glorious memory of an entire dynasty lies here.

Little Ruan Gong personally touched the stone carving of "Horse Trampling the Xiongnu" in front of Huo Qubing's tomb, and sighed in a letter: "Rise and fall are like autumn grass, but the unicorn pattern still remains."

Then he answered Liu Xian's three questions.

Regarding the first question, Mr. Ruan said that eight out of ten things in the world are not satisfactory, and the same is true for people.

We cannot interfere with what outsiders say or do. The only thing we can decide is what kind of person we want to be.

Although not everyone can be humble and indifferent, your identity allows you to stick to your principles. Above the principles, it is harmless to deal with it, and below the principles, you can refuse it sternly.

As long as one can be consistent in what one says and what one does, even if one cannot gain the closeness of others, one will not be envied by others. Regarding the second question, Mr. Ruan said thoughtfully, "This is indeed a very difficult question to answer."

Even Mencius said that if you are rich, you should help the world; if you are poor, you should take care of yourself.

Logically speaking, if you are poor and cannot save other people's lives, there is nothing to be ashamed of. However, I am afraid that as time goes by, people will become numb and take such things for granted.

Only if people constantly examine themselves, remain vigilant to this current situation, and remember these tragedies, will there be a day when things will change.

When it comes to the last question, Mr. Ruan relaxes. He says to Liu Xian with emotion that it is hard to find a confidant in life, but it is easy to make friends. As long as you dare to speak out and are good at speaking out, friends will naturally be attracted to you, as the saying goes, "The chirping sound seeks the voice of friends."

One of the important reasons why the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove were able to meet each other was the soul-stirring and unexpected whistle of Old Ruan.

At the end of the letter, Xiao Ruan Gong congratulated Liu Xian on his marriage and reminded him: When encountering difficulties, don't be discouraged if you can't solve them. You should learn to let go and take detours, turning roadblocks into stepping stones. If you rush, you will only end up with a broken head.

Wait for the right opportunity and use the force to leap forward, this is the way of the leaping dragon.

After reading it, Liu Xian was deeply moved. The image of Mr. Ruan lying in a leisurely and free-spirited manner appeared in front of him again. If he could be as indifferent to worldly affairs as he was, perhaps many of his current troubles would no longer exist.

He summarized Xiao Ruan Gong's advice in three words: stick to the middle and be upright, stand firm and be unyielding, and speak out and seek friends.

The first two are just life principles. You can slowly figure out how to do them in your later life as you interact with others, but the so-called speaking out to seek friends is more practical.

Where should he speak out? How should he speak out? Liu Xian thought for a moment and then discussed the matter with his wife, A'Luo.

After reading Little Ruan Gong's letter, Ah Luo agreed with what he said. She said to Liu Xian, "My husband has been with Little Ruan Gong for many years. Shouldn't he know many famous scholars? Nowadays, famous scholars make friends through elegant conversation. Why don't you use Little Ruan Gong's connections to attend a few elegant conversation gatherings?"

Liu Xian shook his head and said, "Ideal conversation is just idle talk. Even if it turns out well, it will only lead to misleading others and ourselves. If it's not absolutely necessary, I really don't want to participate."

"Okay, okay, you're the only one who's truly noble, and everyone else is just pretending to be noble."

Ah Luo was a little annoyed and said, "Then let's talk to my father about his connections. He knows many famous writers, and talking to him about classics would definitely be helpful."

Liu Xian hesitated for a moment, then shook his head and said, "It's not impossible, but let's wait a while. I don't even have a village rank right now. If I directly use my father-in-law's relationship, I'll be stabbed in the back."

Ah Luo thought about it and agreed, so she said, "Why don't we go to the Imperial Academy to attend the meeting? Although our dynasty can't compare to the Han Dynasty, there are still many talented people in the Imperial Academy."

Liu Xian smiled bitterly and said, "If the Imperial College wasn't in the Imperial College, I would have gone there every day."

Neither this nor that worked. Ah Luo was already getting irritated by the talk and simply put her hands on her hips and said, "In my opinion, you should just follow Old Ruan's example and go to the West Market, the Horse Market, the Gold Market...anywhere there are crowds of people. Then, let out a long roar to the heavens and unleash your heroic spirit. Who knows, you might even attract heroes from all over the world to come and serve you!"

After saying this, without caring whether her husband agreed or not, she pushed the stunned Liu Xian out the door. A moment later, Zhang Gu and Xi An were also kicked out by A Luo. The three of them looked at each other in front of the mansion, and finally laughed in silence.

Xi An patted his sleeves and said with a smile, "Why are you still standing there? Didn't Madam tell us to go out into the streets right away and find a contemporary hero for you, young master?"

Zhang Gu also laughed and said, "Biji, what do you say? How about we go to the horse market and have a sword fight?"

Liu Xian sighed, "Let's find a restaurant and order some food first."

The remark about ordering food was of course a joke, but compared to the elegant conversation of celebrities, Liu Xian really preferred the street life in the neighborhood, the joys and sorrows of the little people. Although they were not as respectable and reserved as those of the gentry, and even had an embarrassing and disliked side, the important thing was that they were direct and real, and not hidden.

Therefore, Liu Xian thought that even if he really got to know a few thieves, it would still be a kind of fun.

So they really went to the horse market.

The horse market is to the north of Anle Mansion, but there is no direct road to it. You need to go east to Dongyang Gate, then walk north to Jianchun Gate, turn east again, and walk half a mile to reach the horse market.

The horse market was the most prosperous of the four Luoyang markets, and also the place with the most complicated traffic. Before Liu Xian even reached Jianchun Gate, the crowds were already thick with people. The road, which once could accommodate four carriages running side by side, was now only half empty.

Although it is already the height of summer in May, the street vendors seem to think it is not hot enough. The sounds of hawking, shouting, and bargaining can still be clearly heard by the young people through the summer heat.

After walking a few steps forward, Jianchun Gate came into view, and on the streets extending out from it, caravans, ox carts, Hu people, servants, scholars, and slaves were shoulder to shoulder and flowing in an endless stream.

Facing the vast crowd, Xi An fanned himself and asked Liu Xian with a smile, "Bi Ji, do you think there is really a hero among these people?"

Liu Xian said, "A hero's origins are not important. If we don't look for them, who will know?"

As they were talking, a burst of shouting from the soldiers came from Jianchun Gate. They seemed to be saying, "Get out of the way, get out of the way, let Zuo Pushe pass through here!"

Accompanied by a commotion among the crowd, a simply decorated ox cart slowly emerged from the city gate, escorted by several servants.

Liu Xian looked over and saw a scholar sitting at the front of the carriage. He was dressed in a plain green robe, with a clear and handsome appearance and a serene and elegant demeanor. Although he was in the bustling city, he seemed to be on a picnic in the mountains and rivers, like a god. Even though Liu Xian was used to seeing elegant and famous people, he couldn't help but be slightly distracted at this moment.

Who is he? Just as Liu Xian had begun to wonder, he heard someone shout, "It's the Dragon Gate of the World! Wang Yifu!" Then the surrounding crowd followed suit and came over to watch the famous scholar.

It turned out to be Wang Yan! Liu Xian suddenly realized.

If we were to quiz the most prominent figure in the literary world today, it would undoubtedly be Wang Yifu, a descendant of the Wang family of Langya. He had been a master of esoteric philosophy since childhood, unrivaled in his ability to debate with others. It was precisely because of his advocacy of this philosophy that it became so prevalent and dominated the literary world. While Shi Chong's claim to be the richest man in Luoyang is still controversial, Wang Yan's claim to be a literary leader is universally acknowledged.

Although he had studied with Young Master Ruan for several years and had met many famous scholars, he had never met this Wang Yan. Seeing him for the first time today, Liu Xian could only sigh inwardly: The descriptions of him as "a celestial being in the jade forest" and "a man beyond the dust of the world" were truly well-deserved! His appearance alone was enough to instill a liking for him.

Just as he subconsciously wanted to move forward and take a closer look at the leader of the nobles.

Perhaps it was fate's will, but suddenly, Liu Xian heard a howl.

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(End of this chapter)