I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 52 A wise man seeks the Way, not food.

"Boatman, boatman, hurry up!"

After leaving Shuxian, Chen Yu dared not take the main road, so he took a detour to Lu'an in the west, where he found a boatman on the Pihe River and asked him to take him across the Huai River.

Chen Yu didn't have much money, and even piecing together all the valuables he had wasn't enough. Helpless, he had to plead with the boatman: "I am the son of Chen Qiu, one of the Three Dukes. I am crossing the river to go north to find General Hou. Please do me a favor!"

The boatman looked at Chen Yu's somewhat tattered clothes, which appeared to be from his journey, and was somewhat skeptical...

"What generals, front generals, don't even think about making me move this ship if I'm short a single penny!"

Chen Yu, clearly accustomed to associating with scholars, actually criticized the boatman: "I am heading north for matters of great importance to the country! How can you be so petty?"

The boatman scoffed, "Why do you scholars always try to intimidate people with these grand principles?"

"I saved your money today for the sake of the country, but if I ever run out of money for food in the future, I wonder if I could ask the government to provide me with food?"

Chen Yu was embarrassed and angry, and stomped his feet in frustration: "How can matters of state be compared to eating?"

"Ah."

As the boatman was about to leave, Chen Yu lowered his head unwillingly, only to see the shocking tear in his sleeve, as if a smiling face was mocking him.

"Zhongshan, if you knew my current predicament, you'd probably laugh at me just like this outfit, wouldn't you?"

Chen Yu squatted on the ground, tears welling in his eyes, his heart filled with sorrow.

But the boatman, who was about to leave, turned around and stared at Chen Yu after hearing this: "The Zhongshan you just mentioned... could it be Liu Miao, Liu Zhongshan, the Han imperial relative and governor of Jiujiang who is currently in Shuxian?"

"You actually know his name?"

"How could I not know!"

The boatman rowed the boat back and reached out to pull Chen Yu across the river from the dock: "If you had said earlier that you knew Magistrate Liu, I would have taken you across the river for free!"

Although Chen Yu was surprised, he immediately grabbed the boatman's strong arm and jumped onto the boat to cross the river.

The boatman patted Chen Yu on the shoulder: "The news that Prefect Liu hosted a banquet for passing boatmen and travelers at the Shuxian dock has already spread!"

"Those who met Magistrate Liu at the time all said that he was approachable and had a benevolent and righteous character! Anyone who passed by, regardless of their name, would be given a meal!"

“My second uncle was also hauling goods on the Longshu River at the time. He was lucky enough to get a taste of it, and when he came back, he told us that it was the best sashimi he had ever eaten in his life! He kept praising Magistrate Liu for being different from other officials!”

The boatman rowed the oars at the back, and the boat finally began to move forward along the Pi River.

"You just said I was stingy, but apart from Magistrate Liu, some officials wouldn't even part with a penny. Tell me, can you blame me for that?"

"..."

Chen Yu had no time to argue with the boatman; he simply tried to hide his face, which resembled a monkey's bottom.

It wasn't until the moment he boarded the ship that Chen Yu came to a conclusion.

The reason he was able to leave Huainan was actually because of Liu Miao!
However, the purpose of leaving Huainan was to abandon Liu Miao...

They agreed to sever all ties, but Chen Yu's gentlemanly heart was like being fried in a pan of oil, determined to squeeze every last bit of strength out of him.

The boatman then asked Chen Yu, as if to kill him, "Everyone is running from north to south these days, why are you running from south to north? Are you on Liu Shijun's orders to go north?"

"..."

It took five days to travel from Lu'an to Yingshang on the north bank of the Huai River. During this time, the boatman brought Chen Yu food to replenish his strength.

Chen Yu was reluctant to eat due to his conscience, but after being starving for two days, he finally devoured all the pickled fish that the boatman had brought him.

This pickled fish not only tastes fishy and smelly, but there's also very little meat in it.

However, when he ate with the boatman in the following two days, he discovered that the boatman's wife and son had to share a single boat, which made Chen Yu fall silent again.

He then realized that the boatman's meticulousness was not stinginess or a lack of understanding of the greater good.

If they don't care about such small amounts, their wives and children might starve to death.

If they were born into wealth and had a fortune, why would they hesitate to part with a mere pickled fish?

"When the granaries are full, people know etiquette; when they are well-fed and clothed, they know honor and shame."

When Chen Yu silently recited the words of Guanzi, he also questioned for the first time the saying in the Analects, "A gentleman seeks the Way, not food; he worries about the Way, not poverty."

Confucius believed that a virtuous person should focus on seeking the Way rather than worrying about food and clothing. Even if you personally till the fields, you might still go hungry; but by diligently studying the Way, you can earn a salary. Therefore, a virtuous person should only worry about not learning the Way, not about being free from poverty.

At one time, Chen Yu regarded it as the guiding principle, believing it to be the teaching of a sage.

But today, he wavered.

Should a true gentleman really seek the Way rather than food?

If everyone in the world became a virtuous person, then who would grow crops and catch fish?

Does becoming a gentleman mean robbing others of the food they have worked so hard to grow, and then not farming yourself?
Chen Yu also heard more from the boatman about Liu Miao after he left.

When Chen Yu heard Liu Miao say, "The people have nurtured me, Liu Miao, so why can't I, Liu Miao, nurture the people?", his resolve to make this choice wavered even more.

When the boat docked, the boatman repeatedly declined, but Chen Yu left all his belongings with him and traveled light.

Just as the boatman said.

The people around are all moving from the north to the south, but Chen Yu is an exception who chooses to go north.

The pedestrians Chen Yu encountered along the way were all in a hurry. They only glanced at him a few times and didn't even have time to say a word. It was as if they had seen each other for the last time.

An elderly woman with white hair carried her crying grandson on her back. Her foot bindings were soaked with blood, and each step left a dark red mark on the yellow earth. When she could no longer walk, she would hand over her grandson and the food she had hidden on her body to someone else, and then lean against a tree with empty eyes, as if she had already prepared to die.

The ferry crossings along the way were completely blocked. As soon as a boat came, people cried and shouted to get on. Fathers didn't act like fathers, mothers didn't act like mothers, husbands didn't act like husbands, wives didn't act like wives, and children didn't act like children. They all rushed to get on, as if they were being chased by some flood or ferocious beast.

Chen Yu's mood gradually shifted from sadness to numbness.

This is different.

This was different from his imagination, where the people would welcome Yuan Shu with food and drink, and the army and civilians would live in harmony!
The General of the Rear comes from the noble Yuan clan of Runan. All the troops under his command are royal troops. How could he do something like driving away the people?

Could it be that these people are used to being harassed by bandits and are afraid when they see a large army coming, so they are rushing to cross the river?
But even this last glimmer of hope was shattered a day later.

The sun was low in the sky that day, and a layer of choking yellow dust floated on the road. Chen Yu was on his way when he suddenly heard the sound of horses' hooves coming from the slope ahead.

Looking up, I saw seven or eight cavalry scouts charging down the hill, carrying military flags bearing the character "Yuan." The leader had a scar across his face, and half a bloody pig's leg hung from his saddle.

"Search! See if these troublemakers have any grain hidden away!"

(End of this chapter)