Young Master Gao? Call me Little Grand Secretary!

As the old saying goes, nothing is impossible for a willing heart.

Gao Zhao was determined to do good deeds. Although there was no progress on Chen Dong's side, his good brother Qin Hui... ugh, his superficial brother Qin Hui was really helpful!

Many students came to Biyong to study, and most of them rented houses in the southern suburbs, three to five people per room, sharing the rent.

There were also those who were as poor as Qin Hui, who could not afford to rent a house, so they stayed in nearby Zen temples or Vinaya temples. They were usually not charged rent, and were only asked to do some work within their capabilities.

Those who could associate with Qin Hui were mostly impoverished students with extremely weak risk resistance. For them, the slightest change would be a catastrophic disaster!

After learning of Gao Zhao's intentions, Qin Hui naturally spared no effort in doing so. This not only pleased Gao Zhao but also greatly benefited him personally, bringing him both fame and fortune.

Qin Hui then introduced him to some struggling students who were on temporary assignments. Gao Zhao generously donated money and offered words of encouragement, earning him a great deal of gratitude.

May his balance break the 10 mark again!

However, this time, he did not immediately exchange them for physique points!

Of course, it wasn't that he felt his constitution wasn't good enough and wanted to change his mind; rather, he had a little trick up his sleeve regarding the use of gratitude points.

Imagine the next time you're locked in a fierce battle at a brothel, when things are at a stalemate and neither side can gain the upper hand, suddenly add this element to revitalize the situation. The scene... wow, just thinking about it is exciting!

All that adding things up recklessly before was a waste!

This is clearly a powerful tool for pretending to be weak while actually being strong, and for showing off and slapping people in the face!

Isn't this kind of plot twist satisfying? Just thinking about it makes me feel really involved!

Besides gaining a lot of gratitude points, he also received an unexpected bonus: he acquired a calligraphy skill, which improved his calligraphy skills to the point of being a beginner.

When you calculate it like this, the cost performance is very high!

However, there are also some ungrateful people who take the money, pretend to be grateful, but in reality, they don't make any changes to the data panel.

Of course, Gao Zhao was a magnanimous person, and he did not break off relations with the person on the spot because of this small amount of money. He just silently remembered it in his heart, thinking that there would be plenty of time in the future!

Some impoverished students refused his help. Gao Zhao once met a man who lived in a temple and struggled to get three meals a day. He learned from Fan Zhongyan that he would cook a pot of porridge, divide it into four pieces, and eat it in turn.

After learning Gao Zhao's purpose, he first thanked him and then politely declined.

Gao Zhao asked in confusion, and the other person said that since you gave away money today, I can live a good life for two days. But after the money is spent, I'm afraid I won't be able to live such a hard life anymore!

These words left him speechless, and Gao Zhao could only leave dejectedly. If there weren't so many poor princes, he would have had all of this fellow's rice taken away, leaving him without even a porridge, and then he would have seen him pretend to be high and mighty!

You dare to refuse even the young master's kind offer? You really don't know how treacherous people can be!

Two more days passed like this, and then it was time to see the old man again!

As usual, Gao Zhao slipped out. When he arrived at the base of the wall this time, the old man was already sitting there, slowly drinking his wine.

Gao Zhao was overjoyed and hurried away, thinking about all the principles of righteousness and profit he had heard these past few days. He was determined to show off his knowledge and let the old man know what a genius was!

However, as soon as he got close, the old man uttered the first question: "Do you have a conscience?"

Gao Zhao was taken aback and immediately wondered if he had done something to offend him.

On second thought, I don't even know who you are or where you live, so I can't do anything about it even if I wanted to!

He suddenly realized that the old man wanted to extort money from him, but it didn't matter. The young master was generous, so he just considered it a reward for listening to the story. He immediately prepared to take out money from his pocket.

"What's the difference between you and a beast?" the old man suddenly asked again.

Gao Zhao was immediately displeased. If you want something, just say so. Why do you keep cursing?

You've really never been beaten by a spoiled brat!

He immediately bent down to look for a stick, ready to show the old man his profound stick skills.

"These two questions are the premise of our discussion on good and evil today!" The old man took another sip of wine before slowly saying, "What is the slightest difference between humans and beasts? This is the fundamental reason why humans are human!"

"Oh, a lecture! It's starting already?" Gao Zhao chuckled awkwardly. "I thought you were insulting me! I can answer your question. Humans are just higher animals; there's not much difference between them."

"Then why were you upset when I called you a beast?"

"Uh...isn't that an insult?"

"If you consider this an insult, then it shows there's a fundamental difference between humans and animals!"

The old man stroked his beard and smiled, saying, "Mencius provided an answer to this question: 'What people can do without learning is their innate ability; what they know without thinking is their innate knowledge! Therefore, what people can know and do without thinking or learning is their innate knowledge!'"

Gao Zhao sat down on the ground, nodded, and said, "So what you're trying to say is that human nature is inherently good! But there are also many evils in human nature, such as lust, greed, selfishness, and so on!"

The old man nodded slightly and said, "The beasts you described also exist, so this cannot be called humanity! At least it's not the inherently good nature of humanity!"

Gao Zhao frowned and pondered for a moment, then suddenly realized and said, "I understand! You're trying to talk about Mencius's theory of the inherent goodness of human nature, the sense of compassion, shame, humility, and the sense of right and wrong! But I still feel that's not right!"

"Right or wrong isn't important; what's important is why Mencius proposed the theory of the inherent goodness of human nature. Didn't he see the evil in human nature?"

Gao Zhao was speechless. "Yes, if I can see it, how could Mencius not see it?"

"During the Spring and Autumn Period, there was still the Zhou Emperor, and the feudal lords could still treat each other with courtesy. But by the Warring States Period, the rites and music had collapsed, and people from all walks of life were vying for profit. Countless scholars put forward their own doctrines, and the Hundred Schools of Thought contended. The Way and the arts were about to be torn apart by the world!"

"At this time, Mencius emerged, establishing his theory on the inherent goodness of human nature, hoping to awaken people's conscience and morality, and to tell those rulers that you are first and foremost a human being!"

Gao Zhao curled his lip and said, "He's just a bookworm; he's bound to fail!"

"Indeed! To do what one knows to be impossible—that too is the spirit of Mencius!" The old man seemed to recall something, a hint of sadness appearing in his eyes. He paused, then continued, "By the time of Xunzi, the world was in even greater chaos. In light of Mencius's failure, he proposed the theory of the inherent evil of human nature!"

"Of course, he deliberately misinterpreted Mencius's views when he made his argument, which is quite normal! Human nature is inherently evil; goodness is feigned! Feigned goodness is man-made, which is the same idea as Mencius's idea of ​​cultivating the seeds of goodness!"

"However, Xunzi no longer believed in the moral power of human nature, but instead revered external forces, using the examples of sages and the system of rites and laws to restrain human nature and educate and transform the world!"

"I have a question!" Gao Zhao suddenly remembered the question that had puzzled him before, and raised his hand to say, "I have a friend who, while acting in his own self-interest, has been doing good deeds. Is this good or evil?"

"You do good deeds and help others..."

"It wasn't me, it was my friend!"

"Hehe... You've already developed a sense of shame and aversion to evil, so naturally you're virtuous!"

"I...I really am my friend..."

"good!"