Chapter 1005: Chapter 1000: Disagree
“Speaking of national policies, compared to the policies formulated by the Yan Kingdom, our Zhou Kingdom’s policies are more beneficial to the people. The Yan Kingdom places imperial power first, while Zhou prioritizes the people’s livelihood. Just to say… after ascending the throne, the Emperor chooses not to build an imperial mausoleum, saving the silver to build schools instead. Can the Emperor of Yan do that?” Bai Qingyu’s voice was harsh, but every word was powerful, “Exchanging you alone… for the vast mountains and rivers of Zhou? Ninth Prince, you truly overestimate yourself.”
“Zhou’s new policy places the people first, I, Rong Yan, acknowledge this! I admire the Bai family’s love for the people even more, but establishing schools to educate the populace, my mother, Empress Ji, once experimented with on a small scale and found it not necessarily a good thing! Shangzi’s Five Techniques of Ruling People… the first is to rule by ignorance. When numerous people read the sages’ books and form their own thoughts, how can you control them?”
“Laozi also said, in ancient times, those good at governing did so not by enlightening the people but by keeping them ignorant. The difficulty in governing lies in the people’s intelligence. Therefore, ruling with wisdom is the country’s bane; not using wisdom, the country’s blessing!” Xiao Rongyan looked at Bai Qingyan, “Whether it’s the Yan Kingdom or Zhou, unifying the realm is for the peace of the world, but if the people learn too much, they will think more, making it impossible to unify their thoughts… how then to unify a nation?”
“Take Zhou, when the Empress ascended, allowing women to study, take exams, and hold office, those who first gathered at the Wude Gate prepared to die protesting were those scholars who had read! Fortunately, Kid persuaded those scholars, but in the future, if every reform employs new policies… must the reigning Emperor personally explain to the scholars each time? Otherwise, they resort to protests and die en masse, often… what name will Kid leave on historical records?”
Xiao Rongyan’s deep gaze grew darker. He shook his head: “To control the people, one must keep them in ignorance. After practice, my mother once said, one day in the future, this world… will eventually be a place where everyone can read, but now is not the time! In the present age, the populace should not know too much; ensuring they can eat and have no warfare is the utmost care an emperor can offer his people.”
Bai Qingyan quietly watched Xiao Rongyan, not interrupting, listening attentively.
Bai Qingyu was also hearing about the Art of the Emperor for the first time; he admitted that the Bai family indeed had no experience in this area, so he was willing to listen to more from Xiao Rongyan.
“There must be scholars, because in such a vast nation, one cannot lack talents to aid the emperor in governance, but it must not be that everyone reads the sages’ books!”
Xiao Rongyan was not secretive. Power politics and ruling the people were essential subjects for the Murong family’s imperial offspring, experiences accumulated by the Murong lineage through generations, whereas the Bai family had no such experience. Relying solely on a sense of duty to protect and ensure the populace’s well-being is far from sufficient.
“To say something possibly offensive, how many in the Bai family army have read books? Precisely because there are many soldiers in the Bai family army who have not read books, they are relatively easier to control, coupled with… the Bai family army’s unwavering dedication to protect and ensure the populace’s well-being, combined with the army’s songs and the generals’ determination to protect the people even at the cost of their lives!”
Xiao Rongyan tapped the table with his finger: “These can be said… to be the ideologies instilled by the Bai family in the Bai family army, making it their duty to protect and secure the populace, and taking pride in it!”
After speaking, Xiao Rongyan seemed to feel inappropriate, and he cupped his hands toward Bai Qingyan and Bai Qingyu: “I did not mean to say that the Bai family did this intentionally; I, Rong Yan, saw… I know the Bai family’s sincere heart, their love and protection of the people… willing to sacrifice for the people’s sake, the shock that the battle in the southern frontier brought to me, Rong Yan, is unforgettable!”
“My point is that the actions of the Bai family, unintentional as they may be, are also a form of imperial strategy in ruling people.” Xiao Rongyan was truly filled with great admiration for the Bai family.
The Bai family’s love for the people was more pure than that of the imperial family, and their goal to unify the world was cleaner than that of the imperial family—it’s like… Bai Qingyan dared to stake on the national policies of both countries, he dares not.”
“Many of the Bai family’s behaviors that follow their heart were inadvertently… using the Art of the Emperor, even with different motivations, the methods are the same.”
“But if you were to share this with scholars, how many could truly achieve what the Bai family army has? Righteousness often lies in the hands of butchers, and unfaithfulness with scholars, too much reading by the populace is not necessarily a good thing!”
“Perhaps Kid will say that when the Imperial College students caused trouble, you thought appearing and debating with them could quell it, is it because students read and understand reason?” Xiao Rongyan shook his head, his voice calm, “The reason it could be quelled, besides Kid’s emperor-like humility and your character, is more because you set a goal for them, which is the unification of the world… you told them that establishing schools, even girls’ schools, and allowing both men and women to study, take exams, and hold office was to gather more talent for the sake of world unification! Now, all of Zhou is working towards this goal! Everything else can give way.”
“But if, after unification, what then? If more people read, they have more thoughts… can the Imperial Court govern properly? If not, then the meaning of unification is lost, and as disputes increase… it may lead to influential and military figures like the Bai family starting chaos, which is hard to guard against.”
“Caring for the people’s livelihood is what every emperor should do, this is not wrong!” Xiao Rongyan looked at Bai Qingyan, “But the people must not be too strong, if the people are strong… the nation is weak! The national governance ideology practiced by the Yan Kingdom, and Kid’s statement of a strong people leading to a strong nation, are poles apart!”
Xiao Rongyan softly said: “On the path of the emperor, Kid is still in the exploration stage, possibly because… too many books left by my mother were sent to you earlier, and the words on equality within them… have influenced you.”
Bai Qingyan listened to Xiao Rongyan and then slowly opened his mouth: “When I first read this chapter of ‘Tao Te Ching,’ I shared the Ninth Prince of Yan’s thought that the Art of Ruling People is to keep them ignorant, but… after rereading the entire ‘Tao Te Ching’ repeatedly, and understanding the sages’ grand intention, I privately believe… that what the sage Laozi said, those good at governing in ancient times did so not by enlightening the people but by keeping them ignorant. The difficulty of governing is the people’s intelligence. Therefore, ruling with wisdom is the country’s bane; not using wisdom, the country’s blessing, this sentence… this ignorance refers to simplicity and sincerity, while wisdom refers to cunning and scheming!”
Bai Qingyan’s eyes were clear looking at Xiao Rongyan: “Its meaning is to say… that rulers should not rule with schemes but should govern with simplicity and sincerity, thinking for the people, is the blessing of the nation! This aligns with Laozi’s advocacy of governing by doing nothing and teaching without words, in power politics, the principle of the reversal of extremes, Bai Qingyan has read ‘Laozi’ since childhood, until now never daring to leave it aside, always gaining something when implementing new policies, therefore… dare not agree with what the Ninth Prince said.”