I

Zhang Xianzhong said that his fourth son was smart, but in fact his third son was not bad either, and could even be said to be both civil and military.

The third son's name is Zhang Jianzhi, who is eighteen years old this year.

He started hunting with his elders when he was twelve years old. When he was fourteen, he went home for the summer vacation. He also participated in the siege of the headhunters, charging and stabbing an enemy very quickly. He successfully graduated from middle school and studied at Fuzhou University at his own expense. Unfortunately, he did not receive a diploma and was only qualified to apply for a government official position.

Zhang Jianzhi felt that being an examiner was not interesting, so after finishing college, he ran to Semarang to join his father.

"You bastard," Zhang Xianzhong was furious. "I paid for you to go to college, but you can't even get a diploma. It's useless for you to read so many books!"

Zhang Jianzhi explained: "Father, today's university graduation exam is the exam for people to be elected in the previous dynasty. From the Ministry of Rites to the Supervisory Office, to the provincial officials, there are many levels of supervision. How can it be easy to pass the exam? Only one college student can graduate. Only a small half or most of the students can only get a certificate of graduation."

"In other words, you didn't pass the examination and only got the title of scholar?" Zhang Xianzhong asked.

Zhang Jianzhi nodded: "You can also say that."

Zhang Xianzhong's anger went away as quickly as it came. He smacked his lips and said, "A scholar is a scholar. He can be considered a cultural person of the old Zhang family. What skills did you learn in college?"

Zhang Jianzhi replied: "I majored in science, and dabbled in physics, mathematics, astronomy, and geography. Liberal arts was a minor course, and I chose relatively unfamiliar Taoist knowledge. I have some rough understanding of Laozi and Zhuangzi."

"I'm not the Supreme Lord?" Zhang Xianzhong suddenly realized, "I'm sorry you bastard went to study Taoism. Did the school teacher teach you the Five Thunders Zhengfa?"

Zhang Jianzhi explained helplessly: "Father, Taoism is Taoism, and Taoism is Taoism. Taoism talks about the principles of truth, while Taoism talks about fasting and rituals, and drawing talismans to drive away ghosts."

Zhang Xianzhong understood again: "Taoists are officials, and they can only talk. Taoists are officials, and they have to actually do things."

As soon as these words came out, Zhang Jianzhi almost fell down.

Zhang Xianzhong sat down with his golden sword: "Then just talk nonsense and talk about Taoist principles."

Zhang Jianzhi thought about it carefully and said: "I heard that my father was the governor here and slaughtered countless natives. In Zhuangzi's eyes, my father is a big thief."

Zhang Xianzhong's hypotension was cured. He slammed the table and said, "How dare you call me a thief? I was forced by the government to rebel, but now I kill people to serve my country. How can I be confused with a thief?"

Zhang Jianzhi said: "My child is wrong. My father is not a big thief. Your Majesty is the big thief today. As for my father, he is a thief at most."

Zhang Xianzhong heard something in his son's words and said angrily: "Don't beat around the bush, just tell me what you have to say."

Zhang Jianzhi asked: "Have you ever heard, father, that until a saint dies, thieves will not stop?"

"Bullshit, Saint Kong died a long time ago, but there are many thieves in the world." Zhang Xianzhong said.

Zhang Jianzhi shook his head: "No, the saint does not specifically refer to Confucius, and the robber is not an ordinary robber. Heaven and earth are divided into yin and yang. Where there is light, there is darkness. If one day, the light disappears, then the world will be full of darkness. If it is all darkness, It means there is no darkness, and even the concepts of light and darkness will not exist. If there are saints, there will be great thieves; if there are no saints, there will be no great thieves."

"Speak humanly!" Zhang Xianzhong was almost stunned.

Zhang Jianzhi began to show off his knowledge: "The great thief mentioned by Zhuangzi actually refers specifically to Tian Chengzi. The so-called thief who steals the hook will be punished, and the princes who steal the country. The Tian family who replaced Qi is a great thief who stole the country of Qi. He not only stole the country of Qi, but also the country of Qi. laws, officials and morals. And his descendant, King Qi Wei, was clearly a descendant of a great thief, but he became a wise king and a holy king."

Zhang Xianzhong became angrier as he listened: "Which stupid teacher taught you this?"

Zhang Jianzhi smiled and said: "Father, please listen patiently. Liu Xiahui is very famous, right? He has a younger brother who is even more famous, called Liuxiazhi, commonly known as Robber Zhi. Robber Zhi is the ancestor of bandits. His disciples asked him if there was any benefit to being a great thief. Can you tell me the method? Let me guess, father, how this rogue Zhi will answer."

"How to answer?" Zhang Xianzhong was a little curious.

Zhang Jianzhi said eloquently: "Thieves Zhi said that the one who can guess what property is in the house can be called a saint; the one who enters the house first can be called brave; the one who leaves the house last can be called righteous; the one who can judge whether to take action can be called It is called wisdom; those who divide the spoils fairly can be called benevolence. Saint, bravery, righteousness, wisdom, and benevolence, these are the main principles of being a thief, which means that thieves also have a way. Without these five qualities, it is impossible to become a great thief."

Zhang Xianzhong slapped his thigh fiercely and said with a cheerful smile: "What a thief, he is also wise, what a saint, brave, righteous, wise and benevolent!"

Zhang Jianzhi added: "Your Majesty is now a thief. He knows what the most important treasure in the world is, which is the saint. Although he started the army later than his father, he was also among the first to rebel. He can be called brave. Facing the officers and soldiers During the encirclement and suppression, he did not abandon the army and run away, which can be said to be righteous. He knew when to rebel, which can be said to be wise. When he divided the spoils, he was more fair than his father and distributed it to all the people in the world, which can be said to be benevolent."

Zhang Xianzhong was stunned when he heard this: "A teacher from Fuzhou University dares to talk about this. Isn't he afraid of beheading?"

Zhang Jianzhi said with a smile: "Hey, of course I don't dare to say it in class. These are drunken remarks made by the teacher in private."

I have to say that the new dynasty of Datong is really full of ideas.

"Don't associate with this teacher again. Sooner or later, his home will be confiscated." Zhang Xianzhong warned.

Zhang Jianzhi said: "Father, Taoist thieves are not purely bad people, but people who do not submit to inherent authority and morality. In "Miscellaneous Chapters: Robber Zhi", even Confucius was a fake Taoist, and Yao, Shun, and Yu were both unkind and unfilial. . Today, Your Majesty is both a great thief and a holy king. The false holy king is Chongzhen, but the real great thief is Your Majesty. As long as the saint does not die, the great thieves will not stop, which means that if Chongzhen does not die, the Ming Dynasty will not be destroyed, and great thieves like your majesty, father, and Li Zicheng will not die. Never ends.”

Zhang Xianzhong savored it carefully: "But it makes some sense."

Zhang Jianzhi said: "My teacher also said that Taoism refuted Confucianism, and many of them were not Lao Tzu's original intention, but were attached to it by later generations of Taoist disciples. Lao Tzu's true meaning is 'clothed in brown but pregnant with jade'. It means wearing tattered brown clothes and carrying a jade in his arms. Baoyu. Your Majesty advocates true morality and opposes false morality. He despises red tape and respects true feelings. He hates empty talk and likes to practice action. Isn’t this what Taoism pursues? Isn’t this just ‘clothed in brown but pregnant with jade’?”

Zhang Xianzhong came to his senses and said, "That teacher of yours is trying to flatter the emperor in a roundabout way?"

Zhang Jianzhi said: "Father, here you must be a real thief, not a middle thief or a small thief. A real thief is to open up territory for the country and the people. Even if there are more killings, the emperor will not blame him. Middle robbers, A petty thief who is bent on selfishness cannot last long.”

"What nonsense?" Zhang Xianzhong actually understood.

Zhang Jianzhi said: "Father, you should remember that thieves also have a way. The way of a great thief lies in the five characters of saint, courage, justice, wisdom and benevolence!"

Zhang Xianzhong smiled and said, "You didn't study in college in vain."

Zhang Jianzhi said: "Being a big thief in Semarang, this land is the greatest wealth. If you let the Han people occupy more land, you can be called a saint. If you dare to forge ahead, you can be called brave. If you can be considerate of your subordinates, you can be called righteous. Knowing when to take action , how to do it can be called wisdom. If the Han people in Semarang can share the benefits, it can be called benevolence. If your father can do these five words, he will be a real thief. You don't need to ask for anything. When the time comes, fame and fortune will come naturally. It will come. This is the ultimate principle of Taoism. You will not fight, but no one in the world can fight with it!"

Zhang Xianzhong was convinced: "Damn it, why weren't you born thirty years earlier? If I had led you to conquer the world, why would I have needed someone else to be a military advisor?"

"The father doesn't have a choice when to give birth to the child." Zhang Jianzhi expressed regret.

Zhang Xianzhong asked: "Tell me, what should we do specifically?"

Zhang Jianzhi said: "My child made it very clear just now. The specific implementation is to lead the Han people to expand the territory and try to give more benefits to the officials, merchants, landlords and ordinary people here. But there must also be rules, Semarang and The domestic situation is different, and local regulations should be formulated separately. The "Laws of Datong" must not be violated first, and then more detailed laws can be formulated based on the local conditions. With the rules, everything will be easy to handle. Even if someone kills someone one day, it will be because of this person The rules are broken. When my father comes, he kills people. Everyone has resentment in their hearts, and fear is greater than respect. If he kills people according to the law, it is said to be fair, and no one can complain."

"It makes sense." Zhang Xianzhong nodded.

"If you have the law, you should also be polite," Zhang Jianzhi said. "The Han people here believe in all kinds of things. It is the Taoist religion, Mazu, and Guan Gong. We must encourage them to abandon their religion and return to our Chinese righteous way. Yes." Set a rule. In future battles, those who only believe in Buddhism will be rewarded more, and those who believe in Christianity will be less rewarded. The same is true for landlords and merchants. Heavy taxes cannot be imposed on those who believe in Christianity, as it will arouse their hostility. . But it can bring more benefits to the landowners and businessmen who give up Christianity. Everyone seeks profit, and this reform will change the religion."

"It makes sense." Zhang Xianzhong nodded again.

Zhang Jianzhi added: "I also heard that the Han people are very powerful in the Surabaya Kingdom in the east. In the future, my father will expand the territory and develop toward Surabaya. When my father kills the natives, he can also release some in front of them. , saying that the Han people are respected and the natives can die. Put them back in Surabaya and stir up the conflict between the Han people and the natives there. If things go on like this, all the Han people in Surabaya can be used by me. If my father and his soldiers are united, the Han people in Surabaya will definitely win the food and the scenery! "

Zhang Xianzhong laughed and scolded: "Scholars are so damn shameless. You didn't read this book in vain!"

Zhang Jianzhi continued: "There are other ways to provoke conflicts between the Han people and the indigenous people. The more ferocious the provocation, the better. If Surabaya can be turned into Han soil, then a hundred years later, my father, a great thief, can also become a saint. Just like Tian Chengzi is a great thief, but his descendant, King Qi Wei, is a holy king. My father is already old, and he must strive for eternal success. He must not be greedy for petty gains. In the future, he will be able to leave a name in history. Moreover, he still leaves a good name."