Qin Official

In mid-May of the thirty-sixth year of the First Emperor of Qin Dynasty, the father of the pavilion in Shimen Pavilion, ten miles north of Panyu City, just got up and planned to feed the chickens. However, he saw two soldiers who had come to stay last night. They were already standing in the courtyard chatting, holding cattail fans and complaining. It was hot in Lingnan, and the prisoner they were escorting: the man with black hair in brown clothes was squatting on the ground, tinkering with something in his hand...

The Mohist's name is "Zhong", and everyone in the Moh clan calls him Ah Zhong. He was one of the three people who were exiled two months ago for refusing to provide precision technology to the Lishanling Underground Palace.

They arrived at a bad time. It was midsummer and Lingnan was like a big steamer. Two of Azhong's senior brothers got sick at Yangshanguan. They couldn't hold on until they reached Sihui. If they went any further, they might die, so they had no choice but to stay there to recuperate. , only Azhong was left to continue on to Panyu and stayed overnight at Shimen Pavilion yesterday.

Seeing Ting's father getting up, Azhong handed over the thing in his hand: "Old man, come and take a look at this thing."

The father of the pavilion greeted the two soldiers, but he saw in Azhong's hand a bell carved from wood. The bell was upside down, with a rope on top and a wooden hook on the bottom...

Father Ting was a little surprised: "What is this?"

Azhong said: "I heard you complain yesterday, saying that Lingnan is hot and humid, and there are many insects and ants near the pavilion. They swarm in when they smell the fishy smell. Even if the fish is hung on the beam, they can still crawl on it. Go up, but with this thing..."

He asked the father of the pavilion to get some water and gave him a demonstration: fill the wooden bell with water, hang a freshly caught fish on the hook below, and hang it on the beam. After a while, red ants smelled the fish. But this time, before they could climb onto the food on the hook below, they drowned in the water poured into the wooden bell. After a while, the wooden bell was filled with dead ant corpses.

"You are so smart, young man!"

Shimenting's father was amazed. This thing seemed simple, but they never expected that the Mohist named Azhong just listened and did it casually, and solved the problem that had troubled him for a long time.

Tingfu thanked him endlessly, but A Zhong said: "Zi Mozi said, if you love others, others will love them; if you benefit others, others will benefit from them. Loving and benefiting others is what a Mohist should do. There is no need to say thank you. When I arrive in Panyu, I will ask craftsmen to make hundreds or even thousands of these things so that every pavilion and camp can use them."

After giving the two wooden bells he made early in the morning to Ting's father, Azhong also left Shimenyi and headed south at the urging of his soldiers. They would arrive in Panyu within today...

"correct."

After he put on the shackles again, he turned around and smiled at Tingfu: "Let's call this utensil 'an angry ant'."

…

"Junhou, three Mohists sent from Xianyang have arrived in Lingnan, but two of them are recuperating in Sihui, and only one came to Panyu the day before yesterday..."

When Li Cang came to report, Heifu was busy drawing lines on the map. He just nodded and said, "I understand."

He had also heard about what happened in Xianyang. After all, Heifu had friendship with the Mo family and the peasant family, and he had been friends with Cheng Shang, a giant of Qin Mo family for many years.

When he heard that Shaofu Yao Jia asked Mohist to help repair Afang Palace and Lishan Mausoleum, he couldn't help but cursed: "Isn't this deliberately provoking trouble?"

To put it mildly, the Mohists are a group of fanatical believers who treat the Mohist Scripture just like Christians treat the Bible. They are well-organized and armed. Mozi's 180 or so soldiers can be put to death by fire or sword. , I will never give back my heel.

Although Qin Mo abandoned Fei Gong in order to achieve unification and great harmony, the nine chapters of universal love, advocating the virtuous, advocating unity, Minggui, Feile, frugal burial, and frugal use have always remained as before.

"Let the Mohists who oppose luxury and generous burials build the Afang Palace and Lishan Mausoleum. What's the difference between this and the British giving bullets greased with lard to the police?"

Sure enough, the three Mohist young men who were assigned to Lishanling quit their jobs and were sent to Lingnan.

It is common for hundreds of officials and families to be exiled. Of the 300,000 soldiers and civilians under Heifu's army, one-third were exiled for crimes. Can you believe it?

However, Heifu still smelled a hint of conspiracy.

"Yao Jia and Zhao Gao, if these two people get together, it would be easy to accuse the Mo family and bring disaster to the Mohist family... Do you want to attack the Mohist family and then the young master Fusu?"

This trick was not clever at all. Heifu shook his head. Lingnan was too far away from Xianyang and he was beyond his reach. He could only analyze the outdated situation through delayed news.

Regarding the Mohist family, Heifu's attitude is: if you can protect it, you can protect it.

Although this organization is under the banner of Minggui, it has delved deeper into natural sciences than anyone else. Under Heifu's persuasion, Cheng Mo published the "Jingshuo" related to optics, mechanics, levers, etc. a few years ago, which is related to Scholars led by Zhang Cang are studying together. In time, it may become the cornerstone of the Chinese scientific system.

The Mohist family's exquisite skills in offense and defense were the key to making the Qin Dynasty's military efficiency lead the six countries. Some of Heifu's ideas must be realized by relying on them.

A few years ago, Li Si proposed banning poetry and writings from all over the world, and the Mohists were among them. It was Heifu who proposed to Qin Shihuang to "promote the study of industry and agriculture" that allowed the Mohists to stay because of their "usefulness".

In the past two years, the more than 100 orphans from the Six Nations adopted before and after the Unification War have gradually grown up and become the mainstay of the Mohist family. At the same time, they rely on Mohists to travel to various counties and teach skilled craftsmen in engineering schools. The Mohist family is enjoying a revival...

In addition to being useful, Heifu also respects the Mohist philosophy from the bottom of his heart...

There are hundreds of schools of thought with diverse academic perspectives and different positions.

Yang Zhu is extremely self-interested and stands from a personal standpoint.

The Taoist Huang Lao advocated inaction, and Zhuangzi also protected his life throughout his life. Huang Lao was more involved in the world, trying to combine the governance of the body with the governance of the country.

The characteristics of each school of Confucianism are active participation in the world and emphasis on personal social and family responsibilities. However, in terms of stance, only Mencius dared to shout that "the people are valued and the country is second to the king." Although other factions said that "Heaven listens to the people," and emphasized the people, but those etiquette principles were all Tips for rulers. To put it bluntly, his feet were clearly standing among the common people, his buttocks were sitting among the scholar-bureaucrats, but his head was stretched out to the emperor's feet...

Needless to say, Legalism, from beginning to end, emphasizes respecting the emperor and centralizing power, with the goal of enriching the country and strengthening its military, and annexing the world. After that, it only considers the life and death of the people. Although it also incorporates some Confucian ideas of "loving the people", Dharma officials like this also have the idea that "the Dharma is the program of the world", but it is by no means the mainstream.

Although the peasant theory is from the perspective of small farmers, it hates merchants and even proposes that everyone should return to the original and farm together, which is too narrow-minded.

In short, looking at all the schools of thought, Mohism is the only one who stands completely on the standpoint of "the people". Mohism's universal love emphasizes that love does not distinguish between closeness and distance, no distinction between high and low, and it loves all people equally. , that is, "love without distinction".

For this reason, Mozi did not hesitate to put his own efforts in order to benefit the world. In the words of later generations, the philosophy of Mohism is: "Serve the people!"

Before unification, Qin Mo could still get along harmoniously with the relatively honest Qin government. But after reunification, it would be strange if there were no conflicts between the monarchy-based court and the people-based Mohist school.

The exile of the three Mohists to Lingnan is just a microcosm of this big contradiction. Heifu believes that the contradiction between the two will definitely intensify in the future and cause even bigger troubles.

He was not too worried. Although Qin Shihuang had become increasingly arrogant in recent years, the superiors still had some sense and were by no means indiscriminate in killing people indiscriminately.

Heifu did not expect that the young faction within the Mo family had become so radical that they wanted to "kill violence", and he thought optimistically:

"If something goes wrong, let it happen. It's best to take over the Mo family and bring them all to Lingnan to work for me!"

…

It was not until three days later that Hei Fu found time to meet the Mohist Azhong.

When Azhong arrived at the commander's tent, Hei Fu was playing with an "angry ant" made in a workshop. Although this thing is simple, it is extremely practical. When he saw Azhong come in, he said:

"I heard that you are a disciple of Mr. Cheng, but your character is not like the loyal Cheng Shang at all. You have only been here for a few days, and you caused trouble again."

Azhong remained silent, he knew best what he had done.

"I heard that you threatened in the workshop that you would make hundreds or even thousands of these things, and you would kill those hateful ants who were greedy, seizing people's fat, and using them to build giant nests. ?”

Azhong responded indifferently: "That's what I said."

Heifu smiled and said: "Zhong, is it the ants you want to piss off, or someone in the court, His Majesty the Emperor?"

Just like in Han Yu's article about offering sacrifices to crocodiles, he is criticizing crocodiles, but in fact, he is criticizing the vassal commanders who support military separatism and corrupt officials who prey on the common people. Ah Zhong also has something to say...

Afang in Lishan Mountain is a huge ant nest, so who is the queen?

Heifu suddenly became serious, slapped the table and scolded: "Do you know how much effort Cheng Juzi put into saving your lives? He also wrote a letter saying that all three Mo people are from the north and asked me to take care of you. You'd better do it. , you are new here, but you don’t hesitate to speak. If these words reach the ears of the supervisor, and they are investigated, you will be slandered for the second time, and not only Kunfa will be exiled! Do you want Cheng Juzi to send the white-haired man to the black-haired man? Are you even willing to harm the entire Mo family?"

"Marquis Changnan, I... I have always been outspoken and heartfelt. I was just not angry for a while and didn't think so much."

Azhong knew that Marquis Changnan was a friend of the Mo family and a close mentor. He felt ashamed for a moment and bowed to Hei Fu, bowing his head and admitting his mistake.

"This incident never happened. Similar words should not be mentioned again."

Heifu also understood that for Qin Mo, they risked the price of betraying Mo Jing and abandoning "non-attack" in order to pursue Shang Tong and made great contributions to the unification of the world.

But now the emperor's governance is contrary to Mo's ideals, which will definitely make Qin Mo, who is full of longing, feel that he has been let down.

"However, your craftsmanship and thought are indeed extremely skillful. Our army is in need of ink masters who can outline and carry out craftsman's work."

Heifu asked Azhong to get up and patted his ashes, treating him like a nephew.

"Instead of complaining all day long, why don't you use your clever thinking to make me angry and find a way to help me end this waste of money and people as soon as possible."

Azhong whispered: "Marquis Changnan, I...I still don't want to build a murder weapon..."

Heifu had already expected this: "I'm not Yao Jia or Zhao Gao. I can't force someone to lock up a man."

"I don't want you to build a murder weapon. I want you to help me build a ship."

"Ship?" Ah Zhong was puzzled. He heard that Changnan Marquis had hundreds of boatmen and countless craftsmen under his command. What kind of ship needs Mo's help?

"This is no ordinary ship."

Heifu asked Azhong to come to the case and pointed to the sketch on the paper: "It is a 'ship' driven by a paddle wheel and can go upstream in the stagnant water!"