Chapter 88: The Hermit After the class was over, the scholars walked out of the classroom in groups of two or three. Seeing Tian Ze standing quietly outside the door, the scholars all showed admiration in their eyes. They hurriedly straightened their clothes and bowed deeply respectfully before leaving in an orderly manner. Tian Ze smiled gently and nodded slightly, his eyes full of expectations for these young scholars. These are all hopes for the future, so he often comes to the academy to show his face. "Envoy Tian is quite free, and he always comes to this academy when he has nothing to do." Just when Tian Ze was in a good mood, a powerful voice suddenly sounded behind him. When Tian Ze turned around, he saw a middle-aged man who was eight feet tall, with extraordinary appearance and transcendent temperament standing behind him. He looked at Tian Ze with an unfriendly face and a bit of blame in his eyes. "Mr. Youan, how do you feel about teaching today?" Tian Ze was not annoyed. He still had a smile on his face and asked in a relaxed tone. "Thanks to Envoy Tian, these students focus more on techniques than on principles. It would be good enough if they can learn half of what I teach." Guan Ning snorted coldly. Tian Ze smiled slightly.
It is extremely difficult to be treated like this by Guan Ning. This man was a true hermit of the pure stream. Although Tian Ze did not fully agree with Guan Ning's ideas, he had to admit that he had a noble character and behaved uprightly. Even if it is just establishing a persona, if someone can maintain it for a lifetime, how is this different from true nobility? The scholars at the end of the Han Dynasty were divided into the clean stream and the muddy stream. The clean stream was mostly a self-proclaimed title of some literati. Most of them believed in Confucianism, took it as their responsibility to clarify the world, and were committed to eliminating eunuchs and relatives of the emperor's wife and rectifying the orthodoxy of the Han Dynasty. However, those officials who were dependent on the imperial power and the eunuchs and their relatives, as well as the eunuchs and their relatives themselves, were relegated to the muddy stream by them. Tian Ze scoffed at this distinction between the clean and the turbid, and to put it bluntly, its essence was nothing more than a struggle for power. In his view, many of the so-called clean streams were just people who were seeking personal gain under the banner of justice. However, in this environment where reputation is highly valued, most people are hypocritical, saying one thing in public and another in private, but there are also some people who are truly influenced by this and behave uprightly. For example, Tian Ze’s mentor Lu Zhi, Guan Ning in front of him, Zhang Zhao under Tian Ze, and so on. They truly lived an upright life and did not pursue fame or fortune. Zhang Zhao had been famous since he was young. When he grew up, he was recommended as a filial and honest official and a talented person, but he refused all the recommendations. His good reputation was not for show, but came from his heart. Later, he assisted the Sun family entirely because of Sun Ce's personal charm and rogue means. Sun Ce called him "Zhongfu" and went with him to visit Zhang Zhao's mother, and only then did he invite him out of seclusion. Later, Zhang Zhao also helped the Sun regime to stabilize Jiangdong. His status was like that of Xun Yu in Cao Cao's camp. However, because he always dared to speak out and had a strong character, he was not liked by Sun Quan, just like Tian Feng in Yuan Shao's camp. There were too many "stubborn donkeys" in the late Han Dynasty. After hitting a wall many times, Tian Ze gradually figured out the experience of dealing with these people. If you go to someone's house to invite them, you will definitely be turned away. You have to use some clever tactics. Most of the hermits like Zhang Zhao and Guan Ning wanted to find a quiet place to escape the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Guan Zhong came to Liaodong for this reason, and Zhang Zhao wanted to go to Jiangdong because he was born in Xuzhou. Tian Ze arranged for people to disguise themselves as passers-by and appear from time to time in places Zhang Zhao often went to. He calmly told him about the benefits of Liaodong and the chaos in Jiangdong, and mentioned that Guan Ning and other great scholars were also in Liaodong. They also arranged a fleet near the village where Zhang Zhao lived in seclusion, and always said that they were going to Liaodong for business, with a round trip every few dozen days, and they also said that Liaodong was a pure land. Over time, Zhang Zhao was finally attracted to him. Tian Ze did the same thing to Guan Ning and other upright officials, spreading the news that Zhang Zhao and other upright officials were in Liaodong. In this way, through coaxing and deception, this group of real "clean streams" were invited to Liaodong. As long as they are willing to come, the subsequent matters will be easy.
The same thing happened to Chen Gong, Cheng Yu and others back then. They traveled around with the mentality of studying, but when they arrived in Liaodong, they were "detained" by Tian Ze. Tian Ze can let go of his attitude, and the prosperity of Liaodong can stand the test. For those who only want to live in seclusion, Tian Ze can't persuade them for the time being, but he will also properly arrange for them. People like Zhang Zhao, who were not particularly determined to live in seclusion and who, although indifferent to fame and fortune, still had the heart to save the world and the people, were taken into Tian Ze's pocket. Zhang Zhao under Tian Ze was more like a combination of Chen Gong and Tian Feng. After his arrival, the administration and integrity of Liaodong improved a lot, and government affairs ran more smoothly with greatly improved efficiency, which at one point made Chen Gong want to abdicate and let others take over. But Zhang Zhao also had his own problems. He was as stubborn as Tian Feng, and his "aloofness" made Cheng Yu, Dong Zhao and others very resistant to him, and they believed that he was not suitable to be in charge of government affairs. Therefore, Tian Ze still handed over the government affairs to Chen Gong, who was in charge, and Zhang Zhao served as his deputy to assist. Zhang Zhao didn't have any thoughts on this. He didn't care about power and status. He just hoped that the people could live a better life with less war. Compared with Zhang Zhao, great Confucian scholars such as Guan Ning had an even stronger "noble spirit". Although they were humble and polite to others, their detached and indifferent attitude really made people feel ashamed. His character is so noble that it is difficult for ordinary people to accept it, and he has transcended worldly fame, wealth and power. Apart from being willing to communicate with Bing Yuan, Wang Lie and others, he usually ignores other people, as if there is no one in the world who can make his heart beat. But after coming to Liaodong to avoid disaster, he began to look at Tian Ze with a new respect. However, this admiration soon turned into disappointment and contempt. In Guan Ning's view, Tian Ze had such ability but did not promote the great principles of the ancient sages. Instead, he focused more on some methods and means among the theories of the Hundred Schools of Thought. He was too utilitarian and did not understand that the Tao is the foundation and the techniques are just appearances. Tian Ze doesn't think so. There is no distinction between Tao and art. Knowing the reasons but not knowing how to put them into practice, and knowing the results but not the reasons behind them, both have drawbacks, and the former is particularly serious. What one has learned throughout his life is not used to govern the world, but buried among the mountains and rivers. Tian Ze cannot approve of this behavior and even despises it. What Liaodong needs today is not a group of people with high morals and who study classics well, but capable officials who are truly capable of doing practical work and have both moral integrity and ability. Tian Ze admired the virtues of Guan Ning, Bing Yuan and Wang Lie, but their values were completely different. Therefore, the three of them expressed that they had no intention of becoming officials and focused on studying and teaching in the academy every day. But this is not bad either. The presence of these people can greatly influence the scholars in the academy, improve their moral character and reduce their utilitarianism. "Lord You'an, doing everything yourself is not what a ruler should do. Although I seem to be doing nothing on weekdays, I can arrange suitable candidates for suitable positions. Now that Liaodong is peaceful, why should I interfere too much?" Tian Ze said with a smile, his tone full of confidence and calmness. "Why did you come here today?" "I came to see these scholars, and by the way, I would like to ask you, Lord Genju, and Lord Yanfang for some help." (End of this chapter)