Cao Cao was shocked by Liu Bei's words.
He looked at Liu Bei in shock, never expecting that such words would come from Liu Bei, a rising star among such a group of scholars.
"Without farmers, what would we eat? Without craftsmen, where would we live? Without dancers and musicians, whose dance would we watch and whose music would we listen to? These professions must exist. The laws of nature are normal. Why should we do this? Demeaning them?”
Liu Bei shook his head and sighed: "Some scholars have bad hearts. They don't know where they read in their books. They don't read benevolence, justice, etiquette, wisdom, and trust. What they read are all about fame and wealth, and following people's influence. Their hearts are broken, and naturally they read everything. Dirty."
Cao Cao was shocked for a while before he finally came to his senses.
He asked himself that he had received a serious education in Confucian classics. Although not many people would admit it, he was also a scholar, and he was pretty good at it.
But no matter which family law he came from, he had never read anything like this said by Master Confucius.
Yes, Master Confucius never had such an idea in his heart. What people want is to restrain oneself and return to rituals, and what they want is to restore the traditions of the Western Zhou Dynasty. Whose truth is Liu Bei talking about?
"Is Xuande a principle derived from reading? Which theory is this from?"
Liu Bei shook his head.
"It's not just anyone's opinion. You can read it and understand it through reading. When Bei first studied with his teacher, he was looked down upon by the children of scholars. They felt that Bei was just a humble man from the outside, full of rusticity, and they didn't want to be with him. Coming and going.”
"I never thought Xuande had experienced these things..."
"Bei was very angry and helpless at the time, but more importantly, he was unwilling to accept it. When he came over the mountains and ridges, they laughed at him because the soles of his feet were covered with mud."
"…………"
"So Bei vows to stand out no matter what, and no matter what, he must make them dare not underestimate Yu Bei anymore."
"So, Xuande did it."
"No, whether it is the Ancient Classics School or the Modern Classics School, although there are people who admire Bei, there are also people who look down on him. They will still think that Bei is just a poor settler in the border area and is nothing special. Even if he is famous in Luoyang, he will not It’s still like this, no matter how high your achievements are in your life, you will always be a lowly person.”
Liu Bei raised his head and drank the glass of wine and sighed.
Cao Cao listened and smiled bitterly.
"Xuande is famous in Luoyang, but Cao is not that uncomfortable."
"Mengde, you..."
"Hahahahaha, just teasing."
Cao Cao patted Liu Bei on the shoulder and laughed for a while.
After a while, Cao Cao showed unconcealable sadness again and said: "Xuande's words are so good. You have gone through hardships and traveled over mountains and ridges, but they ridiculed you for the soles of your feet are covered with mud. Hahahaha, it's really How funny! How funny!!”
Cao Cao gritted his teeth, punched the table with his fist, and cried out bitterly.
Looking at Cao Cao with a look of unwillingness on his face, Liu Bei felt something in his heart.
A generation of heroes also had such an experience, so it is not difficult to imagine that he would issue meritocracy orders three times in a row.
It was obviously impossible to have any substantial impact on reality, but he still did it.
Perhaps Cao Mengde always has romanticism and idealism in his heart that the poet and his youth never forgot.
Meritocracy was Cao Cao's personal insignificant resistance to this era in an era when there was no basis for imperial examinations. It was a rebellion against the etiquette and law society.
Then my guess is correct.
Everything in the past was not some conspiracy or calculation, but the young Cao Cao's counterattack against the real society by relying on the power of his family and unwilling to accept his situation of being discriminated against.
Cao Cao may be a very strong-minded person. He has been discriminated against and has never stopped fighting back. For this reason, he has done many things that are very stupid in the eyes of others.
Even so, he never surrendered.
Of course, this is also because he knows that his family is very powerful.
But anyway, this may be one of the reasons why Cao Cao was able to defeat Yuan Shao and make a comeback.
Thinking of this, Liu Bei suddenly felt that the dissatisfaction he felt towards Cao Cao across time and space had gradually dissipated.
He could already look at Cao Cao quite objectively.
A living flesh-and-blood person who vented his emotions in front of him without any reservation.
"It must have been a difficult journey for Mengde."
"With family to help, it's not easy. But I often have no one to talk to about my depression. When I look around, there are few close friends with whom I can talk about my depression."
"Bei knows what Meng De means. If Meng De has any distress in the future, Bei is willing to listen to Meng De's explanation."
"So, very good."
Cao Cao chuckled and raised his glass to Liu Bei. Liu Bei returned the toast and the two looked at each other and smiled.
Cao Cao felt that he unexpectedly got along very well with Liu Bei, just like an old friend reunited after a long separation.
But the friendship between the two has clearly just begun.
This wonderful feeling is also the same for Liu Bei.
Although I have known Cao Cao for less than ten days, I feel as if he has been an old friend for many years.
So both of them were very happy and talked about more topics.
Literature, military, politics, life, etc., they talk about everything.
The more we talk, the more we say, and gradually there are not so many taboos.
"Based on what Xuande said before, I thought Xuande was going to say something to me about whether princes, generals, and generals should be married to each other."
Cao Cao raised his wine glass in honor of Liu Bei.
Liu Bei laughed loudly, raised his glass in return, and drank a glass of wine.
"The prince and general Xiang Ning have the guts. Does Mengde believe this?"
Cao Cao thought for a while before giving his answer.
"I want to believe what is written in the history books, but when I look around, I don't quite believe it. If the princes, generals and prime ministers are completely innocent, why are there four generations of the Runan family? Why are there three generations of the Hongnong Yang family? ?”
Liu Bei chuckled and drank another glass of wine.
"So, there are only four generations and three princes. China has a long history, which goes back thousands of years. In the long river of history, we are just extremely small existences. There have been talented people from generation to generation, and each has led the way for hundreds of years. Nian, only four generations and three princes, where did the seed come from?"
Cao Cao took a deep breath.
"Xuande has such great courage."
"Hahahahahaha!"
Liu Bei drank three cups in a row and said with a smile: "Only they are allowed to look down on me? I'm not allowed to look down on them? Who stipulated it? I don't! I just want to point out the country and inspire the words, and the filth will be like ten thousand households! If you can't even do this, It’s such a waste of my youth!”
Cao Cao sighed very much and immediately raised a glass of wine in honor of Liu Bei.
"Being able to talk to Xuande is worthy of this life!"
Liu Bei responded with a glass of wine. After drinking the wine, he felt slightly hot in his stomach, so he tapped the wine pot next to him with his chopsticks.
"The sacred thing of the Five Emperors and Three Sovereigns has deceived countless passers-by. How many romantic figures have there been? After stealing Zhizhuang and gaining fame, King Chen stood up and waved the yellow ax! Mengde, our days are still long!"
"this……"
After hearing Liu Bei's words, Cao Cao was stunned for a while before he realized what he said.
"Xuan is a man of great virtue and talent, and the Five Emperors and Three Sovereigns are the sacred things... He deceived travelers from all over the world? It means a lot."
"Of course, they just lied to me and they want to keep lying to me."
Liu Bei smiled and said: "Three generations of rule? Abdication? Handing over great power to others? Mengde, if this is true, then guess, why after three generations only the son can succeed after the death of the father, and only the brother can succeed after the death of the brother? Today's people Is our morality really far inferior to that of the ancients?”
Cao Cao opened his mouth slightly, obviously he had never thought about this.
"In order to deceive people and flaunt themselves, they dare to say any nonsense, and they are not afraid of using their tongues."
Liu Bei sneered, looked at Cao Cao who looked obviously uncomfortable, and waved his hand in front of him.
"Mengde?"
"ah?"
"Silly?"
"………………"
Cao Cao looked at Liu Bei, and his expression became extremely complicated for a moment.
"No, I just feel that many things suddenly become different after Xuande said this..."
"I just said that, and Meng De just heard it, and he didn't dare to say it outside."
Seeing Liu Bei's smiling face, Cao Cao was silent for a while, then sighed deeply and shook his head with a wry smile.
"After I become a eunuch, the scholars will not listen to my nonsense."
After saying that, Cao Cao paused and looked confused again.
"What Xuande said was taught by Mr. Lu, or..."
"My teacher is a great scholar in the world, a humble gentleman, and a role model for the world. How could I have such rebellious thoughts?"
Liu Bei laughed and said: "Only a humble man like me, who weaves mats and sells shoes, is so humble, sinking into the quagmire and unable to extricate himself, can I have such random speculations about the dirty intentions of three generations of sages!"
Listening to Liu Bei's self-destruction without hesitation, Cao Cao suddenly admired Liu Bei very much.
"What Xuande said, Cao kept in mind, and what Xuande asked for, Cao also kept in mind."
"If you are ready for what you want, what should you do?"
Liu Bei looked at Cao Cao with a smile.
Cao Cao smiled and said nothing.
"Don't know?"
Liu Bei laughed, pointed to the barbecue on the table, and said: "Some people dream of having enough food and clothing, and some people are born with enough food and clothing, and some people dream of being able to eat barbecue anytime, anywhere, and Some people are born with the ability to eat barbecue anytime, anywhere.”
After speaking, Liu Bei stared at Cao Cao with a funny look on his face.
Cao Cao was stunned for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter, holding his stomach and bursting into tears.
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, hahahahaha! Xuande is really a wonderful person! Wonderful person! Hahahahaha! When we go back, when we go back, I will ask someone to send a year's worth of spices to Xuande's house. How about it?"
Liu Bei was overjoyed when he heard this.
One year's worth of spices was an astronomical amount of wealth for a third-rate scholar who had just started his career, but in Cao Cao's mind, it seemed as insignificant as a rag.
Is it natural for this damn big dog owner not to kill him?
"Does Meng De mean what he said? No! Even if you don't mean it, I do! I can't take it back after I say it!"
The rich man patted his chest.
"Of course, the Cao family doesn't need money for anything. It's just spices for one year. If Xuande needs it, I will give it to you every year! It doesn't matter if it's sent to the end of the world, it's very simple."
"Hahaha, that's not necessary, that's not necessary, one year is enough, that's enough."
Liu Bei was caught off guard with excitement and said with a smile: "It is true that people are poor but have short ambitions. Even though my family is considered rich, they can't get much luxury goods like spices, so I can't even eat barbecue if I want to." Eat, oh, Meng De’s actions can be regarded as poverty alleviation!”
"Poverty alleviation? Hahahahaha! If so, best, best!"
Cao Cao was overjoyed.
The heavy atmosphere just now was swept away, as if it had never happened at all.
The Liu Bei in front of Cao Cao no longer had the sharp gaze when he said "King Chen rose up and waved the yellow ax". He was just a greedy man who drank and ate meat with great pleasure. His appetite was so good.
Everything just seemed to be just a dream.
But the clear memory told Cao Cao that everything just happened was real.
The ambition and knowledge of the young man in front of him who was six years younger than him were far beyond his ability to fathom.
but……
It's so fun to be friends with him.
From the heart, relaxed and happy!
