Song of Phoenix (思美人)

Song of Phoenix

Episode 42

In the season were all life are withering away, I'm willing to be your friend. - Ode to Orange from Nine Chapters

Qi Palace

Vice Chancellor Qu is indeed eloquent. I was breaking out in cold sweat for you back there.

Lord Meng Chang, you overpraise me.

Also, three days later, I'm holding my monthly

meeting about country governance. I am holding a little banquet for it.

Hope Vice Chancellor Qu and Prince Zi Lan can attend it.

Expert meeting on country governance?

The Great Scholar Meng Ke, Su Qin, the proponent of the Vertical Alliance,

and also scholar Chun Yu Kun who is a guest at my house will all be there.

And one more person, who is also Vice Chancellor Qu's old acquaintance.

This person is an inborn dreamer.

He oft dreamt of himself becoming a fluttering butterfly.

Only to wake up, unable to differentiate whether he had dreamt of himself as a butterfly,

Or a butterfly dreaming it was himself? ("The Butterfly Dream" by the great philospher, Zhuangzi)

Could it be that Master Zhuang Zhou will be coming too?

Precisely.

Prime Minister Tian

You're both here?

Now can you tell me where Qu Yuan lodges?

Your father, I, will personally pay my thanks to him in person.

What?

If it weren't for him being able to convince His Majesty at during crucial times,

Our State of Qi would have fallen for Zhang Yi's machinations.

And, I also have to thank you.

Or else, I also would have committed a grave mistake.

Father, is what you say true?

Of course it's true.

Today at the imperial court, Qu Yuan did not speak about the matter of Zhang Yi's visit.

Or else, I would have been in trouble.

This is great! I will make arrangements right away.

No need. I already invited Vice Chancellor Qu to attend the meeting here in our house two days from now.

If father does not mind, you can attend with me.

Father, it's all thanks to me this time.

I already told you that Qu Yuan surely doesn't have any intentions of Chu conquering the world via the Vertical Alliance, yet you won't believe me.

You're still persisting on this matter?

All right, all right. I won't talk about it anymore.

I feel that you're rather concerned about that Qu Yuan.

Is that so? I just simply take pity on him, that's all.

Is that really how it is?

Don't be nosy about my business.

There are things I shouldn't be nosy about, and things that I really have to butt into.

Isn't that right, Wen'er?

For fellow great masters to be able to deign and come here today,

It is my utmost honour.

Here, I will first toast everyone.

Please.

How about it? Everyone, did you understand?

What's hard to understand about that? Isn't that a hunt?

The deer here are smaller than the ones in our Chu.

That's right. This painting about herding and hunting in the wild that everyone just saw

was a gift from a house guest.

I am sharing this with everyone today

because I want to use this as our theme. May everyone discuss

how the governing principles in the current world should be.

A shepherd and governance. Lord Meng Chang using this painting as a theme

is really worthy to be praised. Worthy to be praised!

Since it's like that, may everyone just say what they think.

I understand one principle, shepherding the people to govern a country.

It can't be prevented to collect taxes.

If the fee is too heavy,

the citizens will feel injustice and will complain. Voices of discontentment will fill the roads.

They will escape to other countries.

What we should do now is treat these deer better.

Let them be full, warm, and have no worries.

And not induce any disaster.

What Lord Cun Yu said is so right.

I initially thought that I and Lord Tian are of the same beliefs.

I used to welcome you with sincerity, treat you with respect.

After seeing this painting, I hate myself for being blind

and befriended a person who cannot discriminate innocence from guilty, right from wrong.

Lord Meng, why do you say so?

Why don't everyone think about it? What kind of world

is the world today? Citizens all facing starvation.

You can see corpses of starved people everywhere.

Beasts are able to eat better than people. What's the difference of that with leading beasts to eat men?

Let me ask you. Why is a tyrannical government more ferocious than a tiger?

When beasts kill each other, people will temporarily feel disgusted by it.

As the citizens' parents, as the king of a country, enforcing a tyrannical government

is no different with leading beasts to eat people. How is he then qualified to be the parents of the citizens?

That's right. The reason why a tyrannical government is fiercer than a tiger

is indeed because from the king to the ministers and nobility,

they all have a heart to harm the citizens,

a savage and cruel ferocious tiger.

Good! Tyrannical government is more ferocious than a tiger.

The tiger in a human heart is more ferocious than a tyrannical government.

You said it so beautifully.

Father, be careful. The paths here are hard to walk on.

Sister, for whom are we picking these medicines for?

His Majesty. - What? His Majesty?

Let's go there to take a look.

Common colt foot flower!

It is the common colt foot flower!

Father, Yi'er, look!

Mo Chou, you cannot climb up there. It's too dangerous.

That's right, Sister, just forget this one. Let's try looking for another one someplace else.

That's right. - No. We have been walking for so long already and were just able to see one.

Sister! - Slowly! Be careful!

Mo Chou! Be careful! - Slowly, sister!

Sister!

Slower...

Slower...

Mo Chou, be careful!

Slowly. Slowly.

Father, I got it!

Sister! - Mo Chou!

Mo Chou, how is your injury?

It's fine, Father. Just superficial wounds. I'll just put a bandage on it when we return home.

I told you to be careful.

That's right, Sister. Why must you risk that much danger

to help His Majesty pick a medicine?

Father, where is the Qi country?

Qi is in the east, where the sun rises.

The place where the sun rises...

May I ask great teachers, to let all citizens be well fed and kept warm,

have a home to live in, their illnesses being cured, the elders getting taken care of,

and let the neighboring countries stop the fighting and make the world be in peace,

what method must be used?

You only need to do one word, 'benevolence'.

People (人) and two (二) forms the word benevolence (仁).

People are born to be innately kind.

They naturally have compassion, shame in doing evil,

politeness, and knowing what's right and wrong.

The citizens are like that. The dukes and nobility are like that.

The king and emperor are also like that.

If a country's king has a heart that doesn't neglect others,

practices governance that doesn't neglect others, loves his citizens,

decreases taxes, decreases punishments,

enjoy with his citizens, share fortunes with his citizens,

can he not win the love of his citizens with that?

I still have one more question.

Please say it.

About the benevolent governance that Teacher Meng said earlier,

it focused on being close to one's citizens, loving them.

A king loving its citizens hence the citizens loving him back.

If you put it that way, the king and citizens will be of equal importance already. Am I right?

I think that the citizens are most important,

the state just secondary, the king being the least important.

Citizens being the most important, the king being the least important?

The citizens is a country's foundation. Only with a stable foundation can the country be in peace.

The reason Jie and Zhou lost the world was because they were brutal and immoral

so they totally lost the people's support.

By practicing benevolent governance, you can win the people's heart.

If you win the people's heart, you can get the world.

None of the kings today are not fond of killing people.

If there is really a benevolent king that doesn't like to kill people,

the citizens of this world will surely gather and harmoniously submit to him.

By that time, who can hinder him?

Good! Citizens as the most important, the king as the least. A benevolent ruler is unrivaled.

This is really the grand path, the grand principle.

I think that a benevolent ruler is useless.

A while ago, it was that 'a benevolent ruler is unrivaled'.

Then a little later, it is now 'a benevolent ruler is useless'.

Who should I listen to between the two of you?

Governing people is like trying to ride a horse.

A horse's hoof can trample on frost and snow, its fur can defend against the cold wind.

But since Bo Le (a horse connoisseur) happened, everything changed.

We are talking about state governance yet you are talking about this and that and why must you talk about horses?

Horses have personality so do humans.

Since a so-called wise and capable emperor existed,

the citizens got subdued and placed under control.

This is why there is nonstop chaos in this world that can't be cured.

Has it changed with the passing of the days?

Who can control the changing of the seasons?

There's something I still don't understand. Sir, do you mean that

a king need not govern a state? He should just listen and let them be?

If that's the case, I don't know how chaotic the world would be.

All living things exist for a reason.

Since a so-called wise and capable emperor existed,

They have their own thinking on how to run the country,

and didn't care about the way of humans, the way of states, the way of the Heavens.

Hence, the world slowly started to become not peaceful.

So I dare you as you all,

in this world now, why do we still need a wise and capable ruler?

The great principle to govern the world now is by doing nothing.

Let the world shepherd its own.

That is the highest form of governing.

There shouldn't be any problem with that medicine, right?

If you believe there's something wrong with the medicine, I'll pour it out.

Please don't be angry Miss Mo Chou,

it's just that, we don't know when His Majesty will wake up.

There are some people who wakes up instantly, there's also some people who even after 3 years, don't wake.

Why's that?

There is a concept of compatibility between medicines and humans. This is the truth.

But... - In this Palace,

there less and less rules.

Changing a tune and being able to dance are fine. Yet you now are practicing some witchcraft?

Even the Queen, you dare to offend.

Mo Chou, it's not like I'm not giving you a chance.

But then you bring the medicine here and say it might not work.

You can't blame me this time.

Guards,

send Mo Chou to the dungeons.

Yes.

Sister.

Your Majesty... Your Majesty, you're awake.

Didn't I say, some people won't wake even after 3 years, there are some people who wakes immediately.

It's good that you're awake, Your Majesty have a rest here,