Time had subtly shifted from the dog days of summer, yet the weather clung stubbornly to its heat. Inside the study of Yushan Academy, Li Pin poured two cups of tea, offering one to Ning Yi.

"Affairs of state and matters of the world – sometimes seeing those who are verbose and overly confident can be laughable. However, many ideas arise from such grand pronouncements. If one merely toils away diligently, never discussing things with others, they're bound to be biased. In the third year of Jinghan, I went to the capital to take the imperial examination, passing as a Jinshi with the eleventh rank on the imperial榜 (bǎng, list). Alas… my policy essay was considered too radical and offended Fu Ying, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. Although I passed the examination, it was difficult to secure a substantive post. After several months, disheartened, I left Dongjing and eventually returned to Jiangning."

Li Pin chuckled ruefully as he recounted this, shaking his head while holding his teacup.

"Others seeking officialdom, having passed the Jinshi exam, would remain in Dongjing for years, seeking connections through various channels. I left after just a few months, and sometimes I'm reluctant to even mention it, lest I be ridiculed. But during my time in Dongjing, witnessing the web of interests between officials was truly perplexing. The atmosphere of Dongjing differs slightly from Jiangning. Upon arrival, one can sense that the presence of the Imperial City seems to envelop everything. From Imperial Street, you can see the towering palace walls every day. Even in places where the palace is not visible, looking in that direction, it seems to loom before you…"

"Those seeking office, those seeking connections, those discussing matters of state, those dedicated to continuing the learning of past sages, those striving for lasting peace… teahouses, taverns, and pleasure quarters alike are filled with such discussions. Everywhere you look, you see the shadow of officialdom. On one hand, it's vibrant and energetic, but on the other, it's weary and stagnant. In short, everyone is anxious and at a loss. But life goes on, and I tried to explore various avenues, sought various solutions, perhaps finding Fu Ying's political opponents to gain promotion. But in the end, it was all to no avail, or perhaps I simply didn't pursue the right paths. I originally thought that the eleventh rank should hold some value, but people didn't refuse me outright, merely evaded, offering me positions that were entirely without substance. Their arrangements were airtight, and after a few months, I realized that this path was temporarily impassable."

"Why bother trying to squeeze through a tiny crack in their territory when it's impossible? My family's circumstances are reasonably good; if I truly wanted to stay in Dongjing and wait for an opportunity, it wasn't as if I lacked the funds. But I felt it was unnecessary, and I might as well use this time to calmly reflect and contemplate. So I left Dongjing, traveling through Xu, Tang, Shen, and An provinces, before circling back to Jiangning. I encountered floods at that time and witnessed many things. Over these past few years, I've been contemplating why the world has become as it is…"

He took a sip of tea, "In the previous century, our Wu Dynasty had also undergone several major and minor reforms. Many failed, but in principle, they never deviated from the three core areas of enriching the people, strengthening the military, and selecting talented individuals. If one wishes to accomplish something, starting with these three is indeed logical. However, what is the root cause that makes our Wu Dynasty's soldiers and civilians weak, and our selection of talent ineffective? Recently, whenever I discuss this with others, I find myself contemplating these very things."

Ning Yi took a sip of his tea, then shrugged, "Isn't the reason… quite simple?"

Li Pin had been awaiting his opinion, and at these words, he paused, taken aback, then smiled. "Indeed, it is simple… What Liheng said initially, that everything has basic rules and a root cause, and that seeing it clearly may help in better grasping future development, I think is very reasonable… Actually, when looking at our Wu Dynasty today, the cause and effect is rather clear. Anyone who puts in a bit of effort can see it clearly…"

He paused slightly, then picked up a piece of chalk and drew a triangle on a small blackboard. "Our dynasty was originally founded on military strength. At the beginning of its establishment, its military power was strong, but the subsequent rebellions made the founding emperor see the drawbacks of this. He then suppressed the military and promoted civil affairs, governing our dynasty with a strategy of strengthening the center and weakening the periphery. This method allowed our dynasty to eliminate the causes of internal strife, and for a time, enriched the people and extended the dynasty's lifespan. But now, it has created many drawbacks, making it difficult for our dynasty to resist foreign aggression. Under much pressure, to ensure that the center remains strong, it has also caused the periphery to become weaker, and wealth continues to flow to the apex. Military force was originally suppressed by strengthening the center and weakening the periphery, and now it is even weaker. The weaker the military, the greater the external pressure, and the greater the pressure, the weaker the military becomes, forming a cycle with no escape…"

Li Pin exhaled, looking at the blackboard. "If we can solve the problems in commerce and give some consideration to the periphery, our dynasty will naturally have the resources to attend to military force. This is a problem that any policy aimed at enriching the people must address… If we can make the military strong and deter foreign aggression, our dynasty will naturally be able to catch its breath. This is a problem that any policy aimed at strengthening the military must address. Selecting talent is also for enriching the people, strengthening the military, and extending the dynasty's lifespan… Alas, all are empty words."

He threw the chalk away. "If we talk about a single policy, it seems that everyone has a method, and even implementing several policies in parallel is not a problem. But in our dynasty, the situation of strengthening the center and weakening the periphery is already established. It's like a large tree: if the center is not satisfied, any nutrients are snatched away by the center, leaving the periphery empty. How to guide this strong center to naturally direct nutrients to the weak periphery – this is the problem. What does Liheng think?"

Ning Yi pondered for a moment, then nodded with a smile. "Yes, very reasonable, and you're saying… let those big landowners and merchants who have become strong – like our Su family – and those imperial relatives and wealthy idlers willingly take out the money they've earned and redistribute it to the people…"

Li Pin smiled, not denying it.

"Indeed, it's a bit idealistic, but there's no other way. Of course, everything in the world moves forward, not backward. People say that the eras of Emperor Heng and Emperor Hui were times of prosperity and wealth for our Wu Dynasty, but thinking of going backward is impossible. The problem lies in how to guide it to the next stage, to make these people willingly take out money, so that it doesn't become a cycle, impractical and useless. Everything must consider the successive promotion and flow. Therefore, there needs to be a method to make these people take out money and invest it in impoverished areas, and then there must be a guarantee that both sides can make money, and then continue, endlessly, without reducing the wealth of the strong center, but allowing the situation of the weak periphery to be alleviated… Perhaps, we can consider letting the imperial court intervene first."

"Wang Anshi's reforms…" Ning Yi frowned slightly, murmuring softly. Li Pin turned his head from the other side, "Hmm?"

The Wu Dynasty didn't have a Wang Anshi, but several decades ago, a Prime Minister named Tan Xi, styled Ziyong, had done something similar, attempting to reform the system by having the court intervene in various businesses in order to revitalize the economy. Ning Yi smiled, "Doesn't Dexin's idea resemble those of Prime Minister Tan back then?"

Li Pin nodded. "I have indeed repeatedly pondered the reforms of Prime Minister Tan, which were very inspiring. Perhaps he thought the same way back then, but he didn't anticipate the extent of the resistance, the failure to implement the decrees, and the officials below outwardly compliant but inwardly resistant. Therefore, the most important thing for state affairs is to clean up the bureaucracy…"

"That statement is correct," Ning Yi nodded. "But the method was wrong. You can't play the economy this way."

"Hmm? Economy?"

"Er, that is, the commercial system, the circulation of goods, the circulation of money, the entire system…" Ning Yi explained with a smile. "Any commercial system that allows privileges to intervene is not a normal commercial system. Privileges here can only be poison, especially privileges like those of the imperial court and the government."

"Liheng also believes that the government should not compete with the people for profit?"

"It's not for that reason," Ning Yi shook his head. "Didn't you want basic rules? The basic rule of the economy is greed. Merchants pursue profit; the only purpose can be profit; everything else can be ambiguous. Greed is a positive thing in many cases. I work in the store, and I want to buy a piece of clothing, so I work hard, try to find ways to make money, or earn more money by being appreciated by the owner. That's good greed. Actually, there are many ways to steal and rob, but that leads to jail, which isn't worth it, so you can only follow the rules of the game. I did so many things, and it's worth that much money, and it's worth that piece of clothing. Greed that allows people to stay in the rules of the game is good greed…"

"But the imperial court isn't in the rules of the game; they're still acting as the referee, and you're letting them join the game. In the end, no one else will be able to play… I said earlier that merchants pursue profit; the only purpose can be profit. If you let someone see profit, teach them greed, and then they turn around and see that they have a 'get out of jail free' card, a knife in their hand. If I can easily take the profit back, why wouldn't I take it? If it could really be so ideal, then wouldn't it be the same as directly letting the big landowners and merchants take out money?"

He paused slightly. "Prime Minister Tan's reforms didn't fail because the rule of law wasn't enough. People will always find loopholes. Greed is too powerful, and once that emotion exists, then they see nothing but profit. This emotion can make people very proactive, its driving force is great, but the only key is: it's best not to let those with privileges have this emotion. If this privilege isn't sufficiently restrained, then in the end, no one will be able to play…"

"As long as there's any small loophole to exploit, then the rule of law will never be enough. Letting the privileged class do business is like letting wolves into a flock of sheep. Instead of considering letting more privileges intervene, it might be more productive to eliminate the privileges that have already entered… Simply put, it's one sentence: letting the referee play the game – how can the game be played? To talk about supervision will only make something that was originally simple more complicated, and destruction is inevitable."

Outside the window, a pair of siblings crouched in the corridor under the windowsill, eavesdropping. The boy nudged his sister's shoulder and whispered, "Sister, sister, is he saying that our family's business should be shut down?"

"This barbarian…" Zhou Pei blinked, somewhat annoyed, then glanced at her younger brother. "But what he said makes a little sense. You have to remember it and think about it. Don't believe it lightly, but don't dismiss words because of the person saying them. That's how you can accomplish great things in the future."

"Oh," Zhou Junwu nodded, then untied the pouch on his waist, took out a glutinous rice cake, and ate it in small bites. Zhou Pei glared at him from the side, exasperated at his lack of ambition.

"Letting the referee play the game…" Inside the room, Li Pin was silent for a long time, then laughed, his expression somewhat complex. "Liheng's words are indeed right on that basic principle. If I were the referee and I stepped onto the field, then it would indeed be…"

He was a person who thought things through. Although he might not abandon the idea of economic guidance, Ning Yi's words made him think somewhat about the consequences. "I wouldn't have thought that I'd pondered for several years, but Liheng saw the most difficult point to solve with one glance. Perhaps this is the difference in Liheng's way of seeing things?"

"After all, this is a very interesting thing. Our dynasty gives the Liao Dynasty hundreds of thousands of years' worth of tribute every year, but it earns millions more from trade. In the end, we're still the ones who benefit. The importance of merchants and the benefits of commerce are now understood not only by Brother Dexin, but by many people. Our dynasty is different from the previous dynasties; our dynasty doesn't suppress commerce. Prime Minister Tan's reforms, although they had problems, also showed the imperial court's emphasis on commerce, but…" Ning Yi thought for a moment, then suddenly said, "Oh, right, I was just thinking, what about that Fu Ying now?"

Ning Yi had been talking about commerce, and suddenly switched to this sentence. Li Pin was also stunned, but after a moment, he burst out laughing. "Liheng is indeed amazing; nothing can be hidden from you. The Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Fu Ying, was investigated for corruption in March of this year, and last month, he was sentenced to exile by the Court of Judicial Review. Once the flood is over, I'll probably…" He was slightly melancholy, but ultimately happy. "I'm probably going to Dongjing again to network and see if I can get a substantive post. I've been waiting for five years now; don't say that I'm too eager for officialdom."

Ning Yi also laughed. "In that case, congratulations, Brother Dexin."

"It's still early, still early… But how did Liheng see this?"

"Commercial secrets." Ning Yi had only noticed some clues from the other person's expression, so he asked a casual question and made a joke. Li Pin shook his head and laughed for a while, then took a sip of tea. "Back to the subject, back to the subject. Since Liheng understands the benefits and drawbacks, I wonder if you've thought about whether there's a compromise if the imperial court were to guide things?"

"That's… just a joke."

"Even if it's just a joke."

"Okay, since you're going to be an official anyway, it's good to discuss it," Ning Yi nodded with a smile. "Personally, I think there is, and there isn't."

"What do you mean by that?"

"It's actually very simple: let the imperial court, let the Confucians consciously raise the status of merchants, then the trend of commerce will naturally flourish even more. If you want to actively guide things without interfering or destroying them, this is the only way…"

Hearing these words, Li Pin frowned. "The status of merchants… this… after all, merchants value profit too much…"

"It's not about merchants valuing profit," Ning Yi took a sip of tea. "The state also values profit. In recent years, with the development of commerce, the status of merchants has also improved compared to the previous dynasties. If we were to actively open things up a little, commerce would definitely grow, but this is also where it's impossible… They don't dare to."

"Who?"

"The people above, the imperial court, the Emperor, the Confucians… you and I, or everyone, doesn't dare to open things up…"

On the corridor outside the window, Zhou Junwu, squatting against the wall, paused slightly. "Sister, he's talking nonsense again. I'm not afraid at all. Our family is also doing business, and the family of the Imperial Son-in-Law does even more…"

"Shut up," Zhou Pei whispered, stopping him from speaking, then thought for a moment. "I'm not afraid either… He's using reverse psychology."

Then they heard Ning Yi's slightly teasing voice from inside.

"If we were to open things up, with a bang, the Wu Dynasty, this country… would be gone."

**********

The next chapter will be posted before 11pm tonight.