I Just Won't Play by the Book - Chapter 243
Chapter 243: Six Rulers 1
The position of grand tutor was the crown prince’s teacher and assistant minister.
But even though that was the case, only the young crown princes who were promoted to the throne at the age of six or seven would let the grand tutor assist in politics. After all, it unknown that whether the emperor would still be willing to sit on the throne.
So most of the time, the grand tutor was an empty title. He had a high position and high salary, but he didn’t have any real power.
The reason why Jiang Beiran wanted to find the grand tutor was very simple. The grand tutor was to teach the crown prince how to be the emperor, which was exactly what Jiang Beiran needed now.
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty, do you want me to massage your shoulders?”
When Wang Shougui went out to summon the grand tutor, Kong Qianqian suddenly stood behind Jiang Beiran and spoke.
“No need.” Jiang Beiran answered without turning his head.
“Then I will sing a song for you…”
Just as Jiang Beiran was about to turn his head, Mu Yao rushed over and pulled Kong Qianqian away. “Your Majesty, please calm down. It’s my fault for not teaching Qianqian well.”
Jiang Beiran waved his hand and made a shooing gesture before continuing to read.
Mu Yao pulled Kong Qianqian to the side and said, “Remember, you can only do what Emperor tells you to do. You are not allowed to do anything without any order. Do you understand? By the way, you were quite tactful yesterday. Why are you making a fuss today?”
“I’m not making a fuss.” Kong Qianqian shook her head. “I was thinking that Emperor was so imposing this morning and was still shouting so loudly. He must be tired, so I wanted to help His Majesty relax.”
“His Majesty will be much more relax if you stand quietly. Do you hear me?”
“Okay.” Kong Qianqian nodded and then stood properly.
A moment later, Wang Shougui returned and knelt in front of Jiang Beiran to report, “Your Majesty, the grand tutor is waiting outside the hall.”
“Let him in.” Jiang Beiran nodded.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
A moment later, Wang Shougui led an old man who should be in his 60s into the hall. However, the old man seemed to be full of energy.
“Your humble subject Shu Gang pays his respects to Your Majesty.”
“Please rise.”
“Thank You, Your Majesty.” Shu Gang bowed and stood up.
After placing “Dianlun” on the table, Jiang Beiran looked at Shu Gang and said, “I will get straight to the point. I have not knowledge of the politics of the Sheng Kingdom, so I would like to ask for your guidance.”
“It’s my pleasure.” After saying that, Shu Gang bowed and said, “It is the blessing of all the people that Your Majesty has such a desire to learn.”
Standing up from the dragon throne, Jiang Beiran walked to the table and asked the beam gang, “Let me ask you, did you teach Deng Bo?”
Hearing this question, Shu Gang did not have much of a reaction. He still answered respectfully, “Yes, I did.”
“Then do you know what exactly Deng Bo did, which is why he was… dismissed?”
When Jiang Beiran said this, the words “fired” almost escaped his mouth. In this world where cultivators ruled, the emperor was simply like a general manager. In front of the employees, you could act like a boss, but when the chairman came, he could dismiss you just because he said so.
This kind of impact on his worldview always made Jiang Beiran feel very out of place.
“Your Majesty, I don’t know about this matter. I only taught him Eight General Studies, as well as zither, Go, calligraphy, and painting. In addition, I let him study historical records, poems, songs, bows, horses, and archery as usual every day.”
Jiang Beiran thought for a moment after listening and asked, “Isn’t this the same as an ordinary student?”
“Your Majesty, I haven’t taught Deng Bo for long. Before I could go deeper, he had already ascended to the throne and become the emperor. I haven’t taught him since then.”
During the short conversation, Jiang Beiran felt a sense of righteousness from Zhu Gang. He also thought that Zhu Gang was pretty straightforward. This kind of person not only had profound knowledge, but also wouldn’t do anything against his heart.
Nodding, Jiang Beiran asked again, “If you continue to teach Deng Bo, what should you teach him next?”
“Your Majesty, it’s time to teach him Six Rulers.”
“What is Six Rulers?”
“Dao, Skill, Law, Form, Force and Right. This is the six rulers that the emperor measures the world.”
After thinking over these six words, Jiang Beiran felt that it was quite interesting. He felt that he could learn something useful.
“What is Dao?”
“Your Majesty, Dao is a goal, a direction, and a realm that the ideal wants to reach.”
“What is Skill?”
“Art is a channel, a path, and a way to achieve the ideal.”
“Then… What is Right?”
“Right is a balance, speculate, and an analysis and judgment of the situation.”
Seeing Shu Gang’s smooth reply, Jiang Beiran could not help but sigh that the old officials were better, unlike those young people who were all useless.
“Since the six words are the Six Rulers that measure the world, are they complementary?”
“Your Majesty is wise. These six words complement each other and are not complete if one missing.”
“Tell me, how do these six words complement each other?”
“Your Majesty, Dao is the distant mountain that Your Majesty yearns for. Skill Is Your Majesty’s path to the distant mountain. Law Is Your Majesty’s method and means to remove obstacles on the path. Form is the form of the obstacles on Your Majesty’s path. Force is the direction and strength of the obstacles. Right is Your Majesty’s comprehensive judgment based on yourself and the obstacles.”
Jiang Beiran smiled and said, “If that’s the case, then I understand. The Dao is the goal, the Skill is the strategy, and the Law is the tactic.”
“Your Majesty is extremely intelligent. You have understood the essence in the blink of an eye. I am very impress.”
“Tsk, I have to say, it is a unique pleasure to be flattered by such a righteous person.”