Chapter 148: Discerning Commerce

Liu Cheng immediately rebuked:

"Agriculture is fundamental, commerce is trivial! Anyone who has read a little and understands the world knows this! Wang Yang, you twist words to win an argument, cover up your shame, and exaggerate to this extent! One man does not till, and someone goes hungry; one woman does not weave, and someone goes cold! Merchants do not till or weave, they cannot produce an extra dou of grain, nor an extra bolt of cloth! They only hoard and wait for the right time, buy and resell—what advantage they offer is merely facilitating the flow of goods across distances, bringing minor convenience. At most, they are of slight use!"

"You are wrong. Merchants indeed do not weave or till, but they can increase the total amount of grain..."

Liu Cheng snorted coldly: "Spouting nonsense, talking nonsense!"

"If you don't understand, then listen well. The essence of commerce is exchange. Exchange improves efficiency. For example, suppose you, Liu Cheng, are skilled at farming..."

Liu Cheng felt blood rushing to his head—he slammed his hand on the table so hard the wine cups toppled: "Wang Yang! You insult me too much!!"

Wang Yang also struck his folding fan hard against the table: "Emperor Wen tilled the land, Zhuge Zhuge Zhuge Liang farmed himself—sages of the Three Dynasties all worked the fields! I say you are skilled at farming, and you call it an insult? Are you nobler than Emperor Wen of Han? Wiser than Zhuge Zhuge Zhuge Liang? You despise farming so much, yet dare to quote 'one man does not till, and someone goes hungry'? You, Liu Cheng, neither till nor weave, yet you've never gone hungry!"

Liu Cheng roared: "My Liu family is of noble lineage, hereditary officials—why should we stoop to farming?!"

His lips trembled as he turned to Yu Yi: "Master Yu! This man speaks with utter disrespect! He scorns the scholar class, mocks his peers at this feast! His rudeness is intolerable! Please order him to leave immediately!!"

As host, Yu Yi bore the duty to regulate guests and mediate disputes. He could not ignore Liu Cheng's plea—moreover, he was eager to hear what came next and did not wish to be bogged down in trivialities:

"Young Master Wang, please focus on reasoning. Unless necessary, avoid using fellow guests as examples."

Seeing Yu Yi restrain Wang Yang, Liu Cheng felt slightly calmer, thinking Yu Yi at least understood the hierarchy between him and Wang Yang. Yet the phrase "unless necessary" sounded odd—did that mean if it were necessary, he could use me as an example?!

Wang Yang naturally granted Yu Yi this courtesy: "Very well. Let me use another example. Suppose there is a man skilled at farming—he can harvest ten shi of grain in half a year, but poor at weaving—he can only weave five bolts in half a year..."

Wang Yang spoke these words while looking directly at Liu Cheng. Though Liu Cheng ground his teeth, he had no choice but to listen.

"Another man is skilled at weaving—he can produce ten bolts in half a year, but poor at farming—he can only harvest five shi of grain in half a year. Without exchange—that is, without commerce—each must farm and weave, so their combined annual output is fifteen shi of grain and fifteen bolts of cloth, correct?"

Wang Yang looked at Liu Cheng.

Liu Cheng clenched his jaw and said nothing.

Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Xie Lady Xie Xinghan said: "Correct."

Liu Cheng's temple throbbed sharply.

Wang Yang continued: "But with commerce and exchange, each can focus solely on what they do best. The farmer no longer wastes time weaving—he devotes the whole year to farming. Previously he harvested ten shi in half a year; now he harvests twenty shi in a year. The weaver, previously producing five bolts in half a year, now devotes the entire year to weaving and produces twenty bolts. Thus their combined output becomes..."

Yan Yan Youcheng and Yu Yu Qianlou's expressions changed slightly.

Yu Yu Yuling murmured: "Twenty shi of grain, twenty bolts of cloth—it truly increased. Why is this so..."

Yu Yi's lips moved slightly, uttering four words—only he could hear them.

Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Xie Lady Xie Xinghan replied thoughtfully: "Because of exchange."

"Clever!" Wang Yang tapped his fan, glancing approvingly at Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Xie Lady Xie Xinghan.

Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Xie Lady Xie Xinghan shot him a reproachful look, yet a hint of uncontainable delight lingered at her brow.

"Exchange improves efficiency—that is, utility—by letting skilled people do what they do best. This is specialization. Higher specialization raises efficiency, and thus the total wealth of society—or rather, the state—increases."

After Wang Yang finished, silence fell over the hall. All were digesting his words.

Liu Cheng could not remain unmoved, but quickly retorted: "Weaving need not take time from farming—during off-season, one can weave..."

His voice trailed off, for this rebuttal was plainly weak.

Wang Yang cast him a look of contempt: "Grain and cloth are merely examples—other goods work too. Brother Liu, you don't truly fail to grasp this principle, do you?"

A cold glint flashed in Liu Cheng's eyes: "Since Qin and Han, suppressing commerce has been state policy—followed to this day. Are you then claiming our dynasty's policy is wrong?"

The remark grew sensitive. Yu Yu Yuling did not sense it, but Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Xie Lady Xie Xinghan, Yu Yu Qianlou, and Yan Yan Youcheng all did. Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Xie Lady Xie Xinghan signaled Wang Yang to be cautious. Yan Yan Youcheng wished to mediate but knew Liu Cheng was inflamed—intervening now might only offend him.

Yu Yu Qianlou glanced at his father, seeking guidance, but found him fixed on Wang Yang—no eye contact possible. His younger brother did not understand the stakes. He felt responsible to halt this taboo topic, so he changed the subject:

"This year's auspicious signs seem numerous—have you heard? Two months ago, a purple lingzhi mushroom was found in Yangcheng County, Yuzhou; in Changle Village, Shixing Commandery, a white pigeon was caught. Clearly, our dynasty's fortune is truly—"

Yu Yi spoke: "Zizhen."

Yu Yu Qianlou bowed quickly: "Father."

"Be silent."

"Yes."

Yu Yu Qianlou fell quiet, stuffing rice dumplings into his mouth.

Wang Yang looked at Liu Cheng and shook his head:

"Liu Cheng, you are wrong again. The policy of prioritizing agriculture and suppressing commerce targets only private merchants! Where has official commerce ever been suppressed? Shang Yang's 'unification of mountains and marshes' follows Guan Zhong's 'state monopoly of salt and iron'—it monopolizes the profits of natural resources! Salt and iron monopolies—control of essential goods! Han's Equal Transport and Price Stabilization policies—officials directly enter commerce! Suppressing private merchants transfers their wealth to the state—the core is 'competing for profit.' Today, our dynasty levies market taxes, valuation taxes, customs duties, wine taxes, salt taxes—all fall under commercial taxation. So I am not criticizing state policy; you simply never understood it."

Pata!

Yu Yu Qianlou's chopsticks fell onto the table.

All the young men sat stunned!

They had never imagined the phrase "prioritize agriculture, suppress commerce" could be interpreted this way!

At that moment, the steward noticed Yu Yi's elbow smeared with soup and stepped forward to suggest changing his robe. Only then did Yu Yi realize his right sleeve was soaked—he lifted his arm and waved the steward away.

Liu Cheng suddenly felt a familiar sensation—the suffocating defeat he had known in scholarly debates, military discussions, and poetry contests—returned again!!!

He would not allow himself to suffer this again!

Not again!!!

"Deceitful rhetoric! Flattering tongue! The harm of commerce is well-documented in the classics! If profit is paramount, how can you teach the people morality?!"

Liu Cheng's voice grew increasingly frantic:

"To govern men, one must block the source of deceit and idleness, cultivate the roots of virtue—only then can moral education flourish! Official commerce competes with the people for profit, eroding their simplicity! Private merchants hoard wealth, fostering greed and vulgarity! Left unchecked, the customs decay, purity vanishes, cunning corrupts, benevolence and righteousness vanish! Isn't this exactly what you, Wang Yang, embody? 'They gather all day, never speak of righteousness, delight in petty cleverness.' Confucius said: 'I have never met one who truly loves benevolence...'"

Wang Yang could not bear it—he interrupted:

"Benevolence and righteousness are not empty words! 'Five mu of land, planted with mulberry, allows those fifty and older to wear silk.' 'One hundred mu of fields, not seized at the right time, ensures a family of several can go without hunger.' When granaries are full, people learn propriety; when clothing and food are sufficient, they know honor and shame. Rather than empty talk of benevolence, seek policies that benefit the people and strengthen the state!

Confucius said: 'Harsh rule is fiercer than tigers.' All evil policies—selling offices, arbitrary taxation—stem from insufficient funds. Sun Quan, with his martial prowess, could not raise five thousand cavalry to resist the Central Plains. Now our dynasty, established south of the river, neglects cavalry—how can we contend for the empire?

You speak of northern expeditions—yet you know that to reform cavalry and military systems, you need vast financial backing. But you never speak of profit, never look at money—where will the funds come from? Where will the horses come from? Where will weapons and armor be forged? Where will grain and fodder be gathered? When northern cavalry ride south, drink from the Huai and Yangtze—will your words 'benevolence and righteousness' stop them? Idle men who talk of benevolence—useless as Liu Cheng—isn't that you?"

Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Lady Xie Lady Lady Xie Lady Xie Xinghan listened, recalling Wang Yang's words in the county school courtyard: "Commerce serves the people's livelihood." She thought: this man truly has grand vision—but never told me. When she heard the final line, she could not help smiling.

"You..."

Wang Yang's words pierced his heart like blades!

Liu Cheng's spirit trembled, his body shook—the humiliation of being crushed at Wang's banquet returned once more!!!

——————

Note: ① From the *Taiping Taiping Yulan, Military Section*, quoting the *Huiji Dianlu*: "Zhu Yu said to Zhongli (Mu): 'Great Emperor, with his divine valor, wished to raise five thousand cavalry to make gains. Now cavalry are unattainable—how can he pursue ambition?' (Mu) replied: 'Great Emperor sought cavalry to counter the Central Plains...'"

"Great Emperor" refers to Sun Quan. "Central Plains" here means the Central Region—i. e., Cao Wei. But Sun Quan never succeeded in raising a five-thousand-cavalry force before his death.

② *Book of Southern Qi, Treatise on Auspicious Signs*: "In the third month of the eighth year of Yongming, a purple lingzhi mushroom was found in Yangcheng County... In the eighth year of Yongming, a white pigeon was captured in Changle Village, Shixing Commandery."