At the southern foot of Wolong Mountain, where mist often lingers, lies an elegant manor named "Woyun Cottage". This cottage was personally built by Zhuge Liang , nestled against the mountains and beside the water, implicitly embodying profound mysteries: a winding stream in front of the gate, originating from Black Dragon Pool , with Bagua-shaped pebbles paving the stream bed; as water flowed over them, subtle spiritual energy surged silently. Inside the courtyard, three flower beds were laid out—orchids planted on the left, spiritual herbs on the right, and a blue stone slab enclosed in the middle, which was exactly where he practiced his mental cultivation method daily. The slab faintly bore lines nourished by spiritual energy. The main house faced south, with bamboo curtains hanging under the eaves, on which the"Tao Te Ching"was carved; when the wind blew the curtains, faint spiritual light seemed to flow between the lines. The east chamber served as a study, filled with bamboo slips and ancient classics, and several Mohist weapon sketches were spread out on the desk, their edges slightly yellowed from being infiltrated by spiritual energy. The west chamber was the residence of his book boy He Yuer, simple and neat, with dried mountain fungi and firewood piled in the corner, exuding the warmth of mundane life.
It was mid-autumn, the anniversary of Confucius' birth. Before the morning mist had fully dispersed, Woyun Cottage had already gained a touch of liveliness. Outside the bamboo fence at the gate, Cui Zhouping, dressed in a plain Confucian robe, approached with steady steps, three strands of green beard hanging under his chin, and an elegant demeanor in his eyebrows and eyes. Close behind him was Shi Guangyuan, wearing a moon-white Taoist robe, a gourd tied around his waist, and a fly-whisk in his hand, walking slowly as if treading on clouds, his eyes calm and indifferent, as if hiding the mysteries of heaven and earth. The last to arrive was Xu Yuanzhi, with a green robe tied at the waist, a long sword hanging at his hip, a resolute face, and sharp eyes, exuding an air of decisiveness. He Yuer had long been waiting at the gate; seeing the three arrive, he quickly bowed and saluted: " Cui, Shi, Xu, my master has prepared clear tea and has been waiting for a long time."
The three nodded in response and followed He Yuer into the courtyard. Zhuge Liang was standing beside the blue stone slab, his tall figure set off by a black long robe. Seeing his friends arrive, he smiled and clasped his hands: "Three virtuous friends, on this anniversary of the sage's birth, this humble cottage is honored by your presence."
"Brother Kong Ming, you are too polite," Cui Zhouping replied with a clasp of his hands, his gaze sweeping over the flower beds in the courtyard. "The spiritual energy in your cottage is becoming increasingly abundant; it seems your mental cultivation method has made great progress."
Shi Guangyuan stroked his beard and smiled: "The spiritual veins of heaven and earth converge here, and Brother Kong Ming has seized the opportunity. We have come today, hoping to absorb some of this spiritual energy."
Xu Yuanzhi patted Zhuge Liang on the shoulder and said loudly: "No more nonsense—let's go inside for tea first. I'm eager to hear if there have been any new developments on Wolong Mountain recently."
The four entered the main house and took their seats as hosts and guests. He Yuer served fragrant cloud mist tea; the tea soup was clear, with a few spiritual herb leaves floating on the surface, and it tasted mellow, capable of nourishing the mind and spirit. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Cui Zhouping took the lead in speaking: "On the anniversary of the sage's birth, we should discuss the way of cultivating oneself, managing the family, governing the state, and pacifying the world. Now the Han Dynasty is declining; after the Yellow Turban Rebellion, warlords have divided the land, white bones lie exposed in the wilderness, and not a single chicken crows for a thousand li. I wonder, Brother Kong Ming, as you have observed the celestial phenomena and the current affairs recently, what insights do you have?"
Zhuge Liang put down his teacup, his expression turning slightly solemn: "Three virtuous friends, to tell you the truth, three days ago I went boating on Black Dragon Pool and encountered an earth-shaking vision." He then recounted the events of the black dragon ascending to heaven, the descent of the heavenly script, and the divine dream, his words concise yet earnest. He only omitted the details of being the guardian of the spiritual veins, focusing on the great Dao recorded in the heavenly script, the art of observing qi, and the responsibility of saving the world.
Upon hearing this, all three showed expressions of shock. Cui Zhouping stroked his beard and pondered, Shi Guangyuan's eyes flashed with sharp light, and Xu Yuanzhi sat up straight, his expression grave.
"What an extraordinary adventure!" Cui Zhouping was the first to speak, his tone solemn. "The sage said, 'Heaven has endowed me with virtue.' Brother Kong Ming, being favored by the heavenly script, must be entrusted with a destiny by heaven. However, the Confucian way takes 'benevolence' as its core. As stated in The Analects·Yan Yuan: 'To subdue one's self and return to propriety is benevolence. If a man can for one day subdue himself and return to propriety, all under heaven will ascribe benevolence to him.' The root cause of the current troubled times lies in the chaos of people's hearts, the collapse of moral principles, warlords pursuing self-interest, and disregarding the people's livelihood. To save the world, we must first rectify people's hearts, restore the order of rituals and music, assist a wise lord in implementing benevolent governance, enable the people to live and work in peace and contentment, and thus unite the strength of the world to revitalize the Han Dynasty."
He paused, looking at Zhuge Liang: "Although the power of the heavenly script is magical, it must be restrained by benevolence. Mencius·Li Lou Shang states: 'The reason why Jie and Zhou lost the world was that they lost the people; the reason why they lost the people was that they lost their hearts.' If you abuse mystical arts, you may defeat the enemy temporarily, but you cannot win the long-term allegiance of the people. If Brother Kong Ming leaves the mountain, you should take Confucianism as the foundation and mystical arts as the means to proceed steadily and go far."
Shi Guangyuan gently swirled his teacup and took over: "What Brother Cui said is too idealistic. "Tao Te Ching" says: 'Man takes the earth as his model, the earth takes heaven as its model, heaven takes Dao as its model, and Dao takes nature as its model.' The decline of the Han Dynasty did not happen overnight; it is the result of the cycle of heaven and the imbalance of yin and yang. The division of the land by warlords and the frequent wars may seem man-made, but in fact, they are the external manifestations of the turmoil of the spiritual veins of heaven and earth."
His gaze turned to the bamboo sea outside the window: "Taoism advocates 'governing by non-interference', which is not passive seclusion but acting in accordance with the trend. Brother Kong Ming obtained the "Xuan Yuan Tong Tian Bao Dian", which is a gift from heaven. The great Dao recorded in the book is essentially the essence of 'Dao follows nature'. Now the spiritual veins of Shu in the west are turbulent, the dragon vein of the Central Plains is disturbed by evil qi, and the water vein of Jiangdong is surging with undercurrents. You should use mystical arts to reconcile the spiritual veins, not force unification. Chapter 49 of "Tao Te Ching"states: 'The sage has no fixed heart; he takes the people's heart as his heart.' You only need to assist a lord who can follow heaven's Dao and stabilize the people's livelihood, act in accordance with the trend, and when yin and yang are balanced, the world will naturally return to peace."
He changed the subject: "As for the heavenly script, it should be used cautiously. 'Reversion is the movement of Dao; weakness is the function of Dao.' Although mystical arts are powerful, they must conform to heaven's Dao and not act against it, otherwise, you will surely suffer retribution. The black dragon you saw three days ago is exactly a sign of the reconciliation of the spiritual veins. The descent of the heavenly script is to let you act in accordance with the Dao, not to fight against the trend."
Xu Yuanzhi grew impatient, waving his hand: "Brother Shi's words are too vague! In troubled times, empty talk about heaven's Dao and benevolent governance is useless! "Han Fei Zi" says: 'The law does not favor the noble; the line does not yield to the curved.' Now warlords rule separately, the strong prevail, and the weak perish. Only by governing the state by law, centralizing power and strengthening the country, can we put an end to the wars."
His sharp gaze swept over the three: "The Qin Dynasty unified the six kingdoms by law; although it perished after two generations, it was not the fault of the legal system but the mistake of harsh governance. "Shang Jun Shu·Kai Sai" states: 'There is no single way to govern the world; what benefits the state need not follow ancient traditions.' In the current troubled times, we should implement the policy of 'heavy rewards and severe punishments', clarify laws and regulations, rectify powers and responsibilities, unite national strength, and thus deter warlords and stabilize the world. Brother Kong Ming, with the heavenly script, you should take the deduction techniques and formation methods recorded in it as weapons to strengthen the country, assist a wise lord in rectifying official administration, training a strong army, and sweeping away the divisions, instead of being rigidly confined to talks of benevolence, righteousness, and heaven's Dao."
He paused, his tone firm: "What the people want is peace, not empty talk of morality. Only when the country is strong can we defend the territory and protect the people—this is the practical way. The power of the heavenly script should be used in practical matters: developing powerful military weapons, formulating winning strategies—this is worthy of heaven's gift."
The three turned their gaze to Zhuge Liang, waiting for his response. Zhuge Liang smiled slightly and said: "What the three virtuous friends said all makes sense, yet each has its own focus. My Mohist way takes 'universal love, non-aggression', 'honoring the virtuous, and frugality' as its core. "Mozi·Universal" states: 'If the whole world practices universal love, then the world will be orderly; if they practice mutual hatred, then the world will be chaotic.' The current troubled times are the culmination of 'mutual hatred'—warlords wage wars, and the people are displaced, all because of the lack of a 'universal love' heart and the overemphasis on self-interest."
He picked up the Mohist weapon sketches on the desk: "I believe that saving the world requires practicality. Confucian benevolent governance, Taoist heaven's Dao, and Legalist rule by law can all be learned from, but ultimately, they must be based on 'benefiting the world'. The heavenly script not only contains mystical arts but also the principles of mathematics and physics, and the way of making weapons. With it, I can develop tools that benefit the people, improve farm tools to enable the people to have sufficient food and clothing; set up mystical formations to protect the peace of a region and reduce the suffering of wars; and use the 'honoring the virtuous' way to assist a wise lord in recruiting talented people, regardless of their background, only based on their abilities, to create a great cause together."
"As for the current situation of the world," Zhuge Liang's expression turned solemn, "after Dong Zhuo's rebellion, Yuan Shao occupies Hebei, Cao Cao holds the Central Plains, Sun Quan guards Jiangdong, Liu Biao holds Jingzhou (key territory in the Three Kingdoms period), and Liu Zhang defends Yizhou. Warlords divide the land, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Cao Cao occupies the dragon vein of the Central Plains; he holds the emperor to command the warlords, and the evil qi around him is gradually increasing. Sun Quan is nourished by the water vein of Jiangdong, with a solid foundation. Although the spiritual vein of the mountain range in Shu in the west is weak, it has dangerous terrain, easy to defend and difficult to attack. Although the Han Dynasty is declining, the people's hearts have not been lost. If we can assist a wise lord who practices 'universal love', occupy Shu, reconcile the spiritual veins, cultivate people's livelihood internally, and form alliances externally, we can form a situation of three kingdoms dividing the world, and then gradually seek restoration to protect the cultural heritage of Huaxia from being lost."
When it came to the heavenly script, differences of opinion arose again among the four.
Cui Zhouping expressed his concern: "The heavenly script has great power. If the user lacks benevolence, it will become the source of chaos. It should be governed by Confucianism to ensure it is used for the right path."
Shi Guangyuan, however, argued: "Heaven's Dao has its own checks and balances. The heavenly script chooses its master precisely because Brother Kong Ming has a pure heart. You only need to act in accordance with the Dao, no need for deliberate restraint."
Xu Yuanzhi retorted: "Restraint is useless. It should be regulated by laws and regulations, so that the power of the heavenly script serves the great cause of strengthening the country, and those who violate it will be severely punished."
Zhuge Liang insisted: "Mohism takes 'benefiting the world' as its criterion. The use of the heavenly script should be measured by the well-being of the people—use it if it is useful, abandon it if it is not, and not be rigidly confined to the views of different schools."
The debate continued until the sun slanted westward, and the four did not reach an agreement on specific methods. Cui Zhouping stood up, his expression solemn: "Regardless of the school of thought, the fact that the people of the world are suffering is undeniable. Brother Kong Ming, favored by the heavenly script and endowed with the ability to save the world, should take on this responsibility—it is a matter of great righteousness."
Shi Guangyuan nodded: "Heaven's Dao cycles, and the troubled times will eventually come to an end. Brother Kong Ming is acting in accordance with heaven and the people. Although we belong to different schools, we are willing to do our best to help you. I can use Taoist techniques to deduce the direction of the spiritual veins and assist you in reconciling yin and yang."
Xu Yuanzhi slammed the table and stood up: "If you find a wise lord, I am willing to use Legalist techniques to rectify official administration, train a strong army, and sweep away obstacles for you!"
Looking at his three friends, Zhuge Liang felt a warm current surging in his heart. He stood up and clasped his hands, his expression firm: "Thank you for your support, three virtuous friends! I, Zhuge Liang, swear here that I will live up to the gift of the heavenly script, the entrustment of heaven, and the trust of my friends. When I leave the mountain in the future, I will take 'benefiting the world' as my mission, assist a wise lord, save the world and stabilize the people. No matter how many difficulties and dangers I encounter, I will never flinch!"
At this moment, the sun was setting, and the afterglow poured through the bamboo curtains, shining on the four of them, making their expressions even more resolute. He Yuer had already prepared dinner; the aroma of spiritual herb stewed with mountain fungi filled the room, mixed with the scent of books and tea, warm and harmonious. The four raised their cups and drank together. Although they belonged to different schools and had different views, they were united by the common belief of "saving the world and stabilizing the people."