VOLUME III, SEMESTER 4, CHAPTER 49, SECTION 3
Money Reaching Over There, That Hand Reaching Over Here
The previous two sections counted three matters each for the two positions. The position of economy: bringing into physical existence, dividing down below, and singling out that ownerless portion. That other position: setting rules, judging right from wrong, and enforcing compliance. With the boundary drawn to this point, its shape is already clear. Yet drawing a boundary clearly does not equal keeping it intact. Chapter 45 spoke of two forms of boundary crossing: over-managing and over-releasing; that chapter addressed the space between the four scales. This section addresses boundary crossing between the two layers, which also takes two forms in opposing directions: one is money reaching into the side that sets rules, and the other is that hand that ought not to step onto the field reaching into the side of trade. Neither of these is a novelty; in that quarrel two thousand one hundred years ago, what both sides spoke of was precisely these two things.
One, the first form: money reaching into the side that sets rules
Look first at the first form. If a matter turns into this: whoever holds more money can alter that boundary, what will become of it? One need not look far; looking at those three paths in Chapter 47 one by one will make it clear. The first path is that people can still speak. But if that table is opened by money, then only one end is left sitting at the table; the other end might still come, but having come, they merely sit there without their words counting for anything. The table is still there, its shape is still there, meetings will be held as usual, and minutes will be issued as usual, yet it no longer accomplishes matters.
The second path is that books are visible. But if the person setting rules listens to money, then which entries are to be placed out in the open and who has the right to inspect can all be handled through accommodation; the books are still there and look very neat, only the most vital entries are not on them.
The third path is that people can walk away. But if whether that document forbidding going to other firms for three years counts or not also listens to money, then this single path will narrow down year by year, until by the time people regain their senses, they no longer know where to walk out.
When three paths narrow down together, what will grow out? That wall in Chapter 47 will grow out, and it will be a wall that no one can ever fill in from the side. For filling in a wall requires three things: someone willing to spend money to test, someone who knows how to do it, and no one blocking with an order. The first two might still exist, for people always wish to test; but once the third is bought out, that path is completely sealed off, with both money and capability blocked outside the gate.
Two, this is not anyone's bad heart; it is once a position can be bought
Here words must be anchored firmly at once, lest it easily be read as scolding people. Saying that money will reach into that side is not saying that people making deals possess black hearts. Chapter 41 established that position is not identity; Chapter 45 further stated that boundary-crossers are mostly not bad people, but mostly possess good intentions or feel anxious. Here a line even more fundamental must be added: Sima Qian wrote, To be wealthy is human nature; men desire it without being taught.Wanting things on one's own end to run smoother and wanting to shift that boundary half an inch toward oneself is human nature, requiring no learning to possess.
Therefore, the crux lies not in human hearts, but in one single matter: whether that position can be bought. If it can be bought, then the buyer need not be a bad person—being a normal person is quite enough. If this firm does not buy today, that firm will buy tomorrow; the firm that does not buy the day after tomorrow suffers a loss, falls one step behind, and fails to land that batch of orders. In the end, the person who does not buy becomes the very one unable to accomplish matters.
The first semester established a path: direct possession, legal possession, market possession; that path, pursued to its end, requires no bad people, but merely a group of ordinary people each doing their duty. This section speaks of the exact same matter, only with the position shifted between the two layers.
Therefore, what is to be guarded against on this end is never a specific individual, but whether that position possesses a boundary that can be held firm.
Three, the second form: that hand reaching into the side of trade
Look next at the reverse form. If that hand judging right from wrong itself steps onto the field to engage in trade, what will become of it? The moment it steps down, it becomes simultaneously a party on the field and the scale beside the field. For the goods it sells, others feel embarrassed not to buy; for the prices it sets, others feel embarrassed to bargain; when it quarrels with other firms, the right and wrong are still judged by itself. With all three gathered, others do not even have a place to harbor grievance.
By this step, not a single one of those three matters can be accomplished. Setting rules turns into setting rules for one's own stall; judging right from wrong turns into judging right and wrong for oneself; enforcing compliance turns into clearing the field for one's own stall. Chapter 43 spoke of that exact collapse where enforcement grows exclusively dominant, which starts precisely from here.
A deeper layer lies here: the moment it steps down, the other three scales have nowhere left to seek mediation. When wages are disputed, who is sought to judge? When deciding how thick that square ought to be, who is sought to evaluate? When asking whether that wall ought to be dismantled upon expiration, who is sought for an answer? That original place that stayed off the field is gone, leaving all disputes with only two paths: either enduring in silence or privately devising individual schemes—seeking connections, leveraging favors, and walking around it. Chapter 45 spoke of agreement without harmony: complete warmth on the surface, while all divergence is moved under the table.
This layer has not existed merely from today, nor is it unique to any single place. Two thousand one hundred years ago, what the Virtuous and Literati spoke of in those four characters—competing for profit with the people—was precisely this matter: it is not terrifying that the official bureau trades well; what is terrifying is that the one making deals and the one serving as the scale become the exact same entity.
Four, that quarrel two thousand one hundred years ago; both sides each blocking one end
At this point, that quarrel discussed in Chapter 47 can be brought out once more to look through, and this time new things can be discerned. What Sang Hongyang's side blocked was the first form. His reasoning was: salt and iron are things used daily by all under heaven and cannot be cut off for even a single day; if completely opened up, several big merchants will hoard the goods, setting the price at whatever they dictate, and by then the livelihood of the entire nation above and below will be held in their hands. Is this not money reaching in and the boundary being altered by money? His desire for the official bureau to grasp this end was precisely to block this end.
What the Virtuous and Literati side blocked was the second form. Their reasoning was: if the official bureau collects taxes on one end and trades on its own on the other end, who will be left to serve as the scale? State-operated iron tools are expensive and poorly made; farmers buy them back but cannot till a few mu of land, yet wish to reason with nowhere to speak, because the seller of iron tools and the manager in charge are one and the same. Is this not that hand reaching in? Their desire to return salt and iron to the people was precisely to block this end.
Therefore, the truth of that quarrel was: both sides each blocked one end, and both sides were right in what they said. What the two sides blocked were two disasters in opposing directions; if either side won entirely, no one would be left to block the disaster on the other end. Chapter 47 noted that the outcome of that year was abolishing the state monopoly on liquor, dismantling the iron bureaus within the passes, while salt and iron generally remained. Why this outcome held up was not because it took a middle number, but because it allowed both hands to remain pressed upon their respective ends. Chapter 43 stated that nourishing together is not compromise; this line shows its utmost weight right here.
These two forms of boundary crossing share another commonality worth remembering: neither happens within a single day, nor begins from a major event. The first form begins from a meal, a personal favor, an act of accommodation; the second form begins from a small shop, a convenient deal. By the time their shape becomes discernible, that boundary has already been shifted far away. Chapter 45 stated that boundaries are not broken into by force, but erased inch by inch by people bearing smiles; this line counts equally true between the two layers.
Five, how this boundary is guarded: still those three things, plus one more line
By what, then, is this boundary guarded? Still those three things established in Chapter 44, only applied this time between the two layers. Books are visible: where money has gone must be visible. Who spent the money, which matter was handled, which word was spoken—laid out in the open item by item, people can judge for themselves whether that word ought to be listened to, and to what degree.
Words are open to discussion: the table must be one that both ends can come up to. A table where only one end can come up is worse than having no table at all, because looking as if it exists, people stop seeking other paths. People can walk away: pinning people down to a specific position is forbidden. If people can walk away, there is more than one path; if there is more than one path, money cannot buy out all paths.
This chapter must also add a line belonging to itself: the person accomplishing matters and the person judging right from wrong ought not to be the exact same person. This line does not stipulate specific operations—those are topics for Volume IV and Volume V; this line merely sets a position, yet it is the firmest line in this entire chapter. If a place guards this line firm, the former three things possess a place to take root; if this line is broken, those three things will fall through one by one.
Six, what this section sets firm, serving also as the close of this chapter
What this section sets firm is one line: when money reaches into the side that sets rules, those three paths will narrow down one by one; when that hand that ought not to step onto the field reaches into the side of trade, the other three scales have nowhere left to seek mediation. Joining all three sections of this chapter together: the position of economy manages bringing into physical existence, dividing down below, and singling out that ownerless portion—it can calculate the books, but cannot judge right from wrong; that other position manages setting rules, judging right from wrong, and enforcing compliance—its capability relies entirely on those three characters staying off field for support, and the table, books, and path to walk away that it provides are precisely two of those three paths of check and balance. Boundary crossing between the two positions takes only two forms, and in that quarrel two thousand one hundred years ago, both sides each blocked one end.
The section pushing upward ends right here. Yet looking back, one will discover that these two chapters have been circling a single question all along: with the exact same foundation, why do different buildings grow out? With the exact same table, why can both ends truly sit down to speak in some places, while in other places it is merely set up for show? Rules written on paper are the same, yet what is carried out turns out differently. Where does that single difference lie?
That single difference lies neither inside the economy nor inside the rules. The next chapter digs further underneath, digging into that patch of soil that supports all of this.
Credit to the ancestors; the mistakes are mine: Tiger Lyon.