Journey to the West: Life Simulation of Sun Wukong

The class ended.

In the morning, there were no other classes; in the afternoon, it was free time.

Su Jie and others had also finished school.

"I didn't expect that within the inner courtyard of Minglun Martial School, we only have classes in the morning and the afternoon is for us to arrange ourselves," Zhang Manman said somewhat surprised, "This is much more relaxed than a regular university."

Su Jie was still contemplating the problem of "making the infinite finite." Hearing Zhang Manman's comment, he smiled and said, "That's quite normal. Minglun Martial School must have considered the situation of students from less wealthy families. The half day in the afternoon allows students like me to have time to earn money, after all, I still owe you seven million."

He hadn't forgotten that part of the money for entering the inner court was borrowed from Zhang Manman.

Zhang Manman pretended to be angry and said, "I'm not rushing you, why keep bringing this up?" For her, seven million was nothing; even ten million was just a drop in the bucket.

Su Jie couldn't help but laugh, "Alright, let's not mention it. When I earn the money, I'll directly transfer it to your account."

Just then, Chen Tian Yuzi said, "Class leader, are you short of money? I can lend you some, no need to pay it back."

Chen Tian Yuzi had joined Su Jie and Zhang Manman's small group after class was over.

She understood that to achieve something, one couldn't do it alone; one needed to build good relationships, and since Su Jie and Zhang Manman were the top talents in the class, she naturally wanted to interact more with them.

Now, she was also friends with these two and had preliminarily entered their circle.

"Heaven's movement is strong, the gentleman should ceaselessly strengthen himself; Earth's bearing is receptive, the gentleman should carry things with great virtue," Su Jie shook his head slightly, "I am not yet a gentleman, but I aim to emulate one. Money is just the first step on the path of cultivation; I will naturally earn it myself."

Chen Tian Yuzi's eyes lit up, suddenly feeling that Su Jie had a grandeur about him.

He would certainly climb to the peak!

However, regarding the source of those two phrases from "The Book of Changes," Chen Tian Yuzi had a different view, "Class leader, those two sentences have a nice ring to them, they must come from 'The Book of Changes,' right? I heard it's a book used for fortune-telling?"

Chen Tian Yuzi, although she had lived here for many years, had never really read "The Book of Changes"; she had only heard about it.

Su Jie had also only recently begun reading it, but he already had his own opinions, "Fortune-telling, you could say that's correct, since the principles spoken of in 'The Book of Changes' are quite accurate. If a person fits the character described in 'The Book of Changes,' there won't be much deviation."

Chen Tian Yuzi was surprised, "'The Book of Changes' is really a book of fortune-telling?"

Su Jie smiled, "Heaven's movement is strong, the gentleman should ceaselessly strengthen himself; Earth's bearing is receptive, the gentleman should carry things with great virtue. These two phrases are indeed from 'The Book of Changes,' and they advocate not believing in fate."

Chen Tian Yuzi was confused.

"The Book of Changes" is a book of fortune-telling, but it starts by telling people not to believe in fate; isn't that a contradiction?

Zhang Manman was thoughtful, "Does this mean, a gentleman does not believe in fate?"

Su Jie nodded, "Exactly, that's my understanding as well because a gentleman, being neither servile nor overbearing, carrying things with great virtue, will not be tainted by the various defilements of the human world. Like a lotus flower rising out of the mud but not stained, full of integrity, no matter how much suffering he endures, he will not waver and will not be trapped by fate."

"A gentleman, does not accommodate."

"People in this world, due to various life issues, will accommodate themselves, and that is just the beginning of continuously lowering their own morality."

"But a gentleman does not."

Zhang Manman deeply agreed, "Indeed, the moral education from elementary to high school, is based on the standards of a gentleman, to be honest, trustworthy, and upright. But once you enter society, you realize it's too idealistic. In this big dye vat, not letting oneself be stained black is already the epitome of 'preserving one's integrity'."

Chen Tian Yuzi also had a realization, "So, a gentleman does not believe in fate, because they can change their own destiny."

"Yes."

Su Jie sighed, "A gentleman, like a dragon, may wander in the mud when small, but soar in the cosmos when large, not letting environmental changes confine him."

"So, a gentleman is not trapped by fate."

"Whereas a non-gentleman, is better off believing in fate, simply because they themselves will be troubled by various problems."

Chen Tian Yuzi said, "So, should we believe in fate?"

Su Jie couldn't help but laugh, "Not at all."

"Why? We are not gentlemen," Chen Tian Yuzi did not believe she could change her fate against heaven.

"A land nourishes its people, didn't you change your destiny by coming here from Japan?" Su Jie countered.

"Yes," Chen Tian Yuzi realized, "If I had stayed in Japan, I probably would have had children by now, possibly even have been a housewife for life. If my husband had a bad temper, I might have had to endure beatings, without even the ability to resist."

Now, Chen Tian Yuzi felt that if her future husband dared to hit her, she would definitely hit back hard, to see who would have the final say in their future home.

"The Book of Changes" contains many hexagrams, each one predicting different people, but how is it possible for one person to be the same every moment?" Su Jie calmly said, "The principal of Minglun once said: 'The Dao changes with time.' We humans are also a manifestation of 'Dao'; can you say that your thoughts from a moment ago are the same as they are now?"

"People grow, and fate too changes with the growth of a person and changes in personality."

"Therefore, one can only discern fate momentarily, not for a lifetime."

"Of course, if someone is stubborn and has already developed deep-rooted beliefs, then it's natural to predict their entire life."

Zhang Manman thoughtfully said, "That makes sense. Many respected elders, because of their extensive experiences when they were young, can almost determine someone's character upon meeting them."

However, sadly, the people Su Jie referred to were not just a few special cases, but the majority.

After reaching adulthood, most individuals, having been battered by society, rarely change their growth or personality.

Not that they don't change at all, but such changes usually take five to ten years to manifest.

Therefore, the vast majority can only "believe in fate".

Chen Tian Yuzi suddenly sighed, "This world is truly sad. I really hope that one day, everyone could go to heaven."

Su Jie, however, had a different opinion, "This is society. Utopia is ultimately an illusion, unreal. Just like Minglun Martial School, given the principal's abilities, I estimate he could absolutely make it so nobody would have to worry about basic needs again, but he didn't do that. Why is that?"

"Is it to maintain a monopoly?"

"No."

"At his level, creating from the void isn't too much. He doesn't need human faith either, otherwise, why bother establishing a martial school when building a divine kingdom would be better?"

Zhang Manman and Chen Tian Yuzi also nodded in agreement.

After all, according to the spiritual cultivation stages proposed by Ming Lun, the manifestation stage requires faith to consolidate divinity and become a True God.

However, the principal and vice-principals of Minglun are not pursuing this path.

They disdain this route.

Despite it seeming like the most orthodox path they had found—

But as "The Book of Changes" states, "Heaven's movement is ever vigorous, and the superior man should ceaselessly strive for self-improvement; Earth's nature is nurturing, and the superior man should carry the weight of his moral virtue."

They hope that everyone can live confidently in this world.

In a sense, this too is a sort of Utopian ideal.

But Ming Lun is striving for it.

"Because not all people are noble."

"And those who are not, need to first cultivate themselves and others to have at least the foundation of nobility."

Su Jie felt he had come to understand Ming Lun more deeply.

Ming Lun, understanding of tomorrow's principles, knowing the morals of humanity. ThiscopywasgeneratedfromcontentatMV|LEMPYR.

If people could truly understand this point, they would be true to their hearts and have the demeanor of nobles.

Zhang Manman sighed, "A nobleman... Su Jie, if you were placed in ancient times, you would definitely be a great Confucian scholar."

Su Jie shook his head, "I am very glad to be born in the modern era. The ancient times were feudal societies. Adapting there, no matter the dynasty, regardless of whether the Emperor of Qin and Emperor Wu of Han were in power, I would think of rebelling because the feudal ideology of familial rule doesn't fit my values, that's all."

Chen Tian Yuzi was surprised, "But Emperor Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han both achieved great feats. Without them through the ages, our land wouldn't be as it is today."

"Their achievements cannot be denied, but from our modern values, they are considered backward. If we travelled back, would we really bow down to them?" Su Jie cautioned, "Perhaps I haven't faced society's harsh blows yet, but this spirited righteousness, isn't it what people of our age should possess?"

Zhang Manman blinked and suddenly laughed, "Su Jie, I find you quite unique, having both the steadiness of an adult and the recklessness of a youth. Is it because your body is still young?"

Su Jie laughed, "Young but old at heart, meaning only that one handles affairs shrewdly, not offending others while keeping one's conscience clear, not that one's thoughts are also old and declining."

Chen Tian Yuzi was puzzled, "Monitor, can we really travel to the past?"

Su Jie laughed heartily, "You seem to have forgotten about the Taixu Illusory Realm. It contains numerous illusionary worlds; perhaps the school will arrange for us to enter historical illusions in the future."

"Also, you know about Primordial Star, which actually exists in the Milky Way; we just can't reach it with human technology and can only access it through the Taixu Illusory Realm."

"In the distant future, discovering a planet still in the feudal era isn't out of the question."

"The universe is vast; there's always a chance."

In their musings about the future, Zhang Manman raised a question she didn't understand, "Su Jie, why do the intelligent beings on Primordial Star look so much like humans? Even according to official genetic testing, there's no reproductive barrier between us."

"I'm not sure about the specifics, but current scientific research shows that the conditions for creating life are limited, and aside from the presence of Spiritual Energy in the two-dimensional space, Primordial Star's environment is nearly identical to Earth's." Su Jie could only say that, "So, it must be an accident."

"Okay, let's not talk about this. Let's go have lunch; I'm a bit hungry."