Bi Yuan had a thousand things he wanted to say, but in the end, he offered no rebuttal. Every argument he made would become another reason for Fang Yun to despise him, just as his first rebuttal had.
"The people support you, not so you can turn them into slaves of a conquered nation. The state entrusts you with great responsibilities, not so you can push the Jing Kingdom into a pit of fire. The people support you so that we of the Jing Kingdom can at least stand on equal footing with people from other nations, without being looked down on. The state entrusts you with great responsibilities so that you can help our great Jing Kingdom stand foremost among all nations, strong and prosperous! You don't want to do that? Fine. Get out of the government office. I can guarantee that once you hold no official post, no commoner will point at you and curse you for harming the people of the Jing Kingdom. But as long as you remain in office, as the director of studies at the Xiang Prefectural Academy, you must help more students of Xiang Prefecture distinguish themselves through the Imperial Examination. You must help more of them remain loyal to the Jing Kingdom. You must help more of them distinguish friend from foe. Of course, they may fail to distinguish themselves, refuse to remain loyal to the Jing Kingdom, or fail to distinguish friend from foe. But that is their business. If you fail to do your part, then you are derelict in your duty!"
Bi Yuan had no answer.
"Do you still want to argue? I'll give you the chance." Fang Yun looked at Bi Yuan.
Bi Yuan gritted his teeth and said loudly, "The Jing Kingdom has long been weak. At