OBS Chapter 2260
Chapter 2260
Chapter 2261
The Pantheon had a brilliant plan: to bring that madman, Gel, into the system with minimal cost.
At that time, no matter how powerful Ger is, he will be completely restricted by the rules of the Pantheon.
Once a person enters a complete system, assimilation is almost inevitable!
The system is like a large machine, and everyone within it is a cog in that machine. How much individuality and talent do you need in a cog? As long as it functions properly and doesn't cause delays, that's enough. The system, like a giant machine, only requires all its cogs to complete their assigned tasks. They don't need to be exceptionally talented, nor do they need to display any personal flair. The key is for everyone to move in unison to maximize the efficiency of the organization. If you stand out too much, it's actually detrimental, making it seem like the system can't function without you. The system's longevity depends on the fact that it can function without anyone.
Therefore, everyone within the system only dedicates a portion of their energy to meeting the system's work requirements, while a significant portion is spent adapting to the system's environment. Very little is fully committed to specific tasks, let alone realizing personal value. Attempts to leave a personal mark on one's work within the system are essentially futile, as the system's inherent nature fundamentally rejects such behavior. Thus, the mediocrity within the system is both a requirement of the environment and a result of people's adaptation to it.
If everyone has the same understanding of the system and the same understanding of work, then their behavior and attitude will also be the same, and over time, assimilation will be inevitable.
In fact, by extension, where can one escape assimilation? Society, in my view, is a product of assimilation. Wherever there are more than two people, assimilation will occur, because people need to make a living, and most livelihoods require cooperation among multiple people. Cooperation involves coordination, and with coordination, each person's individuality is suppressed. People like to talk about the assimilation of systems because those systems suppress the individual to a relatively low level. Don't other places have this problem? They're just relatively better, relatively freer, and allow for more individuality. Some people don't adapt well to the system and leave, only to gain relative freedom and permission to express their individuality. But many people spend their entire lives striving for these "relative" things, so it's understandable; it depends on how each person weighs the pros and cons.
Institutionalization, a seemingly mundane term, plays a complex and subtle role in our lives. It's not just about rules, habits, and consciousness; it profoundly influences our thinking patterns and behavioral choices. Let's explore the duality of institutionalization. First, the positive effects of institutionalization lie in the stability and security it brings. Like the natural human tendency towards laziness, people crave a world where they don't need to react proactively. The predictable future provided by institutionalization can reduce our uncertainty and fear. For example, the socialist system in China paints a harmonious blueprint that citizens can look forward to. From the individual to society, institutionalization acts as a safeguard, providing order and a sense of belonging, making people feel secure. However, this comfort zone can also become an obstacle to innovation, just as entrepreneurs need to break free from institutional constraints to seek new possibilities and become industry leaders. However, the negative effects of institutionalization cannot be ignored. Sometimes it's like poison, subtly influencing our thinking and behavior. Examples in *Pride and Prejudice* reveal how ideology limits our choices; educational institutionalization can lead to rigid thinking, such as the monotonous "three-point line" life under exam-oriented education, which deprives people of the freedom to explore. We might even unknowingly fall into Stockholm syndrome, like Old Brooks in prison, becoming so dependent on the system that we can't adapt to the outside world. Stockholm syndrome reminds us that the shadow of institutionalization is everywhere; it is both a guarantee of social order and a constraint on individual freedom. To break free from the constraints of institutionalization, we need to cultivate critical thinking, dare to question, and dare to break down established frameworks. Just as Marxist theory suggests, behind seemingly stable ideologies lies a deeper logical loop.
There used to be a very, very old internet meme: Don't argue with an idiot, he'll drag you down to his level and then beat you with his vast experience.
Actually, this is a famous quote, said by Mark Twain.
Mark Twain's quote profoundly reveals the wisdom and art of communication. In real life, we cannot avoid dealing with all sorts of people, and sometimes our views and values may be challenged. However, arguing with someone who lacks logic and reason often leads to unnecessary trouble and exhaustion. When arguing with a fool, you may find that despite presenting strong arguments and evidence, you still cannot persuade him. This is because fools often do not view issues rationally; their views are often based on prejudice, superstition, or personal interests. They may not have received a good education or have sufficient insight to understand your perspective. Furthermore, fools often lack effective communication skills. They may not understand your viewpoint, or they may not be able to offer constructive rebuttals. Therefore, you may find yourself wasting time and energy trying to make someone unwilling or unable to understand you comprehend your point of view. Most importantly, arguing with a fool often plunges you into self-doubt and anxiety. You may begin to doubt whether your views are truly reasonable or worry about whether your reasoning is strong enough. This weakens your confidence and your decision-making ability.
This phrase can also be used in many situations.
For example, engaging in political struggles!
It's still Water Margin... I've been obsessed with Water Margin these past few days!
Those treacherous officials in the imperial court are utterly useless in order to wipe out Liangshan. Several consecutive encirclement campaigns resulted in heavy losses and crushing defeats.
But they could wait until Liangshan was granted amnesty.
These treacherous officials took down Liangshan in no time!
After fierce testing and negotiations, the Liangshan group finally reached an agreement with the Song Dynasty court: the court would completely merge with the Liangshan group and recruit Song Jiang and his followers through special talent recruitment. In return, Song Jiang and his group would completely relinquish their shares in the Liangshan group. The negotiations were successful, and Song Jiang and his men were overjoyed, preparing to celebrate for half a month before reporting to the court. However, before the induction ceremony, while outwardly harmonious, undercurrents were swirling. *Water Margin* uses a few strokes to depict this process of mutual suspicion and strategic maneuvering with remarkable depth. Song Jiang always maintained a facade of openness and honesty, appearing completely trusting. After the merger negotiations were completed, Song Jiang planned to send his family back to their hometown, completely abandoning the Liangshan base. Wu Yong, however, reminded him: "Boss, once we've arrived at the court and secured our positions, it's not too late to send our families away." Song Jiang hesitated for a moment, then nodded in agreement. He understood Wu Yong's subtext: if the merger process doesn't go smoothly and the court's arrangements for us are unfavorable, we still need to return to Liangshan to continue our endeavors.
Grand Commandant Su Yuanjing was the imperial envoy who facilitated the surrender, and Liangshan was naturally grateful to him, repeatedly inviting him to stay for several celebratory meals before returning to the court. However, Su Yuanjing was eager to return and report back. He reminded Song Jiang: "Brother Song, the competition in the workplace is fierce these days, with ten people vying for one position. If I don't go back soon to secure a good position for you, those cunning veterans at headquarters might fill your spot!" Song Jiang thought this made sense and quickly let him go.
Before leaving, Su Yuanjing reminded Song Jiang again: "Brother Song, you still need to report for duty as soon as possible. If you're late, the big boss, Emperor Huizong, will suspect you've switched sides and won't save a position for you." Su Yuanjing's subtext was: "You, Song Jiang, are already fickle; if you don't report for duty every day, my performance as the court's HR director can't be effectively monitored!"
Song Jiang agreed to "buy the market" at Liangshan for ten days and then immediately report for duty. This "market buying" involved donating some of the group's hardware and facilities to nearby vendors at low prices or free of charge, thus demonstrating to the imperial court that the Liangshan group was indeed substantially pushing forward with mergers and acquisitions. The market buying process was carried out with great fanfare. On the surface, this was a demonstration of their determination to submit to the Song Dynasty. Secretly, however, it was also a way to stabilize existing clients: in case they ever returned to start a new business, their old resources could be readily transferred.
Ten days later, the Liangshan troops arrived at the imperial court on time to report for duty.
On the way, they received a notice from the imperial court: all former Liangshan group members newly recruited to the court must enter the city wearing uniform professional attire (military uniform). Song Jiang knew this was a small test of the original Liangshan group's loyalty. Almost all the Liangshan members obeyed, with the exceptions of Wu Yong, Gongsun Sheng, Lu Zhishen, and Wu Song. Gongsun Sheng, Lu Zhishen, and Wu Song were respectively a Taoist priest and a Buddhist monk, and their lifelong attire was understandable. Wu Yong, however, wore scholar's clothing reminiscent of Zhuge Liang, which showed a slight rebellion: being a scholar was never a separate profession. He seemed to be testing the court's bottom line regarding their merged employees.
Just as the Liangshan group arrived outside the capital, Emperor Huizong issued new instructions: First, housing prices within the city were too high, so former Liangshan employees were not required to work within the city; the court would allocate land outside the city to build collective dormitories. Second, for this visit to the court headquarters, the Liangshan group only needed to send 500 people. These 500 people were required to wear uniform business attire, walk from the east to the west of the city, and then enter the court office building to complete their onboarding procedures, allowing the city's residents to witness the former Liangshan group's magnificent presence. Whether this was actually a display of Liangshan's glory or a demonstration of the results of the amnesty, only Emperor Huizong knew.
In fact, both sides knew that the imperial court was still very wary of Liangshan: it could not allow all the employees of the Liangshan group to flood into the imperial headquarters, otherwise they might seize the headquarters and hang up the Liangshan group's sign in front of the imperial office building.
Song Jiang and Wu Yong led 500 men on a tour of the city. After the tour, Emperor Huizong issued another order: everyone lay down their weapons, remove their military uniforms, and don the brocade robes of the imperial headquarters before entering the headquarters building. This time, Wu Yong obediently changed, while Gongsun Sheng and two others used fabric from the headquarters uniforms to make monk and Taoist robes, and together they paid their respects to their boss, Emperor Huizong.
The entire onboarding process went smoothly. Emperor Huizong, the big boss, was overjoyed at the successful merger and immediately held an onboarding banquet to celebrate. At this point, the merger of Liangshan was essentially complete. However, the subsequent power struggle continued. The major shareholders of the court, such as Cai Jing, believed that the Liangshan group could not continue to exist as a branch company, otherwise it might become independent; their employees should be dispersed into various subsidiaries of the court. Emperor Huizong thought this was a good idea! As is well known, the Song Dynasty had a particularly complex administrative system with highly fragmented power, especially in the army. To prevent mutinies and rebellions, frequent personnel changes were preferred, ensuring that soldiers didn't know their generals and generals didn't know their soldiers. Why would the court allow such a united group like Liangshan, which reportedly controlled an army of 100,000, to continue existing?
But at this time, Grand Commandant Su Yuanjing saved Liangshan once again.
Grand Commandant Su Yuanjing addressed the emperor, saying, “Your Majesty, Song Jiang and his band of heroes have just surrendered. These 108 men are as close as brothers, as devoted as siblings. They would never be separated, even unto death. Why must you now take their lives?”... The emperor personally wrote an edict, appointing Song Jiang as the Vanguard General in the campaign against Liao, Lu Junyi as the Deputy Vanguard General, and the other generals to be promoted and granted titles after achieving merit.
This account is very telling. Su Yuanjing defended Liangshan, emphasizing that "they would never be separated, and would rather die than part." From this, we can infer that Tong Guan's memorial was to dismantle Liangshan. He also proposed that if they refused to be separated, it would mean that they were not sincere in accepting the amnesty and should be severely punished. Hence the claim that he "wanted to harm the lives of many of them."
In essence, Tong Guan's argument was that the ancestral laws and established national policies of the Song Dynasty constituted a frame-up, yet his reasons were perfectly legitimate. Su Yuanjing's proposed preservation plan involved sending Liangshan to conquer the Liao Dynasty, ensuring the combat effectiveness of a fighting force. Naturally, the existing system couldn't be easily disrupted. In fact, after accepting the imperial pardon, Liangshan, as a group with both official backing and a unique military structure, became a remarkable phenomenon in the Song Dynasty. Unlike the modern image of Liangshan brothers tearfully suppressing the other three major bandits who were their own class brethren, Liangshan's enthusiasm for action remained consistently high. Only by continuously fighting enemy states and eliminating dissidents for the court could Liangshan prove to the world that its propaganda of loyalty and righteousness was not empty rhetoric; only in this way could they have sufficient reason to refuse the court's plan to reorganize Liangshan, allowing this unique phenomenon to flourish indefinitely.
The campaign against Tian Hu was initiated by Liangshan volunteers; the campaign against Wang Qing was recommended by several officials, whom Song Jiang then befriended, discussing court affairs and personal matters with them, drinking and feasting until midnight. Even the later campaign against Fang La, in which many brothers perished, began similarly: Wu Yong, upon hearing the news, was overjoyed and told Song Jiang that Fang La had rebelled in Jiangnan and the court had dispatched Commander Zhang to lead troops. Song Jiang replied, "It is not appropriate for us generals to remain idle here; it would be better to send someone to inform Grand Commandant Su and have him recommend us to the Emperor, so we can raise an army and march to conquer him." The generals then gathered to discuss the matter, and everyone was delighted. Of course, everyone knew that the battle against Fang La would result in mutual destruction. After Fang La's defeat and death, the imperial court seemed to have no strong rebellious forces threatening it for the time being, and it was time to discard the bow after the birds were gone. Liangshan was also so depleted that it was enough to make Song Jiang and Wu Yong disheartened. The resistance to dismantling Liangshan was now very small, so the remaining twenty-seven generals were dispersed to serve in more than a dozen different military prefectures, and the complete Liangshan military group ceased to exist.
This is how the system manipulates you. They don't even need to specifically target you. Even if the four treacherous ministers are full of malice towards Liangshan, they don't need to resort to any conspiracies or tricks. They can simply use the established national policies of the Song Dynasty's ancestors!
Even if this move is stopped.
It's easy too.
I'll throw you into the most dangerous battlefield!