Mrs. Ping seemed to suddenly understand why Li Xiu was dead set against joining the establishment. She asked softly, "An'er, what else did he say?"
Ping'an thought for a moment. "He said that the ancients spoke of cultivating oneself, managing one's family, governing the state, and bringing peace to the world. It sounds grand and impressive, but how many people have ever truly achieved that? He said that great men are always chasing one of three things: governing the state, bringing peace to the world, or power, money, and women. But a man's first duty is to figure out how to protect his own family and what he'll use to do it."
