Lu Mugong was the twenty-ninth monarch of the State of Lu, the state of Lu during this period was deeply influenced by the Sanhuan family, the power of the monarch was weakened, when Confucius was in power, he tried to help the Lu monarch get rid of the control of the Sanhuan family, but unfortunately ended in failure. Confucius's behavior left a good impression on the sons of the Duke of Lu, that is, the Confucius people at least stood by the side of the monarch, and most of the Confucius people were welcomed by the Duke of Lu.
Because Confucius's life experience has a profound impact on his descendants and disciples, especially his travels around the world, it is often referred to by later generations, that is, most Confucian disciples like to travel to the world. Zi Si has left a figure in Weiguo, Qi and other countries. But in fact, the shadow of Confucius's high-level exclusion in the Country of Lu has always lingered in the hearts of the students of Confucius, especially the descendants of the Confucius family who had a close relationship with Confucius, and they did not have any good feelings for the State of Lu.
At that time, Confucius, as a native of the Lu kingdom, did not become a heavy courtier in the lu country, and the apprentices around him rarely made meritorious achievements in the lu country. On the contrary, even Confucius himself was not welcomed in the country of Lu, and the students of Confucius also went to Wei, Qi, Song, Wei and other countries. Therefore, when Lu Mugong found Zi Si to consult state affairs, as a zi Si of Confucius's grandson, his attitude towards Lu Mu Gong was worthy of attention.
Duke Lu Mu was a more effective monarch among the successive monarchs of the State of Lu, and after taking the throne, he vigorously weakened the power of the Three Huans and continuously strengthened the power of the monarch. If Lu Mugong wants to carry out reforms in the country and strive to practice his ideals, he is extremely in need of various talents. At that time, the international situation was turbulent, in the later years of Zi Si's life, Han Zhao Wei had completed the division of the Jin state, and the Jiang Qi state in the north of the Lu state was also crumbling in the conspiracy of the Tian family, and the Lu state had the Sanhuan family, which was definitely a huge threat to Lu Mugong.
No feudal state would want to repeat the mistakes of the Jin and Qi states, and moreover, as the feudal state of the Zhou Gong family, the Lu state absolutely did not allow the incident of Qing Dafu subverting the orthodox Ji family feudal state. Lu Mugong obviously appeared in such an era, and if Lu Guo wanted to completely change the power monopoly of the Sanhuan family, it was very necessary to support a new power team to fight against the Three Huans, and the emerging Qing Dafu force was obviously the best choice.
At that time, the qing dafu class, the most source was the talents of various schools, in addition to the Confucius men, Lu Mugong also specially allowed the children of the Mo family to open sects and teach apprentices in the Lu kingdom, the atmosphere of the Lu state in the Lu Mu Gong era can be described as quite open, even the sons of Zengsan in the Confucius Gate, the sons of Zi Zhang, and the students of the Confucius Gate such as Gong Yi Xiu, Wu Qi and others also became the courtiers of the Lu State and the army. So, how did Zi Si treat Lu Mugong?
Since Lu Mugong attached so much importance to Confucius's Zengsan and Zi zhang, he would certainly treat Confucius's grandson Zisi differently. There is a record in the classics that in order to keep Zi Si in the Lu Kingdom, Lu MuGong once constantly sent people to send "Ding Meat" to Zi Si. So what is "Ding Meat", that is, the meat placed in the copper Ding. It should be known that in the thinking of the Zhou people, the "Ding" thing has a symbolic meaning of power, and Lu Mugong may obviously want to make Zi Si an auxiliary minister of the Lu state.
Zi Si did not agree very much with Lu Mugong's hospitality, and in Mencius, there is: "Now and after, the dog of the Zhijun is a horse and a beast." That is to say, Zi Si believed that Lu Mugong fed himself as a dog and horse, thinking that if he gave "Ding Meat", he would become a vassal of Lu Mugong, rather than regarding himself as a true sage. Zi Si did not oppose Lu Mugong, nor did he deny supporting the strength of the State of Lu, but Zi Si would not enter the Court of the State of Lu because of any good intentions of Duke Lu Mu. The so-called "gentleman is harmonious and different" is Precisely Zi Si's point of view.