"Humane-ness mays make one shed tears and be reluctant to apply penalties, but law
makes it clear that such penalties must be applied. The ancient kings allowed law to be supreme
and did not give in to their tearful longings. Hence it is obvious that humane-ness cannot be
used to achieve order in the state."
From Selections from the Han Feizi by Han Fei, c. 230 BCE
Ideas expressed in the passage directly contributed to which of the following developments in Chinese
history?
Choose 1
A
Centralization of authority during the Qin dynasty
B
Spread of Buddhism into China during the Han dynasty
C
Political division during the Warring States Period
D
Development of Confucian ideas during the Zhou dynasty