Could someone from a "nobody" family really deserve the corner office? In 6th-century BCE China, the answer was supposed to be no—but Confucius had other ideas.

In this sixth episode, host Elliott Bernstein unpacks passage 6.1 of the Analects—just six characters praising a student named Yong Rang who "might occupy the place of a prince." But why does Confucius think a commoner's son could sit in the ruler's seat? What's so special about facing south, and why would your compass direction indicate your authority? And how do you piece together someone's biography when it's scattered across seven different passages written 2,500 years ago?

Along the way: why this episode uses a dusty 1893 translation instead of modern scholarship (hint: "facing south" doesn't exactly speak for itself), the detective work of tracking one disciple through the Analects using multiple names (personal name, surname, courtesy name—what?), the "red ox with horns" metaphor that says talent shouldn't be wasted just because someone's parents are nobodies, how 雍 yōng's story connects to 1,300 years of civil service exams, why Zhou dynasty seating arrangements were absolutely crucial to understanding power dynamics, and the surprisingly recent archaeological discovery of bamboo strips that confirmed what kind of minister Yong actually became.

Plus: what 也 means in Classical Chinese (spoiler: not "also"), and why Confucius's egalitarian views about hiring might be exactly what we need to hear in an age of increasing wealth disparity and résumé gatekeeping.