There is a debate on the usage of historical materials of "what the first person answers for Shenzi" which is in the chapter Nanshi of Hanfeizi,to demonstrate the thought of Hanfeizi in the modern academic history.At first,Mr.Liang Qichao made use of the content of "what the first person answers for Shenzi" to study Hanfeizi’s thought,and considered "what the second person objects the first person" as the part of "what the first person answers for Shenzi".In fact,"what the first person answers for Shenzi" and "what the second person objects the first person" are two persons’opinions.According to Mr.Liang,"what the second person objects the first person" does not exist absolutely.He hold that Hanfeizi’s thought of "rule of law" is a kind of anti-despotism,and that Shenzi’s thought of "rule of power" is a kind of despotism.However,some famous scholars,such as Mr.Chen Qitian、Mr.Xiao Gongquan and Mr.Guo Moruo,pointed out that Mr.Liang did not understand exactly the structure of the chapter of Nanshi.Mr.Xiao Gongquan and Mr.Guo Moruo hold that Hanfeizi’s thought about law is "rule by law" which is actually a kind of despotism,not "rule of law".From then on,many scholars think Mr.Liang is wrong.However,this special debating phenomenon has not been noticed by our academic circles.Not just Mr.Liang did wrong on the usage of the chapter Nanshi,There are still many people,such as Mr.Xie Wuliang,Mr.Chen Hanqin,etc,putting their foots in it.So the question is who is right? This is the question this paper tries to answer.
