孔子於魯昭公三十一年赴洛陽問禮於老聃，老聃傳授的道和禮，孔子接受並加以改造的以仁和孝爲核心的禮，開啟了春秋戰國諸子百家争鳴的源頭。三百年後，荀子招收韓非、李斯爲徒，以帝王術統率思想，給諸子百家争鳴畫上一個句號。這就是先秦諸子百家的開幕式和閉幕式。

In the 31st year of the Duke Zhao of Lu, Confucius went to Luoyang and consulted Laozi about li 禮 (ritual). Confucius re-conceptualized li with ren 仁 (benevolence) and xiao 孝 (familial piety) as the cores. The exchange between Confucius and Laozi marks the beginning of the Contention of a Hundred Schools of Thought. Three hundred years later, Xunzi mentored Han Fei and Li Si and taught them the art of rulership which puts an end to the centuries-long Concention. Such are its beginning and end.