Han Fei knows that human conduct is quite varied, but the current three main interpretations of his view of human beings fail to give a comprehensive and reasonable account. Therefore, a fresh approach is needed. Human conduct as described by Han Fei can be divided into a three types: an unrestrained, self-aggrandizing pursuit of self-interest, a prudent pursuit of self-interest conducted within the framework of rules (e.g., law, morality and convention), and a noble pursuit of self-interest through attaining goodness and beauty in oneself and by acting altruistically. On Han Fei's view, in reality the power elites practice the unrestrained pursuit of self-interest, while most people (from princes down to commoners) approve the noble pursuit of self-interest, and as for the second, prudent pursuit of self-interest, it is rarely realized, but as the rational foundation of the new state, it is what Han Fei aspires to. The unrestrained and noble pursuits of self-interest that Han Fei considers to be common are generated by four elements in people: human nature, innate dispositions, the heart, and vital energy. The former two are similar; they cause a person to value his life and to care for the welfare of himself and others, in accordance with the framework of rules. The latter two amplify these former two fundamental inclinations and make a person love benefit excessively, either in the direction of ruthless self-seeking or in the opposite direction of learning the classics and cultivating virtue. The latter direction, i.e. the noble pursuit of self-interest, is what public opinion endorses, and this endorsement is in turn based on aesthetic pleasure that learning and virtue provide. Han Fei aims to transform those who have excessive love of benefit (both the power elites and the rest) into people who engage in the prudent pursuit of self-interest. This goal requires social engineering in order to shut down the aesthetic activities of the heart and vital energy, and then one can draw a tendency toward prudent pursuit of self-interest out of human nature and innate dispositions, which themselves originally incline to prudent love of benefit.