Would rather die than regret

Author: Gongsun Wujiu

Would rather die than regret

"Good, great good!"

Wu Zheng immediately agreed.

Now that the land of Hexi is in a critical period, staying the same to cope with the ever-changing situation is the best choice.

Fu Jiezi looked towards Chang'an in the moonlight, "Where does Wu Hou think the Han Dynasty will go?"

Wu Zheng also turned his gaze in the direction of Chang'an. He shook his head and said, "I don't know where the big man will go..."

Fu Jiezi sighed: "I'm afraid no one knows where the Han Dynasty will go!"

Fu Jiezi spoke with a confused expression on his face.

Wu Zheng looked at Fu Jiezi in surprise: "Does Commander Fu not know that?"

Fu Jiezi smiled bitterly: "Who knows where the big man will go now?"

While Fu Jiezi was talking, he was thinking about the dispute between Huo Guang and the emperor in Chang'an.

Wu Zheng smiled and said: "Perhaps only the king knows where the great man will go!"

Fu Jiezi nodded when he heard this, feeling very conflicted in his heart.

…

Neither the Zoroastrian rebellion nor the Hexi Incident affected Zhang Yue's reforms in the Western Regions.

While Cai Ting and Pan Hong were vigorously promoting agricultural reforms, Zhang Yue turned his attention to another extremely important aspect.

In February of the fourth year of Yuanfeng, invited by Zhang Yue and Du Ling, Mohist and Taoist scholars Huang Qian, Zhu Ze, Xia Lin, Wu Jun and others finally arrived in Luntai

In March, Zhang Yue summoned Du Ling, Mohist, Taoist, Legalist, peasant, miscellaneous, and other teachers and scholars from colleges in the Western Regions for a meeting at the Luntai Official School.

After more than ten years of preparation, Zhang Yue finally made up his mind to change the previous emperor's policy of "deposing hundreds of schools of thought and only respecting Confucianism" in the Western Regions.

The number of participants in this meeting was unparalleled in the world.

The number of people attending this meeting turned out to be more than 700.

"What do you think my big man needs?"

Zhang Yue first raised this issue at the meeting.

Then he asked everyone, "How can all the disciples serve the great man?"

"Should the Han people be farmers or traders? Should they suppress local powerful people?"

"Should we practice the way of an inner sage and an outer king, or should we practice the way of an outer sage and an inner king!"

Zhang Yue's question immediately aroused heated discussion among the participants.

The meeting lasted for two full months before it ended.

After intense discussions, all schools of thought agreed that the expansion of powerful forces must be restrained.

Everyone believes that all schools of thought have merit and should not be dismissed altogether.

At the same time, everyone believed that Confucianism was too pedantic and unsuitable for governing the country.

But I also believe that Confucianism also has merits, such as the idea of ​​unification and the idea that the people are valued and the monarch is valued, which are conducive to the long-term development of the Han Dynasty...

After this meeting, academies across the Western Regions carried out large-scale reforms.

Various ideas from various schools of thought, including Confucianism, which were beneficial to the unification and development of the Han Dynasty, were incorporated into the teaching of the academy.

In addition, Zhang Yue also opened martial arts lecture halls in the five cities of Luntai, Ershi, Suiye, Yiwu, and Shache to teach military strategists.

Among them, the four towns' martial arts halls are junior schools, which mainly train middle and lower-level officers for the Han army in the Western Regions.

Luntai Military Academy is a high-level school, mainly training middle and senior officers above Qujunhou.

However, after the news of Zhang Yue's academy reforms in the Western Regions and the founding of the martial arts hall spread back to Chang'an, it suddenly caused a shock in the entire court.

Especially when the virtuous writers learned that Zhang Yue had actually changed the previous emperor's policy of "exclusively respecting Confucianism", they were all furious. Doctoral writers wrote letters every day to impeach Zhang Yue for being disrespectful.

The Confucian scholars even gathered outside the Yunyang Marquis' Mansion and cursed him every day.

The powerful people in Guandong have begun to join forces and plan to assassinate Zhang Yue again.

The King of Guangling, Liu Xu, even publicly declared that Zhang Yue was a traitor to the country and could be punished by everyone.

King Guangling's words made virtuous writers and powerful men regard him as their hope.

Soon many Confucian celebrities gathered around King Guangling.

Under the praise of many celebrities, King Guangling became the most virtuous king of the Han Dynasty, while Zhang Yue became the most evil man in the court.

…

In Luntai Academy, Du Ling and Zhang Yue were really leisurely making tea.

"Do you have any regrets, Lord?"

Du Ling asked Zhang Yue while making tea.

Zhang Yue sighed and said: "I never regret!"

Du Ling said: "Why don't you wait until you take control of Chang'an before doing what you do today?"

Zhang Yue asked back: "Does Duke Du think that if someone enters Chang'an, he can still do this?"

Du Ling shook his head and said: "If Gong enters Chang'an, he may be Huo Guang's second best!"

While Du Ling was talking, he handed the boiled tea to Zhang Yue.

Zhang Yue took the tea cup, stared at the tea in his hand and said: "If I don't prepare in advance, I will only be a paper framer after entering Chang'an!"

Du Ling sighed and said: "You can know that what you have done has aroused collective resistance from virtuous writers and powerful people!"

Zhang Yue said with a smile: "How could I not know that these virtuous writers and powerful men now want to eat my flesh and sleep on my skin..."

At this time, Du Ling stared at Zhang Yue closely and said, "Do you know how I feel now?"

Zhang Yue smiled slightly, gently picked up the teacup, and drank the tea in one gulp.

Du Ling looked at Zhang Yue's movements and said slowly: "I feel fear and uneasiness. I don't know where this big man will go in the future!"

Zhang Yue sighed: "You know, Duke Du, but Yue also doesn't know where this big man will go!"

Having said this, Zhang Yue stood up and walked outside the pavilion. Looking at the houses in the distance, he felt quite emotional.

"Does Mr. Du know what Yue saw?"

Du Ling said: "I would like to hear the details!"

Zhang Yue said: "I saw the common people struggling between hunger and death; I saw the collapse of the great Han Dynasty; I saw the bones exposed in the wild without a rooster crowing for thousands of miles; I saw the streets trampling all the bones of the princes..."

Du Ling said: "The mausoleum you saw seems to have been seen..."

"Hey" Du Ling sighed, "Although Ling saw it, he couldn't do anything about it, but the king is different. If there is anyone in this world who can change everything, Ling believes that only the king..."

Zhang Yue shook his head and said: "Du Gong is too high-minded and overestimates..."

As Zhang Yue spoke, he also fell into a conflict in his heart. What he said to Du Ling was not a polite conversation, but he was really confused at this time.

At this moment, he was really confused. On the one hand, he knew very well that the road he was taking now was destined to be full of thorns and blood.

On the other hand, he was unwilling to let the big man fall into civil strife.

But his reason told him that he could not change the current situation of the big man without paying the price of blood.

It is impossible for powerful people to give up their own interests with just a few words.

Confucian virtuous literature will not just watch its privileges being taken away.

Du Ling also walked to Zhang Yue's side at this time, "Your Majesty, are you about to back down?"

Zhang Yue smiled and looked into the distance again: "Does Mr. Du think there is still room for retreat?"

At this time, Zhang Yue finally figured it out, "When I reformed college education, I had no way out. Now I can only move forward bravely!"

When Du Ling heard this, he solemnly bowed to Zhang Yue: "Ling shall follow Duke Ming to the death!"

Zhang Yue quickly helped Du Ling up, "With Du Gong's help, there is no need to worry about everything happening..."

…

The great changes in Hexi not only affected the Han Dynasty, but also had a huge impact on the Xiongnu.

Lubod's original plan to attack the Huns in the north can be said to be an open secret.

In order to deal with the possible attack by the Han army, the Huns also mobilized the whole country.

For this reason, Xulu Quanqu Chanyu even had to temporarily stop the reform of the centralization system.

With Lubod's death, the cloud of war that weighed on the Huns temporarily dissipated.

Although Fu Jiezi quickly took over the post of Hexi Jiedushi and was assisted by Xinjian Hou Wuzheng, it would take at least a year to truly straighten out the four counties in Hexi.
To be continued...