Chapter One Thousand Eight Hundred and Twelve: Frankly Speaking
After Gu Xun hesitated for a moment, he shook his head and replied frankly, "I can't give an exact answer to this question."
"All I can say is, Your Majesty, you still have two years at most. As for whether it's too late... that's beyond my control."
"Two years..." Ying Zheng repeated the number softly with his eyes still closed.
Gu Xun then added, "It is said to be two years, but in fact it is at most one and a half years. Your Majesty, you should have lost most of your normal abilities due to severe headaches."
Halfway through his words, Gu Xun paused for a long time.
Hearing the fatal news, Ying Zheng's expression remained unchanged and he responded calmly, "I understand..."
Gu Xun looked at him quietly and said nothing.
There is really nothing he can do about Ying Zheng's illness, even if he now has the Fuso Sacred Tree, a medicinal artifact, there is nothing he can do.
Because the essence of Ying Zheng's physical problem is not a disease, but excessive wear and tear, and his head illness is a symptom, not the root cause.
Just like an iron pestle that is constantly worn, its quality will inevitably continue to decrease until it is completely destroyed.
This is not the same as Ayan's congenital physical weakness. The disease is like a leaky bucket. Although the water is constantly dripping, the bucket is not damaged.
Ying Zheng is actually gradually heading towards irreversible death.
Gu Xun couldn't save him, and no one could save him except himself.
It's a pity that Ying Zheng will not choose to save himself.
After being silent for a while, Ying Zheng opened his eyes, looked at Gu Xun, and asked in a slightly relaxed tone:
"National Master, have you been complaining about me all these years?"
"There is no sage like the Emperor, so I have no right to comment." Gu Xun lowered his head and replied softly.
He does have a lot of dissatisfaction with Ying Zheng, but he rarely deliberately refutes or even resists Ying Zheng's actions.
Because he is not the emperor, Ying Zheng is.
"No right...haha!" Ying Zheng gave a rare laugh.
The meaning in Gu Xun's words was very clear, having no power does not mean having no power, so his answer to Ying Zheng's question was actually yes.
"The current behavior of those Confucian scholars is also seen by the Imperial Master. How do you think I should deal with them?" Ying Zheng did not dwell on Gu Xun's answer and asked a new question.
"Isn't it appropriate to ask me this question?" Gu Xun did not answer directly, "I have a deep connection with Confucianism, and Your Majesty also knows it."
"Just tell the truth. It's okay to be biased." Ying Zheng waved his hand and motioned for Gu Xun to chat casually.
He is an emotional person, so he allows his subordinates to act emotionally.
When Gu Xun heard the words, he stopped hiding them and replied bluntly, "Since your Majesty said so, then I will tell you."
"Those Confucian scholars only have this kind of virtue. It's really pointless to argue with them."
"Besides, it's not that all Confucian scholars are ignorant of current affairs and general issues."
"The Imperial Master is really rude." Ying Zheng couldn't help but read Gu Xun's words after hearing this.
"They are so disrespectful and blatantly discuss national policy. How can they just get over it with a meaningless sentence?"
"I'm just stating my opinion. It's naturally up to Your Majesty to decide how to deal with it." Gu Xun did not argue with Ying Zheng, nor did he say anything good for Confucianism.
On the one hand, Ying Zheng is a person who cannot be persuaded. If he has an idea in mind, he can only do what he wants.
On the other hand, Confucianism really needs to be hammered down. Everyone’s brains seem to have gone crazy from reading, and they should be sorted out.
Ying Zheng glanced at Gu Xun and said, "If I handle it too well, I'm afraid the Imperial Master will remember me in his heart again, right?"
Gu Xun opened his mouth, not knowing how to answer this.
It seems that Ying Zheng's mood was still affected after learning that his life was approaching. In the past, he would never have shared so many inner thoughts with Gu Xun.
After careful consideration, Gu Xun replied, "If Your Majesty punishes the Confucians severely, I will probably be the only one who wants to bear His Majesty's mark in mind."
Ying Zheng spoke directly from his heart, while Gu Xun simply left no room for words.
"In the whole world, there is nothing but the king's land!" Ying Zheng's eyes turned cold and he said coldly, "I don't want others to comment on what I want to do!"
Ying Zheng's response undoubtedly proves that Gu Xun's previous answer is correct - he really has no right to comment.
Gu Xun was really rude at this moment, and replied with a slight smile, "Of course, others can't comment on His Majesty's decision, but... I'm afraid His Majesty can't control what other people think."
The emperor is supreme, and he can not allow others to say or do things, but he cannot stop others from thinking - unless the Gongshu family clicks a little more on the technology tree to create a machine that can read thoughts.
This sentence made Gu Xun choke, and Ying Zheng was unable to speak for a while.
It’s not that I can’t go back to Guxun, it’s that people are a little confused.
After being stunned for a moment, Ying Zheng laughed angrily:
"It's rare, it's rare."
"It's rare for the Imperial Master to speak so directly to me."
Although Ying Zheng was angry, he did not take the initiative. After saying this with emotion, he did not argue with Gu Xun anymore.
He is an emotional person and has a high tolerance for people he is truly close to.
After calming down for a while, Ying Zheng continued, "It's a state-owned and national law. It's not that I don't want to betray the dignity of the national teacher, but it's just that the national law cannot tolerate it."
"I understand, I understand." Gu Xun nodded, but also reminded, "But I also want to emphasize one point to Your Majesty - it is not appropriate to be punished for words. It is best to control your temper."
Ying Zheng did not answer Gu Xun's words, but closed his eyes again and began to rest.
He has a high tolerance for Gu Xun, but that doesn't mean Gu Xun can dictate what he does.
Seeing this, Gu Xun bowed his hands in understanding, excused himself, and left.
He had never thought of talking directly to Ying Zheng about Confucianism, because he knew Ying Zheng well enough to know that even if he came forward, it would be difficult to change Ying Zheng's mind.
I did get carried away with my chatting today and lost my sense of proportion in my words.
Of course, there won't be any bad consequences, it's just a waste of words and emotions - this is why Gu Xun is often reluctant to break up with Ying Zheng.
Ying Zheng is a person who talks about his feelings, but he is only allowed to talk to others, but not others to him.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! As for the truth, it is even more unacceptable.
Therefore, it is better to do less than to do more, at least it can save some words.
After leaving the carriage, Gu Xun happened to meet Zhao Gao... maybe not by chance.
He bowed respectfully and asked in a polite manner, "Master Imperial Master, I wonder where your Majesty is..."
Ying Zheng sought treatment from Gu Xun without telling anyone, including Zhao Gao, who didn't know about it and sent the person out on purpose.
However, there are not many things that would allow Ying Zheng to specifically send him out. Zhao Gao may have some guesses.
Gu Xun was too lazy to talk nonsense with him. He waved his hand and replied, "He's resting. You can go in and wait on him."
"Then... please forgive Zhao Gao for not sending him far away."
Gu Xun ignored him, waved his hand and left.
Zhao Gao looked at the back of Gu Xun as he left, and walked into the carriage with a smile.
………………
A few days later.
The border between Jibei County and Linzi County.
Master Ban and others walked slowly all the way and were finally far away from the Daizong area.
And the chaos in Mount Tai also came to an end.
The Confucian debate contest on how to conduct the Taishan Conferment Ceremony has finally come to an end.
After Fu Nian, the head of Confucianism, personally stepped out to confront other branches of Confucianism, and the referee, the emperor Ying Zheng, also personally stepped out to try to deflect the conflict, the overwhelming majority of people from other branches of Confucianism were completely defeated.
Among them, Fu Nian's most important role is actually very limited, but it can also be said that he plays a great role.
He alone, even as the nominal leader of Confucianism, cannot overthrow people from other branches of Confucianism.
But as the person who best represents Confucian orthodoxy, his support for the empire gave Ying Zheng great political endorsement.
Ying Zheng, who had always had no taboos, began to care about the world's opinions on the matter of conferring Zen on Mount Tai, so he specially summoned Confucian scholars from Qilu to discuss the matter of consecrating Mount Tai.
With his past temperament, he would never find these people to whisper in his ears, he would only follow his own temperament and ideas.
Without Fu Nian's full support, Ying Zheng could certainly suppress all discordant voices with his dignity as an emperor, but this also meant that his original purpose had failed.
How will the world view this Taishan enshrinement of Zen, which has no support at all from Confucianism, which insists on etiquette the most?
Ying Zheng doesn't have to care, that's what he did before.
He might not care this time, but he has put in so much effort to create such a huge momentum, and in the end it will come to an end.
Without Fu Nian's support, Ying Zheng's plan would have failed, but with Fu Nian's support, Ying Zheng's plan would be slightly flawed at best.
The difference between failure and success is undoubtedly huge.
Ying Zheng can not care about the noise of the world, but he cannot care about his own success or failure.
On the mechanical Suzaku, which was flying at a slow speed with its wings fluttering, Thief Zhi looked at the latest information and couldn't help but sigh, "It seems that the head of Fu Nian has made a great contribution this time."
Master Ban piloted the machine Suzaku and asked without looking back, "What's wrong?"
Pirate Zhi replied with a smile, "Fu Nian helped the empire and successfully suppressed the suggestions put forward by other Confucian scholars. In the end, the ancient ritual of the Qin State to worship God Yong was adopted in the Zen ceremony."
"Ah..." When Master Ban heard the news, he didn't know how to evaluate it for a moment. He touched his beard with one hand and asked after a while, "What are the reactions of other Confucian scholars?"
"Well... to put it simply, I'm so angry." Thieves Zhi shrugged his shoulders and replied without taking it too seriously.
Snow Girl interjected, "But this should be able to alleviate the danger faced by Confucianism to a certain extent, right?"
"This is natural." Gai Nie nodded and said, "Based on this matter alone, Master Fu Nian's actions may greatly resolve the crisis of Confucianism."
"Tsk!" Pirate Zhi curled his lips and said with a smile, "According to Mr. Gai, this matter is not over yet?"
"The matter of Mount Tai's enshrining of Zen has naturally been decided." Gai Nie calmly replied, "But the matter of Confucianism is not over yet."
"Fu Nian certainly eased the empire's pressure on Confucianism, but it also intensified the conflicts within Confucianism."
"What will happen next is still unknown."
Ge Nie was Ge Nie after all. He saw the problem at a glance and understood how difficult the trap was.
Fu Nian's failure to come forward will intensify the empire's prejudice and hostility towards Confucianism.
If Fu Nian comes forward, it will in turn intensify the conflicts within Confucianism, and this will inevitably rebound to the empire. In the end... it will be the previous result.
Anyway, he is not a human being inside or out.
Thief Zhi couldn't help laughing after hearing this, "It won't work if we try to save ourselves together, nor will we give up and wait for death. Either way, we will die!"
Gai Nie was silent for a moment before replying, "Confucianism is different from peasants. The latter's internal contradictions can be reconciled, and results can always be obtained even with bloodshed, but the former's internal contradictions... have no solution."
"No matter who it is, no matter what they do, the most they can do is alleviate the pressure and danger from the outside, but the internal ones... are unsolvable."
If there are no external troubles, even if there are internal contradictions and conflicts, we can always find ways to alleviate them. If they cannot be completely eliminated, they can be temporarily eliminated.
However, in the case of foreign aggression, all internal conflicts will give opportunities to foreign aggression and eventually evolve into a two-pronged dilemma.
Genie doesn't know how to break this game.
He is just a disciple of the strategist family, not the son of God, and cannot break any situation.
"This means... Confucianism is hopeless?" Daozhi spread his hands, finding it hard to accept.
Although he was irritated by this nonsense about Confucianism, he didn't really want Confucianism to die.
Gai Nie shook his head, "Confucianism may not be able to escape this difficulty, but it is not hopeless."
"It sounds about the same." Taizhi scratched his head and muttered.
Genie didn't explain much.
His words sounded like he heard a sentence, but in fact the meaning was still different.
Those who are hopeless are bound to die, but Confucianism is more like a person who is destined to be stabbed. This stab may be fatal, it may be seriously injured, or it may not be painful or itchy.
Master Ban stood at the front, shaking his head and said, "Old man, I only know that we are becoming increasingly unable to get involved in Confucian affairs."
Robber Zhi chuckled, "It's okay if you don't get involved, it's better to do less than to do more."
"Alas!" Master Ban sighed, "I hope Confucianism can turn disaster into good fortune."
At this point, even a good old man like him can only provide all support to Confucianism except help.
Robber Zhi waved his hand, "Hey, let's not talk about things we can't control."
"Xiao Gao is already preparing to board the ship. Let's go back early to help."
"Yes." Master Ban nodded with his back to everyone, "The mirage involves the Qinglong Project, so arrangements must be made early."
"Well...then give up on Taishan completely!"
"Be careful, I'm going to speed up!"
After Master Ban finished speaking, he suddenly pulled the joystick, causing the Suzaku's wings to flap sharply, speeding up, and flying straight towards the east.
………………
At the foot of Mount Tai, the Eastern Patrol Team.
Gu found his loyal subordinate, Han Xin, an upstart in the imperial army.
"How is Taishan's defense arrangement going?"
Hearing Gu Xun ask this, Han Xin reluctantly smiled and responded, "Sir, the preliminary arrangements have been completed."
When arranging the defense of Yishan before, Han Xin felt very reluctant because it was really difficult to make it watertight.
Now that we have arrived at Mount Tai, Han Xin finds that Mount Yi is quite simple.
It's really... very embarrassing, even for people like him.
Gu Xun could see that Han Xin didn't seem to be very willing to talk about this topic, so he didn't talk much about it and instead said:
"I have a task for you."
"Sir, please tell me." Han Xin knew very well that the hardest thing to say to his boss was no. Even though he wanted to avoid being lazy, he could only accept the job honestly.
