Chapter 582: Contest of Hundred Schools of Thought (1)
Chapter 582 A Hundred Schools of Thought Contention (1)
Author: Feng Xiaomu
Chapter 582 A Hundred Schools of Thought Contention (1)
4341 (AD 1644), September 10th.
The palace was busier than usual.
Emperor Su He took the older prince and princess, while Queen Wang Wenjun and other concubines took the younger prince and princess.
They gathered in the Zhongji Hall, preparing to watch the Hundred Schools of Thought Contention Conference today.
Eunuch Zhou Fangzhi walked to Emperor Su He and reminded: "Your Majesty, we should go to the Hundred Schools of Learning Palace. The Hundred Schools of Thought Conference will officially begin at nine o'clock in the morning."
Emperor Su He saw that the concubines, princes and princesses were all ready.
He looked at the princes and ordered: "You must carefully observe this conference and choose the school of thought you like.
I will give you the opportunity to choose a teacher.
You go and sit in a car with your mother, and then come and accompany your father when you wait until the conference."
Emperor Su He looked at the princes and asked which school of thought they would choose to be their teachers this time. This was Emperor Su He's test for the princes.
He encouraged the princes to compete with each other. The former eldest prince Su Shu and the second prince Su Lei had the resources left by their uncles Wang Zhongce and Li Dazhuang, and their power was obviously greater than that of the other princes.
However, the resources left by Wang Zhongce were limited to the academic lineage of civil servants. The resources left by Li Dazhuang were limited to the military.
This is detrimental to the growth of the princes, and even more detrimental to other princes.
This time, allocating teachers from hundreds of schools to the princes will be an opportunity for many princes. The capable princes will stand out.
Emperor Su He saw everyone boarding the car, and he ordered: "Let's set off and go to Baijia Academy."
The car they were riding in was the latest steam car from Longchang Automobile Company.
This type of car is similar to the box goods of later generations.
The body is taller, has a huge front, and is equipped with a more powerful steam engine.
This steam engine technology is simplified from the steam locomotive.
Nowadays, the speed and comfort of cars have caught up with horse-drawn carriages, and they are highly practical and no longer a big toy.
When the car's steam engine starts, the refined oil in the oil storage tank flows to the bottom of the boiler and burns violently, heating the boiler and releasing high-temperature and high-pressure water vapor.
There are two exhaust holes above the car, one emits thick black smoke, and the other emits water vapor from time to time.
The car's boiler quickly completed heating, and the wheels began to rotate slowly, driven by the crankshaft.
The car adjusts the speed through the gearbox and slowly accelerates to 25 kilometers per hour.
Emperor Su He looked at this car. It was an industrial masterpiece of the Dahua Empire.
At present, only the power system is too bloated and complicated. When the internal combustion engine appears, this will be an internal combustion engine car with extremely high technical level.
Emperor Su He rode in this car, which cost up to 400,000 taels of silver coins and was comparable to a battleship, just to promote the car.
The prosperity of the automobile market will encourage more scientists to devote their energy to studying internal combustion engines.
The principle of the steam engine is simple, and he can also teach scientists.
Emperor Su He only understood the general principles of internal combustion engines. He could only propose the idea of internal combustion engines, but could not speed up the progress of internal combustion engine research.
In several cars at the back, Queen Wang Wenjun, Concubine Li Huixin and other concubines were giving instructions to their son.
With their abilities, they help their son analyze the pros and cons of each school of thought.
…………………………
All the schools in the Great China Empire that signed up to participate in the Hundred Schools of Thought Conference came to the Hundred Schools Academy in advance.
They looked at the gate of Baijia Academy and looked forward to the arrival of Emperor Su He.
Representatives of each school are gearing up and preparing to demonstrate the abilities of their own school.
This is an opportunity to reach the sky in one step, and no one will miss it.
If you perform well, you can gain the favor of the big guys behind the school.
If they perform poorly, their life will end prematurely, and their glory and wealth will be far away immediately.
Qu Xiangyang, as the person in charge of the Hundred Schools of Thought Conference, saw the arrival of Emperor Su He's motorcade.
He immediately ordered: "Sound the salute to welcome His Majesty's arrival."
The roar of the salute resounded through the Baijia Academy, and amid huge cheers, Emperor Su He's motorcade drove into the Baijia Academy.
The contestants and the audience looked at the luxurious cars with envy in their eyes.
Emperor Su He quickly got out of the car and saw the ministers headed by Qu Xiangyang coming to greet them.
He ordered: "Qu Aiqing, you are holding a conference of hundreds of schools of thought as normal, I will only be an audience."
Qu Xiangyang immediately understood what Emperor Su He meant.
He invited Emperor Su He and his concubines and princes to take their seats in the best seats in the auditorium.
He quickly arrived at the central stage of Baijia Academy.
In front of him was a metal microphone similar to a plate, and around the Baijia Academy, there were large cone-shaped speakers.
Qu Xiangyang announced in his loud voice: "According to His Majesty's decree, I am holding a meeting of a hundred schools of thought.
The purpose of this conference is to select a school of thought that is conducive to the development of the Great China Empire as the main school of thought promoted by the empire.
The ideas of this school can be found in the textbooks of the Great China Empire.
Sages of this school can become teachers of princes and enter the palace to teach princes knowledge.
Since the preparation of the Conference of Hundred Schools of Thought, it has received support from many schools of thought.
After review by the conference, a total of thirty-six schools of thought came to participate.
I declare that the Hundred Schools of Thought Conference has officially begun."
After several salutes were fired, hydrogen balloons with colorful ribbons took off.
Qu Xiangyang retired and handed over the work of the Hundred Schools of Thought Contest to his subordinates.
He walked to Emperor Su He and was responsible for answering some questions from various scholars attending the meeting.
Emperor Su He saw Qu Xiangyang approaching and asked, "What is the process of the Hundred Schools of Thought Conference?"
Qu Xiangyang resumed: "Your Majesty, the process of starting the conference is to introduce your own school of thought.
The policies for governing the country proposed by their school of thought.
After that, each school held some activities in its own attic.
Here they can recruit students who are interested in their school of thought.
Some conflicting schools of thought will also come to provoke and the two parties will debate."
Emperor Su He asked: "Is there no competition?"
Qu Xiangyang explained: "Your Majesty, when I started preparing for the Hundred Schools of Thought Contest, I also considered arranging written examinations for each school of thought.
However, the ideas of each school are very idealistic. As the backbone of the school, one of the basic qualities they possess is the belief that the ideas of their own school are correct.
In the written examination of the two schools, there is no standard to judge which school is better. It can only be seen that the representatives of which school perform better on the spot.
This is not like natural science, where there are generally accepted standard answers."
Emperor Su He heard Qu Xiangyang's explanation, and he also agreed with Qu Xiangyang's statement.
For the Great China Empire, there is only the most suitable school of thought, and there is absolutely no best school of thought.
He promoted the contention of a hundred schools of thought because he wanted all schools of thought to coexist.
There are appropriate ideas for guidance at each time period.
Each type of person also has appropriate ideological sustenance.
Even Zhu Cheng Neo-Confucianism, as long as some of the dross can be eliminated, this school of thought is more suitable for ultra-conservatives.
A country must be proactive and constantly seek changes and breakthroughs.
But there are some bottom lines that must be guarded.
If the country wants to implement the golden mean, it is impossible for everyone to become progressive.
The existence of conservatives can also put the brakes on this racing country at certain moments.
For these reasons, Emperor Su He did not kill Zhu Chengxue.
But if a prince really chooses Zhu Cheng's corrupt Neo-Confucianism, he will have no chance of becoming emperor.
Emperor Su He can keep some extreme conservatives, but he must not let them become the mainstream of the empire.
He saw that someone was already on the stage and told the princes standing nearby: "You must understand carefully. After the introduction of these schools, you can ask some questions to understand these schools in depth."
Emperor Su He had just finished explaining the princes, and the people on stage had already adjusted their microphones.
"I am Meng Wensheng, a representative of Confucian Zhu Cheng Neo-Confucianism.
Some people say that the core of our Zhu Cheng Neo-Confucianism is to preserve the principles of nature and destroy human desires.
This statement is completely deliberately misinterpreted by someone.
Zhu Daru did not have the desire to destroy human beings according to the laws of nature.
Who studied hard in a poor family, passed the imperial examination and became an official, not for the sake of honoring the ancestors.
Zhu Cheng Neo-Confucianism, as the only prominent school in the previous dynasty, had some scum mixed in with it.
Their approach does not represent Zhu Cheng's Neo-Confucian philosophy.
The core concept of our Zhu Cheng Neo-Confucianism is the Three Cardinal Principles.
The king is the guide for his subjects, the father is the guide for his son, and the husband is the guide for his wife.
We, Zhu Chengxue, firmly support the emperor as the supreme ruler of the empire and support all the emperor's decisions.
We have Zhu Chengxue, Yu Qian and Shaobao, who turned the tide from collapse, and Zhang Juzheng, Zhang Capital, who actively reformed bad government and extended the life of the Ming Dynasty.
These are the heroes who emerged from the Confucian Zhu Cheng Neo-Confucianism.
We at Zhucheng Neo-Confucianism will also make contributions to the empire in the future.
More than 95% of the primary schools in overseas governor's offices are managed by Zhu Chengxue.
It can be seen that we, Zhu Chengxue, can also make outstanding contributions to the empire."
Meng Wensheng wanted to continue telling the story, but the gong next to him was sounded.
According to the procedure, all schools of thought will be introduced today, and each school will have limited time to speak.
Emperor Su He looked at Meng Wensheng and asked, "I have some impression of this man. He is also a Beijing official!"
Qu Xiangyang replied: "He is a fifth-grade Beijing official. His official position is not high, but he is a young official who can be used by Confucian Zhu Chengxue."
When Emperor Su He heard this, he also understood that many people who were demoted in the previous Ming Dynasty were recruited and surrendered. At the beginning of the founding of the country, they still had a certain amount of real power.
When the primary school students and the new generation of students trained by the Dahua Empire enter the officialdom, these officials will usher in their doom.
Some officials with decent official reputations were directly transferred to idle positions.
Most officials have not escaped the continuous anti-corruption actions of the Dahua Empire.
After all, these people have been completely stained by the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty and have all kinds of bad habits.
Officials who can truly reform are very rare.
Emperor Su He said with a smile: "The Confucian Zhu Cheng Neo-Confucian school began to cut off from some things.
They want to travel lightly, but they have to pay a heavy price.
Confucianism’s Three Cardinal Guidelines and Five Constant Confucianism, now we only need the Three Cardinal Guidelines and not the Five Constant Virtues.
It has also abandoned the view of preserving natural principles and destroying human desires. Some corrupt Confucians must not be able to bear it, and the Confucian Zhu Cheng Neo-Confucian school needs to purify itself."
Emperor Su He knew that what he said would soon be spread.
The reason why he said this was that he also recognized the Confucian Zhu Chengxue's actions to change his past.
It all depends on how they do it. If they can really throw away the dross, this school of thought is not that unbearable.
The great Confucian scholar Dong Zhongshu's philosophy was to overthrow all schools of thought and only respect Confucianism.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty did not think so at the time. He just wanted to use Confucianism to complete his revenge on the Huns.
During the Han Dynasty, Confucianism absorbed the strengths of various schools of thought and constantly innovated itself.
They were the most advanced school of thought at that time and had extremely strong vitality.
The Confucian philosophy is to make people obey the monarch, which is in line with the emperor's interests and needs.
Only Confucianism could completely defeat hundreds of schools of thought. Only a few indispensable schools of thought, such as Legalism, survived under the guise of Confucianism.
After one family became the dominant one, Confucianism lost competition and gradually became a stagnant water without any vitality.
In today's era of contention among a hundred schools of thought, it is impossible for Confucianism to fail no matter how much it wants to. It must make changes that adapt to the times, otherwise it will be eliminated.
Emperor Su He looked at the performance of the princes.
None of the princes were interested in Zhu Cheng's Neo-Confucianism.
The content they were exposed to in primary school was also the education given by Emperor Su He to the princes.
In addition, children prefer aggressive ideas.
The most important point is that the mothers of the princes are all smart people. They will warn the princes that they must not choose Confucian Zhu Cheng Neo-Confucianism.
"I am Li Siyuan from the Mencius school of Confucianism.
The theory of our Mencius school can be explained clearly in one sentence by the sage Mencius.
The people come first, the country comes second, and the ruler is the next priority."
Li Siyuan's voice spread throughout the audience, causing everyone in Baijia Academy to burst into uproar.
Many people's eyes are looking towards the audience.
Emperor Su He was in the audience, but Li Siyuan said the words "Jun is light".
In a monarchy country, the monarch is supreme.
Mencius' thought has been greatly suppressed within Confucianism, to the point where no one dares to mention it.
It is because of Mencius' thought that the king should be taken lightly, which may affect the status of Confucianism.
When the princes heard this, Su Shu, Su Lei and other princes, who had already understood the truth, looked at the situation ahead with their eyes wide open.
When Qu Xiangyang heard these words, cold sweat immediately appeared on his forehead.
He listened to Li Siyuan talking endlessly, and his heart was beating fast.
Qu Xiangyang explained carefully: "Your Majesty, the Confucian Mencius School reported to me before.
The core idea they put forward before was the famous saying of Mencius: "If you enter, you will be unable to control the people at home; if you go out, you will be invincible against foreign patients, and the country will perish."
I did not expect that they would change their speech at the last minute and choose this rebellious speech."
Qu Xiangyang wished he could go down now and kick Li Siyuan directly.
He didn't even expect that someone would cause trouble on such a solemn occasion.
This was a major accident. Once Emperor Su He was dissatisfied, he, as a cabinet minister, would be finished.
This mistake was completely different from the one Qian Mingyi made, and it would be difficult for him to recover.
Li Zhisheng, the leader of the Confucian Datong sect, and Yu Wenhe, the leader of Confucian psychology.
They disliked each other, but they all anxiously walked towards the emperor Su He's location.
After all, Li Siyuan belongs to Confucianism, and in this era when hundreds of schools of thought are about to be fully revived.
Once the emperor believes that this is Confucian thought, all schools of Confucianism will be implicated in this matter.
They must make a break with the Mencius school and express their own attitude.
In order to make Zhu Chengli look embarrassed, they gave up the first opportunity to speak.
Now they regret it very much. Like Zhu Chengli, they were the first to express their attitude, so they don't have to worry about being implicated.