The cold wind flew past, and the sharp whistling sound made the scene more tense and solemn.
Everyone stared at Qin Huaidao, filled with indignation and evil eyes. Even Li Er looked at Qin Huaidao coldly. He felt that the imperial power had been provoked and humiliated. A surge of anger was surging. He wished he could order Yu Linwei to take it down, but in his mind
A flash of clarity restrained the impulse.
This feeling made Li Er feel aggrieved. The majestic emperor was actually afraid of a minister. What is this?
Kong Yingda sensed that the opportunity had come. He took a few steps forward and scolded: "You are still not polite when you see the Holy One. Do you want to rebel? Why don't you come here to apologize?"
"Who stipulates that you must salute when you see the Holy One?" Qin Huaidao asked indifferently.
"Of course it's etiquette! The Tang Dynasty advocated etiquette."
"Whose idea of etiquette is it?" Qin Huaidao asked coldly.
"Of course it is the Confucian holy book, created by our ancestor Kong Sheng." Kong Yingda said very proudly.
Qin Huaidao's eyes turned cold and he said disdainfully: "Why should I abide by the things created by your ancestors? My surname is Qin, not Kong, and I am definitely not like some people who randomly identify their ancestors. What do you want from the Confucian holy scriptures?"
I am a military strategist, and the court has its own laws, and governs the world with Zhenguan Law, not etiquette."
During the Zhenguan period, although Confucianism became the mainstream thought of the imperial court, it was not the only one. In addition, Li Er was of Hu descent, and the Tang Dynasty was open-minded and inclusive. Various schools of war, law, Mohism, agriculture, and medicine showed signs of rising, and Taoism was even more popular.
Respecting Confucianism as the national religion, Qin Huaidao deliberately claimed to be a military strategist, and could not find fault in not following Confucianism.
If Kong Yingda persists in this, he will be provoking humiliation. The dispute between the military and military families will not be a matter of two people, but a matter of two schools, and will eventually escalate into a civil-military dispute.
Disputes between civil and military officials were taboo and would shake up the court. Although Kong Yingda was proud, he did not dare to do so.
Of course, Qin Huaidao was not stupid and would not make himself unhappy. If he offended Li Er at this time, he might not be able to kill him if he used the knife. He took two steps forward and bowed: "My son-in-law has seen my father-in-law."
A man can bend and stretch!
As a son-in-law, he was doing family etiquette, not the etiquette of a monarch and his ministers advocated by Confucianism. It also gave Li a lot of face, no one could fault him, and he could perfectly avoid the problem just now.
But his body secretly tensed up, accumulating strength. If Li Er dared to seize the opportunity to kill him, he would rush forward to capture the hostage.
Kong Yingda's face turned red with anger, but he was speechless.
Li Er's gloomy expression instantly melted away, and it was as bright as the sunshine in the sky. He climbed down through the steps. He really wanted to take action, but he didn't have much confidence in his heart. He took a few steps forward and said with a smile: "Xian son-in-law, I heard that Kong Jijiu said that you will generals."
The invigilator kicked out the exam, why?"
With warm eyes and a gentle expression, Li Er is like an elder having a family affair with his younger generation, sending a signal of harmony between the monarch and his ministers to the outside world. In terms of scheming, Li Er is as good as anyone.
Qin Huaidao didn't point it out. Anyway, being kind on the surface was beneficial to him, and said: "Because to avoid suspicion!"
When someone says something, the whole place is filled with anger. This is a question of a person's integrity.
Kong Yingda's face turned red and he scolded: "Are you doubting my character?"
How could Qin Huaidao tolerate the other party and scolded him: "Are you stupid in studying? Avoiding suspicion is not about doubting character, but about rules. I am doing this for your own good."
"You said you're doing it for me?" Kong Yingda was so angry that he was trembling all over, and shouted: "Come on, tell me clearly, how can you do it for me? I can't explain why I will fight with you until I die.
.”
"Then listen carefully, I will teach you a good lesson today." Qin Huaidao shouted: "All the invigilators are disciples of the saints, and the same is true for those who pass the exam. You are the same disciple, your own people, and your own people are invigilating your own people. This is undoubtedly
If you are guarding and stealing, can you guarantee that no one will cheat?"
Kong Yingda's expression froze. There was really no way to guarantee this. After all, cheaters were always caught in the exams over the years.
Qin Huaidao continued: "In the Confucian examination, it is not the case that the invigilator helps, nor does it not help. Therefore, the Holy Emperor asked me, a military strategist, to invigilate the exam, just to avoid the difficulty of the invigilator. I will invite all the invigilators out and arrange for someone else to invigilate the exam."
Who among the people would dare to say the results of favoritism and malpractice? Isn’t the gold content much higher?”
Everyone was stunned, as this seemed to be the reason.
Qin Huaidao stared at the gray-faced Kong Yingda and asked, "Tell me, am I helping you?"
Kong Yingda was so angry that he almost spit out blood, but he couldn't do otherwise, otherwise it would be suspected of cheating.
He was clearly responsible for the exam, and he had been a literati in charge of exams since ancient times. Why did he become unreasonable?
The more Kong Yingda thought about it, the angrier and more uncomfortable he became. His vision went dark and he fainted.
"You still call yourself a great Confucian with such magnanimity. Shouldn't a great Confucian be as humble as a grain and have the world in mind? He is narrow-minded, selfish, and arrogant, and cannot be used for great purposes." Qin Huaidao labeled the other party unceremoniously.
Everyone looked at Kong Yingda sympathetically. Once this label was put on him, he would probably stink on the streets.
When Li Er saw that a great Confucian of the generation fainted after being scolded by Qin Huaidao, he felt that Confucianism was nothing more than that. He waved his hand and said, "Come here, send the Kongji wine to the Imperial Medical Center for treatment."
Someone immediately came forward and carried the person away.
If we really want to talk about it, Fang Xuanling is also a disciple of Confucianism, but Fang Xuanling has an extraordinary temperament and does not like the disputes between schools. He is afraid that Qin Huaidao will be resented by others, so he smoothes things over and says: "King of Han, I don't know what the question of this big exam is?"
"Of course, we should not show too much intimacy in public or formal occasions. Qin Huaidao said seriously: "The purpose of returning to the prime minister is to discuss how Confucianism governs the country."
"On how Confucianism governs a country?"
Everyone curled their lips in disdain. Isn't this question too simple? As expected, they don't understand the meaning of Confucian classics, so they can only ask such simple questions that even enlightened students can answer.
However, this subject is stable!
It is also a good thing that a large number of students have won the exam. If the saint's disciples monopolize all the positions in the three provinces and six ministries, Confucianism will surely flourish.
Fang Xuanling was also a little surprised. Isn't this question too simple?
However, Fang Xuanling knew Qin Huaidao, so it was impossible for him to be uneducated and incompetent. If he really didn't know how to ask questions, he could go to the door and ask himself. I'm afraid there might be some hidden meaning in asking such questions, so he had to think about it.
Li Er was worthy of being an emperor. He stood tall and could see far. He drove out the invigilator and thought a lot about his anger at Kong Yingda. He vaguely guessed the meaning of the question and couldn't help but look at Qin Huaidao with a somewhat complicated look.
Everyone had different expressions and remained silent.
After a while, Li Er said seriously: "This question is very wonderful!"
After saying that, he turned around and left without saying another word, which was considered a conclusion to the matter.
When everyone saw that Li Er agreed, they didn't want to cause further trouble and quickly left.
Fang Xuanling was worried that Li Er had a grudge, so he quickly caught up and said, "Your Majesty?"
"Come with me." Li Er whispered back.
The monarch and his ministers made a tacit agreement not to speak, so as not to be overheard by those around them, and walked on in silence.
Everyone quickly dispersed and returned to their posts. Li Er took Fang Xuanling to Ganlu Hall. The monarch and his ministers sat down around the stove to warm themselves. Li Er waved his hand to signal all the servants to leave and then asked: "Xuanling, you too.
Disciple of the saint, I want to hear the truth, can Confucianism govern the country?"
"this……"
Fang Xuanling's face was full of bitterness, and she didn't know how to answer. She said she couldn't, since she was also a junior, but it was unconscionable to say she could.
"Why, this question is difficult to answer?" Li Er pressed.
Fang Xuanling saw that he could not escape, so he had to tell the truth: "Back to the Holy Spirit, Confucianism can govern the country, but it is far from enough. Apart from other things, Confucianism is not good at arithmetic alone. Without arithmetic, governing a county will be deceived, and the population will be deceived."
"If you can't even check the taxes, let alone govern the country."
"The King of Han also mentioned these remarks."
After Li Er finished speaking, he was filled with emotion and said with a wry smile: "Confucianism advocates benevolence and righteousness, rule by virtue, and the three cardinal principles and five constant principles. It can be used to determine human relations, but it is absolutely not possible to govern a country. Otherwise, what else would the Zhenguan law do? I don't believe in such a simple truth as Confucianism."
Do you understand? I am afraid that you are pretending not to understand in order to improve the status of Confucianism, right? For the sake of the status of one school of thought, he does not hesitate to belittle other schools and ignores the interests of the imperial court. His heart is to be punished."
"The Holy One is wise!"
Fang Xuanling smiled bitterly, and suddenly thought of something, and continued: "Confucianism cannot govern a country, but it can determine human relations and establish morality. The King of Han also saw this, so today's subject asks students to discuss how Confucianism governs a country. If students answer with Confucianism's ideas,
, it must be difficult to convince others with reason and evidence, and it may even turn into absurd talk and rhetoric. If you do not answer with Confucian ideas, you are deviating from the classics and a traitor to the Confucian sect. The King of Han is..."
It was hard for Fang Xuanling to say what happened next.
"Too insidious, right?"
Li Er spoke for Fang Xuanling, suddenly he was in a good mood, and said with a smile: "This is a conspiracy. Even if the candidates see through it, it will be difficult to answer. It is the way of a military strategist. No wonder the King of Han just called himself a military strategist. He just didn't know the true purpose of this move. Is it possible?"
Shouldn’t it be difficult for the candidates and no one will go to high school?”
"It shouldn't be possible. I'm afraid the King of Han's move has a deeper meaning. Your Majesty may wish to take another look." Fang Xuanling hurriedly persuaded him, fearing that Li Er would do something bad again in anger.
"Okay, let's take a look again!"
Li Er agreed, his eyes flashing and his thoughts unpredictable.
ps: Thank you to my friends who read this, you are true love!