The surrounding area is open and full of flowers and plants, and literati like to gather here.
There is a debate today.
Emperor Zhao Han of Datong's Hanzhu Debate has been spread throughout the world with added fuel and jealousy. In addition, the government does not punish crimes based on words. Not only has it become a common practice, but debates are held every two days.
Zhang Erqi came from Jiyang, Shandong Province. He hated the imperial examination and refused to serve as an official. After more than ten years of drought, locust plague, military disaster and plague, Zhang Erqi began to reflect on how to govern the world. His approach was to find it from ancient rituals.
Only in his thirties, Zhang Erqi was already proficient in the three rites, namely "Rites", "Zhou Rites" and "Book of Rites".
He taught a private school in his hometown, and scholars often visited him. Since last autumn, primary schools were being built across Shandong. Zhang Erqi did not want to be a primary school teacher, and the private school could not recruit many students, so he simply stayed at home and studied behind closed doors.
The magistrate of Jiyang County admired his talent and visited him personally to ask for advice.
After some academic exchanges, the magistrate said: "Sir's talent should be known all over the world. Now that Shandong is in decline and the literary style has declined very much, why not go to Nanjing to spread knowledge?"
So Zhang Erqi came to Nanjing and found a job as an editor in a bookshop.
He also contributed articles to various literary societies in Nanjing and published several articles discussing "rituals". In just six months, he became famous and was also besieged by opponents.
At this moment, Zhang Erqi was expounding his point of view: "Husband's etiquette suppresses people's arrogance and resists people's cowardice, so as to give in. The hostages in the world cannot be at peace if they are inconvenienced. If they are uneasy, they are afraid of doing something.
Dao split refers to the things of etiquette and praises them with frank words, so as to study them to the deepest, greatest and most extreme place. Therefore, those who adhere to etiquette are the only way to unify their hearts..."
The general meaning is: etiquette can suppress people's surliness and resist cowardice. People in the world do not understand the essence of etiquette, so they cannot truly observe etiquette. If they cannot observe etiquette peacefully, they may
When morals decline, rituals and music may collapse. People point to gifts (archways, rules, vulgar customs, etc.) and say that rituals are these things and are easy to do. Then they study the rules of ethics, the chastity memorial arch, and use the principles of heaven and earth.
Pack it up and explain it. In this way, everyone's desire to observe etiquette will turn into observing the etiquette and teachings in a regular manner.
All the scholars couldn't help but nod their heads, and even Zhang Erqi's opponents thought that this passage was of good quality.
But then Zhang Erqi said: "Rituals are the collection and embodiment of Tao. Even if there is a Tao of benevolence and goodness, if rituals are not used as the way of education, it will not be able to spread to all people in the world. What the saints support is supported by rituals
"What the saints criticize is what Li objects to..."
"It's ridiculous," a scholar immediately interrupted, "You just say that saints are just polite!"
Zhang Erqi said: "The reason why saints are saints is because they know etiquette and observe etiquette. Therefore, if a saint is not etiquette, he will be a saint if he knows etiquette and observes it. If you can also know etiquette and observe etiquette, you can also be a saint. This
"Etiquette is the real etiquette, not the appearance of the moral code. The moral code is the expression of the etiquette, but it is not the etiquette itself."
This statement is unexplainable, because he himself defined a saint and blocked all avenues of rebuttal by his opponents.
Another scholar said: "Qingli, Qingli, etiquette is nothing but love."
Zhang Erqi shook his head and said: "Emotions can be divided into good and evil, but etiquette has no distinction between good and evil. If there are evil feelings, they should be suppressed with courtesy. Just like I love a woman, but she is already married. Although this feeling is not evil,
Love, but if it is not in line with etiquette, I cannot be a fair lady, and a gentleman is too arrogant. If I ask for mercy in everything, my morals will be corrupted, and the world will be in chaos. In the old dynasty, corruption among civil officials was rampant, and military generals brutalized the people. These must be eliminated with etiquette.
Restraint and enlightenment.”
Some scholars sneered and said: "Strong words! The examples you just cited are all about desire, not love. Zhu Ziyan said, preserve the natural principles and destroy human desires. Marriage between husband and wife, eating to fullness is the natural principle; wives and concubines in groups, big fish and meat.
, human desire."
Zhang Erqi said: "To observe etiquette means to abide by the laws of heaven. This is exactly what I said."
Another scholar asked: "Tell me, should the widow remarry? I think she should remarry, but Zhu Zi advised the widow not to remarry. Is Zhu Zi a saint? If he is a saint, based on what you just said, the saint supports,
Even if it is supported by etiquette, is it also considered unethical for a widow to remarry?"
Zhang Erqi said: "Widows are not supposed to remarry according to etiquette, but everything is subject to change. Now the north has experienced wars, husbands have lost their wives, and wives have lost their husbands. If widowers and widowers can reorganize their families, they can help each other and prosper.
Human beings, this is the great road of human relations. Human relations are also etiquette."
"Haha, human relations are about love, so where are the etiquette?" The scholar laughed, "When a widower and a widow get married, they break the etiquette and are in harmony with each other. What does this mean? It shows that when there is a contingency, emotion should be the first priority. Ruthless etiquette, then
It’s an evil etiquette and a fallacy!”
Zhang Erqi said: "No, no. The marriage of a widower and a widow is a contingency for the dynasty. If the population in the future is prosperous, the widow should not remarry. If a widow does not marry and stays together, she will be like a loyal minister and a good general.
The emperor is from one to the last. These three cardinal principles and five constant principles cannot be changed."
"Fart, women are human beings too. A widower can remarry, why can't a widow remarry?"
Some scholars shouted wildly: "It is natural for widows to remarry. Your Majesty encourages widows to remarry, which is the wisest king in the world. Is it possible that you still want to criticize Your Majesty? I think you are the rebellious minister and traitor, and you must be a spy sent by the Tatars to disrupt public opinion!"
"
Zhang Erqi was also angry: "Don't slander me! Your Majesty encourages widows to remarry because of the turbulent times. Revitalize the north as soon as possible!"
The two sides are completely confused because everyone has different definitions of love and etiquette.
Don't feel like you're full because this is really a national matter. They want to use their own ideas to build the social values of the new Datong Dynasty.
In another time and space, Zhang Erqi's views became more conservative due to the Manchu Qing taking over the Central Plains.
In the society of the late Ming Dynasty, the ideological atmosphere was fragmented.
Some people are extremely conservative, some are extremely open, and more and more people are open.
Open-minded people advocate self-worth, pursue equality between men and women, and advocate courtesy and affection. Moreover, the academic mainstream, tracing back to the pre-Qin philosophers, even those who abide by Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, also like to study the value of the various schools of thought and the principles of their theories.
The combined use of Wangba and Wangba is also recognized.
Historically, after the Manchus entered the customs, the ideological atmosphere took a sharp turn for the worse.
People no longer pursue themselves, and do not talk about equality between men and women. They also believe that emotions should be restrained by etiquette. Hundreds of schools of thought were rejected and slandered, and they only recognized Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism. They used both kings and hegemons to respect only the king's way.
Now that Zhao Han established a new dynasty, he did not castrate social thought, but instead stimulated more complex and diverse academic trends.
Some even proposed: Men can have concubines, why can't women have multiple husbands? The court should support the freedom of marriage, and as long as a woman has the ability, she can marry more than one husband.
This is an era where a hundred flowers are blooming, and it is also an era where demons are dancing wildly.
Cao Fengji, a man of Qing Dynasty, was standing beside Qian Qianyi, listening to these scholars debate about love and etiquette.
Cao Fengji sighed: "Nanjing's prosperous literary style is really far superior to that of the north!"
Qian Qianyi said: "Although your Majesty is stubborn today, he does not interfere in academic disputes, which is also very good. But it is too confusing. There are hundreds of theories from various places, and there are many monstrous theories. This is not conducive to the court.
Your Majesty should exercise some restraint on your rule."
Cao Fengji asked: "Does the herdsman think the Datong court can last long?"
"Of course it will last forever," Qian Qianyi said with a smile, "Can the intruders from the northwest and the Tatars from Liaodong still conquer the world?"
Cao Fengji nodded and said, "I think so too when I'm late."
Qian Qianyi suddenly complained again: "The new dynasty is prosperous, but we can only watch. What can we do about such a situation? What a pity, what a pity."
Cao Fengji took the opportunity and said: "Shepherd has countless disciples and former officials, why not also form a literary society and teach his knowledge? Li Ge Lao (Li Banghua) in the cabinet heard that the children of the clan are quite powerful in the government and the army. Such a powerful minister
, a single family will be tabooed by His Majesty sooner or later. If this person falls, a folk legacy like the shepherd will definitely be reused by Your Majesty."
This craftsman actually wanted to provoke a party struggle in Nanjing.
Qian Qianyi looked quite moved, and sighed again: "The new dynasty is not like the old dynasty, and with my reputation, I can't answer every call. In the past, wealthy businessmen and scholars donated money to Fushe, but now how can I have the financial resources to do it?"
Making a big noise?"
Cao Fengji said: "I was born late and have no talent. I have some money in my hands. I am willing to help the shepherd."
Qian Qianyi did not agree directly, but asked: "Are you the craftsman sent by Li Zicheng?"
Cao Fengji was startled, then smiled and said, "The shepherd has a good eye."
Qian Qianyi said: "It's impossible for Li Zicheng to succeed, but if he wants to give me money, I can do something for him. Alas, I can't hold a high position in this life, and I can only make some money to live on.
Already."
Cao Fengji had no doubt that this kind of operation was normal and Chongzhen had a lot of similar people under his command.
Cao Fengji's mission when he went south this time was not to lure someone to surrender to the enemy, because that was obviously unrealistic. His mission was to bribe officials and scholars and obtain all kinds of intelligence information. It was best to mess up the Nanjing court and make Zhao Han suspicious of those people.
An important minister who can get things done.
The two of them said no more and went home separately.
In the afternoon, Zuo Xiaocheng came to Cao Fengji's home: "Shopkeeper Cao, I have been contacted, but he has no ambition and no ability."
"Don't be in a hurry, take your time." Cao Fengji said with a smile.
Zuo Xiaocheng spread his hands and said, "Shopkeeper Cao, um... I'm a little tight on money."
With a kind smile on his face, Cao Fengji asked someone to fetch five taels of silver, put it into Zuo Xiaocheng's hand and said, "Do something for me. I'll have plenty of money, and I'll give you a big reward in the future."
Zuo Xiaocheng came into contact with the grandson of the former consort, the consort who brought Zhu Cihong and Zhu Aelao to Nanjing. His family was also brought to Nanjing to settle down in the spring of the following year.
Cao Fengji planned to play a trick to restore the Ming prince. He did not seek success, but only wanted to cause trouble. It would be best to involve some important officials in Nanjing.
As for Zuo Xiaocheng, I met him when he held a cultural gathering and was the first to be bribed by him.
After finding out all the details, when the Ming Dynasty Jiangxi scholar Zhao Han only had one town, Zuo Xiaocheng helped the government suppress it and took refuge with several governors, governors, prefects, and general soldiers.
Today, Zuo Xiaocheng is completely depressed and wanders around Nanjing all day long, making a living by working as a cultural assistant for others.
Moreover, Zuo Xiaocheng was good at gambling. Nanjing's casinos had long been banned, but there were always outlaws who gambled in private.
He was down and out, loved gambling, and had a grudge against the Emperor of Datong. Couldn't he be bribed easily?
Zuo Xiaocheng took the silver and went straight to the Qinhuai River, and happily invited people to drink flower wine. After closing the door, he said to the people drinking flower wine together: "This is so whimsical that you actually want to encourage the former prince consort to take the former prince with you."
During the restoration, he also wanted to involve the children of the ministers in the DPRK. He was generous in his approach and gave money every time he did things."
The person at the same table ordered: "Whatever he asks, you do your best. After the incident fails, it would be better if he can escape back to Liaodong with him."
Zuo Xiaocheng suddenly became anxious: "No, it's bitterly cold in Liaodong and Tatars are everywhere. Don't you want me to die?"
The person at the same table said: "There is an order from above to develop a detailed work in Liaodong. He is not an ordinary spy, but one who can talk to the Tatar nobles. We will take good care of your children born outside the family, and they will take the exams to become officials in the future.
Definitely extra points. If you can come back alive from Liaodong, you will be rewarded with thirty acres of farmland for each person in your family. Don’t worry, the Tatars are very good at craftsmanship. You can also enjoy good food and drink in Liaodong. If you are captured by the Datong Army, you can report it.
I just want to bring you back."
Zuo Xiaocheng reluctantly agreed: "Okay, let's go to Liaodong for a walk."
