Water Margin people

Chapter 1658 Demonstration

For several days in a row, Liangshan City was immersed in the joy of the New Year.

But the literati group could no longer hold back. Seeing that the world was stable and the overall situation seemed settled, they could not help but feel anxious. If this continued, they would be wiped out of history.

On the sixth day of the first lunar month, the literati group could no longer sit still. They took to the streets, holding the Confucian flag and holding the portrait of Confucius, and began to march.

The people didn't know what was going on and thought there was some kind of activity going on, so they watched out of curiosity.

"Clear the emperor's side, rectify the emperor's ears, uphold Zhou rituals, and return to Confucianism!"

The literary group began to shout.

The purpose of the literati group was very clear. They opposed the emperor's teaching method. They did not allow miscellaneous subjects such as engineering and science to enter the school, and did not allow those who studied these subjects to be treated the same as them. They even tested these subjects in the imperial examinations. In the eyes of those literati, only Confucian classics were orthodox academics, and all others were miscellaneous studies.

These literati had already made up their minds to die, and they estimated that the court would respond soon, such as sending government officials to arrest them or sending troops to suppress them.

As long as the court dared to take action, they would make things worse, making it impossible for the emperor to deal with it, and finally compromise with them to ensure their eternal social status.

……

"Brother, those guys have started!"

In a corner, a boy of about eleven or twelve spoke to Xin Qiji.

"Okay, let's get started! Get all the brothers out."

Xin Qiji said with a grim look on his face.

"Brother, those are adults. If they start fighting, we won't be able to defeat them!"

The other teenagers said somewhat dejectedly that most of them were in their teens.

"What are you afraid of? If they dare to attack you, you won't dare to cry? Don't forget that we are the emperor's disciples! We are his majesty's students! Are you afraid that no one will protect you if the situation gets out of hand?"

"What's more, these guys are obviously targeting our school! The school was founded by His Majesty, and they provide us with food and drink, and a future! Do you still want to go back to farming?"

Xin Qiji looked at the group of classmates around him and said that most of the students in school now are children from ordinary families. They cannot compare with the rich and poor families. It can be said that their families have not even had a door for generations. It was His Majesty the Emperor who opened a door for them.

"Done! Afraid of hair!"

"Dry!"

"I'll call someone!"

……

Young people are easily carried away by passion. When they think about their hard-earned hopes being extinguished and about being oppressed and enslaved like "slaves" for generations, they can no longer suppress their anger.

A group of young people immediately disappeared into the crowd.

"I'll let you guys make some noise, let's see who can make more noise!"

Xin Qiji looked at the literati who were waving flags and shouting by the water with sarcasm on their faces.

……

Liangshan.

"Your Majesty, those people have started protesting by the water!"

Reported by Lu Fangzhen.

"You can't help it? You're just protesting with a march? You're really a bunch of losers!"

Sun Lei smiled nonchalantly and said, he thought there might be some new tricks, but he didn't expect that there were only these inferior ones.

"Your Majesty, should we send troops to suppress it?"

Deng Fei looked at Sun Lei and bowed to ask for his order.

"Your Majesty, if we suppress it, I'm afraid things will get out of control!"

Wen Huanzhang hastily dissuaded them, saying that suppression was the most undesirable approach in the face of demonstrations. The more they were suppressed, the more excited the demonstrators would become, because their purpose was to make things worse.

"Let them make a fuss first. How can I punish them if they don't make a big fuss?" Sun Lei shook his head. It was obviously not the best time to take action now.

"Your Majesty, these people are holding up the banner of Confucianism, and this time they have invited Kong Duanyou, the Duke of the Kong family, to come. I'm afraid they will not give up!"

Xiao Jiasui said.

"Let it go? They want me or not? I have been wanting to deal with a family of traitors for a long time!"

Sun Lei's face turned cold and he said that he had wanted to destroy the Kong family in Qufu for a long time, but he just couldn't find an excuse. Now, the family has come to him.

"His Majesty!"

Everyone looked at the emperor in surprise. They didn't expect that the emperor would destroy the Kong family as well. This was the Kong family that had been passed down for forty-eight generations since the Spring and Autumn Period.

This is the conclusion Sun Lei gave to the Kong family: a family of traitors. If this conclusion were to be made public, it would probably shock the world. Confucianism has a huge foundation spanning thousands of years, and it depends on the Kong family of Qufu.

"Your Majesty, I'm afraid we should just let the Kong family go for now! If we really touch the Kong family, I don't know what will happen to the world!"

Wen Huanzhang began to persuade him again.

"Mr. Wen, how can you destroy this Confucian family without touching the Kong family? Do you want me to go to Qufu to pay homage to Confucius?"

Sun Lei looked at Wen Huanzhang and asked, since the Han Dynasty, emperors of all dynasties have had the habit of worshipping Confucius, and the Kong family was given higher titles step by step until they reached the title of Yansheng Duke.

"This……"

Wen Huanzhang was a little at a loss. The emperor he knew was not afraid of the gods and immortals in heaven and earth, and never believed in ghosts and gods. How could he possibly worship Confucius?

"Besides, even if I disturb the Kong family, what can I do? Who dares to rebel? I will confiscate their property and exterminate their clans. Let's see who dares!"

Sun Lei spoke again, he was not afraid of any consequences, it was nothing more than suppressing the rebellion.

"Your Majesty, I'm afraid those people will cause chaos. Should we let the government control the situation?"

Zhu Gui said that there were probably tens of thousands of people gathered for the parade. It would be easy for chaos to occur if so many people gathered together. It would be bad if there was looting and smashing.

"Anyone who dares to cause trouble will be directly treated as a criminal!"

Sun Lei waved his hand and said that he could tolerate demonstrations, but if someone did anything, they would be seeking death.

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Zhu Gui immediately obeyed the order.

……

The group of literati outside the water shouted for a long time, but seeing that the court had no response at all, they shouted until their throats were smoking and gradually stopped.

"The water is so wide, even if we shout the emperor won't be able to hear us!"

Some people started to say discouraging words.

"The emperor doesn't care? We'll just parade through the city! Let's go, parade along the streets of Liangshan City! Let everyone know!"

A middle-aged Confucian scholar said that since the emperor turned a blind eye, they would continue to add fuel to the fire, and they did not believe that the fire would not burn the palace.

  The Confucian scholars began to march along the streets, and the common people along the way looked at these literati curiously. Why did the intellectuals who were so high and mighty in the past run to the streets and shout today?

"What are you doing? I can't do business anymore!"

Wu Dalang looked angrily at the literati parading on the street. It was the New Year period, the best time for business, but when these guys paraded, they blocked the way for pedestrians and business plummeted.

"Get out of here!"

"Get off the street!"

"Get lost, don't disturb my business!"

The merchants couldn't stand it anymore. They thought everything would be fine if these people left, but they didn't expect these guys to stay on the street and refuse to leave. This was completely preventing them from doing business.

The angry merchants started to throw rotten eggs and vegetable leaves at the literati, and some even went so far as to throw leftovers and slop out directly, causing the literati to flee in panic.