Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

The collation and annotation of the Four Books and Five Classics was an absolutely major undertaking that attracted everyone's attention.

The content of the Four Books and Five Classics is relatively simple and there is not much controversy.

Some, however, are highly controversial and have been debated several times throughout history.

By the time the Ming Dynasty was established, Neo-Confucianism had achieved absolute dominance.

Therefore, the imperial examination textbooks of the Ming Dynasty were mainly based on the annotations of Cheng Yi, Cheng Hao, and Zhu Xi, and were written according to their interpretations.

Now that the emperor wants to re-edit and annotate the Four Books and Five Classics, it is clear that he intends to use new learning to replace Neo-Confucianism.

Some officials, recalling the recent wave of criticism against the Song dynasty, vaguely understood the emperor's thoughts.

Some officials, who upheld Neo-Confucianism, vehemently opposed this.

Lu Weiqi, the Right Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, said:

"Your Majesty, Zhu Xi's Collected Annotations on the Four Books fully explains the true meaning of the sages."

"Students all over the world follow its teachings, so there is no need for re-editing and annotation."

This garnered support from the court officials, who believed that there was no need for any changes.

This is what they've learned for generations. If they suddenly change, they'll have to start on the same footing as everyone else.

Upon seeing this, Zhu Youjian explained:

"Zhu Xi's annotations are naturally excellent."

"But now that punctuation marks have been standardized, they must be proofread."

"Apart from that, most of the content of the Four Books Annotated does not need to be changed."

After calming the assembled officials, Zhu Youjian then said:
"However, Zhu Xi's commentary was ultimately written in the declining period of recent times."

"What he was talking about was how Chinese civilization should protect itself in the face of decline."

"Therefore, it is inevitably somewhat conservative, which is out of step with the times for establishing a new dynasty and returning to a golden age."

"I believe that these contents that are not suitable for the new era must be changed."

These words took the ministers by surprise; they had not expected the emperor to view Neo-Confucianism in this way.

Those who thought the emperor's criticism of Song was intended to completely overturn Neo-Confucianism were surprised to find that the emperor affirmed the significance of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism and continued to use most of the commentaries.

Those who upheld the orthodox tradition of Neo-Confucianism did not expect that the emperor, starting from the founding of the Celestial Empire, believed that the Cheng-Zhu school of Neo-Confucianism was outdated.

They certainly had to explain, but the fact that the Song Dynasty never became the Celestial Empire made their explanations extremely weak.

While the reign of Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty could certainly be called the Celestial Empire, the power at that time was held by the nobility, and no one could say that the country was made into a Celestial Empire by governing the country through Neo-Confucianism.

On the contrary, their abandonment of Jiaozhi and other places during the reign of the Three Yangs led to the Luchuan Rebellion. The Tumu Crisis that followed was also related to their flawed frontier policies.

After the Tumu Crisis, Confucian scholars who studied Neo-Confucianism completely seized power. Although the Ming Dynasty under their rule could be described as stable, it maintained peace for more than two hundred years.

However, the distance between us and the Celestial Empire is growing ever wider, to the point that it is practically unreachable.

If the emperor wanted to establish a new dynasty, he could no longer rely on Neo-Confucianism.
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After this thorough review, the court officials realized why the emperor was dissatisfied with Neo-Confucianism and wanted to re-edit and annotate the Four Books and Five Classics.

Emotionally, they didn't see the problem as a fault of rationalism, but they couldn't find any other culprit to blame.

It's not fair to say that the Ming Dynasty was always ruled by incompetent and corrupt officials, which is why it was constantly declining.

If we really need to find a scapegoat, the most suitable one is Neo-Confucianism, which holds a dominant ideological position.

The Ming Dynasty's scholar-officials governed the country according to the Cheng-Zhu school of Neo-Confucianism, which led to the dynasty's increasing decline.

The Neo-Confucianism that ruled the court certainly deserved this responsibility.

Qian Qianyi, who was appointed to oversee the collation and annotation of the Four Books and Five Classics, further attacked Neo-Confucianism by starting from the previous debates on ancient and modern times:
"Neo-Confucianism always refers to the ancients, and even the eight-legged essay must adopt the tone of the ancients."

"If this continues, people will think that the present is not as good as the past, so how can it become stronger and stronger?"

"I believe that the world will surely progress and the future will be better than the present. Only in this way can the Ming Dynasty become stronger and stronger and surpass the previous dynasties."

These words greatly pleased Emperor Zhu Youjian, who praised them, saying:

"Mr. Qian's words have revealed a problem with Neo-Confucianism."

"Neo-Confucianism emerged in the Song Dynasty and had its purpose."

"Because in a time of decline like the Song Dynasty, it was already quite difficult for the Chinese people to preserve their culture and pass on the wisdom of the sages. We can't ask for more."

"However, the Ming Dynasty is far stronger than the former Song Dynasty. Even though it has declined somewhat, its territory is still larger than that of the Song Dynasty at its peak, and it may even become a celestial empire again."

"How can we apply the scholarship of Song Dynasty Confucian scholars in this situation?"

"Did the Song Dynasty Confucian scholars ever consider how to make the Song Dynasty a celestial empire that ruled the world?"

This was a question the court officials found difficult to answer. Zhu Youjian then said:
"We admire the morality of the sages and can learn from their ideas on self-cultivation."

"However, measures for governing the country, especially in foreign affairs, should be selectively adopted."

"Therefore, I have ordered the re-editing and annotation of the Four Books and Five Classics, to create a new system of learning suitable for the Ming Dynasty based on the work of our predecessors."

"We must know that the world will inevitably progress and the future will be better than the present. Standing on the shoulders of our predecessors, we will surely be able to create even better knowledge."

His words were righteous and forceful, affirming the significance of Neo-Confucianism. He also believed that even better scholarship could be created based on Neo-Confucianism.

Liu Zongzhou, Qian Qianyi, and others were greatly encouraged, and those ministers who aspired to achieve great things were equally eager to see what would happen:

By participating in such a grand event, they too can leave their mark. If the Ming Dynasty truly becomes the Celestial Empire again in the future, then their contributions will be remembered.

Grand Secretary Han Kuang stepped forward and said:

"The way of the sage changes with the times, therefore Your Majesty has re-established rites and music."

"Zhu Xi's commentary on the Four Books is the Song Dynasty Confucian understanding of the words of sages."

"Now that people's understanding has changed, it is necessary to re-edit and interpret the teachings of the sages."

"I believe this matter should be overseen by the Hanlin Academy, with the participation of virtuous officials from both the court and the countryside."

He was the first to express his approval, and this inspired a large number of officials to support the collation and annotation of the Four Books and Five Classics.

Zhu Youjian was very satisfied, and looking at the expectant ministers, he gave the order:
“In addition to the Hanlin Academy and the National History Museum, a new Classics and History Museum was established.”

"He was specifically responsible for collating and annotating the Four Books and Five Classics, as well as classical and historical texts used as references, and helped the Textbook Department review textbooks."

"From now on, the scope of the imperial examinations will be limited to these books. Official punctuated and annotated versions will be published to educate students throughout the land."

The matter was formally handed over to the Hanlin Academy, with Liu Zongzhou and Qian Qianyi remaining in charge, while other officials were allowed to participate.

Everyone can submit their own interpretations, which they believe to be correct, to the Imperial Academy of Classics and History.

However, the final decision on whether to adopt this approach requires the consent of Liu Zongzhou and Qian Qianyi.

This method greatly enhanced the sense of participation among the officials.

They no longer objected to the collation and annotation of the Four Books and Five Classics; instead, they wanted to incorporate their own expertise into the process.

Zhu Youjian successfully gained the support of his ministers, which reduced the resistance to the collation and annotation of the Four Books and Five Classics and the promotion of new learning.

More specific matters will be discussed at the lecture on the 12th.
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Therefore, after the court assembly ended, apart from the officials who served as examiners along with Yang Jingchen and Cheng Jiming, other officials with academic insights flocked to the residences of Liu Zongzhou and Qian Qianyi to discuss the issue of collating and annotating the Four Books and Five Classics.

The largest crowd gathered at Qian Qianyi's residence was almost overwhelming.

He was already a leader of the Donglin Party, and after publishing "On Production," he gained fame in academic circles.

Many people regard him as a master of Confucianism and believe that he will surely be the one to take the lead in academia in the future.

His disciple, Qu Shisi, in particular, vehemently praised his teacher. In front of everyone, he said:
"Mr. Muzhai founded practical learning and advocated applying knowledge to practical use, all for the purpose of making the Ming Dynasty strong again and becoming a superior nation."

"The only thing that can replace traditional learning is practical learning; empty talk and the philosophy of mind cannot make the Ming Dynasty strong."

They denigrated Liu Zongzhou's philosophy of mind in order to promote the status of practical learning.

When people arrived at Qian Qianyi's residence, most of them agreed with his scholarship. At this time, the School of Mind was indeed not well-received, and the Donglin Party used the pretext of opposing the School of Mind to revive Neo-Confucianism, thus establishing influence among scholars.

Therefore, they had no objection to Qu Shisi's criticism of the School of Mind.

However, some people disagree with the idea that practical learning should replace traditional learning.

Hou Xundao, Imperial Censor of Guangdong Circuit:

"Neo-Confucianism certainly has its shortcomings and needs to be improved."

"But to completely replace it with new knowledge would be going too far."

“We, the scholars of Donglin, should revive Neo-Confucianism and create Donglin Neo-Confucianism based on Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism.”

They agree with the collation and annotation of the Four Books and Five Classics, but do not believe that Neo-Confucianism should be abandoned.

Instead, they called for the creation of a new school of Neo-Confucianism belonging to the Donglin Party, based on the Cheng-Zhu school of Neo-Confucianism.

This idea was proposed by him in order to maintain the Donglin Party and to unite its members to the greatest extent possible.

The Donglin Party was based on the revival of Neo-Confucianism. If this banner were lost, a group of people would surely become disloyal.

Hou Xun didn't care what kind of scholarship would dominate after the Ming Dynasty, but he believed that the Donglin Party must not split.

His patron, Zou Yuanbiao, was particularly devoted to the study of Neo-Confucianism. His teacher, Zheng Sanjun, also revered Neo-Confucianism and would not abandon this field of study.

Therefore, he opposed Qian Qianyi and Qu Shisi's use of practical learning to replace Neo-Confucianism, believing that Neo-Confucianism could be improved, but its name should not be discarded.

Hou Xun's viewpoint has been agreed upon by many people.

Although they realized, under the emperor's persuasion, that Neo-Confucianism should be reformed.

However, he did not believe that Neo-Confucianism should be completely abandoned and replaced with new learning.

The Cheng-Zhu school of Neo-Confucianism was developed successively by the Cheng brothers and Zhu Xi, so it is only natural to add another developer.

They hoped that Qian Qianyi would develop Neo-Confucianism, rather than pursue practical learning.

If that were done, the existing Donglin Party members would inevitably split due to academic differences.

Having already suffered heavy losses at the hands of the eunuch faction, they were unwilling to see this happen.
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Qu Shisi listened to their ideas and hesitated for a moment.

As a member of the Donglin Party, he naturally did not want the party to split.

However, asking one's teacher, Qian Qianyi, to abandon the practical learning he had already established in order to improve Neo-Confucianism would seem foolish:
No matter how well one improves Neo-Confucianism, one can only rank after Cheng Yi and Zhu Xi.

How can one establish a new school of thought and become the founder of a school of thought to gain status?

After some hesitation, he went to see his teacher, Qian Qianyi. After explaining everyone's plans, he inquired:
"Teacher, can practical learning really flourish like theoretical learning in the future?"

"If we are not confident, we should improve our understanding of Neo-Confucianism."

After hearing the ideas of other Donglin Party members, Qian Qianyi hesitated for a moment.

He certainly had confidence in practical learning, but he himself didn't believe that practical learning could replace Neo-Confucianism.

In today's world, Neo-Confucianism is absolutely dominant. For practical learning to achieve such a position, it would require at least a century of accumulation.

Moreover, let alone replacing Neo-Confucianism, practical learning in the new field of knowledge also has to compete with science. Even Liu Zongzhou's philosophy of mind can be considered a new field of knowledge.

The emperor showed no favoritism towards any of the three schools of thought, and they would continue to compete even after the fall of Neo-Confucianism.

If one transforms the creation of practical learning into the improvement of theoretical learning, it will be more conducive to promoting knowledge and making it accepted by people all over the world.

With this thought in mind, Qian Qianyi also considered the principles of practical learning:
"Practical application of knowledge and skills, seeking truth from facts."

"These eight characters were chosen by His Majesty!"

"It contains the word 'real,' referring to practical learning, not to the realm of Neo-Confucianism."

"If I abandon him, will His Majesty still support him?"

Shaking his head, Qian Qianyi's somewhat confused mind cleared up.

Regardless of whether he had the ability to improve Neo-Confucianism, he would have been abandoned by the emperor himself after abandoning practical learning.

Therefore, it was impossible for him to abandon practical learning and return to theoretical studies.

He said to Qu Shisi:

"Improving Neo-Confucianism is absolutely impossible; His Majesty is determined to overthrow Song Dynasty learning."

“The study of classics in the future will inevitably be a new field of learning belonging to the Ming Dynasty.”

"The Ming Dynasty, not the former Song Dynasty, ruled the world."

Qu Shisi's expression changed several times, and he realized why the emperor wanted to promote new learning.

The current emperor aspires to be a wise and benevolent ruler, and plans to return to the Celestial Empire and usher in a new era.

Those old things naturally clashed with the emperor's eyes.

As a remnant of the Song Dynasty, Song learning will inevitably be discarded.

The Confucian classics of the Ming Dynasty will inevitably become the Ming School.

Regardless of which school of thought it was the dominant one, Ming learning could never be a branch of Neo-Confucianism, which belonged to Song learning.

The scholarship of the Ming Dynasty cannot become subservient to the scholarship of the Song Dynasty; the current emperor cannot tolerate this.

Believing he understood the emperor's thoughts, Qu Shisi was both worried and pleased, and said:

"In that case, it is not feasible to improve Neo-Confucianism."

"However, Mr. Jishan's philosophy of mind also originated from Song Dynasty learning, so the Emperor will certainly not like it."

"The teacher's practical learning will surely flourish and become a new school of thought that replaces Neo-Confucianism."

Qian Qianyi stroked his beard and smiled, also believing it to be one of his strengths.

Compared to the philosophy of mind, practical learning was a completely new field of study, and it was even guided by the emperor.

Only such scholarship can represent the Ming Dynasty and become the Ming Dynasty's classical studies.

Of course, we must also pay attention to the philosophy of mind and not take it lightly. He said to Qu Shisi:

"Although the philosophy of mind originated from Lu Jiuyuan, it was in this dynasty that it was developed and popularized."

“Mr. Baisha, Mr. Ganquan, and Mr. Yangming are the ones who perfected the philosophy of mind.”

"Liu Zongzhou also belongs to this lineage, integrating the learning of Wang Zhanzhi."

"The Emperor may well accept the School of Mind and regard it as the classics of the Ming Dynasty."

He pointed out the differences between the School of Mind and the School of Principle, and believed that Wang Yangming and others, along with Lu Jiuyuan, were equivalent to Zhu Xi and the Cheng brothers in status.

It's entirely plausible to say that half or even more of the philosophy of mind originated in the Ming Dynasty.

He still valued Liu Zongzhou highly, believing him to be the only person who could rival him for academic standing.

Qu Shisi nodded and then brought up the issue of the Donglin Party.

Now that the establishment of practical learning has been confirmed, those in the Donglin Party who still cling to Neo-Confucianism may part ways with them.

Qian Qianyi was also somewhat reluctant to part with it, but he knew better than anyone the emperor was wary of the Donglin Party, and said:

"Let's separate then. That way, we might have more opportunities to become high-ranking officials."

"They all use the name Donglin Party. Donglin Party is too conspicuous in the imperial court."

"It would be better to divide into several factions, so that His Majesty would not have any reservations."

He instructed Qu Shisi to win over his core followers and prepare to separate from those who did not accept practical learning.

Zhu Youjian's plan to use academic discourse to divide the Donglin faction has finally entered the implementation stage. (End of this chapter)