I stole divine power in Daxia

Chapter 536: Confucianism, Legalism, and Miscellaneous Schools’ Different Thoughts

In the Simin Mansion's study, Zhang Shizhong, the chief priest of the Imperial Academy, told the information he knew, including Mei Juncang's reasoning. At the end, he said with hatred, "Killing innocent people in the name of state affairs is no different from being a demon!"

As the chief academic officer of the Imperial Academy, he was of course angry that the collection officer under his command died in such an unclear manner, but what was the use of being angry?
Firstly, the other party took action to deal with a collection officer, and all the evidence that could be eliminated was eliminated. In the end, the only evidence left was the evidence pointing to Zhou Tieyi. Secondly, and most importantly, the Emperor of Daxia in Zixiao Heaven had acquiesced to this matter, and the Queen Mother had also acquiesced to this matter. Outside, there was also the crisis of Zhou Tieyi's becoming a saint. They were really caught between a rock and a hard place, and were attacked from all sides.

"Not urgent."

Dong Xingshu coughed and said softly, "He is just a cruel official. Sooner or later, he will be killed. Let's record this for him first."

As for Gao Wencan, Dong Xingshu was very confident that he could solve the problem.

Zhang Shizhong said anxiously, "Brother, how can you not be anxious? Mei Juncang and the others have retreated, so Gao Wencan will open the library tonight at most. Others may encounter obstacles when entering the library, but Gao Wencan has the Queen Mother, the secret order from the Emperor, and people from the Master's Courtyard around him!"

Apart from the Confucianists and historians on Yujing Mountain, the one who knew best how to enter the library was the Confucius Institute.

Dong Xingshu took some water from the clay stove next to him and poured tea for himself and Zhang Shizhong. The rising steam and the aroma of the tea spread in the slightly chilly spring day, making people feel calm.

He knew why Zhang Shizhong was anxious, because the library contained the last resort left for him by Sima Qian. Sima Qian clearly stated that this was the key to his victory over Zhou Tieyi and even the current emperor. If he lost this resort, Zhang Shizhong really couldn't figure out how he, a third-rank official, and Dong Xingshu, a second-rank official who was almost about to be abolished, could compete with Zhou Tieyi and the emperor of Daxia.

"We can't keep that thing."

Dong Xingshu's eyes are deep.

Zhang Shizhong held the teacup tightly in his hands until the hot water scalded his palms, then he let go and sighed dejectedly.

Their opponents are not fools. Even the so-called 'teammate', the Emperor of Daxia, must ensure the safety of all his subordinates before deciding to personally deal with Zhou Tieyi. Then, no matter what brilliant tricks the Confucians and historians of Tianjing have, they will be turned upside down and controlled in his own hands before he can feel at ease.

"We must first stabilize the country before we can resist foreign aggression. I was the one who first told him this."

Zhang Shizhong served as the chief academic officer of the Imperial Academy and also as a lecturer in the palace. At this moment, he recalled the imperial studies class thirty years ago and felt quite disillusioned.

Dong Xingshu laughed, "Do you still remember what the teacher said to us before he left?"

Seeing that Dong Xingshu was not worried at all and was so confident, Zhang Shizhong felt relieved and looked up to ponder.

Dong Xingshu continued, "The final judgment has never been a secret. If you want to rely solely on the art of final judgment to restrain the strongest person in the world, it is like looking for fish in a tree. The art is always a side branch, and the Tao is the root."

"So how do we restrain them?"

"Since he is the strongest, he must be the strongest himself to control him. We can use his own spear to attack his shield. However, the final conclusion in our hands is to make them believe that this is a technique that can control them. That's why our teacher reminded us that even if it is fake, we can make it real. It was good that Zhou Tieyi entered the academy, and it's also good that they entered the library today, because it will make them believe that this technique has always been there and has always been useful."

Dong Xingshu then said, "He talked about the Way of the Five Immortals at Taiyi Temple, which must be matched with spring farming. We cannot let this go, because it concerns the great principles of the world. You go to the Palace of the Queen Mother of Heaven and tell her what I mean. Wang Mingyi has made great contributions to the reforms in Pingjindu and is worthy of the great responsibility. He should be recalled to Tianjing and be the special envoy for the reform of spring farming."

Zhang Shizhong immediately understood what Dong Xingshu meant. The reason why they, as brothers, were able to unite instead of turning against each other like Tang Anshi did, was because they had the same educational philosophy. They both believed that even if their generation lost, they could cultivate a new generation of young people who would inherit the will of Confucianism.

Even if these young people learn Zhou Tieyi's reform theories and techniques, they will ultimately shape a new Confucianism based on Confucian principles.

The situation in Tianjing is becoming increasingly complicated. Wang Mingyi has led a new type of reform in Pingjindu and has achieved his own results. Now he must return to Beijing.

Because now I can be entrusted with important tasks as soon as I return to Beijing.

They "will not pursue" the matter in the historian's library, but in return, the Queen Mother and the Emperor will come up with something to appease the two "old and young people", and their request is to push Wang Mingyi, the local reformer, into the core of the central reform in one step and completely establish the banner of New Confucianism.

This is indeed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Zhang Shizhong thought that if he didn't take advantage of this opportunity, the core power of agricultural reform would be difficult to hand over to a young man from a weak force.

"I'll do it right now."

Zhang Shizhong stood up and left the Simin Mansion.

In the Si Lu Mansion, which was only a few streets away from the Simin Mansion, Qingkong Gui first tested Mei Juncang's knowledge of the Legalists, and nodded with great satisfaction, "I used to think that the Confucian theory of destiny producing outstanding people was exaggerated, but after seeing the changes in you, I know that it is true. In another month, when the Great Xia Tianxian is completely translated, you will successfully complete the fifth-grade 'borrowing momentum'."

"The most important thing about the fourth-grade 'manipulation technique' is not to play with people's hearts, but to restrain one's own desires. If you understand this, then within a year or two, it won't be a problem to enter the third grade."

Qingkong Gui pointed out to Mei Juncang that the fourth level of Legalism is "manipulation", which is called "art" but actually means to control people with art, to manipulate people's minds with the art of power and intrigue. This is not a difficult task for Mei Juncang who holds great power. The only thing Qingkong Gui is worried about is that Mei Juncang has too much power and will eventually lose himself in the desire for power and intrigue.

As for the transition from the fourth rank to the third rank and setting rules for the world, Zhou Tieyi had already laid the groundwork for Mei Juncang.

From the initial luxury tax pilot to the Tianjing commercial tax that is gradually taking shape today, Zhou Tieyi has always kept this ladder to heaven for Mei Juncang. As long as the people of the Legalists do not snatch it away, there will naturally be no obstacles for Mei Juncang to enter the third rank.

"A teacher should plan for the future of his students. What he has done for you is worthy of you calling him a teacher."

Qingkong Gui looked into the eyes of Mei Juncang as he bowed.

The people below thought that Zhou Tieyi and Mei Juncang had fallen out because of issues regarding the path of Taoism, but without reaching the realm of Taoism, how could they see clearly the path Zhou Tieyi had paved for Mei Juncang.

From the beginning to the end, Mei Juncang has been moving forward on a smooth path, so how could he break up with Zhou Tieyi?

Since there was no falling out, the purpose of Mei Juncang coming to his house today was very clear.

Mei Juncang smiled and bowed, "Teacher has always respected Si Lu and often told me that only by following Si Lu can I learn real skills."

Qingkong Gui snorted, not taking it seriously, "He respects me? It's good enough that he doesn't scold me for being indecisive and follows the rules."

Then he raised his head, looked through the blue sky towards the direction of Taiyi Temple, and exhaled, "How is he going to deal with the affairs of Taiyi Academy?"

Mei Juncang raised his head and said, "Do as you please."

Qingkong Gui pondered for a moment and asked with a smile, "It seems that he has a lot of internal conflicts. You came to me to ask me not to interfere in this matter?" Mei Juncang shook his head, "Since they are doing their own thing, if Si Lu wants to intervene, he can naturally intervene. I just passed some of the information to Si Lu to help you judge."

Qingkong Gui hesitated for a moment and said, "Don't hurt the people."

Mei Juncang smiled and replied, "This incident will not happen on Yujing Mountain, so how could it harm the people?"

At the Railway Chamber of Commerce, Hao Ren woke up from his nap and sat in his seat, thinking for a moment.

Since it has been decided that it is the ancient gods who will take action, he naturally will not get involved anymore. But even though he will not get involved in this matter, he has to prepare for what will happen next.

Hao Ren calculated the forces he could invite. The merchant Qian Guangyun had already entered the third rank of "Jianji". Now the whole world has convenient shipping, industrial development, and financial reforms. All of these are beneficial to the merchants' practice and also make the merchants truly become firm supporters of Zhou Tieyi.

How determined are they? For example, Zhou Tieyi once said that he wanted to control the flow of grain to the western provinces. Merchants from all levels insisted on strictly controlling the flow of grain, despite the possibility of death if they failed to provide disaster relief. Even if Western Buddhist monks gave them a lot of gold and silver, the middle-level and above merchants remained unmoved.

Because Zhou Tieyi now represents the core interests of the merchants, which are far greater than the merchants' previous supporters. Any businessman with a little insight understands that only by following Zhou Tieyi and following this path of reform can the merchants produce a second-grade or even a first-grade person.

Only when merchants produce first- and second-grade products can you avoid being preyed upon by others. Otherwise, even if you make a fortune, it will only bring you death.

Now that they see that Zhou Tieyi has a chance to become a saint, especially with the core elder Shentu Yuan building up momentum, the merchants naturally do not want to be outdone. After learning the news this morning, this afternoon, vendors of all sizes in Tianjing have gradually changed their words and called Zhou Saint one by one.

These are businessmen. They are short-sighted and greedy for profit, but they also possess unimaginable shrewdness and courage.

Qian Guangyun needs to be notified.

Besides this there is another force.

After Hao Ren stood up, the confidant who was guarding outside the door noticed it, knocked on the door and came in, "Sir, I will notify them to come in and work."

"Not urgent."

Hao Ren raised his hand to stop him. "Go and inform the union manager Chu Huanhuan, and ask him to notify his grandfather to come for the meeting, and hand my invitation to Qian, the manager of the Southeast Chamber of Commerce."

"Yes."

In less than half an hour, the two third-rank officials and Chu Huanhuan were invited into Hao Ren's office.

Hao Ren had brewed tea in advance and said to Qian Guangyun, "The saint is preaching at Taiyi Temple, and all the wise men are here. We merchants have received a lot of advice from the saint, so we have to contribute. I heard that the saint wants to build the Thirty-three Heavens. Although we merchants can't do anything else, we have the power to gather wealth from all over the world. I wonder if Manager Qian can team up with a few business elders to represent us merchants."

Although Hao Ren was very dissatisfied with Shen Tu Yuan's recklessness, things had come to this point and even the Shinto was about to take real action. Changing his words at this time would definitely disrupt his own position, so he could only firmly promote Zhou Tieyi's name as a saint.

When Hao Ren takes action, he naturally has more resources and advantages than Shentu Yuan.

Qian Guangyun was surprised and delighted to hear Hao Ren's sudden change of words, and asked cautiously, "If the saint allows my business to build a layer of heaven, I will definitely be happy. Even if the merchants in the world empty their pockets, they are willing to do this to cheer for the saint's preaching."

The merchant has indeed never produced a second-rate product, but in terms of accumulation, the merchant's wealth is indeed not low. After all, he is in charge of the circulation of wealth in the world. Even if they are to be divided up by the various companies behind the scenes, the merchant must have a lot of good things hidden secretly, but he just didn't dare to show them before.

But it is different now. To build one of the Thirty-three Heavens, as long as Zhou Tieyi allows, the merchants will really sell everything they have to get involved. Although they don’t have second-grade treasures, they can still come up with treasures that can replace second-grade treasures.

Hao Ren first dealt with Qian Guangyun, his own man, and then looked at Chu Wensheng from the Za family.

The old man from this miscellaneous family was still wearing his patchwork clothes. His granddaughter Chu Huanhuan snorted coldly at the look Hao Ren gave her.

Chu Huanhuan established the first factory union, opening up a new path for Zajia. However, the establishment of a union was bound to conflict with the interests of the factory itself.

Before there was no trade union, no one paid much attention to it. But now that there is a channel to communicate with the higher-ups, the workers' demands naturally converge on Chu Huanhuan, so Chu Huanhuan has had many arguments with Hao Ren.

Chu Wensheng has more life experience. When he saw the Railway Chamber of Commerce being established step by step and putting many of their miscellaneous ideas into practice, his admiration for Zhou Tieyi went far beyond the conversation they had in seclusion.

So even though the Railway Chamber of Commerce still has many shortcomings, he often advises his granddaughter that many things are excessive, even when fighting for the rights of workers.

He cupped his hands and smiled, "My granddaughter is still young and inexperienced, Manager Hao, please bear with me."

Hao Ren certainly wouldn't argue with Chu Huanhuan. He said, "Mr. Chu, I wonder if we can contact the expert of the 'Xiao Yao You' sect now?"

Chu Wentian did not answer immediately. He first took out a piece of canvas from his arms and, like a magic trick, spread it over the surrounding space. Then he said, "Do you want our family to help Lord Zhou build a sky tower?"

"Right on my mind."

Chu Wentian thought for a moment, "You have caused the miscellaneous families and merchants in Tianjing, who are third-rank officials close to Marquis Zhou, to leave Tianjing one after another. I'm afraid it's not just as simple as helping Marquis Zhou establish Tianyu, right?"

Hao Ren's expression changed slightly. As expected, the old man is wise. Chu Wentian realized the key to the problem in an instant. Now going to Taiyi Temple to establish a layer of Tianyu is the icing on the cake. The most important thing is to transfer the accumulation of miscellaneous families and merchants away from Tianjing and prepare for the worst.

Chu Wentian continued, "Is it related to what happened at Tai Academy this morning?"

Hao Ren nodded slightly.

As he nodded, a gust of wind blew into the sealed room and transformed into an old man holding a bamboo stick, wearing linen clothes, with a burly figure and a beard tied in a pigtail. After this second-rank man from the Miscellaneous Family came in, he got straight to the point, "If he wants to rob the Shi Family Library today, we from the Miscellaneous Family want to participate."

"Why?"

Hao Ren was a little puzzled.

The old man who appeared sighed softly, "Because the first-class Taoist lineage of my miscellaneous family is also sealed in the historian's library."

(End of this chapter)