Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 376 Qi Min Yao Shu
Yidu.

This is a small county town located in Qingzhou. It is ordinary, neither big nor small, and there is nothing special about it among many cities.

The sky was just getting light and the city was gradually waking up from its sleep.

The farmers walked out of their homes, carrying their farm tools, greeted their neighbors, and walked towards their own farmland with a smile.

A shepherd was driving his flock of sheep on a path outside the city.

Everything is so peaceful and tranquil.

The west of the city used to be the gathering place for wealthy families.

At this moment, the glory is no longer as great as before, even worse than other corners of the city, dead and lifeless.

When Liu Taozi led his troops here, most of the wealthy families here had fled.

The few who did not escape were hit by the iron fist of the Equal Field System and lost a large amount of farmland, property, and tenants. This was still a good thing. As for those who did all kinds of bad things and were lawless in their daily lives, the grass on their graves was half a person tall.

The door of a large mansion was pushed open, and an old servant came out with water in his hand and began to sprinkle water on the street. After sprinkling the water, he swept it a little.

The alley was quiet, with only this person there.

After being busy for a while, the old servant finally entered the yard.

The house was extremely large, and it would probably take half an hour just to walk around the wall.

There are countless houses inside, but most of them are empty now.

Only after walking into the backyard could I hear some sounds.

An old man was sitting in the pavilion in the front yard, with five or six young men kneeling around him. The old man was holding a yellowed ancient book in his hand and was earnestly explaining the classics to everyone.

The young men were of different ages, the older ones were already adults and the younger ones were just children. They were all confused and shook their heads, but the old man didn't care whether they could understand or not, he just kept talking.

After being influenced by metaphysics and Buddhism, the classics became even more obscure and difficult to understand. Many people have studied them for their entire lives and still find it difficult to master them. They are becoming increasingly detached from the masses and even from the elite.

Many of the great scholars of this era, especially those in the north, were fearful about the future.

They can't see where the future of classics lies, nor can they see where the way out is.

This is the worst example of the collapse of rituals and music.

The great Confucian scholars in the past wanted to use classics and rites to restrain the emperor, but now, they can't even restrain the literati. No one believes in the righteousness of the classics anymore, and no one cares about the morality of the ancients. Naked desires have replaced the beliefs in the classics.

The old man talked a lot, his mouth became dry, and he slowly put down the book in his hand.

He looked at the disciples in front of him, but saw that they were all absent-minded.

The old man suddenly became angry.

"So many people want to read it but no one explains it to them. How can you ignore it?!"

"You must know that classics are the great truth!! If you don't know classics, how can you be a human being?!"

Listening to the old man's words, an older young man smiled bitterly and said, "Uncle, what's the point of studying scriptures now?"

"The imperial court selects scholars according to their specialties. The first is the scholar-official category, followed by the scholar-official category. There are many candidates who are good at law, calligraphy, and mathematics, but the classics are the least valued."

The old man was furious, "What do the Hu people know about the principles of governing the world?"

"Our family has been passing down the classics from generation to generation. From ancient times to the present, I have never heard of anyone neglecting the classics and valuing miscellaneous studies."

The young man retorted: "Uncle, I remember that uncle was..."

"It's because there are too many people like him that my family has fallen to this point!!"

The old man vented a few more words, his face flushed and his eyes full of grief and anger.

"In the past, our family was so famous in Yidu. Now, all the good farmland in the southern suburbs is gone, and only less than half of the dozens of shops are left. I teach you to read the classics, not to make you work for the Hu people! I want you to know right from wrong and understand the principles in the classics!"

"The Hu people claim to be the Mandate of Heaven and appoint people like Zu Ting as their chief minister. Sooner or later, they will be defeated. This classic will be useful one day!"

"Those who study the classics should not attach so much importance to fame, wealth and status, but should focus on the great principles of the Spring and Autumn Annals."

As the old man was talking, the old servant suddenly ran over here in a hurry and looked at everyone, "Master! It's not good!"

"There are many soldiers and an official outside the gate."

The old man's face changed drastically. He quickly stood up, left a few older young men behind, and asked the rest to go back to the backyard.

He led these people to the front door, saying as he walked: "This group of people will never stop, it is obvious that they want to eat us up. However, we are people who are familiar with the classics, and we cannot fight with the barbarians with weapons, otherwise it would be a loss of status. If he wants it, just give it to him, don't talk back!"

Everyone hurried to the door.

The gate of the house was open, and a man who looked like an official was standing there, looking around with a smile.

Seeing the group of people coming, the official hurriedly bowed and saluted.

"Meet the Father-in-Law"

The old man nodded slightly in return, and without being polite, he asked directly: "I wonder what you can do for me, my distinguished guest?"

The official said, "I am Wei Changxian, the secretary of the Minister of the Court. I am here to visit your palace on the order of the Minister of the Court."

There was some surprise on the old man's face, and the indifference on his face suddenly disappeared.

"Ah, it turns out to be Lord Wei. What are you guys still standing there for? Why don't you pay your respects to him?!"

The young men behind him hurriedly bowed to greet him.

Wei Changxian smiled and nodded. The old man hurriedly bowed and warmly invited the other party into the house.

The two walked on the road one after the other. Wei Changxian looked around the mansion and said, "I didn't expect Mr. Jia to be so frugal."

The old man's lips trembled, and then he said, "My family has always been frugal and frugal."

The two men walked into the house, and the old man treated the distinguished guests with true etiquette of a wealthy family. He ordered people to slaughter livestock and asked several of his own sons and daughters to come out to pay their respects.

Then the normal etiquette of the big families began, and they started to build relationships.

"Where is Duke Wei from?"

"I'm from Quyang."

"Oh? I wonder if the Duke of Wei Shou in the court is yours."

"In terms of seniority, he is my nephew."

“Ah! I see!!”

"Oh, then our two families have a connection. My father once taught Duke Wei."

As long as both parties are big families, there will be some connection between them anyway.

The two exchanged a few pleasantries and became closer. Old Man Jia then asked, "What instructions does Grandpa have? If there is something, why not send someone to tell me directly? I will go to visit him myself. I have admired Grandpa for a long time."

Wei Changxian said seriously: "In fact, this is what your majesty meant. Your majesty heard from others that there is a noble man in the Jia family of Yidu, named Jia Sixie, and he sent me here to inquire about his situation."

Old man Jia was stunned for a long time, and murmured: "The person you are talking about is my uncle, he has been dead for eight or nine years."

Old man Jia quickly wiped his tears and said sadly: "It's a pity that he never met a wise ruler in his life. Now that the wise ruler has ascended the throne, he is gone. How painful! How painful!!"

Wei Changxian sighed. Before coming here, he probably thought that if the other party was still alive, it would be impossible for him to cut off contact with Gao Yun directly.

Wei Changxian said: "Your Majesty, I heard that he wrote a book on agriculture and has many manuscripts. He attaches great importance to these. Does he have any disciples alive? Does he have any manuscripts at home?"

Old man Jia was very excited. "How could His Majesty think so highly of me? My uncle's spirit in the afterlife must have wished for his manuscripts. I have carefully preserved them!"

He stood up and said, "Please sit here for a while. I will go find the manuscript for you!"

Before Wei Changxian could dissuade him, the old man had already left in a hurry.

As he walked out of the guest room, the old man's excited face suddenly became flustered.

He called a few young men over.

"Quick! Quick!"

"Now drive to the residence of your great-grandfather who studies various subjects and look for his manuscripts! Get in the car! Get in the car!"

Everyone didn't dare to delay, got on the car and headed out quickly. Looking at the uncle who was almost full of energy, the young man was a little surprised.

"Uncle, didn't you just say that the Hu people are in power?"

"Well, how can a wise ruler be called a barbarian when he is able to show respect to the wise and humble himself and send people from thousands of miles away to invite us?!"

The group arrived at Jia Sixie's residence.

Jia Sixie came from a prominent family, the Yidu Jia family. Several of his brothers were high-ranking officials, the most famous of whom was Jia Sibo.

They were originally from the Wuwei Jia family. Yes, the Wuwei Jia from Jia Xu. They and the Wuwei Duan from Duan Shao were fellow villagers. They migrated here later because of war.

And Jia Sixie's status in the clan was actually not very high. Jia Sixie was not from the main branch, but from a small clan.

Moreover, he resigned from his official position very early and started his own research.

From the Qin and Han Dynasties to the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the "wise men" holding classics shouted every day that agriculture was the foundation of the country, but in fact, they extremely despised agriculture and sericulture.

They look down on farmers and agricultural technology.

Jia Sixie, a man who put aside his classics, worked in the fields every day, and chatted and laughed with old farmers, did not have a very good reputation within the clan.

It was not until Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty came to power that he began to spend a lot of money to collect books from the public. Only then did "Qi Min Yao Shu" receive the treatment it deserved. Since then, its status has continued to improve and it has become an agricultural masterpiece that has influenced thousands of years. Even compared with several other famous agricultural books, "Qi Min Yao Shu" can compete for the top position.

Jia Sixie had no son, only a daughter. After his daughter got married, the couple died one after another. There was only an old servant in charge of cleaning the place. The servant was also old and could hardly hear clearly.

After everyone arrived, the servant led them to the study.

Although Jia Sixie had passed away for a long time, his residence was still kept clean, including his collection of books. Many of the classics had been taken away by his son-in-law, leaving only the agricultural books he wrote and related materials.

These documents are also well preserved and are completely free of damage and stains.

After seeing these things, Old Man Jia finally breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly asked a few young men to pack up the documents.

He also gave the old servant some money as a reward for his diligence and dedication over the years.

They started walking back again.

As they walked along the road, Old Man Jia earnestly told his attendants, "We don't just want books, we also want his disciples!"

"This disciple must also be found as soon as possible."

Several young men were very embarrassed. "Books are easy to find, but his disciples, it's been more than ten years, his disciples have long gone to different places, where can we find them?"

"Bastard thing!"

"Is it hard to find a disciple? You, you, and you, the three of you will be his disciples from now on!"

"what?"

Several young men looked at each other and said, "Sir, we have never learned anything about agriculture and sericulture."

Old Man Jia pointed at the documents and said, "Didn't you see these? Copy them down. You will learn from them in the future!"

"I will give you some of the family's farmland. You can move there in the future and learn farming while reading books."

The young man was stunned.

"Sir, didn't you say that those were just miscellaneous knowledge?"

"What kind of miscellaneous knowledge is this?! Food is the foundation of the people! Agriculture is a major issue for the country, how can we take it lightly?"

"I don't care how long it takes you, ten years, twenty years, you have to learn these books thoroughly for me. The Minister's Secretary has come here in person. Do you know how great an honor this is? His Majesty seems to attach great importance to agriculture and sericulture. If our family can produce another person like my uncle, even if he is half as good as him, our family will be able to revive again!"

"listen to me!"

Several people had no choice but to lower their heads, and Old Man Jia took the things back to the guest room.

Wei Changxian sat for a long time and finally waited for him to come back. As soon as he stood up and hadn't said anything, Old Man Jia asked someone to move all the things over and put them aside.

There are a lot of these books. Although Jia Sixie only wrote one book, he did countless research for this book. There are many contents and knowledge manuscripts that were not compiled into the book. These are the original manuscripts, piled aside like a small mountain.

Wei Changxian was overjoyed. He hurried forward and gently flipped through the books, his eyes becoming brighter and brighter.

"Okay!"

"Great!"

"The Minister will definitely reward you handsomely!"

Old Man Jia cleared his throat and whispered, "These are all the life's work of my uncle. If they are valued by the emperor, it would be an honor for our family. We would never dare to ask for any reward! Please go back and tell our grandfather that our family does not want any reward."

Wei Changxian was still smiling, and old man Jia continued: "As for the disciple you are looking for, it has been more than ten years, and I am afraid it will be difficult to find him. However, our family has always attached great importance to agricultural studies. There are many children in the family who study day and night, but they are still very young, and I am afraid it will be useless if they go. If one day they can achieve success in their studies, they will definitely be allowed to visit us."

Wei Changxian more or less understood the other party's thoughts and nodded.

"I understand. Thank you, Mr. Jia."

Old Man Jia asked Wei Changxian to stay for another day, and then hurriedly took his disciples to copy the manuscripts, leaving behind many copies of the manuscripts.

The next afternoon, Wei Changxian finally got into the car with the manuscripts and left.

Old man Jia and his clansmen escorted him far away.

His eyes were full of longing, and he said to his attendants passionately: "Your Majesty is truly wise! The world will be peaceful!"

Everyone pursed their lips. If they didn't know how you usually talked about the emperor in the mansion, they would really believe it.

Wei Changxian walked very fast, first by car, then by boat, and then by horse. He was not young, almost fifty years old. But he was very strong, and a forced march was nothing to him. After all, he had a new concubine this year.

Although Wei Changxian and Wei Shou are relatives, their personalities are quite different.

Wei Changxian was not the kind of person who bullied the weak and feared the strong. When Gao Yang was in power, he dared to write a letter to refute the government, and was then dismissed and exiled, and has been stuck at the bottom ever since.

It was not until Liu Taozi came to power that Wei Shou and other court ministers secretly sought positions for their relatives and recommended each other.

Of course, there were some bad guys among the people they recommended, but there were also good people, like Wei Changxian. Zu Ting felt that he was upright enough, so he kept him by his side to help him with some clerical work.

Wei Changxian walked for a very long time and finally returned to Pingcheng within the appointed time and met Zu Ting.

Zu Ting received these books, but did not rush to hand them over to the emperor. Instead, he read them all night under the pretext of revising them.

There were a lot of documents, but Zu Ting read very quickly. He stole thousands of books from his good friend. It was not known whether it was considered stealing or robbery. Anyway, after he got them, he finished reading them in less than half a year, but he did not return them to the owner.
Zu Ting read through the documents hastily, memorized the important points, and then hurriedly handed them to Liu Taozi.

Liu Taozi, Gao Yin and Zu Ting were flipping through the books in the main hall.

Zu Ting pretended to pick it up and looked at it for a few seconds, then stroked his beard and said, "This Lord Jia, what he thinks is similar to what I think."

"I also think that agriculture and sericulture should first focus on reform. We cannot follow the ancient kings. For example, Shennong, although he was a saint, compared with the present, he mastered very few technologies. Therefore, in managing agriculture and sericulture, we must first focus on reform and encourage new technologies and new tools. We cannot refute or suppress these people, but must support them and reward them."

Zu Ting said this and turned to the next page.

"Ah, Your Majesty, look, Lord Jia actually said the same thing! He also used Shennong as an example!"

"We really have the same idea!"

Gao Yu narrowed his eyes and looked at Zu Ting dimly, "Grandpa, did you read it last night?"

“Can I finish reading so many manuscripts in one night??”

"If it's someone else, no, but if it's my grandfather, then it's hard to say."

Zu Ting was somewhat unhappy. "Why should I do this? I secretly read his book just to show off a few words in front of His Majesty? How could I be that bored?"

Liu Taozi glanced at Zu Ting and said, "If it were someone else, they wouldn't be so bored. But if it were Zugong, it's hard to say."

Zu Ting laughed out loud and put away the book in his hand.

"Your Majesty is wise! You saw through me at once!"

Gao Yu was hesitant to speak. What kind of person is this? He seemed normal at first, but why does he seem to be becoming more and more abnormal?

Zu Ting then quickly became serious, "However, I read it in advance just to understand the quality of the book as soon as possible."

"Your Majesty, this book, "Essential Techniques for Governing the People," is a masterpiece for governing the world!"

(End of this chapter)