The immortal of the Tang Dynasty, but the game starts at Xuanwu Gate?

Chen Huai'an was stunned when he heard the conditions Wang Gui offered.

He could hardly believe his ears: "What did you say?"

Wang Gui said calmly, "You can take the Wang family's books to make copies, but you must return the originals to us after you've finished making the copies."

"This is the greatest sincerity we can offer."

Chen Huai'an was full of questions, and even suspected that Wang Gui in front of him might have been possessed.

Does he know what he's saying?

Can he make rubbings of all the books in the Wang family's collection?

It's so numb!

Are you kidding me?

Chen Huai'an was starting to have some doubts.

He thought Wang Gui would offer better terms, since things had come to this point and they couldn't very well talk about money and supplies; that would be too ridiculous.

In Chen Huai'an's view, the best conditions Wang Gui could offer were nothing more than land, such as supporting his land investigation.

He has never covered this up; he has wanted to investigate the land for a long time, and everyone knows that.

But Wang Gui immediately went for a royal flush, which was equivalent to going all in.

He couldn't help but have doubts.

"Are you serious?" Looking at Wang Gui's seemingly genuine expression, Chen Huai'an felt a little suspicious.

"Of course." A smile flashed across Wang Gui's face. "I know what you want to do. We can help you. You need the Wang family, and the Wang family needs you too."

"This is something I said from the beginning."

"Of course I'm serious."

Upon hearing this, Chen Huai'an frowned deeply and did not immediately agree.

Were the conditions offered by Wang Gui really good?

Of course, that would be great.

It's unbelievably good.

The Wang family's book collection is extremely important, and the condition of offering all of their books carries a subtle weight.

It is a bargaining chip whose symbolic significance far outweighs its practical value and whose cultural value far outweighs its political value.

The reason why the Five Clans and Seven Noble Families were able to monopolize the interpretation of the classics and control official careers was that they possessed exclusive book collections and the barrier of oral transmission from master to disciple.

A complete set of classic commentaries, rare ancient books, and records of historical institutions and systems are all passed down through hand-copying. A single set of books may represent the accumulated wealth of several generations and cannot be purchased on the market.

Why does Chen Huai'an need to win over so many families?

Besides wanting their help in fighting against the Five Clans and Seven Noble Families, the deeper purpose, of course, was to covet the books stored within their families.

Without these things, even if you have the best and cheapest paper and movable type printing, what can you print without a copy?

Before the advent of woodblock printing and papermaking, a good handwritten copy in the Tang Dynasty could be worth anywhere from a few strings of cash to several tens of strings of cash.

Aristocratic families often possess thousands of volumes in their book collections, which translates to a huge sum of money. But more importantly, many of these rare and unique books are priceless.

The Wang family has been around for so many years, who knows how much stuff their collection of books contains?

Commentaries on Confucian classics, institutions and systems of past dynasties, historical books and local chronicles, works of various schools of thought, collections of writings, astronomy and calendrical systems, medicine, divination and numerology—the list is probably too long to count.

Most importantly, what should Chen Huai'an do now?

Break cultural monopoly and unify the interpretation of scriptures.

If the government wanted to unify the interpretation of the classics, it could not rely on just one opinion; it had to collate various versions. The royal family's collection of books could provide multiple versions of classic commentaries as a reference.

As soon as someone runs out of town, they say: "The newly compiled 'Correct Meaning of the Five Classics' has been collated with the rare editions that the Wang family has kept for a thousand years."

With just this one sentence, he could silence most of the scholars in the world. They would no longer force a unification, but rather unify based on the integration of all knowledge and experience.

From then on, even if someone wanted to deny the official version, they couldn't.

"..."

"Minister Wang is truly generous," Chen Huai'an couldn't help but exclaim. If he hadn't known Wang Gui for a long time, he would have definitely doubted whether the person in front of him was actually him.

Wang Gui chuckled lightly: "I know what Duke Anguo is worried about. The fact that I can say this proves that we are already prepared, and it is not just my personal opinion."

"If you agree, then our cooperation is officially complete. I have shown my sincerity, and now it is Duke Anguo's turn."

Chen Huai'an narrowed his eyes slightly, suddenly realizing a problem.

The Wang family's gift of their collection of books was truly a timely and much-needed act of kindness.

However, there are also traps within it that we must be wary of.

Once the Wang family gives them the book, if they are not allowed to participate in unifying the interpretation of the classics, they will retain the right of final interpretation.

In the future, it can be said that the imperial court only printed his family's books, but did not understand his family's spirit. The real knowledge still lies with the Wang family.

Only when they are truly involved and the unified interpretation of the classics aligns with their expectations can the authority of the imperial court in unifying the interpretation of the classics be guaranteed.

This is almost a calculated move: either you don't take these books, or you have to get them involved.

Furthermore, the fact that the imperial court standardized the interpretation of classics and that the Wang family immediately sent their collection of books would instantly elevate their reputation.

However... compared to these, these are things that Chen Huai'an can accept.

"Very well, since Vice Minister Wang has shown such sincerity, it would be rather ungrateful of me to continue refusing." Chen Huai'an cupped his hands in greeting. "I will recommend the great Confucian scholar from the Wang family to His Majesty. In addition... I will also persuade His Majesty to delegate the authority of the examiners for the new imperial examination system to the Ministry of Rites."

Secondly...

Chen Huai'an paused for a moment: "In the future, we will also need the Wang family's help with the printed books."

Wang Gui was overjoyed, realizing that the other party had not only agreed to their demands but also promised to share some of the profits with them in the future.

The main purpose of today's meeting has been completely achieved.

"good!"

Wang Gui got up, walked straight out, and gave a few instructions.

Soon, people kept bringing in fine wine and delicacies.

Wang Gui poured Chen Huai'an a glass of wine: "What contract? It's just a useless piece of paper to us. Let's raise a glass and form an alliance today."

"Let's encourage each other in the future."

"No problem!" Chen Huai'an was also very satisfied with today's gains. He raised his glass and clinked it with Wang Gui's. The two of them drank it all in one gulp.

The atmosphere in the room immediately relaxed considerably. Wang Gui gestured for Chen Huai'an to eat while speaking.

"Actually, just two days ago, we were still hesitating about what to do next."

"However, an elder in the family said that we are now in a very delicate situation, that is, we all think that the other is too strong, and neither of us dares to make a move."

"Furthermore, the wheels of time keep turning, and sticking to the old ways is a dead end, so... we chose to cooperate with Duke Anguo."

Chen Huai'an nodded: "It's clear that you have a lot of guts."

Wang Gui smiled and shook his head, then solemnly said, "Now that things have come to this, may I ask Duke Anguo, what exactly is your hidden trump card?"

"You want to know?" Chen Huai'an wasn't surprised by his question and raised an eyebrow.

"Of course I would like to. Would the Duke of Anguo be willing to tell me?"

"I don't want to!"

Wang Gui: "..."

"..."