He hurried into Prince Yu's mansion.
Xu Jie saw Prince Yu's anxious face again, and Li Chunfang sat alone in a corner with a worried expression. He couldn't help but sigh and shake his head—
For such matters, Prince Yu was still young and naturally flustered. But Li Chunfang was not young, why was he like this too?
Prince Yu rushed forward, grabbed Xu Jie, and sat him down. He asked, "Chancellor Xu, what should we do about this? Master Li said this great tide has just begun. Then... wouldn't that mean...? Sigh..."
Xu Jie said warmly,
"Your Highness, things have come to this point. Our anxiety is useless... Yin Zhengmao killing the rebels has completely ignited the situation... We must pay attention to the people's sentiments and official opinions. On my way here, I heard many bizarre theories. If this continues, it will surely lead to great chaos...
Your Highness, the urgent task is to stabilize people's hearts and eliminate rumors. As long as people's hearts are stable, it is serving the Emperor... Hmm, Brother Shilu, I thought of an idea on the way. Come and consider if it's feasible?"
Li Chunfang grunted and moved closer to sit.
Xu Jie pondered for a moment and said,
"The current plan, in my opinion, since the rebellious talk started from the academy and from scholarship, then we must start from here... In a word, Yangming's học definitely cannot be established as official learning! As for other matters, we shall not mention them, nor speak of them. We shall simply reaffirm the principle that our dynasty adheres to Cheng-Zhu as the main school of thought. As imperial advisors, reaffirming national policy should not be interpreted as aligning with anyone...
My intention is, Brother Shilu, you have always been deeply versed in Neo-Confucianism of Cheng and Zhu. Why don't you lecture more at Baitán Academy? Let them focus on their studies. Learning must be put into practice. They shouldn't spread rebellious talk all day, otherwise, it will affect their careers... What do you think?"
"Good, feasible. I will go tomorrow."
Li Chunfang was most amiable and had always known that Xu Jie was adept at opportunism. This move, indeed, occupied a position of righteousness and showed utmost fairness, neutrality, and moderation. It could be said that everyone could see him making a grand move, but in reality, it would not produce any consequences. He was truly a master of self-preservation. He readily agreed with a smile.
Prince Yu's shock subsided slightly. He thought for a moment and said, "This is perfect. Master Li, Chancellor Xu, if you need me to go, I can."
Mmm,
Xu Jie and Li Chunfang exchanged a smile, thinking: This is right... You are the crown prince. Reaffirming the fundamental policies of the nation, impartially, is naturally appropriate...
Prince Yu's expression turned serious again and said,
"Cough cough, the matter in Jiangnan and the matter of Yangming official learning were originally two separate issues, how did they become one? This is the crux of the problem... Chancellor Xu, I have also thought about it. It is all rumors at work here. If there were no rumors, these two matters would not be linked together?"
Xu Jie nodded and said, "Yes, and the rumors are targeting the reform. On the surface, it's about official learning, but in reality, it's criticizing the reform and cursing Zhu Mo... Alas, pointing at the mulberry tree to scold the locust, how vicious! But, we can't do anything about it either. Although these are rumors and rebellious talk, they are also the will of the scholars and gentry across the land!"
Li Chunfang also nodded and said, "This is too damaging. Establishing Yangming official learning and abolishing the reform, these two matters must become one. Yan Shifan has nothing to lose and everything to gain. It is too vicious, and he doesn't care if the whole world falls into chaos... But as Shao Hu said, this is also the will of the scholars and gentry across the land. We cannot go against it, otherwise, the orthodox Neo-Confucianism will suffer along with Zhu Mo..."
Prince Yu worried, "The Emperor is so wise, he must have known, but why has there been no decree?"
Xu Jie replied, "The Emperor is also in a difficult position... If a decree is issued at this time, and the situation deteriorates further, it will be very passive... But Your Highness can rest assured, with a wise ruler above, everything will remain as steady as a rock..."
Prince Yu thought about it. He felt that this matter was incredible and he had no clue. He asked, "Then what about our attitude? I always feel that everything was caused by Zhu Mo's reform. Perhaps it should also be stopped?"
Xu Jie sighed and shook his head, saying,
"Your Highness, to be honest, I don't agree with Zhu Mo's methods. Naturally, I must oppose them. Let's just stop them on this occasion... However, others can criticize, but we cannot. We can only oppose Yangming official learning, and also oppose the reform, and further oppose linking the two matters together...
In this way, we can occupy the moral high ground! Your Highness, the balance here is a bit subtle, and we must think carefully about it. Brother Shilu, when you go to lecture, you must also be careful. Do not openly oppose the reform. Just lecture on Neo-Confucianism, and the scholars and gentry across the land will naturally understand our intentions...
As for Jiangnan, everything will depend on Zhang Taiyue. We will not interfere. If he doesn't want to stop, he can continue. We don't need to care about him. If he also wants to stop the reform, we must come up with a proper exit strategy. After all, this involves the Directorate of Weaving, ten million taels of silver, and countless farmers and contributing merchants and gentry..."
Mmm,
At this point, everyone admired Xu Jie's calm mind.
This attitude was the most stable. Those who were unwilling to cause trouble would sincerely agree, and thus, the Neo-Confucian pure scholars would gradually gain control of the discourse on this matter.
...
Capital City, afternoon.
Baitán Academy.
In the clearing of ancient cypresses, scholars from all over the land were seated.
After Zhu Mo received Zhang Juzheng's secret letter, he knew that killing by Yin Zhengmao could not be stopped. Even if he wanted to stop it, there wasn't enough time. The letters to Wu Ming, Wu Liang, and Hai Rui were still on their way, and they were indeed four or five days late!
Now,
"Reform by killing civilians" had become a vicious rumor circulating throughout the land.
And the creator of all this, the key person behind the conspiracy, was undoubtedly Gao Gong! This man had gone all out for his personal ambition...
After all his calculations,
He did not expect that Gao Gong, this boisterous person, would deliver the most fatal blow. Now, even going to Jiangnan personally was useless. In fact, even if the Emperor went personally, it would still be useless... Because the focus of this offensive was—
Public opinion!
He had heard various rumors these past few days, and he was completely clear about the logic of the entire situation. However, being at the center of the vortex, he was powerless.
Imagine,
If everyone on the street said this, and you couldn't shut their mouths, what else could you do? As for the scholars and gentry all over the land, there was even less one could do about them. Jiangnan, Xuanda, where were the rumors not flying everywhere? As for demonization, haven't they always done that? What else could be done? There were even more disgusting things than this!
These past few days, staying at home,
He felt utterly alone. In the courtyard, not even a bird came. It truly echoed the old saying: When a person falls into deep misfortune, even ghosts won't visit!
Today,
He was wandering aimlessly on the street and heard that Masters Wei Liangbi and Sun Ying'ao would be lecturing at Baitán Academy. At that moment, he thought: These two should be the authors of "A Treatise on Exhorting Learning," right?
This "A Treatise on Exhorting Learning," read it with great effort, is far from the classic ancient texts he had read before. Moreover, it is full of sophistry and its style is considered inferior. Such a bad article, yet these Ming Dynasty scholars each have a copy, and others are bewildered, but he is very clear—
This is meant to squeeze him out!
To push him, Zhu Mo, to a dead end...
People say that rumors kill people, but this is also the first time he has seen an article that can kill people. Every day these scholars read it once, and then discuss it with others, Zhu Mo gets one step closer to the gates of hell.
Now,
The scholars of the world have united and are launching an unprecedented siege against him, Zhu Mo. Based on the historical knowledge he possesses, perhaps only Shang Yang, who was dismembered, can be compared!
"Shang Yang, died by his own law..."
"Will I, Zhu Mo, also be dismembered?"
Thinking about it,
He actually felt there was a slight possibility.
Imagine,
In this Great Ming Dynasty, with a population of billions, anyone who can read would probably not oppose the dismemberment of Zhu Mo. This demon disrespects the teachings of the sages, and only elevates the lowly, engaging in some messy reforms, completely disrupting the order of the four classes since ancient times...
Shouldn't such a person be dismembered?
Earlier, he also looked at the dog system, and the report once again blinded his money-grabbing eyes—
[Event: Record-breaking social death scene in human history;]
[Indicators: Soft violence index 100%; Mental damage 100%;]
[Number of participants: 20 million; Remarks: Ming Dynasty illiteracy rate 77%; Scholars among literate population 99%;]
[Consequence prediction: Beheading possibility 65%; Dismemberment possibility 72%; Lingchi possibility 78%;]
[Suggestion: Flee immediately;]
The dog system,
Again gave unreliable advice.
However,
It is indeed reasonable to say that this is a record-breaking social death event in human history. And the penalties mentioned are also correct. Beheading is too lenient. The possibility of lingchi is definitely the highest.
As he thought,
He stepped through the gate of Baitán Academy, wanting to see how the scholars of the world would evaluate him. And to hear if he could find any loopholes. Even if it's social death, shouldn't he fight back?