Chapter 327 Arrest, Naive
Early in the morning, the students in the private school began to recite.
There is a big tree in the yard. When Fang Zhuo first came to see this house, he fell in love with the tree at first sight and bought the house.
When he has nothing to do, he likes to stand under the tree, with his back against the trunk, feeling the vitality that remains vigorous over the years.
"The news has spread everywhere. The emergence of Mohism will shock the world. But how should our Confucianism respond? Should we act like a pile of sand, each doing our own thing, or should we join forces to eradicate Mohism? The famous scholars in the capital are discussing..."
Chen Zhan looked up at the treetops, "The important officials in the court are also discussing it, but they are afraid of your majesty's attitude, so there is no result yet."
Fang Zhuo said, "Your Majesty, what can you do? We were able to force him into the West Garden back then, so why can't we do that today?"
Chen Zhan looked at him, "Don't underestimate your majesty. He is an emperor and is born to suppress us."
"Before the Han Dynasty, the emperor was just a mortal. Since Emperor Wu of Han, the emperor has become a god, the son of heaven..." Fang Zhuo said sarcastically: "Dong Sheng changed Confucianism and worshipped the emperor as a god, but he never expected that my Confucianism would one day become the enemy of the emperor."
"It's not just one day, but since the Han Dynasty, our Confucianism has been the enemy of the emperor. But we have fought but not defeated." Chen Zhan said: "In the end, it's all about power."
"If those people heard what you said, they would definitely accuse you of being a traitor!"
"Except for those fools and young scholars, who doesn't know this truth? Do you really think that we are fighting against the emperor for the sake of the country and the people of the world? Come on!"
The two smiled at each other, and Fang Zhuo said, "Jiang Qingzhi will certainly keep a low profile recently, and it will be difficult to find opportunities. But there is no such thing as guarding against thieves for a thousand days. As long as he stays in the capital for one day, he will reveal his flaws sooner or later... Tell those people that I will keep an eye on him."
"It was you who proposed the plan to clip Jiang Qingzhi's wings first. Those people didn't agree with it. Yesterday's assassination attempt on Xu Wei failed. If I go there later... I'm afraid I'll be ridiculed by those people." Chen Zhan smiled bitterly.
"Those idiots, clip their wings, and then calmly deal with Jiang Qingzhi. Even if something unexpected happens in the middle, the situation will not be too escalated."
"Forget it, I have to go. By the way, you should stay out of the house in the next few days."
"Don't worry. The middleman only takes money and does the job. He doesn't know my identity, so Jiang Qingzhi can't find me. Also, I have someone outside. If things don't go well, I will just flee far away."
After seeing Chen Zhan off, Fang Zhuo walked out of the classroom and watched the teacher teaching students to recite.
"The sky and the earth are dark and yellow."
"The sky and the earth are dark and yellow."
"The universe is vast."
"The universe is vast."
The children followed the teacher in reciting, shaking their heads, with stern faces.
Fang Zhuo seemed to see these children walking into the court many years later...
and then?
Fang Zhuo asked himself.
then……
Continue to suppress the emperor?
But what are the consequences of suppressing the emperor?
Those people say that if the court is full of righteous people, the country will naturally be well governed.
That is to say, Xu Jun.
Use ministers to govern the country.
That is to say, governing the country with Confucianism.
"Why has the Central Plains been unable to escape the vicious cycle of order and chaos for thousands of years?" Fang Zhuo murmured.
He shook his head. "What does it have to do with me?"
He was just an executor. As for how Confucianism competed with the emperor, he had no right to interfere and did not want to interfere.
"We are the generation that holds the power, directs the country, and writes inspiring words... How wonderful it is!"
The morning breeze blew, and Fang Zhuo felt relaxed and happy under the big tree.
Suddenly, a dog barked outside. Fang Zhuo asked with a smile, "Are there any guests?"
The footsteps stopped outside and someone knocked on the door.
Just as Fang Zhuo was about to open the door, he heard someone shout, "It's Jiang Qingzhi."
Bang!
As soon as he finished speaking, the door was kicked open.
Amid the smoke and dust, a young man walked in.
The reading was interrupted.
The teacher walked out of the classroom and looked in astonishment at Jiang Qingzhi and the guards who rushed in.
The children couldn't sit still anymore and started to look in.
Jiang Qingzhi had a cold face at first, but he smiled a little more after seeing the children. "Mr. Fang, you didn't even come out to greet your old friend. And your gate should be repaired. It collapsed when I just pushed it lightly."
Fang Zhuo looked back at the children and said with a smile, "Go study!"
The children were afraid of being punished, so they returned to the classroom shouting and yelling.
"It's full of vitality, isn't it?" Fang Zhuo said with a smile.
"What did you teach?" Jiang Qingzhi asked.
"Thousand Character Classic."
"Don't you have any professors who teach poems to encourage learning?"
"Taught."
“Books contain both beautiful women and golden houses… Why do we read?”
"for……"
"Go on." Jiang Qingzhi said lightly.
Fang Zhuo smiled bitterly, "Isn't the purpose of life to realize one's ambitions? If one can be rich and prosperous, who can refuse?"
"Everyone's nature is different. A teacher's job is to impart knowledge and resolve doubts. Children are like a blank sheet of paper, allowing adults to paint on them. A person who keeps company with a good person will become good, while a person who keeps company with a bad person will become bad. What has Confucianism painted on this blank sheet of paper over the years? Fame, wealth, and desire for fame and fortune..."
Jiang Qingzhi stood with his hands behind his back, listening to the sound of reading again, and said: "Generation after generation of children are taught to study for wealth and glory. Beauty and money are all in books, in the imperial examinations... After generation after generation of children grow up and enter the officialdom, what will they do?"
Fang Zhuo sneered, "If not these, what else can we teach? Is Chang Wei Bo so naive that he thinks human nature is good?" "Let's not talk about the good and evil of human nature. If we paint something more positive on those blank papers, then I don't think the Central Plains would be like this."
"Does the Mohists want to reopen Mohism? Chang Wei Bo, do you know what this will bring?" Fang Zhuo said, "During the Spring and Autumn Period, there were hundreds of schools of thought, and there were even disputes among schools. Today, my Confucianism has unified all schools of thought, who dares to disobey?"
"Confucianism is old." Jiang Qingzhi shook his head. "Your way of thinking is no longer applicable. You are sitting in a well and looking at the sky, but you don't know that the world outside has already undergone earth-shaking changes.
The fleets of those alien races were sailing on the sea, and they found a new continent with endless resources. They seized countless lands and wealth, which made those alien races stronger and stronger...
People's desires are endless, and they will turn their eyes to the farther east. When powerful ships and cannons appear on the coastline of the Central Plains, what can Confucianism do? "
Jiang Qingzhi thought of the scene many years later. Being invulnerable to swords and guns became a joke in front of the musket.
The Central Plains Dynasty, which had always been ahead of the world, finally became a clown in the eyes of foreign races.
"Confucianism is like a woman's foot binding, long and smelly!"
Jiang Qingzhi waved, and Sun Bu Tong came over. "Do you want to follow me, or knock me out and take me away?"
Fang Zhuo sighed, "Allow me to say goodbye."
Jiang Qingzhi nodded.
Fang Zhuo went to explain things to his husband, and then followed Jiang Qingzhi away.
There was no torture, Fang Zhuo calmly told everything.
"It was I who suggested clipping Long Wilbur's wings first, and then proceeding slowly."
"Why?"
The person who interrogated him was Xu Wei.
"You should know." Fang Zhuo smiled and said, "Xu Wei, one of the Ten Sons of Yue, is extremely talented, but unfortunately his road to the imperial examination was quite bumpy. You are good at planning, but you are too wild. Even if you enter the official career, few superiors and colleagues can tolerate you."
"It's interesting." Xu Wei asked, "What's the plan for the follow-up?"
"Follow-up... First, we clipped Long Wilbur's wings, and then we created public opinion."
"Smear?"
"Yes, let Long Wilbur and the Mohists become infamous."
"Are those people fools? They believe everything you say." Sun Chonglou was puzzled.
"Haha!" Fang Zhuo laughed, "The people are ignorant and just follow what others say. Who controls this place? They are my Confucian disciples. The people believe whatever they say."
"Then...what if His Majesty issues an edict to clear the name of the young master and the Mo family?" Sun Chonglou said unconvinced.
"Xu Wenchang, this..." Fang Zhuo raised his eyebrows.
Xu Wei felt a little embarrassed, "Young people are straightforward."
Fang Zhuo smiled, "Your Majesty has issued an order... Who will carry it out?"
"Local officials!" said Sun Chonglou.
"Who are the local officials?" Fang Zhuo asked back.
Uh!
Sun Chonglou was stunned.
……
"As expected, they are planning to discredit Lord Bo and the Mo family."
Xu Wei handed the confession to Jiang Qingzhi.
Jiang Qingzhi glanced at it and said, "This is the trick that Confucianists like the most."
"Master, don't underestimate public opinion. As the saying goes, a righteous man has many supporters, while an unrighteous man has few. Once the Mohist School becomes a rat crossing the street that everyone wants to beat, it will be a joke if it wants to develop further."
Xu Wei said: "I think we should take the lead in counterattacking and use this assassination as an excuse to refute Confucianism..."
Jiang Qingzhi shook his head. "I bet our voices won't make it out of the capital, or even out of Xin'an Lane."
"We have to try it." Xu Wei said.
"Alright."
Jiang Qingzhi nodded.
……
In that house, more than ten scholars were arguing endlessly.
"I have said it before. Instead of clipping his wings, it is better to attack Jiang Qingzhi directly. How about now? The assassination failed and it alerted the enemy instead."
"Then just assassinate Jiang Qingzhi!"
"Nonsense, Jiang Qingzhi now brings five or six guards with him when he goes out. Those guards are very skilled. How many people are needed to succeed? This is the capital. Dozens of people surrounded and killed Jiang Qingzhi. What do you think the guy in the West Garden will do?"
A famous scholar pointed at the crowd and cursed: "He will use this as an excuse to mobilize the Beijing guards to wipe us out."
"We can't give him an excuse!" A famous scholar said solemnly, "But there is no need to rush this matter. We are in the dark, and Jiang Qingzhi is in the light. We keep an eye on him, and the government and the opposition will take action together to see how he responds. Once he reveals a flaw..."
Chen Zhan was on the periphery and had no place for him to speak.
An attendant came in, glanced at him, and shook his head slightly. Chen Zhan's heart tightened, and just as he was about to go over to ask questions, the attendant walked over and said, "Gentlemen, just now, Jiang Qingzhi and his men arrested Fang Zhuo."
The celebrities were stunned.
A more intense quarrel then broke out.
Half an hour later they reached an agreement.
"Mobilize public opinion! Make Jiang Qingzhi and the Mohists become rats crossing the street!"
A famous scholar foamed at the mouth and said firmly: "The Mohist School is not good at mechanics. It starts with the court and makes all officials hate Jiang Qingzhi and the Mohist School. When no one in the six ministries cooperates and he encounters obstacles everywhere, he can only sigh in vain even if he has great abilities!"
"good!"
(End of this chapter)
