Chapter 394: Confucianism is dead, burn paper if you have any questions
"Ma Yuan's road to the imperial examination was quite bumpy. He took the imperial examination five times and failed five times. Later, he made a living by teaching. Who knew that he had a talent for teaching and educating people? His students passed the exam in the third year. He became famous because of this...Now many nobles want to send their children to his private school, but Ma Yuan is quite strict in accepting students."
Xia Yan whispered Ma Yuan's origins.
He had met Ma Yuan once before. "I once visited his private school that year. He was still young and full of vigor. But now he looks much more stable."
Calmness comes from being beaten by society.
Jiang Qingzhi nodded, "Mr. Ma, what brings you here?"
Ma Yuan smiled and said, "I have been teaching for many years, and in my spare time I have pondered the disputes between schools of thought. Some people say that it is inappropriate to respect Confucianism alone, but I think that if Confucianism is not respected alone, there would be countless people who have become kings and emperors over the past thousand years. Do you agree with Chang Wei Bo?"
"If Confucianism had not defeated the Hundred Schools of Thought and unified all schools of thought, then the Central Plains would have believed in Taoism today, Buddhism tomorrow, and diplomacy the day after tomorrow...
How can we live like this with so much chaos and confusion, with one person taking over and the other taking the stage?
Today you are shouting for war and killing those around you, and tomorrow you are sticking your butt out and letting others trample on you.
Being lenient to the people today, being strict like the legalists tomorrow…”
Ma Yuan said: "Can there be a prosperous era in the Central Plains?"
"It is indeed Ma Gong, what he said is very good!"
"That's right. If it weren't for Confucianism and the emergence of various schools of thought, the Central Plains would have been in chaos long ago."
"Let's see how Jiang Qingzhi responds."
This person was indeed here to cause trouble. Xia Yan was about to step forward when he saw Jiang Qingzhi take out a cigarette and put one end of it on the small wooden box that contained the cigarette.
"A word, a truth, a doctrine, has become outdated from the moment it was born." Dou Jialan lit the fire, and Jiang Qingzhi tilted his head to ignite the medicine smoke.
"This was the case with Mohism back then. Universal love and non-aggression were appropriate in those troubled times. But when people's minds stabilized, a unified pattern was formed. It is inappropriate to talk about universal love and non-aggression now."
Ma Yuan's eyes narrowed.
The scholars were surprised and even exclaimed.
No one expected that Jiang Qingzhi would be the first to stab Mohism and the Mohist School.
Jiang Qingzhi exhaled the smoke and looked at Ma Yuan, whose eyes were as calm as waves. He thought to himself, if you can still remain like this after I say the following words, then I really admire your composure.
"Great unification was the call of the time. Qin followed the trend and unified the six kingdoms. From then on, the Central Plains dynasty was established and continued. By the time of the Ming Dynasty, a set of rules had been formed, and this set of rules was named Confucianism."
Jiang Qingzhi asked: "What is a family? What is a doctrine? What is the foundation of a doctrine? Can Mr. Ma teach me?"
The counterattack is coming... Xia Yan stroked his beard and smiled.
Ma Yuan said: "A family is a gathering of like-minded people, and a doctrine is the ancient sages' views and solutions to the current situation. As for the foundation of a doctrine, it is naturally for the country and the people."
These three answers are almost unshakable. Even if Lao Fuzi were reborn, he would only be able to choose this answer in today's environment.
“Well said, like-minded people!”
"We take it as our duty to serve the country and the people, but we don't know what Jiang Qingzhi's Mohist school is for."
Amid the sarcasm, Jiang Qingzhi said: "First, people with the same ideals, as far as I know, local scholars and officials have spared no effort to annex land and absorb population, so that the court and local taxes have dried up and it is difficult to continue. So, I would like to ask, are these people with the same ideals and principles the Confucian ideals and principles?"
Ma Yuan's expression remained unchanged. "That's just a minority."
He was very familiar with this kind of debating technique and could handle it easily.
"Old Xu." Jiang Qingzhi smiled happily.
Xu Wei stepped forward and said, "In the capital area, eight out of ten local gentry have annexed land.
For example, in Huairou, the last time my uncle went there, he did some checking and found that nine out of ten local gentry in Huairou had annexed land and taken in people.
Mr. Ma said that there were only a few. I would like to ask, where did this minority come from? If Mr. Ma has carefully investigated, then where is it? Please tell me, Mr. Ma, there is not much else in the Bo Mansion, and there are a few people, and it will only take a few days to find out the truth. "
What a poisonous tongue!
Xia Yan sighed in his heart and burned three sticks of incense in silence for Ma Yuan.
"Mr. Ma, do you dare?" Xu Wei continued to spit venom.
Ma Yuan said calmly: "I will naturally ask about it later."
Xu Wei chuckled, "In other words, Mr. Ma has not verified this news? He regards unverified news as truth and teaches it to his disciples. I want to ask, is this considered misleading his students?"
What the hell!
This is no longer just spitting venom, but a deadly flying knife.
Hu Zongxian felt that Ma Yuan would fight to the death with Xu Wei.
Those scholars were all waiting for Ma Yuan's counterattack, but Ma Yuan remained silent.
Several of his disciples exchanged glances, feeling somewhat uneasy.
Sir, you lost the first battle?
Ma Yuan's expression remained unchanged. Jiang Qingzhi did not pursue him, but continued, "What is a doctrine? As Mr. Ma said, knowledge is the ancient sages' insights and solutions to the contemporary world. Since Confucius founded Confucianism, generations of sages have continuously modified and supplemented it to adapt to the contemporary world."
Don't say that Confucianism is not keeping pace with the times. Since the establishment of Confucianism, people have been constantly improving it. It is no exaggeration to say that it is keeping pace with the times.
"But I want to ask, why can't the ever-improving Confucianism make the Central Plains dynasty last longer?" "The rise and fall are naturally determined by the laws of nature." Ma Yuan said indifferently: "One rise and one fall, the rise and fall cycle, this is the law."
Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism have been fighting for many years, but they are also merging with each other. For example, Ma Yuan's words are full of Taoist thoughts.
"Reversal is the movement of the Tao?" Jiang Qingzhi smiled, "In that case, let's take the former Song Dynasty as an example. The former Song Dynasty was destroyed by the Three Redundancies. Is this what the historians said true?"
Ma Yuan nodded.
"All people of insight have seen this," Ma Yuan said, "but the laws of nature cannot be violated."
"What a Tiandao." Jiang Qingzhi said with a smile, "What kind of problem can't be solved? He caused a big disaster but didn't want to bear the blame, so he threw the pot on Tiandao's head. Is this the famous private school principal in the capital?"
Jiang Qingzhi laughed, "Who caused the three redundancies?"
Without waiting for Ma Yuan to answer, Jiang Qingzhi said, "Scholar-officials!"
Ma Yuan's lips moved, "That's... due to the situation."
"What a situation." Jiang Qingzhi countered, "Redundant staff, redundant soldiers, and redundant expenses. Redundant staff, where do all those extra officials come from?"
Jiang Qingzhi looked at those scholars, as if he had traveled through time and space to the Song Dynasty. "They came from the imperial examinations and from the influence of family backgrounds. Are those scholars who passed the imperial examinations and those who were influenced by family backgrounds part of the scholar-officials?"
No one denied it.
"There were too many soldiers. In the early Song Dynasty, the civil officials controlled the military. The scholars and officials were full of confidence and thought that it would be easy to bring peace to the country. But once a disaster occurred, how would they deal with it?"
Jiang Qingzhi said sarcastically: "They were afraid that the disaster victims would rebel, so they organized them into the Xiang army and were very proud of it. Many years later, their descendants did not make any progress and continued to follow the same rules, causing the size of the Former Song army to continue to expand, consuming countless money and food every year."
"It's a waste. Every year, the former Song Dynasty would allocate a large amount of money and grain to reward officials. Who are those officials?"
Everyone felt that an answer was about to emerge.
"The extra staff are from the literati, the extra soldiers are from the literati who are helpless in the face of disasters and throw the problem to the finance department, and the extra expenses are from the literati who divide the spoils among themselves..."
"You are talking nonsense!" Ma Yuan saw that many scholars' faces changed slightly, and they were whispering to each other, and the look in their eyes was not right.
"Then, Mr. Ma, can you teach me?" Jiang Qingzhi asked, "Where did the money and grain go? Can Mr. Ma refute it?"
Ma Yuan said: "At that time, the former Song Dynasty was in decline and its financial resources were exhausted..."
"Stop it." Jiang Qingzhi sighed, "Can't you be more down-to-earth when doing research? Are you not afraid of going to hell for lying all the time?"
Xu Wei took a step forward and Ma Yuan’s eyes narrowed.
Xu Wei sneered and said, "Do you want me to give you a real number of taxes in the early Song Dynasty?"
Jiang Qingzhi said calmly, "Your verbal invincibility has no place to survive before my Mohism is grounded in reality. Mr. Ma, do you still want to humiliate yourself?"
Ma Yuan laughed, "So this is Mohism? Then may I ask what Mohism is all about?"
"Don't go off topic." Jiang Qingzhi said calmly: "Let's review the situation first. Since Confucianism was promoted as the only doctrine, it has been in power in the Central Plains for many years. However, the dynasties in the Central Plains could not escape the nightmare of the cycle of order and chaos.
Who is wrong? Mr. Ma said it was the way of heaven.
But is it God's will that makes the scholars and officials greedy?
But the law of nature made the scholars and officials frantically annex land and absorb population? To evade taxes?
But the way of heaven allows the scholars and officials to be corrupt and exploit the people? "
"That's not the way of heaven, but the human heart!" Jiang Qingzhi said sternly, "It is the greedy human heart that brought all this. And what is the response of Confucianism? Constantly emphasizing personal cultivation. Is it useful?"
Jiang Qingzhi looked at the crowd and said, "For thousands of years, Confucianism has been advocating self-discipline and personal cultivation, but those who are corrupt are still corrupting, and the number is increasing.
The number of people annexing land and absorbing population remains the same, and is increasing.
Why is it that the more we emphasize this, the more it happens?"
Everyone's heart beat faster, knowing that Jiang Qingzhi would then explain the Mohist school's position on Confucianism.
"That is, Confucianism has long become a tool for some people to seek personal gain," said Jiang Qingzhi.
Ma Yuan's face changed drastically, and he pointed at Jiang Qingzhi, "How dare you blaspheme the ancient sages, you little brat?"
Jiang Qingzhi sneered: "In the past thousand years, what has Confucianism and Confucianism brought to the Central Plains? It has brought endless disasters. And yet they shamelessly talk about a prosperous era.
That prosperous era was the result of the dynasty's infancy, before it was corrupted by Confucianism. What has it got to do with you? You shamelessly claimed the merits of heaven for yourself. Then, when the dynasty fell, you threw the blame on the emperor and on the way of heaven."
"From the moment it was born, Confucianism was not a discipline for governing a country, but a discipline for cultivating one's mind. Using the discipline of cultivating one's mind to govern a country is ridiculous!" Jiang Qingzhi said firmly. "Confucianism is ruining the world! Confucianism is harming the world!"
Li Tian came out. She looked at her husband standing there. Although he was not tall, he had a kind of pride and confidence that looked down on everyone.
Jiang Qingzhi shook off the cigarette ash.
He said calmly:
"Confucianism is dead, burn paper if you have something to worry about!"
(End of this chapter)
