Chapter 868: The Age of Being a Commoner
"Lü Song..."
After learning about the Ministry of Revenue's decision, the Taoist priest pondered for a long time.
The emperor wishes he could control everything in the world and have all his subjects act according to his wishes.
Those in power like constancy and hate impermanence, so they hate ministers who create impermanence.
For example, the Ministry of Households.
Daoye's eyes were somewhat cold, "What do you think of replacing Lu Song?"
Jiang Qingzhi sighed in his heart, "Lü Song was not well disciplined, so the Ministry of Revenue was in chaos. It's not a big deal to use this as an excuse to take him down. But Your Majesty, if Lü Song is gone, who will take over? I think that no matter who takes over, they can't be compared with Lü Song. If things go wrong..."
"Will it be worse?" Emperor Jiajing narrowed his eyes. The temptation of replacing the unpredictable variable in the Ministry of Revenue was too great for him to resist.
"Yes." Jiang Qingzhi thought it was ridiculous. As a great Mohist, he actually had to defend his mortal enemy and help him. "Most of the officials in the court who are capable of managing finances are Confucianists. They are dissatisfied with the new policies. When they come to power..."
"I do have a candidate here." Emperor Jiajing said lightly.
"Your Majesty, the Ministry of Revenue is different from other places. The Ministry of Revenue has many complicated matters, and if you entrust it to the wrong person, not only will he be taken advantage of, but if you are not careful, you will miss important things."
Let technology be technology, and let bureaucracy go aside!
What Jiang Qingzhi hates most is the bureaucratization and power-orientation of technology.
"The greatest achievement of the cultural revolution launched by Western countries was to separate technology from religion. Your Majesty probably doesn't know this! Before this, some wise men in the West questioned some of the religious doctrines of the time and were burned alive."
Jiang Qingzhi did not want the Ming Dynasty to become like this.
"Are you worried that I will appoint my confidants in a way that is either this or that, black or white?" Emperor Jiajing stared at Jiang Qingzhi, as if he would punish him if he said something wrong.
"Yes." Jiang Qingzhi nodded. "The new policy requires new ideas, new atmosphere, and new thinking. We must be open-minded and accept everyone's participation. We can't destroy Confucianism! So we can only reform and accept it."
"Confucianism cannot be destroyed..." This perspective made Emperor Jiajing feel disappointed for a moment.
"Yes! Confucianism is so huge that almost all scholars in the world, no, literate people, admit that they are Confucian disciples. If you want to destroy Confucianism, you must first destroy the world." Taoist stroked his beard, "I am the emperor, but I can do nothing about this. I am helpless. Congratulations."
"His Majesty."
"I am thinking that even if the new policy is successful, once our children and grandchildren relax, Confucianism will still be able to make a comeback. Then, is all this today useless?"
This was a rare moment of weakness for Emperor Jiajing. Jiang Qingzhi thought about it carefully and said, "Yes. However, I think that the general trend of the world is like a tide, and the torrent of history is like a tide, which is mighty and powerful. Those who follow it will prosper, and those who go against it will perish.
The world today is an era of great contention. Western countries are making rapid progress in many fields, while the Ming Dynasty is still struggling and sinking in the vicious cycle of rise and fall.
Your Majesty, the West is constantly inventing things that are beneficial to farming, fortifications, and armaments, while the Ming Dynasty is stagnant in various rules, in the midst of nonsense, and in its desire to be content with peace and tranquility.
Confucianism, which had existed for thousands of years, could not adapt to the current situation. It had to either sink with the Ming Dynasty or make changes. And Lu Song wanted to change Confucianism and Confucianism. "
"As a great Mohist master, don't you want to see Confucianism decline?" Emperor Jiajing looked at Jiang Qingzhi with amusement.
"I naturally hope to see that. But if Confucianism sinks, Ming will become a sacrificial offering." Jiang Qingzhi said calmly: "There are only a few hundred people in Mohism. If they want to replace Confucianism and become the Ming school, it will be impossible within ten or twenty years."
"Ten or twenty years..." Emperor Jiajing thought to himself, "I will probably be very old by then!"
"Your Majesty, look..." Jiang Qingzhi narrowed his eyes and looked at the Taoist priest, "There are only about thirty people. When they go out, others will see, oh! Aren't these two brothers?"
"Stupid boy!" Emperor Jiajing pointed at Jiang Qingzhi and laughed.
The two were brothers, but Emperor Jiajing was old enough to be Jiang Qingzhi's father.
"That's all about Lu Song!"
"Yes."
Lao Lu, I saved you!
Jiang Qingzhi then took his leave.
In Yongshou Palace, the atmosphere of winter is very strong.
There were dead branches and leaves everywhere. The eunuchs were sweeping up the fallen leaves. When they saw Jiang Qing, they quickly moved aside.
The eunuchs' hands were swollen and red from being frozen, and their faces were either red or blue from the cold wind.
These are the lowest-level eunuchs, while the eunuchs of higher status are either sitting by the fire and drinking tea in a warm place, or enjoying the good life beside the nobles.
"Zhang Tong."
Zhang Tong, who was accompanying Jiang Qingzhi, turned around. "Hey!"
"These..." Jiang Qingzhi pointed at the eunuchs who were sweeping the floor, "Do these eunuchs have a chance to be promoted?"
Zhang Tong said, "I heard them say that if you want to get promoted, you either need to be liked by a noble, or you need to be able to read."
"Literacy?"
"Well! Illiterate people can only do the dirtiest and hardest jobs. What do they call these people..." Zhang Tong scratched his head, "Straw dogs."
"Heaven and earth are unkind and regard all things as stupid dogs."
"Yes, but Eunuch Huang scolded me for using inappropriate words."
Huang Jin said the wording was inappropriate, but he did not say the metaphor was wrong.
Jiang Qingzhi suddenly laughed, and Zhang Tong turned around, "Chang Wei Bo, is there anything funny?"
"Yeah!" Jiang Qingzhi nodded, "I am laughing at the world and at myself."
"People from all over the world?"
"Yes! Everyone in the world."
Only at this moment did Jiang Qingzhi understand what the Confucianists meant by "people of the world".
In the eyes of Confucianism, only literate people are human beings, while illiterate people are just tools, like straw dogs.
When the emperor wanted to collect taxes, the people mainly involved were literate scholars.
Those are people!
But the farmers who work hard in the fields every day, the craftsmen who work hard to make tools, and the soldiers who shed blood for their country... they are illiterate.
Those who cannot read are not human beings.
It's a straw dog!
They tied straw into a dog and used it in sacrifice, but when the sacrifice was over they threw it away and trampled on it.
A straw dog is a dog made of straw. After the sacrifice, it has completed its mission and is then abandoned and trampled. The same is true for farmers, craftsmen, and warriors.
Every year you pay taxes, you make tools, you fight when enemies come... you deserve to die, you deserve to be poor, don't complain when you're hungry...
In a word, those who cannot read are not human beings.
Reading and writing is like a natural barrier that divides people into two classes.
Your Majesty is competing with the people for profit...The people here refer to the scholars.
And the next class below is not called the people.
Therefore, this is an era where ordinary people want to be commoners but cannot.
Jiang Qingzhi smiled very happily.
When they arrived at Zhilu, he threw a piece of dried meat to Zhang Tong and said, "Go study if you have nothing to do."
"Oh!" Zhang Tong took the dried meat and muttered, "But if I study, I will have to fight those people! Eunuch Huang said that with my character, I will be sold out and help others count money. Should I study or not? Oh!"
Sun Chonglou and Hua Yan were talking about something, but this guy was so excited that he turned around and said, "Young Master."
"Hello, Master." Hua Yan first bowed, then stuck out her tongue and bowed quickly. The movements didn't look standard at all, which showed that most people usually bowed as a greeting.
Mo Zhan smiled and found the scene inexplicably funny.
"Long Wilbur!"
Yan Song and his son, plus Zhao Wenhua who just came back from outside.
Mo Zhan subconsciously stood beside Jiang Qingzhi.
Yan Shifan glanced at him with a look of sarcasm in his eyes.
He is just a guard. He behaved like this in front of them and their son, which shows Jiang Qingzhi's attitude in daily life.
——Yan Song and his son are rivals.
Zhao Wenhua on this side also stopped smiling and looked at Jiang Qingzhi coldly.
Jiang Qingzhi sighed: "Why bother with such tension?"
Yan Song smiled and said, "It would be better if we could join hands."
"What Yuanfu said is very true." Jiang Qingzhi said with a smile: "How about we drink together later?"
"I don't drink alcohol."
"is it?"
Xu Wei was not in Zhilu for nothing. After observing for several days, he found that Xu Jie and Yan Song father and son were showing signs of getting closer.
Xu Wei made an analysis: Wang Anshi was in power at that time, and Sima Guang could only go to Luoyang to edit books. Yan Song and his son were afraid that Jiang Qingzhi would seize power, and Xu Jie wanted to undermine the new policy... The two had different purposes, but they had a common goal.
——Suppress Jiang Qingzhi!
Both sides are sensible people and will not pretend to be friendly.
Hua Yan felt that the atmosphere was not right. She learned that Yan Song was the most powerful person under the emperor, and he could destroy her family and clan with just one word. So when Yan Song came, Hua Yan kept silent.
"What are you looking at?" Sun Chonglou suddenly attacked and shouted at Zhao Wenhua.
There was more coldness in Zhao Wenhua's eyes. "This is Zhilu, how dare a servant speak?"
Hua Yan pulled Sun Chonglou's shirt from behind and whispered, "Don't mess with that guy."
"shut up!"
Yan Song opened his mouth and Hua Yan's expression changed slightly.
But at first glance, it seemed something was not right, as if these words were directed at Zhao Wenhua.
The look Yan Song gave Sun Chonglou was like... the look his parents gave him.
Kind and gentle!
"East Building."
Yan Song held out his hand, and Yan Shifan was stunned. "Dad."
"I just bought you some chestnuts."
What the hell!
Yan Shifan is almost forty years old, and Old Yan is still buying chestnuts for him like he is coaxing a child?
Yan Shifan's old face turned red, and he took out an oil-paper bag from his arms and handed it over.
Yan Song took it and handed it to Sun Chonglou, "I have tasted it, it is sweet and delicious. Chestnuts are good for health, you should try it."
Sun Chonglou looked at him with disdain, but Jiang Qingzhi said calmly, "Just eat it if you give it to me."
"Well! It would be a waste if you don't eat it." Sun Chonglou took it, easily pinched the chestnut with two fingers of his right hand, and ate one.
"How is it?" Yan Song asked with a smile, like an old grandfather asking his grandson.
"The taste... is just so-so." Sun Chonglou said disdainfully, but picked up another one.
“Hahahaha!” Yan Song laughed. “Let me know when you want to eat some, and I’ll ask someone to buy some for you.”
Hua Yan looked at Yan Song in astonishment as he entered the duty room. "Why is he so nice to you?"
Sun Chonglou shook his head, "I don't know either!"
Killing the enemy on the battlefield is an instinct. As for who is saved, no one cares about it, especially Sun Chonglou.
Entered the duty room.
Yan Shifan frowned, "Dad, why are you so polite to that kid?"
Yan Song sat down, "Fate!"
(End of this chapter)
