Chapter 100 Knowledge Monopoly
Liu's father was not well educated and had to look up a dictionary to read Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Therefore, he had no idea about aristocratic families.
Liu Hongmin could only say: "Aristocratic families are bureaucratic families that have been passed down for hundreds or thousands of years."
"so smart?"
Father Liu was extremely surprised. According to his understanding, a family that had been in official positions for hundreds or thousands of years must be very powerful.
"They have a monopoly on knowledge, so they are naturally powerful."
The emergence of aristocratic families is a historical necessity. During the Qin and Han dynasties, there was no medium for the dissemination of knowledge, and it could only be recorded on bamboo slips and cloth. Therefore, only high-ranking officials and dignitaries could not access knowledge.
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cai Lun improved Zuo Bo paper, and paper gradually became a carrier of knowledge. Cai Lun's Cai Hou paper was not of very good quality and was very expensive, so it could not be popularized. Therefore, during the reign of Emperor Ling of Han, in order to correct the Six Classics, the Six Classics were engraved on stone tablets, which became the official textbooks, called Xiping Stone Classics.
At that time, the dissemination of knowledge was still open, so many small people could change their fate through knowledge.
During the Three Kingdoms period, many books were destroyed due to the continuous wars. The common people had a hard life and were unable to pass on knowledge. However, the knowledge of the bureaucratic families was preserved, and generations of scholars were cultivated.
These people don't even need to be talented to be officials, because they are the only ones who can read. If they can't be high officials, they can be minor officials, controlling local power. Officials sent from above also need to rely on them, otherwise there will be no one to serve.
During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, these noble families grew stronger. There were five surnames and seven families in the north and eight great families in the south. They intermarried and controlled the power of the country.
By the Sui and Tang dynasties, knowledge was no longer monopolized, but the aristocratic families had become too powerful to be eliminated. The aristocratic families had a rich heritage, they controlled the local areas, and produced many talented people. If the emperor did not use them, many administrative orders might not be transmitted to the local areas.
In the middle of the Tang Dynasty, the aristocratic families reached their heyday. However, they declined after their peak. The An-Shi Rebellion broke out and the aristocratic families suffered heavy losses. However, they still held power in the court and the local areas.
It was not until a failed scholar named Huang Chao rose up in rebellion that the aristocratic families were swept into the dustbin of history.
Liu Hongmin suddenly had an idea: the fact that Western history does not allow questioning is also a form of knowledge monopoly.
They set various standards, and they would not recognize anything that did not meet their standards. They did not recognize the history before the Shang Dynasty even though there were records in the "Records of the Grand Historian". On the other hand, they themselves, relying on a mythological epic, said that ancient Greece existed; relying on a novel, they said that ancient Rome existed.
Their archaeological discoveries, relics thousands of years old, are almost the same as those from last week. They are so obviously fake, yet they dare to make up stories so braggingly.
This is knowledge monopoly, also called cultural hegemony.
Liu Hongmin immediately stood up and said, "Dad, I'm going back to the study first."
Father Liu waved his hand, picked up the dictionary again, and looked up the unfamiliar characters according to the radicals.
Ge Chaoguang and his friends have graduated and found jobs, but those who are still in Beijing will still go to Liu Hongmin's place on Saturdays to help him sort out ancient books.
This Saturday, as soon as they arrived at the courtyard, they were stopped by Liu Hongmin.
"Old Ge, I need to write my graduation thesis. Can you help me find some information about the family?"
Ge Chaoguang took the note and read the request, "You want us to help you turn over the history books!"
Liu Hongmin smiled and said, "It's all the same, all the same!"
"Okay, leave it to us!" Ge Chaoguang was already used to Liu Hongmin's roguery. Then he called out, and a dozen people immediately got busy.
There are many historical materials in the Twenty-Four Histories and the Qin and Han Dynasties, the Three Kingdoms, the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and the Sui and Tang Dynasties. After all, the period covered is very long. For example, "Jiang Biao Zhuan", Pei Songzhi's "Three Kingdoms Notes", "Jin Ji", etc., there are more than a hundred books. If Liu Hongmin were to read these historical materials by himself, it would probably take until next year.
Ge Chaoguang and others were professionals with maximum efficiency. In less than a month, they found all the records related to the family and wrote a catalogue for Liu Hongmin.
During this period, Liu Hongmin helped Ma Weidu with two revisions and finalized the draft of "The Family Tribulation". He gave Ma Weidu the outlines of the next six units and asked him to revise them after he finished writing them.
I took some time to visit Beijing Film Studio and discussed with Lin Yong the filming of the new movie "New Shaolin Temple".
The cooperation between the two parties on "The Young Master" was very pleasant. Beijing Film Studio did not spend a penny, but earned 450,000 yuan from the mainland copyright of "The Young Master". With this 450,000 yuan, Beijing Film Studio's New Year benefits were much more generous.
Tomorrow Film Company also set up an office in Beijing. Liu Hongmin asked Ma Weidu to work there and paid him with the company's money.
The mainland copyright of "Shaolin Kid" was sold for 900,000 yuan. Half of it was distributed to Beijing Film Studio, and the remaining 450,000 yuan was kept in the account of Mingtian Film Company's Beijing office. The expenses of shooting "New Shaolin Temple" in the mainland will be paid from the office and will no longer be converted into Hong Kong dollars.
Tomorrow, the film company did not keep the Hong Kong dollars in its hands. Except for 10 million to run the company, the rest were all converted into Japanese yen. Liu Hongmin did not understand finance, so he could only plan a few years in advance and make a fortune after the yen appreciated.
In April, "The Young Master" was finally released in mainland China. It is said that during the Chinese New Year, China Film was preparing to release "The Young Master", but at that time "Shaolin Temple" was sweeping the country. All movies were affected, and China Film suppressed "The Young Master" in order to avoid losing money.
Shaolin Temple is a phenomenal movie. Once it was released, it caused a sensation across the country. Many places saw a movie-watching craze. According to Ma Weidu, before the Chinese New Year, whenever Shaolin Temple was shown, it was packed, and many people even bought standing tickets to watch the movie.
According to incomplete statistics, the box office of "Shaolin Temple" in mainland China has reached million yuan.
How terrifying!
Compared with it, "Tang Dynasty" is no different from ordinary movies. The key is that "Shaolin Temple" has a greater social impact, earning 16 million Hong Kong dollars in Hong Kong, and the copyright has been sold to more than a dozen countries and regions.
With this movie, Jet Li became an internationally renowned martial arts star and started his legendary journey.
This craze swept the country, and countless children wanted to learn martial arts. It is said that for decades afterwards, martial arts schools near Songshan Mountain were never short of students.
As a result, the newly renovated Jietai Temple is constantly visited by tourists. The sign of the Shaolin Temple Beijing Office left behind during the filming of "Shaolin Kid" has become a scenic spot.
When "The Young Master" was released, the cinema chain used the Jietai Temple and the brand to promote the film, which immediately attracted a large number of audiences into the cinema.
To the extent that, if "New Shaolin Temple" wanted to shoot near Beijing, the site fee had to be increased to 100,000 yuan.
Liu Hongmin was very angry about this. I was filming here to promote you. But you took advantage of me?
So, he asked Lin Yong to look for temples in the surrounding suburbs. The country is so big, there must be plenty of temples, right?
(End of this chapter)
