First Minister of Ming Dynasty

Although the gentry cannot eliminate the second law, they can use various means to tie as many people as possible to the land and create an environment that is beneficial to them.

It is only beneficial to the gentry, but it is becoming more and more detrimental to the country. The strong man prospered in the Tang Dynasty, the four concubines served, Zhao and Song Dynasty prayed for peace, the defeat of Yashan, the fall of the Central Plains, the loss of clothes, and the centuries of Qiuxu... The sin is the scholars !

The three articles came to an abrupt end, but the shock they brought caused these four great talents to look at each other in blank dismay, shocked in their hearts.

Yang Ji rubbed his chin and said in panic, "Brother Qingqiu, how can this kind of article be lost to the people, you should burn it as soon as possible!"

Gao Qi couldn't help laughing out loud, "Burning? How? It was done by Duke Zhang, the right minister of Wu Guogong! Not surprisingly, the schools in Jinling and other places will soon learn these three articles. It's about equalizing land, restraining Haoqiang's propositions will be implemented. Also, Zhang Gong's reinterpretation of the rise and fall, and the explanation of the outline, is estimated to be accepted by more and more people. The most important thing is, as Zhang Gong said, under the rule of Wu Guogong, Regardless of men and women, everyone contributes, and all people are united. At that time, it was easy to expel the barbarians and restore China! Burning Zhang Gong's articles, we are too overconfident."

These few people looked at each other, Xu Ben who had been silent all this time suddenly said: "Brother Qingqiu, I can't say it right now, but I have a lot of admiration for Zhang Gong, and I plan to go to Jinling!"

"What?" Zhang Yu said in surprise, "You, you want to surrender to Zhu Yuanzhang?"

"No!" Xu Ben shook his head and said, "I, I just want to ask the teacher. The so-called hearing of the Tao in the morning can die in the evening. The Song Dynasty has been subjugated for a hundred years. If you count the loss of Yanyun before, it has been three or four hundred years... Two Song Dynasties After a hundred years of debating classics, Master Zhu made orthodox discourses extravagant, but ask yourself, do you believe it? If you lose, you lose. Perhaps, as Zhang Gong said, the way of scholar-bureaucrats has come to an end, and it is time to open a new way.”

Zhang Yu and Yang Ji looked at each other in blank dismay. The number of words in the article was not many, but it was enough to shake people's hearts. No, Xu Ben had already used it.

"So, are you going to seek refuge with Duke Wu?" Yang Ji asked curiously.

Gao Qi pondered for a while, then said: "I'm not busy with this matter, but there is another matter that is very important."

"What's the matter?" The three asked together.

"We have to find a way to spread these three articles by Mr. Zhang so that the scholars in Wudi can read them as soon as possible!" Gao Qi said decisively.

Chapter 261 Zhang Ximeng Stolen Again

Gao Qi was attracted by Zhang Ximeng's article, it was not just a momentary fever, in fact, paying attention to the thoughts of Zhu Sheng, Liu Bowen and others can also get a glimpse of the general idea.Mongolia destroyed the Song Dynasty and ruled the world, but it was governed in a mess, the people were in dire straits, and mourners were everywhere.

There are too many insightful people, thinking hard, hoping to find out the serious illness in the world.

From the perspective of later generations, science students are responsible for changing the world, while liberal arts students are more about explaining the world, and making an appropriate summary of past history may not be of great value.

But at some critical moments, a proper and comprehensive summary can just recognize yourself and guide the future.

As mentioned earlier, from the Tang Dynasty to the Song Dynasty, this was the most critical node. As a result, a bunch of quack doctors came out.

It is worth mentioning that the official orthodoxy of the Yuan Dynasty was also Confucianism. .

But can science explain history?

Can you explain the defeat of Zhao Song?

Can it diagnose the ills of the Yuan Dynasty today?

Can it guide the way for the future?

Obviously, Confucianism's preservation of the principles of nature and elimination of human desires is only about personal cultivation.Confucianists like to extend themselves to others, see the family from the individual, and push the country from the family.Family, country and world, naturally.

As long as everyone respects Neo-Confucianism, everyone is a gentleman, and the world will be governed naturally, and a prosperous age will appear... This seemingly perfect explanation cannot really solve the real problem.

Because families are different from countries, countries cannot be regarded as simple families.

In the land of the Central Plains, even if the rituals are broken and the world is chaotic, there are still some rules and principles to be said. Even if the yamen is unreasonable, they still collect money.

But between countries, there are intrigues, swordsmen meet, life and death, eating people without spit out bones... A little understanding of the history of the Song Dynasty, you will understand that those honest gentlemen and famous officials dealt with state affairs. Above, how immature and incompetent, humiliating and humiliating the country!

The more top-notch literati, the more books they have read, the more flexible and intelligent their brains, the more they are thinking about this problem, what should they do?

What is right and what is wrong?

These questions have not been resolved in history, but the Ming Dynasty was established to cover up the contradictions.However, with the development of the times, the defects of Neo-Confucianism were exposed again. As a result, Wang Yangming's Psychology appeared to counter Neo-Confucianism.

But the study of the mind was not successful. When the Ming Dynasty perished, the literati in the Central Plains faced a more tragic failure than the Southern Song Dynasty. Some people began to reflect deeply, and even said the great harm of the king. remarks.

It shows the depth of heartache.

It's just that this kind of reflection didn't really change the general trend of the world. Since the Song Dynasty, the fortunes of the Central Plains have continued to decline. Although there have been occasional repetitions, it still can't change the reality of overall decline. Cruel battles and the heaviest sacrifices were enough to stop the falling national fortunes and show signs of revival again.

People like Gao Qi may not have such a deep understanding of history, but they are also eager to know that the defeat of the Great Song Dynasty knows how to rejuvenate...

For ten days in a row, several people studied behind closed doors and studied carefully. During the period, after the most intense quarrel, they almost turned their faces.In the end, their faces were exhausted, and a few young scholars became unkempt sloppy ghosts.

Putting down the book, Gao Qi sighed: "I still have a lot of things I don't understand, but based on what I know now, these articles are simply enlightening, like waking up from a dream."

The other three also nodded, "Brother Qingqiu is right, I can't wait to let more people know."

Gao Qi said again: "But Zhang Shicheng has already told me not to leak it out, so that everyone will know... Presumably he also knows the power of these articles, and is afraid of causing confusion. We are just scholars, and we insist on spreading the articles. How many people can it be passed on? If Zhang Shicheng is offended, wouldn’t it be a catastrophe? I don’t regret my death, but these three articles cannot be read by the people of Wuzhong, which is a heinous crime!”

Yang Ji nodded, agreed very much, and asked, "Brother Qingqiu, do you have any clever ideas for what you said?"

Gao Qi said with a smile: "It's not a good strategy, it's just a bad idea, I hope you guys can help, let's write an article together, and scold Zhang Gong's three articles!"

"What?" Zhang Yu yelled strangely: "Brother Qingqiu, are you crazy? Let us scold Mr. Zhang? Are you not afraid of thunder?"

Xu Ben also said angrily: "Yes, this is a sage's writing, a wise saying, how can we refute it?"

Gao Qi laughed, "Of course I refuted it paragraph by paragraph."

Yang Ji lowered his head and was stunned for a long time before he slapped his thigh suddenly!

"I, I understand! Brother Qingqiu's meaning is to let us put Zhang Gong's articles in our articles, called rebuttals, but actually let these articles spread out! Wonderful! It's really wonderful!"

When he said this, he suddenly realized that he couldn't help laughing. Sure enough, the one whose surname is Gao is Gao!

The four great talents cheered up and continued to work... When it comes to writing articles, they are even more skilled than Zhang Ximeng.

Gao Qi is proficient in the articles of the past dynasties, and has a great ability to learn and imitate. He imitated Tang like Tang, imitated Song like Song... Gao Qi quoted the classics and went all out to refute Zhang Ximeng's article. The writing is colorful and brilliant.

But Gao Qi secretly not only quoted Zhang Ximeng's words, but also found examples to support these words.

Soon, the first batch of articles refuting Zhang Ximeng came out.

Full of apprehension, he sent it up, and was soon summoned by Zhang Shicheng. Lao Zhang was very moved, and directly rewarded Gao Qi with 1000 taels of gold!

"Okay, I have nothing to worry about with Mister's brilliant pen!"

Zhang Shicheng feels very relieved, since Gao Qi can scold Zhang Ximeng for nothing, let the scholars in Suzhou read Gao Qi's article!

Zhang Shicheng nodded, and ordered the best bookstore in Suzhou to publish the article and spread it widely!

Gao Qi let out a sigh of relief, but just as he came out of the palace, Gao Qi was grabbed by a person, "You are so courageous, how dare you deceive the Taiwei!"

Gao Qi was startled, turned his head to look, the person who came was one of his good friends, named Wang Xing, who was also working under Zhang Shicheng's subordinates at the moment.

"Brother Wang, why did you say that?"

"Why did you say that? You put Zhang Gong's article in your own article, refuted it openly, and fueled the flames secretly...Your tricks can fool Taiwei Zhang, how can you fool me!"

Gao Qi turned pale with shock, "You, are you trying to kill me?"

Wang Xing looked at him, and suddenly smiled, "In the past, I might have pointed out this matter, but Zhang Shicheng joined Da Yuan and has become a Yuan Ting Taiwei. If I still follow him, I will be blind! You Don't worry, what I gave Zhang Shicheng was the abbreviation I copied, and this move of yours is enough to confuse him for the time being. But Brother Qingqiu, don't be too complacent, you have to be prepared, and you will run away as soon as things get out."

Gao Qi was startled, and then said: "I'm just a scholar, how can I escape?"

"Don't be afraid, I've thought it all out for you." Wang Xing whispered a few words in Gao Qi's ear, and at night, a young man came to Gao Qi's residence.

This person has thick bones, high brow bones, and deep-set eye sockets. He looks like a sick man, but he has strong muscles and bones, and there is a fierce light in the dark.

"You are……"

"My servant is Yao Guangxiao, whose Dharma name is Daoyan."

"Are you a monk?"

"I have never lost my hair, but now I am practicing with the real person Xi Yingzhen!"

Gao Qi laughed, "So, you are proficient in Buddhism?"

Yao Guangxiao shook his head, "I am more proficient in Confucianism...Qingqiuzi will not think that you are the only one in the world who also studies the three religions, right? The land of Suzhou has outstanding people, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, don't underestimate the heroes of the world!"

Gao Qi could tell that this fellow of his own age was also full of arrogance. In the past, he might still have thought of competing with him.

But in the face of Zhang Ximeng's three articles, Gao Qi has long been honest.

What else is there to argue about, no matter how much you argue, you are still eating dirt behind Zhang Gong's back!

It's better to put your mind on the business and think about how to spread Zhang Gong's articles!

The joining of Yao Guangxiao made a few scholars discover their blind spots. In the past, they only thought about Shilin. Do they want the common people to know?It's just such a profound article, they still can't fully understand it, how can the common people grasp it clearly?

Yao Guangxiao couldn't help laughing, "Sure enough, the scholars rebelled, and they failed in three years! Mr. Zhang wrote the outline of dividing the land a few years ago. These articles did not come out of thin air. Mr. Zhang has accumulated a lot of money, and it will come naturally. How do we We can count on the people to understand it all at once.”

"Then, what should we do?" Gao Qi asked doubtfully.

"It's very simple. I think it's enough to let the people know that Zhang Fentian, the Princess of Wu State, will have a piece of land if she surrenders to Duke Wu."

Gao Qilue pondered and nodded immediately.

hurry up!

Articles by Gao Qi and others were published here, and Yao Guangxiao collected a lot of Buddhist scriptures and amulets over there. Among these things, there was a small note, which said, "Waiting for King Wu, looking forward to King Wu, it is good that King Wu is here." Eat food", "follow the Zhu family army, rich and farmland" and other small notes are distributed everywhere, as long as someone comes to ask for a lottery, they can get a copy.

On the other side, hundreds of copies of the articles by Gao Qi and others were quickly published. In Suzhou City, almost all the scholars gathered had a copy. The big guys looked at it and suddenly realized that Zhu Jiajun’s proposition was this. Ah... no wonder they divided the land equally, closed the brothels, and let the girls come out to work.

This is not some rooster who sets the morning upside down, turns the world upside down, corrupts Gangchang... but has a profound truth.And it's not just as simple as improving the status of women. On the contrary, it seems that men can get more choices, and the family will be better.

And this is also the only way to make the country rich and strong. If you want to reproduce the prosperity of the Han and Tang Dynasties, you must take this road.

You can object to Zhang Ximeng's claims, but you cannot ignore the lethality of these articles.It's okay to scold Confucianism, and it doesn't matter if you criticize Gangchang. After all, there are too many crazy students in the world, and Kong Rong also said that there is no need to honor your parents!

It's just that these three articles are too special. Not only do they want to scold Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, but also explain clearly the truth behind Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism that imprisoned the people, caged the people's power, and harmed the country and the people.

This is no longer just digging up the ancestral graves, but dragging out the bones of the ancestors and throwing away the ashes!

I couldn't take it anymore, I had to come out and criticize... Suzhou scholars jumped out one after another, scolding Zhang Ximeng, writing articles, and even pricking villains, cursing Zhang Ximeng.

Faced with such a lively situation, Zhang Shicheng was still a little excited. It really was whimsical and unpopular... But Zhang Shicheng soon realized one thing. He didn't want to publicize it. He just wanted to ask Gao Qi's opinion, but until now , It seems that everyone knows it?

Zhang Shicheng had a bad feeling.

And in Jinling, hundreds of miles away, Zhang Ximeng's mansion was robbed again. This time, no one left him the gold ingot, and the manuscript that he wrote so hard disappeared.

Zhang Ximeng hugged his temple in distress, "Go and call Lu Qiuyun, let him help me find the culprit!"

Chapter 262 Fork in the Road (Fill Yesterday's)

He lost something again, and Zhang Ximeng didn't know why he attracted thieves here. After being stolen last time, he had already called Guo Ying over and scolded him angrily.According to the logic, outsiders cannot get in, and after all he still has the reputation of being an upright official, if he wants to make money, then go and steal Li Shanchang!

Since it wasn't for money, it had a purpose, stealing manuscripts must have been instigated by someone, most likely because they wanted to spy on Zhu's army's secrets.

Thinking about it this way, it can be roughly determined that it should be the people sent by those hostile forces.This is a bit scary, since you can steal books, you can assassinate them.

Zhang Ximeng couldn't help but patted his head, no matter what, he couldn't lose the guy who was eating!

We must step up efforts to protect the safety of Prime Minister Zhang, without delay!

But back to the theft case, there were only three people in Zhang Ximeng's mansion, a cleaner, a coachman, and a cook.

These three people were all from Huaixi, they followed Zhu's army across the river, they were loyal and there would be no problem.

Then the matter is strange, who on earth is so powerful, who slipped into Zhang's mansion?

Zhang Ximeng wanted to break his head, but he came to no conclusion. .

There is no other way but to consult a professional.

It so happened that Lu Qiuyun also came at this time. When he saw Zhang Ximeng, he was so moved that he almost cried, "Zhang Xiang, you don't know. After Timur was pardoned, he opened a veterinary school by himself, and his two nephews opened another school." He set up a horse farm, specializing in handling animals, and his business flourished. There was also that Alu Hui, who heard that Timur also raised animals first, so he set up a woodworking shop, making carriages and plow sticks, and Yang Zhongying played with them. A blacksmith shop, Bald Jian is writing a book...they all have a bright future!"

Lu Qiuyun said miserably: "As long as I have nothing to do, I can't continue to teach people to steal things?"

Zhang Ximeng rolled his eyes at him, "Stupid! You won't change your mind?"

"How do you change your mind?"

"You used to steal things, but now you are studying anti-theft! For example, make anti-theft doors and windows, study the locks, build basements for people, and see how to prevent thieves."

When Lu Qiuyun heard this, he was overjoyed and overjoyed. As expected of Zhang Xiang, his mind is flexible.

"Thank you Zhang Xiang for your advice, I, I'll go now!"

"Don't be busy!"

Zhang Ximeng stopped him, "The matter of anti-theft is very important. I plan to ask you to cooperate with the authorities."

"Cooperation? How to cooperate?"

"I can give you the position of Qianhu in the guard department, who is responsible for protecting various yamen, official residences, and warehouses. Prevent thieves from entering and protect key secrets."

Lu Qiuyun was overjoyed.

It's very appropriate to leave this matter to him.It's simply that the dung beetle meets the beautiful rare sect, a perfect match!

"But don't worry about being happy. There is a big event right now. My place was stolen again. If you can find the murderer and prove your ability, and talk about it. If you can't, then I can only ask Gao Ming gone."