Chapter 157: Taking Shape from Objects, the More You Look, the Clearer It Becomes

By the time Confucianism developed into the Song and Ming dynasties, it had become completely different from its original naive empirical moral theory.

It has fully absorbed the essence of Buddhism and Taoism, and based on its own ontology, it has gone a step further and achieved transcendence of the real world in terms of moral paradigm.

In theory, it has two meanings.

The first is ontology - knowing oneself, that is, who I am and where I come from.

In the scope of Song and Ming Confucianism, more specifically, it refers to "nature", that is, the moral entity endowed by human beings, which is the basis for self-cultivation and practice of life to become a saint.

The second skill is moral practice. Confucianism does not need to answer where I am going, because the ultimate destination of man is to become a saint, so this is explaining how to become a saint.

That is, the means and methods of self-cultivation adopted in order to grasp the moral essence and realize or achieve human nature.

All of this is accomplished in the moral superego world, whether it is "the unity of knowledge and action" or "the pursuit of knowledge through investigation of things", and it has never had anything to do with physics.

Since Gu Xiancheng wanted to restore the past and get back to the roots, we have to talk about what roots he wanted to get back to.

Gu Xiancheng felt a little cold, and he kept talking and moving on the stage: "Generally speaking, learning has a purpose, which is the strength of the person and the entry point for scholars. The principles and morals of the world are endless. If they cannot be defined in one or two words, how can they be summarized and made available to us?"

“So when teaching, one should start by stating the main point.”

"That is, speaking of essence, it is just the two words, good nature; speaking of effort, it is just the two words, carefulness."

When giving lectures, in order to facilitate dissemination, knowledgeable people always use the general-specific-general approach, listing one, two, and three in the middle, which shows that the rules are clear.

After hearing Gu Xiancheng's summary, the scholars in the audience could not help but nod in agreement.

Yu Menglin led several classmates from the Imperial College to listen to the lecture. Many of the students were whispering to each other.

"Be careful with this title. As soon as I heard it, I could tell what Master Xue meant. It seems that Gu Xiancheng has completely abandoned his mentor, Master Zhang."

"This is normal. How can Master Zhang compare to his current teacher, Master Xue? The latter is a great scholar who was enshrined in the Temple of Sages and enjoyed the Spring and Autumn Festivals. Is there any need to ask whose opinion he is following?"

"Not entirely. As a disciple of Yangming and a great scholar of the time, Master Xue's knowledge is much deeper."

"I'm afraid he has gone too far. He sent a disciple who has just grown hair to stir up trouble here. If you don't know, you might think he is planning a journey to the West."

Several students spoke one after another.

The Master Zhang mentioned in the conversation refers to Zhang Qi, who is well-known locally.

Master Xue refers to Xue Yingqi.

His ancestor Xue Ji served as a Grand Secretary and Privy Councilor in the early Song Dynasty. His recent ancestor provided financial assistance to Emperor Taizu before he came to power. He himself was a student of Shao Bao, Ouyang De, and Lu Tan, and was an authentic descendant of Neo-Confucianism and a disciple of Yangming, the School of Mind.

He holds a pivotal position among the literati and can be regarded as a great scholar of the time.

One of the students looked around and lowered his voice.

"It was the root of the trouble during your Majesty's lecture last year. The various factions of the royal family were fighting each other peacefully, but the emperor suddenly intervened and started discussing good and evil. I don't know which lecture official was ignorant of the situation."

There are many factions in the Wang Clan nowadays, but the mainstream ones are only three.

It is divided into Wang's orthodox school, the left wing, and the right wing.

The right wing has never been popular and is often criticized for preaching in a disguised form of Buddhism.

This school advocates that conscience should be quiet. Inspired by the enlightenment at Longchang, they believe that the fundamental way to achieve conscience is to have a quiet mind.

When the consciousness has fewer distracting thoughts, the nature of conscience will emerge. The way to practice is to rely on enlightenment. Becoming a monk or living in seclusion are both good ways.

They even roam around the courthouse all day long - anyone with low morals can find a dark place to "retreat" for a few days to satisfy their conscience.

The left is more mainstream than the right, but it is also the culprit that is now blamed for the spread of the movement.

This school of thought holds that the essence of the human mind is neither good nor evil, but is clear and bright, whereas thoughts can be good or evil, so one only needs to know oneself to become a saint.

The tributaries were also divided into two. The first was the ready-made faction, which said that since conscience was ready-made, everyone should just be themselves. They were often absorbed by high-ranking officials and dignitaries, who were unrestrained and self-centered. The second was the daily use faction, which said that since everyone had conscience, everyone was a saint. They advocated that "saints are never high, and ordinary people are never low" and "the daily life of the people is the Tao". The main representative was the Taizhou School, which was also the Taoist tradition of Li Zhi.

The orthodox Wang School is most familiar with Wang Yangming's works, but has the worst market share.

Nowadays, he just puts on airs and criticizes the left and right factions all day long, scolding Gui Ji for being too inward-looking in his love of meditation and enlightenment, and lecturing the daily-use faction for being too outward-looking in their focus on the people.

In short, the main focus is on authentic origin and moderation and balance.

The orthodox, left, and right factions now have huge differences and fierce disputes. They all hope to use their own doctrines to clarify the world's customs, and at the same time achieve the three immortalities and occupy the holy throne vacated in the last days.

Especially after the emperor extended his tentacles to Confucian classics, the situation became increasingly serious.

It started with an essay on good and evil written by the emperor two years ago, turned with Li Zhi of the daily life faction taking over the Xinbao at the beginning of last year, and was marked by the emperor's attainments in Confucian classics displayed in his examination of the classics last year.

The entire Confucian classics debate then moved to the capital, and all factions focused their attention on the topic, published articles to express their opinions, and the fighting became increasingly fierce.

"The Imperial Lecture Official? Oh, why do you think Li Zhi could stay in the Xinbao newspaper and say those words that mislead the world and disturb the people? Who do you think Tu Xiying, Luo Wanhua, Gu Xiancheng and others are dissatisfied with when they give lectures one after another?"

"Gu Xiancheng was just a juren, and at best he was nothing more than a mouthpiece for the great scholars of the time, such as his teacher Xue Yingqi, his uncle Cha Duo, and his grandmaster Qian Dehong."

"Isn't this a case of a faction within the orthodox school of Confucianism fighting against dissidents? It's a purge of the emperor's entourage!"

As soon as the voice fell, Yu Menglin, who was sitting upright and listening to the lecture, suddenly turned around and interrupted the discussion: "Don't talk about irrelevant things."

After being scolded, several scholars realized that they had said something wrong, so they quickly shut up, opened their ears, and continued to listen to the lecture with a serious expression.

Only Gu Xiancheng's voice could be heard from the stage.

"'Life is called nature', nature is qi, qi is nature, and this is what life is called."

“Human beings are born with good and evil in their nature, but it is not that these two things exist in nature in opposition to each other.

"Some are good from childhood, and some are evil from childhood. This is because of their temperament. Good is certainly innate, but evil can also be called innate. It is said that 'life is called nature' and 'people are born quiet'. When we talk about nature, it is no longer nature. When ordinary people talk about nature, they just say 'what follows is good'. Mencius said that human nature is good."

"..."

"In order to explain the truth, I must first criticize the two theories to distinguish them."

Gu Xiancheng stopped talking here, looked around, and then said word by word: "The first is Xu Jie's theory of no good and no evil, and the second is the evil man Li Zhi's theory of morality following the world."

"They are all lies to confuse the people! They are all nonsense!"

As soon as the words fell, the audience suddenly buzzed.

Some were whispering to each other, some were looking down upon it, and some were agreeing loudly.

One of the students looked at Yu Menglin and said hesitantly, "Brother Yu, the test will be held in half a month. How about... let's go back and review our lessons?"

After all, Li Zhi was the director of the Imperial College, so the topic was a bit sensitive.

What's more, he also brought Xu Jie with him.

These two people now frequently go in and out of the palace, so if they don't consider the monks, they have to consider the Buddha.

The other students quickly held him down and said, "Listen again! Listen again!"

Obviously, he just wants to watch the fun and is not afraid of trouble.

Seeing this, the man who spoke first could not help but persuade him, "Since Gu Xiancheng has started a newspaper, it will definitely be published tomorrow. We can just listen to it then. Why bother to cause trouble here?"

Unfortunately, seeing that his classmates and Yu Menglin were indifferent, he felt embarrassed to leave his classmates alone and sighed to himself.

Yu Menglin turned a blind eye, but felt helpless.

There is no way, academic disputes, anyone with a teacher can't avoid it. Everyone thought he wanted to come?
Gu Xiancheng on the stage raised his hand and pressed it, signaling everyone to be quiet.

When the scene calmed down, Gu Xiancheng continued, "Let's first talk about the theory of no good or evil."

"Guan Dongming said, any unrighteous doctrine that circulates in the world for a long time must be something that caters to the selfishness of villains, but can also be attached to the great principles of gentlemen."

"I think the four words 'neither good nor evil' can describe it. Which one?"

"I think that the essence of the mind is neither good nor evil, and when you put it together it becomes the word 'emptiness'."

"When one is empty, all is liberated, and there is no more hindrance. One regards benevolence and righteousness as fetters, etiquette and law as soil and weeds, the sun and the river as the cause of dust, and management as grasping. One regards reflection on things as chasing after the state, and repentance and relocation as reincarnation. One regards learning from the lower to reach the higher as falling into the lower class, and one regards being upright and independent and fearless as acting on impulse."

"..."

Gu Xiancheng quoted classics and severely refuted the theory that there is no good or evil.

In short, anything that does not conform to the teachings of Confucianism and the origin of the saints is also the obstacle that he needs to clear in his restoration.

As for what’s wrong?
It weakens moral values! All righteousness, courtesy and propriety can be abandoned, and they are no different from animals!
At the same time, the main culprit for the decline of morals and the decline of social ethics today must be started from the time when Xu Jie was in power!
Many people in the audience agreed and nodded frequently.

As soon as he finished speaking, a voice rang out from the audience: "They confuse morality and regard selfishness as conscience, so they are naturally subject to criticism. Then why should I, Li, be listed with them?"

The voice sounded at least over 40 years old, and the tone was extremely impolite.

Everyone subconsciously looked at the person who came.

When the students of the Imperial College saw the newcomer, they were all startled and quickly stood up: "Dean Ye."

"Li Siye."

There were still some people in the field who had never seen Li Zhi before, and they couldn't help but understand the identity of the person.

His eyes looked back and forth between Gu Xiancheng and Li Zhi, each with a different expression.

As the leader of the students, Yu Menglin felt a little uncomfortable. He hesitated for a moment before he stepped forward and said, "Li Siye."

The Director of the Imperial College is in charge of teaching and academic affairs. When students meet him, they naturally have to greet him, but this scene is a bit awkward.

Li Zhi nodded, without returning the greeting, and walked straight away.

The students and candidates subconsciously moved to the sides to make way for a path.

Li Zhi did not go on stage. He just walked silently to Yu Menglin's seat and sat down leisurely, just like a qualified listener, quietly waiting for Gu Xiancheng's follow-up.

Gu Xiancheng naturally understood the identity of the visitor and just watched Li Zhi take his seat quietly.

Facing the uninvited guests, Gu Xiancheng still remained well-mannered.

Not only was he not angry, but he smiled and extended his hand to invite Li Zhi to sit down, explaining in a gentle voice: "Li Siye, it's not that I can't tolerate other factions, but they are in charge of public affairs, but they have ideas that are harmful to the world and mislead the people. People with insight can still distinguish them, but how can the people distinguish between the traitors and the young emperor?"

Li Sancai, who was watching coldly, looked in the direction where Li Zhi appeared.

He recalled the person who had asked the question with ulterior motives just now, and quietly went up to the second floor.

Li Zhi sat in a seat at the Imperial College, with a group of students standing behind him with awkward expressions.

The former waved his hand and said, "Stop talking nonsense. Go on. What are the flaws in Mr. Li's theory of morality?"

Gu Xiancheng nodded, retracted his gaze, and continued to speak: "Just now when we talked about the theory of morality following the world, we have to talk about this evil man Li Zhi, who can be said to be confusing the world and disturbing the people."

He called him a demon directly, without any regard for Li Zhi's face.

Li Zhi didn't care and even listened with great interest.

Gu Xiancheng said loudly: "Li Zhi seized public funds and used the national newspaper to openly clamor that morality follows the world, and conscience can only be in line with the times and consistent with the common interests of the people."

"The root of its greatest evil is confusion."

"When everything is mixed up, it is all vague and there is no more choice. The flexible ones move it as they please. They regard following the customs and following the wrong as moderation, and flattering the world as the unity of all things. They regard bending the rules as sacrificing their lives to save the world, and making concessions as everything is possible. They regard being reckless and fearless as not wanting reputation, and those who escape danger as saints without death, and those who are stubborn and shameless as those who are not moved."

"A chaotic world is a chaotic world!"

"But they are so arrogant that they bring up concepts such as the world, the times, and the people. They occupy a very high position. They can climb the noble path of a gentleman, and they can attach themselves to the selfish desires of a villain."

"Even if Confucius and Mencius were reborn, what would they do?"

Gu Xiancheng finished his speech with gnashing teeth and eyes wide open: "This is called killing the heaven with academic knowledge!"

The people in the audience were infected by this and many of them looked thoughtful.

They all looked at Li Zhi.

Li Zhi turned a blind eye and looked a little bewildered.

It’s not that he doubts that his theory is wrong, but Gu Xiancheng’s words explain very clearly why he is so hated now!
He came from the daily life school, with the slogan "The daily life of the common people is the Tao" and claiming that "the common people are not inferior, and the princes and kings are not superior".

On this basis, he was inspired by the emperor and went a step further in the past year or so, demonstrating the essential source of moral conscience and constructing an ontology of history, the world, and the unity of all people. This was a natural thing.

But this is not the case for people like Gu Xiancheng.

Li Zhi's narrative is so grand.

How can external factors determine the self? How can they determine the essence?

Just like what Gu Xiancheng said just now, this is not called saving the world, this is called "flattering the world."

As outstanding and aspiring elites, how can their moral values ​​be influenced by "material things"?

How can Confucian scholars, who are supposed to educate the world and establish words and morals, allow moral values ​​to be formed by the consensus of the "common people"?
The origin of morality cannot be limited to Confucianism, but at least it should be in the category of natural law, right?

Especially for the people, if Confucian scholars do not inspire and save them from a superior position, then they are "following the customs" and abandoning their true selves to "compromise".

If being neither good nor evil is self-centered, then Li Zhi's approach, in Gu Xiancheng's view, is abandoning the self.

Only then did Gu Xiancheng criticize the two as two extremes.

So, did Li Zhi care about Gu Xiancheng’s criticism?
He certainly doesn't care. He has been criticized countless times over the past year.

However, Gu Xiancheng had something to say about this point. He said that this was "rampant and reckless" and that he himself had a bad reputation and was using "stubborn and shameless" to resist criticism from the outside world.

The position is too high, so high that even Gu Xiancheng admitted that this doctrine was attached to the doctrine of sages and that it catered to the selfishness of the people.

Even if Confucius and Mencius were reborn, what could they do to Li Zhi?

Precisely because of its horror, Gu Xiancheng regarded it as a scourge!
It's so meticulously crafted and so devious that it almost defies justice!

Therefore, whether it is Neo-Confucianism or Wang's school of thought, Li Zhi is regarded as an enemy.

After Gu Xiancheng finished speaking, he turned his gaze to Li Zhi.

All the scholars turned their eyes to Li Zhi at the same time.

Li Zhi shook his head, and stood up slowly, trusting everyone's expectations.

He stood on the stage, not even looking at Gu Xiancheng, but looking around, and said in a loud voice: "Mr. Gu quoted classics, claimed to be restoring the past, fiddled with orthodoxy, and praised the saints, and he clearly wanted to use this to refute me as a heretic."

"Little did I know that the breeze was blowing on my face."

"Today, I will tell you..."

"The saint is dead! He has no right to control me!"

As soon as the words fell, everyone's faces changed color with shock!

They were whispering to each other and talking in a noisy manner.

Several students from the Imperial College covered their faces, fearing that this sentence would cause them trouble when they met Li Zhi just now.

Some people who were more thoughtful quietly took out pen and paper to record it.

Li Zhi's words obviously did not mean that the saint was dead - the saint was already dead.

The doctrine he was referring to! He was so bold that he regarded the doctrine of the saints as outdated and stupid!
How arrogant!

How willful!

Gu Xiancheng's face changed drastically. He looked around helplessly at Li Sancai's figure, and shouted incoherently: "Arrogant! Arrogant!"

Li Zhi seemed unaware of anything, left the supervisor behind, and walked to the front of the stage.

He didn't take a detour to climb the stairs, but simply supported himself with his hands and climbed up with one somersault.

Li Zhi dusted off his hands, looked at Gu Xiancheng and continued, “Last time, Li published the Theory of Morality in the New Newspaper.”

“Moral conscience is a product of the times, based on historical evolution, and an aggregate abstracted from everyone’s past life experiences, current living standards, and pursuit of common interests.”

"Mr. Gu obviously doesn't understand it very well yet, so he takes the saints as the source and the restoration as the basis of his argument."

"That's right. I'll explain it to you guys in detail, so that you won't follow Confucius and bark and even say that the shit you eat is Confucius's."

"Why do I call morality a product of its time?"

"The morality of the ancient times is very different from the morality of today. Why is that? It is because the universe is different!"

"The morality of the barbarians is very different from that of the Chinese. Why? Because the universe is different!"

"Confucius's teachings were in line with the times. Rites and music were the common aspirations of the people. Confucius established rites, which gave him a temporary status as a saint. I call him a 'sage of his time', not a sage of all ages as you say."

“This is what the times produce and what history requires!”

"Now, two thousand years have passed, the world is different, the morals and conscience are completely different, and it is all outdated!"

"The good people in the world have different moral principles, so why are saints called saints?"

"It is only his thoughts, sources, and works that have been preserved in the form of history and consensus among the people. Only by taking their essence and changing with the times can they be revered by all generations. This is the fundamental reason why Confucius is greater than you and me! It is not the innate holiness and the eternal immutability of the classics that you keep saying!"

"That is why I say that the saint is dead!"

"You are using the ancient ways to stop me and use the saints to suppress me? This is ridiculous!"

"You don't want to start a new faction to fight with me, but spend all day rummaging through piles of old papers looking for outdated things. How can you fit in with the general trend of the world? How can you win the hearts of the people?"

"Today, I declare that all the teachers, masters, orthodox people behind you who want to compete for the sainthood..."

"Anything that is not based on the current situation, the interests of the people, and the needs of the country is nothing but a castle in the air!"

"The saints of the past are dead, and you saints of the present may not be able to defeat me!"

After saying that, Li Zhi looked at Gu Xiancheng, who looked a little flustered, and snorted coldly.

She turned around, lifted her skirt, flipped sideways, walked off the stage in a graceful manner, and left.

……

Zhu Yijun heard these words on the second floor and couldn't help but applaud.

Arrogant and arrogant, he is indeed Li Zhi who started mocking Confucius at the age of eight!

It’s so refreshing, so refreshing!

Zhu Yijun turned to look at Li Chengming and urged him, "Quick, stick your head out and cheer for me!"

He is now in the voice change period and his voice is not very pleasant, so he asked Li Chengming to question him earlier.

Li Chengming had no choice but to walk to the window and cheer several times, saying things like "Well done, you didn't lose any points".

After he finished shouting, he saw that the emperor had no other instructions, so he walked back and forth from the window.

Li Chengming asked curiously: "Your Majesty, is Li Zhi's words a bit too radical..."

The saint is dead, and his spirit is truly unique.

Likewise, the trouble will not be small.

If word gets out, I'm afraid it won't just be these young guys charging forward.

Zhu Yijun shook his head upon hearing this, and said with some emotion: "Radical? This is just the beginning. Just wait and see. Today's dispute is just the beginning, and the capital will be in turmoil after that."

"There's a saying that goes 'the more you hold back, the angrier you get.' Today, Li Zhi made such outrageous remarks that Gu Xiancheng was so flustered that he forgot to refute him. When he returns, he must be upset. Isn't he running a newspaper? It depends on when he can think of the right words to refute him."

At this point, Zhu Yijun sighed for no reason: "Hey, this is also for Confucius's own good, so that he can return to his rightful position earlier, so as to avoid being scolded for nothing."

How many saints can there be at one time? This is already quite remarkable.

Like Zhou Shuren, he now calls Confucius a modern sage from the bottom of his heart.

As for being a law for all eternity? Forget it.

It would be detrimental to the work if there was someone on the throne who was never wrong.

Just as I was thinking about it, there was a knock on the door.

They both turned around.

Gu Huan raised his weapon and asked coldly, "Who?"

The outside quickly replied: "I am Qingyang, please tell your majesty that the scholar Li Sancai wants to see you."

The emperor's identity was not hidden from the Sanyang Palace. After all, he said he would not wear the White Dragon Fish Clothes, so the surrounding defenses were directly replaced by the Jinyiwei.

But Li Sancai wanted to see a nobleman and obviously did not know the emperor's identity.

Gu Huan said nothing and gave the emperor a questioning look.

Li Chengming's face turned bitter and he looked towards the emperor for mercy - if what happened tonight got out, he would definitely be in big trouble.

Zhu Yijun burst out laughing.

He slowly stood up and motioned for Gu Huan to open the door.

There were three people standing at the door. Seeing this, they immediately bowed and said, "Qingyang greets His Majesty."

"Chiyang greets His Majesty."

The third person was about to salute, but Zhu Yijun was afraid that he would announce his name, so he interrupted him in a panic: "No need to be so polite!"

True Man Qingyang glanced at the emperor cautiously and lowered his voice and said, "Your Majesty, Li Sancai seemed to have seen Master Li at the window just now and became suspicious. He is now making trouble on the first floor."

Zhu Yijun nodded: "Bring me the paper and pen."

……

Li Sancai frowned and looked upstairs.

Just now he clearly saw Li Zhi coming down from upstairs.

At the same time, a man with a rat-like face, who looked like the young master of the emperor's father-in-law, was seen leaning against the window and cheering, and his voice was the same as at the beginning.

The two of them obviously wouldn't get together easily.

Then who is the noble person mentioned by Qingyang Daoist?

He had some thoughts, but he didn't dare to think too deeply about them. He even had to pretend he didn't know and asked for a meeting openly.

Just as he was thinking about it, he saw three Taoists walking towards him from the stairs.

Li Sancai said without leaving any trace: "Three Taoist priests, how is it?"

Taoist Qingyang shook his head: "The noble said that his family is urging him to go home early. It's not a good idea to stay too long. We will meet again if we are destined."

Li Sancai remained silent.

See you someday...

That depends on whether you can pass the exam.

It’s a pity that I didn’t get to see it.

He bowed, thanked the three Taoist priests for their message, and turned to leave.

Taoist Qingyang suddenly called Li Sancai again, and Li Sancai turned around in confusion.

Taoist Qingyang took out a rolled-up copy of calligraphy from his sleeve and handed it to him: "My nobleman said that you should also learn from Gu Xiancheng and not be so restrained just because your father is an official in the Ministry of Revenue."

Li Sancai subconsciously took the copybook.

He had a complicated expression and slowly unfolded it.

There was a line of big characters that read: The truth becomes clearer the more it is debated.

Li Sancai was stunned and speechless.

(End of this chapter)