Chapter 57: Throwing a stone to test the waters, full of doubts

Beijing, October 29th, early morning.

Yu Youding and Shen Shixing grabbed a seat at the mutton soup restaurant early and had breakfast.

The two chatted idly.

Yu Youding looked at Shen Shixing's official robes and said with envy: "The three of us are in the same class, and you and Yuan Yu are already wearing third-grade red robes."

When the new emperor ascended the throne, Shen Shixing became the vice minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and Wang Xijue became the vice minister of the Ministry of Justice in Nanzhili.

Yu Youding looked at his own green official robe as a horse washer from the Sijing Bureau, a mere fifth-rank official, and couldn't help feeling jealous.

Shen Shixing shook his head: "Bingzhong is in the middle of the situation and can't see clearly. You are so simple in the emperor's heart, the emperor must have left a better place for you."

Yu Youding was stunned and asked with self-doubt, "Really?"

Shen Shixing said with a smile: "Look at this group of Japanese lecturers."

"Leaving aside Lord Gao and Minister Zhang, Ma Ziqiang became the Minister of Rites, Tao Dalin was promoted to the position of Jijiu of the Imperial College, and Chen Dong, the taciturn guy, was promoted to Shaoqing of the Dali Temple. It seems that he will follow Hai Gangfeng to Lianghuai to make meritorious deeds."

"How could you, the one His Majesty singled out as Yu Tanhua, be left behind?"

When Yu Youding heard this, it seemed to be true.

But he was still worried whether Shen Shixing was coaxing him, and he became even more anxious.

Shen Shixing let him dwell on his own faults while he drank the mutton soup comfortably.

Yu Youding thought about it for a long time but couldn't figure it out, so he simply shook his head and put it out of his mind, and talked about other things: "Speaking of Chen Dong, he went to Jianghuai with Hai Gangfeng this time. After returning and studying for a few years, I'm afraid he will have a chance to become a minister."

Chen Dong is now the Shaoqing of Dali Temple. If he can really accomplish Jiang Huai's affairs, he will definitely be the Minister of Dali Temple in the future.

Shen Shixing thought of the news that came out of the palace yesterday, and a trace of longing flashed across his eyes: "This time, His Majesty is really taking action. I heard that he mobilized the Beijing Camp, the Jinyiwei, the Governor of the Canal Transport, the General of the Canal Transport, and even the newly appointed eunuch garrisoning Nanjing, and also led the Imperial Horse Supervisor to suppress it."

This trust alone is enough to make people excited. I don’t know how Chen Dong is so lucky to have the benefit of Hai Rui.

The two looked at each other, and Yu Youding sighed again.

It is said that His Majesty is kind and benevolent, and treats his ministers well. Why hasn't he shown his kindness to me too?

At this moment, on the street outside the mutton soup restaurant, there were shouts: "Newspapers for sale!"

"The latest issue of the Sun and Moon Morning Post!"

"The first release from the Ministry of Public Administration, the emperor's enlightenment at the imperial lecture!"

Shen Shixing stretched out his hand and beckoned the young man to come closer.

He took out a few copper coins from his pocket and said, "Little brother, give me two servings."

He handed over the money with one hand and the goods with the other hand with ease, and then handed another copy to Yu Youding.

This was not the first time that Shen Shixing had bought the newspaper. It could be said that any official with some political sense would not miss the new newspaper.

Ever since Earl Ding'an rushed to Songjiang Prefecture, almost all the forces in the court have been cleared out and replaced by several big bosses today.

Only a few of his former students and officials were left, including only two among the Nine Ministers, Ge Shouli, the Chief Censor of the Censorate, and He Yongqing, the Right Minister of the Ministry of Public Security.

Without Gao Gong's protection, he could still stand firm in the court. Everyone knew who was protecting him.

Since we know who He Yongqing is, we can naturally guess who wants to publish the newspaper.

Therefore, this daily and monthly morning report, which was issued by the Ministry of Public Security together with the court bulletin, became a legal way for court officials to spy on the emperor's mind.

Both of them browsed the pages very knowledgeably.

As if by coincidence, both of them saw the large edition of this issue - "From the experience of distinguishing good from evil, realize the attitude and method of studying classics."

The new newspapers always use plain language like this, and the two are used to it, because the treasury is rich and there is no need to save paper.

However, the content of the title immediately made the two of them alert.

Yu Youding frowned and asked, "Are you going to make a final conclusion on what happened at the last imperial lecture?"

Yu Youding naturally also experienced the disputes about the theory of good and evil in the imperial lectures.

The question of whether human nature is good or evil has remained undecided for thousands of years. How could a lecture on imperial law possibly produce a conclusion?

But the emperor insisted on a final conclusion.

This is like stirring up a hornet's nest.

What is the official school today? Of course, it is the uncrowned king, Xinxue.

However, there are different views on this in psychology. Some believe that good and evil are innate and can be expressed by the heart, while others believe that good and evil are acquired and require cultivation. There are even some who believe that there is no good or evil in the world and that people can do whatever they want.

Once an argument is started, it is not so easy to settle.

Especially since the emperor was in the imperial lecture, he acted like he was determined to get to the bottom of the matter.

We have been arguing about this for more than a month.

Shen Shixing shook his head with a complicated expression: "It's not a final conclusion, but there is no room for discussion."

The emperor's work is not very sophisticated. When great scholars debate, they can make the dead seem alive, so they don't care about any clear evidence or examples.

But there is one thing about the emperor's behavior that cannot be ignored - that is his loud voice.

The right to publish is not something that ordinary bookstores or academies have, but for the emperor who holds the Ministry of Public Administration, it is as easy as eating and drinking.

The full coverage of Northern Zhili was not just talk, but it was still restrained and not copied to the whole country along with the official report.

Now it is just a test. If the reaction of the court officials is not strong enough, we may have to print more copies and send them to the two capitals and thirteen provinces for everyone in the world to see.

Moreover, this new newspaper is written entirely in plain language, and its voice is only limited by the number of literate people in the world.

The voice is loud, the base is large, and there is clear evidence to support it. Naturally, its persuasiveness among the people is more powerful than empty talk.

This person is not here to debate, but to use his power to pressure others.

Yu Youding also spoke up: "Your Majesty really wants to raise the flag for everything he does. He wants to take advantage of the trend of Xinxue, but he drags Gaozi into it."

At this time, it is time to go back to the past and invite one of the philosophers to support us. The effect is self-evident.

Just from the look of this Six Classics Annotation, this emperor will surely become a Confucian scholar in the future. But Shen Shixing did not agree with this, instead he smiled bitterly and said: "This emperor is not arguing about the theory of good and evil, he does not care about these."

"The so-called drunkard's interest is not in wine, but in the mountains and rivers."

"What this emperor wants is to re-explain what is 'correct'."

He poked the newspaper hard - at the last sentence: "In any dispute over claims, proof comes first."

There is never a referee in academic debates.

But now that the emperor has done this, it is hard not to think in this direction.

Shen Shixing poked it unconsciously six or seven times until he made a hole, then he stopped in disappointment.

Yu Youding also noticed something.

He exclaimed, "Your Majesty, do you want to be the Saint and the King in one?"

It would be fine if the source of power belonged to the emperor, but did he also want to bring the source of Confucian classics under himself?
This is probably a bit far-fetched.

Shen Shixing's face was solemn: "It shouldn't be the case. I think he might want to stir up disputes among the schools and act as a judge."

It doesn't matter what the judge's opinion is. What matters is that he has the power to judge and punish, which will naturally allow him to bring together various schools of thought.

Yu Youding frowned: "Why do you think so?"

Shen Shixing murmured, "It is said that we should follow the 'clear evidence', but whether to recognize this 'clear evidence' is still up to His Majesty, isn't it?"

"This is to use the wind of debate among various factions to establish one's own way."

"I was wondering why His Majesty had the eunuchs stuff a pile of rotten grass in the palace in August and let the ministers look at it one by one."

Yu Youding looked at Shen Shixing in confusion, waiting for his next words.

But Shen Shixing kept silent.

He couldn't help but ask, "I also know about this matter. Several ministers kept silent about it afterwards. Is there anything else to say about this matter?"

Shen Shixing had some guesses, but he didn't want to say them out loud, so he just speculated, "Perhaps, after today's matter is debated, the matter of rotten grass will be reported in the next issue."

When the two of them talked here, they stopped talking and looked at each other in silence.

Shen Shixing didn't want to say it. After all, he couldn't quite grasp the emperor's thinking.

Yu Youding didn't care much. The so-called school community had long disappeared. Even if the emperor wanted to integrate the classics, it would be unlikely to succeed.

After breakfast, the two of them went to the imperial city together, each with their own thoughts.

Shen Shixing is now the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. In the absence of the Minister of Personnel Lu Shusheng, he is almost equivalent to the Minister of Personnel.

As for whether Lu Shusheng would take up the post... the court had already invited him twice, but there was still no sign of him leaving.

In short, Shen Shixing is now in charge of the Ministry of Personnel and participates in court discussions.

In other words, this talented man, who was only 37 years old, had already become a court official who had influence over the political situation of the Ming Dynasty, and an extremely important one at that.

Therefore, after arriving at the imperial city, Minister Shen could only part ways with his friends in the same class with regret and rushed straight to Wenhua Hall to prepare for the court meeting.

When Shen Shixing arrived, several ministers were already standing at the head of the class.

He originally wanted to find his teacher Lu Diaoyang to ask the emperor about the imperial lecture and the new report, but he saw that the emperor was already sitting on the imperial desk, so he had to put it aside for the time being and talk about it after the court meeting.

Not long after that, the Minister of Works Zhu Heng was the last to arrive.

This Minister of Works has been busy with matters concerning the Yellow River and the mausoleum since the new emperor ascended the throne.

After finally finishing my work, I heard that the new emperor had assigned me a new task. It seems that I was born to be a hard worker.

After Zhu Heng arrived, the court meeting began as normal.

Zhang Juzheng was the first to ask: "May I ask how Your Majesty is doing?"

Zhu Yijun nodded slowly: "I am well."

Now that the imperial lecture has begun, the emperor's schedule has naturally changed.

The first minister, the second minister, the minister of rites, and the left vice minister of the ministry of personnel all served as officials for imperial lectures. Naturally, they could no longer attend court meetings here and imperial lectures there.

If people are missing from either side, nothing can go on.

Therefore, they changed the practice to explain the classics to the emperor after the court meeting was over.

As for what the emperor did before the imperial lecture, it was up to him to arrange it freely - this was something the emperor had won with his own wisdom and intelligence.

In the previous several examinations, the emperor had made no mistakes and won the recognition of all the daily lecturers with excellent results.

The last time, the difficulty was comparable to the children's test.

The emperor still passed it easily, so much so that both palaces praised him endlessly and their trust in him doubled.

Therefore, it is reasonable for the emperor to transfer some of his intelligence and talents to government affairs.

After being asked how he was, Zhu Yijun also smiled and asked, "How are you all these days?"

This is a polite greeting and also creates a good political atmosphere. The atmosphere always infects people and moistens things silently.

The court officials hurriedly bowed and replied, "We are all fine."

Zhu Yijun nodded and said, "The ministers, please conclude the discussion."

As soon as he finished speaking, Ma Ziqiang, the Minister of Rites, stepped out immediately.

He bowed towards the imperial steps, but turned his head to glare at Tongzheng He Yongqing: "I am Ziqiang, the Minister of Rites, and I have a memorial to make!"

Everyone looked at Ma Ziqiang.

Ma Ziqiang said angrily: "I want to impeach Tongzheng He Yongqing for spying on the imperial lecture and violating the emperor's will!"

"Control the secrets and expand your power!"

"Spreading rumors and misleading people!"

(End of this chapter)