Red Mansion Royal Cat

Chapter 593: Two and a half years of editing the book, the first move is a king bomb
This year's Mid-Autumn Festival, the city of Jinling was not affected by Prince Zhongshun pulling a cannon to arrest people. Instead, it was more lively than in previous years.

This excitement is different from before. In the past, a group of wealthy businessmen would spend a lot of money to win the most beautiful girl and spend huge sums of money to make lanterns. It seemed lively, but in fact it had little to do with ordinary people.

What is most touching about the Qinhuai River this year is that the atmosphere is more lively and closer to life.

Jia Cong and Daiyu changed into casual clothes, prayed for amulets for their relatives at the Confucius Temple during the day, and played until nightfall. Then they came to the Qinhuai River to light lanterns and pray for blessings.

The Qinhuai River no longer has the activities of selecting courtesans at great expense, but instead highlights the literary atmosphere of Jinling. The lantern festival hosted by the government on the river bank has become the preferred place for talented men and beautiful women to play.

Just like Jia Cong and Daiyu, the young boys and girls were happily strolling and playing on this lantern-filled street, reciting poems and composing essays.

On the side is a snack street with a strong flavor of fireworks. Without the "special expenses" of brothels and pleasure boats, the affordable and delicious snacks make this year's Mid-Autumn Night particularly charming.

Jia Cong chartered a cruise ship and looked at the city of Jinling that never sleeps from afar on the Qinhuai River filled with reflections of lights, feeling filled with emotion.

"Finally, my efforts were not in vain. Compared with the previous illusion and splendor, the current Jinling City is truly prosperous."

Daiyu made some tea and handed a cup to Jia Cong. She smiled and said, "The beauty of the southern country is also due to the efforts of you and me. I hope we can encourage each other."

"mutual encouragement!"

The two of them drank tea instead of wine, clinked their glasses lightly, and smiled at each other.

After years of careful planning and hard work, the two worked together to bring the beautiful scenery they had imagined in their hearts to life. This is an honor that belongs to both of them.

Whether it is Jia Cong or Daiyu, the two of them gradually established a common belief during their growth together over the years.

Instead of worrying about satisfying their needs in terms of food and clothing, they would rather achieve spiritual sublimation.

"From what Xueyan said, Zijuan fell in love with a student of the Imperial Academy?"

"Well, the student is called Zheng Zhiyuan, and he is Baoyu's friend. Although he has not achieved anything in the imperial examinations, he is also a talented person. A few days ago, he asked Baoyu to write a letter to Zijuan, saying that he would go home at the end of the year and asked the elders in his family to come and propose marriage."

Daiyu glanced at Zijuan who was playing with Xueyan at the stern of the boat, and briefly told Jia Cong about the matter.

In fact, according to tradition, the two maids around her were considered Jia Cong's concubines.

But Jia Cong was a man who was extremely loyal in his feelings. He had never touched Jixiang and Ruyi, who had served him since childhood, let alone other people.

For this, Daiyu was very grateful to God for giving her such a devoted husband.

Jia Cong thought about it and quickly found some information about Zheng Zhiyuan in his memory.

"So it's him. He's a talented guy. He once published an article in the newspaper on the application of financial circulation, which was quite insightful."

The interactions between these people really prove the old saying: Birds of a feather flock together.

There is a reason why Zheng Zhiyuan can play with Baoyu.

Although the Zheng family is far less wealthy than the Rongguo Mansion, it is also one of the largest families in Kaifeng City.

A few years ago, Zheng Zhiyuan was just like Baoyu, who was spoiled by his old lady by holding her hand in her mouth. As a result, he was ignorant of the world even in his teens and was as pure as a blank sheet of paper.

Perhaps it was God's will that Zheng Zhiyuan's father was transferred to Nanyang by the imperial court and became the county magistrate of a county under Nanyang's jurisdiction. At that time, Henan was in the midst of the White Lotus Rebellion and was hit by a flood that had not been seen in a century.

The people suffered greatly from the war and natural disasters.

Zheng Zhiyuan, who went with his mother to visit his father at his post, witnessed for the first time what it meant to have refugees thousands of miles away and starving people everywhere.

After returning home, he changed his past absurd behavior, worked hard, and won the first place in the county examination, provincial examination, and imperial examination. He became the most famous talent in Kaifeng City. He was recommended by the Kaifeng prefect to go to Beijing and study in the Imperial Academy.

One of the biggest reasons why Jia Cong remembered this person was that Zheng Zhiyuan had witnessed the sufferings of the people and knew what it meant to solve problems in a practical way, rather than just writing nonsense.

"He has repeatedly advised the court in newspapers to abolish agricultural taxes for ordinary people. This is a point that he has seen further than many people."

Canceling agricultural taxes from ordinary farmers and only collecting agricultural taxes from large landowners to prevent land annexation is the first principle of land policy that Jia Cong has always adhered to. Zheng Zhiyuan's idea coincides with his.

When commercial taxes exceeded agricultural taxes, the imperial court had already begun to gradually implement the policy. Finally, at a grand court meeting after the summer harvest last year, an official decree was issued to abolish agricultural taxes for ordinary farmers. Agricultural taxes would only be levied on those who owned more than 100 acres of land, and at a rate of one in twenty.

Based on this point alone, the current emperor has already secured his position as the greatest emperor of all time.

Even the previous kings of Daxia had to benefit from it, especially Emperor Zhaowu. The old man laid a solid foundation for the current dynasty, and before his death, he helped the stubborn fourth emperor to kill all the remaining troubles, making the implementation of this policy almost without any resistance.

Speaking of Zheng Zhiyuan, what Jia Cong is most interested in is the big fuss this man and Baoyu have recently caused.

"But he's in trouble now, so this marriage probably won't have any results for a while."

Zheng Zhiyuan's father, Zheng Tai, was one of the old-school officials who were pedantic and upright.

It is said that Zheng Zhiyuan stayed in the Imperial College for two and a half years and did not even dare to go home because he was afraid that his father would beat him to death.

Of course, he was not opposed to the abolition of agricultural taxes in the current dynasty, but he was opposed to the "New Ritual Movement" initiated by Zheng Zhiyuan and Baoyu.

The New Ritual Movement is in contrast to the retro Zhou Ritual.

In other words, the New Rituals were opposed to the Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism’s advocacy of “preserving Heaven’s principles and eliminating human desires.”

There are tens of thousands of Confucian scholars in the world, and more than half of them follow Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism.

Coincidentally, Zheng Zhiyuan's father was a disciple of Neo-Confucianism.

The son rebelled against his father, and the family was turned upside down. Now Zheng Zhiyuan, a son of an official, wanted to marry a maid of the Jia family. It seemed as difficult as ascending to heaven.

Jia Cong could already imagine that Zijuan's "future husband" would be hung on a tree and whipped as soon as he returned home.

"You'd better make it clear to Zijuan. Unless Zheng Zhiyuan can have He Chong's determination, she shouldn't hold out too much hope."

The reason why He Chong was able to marry Baochai for the first time was not only because of the open-mindedness of Mr. He Yaomin, but most importantly, He Chong had the right ideas and made up his mind.

Besides, Baochai is the eldest daughter of the Xue family in Jinling. Although her status does not reach the level of the He family, it is still acceptable.

Zijuan was miserable. She was born into a family of slaves in the Jia family...

Alas, it’s really hard to describe in words!

"By the way, where's Xueyan? What are your plans?"

Zijuan has loved scholars since she was a child, and she once thought of becoming Baoyu's concubine.

Xueyan is different. She is not scheming and is devoted to serving her daughter. Compared with Zijuan who knows how to plan, Xueyan is the kind of honest child who moves at the touch of Daiyu.

Seeing that Xueyan is almost 19 years old this year, she is still childish...

Daiyu couldn't help but hold her forehead: "I asked her before, and she said she would definitely follow my arrangements."

Jia Cong also laughed along with Daiyu's bitter smile, which really fits Jia Cong's impression of Xueyan.

"How about I pick one from my family's personal soldiers?"

Xueyan was bought back to the Lin family by her aunt when she was young and raised as a house daughter.

Because she has been accompanying Daiyu all the time, she has basically no experience of living outside. If such a simple-minded girl is released from the mansion, she will probably not survive more than three episodes...

"That's good. I'd still feel uneasy if I let her go."

Daiyu also felt that Jia Cong's arrangement was good. Not everyone could be a Jia family soldier, and they could basically get a seventh-rank military position.

Not to mention becoming rich, but at least you can live a stable life.

"The personal soldiers in my family are carefully selected and have trustworthy character. Besides, I am used to having Xueyan around, and I don't want to let her go."

If Zijuan really married Zheng Zhiyuan, it would be impossible for him to continue to stay by her side and serve her.

Although she was reluctant to let Zijuan leave, Zijuan's personality and character meant that she would not stay by her side as a maid forever.

This is not to say that Zijuan is a bad person, but no matter how good the relationship is, if I delay her future just to keep her by my side to serve her, we will only become enemies.

"What do you think of Uncle Jiu's son, Jia Sibao?"

Ok?
Daiyu couldn't remember this person for a moment, so Jia Cong made a gesture of drawing a bow and shooting an arrow.

"It's the nearly complete leopard skin that I gave to my father-in-law when I proposed marriage..."

I remember when Jia Cong went to the Lin family to propose marriage, the most outstanding thing he brought was an almost intact leopard skin.

This leopard skin was obtained by Jia Sibao when he shot an arrow through the leopard's eye.

The sharpshooter, originally named Jia Gousheng, became famous in one battle and changed his name to Jia Sibao. He became the future commander of Jia Cong's personal guards selected by Master She.

"So you are talking about Brother Gousheng..."

Daiyu covered her mouth and laughed: "This is a good choice, but I have to ask Xueyan first, and you also have to ask Uncle Jiu and Brother Gousheng for their opinions."

When it comes to marriage, it is best if both parties are in love with each other.

Jia Jiu is the commander of Master She's personal guards and holds a fifth-rank military rank. It is reasonable for Jia Sibao to marry a woman from an official family. There is no reason for him to agree to marry her just because she is the maidservant of your grandmother Cong San.

"Okay, I'll write to Uncle Jiu later."

Jia Cong also understood this truth, and after Daiyu reminded him, he kept the matter to heart.

In fact, he was still very optimistic about this marriage. Jia Sibao would be the commander of his personal guards in the future, and even the commander of his son's personal guards, so the people around him must be reliable.

Xueyan is the best choice in terms of both character and personality.

……

After Mid-Autumn Festival, time seems to pass very quickly.

The first snow in Jinling City this year fell at the beginning of winter. Jia Cong was sitting by the stove, reading the latest news from the capital.

Just as Jia Cong had guessed, Baoyu's life was both painful and happy.

The various schools of Neo-Confucianism united with Buddhism and Taoism and began to suppress Baoyu's "Protestant movement" from all sides.

The "Daxia Xinxue" which had not yet grown up was caught off guard and was almost strangled in its infancy before it could grow up.

Just when Baoyu and others were about to collapse, the boss finally took action.

On the tenth day of the tenth month, Zhou Jiong, the former Prime Minister who had been busy compiling a book for two years and the current head of the Confucian school in the country, officially started selling his new work at a low price in all bookstores in the capital.

"The Collection of Confucianism" is so bold!

The two words "studying Confucianism" fully demonstrate Mr. Zhou's determination.

Jia Cong flipped through the collection of books that was sent along with the letter. There were a total of eleven volumes, which included the old man's new annotations on the Four Books and Five Classics, as well as his own understanding and summary of the Confucian classics.

The scale of this project is so huge that it is hard to describe it. Jia Cong was already filled with admiration after just flipping through "A New Interpretation of the Analects" and his eyes widened in shock.

Annotating the classics would be fine, but the most important thing is that Mr. Zhou brought together a group of old friends to summarize and organize the thoughts of various schools since Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, and gave a fair evaluation of the thoughts of each school.

Among them, the changes in Neo-Confucian thought were combined with reality, and completely negated the gradually rigidified ethical code, and the mainstream thought of "Religious Education" that advocated preserving the principles of heaven and eliminating human desires.

"My God, Baoyu is really a favorite of God in this life. With this move by Mr. Zhou, those who use Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism to attack him will have to refute Mr. Zhou's point of view first."

With the shift of the main contradiction, Baoyu, the main driving force behind the "New Ritual Movement", immediately became an insignificant "small fry". I guess the biggest headache for those pedantic old people now is how to refute Mr. Zhou's point of view.

The old man directly denied the current rationalist thought from the root. If you have the ability, you can also come and find the root...

In fact, Confucianism and Confucianism have always advocated the concept of inclusiveness since Confucius.

Confucius also sought advice from Lao Tzu, and even continued to improve his ideas through the story of children arguing about the sun.

Now, if anyone raises any objection, Shao Zhengmao will kill him.

They tried to trace the source of the rebuttal and found it back to Confucius, and discovered that they themselves were the rebels.

From Mr. Zhou's letter, we can roughly infer that after two and a half years of seclusion, the old man has grasped the key to reforming Confucianism.

"Retro, retro, many people are talking about retro. But they have never thought that the Zhou Li of Confucius, which talked about the great harmony of the world, actually meant the great harmony in politics, economy, culture and other aspects. Maybe this concept is naive, but no one can deny that Confucius's concept is extremely advanced and worthy of people's pursuit."

Mr. Zhou Jiong is worthy of being the current head of Confucianism. He refuted the bad ideas of various schools one by one in light of actual conditions, and he made these people know how to refute even the rebuttal.

Anyway, when Jia Cong received the letter from the capital, although there was an uproar in the capital, no one dared to discuss it openly with Mr. Zhou.

This trend should soon reach Jinling. Jia Cong is now looking forward to the reaction of Jinling City and even the prosperous and cultural area of ​​Jiangnan.

"Uncle Eleven, it's time to come! Go and invite the owners of all the major bookstores in Jinling City. I want to treat them to a big meal!"

……

The printing and sale of "Zhiru Huidian" was basically not profitable, and the imperial court even gave a lot of subsidies to the printing and selling shops.

Jia Cong paid out 10,000 taels of silver from his own pocket and joined forces with gentry and merchants who were willing to donate to print 100,000 copies of "Zhi Ru Hui Dian" in Jinling City. They were then distributed free of charge to public schools in the three provinces of Nanzhili, Zhejiang, and Fujian for students to read and study.

For a time, the whole of Jiangnan was filled with discussions about Mr. Zhou’s masterpiece, and along with it, there arose a great debate on the “New Ritual Movement” and contemporary Neo-Confucianism.

Monthly ticket recommendation ticket

　I’ll stop here tonight and continue tomorrow. Good night!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)