Sui Dynasty: I, Yang Guang, am both scrupulous and stable

Chapter 357 Not Existing Alone

The young Confucian scholars all over the street bowed their heads one after another. The crowd of onlookers all over the street had never seen such a scene before, and they all stopped to watch.

The fact that Yang Guang arrived in Qufu City and was blocked by Confucian scholars had already spread throughout this small city. After everyone spread the word, the story became confusing, and then a group of Confucian scholars were caught and imprisoned by the government. In connection with the previous assassination of the prince by Kong Sheng and Kong Bo.

The common people felt that there might be a fight in Qufu City this time, and many people with a strong sense of crisis even ran out of the city to avoid being affected.

But I didn't expect that early this morning, Kong Shun, the current eldest grandson of the Kong family, would bring all the younger generations of the Kong family to greet the prince Yang Guang with the most solemn ceremony. The ceremony and music were prosperous.

The young Kong Shun has already grown a beard. Growing a beard is not a big deal, and razors were not developed in this era. However, in a place of etiquette like the Kong family, generally speaking, when his father is still alive, he will not do it. Bearded.

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, Kong Shun, a common man, and the grandson of Kong's family, see His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Because the two families of Kong Sheng and Kong Bo were completely removed from the family tree, Kong Shun, whose father died early, became the current grandson of Kong's family. From this perspective, Kong Shunke had to thank Yang Guang.

Yang Guang said condescendingly: "Forgive me."

But unlike his usual kindness, Yang Guang's words of abstention this time had the dignity of a superior.

Kong Shun stood up, and the people behind him also stood up. At this time, the prince's carriage came with a stampede, pulled by four horses, Qin Qiong waved his whip, and carried Yang Guang to the Kong Mansion amid the sound of ritual music.

Yuan Tiantian asked in the carriage: "Your Highness, the Confucius Mansion is coming to welcome you with such great fanfare. Have they received any news?"

"Only a few of us know the news that I have to canonize them. I believe it will not be spread outside. I released all the Confucian scholars early this morning. I did not pursue their affairs anymore. I think it was because I felt guilty and did not dare to offend me, so I did this. Once it comes out, there are some sensible people in the Kong family. Although they like to rely on their elders, they still have some foresight."

Yuan Tiantian said: "Does His Highness plan to read out the imperial edict when he leaves?"

"No, let's take a look at the Kong family first. Only with kindness and power can we control this arrogant giant."

"Why does Your Highness say they are arrogant? I think Kong Bowang and others are not arrogant."

Yang Guang chuckled disdainfully: "The etiquette in words and deeds hides the extremely arrogance in their hearts. After hundreds of years of accumulation, they have become extremely arrogant and arrogant. This arrogance comes from the fundamental mentality of being superior to others. , you won’t be able to detect it if you don’t taste it carefully.”

The carriage arrived outside the gate of the Confucius Mansion. It was hard not to notice the large house that occupied nearly a quarter of the area of ​​Qufu City. It had been built and expanded continuously over the years to reach its current size.

Yang Guang stepped out of the carriage, and Kong Bowang led everyone in the Kong family to greet Yang Guang. Yang Guang also showed a slight smile.

People were doing it so grandly, so naturally they were greeted with smiles. Of course, based on Yang Guang's understanding of this group of people, it was not impossible for people to do small tricks behind the surface, so Yang Guang still kept an eye on it.

The prince dismounted and was surrounded by scholars.

"The old man Kong Bowang respectfully welcomes His Highness the Crown Prince."

This time Yang Guang took hold of Kong Bowang and said with a smile: "Mr. Kong, thank you for taking care of me. Today is so grand. I feel worthy of being the hometown of Confucius and Mencius and the place of etiquette."

"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is so complimentary. Please come inside, Kong Shun, to start the ceremony and music."

Kong Bowang and others took Yang Guangxian to the statue of Saint Kong.

This is a simple statue. There is a lot of incense in front of the statue. It is watched over every day. Students from all over the world come to pray when they pass by Qufu.

Kong Bowang introduced to Yang Guang: "Your Royal Highness, this saint statue was handed down from the Han Dynasty. It has been repaired several times over the years and is the best preserved saint statue now."

Following Kong Bowang's words, a maid came forward and handed over the incense that had been lit.

Everyone in the Kong family knelt down to worship Confucius. Yang Guang understood that these people wanted to kneel down and worship Confucius himself.

As a descendant of the Chinese nation, it was no problem to pay homage to Confucius, so Yang Guang paid homage to Confucius very smoothly under the surprised eyes of Kong Bowang and others.

Kong Bowang initially thought that Yang Guang might refuse to pay homage to Confucius, because judging from his performance, Yang Guang did not obey Confucius.

But in fact they were all wrong. For the sages of China, Yang Guang should respect him more than any of them. Those ancestors who explored the principles of the world were the ones he followed throughout his life.

He respected Confucius rather than the Confucius family, and he respected all the sages rather than Confucius alone.

Kong Bowang said: "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has set an example for the world by respecting Confucius so much. I believe it will be a good talk."

Yang Guang said with a smile: "Confucius founded Confucianism and traveled around the world. As a descendant of the Central Plains, he should be respected."

"What His Royal Highness said is very true."

Kong Bowang continued: "Everyone knows that His Highness the Crown Prince is the most talented person in the Sui Dynasty, so when His Highness the Crown Prince arrives this time, the young students also want to communicate closely with His Highness the Crown Prince. If His Highness the Crown Prince does not dislike it, in Kong Let’s meet with everyone in the lecture hall of the mansion.”

Yang Guang did not reject the proposal and came to the lecture hall under the leadership of everyone.

The Confucian Lecture Hall is very particular. Before the opening of university halls in various places, it was a holy place for students. Every year, countless people come from all over the world to make pilgrimages and study. However, in recent years, it has gradually declined, and the number of students who come here has become more and more popular. There were fewer and fewer visits, and everyone went to the school, where the learning atmosphere was more intense, and there was a better chance of becoming an official in the court. Even if they could not pass the imperial examination and become an official, most of them could find a good job.

Especially in various new factories, they particularly like to recruit students who have graduated from universities. Basically, they will be in the leadership as soon as they enter, and the salary is quite good.

In the quaint Confucian lecture hall, students took their seats one after another. They all sat upright, very neatly and upright.

Yang Guang slowly walked up to the stage and looked at the crowd. There should be quite a few people among them who were shouting slogans before.

At this time, Yang Guang finally understood the plans of Kong Bowang and others. He knew that Yang Guang was not a hard-core person, so he wanted to make Yang Guang more inclined to Confucianism in cultural discussions.

It's true that Yang Guang doesn't eat hard food, but he doesn't eat soft food either.

Kong Bowang said to Yang Guang: "His Royal Highness, Su Wen, you are the most talented scholar in the Sui Dynasty. You are very talented and you are known as the Immortal Poet in the world. Therefore, the students would like to ask you for advice."

Yang Guang looked at the people in the hall and said, "Mr. Kong, what do you think we should talk about today? Poetry?" Kong Bowang stroked his beard and said, "Poetry is a small thing, knowledge is a big thing. Before, we Kong My family went to Shandong University and there was a debate. I argued with some students from Shandong University, but in the end no conclusion was reached. The topic of the argument was "Can Confucianism be good for the country?"

This topic is actually very biased. Confucianism is good for the country, of course it is. Fundamentally, you cannot debate with Confucian people. Kong Bowang is so confident that when Confucian students were in Shandong University, they should be Let's kill everyone.

Yang Guang shook his head and wrote a few big characters with a brush on the bamboo board behind him: "Respect Confucianism alone or let a hundred schools of thought contend".

After writing, he threw away the pen and said: "When I first arrived in Qufu, I heard many people shouting, depose hundreds of schools of thought and only respect Confucianism. I am very curious why you shouted such words to me, why did you say this to me? Woolen cloth?"

Yang Guang put on a questioning expression: "Since you have all shouted, why not let's discuss today whether it is better to only respect Confucianism or let a hundred schools of thought contend."

Kong Bowang was a little surprised to hear Yang Guang say this. He didn't expect that Yang Guang would discuss such a matter openly.

For a moment, I didn’t know whether I was timid or Yang Guang was bold.

The students also looked at each other in shock. Several of them had been in prison this time. Now they didn't know what Yang Guang wanted and didn't dare to say a word.

Kong Bo saw this and said, "Your Highness, is this topic too big for young people?"

"Since we are all people who want to take the scientific examination to become officials, the things they want to think about are naturally bigger. I think this question is too small."

Yang Guang said this, and Kong Bowang didn't know how to refuse. His eyes signaled Kong Shun and others to take over Yang Guang's words.

But although Kong Shun is very young, he has his own ideas.

His father died young, so the experience in childhood and youth was not a happy experience, and often such experiences make people mature beyond their years.

He never thought that the position of direct descendant of the Kong family would be his turn. After all, there were so many people in the two houses in front. He didn't dare to think about such a one-stop thing, but it really happened like this. .

And he had learned the lessons from those two houses, and with his cautious character, he was unwilling to be the first, let alone be used as a gunman, so when faced with Kong Bowang's reminder, he pretended not to understand.

Kong Bo frowned when he saw that Kong Shun didn't understand what he meant. He felt that this temporary direct descendant was really stupid and gave him a headache.

Fortunately, at this time, a courageous student asked: "Your Highness, we believe that only respecting Confucianism is the right path. In ancient times, countries that only respected Confucianism were prosperous. The prosperity of the Han Dynasty was all due to the exclusive respect of Confucianism. If you follow the way of heaven, humanity will prosper. Confucianism Pay attention to etiquette and govern the world with benevolence and righteousness, the people will live and work in peace and contentment, and the country will prosper."

When one person stood up, a second one stood up and said, "The students also think so. The world teaches people to be polite and respects people to be polite. The king is benevolent and the people are honest. This is the true way of the world."

The students were indignant for a while and spoke freely. Kong Bowang looked at the performance of the students on the field with great satisfaction and felt that this time he had insulted Yang Guang.

But he turned to look at Yang Guang, his face full of shock and confusion.

Yang Guang's face did not have the dissatisfaction, indignation, or even a black face that he had expected.

It was an expression of excitement, almost consistent with Kong Bowang's satisfied expression when he looked at the group of students just now, his eyes shining brightly as he looked at the students who were talking about each other.

This made Kong Bowang puzzled.

He could never understand his villainous nature. What he wanted to fight for was the affairs of one family, while what Yang Guang wanted was for the ages. He was not against Confucianism, let alone Confucianism.

Wait until the voices of everyone talking gradually became quieter.

Only then did Yang Guang speak: "You have just said a lot, and I am deeply gratified. Judging from your words, I know that our Confucian scholars in the Sui Dynasty have indeed learned solidly. The famous sayings of the saints come right out of their mouths, and they are reasonable and timely. , even if a saint is still alive, he would be very pleased to see so many young Confucian scholars speaking out about Taoism."

Regarding Yang Guang's praise, those Confucian scholars who just came out of the prison today looked at each other, wondering what Yang Guang was going to do.

Yang Guang then said: "Everyone is talking loudly, and the views are unanimous. They all want to respect Confucianism alone. It is undeniable that there are many principles in Confucianism that are applicable to ancient and modern times. The sage said that it is right to do so. Yes, it will never be wrong. .”

"but……"

Everyone finally waited for Yang Guang's "but" word.

"But Confucianism cannot solve all problems."

Kong Bowang immediately answered: "Your Highness, may I ask you what problem cannot be solved? Today is a great opportunity for us to discuss it together."

Yang Guang said with a smile: "Then let's talk about something big."

"Kong Sheng and Kong Bo are contemporary elders of the direct line of the Kong family. They are full of knowledge and Confucian leaders. However, they committed treason and evil in Daxing City and attempted to assassinate me. Let's talk about how to use Confucianism to define their guilt. "

No one answered for a while, and Kong Bowang looked embarrassed. This incident would always allow Yang Guang to stand on the moral high ground and inhumanely condemn and flog them.

"Your Highness, Kong Sheng and Kong Bo are morally corrupt and have been deleted from our family tree. They are not worthy of being members of our Kong family."

Yang Guang just smiled politely at such far-fetched remarks.

"Since we can't handle such a big thing, let's talk about a smaller one."

Yang Guang gave another example: "The son of Zhang San's family beat Li Si's son. Li Si's son went to Wang Wu's son and had another fight with Zhang San's son. In the end, Zhang San's son's arm was broken. Li Si's son's leg is broken, and Wang Wu's son's leg is also broken, so I would like to ask you now, how do you decide how Confucianism should resolve the disputes between the three families."

Everyone present looked at each other in shock. Soon, one person stood up and said, "Your Highness, this is a conflict between neighbors and you need to go to the Yamen."

Yang Guang nodded: "Confucianism can't solve this problem. Legalism has to come. It's the same thing as what I said before. Confucianism can't solve all problems."

"It cannot solve the disputes among the people, the problem of hunger, the problem of Turkic invasion, and the problem of people getting sick, so as a science, it cannot be exclusive."

"Because it does not have this exclusive theoretical basis."

(End of this chapter)