I practiced magic in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 103: The Radicals Are Still Too Conservative
China's academy system was formally established in the Tang Dynasty. At that time, it was a new thing that came into being along with the imperial examination system. It was far more advanced than the private education system that prevailed during the Han Dynasty.

In order to cope with the huge demand for the imperial examinations, the academy improved the original education system. The education model changed from the original aimless lectures by famous teachers to a variety of fixed teaching tasks with clear teaching objectives and subject classifications. Tutors and apprentices also formed relatively fixed classes.

In this way, the teaching progress can be naturally controlled, the knowledge system learned by students is relatively complete, and the efficiency of cultivating talents is incomparable to the previous private schools that were haphazard.

If we compare the two, the academy is clearly better than the private school!

When Wang Jing told Lu Fang about the academy's teaching methods, the latter immediately understood the advancement and strength of the academy system and praised it, saying, "This method is great!"

By using the academy system to train Mohist disciples, and with sufficient financial investment, I am afraid that within ten years, the Mohist school will be able to train a large number of talents and gain a firm foothold in the academic dispute with the Confucian school.

And if it only takes three generations of persistence, Mohism can even develop to the point where it can compete with the entry-level school!
A hundred years later, unless Confucianism imitated this method and established academies to spread its own doctrines, it would be eliminated by the times and would no longer be able to fight against Mohism.

While Lu Fang was immersed in the glorious prospects and bright future of Mohism and Mohism, Wang Jing had already decided to seriously engage in domestic affairs construction.

Wang Jing told Lu Fang, "Zhengliang, please go talk to Senior Moshi and see if we can invite some Mohist scholars. I want to make a drastic reform to Hongdu School and teach in the academy style. The additional courses will require many teachers to teach."

It was obvious that Wang Jing intended to accomplish the goal in one step, directly establish the academy, and then immediately start to use the shell of the Hundred Schools of Thought to secretly spread science, mix the relevant basic knowledge of physics and chemistry with Mohism and Taoism, and pass it on to the students who came to study.

The purpose of doing this is very clear, which is to cultivate a group of young people with scientific thinking to serve as the cornerstone of the future of Chinese civilization.

We need both magical powers and science!

And who says that we can’t practice magical skills using scientific methods?

Wang Jing himself practiced the "Nine Refinements of True Yang" through a modified version of the "Three Body Technique", and the effect was surprisingly good.

What's more, the mechanical engineering inherited by the Mohist school originated from the Yanjia technique of ancient times. In Wang Jing's view, this mechanical engineering that combines the two characteristics of refining qi and refining spirit is simply the prototype of intelligent machinery, a fantasy version of cyberpunk!
The prospects are bright!
Lu Fang was stunned when he heard this, obviously shocked by Wang Jing's generosity. After hesitating for a while, he said hesitantly: "Master, isn't this a bit radical? In fact, it would be better to open a few classes to test the waters. We don't know how many people will come to listen to the classes and learn."

However, as a conservative who strives for stability, Wang Jing still thinks that Lu Fang's radical ideas are too conservative, and he directly waved his hand: "No, the number of people is very important! Either don't do Mohism, or do it in a big way, and the momentum must be created! First, you should try to persuade Senior Moshi to gather Mohist disciples. The first batch of Mohist graduates after the reform of Hongdumen Academy into an academy is too few. There should be at least 500 people, right?"

Wang Jing's move was obviously Xiang Zhuang's sword dance, aimed at Pei Gong.

The five hundred Mohist graduates are not the point. The point is actually that Wang Jing hopes to promote the development and growth of Yanjiashu.

Because during the Xian Qin Dynasty, the Qin Dynasty's terracotta warrior technology was already the best in the world. At that time, the Mohist School and the Yin-Yang School worked together to create a powerful terracotta army for Qin Shihuang Ying Zheng.

The most powerful among them are naturally the twelve golden-armored gods in different shapes, named Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig respectively. Each of them possesses powerful magical powers and combat power to suppress the world.

Under the Twelve Godly Generals, there are also low-level terracotta warriors made of two different materials, Jia wood and Wu earth. They have all shined on the battlefield, able to fight without sleep, and made great contributions to the expansion of the territory of the Immortal Qin Dynasty.

It is a pity that the last army of terracotta warriors were burned to ashes by Xiang Yu with the Nanming Lihuo in the battle of Afang Palace, and the design drawings were also completely lost. Even in the hands of Mo Shi, only a few words of description remained.

Fortunately, the Yanjia technique is now available. After all, the technology for developing wooden terracotta warriors is in the same line with the Yanjia technique, so the worst that can happen is that we can just re-create it.

This is also the reason why Wang Jing was willing to offend Confucianism in order to revive Mohism. The Yanjia technique was really so powerful.

As for Lu Fang, he was born in a poor family after all. Although he had been exposed to Mohism, his horizons and thinking had not been fully opened. Therefore, he could not understand why Wang Jing did this. He was just stunned by Wang Jing's domineering and generous move.

Five hundred people isn’t a lot?
The number of students at the Imperial Academy, which mainly received Confucian education, was only 30,000 at its peak, and this was the result of hundreds of years of Confucianism being the only orthodoxy.

In the past, your Hongdu School was under the patronage of Emperor Ling, so we could have tolerated opening our Confucian school to the poor and common people. But now that Emperor Ling is dead, you, Wang Jing, actually dare to openly spread Mohism and recruit 500 people in the first semester?
You simply don't take my Confucian school and my aristocratic family seriously!

Xun You's eyelids twitched when he heard this, and he couldn't help but remind Wang Jing, "My lord, haste makes waste. The Imperial College in the south of Luoyang City has gathered young talents from all over the country, but it only had 30,000 people in its heyday. The Hongdu School is recruiting 500 people for its first class of Mohism. Isn't this a bit too much?"

Wang Jing just smiled calmly: "Is it too much? I thought the number of students was too small. It's only one sixtieth of the size of the Imperial College? It seems that we still need to expand the school in the future..."

Compared to Xun You, who had a depressed expression and didn't know what to say, Lu Fang seemed much happier. Seeing that Wang Jing attached great importance to Mohism and made such a promise, he immediately ran to Mo Shi to discuss writing a letter to summon Mohist disciples. He even wished he could turn into a carrier pigeon and fly to various places with the envelope in its mouth to let many Mohist fellows know the good news as soon as possible.

Lu Fang left, but Xun You stayed and came to Wang Jing silently, with an expression as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

"Gongda, do you have anything to say?"

After hesitating for a long time, Xun You asked sincerely, "My lord, do you have any prejudice against Confucianism?"

No matter what, Xun You was ultimately a Confucian scholar, and although he was most interested in the tactics and strategies of military strategists, these could not change the fact that the books he read the most in his life were Confucian classics, and his worldview from childhood to adulthood had long been shaped into a Confucian one.

You must know that changing a person's mind is not something that can be done overnight, and it is almost impossible to do so.

The knowledge and things a person learns and comes into contact with before the age of thirty will accompany this person throughout his life, shaping his three views and determining his thinking.

Therefore, to reshape ideas, it is best to start with the next generation of young people.

Wang Jing knew this very well, so he had no intention of working hard on Confucianism. He even gave up on Imperial College and chose to start a new school in Hongdu School.

Facing Xun You's question, Wang Jing sighed and then said, "It's not that I am biased against Confucianism, but Confucianism has long deviated from the right path and has become a tool for the ruling class to oppress the people. It is Confucianism that discriminates against and suppresses other academic thoughts. Am I the one who is biased? It is Confucianism!"

These words were like a revelation to Xun You, causing him to break out in a cold sweat. He finally jumped out of the Confucian perspective and began to re-examine the whole story.

It was not until then that Xun You realized that it was not that Wang Jing was prejudiced against Confucianism, but that Confucianism had expanded to the point where it would not allow other academic schools to compete on the same stage, and even wanted to label the doctrines of other schools of thought as heresy.

Of course, this is not actually Xun You’s problem, but the inevitable choice of the Han Dynasty as the unified dynasty after the Qin Dynasty.

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, various countries competed for hegemony. It was precisely because of this social environment of mutual division and frequent exchanges that various thoughts and academic schools came into being, and eventually flourished into the brilliant era of a hundred schools of thought.

That magnificent epic period is still recalled and recalled with emotion by countless people of noble character and lofty ideals.

Xun You was originally the most talented elite in Confucianism, so he naturally knew that the reason why Confucianism was able to win among the Hundred Schools of Thought was not luck, but destiny.

Therefore, he calmed down and advised Wang Jing again: "My lord, Confucianism can stand out from the hundreds of schools of thought and become the only prominent school of thought in the world. There is a reason for its survival. My lord may not like Confucianism, but you should not ignore its positive significance. Why did all the Han emperors since Emperor Wu unanimously respect Confucianism and regard it as the orthodoxy of the dynasty?"

"Nothing special, just because only Confucianism can help the monarch govern the people, stabilize the world, and make the country last forever. Therefore, Confucianism can become the only prominent school of thought in the world and be recognized by people all over the world."

Xun You looked at Wang Jing with burning eyes. Although he was his subordinate, Xun You would never give in easily in the dispute over academic concepts, simply because it was a dispute of ideas and even more so a dispute of beliefs.

After listening to what Xun You said, Wang Jing did not rush to refute it. Instead, he nodded in agreement and said, "It is destiny that Confucianism can become a prominent school of thought. After all, among all the schools of thought, Confucianism is indeed the most suitable academic discipline for governing the world in a unified dynasty system with the emperor as the core of power."

In Wang Jing's view, Confucianism emphasizes benevolence and courtesy, which actually emphasizes the importance of interpersonal relationships. It is about circles. Confucianism teaches people in the world how to treat family, friends, teachers, superiors or subordinates, so as to form a stable circle of interpersonal relationships. The emperor is the highest level circle, located at the top and the center of the power tower. Then there are ministers and nobles around the emperor. Another circle is formed on the second level. Under the three dukes and nine ministers, the nobles and ministers have their own families and relatives, thus forming a smaller circle at the next level. This is layered and interlocking, and finally formed a nesting doll model of circles within circles.

It is precisely by using this nesting doll model that Confucianism was able to cover the entire world and spread throughout the four seas, laying a solid ideological foundation for the unification of China.

It can be said that without Confucianism, there would be no Han nationality, and no Chinese civilization that has been passed down for thousands of years.

Therefore, no one can erase the achievements of Confucianism.

What's more, the problem is not Confucianism, but the Confucian scholars and Confucian students who master Confucianism. A group of selfish monks have distorted the scriptures, and the situation is getting more and more distorted. The blame should not be put on the scriptures.

What Wang Jing wanted to oppose was not Confucianism as an academic school, but the Confucian organization based on aristocratic families.

"Gongda, what do you think of the Confucian scholars in the world? Do you think they can accept my revival of Mohism and even the Hundred Schools of Thought before the Qin Dynasty?"

After saying this, Wang Jing looked at Xun You with a smile.

Faced with this question, Xun You remained silent, because there was only one answer.

Confucians will never sit idly by and watch the revival of other schools of thought, nor will they allow the doctrines of other schools to shake or even break the current aristocratic Confucianism's monopoly on thought and academic discourse.

Thoughts are weapons sharper than swords and can kill people without visible evidence. Although there is no blood, they are more terrifying than simple killing because thoughts transform your brain.

Wang Jing spread his hands towards Xun You and said, "Look, the truth is so straightforward. It's not that I am biased against Confucianism, but that Confucianism is biased against all other doctrines."

Xun You remained silent, but still felt unwilling.

Wang Jing smiled and reminded him: "Confucianism has deviated from the right path. The dragon-slayer of the past has now become the new evil dragon. But this is a human problem, not a Confucian problem, so I will not ban Confucianism. But I will not learn from Emperor Wu to abolish all schools of thought and respect Confucianism alone."

Xun You's eyes lit up when he heard this: "My Lord, do you mean to allow us to compete with the Mohists?"

"It's natural."

Wang Jing never thought of eliminating Confucianism, because the existence of Confucianism played an irreplaceable role in governing a huge country with a large population and vast territory.

In Wang Jing's view, the existence of Confucianism itself is reasonable, representing the human nature's pursuit of family affection, order, and all beautiful things.

Therefore, in terms of ideology, Confucianism is able to unify thoughts to the greatest extent, improve cultural customs, and ease class contradictions. It becomes the lubricant for social operations and allows the country to run in an orderly manner. These are things that other schools of thought cannot do.

Unfortunately, the emergence of Confucianism also had obvious negative effects, the biggest problem being that it restricted thought.

After Confucianism became the only official doctrine, it lost external competition and soon began to become rigid and corrupt. Although there were several internal reforms, it was ultimately unable to reverse the decline and was eventually abandoned by the times.

What Wang Jing is doing now is to break this destined cycle of fate and open up more possibilities for the future of Chinese civilization.

He said to Xun You: "Gongda, after the printing house is opened, you can also publish Confucian classics, and also teach Confucian knowledge by establishing academies. In this regard, I will treat everyone equally and provide funding and support. Isn't this a statement of my attitude?"

This is equivalent to giving Confucianism a fair chance to compete.

Xun You knew that this was the maximum concession Wang Jing had made, so he did not ask for more: "I am here to thank you, my lord, on behalf of all the Confucian scholars in the world."

Seeing Xun You being so active, Wang Jing felt helpless.

People who study Confucianism are suitable for being officials and governing people, but they are not suitable for governing the country.

Because the development of a country is far from enough to rely on political tactics alone. What does civilization rely on for progress? Is it the mentality of the emperor or the principles of how to behave in the world?

neither!
The progress of civilization depends on technology, industry, and science!

Even if one has many magical skills, the practitioner himself still needs to eat and wear clothes. No one can live in a vacuum.

However, after a strong man has mastered invincible military force, he will often become only a consumer rather than a producer. Therefore, the development of the Yanhan Dynasty was quite slow, and the lives of the lower-class people did not improve much. In fact, because there were generally strong people in the aristocratic families and wealthy families, the people were exploited even more severely.

Because peasant uprisings could not threaten the aristocratic families and powerful clans who could defeat a hundred or even a thousand of them alone.

If the growth of Confucianism did not require the accumulation of intellectual power, and if it did not require packaging itself as a good person, the people would have been oppressed even more miserably.

To change this situation, we must break the Confucian monopoly on thought.

However, due to its own arrogance and contempt, Confucianism has been dismissing all kinds of crafts as having strange and obscene skills for hundreds of years, so that some technologies during the Qin Dynasty not only failed to improve, but many were directly lost.

Although Wang Jing did not intend to eliminate Confucianism, he also wanted to reverse the established destiny, put Chinese civilization on the right track, and create an unprecedented pattern and future.

Hongdu School was the first step in the implementation of Wang Jing's plan for a major ideological transformation in the late Han Dynasty.

However, any reform will inevitably touch the cheese of vested interests, so what Wang Jing was going to do was soon noticed by the Confucians.

Kaiyang Gate in the south of the city is only eight miles away from the imperial palace. There stands a huge building complex with a strong academic atmosphere.

This is Taixue, the highest institution of learning in the Yanhan Dynasty and the first national central university in the Eastern world.

During its heyday, 30,000 students gathered here to read poetry and books, learn rituals and music, follow great scholars and celebrities, and wait for the day when they could display their talents and become famous throughout the country.

At this time, the Imperial Academy had just experienced the Dong Zhuo Rebellion and had not yet recovered, but more and more students were returning.

Ma Ritian looked at everything in front of him with joy, but then he remembered some rumors he had heard recently, and his mood suddenly became bad.

Cai Yong, who was sorting out the legal documents, saw his friend's expression change and became curious: "Why is Uncle Weng so sad? Could it be that something unexpected happened in the court?"

Ma Riti was one of the Nine Ministers and was the Taichang who was in charge of the ancestral temple rituals. Even the huge Imperial Academy in front of him was under his jurisdiction. It was not an exaggeration to say that he was in a high position and had great power.

So Cai Yong was very curious and couldn't help asking a few more questions: "What on earth could have made you, the current Minister of Rites, so worried?"

(End of this chapter)