Volume 4: Gathering of Sages Chapter 577: Earth-shattering
“Food, clothing, shelter and transportation are the four things that all people in the world cannot live without. Only when these four things are solved can the world be truly prosperous.”
"Such prosperity is inseparable from capable officials who can select high-quality seeds for promotion, craftsmen who can modify farm tools to make them more efficient, skilled women who can spread advanced textile technology, and skilled craftsmen who can build beautiful houses, boats and carts. If not for this, how could Emperor Taizu hang the words 'food, clothing, housing and transportation' on the screen of Fengtian Hall when he first ascended the throne?"
"Speaking of transportation, the Qin Dynasty's railways once enabled the Qin Dynasty to deploy troops and supplies to all parts of the country at the fastest speed, and the Qin Straight Road is still a famous road in Shaanxi. And the reason why the world was able to establish counties instead of enfeoffment of princes at that time was not because of this convenient transportation, which gradually united the world and made it easier for government orders to be passed down from top to bottom?"
"This boat may seem like a small, insignificant toy, but just like any foreign invasion, the first thing to do is to ensure the route. How can we arbitrarily assume that those small foreign countries overseas will not be able to equip their own boats with wings like this one and fly across the seemingly insurmountable ocean? Just because they can't do it now doesn't mean they can't do it in the future!"
"A strong pass guarded by one man cannot completely block foreign enemies. There have been too many examples of strong passes being breached in history. A great river cannot completely stop the iron hooves of northern invaders, because a great river will also freeze over one day, and thousands of iron hooves will break through the ice. That kind of scene has happened more than once."
"Perhaps one day, giant steel ships will be able to sail in the vast ocean, and manned steel birds will be able to sail in the sky. A journey that used to take a month or even several months will only take one or two hours. If this technology is in the hands of our dynasty, we will naturally be invincible. But if it is in the hands of others, who knows if it will not be a huge threat?"
"A small country with few people may not seem worth mentioning at first glance, but looking at the globe and map just now, there is still a vast land in this world. If the king of a foreign country has the ambition to expand his territory, he should not limit himself to expanding his territory on land, but should also focus on overseas."
"Then use a high reward to motivate those drifters who can't find a livelihood in their own country, or those young men who can't make a name for themselves. Will some people take risks to make money and go out to sea to explore and find new continents? Once fertile land is discovered, a swarm of hornets armed to the extreme with strong ships and powerful guns will follow. Then, what about ten, twenty, or a hundred or eighty years?"
"Think about it, Jizi, a descendant of the Shang Dynasty, was able to establish a country in Korea and act as the ruler of a country. Although the country was stolen later, Goguryeo was once a major threat to the border of the Sui and Tang dynasties. Although those foreigners in the West are poor, once they are greedy and set their sights on the world, they will encroach on those uninhabited territories and desperately increase the population. What will be the result?"
"There had to be a war between the Han and the Xiongnu, and there had to be a war between the Tang and the Turks, because the universe cannot accommodate two great powers! The fact that the Song and the Khitan lived in peace for many years was not an exception, because both countries had lost their ambitions to make progress, and eventually they were destroyed one after another, and their societies were no longer viable! The rise and fall of a country is like sailing against the current. If you don't have power, you will either advance or retreat!"
When Zhang Shou said the last four words, the Third Prince, who had been trying to appear calm, finally showed a flush of excitement on his face. He took a deep breath, resisted the urge to open his mouth to praise and agree, and looked at his father beside him.
The emperor seemed to be sitting on the throne as if nothing had happened, but his fingers were rubbing unconsciously. It was clear that he had not only listened, but was also pondering. As for whether he was impressed or not, the third prince could not tell, but he felt that the reason why he liked Zhang Shou as a teacher was because he could see far ahead.
The words of the sages in historical books are certainly worth learning, but people cannot always look to the past; they need to look to the future.
The world is so big, why is it that discussions of rise and fall, survival and destruction are always focused on those small countries in the past, and not spread throughout the universe?
Even though the Celestial Empire was located in the center of the world and thousands of nations came to pay tribute every year, many of those so-called nations were just small, barbaric countries occupying an island. They came from afar just to ask for rewards. Emperor Taizu scoffed at this.
What Zhang Shou just talked about were some Western countries that also looked like small countries on the map, but from the tone of Mr. Kong, it was clear that he was confusing these countries with the island countries in the vast ocean to the south. However, Zhang Shou disagreed.
Why are those Western countries and those small countries in Southeast Asia so different? Are they more ambitious?
A lot of thoughts went through the mind of the Third Prince, but he was soon awakened. Because after a moment of silence in the hall, applause suddenly broke out. The applause seemed very abrupt at first, but as more people joined in, one person, two people, three people... dozens of people, gradually gathered into a torrent that could not be ignored.
He looked in the direction of the voice and saw Ge Yong, Qi Jingshan and Chu Ying, who were very pleased, Lu Sanlang, Zhang Chen and others, Zhu Jing, Zhu Tingfang and Zhu Er and his son, who nodded slightly, Zhu Ying and a group of girls who were in high spirits, the Fourth Prince who was extremely excited, and the Queen Mother who was clapping her hands gently as if to express her appreciation symbolically.
Although these people did not constitute an absolute majority in the hall, and were far less enthusiastic than the reaction when Zhang Shou gave a lecture at the Imperial College, the Third Prince still became happy all of a sudden.
The teacher is not alone in this world, there are many people who support him! Of course, this also includes...
The third prince was beaming with joy, and immediately joined the clapping without hesitation. Seeing him join, the already gloomy face of Grand Secretary Kong suddenly became even more stern. But what made him even more angry was that Grand Secretary Wu was also clapping with a smile, which made him particularly eye-catching among the group of senior officials.
But just as he cursed the sycophant in his heart, he heard applause coming from the side again. When he looked again, it was Lu Wan, Minister Liu of Works, and the former Minister Liu Zhiyuan of the Ministry of War who was specially summoned by the emperor today.
In addition to them, there was actually Shangshu Chen from the Ministry of Revenue, a fellow student of Zhang Shou, and a Vice Minister from the Ministry of Justice, a student of Qi Jingshan. Even in the Censorate, which had always been the most vehement opponent of Zhang Shou, there were a few "traitors"!
At that moment, what Confucius thought of was not that the situation was over, but that Zhang Shou's eloquence had deceived countless people, and now the situation was already established! Sure enough, he saw the emperor raise his hand right after that.
Just when he thought the emperor was going to applaud him, he suddenly heard a loud shout: "Zhang Shou, even if you are eloquent, you can't hide the fact that your background is unknown and your master is questionable!"
Although he had hoped that the eldest prince would share the pressure with him, and that high-ranking officials like Academician Kong, who had always been wary of Zhang Shou, would stand up to him, but just now the eldest prince and Academician Kong were fiercely counterattacked by Zhang Shou, and Zhang Shou's words were actually recognized by many people. The second prince finally had to burn his boats.
He did not care about the dagger-like gazes piercing his face at this moment, including his father's. He stood up suddenly and shouted with all his strength: "You relied on yourself and Zhu Ying, who were born on the same day as Yongping, to spread rumors, confuse your life experience , and plot evil!"
"You claim to be the last disciple of Grand Master Ge, but you actually have another master. Otherwise, how could a country boy like you know so many strange and ingenious things? How could you have the capital to cheat people?"
"Zhang Shou, you are a liar. You used sweet words to deceive Zhu Ying, Master Ge, your students, and everyone else! You don't want wealth, fame, or fortune, because you want something bigger. You want the whole world of the Ming Dynasty!"
If the previous attacks by the Second Prince and the First Prince, together with the help of Grand Secretary Kong, only slightly muddied the water in the Wenhua Hall, then the Second Prince's stern rebuke at this moment was undoubtedly like inserting a stirring rod into a pond of muddy water, then turning on the electricity and increasing the power to maximum, and in an instant, countless people were knocked unconscious.
Even the emperor himself, the calmness that he had shown before, was gone without a trace, replaced by a gloomy look. Although he was not angry yet, anyone who knew him well could tell that he was really angry - but at this moment, few people noticed the emperor's expression, because everyone was shocked by the words of the second prince.
Although rumors about the life stories of Zhang Shou, Zhu Ying and Princess Yongping had been circulating in the capital for a while, soon there was solid news coming from the palace that Zhang Shou's biological mother, the widow Zhang, had saved Concubine Yu and Lady Zhao during the rebellion of King Ye in the past, which led to the engagement between Zhang Shou and Zhu Ying.
The three children were born almost at the same time. Such a coincidence can indeed make people think a lot. But now that the second prince spoke so boldly in public, the doubts that had been suppressed naturally surfaced in many people's minds again.
However, the one who reacted faster than anyone else was the oldest man in the Wenhua Hall. The old Grand Tutor Ge Yong, who had been sitting there leisurely, enjoying the service of his disciples and watching his last disciple Zhang Shou using words like a knife to fight back against others, not only stood up, but also kicked over the high table in front of him.
This noise was much louder than when the Second Prince jumped out before. The bang and the subsequent clang of cups and plates falling to the ground were like thunder, and even frightened the Second Prince, who was originally filled with indignation, and he took a step back.
The old but still strong Ge Yong kicked over the high table, letting the fruits and vegetables that the emperor had specially prepared for his teacher fall to the ground. He then snorted coldly, "This is ridiculous!"
"My disciple, my student, do I know him or do you know him? Am I being deceived? How could I not know!"
The second prince expected that someone would speak up for Zhang Shou - at this point, he had already taken the most risky move and no longer expected any comeback. His only hope was to bring his mortal enemy Zhang Shou to an irretrievable end.
He is already so down and out and pitiful, why is it that the other party is not only successful and rising in status, but is also about to marry a beautiful woman?
Therefore, Ge Yong was the first to come out to stand up for Zhang Shou. He was not surprised at all. He just stepped back and stepped forward again. He stared at the current imperial tutor, the veteran of four dynasties, without fear, and said word by word: "Since the old master said that Zhang Shou did not lie to you, that means you want to cover up for Zhang Shou?"
"Yes, you once left Beijing for several months and stayed in Rongshui Village outside Beijing. You even built a bamboo house in the bamboo forest of Rongshui Village to live in seclusion. But you never taught Zhang Shou a day! Because his ignorant foster mother was like an old hen protecting her chicks. She hid him at home when he was sick and weak at that time and did not let him contact outsiders!"
"Since you have never had any contact with him, and he only left a few books behind, even if Zhang Shou is a genius who can learn without a teacher, doesn't he know too much? Is he more powerful than you, the old master?"
"and……"
The second prince took a deep breath, and with the intention of dying together, he said sinisterly, " Old Grand Master, you dare to say that the more than ten volumes of "Ge's New Compilation of Mathematics" that were circulated in the world before were really your work, and not Zhang Shou's, but you just took the credit?"
The truth will come to light...
At this moment, Ge Yong couldn't help but sigh inwardly, but to say that he was panicked, frightened, or uneasy was pure nonsense. In fact, he had expected this day to come. He laughed and said nonchalantly, "That book was indeed not written by me. I, as a teacher, took over the work of my student. I admit it!"
When Ge Yong said this, Chu Ying and Qi Jingshan's hearts suddenly skipped a beat. They had teased Ge Yong for taking advantage of Zhang Shou, a student, but that was just a joke. But now that the Second Prince had exposed this with ulterior motives, Ge Yong actually admitted it. Wouldn't this leave a huge stain? Stealing other people's poems, songs, and other works has always been the most taboo!
But just when they were anxious, Zhang Shou suddenly said, "The Second Prince's words are simply ridiculous. Teacher, why do you have to play tricks on him? You should know that the books were all printed from Lu Sanlang's bookstore, and those dozen volumes are Ge's Mathematical New Edition, not Ge Yong's Mathematical New Edition. As for the compiler, there is no mark, so where does the so-called name come from?"
"The reason why I used 'edit' instead of 'use' is even simpler. The teacher once despised those symbols passed down from foreign countries, and even those foreign mathematics that were very different from the mathematical system passed down in our country since ancient times. But ordinary people don't think so, just like Confucius, who denounced them as strange tools and tricks, and killed them with one stick, but the teacher is different."
"Teacher, you didn't think it was important, but you went out of your way to collect those foreign books, studied and judged them yourself, and even passed them on to me, your student! Therefore, this "New Edition of Ge's Mathematics" is a new compilation of the ten mathematical classics handed down from past dynasties, combined with the various advantages of foreign mathematics, and the interpretations and explanations of Ge's teachers and students!"
"That's why it's called the New Edition! Second Prince, you are obviously uneducated and unskilled, so don't embarrass yourself here!"
