Chapter 344: Great Scholars Give Lectures, the Crown Prince Enters the Capital

To the east of Binhai Road, adjacent to the East China Sea, there are green mountains towering into the clouds.

At the foot of the green hills is the city that was expanded from a small town over hundreds of years.

On the long official road, Chai Keqiao, who had just returned from a long journey, walked towards the place.

His hair was disheveled and he looked dusty.

Chai Keqiao stood at the city gate, raised his sunburned face, and suddenly grinned, revealing his snow-white teeth:
"I am back!"

There was no grand welcome, and no one even paid attention.

It was not until Chai Keqiao stepped into the city, sat down in a familiar restaurant, had a meal, left a silver ingot, and left in a leisurely manner.

The martial artists in the city who had come from all over the world to make a pilgrimage to the foot of Qingshan Mountain heard the news and came, only to find to their disappointment that the city lord's personal disciple had already left.

Chai Keqiao passed through the city, arrived at the foot of the green mountain, and began to climb along the rugged and steep mountain path.

Along the way, he could still see warriors trying to climb the mountain.

However, as he climbed higher and higher, the number of people he met on the road decreased.

On the green hills, there are man-made platforms every few hundred steps on the long mountain path.

There were disciples practicing on the platform, oblivious to the people around them.

There was a young man standing in horse stance and punching, sweating profusely, and staggering.

There were young men who sat cross-legged in meditation, holding their chins in their hands, and after a long time, they would suddenly jump up, pick up a branch on the ground, prick the air several times with a "humming" sound, then throw it away, sit cross-legged on the ground and continue to think hard with their heads in their hands.

There was a shirtless middle-aged man who bumped into the giant tree again and again, and each time yellow leaves fell like heavy snow.

Every time he climbed higher up the green hill, he saw a new view. Chai Keqiao never stopped, and no one even looked at him.

In the martial arts world, the Daqing Mountain, which only exists in legends, seems to be completely undefended.

Unconsciously, Chai Keqiao walked into the clouds. He clearly felt that there were gazes coming towards him from the clouds and then moving away.

He knew that it was his senior brother who guarded the mountain, and after confirming his identity, he ignored him.

"How indifferent! He didn't even come out to say hello."

Chai Keqiao sighed, and when he walked out of the clouds, he had already reached the top of the mountain.

Looking down from this height, the entire city is shrouded in a sea of clouds, and the mushroom-shaped cloud columns make people look as small as ants.

At the end of the sight is a cliff extending from the mountain towards the sea.

"Whoosh-"

The sea breeze blows towards you, sweeping away the fatigue of the journey.

Chai Keqiao walked respectfully to the cliff and looked at the figure who was sitting cross-legged with his back to him, gazing at the East China Sea.

"Master, the disciple is back."

The man sitting alone on the cliff was as his name suggested, with a tall and sturdy frame. He was also dressed in coarse linen clothes, and his rough and messy hair was a mixture of black and white, casually tied behind his head with a ribbon.

Wu Xiankui had the face of a middle-aged man in his fifties. There was nothing special about his appearance except for a mark the size of a fiery red date on his forehead.

The only real martial arts grandmaster among the four "celestial beings" in the world today opened his eyelids, did not turn around, and asked calmly:

"Why did you come back so late?"

Chai Keqiao scratched his head embarrassedly:
"I was very disappointed that I didn't have a fight with the young monk Tianhai on this trip. On the way back, I took a detour to find someone to spar with. I came back a little late."

Wu Xiankui said: "I heard from people down the mountain that it was the Great Yu Priest who stole the limelight this time. His surname is..."

"His surname is Zhao, Zhao Duan," Chai Keqiao thought for a moment and said, "I didn't expect that this person would win the championship. But he said that he relied on the Tai'a Sword."

Wu Xiankui didn't care much and said:

"Victory is victory, why should we care about relying on fists, feet or swords? It seems that the royal family has a successor. What about the female emperor?"

Chai Keqiao thought for a moment and said:

"From what I have heard and seen, the empress is very diligent in government affairs. I think she wants to be a wise ruler."

Wu Xiankui said disappointedly:

"Humans are like mayflies, born in the world, and their life spans are limited by human power. I thought the royal family had another talented heir, but he wasted his time on mundane things. What a pity."

Chai Keqiao blinked and said, "Then the hundred-year battle..."

Wu Xiankui closed his eyes and said, "I will do my best."

In the past, the "God of War" created by the Dayu royal family and the Qingshan inheritance competed with each other, imitating the Buddhist and Taoist fighting methods, and agreed to a gambling fight once a hundred years.

However, it is different from the Buddhist and Taoist rules of sending young disciples to fight.

The gambling fight was a fight between two people with their peak fighting power.

In the past hundred years, the one who represented the royal family to attend the appointment was not the emperor, but Hai Chunlin, the first priest of the palace who was at the peak of his career.

In that battle, Hai Chunlin suffered internal injuries, and his realm regressed instead of improving, falling from the threshold of pseudo-celestial being back to the mundane realm.

In this hundred years, only Xu Zhenguan can keep the appointment.

Now that the battle between Buddhism and Taoism has ended, the gambling battle between Qingshan and the Dayu royal family is not far away.

Chai Keqiao smiled and said:
"That female emperor has not yet entered the realm of true heaven. I don't think she is a match for Master."

Wu Xiankui said:
"That may not be the case. If he can advance to the level of a celestial being before the gambling match and be blessed by the emperor's dragon energy, it will be a completely different world."

Chai Keqiao wondered, "Didn't Master say that she was devoting herself to government affairs and delaying her cultivation? Can she make further progress?"

Wu Xiankui suddenly said:

"In the past, Great Yu's great ancestor was indeed a genius. Not only was he strong in martial arts and close to being a human immortal, he also created a unique method of advancement for the emperor, gathering the emperor's dragon energy and adding luck to his body. He was only the first. If he could be enshrined in Luoshan, he might be able to go further."

Fengshan at Luoshan?

Chai Keqiao was stunned for a moment, and wanted to ask something else, but he saw the number one martial arts master sitting alone on the cliff waving his hand:

"Go ahead. Stay in seclusion in the mountains and travel around. It's time for you to enter the secular world."

……

One evening, Linfeng Road.

On the official road to the capital.

Somewhere in a leeward valley, carriages stopped.

Mr. Song, a seven-foot-tall man in his fifties dressed like a scholar, jumped out of the car and began loudly directing the servants to clean up the camp for the night.

Then, this scholar who had dealt with Zhao Duan in Taicang Prefecture that day, walked to the team in an almost attentive manner, outside a simple but special carriage, and said respectfully:

"Sir, it's getting dark. We can't catch up with the villages and towns ahead, so we have to stay here for the night."

The twenty-year-old servant boy driving the carriage lifted the curtain, and a middle-aged man wearing a Confucian robe, a cloak, a square hat, and a beautiful beard stepped down from the carriage.

When the middle-aged man appeared, scholars of different ages who were walking behind him all saluted in unison: "Sir!"

Such a noise attracted the attention of strangers who were also preparing to set up camp nearby, and they couldn't help but ask about it.

When they learned that this was "Mr. Zhengyang of Yunfu Dao", they were all shocked.

Mr. Song was not surprised at all. He raised his head and looked behind the carriage.

Behind Mr. Zhengyang's carriage, there were dozens of other carriages, many of which were carts pulled by donkeys or oxen. Several people could sit on a large cart.

This does not include those who followed on horseback, and those scholars who tried to follow on foot and had not fallen behind.

There were so many people, probably more than a hundred.

Some days after Zhao Duan left, Mr. Song learned that his mentor Mr. Zhengyang was going north and passing through Linfeng.

As a "disciple of Zhengyang", Mr. Song immediately welcomed him with great fanfare. He then learned that Mr. Zhengyang had come from Yunfu Road and was going to Beijing. This man, known as "the first hermit of Dayu", was almost as famous as Dong Xuan, the Grand Master, in the literary world. In the south, he was even more famous. He was called "Nanyang and Beidong" and was almost a saint in Yunfu Road.

He guarded his brother's tomb for many years, wrote books to organize and explain the words of Confucian saints of all ages, and even the marking of imperial examinations referred to his annotations to a certain extent.

It can be said that he is recognized by almost the entire Dayu as the only candidate to become the next generation of Confucian master after Dong Xuan.

Although he lived in Yunfu, he attracted scholars from all over the country to come and pay homage to him. He occasionally gave lectures, and his words were passed on to the imperial court through the mouths of his disciples.

Mr. Zhengyang, who had been guarding the tomb for ten years without leaving the mountain, headed north to Beijing as his first stop.

As soon as the news came out, it attracted the attention of countless readers.

When Zhengyang walked out of Yunfu Road, there was only a servant boy beside him.

When he met Mr. Song, there were already dozens of followers around him.

Mr. Song was fortunate enough to witness this great event. He could not resist the temptation to leave his name in history, so he left his family business and followed his teacher north.

Now that the capital is in sight, he has hundreds of followers behind him.

There were countless scholars and literati watching and paying attention along the way. He could imagine what kind of sensation the group would cause when they arrived in Beijing.

"Everyone, take a break."

Mr. Zhengyang bowed to everyone, and everyone returned the greeting as a disciple.

Then, everyone began to set up camp in a very orderly manner. Many scholars rolled up their sleeves and went to pick up dead branches and leaves nearby and gathered them into piles.

When the sky dims, the sunset fades away, night comes, and the sky is covered with stars.

In this valley, clusters of fires have been lit, centered around middle-aged people.

These disciples, who had once listened to Zhengyang's lectures and were scattered all over the place, and now followed their teacher to gather together, took out dry food from their packages and boiled water to eat.

Mr. Song had wealth and servants with him, so he did not have to do chores himself and was able to serve his mentor.

He held the hot meal in his hands, passed by the fires, came to the carriage, and said to the middle-aged man who was sitting cross-legged on the ground with his eyes closed in meditation:

"Sir, please have some food."

Mr. Zhengyang, who was wearing a Confucian robe inside and a cloak outside and had a beautiful beard, raised his eyelids, glanced at the disciple, and did not reject his kindness.

He took the warm earthenware pot and picked up the chopsticks, but he didn't rush to eat. Instead, he said:

"In a few days, we will be entering the capital. You should disperse after sending us here."

Mr. Song was shocked: "Sir, you..."

Zhengyang, who was about the same age as Mr. Song but had a more dignified demeanor than Mr. Song, smiled and said:

"After traveling thousands of miles, we must finally say goodbye. I am here in the capital, entrusted by Prince Mu, to uphold the orthodox learning and debate etiquette with that female emperor who crows at dawn.

This is extremely disrespectful. The capital is a den of dragons and tigers to me. You don't need to be implicated by me. I have sent you here with my own will. The rest of the journey will be for me to walk on my own."

As soon as these words were spoken, not only Mr. Song, but also a group of scholars sitting nearby became anxious.

They all expressed their willingness to follow him until death and never leave.

Zhengyang shook his head helplessly, but said nothing more.

Seeing the atmosphere was dull, Mr. Song said, "Teacher, please give us another lecture on the study of principles."

The eyes of the people around lit up; this was knowledge they never got tired of hearing.

Zhengyang did not refuse. Although they were in the wilderness and the campfire was gathered, it did not delay his lecture:

"What do you want to ask?"

One person said, "Teacher, please talk more about investigating things and seeking knowledge. I still don't quite understand. The Great Learning says that learning should follow the order of investigating things, seeking knowledge, sincerity, uprightness of mind, self-cultivation, regulating the family, governing the country, and bringing peace to the world."

The latter part is easy to understand, but why do we need to first study things to gain knowledge before we can be sincere and upright? In the ancient sages’ scriptures, “study things to gain knowledge” only appears once and has not been explained again, so how should we interpret it?

Another person nearby said:
"This teacher has explained many times that everything in the world has its principles. If we cannot fully understand the principles, we cannot know everything. Therefore, we should study and fully understand the principles of all things. If we do this day by day, we will be able to understand everything and become a saint."

The first person was confused and said:

"But I read what the predecessor Zheng Gong said, ge means 'come', and wu means things. Yingda's theory also has a similar view, good things come when people do good things, and bad things also come when people do bad things...

It seems to be saying that if my heart is good, good will come to me, and if my heart is evil, evil will come to me, just like gentlemen are close to gentlemen, and villains are close to villains... This is different from what you said, and I don’t understand. "

For a moment, a group of disciples started arguing with each other.

Mr. Song was helpless and coughed lightly: "Let's ask the master."

Zhengyang met the eager gazes of his disciples, but remained silent for a moment and did not answer immediately.

The four words "investigate things and extend knowledge" can be regarded as a major case in Dayu Confucianism. Confucian scholars in every dynasty have different views, trying to restore the true meaning of the sage.

Zhengyang annotated ancient books and studied them for many years before he came up with the above-mentioned insights into the "deep principles".

If Zhao Duan studied his theories, he might be able to taste some of the meaning of "preserving the laws of nature and eliminating human desires."

But in the past two years, Zhengyang began to waver. He always felt that his knowledge of ethics and learning was not solid enough, but he had no new direction.

When facing the disciple's question, he was about to answer it when he suddenly heard the sound of horse hooves neighing.

Everyone in the valley turned their heads and saw another convoy arriving on the dark official road, but it was coming from the east.

The convoy was low-key and luxurious, far from being comparable to a group of scholars.

Russian qing.

There were servants in the convoy holding lanterns, escorting several noble-looking figures. Before they arrived, their voices were heard first:

"Haha, is that Mr. Yunfu Zhengyang in front of us?"

Zhengyang and others stood up, and with the help of the campfire, they saw three figures walking towards them, surrounded by a group of noble slaves.

The leader was a young man in his thirties dressed in fine clothes, with red lips and white teeth, but his eyes revealed an uncomfortable taste.

Beside the young master, there was an old man with his hands reaching his knees.

He walked like a monkey. If there were any practitioners present, they would be able to see at a glance that this old man was always in a position to suddenly attack and hurt people.

Next to the master and servant, one step behind, was a woman in her thirties.

Her hair was adorned with white jade pearls, and she had a face that indicated a peaceful and prosperous country. She wore a horse-faced skirt made of dark blue silk with embroidered patterns, and a shawl wrapped around her upper body, but her eyebrows were lowered as she walked.

"May I ask your names?" Mr. Zhengyang frowned.

A servant holding a lantern said arrogantly:

"This is the Prince of Qingzhou Hengwang. He is on his way to Beijing with the Patriarch of the Donghu Xiao Family and Madam Xiao. On the way, he heard that Mr. Zhengyang was here, so he made a detour to meet him."

Prince Heng?

The first female widow of Yu State from the Xiao family of Donghu?
Mr. Zhengyang, who also has the title of "First Hermit", was stunned with a strange expression.

……

Time goes back.

Beijing, Zhao family.

Zhao Duan returned from the government office. After fooling his stepmother and sister by saying that he was busy with official business last night, he returned to his bedroom impatiently.

He closed the door and took out the jade-white, sparkling leaf-shaped treasure from the palm-sized "Taixu Painting Scroll" and poured it into his palm.

Plot preview:

That’s right, Yangming’s Philosophy of Mind is about to be shamelessly plagiarized by the protagonist again.

(End of this chapter)

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