Chapter 360: Your Majesty, the winner of the Plum Garden Meeting is Zhao Duan
Chapter 360: Your Majesty, the winner of the Plum Garden Meeting is Zhao Duan
Not far from the Plum Garden, a three-story restaurant is packed with people today.
Unlike ordinary people who can only be blocked outside the garden.
The dignitaries in the capital were concerned about today's academic debate, but it was inconvenient for them to go there, so they booked nearby buildings several days in advance in order to learn about the debate developments as quickly as possible.
"Well, is it over so quickly?"
On the third floor of the restaurant, "Qingliu Party Leader" Yuan Li sat by the window, looking with a little surprise at the distance, seeing Zhengyang and his group walking out of the main gate of Plum Garden.
An undisguised expression of surprise appeared on his handsome face.
Sitting opposite Yuan Qingyi was the prime minister Li Yanfu.
Today, the two political opponents in the temple sat together rarely, watching this significant academic battle from afar.
"kindness?"
Li Yanfu, who was not wearing an official robe but a loose red coat, a white jade belt, hedgehog-like hair and eyes like deep pools, also raised his eyebrows.
Not long ago, the two witnessed Mr. Zhengyang leading his disciples into the courtyard.
According to their estimation, this debate would take at least one or two hours to finish, and it would not be surprising if it took even longer.
This is also the reason why the big shots have booked the whole place, and are ready to fight a protracted war and eat in the restaurant.
At the same time, although it was not convenient for the top officials to show up in person, the dignitaries in the building also sent their subordinates to the Plum Garden to report the development of the debate every once in a while.
But how long had it been? Just two cups of tea, how come he came out?
"Something's wrong."
Yuan Li frowned and said, "With Dong Xuan and Zheng Yang's knowledge, they have only been able to start the discussion and debate for one or two rounds in such a short time. Does the Prime Minister know the reason?"
Li Yanfu said unhappily:
"How did you know the truth? Even your spy Yuan Li didn't know, and you asked me? But it seems that something unexpected happened, and the discussion could not proceed."
This is the only possibility, but what would happen to force the academic discussion to be interrupted?
With their power and influence, they both knew nothing?
Not only them, but all the dignitaries who were waiting for the news in the entire restaurant stood up and talked about it in surprise.
Some people couldn't wait and went out to ask.
"Dong dong dong..."
Not long after, more than a dozen figures came running out from the crowd in the distance. They were all servants from various families.
The two servants from Yuan Mansion and Xiangguo Mansion almost ran up to the third floor at the same time and reported back with a bow:
"Sir, the results are out."
Li Yanfu narrowed his eyes and made a "you ask first" gesture.
Yuan Li was not polite and asked immediately:
"What happened inside? Was there an accident? What was the result? Did Master Dong win? Or Zhengyang?"
The servant of Yuan Mansion had a strange look on his face and said, "There was no debate. After Zhengyang came on stage, he admitted defeat directly."
Is this really happening?!
Yuan Li was extremely surprised, and the shrewd Li Yanfu was also stunned for a moment, saying:
"It turns out to be like this... So, Dong Xuan still wins."
What he cares about is the result, and only then the process. No matter why Zhengyang admits defeat, the most important thing is still the victory itself.
The guard at the Xiangguo Mansion also had a strange look on his face and shook his head:
"Reporting to the Prime Minister, it was not Grand Tutor Dong who won this battle. The one that Zhengyang admitted defeat to was... Zhao Duan."
Quiet.
The two party leaders at the table had expressionless faces. They were caught off guard by this extremely sudden news and were stunned for a long time.
Zhengyang admitted defeat, but the winner was Zhao Duan?
Does this sound like a word?
After listening to the entire report from the two servants, Yuan Li and Li Yanfu fell into a long silence again.
The two old rivals looked at each other and saw something absurd in each other's eyes.
"Zhao Duan..."
"It's him again?!"
……
……
Jizhao Temple, inside the Zen room.
The Prince of Heng, who was in his thirties but had rosy lips and white teeth, smiled and talked with Princess Yunyang.
Today, his nephew came to visit his aunt again.
During his stay in the capital, Xu Zudi has come to Jizhao Temple several times.
Chatting with Princess Yunyang, who was confined to this nunnery to eat vegetarian food and chant Buddhist scriptures, to relieve her boredom.
"...Unfortunately, my nephew went to His Majesty to plead for my aunt to leave this place, but was ruthlessly rejected."
Xu Zudi sighed, ashamed, "I am just a prince, my words don't carry enough weight after all."
Princess Yunyang sat on her knees in the meditation room. In order to meet her relatives, she had dressed up and put on a nun's robe. She looked like an elder, and sneered majestically:
"Xu Zhenguan will not let me go so easily. Your sister is really cruel. She is so happy keeping her lover, why would she care about me as her aunt? I'm afraid your father will detain you if he comes."
Xu Zudi sighed: "Auntie has suffered."
Yunyang suddenly smiled, seeming to be very happy:
"But according to what you said, Zhengyang has a good chance of winning the debate with Dong Xuan today. After today, Xu Zhenguan will have a headache. Didn't you arrange someone to report? When will they come?"
The eyes of this neurotic and wanton princess were full of anticipation.
Xu Zudi smiled and said:
"I'm afraid the debate isn't even halfway through yet, but the general court will definitely lose this time. It's just a matter of whether it's a small or big loss."
There are no outsiders here, so the aunt and niece don't have to worry too much when talking to each other.
He was happy to see Xu Zhenguan's misfortune.
At this time, there was a noise outside the Zen room. The old man with arms over his knees who was guarding the door opened the door and said:
"Your Highnesses, the monk Bianji passed by outside and was stopped by the nuns in the nunnery. They asked him to come in. It seemed that they were asking about the results of the Plum Garden Discussion."
"Is it over so soon?"
Xu Zudi was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said:
"It seems that Mr. Zhengyang won more easily than I expected."
He knew that Monk Bian Ji had also gone to the Plum Garden.
"Take me to see it!"
Princess Yunyang said happily, and the three of them left the meditation room and followed the sound to the front yard of the nunnery.
Then I saw the monk Bian Ji, dressed in white, surrounded by a group of nuns, asking about the situation.
Princess Yunyang's gaze fell on the handsome face of Bian Ji. Her eyes lit up, and her steps became more graceful as she walked.
"Master, I have heard of your great name for a long time."
Xu Zudi came forward with a big laugh, and Bian Ji, who had adjusted his mentality, greeted him gently.
He smiled again, nodded to Princess Yunyang, and clasped his hands together:
"I greet Her Royal Highness the Grand Princess."
Yunyang smiled brightly and said:
"Master, there is no need to be so polite. I heard that you came back from the Plum Garden, so I came to see you. But is it over there?"
Monk Bianji nodded, and said calmly:
"Something went wrong at the meeting in Plum Garden."
Then, he described the whole thing in detail. In order to avoid being questioned, he described it in great detail, even mentioning the content of psychology. The nuns were fine, but just surprised.
The smile on Xu Zudi's face froze and there was confusion in his eyes.
"Zhao Duan... Xinxue? Defeated Zhengyang early? Even let Mr. Zhengyang call him 'Master'?"
Prince Heng's worldview was severely overturned, and he was completely stunned.
Princess Yunyang, who was staring at Bian Ji with a shrill look in her eyes, was also stunned. Her joyous face suddenly turned gloomy.
His ten fingers were clenched tightly, making a crackling sound.
One side of his cheek suddenly felt hot and he recalled the fear he felt when Zhao Duan came to his house and threatened to slap him in the face in the room.
"It's him again...it's him again..."
Yunyang's eyes turned red and he looked towards the imperial palace with jealousy.
Why was Xu Zhenguan so lucky even though he hated his niece?
He only found a lover, who was not only extremely handsome, but also often protected him from disasters, making him unmatched.
And this aunt of mine has found so many lovers, but they are all trash...
Why...at this moment, she exploded with jealousy.
"The Bodhisattva is coming..."
Suddenly, the nuns around shouted.
I saw the Bodhisattva Prajna with skin as white as snow, a plump figure and a jade bottle in his hand. He appeared at some point.
This great monk, who was under the mysterious seal of the Great Yu Buddhist sect and was as famous as Nagarjuna Bodhisattva and Mahavairocana Master, was in high spirits, with eyes that were almost transparent and colorless like glass, staring at Bian Ji:
"Can you tell me in detail what Zhao Duan said about the philosophy of mind?"
Bian Ji was stunned for a moment, with a complicated expression, and bowed slightly:
"Yes."
……
……
In the "Cha Rong Xiao Zhai", Mrs. Xiao, who came here openly to warm herself by the fire and eat something while Xu Zudi was out today, was quietly roasting oranges.
Suddenly, footsteps were heard behind me, and a confidant of the Xiao family came over:
"Master, the results from the Plum Garden have come out."
"Oh? Tell me about it." Mrs. Xiao asked curiously.
"Yes."
After a moment, the widow who was in charge of the Xiao family in Donghu was stunned and did not speak for a long time.
He didn't care that the oranges on the stove were burnt black.
"Master Zhao..."
……
……
The Royal Palace, in the Royal Garden.
Xu Zhenguan stood alone, quietly in the late autumn garden.
Normally, she should be handling government affairs in the imperial study at this time, but today... she really wasn't in the mood.
Suddenly, a figure appeared in the distance. It was Mo Chou who had hurried back. She walked through the palace maids scattered around the garden.
She ran breathlessly behind the empress, holding up her skirt.
"Your Majesty... It's over in the Plum Garden..."
Xu Zhenguan didn't turn around, still with his back to her, with a look of surprise on his face: "So soon?"
Immediately, her fairy-like face that did not belong to the mortal world, her thin eyebrows like distant mountains slowly stretched out:
"Forget it, it's better to be quick. How about Master Dong?"
She did not rush to ask about the result, but first cared about the Grand Tutor.
This is because the empress had already judged the outcome, and it is also a way to win people's hearts.
Mo Chou had a complicated expression, bit her lip, and said, "Grand Master is fine, yeah, Grand Master is fine."
"That's good," Xu Zhenguan sighed, and smiled with a forced smile:
"I will send the prepared gifts to the Grand Tutor's Mansion later. Grand Tutor Dong is so old, but he is willing to sacrifice his integrity for me and the Great Yu Dynasty, and ruin his reputation for eternity. Don't let him down."
If there had been no coup, Grand Tutor Dong would have been among the greatest scholars of all time.
But the debate between the old Grand Tutor and Zhengyang today may very likely ruin his reputation.
Mo Chou smiled bitterly and said, "Your Majesty, please allow me to report this. The Grand Master may not be needed anymore."
"Hmm?" Xu Zhenguan finally realized something was wrong. He turned his head and looked at her strangely, probing with some disbelief: "Could it be that the Grand Tutor didn't lose?"
She thought of the possibility of a draw.
Mo Chou shook her head, still in a trance, and said:
"No, it's... oh, this matter is a bit complicated. It's probably... that Zhengyang was secretly defeated by Zhao Duan two days ago using some kind of 'psychology' theory, and he ended up admitting defeat on the spot.
Moreover, he seemed to have realized the truth and abandoned the orthodox learning, turning to the study of the mind. He also returned to Yunfu to spread this knowledge and called Zhao Duan his teacher..."
Perhaps it was because this process was really difficult and Mochou's mind was a little confused, so his narration was halting, but at least he managed to recount the entire experience in full.
Xu Zhenguan started: “……?”
Xu Zhenguan continued: “……!”
Xu Zhenguan finally said: "..."
a long time.
"His Majesty?"
Mo Chou looked at the expressionless empress standing quietly in the garden like a jade statue, and called softly, "Does this servant understand?"
Xu Zhenguan looked at her blankly, and suddenly asked, "Where are the others?"
The empress felt a little empty. If it were in the past, wouldn't that guy have rushed into the palace on his own initiative and rushed to show off his achievements in front of her?
Mochou said:
"He left right away. He probably went home to avoid the limelight... Well, when I came back, I saw many scholars outside the Plum Garden, shouting the name of Lord Zhao."
In a sense, the struggle over academic differences is no less intense than the political struggles within the imperial court.
In the past, what Zhao Duan did only offended the local scholars in the capital and caused contempt among scholars all over the world.
After today, Zhao Duan, who was accused of challenging Neo-Confucianism, gained even more bad reputation in the eyes of most scholars in the world.
Xu Zhenguan took a deep breath and said, "Call him in..."
After a pause, the empress changed her words: "Summon the Grand Tutor and Ma Yan to the palace first. You can get ready later. I want to see him."
"……Yes."
……
……
Zhao family.
After leaving the Plum Garden, Zhao Duan took advantage of the fact that no one else had received the news and slipped back home.
"The young master is back!"
The servant opened the door and called out, and Zhao Pan rushed over from the yard, his eyes wide open: "Brother, you're back!"
(End of this chapter)