Chapter 368 New Thoughts, New Doctrine
After the publication of "New Commentary on the Three Classics", the trend of new learning became even more intense in the southeast.
Especially various academies in the southeast are now striving to study new studies.
Mencius' theory of the people's valuing was originally very popular in the Ming Dynasty. From Wang Yangming's secretiveness to Wang Xuetai's public shouting out, in Su Ze's historical timeline, at the end of the Ming Dynasty, "sovereignty lies with the people" was almost considered It has become a mainstream political thought, and the one shouting loudest is the "Donglin Party".
"New Annotations to the Three Classics" does not break away from the traditional Confucian context. Under the passive skill of Su Ze [Annotations to the Six Classics], Su Ze used "New Annotations to Mencius" to develop a theoretical program of "innate civil rights".
In addition, Su Ze put forward a set of rationalist ideas through his annotations on the "Book of Changes".
In fact, this theory is not new to scholars. It was based on the theory of Wang Chong of the Han Dynasty, who put forward the view of "the way of heaven is natural".
The so-called "natural way of heaven" means completely tearing away the Confucian theories about "prophecy" and "influence between heaven and man", etc., and proposes that everything in the world moves by itself, without any mysterious driving force outside of nature.
Su Ze and Wang Chong had different theories. Su Ze proposed two disciplines: "natural principles" and "humanities".
The study of "the study of the changes of heaven and earth, and the study of the principles of all things" is called "Heavenly Principle". Su Ze not only placed arithmetic and investigation of things in "Heavenly Way", but also included "astronomy" in "Heavenly Principle". "Among them.
The knowledge of "the experience of the Ming Dynasty and the present determines the gains and losses of today's people" was called "humanities" by Su Ze. History, literature and law are all studies of "humanities".
Su Ze also pointed out that "natural principles" and "humanities" are two branches of knowledge that can lead to the road to sainthood.
By studying the laws of nature and the laws of all things, you can create world-changing discoveries. This is a kind of "immortality" just like Confucian writing of books and works.
Studying humanities, mastering people's hearts, being able to study the relationship between people, and coming up with ideas that enlighten people from humanistic experiences are also "immortal".
Then Su Ze proposed the new morality of the new era through "The University".
When Zhu Xi was annotating the Four Books and Five Classics, he paid special attention to the annotations for universities.
He proposed the so-called Three Cardinal Guidelines and Eight Items, which can be regarded as the ultimate goal of spiritual practice for later generations of Confucian scholars.
The three cardinal principles are "to be clear about virtue, to be close to the people, and to strive for perfection", and the eight items are "to investigate things, to gain knowledge, to be sincere, to have a correct mind, to cultivate oneself, to manage the family, to govern the country, and to bring peace to the world."
The so-called "bright virtue" is to demonstrate the bright virtue inherent in everyone.
Su Ze criticized this. He proposed that the so-called "bright virtue" is not a mysterious and mysterious "virtue" that is difficult to distinguish between good and evil, but that we need to learn knowledge about "humanities" through thinking and practice. What is “clear” is the morality shared by all people.
"Being close to the people" means going among the people, rather than being separated from the people and talking about "morality", putting the people first and clarifying the morality of all people in society.
"Stop at the highest good" is not only about self-cultivation, but also about reaching the "highest good" realm of world harmony through the two steps of "morality" and "being close to the people", and ultimately achieving a selfless moral level.
Of course, these three principles are only the goal of "sanctification", and what Su Ze proposed is only one direction.
As for the Eight Eyes, Su Ze criticized Zhu Xi for interpreting it wrong.
Scholars must first have the heart to "pacify the world", that is, pursue "the equality of the world."
Only with the heart of "the world is equal" can we govern the country well, govern the family well, and cultivate ourselves well. Only in this way can we face ourselves and make our thoughts sincere and selfless. Finally, we can explore the truth of things and achieve the goal of transcending things. The realm of universal justice.
As soon as the "New Commentary on the Three Classics" was published, it immediately caused a sensation in the southeast. Articles related to the "New Commentary on the Three Classics" were published in newspapers all over the country.
Some criticized and some agreed. This debate was held in county schools and academies across the southeast. Many old Confucians also published articles in newspapers to refute Su Ze.
Su Ze wrote thirteen articles in a row. With the help of the two powerful passive skills [Eloquence] and [Six Classics Notes on Me], he refuted these great scholars one by one, and the new learning became more prosperous in the southeast.
For young readers, "New Commentary on the Three Classics" is more to their liking.
Compared with Zhu Xi's previous eight principles that required self-cultivation before governing the world, Su Ze's theory is more worldly and practical.
And compared with improving inner morality that is difficult to verify, pursuing "equality in the world" is more practical.
It is true that some young scholars read "New Commentary on the Three Classics" and went to the countryside outside the city to help the people farm and work, resolve disputes, appease the villagers, and help the people speak out.
When the people saw these scholars coming to help them, they also respected these scholars very much, which made more scholars feel the feeling of being respected and needed.
And other scholars who were originally not interested in moral articles can now openly study the "natural principles" mentioned by Su Ze.
After all, Governor Su also said that knowing the "laws of heaven" can also benefit all people. Isn't that what you see in the new loom?
The new trend of learning not only blew out of Jiangnan, but also the areas controlled by the Ming court were affected by this trend.
Zhang Juzheng, who is in Xuzhou, is reading Su Ze's "New Commentary on the Three Classics" in his study.
After reading it, Zhang Juzheng could only sigh. In the past few days, he had been studying the "New Commentary on the Three Classics", trying to find loopholes in the book to attack Su Ze's scholarship. Unfortunately, Zhang Juzheng's level of Confucian classics was not high enough and he could not find any. A place where you can refute.
The "innate civil rights", "rationalism" and "practical thought of joining the world" advocated by "New Commentary on the Three Classics" also appealed to Zhang Juzheng. He originally didn't like the empty talk in Lu Wang's philosophy, and Su Ze's The new learning is more practical and practical.
Zhang Juzheng sighed and ordered the boy to send the "New Commentary on the Three Classics" to the capital on a fast horse.
These days, the entire Ming Dynasty was undergoing major events. First, Longqing ascended the throne, and then Jiajing abdicated.
After Gao Gong proposed the New Service Movement, Zhang Juzheng wrote a letter of support in Xuzhou and launched a vigorous New Service Movement in Xuzhou.
But just when everyone in the Ming court was looking forward to this "reform" that would bring new vitality to the court, the news of King Jing of Huguang's imperial edict came, and the Ming court was shocked!
Huguang is the granary of the Ming Dynasty, and its importance can be imagined. No one expected that the emperor would issue such an imperial edict before abdicating the throne.
Huguang is Zhang Juzheng's hometown. Now that his home has been stolen, Zhang Juzheng is feeling irritable.
He had a hunch that the imperial court would definitely give priority to dealing with King Jing, and his army stationed in Xuzhou would most likely be transferred to Huguang to suppress it.
Then wouldn't his business in Xuzhou have to be handed over to the Southeast thieves?
As Zhang Juzheng expected, after King Jing announced in a high profile in Wuchang that he had accepted the imperial edict and raised troops to fight against the southeastern thieves, the Ming court in the capital was shocked.
Long Qing quickly convened a meeting with his ministers to discuss how to respond.
This time, the opinions of the ministers were surprisingly unanimous.
Yang Bo, the chief minister of the cabinet, said directly: "Your Majesty, King Jing received the emperor's chaotic order. Since the Jing Dynasty in the Ming Dynasty, there has never been a reason for a vassal king to lead troops. Please send an order to suppress it as soon as possible!"
Gao Gong also said: "The two taxes in autumn and winter have been collected this year. Huguang cannot afford to lose anything at this time. It is too late to mobilize troops from the capital. Please give an order to Zhang Juzheng in Xuzhou and let him go to Huguang!" Long Qing also understood the situation of suppression
! The importance of kings.
The southeast thieves are indeed troublesome, but compared with King Jing, they are a distant worry. At this time, King Jing is a near disaster.
However, he forced his father to abdicate as soon as he ascended the throne. If he were to attack King Jing again, he would probably be remembered in the history books as "forcing his father to kill his younger brother". Long Qing's political level has also improved in these days. He covered his face and said: "Family ties between flesh and blood cannot bear to use weapons!"
Gao Gong immediately said: "Your Majesty! If King Jing cares about the ties of flesh and blood, he will hear the news of your enthronement. He should return to De'an obediently instead of raising troops to seize the military and political power of Huguang. He is treason!"
Long Qing wiped away his tears and said: "I also ask, if we want to fight against the outside world, we must first calm down the inside. If this is the case, then give it to Zhang Juzheng of Xuzhou Order him to enter Huguang immediately and suppress King Jing's rebellion."
"Your Majesty is wise!"
Just when the Ming court was dispatching troops and generals to suppress King Jing.
After this year's autumn grain was put into storage, a new round of military operations was launched in the southeast.
The first to take action was the Fourth Brigade, which did not participate in the battle north.
The predecessor of the Fourth Brigade was the Qi Family Army. After going south to fight in Guangzhou, it has been resting and recuperating in Guangdong.
In fact, after occupying Chaozhou and Guangzhou, the Ming court basically abandoned the coastal prefectures of Guangdong and transferred all the troops in Guangdong to Shaozhou Prefecture and stationed them in Shaoguan.
The Ming court also dispatched wolf soldiers from Guangxi to station near Lianzhou City. The Ming court's goal was obvious, which was to prevent Guangdong's southeastern new army from moving northward into Huguang.
Shaoguan is an important channel connecting Guangdong and Huguang.
As early as when Qin Shihuang sent troops to unify Lingnan, the Xiaohe Ancient Road was built between the remaining branches of Dupang and Mengzhu ridges, from Daozhou and Guiling in Hunan to Fengkai and Shaoguan in Guangdong.
This road is still an important passage connecting Huguang and Guangdong.
For Mingting, the coastal state capital of Guangdong was lost. Anyway, Guangdong at this time was still an economically underdeveloped area.
Guangdong in the Ming Dynasty had a small population and a relatively low degree of development. The taxes paid were the lowest among the two capitals and thirteen provinces. Moreover, it was too far away from the capital and was originally a non-core area.
Huguang is the granary of the Ming Dynasty and a hub of water and land transportation, so it must be defended to the death.
After seeing the contraction of the Ming Dynasty, Tan Lun in Guangzhou was not polite. After the collection of autumn grain this year, he immediately asked Yu Zigao to attack in all directions and occupy the coastal counties.
Yu Zigao first went east to attack Huizhou Prefecture, and connected with Chaozhou Prefecture.
Immediately afterwards, they immediately headed west, successively capturing Zhaoqing Prefecture, Gaozhou Prefecture and Leizhou Prefecture. Hai Rui's hometown Qiongzhou Prefecture (Hainan) across the sea heard the news and surrendered.
So far, except for Shaoguan Prefecture and Nanxiong Prefecture in northern Guangdong, and Lianzhou Prefecture in western Guangdong, all other state capitals have been recorded in the hands of Southeast China.
The reason why Tan Lun did not attack western Guangdong was because Guangxi's ethnic issues were complicated and there had been many rebellions.
For example, the Tengxia Bandit Rebellion started with rebellions and rebellions from the Chenghua Year. When Wang Yangming took the throne in Jiajing, he served as the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi and suppressed the rebellion in Guangxi.
Later, Zhang Jing also suppressed the rebellion in Guangxi (Hu Zongxian's predecessor in the anti-Japanese war). He had been managing in Guangxi for many years and subdued a wolf troop.
Later, Zhang Jing led the wolf soldiers into Zhejiang. He was impeached because of the wolf soldiers' failure in fighting, and these wolf soldiers were repatriated to Guangxi.
After Zhang Jing was killed, many wolf soldiers all complained about Zhang Jing and rebelled again in the name of revenge for Zhang Jing.
Tan Lun knew the complicated situation in Guangxi and it was not a good time to intervene in Guangxi affairs at this time, so he only asked Yu Zigao to stop after he finished the Leizhou Mansion.
The decision to go north to northern Guangdong to attack Shaoguan was due to the terrain of Guangdong.
Guangdong is high in the north and low in the south. Huguang and Guangdong are separated by the Nanling. Shaoguan Prefecture is located in the Nanling area, with many dangerous and mountainous terrains.
For the Southeast New Army, which is dominated by infantry and artillery, Shaoguan is a place where it is difficult to march and attack on a large scale.
Huang Tai, the prefect of the Ming Dynasty in Shaoguan, had followed Zhang Jing to suppress the rebellion in Guangxi. He had rich military experience and was mature and prudent, so Tan Lun did not let the Fourth Brigade go north easily.
It's just that the prefect Huang's situation is also very delicate at this time.
The north was in chaos. The Fourth Brigade launched a surprise attack on Guangzhou City from the sea. The Chief Envoy of Guangdong and the Capital Commander, the two most senior officials of the People's Liberation Army and the First Army in Guangdong, all fell into the hands of the New Southeast Army.
After Huang Tai received the news, he immediately mobilized the entire Shaoguan Prefecture army to garrison Shaoguan.
The troops who withdrew from southern Guangdong had no place to retreat to the sea to the south, so they had no choice but to go north and gathered in Shaoguan.
Huang Tai is sixty years old. Although he has rich military experience, he is too old to do everything himself.
Huang Tai selected some of the elite soldiers who could still fight and incorporated them into the army, while the rest allowed them to continue heading north.
Huang Tai gathered ten thousand people in Shaoguan and built a mountain stronghold based on the terrain. However, Shaoguan was guarded very tightly.
The reason why only ten thousand people were left was because Shaoguan did not have enough food.
Huang Tai was busy in Shaoguan, and then went north to Huguang to ask for Huguang's support.
However, the people Huang Tai sent to ask for help disappeared, and there is no news at all until now.
This is not to say that Huang Tai's men didn't work hard, but that Huguang in the Ming Dynasty was simply too big.
Huguang in the Ming Dynasty included modern Hunan and Hubei, and was governed in Wuchang.
Huang Tai's men entered southern Huguang (today's Hunan) from the Meiguan Ancient Road, and then went all the way north, finally reaching Wuchang.
Just in time to catch up with King Jing's edict, You Jujing, the governor of Huguang, was detained by King Jing, and the whole Huguang was in chaos.
How could Huang Tai's men dare to interfere with King Jing's affairs? They quickly sent a message to Huang Tai to report to him the changes in Huguang.
Huang Tai couldn't wait for support for a long time, so he could only summon the wealthy households in Shaoguan Prefecture and forcibly distribute military rations.
Shaoguan is mountainous and there was not much food in the first place. These wealthy households had no choice but to spend their wealth and go north to southern Hunan to buy food.
Rich local households also have some local connections, so they can be less exploited.
Those wealthy families who fled from southern Guangdong basically lost everything.
But even so, the food in Shaoguan was still insufficient, and many soldiers were hungry and began to flee.
(End of chapter)