163 Confucianism disrupts law with literature, Taoism disrupts politics with cultivation, and Buddhism hinders punishment with compassion
Outside the West Garden.
"Dad!" Seeing his father Yan Song coming out of the palace, Yan Shifan hurried over to greet him and asked with concern and expectation: "How is it?"
Hearing this, Yan Song, who was hunched over, tilted his head slightly, glanced at his son Yan Shifan, who looked nervous and expectant, snorted and laughed, and said, "The emperor agreed."
Agreed! Hearing his father Yan Song's words, Yan Shifan was slightly stunned at first, as if he had not expected that the emperor would agree to such a ridiculous and crude act of sending his daughter!
But soon, Yan Shifan showed an ecstatic look on his face again, took a deep breath of cold air, and said: "Dad, the emperor is on the side of our Yan family after all!"
"Yes," Yan Song raised his head and looked at the heavy snow in the sky above him, saying, "That's because the emperor saw through our next intention, so he agreed."
"This also indirectly shows that the emperor trusts the Yan family!"
Hearing his father say this, Yan Shifan nodded heavily. He knew that it was impossible to hide from the emperor their Yan family's idea of using the dispute among the three religions to make a big deal out of it.
But some things cannot be said openly, so it all depends on the tacit understanding between the emperor and his father Yan Song, and whether the emperor is willing to show favor to the Yan family.
Fortunately, the emperor was more inclined towards the Yan family after all.
"Dad, now it's up to the Zen master," Yan Shifan said with a hint of hesitation, "Do you think she can compare to Qingfeng girl?"
"What we want is an evenly matched force, so that we can stir up a stir among the upper class and affect the entire Ming Dynasty. If Buddhism is defeated at the beginning of the battle between the three religions, then..."
"Don't worry," Yan Song said in a gentle tone, "This Prajna Forest was originally part of my father's plan. Previously, the emperor appointed Qingfeng girl as the imperial teacher to build momentum for her..."
"The Buddhist sect has been restless for a long time. Three years ago, I had someone secretly contact the Buddhist sect. The monk Chan Shuang from Prajna Forest was adopted since he was young and studied Buddhism..."
“Although I am not sure that his attainments in Buddhism are as talented as Qingfeng’s in Taoism, he is not mediocre either.”
"But none of this matters. What matters is whether she can win the emperor's favor and whether the emperor is willing to support her. As for the success or failure of this battle between the three religions, it doesn't matter. What matters is the momentum."
"If the Taoist sect loses, the Buddhist sect will naturally publicize it. Well, if they don't publicize it, we will help them publicize it. In this way, the Taoist sect will definitely not be willing to accept it. Isn't this a contradiction?"
"On the contrary, if Buddhism is defeated, the same principle will apply."
"As for Confucianism, there is only one ending. Success or failure is not important. As long as the result of this matter is a struggle between the three religions, it will be fine."
Hearing this, Yan Shifan nodded to show that he understood.
……
Later, in the main hall of Xuanpu Palace.
"Buddhism, talking about the Dao?" Qingfeng opened his mouth slightly, and a small dimple formed on his chubby face. He looked at Huang Jin with a puzzled look, "Why?"
Huang Jin choked when he saw the innocent, bright, pure eyes of the young imperial teacher in front of him, without any impurities.
Let’s just discuss the Dao, is there any reason for this?
However, even though he thought so, Huang Jin still gave a brief explanation of some of the things that had happened in the court in recent days.
After listening to Huang Jin's explanation, Qingfeng nodded suddenly.
"Okay," Qingfeng nodded, and then he stopped worrying about it. He closed his eyes silently and was about to start practicing the 'Qi Induction Technique' in his body. Suddenly, he seemed to think of something, opened his eyes, looked at Huang Jin who was about to leave, and said:
"Who is the Buddhist who wants to discuss the Dao with me?"
"I haven't heard of him," Huang Jin recalled the Buddhist genius his godfather Lu Fang had told him about, and shook his head. "I only know his Buddhist name seems to be 'Chan Shuang', and he comes from Prajna Forest outside the capital."
"Haha," Huang Jin smiled and said comfortingly, "National Master, don't worry. Although this Master Chan Shuang is also known as a genius, his status cannot be compared with that of the National Master."
"Besides, she is obviously just a tool..."
"No," Qingfeng shook his head slightly, looking at Huang Jin with clear and pure eyes, and said in a crisp voice: "Eunuch Huang, have you ever heard of the Taoist saying: Everyone in the world knows that beauty is beauty, and this is evil. Everyone knows that goodness is goodness, and this is not good."
“So, existence and non-existence give rise to each other, difficulty and ease complement each other, length and shortness contrast each other, high and low lean towards each other, sounds harmonize with each other, and front and back follow each other?”
After hearing Qingfeng's words, Huang Jin was slightly stunned, and a thoughtful look appeared between his brows.
Huang Jin, who had been serving Qingfeng for a long time, had a certain understanding of some Taoist doctrines.
Hearing Qing Feng's words, Huang Jin realized something and said, "What the Imperial Master means is that the Emperor may also raise the status of Master Chan Shuang to the same level as the Imperial Master?"
"Only equality can form opposition and affect the entire Ming Dynasty." Qingfeng did not understand the court struggles, but she had a deep understanding of Taoism, so she understood everything when she heard Huang Jin mention the struggle between the three religions.
"Zen Frost..." Qingfeng seemed to be thinking about something, then he stopped talking, closed his eyes, and began to practice quietly.
Seeing this, Huang Jin said no more, turned around and left silently.
……
Prince Yu’s Mansion, in the main hall.
Xu Jie, Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, Zhao Zhenji, Wang Chonggu and other core circle members of Prince Yu’s Mansion gathered together.
Although Prince Yu now has Wang Chonggu, a member of the New Party, he is still in the same camp as Xu Jie and others.
After all, before the birth of the new prince, the position of crown prince was always fought over by Prince Yu and Prince Jing. Therefore, when encountering major events, they still gathered together to discuss.
"There's news from the palace," Prince Yu, who was sitting in the upper seat, put down the spiritual tea in his hand, looked around at everyone, and slowly said, "Lord Yan recommended a talented young girl from Buddhism to my father. Her Buddhist name is: Chan Shuang... Ha!" As he spoke, Prince Yu seemed to have thought of something and chuckled with disdain.
"Another woman is being sent to the palace!" As soon as Prince Yu finished speaking, Gao Gong, who had a hot temper, snorted coldly, "Old villain Yan Song, this is the only trick he can use!"
"The girl who sent Daomen to the palace last time."
"This time, I will send another Buddhist girl to the palace."
"Both Buddhism and Taoism, he will brand them with the mark of his Yan Party!"
"From the last time the Imperial Master entered Yuxi Palace, it is not difficult for us to see that Yan Song sent Buddhists to the palace in order to deal with the attack from the Kong family, or the Confucian sect."
Zhang Juzheng stroked his beard and said, "And Lord Yan's move clearly shows that he has a plan to deal with it..."
"The dispute among the three religions..." Just as Zhang Juzheng finished speaking, Xu Jie's voice slowly sounded.
The dispute among the three religions? After hearing Xu Jie's words, everyone looked at him curiously and began to think about something in their hearts.
"By making the dispute between Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism bigger, we can cover up the impact of Confucianism's counterattack on the Yan family," Xu Jie said, putting down the teacup in his hand, looking at Prince Yu, and said:
"May I ask, Your Highness, is there any other news coming out of the palace?"
"That's right," Prince Yu nodded under the gaze of everyone and said, "There's news from the palace that tomorrow the three schools of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism will discuss the Dao. The representatives of Buddhism and Taoism will naturally be the Imperial Master and the Buddhist girl Zen Master. The representative of Confucianism will be the Left Censor-in-Chief, Zhang Shenxing."
Three schools of thought discuss the Tao!
"That's it," Xu Jie nodded slowly, looked at the heavy snow outside the window, and said, "Yan Song's real purpose."
"Through the dispute between Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, this matter was infinitely magnified and expanded to the entire Ming Dynasty."
"In this way, he only needs to make some arrangements to achieve the effect of adding fuel to the fire, so that this matter can be infinitely magnified, thereby causing chaos in the entire Ming Dynasty to some extent."
Xu Jie paused for a moment, and then added, "Of course, the chaos I'm talking about is the chaos caused by the disputes among the three schools of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism over their respective doctrines. It has nothing to do with the people of the Ming Dynasty."
"For the lower-class people, this so-called dispute between Buddhism and Taoism has nothing to do with most people. For them, it is at most just a topic of conversation after dinner."
"No one will realize whether the conflict among the three religions will affect them..." Xu Jie shook his head slightly, his tone somewhat sad. For the common people at the bottom, isn't this a kind of happiness?
When the others heard this, they all nodded slightly.
This is a kind of chaos at the ideological level, but also a kind of reform.
The impact on the grassroots people is subtle and silent. It is an ideological influence that cannot be felt personally.
"When the Ming Dynasty is completely in chaos, it will be time for a reckoning," Xu Jie said, looking at everyone, "As for who will be the one to do the reckoning? Is there anyone in the Ming Dynasty more suitable than Hai Rui?"
When they heard the name Hai Rui, everyone's expressions froze.
To them, Hai Rui's situation can be said to be extremely complicated. This man is like a sword, a sword that cuts down the subjects below and the cabinet above. It is a sword specifically used to quell rebellions. When it comes to cutting off people with one sword, it doesn't matter who you are.
They were not naive enough to think that Hai Rui would really retreat just because he was sent to Ningbo Prefecture by the Emperor.
According to the information obtained from Ningbo Prefecture, Hai Rui also had what they had. What does this mean? It means that the emperor was very caring towards Hai Rui. Hai Rui was like a sword hanging over everyone's head.
No matter whether it was the Qingliu, the Yan Party, or Prince Yu and Prince Jing, as long as he made a move, he would chop them off.
"After this chaos is quelled, the imperial court will have an excuse to use the chaos of the three religions as an excuse to suppress them, and then take the opportunity to introduce the theories of the Hundred Schools of Thought."
"In this way, the biggest stumbling block before Yan Shifan's reform, that is, Confucianism, has been kicked away."
Xu Jie was worthy of being Xu Jie. Yan Song only made a move and sent out a certain signal, from which he understood Yan Song's purpose and all his future plans.
It really is true that "the person who knows you best will always be your enemy". Xu Jie has figured out Yan Song thoroughly.
After listening to Xu Jie's analysis, everyone present suddenly understood.
"Yan Song is really amazing!"
The person who uttered this sigh was Zhang Juzheng.
The others also had looks of admiration on their faces at this moment.
Even though they all keep saying strict party rules and strict thieves and so on, none of the people present are stupid or mediocre.
In their hearts, they had never looked down on Yan Song. Even though they refused to admit it, they knew in their hearts that if there was anyone among them who could compete with Yan Song, it was only Lord Xu.
Not to mention anything else, just in terms of understanding and insight into the opponent, they are not as good as Xu Jie.
"Then what should we do next?" Gao Gong glanced at the seat above, and the silent Queen Yu looked at Xu Jie.
Under the gaze of everyone, Xu Jie slowly said:
"This is the will of the Emperor. No one can disrupt or disturb the situation. Otherwise, we will surely be met with the wrath of thunder. None of us can bear the Emperor's wrath!"
“No one is allowed to stand in the way of reform.”
"So, if we don't want to help Yan Shifan, then we should just keep silent and watch from the sidelines."
"If we are willing to help Yan Shifan reform, then we can secretly add fuel to the flames and act as a pusher. I believe the emperor will be able to see through it. Nothing in the Ming Dynasty can be hidden from the emperor."
Hearing this, everyone let out a sigh of relief, nodded, and looked up at Prince Yu.
No matter what, all the actions and achievements of the Yan Party will eventually be officially attributed to Prince Jing. It will then depend on whether Prince Yu wants to add icing on the cake and act as a promoter.
“Da, da da…”
Prince Yu's fingers tapped lightly on the armrest, his eyes flickering and a thoughtful look emerging between his brows.
After a moment, Prince Yu's brows relaxed, and then he slowly said: "Everything is for the court. We must naturally work together and cooperate well to complete the reform."
"Father is very observant and will definitely remember our contributions when the time comes."
"Your Highness is wise!" Everyone bowed and said. Among the people present, only Zhao Zhenji lowered his eyebrows and eyes, with a hint of pity in his eyes.
In fact, he had already made some arrangements. If the Yan Party was unable to resolve the issue this time, he would take action. Then he would be able to perform in front of the emperor and receive rewards.
Unexpectedly, Yan Song was one step ahead after all.
In the capital, in the hall of the residence of Zhang Shenxing, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Inspectorate.
At this moment, the hall of Zhang's residence was extremely lively.
Today, Lu Fang came forward personally to inform everyone that after the discussion of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism tomorrow, all those who threatened to impeach the father and son of the Yan family would understand that this was their last chance.
The imperial court wanted to abolish the title of Duke Yansheng, shake the foundation of Confucianism, and even abolish its status. Such a big deal had to be discussed.
As for the three religions, in their view, Buddhism and Taoism must be tools of the imperial court to deal with Confucianism.
As long as they win the debate among the three religions tomorrow, the matter will be settled. By then, with some publicity, all the people in the world will understand the unshakable position of Confucianism.
After all, among the two sects of Buddhism and Taoism, one is from Taoism and is also the national master, and the national master represents the imperial court!
For a moment, everyone's confidence increased greatly.
At this time, all of them gathered together to discuss how to deal with the difficulties posed by Buddhism and Taoism tomorrow.
"According to the news leaked from the palace, the old villain Yan Song has recommended a Buddhist girl to the emperor again. How shameless!" An imperial censor slammed the armrest of the table and shouted angrily.
The others were also filled with indignation.
Zhang Shenxing, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Inspectorate, was an old man with white hair and beard. At this moment, his face had a solemn expression, as if he was thinking about something.
"This is not a secret," an official said. "Not long ago, the old villain Yan Song ran to the outskirts of the capital whenever he had nothing to do. I heard that the emperor granted him a piece of land."
"That Prajna Forest was originally a nunnery outside the capital. I guess the old villain Yan Song had been planning to put people in the palace for a long time!"
"Shameless, Yan thief, you really do all kinds of evil!"
"You despicable creature! In the past, the emperor pushed a demon Taoist priest to his side, and now he wants to push a female nun. How could such a treacherous person appear in our Ming Dynasty? God wants to strike you with lightning..."
What this group of people did not notice was that, in the corner, sat a middle-aged man with a chubby belly and a plump figure, like a wealthy man.
If Hai Rui was here, he would have no difficulty recognizing that this person was none other than Li Zhiyuan, who had served as his political advisor in Datong.
Looking at the indignant expressions of this group of people, Li Zhiyuan, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, curled up a disdainful smile at the corner of his mouth.
"A bunch of short-sighted, ignorant people..." Li Zhiyuan sneered in his heart.
After Li Zhiyuan was transferred from Datong, he used his status as a member of the Qingliu faction to be transferred back to the capital and directly entered the Ministry of Revenue.
To be exact, he is Zhao Zhenji's man!
Compared to the group of idiots in front of him who knew nothing, he could be said to know too many inside stories about the imperial court.
Back then, in Datong Town, an immortal came to the world and destroyed Yinshan. Afterwards, people from the imperial court came to warn all high-ranking officials.
In addition, Hai Rui's various behaviors all told him that immortals really existed in this world. Not only that, the court was very likely to have made contact with the immortals.
The emperor who came here to study and practice may have already embarked on the path to immortality.
What does this mean? It means that from now on, the emperor is likely to truly live long, long live!
Where did the new grains come from? And how did the imperial court suddenly start a major overhaul? How did the current prosperous Ming Dynasty come about?
All signs point to one thing: the imperial court has connections with immortals, and the entire cabinet knows about this.
Not only that, since he was transferred back from Datong Town that year, he has tried every means to visit the elders of the cabinet.
Although no one saw him, his hard work paid off and he was appreciated by Zhao Butang.
Therefore, he has confirmed one thing over the years, that is, all the elders in the cabinet have been blessed by the immortals! Although the details are unclear, it is enough to know this.
As a result, his life goals changed completely.
He was no longer willing to be a mortal and turn into a handful of earth after a hundred years. He had to break into the core circle of the imperial court, and Zhao Butang was the stepping stone for him to transcend the mortal world and enter the immortal circle.
The reason why he followed this group of people and was so reckless as to die outside the West Garden was because he was working for Zhao Butang, so that he could take the initiative to stand up and fight when things got out of control!
At that time, Zhao Butang will take the opportunity to show himself again in the cabinet and gain the emperor's appreciation.
As for whether he would be demoted to a more remote place or even sent to jail after he took the blame... he was not afraid at all!
For him, there is gain only when there is sacrifice!
As long as he is given a life, as long as Zhao Butang still remembers him, as long as Zhao Butang does not fall, then he is worth it! And he only needs a glimmer of opportunity, and his future may be bright!
"What a pity," thinking of this, while listening to the discussion about the three religions of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, Li Zhiyuan shook his head slightly and sighed in his heart: "Now that the three religions of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism are discussing the Tao, it seems that Lord Yan has already thought of a way to break the impasse."
"In this way, I will have no chance to resist, and Zhao Butang will have no chance to perform in the cabinet..." Thinking of this, Li Zhiyuan felt that this group of people was an eyesore.
What a bunch of losers. He knelt in the snow for several days with them in vain. He just hoped that Zhao Butang could still remember his kindness.
Li Zhiyuan saw clearly that Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism were all being discussed. Although he did not know the real intentions of people like Yan Ge Lao, he knew in his heart that Confucianism stood in opposition to the emperor and the cabinet.
Then there is only one outcome!
Regardless of who wins or loses in this debate among the three religions, the result will not change, and the status of Confucianism will be much lower than before!
Unfortunately, these idiots don’t understand this truth.
He actually wanted to use his usual method, some kind of death-defying remonstration drama, to impeach the Yan family and force the emperor to submit?
Haha, what era is this?
In an era when the emperor and senior cabinet officials have already embarked on the path to immortality and may soon become gods, will they still care about your thoughts?
In the long lifespan of immortals, Confucianism is just a bigger ant. How difficult is it to wipe it out?
"This is the role of intelligence and vision!" Thinking of this, Li Zhiyuan sighed in his heart, and at the same time he felt more and more fortunate that he had gone to Datong and came into contact with the mystery!
At this time, the hall was filled with the sounds of quarrels, quoting scriptures, preparing for tomorrow's discussion, and criticizing the Yan Party.
There are even some who are so shameless that they claim that Buddhism and Taoism are just two little girls, and that when they discuss Taoism tomorrow, Mr. Zhang will surely win!
Outside the hall, it was snowing heavily.
In a corner of the corridor in the distance, the painter, at the signal of the Zhang residence's housekeeper, began to paint, recording everything that happened today in an album.
So that it can be passed down through the ages.
……
The next day, the snow was still falling, but it was much lighter than yesterday.
Outside the West Garden, there was still a clear stream, and everyone was waiting at the door.
Unlike in the past, at this time in the middle area, the imperial censors headed by Zhang Shenxing, as well as other officials who had been kneeling in the snow in the past few days, making desperate appeals and impeaching the Yan family, were all waiting with solemn expressions.
Naturally, Li Zhiyuan was among them.
After a while, three sedan chairs slowly approached from a distance.
"Here they come!" Gao Gong said, looking into the distance. Everyone looked at each other and took a few steps forward.
After a while, the sedan chair landed and Yan Shifan helped Yan Song out.
The first thing everyone looked at was the sedan chair next to it. They all knew that the person sitting inside was the so-called Buddhist genius.
Different from the superficial greetings of the cabinet members, the officials headed by Zhang Shenxing stood still with sullen faces, watching with cold eyes. Since they had already fallen out with each other, they naturally would not give the Yan family a good look.
"Haha," after noticing everyone's gazes, Yan Song laughed and said, "I'm sure you're all curious about who's sitting in the sedan chair next to me?"
"Shifan," Yan Song raised his hand and pointed to the sedan chair beside him, "Please ask Master Chanshuang to come out."
"Yes." Yan Shifan nodded and walked towards the third sedan chair, "Master, we are here, please come out."
As he spoke, Yan Shifan pressed his hand to the sedan bearer, signaling him to hold the sedan down.
Then, under the gaze of everyone, a young nun wearing a grey coarse cotton coat, a grey cap and holding a string of Buddhist beads walked out of the sedan chair.
"Amitabha," the nun chanted the Buddha's name to Yan Shifan, and then said, "Thank you for your help, benefactor."
Looking at this young nun who was only sixteen or seventeen years old, everyone present showed a look of surprise.
Not to mention anything else, although she is a nun, her temperament gives people the impression of being as calm and steady as a monk at first glance.
The most important thing is that the appearance of this young nun is also very remarkable. Her skin is delicate and firm, her eyebrows are not trimmed, and her eyes are bright and energetic, as if she can see through all illusions.
The most impressive thing is that she has a reddish birthmark the size of a soybean between her eyebrows, which makes her look a bit like a Bodhisattva in a painting. In short, the first impression given is that she is not a girl, nor a nun, or a pawn of the Yan Party.
The first impression this woman gives people is compassion and peace!
This kind of temperament should be found in older monks and nuns who are well versed in Buddhist teachings, but it appears in a girl of sixteen or seventeen years old.
This is really surprising!
Not far away, at the gate of Xiyuan, Huang Jin was also carefully observing this so-called Zen master.
"Not good," Huang Jin took a deep breath and said softly, "The Imperial Master is about to meet his match!"
Huang Jin, who had the longest contact with Qingfeng, could tell the difference between the two at a glance.
The breeze is pure and simple, without any obvious temperament, as if it is taking things as they come. Well, to put it bluntly, it's like a salted fish that doesn't care about anything.
But the Zen master in front of him, named Chanshuang, is the same age as Qingfeng when she first entered the palace, but her temperament is particularly outstanding. The most important thing is that she gives people the feeling that it is easy to ignore her age and be attracted by her temperament.
Huang Jin felt that if he met him in a temple, he would probably be willing to call the other person a master or a Zen master!
However, position determines attitude. He is a supporter of Qingfeng, so what he is worried about now is the outcome of the next discussion.
Although godfather said that winning or losing is not important, it would be best if the national teacher could win.
"This Master Chan Shuang is not simple," Chen Hong's voice rang out beside him at this time, "Our national master didn't have such a temperament at the beginning."
"Compared to others, our national teacher is just like a little girl, a fake celebrity who is just relying on false reputation!" Chen Hong's tone was quite weird, and there was even more sarcasm in his eyes.
"Chen Hong, don't be disrespectful to the Imperial Master!" Hearing Chen Hong belittling Qing Feng, Huang Jin lowered his voice and said angrily, "Be careful or I'll tell my godfather, and you won't be in any good of it then!"
"Hmph!" Facing Huang Jin's threat, Chen Hong snorted coldly, said nothing, and walked away.
However, before leaving, he looked at the Master Chanshuang who was among a group of people slowly approaching from a distance after greeting Prince Yu and Prince Jing.
At this time, Chen Hong had secretly made up his mind that if this girl could be appreciated by her master like Qingfeng, then he would support her from now on!
Huang Jin supports Qingfeng, and he also wants to arrange a trusted godson to support someone of the same status as the national teacher. If nothing else, I, Chen Hong, must have what you have!
Soon, everyone arrived at Yuxi Palace.
This time, Jiajing did not show up, but sat in the Daotai Jingshe in the side hall, intending to listen carefully to the drama of the struggle between the three religions of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism. He believed that Yan Song would make him enjoy it.
As for the young Zen master, he had already used his spiritual sense to see her long ago.
This girl was carefully cultivated by the Buddhist sect, and her attainments in Buddhism are probably quite profound.
As for our own little national teacher Qingfeng, well, there is no need to worry.
"Topic," At this time, after everyone was in place, Lu Fang took a step forward and said, "Confucianism disrupts the law with literature, Taoism disrupts politics with cultivation, and Buddhism hinders punishment with compassion. Let's discuss these three points!"
"..."
(End of this chapter)
