The Bookish Scholar of the Red Mansion

What is the hardest thing in life?

Everyone's answer may be different. For Wang Shuirong of Beijing, it was probably the time after his father passed away.

Power is a good slave, but a bad master. When a lucky person is touched by it, that wonderful feeling seems to own the whole world. Once it chooses to pull away, the original vague sense of satisfaction will turn into hundreds or thousands of times of pain.

Li Zhi's successful accession to the throne was naturally due to the support of most nobles in the court and the tacit approval of civil servants. Chen Heng had not personally experienced what happened back then, and Lin Ruhai kept it secret, so he could not understand the feeling of water melting.

But Shui Rong himself clearly remembered the scene when Li Zhi, using Wang Ziteng as his envoy, quietly walked into the palace at night. He is the old son of the old prince and has been held in his mouth since he was born. Old Beijing King was even more free, so he held Shui Rong in his arms and teased her.

The two people talking at that time each paid attention to a sleeping child. Little did he know that the sound of their conversation had awakened the young prince from his sleep. Having witnessed the discussion between Wang Ziteng and his father, Shui Rong could not understand Li Zhi's behavior of crossing the river and burning the bridge.

The world only knows that old King Beijing died of illness, but most people don't know. The person who treated the old King Beijing back then was the imperial doctor Wang Ziteng had hired. The details are no longer traceable. He only knew that after his father's death, the person who came out to take over as the military governor of the capital was Wang Ziteng.

The rise of a powerful person on one side often means the withdrawal of one person. The taste of power is wonderful, but it is so stingy that only a few people can be favored.

Shui Rong experienced the most glorious period of the Beijing Palace and also witnessed the rapid rise of the Wang family. As a person grows up, conspiracy theories are always inevitable. Occasionally, some idlers would appear next to Shui Rong, saying that the old prince was killed by a traitor.

Yes, his father was not yet sixty when he died of illness. Everyone will think of the hidden meaning, and this guess, accompanied by the pain after the power fades, is deeply hidden in Shui Rong's heart.

Wang Ziteng's character is actually not friendly. In other words, it is difficult for everyone with great power to do this. His often unconscious words and deeds hurt Shui Rong deeply. It wasn't until after Secretary Hai that a group of distinguished nobles begged him for help, that Shui Rong remembered the grand occasion when his father was still alive.

At that time, Wang Ziteng seemed to be only a sixth- or seventh-grade general, right?

Shui Rong subconsciously raised his eyebrows and looked at the dazed Chen Heng beside him. This is a capable and smart man, and smart people always have more thoughts. Thinking that the other party was constantly speculating on his thoughts, Shui Rong couldn't help laughing: Don't think too much about Chi Xing, it's just you and me tonight, it's just a casual chat.

I said, I admire you very much. Shui Rong emphasized again.

Chen Heng didn't know what to answer, so he could only say: Thank you, Your Majesty.

The military camp, which can accommodate tens of thousands of people, is so large that the two of them walked for a long time before they just walked a short distance. After walking around several tents, the scenery in front of us quietly changed. Dots of lights stood in the night, and in the distance was the hazy Black Meerkat Mountain.

The mountains are rolling and extending endlessly to the ends on both sides. Shui Xun, who was about to escape from the prison, looked at the scenery wantonly. After a long time, he focused on the guest beside him.

Shui Rong became interested and continued to joke to Chen Heng: I'm afraid you don't know, but privately many nobles hate you deeply.

This was strange. Chen Heng felt that he had not offended them, so he spread his hands and shook his head and said, I really don't know. He thought for a while and asked again, Is it because of Xue Pan?

Shui Rong seemed to have heard a joke and let out a few mocking laughs. After a moment, the handsome prince put his hands behind his hands and said meaningfully: With your help, His Majesty has become even more intolerable to the likes of us.

It was really unfair. Chen Heng scratched his head subconsciously. Everything he did after coming to Beijing was to ease the party dispute between the DPRK and China. Everyone is eating from the same big pot. It’s such a huge mess and no one has anything to eat. It will also gradually affect the livelihood of people all over the world.

Noticing Chen Heng's confusion, Shui Rong expressed deep understanding, Zhixing, do you think a person with great power has finally gained the ability to get rid of constraints? What will he do?

When Shui Rong said this, Chen Heng understood immediately. But he couldn't help but ask: The prince said this, does he have a similar experience?

This question was a bit pointed. Chen Heng actually wanted to find out about the relationship between Shui Rong and Wang Ziteng. At least in the eyes of outsiders like them, Wang Ziteng, as the current high-ranking speaker, is enough to be Shui Rong's backing and protective umbrella.

Shui Rong did not answer Chen Heng's question. He just asked about other things in a friendly manner: When I am reading in my spare time, I often see the sages saying that the world is unified. Zhixing's knowledge is profound and unmatched by his generation. You said that the world is unified. What kind of world is Datong?

Chen Heng was thoughtful when he heard this. He couldn't figure out the deeper meaning of Shui Rong's investigation. It's just that the other party can avoid his own questions, but he can't pretend not to hear them. After thinking for a moment, Chen Heng replied: Your Majesty Miao praised me. The knowledge of my subordinates is still shallow, and the vision of the sages is far-reaching. The descendants can only follow their words and make some remarks based on the text.

After being humbled, Chen Heng coughed slightly and then replied in a deep voice: The so-called world harmony should mean that everyone is the same.

What is public? Shui Rong asked immediately.

The public is the common people. Chen Heng's reaction was also quick and he replied immediately.

Then what is the unity of the world? Shui Rong asked again.

It looked like the same question, and Chen Heng knew what the other party was asking. He also replied: Everyone helps and loves each other, every family lives and works in peace and contentment, there is no difference, and there is no war, the world is unified.

These are all sentences written in the Book of Rites. Although Chen Heng used vernacular, the meaning did not deviate much. Shui Rong smiled and nodded, and then asked: It has been a while since we have been in various places. Do you think the world can be unified?

Yes. Chen Heng said firmly. This is also the lifelong vision of every conscientious scholar.

Why?

Because the teachings of the sages are placed there.

Shui Rong also understood what Chen Heng meant. He asked how to achieve unity in the world, and Chen Heng answered by saying that everyone should learn from the sages.

Every time dogs are slaughtered for justice, most of them are scholars who are unfaithful. Shui Rong couldn't help sighing, Can reading really make people think deeply and make people wise and good? Shui Rong shook his head mockingly, Even the Buddhists have to use the theory of reincarnation to persuade People tend to be good. Reading is just to make good people better and bad people worse.

Unexpectedly, the young King Beijing was still an angry young man. Chen Heng didn't know what Shui Rong had experienced, but Shui Rong didn't know what he had experienced either. He also said confidently: That's why we need to study more.

Why?

Only by reading books can we distinguish between real good and bad. Only when everyone has a broad vision can we form a consensus that the world will be unified. Perhaps because he was aroused by the water, Chen Heng couldn't help but open up and said: There should be four principles in the world. , for ethics, academic principles, legal principles, and governance.”

After experiencing training in Yangzhou, Shenzhou, and Songjiang, Chen Heng's knowledge and past accumulation are taking root in his heart. Between people, there should be ethics first. This is the principle of caring for the elderly, raising children, and being kind to your neighbors.

But ethics alone are not enough. We must respect ourselves and others, and understand that 'old people are as old as others, and young people are as young as others.' This requires hard study to understand.

Shui Rong listened for a long time and finally said in surprise: I didn't expect that Chi Xing was a disciple of Neo-Confucianism.

Chen Heng shook his head when he heard this, Preserve the principles of nature and destroy human desires is easy to say, but in practice, it is easy to teach metaphysics disciples. It is also extremely easy to fall into battles for the moral high ground and trials.

Cheng and Zhu Erxian's views on 'ethics is the law of nature' are also agreed with by me, a junior and junior person. But as for the theory of 'destroying human desires', I think it is my own meaning and have gone far away from the truth. Chen Heng always insisted on his own Opinion, People have seven emotions and six desires to be human. We must teach the world to distinguish what is good and what is bad. Capsulating the whole ship with one pole will only make the people on the ship fall into the ocean, and their struggle will be in vain.

So this is why you set up a school in Songjiang? Shui Rong seemed to know Chen Heng's movements very well, and asked, Then why do you set up a school for girls?

Because he wanted to liberate productivity, Chen Heng showed an inexplicable smile. He knows that his bold actions will naturally be controversial if there are people who praise him.

He has no intention of discussing the background of the formation of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism. The extravagance starting from the late Tang Dynasty, the war-torn living environment, and the over-prosperous commerce at the turn of the Song Dynasty may have required the emergence of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism.

It’s just that with the development of the world, this widely spread theory has become outdated.

The world needs new things, and people also need to find their own habitat in turbulent times.

Chen Heng couldn't help but raise his head, just as the clouds started to clear and the fog dispersed, a bright moon appeared in the sky, illuminating the mountains and rivers so clearly that even the Black Meerkat Mountain was clearly visible.

Men are human beings, and women are naturally human beings. God has the virtue of good life, but there is no difference between men and women. They should be of the same mind.

This set of statements is fine for casual conversation, but if it is used for debate with others, it still lacks references to the sayings of sages. Thinking that he was just chatting with Shui Rong today, Chen Heng didn't bother to drop his book bag, but there was a look of longing on his face.

If a woman doesn't understand, why would Mencius' mother move three times? Why would her mother-in-law do tattoos? Chen Heng shook his head slightly and let out a hearty laugh, If we want to achieve universal unity, how can we teach half the people and teach half the people?

Ending with these words, Shui Rong thought about it for a long time. To be honest, he didn't care much about the meaning of Chen Heng's actions. The reason why he asked this question was just to judge Chen Heng's character.

After some testing, he understood. Chen Chixing and he were not on the same journey. The other party had the whole world in his heart, but the world he wanted was not the same as the world Chen Heng said.

Thinking of this, Shui Rong's mind couldn't help but feel a little unmotivated. There were some footsteps behind him, and a messenger came over to inform Shui Rong, to the effect that Shi Ding was waiting for him in the camp.

Shui Rong nodded and said to Chen Heng: If you have time in the future, I will ask Chi Xing for advice on legal principles and governance.

Knowing that the other party was busy, Chen Heng stopped talking. There was some silence on the way back. When it was time to say goodbye, Shui Rong suddenly stopped and said, Mr. Chen.

Huh?! Chen Heng blinked.

Do you still remember Mr. Wang's title? Shui Rong said, and he finally answered Chen Heng's probing head-on.

Seeing the other party lift the curtain and enter the tent, Chen Heng stopped where he was for a long time, not knowing what to think.

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Xue Pan was really drunk today. He had suffered so much outside and had many things to prove and an explanation for. After the banquet was over, he broke into Feng Ziying's camp while enjoying the wine.

At this time, Feng Ziying was not in the tent. Xue Pan didn't know where the other party was, so he had to lie half on the bed and wait. When the real owner came back, he saw Xue Pan spinning around his mattress.

Feng Ziying was so frightened that she turned pale and shouted directly: Xue Pan, what are you doing?!

Xue Pan finally waited for him. Seeing the panic on his face, he hurriedly said: Waiting for you. You are really a good person. Why are you stuffing this piece of crap under the bed to make people lie down with their diaphragms?

Feng Ziying stepped forward in a panic and grabbed the thing from the opponent's hand. Xue Pan himself was not interested in it either, and continued to nag: Look at your precious one, a broken mask. If you like it, when I return to the capital, I will ask a few craftsmen to make dozens of them for you.

Heh. Feng Ziying twitched the corner of her mouth and said angrily, You are fine, what are you doing here?

Of course I have something to ask you. Xue Pan, who had drunk too much, raised his hand and hooked Feng Ziying's neck, Tell me honestly, is the person you introduced to me reliable?

Who?! Feng Ziying frowned slightly.

Xue Pan burped and spit out the smell of alcohol in his mouth, Of course it's the person I'm working with...

Feng Ziying smiled dryly and said: Of course it's reliable. Why do you ask?

I suspect he leaked my route to Beijing.

I really drank too much today. After Xue Pan said a few words, he felt his head was so heavy that he couldn't help but shake.

Brother Xue, you drank too much today, so you should rest first. When you wake up tomorrow, how about we discuss it again?

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How did you talk to him?

After sending away the guards on the left and right, Shi Ding asked about the result of the water dissolution. The latter shook his head directly and said helplessly: If you can't be persuaded, people like him will never help us in this matter.

Shi Ding didn't know the reason for Shui Rong's judgment, but at what time it was, everyone's fate was already hanging on a thread. He raised his eyebrows slightly, with a ferocious look on his face, and said directly: I'm just a poor student, why don't I find an opportunity and directly...

Hearing that Shi Ding wanted to kill people and silence them, Shui Rong also showed hesitation. After a long time, Shui Rong finally refused seriously: No.

Why is this? Shi Ding was very anxious. Everything used by the three armies was in the opponent's hands. If such important things are not in the hands of their own people, how can they accomplish their great things?

Are you going to regret it? Shi Ding couldn't guess Shui Rong's thoughts and said directly, You have to think about it. If you stop here, I still have the Taiping Marquis Dangdang. But your family, when your son and grandson are born, I’m afraid there won’t even be a county dukedom.”

Shui Rong knew that Shi Ding was telling the truth and Li Zhi would never give him another chance to lead troops.

Shi Ding saw Shui Rong's intention and followed up: Last time I coaxed that kid to come to the military camp, damn, who knew that this kid would take Baoyu with him on the road. Let him escape, let him go back this time , I won’t be able to find an opportunity in the future.”

Let me think about it again.

What on earth are you thinking about? Shi Ding really didn't understand, so he taunted directly, It's not like you made the lie come true and you really like men.

This was the taboo Shui Rong didn't want to mention. Suddenly someone poked at the sore point. Shui Rong said with a bit of anger: What nonsense are you talking about? Even if we want to conquer the world, we absolutely cannot do without the help of such people. His talents …”

There are many scholars, so why is he missing? Shi Ding really didn't understand, but he was afraid that it would really irritate him, so he had to say, I'll wait for you until tomorrow, before they go back. If you don't make a decision, don't blame me. It’s up to you.”

After saying these words, Shi Ding ignored Shui Rong's look and left angrily.

Today is a day of general cleaning. I’ll do it first and polish it up slowly.