Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 545 is about the anti-Confucian scholars.

Chapter 545 is about the anti-Confucian scholars.

Yun Xiao stared intently at the many strange phenomena surrounding Lu Zheng, revealing a look of surprise.

At first glance, one might mistake Lu Zheng for a prodigy from a Taoist immortal family, capable of cultivating such extraordinary phenomena.

However, Yun Xiao did discover that these strange phenomena possessed a righteous spirit and contained the power of heaven and earth.

Yun Xiao clicked his tongue and said, "Your sea of ​​consciousness and literary palace must have formed a small world, right?"

These are not just a few individual forms, but have become a whole universe.

"Your talent is simply... Why don't you cultivate with me!"

Yun Xiao looked intently at Lu Zheng, "Confucianism teaches that one enters the Dao through literature, and becoming a sage is extremely difficult. If you follow me into the Daoist path, you'll avoid many detours on the road to sagehood!"

Yun Xiao pondered that it wasn't too late for Lu Zheng to change his cultivation path now.

He added, "I see you don't usually study Confucian classics much, so don't even think about burying yourself in writing them. Just hang out with us!"

Yun Xiao kept rambling on, really wanting to win Lu Zheng over and have him study Confucianism to become a sage, which was a complete waste of his talent for cultivation.

Seeing that Yun Xiao was already making grand promises to him, Lu Zheng just smiled and said, "Becoming a saint is not my wish, but I only hope for peace in the world."

Yun Xiao's expression froze, as if a breath was stuck in his throat.

"Well, you're even more saintly than a saint himself..."

Yun Xiao waved his hand and said quietly, "Put these things away, they're making my eyes blurry."

Seeing the dazzling sun, moon, stars, and other celestial beings surrounding Lu Zheng, it would be a lie to say that one is not envious.

He remembered that he had just taught Lu Zheng the Taoist thunder magic last year, and now there were thunderous phenomena, which were even imbued with the power of heaven and earth. Was this kind of talent even human?

Moreover, cultivating so many forms doesn't seem to affect Lu Zheng's cultivation speed; in fact, it might even enhance it.

Yun Xiao suddenly felt that sometimes the difference between people was even greater than the difference between people and demons.

Upon hearing this, Lu Zheng suppressed his unusual behavior to avoid further provoking Yun Xiao.

He then asked, "Master, do you have any guidance for me to improve?"

Yun Xiao rolled his eyes. "You have more extraordinary phenomena than I do. How can I guide you? Since you can conjure so many forms, just go with the flow and adapt to the changes of heaven and earth..."

Yun Xiao casually uttered a few words of cultivation insights; how Lu Zheng interpreted them was up to Lu Zheng.

"Sigh, I need to rest for a while."

Yun Xiao was a little disappointed and felt somewhat depressed.

Seeing this, Lu Zheng also found a blue stone not far away and sat down, carefully sensing the golden bead he had just obtained.

Before long, wisps of energy were released from the golden bead, entering Lu Zheng's small world, slowly drifting into the literary palace, and merging into a thick book.

Those auras were the Legalist power that Lu Zheng extracted from the golden pearl.

That book was a new book that Lu was compiling, a legal code.

Sensing a subtle change in the book, Lu Zheng realized that compiling laws was indeed not simple and required the principles of Legalism.

Unfortunately, the Legalists lacked a true path to spiritual practice, and various states strictly prohibited genuine Legalist doctrines. Writing a true Legalist text was many times more difficult than compiling Confucian and Taoist classics.

Lu Zheng gently squeezed the slightly dull golden bead in his hand. This was far from enough...

……

The State of Qi, Langya.

On the outskirts of Langya City, there was a farm.

It was summer, and the wheat fields were covered in golden yellow.

In the wheat field, an old man dressed in hemp clothing walked barefoot, looking at the wheat covering the hillside, and grinned happily, saying, "This year, we're sure to have a good harvest!"

Suddenly, the old man glanced to the side and saw a figure gracefully approaching from afar.

The newcomer was dressed in a scholar's robe, with a handsome appearance and refined demeanor; he looked to be no more than forty years old.

The middle-aged scholar approached the old man, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Ziyu greets Patriarch Tian!"

Tian Jiu narrowed his eyes slightly, looked at the man in front of him, and chuckled, "So it's Doctor Gao, what a rare guest."

Gao Yan, courtesy name Ziyu, was a high-ranking official in Qi and a scholar of the Six Realms of Confucianism and Taoism. He was well-known in Qi and had many disciples.

Tian Jiu, the patriarch of the powerful Tian clan in the State of Qi, is a martial arts master who is said to have reached the level of a martial saint.

Tian Jiu said with a smile, "Doctor Gao has come from afar, please come and sit at the manor!"

After saying that, Tian Jiu put his hands behind his back and headed straight for the farm.

Gao Yan quickly followed beside him.

The two entered the farm and sat down in a courtyard, where a farm woman served them tea and dried fruit.

Gao Yan sipped the plain tea, which had little flavor, exchanged a few pleasantries with Tian Jiu, and then got down to business.

Gao Yan said in a low voice, "I have come here today because I would like to ask Patriarch Tian for a favor."

Tian Jiu remained calm and said indifferently, "What is it that requires Doctor Gao to come in person?"

Gao Yan couldn't help but ask, "The fact that the Confucian and Taoist Confucian school produced a classic of poetry last year must be known to the Tian family head, right?"

Tian Jiu's eyes flickered slightly, and she slowly nodded.

As the head of the Tian family, how could he not know about such an important matter?

He even possessed that classic work, though the poems within were incomplete and not fully collected.

Gao Yan said, "I've long heard that the Tian family has retainers all over the world. Ziyu would like to ask the Tian family head for help in finding someone to compile the book." Tian Jiu blinked, a strange light flashing in his eyes, "Is this Doctor Gao's idea, or the academy's idea?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Yan opened his mouth and truthfully replied, "It means the meaning of the chief priest."

Tian Jiu couldn't help but smile. Since it was the intention of that high priest, it was clearly also the intention of the Jixia Academy...

So it seems that the Jixia Academy had been searching for that person but had not found him, which is why they asked him to take action.

"Find him, and then what?" Tian Jiu asked.

To be honest, the Jixia Academy treated the new classics as forbidden books, and even when he sent people to inquire and collect poems, they didn't get many.

It still took him some time to obtain some of the poems from Anguo.

The academy's chief priest's desire to find the person who compiled the book was probably not motivated by goodwill.

Gao Yan said softly, "We want to know who the editor of the book is, and we also want to know the identities and backgrounds of the poets who wrote about it, and who supports them."

Tian Jiu remained calm, lightly tapping his thigh with his calloused index finger, his mind racing.

During this time, he also sent people to gather intelligence, but they found nothing.

Tian Jiu slowly said, "I wonder if Doctor Gao could provide any clues?"

Gao Yan thought for a moment and said, "Someone who can compile those poems into classics must have reached a high level of understanding. We have some guesses, but we can't verify them..."

Gao Yan took out a thick file and showed it to Tian Jiu.

Tian Jiu curiously flipped through the pages, then paused, unable to suppress a laugh: "You actually suspect that half-saint from Anguo?"

Tian Jiu was surprised that even that half-saint was on the list.

Gao Yan explained, "The newly published poems are being widely circulated in Anguo. We suspect that the semi-saint wants to find another way to become a literary saint."

“A different path…” Tian Jiu said leisurely, “I’ve heard that there are some poems in that classic that belittle emperors and nobles, which are quite rebellious. What, is it that the ancestor of the dignified Anguo royal family would rebel against himself and exterminate his own clan in order to become a saint?”

"Having trampled the bones of high-ranking officials all over the streets, he doesn't even spare himself?"

The fact that such poems could be compiled into a classic shows that the compilers were sincere in their efforts.

The suspicion surrounding that half-saint from Shang'an Kingdom struck Tian Jiu as somewhat absurd.

Seeing Tian Jiu's mocking expression, Gao Yan could only say, "I just have some doubts..."

If Confucianism were to actually produce a sage, it would indeed be a laughing stock for outsiders.

Upon hearing this, Tian Jiu calmly flipped through the files again.

He had heard of everything recorded there, and had even asked others to pay attention to it; there was nothing particularly special about it.

Tian Jiu asked curiously, "Your academy hasn't found a single scholar who writes poetry?"

Gao Yan said, "We couldn't find them. We guessed that they were all renamed, or that they were ancient poems that someone compiled into classics..."

Tian Jiu chuckled and said, "There are many hermits in the world; perhaps you just haven't discovered them yet."

Gao Yan couldn't help but say, "We are skilled in academic research, so we would like to ask Patriarch Tian for help with this matter... If it is successful, the academy may make an exception and give a few spots to the Tian family disciples, and even allow them to read the true scriptures of the sages."

A flicker of interest crossed Tian Jiu's eyes. Although he didn't think much of these Confucian scholars, the Qi Kingdom ultimately revered Confucianism and Taoism, and the development of his family's power depended on these scholars.

Tian Jiu pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "I will have someone keep an eye out."

Gao Yan was very grateful to Tian Jiu for agreeing.

Tian Jiu then said, "Your academy should have the complete classic, right? Doctor Gao, give me a copy, and I won't pass it on to anyone else."

Gao Yan's face showed a hint of hesitation. "Those are forbidden books, I..."

Tian Jiu said calmly, "I'm not a big mouth, I'm just curious and want to see your Confucian new Book of Poetry."

Gao Yan's expression was unnatural; he found the last three words particularly jarring. They couldn't accept that such poetry could be considered a new version of the Book of Songs.

Seeing Tian Jiu's expression, Gao Yan had no choice but to take out another booklet. "That book was published and passed down in the Confucian Temple. Before it was fully revealed, it was covered up by the chief priest. I don't have the complete copy either."

Tian Jiu chuckled and said, "It's alright. It would be great if I could see a few more songs that I haven't seen before..."

Tian Jiu flipped through the booklet, reading it with great interest.

Upon seeing this, Gao Yan got up to take his leave.

Tian Jiu raised her head slightly, "Dr. Gao, won't you sit a little longer?"

Gao Yan said, "It's inconvenient to trouble Patriarch Tian any further. I still need to go back and teach my students."

"Alright. Goodbye, Dr. Gao..." Tian Jiu said.

Gao Yan nodded, turned around and walked away.

"By the way, there's one more thing."

Tian Jiu suddenly called out to Gao Yan.

Gao Yan couldn't help but stop and turn around to look at Tian Jiu.

Tian Jiu asked, "Does your academy treat the person who compiled this book as a rebellious Confucian scholar?"

Gao Yan's expression changed slightly upon hearing this.

Those Confucian and Taoist scholars whose scholarship differs from the mainstream of Confucianism and who are not well-regarded are considered anti-Confucianists.

A certain great Confucian scholar once cultivated many outstanding disciples, but those disciples deviated from the orthodox teachings and did not respect Confucianism, so much so that the renowned scholar was criticized by mainstream Confucian scholars, receiving both praise and criticism.

Gao Yan couldn't answer the question, so he simply cupped his hands in greeting and hurried away.

(End of this chapter)