Imperial Master of the Ming Dynasty

Before Jiang Xinghuo returned to Rongguo Duke's mansion, Huikong informed him that the old monk was out.

"Strange, where are you going at this time? Are you going to Datianjie Temple?"

"The young monk didn't know. He asked the junior brother who served the master and he said that he went out before dawn in the morning."

Jiang Xinghuo frowned and asked: "When Zhang Tianshi wrote a letter before about the fertilizer workshop, he mentioned that recently, didn't Buddhism and Taoism have to prepare for rituals to be performed by the people in Nanjing on the anniversary of the death of Emperor Taizu Gao? This is the only thing that can be done in Beijing now. Let him go outside.”

"The young monk also finds it strange." Huikong shook his head: "But judging from junior brother's tone, nothing should have happened. Jiang Sheng doesn't need to worry."

Hearing this, Jiang Xinghuo felt a little calmer.

Yao Guangxiao is his most powerful supporter and comrade, both emotionally and intellectually. Now that he has just returned to Beijing, the other party is not here, and no one can discuss countermeasures. Although he has the support of Zhu Di, such a menacing temple The storm still inevitably made him feel a little uneasy.

"Forget it, it's still early anyway. Let's go see Li Zhigang first. It's too late to come back." After thinking for a moment, Jiang Xinghuo got on his horse and rushed directly towards the imperial prison with Wang Bin and others. Zhu Gaoxu was left behind with Zhu Gaosui. After talking, he went into the palace to visit Queen Xu.

The group of people walked down the street to play horses, walked along the Yuhe River, turned a corner and crossed the bluestone bridge. To the south was the imperial prison.

Jiang Xinghuo did not often walk this road, but now Fu Ma looked carefully, it should be the Dayanggou area of ​​Mingyuhe Park in Nanjing in his previous life, but time has changed and the vicissitudes of life have changed unpredictably, making it somewhat unrecognizable.

There was no words all the way, and they soon arrived at the gate of the prison. They tied the horses to the horse posts. Wang Bin stepped forward and took out a token from his sleeve pocket and handed it to the guard. After whispering a few words, a few people stepped forward. Go inside.

Jiang Xinghuo led the soldiers forward with a calm expression. The semi-underground prison area was pitch dark, and there were occasional coughs, which made people's hair stand on end.

After walking through the narrow corridor, they came to a large door. Lao Wang, who had been promoted to the position of cell leader, opened the door. In the hot and humid summer, an unpleasant musty smell hit his nostrils. Jiang Xinghuo raised his hand and fanned it. Fan, then walked towards the prison.

The interior is still that "minimalist and pure prison style". The floors are all covered with straw, thatch and the like. It is humid and hot, exuding a stench. There are several oil lamps hanging on the stone walls, but they do not illuminate the surrounding environment. effect.

At this moment, two prisoners were sitting opposite each other in the deepest part of the cell.

One person's left arm was twisted on his knees, as if he had been tortured; the other person was huddled in the corner, holding his head and remaining silent.

Hearing the movement, the two of them raised their heads and glanced over.

When they saw Jiang Xinghuo, both of them looked surprised.

It seemed that the person who was being tortured was Huang Xin, the right deputy governor of the Inspectorate. At this moment, his clothes were in tatters and his hair was messy, and he looked very embarrassed and miserable.

And sitting opposite him was none other than Li Zhigang, the Minister of Rites!

"National Division!"

Li Zhigang was stunned for a moment, then he quickly got up, hurried up to meet him, grabbed the railing and asked eagerly: "Why are you in the imperial prison?"

"I came to see you."

Jiang Xinghuo smiled lightly, stretched out his hand and patted the railing: "How are you? How have you been these past few days?"

Li Zhigang said excitedly: "Thank you, Imperial Master, for your concern. It's okay."

After he finished speaking, he looked at Wang Bin and others standing outside the iron fence of the cell, and asked doubtfully: "National Master, who are these?"

"Oh, guard." Jiang Xinghuo said, "Some people have been restless recently, so you have to be careful when going out."

Although assassination is generally not used in temple struggles. This is the bottom line. However, once the interests involved are too large, it is not surprising that people can do anything. Jiang Xinghuo will naturally not place his hope on others not touching the bottom line. .

"I see."

Li Zhigang suddenly became excited. Has the situation outside reached such a tense stage?

"Um."

Jiang Xinghuo nodded, turned around and ordered Wang Bin and others: "Go and ask the cell leader to inform the Jinyi guards to take Huang Yushi away. I will ask you questions later. Brother Li and I will talk here."

Wang Bin agreed, and soon the Jin Yiwei came over and took the people away.

Li Zhigang still stood inside the iron fence, watching Huang Xin and Jiang Xinghuo's guards leave. He couldn't help but feel a little uneasy: "Is the Imperial Master coming here to avenge me?"

Whether Li Zhigang's father-in-law made the decision privately, gathering connections and brokering under the banner of Li Zhigang, or whether it was from Li Zhigang's instructions. In fact, it was no longer important to Jiang Xinghuo. What was important was that he had to get it from Li Zhigang. Some key information These old bureaucrats who have been in officialdom for decades should always have some secrets.

"The country has laws and regulations, and matters of redress of grievances will naturally be heard by the three judicial departments."

Jiang Xinghuo's gentle words made Li Zhigang breathe a sigh of relief.

The meaning of the joint trial of the Three Laws Division is that Emperor Yongle has not yet planned to capture him, but let the Three Laws Division go as a formality. In the Three Laws Division, the Inspectorate is now actually controlled by the left deputy censor Chen Ying. Chen Ying and Li Zhigang were together Impeachment, but not yet removed from the throne; the Ministry of Punishment is the territory of Emperor Yongle's number one dog licker Zheng Ci. As long as the above does not change, Zheng Ci will not do anything to him. The good personal relationship between the two has turned upside down in the face of such a storm. It is insignificant; Chen Qia, the minister of Dali Temple (former right minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the second chief envoy of Jiaozhi Chief Envoy in Jiang Xinghuo's previous life, who committed suicide when the army was defeated) is upright, but Dali Temple alone is useless .

Li Zhigang felt a warm feeling in his heart, and burst into tears. He didn't know whether he was pretending, or he was a little panicked after entering the palace: "The great kindness of the national master will never be forgotten."

"You're welcome."

Jiang Xinghuo waved his hand: "Brother Li, please tell me carefully what happened."

"well!"

Li Zhigang glanced around and made sure there was no one around before he breathed a sigh of relief and slowly told the story from his perspective.

But different from what Xia Yuanji learned, Li Zhigang said there were discrepancies in some details, especially the motivation for his letter.

"Brother Li is saying that Jin Zhong, the right minister of the Ministry of Industry, and you drank together in the evening, brought up the affair, and agreed to submit a letter together. They just went home and wrote the memorial, but Jin Zhong did not submit the letter? Why did he drink the memorial? If you don’t keep it or burn it after you wake up, why should you continue to perform the memorial?”

Jiang Xinghuo frowned deeply: "Brother Li, are you being used as a weapon?"

Li Zhigang's face changed slightly when he heard this. After confirming again that there was no one around, he said: "How could I not know, but Jin Zhong is not someone else after all. I thought it was His Majesty's intention, so I had the idea of ​​speculation in my heart. At the same time, even if I felt something was wrong, I would fool myself into it."

What I want to say here is that Jin Zhongzhen is not an ordinary person. He has been familiar with the art of war since he was a child. He became a talent by himself. In the 24th year of Hongwu, he entered the Yan Palace in Peiping. Later, he was recommended by Yao Guangxiao and was promoted to chief historian. Together with Yao Guangxiao, he was The main planner of the Battle of Jingnan. However, unlike Yao Guangxiao, Yao Guangxiao stayed in the rear, while Jin Zhong accompanied the army on the expedition, supported military affairs, and was Zhu Di's effective adviser.

It is said that the closest ministers around Zhu Di currently rely on are the "Two Jins", Wen is Jin Youzi, Wu is Jin Zhong, and the "Two Jins" are all lonely ministers. Although Yao Guangxiao is his recommender, Jin Zhong's position in the temple On the contrary, according to Jiang Xinghuo's vague memories, Jin Zhong seemed to be the most important pusher in the Yongle Dynasty's dispute to establish Zhu Gaochi as the prince and Zhu Zhanji as the emperor's grandson.

The spectrum of temples among civil servants is obviously not only the reformers but also the conservatives. There are also the Jianwen officials, the old officials of Yandi, the Imperial Party, the Grand Prince Party, etc., which are complex and even divided into temple factions based on their regional origin and the year of the imperial examination. When these Intricately mixed together, things have obviously become a little complicated.

Especially now, relying solely on Li Zhigang's information cannot confirm anything.

Jin Zhong said that he was complaining to Li Zhigang after he was drunk. His speech was too broad and he was chattering. Then when he sobered up, he felt it was inappropriate to let Li Zhigang go without writing a letter. What does this mean?

Moreover, even if they both support the reform, the eldest prince Zhu Gaochi, the second prince Zhu Gaoxu and their supporters have different levels of support for the reform. Zhu Gaochi's supporters are mostly gentry, and their interests may be damaged.

So it doesn't mean that if you supported the reform before, you will definitely support the reform in the future, especially after Jiang Xinghuo made drastic changes in Jiangnan.

"These are not enough, and Jin Zhong and Huang Xin have no social relations. This does not make sense."

Jiang Xinghuo looked at Li Zhigang and said: "Brother Li, you are the Minister of Rites, a high-ranking member of the imperial dynasty, and you are also responsible for the arrangements for the death anniversary of Emperor Taizu Gao. Logically speaking, no one would dare to deal with this at this time. Are you using a plan, not to mention being so menacing? There is something fishy about this incident. If you think about it again, there are some obstacles in it."

"cabinet."

Li Zhigang gritted his teeth and said, "There is definitely something wrong with the cabinet!"

The implications that can be derived from this are huge. Who is in charge of the cabinet? Naturally, it was the eldest prince Zhu Gaochi.

But if according to Li Zhigang, all clues can lead to Zhu Gaochi, isn't this another kind of unreasonable?

Jiang Xinghuo didn't want to believe that Zhu Gaochi would interfere with it and sabotage the reform. It was true that Zhu Gaochi was close to the civil servants and gentry, but he was by no means such an unwise person who couldn't understand the importance.

Jiang Xinghuo frowned slightly and said softly: "You mean, it's the cabinet that is fueling the fire. That's strange. Where is the cabinet? The emperor's ministers are in charge of the distribution of government affairs. They can affect many things, but they must Let them not hesitate to do this unless there is a necessary reason, and the cabinet is not monolithic."

"No one can afford this kind of thing, but since the cabinet seems to have no motive, there must be another mystery behind it!"

Li Zhigang's eyes flickered for a few times, he pondered for a moment, and then said: "Although I don't know who is behind the scenes, I am sure that someone is targeting the reform. They want to take Xia Yuanji away, and then let you, the Imperial Master Come back and be alone!”

This is for sure. When the six ministers expressed their stance on the reform, it was three to three, and Li Zhigang left his name.

Xia Yuanji couldn't do anything and could only use the situation to guide him to replace Jiang Xinghuo. However, Zheng Ci focused on licking the emperor without revealing any flaws. The one who could do it was Li Zhigang. To get rid of Li Zhigang, attacking Chen Ying was incidental. The emperor would not give up on Chen Ying. Ying, the falcon, came to monitor Yan Lu, and Chen Ying didn't have too much dirty information. At most, it would embarrass Chen Ying. What should happen next?

And Li Zhigang was imprisoned, and Xia Yuanji went to Jiangnan to take over Jiang Xinghuo's job in handling the reform. It was impossible for Zheng Ci to do anything, so Yao Guangxiao and Zhuo Jing were just trying to support them. If there were no countermeasures in the future, I believe the final sweep of this storm is coming.

Jiang Xinghuo's heart felt a little heavy.

Jing Qing's blood oath was only the first threshold for reform, and the enemy's offensive, which had been brewing for several months, was definitely not trivial, and the ultimate target must be him.

"National Preceptor, go and check the rotation of the cabinet in those days, and whether there is really any connection between Huang Xin and Jin Zhong."

Li Zhigang's words were interrupted by Jiang Xinghuo: "Of course Duke Rong will investigate these matters. Think about it again, what else did you do in those days?"

Li Zhigang pondered for a few moments before recalling: "I also wrote a memorial."

"What memorial?"

"On the anniversary of the death of Emperor Taizu Gao, this is my job according to the etiquette system of the Song Dynasty. On the anniversary of his death, sutras are chanted in various Buddhist halls, emperors and concubines are appointed, and hundreds of officials perform incense offerings. I suggest that your majesty should also follow the Song Dynasty system this time, on Tianxi , Datianjie and other five temples as well as Chaotian Palace, ordered the monks and Taoists to chant sutras for three days and nights."

Jiang Xinghuo suddenly asked: "How did you reply?"

After a brief recollection, Li Zhigang said: "Sir, a son should be attentive to his parents in everything, but the filial piety of a ruler is different from that of a commoner. A ruler is one who obeys the destiny of heaven and is the master of the world. He is the guardian of the country and the support of all living beings. But when we cultivate our moral character, deeply empathize with Heaven, abide by the established constitution, we can lead a country far away in the desert, so that there is no evil inside, no thieves outside, the clan is in peace, and all the people are happy and happy, then we are filial. If we cannot do this, but only If you practice fasting and understand the scriptures, you will be able to suppress the end."

"This is not His Majesty's reply."

This is nonsense. Zhu Di's verbal imperial edicts are basically in plain language. Of course, Zhu Di did not reply to such literate words in person.

Moreover, since Jiang Xinghuo popularized gravity, Zhu Di, who originally didn't believe in destiny, now doesn't believe it anymore. He reads "Xunzi" in the palace every day and studies the way of the Holy King diligently.

Therefore, this memorial is a bit strange.

After confirming again and again, seeing that Li Zhigang really couldn't remember anything, Jiang Xinghuo comforted him to have a good rest and went to the execution chamber.

"Master, do you want to be tortured?"

Xiaoqi, who was in charge of the punishment in Jin Yiwei, asked.

"Need not."

Jiang Xinghuo waved his hand and dismissed everyone, leaving only him and Huang Xin in the execution chamber.

"Is Huang Yushi being punished?"

Unlike Jing Qing, Huang Xin did not lose his mind. He flicked his prison uniform with his right arm and said: "At first, Chen Ying instructed Ji Gang to arrest me, but Jin Yiwei really didn't torture me. Such a big case is If you are going to be tried by the Tribunal of Justice and His Majesty has not nodded, who dares to use torture?"

Jiang Xinghuo looked at the other person's broken left arm: "What about this arm?"

Huang Xin gave him an answer that sounded outrageous, but seemed reasonable after thinking about it.

"Li Zhigang strayed from the country, and I wanted to hit him, but he hid quickly through the iron fence, so I accidentally injured myself."

Jiang Xinghuo was silent for a few breaths.

"Then Yushi Huang isn't going to beat me?"

Huang Xin was also calm: "Li Zhigang is older, you are younger, and my arm is broken. Even if it is violent, it will only increase the humiliation. It is not necessary."

Jiang Xinghuo looked at this very special "enemy" and said:

"Huang Yushi is an upright person."

Huang Xin said calmly: "As for the officials, the country has been raising scholars for thirty-five years, and there must be people like me. Maybe I died a few years earlier, but Chen Ying and Ji Gang are just cruel officials. Take history as a guide, Zhang Tang , What good will happen to people like Lai Junchen? After a few years of majesty, the emperor no longer needs him, so he has to die to vent the anger of the world, and the same goes for you."

Jiang Xinghuo folded his hands and asked with a smile:

"Am I a cool official too?"

Huang Xin shook his head and said: "You are not a cruel official, you are a figure like Shang Yang or Wang Anshi. Compared with Ji Gang and Chen Ying, your end will be worse. If the reform fails, the emperor will blame you, and you will die; if the reform succeeds, The emperor is afraid of you, so you have to die."

"Then according to what Huang Yushi said, there will be no way for me to survive?" Jiang Xinghuo looked at the other party and asked.

"Of course."

Jiang Xinghuo raised his head slightly like Naojiachang.

"Talk about it."

"The only way you can survive is if you become the father-in-law, you are also the father-in-law who kills the king."

Huang Xin laughed loudly and said: "Even if you go through all kinds of difficulties and dangers, carry out the reform, make great contributions to the country, and have unparalleled prestige, His Majesty will take you away when he realizes that his time is running out."

If others heard this, combined with Emperor Yongle's recent attitude towards the second prince, and the entire storm, from Jin Zhong to the cabinet, all vaguely pointing to the figure of the eldest prince, it would be difficult not to feel worried.

Reform is the realization of the Tao. If the Taoist heart is not firm, even if there is a slight flaw, it will expand into a huge crack in the blink of an eye. In fact, since embarking on the path of reform, it is destined that most people from top to bottom will become enemies. , and the original supporters are very likely to turn against each other for various reasons.

People who are not mentally strong enough cannot take the path of reform.

Instead of being shocked, Jiang Xinghuo raised his eyebrows: "Is this your purpose?"

Huang Xin's smile faded.

"What do you think my purpose is?"

"The reform is a reform. Why are all the clues I can get now deliberately leading to the dispute over the throne? The method is very clever and effective. After all, the eldest prince is the key to the support of the reform. If Li Zhigang can be removed, the support will be Kai Xia Yuanji, if I am separated from the eldest prince, I will indeed have no power at the top."

Anyone with a little experience in temple fighting knows that to fight a snake, you have to hit it seven inches. Since it is a fight, how can you not attack the enemy's weak points?

The reform could generate such a huge momentum, and naturally it was inseparable from the most critical factor that Jiang Xinghuo gave lectures in prison and changed the minds of the top brass of the Ming Empire.

This is the core reason why the reform can take off, but from another perspective, it is also the weakness of the reform.

The reform is indeed a top-down movement, which means that the reform only has relatively superior power at the top, and is extremely lacking in supporters at the middle and lower levels. The trip to Jiangnan may have slightly changed the situation at the lower levels, but in the court , mid-level officials, and those who oppose the reform still account for the vast majority.

This is something that is easy to understand, because one of the main policies of the reform is to "test the law."

So, if you are Jiang Xinghuo’s enemy, how should you target Jiang Xinghuo?

Naturally, it is not a matter of directly impeaching Jiang Xinghuo. Jiang Xinghuo is a saint-like figure. He has no weaknesses from public to private. In fact, this is one of the reasons why Jiang Xinghuo refuses to propose marriage. With a woman, there is a weakness, not to mention This woman will bring with her a string of relatives who will often serve as an excuse for criticism.

Therefore, we must not attack Jiang Xinghuo directly. We must weaken his core strength, which is the highest-level supporters of the Ming Empire.

If the reform loses its advantage at the highest level, and even Jiang Xinghuo, the emperor, and the eldest prince become alienated from each other, then the sudden collapse of the reform, which has a somewhat "castle in the air" meaning, is almost inevitable.

Huang Xin's face became serious, and the smile completely disappeared from his face.

"Let me guess again. I'm wrong. Please correct me, Huang Yushi."

Jiang Xinghuo raised his head greatly on the chair and looked at the ceiling of the torture chamber.

"First, although you have connected many censors, in my opinion, it may not be some organized and systematic secret group in the temple who colluded together to collectively launch this action. The Ming Dynasty has not yet reached this stage. The scholar-bureaucrats from Jiangnan and Jiangxi may have contributed, and they followed up by writing letters one after another, which muddied the waters, but that was a spontaneous action based on their own interests, and now it seems that it may have been part of a calculation to confuse the public."

"Secondly, there must be someone behind the scenes, but there was a big purge in the temple last year. Basically all the ministers and ministers appointed by Emperor Jianwen were replaced. Even the middle-level doctors and chief ministers had a huge personnel change. I’m afraid the person behind the scenes may not be someone in a high position, and it’s hard to say whether he or she is even a court official, but in any case, he or she must have some influence in the temple.”

"Thirdly, you are not strong."

Jiang Xinghuo relaxed his neck, stood up, and looked down at Huang Xin.

"You saw the so-called 'weakness' and did so, but today, you can only use words to provoke me. This is exactly a sign of your, or rather your, powerlessness."

"The answer is also very simple. If there is no internal fighting at the top, and the emperor, princes, ministers, and nobles all insist on reform, then no matter how you plan, you still can't win."

Huang Xin was silent. He didn't expect that in Jiang Xinghuo's eyes, he and others were already at their wits' end.

Huang Xin slowly shook his head: "I don't comment on what you said, but what I want to say is that even if we lose, you still can't win."

"Oh? You mean there will be a steady stream of opponents and challengers?"

"No, although you have all kinds of magical qualities, your enemies are not something you can fight against. I have not lied to you. One day, you will part ways with His Majesty. At that time, even if you have monstrous His abilities are no match for the imperial power."

"It's too early to say this. For the reform, Jing Qing's blood oath is just an introduction."

Jiang Xinghuo said coldly: "Now, your challenge really begins."

Huang Xin scratched his flea-covered bun with his right hand and lowered his head.

"I've been observing you for a long time. If I'm not wrong, your next step in 'strengthening the country and enriching the people' is to follow the path of financial management like Wang Anshi, right? You should learn from Xunzi, Han Fei, and Shang Yang, and act like a king." You are domineering in order to govern the country, and you seek practical benefits to enrich the country at the expense of righteousness. But your opponents are not only scholar-bureaucrats, but also moral knowledge accumulated for hundreds of years. They are invisible and intangible, but they are much more feared than anyone in the temple. "

"I know that you are very strong. You have overcome one of the last few obstacles to Neo-Confucianism in your knowledge. It is not an exaggeration to call you a generation of Confucianism. But isn't Mr. Longchuan (Chen Liang) of the Yongkang School not strong? I Looking at your academic path, the so-called "bold assumptions, careful verification, and practice can produce true knowledge" still follow the meritocracy of Long Chuan and Xinshui (Ye Shi) (advocating pragmatism rather than being unrealistic, emphasizing the need for theory) It is the way to test it through actual activities, and think that 'those who have not tested things, their words are inconsistent, and those who have not tested the tools, their teachings are not translated')."

The Yongjia and Yongkang meritorious schools in eastern Zhejiang here refer to the academic schools represented by Ye Shi and Chen Liang. Together with Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism and Lu Jiuyuan's psychology at that time, they were the three major schools of Confucianism in the Southern Song Dynasty. Less well known to future generations.

Huang Xin said:

"If you want to change the law, there are some things that you can't get around."

"Mr. Longchuan and Zhu Zi's debate over justice and interests, do you think you can win if we try it again?"

Huang Xin did not lie. The biggest obstacle to the reform has never been the civil servants who engaged in political disputes in the temple.

As long as they are individuals, they are insignificant in the face of absolute force.

In fact, if the law can be changed by just killing people, then there are so many emperors and ministers in the past dynasties who dared to kill people and were willing to change, so why are there so few who dared to do so and succeeded?

Reform, on the surface, becomes a legal system, and conservatism, on the surface, maintains the old system.

But in fact, in the final analysis, the struggle for victory is the core proposition in temple and even social morality, and it is an out-and-out moral struggle.

Can we not fight for orthodoxy, but directly change the law and silently make a fortune?

In the temple environment of ancient China, the answer is no.

Because the reform will inevitably involve the most classic "difference between kings and hegemons, the difference between justice and benefit, and the difference between ancient and modern times", these three core debates in ancient Chinese political philosophy.

As far as "kingly way" and "hegemony" are concerned, this is not only a matter of different value orientations, but also has completely different meanings and respective substantive contents in the field of real temples. As Zhang Mushi of the Song Dynasty said: Scholars must first Understand the distinction between kings and hegemons, and then we can discuss the governance of the body. This means that the identification of "kings and hegemons" is not just a philosophical speculation, but a very practical temple issue.

As for the "dispute between righteousness and benefit", the issue of righteousness and benefit and the relationship between righteousness and benefit are extremely important in Confucian ethical thoughts and values. However, Cheng Hao, Cheng Yi, Zhu Xi and others insisted on Dong Zhongshu's point of view and believed that morality and utilitarianism are mutually exclusive. Of course it is easy to talk about morality. Of course, some kind of temple is correct. It is so satisfying to stand on the moral high ground and point fingers. The alternative method is to emphasize utilitarianism and despise morality.

Not to mention the "debate between ancient and modern times", is it said in the temple that the laws of the ancestors are immutable, or does the teachings have to change with the changes of the times? Academically, should we learn from the past or the present? These issues are never purely philosophical issues, but extremely sensitive temple issues.

All in all, ancient and modern, hegemony, justice and benefit, this is an old proposition that cannot be circumvented for thousands of years.

Even if Jiang Xinghuo asked Zhu Di to hack all the opponents to death, it was of course impossible, but even if he said angry words, he still couldn't avoid these problems in the end.

If he wants to reform, if he wants to carry out Confucian reform, lift the shackles of thought, and unlock creativity at the same time, to complete the dual transformation from thought to reality, then these challenges are what he must face.

In other words, it is time to initiate an ideological discussion and change.

This is what the "Enlightenment of the Ming Dynasty" really wants to do.

Only by completing ideological unification can modern science have the most basic space for development and dissemination. Only with modern science can industrialization be further promoted and the Ming Dynasty of this world embark on a new path. This is a prerequisite for the development of science.

To be honest, it is useless to just rely on scientific experiments to shock the ancients. There was no shortage of fantastic ideas in ancient times. What was lacking was the people who could build a sheltered building for these fantastic ideas.

Jiang Xinghuo walked to the small window of the execution room and opened the wooden window that blocked the light.

Outside, it is still a sunny summer day.

Across a river, the streets and alleys on the opposite side were still bustling with activity.

But in Jiang Xinghuo's eyes, a chill gradually grew.

"The truth cannot be understood without debate. The debate between ancient and modern times, the debate between kings and hegemons, and the debate between justice and benefit are just three stumbling blocks on my road. You just have to live a good life and see how I can kick them away."

Jiang Xinghuo looked back at Huang Xin and spoke calmly word by word.

"Zhu Xi can claim that he 'won' because his opponent is not me."