Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 655 As long as there is a source of living water...

The transformation of Confucianism was destined to be significant, but it was also destined to begin subtly and gradually.

What ordinary people care about most is birth, aging, illness, death, and the necessities of life.

And political faction leaders have even more to consider.

After Liu Huai and Wei Sheng finalized some matters in private, and after spending a brief moment of romantic time with Wei Rujun, they immediately rushed to Yanzhou to deal with the Kong family's affairs.

Wei Sheng, in the name of the Shandong Marshal's Office, summoned the generals in command and representatives of local officials to Jinan Prefecture to discuss the next strategy.

It's one thing for generals to command troops, but local officials really can't leave their posts without permission.

As the territory expanded, many issues could no longer be resolved with a small meeting at the state government office.

If the Han army were to expand further, it might be necessary to establish official positions such as Imperial Inspectors and Governors to facilitate communication between local authorities and military governorships.

However, the Shandong rebels were not a military state, and the opinions of local officials were indeed very important. Wei Sheng had no choice but to summon officials such as Luo Guzi, Zhang Xiaoxiang, and Xu Zongyan to discuss important matters.

On the 20th day of the first lunar month, after drawing three hundred armored cavalry from the Flying Tiger Army as his personal guards, Liu Huai finally arrived in Yanzhou, a place he had always been loyal to.

As the landlords, the Kong family had learned of Liu Huai's arrival early on. Just as Liu Huai was passing through Ziyang, the capital of Yanzhou, the 49th generation Duke Yansheng, Kong Zheng, was already waiting outside Qufu City with his brother Kong Su, who was the magistrate of Qufu, holding a newly embroidered banner with the character "Han".

These two are considered the third generation leaders of the Northern Confucian School. Their grandfather was Kong Duancao, who was the founder of the Northern Confucian School.

Kong Zheng and Kong Su were both quite old. They waited for a long time outside Qufu, but Liu Huai did not arrive. They had no choice but to send someone to inquire again.

It wasn't until an hour later that someone returned to report.

As soon as Commander Liu entered Qufu, he stopped at a military post, seemingly discussing important matters with the renowned Zhu Xi, completely ignoring the members of the Confucius clan.

Kong Zheng was filled with shame and indignation, but he dared not leave in a huff and could only continue to wait in the cold wind.

"Master Zhu has done a great job." Liu Huai strode into the barracks and was immediately startled: "Master Zhu, how did you become so thin?"

Originally, Zhu Xi was a strong and robust man, with broad shoulders and a thick waist. However, after only two or three months apart, he had lost a lot of weight, and even his wide robes and sleeves had become loose.

"Liu Dalang, it's been a long time." Zhu Xi didn't answer, but just looked up and said with a smile.

Compared to a few months ago, Master Zhu's temperament has become more reserved. His originally flamboyant personality seems to have settled down in the past few months, transforming from a sharp longsword into a sheath that has sheathed its edge.

Liu Huai paced slowly in Zhu Xi's house, looking left and right.

Zhu Xi's house was somewhat cluttered, but the dividing lines were still discernible.

The east side was relatively tidier, with many official documents and urgent instructions on the desk. From time to time, clerks would come and leave a stack of documents or take away a few books.

The west side was a mess, with the walls covered with all kinds of papers. In the corner, there was a wooden bed, half of which was piled with books. The desk was also in disarray, with open books scattered everywhere. As a result, the huge desk only had a space of about two palms in front of it for Zhu Xi to write documents.

Liu Huai looked at a piece of paper pasted on the wall and slowly read aloud: "Suspicion should be avoided, and arguments should be meticulous. Tsk."

He tilted his head and looked at Zhu Xi: "Master Zhu, shall I revise this sentence for you to make it more accessible and easier to understand?"

Zhu Xi's eyes lit up: "I have long known that Liu Dalang is a man of great talent. Now, let me write for Liu Dalang."

Liu Huai pointed to the paper: "There's no need to write anything down, just a matter of two sentences. That's right, make bold assumptions and carefully verify them."

Zhu Xi was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then immediately began to write swiftly and powerfully on the paper, muttering to himself, "Wonderful, wonderful!"

Although Zhu Xi pioneered a new method of investigating things and summarized several key points, he had not yet fully developed it into a theory or written it down.

After the war began, Zhu Xi devoted his main energy to the army's logistics and had no time to organize things systematically.

Only now, after the war has finally ended and most of the army has been disbanded, has Zhu Xi had time to write his treatises.

Zhu Xi had a premonition that if he could actually complete this book, "On the Investigation of Things," he would most likely be able to earn the title of "Master Zhu" in later generations.

After shaking his head for a long time, Zhu Xi finally raised his head and said, "Liu Dalang, you came here not just to discuss the investigation of things with me, right?"

Liu Huai brought over a clean chair, sat down, and laughed, "Why not? This is a momentous event, far more important than dealing with the Confucius family. If Master Zhu's 'Investigation of Things' is completed, there will be many more great Confucian scholars in the future."

It's about investigating things to gain knowledge.

The purpose of investigating things is to acquire knowledge, to seek truth. If one finds the truth, wouldn't one become a great Confucian scholar?

This is where the importance of methodology lies. If the right method of investigation is found, people will naturally seek the truth and ultimately improve natural science.

Zhu Xi smiled, then sighed and said, "But my writing is considered heretical and deviant, so I will inevitably face a barrage of criticism." This is how it always is when new theories emerge. This is because Confucianism had already become philosophical in the Song Dynasty. If it were the Eastern Han Dynasty, when Confucianism had become a sectarian religion, it might have been a bloody storm.

Liu Huai, however, said nonchalantly, "Master Zhu is overthinking it. When the time comes, let those scholars debate with me. Master Zhu and those people will still have some face-saving issues, but I am lawless and have no ties."

Hearing Liu Huai's arrogant words, Zhu Xi laughed again: "That's not how things are done. How can matters of learning be forced by force?"

Although Zhu Xi had considerable confidence in "On the Investigation of Things," he still had some concerns.

He worried that his doctrines would be rejected, and that he would eventually find a way for Confucianism only to be abandoned by scholars. Wouldn't he die with regrets?

Liu Huai reached out and took another piece of paper from the wall: "You must have faith in the Han people, and you must also have faith in scholars."

In modern times, once a way out was discovered, Chinese intellectuals abandoned their two-thousand-year-old doctrines without hesitation and fully embraced modern science in just a few decades.

Given the extremely pragmatic nature of Chinese intellectuals, with just a little guidance, they would immediately regard Zhu Xi's "On the Investigation of Things" as the ultimate guide.

“However, since Master Zhu has embarked on this path, he must come up with something to convince the public, right?” Liu Huai put the paper back on the wall and then spread his hands in response: “Otherwise, I don’t know how to promote the new learning.”

Zhu Xi was prepared and handed over two books, saying, "I have two points to make."

Liu Huai took the two books and carefully flipped through them.

This document details Zhu Xi's discovery of the relationship between maggots and flies, and his refutation of the claim that "rotten grass turns into fireflies" through experiments.

Apart from the fact that the writing style of these two articles is still classical Chinese, they are already quite similar to later investigative literature.

In particular, in order to prove the effectiveness of the theory of investigating things, Zhu Xi also described in detail the detours he had taken and the mistakes he had made, which made the whole article more detailed and reliable.

After reading through them for a long time, Liu Huai said, "Master Zhu, there are still some errors in these two investigation reports."

Zhu Xi raised an eyebrow: "Oh?"

Liu Huai said seriously, "Actually, neither flies nor fireflies give birth directly; they lay eggs. Only after the eggs hatch do larvae appear, eventually becoming adults."

Zhu Xi understood: "Oh, like a silkworm egg?"

Liu Huai was slightly taken aback. He hadn't expected Zhu Xi's thinking to be so divergent. He nodded and said, "It is just like a silkworm egg, only much smaller, so small that it is not even visible."

Zhu Xi was somewhat disappointed, but he still nodded and said, "It's alright. As long as you continue to investigate things, you will eventually be able to see them clearly."

Liu Huai pondered for a moment: "Has Master Zhu ever seen a crystal that can magnify characters? It could allow people with presbyopia to continue seeing."

Zhu Xi shook his head: "I've only heard of it. There are wealthy merchants in Liangzhe who own crystal 'Aida'. It has the effect of magnifying the objects in front of them, just as Liu Dalang said. I've also heard that it can start a fire."

The iris was the prototype of eyeglasses, and it was recorded in the Song Dynasty book "Dongtian Qinglu". Crystal magnifying glasses appeared even earlier, with prototypes existing at least as early as the Tang Dynasty.

Liu Huai slowly said, "Last year I gathered some craftsmen to grind crystals, and now we have a few usable lenses. I will assemble one to help Master Zhu see the insect eggs."

Liu Huai often did things in unexpected ways, so Zhu Xi wasn't surprised. He simply smiled and nodded, saying, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Liu Dalang."

The Ordnance Bureau grinds crystals to make telescopes, but now, in order to win over Zhu Xi, the leading figure of Confucianism, Liu Huai wouldn't be so stingy as to not even spare a few lenses.

As the saying goes, "to return a favor," Liu Huai came to Zhu Xi's place, promising to support his new doctrines and assisting him in perfecting "On the Investigation of Things." Zhu Xi was obliged to reciprocate.

In other words, they were going to support Liu Huai in eliminating the Confucius family in Qufu.

The two discussed the matter for a while longer before Liu Huai took his leave.

Zhu Xi rose to see him off, but when they reached the door, Liu Huai turned back and said, "Master Zhu, how about I add one more point to your 'Investigation of Things'?"

Zhu Xi nodded in agreement.

Liu Huai slowly said, "Investigating things requires starting from reality and seeking truth from facts."

Zhu Xi's breathing faltered slightly. After a moment, he cupped his hands and smiled, "Why don't you, Liu Dalang, resign from your post in charge of Shandong's military and political affairs and come with me to pursue scholarship?"

Even though he knew that Zhu Xi was praising him in this way, Liu Huai still found it both funny and exasperating.

He smiled, shook his head, turned around, mounted his horse, and then said, "Master Zhu, writing is an eternal affair, but those who write must also have food to eat and clothes to wear. Now, let me accumulate small steps so that Master Zhu can reach a thousand miles."

After saying this, Liu Huai cupped his hands to Zhu Xi, mounted his horse, and rode for less than a hundred paces. Hearing a long howl from the house behind him, he couldn't help but smile.

(End of this chapter)