Simulates history, but Chongzhen is the Divine Emperor at the beginning

Chapter 244: The Battle with Literary Masters!
Historically, few high-ranking individuals have personally engaged in debates with their critics, because there's little benefit in winning or losing.

[Winning the debate won't bring any real benefits; it will only damage your public image and composure, making you appear as an impatient and easily angered person, leading to public ridicule: "He's getting impatient! He's getting impatient! He's getting impatient!"]

[And if you lose the argument, that's even worse! You'll be completely disgraced on the spot...]

The most famous example of this is probably the debate between Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty and the early eccentric "Zeng Jing" regarding the distinction between Chinese and barbarians!

Zeng Jing first criticized Yongzheng's ascension to the throne as illegitimate, saying that Yongzheng's accession caused "mountains to collapse and rivers to dry up"... Yongzheng confronted him directly, asking him exactly which mountains collapsed and which rivers dried up.

[Then Zeng Jing further criticized the Manchu Qing dynasty for not being the legitimate successor of the Han dynasty and urged Yue Zhongqi, a descendant of Yue Fei, to "overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming dynasty"... Meanwhile, Yongzheng raised the righteous banner of "barbarians entering China should be Chinese," and used the fact that the Zhou dynasty originated from the Western Rong to argue for the legitimacy of the Qing dynasty's "barbarian rule over Chinese"...]

In short, it was all about stubbornness and confrontation. Emperor Yongzheng, who was so angry that his face turned red, even wrote a book called "The Great Righteousness Awakens from Delusion" to refute Zeng Jing's statements point by point. He even strictly required all officials to have a copy, and that they not only read it themselves but also explain it to the people.

What are the results of this kind of debate?

The answer is that it was basically fruitless, because firstly, Yongzheng did not completely win the debate, and secondly, the general public's level of knowledge was insufficient; they couldn't understand what the emperor was arguing about at all, and simply regarded "The Record of Awakening from Delusion" as royal gossip to satisfy their innate gossip mentality...

Therefore, those in high positions are usually very averse to debating with others. They either resort to direct violence to silence them, feign indifference, or have a trusted confidant pretend to be a "pure deer" (a person of high moral character) and then have the "pure deer" debate on their behalf. In this way, regardless of winning or losing, it won't affect the reputation of the person in high position; at worst, they can simply distance themselves from the situation.

Therefore, you didn't actually expect "God Zhao Gou" to personally engage in debate with you. After all, he wasn't the impulsive and hot-tempered Emperor Yongzheng. Zhao Gou, known in history for his "prudence," was unlikely to personally debate with anyone.

But now, reality has caught you completely off guard...

That scoundrel actually participated!

[With a mixture of surprise and delight, you pick up that incredible article again: Although He deliberately didn't sign it to disguise Himself as a "pure deer person," the purity of His words has already implicitly proven His identity... This is a true advocate of war!]

Of course, the above is not enough to fully prove His identity. What truly convinces you of the author's identity is that classic phrase, "fabricated charges"...

As someone who grew up listening to the original story of Yue Fei, you're extremely familiar with the phrase "fabricated charges": this was the famous statement used by Qin Hui and Zhao Gou when they convicted Yue Fei. Since Qin Hui is long dead in the current historical timeline, the only person who could have uttered those three words was clearly Zhao Gou.

In conclusion, you are 98% certain that this person is indeed the "Divine Zhao Gou"!

【…】

[Upon receiving the defiant pro-war article personally penned by "God Zhao Gou," you are naturally overjoyed. Since He specifically published this article in Xiangyang, it proves that your previous efforts to promote the cause were not in vain... This most powerful and mysterious ancient god among mortals in the Southern Song Dynasty has already cast his gaze upon you!]

From this moment on, you have stepped onto the highest political stage of the Southern Song Dynasty...

[However, amidst the surprise, you can't help but feel puzzled: Why would Zhao Gou personally engage in debate with you on the classics? He's not that kind of person, is he?]

After much thought, you gradually came to a guess: "Perhaps I made too much of a scene, which was like slapping Him in the face, causing Him to break down... But because I'm using the name of Yue Fei's disciple, He can't just directly and violently shut me up..."

"So in the end, we had no choice but to find a pure deer-man to act as a substitute..."

The problem is that Zhao Gou could hardly find a suitable "pure shill" in the court, because strictly speaking, he was the only one advocating war, while almost everyone else was a proponent of peace like Yue Fei... Forcing some sycophants to write about him wouldn't work because they weren't pure enough to produce the kind of highly pro-war writing he wanted.

[After much back and forth, "God Zhao Gou" had no choice but to step in himself... But to avoid trouble, he couldn't appear in his real name, so this unsigned article by "Pure Deer Man" came about...]

[Thinking this through, your thoughts suddenly become clear!] [Why did I go to such lengths to create abstract concepts? Wasn't it to get into the inner circle of power?]

What exactly constitutes entering the inner circle of power? Is it becoming a high-ranking official and ruling the country? Or is it becoming a world-renowned "gold medal lecturer" and reaping countless flowers and applause?

No! No! No!

In this extraordinary world, the core of power has always been "God Zhao Gou" himself. Therefore, entering the inner circle of power is equivalent to gaining the attention of "God Zhao Gou" and thus being able to have relatively equal exchanges with him!

And now, this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is right in front of you...

[Excited to the point of almost jumping for joy, you immediately wrote a sharp and critical article under the guidance of the Prime Minister, deliberately using incisive language... In short, from logic and morality to human nature and ethics, you launched a literary attack on the "God Zhao Gou" disguised as a pure deer, utterly destroying his outrageous article and, incidentally, insulting his humanity!]

[Using pen and ink as weapons, and literature as the battlefield! You wield the pen like a gun barrel, your sharp words piercing towards "God Zhao Gou" like spear tips!]

A flowing, elegant article, a set of sharp, unrestrained marksmanship—it all turned him into a leaky showerhead...

【…】

[So, just one day after the "Pure Deer Man" article was published, a critical article, brimming with your passion and provocation, was published in Xiangyang!]

The printing shops in Xiangyang were already used to this: to satisfy the needs of these "literary giants" engaging in their online battles, and to make a fortune from this traffic, the shops had even spontaneously formed cooperative alliances with booksellers from various places, thus evolving into new "newspaper-like" organizations, just waiting for you to deliver your articles every day...

[There's no need to chase them for these drafts; you incredibly prolific "literary giants" with your own built-in audiences submit drafts almost every three to five days.]

[Shop owners and booksellers: We're making a killing, guys!]

While marveling at how amazing these internet celebrities are, they're also working overtime to print and sell articles, doing everything they can to get your articles published as quickly as possible so your followers can send you money sooner...

【…】

"How dare this brat deceive me!"

[The ever-watchful Emperor Zhao read your sharp article over and over, his eyes blazing with fury, wishing he could deliver divine justice right then and there!]

But... He gritted his teeth and ultimately did nothing to you. Instead, amidst the trembling kowtows and apologies of the eunuchs, he composed himself, then knelt before his desk, and, gritting his teeth, began to write a rebuttal to you...

[Perhaps your article was too aggressive, with too high a penetration level, causing it to suffer critical hits and true damage, making it somewhat unstable in its mindset... In short, no matter how hard it tries, it can't write anything that expresses its anger...]

At this moment, He, who had always been isolated by the pro-peace ministers in court, felt increasingly lonely and sorrowful: "This kind of debate, I have to personally take the stage! There isn't a single person in the entire court who is suitable!"

Perhaps I should also promote some promising new officials from among the common people who support me, to challenge these pro-peace voices?

Thinking this, He suddenly remembered something, and his eyes flashed, as if he had made up his mind...

……

(End of this chapter)