The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 6: After a thousand schemes, he finally takes the stage.

Another day has passed, and the sky is clear and bright.

In front of the main hall of the Li family's villa.

Li Qi found Zijuan, who had just buried Li San Guniang. She was an orphan, and Li Qi took her in.

In this villa today, besides the Li family of four, there are six maids serving Princess Lin'an.

"What Heaven ordains is called human nature; to follow one's nature is called the Way; to cultivate the Way is called education. The Way is something that cannot be separated from for even a moment; what can be separated from is not the Way. Therefore, the superior man is cautious about what he does not see and fearful of what he does not hear."

Fang'er, can you explain the meaning of this passage?

In the Li family's villa, Li Qi was teaching his two adopted sons to read. With his current knowledge, teaching two young children was more than enough for him.

Li Fang said in a serious tone, "What Heaven bestows upon man is his nature. To follow one's nature is the Way. To cultivate oneself by following the Way is the teaching. The Way cannot be separated from for even a moment, but what is separated from it is no longer the Way. Therefore, one should be fearful and reverent even in places where no one can hear us."

After reciting this explanation, Li Fang said, "This is the principle of 'a gentleman being cautious when alone,' as the sage said."

Li Qi said with satisfaction: "A gentleman should be careful even when no one is watching. A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall. This means that a gentleman should be careful in any place. If he is not careful, a gentleman will become a petty person, and a petty person is destined to perish."

This is the family tradition that the Li family learned from bloodshed and turmoil; you must remember it.

The most important factors for a family to prosper are its family traditions and the vision of its head!

It is true that one can climb up the crooked path quickly, but one can also fall just as quickly. Those who prosper by relying on power will eventually perish when those in power disappear.

Li Qi, the future head of the Li family, is not worried. He is only worried that Li Fang and Li Mao will be careless and implicate the main branch, which would ruin everything.

"Consort."

Princess Lin'an entered the study. Upon seeing her, Li Qi told Li Fang and Li Mao to leave first. The two brothers bowed to their mother and then left.

The princess said happily, "My lord, the Emperor has been disseminating your writings from the past year in batches throughout the capital. In just three days, the scholars in the capital have been greatly impressed."

Moreover, the Emperor has already permitted the descendants of the Li family to participate in the imperial examinations!

Her eyes sparkled, and her cheeks flushed with excitement.

In her view, it was naturally a joyous occasion that her father had placed Lady Li in the public eye.

Li Qi smiled and nodded. Although he never left his house, he already knew about these things.

because……

[The Emperor has shown clear goodwill; Clan Chief Li Qi's reputation has increased by 101, currently standing at 1.]

The article circulated in the capital and gained approval from a minority. Clan leader Li Qi's reputation rose slightly, and it was weighted after reaching 1 point.

[The Li family's sins have been mitigated; their descendants are allowed to participate in the imperial examinations. Family reputation +30, current family reputation -70.]

The system had given him the answer, and it was exactly as he had guessed.

Zhu Yuanzhang's decision to disseminate Li Qi's writings and allow Li Qi's descendants to participate in the imperial examinations was a clear positive gesture, demonstrating that this son-in-law was still highly regarded by the emperor.

Although he was mostly criticized by scholars, many believed that not a single word of Zhu Xi's classics could be changed, and that Li Qi was simply arrogant for daring to question Zhu Xi.

But most people no longer considered him an untouchable sinner, so Li Qi's reputation instantly soared to a positive level.

This is the emperor's authority!

This is why Li Qi had been plotting to get the emperor to forgive him and value him.

The reason why the overall prestige of the Li family has grown only so much is because it is clear from the article that Li Qi has severed ties with the Korean government, and his escape was a betrayal of the Korean government.

Although Li Qi did not admit that his father Li Shanchang had rebelled in his article, he clearly stated that the Li family's fate was that they "did not treat the emperor sincerely" and thus "suffered great calamity".

This attitude of "Your Majesty is wise, and your subjects are fully responsible" successfully moved Zhu Yuanzhang, but it was still a burden on the reputation of the entire Li family. Li Shanchang was still a guilty person.

The Li family could only allow their descendants to participate in the imperial examinations; their chances of turning their fortunes around were still far off.

Li Qi did want to exonerate the Li family, but he couldn't achieve his goal overnight and wouldn't attempt a futile effort.

It's already the limit that we can get Li back to the capital and onto the political stage again.

Moreover, he didn't actually admit that Li Shanchang was plotting a rebellion, which foreshadowed his actions, showed his cunning, and left an opening.

After Zhu Yuanzhang's death, he could easily reverse his words and be exonerated one day. After all, it's common for later emperors to contradict their ancestors.

Of course, these are all for later.

In short, most people could not have guessed that Li Qi was planning so far ahead, even thinking about things decades or centuries later.

They could only see that the emperor was not going to exonerate the Han family, but rather to crack down on Hu Weiyong's faction even more severely.

Of the entire Li clan, only Li Qi was capable of shouldering the responsibility, but he couldn't participate in the imperial examinations, so the Li clan remained a family without political prospects. However, Li Qi didn't think so.

First, we must clarify a basic political rule: official position ≠ power. Power = resources that can be directly mobilized (official position) + resources that can be mobilized (prestige).

He's crippled by his lack of official position, making it impossible for him to reach the pinnacle of power, but that doesn't mean he's completely useless. If he can cultivate numerous talents, he'll still be quite influential.

"Now that Father has spread my writings throughout the capital, he must be preparing to see us. I have prepared for the questions and answers before His Majesty countless times, all for this day."

As Li Qi had expected, an imperial edict was quickly issued from the palace, summoning the two men to the palace for an audience with the emperor.

As the carriage, clearly bearing royal insignia, passed through Taiping Street, a cacophony of voices reached Li Qi and Lin'an, including many scholars arguing amongst themselves.

"Li Qi despises the classics of sages and does not listen to the teachings of great Confucian scholars. Do you expect him to listen to a descendant of a disgraced official who only started his career halfway through his studies and has no official title?"

"Yes, how long has he been in school? How dare he question the words of a sage? It's ridiculous."

"You northerners, what do you know about Zhu Xi's philosophy? How dare you speak so arrogantly in front of us?"

Neo-Confucianism flourished at the end of the Southern Song Dynasty. At that time, the north had long been the territory of the Jin Dynasty. The north and south had been divided for hundreds of years. Southern scholarship was thriving, while the north was exhausted and education was far inferior to that of the south. This statement really hit the nail on the head for many northern scholars.

Then a student with a distinct northern accent retorted: "Since Zhu Xi's death, a century of tyranny has passed. How can you, a student from the south, fully understand Zhu Xi's meaning?"

I think Li Qi's rebuttal is very reasonable. He's not misinterpreting Zhu Xi's meaning; rather, he's distinguishing truth from falsehood!

"That's right! The annotations on Li Jinghe's articles all have the date recorded. In June of the twenty-third year of Hongwu, he was still a novice."

But in just one year, the grandeur of his articles and the incisiveness of his commentary have left me far behind, unable to even catch up with him.

His insightful commentary, born of such genius, perfectly reflects Zhu Xi's original intent.

Confucianism highly reveres sages, even believing that sages are born with knowledge.

As the ancients said: "Adversity makes you stronger."

Li Jinghe experienced a great upheaval and suddenly attained enlightenment. I believe he is the one in this world who can inherit the sacred path. How dare you all interfere!

But these voices were quickly drowned out by a chorus of criticism and doubt.

Inside the carriage, Princess Lin'an held Li Qi's hand and comforted him with some concern, "Husband, don't worry. As long as Father Emperor is happy, that's all that matters. Besides, you also have the support of scholars."

Li Qi listened to these arguments, a slight smile playing on his lips.

He didn't care about the opinions of his contemporaries. Being a knife in the emperor's hand meant he didn't know how many storms he would face in the future.

The struggle for the orthodox tradition not only determined who was superior but also decided life and death!

If he cannot stand at the top in his own life, then he will pave a bright future for his descendants!
It seems that the situation is better than expected, and signs of a North-South conflict have already emerged.

In Li Qi's eyes, this was the material for forging another divine sword.

As the carriage drove further and further away, the sounds behind it gradually faded away.

Before long, the carriage stopped. Standing before the magnificent palace, Princess Lin'an felt as if she had been transported to another world.

She once thought she would never be able to return here in her lifetime.

"what?"

Princess Lin'an was sighing with emotion when Li Qi saw someone he hadn't expected enter the palace.

"Yang Jing, Minister of Justice?"

Seemingly sensing Li Qi's gaze, Yang Jing glanced back before stepping into the palace gate. Their eyes met briefly, a sharp glint in their eyes, and then they bowed in unison.

Yang Jing turned around and his face instantly darkened.

A fierce glint suddenly appeared in Li Qi's eyes.

"Yang Jing must be here to report on Wang Wu's matter when he enters the palace. On the surface, this matter involves just a few ordinary people, but it has implicated local officials, the Ministry of War, the Five Military Commissions, and the garrisons. It's a matter that affects everything. Yang Jing must be in a state of great distress and needs to understand the whole situation before making a decision."

Li Qi felt that heaven was helping him. It just so happened that on the day he went to the palace to meet the emperor, Yang Jing came to report on this matter. Wasn't Yang Jing just walking into a knife's edge?
"Please, Princess and Prince Consort, come with me to the palace."

There was still some distance between the palace gate and the Fengtian Hall, and Yang Jing had already disappeared. It wasn't until Li Qi and Princess Lin'an were taken to the side hall that they heard Yang Jing's voice again. He was answering Zhu Yuanzhang's questions.

After listening to a few words, Li Qi smiled.

Sure enough!

That's true!

Yang Jing, you've brought this upon yourself, so don't blame me!
(End of this chapter)