A son who doesn't resemble his father? Love you, old man, see you at Xuanwu Gate!

Chapter 14 The New Ram

Jiaoxi Kingdom, Gaomi, Prime Minister's Residence.

In the middle of the Prime Minister's residence is a stone-paved passageway leading directly to the main hall. On both sides are two large open courtyards. Apart from a large water vat made in Yuzhang County for fire prevention, which is white with blue flowers, there are no trees or flowers planted in the courtyard, making it appear very spacious.

There were no flowers, no grass, no trees, and no bamboo in the house, which was obviously not in line with the habits of the most learned people of the time, but Dong Zhongshu had no choice but to do so in order to prevent himself from dying for no reason.

Since entering Jiaoxi in the fourth year of Yuanshuo, only three years have passed, and Dong Zhongshu has lost count of how many assassination attempts he has encountered: sword thrusts, knife slashes, axe cuts, spear thrusts, flying knives, silk kills, arrow shots, hammer blows, poisoning, rope strangulation... the list goes on and on.

There was only one assassin: Liu Duan, the King of Jiaoxi.

The son of Emperor Xiaojing and the elder brother of the current emperor, he was granted the title of king as a prince after the Rebellion of the Seven States.

Liu Duan was cruel and ruthless. A young official he once favored had an affair with a palace maid. Liu Duan not only killed the official, but also executed the official's son and mother.

Such absurd and inhumane behavior prompted numerous ministers and officials to repeatedly demand that His Majesty severely punish Liu Duan. However, His Majesty always considered the brotherly bond and could not bear to punish him, instead only reducing the fiefdom of Jiaoxi Kingdom.

Today, the size of Jiaoxi Kingdom is less than 30% of what it once was. As a result, dozens of high-ranking officials with salaries of 2,000 shi (a unit of grain) sent by the imperial court to Jiaoxi Kingdom have also been lost.

Even more critically, the large-scale reduction of his fiefdom fueled Liu Duan's resentment, leading him to passively resist the central government. The kingdom's treasury collapsed on a large scale due to disrepair, and a large amount of property rotted away without his care. He refused to collect rent and even withdrew the palace guards. With nothing to do, he spent his days trying to find ways to kill Dong Zhongshu.

If it weren't for Dong Zhongshu's intelligence and good fortune, the grass on his grave would have grown several feet tall in those three years.

Of course, an open courtyard also has its advantages. When the sun comes out, the whole courtyard is filled with sunlight. At this time, bamboo boards, each ten feet long and five feet wide, are placed on both sides of the passageway. There are more than a dozen such boards, and books and bamboo slips are placed on them.

Dong Zhongshu, dressed in a loose-fitting plain white ramie short jacket and trousers, sat on a chair at the foot of the stone steps in the hall, letting the morning sunlight shine on him and on the books and bamboo slips scattered throughout the courtyard.

According to the theory of Yin and Yang, after the Ghost Festival on the 15th of the seventh lunar month, the Yang energy in the world gradually fades and the Yin energy gradually emerges, and the desolate autumn is about to arrive. Scholars air their books several times a year, and the Ghost Festival in the Three Yuan Festivals is often the last one.

In the past, every year when he aired his books, Dong Zhongshu would not let his servants help him. He would wander among the bamboo boards, turning through each book one by one to air them.

But this year, due to heart failure, Dong Zhongshu truly felt old and could no longer air out his books himself. He sat there watching two scribes air out the books between the bamboo boards.

Two months had passed since the letter from the Prime Minister's office. Dong Zhongshu scoffed at the goodwill shown by Prime Minister Gongsun. The Prime Minister deserved great credit for his ability to come to this place where he was on the verge of death, but he could not ignore the promise in the letter to "return to court after completing his mission".

To find evidence that the Empress was "the rightful consort" and the Crown Prince was "the rightful prince," Dong Zhongshu practically wore out the Gongsun Chunqiu.

Both the Gongyang and Guliang schools of thought had a grand ritual of "feudal lords no longer marrying," and both considered the deposed Empress Chen Ajiao as a "consort," while Empress Wei Zifu and other concubines were "lowly people," and all the princes were "sons of lowly people." However, the Guliang school's "no legitimate heir" system gave the crown prince the orthodox legal principle, which led the empress and the crown prince to believe that the interpretation of the Guliang Commentary was superior.

As the saying goes, perseverance pays off. Dong Zhongshu found another interpretation in the Spring and Autumn Annals. Duke Yin of Lu wanted to abdicate in favor of Duke Huan, which was contrary to the principles of the Spring and Autumn Annals. "The Spring and Autumn Annals values ​​righteousness over favor, and believes in the Way over evil. A filial son praises his father's virtues, not his vices." According to the ancient custom that feudal lords would not remarry, since Duke Hui of Lu already had a "suitable wife" (primary wife) Mengzi, neither Duke Yin's mother Shengzi nor Duke Huan's mother Zhongzi could be a wife. Therefore, neither Duke Yin nor Duke Huan were the rightful heirs. Thus, the succession should be determined according to the order of seniority. Duke Yin was older and Duke Huan was younger. Therefore, Duke Hui of Lu's desire to pass the throne to Duke Huan was not the proper way.

The Gongyang school originally insisted on the principles that "Huan was young and noble, while Yin was old and lowly," "There are no two legitimate sons among the feudal lords, so how can Heng be noble? If so, this principle can be overstepped, and the status can be exceeded," and "The son is noble because of his mother, and the mother is noble because of her son." Now, Dong Zhongshu has put forward a new proposition: "The mother of a concubine cannot be a lady."

Since Duke Hui had overcome his selfish desires and passed the throne to Duke Yin, Duke Yin should not "explore the evil intentions of his former ruler and then pass them on to Duke Huan."

Applying this principle to our dynasty, Empress Chen, once deposed, lost her right to be the rightful wife, while Empress Wei should have been the rightful wife!
Therefore, no matter how much His Majesty favors Consort Wang or other concubines, there is no reason, now or in the future, to change the Crown Prince's "primogeniture" and "crown prince" status.

The saying goes, "If there is a legitimate heir, the eldest son shall inherit; if there is no legitimate heir, the eldest son shall inherit." The Crown Prince is the eldest legitimate heir, and in this world, only the Crown Prince can inherit the throne. Any other prince who dares to harbor any ambition for the throne is illegitimate and lacks legitimacy!

As for whether this proposal overturned the grand ritual of "feudal lords no longer marrying," Dong Zhongshu didn't care at all.

A Confucian school can have hundreds of schools, such as Gongyang, Guliang, Zizhang, Zisi, Yan, Meng, Qidiao, etc., whose thoughts and ideas often conflict with each other. Can't there be a "new Gongyang" school that conflicts with each other?

The Han Dynasty was so vast, surely it could accommodate two different schools of thought, Gongyang School?

Dong Zhongshu stared blankly at the stone path beneath his feet, his eyes filled with the dappled sunlight reflecting off the stone.

The two clerks were clearly used to this, mechanically flipping through the books one by one.

Faintly, everyone seemed to hear the knocking on the gate being knocked on so loudly that it filled the courtyard—the sound of the court returning.

……

Changan.

The clouds remained thick and the sky low, and the rain fell steadily, neither too fast nor too slow, neither too sparse nor too dense, spreading gently, as if the heavens had cast a fine veil over the earth.

This is a late summer rain that resembles spring rain but is even more substantial. It is the perfect seasonal rain that Guanzhong needs every year. The Wei River flows smoothly across the plains, and all sown seeds will be harvested. All that is needed is this good rain so that the whole world can reap the harvest.

Listening to the pattering rain outside the door, Prime Minister Gongsun Hong's tightly furrowed brows gradually relaxed. He had to admit that, as a self-taught scholar, his knowledge was indeed inferior to Dong Zhongshu's, but this time, he no longer felt that intense jealousy.

Even the highest level of learning must be used for his own purposes, and his learning, in turn, is used for the Crown Prince's purposes.

They were all loyal ministers.

"come back."

The Grand Chancellor of the Han Dynasty had the power to appoint and dismiss officials of 600 shi and below. Gongsun Hong said softly, "Jiaoxi Kingdom has repeatedly made mistakes in taxation. The king is no longer a king, and the prime minister is no longer a prime minister. Dong Zhongshu cannot escape his crime. He should be demoted back to the capital and appointed as the Grand Historian!"

(End of this chapter)