He fiercely criticized the Manchu scholar clique and the twelve emperors of the Qing Dynasty.

May 17th, 10:00 AM.

Sunlight streamed through the glass of the dormitory at Southeast University, falling on several scattered manuscript papers on the desk.

Zhao Shuyao was holding the mouse, categorizing and filing the document about the shell company in Horgos on the screen, when the pop-up window in the lower right corner suddenly flashed.

Today's headline push: [Head-to-head confrontation? Teacher A responds to the "Three Dynasties" controversy with a latest video].

Zhao Shuyao's finger paused for a second, then he clicked the left mouse button with his index finger, and the page redirected.

The video begins to play. In the video, the iconic short, stout scholar sits in a traditional Chinese armchair, his ever-present folding fan open, which he waves idly, his expression attempting to convey the magnanimity of an elder looking at a mischievous child.

"Zhao Shuyao, you're still too young." The voice in the video came out slowly and deliberately. "It's good that young people have passion, but when it comes to scholarship, you can't change the concept. The 'three no's' I'm talking about are completely different from your understanding of 'three no's' in the same evaluation system."

Zhao Shuyao leaned back in his chair, his hands casually placed.

"If we follow your extremely broad understanding, the Ming Dynasty is indeed not a dynasty without any achievements, achievements, or anything else." Teacher A continued fanning himself, his tone carrying a hint of condescension. "But in the field of history, absolute rigor is paramount. Let's start with Emperor Ming. What are my standards?"

The fat man in the video raises a short, thick finger: "Great talent and strategy, praised throughout the ages, are just the foundation. The most crucial point is that one cannot have obvious historical flaws in character and morality."

"You say Zhu Yuanzhang was a wise ruler, but he was cruel, slaughtered meritorious officials, and used harsh laws. Can he be called a wise ruler? You say Zhu Di, but he did not inherit the throne in accordance with the right of succession; he usurped the throne and even killed the civil officials of Emperor Jianwen. In traditional moral evaluation, this would absolutely be rejected outright."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Shuyao raised his hand, gently rubbed his temples, and an uncontrollable smile appeared on his lips.

The theory of a morally fastidious, enlightened ruler—a sophistry specifically designed to strip away historical achievements—is truly unsurprising.

The video is still playing.

"To clarify, the 'unknown general' I'm referring to is the absence of purely professional military commanders." Teacher A closed his folding fan and tapped his palm. "Those so-called famous generals who commanded the overall situation in later periods were all civil officials. When civil officials lead troops, they only have the right to execute orders, not a purely military overall coordination position."

"As for Xu Da, the founding general you mentioned, while his achievements in internal wars were certainly good, his historical performance in resisting foreign aggression was still lacking. Therefore, from the perspective of a purely professional soldier, the conclusion that the Ming Dynasty had no famous generals is valid."

"Finally, the famous scholars—note, I'm talking about famous scholars, not famous ministers—did not produce the kind of literary masters who are remembered for all time and are known to every household. To force a connection with a minister like Hai Rui who died for his country is simply logical sophistry."

As the video drew to a close, Teacher A placed a folding fan on the rosewood table and gave the camera an extremely accommodating smile.

"Actually, I can completely understand Zhao Shuyao's thoughts. It's understandable that young people want to show their presence through historical issues. As for you personally, I have no problem with you." He paused and gave his final conclusion.

"If given the opportunity, I would very much like to sit down with Zhao Shuyao on a public program and have an in-depth debate face to face. After all, academic discussions become clearer through debate."

The progress bar reached its end, and the image froze.

Zhao Shuyao sat in the chair, staring at the feigned magnanimous face on the screen, without making a move for a full ten seconds.

Then, he burst out laughing.

The laughter was extremely clear in the quiet dormitory, carrying a sense of clarity and absurdity, like watching a clown finish their energetic performance.

These public intellectuals who control the discourse, once they find that common sense and logic cannot suppress their opponents, begin to skillfully manipulate the rules. If they can't beat you, they'll narrow the goal to only allow one golf ball to pass through, and then declare that your shot missed.

Without hesitation, Zhao Shuyao gripped the edge of the table with both hands, leaned forward, pulled the desktop stand in front of him, adjusted the focus of the front-facing camera, and turned on recording mode.

Press the red record button with your index finger.

The three-second countdown has ended.

"Good morning, comrades. I am Zhao Shuyao." He looked at the camera with an extremely friendly smile on his face and a relaxed tone.

"I just finished watching Professor A's latest response video, and to be honest, I was amused." Zhao Shuyao shrugged, frankly showing his emotions. "I originally thought that since we all study history, even if we have different opinions, we could at least debate on a basic level of facts. But I didn't expect that after Professor A realized he couldn't state the facts, he directly started acting as the referee and changing the rules of the game on the spot."

He tilted his body slightly and tapped his index finger lightly twice on the table.

"Let's break down Teacher A's newly released 'customized standards' one by one. First, the standard of a wise ruler." Zhao Shuyao's voice was steady and his pronunciation was extremely clear. "He must be a man of great talent and ambition, and he must not have any obvious flaws in his personality and morality. The Ming Taizu was judged to be cruel because he punished corrupt officials and arrogant generals, and the Ming Chengzu was vetoed because he usurped the throne."

Zhao Shuyao raised one eyebrow.

"Teacher A, according to your extremely strict moral standards, let's take a look at Chinese history." He stretched out his fingers and began to count, "Qin Shi Huang burned books and buried scholars alive, and engaged in massive construction projects. He was definitely not a wise ruler."

"Emperor Wu of Han was warlike and aggressive, and in his later years he caused the witchcraft incident, forcing his own son to commit suicide. He had serious moral problems and should be removed from the list. Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, killed his brothers and forced his father to commit suicide during the Xuanwu Gate Incident. This is also a clear case of 'usurpation' and should be removed from the list as well."

Zhao Shuyao spread his hands, his smile revealing an extreme sense of absurdity.

"By your standards, China's five-thousand-year history would be completely wiped out. So, the only wise ruler in the world who meets your criteria would be a living bodhisattva who eats vegetarian food and chants Buddhist scriptures every day, never fights back or talks back when attacked, and even recites a couple of poems to pray for the invaders when they are attacked?"

Without pausing, Zhao Shuyao immediately moved on to the next logical node.

"Let's look at your second criterion, the standard for no famous generals. They must be purely professional military generals; civil officials in charge don't count." Zhao Shuyao shook his head, his tone filled with undisguised sarcasm. "This kind of talk has really opened my eyes."

He stared at the camera, his voice gradually becoming louder.

"War is war, and defending the country is defending the country. As long as you can drive away the foreign enemy and protect the people from being slaughtered, you are a great general. Now you're telling me that those who command troops must have their family backgrounds investigated? Aren't you going to give them a professional qualification certificate?"

"According to your logic, if civil officials leading troops doesn't count, then I suggest you go to Shu Han and invite Zhuge Liang out of the Temple of Martial Arts. After all, he was also a civil official who carried a feather fan. Wang Yangming's suppression of the Prince of Ning's rebellion is probably just a violation of regulations and an overstepping of boundaries in your eyes."

Zhao Shuyao crossed his hands and placed them under his chin.

"In the end, you're not doing academic research, you're 'drawing a target for an arrow.' As long as something existed in the Ming Dynasty, you immediately add a prerequisite and forcibly exclude it. It's like you insist that there are no dogs in the world. I bring a dog over, and you say no, it has to be a dog with wings that can fly to be considered a dog."

He chuckled lightly: "Is this what cultured people do? This is just sophistry."

Zhao Shuyao sat up straight, abandoning his casual teasing, and his eyes became extremely sharp.

"However, at the end of the video, Teacher A showed the tolerance of a senior, saying that she was very willing to have an in-depth debate with me face to face on the show."

Zhao Shuyao looked at the camera and nodded.

"I accepted." Three words, crisp and decisive.

"I'm currently working hard to revise my graduation thesis, and life is indeed a bit monotonous," Zhao Shuyao said calmly. "Since you're willing to set up a stage to help me pass the time, just set the time and place for the show and send it to me, and I'll definitely be there on time."

Then, he focused his gaze completely, as if penetrating the screen and staring directly at the other person's face.

"But before we meet, I'd like to give Teacher A some homework."

Zhao Shuyao's lips curled up slightly as he unleashed his final and most lethal counterattack.

"Since you've gone to such great lengths to tailor-make this flawless 'three-no standard,' then please take the trouble to apply this standard, which you are most satisfied with, to the Qing Dynasty, which you have previously liked and admired the most on the show."

"Please use the standards of no cruelty, no killing, and no moral flaws to find a wise ruler in the Qing Dynasty."

"Please use the standard of winning foreign wars without the coordination of civil officials and relying entirely on pure professional military generals to find a famous general in the Qing Dynasty."

"Next, please use the standards of a well-known, timeless literary master to find a famous scholar from the Qing Dynasty."

Zhao Shuyao pointed his index finger at the camera.

"I'm really looking forward to the day we meet on the show. I hope you can read aloud the list of Qing Dynasty officials who meet this standard. I'll be waiting for you anytime."

Press the stop button.

Video recording is complete.

Zhao Shuyao exported the video without making any unnecessary edits or modifications, and directly opened the Toutiao backend.

Title: "If the rules are set well, even the darkest things can be turned into treasures—A response to accepting a face-to-face debate with Teacher A."

Click Publish.

Watching the green progress bar rapidly climb on the screen, Zhao Shuyao turned off his phone and casually tossed it onto the table.

I turned my head and glanced at the calendar.

Today is February 3.

Tomorrow is December 18th.

In the morning, he needed to finalize the framework of his graduation thesis. At 3 p.m., at the Starbucks at the main gate of Dongda University, the representatives of entertainment industry capital hidden behind the celebrity studios would make their appearance.

At 5 p.m., I'm going to see "The Revenant" with Gu Nanxi.

Zhao Shuyao picked up the now-cold water glass on the table, tilted his head back, and took a big gulp, which brought a refreshing coolness.

An online cyber battle has been decided, and an offline physical contest is about to begin. Those vested interests who thought they could use rules and money to crush their opponents will soon understand what it truly means to overturn the table.