The Great Ming Demon Pill: Your Majesty, please address me as the Crown Prince!

The ship remained silent for a long time.

The group looked at each other in bewilderment, remaining silent.

Zhu Di was dumbfounded.

What is that bastard saying?

You dare to say it, but I don't dare to listen.

But you know what, he actually put it in a pretty classy way.

Zhang Mao, Zhu Yi, Li Heng, Zheng Yu, and the others looked at each other in bewilderment.

Is there such a thing as enlightenment?

How come they didn't know?

Zhu Gaosui swallowed.

What nonsense is this kid spouting?

Yang Shiqi was almost laughing in anger.

He had spent decades in officialdom and was a staunch fighter against feudalism.

He always boasted that he would remain calm even if Mount Tai collapsed before him.

Now I'm starting to lose my composure.

Enlightenment in a brothel?

He shook his head.

"Your Highness, please watch your words!"

"Enlightenment is a profound matter of self-cultivation, understanding one's true nature, and realizing one's own mind; how can it be confused with such matters of pleasure and debauchery?"

"If Your Highness truly desires the Way, you should seek it in the books of sages and contemplate it in a quiet room. How can you presume to discuss enlightenment on this fragrant boat amidst the intoxicating sounds of music?"

"Your Highness's actions are disrespectful to the sages and disregard the Dao!"

"May this old minister ask Your Highness, what enlightenment have you gained here tonight?"

"Your Highness, though young, must not speak carelessly, mocking the Emperor and the officials present, nor should you tarnish the original purpose of this lantern festival, which the court set up to provide relief to disaster victims and share joy with the people!"

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, also finding Yang Shiqi's words sharp and relentlessly pressing.

However, Yang Shiqi is the Crown Prince's most trusted confidant, and it is normal for him to be hostile towards the increasingly favored Zhu Zhanjun and seize the opportunity to strike him down.

Zhu Di remained calm, but did not speak to stop him. Instead, he turned his gaze to Zhu Zhanjun, wanting to see what other tricks this kid could come up with.

He didn't think his grandson was making baseless accusations.

"Scholar Yang, you are mistaken," Zhu Zhanjun said, shaking his head. "Where the Way exists, there the teacher exists."

"One could say that the Way is in excrement, in rubble, in... the painted boats of the Qinhuai River, so what's wrong with that?"

"Foot massage is also a way of life!"

[Ding! You have obtained a golden treasure chest!]

Zhang Fu and the other meritorious officials almost burst out laughing.

That Prince Jiyang is too ruthless.

Foot massage has even started.

Zhu Di also couldn't hold back, his expression turning strange.

Zhu Gaosui stared in disbelief, as if he were looking at a monster.

My nephew is truly eloquent.

Zhu Yi, Zhang Mao, Li Heng, Zheng Yu, and the others looked shocked; they were practically kneeling before their class monitor.

This is a cabinet scholar, yet the class monitor held his own in the debate.

That's awesome.

Yang Shiqi's face darkened.

Today, he deliberately pointed out that Zhu Gaosui and Zhu Zhanjun were in a brothel. On the one hand, he intended to sabotage the marriage between Zhu Gaosui and Mu Sheng's daughter, since Zhu Gaosui and Zhu Gaoxu were often inseparable. On the other hand, he wanted to undermine Zhu Zhanjun's increasingly high status in Zhu Di's heart.

He was a trusted minister of the Crown Prince's Palace and also the teacher of the eldest grandson of the Emperor, Zhu Zhanji.

He did not want the Ming Dynasty to see another instance of succession by someone other than the eldest son.

I never expected Zhu Zhanjun to be such a smooth talker and cunning fellow.

In particular, the phrase "foot care is also a way" truly enraged this traditional Confucian scholar who revered sages as gods.

It’s ridiculous.

Yang Shiqi took a deep breath and said coldly.

"Your Highness, I beg you to preach to us, so that I may see what lessons can be learned from a brothel?"

Zhu Zhanjun smiled faintly.

"The way of the sage is inherently sufficient within our own nature; those who seek reason in external things are mistaken."

"The principles of Heaven are not found in the heavens and earth or in things outside of books; the principles of all things reside entirely within one's own heart..."

"This means that there is nothing outside the mind, and no principle outside the mind."

"Mind is principle."

Upon hearing this, Yang Shiqi responded with a sarcastic remark without hesitation.

"Your Highness is mistaken!"

"If we follow Your Highness's doctrine that 'the mind is principle,' wouldn't that mean everyone has the inherent principle within their own heart, without the need for studying classics or investigating things to acquire knowledge?"

"Then wouldn't the classics of sages, the laws of the court, and the moral principles of human relations all become meaningless?"

Zhu Zhanjun smiled faintly, displaying the demeanor of a highly accomplished sage.

"Scholar Yang has misunderstood."

"The mind is the principle, but this does not mean that people should close their eyes and ears or be ignorant and incompetent."

"On the contrary, this mind is the clear and bright mind that can know, perceive, and distinguish right from wrong and good from evil."

"The classics of sages, the laws of the court, and the ethical norms of human relations are precisely the manifestation and norms of this mind in concrete matters of 'extending innate knowledge'."

"Reading is to awaken and polish this heart."

"Investigating things means putting the principles of Heaven into practice in all things."

"If one's heart is blinded by selfish desires, even if one reads all the classics, it will only be a matter of memorization, and one may even become a hypocrite or a false moralist."

"Take the Qinhuai River tonight, for example. The lantern festival was set up by the imperial court to provide relief to disaster victims and to share joy with the people. This is in accordance with the principles of Heaven."

"If my third uncle and I are here with the intention of helping the people, and we buy more lanterns to help the disaster victims, then we are 'acting in accordance with our conscience' and acting in accordance with reason."

"Scholar Yang only saw that the pleasure boat was a place of pleasure and concluded that there was no 'reason' or 'morality' there. Isn't this because his 'mind' was prejudiced from the start, and he was blinded by the word 'brothel,' failing to discuss the matter objectively and distinguish right from wrong?"

"If one's mind can be broad and impartial, responding to things without being bound by them, then where can one not understand the people's sentiments?"

"Where can't one perceive the principles of Heaven?"

"The Great Learning speaks of 'sincere intentions and a righteous mind,' doesn't this precisely require that the mind be constantly kept upright, clear, and aware?"

A moment of silence fell over the ship.

Zhang Fu, Hu Guang, and other meritorious ministers were dumbfounded and felt their scalps tingle.

Holy crap, he actually attained enlightenment?!

That sounds pretty convincing!

Zhu Gaosui was completely dumbfounded.

That nephew of mine is ruthless.

Going to a brothel to listen to music and also to gain enlightenment?

Zhu Yi, Li Heng, and others looked on with admiration; if the occasion hadn't been inappropriate, they would have knelt down.

That's amazing, my class monitor!

Yang Shiqi's expression changed. He was well-read and naturally understood that Zhu Zhanjun's words were not just nonsense, but rather contained a distinct style and profound meaning.

What alarmed him even more was that Zhu Zhanjun, at such a young age, possessed such depth of thought and could articulate it fluently in public. His quick wit and extraordinary insight far surpassed those of his peers, and even many court officials were no match for him.

Zhu Di's eyelids twitched violently, and his mind was shaken.

That grandson of mine is so awesome.

Is this how one becomes a saint?

My Zhu family bloodline has this talent.

Yang Shiqi's expression changed repeatedly.

He took a step forward.

"Your Highness is eloquent and persuasive; this old minister admires you."

"However, according to Your Highness's saying that 'nothing exists outside the mind,' this old minister would like to ask for your guidance."

"If Your Highness were not standing on this Yixiang Boat at this moment, and had not seen the singers and dancers on this boat, would they not exist?"

"These painted boats on the Qinhuai River, these living people in the Yixiang Pavilion—have they all vanished simply because Your Highness's heart has failed to see them? This is utterly absurd!"

Upon hearing this, everyone on the ship held their breath.

Yang Shiqi's question was extremely sharp, pointing directly to the fatal flaw of "nothing exists outside the mind".

Zhu Di frowned slightly, and Zhang Fu and the others also showed signs of deep thought.

Zhu Yi, Zhang Mao, and the others secretly broke out in a cold sweat, watching Zhu Zhanjun nervously.

Zhu Zhanjun, however, remained calm.

"Scholar Yang has misunderstood."

"The absence of anything outside the mind does not mean that all things do not exist, but rather that the 'meaning' and 'manifestation' of all things are inseparable from the observation of the human mind."

"For example, these girls, standing here right now, naturally possess physical bodies."

"But for you, when Scholar Yang never even glanced at them, did their charming smiles leave even a trace in your heart?"

"Do you perceive their beauty and vitality as utterly subdued?"

If they are not in your heart, what difference is there between them and the willow catkins drifting on the river in the wind?

"From this we can understand that the manifestation, meaning, and even the judgment of good and evil, beauty and ugliness of all things depend on the perception and endowment of our own mind."

"If the heart is clouded by dust, then everything will appear stained with dust."

"If the mind is clear, one can reason about things based on facts, without being bound by appearances."

"Tonight, we are here with our hearts set on the disaster victims, releasing lanterns to aid relief efforts. This is to act in accordance with heavenly principles with clear minds."

"If Scholar Yang clings to the idea that 'going to a brothel is the same as soliciting prostitution,' isn't he letting his mind be clouded by material desires?"

"What we see and get is naturally all prejudice."

"As it is said, it is a body without good or evil intentions."

"Movements that can be either benevolent or malevolent."

"Knowing good and evil is conscience."

"To do good and eliminate evil is the investigation of things."

"Foolish child, wake up right now!"