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After hearing this, although Song Chengren was a smart man, due to the inertia of his thinking, it took him a moment to understand Zhou Shangjing's hint.
"Zhou Shoufu, you mean... Lu De is also a direct disciple of He Ming? How is this possible? He is a descendant of the Lu family! His great uncle is Lu Sirui, a great scholar from Jiangnan. This person's academic philosophy has always been completely different from that of He Ming. On the contrary, although Lu Sirui has passed away, he debated scriptures with He Ming many times during his lifetime, and each time they were at war with each other..."
At this point, Song Chengren was dumbfounded and shook his head repeatedly: "Under such circumstances, how could Lu De, as a descendant of the Lu family, worship He Ming as his teacher? For the Lu family, this kind of thing is as serious as bullying the teacher and destroying him. Ancestor, this is simply treason! If word spreads, he will not only lose the qualification to inherit the family business, but may also be kicked out of the family and removed from the family tree... What's more, Lu De and Zhao Shancai have always had a cold relationship and are at odds with each other. , how could it be possible that they are brothers in the same discipline..."
No wonder Song Chengren couldn't believe this.
The ancestor of the Lu family is a disciple of Wang Shouren. He has always believed in the "Xin Xue" school, which is an emerging branch of Confucianism. It teaches that "the heart has no external things", "the heart is reason", "the unity of knowledge and action", "everyone is can become a sage”;
The imperial mentality that He Ming is good at is derived from the more ancient "Gongyanggu Liang" school. The main concepts are "great unification", "monarch and ministers, father and son", "discrimination between Hua and Yi", and even "internal affairs". "Confucian outside the law"!
Although these two schools are both branches of Confucianism, their specific ideas are completely opposite and conflict with each other.
In this era, sectarian differences, sectarian differences, and orthodox disputes have become instincts deeply rooted in the bones of all scholars. Deviation from the orthodox and changing sects are things that scholars will never dare to cross.
Therefore, Song Chengren naturally couldn't believe that the Lu family was the leading example of "Xinxue" in the world, and Lu De, as a descendant of the Lu family, actually secretly joined He Ming's sect!
If this kind of thing spreads out, it will definitely cause a shock among the scholars.
Zhou Shangjing smiled indifferently and said: "Why is it impossible? Although the Lu family regards 'Xin Xue' as the norm, it does not mean that Lu De will definitely stick to 'Xin Xue' and inherit the family tradition! Lu De is also a A young man with great ideas. He has watched the debates between the two great scholars, Lu Sirui and He Ming, many times since he was a child. He has also witnessed He Ming's charm and demeanor with his own eyes. It is normal for him to become interested in He Ming's knowledge. matter!"
After a pause, Zhou Shangjing further explained: "After He Ming left the temple center and went to Yingtian Academy to preach and teach, I have been sending people to keep an eye on him secretly, and I also know everything about He Ming's private activities!
While He Ming was preaching and teaching at Yingtian Academy, he had only one direct disciple, Zhao Shancai, but in fact, there was another young man who often visited He Ming secretly and received private lessons from He Ming together with Zhao Shancai. And this young man The young man is Lu De! Therefore, regardless of whether Lu De officially became a disciple or not, he was He Ming's direct disciple, and like Zhao Shancai, he inherited part of He Ming's true heritage!
However, due to the differences in ideas and orthodoxy between the Lu family and He Ming, Lu De naturally did not dare to disclose his relationship with He Ming. It has always been kept secret. Only a few people know the truth, and he and Zhao Shancai The relationship between them is cold, and this is probably intentional! "
Having said this, the smile on Zhou Shangjing's face became more meaningful, and he continued to add: "One more thing, according to the information I collected, Zhao Shancai left several secret letters before he died of illness, one of which The sealed letter was sent to Yingtian Academy, and the recipient is most likely Lu De! Therefore, this Lu De may be one of the back-up men Zhao Shancai left behind!"
Song Chengren's eyes flickered and he murmured: "So that's it! That's it! If that's the case, this Lu De is indeed a variable! But this variable...may be beneficial to us!"
Then, Song Chengren looked up at Zhou Shangjing and inquired: "Zhou Shoufu, I received news not long ago that the seventh prince summoned Lu De earlier today. The two talked for a long time and seemed to have a very happy conversation. When Lu De said goodbye and left, the seventh prince even personally sent Lu De to the front courtyard of Zhanyuan... At first, I thought this news was just a small matter, so I didn't inform you in time.
But looking back now, the contact between Lu De and the Seventh Prince seems to have another agenda! Perhaps Lu De's various actions were just to get revenge on He Ming and Zhao Shancai. Some time ago, he deliberately alienated the Seventh Prince and allowed the Seventh Prince to get into trouble. Now, he is giving help in the snow and once again showing his intention to surrender. It is obviously a trick to play hard to get. , I want to take the opportunity to win the trust of the Seventh Prince, lurk around the Seventh Prince, and spy on the Seventh Prince’s secrets!
Therefore, should we communicate with Lu De privately and cooperate internally and externally to make our follow-up plan more invincible and foolproof? What's more, we know his true relationship with He Ming, which is equivalent to having a handle on him, and we can disqualify him from inheriting the family business at any time, so as long as we threaten him with a little hint, we are not afraid of him refusing to cooperate! "
Song Chengren's suggestion seemed to be in line with the title, but Zhou Shangjing directly rejected the proposal.
"No! You are wrong! Lu De will never cooperate with us! If we contact him secretly and force him to join forces with us, it will only increase the risk of failure of our plan!"
Song Chengren couldn't help but was stunned and asked: "Why do you say that? Doesn't he want to take revenge on He Ming and Zhao Shancai?"
Zhou Shangjing shook his head helplessly and explained patiently: "If Lu De has inherited He Ming's true heritage, then he must not be simply regarded as a vassal of He Ming and Zhao Shancai. He must have his own position and ideas! If he thinks that he You can use the Seventh Prince to realize your own ambitions and gain more benefits, but you can also deliberately approach the Seventh Prince to draw chestnuts out of the fire. This possibility is not low, and you have to guard against it!
Even if Lu De took the opportunity to lurk around the Seventh Prince out of revenge, he still has completely different goals from ours. We just want to prevent the Seventh Prince from becoming the crown prince. But for Lu De, Just to make the seventh prince lose the chance to inherit the throne, this punishment is obviously too light and not enough to avenge him!
If I and Lu De were to change places, I would definitely try my best to help the Seventh Prince tide over the difficulties at this time, and take the opportunity to win more of the Seventh Prince's trust, and then gradually gain access to more of the Seventh Prince's secrets, and finally choose a critical moment. The seventh prince was suddenly stabbed in the back, causing him to fall from his peak, ruin his reputation, and be completely in dire straits, even to the point of dying in peace!
Therefore, if we have rash contact with Lu De, we should naturally regard Lu De as a helper. Lu De might instead use us and betray us to gain more trust from the Seventh Prince! At the same time, with the deaths of He Ming and Zhao Shancai, the true relationship between Lu De and He Ming has long been unconfirmed, and we cannot use this incident to threaten him to cooperate with us! "
After hearing Zhou Shangjing's explanation, Song Chengren couldn't help but look disappointed, shook his head and frowned: "Well, one Jiang Zheng and one Lu De, if these two variables really affect Zhou Shoufu's follow-up plan, the seventh prince can escape by luck. If we fall into the trap you have laid, what should we do? If the Seventh Prince can successfully solve the current predicament and successfully take over the position of Crown Prince after returning to the capital, then wouldn’t our current actions completely offend the future ones? emperor?"
Seeing Song Chengren's worry, Zhou Shangjing smiled slightly and said with relief: "Don't worry, I have completed the layout, and I will not let the Seventh Prince get benefits next! If we still want all parties to play in the game of Ming Dynasty, If you go on, you can't let a person who is ready to overturn the table at any time sit on the chess table and become a chess player! This is my bottom line!
As for the two variables Jiang Zheng and Lu De, even if they play a role, at most they will only slightly reduce the effect of my plan; even if the seventh prince is lucky enough to escape from my trap, he will definitely be covered in fishy smell. , can no longer sit firmly in the reserve position!
What's more, there is also Zhao Junchen! The reason why I suspected the Seventh Prince in the first place was because of Zhao Junchen's reminder. Therefore, after Zhao Junchen found out that the Seventh Prince could not secure his position as Crown Prince, he would definitely add insult to injury and try his best to bring him down completely... In this regard, I am still very good at it. Trust Zhao Junchen! "
Having said this, Zhou Shangjing's old face flashed with a hint of sadness, and he continued: "Actually, my fear of Zhao Junchen is no weaker than that of the Seventh Prince, but recently I have only been taking action to deepen Zhao Junchen's hidden dangers and make Zhao Junchen even more afraid. It's easy to show flaws, but I haven't killed him all the time, just in case!
My physical condition is getting worse and worse, and I don’t know how long I can survive, so I need to keep Zhao Junchen as a back-up. If I haven’t completely defeated the Seventh Prince, my destiny will be over and I will pass away. At least I can still hope. The two hidden dangers, Zhao Junchen and the Seventh Prince, are constraining each other and hurting both sides! "
Hearing Zhou Shangjing suddenly mention his own death, Song Chengren's attention was diverted. He couldn't help but feel sad, and subconsciously raised his head to carefully observe Zhou Shangjing's complexion.
After a little observation, Song Chengren couldn't help but feel surprised again.
He suddenly realized that he had just been focusing on discussing the Seventh Prince with Zhou Shangjing, but he had ignored Zhou Shangjing's physical condition and never allowed Zhou Shangjing to rest in time.
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At this moment, Zhou Shangjing was full of fatigue, and pain flashed across his expression from time to time. His wrinkled forehead and gray temples were once again covered in sweat. It seemed that his stomach ailment had attacked again, but he still He endured his physical discomfort and insisted on talking to Song Chengren.
After seeing this situation, Song Chengren stood up quickly and said with concern: "Zhou Shoufu should take a quick rest, and can't continue to waste his mind... Do you want me to summon Doctor Zhang to diagnose you again?"
Seeing that Song Chengren was about to turn around and leave, Zhou Shangjing immediately shook his head and said: "There is no need to summon Doctor Zhang. I have stomach problems seven or eight times every day. Although the pain is unbearable, I have already become accustomed to it. Even if Doctor Zhang is asked If you come to see me for treatment, you won’t diagnose any new conditions. Instead, you will be scolded by him! Don’t leave either, stay with me and chat for a while longer! I’m not tired, not at all, I just don’t want to lie alone. Wasting time in bed..."
Hearing Zhou Shangjing's statement, he was completely unwilling to let himself leave, and a hint of sadness flashed across Song Chengren's expression again.
Song Chengren knew very well that Zhou Shangjing just wanted to talk to him for a while when he analyzed the situation eloquently to him.
Ever since Zhou Shangjing discovered that his stomach disease had worsened again, but he had been unable to find the cause and treatment, he knew very well that he must be dead soon, but he didn't know how long he could last.
Therefore, perhaps because he wants to seize something as much as possible, or perhaps because he wants to leave something behind as much as possible, Zhou Shangjing always likes to chat with his old friend Song Chengren recently, or to review the past friendship between the two, or to deduce the temple. The future changes of the situation, or just the gossip between the parents... In short, I just don't want to lie in bed and rest alone.
There was not much time left, and Zhou Shangjing was unwilling to waste it, let alone spend it just lying on the hospital bed.
After guessing Zhou Shangjing's intention, Song Chengren hesitated for a moment, and finally returned to his seat to sit down and continue chatting with Zhou Shangjing.
Zhou Shangjing also took a serious look at Song Chengren and found that Song Chengren had a rosy face, a plump figure, and not many wrinkles on his face. He had obviously taken good care of himself in recent years. Although his actual age was only four or five years younger than him, he looked like He is twenty years younger.
Zhou Shangjing couldn't help but look envious, shook his head and said: "I am arrogant and arrogant, and I have always been too deep-rooted and scheming, so those who are qualified to be friends with me keep a distance from me and are unwilling to be with me." Deep friendship! I have been running the temple for decades, experienced countless political turmoils, and met all kinds of people, but the only people who can truly be called close friends are you and Li He!
Hey! If Li He were here, I would even be willing to shamelessly talk to him about his proud skills of staying alive! After all...there are only a few opportunities left to have a heart-to-heart talk with you! Alas, Li He was born in good health and full of energy, but you are enjoying your old age and taking good care of yourself...I really envy you, I really envy you..."
Speaking of the latter, Zhou Shangjing slowly closed his eyes, and a trace of moisture appeared in the corners of his eyes.
No matter how wise and open-minded a person is, he will definitely be afraid of death.
Even Zhou Shangjing is no exception.
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