Chapter 30 Vernacular Proposal
Kong Xilu was overjoyed.
Hold another imperial examination. Although it was the last time, it was enough for him to have a group of new people enter the court. At the same time, he established four academies and asked them to preside over them.
Doesn't this open the door to convenience for them?
It can be said that they want it. He Xikai's conditions were all obtained.
Kong Xilu said: "Thank you, sir."
He Xi said: "You're welcome in advance. I also have something for you to do. If you are willing, you can say anything. If you are not willing, just pretend you haven't heard this."
Kong Xilu was stunned and thought to himself, "Is this right?"
In his mind, He Xi was never easy to talk to. Now that he suddenly becomes so talkative, there must be something wrong with it. Hearing He Xi say that he had a request, he felt relieved.
Kong Xilu said: "Sir, please speak."
He Xi said: "You go back and report to the court. On the grounds of simplicity, please ask the court to use vernacular Chinese in future documents and confirm that simplified Chinese characters should be replaced by traditional Chinese characters."
This is also the thing that He Xi values most.
He Xi's evaluation of what she has done over the years is too pragmatic.
Being pragmatic is not bad.
Virtual reality affects each other.
He Xi created many things and established a completely new government system. However, in the eyes of many people, these systems are just a measure for rights and interests and an emergency measure in times of war. Not a long-term solution.
Many people throughout the court wanted to go back to the Hongwu period. It seemed that the Hongwu period was the most perfect. It can be seen that Zhu Yuanzhang killed too few people back then.
In fact, He Xi can also understand.
However, it is a trick of using the dead to suppress the living.
He Xi didn't care about this method. I don’t think I can get on the stage either. But the problem is, what people want is a big problem. It is difficult to change what others think.
Before, He Xi just immersed himself in work and straightened out one thing after another. Got it figured out. It's done. In terms of retreat, it is more a matter of legal and political logic.
For example, the Ming Emperor's legal principles were changed from destiny to public opinion. Let the emperor's identity change from the son of heaven, acting as a herdsman on behalf of heaven, to the lord of the people, being trusted by the people of the world and presiding over the world's affairs.
But ordinary people don’t actually care too much about these things.
Most people don’t care about the basic logic of American political correctness.
Therefore, He Xi actually gave up the aesthetic power to the old Confucian scholars.
What is beautiful, what is not beautiful, what is good, what is bad, seem to be very simple questions, but they represent fundamental issues. If everyone in the world feels that the policies implemented by He Xi are temporary, hasty, last resort, and expedient, then it is inevitable that He Xi's policies will be overturned in the future.
Therefore, He Xi must reverse this situation through public opinion.
Of course, He Xi didn't want to mention this matter at the conference. After all, half of the conference was a cosmetic matter, and the other half was about solving the problem.
The promotion of vernacular Chinese and simplified Chinese characters is necessary.
First of all, the government affairs of the Ming Dynasty increased explosively, and a large number of documents and archives existed. These things naturally have nothing to do with ancient texts.
There are also various requirements, which were too inconvenient for the ancients.
Secondly, He Xi started from the vernacular, creating a cultural break with the previous ones. It can be said that as soon as the vernacular comes out, it can be concluded that before He Xi, it is ancient times, and after He Xi, it is at least modern.
This is especially the attitude of He Xi who was determined to pull the world's public opinion from the hands of the scholar-bureaucrats to the hands of the citizens.
Although He Xi had already published a newspaper, it was not enough.
Because of the war in the late Yuan Dynasty, there were not many literate people in China. Newspapers were mostly circulated in the hands of officials and scholar-bureaucrats, and even became a tool in political struggles. But the public opinion they influenced was only the upper class of scholar-bureaucrats. It has nothing to do with the lower class people at all.
However, He Xi also noticed. With the development of Beijing's industry, there are actually lower-level technicians who are not very literate, but they are at least literate, because if they are illiterate, many jobs will be difficult to perform.
He also earned dividends from industrial development and was able to educate his children.
But these people naturally have nothing to do with ancient literature.
If there is a war of public opinion, if it is in the field of ancient prose, then it is not impossible for He Xi to win, it is just difficult. After all, sometimes changing a person's mind is harder than killing him.
Therefore, He Xi wants to confirm that vernacular Chinese is the official orthodoxy.
In this case, the situation will be different.
He Xi must do this sooner or later. Just take it out today and make an exchange with Kong Xilu. After all, Kong Xilu and the Jiangnan scholar-officials behind him represent the cultural aesthetics of this era.
If they came forward, the turmoil would be smaller and more people would be scolded.
Yes, He Xi knows it very well. If he does this, there will definitely be a big disturbance. In fact, the vernacular He Xi has been implemented on a small scale. Many people don't care, after all, in their view, this is unworthy of elegance.
Just like Japanese and Korean, in ancient times, these so-called languages were just developed for learning Chinese. In North Korea and Japan, only people with low status would study.
The same goes for vernacular writing.
Let vernacular Chinese replace ancient Chinese and become orthodox. This is simply unacceptable to many die-hards. There will definitely be a storm.
Of course, these people only have some academic influence. Politically, nothing can stop He Xi from doing anything. But He Xi still felt that it would be better to let these people come forward and bear the infamy on his behalf. At the very least, let the Jiangnan scholar-officials support him in this matter.
It can also be regarded as a certificate of submission.
Isn’t it just that this certificate of application is difficult to obtain?
This request shocked Kong Xilu. Don't know how to answer at all?
In his opinion, the humble words of saints and their great righteousness are not comparable to those of so-called vernacular literature. As far as he is concerned, this is something he absolutely cannot do.
But these words came out of his mouth.
the reason is simple.
Kong Xilu is not a person, and he does not represent himself. He spoke happily, but behind him, the Nankong lineage was ruined by him.
What made Kong Xilu even more moved and uneasy was that he thought those people behind him might really agree?
Yes, what he thought at first was absolutely not possible. But if you can guarantee your family's status and inheritance, it may not be impossible.
He himself has done this. Not to mention everyone else.
Those who are truly hard-core and have unswerving persistence in Confucianism are all dead.
Kong Xilu said: "This matter is of great importance. I must go back and discuss it with others before I can give you an answer."
He Xi said nonchalantly: "As soon as possible, time waits for no one."
"Yes." Kong Xilu said. He hesitated for a moment and said, "Sir, the case of Kong Mansion?"
He Xi said: "Do you want to intervene in the Confucius case? Yes, as long as all so-called schools and imperial examinations are cancelled. Is it not impossible for me to reinstate Duke Yan Sheng?"
Kong Xilu immediately said: "Sir, this is absolutely unacceptable."
Is Nankong worried that Yan Shenggong's lineage will be lost? Don't worry, the ancestor of their lineage was originally Duke Yansheng of the Southern Song Dynasty. Speaking of which, they are the direct descendants of Confucius. After the Mongols destroyed the Song Dynasty, they were forced to pass the Yanshenggong lineage to the north.
Nan Kong is willing to do so, which is a joke.
Just a last resort.
He came forward now because he wanted to know what He Xi thought of the Confucian family, or rather the Confucian sect. Instead of saving Beikong. Don't tell me, if he doesn't really want to save her, even if he really wants to save her, this condition won't apply.
Nam Kong alone is nothing. He can speak now because he represents a group of people behind him.
Nankong would never be able to fulfill the requirements for vernacular writing set by He Xi. The people behind him couldn't possibly agree. He was generous to him.
Human generosity goes to save Beikong.
"What I mean is that Beikong's lineage rebelled against the imperial court and deserved this end. It's just that there is no one to worship the ancestors. What I mean is------" Kong Xilu said.
He Xi said: "Do you want to be the Holy Duke of Yan?"
"I have absolutely no intention of doing this." Kong Xilu said, "I just don't want to see the sacrifices of our ancestors cut off. Please be patient."
He Xi was silent for a while and said, "Are you a white body?"
Kong Xilu said: "That's right, I haven't retired yet."
He Xi said: "Then you can become a doctor in the Hanlin Academy."
Kong Xilu was stunned for a moment, then he was overjoyed and said, "Thank you, sir."
The reason why Kong Xilu is happy is not just a doctor, but a minor official. What does he care about what the official doctor represents? Doctors of the Five Classics were used by the imperial court to place the descendants of sages.
From Mencius down to Zhu Xi, many descendants of Confucian sages hold this position, and it is hereditary.
Of course Confucius did not. Because Confucius had Yan Shenggong.
Now, He Xi said that he was given a doctor of the Five Classics, which in itself placed Confucius in the position of a sage of Confucianism. Although he may no longer be King Wen of Dacheng, he may still be the sage teacher.
In other words, Confucius' political status will be retained, and Confucianism will not be completely overthrown.
For Kong Xilu, this time he came here and his goal was achieved.
He Xi was also very helpless about this result. Confucianism is so difficult to deal with that even a hundred-footed insect will die without becoming stiff. The influence is too great. With He Xi's current power, it is not impossible to overthrow the Kong family store. All I can say is that the backlash was too great. It was too big for He Xi to bear.
When He Xi captured Beikong, he also said that the descendants of Beikong were unfilial and bent their knees to serve thieves, and did not say anything wrong about Confucius himself.
Relisting Confucius to the ranks of Confucian sages can be regarded as a return to Confucius' status, but in essence, He Xi has to admit the reality.
Confucianism is stretched into the flesh and bone of China, and it cannot be removed without a single movement, thrilling, and near-death surgery, such as the hundred years of humiliation in the late Qing Dynasty.
It is impossible for He Xi to create a crisis abruptly in order to completely liquidate Confucianism.
