The supervisors were all looking forward to it when they saw the competition between Huang Zongxi and Zhang Mingwei begin. In their opinion, Huang Zongxi's knowledge is of course nothing to say, and he will definitely be able to defeat this boy who came out of nowhere!
But who knew that when they heard Zhang Mingwei's question, they were immediately dumbfounded.
"Why does this folding fan fall to the ground instead of falling to the sky?"
Huang Zongxi was also dumbfounded and subconsciously replied: "How could the folding fan fall into the sky? Is there any reason for this?"
Not to mention them, even the people on Zhang Mingwei's side were also stunned. They were thinking, Zhang Mingwei couldn't ask questions, so he started asking random questions, right?
Although Zhu Yuluo was a little surprised, she did not have any doubts: Who is the gentleman? He came from more than four hundred years ago. His knowledge is far beyond that of today. How could the question he asked be meaningless?
After hearing this, Zhang Mingwei sneered and said: "Everything has its own internal laws. Study things to gain knowledge, and then use them to serve the country and the people and benefit the people. Is that okay?"
If you really want to compare the Four Books and Five Classics with Huang Zongxi in terms of poetry and poetry, the result can be imagined. Therefore, Zhang Mingwei made up his mind from the beginning to use his knowledge to teach him a lesson.
Not to mention, Huang Zongxi was a little dumbfounded. There was so much truth in it?
In fact, at the end of the Ming Dynasty, due to the influence of Western missionaries, some of the Ming Dynasty scholar-bureaucrats began to give up empty talk and turned to practical learning, focusing on "application of the world."
The representative figure among them is of course the famous Xu Guangqi in later generations.
Others include Chen Zilong, Fang Yizhi, and Huang Zongxi. However, during this period, most of them were still talking empty words and trapped in sectarian disputes. As for practical learning, most of them were still in the initial stage.
At this time, if Zhang Mingwei's words were meant for those stubborn scholars, they might not admit it at all and deny it directly. But what he said was to ask Huang Zongxi, who had just begun to have some budding practical knowledge, so Huang Zongxi was a little confused.
After listening to Zhang Mingwei's question, he couldn't help but stammered: "This...is using the method of studying things...to achieve knowledge? What...what's the use of this?"
The study of things to achieve knowledge originates from the Book of Rites and is one of the most important classic theories of Confucianism. Therefore, ancient people actually did not reject the idea of studying things to achieve knowledge, but they had different understandings.
Take the Ming Dynasty as an example. The famous Wang Yangming spent a long time studying things to gain knowledge.
"How could it be useless?" Zhang Mingwei asked after hearing Huang Zongxi's words, and then lectured, "Those who know know it, and those who don't know don't know. How difficult is it to admit this?"
This sentence is very common and often said in later generations, and it also comes from the Confucian classic "The Analects of Confucius".
After hearing this, Huang Zongxi suddenly looked ashamed, blushed and admitted: "I... really don't know!"
"Okay!" Seeing his admission, Zhang Mingwei decided to question him and not give him a chance to ask questions, otherwise the secret would be exposed. "Then I will ask you again. A folding fan and a book fell to the ground at the same time. That is the folding fan. Which one will fall to the ground first, or the book?"
"..." Huang Zongxi didn't expect another unexpected question. He was stunned again and said a little uncertainly, "They should...should have landed together?"
After hearing this, Zhang Mingwei immediately asked: "If there is an iron ball and a feather falls to the ground at the same time, which one will fall to the ground first, the iron ball or the feather?"
"Iron ball!" This time, Huang Zongxi answered without hesitation. This answer can be answered by any normal person.
After Zhang Mingwei heard this, he immediately asked: "Why?"
"..." Huang Zongxi felt his head hurt, and felt that Zhang Mingwei's question was too tricky, but it was still easy to answer, so he replied: "The iron ball is heavy!"
Hearing his answer, the equally dumbfounded supervisors all nodded together. That's right, the iron ball is heavy and will definitely hit the ground first.
"Why?" Zhang Mingwei asked again after hearing this.
"..." Huang Zongxi was dumbfounded, why is there another reason?
At this time, he didn't know how to answer.
Huang Zongxi felt that this question seemed very simple and he could answer it subconsciously. But when he thought about it more deeply, he felt that there was no answer. There was a reason behind it!
The supervisors, including Zhou Yuji and others, were dumbfounded when they heard their conversation. They looked at each other, their heads spinning.
Zhang Mingwei looked down at them, and without giving them much time to think, he asked Huang Zongxi again: "Let me ask you again, if an iron ball and a stone are thrown into the water at the same time, which one will sink to the bottom first?"
"It should be the iron ball? No, it could be at the same time?" Huang Zongxi looked a little panicked after hearing this, and answered uncertainly.
I don't know why, but when he answered this question, he suddenly seemed to have discovered something. But for a moment, he couldn't tell. What on earth seemed to be discovered?
Zhang Mingwei looked at his appearance and asked: "If a feather and an iron ball are thrown into the water together, which one will go first..."
This time, before he finished asking, Huang Zongxi and the supervisors replied in unison: "Iron ball!"
"Why?" Zhang Mingwei was not annoyed when his words were interrupted, so he asked directly again.
"Because water is buoyant!" This is common sense, so everyone, including Zhou Yuji and others, almost all answered in unison.
The question Zhang Mingwei asked was so weird that it attracted the attention of all of them. At this time, I feel that I will have a sense of accomplishment when I answer it, so it happens.
However, Huang Zongxi and Zhu Yuluo were the only two who thought more. Almost immediately after answering, they said in unison: "There is also buoyancy in the air!"
After hearing this, others suddenly realized. By comparing the few questions just now, it was obvious that there was buoyancy in the air.
However, after reaching this conclusion, almost all of them were dumbfounded.
Isn't this air nothing? How could it be buoyant like water?
However, when they carefully thought about these questions, didn't they prove that air is indeed buoyant like water?
Thinking of this, all of them were a little dumbfounded.
This conclusion is a bit beyond their knowledge.
For a moment, they all forgot about the competition, but were thinking about this thing that subverted their cognition!
After Huang Zongxi carefully considered it, he felt that there was buoyancy in the air, and it must be true. So, with his quick mind, he immediately asked Zhang Mingwei: "Sir, even if you know that there is buoyancy in the air, how can you use it, how can you benefit the country and the people, and how can you benefit the people?"
Unconsciously, Huang Zongxi's title changed, but he didn't know it yet.
