In terms of old Confucian thought, no matter how powerful the people of later generations are, can they still be superior to the saints?
Zhang Zai in the Northern Song Dynasty, Zhu Xi in the Southern Song Dynasty, etc. are all very famous figures in Confucianism. But can their reputation surpass that of Confucius and Mencius?
This is obviously impossible!
Therefore, at this moment, Zhang Mingwei actually said that his knowledge requires students to stand on his shoulders and become better than their masters. Such a view immediately shocked the entire audience.
Everyone who heard this had surprised faces and stared at Zhang Mingwei motionless, recalling what Zhang Mingwei had just said in their minds deafeningly, and were speechless for a long time.
Huang Zongxi was like this, and so were Fang Yizhi and his son. Regardless of whether they had reached a certain level in Confucianism, such as Jinshi or not, they were all shocked by Zhang Mingwei's words.
Although Emperor Chongzhen who was watching was also shocked, for him, Zhang Mingwei had said so many things that shocked him that he was already a little numb, but he was better than others.
Zhang Mingwei looked at the faces of the people below, and with something in mind, he continued to speak loudly: "Science and technology knowledge is the exploration of all things, and then using the discovered laws to transform our lives and make our lives change." To get something even better! The same principle applies to studying things to gain knowledge and then using them."
"Can birds fly in the sky with the help of wings? Can humans fly in the sky with the help of tools?" Zhang Mingwei began to intensify their sense of shock and asked his questions one after another, "I said yes, as long as the rules can be studied. , it can be done. I can also tell you clearly that in my knowledge of science and technology, there is a set of theories that can already explain how people can fly in the sky, just waiting to be realized!"
"Fish can swim in the water and dive, so people can use tools to swim in and out of the water, and they can also sneak under the water. Does that mean they can avoid huge waves? I can tell you clearly that it can ! In my knowledge of science and technology, I can already explain what tools people use and what principles they use to sneak underwater!"
"The legendary clairvoyance, ears that follow the wind, can see situations thousands of miles away and hear sounds thousands of miles away without leaving home? Can we humans do it? I can tell you clearly, yes! In my knowledge of science and technology , has been able to explain what tools and principles people use to achieve clairvoyance and shunfeng ears!"
"It is said that only a thousand-mile horse can travel a thousand miles in a day. What tools can we humans use to travel thousands of miles in a day, thousands of miles, and yet still be very comfortable? We can just lie down and sleep..."
"..."
Zhang Mingwei talked about common social phenomena in later generations one by one. For these ancient people, many people had never thought about it. But now, Duke Xingguo told them that his knowledge of science and technology can achieve all this.
Some people have already heard what he said, but even so, they were shocked again and again by Zhang Mingwei's questions one after another.
After Zhang Mingwei finished speaking, the entire scene was still very quiet for a long time. Everyone looked at Zhang Mingwei with the shocked expression on their faces.
Seeing this, Zhang Mingwei took a sip of water, moistened his throat, and gave them time to react.
I don’t know how much time passed, but finally there started to be sounds. First, they were whispering in places far away from Zhang Mingwei. Later, even Fang Yizhi and others under Zhang Mingwei's eyes began to talk to each other.
"Is what the Duke said true? If that's the case, what kind of situation would it be? It's really unimaginable!"
"Yes, only gods can have ears and clairvoyance, but we ordinary people can actually do it?"
"The Duke said that he could fly in the sky. If it were true, that would be great. Go to the sky and see it. It will definitely be beautiful!"
"..."
If Zhang Mingwei's words were transferred to the previous dynasty, a lot of people would probably be suspicious and not believe it. However, by the end of the Ming Dynasty, it was no longer the time for Confucianism to dominate the world.
The knowledge brought by Western missionaries has been spread among scholars. The most famous representative is of course the famous Xu Guangqi. It's a pity that when Zhang Mingwei traveled through time, he had already passed away. Otherwise, he will definitely become Zhang Mingwei's most loyal supporter.
Figures in the late Ming Dynasty, represented by Xu Guangqi and others, had already opened up some of the space occupied by Confucianism for science and technology. Then, Zhang Mingwei came.
He was like a sun shining on the Chongzhen Dynasty. His power and status were unmatched by others. Such figures once again stood up for science and technology knowledge, and also showed tools such as microscopes, which have let some people know that there are areas in this world that they have not touched.
From this, the impact he brought on Confucianism and people of this era can be imagined!
Zhang Mingwei waited for a while and then started talking again.
As soon as he spoke, the people below him consciously shut up and listened attentively to what Duke Xingguo had to say.
"Let's go back to the first question. I can teach you another method. You can go back and do it yourself to verify whether what I said is right?" Zhang Mingwei said this, thought for a moment, and added Said, "I hope you don't just listen to it. You really have to do it and use facts to prove that what I said is right or wrong!"
It's a bit silly to really have to carry a heavy burden to jump, and the time is too short, which is not conducive to experimentation.
Therefore, Zhang Mingwei said to them: "You can find a scale, which is like a pole..."
The method he introduced is the famous Rosenberg experiment. If you don't know that freely falling objects have no weight, you will definitely not be able to guess the experimental results when doing this experiment, and the results will be different from people's cognition.
After Zhang Mingwei introduced the Rosenberg experiment, he said: "This experiment is very simple. Basically everyone here can do it. I hope you will do it and use facts to speak for yourself to deduce a conclusion! In this way, This is a very important way of learning in my knowledge of science and technology. Our vast world is just waiting for us to discover and use it to make our life better! It will benefit the people and future generations!"
After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen turned around and ordered Wang Chengen beside him: "Remember to do it, I want to see it!"
It is impossible for him to shoulder the burden and jump to the high ground. It is impossible in this life. However, there is no problem in doing this Rosenberg experiment. According to what the teacher said, you can see the result just by looking at it!
"Long live the Lord, don't worry. I'll do it when I get back to the palace." After hearing this, Wang Chengen quickly agreed.
Emperor Chongzhen was like this, and many others were like this. I won’t do it myself and let others do it. No matter what, just think of it as an experimental assistant!
Even Fang Kongzhen, who originally wanted to prevent his son Fang Yizhi from being expelled, reluctantly entered the sect of Xingguo Gong. But after what he saw and heard today, to be honest, a strong curiosity arose in his heart.
His family came from a family of officials, and he himself was also a Jinshi. He had been an official for many years and was imprisoned by Yang Sichang. His life was rich and he had seen many things.
However, what Duke Xingguo said today was something he had never thought of before.
As long as you are human, you will have curiosity.
From ancient times to the present, human beings have naturally yearned for being able to fly in the sky and swim in the water.
Now that Duke Xingguo said it could be realized, this attracted Fang Kongzhen even more.
Curiosity leads to interest, and interest leads to motivation. Such a process is also suitable for veteran Confucian students like Fang Kongzhen.
In other words, anyone who is not a pedantic Confucian scholar will also be interested in what Zhang Mingwei says.
At this time, he also made up his mind to try it when he went back to see what would happen!
After Zhang Mingwei on the stage finished speaking, he glanced at the people below. After a while, he said to them again: "If you are interested in studying science and technology and want to join my school, I hope you will read more and think more." , summarize more. Do you have any ideas about the two previous questions about fire? "
The two questions he asked before were about fire. One was why does fire slowly extinguish in a closed container? Second, water can extinguish fires, but when a small amount of water drips onto burning coal and other objects, why do the flames jump higher?
At this time, glass was not popular. When they did this experiment, they could only use porcelain or the like to cover the fire, and they could not see the process of the fire extinguishing. For this experiment, it is always inconvenient. This is why Zhang Mingwei first pointed out the technological point of glass and attached great importance to it.
His two questions are confusing to many people. I don’t know what is going on. However, Huang Zongxi, Fang Yizhi and others have heard Zhang Mingwei’s example of using water to remove air before, so they are very surprised. It is easy to compare the invisible and intangible air with water.
Therefore, others could not answer, but Huang Zongxi bullied Fang Yizhi for not being able to answer quickly. He immediately stood up and replied: "Teacher, is there something in the air that can make fire burn? If this thing is gone, the fire will be extinguished." Already?"
Zhang Mingwei listened and immediately affirmed. This kind of question and answer method in public immediately let more people know that the air is not nothingness?
Some people started whispering, and when Zhang Mingwei asked the second question, no one could answer it.
Zhang Mingwei can understand this, after all, it involves chemistry.
So, he loudly said to them: "This second question actually involves the chemistry branch of science and technology knowledge. It allows us to truly understand what water is?"
