Old Text School:Blah, blah, blah, blah…
They debated over The Spring and Autumn Annals, The Rites of Zhou, The Book of Rites, The Book of Docunts, The Guliang Comntary, The Gongyang Comntary, and The Zuo Comntary…
When it ca to the dispute over orthodoxy, neither side was willing to back down.
Even the argunt over whether The Rites of Zhou was written by the Duke of Zhou or Confucius had already escalated into a full-blown, earth-shaking battle.
This was Xu Yanmiao’s first ti witnessing a scripture debate up close. Although he found it difficult to follow, he was lucky to have a certain kindhearted colleague from the Ministry of War interpreting for him, making his “spectator sport” experience all the more enjoyable.
[“Rip into each other! The louder, the better!”]
[“Oh my, it seems like both claims—that The Rites of Zhou was authored by the Duke of Zhou or by Confucius—could make sense!”]
[“Wait, wait! Soone is sneaking in their own agenda! Woohoo! Soone’s subtly claiming that The Rites of Zhou—no, in fact, all of the ‘Three Rites’—are forgeries!”]
The Modern Text Faction: “!!!”
Heretic!
They imdiately identified the culprit trying to muddy the waters and bombarded him with scathing criticism.
Quan Yizhang, upon discovering the incident, temporarily put aside his battle with the Modern Text Faction.
Both the Modern and Ancient Text Factions joined forces to suppress the heretic claiming The Rites of Zhou was a forgery. Once the heretic was subdued, they resud their mutual attacks.
Xu Yanmiao crunched on his taphorical snacks, thoroughly enjoying the show.
[“Wow! Is there regional prejudice going on now?”]
[“Hey, hey, that Assistant Minister of the Court of Judicial Review! Don’t think I didn’t catch that! Sure, criticize The Rites of Zhou, but why drag in Quan Yizhang and compare him to the so-called cunning people of Fuzhou? What, did Fuzhou people steal your rice or sothing?”]
The Fuzhou officials in court: “…”
??Heh.
[“Let
check where you’re from… Oh, Jiangsu, huh? Oh, no, wait—shouldn’t it be Jiangdong? Ah, yes, ‘Jiangdong gentlen, so talented and outstanding!’”]
Lü Yu, an official from Fuzhou and a director in the Ministry of Justice, imdiately redirected his ire: “Jiangdong people are arrogant and fragile! Back when the empire was being built, it’s a good thing we didn’t rely on Jiangdong n. Otherwise, whether His Majesty could unify the country would’ve been a big question!”
The Assistant Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, Wang Gongda, was about to retort when Imperial Censor Shang Yuan quickly intervened:
“Calm down, calm down. We’re all southerners. Why fight amongst ourselves?”
[“True, after all, so northerners always look down on southerners anyway.”]
[“For example, soone—I think the Minister of War?—once boasted that northerners are honest and upright, unlike the cunning southern barbarians.”]
The Minister of War: “…”
Uh oh.
With four northern colleagues and two southern ones in the ministry, the Minister of War now felt the burning stares of the two southerners boring into him.
The administrative officer from the Ministry of War whispered anxiously: “Xu Lang…”
[“Hey, hey! Is that Deputy Minister of Works stupid or what? Even if his colleague next to him is losing the argunt with Quan Yizhang, that’s no reason to broadly insult all Sichuanese by claiming they’re uncultured and their opinions don’t count!”]
The officer from the Ministry of War was growing desperate: “Xu Lang… Xu Lang…”
[“By the way, are Suzhou people really as extravagant and indulgent as they say? The other day, I think one of the censors said sothing like that… But looking at the Deputy Minister of Works, his attire doesn’t seem too lavish. Did I rember wrong? Is he not from Suzhou?”]
Xu Yanmiao remained engrossed in his internal monologue.
Completely oblivious to the Ministry of War official, who was on the verge of tears trying to stop him.
[“Oh! I rember now!!!”]
What? Rember which cursed censor insulted Suzhou people?
Every Suzhou official in court clenched their fists, ready for action.
[“Apparently, the Ancient Text Book of Docunts currently in circulation is a forgery…”]
The Modern Text Faction: “?!”
Such an important revelation! And you’re only bringing it up now?!
[“Darn, I can’t recall exactly why it’s considered a forgery. Who wrote a book proving this again?”]
[“I think they ntioned sothing about it being ‘inconsistent with ancient texts, historical precedent, ancient history, ancient rituals, ancient calendars, ancient geography, textual exegesis, and ethical principles.’”]
[“Too bad I can’t rember it all. Otherwise, I could bring it up and stir the pot even more! The scene would be spectacular!”]
The Modern Text scholars smiled coldly.
Xu Yanmiao might be clueless about scriptures, but they weren’t. morizing and recalling textual details instantly was their bread and butter, honed through years of grueling civil service exams. Now that they had been given the “eight inconsistencies,” how could they not turn it into an opportunity to slap the Ancient Text Faction in the face?
Quan Gong, although you can’t hear Xu Yanmiao’s thoughts, and it may be unfair to you, the integrity of academic orthodoxy is paramount! So, apologies in advance!
Excited by this “breakthrough,” they failed to notice that several people in the court were growing increasingly tense. Frowning, they prepared to step forward.
Quan Yizhang had no official seal and couldn’t hear Xu Yanmiao’s inner thoughts, putting him at a disadvantage.
But! They could hear him.
They were secretly Ancient Text adherents, forced to pose as Modern Text scholars for the sake of their careers.
Now was the mont to reveal themselves.
After years of enduring humiliation, it was ti to reclaim what was lost!
For the glory of the Ancient Texts!!!
Modern Texts were the real heresy!!!
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