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Dusk is approaching and the lights are coming on.
Teams of imperial guards set out from the Great Qin Palace and raced along the streets, shouting along the way: "The Great Qin Emperor has issued an oral order. Thousands of scholars have come to the palace to submit petitions today. Although some of them may have been deceived and acted rashly, I firmly believe that most of the scholars are motivated by public interest rather than personal gain.
Confucian disciples are the country's talents and should not be insulted lightly. Today, although the common people in the streets are sincere, their behavior is too radical and insults the culture. Now I order those who litter outside the Daqin Gate to immediately take the initiative to clean up and apologize to the scholars in public.
A nation that does not know how to respect knowledge is a nation without hope; a country that does not know how to respect talents is a country without hope.
I hope that the people of Daqin will respect knowledge and talent, take the initiative to stand up, take responsibility for their excessive behavior, and sincerely apologize to the scholars. "
The palace guards galloped past, shouting all the way, and posted notices everywhere.
It is said that among the scholars who were humiliated outside the Daqin Gate today, many of them felt more and more sad and indignant the more they thought about it. Some of them took out their anger by drinking, and some were even ready to jump into the Qinhuai River in a protest to their death.
Suddenly, the shouts of the palace guards resounded throughout the city, especially the sentence "A nation that does not know how to respect knowledge is a nation without hope; a country that does not know how to respect talents is a country without hope." It is easy to understand, but it fully reflects the emperor's sincerity.
Many scholars who were filled with humiliation could not help but burst into tears after hearing this. They knelt on the ground and cried out to the palace: "Your Majesty! Your Majesty..."
Such scenes could be seen everywhere in the city of Nanjing when the lights were just coming on. The hearts of the scholars were deeply touched. They knelt on the ground and cried out, often simply repeating the call for the emperor, without saying anything else.
The situation was like a child who had suffered a great deal of injustice shouting for his parents, and many ordinary people couldn't help but shed tears when they saw it.
Seeing these touching scenes, most of the people who had thrown things at the scholars outside the Daqin Gate actually stood up, took the initiative to apologize to the scholars, and then brought brooms to clean up the garbage outside the Daqin Gate.
The scholars, who were originally full of grievances, were comforted by the emperor's oral instructions, and after the people apologized and cried loudly, no one wanted to cause trouble anymore.
The next day, Qin Mu, along with the imperial guards and cabinet ministers, left the palace and went to the Imperial Academy, where he personally went to the Confucius Temple to worship in order to show the emperor's respect for Confucianism.
At the same time, Qin Mu summoned the scholars who were going to Beijing to attend the next spring festival and asked them to come to the Imperial College. After paying homage to Confucius, Qin Mu asked everyone to sit together under the green pines in the courtyard of the Imperial College.
Qin Mu did not put on airs or act superior. He just sat on the ground among thousands of scholars and had a heart-to-heart talk with them.
As an emperor, he does need to be majestic and high above others, but at the same time, he should also show some people-friendly image. Just like this, he sat together with everyone, and even before he spoke, he made the scholars feel very close to him.
With this kind of intimacy, everyone will appear to be very sincere when chatting and it will be easier to open up to each other.
"My fellow scholars are all the country's talents and the hope for the country's future. I came here today to have a heart-to-heart talk with you. I hope you will also be frank with me.
We don't need to be bookish, we don't need to use any nonsense, we don't need to speak falsely, we just sit down like a family and chat about daily life, we are a family, there is no need to be restrained, we can say whatever we want, even if we say something wrong, it doesn't matter. "
"Your Majesty is wise!"
"Long live the emperor!"
"... ... ... ... "
The scholars sitting around looked happy and pleased.
“To be honest, I do not agree with your views, but I do not blame you. You are the future of the country, and I am happy to see you express your sincere thoughts.
Since I established the throne, there have often been ministers who have contradicted me out of public interest. I dare not say anything else, but I do not punish them for their words. I believe I have done this, because I know that a country will not perish if it has loyal ministers. "
Qin Mu's words were very sincere, and the scholars present sincerely admired him for this. Since Qin Mu proclaimed himself emperor, he has indeed never convicted anyone for his words, not even once. This has always been one of the reasons why scholars all over the world talk about it with relish and sincerely admire him.
"Your Majesty is wise and open to public opinion, which is a blessing for all people in the world."
"Your Majesty created the prosperous Qin Dynasty, but you have always been open-minded and willing to accept advice. You are truly a wise ruler who has never been seen before. Every word I say comes from my heart, and I have no intention of flattering your Majesty."
“… … .”
Qin Mu smiled and said, "As long as everyone is sincere and believes that I am sincere, it will be easy for us to communicate. I will no longer hide it from you. I do intend to reform the judiciary.
In every dynasty, there are always some black sheep who are corrupt and abuse their power, so that the people suffer greatly and complain. Every dynasty is often ruined by these black sheep. I hope that the judicial system of Daqin will be more fair, more transparent, and more efficient, so as to benefit the people of the world.
In this matter, I really do not mean to emphasize legalism over Confucianism. The role of legalism is just to maintain the bottom line of society, nothing more. If we want the country to be more united, the society to be more harmonious, and if we want to lead the morality of the people to a higher level, we can only educate and guide them with Confucianism's benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom, trustworthiness, forgiveness, loyalty, filial piety, and brotherhood.
If we abandon these core ideas of Confucianism, the entire society will become extremely cold and ruthless, and the relationships between the ruler and his subjects, father and son, and between people will be no different from those of beasts.
Therefore, I will not despise Confucianism, but will pay more attention to using Confucianism to educate the people and guide the moral values of society. I have said this to my ministers, and today, I will say it again to you scholars with all my heart, because I regard you as the hope for the future of the Qin Dynasty. "
The Imperial Academy was quiet. Although there were many scholars around Qin Mu, they all calmed down and listened quietly. Qin Mu did not quote from classics or preach like a saint. It was just like chatting with everyone, very approachable. The more this was the case, the easier it was for everyone to listen.
Some people even listened to the performance with tears of excitement in their eyes.
"You are the hope for the future of Daqin, so you must understand that for a country to develop, it needs many things to be improved and perfected together, and you must have a mind that can accommodate all rivers and seas.
While clarifying that Confucianism is the main ideology of the Qin Dynasty, we cannot blindly reject other doctrines. Confucius also went to Laozi to ask for advice. Does this damage Confucius' virtue
In my opinion, nothing in this world is perfect. It doesn’t matter if it’s imperfect. What’s terrible is that you are imperfect but think you are perfect.
The same is true for Confucianism. We cannot blindly reject other doctrines, otherwise we will only become self-enclosed and rigid. I think most people understand these principles, but some people are afraid to admit their shortcomings and want to cover up their mistakes.
You are the hope for the future of Daqin. If you are like this, it will be the greatest sorrow for this country and this nation. I will also feel very sad. "
Tall green pines, the sound of pine waves, and the warm winter sun shining on the courtyard of the Imperial College. Qin Mu talked with everyone, and thousands of scholars were filled with emotion. Such a thing had never been recorded in history books.
Such a kind and caring emperor moved everyone present. Many people took the initiative to stand up, review their mistakes, and kowtow in tears. Qin Mu did not blame them, but comforted them with gentle words.
After that, everyone expressed their opinions. Not only did no scholar oppose the judicial reform, but some people also gave Qin Mu some good reform suggestions. Qin Mu listened carefully and asked the accompanying officials to write them down one by one.
The fact that this matter could be resolved in this way once again proves that the emperor not only needs the majesty of being high above, but also needs to communicate sincerely with the lower classes.
Many troublesome things will become much easier to solve as long as you can put aside your pride and communicate with others sincerely.
The Queen Yang Zhi's virtuous character and appropriate persuasion played a crucial role in turning out this way.
Qin Mu respected this queen from the bottom of his heart. As soon as he returned to the palace, he went to Kunning Palace and asked someone to serve some small dishes. He and Yang Zhi drank by the window. Yang Zhi was not good at drinking. After just two sips, her face turned red. She was so beautiful, just like the plum blossoms in front of the window...
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