ps: Today is the second update, please support me with monthly tickets. There are still 10 hours left, whether my little dream will come true or shattered, the dominance lies in the hands of you brothers, please vote for me, help me keep the top six, bye!
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A canal connects the north and the south, with green water flowing smoothly, sails fluttering, and boats coming and going constantly.
The willows on the bank are newly sprouting, and the grass is not visible near. The partridges are chirping in the distance, and the village is picturesque. The beautiful scenery of early spring in the south of the Yangtze River is intoxicating.
A fleet sailed south along the canal, with dragon flags flying on the ships. Soldiers in black stood on the decks of each ship, looking vigilantly at the riverbank. There were also small eagle ships on guard outside the fleet, and all passing ships had to stay away from the shore to let the fleet with dragon flags go first.
On the big ship in the middle, Qin Mu, wearing a black long-sleeved cross-collared uniform, sat in the cabin. The painted curtains in the cabin were half rolled up, and he could see the beautiful scenery on both sides of the river.
Wang Fuzhi, who was sitting cross-legged opposite him, was talking eloquently: "I think that without the instrument there is no Tao, and if the instrument is exhausted, the Tao is in it. In the end, there is no Tao that is suspended in the air. It is like there is no imperial Tao without carriages and horses, and there is no Tao of ritual and music without wine, jade coins, bells, and strings."
Qin Mu heard this and said, "However, the Neo-Confucianism of Zhu Xi and Cheng Yi believes that there is an invisible spiritual entity outside and before the instrument. Isn't Nong's view wrong?"
Wang Fuzhi, courtesy name Ernong. Qin Mu was very optimistic about him, so he called him by his courtesy name to make him seem closer. Wang Fuzhi immediately replied: "I think this is a fallacy. The Tao exists with the instrument, and it is inevitable when it is separated from the instrument."
Qin Mu nodded with a smile, and then asked: "What does Er Nong think about the pursuit of knowledge through investigation of things?"
"Reply to the King of Qin, I believe that knowledge comes from practice, and only after practicing can one have true knowledge. Practice can be combined with knowledge, but knowledge cannot be combined with practice."
"Well, according to what you said, action is the basis and motivation of knowledge. Action includes knowledge and commands knowledge."
"That's right. Knowledge and action complement each other. If you know but don't act, it's not true knowledge. When you know everything, you should put it into practice."
Qin Mu invited him to drink a glass, and then continued to ask: "What does Er Nong think of the idea of preserving the principles of heaven and eliminating human desires in Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism?"
Wang Fuzhi was in high spirits and answered without hesitation: "Reply to the King of Qin, on one point. I agree with Mr. Zhuo Wu's point of view. Wearing clothes and eating food are human ethics and physics. Morality and people's desires in life are inseparable. Material life desires are common to all people. Where there is desire, there is reason. Morality is just a rule to adjust people's desires and make them reasonable."
"Hahaha..." Qin Mu was very happy to hear that. For thousands of years, China has been adhering to idealism. This kind of thinking can easily make the entire social group divorced from reality, keen on pursuing an illusory spiritual realm, and ignoring the actual operation of things, which is extremely detrimental to the development of society.
This is an underestimation of the matter. This is a question related to the overall consciousness of the whole society. If materialism cannot become the mainstream thought of the whole society, then the whole social thought system is developing in the wrong direction.
Just like a train going in the wrong direction, no matter how hard the individuals on the train try to move backwards, it will be of no use.
You may even be denounced as a heretic, just like Copernicus and Galileo, who were the first to awaken and were tortured to death as heretics.
But history has proven that if there were no such people who were denounced as heretics, the development of human society might have stagnated forever, people would have always pursued idealism, no one would have studied the changes in matter and the laws of physics, and there would have been no vigorous development of science.
Think about it, for thousands of years, human scientific progress has been extremely limited. Why did it show an explosive development after the 18th and 19th centuries? There is only one reason: materialism has been recognized by society.
It is precisely because of this understanding that Qin Mu is so deliberate and wants to change people's thinking. He even started to do this before the war of unification was completed. Now because of the war, the whole social structure is in chaos, and intellectuals are also reflecting. It is the best time to guide the people's ideological transformation.
If we wait until the entire social system is reorganized and stabilized, it will be difficult to change it.
At this time, Wang Fuzhi's appearance was a blessing for Qin Mu, at least he had a companion and was not fighting alone. It made him feel the joy of meeting an old friend in a foreign land.
Han Zanzhou, who was standing by, was also grinning when he saw Qin Mu and Wang Fuzhi talking happily. It was he who arranged for Wang Fuzhi to meet Qin Mu, so since Qin Mu was happy, he naturally wanted to benefit from him.
After a long talk, Wang Fuzhi himself was also very excited. Now, his ideas were not mainstream and were disparaged by many people. He did not expect Qin Mu to give him such a high evaluation, which made him feel that he had met Qin Mu too late.
With Qin Mu's support, his ideas are likely to become popular in the future. Looking forward to the future, how can Wang Fuzhi not be happy.
The cool spring breeze on the river blows, the sound of oars is heard, the blue waves are rippling, and looking around, there are farmers plowing the fields by the river, calves are running happily in the fields, mooing from time to time, and there are always some insects such as crickets in the newly turned mud. A few birds are not afraid of people and follow behind the plow in search of food. This picture of man and nature living in harmony is the most beautiful pastoral painting.
Qin Mu retracted his gaze and smiled at Wang Fuzhi, "Ernong, organize your thoughts into a system. I have a most suitable place for you."
Wang Fuzhi replied respectfully: "Today I have seen the King of Qin, which is better than reading for ten years. As the saying goes, a scholar will die for his friend. If the King of Qin has any orders, I will do my best to repay the King of Qin for his kindness."
"You can go to teach at the Imperial College. Besides that, I will also give you the Great Qin Times. I will give you these two platforms so that you can amplify your voice. I hope you can awaken the people and free the people of Great Qin from the shackles of Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism."
"My student... will not stop until his death." Wang Fuzhi was extremely excited and bowed respectfully to Qin Mu.
Wang Fuzhi was so excited that he could not express it in words to meet a monarch like the King of Qin. You should know that during the Wanli period, Li Zhi, who had similar ideas to him, was persecuted many times for proposing the materialism that "clothing and food are the human ethics and physics". He was eventually imprisoned by conservative bureaucrats on the charge of "daring to advocate heresy, misleading the world and deceiving the people", and died unjustly in prison soon after.
Qin Mu had also heard about this incident, which shows that when materialism first appeared, persecution was not only in the West, but also in China. Now that Qin Mu controls the Daqin train, he can use his power to provide protection for Wang Fuzhi and let him awaken the people without being persecuted.
Perhaps with his powerful position as a protective umbrella, Wang Fuzhi could have made materialism the mainstream thought in China more quickly.
Qin Mu had not been here since he conquered Jiangnan. This time he came to inspect Jiangnan at the beginning of spring. First of all, he wanted to show his presence. How to say it, it's like a tiger. After occupying a piece of land, it must first inspect it, pee, and poop to prove that this is its territory.
Well, it may not sound good, but this sense of existence is very important. There is a saying that goes, the sky is high and the emperor is far away. If you don't show your presence, the people will think that the sky is high and the emperor is far away. When you come and the people see you, they will have a greater sense of belonging.
Of course, his visit to Jiangnan this time was not just to show his presence. The reason why the Northern Expedition was stalled was because of the lack of food and grass. Jiangnan was the most important grain-producing area. This time, he must see how the spring plowing preparations in Jiangnan were going.
Therefore, whenever he arrived in a state, he would stop his boat to inquire about the local officials' preparations for spring farming.
In addition to spring ploughing, Qin Mu had three other things to do when he came to Jiangnan.
One of them was to see how the textile factories were doing. The first batch of textile factories were mainly located in Yangzhou, Suzhou, Songjiang and Hangzhou.
The boat was twenty miles away from Suzhou when the prefect Wu Jiacheng received the news and hurriedly brought local officials to greet them. After meeting, the first thing Qin Mu asked about was the situation of the textile factory.
Wu Jiacheng was a man in his fifties, slightly overweight and with an ordinary appearance. He replied with great trepidation, "Your Highness, Suzhou Prefecture has now established seven spinning mills, four weaving mills, and thirteen other supporting printing and dyeing mills, cotton-binding mills, etc., and has resettled a total of 23,200 refugees, 80% of whom are women."
Qin Mu said without comment: "Prefect Wu, please lead the way. I want to go and take a look."
"This... ... ... The King of Qin has been exhausted from the journey. His health is more important. He should rest in the city first."
"No need." Qin Mu interrupted him without waiting for him to finish, "After you finish reading, I can rest in peace. Magistrate Wu, please lead the way."
"Your Majesty, I obey your order."
Wu Jiacheng's forehead was covered with sweat. It would have been fine if the King of Qin had arrived suddenly, but he asked to visit the textile factory as soon as he arrived. He didn't have time to make any arrangements beforehand. What if it didn't suit the King of Qin's wishes
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.(To be continued..)
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