Chapter 108 We have a traitor in our midst
Then the father and son talked about the current situation in the court. Outside Hulao Pass, the coalition forces of the princes were still procrastinating, neither attacking nor retreating, just wasting time there.

Wang Jing was also unable to provoke a military conflict, so everyone competed with each other in strategic strength, waiting for the other side to make a mistake first and shoot the first arrow.

After all, Wang Jing is not Dong Zhuo, and it is morally right for Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu to call on the princes of the world to attack Dong Zhuo, and everyone can save face.

But Wang Jing came from a noble family and had no bad record. He no longer controlled the government. Even many people in the coalition of princes had joined the New Party.

Therefore, before the power struggle in Luoyang became public, no one dared to take action first, otherwise they would suffer a great loss in legal terms and be labeled as a "traitor."

Although if the military force is strong, it is okay to be accused of something, but can the mouth be tougher than a knife?
Unfortunately, after being beaten up by Dong Zhuo, the allied forces of the princes realized that they looked strong but were actually weaklings. So it was better not to fight if possible. Now it was just a pre-match time for them to exchange trash talk and verbal attacks.

Both sides are accumulating strength, waiting for the outbreak of a real war.

The reason why Wang Jing was impeached by a group of people was that memorials came in like snowflakes from all over the place. Things like breaking into the Imperial Academy and offending Taichang Ma Ritian were just excuses.

The main reason they reported Wang Jing was that they were afraid that Wang Jing and the New Party would gain power, so they wanted to ruin Wang Jing's reputation in the political arena and let people in the circle isolate Wang Jing.

As long as Wang Jing is dealt with, the Wang family of Taiyuan will become a rootless duckweed.

In fact, when dealing with Dong Zhuo before, the aristocratic families also used the same tactics. They first isolated Dong Zhuo politically and then launched an attack.

Because in the eyes of the aristocratic families, Dong Zhuo was of humble origin and was not one of "them" at all, so they believed that Dong Zhuo had no right to issue orders to these noble aristocrats.

Now that Dong Zhuo has been defeated, the Wang family of Taiyuan has taken advantage of the situation to rise. Although the Wang family is also a member of the aristocratic family, they are still not liked by the old party.

In particular, Wang Jing valued talents from humble backgrounds and recruited and supported people from the Mohist and Taoist schools, which made the conservatives in the aristocratic families feel instinctively threatened.

Families that monopolize knowledge often have a fearful and rejecting attitude towards new things.

The so-called conservatism is because for the vested interests, conservatism means protecting their own rights and status and continuing to monopolize the resource allocation of the entire society.

Who is qualified to be an official?

They have the final say!
Who is eligible to study?

They have the final say!
How should the entire country be governed and how should resources be allocated?

They have the final say!
Knowledge is power, and whoever monopolizes this power actually rules the entire country.

Perhaps there are many enlightened people in Confucianism who have the world in mind, but they are still destined to be unable to change the so-called trend of heaven and earth formed by the collective subconscious of the entire aristocratic class.

In the original historical trajectory, even if Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao in a comeback, he was ultimately unable to help the poor rise. In the end, the more enlightened Cao Wei regime was replaced by the Sima family, the representative of the aristocratic families, and the Central Plains entered the era of the aristocratic families.

The establishment of the Nine-Rank System represented the collective entry of aristocratic families into the political arena. The aristocratic families completely overwhelmed the imperial power and monopolized everything.

The Two Jin Dynasties were the Two Jin Dynasties of the aristocratic families, not the Two Jin Dynasties of the people of the world.

In the end, in this stagnant society, class contradictions continued to accumulate and erupt. The common people never had a chance to rise and were exploited like cattle and horses. Hatred accumulated over time, and finally when foreign enemies invaded, no one was willing to work for the country and the wealthy anymore, which led to the tragedy of the Five Barbarians Invading China.

From this we can see that a civilization monopolized by aristocratic families and nobles has no future.

Wang Jing did not want his descendants to be wantonly ravaged by the iron hoofs of the Hu people, so he was determined to change the fate of all Han people.

Movable type printing and new papermaking techniques are the knives that cut through the predetermined trajectory of destiny. There is no doubt that this is a magical weapon that can break the predetermined destiny.

Now is the perfect time to wield the knife.

Wang Jing had the ambition to change the world, so he did things without hesitation and said to Wang Yun directly: "Father, I want to rebuild the Secretary Bureau and put it under the jurisdiction of the Minister of the Household to specialize in the management of all the books and pictures in the world. Under it, set up a department called the Publishing Bureau to specialize in the publishing of books in the world. Only with the permission of the Publishing Bureau can they be printed and distributed."

After hearing this, Wang Yun thought carefully in his heart. Although he had a straight-forward personality, he was not a fool. He knew that Wang Jing wanted to seize power.

But doing so would inevitably offend certain people in the court.

The first person to bear the brunt of the attack was none other than Taichang Ma Midi.

"Yuan Xu, do you know how many people you will offend if you do this?"

After all, they were father and son. Although Wang Jing often made Wang Yun worry, Wang Yun still couldn't bear to see him making enemies everywhere, so he reminded him: "The Secretary General has existed since the second year of Yan Xi. At that time, it was under the jurisdiction of the Taichang Temple. Later, because the court had no money, it was abolished by the previous emperor. Now you want to re-establish this department and put it under the management of the Shaofu. I'm afraid Ma Riti will be the first to stand up and oppose it."

Wang Jing, however, was dismissive of this: "Is it his real talent and knowledge that allowed Ma Riti to become the Minister of Rites? If he were not the grandson of Ma Rong, the master of Confucian classics, could he be compared with Cai Bojie based on his virtue and talent?"

Cai Yong was already in his sixties, while Ma Riti was only in his early fifties. The former far surpassed the latter in terms of knowledge, qualifications and talents, but the latter happened to be the former's immediate superior.

It can only be said that reincarnation is really a technical job. Whoever does a good job and chooses the right family when reincarnated will be able to hold a high position.

As for hard work and talent?
Why should your efforts and talents be compared with the efforts of generations of others?

Their ancestors fought together with Taizu to establish the country. You can only blame your ancestors for not working hard enough, so your descendants have to work like slaves for others.

Although this nonsense doesn't actually make sense, the reality is cruel.

People without virtue and ability are placed in positions that require virtue and ability to hold on, while people with virtue and ability have to waste their lives working like slaves.

If this continues, the anger at the bottom will eventually erupt.

After all, no one wants to be treated like a slave. If you don't give a way out to those below you, don't blame them for fighting their way out.

At the end of the Qin Dynasty, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang shouted the slogan "Are kings, dukes, generals and ministers of different races?" Wang Yun naturally heard Wang Jing's dissatisfaction, but he still had to persuade him: "No matter what, Ma Riti is still the prime minister after all. If he wants to mobilize his connections and relationships to target you, things will probably become very difficult."

Wang Jing sneered contemptuously: "Does he think he's worthy?"

Seeing Wang Jing so confident, as if he had it all planned out, Wang Yun couldn't help but wonder: "Has Yuan Xu figured out a way to crack it?"

"Father, you know me well. I never fight a battle without preparation."

Then Wang Jing told Wang Yun all about his plan: "I am the only one who truly masters movable type printing. I have full control over the machine design drawings and the craftsmen from the Mohist school. So even if Ma Riti seizes the Secretary General and the Publishing Bureau, what's the use? Won't he still have to beg me when the time comes?"

This is the secret of mastering core technology.

The other party has no idea what to do.

If you want to break this technological monopoly, you can only do research and development on your own.

But for Confucian scholars, they may be able to talk big, but the art of speaking sagely words is indeed profound and mysterious, and it can even be said that their words are as true as the law.

However, no matter how wonderful the words of the sages are, they cannot make Confucian scholars actually engage in technical research.

Therefore, Wang Jing was confident and not panicked at all. He even felt sorry for his opponent. As long as he controlled the printing factory, he would have plenty of ways to defeat Ma Riti.

Wang Yun and Ma Ritian had a good relationship, so he didn't want the relationship between Wang Jing and Ma Ritian to become too strained, so he privately invited Ma Ritian to be a guest at Sikong Mansion.

"Senior Brother Zi, you called me here today, what's the good news?"

Ma Ritian came to the banquet with a smile on his face, but when he saw Wang Jing was also there, his face suddenly turned dark and he looked at Wang Yun with a depressed look.

Wang Yun looked slightly embarrassed for a moment, but still stepped forward to greet him: "Uncle Weng is here? Please take a seat. I called you here today mainly because I want to discuss something with you."

He then told Ma Riti about Wang Jing's idea of ​​re-establishing the Secretariat and setting up a Publishing Bureau.

Good man, you two, father and son, are really unreasonable. How dare you bully an honest man like me?
Ma Ritian was both angry and aggrieved at this moment. Wang Yuanxu, you are not done yet, right?

First, he promoted Mohism and shook the foundation of my Confucianism, and now he is trying to divide the power of my Taichang Temple. How dare you target me one after another? Do you really think that I, Ma Ritian, am easy to bully!
Ma Ritian was furious and stood up and shouted, "There is no room for negotiation. I have something else to do. Goodbye!" But before Ma Ritian walked out of the door, Wang Jing said coldly behind him, "You can go, just don't regret it."

Ma Ritian grinned and sneered: "What, Marquis Qi still wants to threaten me? I am one of the nine ministers of the dynasty, what do I have to regret?"

"The printing factory has been completed. We now have ten machines and hundreds of employees. We can print 20,000 books a day."

Wang Jing's words were in a calm tone, but every bit of data in them made Ma Riti and Wang Yun tremble in their hearts after listening to them.

Twenty thousand books can be printed every day!

If all the teachers and students in the entire Imperial College copy books together, can they copy 20,000 books in a day?
Even if they can, how many days can they sustain such high-intensity labor?
Ma Riti didn't dare to think about it, so he put down his raised foot and turned around with difficulty.

He just had a wrinkled old face, still glaring at Wang Jing: "What is the purpose of Marquis Qi telling me these words? The Secretary General can be re-established, but it must be under the jurisdiction of the Taichang Temple. There is absolutely no room for bargaining on this matter!"

These words were said with absolute certainty and firmness.

Unfortunately, no one in the world can escape the law of true fragrance, and Ma Riti is no exception.

Wang Jing was so confident that he said nothing and directly took out a copy of "Ancient Texts Classics" annotated by Zheng Xuan and threw it to Ma Riti.

Ma Riti flipped it open and found that it was a handwritten copy. He had read many of the contents before, but he could not figure out what Wang Jing was up to.

The so-called ancient text classics are actually the Confucian classics left over from the Warring States Period. Because these old books were written in the characters of the Six Kingdoms, the content of the chapters is also different from the official official script modern text classics popular in the Han Dynasty, so they are called "ancient text classics."

Of course, these are not the point.

The point is that before Zheng Xuan became a master of Confucian classics, he studied under Ma Rong, and what he learned was the ancient text classics, so he can be regarded as a follower of the ancient text classics school.

Wang Jing looked like he had Ma Riti in his hands. He said calmly, "There are more classicists in the world than just Ma Nanjun. Zheng Kangcheng is also a great Confucian scholar. I plan to print the ancient classics he annotated and distribute them to the world. What do you think, Master Taichang?"

After hearing this, Ma Riti's heart skipped a beat and he became panicked.

He can't help but panic!

Although Wang Jing didn't express any threat in his words, he was definitely threatening!

Zheng Xuan was a master of Confucian classics, and his books were popular all over the world. But a few years or decades later, who in this world will still remember that Zheng Xuan had a teacher named Ma Rong?
As a member of the Fufeng Ma family and the grandson of the great Confucian scholar Ma Rong, Ma Riti could not ignore this matter even if others did.

After all, within Confucianism, the strength of the sacred words is determined by the amount of thought power. The reason why the Fufeng Ma family is so prominent today is because of the protection left by Ma Rong, which allowed the Ma family to become famous, enjoy huge prestige and fame, and gather a large amount of thought power.

It is precisely with the "nourishment" of such a huge power of thought that the Fufeng Ma family has produced many masters of spiritual cultivation.

Wang Jing's move of cutting off the source of the problem was really cruel. All the fame would belong to Zheng Xuan. What would happen to the entire Ma family?
Moreover, Ma Riti had no way to counterattack because he could not produce so many books.

Books are not only carriers of knowledge, but also an extension of discourse power.

Wang Jing controlled the printing and distribution of books, which was equivalent to strangling the throats of all Confucian scholars. If you disobey, then the school you belong to will be quietly extinct.

Only obedient schools could use Wang Jing's channels to print and promote their knowledge and expand the influence of their schools.

Ma Ritian really wanted to curse now, but looking at Wang Jing's overly young yet aggressive face, he couldn't say a word.

"How have you considered it? Ma Taichang, can we discuss this matter now?"

Wang Jing glanced at Ma Riti calmly, his tone nonchalant.

Ma Ritian was indeed so angry that he even straightened his beard with his hands. However, the situation was stronger than he was, so he had to bow to Wang Jing and said reluctantly, "Okay."

And just like that, the matter was finalized through "friendly" negotiations between the two sides.

On the second day of the court meeting, Wang Jing requested to re-establish the Secretary General in front of all the civil and military officials in the court.

Yuan Wei and Yang Biao frowned, feeling that this matter was not simple, but they did not rush to speak out. Anyway, they all felt that Ma Ritian, the person involved, would definitely jump out to oppose it.

So they waited quietly to watch the show.

But the result surprised them!

Ma Ritian did not object!
When they looked closely, they found that Ma Riti was standing in the corner with his hands on his chest and eyes closed, pretending to be dead.

Yuan Wei glanced at Yang Biao and asked in a low voice, "What happened? The Secretary General is under the jurisdiction of the Taichang Temple, but Uncle Weng didn't say anything?"

Yang Biao also expressed his confusion, with question marks written all over his face: "When did Uncle Weng become so good-tempered? Wang Yuanxu is really taking advantage of me!"

The two exchanged glances and pondered for a long time, but still couldn't figure it out.

The result was that Wang Jing's proposal was passed smoothly. After all, the funds were provided by the court, the increased official positions were real, and there would be more vacancies for everyone to grab. Only a fool would jump out to oppose it.

After the morning court session ended, Wang Jing returned to the West Garden.

Xun You came out to greet him with a smile: "My lord, I believe you have returned victoriously again this time."

Wang Jing couldn't help laughing at this time. He was in a good mood and said with a clear mind: "It's all thanks to your proper planning, Gongda. Otherwise, things wouldn't have gone so smoothly."

Xun You twirled his newly grown beard, accepting the praise with pleasure. At the same time, he lamented the lack of information and shortsightedness of his ministers: "Grand Tutor Yuan Wei and Minister of Civil Affairs Yang Biao, if they knew how important the Secretary General would be after the restoration, they would regret not snatching a few positions from the lord today."

Wang Jing was not surprised by this: "Does Gongda know the parable of sitting in a well and looking at the sky?"

Xun You was also well-informed and intelligent. He thought for a moment and blurted out, "But it's from the 'Autumn Water' chapter of Zhuangzi: A frog in a well cannot talk about the sea, and a summer insect cannot talk about ice?"

Wang Jing nodded and smiled: "That's right, the former is limited by the empty, and the latter is based on the present. What they think and what they think are all limited by their own knowledge and experience, and it is difficult to see the full picture of everything."

In Wang Jing's eyes, although Yuan Wei and Yang Biao could be regarded as men of wisdom and cunning, they had lived in peace for too long and had long been accustomed to using bureaucracy to perceive and understand everything.

But they didn't know that because of Wang Jing's arrival, the world was about to undergo earth-shaking changes.

"The first batch of printed books has now been finalized, and we can start the process."

Wang Jing knew that if he wanted to change the world, he had to start by innovating the inheritance of knowledge. Only by popularizing education could he truly change the future of a nation.

So what he has to do now is to print a large number of books and periodicals, and then promote them to the common people.

At the same time, it was also to allow himself to carry out his own agenda, not only to sow the seeds of science, but also to condense the status of the Holy Heart, embark on the road to immortality, and ultimately be canonized by writing books.

Wang Jing not only had to truly break the aristocratic families' monopoly on ideology and politics, but he also had to bring his spiritual cultivation to an unprecedented level.

The Lord of Mechanics!

Gravity Emperor!

These two holy names are very exciting just thinking about them.

"Yes, my lord!"

Xun You also knew that this incident was destined to be recorded in history books, and that being able to participate in it was truly exciting and his emotions would take a long time to calm down.

Although the Xun family is also a member of an aristocratic family, once knowledge becomes popular among the common people, their status will inevitably be shaken, and they may even lose their monopoly on official positions and academics.

But the benefits offered by Wang Jing were too great for the Xun family to refuse, and Xun You himself could not refuse even more!
(End of this chapter)