Qin Official

"I passed through Linzi last time and only stayed for one day. I didn't have time to come here. Chen Ping came to visit, but he only said that Jixia had been dispersed and turned into a military camp."

Heifu looked up at the Hengmen in front of him, which is also the archway. It uses two stone pillars to support a huge wooden beam, and there is a bracket and a black tile roof on the top. There are no carved beams or pillars of later generations, it is just simple and without any carvings. , only the large stone slab in the middle of the beam is engraved with four large characters painted in vermilion that have not faded to this day: "Jixia Academy!"

It was late August. After descending from the shady slope of Mount Tai that day, Qin Shihuang went to the nearby Liangfu Mountain to hold a Zen ceremony there to worship the earth gods. Just like Feng Taishan, Confucian scholars were not allowed to participate. Instead, they listened to the advice of alchemists and combined the etiquette of Qin's worship of social gods and the Qi people's worship of "landlords".

After that, the strange beasts, birds, white pheasants and other objects that came as tribute from far away were returned to the mountains and forests. The giant beasts such as oxen, rhinoceros and elephants from the south of the Yangtze River were not suitable for returning to the mountains and forests, so they all were killed and sacrificed... Anyway, Mount Tai The palace at your feet is finally no longer a "zoo".

Qin Shihuang also announced that for every ten households in Taishan and Liangfu, one sheep, ten stones of wine, and two pieces of cloth and silk would be given to the lonely elderly people over eighty years old. The areas passed by this time were exempted from corvee service and this year's taxes. This was a timely blessing for the local people who had shouldered the burden of palace and road construction. However, the emperor did not agree to the amnesty requested by the ministers.

The next day, the alchemists Lu Ao, Hou Sheng and others reported again that at the place where the Zen ceremony was performed, there seemed to be light appearing that night, and white clouds rising from the sealed soil during the day...

In response, Zhang Cang just curled his lips. Although he didn't believe it, he didn't stand up rashly again. He understood that this was exactly what the emperor wanted to hear and what he wanted the world to believe to be true. It was still too early to clear the clouds and see the light of day.

In late August, Qin Shihuang's inspection team finally arrived in the west of Linzi City. Because it was getting late and there was no time to rush into the city, they spent the night outside Jimen.

Jimen is the west gate of Linzi. Outside the city gate, there are densely packed houses and pavilions. There are ready-made houses for large groups of people to live. It was only when Hei Fu was led by Zhang Cang to Hengmen that he realized that this place was It’s the famous Jixia Academy!

Zhang Cang told Hei Fu that in the Spring and Autumn Period, the emperor had "Piyong" and the princes had "Pan Palace". They were all official schools and were responsible for educating the children of princes, ministers and officials, so that they could not be illiterate, ignorant of poetry and mathematics.

However, with the collapse of rituals and music, this kind of official learning passed down from the Zhou Dynasty was gradually abandoned. At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, learned people such as Confucius began to set up private schools, teaching without distinction, and later generations followed suit.

In the early centuries of the Warring States period, Confucianism and Mohism were the dominant learning, and the official learning of the princes was like ashes in the cold pit, while the private learning was like a prairie fire, growing more and more prosperous, and even reached the point where the princes and kings had to recruit scholars to serve as doctoral consultants in the dynasty. degree. For example, Wei Wenhou invited Zixia to join Wei and founded the Hexi School.

The same goes for Tian's Qi State. In order to get rid of the accusation of treason, and in order to attract knowledgeable people and consolidate power, Duke Huan of Tian Qi established Jixia Academy and recruited talents from all over. It has been more than a hundred years since the scholars who came to seek refuge were treated like doctors and allowed to "discuss without treating them."

Therefore, Jixia Academy can really call itself a "century-old university" because all the top ten schools of thought gather here and a hundred schools of thought contend, so it is also a serious "comprehensive university". Xunzi was the president of this university and was re-elected three times.

Heifu had heard about Duijixia for a long time and had always wanted to come and see it.

However, they encountered obstacles at Hengmen.

"who is it?"

Severe scoldings rang out. Qin Bingjia and Qin Bingyi guarded the place with arms, watching the two of them warily. Zhang Cang and Heifu, one fat and one thin, one white and one black, walked together very conspicuously.

After they showed the verification talisman, the soldiers quickly bowed down to apologize. Soon, a local little five hundred master also came over and apologized:

"I dare to speak to the superiors. This area has been turned into a military camp. When the soldiers heard that Your Majesty was resting nearby, they were very alert. They did not recognize the nobles and bumped into the two of you."

As he said that, he diligently wanted to lead the way for Heifu and the others.

"No need."

Zhang Cang sent him away. Although Fatty was his master in Lanling, Xunzi also brought him here when he returned to Zhao and stayed for several months. Therefore, Zhang Cang was familiar with every plant and tree under Jiji, so he led Hei Fu and walked in on a familiar road.

When you enter Dehengmen, you will see a piece of water, which is part of Shenchi. It is recessed inward to form a pond. There are many stone railings made of bluestone beside the pond.

Zhang Cang leaned on the stone railing, pointed at the water surface and said: "If we come in May or June, we can see that the entire pond is covered by lotus leaves, and the lotus flowers are in full bloom. It's a pity..."

Unfortunately, what Heifu saw was the withering lotus leaves in the pond, and his eyes were full of ruins, just like Jixia now. The garrison gathered water here to wash clothes, which made the pool a lot turbid.

It is similar in other places. The courtyard where Mr. Jixia and his disciples lived has now become a barracks where soldiers sleep. The room that was once filled with books was left empty. The Debiantan Square, where Xunzi and Mencius' disciples discussed "the debate between heaven and man, and the debate between good and evil in human nature", became a place where soldiers gathered for training.

Even the peach grove where Zou Yan, Tian Pian, Shen Dao and Xun Qing gave lectures in the past was cut down by the garrison and used as firewood...

"It's not all your fault."

Zhang Cang saw that Jixia had changed beyond recognition. While sighing with regret, he also blew his beard and glared, blaming the black man.

"What do you blame me for?"

Heifu was confused. He neither participated in the battle of Qi nor was he a local official in Linzi. What did Jixia's decline have to do with him?

Zhang Cang was just joking, lighting the Taolin with only a pile of wooden stakes on fire and said with a smile: "When you were in Yuzhang and Beidi, you advocated that soldiers drink boiled water to reduce diseases. This policy has spread, and now generals everywhere , as long as there are conditions, the soldiers can also drink hot water, which will require a lot of wood, will this peach forest not suffer?"

Hei Fu knew that Zhang Cang was joking, but he also said: "Since the people have gone, what's the use of leaving the peach forest empty?"

Zhang Cang was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "Yes, the most important thing in Jixia is not the courtyards, palaces, or peach trees, but the people. If people stay, culture will flourish, if people leave, culture will decline..."

Thinking of this, Zhang Cang felt a little unmotivated and sighed: "Times have changed and things have changed, and Jixia has been defeated. What a pity. I want to explore the mysteries of the world and the laws of nature, but my knowledge is limited. Just working behind closed doors will not make the right move. , I'm afraid I won't be able to achieve results. I need the help of my disciples, and I also need to debate with others. If Jixia is still there, it should be the best place."

Heifu could understand and said with a smile: "The truth becomes clearer the more we debate it."

"That's right, the truth becomes clearer with more debate!"

Zhang Cang's eyes lit up: "Master also said that if there were no disciples of Mencius, Mohists, famous scholars, and Huang Lao debating with him, his understanding of the five arguments of heaven and man, name and reality, good and evil, interests and righteousness, and kings and hegemons would be lost." , it is impossible to deepen day by day. And only debate can make ideas spread throughout the world and become known..."

People don't like to read obscure books, but they like to listen to lively quarrels. Those propositions and wonderful remarks in Jixia's debate forum can often be talked about by scholars all over the world.

But the best era for scholars has passed. Now that Jixia has been destroyed, there is no such condition at all.

"I don't think so."

But Heifu smiled and said: "It is true that Jixia has declined, but has the spirit of learning inherited from Jixia also died? I don't think so. As long as people are still there, Jixia will still be there!"

"If people are still there, Jixia will still be there..." Zhang Cang seemed to have some realization after hearing this.

Looking back on what happened over the past few hundred years, this is certainly the case. Zhang Cang remembered that his master Xunqing once said to him that the learning of the ancients must have been learned from officials of the Zhou royal family. For example, the six arts respected by Confucianism were originally the education of the nobles by the official schools of the Zhou Dynasty. I was originally a member of the Zhou Dynasty. Shi Zhizhi, the cultural center of the world at that time was in Luoyang.

However, after the Rebellion of the Prince Dynasty, Luoyang was greatly damaged, and even the collection of books was gradually dispersed in various places. Later, private schools emerged. With the opening of Confucius, Shaozhengmao, etc. to teach disciples, the cultural center of the world was transferred to Lu.

After Confucius died, the seventy-two disciples began to split, and some went to Qi, some to Chu, or some to Jin. However, a new center soon appeared, which was the Hexi School during the reign of Emperor Wen of Wei. With Zixia and others as the core, the school had various A few people became good rulers of the Wei State, and Legalist thought also sprouted there. The Wei State was a well-deserved cultural center in the early Warring States Period.

After that came Jixia Academy, needless to say, Taoism, Confucianism, Legalism, Ming Dynasty, Military Affairs, Agriculture, Yin and Yang, major and minor schools, the stars were shining brightly, and hundreds of schools of thought contended! At that time, Jixia was not only the axis of Chinese culture, but also one of the three major axes of world civilization. It is a pity that later on, King Min of Qi went on a military rampage, was so fond of great achievements, and acted arbitrarily, which caused the decline of Jixia Academy, and Mr. Jixia gradually dispersed and gathered in Qin and Chu respectively.

At the call of Lord Chun Shen, Xunzi and others gathered in Lanling County of Chu State. Li Si, Han Fei, Fu Qiu Bo and Zhang Cang all studied in Lanling.

But the irony is that three of them all chose to join Qin! Lu Buwei, who was the Prime Minister of Qin at that time, vigorously summoned his disciples to compile "Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals", which was a masterpiece of knowledge from hundreds of schools of thought. Although no one mentioned this book after Qin Shihuang came to power, it was still mentioned among the Six Kingdoms of Qin. Most of the guests stayed.

After the unification of Qin, the emperor recruited more than 70 Confucian, Huang and Lao scholars to Xianyang and honored them as doctors. Together with the Mohists who already existed in Qin, Xianyang became a new cultural center. Doctors can consult and organize the books that the Qin Dynasty took from the Six Kingdoms. Zhang Cang's "Nine Chapters of Arithmetic" was compiled on this basis!

Coupled with the help of paper, copying ancient books into paper books has become a new trend that cannot be ignored. The speed of knowledge and cultural dissemination is much faster than before.

Sitting in the Jixia peach grove with only wooden piles left, Hei Fu accompanied Zhang Cang and sorted out the circulation of China's cultural center over the past thousand years. Finally, he came to the conclusion that knowledge and culture are not like the country. Just like the country, once the building no longer exists, it will suddenly perish, and it will flow with people!

Heifu couldn't help but laugh at Zhang Cang and said: "Zihu, Zihu, you are so smart that you have been so stupid all your life. You actually rode a donkey to look for the donkey. You are here lamenting the death of Jixia, but you don't know that the new Jixia, with the new flowers blooming, has already been here. Brewing, germinating!”

But this good trend may die at any time, because the emperor and Prime Minister Li Si both like to settle on one person and hate different voices and "township discussions."

Heifu didn't realize it in the past, but this time, the Confucian scholars' desperate behavior at the foot of Mount Tai made Heifu feel that the estrangement between the Confucian scholars and the court had begun irreversibly.

It wouldn’t be surprising if this group of people causes trouble again and the order to “burn books” comes early!

While he was thinking about it, a visitor, Yang Xi, came to Jixia to look for Hei Fu and Zhang Cang. He bowed and said, "Young Master Zao, the fifth doctor, your majesty has urgently summoned you!"

Seeing that he was in a hurry, Hei Fu asked, "I wonder what happened?"

Yang Huan said helplessly: "Your Majesty, Feng Chan was caught in the rain. For some reason, he arrived in Linzi earlier than the car driver. Now he is criticized and ridiculed in the streets of Linzi. After being heard by the officials, he reported back to the palace. Your Majesty heard that He was furious and ordered the Prime Minister to investigate the matter thoroughly! "