Lü Haowen was about to speak, but Emperor Zhao suddenly pressed his wine glass on the table, forcing him to continue asking questions: "And speaking of that, if one day we are easily defeated like Western Chu, Former Jin, and Later Tang, or if we hesitate and stay in peace, I will become a laughing stock for all eternity, and won't you, Lü Haowen, also be a laughing stock for all eternity? Lord Lü, your family and the country are worth less than shit in my eyes, but you and I are the king and minister, and we will rise and fall together, and we will fall together, which is an ironclad fact, and it cannot be deviated or distorted no matter what you and I think... Last year, I asked you once at the foot of Shaoshi Mountain. At the beginning of the year, in front of Yiyou Gate, we had both the intention of entrusting the orphan to you and the intention of gambling. When we returned victorious in autumn, you advised me to slow down a bit, and I slowed down for several months. Now it is the twelfth month, do you want me to slow down until next year?!"

By the end of his speech, Zhao Jiu had lost his smile. Lu Haowen knew that he was ready to be frank with the emperor, but he bowed slowly and said, "Your Majesty, I will speak alone!"

Zhao Jiu nodded, but raised his hand slightly to the right.

Immediately, Prince of Yan'an Han Shizhong and other generals, officers and attendants stood up and saluted, then hurried away. On the other side, the relatives and friends of the Lu clan also bowed their heads and saluted, then walked away.

"Lü Benzhong, stay." Zhao Jiu suddenly said. "If your father can't do it today, maybe you, as his son, will have to do it."

Lu Ben's heart trembled with fear, but he could only turn around and stand on the empty space between the tables a few dozen steps away from the emperor and his father, with his hands clasped and his head lowered in silence.

Seeing that there were only three people left in the backyard, Lu Haowen said helplessly: "Your Majesty, my son was born early, and he encountered so many things by accident. He is over 40 years old and has not yet entered the officialdom. What's the point of keeping him?"

"What I want is the Lu family school, which has a place in Taoism, and your position as prime minister. After all, he is your eldest son and the heir of the Lu family school, right? If you don't do it, I will let him do it in your name." Zhao Jiu continued to pour wine. "Lu Xianggong, please sit down... Let's talk slowly today... It's your turn."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Lu Haowen turned around and sat behind a table on one side, sighing a few times before speaking. "I understand the emperor's intentions and the importance of this matter... During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, hundreds of schools of thought contended with each other. Confucianism was the only school of thought in the Former Han Dynasty, and the ancient and modern texts were the only ones in the Later Han Dynasty. In this dynasty, the interaction between heaven and man and the cycle of the five virtues were almost abandoned, and everyone wanted to find another way to achieve the great way... Academics may seem like empty talk, but they have always been a fundamental matter of the country. Whether there is an official and respectable doctrine is the difference between doing twice as much work with half the effort and doing half as much work with twice the effort."

Zhao Jiu poured himself a glass of wine and drank continuously.

"Your Majesty." At this point, Lu Haowen looked at Zhao Jiu seriously. "As your Majesty said, we, the king and his subjects, have been through so much, and we dare not say one, two, two, one, but your Majesty has this request, and I should do my best. Moreover, your Majesty has had this intention for a long time, and I knew it as early as last year at the foot of Shaoshi Mountain..."

"Then why do you still pretend to be deaf and dumb?"

"There are two reasons why I pretend to be deaf. This is because I still have a few difficulties..."

"You also think that the New Party ruined the country?" Zhao Jiu sneered while holding the cup. "The New Learning ruined the country? Do I have to say that? The ones who ruined the country were the two saints of Beishou, especially the Emperor Taishang Daojun. As early as the Jingkang period, you were afraid to say that it was actually him who ruined the country because of the respect for him. And because of decades of party strife and grievances between the New and Old Parties, you took the opportunity to point fingers at Cai Jing and throw all the responsibility for the country's ruin to the New Party, the New Learning, and even Wang Anshi... There is one thing I still dare to say now... It's too shameless!"

Seeing this kind of scene for the first time, Lü Benzhong's heart was already in turmoil. Lü Haowen, on the other hand, became more and more docile: "In fact, what new party or old party, new school or old school, the past grudges, I don't care about them anymore. At least I won't argue with the government over such a personal matter..."

"I knew I could trust Mr. Lu." Zhao Jiu was relieved and quickly poured wine, then raised his glass and sighed. "In fact, I know that most of the new laws have bad effects. Later, when Cai Jing and his people controlled the New Party and the government, eight out of ten new laws were bad... But the problem is that no matter what, Wang Anshi's original intention of reform must be affirmed, and changes must be required when it is not feasible! Sitting in limbo and waiting for death is absolutely not advisable! This is the basis for my determination to protect the new learning!"

"Your Majesty." Lu Haowen waited for the other party to finish speaking before continuing helplessly. "The reason why I have never agreed to this matter with your Majesty is not that I cannot change your political course, but that there are naturally some shortcomings in the new learning of King Shu (Wang Anshi). This involves the unique learning of the sages, and I dare not go against the laws of nature... What is the difference between doing so and abandoning the country and surrendering to the Jin Dynasty?"

Zhao Jiu immediately drank another cup and then sighed... Of course he understood what the other party meant. In the eyes of people like Lu Haowen who belonged to a branch of Taoism, the new school of thought was ultimately a theory with huge and obvious errors and omissions. Asking him to promote this thing was as absurd as a government in later generations forcing a scientist to promote the flat earth theory.

However, after sighing, Emperor Zhao shook his head, but instead of getting angry, he smiled: "We talked about this matter at the foot of Shaoshi Mountain. I seem to remember that it is not right in terms of morality and ethics?"

"It's not wrong, it's missing." Lu Haowen explained helplessly. "So that the emperor knows that Wang Shuwang (Wang Anshi)'s knowledge and morality are impeccable, but even he can't study the fundamentals of heaven and man... There are two major shortcomings in the new school. One is the explanation of the universe, that is, what is the so-called heavenly principle? The new school doesn't mention it at all! The other is what kind of interactive relationship there is between heavenly principle and man, how man can obtain heavenly principle, he didn't mention it! Although Taoism and Buddhism are not perfect, Taoism says that heavenly principle is nothing, and Buddhism says that heavenly principle is empty... And the reason why these Neo-Confucianists and Taoists are called Neo-Confucianists and Taoists is that we are trying to find a heavenly principle for Confucianism!"

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