Chapter 154 Do you think I'm afraid of all the scholars in the world?
"Lord Xiao, I have a question that I'm quite curious about. Why do you assume that all common people will go into business?" Wei Shuyu asked, puzzled.
“If merchants can make money, the people will naturally flock to it,” Xiao Yu sneered.
"Then another question arises: among scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants, scholars come first. Why do ordinary people choose the lowly life of merchants instead of entering officialdom?"
Upon hearing this, the expressions of all the ministers changed.
Why?
Naturally, the cost of education is too high, and ordinary people cannot afford it.
"Is it because ordinary people can't afford to go to school?"
Wei Shuyu smiled and said, "Then where will the common people get the money to do business?"
“Studying requires talent!” Xiao Yu retorted coldly.
"Does doing business not require talent?" Wei Shuyu replied with a smile.
this……
Xiao Yu was rendered speechless for a moment by the argument.
However, Xiao Yu was not the only official in the imperial court.
Seeing that Xiao Yu did not reply for a long time, another minister immediately stepped forward.
Lu Chengqing of the Lu family of Fanyang retorted, "Doing business is different from studying. If you don't have money to do business, you can slowly save it up. Once you have enough capital, people will naturally not want to farm anymore."
"What you said makes perfect sense."
Wei Shuyu glanced at the assembled officials and said, "Isn't a true golden age one where every commoner has savings?"
Grass.
I've gotten caught up in this again.
"Wei Shuyu, I'm here to discuss serious matters with you. Please answer directly: what will we do if no one is willing to farm?"
Lu Chengqing looked displeased.
"Who says nobody wants to plant it anymore?"
Wei Shuyu's lips curled into a smile: "Merchants can also farm."
What?
The assembled officials all looked on in shock.
"How can a merchant farm?" Lu Chengqing scoffed.
"Renting land, hiring people..."
Wei Shuyu said confidently, "Scholars have their theories, and merchants have their principles."
"As long as there is profit, businessmen will find a way to solve it."
"Speaking of which, I'd like to ask you all a question: His Majesty must have bestowed quite a lot of fertile land, right? Did you all cultivate it yourselves?"
These words left the courtiers embarrassed.
Those who could stand on the Taiji Hall had basically been rewarded by Li Shimin.
Wei Shuyu sneered: "You can hire people to farm, so why can't merchants hire people?"
"Your answer is too general and not convincing enough," Lu Chengqing rebuked.
"Alright, I'll answer you in a simpler way..."
Wei Shuyu glanced at the assembled officials and said, "The market will become saturated!"
The great Confucian scholar Xiahou Sheng of the Han Dynasty once said: "If you do not understand the classics, you might as well go back to farming."
"To put it bluntly, if you don't do well in your studies, you should go home and farm!"
"The same principle applies to itinerant merchants."
"When all the people go to sell clothes, the clothes will not sell!"
“If ordinary people lose money in business, they will naturally go back to farming.”
The courtiers were dumbfounded; they hadn't expected the question to be so simple.
Lu Chengqing couldn't find a reason to refute it for a moment.
"wrong!"
Seeing Lu Chengqing's defeat, Wei Ting also stepped forward.
"Merchants will stop at nothing for profit. What will the common people do if they raise prices?"
Wei Shuyu laughed heartily...
"I really didn't expect you to say such a thing!"
"What are the people paying taxes for?"
"They need the imperial court to protect them!"
"Anyone who dares to raise grain prices without authorization should first ask if the imperial court's sword is sharp enough!"
Wow.
The courtiers were shocked.
Wei Shuyu won the debate again.
With everyone going off to trade, who will farm the land? This has been the case since ancient times, not just for them.
Is it really going to be overthrown?
They were all stunned and stood there speechless.
Not bad, not bad...
Li Shimin sat on the dragon throne, his eyebrows twitching.
Xiao Wei is pretty good.
It was remarkable that it was able to withstand the attacks and annihilation from the court officials for so long.
Will he actually pass the bill later...?
"Your Majesty, I have something to say!"
Just then, Cui Yixuan, who had been resting with his eyes closed, opened them.
He bowed to Li Shimin.
"allow!"
Li Shimin's mind went blank.
The big boss is coming.
As the head of the Cui family, Cui Yixuan's ability to lead the entire Qinghe Cui clan is undoubtedly outstanding.
Cui Yixuan bowed again before turning his gaze to Wei Shuyu...
"Imperial Censor Wei, the ways of scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants have always been the same; it's not that we're deliberately trying to refute you..."
"But may I ask, the Lüshi Chunqiu, in the chapter on agriculture, also states that when people are farmers, they are simple and honest. When people are simple and honest, they are easy to govern. When they are easy to govern, the borders are secure and the ruler is respected. When people are farmers, they are serious and honest. When they are serious and honest, they have fewer selfish motives. When they have fewer selfish motives, public laws are established and their efforts are focused. When people are farmers, their production is restored. When their production is restored, they migrate more often. When they migrate more often, they have no worries about where they will die."
“If the fundamental is neglected and the secondary is pursued, there will be no order; if there is no order, the state cannot be defended, nor can it be waged war. If the people neglect the fundamental and pursue the secondary, their property will be scarce; if their property is scarce, they will easily migrate; if they easily migrate, the state will suffer. They will all have distant ambitions and no one will settle down. If the people neglect the fundamental and pursue the secondary, they will be fond of cleverness; if they are fond of cleverness, they will be deceitful; if they are deceitful, they will be clever with laws and regulations, taking right as wrong and wrong as right.”
"Furthermore, may I ask, as Han Feizi's 'Five Vermin' states: 'The merchants and artisans repair and manufacture inferior tools, amass wealth, and store it up for the opportune time, thus matching the profits of farmers. These five are the vermin of the state. If the ruler does not eliminate these five vermin and does not nurture upright and honest men, then it is no wonder that there are ruined states and destroyed dynasties within the country.'"
"Furthermore, Guanzi's chapters on 'National Reserves' and 'Light and Heavy' are entirely critical of merchants..."
Cui Yixuan quoted extensively from classical texts and delivered a long, eloquent speech…
"Well said!"
Wei Shuyu praised loudly, then asked awkwardly, "But I don't know what it means?"
"..."
Cui Yixuan was so angry he almost went berserk.
I've said so much, and you still don't understand a single word?
Cui Yixuan suddenly felt like he was facing his simple-minded son.
"The general idea is that the people farm, which makes it easier for the court to manage them, and their property is fixed and not easy to transfer, which makes the country more cohesive."
"The latter means that those who are at the bottom of society have a lot of money and are easy to migrate. Once the country is in trouble, they will run away with the money!"
"Han Feizi's 'Five Vermin' refers to merchants who produce shoddy goods, accumulate easily transferable assets, hoard goods to inflate prices, and then sell them at opportune moments to reap huge profits from the people. If a ruler does not eliminate these parasites on the state, it is no wonder that the country will fall and the family will perish!"
"The pipe..."
Cui Yixuan continued rambling on, while Wei Shuyu nodded repeatedly.
"So what are you trying to say?" Wei Shuyu blinked.
"I want to tell you that a pro-merchant policy will absolutely not pass!"
"The sages of the past all criticized merchants. Do you think their theories were wrong?"
"Such a provocative act is also an act of defiance against all scholars in the world!"
Cui Yixuan unleashed his full power, his surging momentum charging towards Wei Shuyu like a stampede of ten thousand horses...
Cui Yixuan was really serious in the court, and even Li Shimin had to be wary of him!
Wei Shuyu lowered his head and remained silent.
He raised the ivory tablet, looked at the writing on the tablet, and a smile involuntarily appeared on his lips.
"But... I'm doing things for the common people of the world..."
Wei Shuyu raised his head, his sharp gaze meeting Cui Yixuan's without fear, and took a step forward: "Do you think I would be afraid of all the scholars in the world?"
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