In traditional Chinese Confucian culture, Mencius' status is also very high, almost comparable to Confucius, the founder of Confucianism, and is honored as the second sage.
But the status of Mencius' descendants really began to rise in the Song Dynasty. Besides Meng Haoran and Meng Jiao, the "loving mother sews the clothes for her wandering son," there aren't many famous descendants.
Zhu Yuanzhang treated the descendants of Confucius and Mencius particularly well. In addition to granting them sacrificial land and exempting them from corvee labor, he also specially bestowed the ten characters "Xiyan Gong Yancheng, Hongwen Zhen Shang Yin" as generation names for the descendants of Confucius and Mencius.
Although Mencius also formally accepted official sacrifices and his descendants also accepted rewards from the court, it was still far inferior to that of the Kong family.
The emperor had no intention of elevating the Meng family to the same level as Confucius, but just wanted to use the issue to praise Meng and criticize Confucius.
Being able to fight in the battlefield during the rebellion, the descendants of Mencius really impressed the emperor. Compared with the Kong family, they were much stronger.
This is just a signal. It doesn't need to be said too clearly, nor does it need to be shown too obviously, and there is no need to let too many people figure out what the emperor means.
Even Liu Ruoyu didn't know why the emperor suddenly had the urge to promote the descendants of the Meng family. Xu Hongru's White Lotus Rebellion had been going on for many years, so why was he thinking about it today?
But the emperor's mind is unpredictable, and there may be deeper meanings behind every thing. Liu Ruoyu cannot figure it out, nor does he want to think about it seriously.
They say that to divine the emperor's will, one must do so covertly, concealing it in the heart. Yang Xiu's death was due to his poor tongue. A true master is one who sees clearly but doesn't speak.
The emperor rested for a while, then took the intelligence sent from Liaodong and looked through it one by one.
Among them are people from various Mongolian tribes, Manchus, and remnants of the Jiannu in the north. Although they have been counted, there are still quite a few of them.
Some intelligence only reflects the surface situation. The emperor can often obtain deeper information by combining it with the trajectory of historical development.
The remnants of the Jiannu must be dealt with, but judging from the intelligence, they are only lingering on and have been relegated to second place.
Now it was Hu Dun Rabbit's turn to be first. The emperor had been holding back because he wanted him to continue his mischief, until he was deserted by everyone and would be easier to deal with.
Besides, the emperor was still waiting for Hu Duntu to move westward and defeat the right-wing Mongolian tribes!
………………
Sparse snowflakes dance in the air, falling to the ground hesitantly and reluctantly. This is their fate.
"The capital has changed a lot!" Zhao Huizu opened the window and looked outside, not afraid of the cold wind blowing in.
Zhang Zongbao raised his head to take a look, then lowered his head to eat the mutton dipped in sesame paste in big mouthfuls.
Inside the private room, a steaming hot pot filled the table with all the condiments. There were only four people at the table, all of them close friends of Zhao Huizu.
There are many dandies in the capital, but there are only a few who can hang out with Zhao Huizu and others. The reason is simple: Zhao Huizu and others no longer look down on those idle second-generation rich kids.
"I heard that my uncle is looking for a way to transfer you back to the capital to work in the military academy or the Ministry of War." Zhang Junneng put down his chopsticks and asked, "Being in the Beijing camp wouldn't be bad either, but you might have to go out and fight in the future."
Zhao Huizu chuckled, sat down in his chair, and said, "I don't care. It's the same wherever I live. My father naturally hopes that I will stay in the capital, get married, have children, and live a stable life."
Zhang Zongbao wiped his mouth and said, "My father planned the same thing, but the marriage he arranged for me is really not satisfactory."
"Ugly?" Zhang Junneng glanced at his friend and teased, "Even with the lights off, it's still the same."
Tsk! Zhang Zongbao waved his hand and said, "I heard that she looks pretty good. Although not a beauty, she is also a beautiful girl from a small family. That's right -"
A few of his friends looked at him with curious and teasing eyes. Zhang Zongbao rolled his eyes and said helplessly, "It's just too dignified and too orthodox. I think life will be very boring from now on."
"If it's boring at home, go out and have some fun!" Zhang Junneng said with a nonchalant smile, "Do you still want to marry an otaku? Your father will beat you to death."
Zhao Huizu smiled and said, "Baobao wants to find someone from the common people, someone who can handle both the living room and the kitchen. Someone who can joke around casually. That's more interesting, right?"
Zhang Zongbao patted his thigh, not caring about the awkwardness of the word "baby". He felt like a close friend and said, "That's it. Pangpang still understands me."
Zhang Zongbao added wistfully, "On my way back to Beijing, when I was crossing a river, the girl ferrying me there was exactly the type I liked."
Chen Qiluo also came from a noble family. He served in the same army as Zhang Zongbao and came back together to visit his family for leave.
Hearing Zhang Zongbao mention the ferry girl, Chen Qiluo was very surprised and blinked his eyes and said, "Is that the brave girl who paddles the boat barefoot? Just because I looked at her a few more times, she called herself 'auntie' and wanted to knock people into the river with a pole?"
"That's her!" Zhang Zongbao slammed his chopsticks on the table just as he picked them up. "I still remember her sullen face as she yelled, 'Whoever dares to mess with me will be thrown into the river with a pole to feed the turtles.'"
Zhao Huizu's eyes widened. He looked at Zhang Junneng, and they both shook their heads and gave Zhang Zongbao a thumbs up.
Wow, what kind of mentality is this? He married a wife like this because he felt that the instructor wasn't tortured enough when he first joined the army?
Zhang Zongbao laughed heartily and said, "That girl is quite a shrew. She's quite interesting, very interesting!"
Everyone knew that Zhang Zongbao was just saying that, so how could he go back and look for someone else? Besides, a wild girl from the countryside, with their family background, forget it.
"No matter what, we have to wear this uniform until we grow old," Chen Qiluo said with emotion. "I'm not exaggerating. It's all thanks to our service in the army that our families have a better life. Those idle guys, who knows when they will be beaten to death and forced to beg for food!"
Now, everyone can see that the emperor is full of malice towards his vassal states and nobles.
Don't blame the emperor for this; those dandy young men who relied on their ancestors' influence are truly worthless. With each passing generation, they become increasingly useless.
"Your Majesty has paved the way for advancement to the nobility. If we work hard, we might even surpass our ancestors." Zhao Huizu twirled his wine glass and said calmly, "At worst, with the military pay, we should be able to live well."
Zhang Zongbao nodded and said, "There will be many more battles like this in the future. There will always be opportunities to make achievements. I think there are more opportunities in the south than in the north. What do you think?"
"It should be temporary," Zhang Junneng said thoughtfully. "It's the same everywhere. It just depends on whether you can adapt to it. I'm quite afraid of the climate in the south."
Zhang Zongbao shook his head and said, "I'm used to it. It's all the same. I still think there will be more fighting in the south. After all, the court is most concerned about food. Didn't the newspaper say that the disaster will be more widespread and last longer?"
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