What etiquette should be followed?
Yun Zheng's words stunned Gao Shizhen.
He has no achievements!
Of course he knew that according to the Da Gan etiquette, he should kneel down to Yun Zheng.
But he is a great scholar of the time!
The title of great scholar is not fame, but it is better than fame!
As long as Gao Shizhen is willing, he can serve as an official in the court at any time.
However, Gao Shizhen knew in his heart that even if he became an official in the court, his position would be far below that of Zhang Huai.
They are all recognized great scholars of the time. His official position is much lower than Zhang Huai's. Isn't that embarrassing?
As for the ceremony, let alone the fact that the person he was meeting now was Yun Zheng, even if he was meeting Emperor Wen, as long as Emperor Wen did not specifically ask for it and as long as they were not in the court, he would not have to kneel!
...
...
"I'm afraid Your Majesty may not be able to bear my kneeling respect!"
Gao Shizhen looked up at Yun Zheng, with a hint of anger on his face.
"I am a prince and the governor of Shuobei. How can I not accept the courtesy of a commoner like you?"
Yun Zheng smiled indifferently, "You are already old, and I don't want to embarrass you, but as the saying goes, etiquette cannot be abolished, and I am helpless too!"
After listening to Yun Zheng's words, many scholars who were sitting in meditation with Gao Shizhen showed indignation on their faces.
Gao Shizhen is one of the three great Confucian scholars recognized by the world at that time.
Many people even regard Gao Shizhen as a spiritual totem.
Yun Zheng asked Gao Shizhen to kneel down to him in public. In the eyes of these people, this was like blaspheming the gods in their hearts.
"Your Majesty is too arrogant!"
"Mr. Gao is a role model for scholars all over the world. Your Highness humiliating Mr. Gao is tantamount to humiliating scholars all over the world!"
"Even if His Majesty were here, he would definitely not ask Elder Gao to kneel down!"
"I'm afraid that the prince's majesty is being used in the wrong place..."
For a moment, a group of scholars angrily refuted Yun Zheng.
Ye Zi gently pulled Yun Zheng, signaling Yun Zheng not to make things difficult for Gao Shizhen.
According to etiquette, Gao Shizhen, who had no achievements, should indeed kneel down to Yun Zheng.
But there are always exceptions!
The status of scholars in the Dagan Dynasty was still very high.
What's more, Gao Shizhen was a great scholar of his time.
Gao Shizhen's title of great scholar almost saved him from having to kneel before anyone.
It is easy to make Gao Shizhen kneel down.
But if Yun Zheng really forced Gao Shizhen to kneel down to him, and the news got out, it would probably bring Yun Zheng more criticism.
Yun Zheng shook his head slightly at Ye Zi, then turned and looked coldly at the young scholar next to Gao Shizhen.
This birdman was one of the most emotional people.
"May I have your name."
Yun Zheng asked this person indifferently.
"Ye Chen."
Ye Chen raised his cheeks and answered neither humbly nor arrogantly.
“…”
Hearing this man's name, Yun Zheng's face suddenly turned pale, and he immediately asked, "Who are you? Are you worthy of the surname Ye? And you dare to call me Ye Chen?"
Ye Chen was confused by Yun Zheng's series of questions.
He had no idea why a name caused Yun Zheng to have such a big reaction.
Before Ye Chen could react, Yun Zheng asked again: "Do you have any achievements?"
"No."
Ye Chen replied.
The moment Ye Chen finished speaking, Yun Zheng kicked him hard.
Yun Zheng’s kick was heavy and fast.
Ye Chen was a weak man, so even if he was prepared, there was no way he could dodge the kick, let alone be unprepared.
Bang!
Yun Zheng kicked Ye Chen hard and knocked him to the ground.
"puff……"
The moment he fell, a stream of blood spurted out of Ye Chen's mouth again.
Seeing Ye Chen vomiting blood, everyone's faces changed color.
No one expected that Yun Zheng would be so cruel to Ye Chen.
At this time, some timid people have already started to back down in their hearts.
They came to petition for fame.
Not here to die!
Yun Zheng's attitude was completely beyond their expectations.
They were now really afraid that this iron-blooded prince who had just come down from the battlefield would take their lives directly.
However, there were also some stubborn people who were sure that Yun Zheng would not dare to kill them, and stared at Yun Zheng angrily.
Gao Shizhen's old face was even more embarrassed.
"Your Majesty!"
Gao Shizhen suddenly raised his voice and roared: "Your Highness treats petitioners like this, is it possible that..."
"Why should I care what you do?"
Yun Zheng interrupted Gao Shizhen and said, "Since you have no achievements, you should kneel before me! Including you!"
Yun Zheng's attitude was very tough and he stared at Gao Shizhen with cold eyes.
"presumptuous!"
Gao Shizhen's beard trembled. "I am a great scholar of the time. Do you dare to ask me to kneel down?"
At this moment, Gao Shizhen finally put on the airs of a great scholar of the time.
"Great scholar?"
Yun Zheng sneered, "Didn't you just say that you were just a poor old man? Why, now that you are asked to perform a formal ceremony, you are calling yourself a great scholar? Are so-called great scholars so inconsistent and shameless?"
"you……"
Gao Shizhen's old face twitched violently, and he finally realized that he had fallen into Yun Zheng's trap.
Now, if he does not kneel down to Yun Zheng, he would be seeking fame and reputation, which would be tantamount to slapping himself in the face.
But if they knelt down to Yun Zheng, wouldn't they be at a disadvantage from the start?
Gao Shizhen was caught in a dilemma and couldn't make up his mind for a while.
Before Gao Shizhen could think it over, Yun Zheng pointed at Ye Chen who was curled up on the ground and asked, "What's your relationship with him?"
Gao Shizhen said angrily: "He is my student!"
"student?"
Yun Zheng shook his head and smiled, "Your students don't even know the basic etiquette. You are really unworthy of being a teacher! However, I can understand. After all, if you, as a teacher, don't know etiquette, how can you teach your students?"
Hearing Yun Zheng's words, Gao Shizhen suddenly became angry and his face turned red, gasping for breath.
He didn't expect that Yun Zheng's mouth was so powerful.
"Your Majesty, we are here to petition!"
Gao Shizhen chose to avoid the question and go straight to the point.
"Let's talk about the petition later! I will teach your students the basic etiquette on behalf of an incompetent teacher like you!"
Yun Zheng looked at Gao Shizhen jokingly, then turned to ask Zuo Ren, "What is the crime for those who refuse to pay respects to me when they see me?"
Zuo Ren immediately answered loudly: "The first time, you will be punished with twenty strokes of the cane. If you do it again, you will be sentenced to three years of corvée! As a prince, those who refuse to pay respects can be punished as contempt of the royal family. The lighter punishment is imprisonment, and the heavier punishment is exile to the frontier!"
As Zuo Ren finished speaking, many scholars at the scene trembled.
They knew that Zuo Ren was telling the truth.
Even the lightest punishment is twenty strokes of the cane.
After these twenty blows, their skin will be torn into pieces.
Although the twenty sticks had not yet landed on them, some of them had already felt a burning pain in their backs.
"very good!"
Yun Zheng nodded slightly, raised his eyes and scanned the crowd, "I am here to teach you etiquette on behalf of this great scholar in name only. Listen carefully! Those who have achievements but no official position, when they see me, should perform the half-body worship ceremony! Those who have official positions, when they see me, should perform the bow ceremony! Those without achievements, should perform the kneeling ceremony! Do you understand clearly?"
Everyone looked at each other silently and nodded guiltily.
The next moment, everyone slowly stood up and then slowly knelt down.
Even Ye Chen, who was kicked by Yun Zheng and vomited blood, struggled to get up and kneel down.
"Greetings, Your Majesty!"
A few people who had achievements but no official positions also followed the half-body worship ritual.
Looking at the people kneeling on the ground, Gao Shizhen's old face looked even uglier.
After hesitating for a long time, Gao Shizhen finally knelt down tremblingly, gritted his teeth and growled: "Greetings, Your Majesty..."
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