Zhu Mo cleared his throat and recited loudly:
“How glorious and vast, the Great Way’s progress.
Its light spreads far, its blessings sustain for ages.
In the past, the Yellow Emperor, facing the prime culprit;
Ruled by descending curtains, dwelling in the Central Land.
Yao like the sun, Shun like the moon, the reclusive played with earth;
The world belonged to all, the four mountains as emissaries.
Without confusion, how could evil be heard?
The common people united in great harmony, achieving peace and prosperity.
Jie and Zhou wreaked havoc, usurpers followed each other;
The realm sighed, weeping blood and lamenting the earth.
Then came Nifu, traveling and reviving the lost;
Though pressed, he remained firm, seeking the Great Way.
The six or seven disciples, shared this same aspiration;
Five hundred years later, kings rose mightily.
A thousand years have passed, the Great Way suddenly vanished;
The Central Land rose and fell, order and chaos cycled.
Many treacherous villains, usurped titles as false kings;
Cast aside the Way like shoes, and oppressed the common people.
Even bowing to bandits, handing power to others;
What deeds transpired in the realm, such torment inflicted?
Now the Western barbarians, nurture these Japanese pirates;
Treacherous heroes emerge one after another, vassal states languish.
They covet the Central Land, seeking to seize imperial dwellings;
Friendly nations profit, and successive rebels attack,
Proclaiming monstrous chaos, the world is in turmoil.
We, Mo and others, with limited strength, also admire the Great Way;
We uphold Heaven’s mandate to reform, in pursuit of the Sage Kings.
Good generals hear the wind, talented scholars thirst;
Huating and Zhoushan, surrounded by pirates.
To practice the royal Way, extending to all states,
First establish a public office, solely responsible for those beyond our borders.
Bandits will be punished, merchants will prosper,
All nations will respect, international law.
Alas, Confucius at Mount Ni, did not hear of such endeavors,
Traversing everywhere, dwelling in the Spring and Autumn Annals.
We, the later disciples, report to the former master,
The Great Way is for all, spreading throughout the universe,
May this bless the Great Ming, and achieve this grand enterprise.
The year is Xinyou, in the midst of summer.”
After Zhu Mo finished reading, he and He Xinyin exchanged a smile.
He Xinyin felt that this text perfectly captured the Great Way he had pursued his entire life, embodying the aspirations of Yao and Shun, and the unity of purpose needed for true peace. It was expressed with utmost clarity.
Meanwhile,
All the officials in the hall were stunned—
Was this a sacrifice to Confucius?
It sounded more like something from Emperor Qin or Han Wu!
From the Yellow Emperor all the way to the present, was this an attempt to merge Confucianism and Legalism?
And what was this “public office” they mentioned?
What did "solely responsible for those beyond our borders" mean?
And calling it the righteousness of the Spring and Autumn Annals?
And intending to spread it to all nations?
But no matter what they thought, they were all deeply afraid of Zhu Mo. Each person kept their questions bottled up, suspecting that this scoundrel Zhu Mo surely had more tricks up his sleeve…
As expected,
Zhu Mo felt the time was extremely tight, truly a case of “time waits for no one.” He then announced loudly:
“The sacrificial ceremony is concluded…”
“Upholding the Spring and Autumn righteousness of the former master, the Zhoushan Public Office is established today!”
Zhang Han and Liu Yingjie, holding each end, unveiled a plaque that indeed read—
Zhoushan Public Office.
The officials were immensely shocked, but they already held considerable fear towards Zhu Mo. Although extremely displeased, they dared not discuss it on the spot. Furthermore, He Xinyin had just declared the ceremony complete.
As the officials exited the hall, they naturally gathered in small groups, and soon began to discuss heatedly, their words flying.
A few of the smarter ones had already grasped the purpose of this action, and their respect for Zhu Mo and Zhang Juzheng grew even deeper—
They had thought Yan Song had the situation cornered, but who knew Zhu Mo would pull off such a move, directly sacrificing to Confucius in the Southern Temple, and presenting a sacrificial text that blended Confucianism and Legalism, completely neutralizing Yan Song’s countermeasures!
And that Zhoushan Public Office?
After some thought, the officials understood—
It was intended to handle the issue of Japanese pirates involving multiple nations, in the manner of Confucius’s judgments in the Spring and Autumn Annals, treating Joseon, Japan, Ryukyu, and Portugal as the various states of the Spring and Autumn period. It aimed for all nations to abide by the Spring and Autumn laws of the Emperor of the Great Ming…
This, was the "international law" that Zhu Mo himself had spoken of?
Among the officials were many of Yan family’s partisans. Although they didn’t yet fully understand the intricacies of today’s events, they guessed it was extraordinary. Thus, they gathered in low voices to confer, and each hurried back, immediately sending secret reports to Yan Shifan.
…
The sacrificial ceremony completed,
Zhu Mo immediately wanted to return to Hangzhou, to hang the plaque and quickly handle this important matter. While hastily packing, Zhang Juzheng found time to come to the side room and said with a smile:
“Zixuan, I see that today’s actions have left the officials and gentry speechless, and the common people will have their doubts dispelled upon hearing that you sacrificed to Confucius as a disciple. Life is sometimes like this, the superficial aspects are particularly crucial…”
Precisely!
Zhu Mo naturally saw this too. He had overheard some discussions just now, which were basically as expected. Before long, this matter would spread throughout Jiangnan, and then throughout the realm. This sacrificial text would also be circulated, and the people would understand the true purpose of Zhu Mo’s reforms.
However…
At this moment,
He saw Zhang Juzheng’s expression was a little unusual, guessing that he might be somewhat dissatisfied with the sacrificial text. So he smiled and said:
“Brother Taiyue, things have reached this point, and I can do nothing else but speak in general terms for now… Well, this doesn't represent the entirety of the reform’s intent… If you have any considerations, we can compile them into a booklet in the future and make a final judgment then. What do you think?”
Zhang Juzheng had absolutely no prior knowledge of such a sacrificial text. He had listened carefully to every word, and then requested the original from He Xinyin. After a thorough review, he finally understood—
A significant portion of the rumored secret memorial from Zhu Mo should be similar to today’s sacrificial text, especially the assertion that the present dynasty was founded on the Great Way of Yao and Shun…
These words, to some extent, were reasonable. After all, to deal with the deadlock of Confucian-Legalist opposition created by Yan Song, this discourse on the Great Way could indeed set things right…
Moreover, the officials originally thought Zhu Mo was a Legalist. Today, seeing Zhu Mo dressed in Confucian robes and sacrificing to Confucius as a disciple, speaking of the righteousness of the Spring and Autumn Annals, they would have nothing more to say from now on.
However,
This sacrificial text still carried a whiff of Qin law. Although not explicitly stated, any educated person could guess that the phrase “Five hundred years later, kings rose mightily” could refer to Emperor Gaozu and Emperor Wu of Han, or equally, to Qin Shi Huang.
This,
Still posed some potential future trouble.
In Zhang Juzheng’s view, if Zhu Mo were to always use Confucianism as a banner for reform in the future, he would gain a complete advantage, making it difficult for himself to establish his own position. Especially since Zhu Mo elevated the Great Way above the sage, the "sage's institutions" upheld by all the scholars and officials would be rendered invalid. Although Zhu Mo had not explicitly stated this yet, it was already a very dangerous sign…
Therefore,
He smiled and said:
“Zixuan, I can’t say there’s anything wrong with it… Let’s wait and see the reaction of the world…”
Mm-hmm,
Zhu Mo nodded, thinking: You, Zhang Juzheng, can never grasp this point. What logic is there in the sage’s institutions? They are entirely fabricated! Why can’t you understand?
He sighed inwardly, knowing that the intensity of future conflict with Zhang Juzheng would likely be no less than that with Yan Song. This man was good in all respects, even a brave soul unafraid of death in his quest to save the Great Ming. But he was unwilling to shed that scholarly pride…
“Brother Taiyue, it is merely a temporary measure… Consider this, if we were to present a sacrificial text identical to Yan Song’s, wouldn’t the people be even more confused?”
Zhang Juzheng also felt helpless, thinking: If your discourse on the Great Way were truly put into practice, it would inevitably provoke the rebellion of all the gentry and officials… Alas, Zhu Mo, Zhu Mo, if I become your enemy in the future, it will likely stem from today’s sacrificial text…
While thinking this, he smiled and said:
“Mm-hmm, let’s attend to the main business first! I won’t return to Hangzhou for now. I’ll go to Jingdezhen to oversee those orders from the foreign merchants in Jiujiang… I’ve been too busy these past few days, and I haven’t had time to tell you about the matters of the foreign merchants at the Jiujiang trading post. Shall we discuss it after you’ve dealt with the Japanese pirates?”
Alright!
Although Zhu Mo felt both regret and worry, he deeply admired Zhang Juzheng’s character. Even at this point, he maintained his composure. The scholars of Hua Xia still had their ways…
Thus,
The two, each with their own thoughts, bid a hasty farewell and parted ways.