Zhu Mo had thought it through all the way.
If the Yan family were to also perform the ritual sacrifice to Confucius, it would present two problems—
Password five six three seven four three six seven five
The first problem was the location; the second was the identity.
The Imperial Confucian Temple in the capital was the Imperial Academy, the place for the royal sacrifices to Confucius, and the Yan family could not go there. Qufu was also of royal specification, and it was inconvenient for the Yan family to go there. That left only academies. Or, they could simply go to the Altar of Heaven and Earth.
Moreover, Yan Song and Yan Shifan could only attend in their personal capacity, because such matters required at least a memorial from the Grand Secretariat. Yan Song had previously been deeply distrusted by Jiajing and had lost much of his prestige, and was now at home recuperating from illness. It would therefore be impossible for him to perform the sacrifice to Confucius in his capacity as Grand Secretary. They would most likely collude privately and then make it appear as a "spontaneous" event.
While he was contemplating,
He Xinyin approached with a smile, cupped his hands, and said, "Scholar Zhu, Zhuo Wu, Shu Jian, what brings you here today?"
Zhu Mo smiled and said, "No business, no visit to the treasure hall. Master He, I'll be direct. I want to ask you a few questions... Um, have you heard about Yan Song's poem offering, Master He?"
Seeing that he brought this up immediately, He Xinyin's expression suddenly turned serious. He deeply felt that today was probably not simple. He immediately nodded. This was because rumors had been circulating even in Hangzhou that the capital was under martial law, and that the Emperor had abandoned the systems of the sages and was ruling the world purely by the methods of Legalism and Daoism.
What kind of person was he? He was the most sensitive to these issues in his life and could even guess that something major had happened. If the Emperor made no response, it was likely that all the scholars in the world would be confused, and there would be great chaos in the world and in people's hearts.
Hmm, hmm,
Zhu Mo continued:
"Our dynasty was founded on the great principles of Yao and Shun. Whether it is the kingly way or sage learning, even the various schools of thought, why can they not be embraced and integrated? But the world is ignorant... Master He, the world knows that the Emperor cultivates purity, but that is merely a personal preference and has nothing to do with the principles of statecraft..."
Hmm, hmm,
He Xinyin had already gained some understanding and nodded, "It is so. Our dynasty was indeed founded on the great principles, and the learning of the sages is inherently within the great principles..."
Zhu Mo nodded and said again:
"Let me be frank. Yan Song is very likely to perform the sacrifice to Confucius... You should understand?"
Yan Song to perform the sacrifice to Confucius?
He Xinyin was suddenly startled.
He was no ordinary scholar, and at this moment, his mind was clear—
Yan Song was trying to pressure the Emperor!
The rumors were indeed not wrong, this was a showdown...
Yan Song intended to smear the Emperor as a sorcerer who did not respect the kingly way of the sages...
"This? Zi Xuan, is it true?"
Zhu Mo nodded, feeling that it was more than nine-tenths certain, and said, "It's probably already being prepared... You might not know, but the Emperor also wants Prince Yu to go to Qufu to perform the sacrifice to Confucius. The date is set for the twenty-seventh of August, and Yan Song will likely try to get ahead of him..."
He paused slightly, and before He Xinyin could reply, he said again:
"I have an idea, which is that we also hold a sacrifice to Confucius, and we must do it before Yan Song..."
The three almost felt they had misheard—
When did you, Zhu Mo, become a Confucian scholar?
But on second thought, they felt that the matter was indeed very necessary. After all, a few of them understood the Yan family's intentions. Zhu Mo performing the sacrifice to Confucius ahead of time, due to his identity as imperial envoy and reform minister, would naturally carry great weight. The rumors that the royal family had abandoned sage learning would naturally not cause any disturbance...
Hmm, hmm, hmm,
He Xinyin nodded repeatedly and mused, "Yes, yes, what Zi Xuan says is right... We must also perform the sacrifice to Confucius, the Great Way sacrifice to Confucius..."
Zhu Mo saw that he had understood the essence of the matter and continued to ask:
"Master He, regarding the ritual sacrifice, I am completely clueless... How can we achieve the desired effect? How can we present the Great Way? And also my identity, it's all very complicated. I can only come to you for this..."
He Xinyin's expression was solemn, and he pondered for a long time before saying:
"Zi Xuan, what you say is correct. Let us start with identity, and then we can peel back the layers of silk...
Traditionally, for the sacrifice to Confucius, the Son of Heaven uses the Tai Lao (grand sacrifice with three animals), princes use the Shi Dian (offering with music and dance), and scholars use the Shi Lai (offering with vegetables and fruits)... Uh, Zi Xuan, as you are from the Daoist sect, if you must perform it, it would be the Daoist sect participating in sage learning, and you could also use Shi Lai. If Zi Xuan is an imperial envoy supervising the academic cases, then it must be much more solemn. You can use Shi Dian, but it must be downgraded, only to be compared to the specifications of a minister of high rank..."
Oh, oh,
These details were only known to those who had been in academies for a long time. Li Zhi and Lü Kun did not quite understand these subtle differences.
Zhu Mo pondered for a moment and said:
"I think Shi Dian is still too high, it's not appropriate... Although I am from the Daoist sect, I am also an imperial envoy supervising academic cases, and I can also be considered a disciple of Confucius! Let's use Shi Lai, but the specifications can be raised a bit, after all, I am not an ordinary Confucian scholar!"
Hmm, hmm,
The three nodded in unison.
He Xinyin thought of a detail and said again:
"Shi Lai is certainly appropriate, but the identity is difficult to handle... The Confucian Temple in Hangzhou is not of sufficient rank... Hmm, how about this! Zi Xuan, why don't you go to Quzhou to perform the sacrifice to Confucius."
Quzhou?
Why go all the way to Quzhou?
Zhu Mo was perplexed,
Lü Kun suddenly realized, "Right! Mr. He has a brilliant idea! Zi Xuan, the Confucian Temple in Quzhou, known as the Southern Confucius, was built after the Southern Song dynasty relocated its capital. Its specifications are only slightly lower than Qufu, and it is also a legitimate Confucian Temple in the world!"
Right,
Southern Confucius!
Zhu Mo also remembered—
After the fall of the Northern Song, the Confucius family moved south to Quzhou during the Shaoxing era, indicating their determination to advance and retreat with the legitimate imperial family. Therefore, the status of the Southern Confucius was indeed not inferior to the Northern Confucius of Qufu, and it was not so conspicuous, nor would it steal Prince Yu's thunder. It was indeed the most suitable.
Good!
Good!
Everyone clapped and laughed together.
He Xinyin said again:
"Zi Xuan, you are known to the world as a person of the Daoist sect... If people did not know, it would be fine, but since everyone is aware, we must be particular about etiquette. Before the grand sacrifice, Zi Xuan must first wear a Daoist robe and perform the ritual of participating in learning, and then change into official attire to perform the ritual of Shi Lai."
Damn!
Confucian scholars have so many formalities.
Zhu Mo shook his head and laughed, "Alright! This kind of thing must be done clearly and without fault... I just didn't expect the rules of the Confucian sect to be so grand, it seems other sects cannot interfere?"
He Xinyin also laughed, "That's not entirely true, it's just that among all the important matters, this is the most important..."
Zhu Mo deeply agreed: If it weren't for this reason, why perform the sacrifice to Confucius? The most important thing in the world is legitimacy, because it can connect people's hearts...
At this point,
The first problem was solved. The next step was how to display the profound meaning of the Great Way.
"Master He, since the identity and rituals are settled, how can we show our distinction? You see, we are enacting reforms, directly pursuing the Great Way of Yao and Shun. When we perform the sacrifice to Confucius, we naturally cannot be the same as Yan Song and the others..."
He Xinyin nodded and said:
"Yes, it naturally must be different. Let me think... Hmm, why not make it simple and not put too much effort into it? Let's focus on the sacrificial text! You have two great talents by your side, why not compose a great work on the Great Way sacrifice to Confucius? When it is circulated throughout the world, then everything will be made clear? It can also promote the learning of the Great Way!"
Good!
Zhu Mo praised, "This is excellent! Then we must trouble Zhuo Wu and Shu Jian!"
Li Zhi and Lü Kun immediately bowed and said, "To be able to compose the text for the Great Way sacrifice to Confucius is a great honor!"