Liu Bei: My younger brother is a deity.

Chapter 46 Old Bottles with New Water

Lu Zhi led his four disciples into the hall. After some pleasantries and self-introductions, he formally introduced his disciples into the circle of renowned scholars in Luoyang.

Liu Quan didn't pay much attention to the big shots like Qiao Xuan and Yang Ci, but was more concerned about the other two young men.

Wang Yun, the tutor of the prince, was in his thirties and had a dignified appearance.

Born into the Wang clan of Taiyuan, a member of a noble family, he was upright and hated evil, and had a good reputation in Luoyang.

He came with Yang Ci today.

Yang Ci was his mentor, and the two had a very close relationship.

Kong Rong, also known as Kong Wenju, was a child prodigy in his early twenties, a 20th-generation descendant of Confucius.

This man was dressed in a well-tailored brocade robe, with a leather belt around his waist and leather boots on his feet, exuding the air of a privileged young master from a prominent family.

Liu Quan noticed these two not because they were historical figures, but because he felt that they were looking at him with ill intent.

At the third quarter of Chen Shi (7:45 AM), the conversation officially began.

Today's topic was decided long ago, and was personally proposed by Cai Yong: "An interpretation of the 'Canon of Yao' that says, 'He clearly understood the virtues of the outstanding and virtuous, and thus brought harmony to his nine clans.'"

This topic is so classic that everyone can say something about it, but precisely because everyone can say something about it, it's harder to come up with anything new.

The interpretations of the New Text School and the Old Text School of Confucianism are there, as are the various commentaries; all you can do is fill in the gaps within the framework established by your predecessors.

To break free from established frameworks and create new theories, one needs both profound knowledge and extraordinary courage.

Gongsun Zan, being impatient, was the first to speak.

In order to make a name for himself today, he and his two cousins ​​rummaged through two cartloads of bamboo slips, believing they were well prepared.

He began with a well-researched argument, starting with the meaning of the word "Junde" and moving on to the definition of "nine clans," progressing step by step, linking each point logically, and almost flawlessly.

The people in the hall nodded frequently as they listened. Qiao Xuan stroked his beard, Yang Ci sat behind the table and nodded slightly, and even Zheng Xuan showed a hint of approval.

Gongsun Zan felt a surge of pride, and his gaze became somewhat arrogant.

Wang Yun, seeing how shallow this person was, couldn't help but curl his lip.

After Gongsun Zan, younger generations, including Liu Bei and Liu Deran, each expressed their own views.

Cai Yong, Qiao Xuan, Yang Ci, Lu Zhi, and others provided their comments one by one.

Then it was Kong Rong's turn.

Kong Rong never missed an opportunity to make a name for himself.

He straightened his clothes, stood up, and first bowed to Cai Yong, Zheng Xuan, Qiao Xuan, and others before speaking.

His voice was clear and bright, with the sharpness unique to young people, and he immediately attracted the attention of the entire room as soon as he opened his mouth.

He first reviewed the previous discussions on this issue.

From Fu Sheng's "Shangshu Da Zhuan" to Ma Rong's "Shangshu Zhu," from the New Text School of Confucianism to the Old Text School of Confucianism, he knew them all like the back of his hand and could recite them fluently.

The people in the hall nodded in agreement, and someone couldn't help but whisper in admiration, "No wonder he's a child prodigy, Kong Wenju. His foundation in learning is solid."

Kong Rong, who was feeling quite pleased with himself, glared angrily at the speaker upon hearing this.

Since becoming an adult, he has disliked being called a "child prodigy".

Wang Yun curled his lip again, thinking to himself, "Kong Wenju has such a great reputation, but his character is nothing special. He's not much better than that Gongsun Zan from before."

He then thought, "However, this fellow is indeed quite learned and has a wide knowledge. If I become a high-ranking official in the future, I can recruit him as an aide to provide consultation."

After Kong Rong finished speaking, the hall was quiet for a moment, and no one responded.

Even Cai Yong, Qiao Xuan, and others merely stroked their beards and nodded, offering no comment.

This is because everyone felt that Kong Rong had explained the topic thoroughly and perfectly.

Lu Zhi tugged at his beard and looked at Liu Quan with some concern. "If I had known that Kong Wenju was so accomplished in scholarship, I should have let Yuan Gu speak first. Now that the pearls and jade have been presented before us, wouldn't the later speakers be making fools of themselves? It would be better to keep our talents hidden."

After Kong Rong finished speaking, the younger generation in the hall who had not yet spoken were not allowed to speak, including Wang Yun, who looked down on Kong Rong.

Seeing the silence in the hall, Cai Yong coughed lightly and was about to speak when he caught a glimpse of a young man standing up out of the corner of his eye. It was none other than the "Jade Gentleman".

"Oh, this kid dares to make such a statement?" Cai Yong immediately stopped what he was about to say and waited for the other party to speak.

Qiao Xuan, Yang Ci, Ma Ridi, and others also looked at Liu Quan.

Ma Ridi thought to himself, "Regardless of how well my junior brother argues, his courage is commendable!"

Wang Yun looked somewhat surprised. "I thought this kid was just a pretty face, relying solely on his looks to attract attention. Could he actually have some substance? No, wait—"

He then thought, "It's also possible that this fellow simply didn't grasp the brilliance of Kong Wenju's argument."

Liu Quan spoke up.

"The seniors and Brother Wenju just now discussed the phrase 'to cultivate virtue and foster kinship among one's nine clans,' and they provided a very detailed explanation of its meaning, etymology, and institutional system. I have benefited greatly from their discussion."

Liu Quan paused here, glanced at Kong Wenju across from him who had a disdainful look on his face, and smiled slightly.

"However, I would like to venture to discuss this statement from another perspective."

Another angle?

Cai Yong's brow twitched slightly.

"In my humble opinion, the key to understanding the eight characters '克明俊德，以亲九族' lies not in the two characters '俊德' or '九族', but in the two characters '克' and '亲'."

"‘克’ means ability and also victory. The Shuowen Jiezi says: ‘克 means shoulder.’ Shoulder means responsibility. Therefore, ‘克’ has the meaning of bearing and being capable. Yao was able to bear his virtue, hence the saying ‘克明俊德’ (Ke Ming Jun De). However, I believe that ‘克’ here also has another meaning—restraint."

Upon hearing this, Lu Zhi relaxed slightly and even mentally praised, "That's insightful."

Several bigwigs, including Cai Yong, Qiao Xuan, and Yang Ci, also sat up slightly.

Kong Rong's disdain faded somewhat, but it remained.

The Analects says, "To subdue oneself and return to propriety is benevolence." Ma Rong's commentary says, "To subdue oneself means to restrain oneself." Restraining oneself means to discipline oneself. It can be seen that the word "restrain" not only has the meaning of "ability" but also the meaning of "control." Then, can "to subdue and illuminate one's great virtue" be understood as—restraining oneself in order to illuminate one's great virtue?

Liu Quan's gaze swept across the hall, and seeing no one object, he continued, "This interpretation is intrinsically linked to the following phrase 'to maintain harmony within one's nine clans.' How can one maintain harmony within one's nine clans if one cannot restrain one's own selfish desires?"

"The reason why people are not close to their nine clans is often not because they do not understand 'love,' but because they are driven by selfish desires, favoring one while distancing themselves from another, and being kind to one while being harsh to another. Yao was able to restrain his selfish desires, so he was able to see his outstanding virtues; he was able to see his outstanding virtues, so he was able to be close to his nine clans. From 'restraint' to 'sight,' and from 'sight' to 'closeness,' these three words form a chain of cause and effect."

Cause and effect? ​​A Buddhist term? Does this child even understand Buddhist principles?

Cai Yong sat up straighter.

Kong Rong's disdain disappeared.

"As for the term 'nine clans,' there have always been two interpretations, one in modern Chinese and one in ancient Chinese, which have been the subject of much debate. I believe that rather than discussing its scope, we should focus on its underlying principles."

He paused.

"When Mr. Kang Cheng (Zheng Xuan) annotated the Rites of Zhou, he said that the 'nine clans' were 'four from the father's clan, three from the mother's clan, and two from the wife's clan.' This argument is based on the closeness of blood relations and is reasonable and well-founded. However, I dare to say that the sage did not necessarily intend for later generations to be so concerned about the names of these nine clans."

The Book of Rites, in its section on mourning attire, states: "The number of relatives is calculated from three to five, and from five to nine." Zheng Xuan's commentary explains: "From one's father above, one's son below, that's three; from one's father to one's grandfather, from one's son to one's grandson, that's five; from one's grandfather to one's great-great-grandfather, from one's grandson to one's great-great-great-grandson, that's nine." Thus, the "nine" in "nine generations" is merely an extension to the extreme.

"The sage's intention is not in the number 'nine,' but in the action of 'pushing forward.' From oneself to one's father, from one's father to one's grandfather, from one's grandfather to one's great-great-grandfather; from oneself to one's son, from one's son to one's grandson, from one's grandson to one's great-great-great-grandson... pushing forward layer by layer until there is nothing left to push forward. This is the true meaning of the word 'kinship' in 'kinship with the nine generations.'"

"This is not a static noun, but a dynamic verb. It's not that your nine generations of relatives need you to 'be intimate' with them, but rather that you become part of the nine generations of relatives through the act of 'be intimate' with them."

Cai Yong's eyes lit up.

Kong Rong straightened his back.

When Wang Yun looked at Liu Quan again, he no longer felt that Liu Quan was just a "pretty face with no substance".

Liu Quan himself felt a sense of incompleteness.

He actually wanted to take this opportunity to elaborate on the concept of "nation", but he was afraid of going too far, so he ultimately restrained himself.

"Yuan Gu," Cai Yong began, his tone solemn, "you just said that 'ke' means restraint and 'qin' means expansion. Then how do you interpret the character 'ming'?"

Liu Quan turned to Cai Yong and bowed: "Master Bojie, you have asked a question, and I, a junior, will attempt to answer it. 'Ming' means to manifest or illuminate. The Great Learning in the Book of Rites says: 'The way of great learning lies in manifesting one's bright virtue.' The first 'ming' in 'manifesting one's bright virtue' means to manifest or illuminate. The 'ming' in 'to manifest one's outstanding virtue' has the same meaning."

He paused, then continued, "There's a key point here—virtue needs to be 'enlightened.' Why does it need to be 'enlightened'? Because virtue is inherent within us, but it is obscured by selfish desires, like a lamp covered by a shade, unable to let out its light."

"'Restraint' means to remove the veil, and 'enlightenment' means to let the light shine through. Once the light shines through, it can naturally illuminate both near and far, and the farther it shines, the wider the 'kinship' extends. So these three are actually a complete process: restrain oneself and then enlighten one's virtue; enlighten one's virtue and then cherish one's relatives."

The hall was quiet for a moment.

Qiao Xuan said, "Yuan Gu, I haven't seen your interpretation in the old commentaries. Where did you get it from?"

Liu Quan calmly bowed to Qiao Xuan.

"My interpretation is indeed not directly found in the old commentaries. However, I believe it can be deduced from two lines of scripture."

Liu Quan looked around at the entire room, where everyone was focused on the scene, including Wang Yun and Kong Rong.

"Firstly, in the Analects, Yan Yuan: 'To subdue oneself and return to propriety is benevolence.' Ma Gong's commentary on 'subduing oneself' is 'restraining oneself,' meaning to discipline oneself. Here, the word 'subduing' means to restrain or control oneself."

"Secondly, the Book of Rites, Record of Music, states: 'The superior man returns to his feelings to harmonize his will, and compares his actions to others to perfect his conduct.' Zheng Xuan's commentary states: 'Returning to one's feelings means suppressing one's desires.' Suppressing means restraining. It is evident that Confucianism does not shy away from the restraint of private desires."

"So, if we look at these two passages together, the word 'Ke' in 'Ke Ming Jun De' is interpreted as 'restraining selfish desires.' This is not something made up out of thin air. It is an extension of the 'Ke' in 'Ke Ji Fu Li,' which is precisely the correct interpretation clearly stated by Confucius and commented on by the sages of the past."

He paused, then continued:

"As for the relationship between 'enlightenment' and 'kinship,' I was inspired by Mencius. Mencius said in 'Jin Xin': 'Love your relatives, and you will extend that love to the people; you will extend that love to all things.' From kinship to benevolence, and from benevolence to love, it is an expansion that goes out layer by layer."

"The 'kinship' in 'respecting one's nine generations' is the starting point of this expansion process."

"However, the Yao Dian describes Yao's realm—he was not only able to love his own relatives, but also extended his influence to the nine generations of his family; not only was he able to extend his influence to the nine generations of his family, but he was also able to maintain the clarity of his 'bright virtue' throughout the process of extending his influence."

"This is the weight of the eight characters 'Cultivate virtue and kindness, and foster kinship among the nine clans.'"