Chapter 28

Xiao Letian's dazzling entrance stunned everyone present. The scholars, intimidated by his domineering gaze, dared not utter a word, while the famous courtesans in the building blushed and shyly stared at Xiao Letian, wishing they could offer themselves to him, even if it meant paying him.

To be honest, during the late Qing Dynasty, the aesthetic standards for men were still quite normal. A man with regular features, clear eyes, and a well-proportioned body was generally the favorite of all women, and Xiao Letian perfectly matched the Qing Dynasty women's aesthetic standards.

However, the aesthetic standards for women in the late Qing were extremely distorted and bizarre. When Xiao Letian saw the so-called famous courtesans in the room, he immediately felt distressed. Are these women considered beauties? How can they all have bound feet? And look at their ghostly makeup, can't they use a little less powder?

It seems that historical records are not misleading. In the late Qing, small breasts, bound feet, pale faces, and red lips were in vogue. Heaven, with these features combined, it looks like there will be no romantic encounters tonight.

Actually, Xiao Letian really wanted to experience the taste of the famous courtesans in the brothel. This guy was not a moral saint, but the aesthetic standards of the late Qing were so different from those of the future that Xiao Letian's tastes were not that heavy.

Since a romantic encounter was absolutely impossible, he decided to focus all his energy on the scholars. Unfortunately, just as Xiao Letian sat down at the main seat and had not even finished three cups of wine, he was already overwhelmed by questions.

"Mr. Xiao, since Prince Henry made such great contributions to Portugal and was so talented, why didn't he eventually ascend to the throne?"

"Mr. Xiao, you mentioned that the Age of Exploration in Portugal was almost simultaneous with Zheng He's voyages to the Western Seas. Why didn't the Ming Dynasty circumnavigate the Cape of Good Hope and reach Europe at that time?"

"Sir, was the Ming Dynasty's maritime power really that strong? What evidence do you have for criticizing the policy of isolationism in your book?"

"Also, why did Spain eventually annex Portugal? Is there any hidden story behind this? And in your last chapter, you wrote that the Spanish fleet was about to meet the king of the Inca Empire. What happened next? Why didn't you continue writing?"

A barrage of questions flooded in, and even though Xiao Letian was mentally prepared, he almost choked. Just as he was about to put on the airs of a master of Western learning, a cold snort came from another table.

"A charlatan, a deceiver, using fairy tales to fool people, and there are still people who believe it. How foolish can they be?" As he spoke, he slammed the table, overturning several wine glasses.

"I have never seen such a shameless person in my life. Abandoning the graves of our ancestors, forgetting the great grace of the emperor, and serving foreigners as a second-rate traitor, and still having the nerve to write a book and call yourself a master of Western learning. It's a fraud and a deception..."

Xiao Letian was stunned by the insults. He didn't expect to be attacked so fiercely as soon as he sat down, without even a chance to eat. He looked at Luo Hanlin and Wen Zhangjing with a puzzled expression, and they quickly explained.

"Mr. Xiao, this is the famous scholar and old minister of Beijing, Wang Shizheng, and the others are also renowned scholars of the Qing Dynasty..." Xiao Letian immediately understood that the old scholars were trying to disrupt the event. He didn't expect that a book of just a few hundred thousand words had already made them so anxious.

Xiao Letian was not angry but smiled and bowed to the old men. "Please enlighten me, sir. I am all ears..."

Wang Shizheng, the old scholar, stroked his white beard and gave him a cold look. "If your book 'Journey to the West' were a fairy tale like 'Journey to the West' or 'Investiture of the Gods,' it wouldn't be a problem. But you dare to claim to be a master of Western learning? You don't deserve it."

"The sages told us thousands of years ago that the earth is square and the sky is round. Why are coins round with a square hole in the middle? It's to illustrate this principle. Zhu Xi also said in 'The Original Meaning of the Book of Changes': 'The sky is round and the earth is square. The round is one and the circumference is three. Three is an odd number, so the sky is three. The square is one and the circumference is four. Four is an even number, so the earth is two...'"

"Listen to this. Can the words of the sages deceive you? The Western barbarians spout nonsense, saying the earth is round. If that were true, wouldn't people on the opposite sides of the sphere fall off? Wouldn't all the rivers and lakes spill out?"

Wang Shizheng now seemed to be lecturing a group of newly initiated students, almost ready to hit them with a bamboo stick. "Look at you, all of you have been misled by the lies of the foreigners. It's a betrayal of our ancestors. What good do the foreigners have? They only want to stir up the hearts of the people and make them forget their roots. How foolish can you be?"

The old man's spittle flew everywhere, and no one dared to speak. The young people couldn't confront him directly because of his age and seniority.

"Always quoting the sages, the sages. If the foreigners have beaten us to this extent, why can't we learn from their strengths?" someone whispered at the table.

"Who! Who said that..." Wang Shizheng's beard bristled with anger. He slammed the table and stood up, pointing at the people. "Have the courage to say it, but not to stand up? Let me see who dares to insult the words of the sages!"

"The principles of the foreigners? Who wants to learn them! Disrespecting ancestors, lacking shame, and full of greed, and there are still people who want to learn from them! If you go to learn, I will report you to the court and strip you of your titles..."

The old man's outburst frightened the courtesans, who were puzzled. The usually gentle Wang Shizheng was so angry today.

Since the conversation had reached this point, Xiao Letian could not remain silent. The old man was clearly trying to use his official status to suppress him. If the scholars didn't listen to him today, he might report them to the court the next day.

"Since you doubt my words, sir, I have a few questions for you. If the foreigners are barbarians as you say, why can they build large ships that can sail thousands of miles? Why can they manufacture guns and cannons that the Qing cannot defeat? Why can they force the Qing to open our ports one by one? Why did they attack the capital and burn the Summer Palace..."

Before Xiao Letian could finish, the old scholar flew into a rage and pointed at him. "Why do you ask? Isn't it because the Qing has traitors like you who recognize foreigners as ancestors? Four years ago, Gong Cheng was a model for your kind. If he hadn't betrayed the Qing's secrets, how could the British and French have burned the Summer Palace?"

The old scholar was so angry that he was almost speechless. Gong Cheng, also known as Gong Banlun, was the eldest son of the famous late Qing scholar Gong Zizhen. Even Xiao Letian was angry with this ungrateful son. According to historical records, the Anglo-French forces did not originally intend to burn the palaces when they entered Beijing. It was Gong Cheng who suggested burning the Three Hills and Five Gardens to force the Qing to sign a treaty immediately.

Gong Cheng was highly favored by the British, receiving a monthly salary of ten thousand taels. Four years later, he was living a carefree life in the Shanghai concession, while the Qing scholars wanted to tear him apart.

When Wang Shizheng mentioned Gong Cheng's name, there was a murmur of surprise in the building, and the young people's eyes showed a hint of doubt. Wang Shizheng pressed his advantage, attacking Xiao Letian's arguments. "You talk about large ships? What's so great about them? Even if they can sail thousands of miles, can they land? As for guns and cannons, these are just tricks that are useless in the long run..."

"Let me ask you, before the Eight Banners entered the pass and before Li Zicheng entered the capital, were the Ming Dynasty's firearms not powerful? But how could such powerful firearms not stop Li Zicheng's army or the Eight Banners' cavalry? What's the point of repeating the same old arguments now..."

Wang Shizheng now seemed to be debating in the imperial court, looking disdainfully at the scholars, especially Xiao Letian. "Our Qing Dynasty was founded on archery and horsemanship, and we must follow the old traditions. As long as the civil officials are not greedy and the military officials are not afraid to die, we can strengthen our internal governance and external military power. Why should we fear the barbarians? Look at the Taiping Rebellion. Didn't we ultimately win?"

After speaking, the old scholar raised his wine glass and toasted to the emperor and the empress dowager. "Although our Qing Dynasty has faced some difficulties, its prosperity remains. With the wise emperor and the empress dowager in power, the Qing Dynasty will last forever... Cheers to the Qing Dynasty, to the emperor and the empress dowager!"

Xiao Letian almost choked with anger. He thought, this old man is really skilled at using his official status to manipulate everyone, even using the emperor's authority to bind them.

When the men and women in the building heard the old man mention the emperor and the empress dowager, they all stood up to toast, even Xiao Letian.

Wang Shizheng, like a proud rooster, looked at Xiao Letian with disdain. The scholars in the room, except for Luo Hanlin, Wen Zhangjing, and a few practical-minded people, all showed signs of doubt.

In the late Qing, very few scholars truly understood politics and economics. Most were numbed by reading the eight-part essays. They could manage domestic affairs by following the books, but when it came to dealing with foreigners, they were all at a loss.

In their eyes, it was a matter of who spoke louder. They would listen to whoever was louder, and whoever won was right.

Xiao Letian shook his head with a bitter smile. "If the court is full of people like you, sir, the Qing Dynasty is doomed!"

"Blasphemy! How dare you curse the holy dynasty..." The old men were about to explode, even considering reporting Xiao Letian to the local authorities. But Xiao Letian waved his hand. "Save it. I'm not a Qing citizen. I have a legitimate foreign identity, born and raised in the West. Can the Qing laws control me?"

"The principles you mentioned are not worth refuting. You say the earth is square? Tell me, four years ago, the Anglo-French forces landed at Dagu. After the war, how did those ships return home?"

"Half of them went south to Vietnam, through the Malacca Strait to India, the same route they took before. The other half went east, toward the rising sun, passing Japan, crossing the Pacific, and then through South America into the Atlantic, finally returning to Europe. These fleets circled the earth."

"Ask yourself, sir, if a ship sails east and eventually returns to its starting point, how can you explain it if the earth is not round? I know you will call me a liar, but you can check with the British and French embassies to see if I am wrong!"

Xiao Letian looked around, staring at all the Qing scholars present, and said calmly, "I didn't come here to debate. You invited me, and the invitation didn't mention a debate. But since you have questions, I will answer them. Before I do, I need to clarify one thing..."

"Only practice can lead to true knowledge. Don't use the words of the sages to refute me. The foreigners don't listen to the sages, yet they still beat the Qing to a pulp..."

"You!" Wang Shizheng's head spun, and he almost went mad. "Blasphemy! You are a blasphemer... How can the words of the sages be wrong? They are the words of the sages..."

Xiao Letian shrugged and ignored him. Then he said something even more astonishing, causing a stir in the entire building. All the scholars and courtesans were stunned, as a whole new world unfolded from Xiao Letian's mouth.