In the imperial court.
"Men and women shouldn't touch each other. The Book of Rites says, "Men and women shouldn't sit together. They shouldn't teach each other …"
A white-haired Quan Wanji was quoting from the classics. According to his point of view, it was against etiquette for men and women to talk to each other.
"Lord Quan is indeed a learned scholar. You are the moral model of the Tang dynasty." Many officials nodded in agreement.
Quan Wanji got the support of the officials and said angrily, "Although Mo Jiazi is famous for his talent, his behavior is improper. He is like a lecher. He promised to marry a girl on the street. This is against etiquette. If we don't punish him, the youths in Chang 'an will follow suit and destroy the moral foundation of the Tang dynasty. This is a serious crime! "
"This is the rule of Confucianism. Meton is Mo Jiazi's younger brother. If you use the Book of Rites to criticize Meton, I'm afraid it's inappropriate!" Qin Qiong could only say.
Hearing Qin Qiong's words, many generals nodded. Quan Wanji was quoting from the classics of Confucianism. Furthermore, Confucianism and Mohism had always been at odds.
Li Shimin nodded and said, "Moreover, it's normal for a young man to fall in love. There's no need to criticize him!"
At this moment, Li Shimin naturally didn't know that this girl was Princess Changle. If he knew, he wouldn't think so.
Quan Wanji stubbornly said, "Although Modun is a member of the Mohist Clan, his parents' orders and matchmaker's words are the rules of heaven and earth. If he really likes someone, he can ask for her hand in marriage. However, a member of the Mohist Clan privately gave a token of love. Without the consent of the girl's parents, isn't it against etiquette?"
In this era, the marriage of a man and a woman was decided by their parents. Everything was arranged by their parents. There were even cases where the man and woman had never met before marriage. Moton's action of pledging his love to a woman without the consent of his parents was unforgivable in the eyes of traditional etiquette.
Hearing Quan Wanji's argument, even Li Shimin fell silent. According to the current customs of the Tang dynasty, Meton's actions were indeed inappropriate.
Qin Qiong sneered and said, "As the saying goes, if the people don't report, the officials won't investigate. If you want to punish Meton for his crimes, then at least there has to be a victim! May I know who Lord Quan is upholding justice for? Is it the girl's parents? "
Quan Wanji suddenly froze. Qinqiong's words had hit his biggest weakness, which was that he still didn't know who the woman was!
No matter how many crimes Quan Wanji listed, they wouldn't be able to be carried out. This was such a good opportunity. The other Confucian disciples were all silent. Only a stubborn and inflexible person like Quan Wanji rushed to the front without a care.
Li Shimin asked curiously, "So, we still don't know who the woman is?"
All the officials nodded helplessly. Mo Jiazi's scandal had spread all over Chang 'an City, but the woman still hadn't shown up. It was like a mystery.
Qinqiong revealed an inexplicable smile and said, "I heard from my son that Meton insisted that he only met her by chance. Just like what was written in the poem, he doesn't know the woman's identity."
All the officials were stunned and couldn't help but reveal strange smiles. Some of the more open-minded officials couldn't help but laugh and say, "It's good that he's young!"
They also had similar impulses when they were at Meton's age. It was just that they didn't have Meton's good luck and talent.
"How is that possible? The two of them have the golden thread as a token. It will be exposed sooner or later. " Quan Wanji couldn't believe it. This was the famous Mo Jiazi of Chang 'an City. His wisdom and temperament were unparalleled. How could he make such a low-level mistake?
Li Shimin waved his hand and made the final decision. "Then we'll wait until the woman's parents report it. Then we'll discuss it."
This was an important matter in the imperial court. How could it be the place to discuss Meton's love affairs? Li Shimin's actions were suspected of being biased toward Meton. If the woman's parents knew that Mo Jiazi liked their daughter, they would be overjoyed. How could they report it?
Although Quan Wanji was helpless, he could only drop the matter. But from his resolute expression, everyone knew that this matter was far from over.
After dealing with the affairs of the imperial court, all the officials withdrew from the court. Li Shimin breathed a sigh of relief.
"That's right! Why haven't I seen Meton come to court recently? "Li Shimin suddenly asked Pande.
Pande bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Merton claimed that he was a seventh-rank official. He didn't meet the standards of the imperial court, so he didn't come to court."
The standard of the Tang dynasty was that only fifth-rank officials and above were qualified to attend court. Of course, those with noble titles were also eligible. According to the rules, Meton didn't come to court because he was a seventh-rank official. It was reasonable.
Li Shimin coldly snorted and said, "At this time, he knows the rules."
Pande smiled and said, "In this old servant's opinion, Marquis Merton is young and active. How could he endure the hardships of the morning court? I'm afraid he just wants to slack off and sleep in!"
Li Shimin nodded. Although Meton was Mo Jiazi's younger brother, he definitely didn't carry forward the philosophy of the Pre-Qin School of Mo. Instead, he was even worse than an ordinary Mo Jiazi's younger brother. He made a lot of things that were greedy for pleasure.
"I let him return to the Firearms Supervisor, but he still has the mood to go to the lantern market. Could it be that he thinks that a seventh-rank official like him isn't worthy of his marquis status?!" Li Shimin said angrily.
Li Shimin was full of anger when he thought about how Meton's visit to the lantern market had caused an uproar in the city and even in the imperial court.
To the side, Pang De bowed even more deeply. The son of the Mo family had caused such a ruckus in the city of Chang 'an. Coupled with the rumors of the son of the Mo family and Princess Changle, the palace had become a taboo.
Li Shimin calmed down a little and asked, "How's the progress of the Firearms Supervisor?"
"Your Majesty, now that Master Craftsman Yuwen Bo of the Ministry of Works is using the Mo Family's equipment to build the Firearms Supervisor, the progress has been greatly accelerated. According to Merton's memorial, the first phase of the project will be completed by mid-February. Then we can start making gunpowder." Pande handed over Meton's memorial and said respectfully.
Li Shimin took Moton's memorial and read it carefully. Then, he nodded his head. It was the middle of February. There was plenty of time for that.
"Tell Meton that if he delays the Western Expedition, I won't forgive him!" Li Shimin said bitterly. The Western Expedition was imminent, and Li Shimin had to worry about every aspect of the Tang dynasty. Naturally, he wouldn't spend all his time on Meton.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Pande said respectfully.
Li Shimin suddenly had an idea and said, "Meton controls the secret of gunpowder. In order to prevent people with bad intentions from getting close, investigate thoroughly. We must find out who Mo Jiazi was on the night of Shangyuan."
How could he not be curious? Who was Meton's sweetheart on the night of Shangyuan?
However, it didn't make sense for him to use the imperial court's intelligence to investigate the private affairs of an official. He had to find an excuse for himself.
"There's no need to investigate. I already know who it is."
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
