Meton snorted. "Lord Quan only remembers that the monarch is the subject, but you don't remember that Confucianism also has the husband as the wife. Lord Quan is a great scholar of Confucianism, but you're taking things out of context. How laughable."
Quan Wanji retorted without any shame, "The monarch is the subject, the husband is the wife, and the father is the son. Of the three, the monarch is the subject. There is nothing wrong with what this old official said."
Many of the civil officials couldn't help but look proud. The reason why Confucianism was valued by the emperors was because of their loyalty to the monarch. Moreover, before the Tang Dynasty, when a princess was married, there was a saying that the emperor's daughter was the nobility.
"Is that so? In this official's opinion, you are gravely mistaken." Meton retorted.
Quan Wanji immediately sneered, "Could it be that your Mohist School believes that loyalty to the monarch is gravely mistaken?"
He knew that Meton would oppose the marriage and had already thought of a reason to throw dirty water on Meton. It could even be said that his proposal of marriage was a trap that he had dug for Mo Jiazi. If Meton agreed, then he would be like an adopted son-in-law, unable to raise his head. If Meton opposed, then it would be irrefutable evidence of his disloyalty to the monarch.
Meton retorted, "What I said is gravely mistaken. The Mohist School is actually applying the monarch's subject's principle to the husband and wife's principle. It's simply a double entendre."
Quan Wanji argued, "Ordinary couples naturally don't have such worries. However, the princess is the monarch in the palace, and she is the wife when she marries. That's why there is such a compromise."
"Then according to what you're saying, when the princess marries, the mother-in-law and father-in-law have to bow to the princess as the subject of the monarch. Then during the wedding, shouldn't the second bow to the parents be changed?" Meton asked.
After Meton finished speaking, the faces of many officials who had marriage agreements with the imperial family sank. If news of them bowing to their daughter-in-law spread, they wouldn't be able to hold onto their old face.
"The parents-in-law are still the elders …" Quan Wanji felt that something was wrong and stuttered.
"Lord Quan, didn't you just say that the monarch is the subject?" Meton retorted.
Quan Wanji's face froze, and he couldn't say anything.
"Since the concubines of the imperial harem have married into the imperial palace, they are naturally monarchs as well. If they visit their relatives and see their parents, according to Lord Quan's opinion, shouldn't parents also pay respect to their daughters as monarchs and subjects?" Meton pressed.
Quan Wanji's expression suddenly changed. If a parent bowed to their daughter, wouldn't that be considered a crime?
Li Shimin's expression turned ugly. He immediately realized the seriousness of this matter. If this was the case, the harem would be thrown into chaos.
"That's not what the Minister meant!" Quan Wanji hurriedly explained.
"Master Quan means that the relationship between the Princess and the Prince Consort can only be carried out between the Princess and the Prince Consort," Meton said casually.
Quan WanJi felt as if he had grasped onto a life-saving straw. "Yes! Yes! That's exactly what this old subject means. "
"Then this lowly official would like to sue Official Quan for deliberately destroying the princess's marriage." Meton countered.
Quan Wanji suddenly found it hard to breathe. He looked at Meton in disbelief. The other ministers were surprised to see this turn of events.
"How could an Old Man destroy the princess's marriage? Could it be that you, Mo Jiazi, want to break off the engagement?" Quan Wanji said sternly. He had always been the one to take the initiative to attack Mo Jiazi. He didn't expect that today, Mo Jiazi would bite back. If Meton decided to use a method of mutual destruction, then he, Quan Wanji, wouldn't be at an advantage.
Li Shimin's expression sank as he glared at Meton.
Merton said, "Replying to Your Majesty, the Mo Family advocates universal love and advocates equality between husband and wife. Naturally, they wouldn't use the husband as the wife to coerce Changle. Moreover, this subject believes that Changle will treat this subject the same way. Moreover, this subject's parents died early, so there is no relationship between mother and daughter-in-law. Therefore, Master Quan's worries are complete nonsense."
Li Shimin's expression relaxed. Indeed, Meton's worries had nothing to do with him and Changle.
"This old subject isn't targeting Princess Changle. This old subject is speaking out for the other princesses!" Quan Wanji ignored the fiery eyes of the other ministers and hurriedly tried to save himself.
Meton sneered, "This is exactly what this Mo is complaining about! If the princess wishes for the prince consort to live alone in the princess's residence, the prince consort will definitely have to separate from his parents. Wouldn't that reduce the chance for the prince consort to fulfill his filial piety? The Minister believes that any man with filial piety will be afraid of being labeled as unfilial and will resist marrying the princess. Wouldn't this cause the princess to miss out on a good match? "
Filial piety was also a strong ethic of Confucianism. Meton once again used the spear of Confucianism to attack the shield of Confucianism. Moreover, what Meton said wasn't false. During the Song Dynasty, it was popular to wish for the prince consort. Moreover, the prince consort's status was very low. At that time, even the officials who passed the imperial exam weren't willing to marry the princess in order to prevent it from affecting their career, let alone the top scholar. The widely circulated case of Chen Shimei was nothing more than a play.
In history, the only example of a top scholar marrying a princess was during Emperor Wuzong's time. Zheng Hao married Princess Wan Shou. It was worth mentioning that Zheng Hao was forced to do so.
Li Shimin's expression suddenly changed. It wasn't just filial piety men who weren't willing to marry the princess. Perhaps even some unyielding men wouldn't be willing to marry the princess. After all, a dignified man wouldn't be willing to bow and bend the knee to a daughter, even if that person was a princess who was as beautiful as a fairy.
As a result, filial piety and unyielding men wouldn't be willing to marry the princess. Those who came forward were all spineless. How could they be a good match? Meton didn't lose anything by suing Quan Wanji for ruining the princess's marriage.
"This isn't what this Old Minister meant?" Quan Wanji was terrified. He originally thought that he was standing on the moral high ground, but he didn't expect that he would suffer the consequences of his own actions.
"How can the path of a monarch and minister be confused with the path of husband and wife? This Minister believes that wishing for the prince consort isn't desirable." Fang Xuanling was the first to object. If Fang Yiai married an ancestor, that would be the end of the Fang Clan.
Zhangsun Wuji, Cheng Yaojin, and Wei Zheng also objected. After all, Meton had already charged through the enemy lines for them. Meton and Princess Changle were free to fall in love, so it wouldn't affect them much. If they didn't speak up, they would be the ones to suffer in the end.
As the ministers expressed their opinions one by one, Quan Wanji's face turned ashen. He knew that this time, he had completely fallen under Mo Jiazi's sharp tongue. Even the imperial censors who had helped him before didn't say anything. They were afraid of bringing trouble to themselves.
Li Shimin took a deep breath and said, "The imperial family also abides by the law. Parents-In-Law should receive an audience with the princess to show the beauty of the country. From today onwards, when the princess marries, she will have to pay her respects to her parents-in-law. Don't mention wishing for the prince consort again. The princess' marriage will be permanent."
Apart from Meton and Zhangsun Chong, almost everyone who was betrothed to the princess was the second son of the first wife. If there was a prince consort, even the second son of the first wife wouldn't be willing to marry the princess.
"Your Majesty is wise!" The ministers immediately let out a sigh of relief, especially the ministers who were betrothed to the imperial family. They couldn't help but rejoice.
"The Minister doesn't have such intentions. He is wholeheartedly thinking for the princess!" Quan Wanji made a final struggle.
Meton sneered, "There's no need for Official Quan to worry about it. For the sake of marrying the princess, this Mo has already bought a house next to the Mo Estate and secretly built it for nearly a year. Now that it's mostly finished, it will be used as a wedding room. As for food, the Mo Estate's greenhouse is green all year round. We have all kinds of fruits and vegetables. We definitely won't let the princess suffer in terms of food and accommodation."
If it was someone else who said that they wouldn't let the princess suffer, perhaps some people would say that they were boasting. However, when it came from Mo Jiazi's mouth, no one would refute. The Mo Estate's food was the best in the world, and their craftsmanship was superb. Not to mention building a wedding room, even if they had enough time and materials, it wouldn't be difficult to build another Changle Palace.
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