Chapter 2521: Empty Talk

Li Suiqiu lifted his teacup and took a sip to wet his parched throat. "When the Kun thieves first arrived, I assumed they were merely maritime merchants with some peculiar skills and tricks up their sleeves—that their purpose in settling Lingao was no different from the Franks in Macau. When Purple Company's Australian goods first appeared in Guangzhou, I even purchased an Australian mirror for my mother and wife. Never did I imagine that Governor Wang would later heed slander and insist on provoking them. I attended He Rubin's military parade in Guangzhou before his so-called 'Expedition to Qiongzhou.' Who could have foreseen that not only would He Rubin's entire army be annihilated, but they would fight their way to the gates of Wuyang Courier Station and extort three hundred thousand taels of silver as ransom for the city? Every village and town below Guangzhou Prefecture was ravaged. Only then did I recognize them for what they were: pirates with sturdy ships and devastating cannons. Later, I learned that other pirates on the seas had either been crushed or absorbed by the Australians, who had become undisputed overlords of the ocean. That was when I finally understood—these thieves are formidable bandits with unfathomable ambitions, far beyond the likes of Liu Xianglao or Zheng Zhilong.

"And later, at East Gao Villa, I watched from the rockery as they constructed their 'Iron Ladder' stretching all the way from the 'Great World'—iron automatic carts belching black smoke and white mist running along the tracks. The Australians advance relentlessly, step by step. Who would have imagined that these pirates, so adept at commerce and industry, would dare raise the banner of the Great Song to contend for the realm!"

Li Suiqiu's brows drew together, his face etched with anxiety.

Kuang Lu had been away from home for several years and lacked firsthand knowledge, so he asked, "Does Meizhou mean to suggest these people are not descendants of the Zhao Song?"

"Though their appearance resembles that of our people, everything they practice follows Far Western methods. Could descendants of the Zhao Song have drifted to the Far West and fabricated this tale of coming from Australia?" Li Suiqiu was equally puzzled. "Daoist Cui at the Temple of the Five Immortals often hosts small gatherings he calls 'salons.' I have attended them myself. Though the Australians have never stated it openly, anyone with discerning eyes knows that Fatty Cui is a True Kun. These 'salons' at the Temple discuss everything—astronomy, geography, the classics of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. They also demonstrate various ingenious machines. Hot air balloons ascend into the sky, allowing one to survey the entire prefectural city from above. Microscopes reveal that a single drop of water teems with eighty thousand creatures. Many scholars of weak constitution have already been seduced by these wonders."

Chen Zisheng spoke up. "Although the Australians' theories resemble those of the Far West, I believe the Australians surpass them. Matteo Ricci taught that 'the sky envelops the earth, so beneath the earth is still sky. A man's head touches the heavens while his feet stand upon the ground; the earth resides within the sky like a yolk within an egg, surrounded on all sides.' Yet Ricci held that the sky was finite, with the earth at its center, and above it lay nine celestial spheres—the Moon Heaven, Mercury Heaven, Venus Heaven, Sun Heaven, Mars Heaven, Jupiter Heaven, Saturn Heaven, Fixed Star Heaven, and Starless Crystal Heaven—crowned by the Primum Mobile and the Empyrean, with sun, moon, and stars all revolving around the earth. The Australians, however, possess a solar system model with the sun at its center, and beyond the planets lies only void. This is far more elegant than Western theories. Seasonal changes, solar and lunar eclipses, all manner of celestial phenomena—their model explains everything. Moreover, their ships are sturdier and their cannons more deadly. If the Australians originated from the Far West, why does no one there know their origins?"

Li Suiqiu nodded. "What Qiaosheng says is reasonable, but this is precisely what troubles me."

"What do you mean?" Kuang Lu and Chen Zisheng asked in unison.

Li Suiqiu said, "When Western methods first entered China, Xu Guangqi and others embraced them wholeheartedly. The Westerners claim that sailing from the Far West to China, upon reaching the equator shown on their maps, one can observe both the North and South Poles level with the horizon, with scarcely any elevation. When the voyage turns south past the Cape of Good Hope, the South Pole rises to thirty-six degrees above the horizon—thus the Cape and China stand opposite, top and bottom. The sun and moon traverse north and south across the heavens through the twenty-eight lunar mansions. In the southern sky lie unknown stars, presumed to circle the South Pole. The north has the Purple Forbidden Enclosure, Taiyi, and other celestial formations—but why does the south lack equivalents? Does this not invert the natural hierarchy of superior and inferior? How fortunate are those born near the North Pole, how unfortunate those born near the South! Does this not still define the distinction between Hua and Yi, between Chinese and foreigner?

"Since the earth is round like a melon rind, taking the North and South Poles as its stem and navel—if one views the rind from inside the melon, there is an object attached between stem and navel rotating with the melon itself. The region near the navel forms the Southern Path, narrowing as it approaches. The region departing the navel toward the stem forms the Northern Path, broad and expansive. Thus on the Summer Solstice, day and night are equal in length; on the Winter Solstice, day and night are equal in length. But when days grow short, why must they still complete a full day and night, exhausting one-quarter of the three hundred sixty degrees? The theorists remain blind to the absurdity of their claims, saying 'what is day above is night below.' Do they not realize that under such a theory, the degrees can no longer be uniform? There must exist a country whose inhabitants' heads point toward the South Pole; when the sun passes through the Tail and Winnowing Basket constellations, it simply circles overhead without deviation—surely there can be no rising or setting, only endless day! And there must be another country whose heads point toward the North Pole; at that same time, would it not be endless night? If their theory holds true—that above, below, and on all sides lie mountains, rivers, grass, trees, and people, with no fixed up or down where they dwell—then if we say there is no distinction between east, west, south, north, up, and down, pushing this reasoning to its conclusion, it would seem all people hang upside down in the world, and the hierarchy of noble and lowly established in the Book of Changes through 'high heaven and low earth' can no longer be determined. Should such theories spread and bring calamity, making everyone believers, in time there will be no distinction between ruler and subject..."

"What Meizhou says is absolutely correct." Chen Zizhuang, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke. "Whether it is Matteo Ricci's 'Map of Ten Thousand Countries' or the Kun people's 'World Map,' China is called Asia, while the Western Ocean is called Europa. I do not know the explanation for Europa, but inferring from the Far West, it must be words aggrandizing their greatness. As for 'Ya'—the Erya explains it as 'secondary.' The Shuowen Jiezi says 'ugly.' The Zengyun says 'few.' And 'Xi'—the Shuowen Jiezi says 'tiny,' the Yupian says 'few.' Asia is a Western word; in Chinese, it means 'Secondary Small Sub-Continent.' The insult to China could not be more extreme. Modern scholars discussing history often sneer at the Zhao Song for its weakness. Yet when Yuanhao changed his name to Wuzu, meaning 'My Ancestor' in Chinese, Ouyang Wenzhong submitted a memorial saying: 'These two words, My Ancestor—what manner of speech is this? "My" means me. "Ancestor" means what common folk call "Weng"—father or grandfather. If we permit him this title, then in future imperial edicts we must address him as My Ancestor, creating a situation where the court calls a barbarian thief "My Father." I do not know who would dare utter such words. Moreover, when the barbarian thief devised this name and title, he deliberately intended to insult and mock China. Now, from Yuanhao down, for all names and official titles, they employ barbarian terms and observe barbarian rites in everything—how then can they use Chinese only for this one title? To be our subject, yet compel us to call him Ancestor! We should cite this to refute him and beg leave to reject it.' Yet people today willingly accept insults and disrespect from Westerners and Kun people without even recognizing them. Why has not a single person seen through their treachery?" He finished with a succession of sighs.

Seeing his elder brother's distress, Chen Zisheng rose and bowed to Chen Zizhuang and Li Suiqiu, his face flushed with shame. "I am grateful for the instruction of my two elder brothers. This foolish younger brother was previously captivated by the elegance of Australian theories and failed to perceive their underlying intentions. I am truly ashamed."

Li Suiqiu said, "Both Westerners and Kun people calculate their calendars by the sun, thus they model the circular rotation of north and south paths as round instruments, like copper spheres. This does not contradict the canopy-heaven theory but merely assumes the earth sits at the center of the sky. Westerners and Kun people stubbornly maintain that China is minuscule while Europe and Australia are vast and distant. Yet if we reason from the canopy theory, the earth would be larger than the sky—so they must invent the Globe Theory to extend their argument. It is most fortunate that Qiaosheng understands this and remains undeceived!"

Chen Bangyan was close with Chen Zisheng in ordinary times. Though he had corresponded with Chen Zizhuang, this was their first meeting in person. Seeing that the group had reached some consensus, he spoke. "The gentlemen present are truly learned, and this student is filled with admiration. In my humble opinion, the resonance between heaven and mankind concerns the very safety of the state. Throughout the dynasties, interpretation of celestial phenomena has been controlled by the imperial family, with the Directorate of Astronomy established to specialize in such matters and others forbidden from meddling. Now the Kun people teach indiscriminately, instructing children with hair still in tufts in methods never taught in past dynasties. Moreover, their theories instill meanings of no superior or inferior, no ruler or subject, no noble or lowly. The spreading poison runs deep—this is truly a method to use the barbarian to transform the Chinese. Their intentions deserve punishment."

Li Suiqiu said, "In my view, what the Australians scheme for extends beyond these rivers and mountains of state. As for the path of Sage Learning, they constantly disparage it—revealing a grand ambition to invert heaven and earth."

"Could it be that the Kun thieves truly intend to rule the country as merchants?"

"That merchants would rule the country may not be accurate. It is simply that we will not be among those who do."

"This is truly inconceivable." Kuang Lu, having lived abroad for so long, knew little of Guangzhou's circumstances and could not help exclaiming, "Since Dong Zhongshu, every dynasty without exception has taken Confucianism as its foundation. It has been a thousand years since the Sui Emperor established the examination system. Duke Wenzhong of the Zhao Song—Wen Yanbo—once told Shenzong: 'Your Majesty rules the realm alongside the scholar-officials, not alongside the common people.' Only the Mongol Yuan rarely selected scholars through imperial examinations, and so their mandate lasted no more than a century. The Taizu Emperor rose from common cloth, drove the Tartars north, and restored China. For more than two hundred years, the state has been built upon nothing but the heart's blood of scholars. Since the Kun people claim descent from the Song Dynasty, do they not understand this principle?"

"They understand the principle well enough, but people learn differently." Chen Bangyan paced the hall as he spoke. "When the Kun people first arrived in Lingao, so it is said, they possessed the land of a single ship and a following of no more than a few hundred. Yet within a few short years, they gathered a host of one hundred thousand, swept aside the government army, and seized Qiongzhou. The people followed them gladly. Have you heard of any scholar contributing to this? Their obscure arts and cunning tricks turn stone to gold; their ships are sturdy and cannons devastating—have you heard of any scholar contributing to this? Today, in the governance of Guangzhou, the citizens praise it with one voice—have you heard of any scholar contributing to this? The Kun people's so-called 'Good Governance' is governance that does not share the realm with scholar-officials, yet still governs effectively! The affairs of Guangzhou are merely a repetition of the Qiongzhou story!"

Chen Bangyan's words forced everyone present to confront the question they had subconsciously tried to avoid: the Kun people were already, or were about to become, a separatist regime contending with the imperial court—and they had no place within that system. Whether they would even wish to join was another matter entirely.

Recalling the phrase the Kun people repeated most often after entering the city—"Stand up, do not kneel! Our Great Song does not practice this!"—they truly could not imagine how a separatist regime with no superior or inferior, no ruler or subject, no noble or lowly, one that deviated so utterly from the Confucian concepts engraved in their bones over decades, could possibly function.

What maddened them even more was that in the current situation, they seemed to have done nothing wrong, yet could do nothing—or had perhaps done nothing at all.

If an Australian Senator had witnessed this meeting, he would certainly have sent them a quip: "Inconvenient truths, the certainty of death, and mustaches on women are three things we would rather ignore."

(End of Chapter)