Chapter 13 – A Hand Overturns the World

Xuanjing City, the Zhuangyuan Tower.

A group of scholars had gathered together to examine the several scrolls of ancient texts that had recently shaken the entire realm.

Ever since the texts had surfaced days ago, the city’s bookshops had been printing copies without pause. Even so, demand far outstripped supply. These scholars had only managed to purchase a few scrolls today after great difficulty, and so they had invited a group of friends to come and appreciate them together.

“The highest good is like water — water benefits all things and contends with none. Wonderful, simply wonderful!”

“The Dao gives birth to one, one gives birth to two, two gives birth to three, and three gives birth to all things. Just a few words, yet reading them, one feels infinite profundity. This scripture is truly extraordinary!”

“In my opinion, these three thousand words alone are worth more than everything I have ever read before!”

“I feel the same way!”

“No, no, no — in my view, the 《Yi》 is even more exquisite than the 《dao De Ching》. Though the language is obscure and abstruse, every word is a pearl, as if it contains the ultimate principles of heaven and earth.”

“Precisely! ‘As heaven maintains vigor through movement, a gentleman should constantly strive for self-improvement!’ It speaks the very heart of our generation!”

The scholars chattered excitedly, all wearing expressions of utter absorption.

Just then, one of them suddenly let out a long sigh. “Who would have thought that such brilliantly exquisite writing lay buried underground for thousands of years, unknown to anyone. Every time I think of this, it pains me deeply!”

His words drew agreement from the crowd.

“Indeed. My late master loved reading more than anything in life. If he could have read these scrolls, imagine how gratified he would have been.”

“All the scholars throughout history who never had the chance to encounter these scriptures — what misfortune!”

“But are these texts truly the work of the ancients, lost to war, with only fragments preserved in ancient tombs? When I read the 《Nanhua》 and the 《Lunyu》, the people, events, and things mentioned in them appear nowhere in existing historical records.” A somewhat discordant voice rose from among the group.

The crowd fell silent for a moment, then delivered their verdict with absolute certainty.

“It must be so. Such writing could never be forged by anyone living today. Existing historical records cover only the last three thousand years. Before that, there are virtually no detailed accounts. Surely these classics are products of that earlier era.”

“I’ve heard that when the School of Antiquarian Studies had their audience with the emperor, they said that in high antiquity, there was an era when a hundred schools of thought contended, and the classics produced were as numerous as the stars in the sky — beyond counting. The few scrolls we are reading now are merely an insignificant fraction of the whole.”

The moment these words left his mouth, gasps of astonishment erupted throughout the tavern.

“Can this be true?!”

“The thought that so many classic works still lie buried underground, unseen by the world — it fills me with unbearable anguish! I cannot sleep at night!”

“I wonder what the other classics must be like.”

…

“But after all, these ancient texts are hidden deep within various tombs. The School of Antiquarian Studies’ proposal to conduct large-scale excavations of tombs in search of lost classics is truly a violation of moral propriety.”

The scholars instinctively moved to voice their agreement, but when they thought of the countless classic works still waiting underground to be unearthed, their tone became far less resolute.

“Didn’t the leader of the School of Antiquarian Studies say so himself? What they practice is preservation — rescue excavation. They are not engaging in destruction.”

“That’s right. I’ve heard that whenever they excavate a tomb, they don’t recklessly destroy everything and take only gold and silver like common grave robbers. Instead, they carefully remove every item within, properly preserving each one. If anything is damaged, they even have specialists responsible for restoration.”

“Indeed, one cannot simply equate them with grave robbers.”

However, there were still quite a few among the group who held opposing views.

“Those are just pretty words. What’s really different? Who among us here has no ancestors? If your own ancestors’ tombs were excavated like this, how would you feel?”

“This precedent must never be set, or the consequences will be endless. We should do everything in our power to dissuade them.”

“Precisely so.”

…

There were also some who offered no opinion of their own, playing the role of peacemakers.

“The emperor and the court ministers have surely already reached a conclusion on this matter. We needn’t worry ourselves overly much.”

“Let us wait and see, wait and see.”

…

As the 《dao De Ching》 and the other texts spread throughout the realm, fierce debates erupted across all of Great Xuan.

Scenes like the one in the Zhuangyuan Tower today were playing out in countless places.

Li Fan knew that trying to shift the thinking of the entire world in a short time was simply impossible.

For now, this was only the beginning.

But Li Fan was not the least bit worried that things wouldn’t work out.

In the current world, it was scholars who held the power of discourse.

With countless classics as bait, Li Fan had no fear that these scholars wouldn’t take it.

Moreover, Li Fan didn’t even need their support — he only needed them not to stand up in opposition.

…

While secretly maneuvering to reshape the world, Li Fan was also steadily advancing the School of Antiquarian Studies’ influence in secular society.

In the sixth year of anchoring, the emperor suddenly fell gravely ill, bedridden. The imperial physicians were all at a loss. At that moment, the School of Antiquarian Studies presented a pill to the emperor. They claimed it had been found in an ancient tomb, believed to have been left behind by an immortal, with the power to bring the dead back to life and restore flesh to bare bone. Taking it might resolve the crisis.

The emperor initially paid it no heed, but as his condition worsened day by day, and with death’s door fast approaching, he took the pill with the attitude of trying anything as a last resort.

To everyone’s astonishment, the pill proved miraculously effective. Within just a few days, the emperor was fully restored to health.

The court was shaken, and ministers buzzed with discussion.

The emperor even summoned the leader of the School of Antiquarian Studies to the palace in a late-night audience, questioning him in detail about matters of immortals. He did not hold court for days on end.

From that point on, the emperor became a firm believer in the existence of immortals. He secretly instructed trusted generals in the military to cooperate with the School of Antiquarian Studies in searching ancient tombs for traces of immortals.

In the ninth year of anchoring, the School of Antiquarian Studies held an exhibition in Xuanjing City, inviting court ministers and the capital’s nobles and aristocrats to attend.

Though these people were themselves extraordinarily wealthy and well-traveled, upon seeing the priceless treasures on display at the exhibition, every one of them was utterly captivated, lingering and reluctant to leave.

After this, the School of Antiquarian Studies went further and opened its doors to the public — ordinary citizens needed only to purchase a ticket to enter and view the collection.

Xuanjing City was instantly in an uproar.

Countless people lined up, eager to catch a glimpse of the treasures inside. The crowds were so immense that they caused gridlock on the capital’s roads. Only when the emperor issued a decree and garrison troops were deployed in armor to maintain order did the situation avoid escalating into a greater disturbance.

The spectacle continued for more than half a month.

After that, far from ceasing, the exhibition began touring various regions, opening in one location after another across Great Xuan.

In the eleventh year of anchoring, Jianghuai Prefecture cracked a major tomb-robbing case and arrested a team of over a hundred grave robbers.

This gang had been conducting large-scale excavations of ancient tombs deep in the mountains, causing incalculable damage.

By law, every one of them should have been sentenced to death.

But the number of people involved was enormous and the case’s reach too broad. Li Fan, the prefect of Jianghuai Prefecture, did not dare make the decision on his own. He submitted a memorandum and had it delivered to Xuanjing City by express courier at eight hundred li per day, requesting the emperor’s judgment.

One minister, upon hearing of the case, was so incensed that he submitted a memorandum demanding immediate execution.

Yet strangely, the vast majority of court ministers remained silent.

The emperor, too, set aside all the related memorandums without comment.

A full month passed before the emperor’s edict finally arrived.

No death sentences were imposed. The criminals were merely sentenced to permanent servitude and taken into the capital.

Virtually none of the court ministers submitted objections.

Li Fan looked at the edict and smiled faintly, knowing the tide had turned in his favor.