On Rites

"Oh?" Qiu Yan stopped, narrowed his eyes, and looked at the person blocking his way. "I wonder what kind of etiquette you are referring to? Please enlighten me."

When these words were spoken, a chill inexplicably rose in the heart of the person opposite. He swallowed hard, forced himself to calm down, and then said, "If you want to speak with my senior brother, you must first state your name and lineage."

"Hmm?" Qiu Yan was slightly taken aback.

At this moment, Gao Song turned around, glanced at Qiu Yan, smiled faintly, and then waved to the person blocking his way, saying, "We've come here to participate in the evaluation. Outsiders don't know etiquette, so it's up to us to teach them a lesson."

"Senior brother is right." The man nodded and took a step back.

Then Gao Song stepped forward and looked at Qiu Yan, saying, "Brother, judging from your appearance, you've come straight here for me. May I ask what brings you here?" When he spoke, he had a calm demeanor, seemingly approachable, yet there was also an air of superiority about him.

Qiu Yan was displeased and frowned, but since he had already come, he suppressed his displeasure and said, "I have heard that Ritual Reverence Academy has unique insights into the Way of Sage Sun, and I have come to seek your guidance."

"So you've come to seek my guidance," Gao Song nodded. "You can ask me anything you don't understand, but before that, I need to tell you some principles."

"Teach me principles?" A glint of light flashed in Qiu Yan's eyes. In just a short while, he had been stopped by someone, and then listened to Gao Song's words. He had gleaned some characteristics from the man and knew that the person in front of him was pretentious.

"Our Ritual Reverence Academy has always Ritual Reverence. Since you wish to learn from Sage Sun, you should know that all propriety begins with the pillars, is completed through literature, and ends with joyful conduct. Every action can be traced back to this. Judging from your tone, you must have studied Sage Sun's methods, but merely knowing Sage Sun's teachings is not enough; one must put them into practice. You say you want to learn from me, but you haven't shown enough propriety, nor have you demonstrated sincerity."

"It begins with simple forms and is completed with written forms." This phrase comes from Sage Sun's "On Treatise on Rites," which describes the process of the formation of rites. Initially, they are expressed in simple and incomplete ways. Once they are written down, they are formed and eventually conform to people's wishes and are promoted.

But here, Gao Song used it to attack Qiu Yan, saying that he didn't pay attention to etiquette.

After speaking, Gao Song glanced at Qiu Yan again and smiled, "Have you remembered this? Take it as a lesson."

The surrounding Confucian scholars immediately cheered, feeling that Gao Song truly deserved to be a top student of the Ritual Reverence Academy. He demonstrated a strict self-discipline and advocated that every action should conform to etiquette.

Qiu Yan was baffled. He had simply come over to discuss scholarship with Gao Song, and the two had never met before. So why did Gao Song speak in such an lecturing tone, his words filled with accusations against Qiu Yan?

"I don't know how Gao Song reads books. I only asked him a question, but he acted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. It's really inexplicable."

Little did he know that Gao Song, as the leading figure of this generation at the Ritual Reverence Academy, and located in a literary hub like Eastern Capital, would inevitably have to interact and debate with other academies on a daily basis. Especially at literary gatherings like this, he could not let his guard down at any time. Otherwise, a single careless word could become a weakness that would be seized upon by people from other academies and used to make a big fuss.

In the past, countless outstanding figures, who had finally established a reputation, ultimately suffered disgrace and ruin due to the debates, competitions, and intrigues among academies.

This Literary Pavilion Appraisal is not only an opportunity for the major academies in Eastern Capital to suppress other academies, but also a crisis. If they are not careful, they may be suppressed by other academies and their reputations will be ruined.

Before even entering Literary Pavilion, Gao Song and his group encountered several people from other academies and engaged in two debates. The debates were truly fierce, with murderous intent lurking in the shadows. A moment's carelessness could lead to disaster. After these two rounds, both Gao Song and the scholars beside him were on edge.

As a result, after entering Literary Pavilion, he hadn't walked far when he ran into Qiu Yan. As mentioned earlier, few people would actually seek advice from someone like Qiu Yan, who specifically chose to do so at a literary gathering. This gathering was a time to showcase one's abilities, and who would dare to be careless?

Therefore, everyone at the Ritual Reverence Academy immediately regarded Qiu Yan as a person with ulterior motives and launched a scathing attack on him without distinguishing right from wrong.

This displeased Qiu Yan. Although he did not want to spread his empty fame through literary gatherings, he also had no intention of becoming a stepping stone for others.

"Ritual Reverence Academy takes rites as its name and also teaches the teachings of Sage Sun, but now it seems that it has put the cart before the horse."

Qiu Yan shook his head and looked directly at Gao Song: "Sage Sun once said that humans are born with desires, and the struggle for desires leads to chaos. Therefore, rites and righteousness were established to regulate these Human Desires, and to provide for human needs. Rites are not empty formalities, but rather a means of regulating resources. Yet, in your mouths, they seem to have become truths that cannot be violated for even a moment. This is like inventing a hoe but not using it to cultivate the land; instead, you simply worship it. If Ritual Reverence Academy only has this kind of understanding, then I, Qiu, am greatly disappointed."

Human beings are driven by desires, which lead to conflict. Insatiable desires make it difficult for the world to be at peace. Therefore, there must be Order to restrain people's hearts, control desires, and meet needs, so that Human Path does not get out of control or become exhausted. This is the "rites" in Qiu Yan's mind.

This is a standard, a means, not an end.

This was his conclusion after studying Sage Sun's works and comprehending the Sage Spirit. However, when it came to the people at the Ritual Reverence Academy, it became a formality used to confirm "sincerity."

After saying this, Qiu Yan bowed to Gao Song, turned around and left without saying another word.

"This person..."

The disciples of the Ritual Reverence Academy's expressions changed drastically, but Gao Song, the leader, simply shook his head and laughed, "He's just making a show of shocking things. I've seen countless people like him; it's not surprising that he wants to make a name for himself through unorthodox methods."

He turned to the Human Path around him and asked, "Which academy does this person belong to? Does anyone know him?"

Those who heard this shook their heads.

Gao Song then said, "That's it. Judging from his appearance, this person is not qualified to enter any academy. He doesn't know etiquette. Although what he said makes sense, how can one sweep the world if one can't even sweep one's own room? If one can't even control one's own behavior, how can one comprehend deeper principles? Judging from his words and actions, he is a madman who wants to seize the opportunity of Literary Pavilion Appraisal to compete. If we argue with him, we will fall into his trap."

"I see, Senior Brother sees things more clearly." After thinking about it carefully, the group felt that Gao Song's words made sense, but they still felt a little unhappy and couldn't help but cast unfriendly glances at Qiu Yan.

Even Gao Song, after saying these words, appeared nonchalant on the surface, but in reality, he gave Qiu Yan a deep look.

In any case, he had to maintain his composure and demeanor, and not fall behind in academics. Besides, he was confident that he was second to none among the younger generation in Chinese literature, and he was not afraid even if Qiu Yan had some connections.

"Brother Qiu, how was it? Are the people from the Ritual Reverence Academy difficult to deal with?" Xu Miao greeted Qiu Yan as he returned.

Cao Jin also came over, saying, "I have had good hearing since I was a child, and I can hear the teacher lecturing from a long distance. To tell you the truth, Gao Song was just saying that you, Brother Qiu, were putting on a show of surprise." Then he repeated what Gao Song had said.

Qiu Yan chuckled, "Gao Song is using this as an excuse to criticize me. Instead of admitting that he's too harsh on people, he's saying I lack self-control. Since I started studying, I've always believed that one must first correct oneself before teaching others. Gao Song himself can't even behave politely. When I asked him for advice, he didn't treat me with courtesy but instead condescendingly reprimanded me. Now he demands that everyone else's words and actions conform to ancient principles. He's a person who's lenient with himself but strict with others."

Cao Jin seemed to be deep in thought, but finally said, "Brother Qiu's words make sense and are thought-provoking, but it's best not to spread them around."

"Oh?" Qiu Yan was taken aback at first, then nodded, understanding.

In fact, the Confucianism concept of "rites," under the advocacy of the Supreme Sage Confucius and the Second Sage Qiu Yan, largely falls under the categories of moral self-discipline and moral sentiment, reflecting a person's cultivation. This is why others agreed with Gao Song's criticism of Qiu Yan's words and actions.

However, Sage Sun's teachings Transcendence this category, evolving into external Order and rigid Principle. His students and disciples used this framework to perfect Legalist School, but this is also a point of criticism against Sage Sun. As he rose to the status of a second-class sage, his teachings were increasingly denigrated.

Qiu Yan was deep in thought when someone suddenly called his name from the doorway.

"Qiu Yan! You really came..."

The voice was clear and crisp. Qiu Yan didn't need to turn around to guess who the speaker was. Sure enough, not long after, Han Wei'er, dressed in men's clothing, walked over.

Along with this came a series of gazes, each carrying a different meaning.

At that moment, Qiu Yan suddenly became the focus of everyone's attention, not because of Han Wei'er, but because of her shout, which exposed Qiu Yan's identity.

"Qiu Yan? Could he be that traveling scholar who defeated He Shuchang in debate?"

"I heard that this person has attracted the attention of Junior Chen, who wants to take him on as his successor..."

"Someone this powerful would even appear here?"

"He Shuchang was his defeated opponent, but he has already joined the Scholar Forest. It's rather strange that this person is still outside..."

"This Qiu Yan has some reputation. If we can defeat him in a debate, we can immediately replace his reputation with fame and become famous Eastern Capital. It will have been worth the trip."

Discussions arose, and a sense of chaos filled the building as the scholars began to stir.

Seeing this situation, Qiu Yan shook his head helplessly. When he was asking for advice earlier, he deliberately kept his name from being leaked, not because he was afraid of trouble, but to avoid problems. He did not expect that Han Wei'er's seemingly unintentional shout would change things.

"Unintentionally?"

With a sudden thought, Qiu Yan's gaze swept across Han Wei'er's face. He noticed that this young lady from a noble Aristocratic Clan, disguised as a man, had an excited expression on her face, her eyes filled with anticipation, and she exuded an air of wanting to stir up trouble.

ps:

Thanks to "Can't Play" for the tip! Thanks to "cyanc" for the evaluation vote!