Although Guo Jia did not object to such methods for the sake of the great undertaking of reform, they were absolutely out of the question under the present circumstances.
Scholars throughout the realm were now waiting for this great Confucian to declare his stance. If he died at this juncture, suspicion would easily fall on the Imperial Court.
Public controversy would not subside then, but would instead grow ever fiercer.
The people would believe that the Son of Heaven was muddleheaded, that he had established the Imperial Academy solely to make it easier to promote and appoint officials according to his own preferences, and that he had even gone so far as to kill a great Confucian scholar of the age to silence dissent.
That infamy was something he absolutely could not bear.
Liu Xie understood the stakes as well, so he asked, "Fengxiao, what are your thoughts on this matter? Do you have any solutions?"
Guo Jia pondered for a moment before saying, "I believe Zheng Xuan holds tremendous influence among the literati. We might be able to put that to use."
"Put it to use? How?"
Liu Xie raised his eyebrows and pressed him.
Guo Jia continued, "The Imperial Academy has faced obstacle after obstacle since its establishment and has never managed to gain a firm footing. That is because it lacks the endorsement of someone with sufficient influence and prestige to convince the scholars of the realm."
"Thus, if we can find a way to persuade Zheng Xuan to change his mind and support the establishment of the Imperial Academy, the voices of opposition will naturally disappear."
"That would be the best solution."
Liu Xie felt a wave of disappointment at those words. He knew persuading Zheng Xuan would be best, but the question was how.
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