Chapter 85: Unrivaled

Xu Bozhen tried to remain calm: "Just missing three sentences, what's so strange about that?"

Wang Yang said "Oh": "Then in that case, *Three Systems Calendar* quotes the *Bi Ming Feng Xing* chapter saying: 'In the twelfth year, the sixth month, Gengwu, the king ordered the strategy *Feng Xing*.' But the current *Ancient Text Book of Documents* does not have these sixteen characters. I suppose this is also an omission that is nothing strange?"

Xu Bozhen was speechless.

A Confucian scholar under the stage suddenly shouted indignantly: "Maybe the *Book of Documents* quoted by *Three Systems Calendar* is fake!"

Wang Yang waved his fan and asked: "Do you know who wrote the *Three Systems Calendar*?"

The scholar couldn't answer. Another scholar stood up and said in an unkind tone: "It's Liu Xin of the Western Han Dynasty, so what?"

"Liu Xin and his father Liu Xiang jointly corrected the books in the secret mansion. The book catalog *Bie Lu* compiled by them clearly records 'Fifty-eight chapters of the *Book of Documents*.' This is the true *Ancient Text Book of Documents*! Liu Xin also advocated establishing the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* as a school official! Liu Xin was a great scholar of the Western Han Dynasty. Is it possible that the version he saw was wrong, and instead, the version of Mei Ze three hundred years later is correct?"

Wang Yang finished speaking and looked at Shen Linsi: "Sir just said 'late-appearing books are not enough to be based on,' then I ask Sir, between the *Book of Documents* seen by Liu Xin and the *Book of Documents* seen by Mei Ze, which one is late-appearing?"

Shen Linsi was speechless and didn't know what to say!

In the southeast seat, another scholar argued loudly: "The examples Wang Young Master just cited are all from the Han Dynasty. After the burning of books in Qin, ancient books were incomplete, how can they be trusted?"

Wang Yang smiled:

"Han is after Qin, and ancient books are incomplete and cannot be trusted, then Jin is after Qin and Han, and the incompleteness is even worse, isn't it even less trustworthy? You said that the examples I cited are all from the Han Dynasty. Fine, then I will cite pre-Qin books as evidence. *Mozi: Shang Tong* records *Ancient Text Book of Documents: Great Oath* saying: 'When the villain sees treachery, he hears it and doesn't speak, and the crime is equal.' The current *Ancient Text Book of Documents* does not have this sentence. Is it possible that the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* seen by Mozi is also untrustworthy?"

The Confucian scholars who specialized in the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* were all pale when they saw Wang Yang answering fluently without any delay!

Liu Cheng was like falling into a cold pool!

"The current *Ancient Text Book of Documents* is fake, and there is much evidence!"

"First, according to *Book of Han: Bibliography* and *Biography of Prince Chu Yuan*, the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* in the Han Dynasty had sixteen more chapters than the *Modern Text Book of Documents*, while the current *Ancient Text Book of Documents* has twenty-five more chapters than the *Modern Text Book of Documents*. This is the difference in the number of chapters."

"Second, the Han version of the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* had chapter names like *Gu Zuo*, *Jiu Gong*, and *Dian Bao*, while the current *Ancient Text Book of Documents* does not have these chapters. This is the difference in chapter names."

"Third, the five pieces of lost text of the *Great Oath* chapter of the *Book of Documents* cited by pre-Qin literature not collected by the Eastern Han scholar Ma Rong are all included in the current *Ancient Text Book of Documents* according to Ma Rong's theory, but they do not reach those not cited by Ma Rong. For example, the thirteen characters of 'the villain sees treachery' cited by *Mozi: Shang Tong* mentioned earlier. This is the difference in content."

"Fourth, *Zuo Zhuan: Eighth Year of Zhuang Gong* quotes *Book of Documents: Xia Book* saying 'Gao Yao Mai Zhong De' after, and Duke Zhuang of Lu said: 'De Nai Jiang.' These three characters. The current *Ancient Text Book of Documents* actually included these three characters as the speech of Great Yu! This is a flaw of the forger."

"......"

In the original history, the doubts about the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* were only noticed after the rise of the "Skepticism of Antiquity" in the Song Dynasty, but it still could not shake the authority of the *Ancient Text Book of Documents*. This kind of skeptical debate lasted for more than six hundred years, during which many scholars emerged to verify and reason, but they never cleared up the truth.

It was not until the great scholar Yan Ruoqu of the Qing Dynasty, who inherited the past and opened up the future, wrote the book *Textual Research on the Ancient Text Book of Documents* after thirty years of immersion, listing ninety-nine pieces of evidence that the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* was a forgery, making the forgery of the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* that had confused people for thousands of years clear to the world, and it became the conclusion of the academic world!

Although Yan Ruoqu's merit is great, his textual research also has imperfections. So his contemporary Mao Qiling wrote *Unjust Words of the Ancient Text Book of Documents*, specifically refuting Yan Ruoqu's errors. Subsequent scholars or corrected or supplemented research, finally making the forgery of the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* a conclusion.

And Wang Yang synthesized the essence of these scholars' research, so his arguments were naturally high-level and well-founded.

On the surface, he was refuting all the scholars of the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* with his own strength, but in reality, he was backed by those great scholars who shone through the ages!

It's like you bringing all the powerful martial arts and traveling to *Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils*, then even Qiao Feng and Duan Yu cannot resist.

Just like Huang Jianxiang's commentary: He is not fighting alone!

This is the reason why even though Wang Yang knew that the three judges would favor the other side, he still had the confidence to fight.

To use an inappropriate metaphor: if the Flash went on the field to play football, would he need to worry about the problem of a biased referee?

So when Liu Cheng expected his brother to beat Wang Yang to pieces,

Wang Yang never took his brother as an opponent from the beginning; his opponents were all the scholars in the venue who believed in the *Ancient Text Book of Documents*!

At this time, no one could speak to argue with Wang Yang, and only Wang Yang's voice could be heard talking eloquently in the venue.

A group of great Confucian scholars were all stunned and could not say another word.

Liu Zhao was writing furiously, using shorthand, trying his best to record the main points of what Wang Yang said.

Xie Xinghan stared at Wang Yang, fully focused, afraid of missing a word.

But not all participants were concerned about learning. There were also those who just came to join in the fun.

For example, two students to the right of Xie Xinghan were not interested in learning. At first, when they heard Wang Yang argue that the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* was a forged book, they were shocked and felt it was incredible. Later, they began to chatter endlessly:

"...... This kid is lucky, look at that beautiful guard, she looks like a concubine."

"The Langya Wang family is so amazing, ordinary people have maids as concubines, and the Wang family's guards are also concubines!"

"These long legs are amazing! Tsk tsk tsk! If she went to the Reed Pavilion, she would definitely be the top card!"

"It's a pity the face is too cold."

"I just like cold ones."

"You're cheap."

"Aren't you cheap?"

The two whispered, and the people around who were listening carefully cast dissatisfied glances at them. But the two were completely unaware and became more and more excited as they talked. It felt like the more such an occasion, the happier they could chat!

Xie Xinghan raised her eyebrows and gave an order to Xiao Ning. Xiao Ning conveyed the master's order, and four green-clothed servants with short sticks at their waists stepped forward, covering their mouths and holding their legs, two carrying one, and dragged the two students who were chatting excitedly out without a sound.

Everyone around looked at Xie Xinghan, but Xie Xinghan ignored them and continued to listen to the lecture.

Seeing the situation out of control, Xu Bozhen was very anxious and said to Lu Huan, who had been silent: "Lu Lao, you have to say something!"

"Lu Lao?"

"Lu Lao!"

Lu Huan shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Truly, the younger generation is to be feared, what can I say?"

Xu Bozhen was indignant, his white beard shaking: "Could it be that Lu Lao also thinks the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* is fake?! A thousand years of teaching, the words of the sage, just because of this hairy boy's nitpicking textual research, you say it's fake?!"

Lu Huan pondered without speaking.

Shen Linsi also persuaded: "Yes! This battle is not about personal honor and disgrace. If this child succeeds, how will the scholars who study the *Ancient Text Book of Documents* in the world stand in the future?! Isn't the ancient text lineage cut off from now on? This is the autumn of the survival of ancient classics, please Lu Lao must come forward and preside over the overall situation!" ===== CHAPTER 86 =====