In addition to Pan Wei, Song Qin, and Cai Yuncheng, the last scholar who went to sea with the group was called Li Sixiao.

Just when Song Qin was summarizing the methods of scientific research, Li Sixiao entered the room with "Principles of Philosophy" and said excitedly: "Brother Yang, the book you recommended is really well written, Descartes is really a great Confucian!" ”

Song Qin said with a smile: "The Great Confucianism can't be talked about, and he is not a Confucian, but he is indeed a European sage." ”

"Otherwise," said Li Sixiao, shaking his head, "this Descartes is indeed a great Confucian, even if he has not read the Confucian classics." The truth that this person comprehended, I also translate it as 'mind-matter theory' (mind-object dualism), which is secretly in line with Yang Minggong's mind and learning avenue! ”

"Huh?"

Song Qin was stunned when he heard this.

Li Sixiao analyzed: "Descartes doubted everything, he believed in God, but he said that he was not sure that God existed. Because only suspicion is real, and conviction is questionable. Skepticism proves that people are thinking, and thinking is the proof of people's existence, so 'I think, therefore I am'. He was convinced of his own existence and tried to prove the existence of God and the world. Thinking is the heart and conscience. I think, therefore I am, isn't there nothing outside the heart? ”

Song Qin muttered: "This explanation is too far-fetched, right?" ”

"It's not far-fetched!"

Li Sixiao began to gush: "Yang Minggong's heart has nothing outside it, and the heart is the same as the object." Without the heart of the spirit, there will be no heaven, earth, ghosts, gods and all things; Without heaven, earth, ghosts, gods, and all things, there is no spiritual heart. Descartes said that he thought about himself in order to prove that God and the world exist. Without God's mind, without this world, he could not think. Yang Ming Gong and Descartes, isn't it the same truth? ”

Song Qin didn't like things with empty heads, so he didn't bother to refute it, nodded and said, "Maybe." ”

Li Sixiao said again:

Descartes said that the world is complex, and that man can never really see things holistically, and only God can do that. Therefore, the way people study the world should divide the problem into details, and study it in isolation and stillness as much as possible. ”

Yang Ming Gong also said that the Tao cannot be spoken. And he said, "It is a thing to do evil for the sake of good." Besides, one must be trained in things. What is the character of Yang Ming Gong, and he has to hone his kung fu in things. He also said, "Do things according to the times." Isn't it just about the facts, isn't it about the division of things? The ready-made school, the Returning School, and the Orthodox School of Mind Learning, they all have their own methods. And we scholars who study the world should find another way to comprehend the study of mind, and this Descartesian knowledge will cooperate with the study of mind to understand and guide our study of the world. ”

"Descartes had a theory of mind and matter, and Yang Ming Gong said that the mind is reasonable. matter, which can be attributed to qi. Isn't the theory of mind and matter the theory of qi reason? ”

Song Qin was dumbfounded when he heard this, okay, he turned around in a big circle and returned to Song Ming's science.

Li Sixiao said: "Qi and reason are inseparable. To be unreasonable is to be unintentional, that is, to be unable to think, and to be unable to appreciate the rules of all things in the world. Without air, neither people nor things exist. Qi and reason, according to Descartes, are the preceding existence of reason. Since God existed first, and with God, there are all things and human hearts. ”

"Isn't it, the god of Descartes can be understood as Zhuzi's Wuji or Taiji. The heart is reason. Qi is the world. We have hearts, we have consciences, we can think, we can study the world. We are born to know as saints, and we are not saints, so we need to learn from things. To study the world and to study knowledge is to have a conscience and to explore all things in the universe. Knowing that there is a disability, so we must be suspicious, so we must put aside our prejudices. ”

"The existence of cognitive impairment, the ignorance of the mind, must have what you call epistemology and methodology."

Song Qin didn't know much about psychology, and even knew only the surface of science, he was not interested in traditional things, and his mind was all about scientific research.

However, it is true that it is possible to put a layer of skin.

Li Sixiao continued: "There is no essential difference between the worldviews of science and mind, and we do not need to overturn it, but we can use it. ”

"So, there is a worldview for doing research. First, there is Wuji or Taiji, which is what Descartes said about God. Tai Chi is divided into two instruments, giving birth to qi and deriving all things in heaven and earth. Reason is the heart, conscience, the rules of heaven and earth, and the ability of human thought. Qi is the object of our study, which is all things in the world. ”

"And epistemology is there. We are not saints and cannot be born to know. Confucius, Meng Yasheng, is only the most holy teacher, not a true saint. What they say is not necessarily right. So we have to be skeptical, we have to study the world rationally. We have to be suspicious of any rule of truth that cannot be clearly proven. Even what Confucius said should be doubted. Use suspicion to study everything, and work what Yang Minggong said. Doing evil for the sake of good is the object, good is the truth, and evil is hypocrisy. ”

"So there is a methodology, which is what Descartes said!"

Song Qin just doesn't care about mundane things, but he is not a real fool.

He knew that natural science research was still a side path. The current emperor supports it, but the future emperor may not necessarily suppress and oppose it. If you want the natural sciences to be recognized, if you want to become the mainstream of academia, you can't abandon everything that is traditional.

Suddenly, Song Qin smiled and said, "You and my brother, how about doing this together?" ”

Li Sixiao said happily: "That's what I mean!" It's a pity that there is no real Confucianism among the envoys. The two of us can only set a general framework first. When I return to Nanjing, I will visit the famous Confucian. Look for those enlightened Confucian scholars, such as Huang Zongxi, Gu Yanwu and the like. Whether they criticize or encourage, they ask them to blame their mistakes and omissions. Then call on the scholars of the Qintian Academy to all flesh out this theory. In time, it will come to fruition! ”

In a word, the two wanted to borrow the Confucianism set of skins and use the old bottles of Confucianism to fill the new wine of science.

This kind of thing is normal, especially at the end of the Ming Dynasty, when the Chinese ideological circles were simply dancing with demons and a lot of various ideas. Even the science of science and mind, which are incompatible with fire and water, have been improved and put together to form various new schools.

Li Sixiao's set of theories, among the countless new thoughts, actually does not seem too outrageous, because there are even more outrageous people.

Nowadays, it is not the traditional science that monopolizes the academic world, but the best period for the birth of new ideas, and the best time for the formation of theories in the natural sciences.

Their core point is that what Confucius said is not necessarily right, that is, the skeptical spirit of science. This kind of thinking is also out of line, there are not a few non-Confucian people in the late Ming Dynasty, and many Confucian scholars want to break through the cage of Confucius and Mencius. It's just that history was interrupted by the Manchu Qing Dynasty. In order to establish legitimacy, the Manchu Qing erected Confucius, and all the active and advanced ideas died under power.

"Cheng Zhu has science, King Lu has heart, what should we call it?" Song Qin asked.

Li Sixiao smiled: "We study the world, and our worldview is generally the same as that of science. The key lies in Gewu, and Gewu is heavily doubted, and in doubt, Gewu is the truth of Gewu. How about calling it 'Gewuxue'? Maybe a hundred years later, some people will use your and my surnames to call Gewuxue 'Song and Li Zhixue'. ”

Mathematics, astronomy, and geography are all traditional miscellaneous subjects.

As for physics, there is no need for Zhao Han to name it, it already existed at the end of the Ming Dynasty, and it was taken from the "Principle of Gewu".

Li Sixiao's ambition is very great, and he wants to unify all miscellaneous sciences, that is, natural sciences, into "Gewuxue".

The truth that comes out of Gewu must stand up to verification. We must doubt everything, what cannot stand the test is false reason, and what can stand up to the test is the truth. In the future, there will be no authority in academia, but skepticism and rationality will be authority. There are no saints, only scholars who are constantly striving for conscience.

Confucius is still the same Confucius, but not the Confucius.

At this moment, far away in Paris, Queen Anne ordered the gathering of scholars and artists. The main convenees were young celebrities from the Académie Française, or disciples of older scholars, to send ten people to China for exchanges.

Of course, it is not to exchange natural sciences, but to study the Chinese theory of Zhongjun, music, painting, architecture, sculpture, and so on.

Bryce Pascal, who is only 30 years old, has just finished his Essays on Liquid Balance and Air Weight. As early as the age of sixteen, he completed "On Conic Curves", leaving behind the "Pascal's theorem". He invented calculators, studied vacuum and atmospheric pressure, improved mercury barometers, and used barometers for weather forecasting. Even Leibniz's invention of calculus drew on Pascal's research manuscripts.

If we follow the trajectory of history, just next year, such a scientific bull will turn to theological research in an all-round way.

Proceeding from skepticism, this gentleman came to the conclusion of religion: neither sensual nor rational knowledge is reliable, and therefore faith is above all else!

Later, during the study of theology, he took a leave of absence to recuperate due to illness, and in addition to being in a panic, he also engaged in some scientific research. For example, he corresponded with the mathematician Fermat and laid the foundation for modern probability.

His name is Pascal, and the unit of pressure is abbreviated as "Pascal".

"Can I go to China? In correspondence with Mr. Descartes, he said that the study of mathematics in China was progressing. Pascal asked.

The official said in disgust: "We only recruit scholars from the academy, or disciples of scholars. You are only a peripheral member of the academic academy, what qualifications do you have to go to China? ”

Pascal said, "The emperor of China was a mathematician. Mr. Descartes, who corresponded with the Jesuit clergy. His Majesty, the Emperor of China, like Mr. Descartes, invented analytic geometry very early. If there were mathematicians in the legations, I think it would be better to have a common language with the Chinese emperor. ”

When the officials heard it, it seemed to make sense, and Pascal was famous. So he no longer refused, but said, "I will go and ask the Prime Minister." ”

"I have a friend named Pierre de Fermat, who, although he is a lawyer, is also very good at mathematics. He also had analytic geometry ideas from different angles, which preceded Mr. Descartes. Perhaps, he could also go to China. ”

"Lawyer?" The official laughed, "Did he go to China to study law?" That's what Fermat, forget it. Even if it's you, ask the Prime Minister. ”