The old scholar then turned to Cui Chan and asked, "Do you know why I answered your question so quickly back then?"

The old scholar was picking at an old scab.

"Because you were fonder of Qi Jingchun and had higher hopes for him!" Cui Chan huffed in anger. "You regarded my philosophies as useless balls of paper in the trash can, and you didn't want to soil your sagely hands by fishing them out and opening them back up!"

The old scholar shook his head and explained, "It was because I had already mulled over that question for many years before you asked it. No matter how I pondered at that time, I could only reach a single conclusion — an embankment of 500 kilometers destroyed by ants, a flood of great magnitude unable to be reigned in. Because it only treats the symptoms and not the root cause, and because your foundational knowledge wasn't strong enough, these initially well-intentioned philosophies would have ended up causing more harm than good. This is analogous to constructing a tall building. The taller and more majestic it looks on the outside, the more dangerous and deadly it will be if it collapses due to an unstable foundation."

Cui Chan faltered upon hearing this. However, he was still slightly reluctant to accept this explanation.

The old scholar sighed and continued in exasperation, "All of you need to realize that the Confucian teachings also have their issues. It isn't perfect and without blemish. With so many rules and regulations, it's only natural that not all of them will be able to keep up with the progression of time. Otherwise, what will happen to people in the current generation and the future generations if our ancestors have already offered the best and most correct philosophies? What else will there be for us to discover and learn?

"The solution offered by the Paramount Sage is the purest and most general. At the same time, it's also the most gentle and beneficial. The solution that he offered is a tonic food that's entirely beneficial and with no harm. However, this is subject to the prerequisite that everyone adopts the practice of eating 'Confucian' food. Isn't that right?

"However, there are also times when exceptions need to be made. For example, as a person's biological functions degrade, or perhaps because they've been weakened by the elements, it's only natural that they'll experience...