By the beginning of Qing, "Changzhou
shixue" was distinct from the
Suzhou and
Yangzhou traditions. However, its proponents were less interested in the Han learning, sticking to the
Cheng-Zhu orthodoxy as a reliable way to examination success. In the middle of Qing, however, Changzhou had a plethora of Han learning scholars:
Sun Xingyan,
Hong Liangji (1746–1809),
Huang Jingyan,
Zhao Huaiyu,
Zhao Yi, Li Zhaole (1769–1849). The spread of Han learning was stimulated by
Lu Wenchao, a Hangzhou native, who moved to the Changzhou Longcheng Academy after being the head of the Jiyang Academy 暨陽書院 in the nearby Jiangyin in 1790–96. Zhuang Youke 莊有可, though largely unknown outside Changzhou, was recognized as a fine scholar dealing with the Old text/New text controversy. He was praised for his mastery of the
Shuowen dictionary and produced a number of works on the
Change classic and the
Chunqiu. His support for
Yan Ruoqu-
Hui Dong's refutation of the Old Text
Shangshu chapters stood in opposition to
Zhuang Cunyu's politics-bound view: Cunyu held that the
renxin-Daoxin 人心 道心 notion of the "Councils of Yu the Great" chapter was crucially important for the imperial ethics, while the
Han xue proponents, including Youke, interpreted it as a heterodox Buddhist influence on the Confucian doctrine. Zhuang Cunyu (another prominent native of Changzhou), however, had an intellectual influence other than textological: he was an embodiment of the message that scholarly activity for a Confucian cannot be divorced from the political. Besides, he was the tutor of the younger generations of his lineage, including
Zhuang Shuzu (cousin),
Zhuang Shoujia and
Liu Fenglu (grandsons). Shoujia was instrumental in publishing their grandfather's works, restraining from popularization of his own writings. Due to the diplomatic and scholarly success of Liu Fenglu (
劉逢祿, 1776—1829) in Beijing, the Changzhou school obtained national fame. Thus, he persuaded
Ruan Yuan (1764–1849) to include a number of Changzhou-originated studies of classics into the
Huang Qing jingjie 皇清经解. The new intellectual generation in Chanzhou showed interest in paleography. Zhuang Shoujia, developing the ideas of Shuzu, authored the
Shi shuming (Explication of writing and names), providing a history of ancient calligraphy with etymological () and paleographic () insights. Among the sources of his studies, Shoujia used remnants of the
Xiping Stone Classics (Han dynasty). Shuzu's pupil
Song Xiangfeng 宋翔風 (1776–1860) developed specialization in etymology, studying the
Erya dictionary. However, quite the in spirit of Zhuang Cunyu, he claimed: "In antiquity, those who studied the Classics did not drown in etymological glosses... Etymologists, if they reach farfetched explanations, and theorists, if they wind up in airy and distant studies, must both be criticized... if the Tao is not put into effect, then the empire will not be ordered. The blame will fall on no one else but on scholars." == References ==