From an early age, Wei espoused the New Text school of Confucianism and became a vocal member of the statecraft school, which advocated practical learning in opposition to the allegedly barren evidentiary scholarship as represented by scholars like Dai Zhen. Among other things, Wei advocated sea transport of grain to the capital instead of using the Grand Canal and he also advocated a strengthening of the Qing Empire's frontier defense. In order to alleviate the demographic crisis in China, Wei also spoke in favor of large scale emigration of Han Chinese into Xinjiang.
What did Wei advocate for?
Wei advocated for the following:
- practical learning in opposition to allegedly barren evidentiary scholarship as represented by scholars like Dai Zhen
- sea transport of grain to the capital instead of using the Grand Canal
- a strengthening of the Qing Empire's frontier defense
- large scale emigration of Han Chinese into Xinjiang