This is destined to be an unusual day, even for the people of Luoyang who are accustomed to watching scenes of murder and execution. On a summer day in 263 AD, at the Ma Shi execution ground to the east of the capital city of Luoyang, the people of Luoyang held their clothes and stopped to bid him farewell. Previously, 3000 students jointly submitted a petition requesting to be his teacher, hoping to exempt him from the death penalty. They were eager to make a final effort, hoping that the powerful general of Cao Wei, Sima Zhao, could cherish the famous scholar and retain his life. However, the petition of the students did not prevent the fall of the butcher’s sword. After the fall of this famous scholar, his name was repeatedly mentioned in many ancient books such as “Book of Jin”, “New Tales of the World”, and “Comprehensive Mirror of Zizhi”. Scholars, literati, and painters in later generations were even more impressed by him, and he gradually became a cultural symbol of that era. This person was Ji Kang. The demeanor of a generation of famous scholars represented by Ji Kang, praised by Lu Xun as “Wei Jin demeanor,” has become an unavoidable topic in the history of Chinese thought.
At midnight, the city of Luoyang always echoes with the ancient and mysterious sound of the qin. He resents and mourns like ghosts and gods in the underworld, with wind and rain like pavilions and spears crisscrossing. The person who played the qin was the famous scholar of the Wei and Jin dynasties – Ji Kang. According to legend, Ji Kang once stayed overnight at Huayang Stop in the southwest of Luoyang. A mysterious passerby presented this divine song “Guangling San” to Ji Kang and advised him not to pass it on to others. The divine song seemed to have found his true master. According to ancient books, Ji Kang was as solemn as a pine tree, and when drunk, he fell into a state of collapse like a jade mountain. Due to his outstanding talent, Ji Kang became a famous scholar at a young age. Although he was appointed as a high-ranking official in the imperial court, he had no intention of politics and instead devoted himself to the mountains and rivers. More than 100 kilometers away from Luoyang, there is a famous mountain called Yuntai Mountain. Ji Kang often comes here to leisurely wander, play the qin and howl long. When he comes to make friends with him, there are six famous scholars, including Ruan Ji, Shan Tao, Xiang Xiu, Liu Ling, Ruan Xian, and Wang Rong. They are all famous in the capital, because the seven people often gather in a bamboo forest at the foot of Yuntai Mountain, known as the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Forest. For them, the bamboo forest seems to be a pure land, and the Seven Sages sing and recite poetry here. They wear commendable clothing, wide robes, and large sleeves, and when drinking and hearing are hot, or when drinking, they bare their chests. Expose your back or take off your hat, without following any etiquette or rules.
The common hobby of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove is drinking alcohol, which has almost become the most important characteristic of life for the famous scholars of the Bamboo Grove. According to historical records, Shan Tao drank until he was eight Dou Fang drunk, while Ruan Ji could drink for sixty days without waking up. However, the person with the most drinking stories is still Liu Ling. It is recorded that once Liu Ling became interested in drinking, he would strip naked and enjoy himself at home. The person who visited at the door mocked him for his lack of propriety, but Liu Ling didn’t take it seriously. She said with a drunken and hazy eye, “I use heaven and earth as my house, and houses as my clothes. Why did you all crawl into my pants?”? Why is the trend of drinking so prevalent at this time? This includes both a strong attachment to life and a sudden fear of death.
Professor Fu Gang from Peking University: Rulers naturally try to win over scholars, and if they cannot win over, they naturally kill them. Therefore, there was a saying at that time that famous scholars were halved within a day.
In the first year of the Zhengshi era, the young lord Cao Fang ascended to the throne, and his uncle Cao Shuang and the elder Sima Yi assisted in politics. The conflict between the two major political groups, Cao and Sima, intensified day by day. In the tenth year of the Zhengshi era, Sima Yi took advantage of Cao Shuang’s companionship to leave Luoyang and sweep tombs at Gaoping Mausoleum, launched a coup, and took control of Kyoto. In the subsequent large-scale political cleansing, thousands of people were killed before and after, shaking the world. From then on, the Sima family fully controlled the military and political power of Cao Wei, and the fear of death brought about by cruel political struggles deeply enveloped the elite class.
Liang Mancang, a researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: Some intellectuals intentionally avoid this complex political struggle and go to a pure land in the bamboo forest to hide their strength and recuperate.
The Nanjing Museum houses a rare treasure depicting the seven sages of the bamboo forest – the Southern Dynasty portrait bricks, which are rubbings of the portrait bricks.
The director of the Nanjing Museum, Gong Liang, has studied this for many years. The Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove are represented by Ji Kang, Ruan Ji, and Shan Tao. Ji Kang is a married relative of Cao Wei and takes Princess ChangLeting as his wife. Shan Tao, on the other hand, is a cousin of Sima Zhao, the son of Sima Yi, while Ruan Ji is one of the seven sons of Jian’an, a famous scholar of Cao Wei. Although the origins of the Seven Sages are different, they all choose to drink in the bamboo forest to avoid political risks. Only the pure land of the bamboo forest can slightly cover up the bloody scenes. Upon closer inspection, in addition to the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove, there is also an additional person in the picture. Unlike the Seven Sages who sat casually with bare feet and legs exposed, this person named Rong Qiqi, who lived in the same room as the Seven Sages, was a hermit from the Spring and Autumn period. Why did he travel to the bamboo forest with the famous Wei and Jin scholars who have been separated for nearly a thousand years?
Director of the Nanjing Museum – Gong Liang: His thoughts and actions are actually in line with the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove. It turns out that in the Central Plains region, there are more traditional Confucianism and Confucianism, and he highly values metaphysics and dialogue.
According to legend, Rong Qiqi was very proficient in music and was knowledgeable and talented, but he did not achieve great success in politics. In his old age, he often sang and enjoyed himself in the fields of deer and fur, playing drums and qin. He and the Seven Sages belonged to the same class of scholars. Scholars were the last class of aristocrats in the social order of the Western Zhou Dynasty. During the social changes on the other side of the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period, the literati class disintegrated and their identities became very complex. Although they were no longer aristocrats, they still retained the title of literati and the tradition of learning and mastering various specialized skills, forming the knowledge group at that time. Scholars could serve as the backbone of combat in the military, middle and lower level officials in politics, and learned ancient and modern knowledge in culture. Many of them had perseverance, ambition, and a sense of social responsibility. Therefore, in ancient China, this knowledge group was often referred to as literati, but ideals and reality always conflicted. Painters in the Southern Dynasty compared Rong Qiqi with the Seven Sages. Parallelism formally expresses the similarity between them, which is a certain state of mind for those who have not achieved their goals. In the Han Dynasty, with Emperor Wu of Han’s overthrow of the Hundred Schools of Thought and the sole emphasis on Confucianism, Confucianism became the mainstream of social thought. The words and actions of Confucian scholars were increasingly valued by the government, and they gradually formed the main intellectual group and stepped onto the historical stage. Many of them adhere to Confucianism and possess a strong sense of historical mission and crisis awareness. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the political system was greatly disrupted, and Confucian scholars and officials were dissatisfied with the current situation. They recommended talents and criticized current affairs through character evaluations, known as the Qingyi. Kong Rong, one of the seven sons of Jian’an in the late Han Dynasty, inherited the style of pure deliberation from the literati. Kong Rong believed that Cao Cao’s use of the emperor to command the feudal lords was a violation of the rules and regulations, and a sense of social responsibility from the literati led him to stand up and criticize Cao Cao’s retrograde actions. In 208 AD, the famous scholar Kong Rong was executed by Cao Cao on charges of great rebellion and immorality.
Researcher Lou Jin from the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: Because Cao Cao absolutely cannot let this lack of cooperation and support become a social trend, otherwise all the undertakings he established, whether positive or negative, will not succeed. Therefore, killing Kong Rong is symbolic in this issue. It turns out that people from the same camp are also going to be killed.
The cruelty of politics prompted scholars to retreat and contemplate the origins of the universe, life, and society. During the Cao and Wei dynasties, a renowned scholar represented by He Yan and Wang Bi, relied on Laozi, Zhuangzi, and the Book of Changes as the framework of literature to understand Confucianism and Taoism, and founded mystical thought. They asked various questions about the relationship between nature and humanity, such as the origin and end, existence and non existence, body and function, nature and emotion, form and god, and religion and nature. It should be said that mystics are fully immersed in this discussion with their genuine feelings for history and reality. Their various opinions expressed around these issues in the form of discourse are not so much a calm reflection on pure speculative studies, but rather a passionate pursuit of a reasonable social existence. With the help of metaphysics and discourse, literati can maintain their noble demeanor and shoulder their responsibilities. However, ideals and reality are difficult to balance. As the struggle between the Cao and Sima factions intensifies, scholars are no longer able to stay out of it. There are only two options before them: one is to continue supporting the Cao Wei royal family, and the other is to turn to the Sima clan. Zhong Hui, who came from a superior clan, was a beneficiary of the Sima clan.
Zhong Hui was the son of the famous calligrapher Zhong You, the Grand Tutor of Cao Wei. He was talented from a young age and was only two years younger than Ji Kang. However, he succumbed to the charm of the famous bamboo scholar Ji Kang. Zhong Hui wrote an article titled “Four Books and Treatise” discussing the differences, similarities, differences, and issues of human talent and character. He hoped to receive Ji Kang’s approval. Zhong Hui carried the article to Ji Kang’s doorstep and hesitated again. So he threw the article from a distance outdoors, turned around, and hurriedly ran away.
Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lou Jin: He felt very embarrassed because the two were politically opposed, so he threw his “Four Books” at Ji Kang’s and ran away through the window, indicating that they had common concerns and a side of mutual pity. However, their political positions were indeed opposed, and Zhong Hui himself was a figure who planned with the Sima family in the secret room how to seize power and replace the Cao family’s regime.
At this time, the power of the Sima clan was at its peak, even dominating the royal family. Despite this, Ji Kang, who was narrow-minded and straightforward, still chose not to cooperate with the Sima family. As the saying goes, the three great hardships of the world are forging iron, rowing boats, and grinding tofu. The elderly man in Luoyang, who is 70 years old, has already forged iron for a lifetime. In his opinion, without strength, he cannot forge iron, and without courage, he dare not forge iron. According to the “Book of Jin”, Ji Kang was also a skilled blacksmith. Every time the red stove burned high, flames flew, and the generous sound of the qin collided with Ji Kang’s strong iron bones, echoing in the bamboo forest. On this day, Ji Kang was swinging a sledgehammer to strike iron when Zhong Hui arrived. Although the strategist of Cao Wei was already a favored minister of Sima Zhao, he still wanted to make friends with this famous scholar in the bamboo forest. However, Ji Kang ignored this court celebrity and threw his hammer alone to strike iron as if there was no one around. The two of them remained silent for a long time, only hearing the clanging sound of the iron. Zhong Hui couldn’t help but turn around and leave. Finally, Ji Kang said a sentence: “Where did you hear it? Where did you see it?”; Zhong Hui refused to be outdone and responded, “Come by hearing what you hear, go by seeing what you see.”; The confrontation between the two mystics was like a master duel, with the rabbit rising and the magpie falling, and the winner being determined. This dialogue became a classic. A thousand years later, it seems that one can still smell the prevailing atmosphere of mysticism at that time.
Researcher Lou Jin from the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: Metaphysics greatly advanced the thinking level of the Chinese people at that time, greatly improving our theoretical thoroughness, rationality, and standardization. Because it was interpreted using the most standard interpretation they believed at that time, we can responsibly conclude today that the level of thinking and conclusion reached in thinking and thinking paths was clearly ahead of the group.
At that time, the activities of famous scholars studying mysticism together were called Qingtan. The Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove led by Ji Kang were mostly one of the top experts in mysticism at that time. They all admired nature and belittled famous religions. Ji Kang’s slogan of “let nature prevail over famous religions” was the most representative slogan of the Wei and Jin dynasties.
Professor Fu Gang from Peking University: Ji Kang believes that it is human nature to go beyond this famous religion and directly recognize nature. There is a clear political attitude that opposes the Sima clan group, because the Sima clan group promotes famous religion. What is famous religion is to establish education by name, and to establish various names that conform to Confucian norms as education.
The more famous the religion, the more natural it is. This does not mean that it can transcend reality. As the Sima Group accelerated its pace of usurping Wei and began to recruit famous scholars from all over the world, they left the bamboo forest one by one and returned to the court due to the situation. Ruan Ji immediately became an infantry colonel with a position but no authority, and remained intoxicated for a while; Thanks to his special relationship with the Sima family, Shan Tao rose steadily and had a smooth career. In 261 AD, he was about to be promoted again as the Minister of Personnel. Who would take over his original position? Shan Tao thought of his former friend in the bamboo forest – Ji Kang. This was a win-win idea, which could not only demonstrate the tolerance of the Sima group towards famous scholars, but also allow Ji Kang to walk out of the bamboo forest with dignity. After the cold winter, it was the season of peach blossoms, and Shan Tao’s recommendation had a clear answer in the falling petals. In this letter of severing diplomatic ties with Juyuan, Ji Kang used the strictest language to express his refusal and stance. Ji Kang’s severing of diplomatic ties was not aimed at Shan Tao himself, but at the Sima political group represented by Shan Tao. The words “not Tang Wu but Bo Zhou Kong” written in the letter were a cry and protest of the times.
Professor Fu Gang from Peking University: Because of his slogan, it is equivalent to clearly proposing a slogan to break away from the Sima Group. For example, Shang Tang created a rebellion against Xia Jie, and King Wu of Zhou was the one who defeated Zhou. As for Zhou Gong, who promoted the political concept of the Holy King, the so-called merits of these Holy Kings were seen by Ji Kang. He said that I was disrespectful, but I think these are all wrong. He called it “not Tang Wu but disrespectful of Zhou”, and together with Confucius, he despised the Sima Group. Therefore, this is equivalent to opposing what you preach to the Sima Group. I do not support you, and this slogan is used to criticize the Sima Group. The usurpation of Cao Wei naturally caused a great distress and obstacle.
A letter of estrangement completely broke off Ji Kang from the authorities. In the bamboo forest below Yuntai Mountain, the voices of the Seven Sages drinking and chatting about the mysteries could no longer be heard, leaving only Ji Kang’s indifferent playing of iron and piano. Ji Kang chose to self exile in the natural landscape, and it went further and further. During this period, he created four qin pieces: Changqing, Shortqing, Changbian, and Shortbian, known as the “Ji’s Four Nongs” and a famous group of qin pieces in ancient China. He wrote a music theory article titled “The Theory of Sound without Sorrow and Music”, which had a significant impact on the Wei and Jin Qing Dynasty. Ji Kang believed that happiness, anger, sorrow, and music were fundamentally not emotions of music, but rather human emotions. Music is an objective existence, while emotions are subjective. The emotions of sorrow and joy in human beings arise from harmony, which serves as a medium.
Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lou Jin: It is called “Heaven and Earth are not benevolent, and all things are like a cud dog”. The sound itself is not like the principles of the universe, it does not have joy or anger, nor sorrow or joy. So all things are added by humans, he is explaining this truth. This principle is still linked to his belief that nature is a religion, and that things that conform to heavenly principles are truth. Therefore, his political orientation is still linked to his reverence for nature and his demand for a religion that obeys nature.
Whether playing the piano, composing music, or composing poetry for literature, Ji Kang is known as a master, leading a generation of elegant and distant mystical styles from leisurely and leisurely parades through the realm of mysticism. Ji Kang, who refused to bow down and take office, became a sought after object among the scholars in Luoyang. This great scholar’s resolute refusal to cooperate with Sima Zhao naturally became a topic of discussion. Finally, Sima Zhao had the opportunity to eliminate this ignorant person. Lu Shi and Lu An were friends of Ji Kang, and the two brothers turned against each other. Lu Shi accused his younger brother of unfilial piety, and Lu An was imprisoned as a result. Ji Kang was implicated because he had intervened for them. In the end, Sima Zhao used this absurd reason to impose the death penalty on both Ji Kang and Lu An.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lou Jin: Ji Kang was killed because he opposed the usurpation of power by the Sima family. The Sima family seized the power of the Cao family, and it must continue from beginning to end. As a scholar, he must continue from beginning to end. I can only end up with the government that I want to end with. I cannot be a slave with three surnames. Ji Kang’s death is a political issue.
After Ji Kang’s death, he was buried in his birthplace – Shigongshan, Anhui. His remarkable passing left the entire clan shrouded in deep sorrow. Not long after, on a cold night, Ruan Ji passed away in a drunken sleep. Shan Tao rose to fame in the imperial court. 14 years later, Xiang Xiu, one of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove, had to go to Ying County in Luoyang due to the authority of the Sima family. Along the way, Xiang Xiu made a special detour to visit the former residence of Ji Kang in Shanyang. As the sun was setting in the western mountains, Xiang Xiu recalled the beautiful time of visiting and feasting in the bamboo forest with her friend Ji Kang. Not only did she feel sad, but she also mourned the eternal farewell of Ji Sheng. Looking at the shadows of the sun, she played the piano and wrote a poem with tears in her heart. The bamboo forest era has long ended, and such a pure land can no longer be found in the world.
Professor Li Zhonghua from Peking University: The metaphysics of the bamboo forest period was a model of using their own behavior to not bow down to lustful authority. Therefore, Ji Kang’s personality and his influence in Chinese history are very high, and he is completely indulgent compared to the later famous officials, fake scholars, and the kind of false indulgence. That group of people is completely different, and they no longer have this kind of personality. It is not that they have psychological pain, but that they are completely anesthetized.
In the late Western Jin Dynasty, there were eight unrestrained scholars who were known as the Eight Great. They locked themselves in small houses, with their hair down and naked, drinking heavily for days. Eight Great himself inherited the style of the bamboo forest, but in fact, he did not understand the struggles of Ji, Kang, Ruan Ji’s feigned madness, and Ren Da, and naturally lacked their critical consciousness and sense of social responsibility. Ji Kang may not have thought that the “Ji Shi Si Nong” it left behind had already spread throughout the streets and alleys of Luoyang city. However, the resounding strings of the past had already changed their flavor and became a plaything of the upper class gentry. In the late Western Jin Dynasty, Shi Chong, who was wealthy and could rival the country, was happy to make friends with the children of wealthy families and literati. At that time, he was known as the “Twenty Four Friends”. They had dancers and bands who often gathered in the Golden Valley, indulging in poetry, wine, banquets, and indulging in music, and indulging in the pleasures of the world. The literati were intoxicated by paper and gold, and the trend of flaunting wealth and fighting for wealth was rampant.
Liang Mancang, a researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: Some changes occurred in the late Western Jin Dynasty, which seriously damaged social norms. On the other hand, metaphysics and politics cannot be separated. Some politicians do not focus on governing the country and make discussing metaphysics the top priority, which leads to a misunderstanding of the country.
Wild and unrestrained, Ren Da is just one side of the bamboo forest masters, and their scenes of discussing mysteries are also talked about by later generations. In the late Western Jin Dynasty, many officials used Qingtan to avoid trouble and adorn themselves with the demeanor of famous scholars. Wang Yan, a quiet talker, is good at speaking mystical words and is skilled in discussing Laozi and Zhuangzi. Because he has always held important positions, the less advanced people have all followed his example in speaking mystical words, creating a proud and frivolous atmosphere in the entire court. At that time, people commented on Wang Yan, saying that he did not take matters into his own hands and did not inquire about political affairs. He was a typical bureaucratic mystic. It was this Wang Yan who was appointed as the Marshal in the capacity of the Three Princes and was ultimately killed by Shi Le of Later Zhao. On his deathbed, Wang Yan sighed that although we were not as good as the ancients, if we had not worshipped metaphysics in the past but worked together to support the country, we would not have fallen into this land today. In 316 AD, the short-lived dynasty of Western Jin, which had unified China for only 37 years, declared its demise in an untimely conversation. The Sima family led a large number of scholars to cross the Yangtze River, established the capital of Jiankang, and established the Eastern Jin regime. The legacy of famous scholars was also brought into Eastern Jin by the literati.
The production of bamboo fans in Jiangnan has a history of thousands of years, and it is precisely because a large number of scholars migrated south that bamboo fans were endowed with more elegance. This bamboo fan workshop located in Shaoshan produces thousands of bamboo fans every day. Similarly, during the Eastern Jin Dynasty, an old lady was worried about not being able to sell the bamboo fans she made. Coincidentally, a scholar passed by and picked up a pen to write on the old lady’s fan. She instructed the old lady, saying that it was Wang Youjun’s character and that it would be sold for a hundred yuan. However, all the bamboo fans in the market were sold out. Wang Xizhi, a famous calligrapher of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, was the famous Wang Youjun, who was worth every word. His representative work, “Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Collection,” can not only be regarded as the world’s finest writing, but his calligraphy has also been promoted as the number one running script in the world by later generations.
Professor Fu Gang from Peking University: a renowned scholar of metaphysics during the Eastern Jin Dynasty, represented by Wang Xizhi. His contributions to calligraphy are well-known to everyone. So the beauty of his calligraphy is precisely a concrete manifestation of the charm of famous scholars in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. I always thought that the greatest contribution of the mystical masters of the Eastern Jin Dynasty was to cultivate the artistic soul.
Qu Shui Liu Chu is a custom passed down in ancient China. In March of the lunar calendar, after a ceremony, people line up as waterfront and place wine glasses upstream. The wine glasses flow downstream and whoever stops in front of them will raise their glasses to drink. It was during such gatherings that Wang Xizhi took the opportunity to write a book and write the world-renowned “Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Collection”. At the Orchid Pavilion gathering, there was another famous figure, the Prime Minister of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Xie An. Xie An, who was young and admired simple talk, was indifferent to entering the officialdom. Later, due to the decline of all members of the Xie family, Xie An returned to the court to preside over the overall situation and became the Prime Minister. This master of mysticism served as the commander-in-chief when facing the frontline of life and death in the face of the invasion of the Former Qin in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. With 80000 troops in Feishui, he defeated the former Qin army, which was known as a million soldiers, causing the former Qin to collapse. Xie An’s efforts to turn the tide, won decades of peace and tranquility for the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and also earned him the reputation of a charming prime minister.
Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lou Jin: Like Xie An, their entire pre Qin army was under pressure, and their strength was vastly different. At such a time, they were able to plan meticulously, which can be said to be the backbone of the entire Eastern Jin Dynasty. “Saving danger from collapse” should be said to be a kind of backbone, pillar, spiritual leader, and social soul role played by the aristocratic family at that time.
In the development of history to the Eastern Jin Dynasty, metaphysics had a better integration between Confucianism and Taoism. Famous teachings and nature are interpreted more harmoniously in the minds of famous scholars, whether they are officials in the court or living in seclusion in the mountains and wilderness; With hundreds of steps between the banks, there are no miscellaneous trees in the middle, the fragrant grass is delicious, and the fallen petals are colorful. Near the water source, you will come across a mountain with a small mouth, as if there is light. This is the Peach Blossom Spring described by the famous Eastern Jin Dynasty scholar Tao Yuanming, and also an ideal country planned by Tao Yuanming for future Chinese people. There is no injustice or fraud here, everyone gets along harmoniously and lives and works in peace. The elderly and children are all content and content. At the end of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the situation was turbulent. Tao Yuanming resigned from his official position and returned to his hometown, focusing his spirit on drinking, reading, and writing poetry in rural pastoral life. He persisted in poverty and inherited the path of literati, perfectly realizing the reclusive life that the seven sages of the bamboo forest longed for.
Professor Fu Gang from Peking University: Tao Yuanming has resolved both the conflicts between humans and nature, as well as between humans and society. For example, the conflict between humans and nature is the contradiction between life and death. Since the end of the Han Dynasty, people have been feeling anxious and fearful. How to view the relationship between brief life and eternal nature has always been a question that literati are considering, anxious, and puzzled about. However, it was not until Tao Yuanming that he solved it.
Starting from the end of the Han Dynasty, this period of Wei Jin demeanor has undergone more than two centuries of baptism and is still enduring. Kong Rong, Ji Kang, Wang Xizhi, Xie An, and Tao Yuanming are all using different ways of behavior to express their own Wei and Jin demeanor for their time and future China. The interpretation of Wei and Jin demeanor is also reflected in many paintings and literature, and the most stirring and heartwarming scene is when Ji Kang uses his own life to explain Wei and Jin demeanor.
Researcher Lou Jin from the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: Idols are shaped by time sharing, and he himself is nothing more than a free spirited person. I oppose the Sima family’s change of generation, as it would not have meant death. When Sima wanted him to suffer a little and imprisoned him, there were 3000 imperial students. At that time, the entire imperial academy was only so large, and he petitioned to release him. This made Sima truly feel how difficult it was for us to replace the resistance of Cao Wei. He had become a symbolic figure, so he had to kill him.
Although everyone in the court was calling for him, Ji Kang was well aware that disaster was inevitable. He made two unexpected arrangements to this day. The first one was to write a family admonition for his child, teaching them to be cautious and follow the rules of etiquette; Another thing is that Ji Kang did not entrust his own child to his brother Ji Xi, to his respected Ruan Ji, nor to Xiang Xiu, who was always with him. Instead, he entrusted it to Shan Tao, who had sworn to break off ties. He hoped that Shan Tao could help his son Ji Shao enter the officialdom and shoulder the responsibility of a scholar. Shan Tao did not disappoint Ji Kang’s instructions. He told the child not to become a fellow villager, but to be able to keep up with the world and maintain integrity. 18 years later, Ji Shao became a loyal minister of the Jin Dynasty. He protected the monarch with his body and died under a flying arrow.
On the day of Ji Kang’s execution, in the deserted streets of Luoyang city, historical records recorded this tragic moment. When he was about to be executed, Ji Kang’s expression was calm. He looked at the shadows of the sun, and there was still some time before the execution. He wanted a guqin, and under the attention of the scholars, he began to play the strings of the qin, playing “Guangling San” with a resounding sound and generous melody that covered the sky and earth. At the end of the song, he sighed with a slight regret: “Guangling San” was about to be cut off from now on. The demeanor of the Wei and Jin dynasties represented by “Guangling San” still underwent various changes in later generations. The awakening of humans brought about a bold personality and criticism of current affairs, focusing on the vast universe to pursue a poetic life and return to a spiritual home. This is the demeanor of the Wei and Jin dynasties.
90 seconds in history: Battle of Feishui
Before 383 AD, the commander-in-chief of Qin, Fu Jian, led a million strong army and headed straight to the capital of Eastern Jin, Jiankang. The Eastern Jin Dynasty was in danger. The pre Qin army and the Eastern Jin army were in a standoff across the Feishui River, with Xie Xuan serving as the frontline commander. At this time, Xie An, who was serving as the commander-in-chief of the expedition, was far away in Jiankang playing chess and strategizing. Xie Xuan sent someone to advise the pre Qin army to retreat slightly. When the Eastern Jin army crossed the river to determine the victory, Fu Jian wanted to take advantage of the Jin army’s opportunity to cross the river and annihilate it. However, the Eastern Jin general Zhu Xu took the opportunity to shout: “The Qin army has been defeated, the Qin army has been defeated.”. The Qin army retreated but could not be stopped. The retreating Qin army was like a burst flood. The Jin army took the opportunity to cross the river and chase after Fu Jian, who was shot by a shooting arrow and fled back to Huaibei alone. When the news of the great victory in Feishui reached Jiankang, Xie An read the letter and remained silent. He slowly turned around and continued playing chess, his demeanor and demeanor were no different from usual. From then on, the former Qin dynasty fell into a state of chaos, and the north fell into chaos. In the following decades, the Eastern Jin dynasty saw no more foreign invasions.