Why didn't Zhu Yuanzhang want to admit that Liu Bowen was a "Confucian"?

Liu Ji, the word blog post. Yuan Wuzong was born in his senior year. His hometown, Nantian Wuyang, Qingtian Village, belonged to Chuzhou Road in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces according to the administrative divisions of the Yuan Dynasty at that time.

Jiangsu and Zhejiang are the birthplace of humanities. Although Wuyang Village, Liu Bowen's hometown, is a remote mountain village, which is more than 50 miles away from Qingtian County/KLOC-0, the atmosphere of reading is enduring. Liu Ji's great-grandfather became an official in the Song Dynasty and passed it on to Liu Ji's father's generation. Although he is not prominent, he is undoubtedly a typical small family in the traditional rural areas of China. In this context, Liu Bowen received a good traditional Confucian education from an early age. Said Liu Bowen "young and smart", especially smart. His teacher told his father that Liu Bowen is not a thing in the pool, and he will honor his ancestors when he grows up. It is also recorded that "Kibotong's classics and history are all glimpsed in books, especially the knowledge of latitude". The so-called astrology is a set of mysterious knowledge to predict personnel by observing astronomical phenomena and divination. In ancient times when science was underdeveloped, this understanding was reasonable. If it is supplemented by careful thinking and clear judgment, its so-called predictions will often come true, thus casting a strange veil on this knowledge.

The records of these two articles are very important, because they basically outline two tracks of Liu Bowen's life: one is Liu Bowen, a "Confucian" deeply educated by traditional Confucianism; One is a goose feather fan, and Liu Bowen is a "counselor". The two can't be neglected, rather the former is more important, but unfortunately, through the rendering of unofficial history and the people, it may even include the intentional or unintentional "transformation" of Liu Bowen's descendants. Liu Bowen, as a "counselor", "overwhelmed" Liu Bowen, as a "scholar". As a result, a traditional intellectual who is not without tragedy has become a funny and clever monster in all kinds of bizarre legends, almost equivalent to a charlatan.

As a Confucian scholar, Liu Bowen will, as always, follow the path of repeated cycles of his predecessors. In the fourth year of Shunzhi, 23-year-old Liu Bowen took part in the Imperial Examination of the Yuan Dynasty and was admitted to Jinshi. It is worth mentioning that, according to the system of the Yuan Dynasty, only adult males over the age of 25 can take the exam. According to the research of contemporary scholar Yang Ne, Liu Bowen lied about being 26 years old and finally got away with it. But in the old society, this is a story that literati relish, as long as it is based on real talent and practical learning.

The tragedy of "Confucian scholars" and "counselors"

In November of the nineteenth year of Jackie, Zhu Yuanzhang's army captured Chuzhou, Zhejiang. Because of Liu Bowen's popularity in his hometown, he and three other famous local intellectuals, Song Lian and Zhang Yi, were sent by Zhu Jiabing to meet Zhu Yuanzhang. It is recorded that these four people met Zhu Yuanzhang: "Mao Laoji and others said,' I am the fourth division in the world, and it is raining today. "When will it be decided?" "Zhu Yuanzhang showed a corporal attitude and asked them how to unify the world and stabilize the world. Zhang Yi replied: "Heaven is impermanent, supplemented by virtue, and those who are not addicted to killing can listen to it. "It means that as long as Zhu Yuanzhang keeps the people safe, he can tidy up the hearts of the people and complete the thought.

From then on, Liu Bowen began his new life as a counselor of Zhu Yuanzhang.

Liu Bowen, who was deeply baptized by Confucian culture, degenerated into a "traitor" in the traditional concept so quickly. Of course, there are many factors. There is a story about "Looking at the West Lake Clouds" circulating in Historical Records, saying that Liu Bowen discovered the so-called "Tian Zi Qi" in Jinling long before he joined Zhu, so he decided to "assist it". This is undoubtedly nonsense. Liu Bowen defected to Zhu Yuanzhang, naturally because of his disappointment with the Yuan regime. Secondly, some of Zhu Yuanzhang's actions at this time were in line with Liu Bowen's expectations-Zhu Yuanzhang's army was disciplined, Zhu Yuanzhang himself could be kind to the wise, and Zhu Yuanzhang showed a strong desire to unify the world. These are the places where he is different from other groups and attracts intellectuals like Liu Ji. In addition, there are two important points: first, Zhu Yuanzhang played the national card and called for the expulsion of foreign regimes; Second, Zhu Yuanzhang at this time has realized that if we want to unify the world, we must not only destroy it, but also start construction. To carry out the construction work, we must rely on the gentry to safeguard their interests as much as possible.

As early as when Liu Bowen resigned from his post and lived in seclusion, the Ming Dynasty said that "education should take the place of the monarch's classics, be punctual, obey the law and discipline, and be happy with rites and music, and be happy with you". At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang was quite "prudent and polite". Isn't it natural for Liu Bowen to be the "king" of Ran Ran?

As for Liu Bowen's role in Zhu Yuanzhang's farmland, although it is not as magical as the legend, it is worthy of historical affirmation that he and other intellectuals helped Zhu Yuanzhang to restore the order in troubled times.

Zhu Yuanzhang unified the world, and Liu Bowen, like other founding heroes, was rewarded, which seemed to realize his life ambition. However, as a Confucian intellectual, the establishment of the new dynasty made Liu Bowen consciously undertake a new mission, that is, to "lead the monarch into righteousness" and make the new emperor conform to the political and cultural traditions of Confucianism. It is in this respect that Liu Bowen began to taste the bitter fruit, because it is not easy to make a living under people like Zhu Yuanzhang.

The mystery of death

Liu Bowen, who lives in seclusion, tries his best to wash white lead, acting like an illiterate old farmer and not interacting with local officials. He knew that a pair of eyes were watching his every move. He vividly described his caution: "I'm still hiding in the mountains, but I drink and play chess, but my words don't make my contribution." The market asks for an audience, anonymous and savage. Square foot, so that the introduction from the cottage, cooking millet meal order. Tell him,' a magistrate in Qingtian is also there.' At first, people will say thank you, and then they will never see you again. "Hometown elders never see Liu Bowen, then put on casual clothes, for. Of course, Liu Bowen, who was washing his feet, refused the guests. He made a fire to cook for the guests, but when the magistrate told the truth, Liu Bowen immediately changed his color, called himself king, and immediately hid away.

When Liu Bowen was still in the imperial court, the selected works of Zhu Yuanzhang were engraved and sent to Li Shanchang, Hu and Song Lian, but not to Liu Bowen. This reflects the cold relationship between Zhu and Liu Bowen. Liu Bowen was seriously ill, and Zhu Yuanzhang wrote a letter summarizing the fighting between them. Among them, he not only blamed Liu Bowen for not joining early, but also praised his achievements. Most importantly, he said that after he became emperor, the arrangement and disposal of Liu Bowen was in line with the "overall situation of the country". For Liu Bowen, getting such a letter is definitely not a pleasant thing.

The ministers of Zhu Yuanzhang and Liu Bowen probably have some deviations in their identities. Although Liu Bowen is regarded as a "counselor" or even a "warlock", he calls himself a "scholar". However, to his dismay, Zhu Yuanzhang preferred to regard him as a "counselor" and a "warlock". In today's discussion about who is a great scholar, Zhu Yuanzhang said contemptuously: How can Lian and Liu Bowen be called "great scholars"?

Why didn't Zhu Yuanzhang admit that Liu Bowen was a "Confucian"? There is a simple reason. A scholar has the mission of "guiding the monarch into righteousness". In the traditional concept, the real scholar should be the imperial examination teacher. Being a teacher is the highest ideal of China literati for thousands of years, and Liu Bowen is no exception. The problem is that this ideal is often just the wishful thinking of literati. An overconfident person refuses to admit that there is a "royal teacher", otherwise, doesn't that mean there are better people in the world than him? Zhu Yuanzhang was like this, and so was Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. Yin Jiaquan, a pedantic scholar, wrote an article in which he quoted a sentence from the History of the Ming Dynasty: "Learn this as a teacher of emperors." Although he repeatedly declared that he dared not pretend to be himself, he was put into a literary prison by Gan Long. Gan Long asked angrily, "If you want to be an imperial envoy, where will you put me?" This is the key point that men hate the royal teacher from the bottom of their hearts. There is also a famous saying that the dragon blurted out when he denounced: "I think your literary talent is very good, and it is nothing more than advocating superior animals." How dare you talk about state affairs! "Meaning more thoroughly. It turns out that in the eyes of the emperor, the so-called state affairs are actually just his family affairs and his own affairs. Scholars, even nominal teachers, are just for fun. At this point, the paper crown of "Imperial Teacher" was blown contemptuously by Qianlong and then broken.

Is Liu Bowen's dream of "Confucian scholar" and "teacher" finally shattered under the ruthless blow of reality? I don't know. What we know is that he left a commandment before he died, warning future generations not to be an official.