Source: Wang Anshi's reply to Sima's suggestion in Song Dynasty
Original text:
Some revelations: I was taught yesterday. I thought I had traveled with you for a long time, but the content of each discussion was different and my skills were different. Although you want to be strong, you won't be seen in the end, so you will report it a little and no longer distinguish yourself. Rethinking Meng Jun really regards it as thick and should not be repeated rashly. Therefore, there is a way today, and Ji Jun is really tolerant.
Confucians strive for fame and reality, fame and clarity, and the world is right. Today, when I met my teacher, I thought that I invaded the official, caused trouble, and took advantage of it without remonstrating, so that the world complained and slandered. There is also democracy to hand-picked laws, so that they are granted the right to be in charge, rather than invading officials; Take the former king's administration, promote advantages and eliminate disadvantages, and not make a living; Managing money for the world is not for profit; To ward off evil spirits, it is difficult to refuse people, not to refuse advice. As for the number of grievances, we knew it before.
People have been used to it for a long time, and most scholars don't care about state affairs, so it is better to flatter their own public. In fact, they want to change this, and some people don't measure the number of enemies and want to help them fight. What are people doing without initiative? Pan Geng's move, the people are also complaining, not the imperial literati; Pan Geng didn't change his degree for the complainer, but he didn't see it before moving, so he can regret it. If it is really my fault that I have been in office for a long time and failed to help the people of Jersey, then someone will know the crime; For example, today, everything is idle, but what you did before is beyond someone's cognition.
Meet for no reason, don't just yearn for it!
Translation:
Dear Wang Anshi, please enlighten me: Thank you for your advice yesterday. Personally, I think we have maintained good contact with Shi Jun for a long time, but when discussing political affairs, we often have differences. This is because our political opinions and methods are mostly different. Although I reluctantly want to persuade a few words, I will definitely not be understood by you in the end, so I will simply write back to you and stop defending them one by one. Later, considering that you have always valued me and treated me well, I should not be careless in correspondence, so I will tell you the reasons for doing so in detail now. I hope you can understand me after reading it.
What scholars argue, especially whether fame is in line with reality, and after fame is in line with reality, the truth on earth becomes clear. What you are trying to teach me now is that my behavior violated the authority of officials, caused trouble, accumulated money and competed with the people for profits, and refused to accept opinions, thus causing resentment and accusations from all over the world. However, I believe that accepting the emperor's orders, openly discussing and formulating laws and regulations in the court, and amending them in the court, and handing them over to officials of relevant departments for implementation, is not an infringement of official power; Imitate the wise politics of the first emperor to establish good and eliminate evil. This is not to make trouble; Managing state finances is not robbing money; Refuting false statements and accusing traitors and villains is not refusing to listen to opinions. As for so much resentment and slander, it should be like this.
This is not the day people are used to muddling along and muddling along. Most scholar-officials regard it as a good thing to please others, regardless of state affairs. Your majesty wants to change this (bad) atmosphere, so I don't want to estimate the number of opponents, and I want to help your majesty resist this force. Then why don't those people make a fuss (about me)? Pan Geng moved the capital, even the common people complained, (and) it was not only the scholar-officials of the imperial court (against); Pan Geng won't change his plan because someone hates him; (This is him) considering that (moving the capital) is reasonable, and then acting resolutely; I don't think there is anything to regret. If you really blame me for not helping your majesty to do great things and benefit these people because I have been in office for a long time, then I admit that I am guilty; If we should do nothing and stick to the rules now, I dare not learn.
I have no chance to see you, I admire you very much!
Precautions:
(1) Sima Yi: Sima Guang (10/9—1086), a native of Xia County, Shaanxi Province (now Shanxi Province), was a doctor at that time. He is a famous historian in the Northern Song Dynasty, and he is the author of "Learning from the Same Resources". The immortal used Wang Anshi to implement the new law, and he strongly opposed it. In the eighth year of Yuanfeng (1085), Zhezong ascended the throne, and the Empress Dowager Gao listened to politics and called him in charge of state affairs. The following year is the phase. Abolish the new law. In order to die for eight months, Wen Guogong was hunted down.
(2) a: claiming to be. Rev: Write a letter to explain things.
(3) Enlightened: Thanks for your advice. Here refers to receiving a letter.
(4) stealing: private. In private. Used as a polite expression here. Military adviser: the words of Sima Guang. The ancients wrote letters to show respect for each other's words.
Travel location: traveling with colleagues, that is, interacting with colleagues.
(5) Fuck: Hold it and use it. Operation: method, proposition.
(6)guū: it is difficult to explain. Me: The sound is very noisy. See also: passive.
(7) Abbreviation: Abbreviation. Report: Write it for you. Reply: refers to Wang Anshi's short reply after receiving Sima Guang's first letter.
(8) think twice: think twice before you act. Depending on the thickness of the encounter: the meaning of the value, depending on the encounter: treatment.
(9) Repetition: refers to correspondence.
Reckless: simple and rude.
(10) Dojo: detailed description. So: the whole story.
(1 1) Ji (j): Hope.
(12) Confucianism: This refers to the general feudal literati.
(13) name and reality: name and reality.
(14) Blame (bàng): resentment, accusation.
(15) Owner: Emperor. This refers to Song Shenzong Zhao Yong.
(16) review of laws and regulations: discuss and review national laws and regulations. Revision: revision.
(17) Yus: an official with a heavy responsibility.
(18) Example: Implementation.
(19) Exorcism: Refuting false statements. Reject, refute, exclude.
(20) Difficult (nàn): censure. Everyone: Everyone refers to someone who is eloquent and flattering.
(2 1) Reality: Originally. Before: in advance.
T-shirt (XI): Be careful. Self-flattery in line with the secular: refers to identifying with the secular and flattering everyone.
(23) On: Your Majesty. This refers to Song Shenzong Zhao Yong. Yes: but.
(24) resistance: resistance, struggle. The pronoun refers to the "scholar-bureaucrat" mentioned above.
(25) angrily: noisy.
(26) Pan Geng: the monarch in the middle of Shang Dynasty. Shang dynasty used to build its capital in the election (now Qufu, Shandong Province) north of the Yellow River, and floods often occurred. In order to get rid of political difficulties and natural disasters, after Pan Geng ascended the throne, he decided to move the capital to Yin (now northwest of Anyang, Henan). This decision met with dissatisfaction and opposition from all over the country. Later, Pan Geng issued a proclamation to persuade them to complete the plan of moving the capital. See Shangshu Pan Geng.
(27) Xu (xū) resentment: mutual resentment. More refers to people's resentment against the world. X: All of them.
Change the extent of it: change his original plan. Degree: Planning.
(29) degree (duó) meaning: consider whether it is reasonable. Degree: consider, used here as a verb.
(30) Yes: It is used as a verb here to indicate that it is right.
(3 1) Plaster: Do me a favor. Used here as a verb.
(32) inaction: inaction. Everything, doing things. The former word "thing" is a verb and the latter word is a noun.
(33) Keep the previous practice: stick to the previous practice.
What I know: I am willing to learn. Understand and learn.
(35) René is just a yearning: it means that selfishness cannot be admired. This is an ancient polite way to write letters. If you don't do it, you can't stand it. Affection can be described. Tiny, tiny, here refers to oneself, self-deprecating words. Yearning for, admiring.
Creative background:
In the first year of Xining (1068), Song Shenzong, who was newly acceded to the throne, asked Wang Anshi, "What is the first way to govern the country today?" Wang Anshi replied: "From the choice of surgery." In the second year of Xining, Song Shenzong asked Wang Anshi, "I don't know what your plan is, what is the first one?" Wang Anshi replied: "It is urgent to legislate to change customs. All customs that want beauty are long gentlemen, and villains are eliminated. This is also a question of the gentleman's courtesy and integrity ... "
In February of the second year of Xining (1069), Wang Anshi began to implement the new law and adopted a series of reform measures. Fan Zhen, an Hanlin scholar, thinks that the implementation of "Young Crop Law" is to become rich and take more and less, but "taking less and taking more is still fifty steps and a hundred steps". In July and August, Fan Chunren wrote to the emperor, publicly accusing Anshi of "taking advantage" and giving up "knowing Yao and Shun to protect the people". In the proposal, Cheng Lu wrote to Wang Anshi and said, "Sure! Once Song Shenzong and Wen Yanbo discussed the matter of political reform, Zong Shen said: "If the legal system is strengthened, how unhappy the literati are, why are the people inconvenient?" Wen Yanbo said: "Rule the world by literature, not by the people. "
In the second year, Sima Guang wrote three long letters to Wang Anshi-A Letter to Fu Jie (King), accusing Wang Anshi of "making money and grain interests autonomous without appointing the three divisions, and also setting up the three divisions to adjust the interests", "promoting Changping Guanghuicang" and "taking Fu Jie as the current government, changing the old methods of ancestors, taking the top down, taking the right and the left, and making achievements. ....... ","I happened to be in charge today. I set up the first organization to set up the Law Department. I talked about money and profit. I also ordered Xue to lose money in jianghuai in an attempt to seize the interests of merchants. I also sent envoys to spread young crops everywhere and collect their interest, which was distressing. Father and son don't meet, brothers and wives are separated. ..... ","or see a little different, make the new order easy, just add anger, or insult it, or talk about it one by one, don't wait for it to finish. The wise Lord was so tolerant, but Fu Jie refused to protest. Nothing is not enough to forgive! " .
He also listed various drawbacks of the implementation of the new law, such as "invading officials", "insurrection", "levying profits", "refusing to remonstrate" and "provoking anger", and asked Wang Anshi to abandon the new law and restore the old system. Wang Anshi wrote a reply to Sima's suggestion: "If I really blame myself for being in office for a long time and failing to help the people, then someone will know the crime. For example, if you do nothing today, but continue to do what you did before, it is beyond someone's knowledge. " Later, the two men broke up completely, and Sima Guang resigned from the emperor and concentrated on writing "Learning from Mutual Aid" in Luoyang.
Appreciate:
The argument of the full text is aimed at Sima Guang's accusation that the new law "invades officials, causes troubles, levies profits, refuses to remonstrate and complains", and points out that the dispute between Confucianism lies in name and reality. Justified, the world is cold. This shows that the reform is correct. Sima Guang's attacks are untrue and absurd. This paper refutes Sima Guang's fallacies one by one, reveals its conservative and decadent nature, and shows the author's determination to persist in reform and not be moved by gossip.
The first paragraph mainly expounds the reason and purpose of writing this letter.
Because there are differences between them, I am writing to express my position and attitude. Wang Anshi wrote three meanings in the first sentence of the first paragraph: the first layer of "being taught yesterday" is a courtesy; On the second floor, it is mentioned that "we have traveled together for a long time" and Sima Guang are very affectionate and make Sima Guang very comfortable. The third layer quickly turned to "every disagreement in the process of deliberation has led to many different skills", which has a lightning-fast speed and directly pointed out the reasons why the two did not get along politically. These three meanings are concentrated in one sentence, which embodies a high degree of generalization and highlights the focus of differences. Don't hurt your feelings, be honest. The second sentence has two meanings. The first layer is: Sima Guang's opinion is very firm and will not change easily, so if he tries to be strong, he will certainly not be observed; For a letter of more than 3,000 words, I only give a simple answer without distinguishing one by one. The second layer is: after careful consideration, Sima Guang attaches great importance to himself, and the letter should not be rash. It should be explained in detail, and I hope Sima Guang can forgive him. This shows the author's attitude and method and shows calmness.
The second paragraph is the key part of the full-text rebuttal. The author refutes the conservative fallacy from the standpoint of "justified, the world is justified", which shows that he insists on political reform.
Before refuting, put forward one of the most important principles-the question of name and reality. The name is very formal, and the words are clear and clear, and the movements are in place. But from different standpoints, there will be different or even completely opposite views on whether the same thing (that is, "truth") is reasonable (that is, whether the name is "positive"). In his letter, Sima Guang accused Wang Anshi of "invading officials and creating troubles, taking profits and refusing to remonstrate, so that the world complained and slandered". If these accusations are well-founded, it is likely that the other party will fall into passive parry because of some superficial phenomena or specific facts, and the more he defends, the more he seems to be indefensible; We must stand on the commanding heights and profoundly reveal the essence of the matter, so as to fundamentally refute each other's accusations and vindicate the reform. First refute the "invasion of officials." The author does not care whether the implementation of the new law encroaches on some powers of relevant government agencies, but focuses on the big picture, pointing out that the decision to carry out reform is "the order of the people" and is out of the will of the emperor; The formulation of the new law is "discussing the written law and amending it to the court", which is the conclusion drawn by the court after careful discussion; Then "give it to the company" and deliver it to the specific competent department for execution. This kind of "acceptance", "discussion" and "granting" puts the whole process of the new law from decision-making, formulation to implementation on a completely just, reasonable and legal basis, and the theory of "invading officials" is self-defeating. The second refutation of "making trouble" is based on "the rule of the former king" and its fundamental purpose is "promoting the advantages and eliminating the disadvantages". Such a "thing" is not a "nuisance" because it is superior to Wang Zhidao and inferior to Chinese people. Refuting "collecting money" again. It is enough to use the phrase "managing money for the world". Because the question is not whether to levy profits, but for whom. If the fundamental starting point is correct, then the accusation of "collecting profits" will be untenable. Then refute "refusal to remonstrate". Only by refusing correct criticism and whitewashing peace can we refuse to give advice. Therefore, "exorcising evil spirits is hard for people to forgive" has nothing to do with refusing to remonstrate. Finally, when it comes to "complaining and condemning a lot", I don't refute it from the front, but only use the sentence "I knew it long ago" to express my contempt and lead to the following discussion.
This paragraph is an excuse and a "defense" from the perspective of answering the other party's accusations; However, because the author grasps the essence of the problem and focuses on the overall situation, this excuse is not simply parrying and defending, but defending and attacking. For example, while refuting the crimes listed by Sima Guang, he indirectly accused the other party of violating the will of the "master" and the administration of the "former king" and failing to promote the benefits and eliminate the disadvantages for the world. In particular, the phrase "it is difficult to ward off evil spirits" puts the other party in an awkward position as a spokesman for evil beliefs. Of course, the exposure and attack on Sima Guang is mainly in the following paragraph.
In the third paragraph, the author further clarified his position and attitude, and followed the fearless statement with many complaints at the end of the last paragraph. The author makes a sharp analysis of the origin of "complaining".
First of all, it's not a day since people got used to sneaking around. Most court officials have adopted a good way to deal with the world without worrying about state affairs, agreeing with popular customs and pleasing everyone. In Wang Anshi's poems, "wandering dog" is synonymous with conservatism; And "vulgarity" and "mass" are powerful social and political forces influenced by conservative thoughts. Their mental outlook and ideological essence are revealed here, which provides a reasonable basis for the emperor's "wanting to change this" and his own "helping to resist it". Therefore, continuing to talk about "what is the public but not aggressive" can only show that the opposition of conservative forces is inevitable, but it does not mean that they are completely rational and powerful. Next, the author cites a historical example, Pan Geng moved the capital, which shows that many opponents do not mean that the measures are wrong. As long as you "judge before you move" and make sure that you are right, there is no need to retreat and regret. Pan Geng's move, even if it was against the people, failed to make him change his plan, so the current political reform was only opposed by the conservative forces in the imperial court, and there was no retreat. This is a historical example of reform to illustrate the rationality and justice of the current reform, indicating that he will not change his firm attitude of determination because of many complaints. It can be said that Wang Anshi's code of conduct is a summary of the resolute spirit of all reformers in history.
As soon as I write here, it seems that the words have been finished. However, the author, playing hard to get, made way first, saying that if the other party blamed himself for being in office for a long time and failed to help the emperor do great things and benefit the people, he would be guilty. Although this is not the original intention of this article, it is from the heart. Then he reversed the past and made a positive statement: "If today, when everything is idle, and you just keep the same as before, it is not something you dare to know." Euphemistic tone contains sharp edge, which breaks the ideological essence of conservatives represented by Sima Guang, and directly hits the other side, leaving it exposed and speechless.
This short message is excellent in writing, concise and persuasive in writing, euphemistic and solemn in tone, and neither hurts personal friendship nor compromises opposing opinions. The author's rhetoric and logical reasoning are carried out step by step from near to far, from far to near, and layer by layer by using the methods of refutation, guidance, comparison, proof, inspiration and analogy according to specific people and specific occasions. It is a typical work that criticizes political papers.
This article has three writing characteristics.
The first characteristic, as an epistolary argumentative essay, is that the writing is concise, the structure is rigorous, and there are no branches. In addition to using a few pleasantries in the opening and closing paragraphs, the full text firmly refutes several main arguments of conservatives, only refuting arguments and not involving others. The structure is very rigorous, and the rebuttal is focused on its key points, which makes the article short and pithy.
The second feature is the diversity of argumentation methods. The way of argument in this paper is refutation, and there are various methods of refutation. The first direct rebuttal, such as managing money for the world, is not for profit. The second argument is based on refutation, for example, "On the orders of the master, the statutes shall be revised by the court to give the secretary a gift and not invade the official". Here, I quote a favorable argument that it is not my own intelligence, but my orders from the emperor, which is a decree resolved by the court, pointing out that this is not my personal behavior, but reasonable and legal. Third, cite historical facts to refute, cite historical facts to refute, such as "Pan Geng's move, the person sued is not a scholar of the court." Pan Geng didn't change his degree for the complainer, and then he was moved, but he didn't see it and regretted it. Here, taking the historical facts of how to deal with grievances as an example, I express that I am not moved by rumors, which not only gently refutes the accusations of many grievances, but also expresses my strong determination to reform. The whole rebuttal is clear and powerful, and concise.
The third feature is majestic, combining rigidity with softness. The full text has several characteristics, such as overwhelming the enemy's integrity. The first is based on reasons, and the reasons are sufficient. Second, be good at parallelism and refute each other with parallelism, which is unstoppable and unstoppable. Third, make good use of irony. If you want to help and resist it, what should people do instead of being aggressive? Although the full text is full of lofty sentiments, gushing, and furious, it emphasizes that the determination to persist in reform is irreversible, but the tone is quite euphemistic, soft and firm. For example, if you explain in detail why you did it, you may forgive me. In the end, you said that your criticism didn't help the emperor to do much, so I knew the crime, but if I was told to do nothing, I wouldn't dare to learn. On the one hand, it takes care of the friendship gained over the years, on the other hand, it adheres to the principle of not giving in and fully safeguards the just position of political reform.
About the author:
Wang Anshi (102 1 year1February 8 18-1May 2, 0861day), is known as the king of the world. Han nationality, a native of Linchuan, Fuzhou in the Northern Song Dynasty (now a native of Dengjiaxiang, Linchuan District, Fuzhou City, Jiangxi Province), was a famous politician, thinker, writer and reformer in the Northern Song Dynasty in China, and was one of the eight masters in the Tang and Song Dynasties. Ouyang Xiu praised Wang Anshi: "There are 3,000 romantic poems in Hanlin and 200 articles in the official department. The old self-pity is still there, so who will argue with his son? " Collected works handed down from ancient times include Wang Linchuan Collection and Linchuan Collection. His poems are very good in all aspects. Although there are not many words, he is also good at them, including "Cinnamomum cassia" and other famous works. And Wang's most popular poem is "Spring breeze is green, green, when will the bright moon shine on me?"