After Liang Xiaowang's death, Sima Xiangru returned to Beijing. At this time, his family was in decline. It can be said that his family is poor and Sima Xiangru has no suitable job, so his life is very embarrassing. At this time, Wang Ji, the magistrate of Lin Qiong, who had a good relationship with him, said to him, "You have been away from home for a long time, and it is not satisfactory to be an official. You might as well come to my small county. " When Sima Xiangru came to Lin Qiong County, Wang Ji arranged for him to live in a small room and visit Sima Xiangru hypocritically every day. He doesn't really want to help Sima Xiangru. He just wants to show the world that he is a man who respects the virtuous and values the road through Sima Xiangru. At first, whenever Wang Ji visited, Sima Xiangru warmly received him, but later he discovered Wang Ji's intention and told his entourage and Wang Ji that he was ill and could not see Wang Daren. Wang Ji was not angry, but treated Sima Xiangru with great respect.
Zhuo Wangsun, the richest man in the county, heard that Sima Xiangru came to the county and was warmly received by the county magistrate, so he also wanted to give a banquet to invite Sima Xiangru. However, Sima Xiangru refused Zhuo Wangsun's invitation, and Zhuo Wangsun asked the county magistrate Wang Ji to invite Sima Xiangru. Sima Xiangru couldn't refuse, so he came to Zhuo Wangsun's party. Sima Xiangru was born with extraordinary appearance and extraordinary conversation, which surprised all the guests present. After three rounds of wine, there were mixed feelings. The county magistrate Wang Ji took out the piano and put it in front of him, saying that the piano was good and he wanted to play a song for everyone. After a slight delay, Sima Xiangru played a song for everyone on the spot, and everyone was amazed. In fact, Sima Xiangru plays the piano for a purpose. He had long heard that Zhuo Wenjun, the daughter of Zhuo Wangsun, was talented and beautiful, and knew poetry and prose, so he wanted to attract Zhuo Wenjun's attention through his own piano. Zhuo Wenjun also knew that Sima Xiangru was a contemporary genius, but worried that his father would not agree to his marriage with Sima Xiangru, so he eloped with Sima Xiangru to Chengdu. Zhuo Wangsun was very angry, so he said that he would not help his daughter and Sima Xiangru to die.
When I arrived at my home in Chengdu, my family gathered around me. Soon Zhuo Wenjun told Sima Xiangru that it was his incompetence that made him a seven-foot man and could not live a better life. With "xianggong"' s literary talent and ability, you shouldn't live like this. Why don't we go back to Lin Qiong County to do some small business? We can borrow some money from our brothers as capital, so that we won't be so embarrassed. They returned to Lin Qiong County and opened a pub to make a living. Zhuo Wangsun felt very ashamed when he learned that. Persuaded by relatives and friends, he gave his daughter and son-in-law 100 slaves and the property that many daughters should get when they got married. They returned to Chengdu, bought fields and houses, and lived a rich life.
Sima Xiangru's chance has finally come. One day, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty saw vanity, and he felt that he and the author could not live in the same era. An official close to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty had a good relationship with Sima Xiangru. He said that as far as I know, this "Zi Xu Fu" was written by my good friend Sima Xiangru. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty summoned Sima Xiangru, and Sima Xiangru said that Zixu House was not worth mentioning. Please let me write an essay about the hunting of the son of heaven and dedicate it to you. Soon after, Sima Xiangru dedicated the written ode to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. The last part of the eulogy advised the emperor to be thrifty and self-disciplined. After reading it, the emperor was very satisfied and immediately named Sima Xiangru as a doctor. Sima Xiangru's fate began to change.
After being a doctor for many years, Sima Xiangru had a chance to show his political talents. Tang Meng was too ruthless in dealing with the barbarians in southwest China, which caused panic among the military and civilians in this area. So Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty asked Sima Xiangru to draft an imperial edict, saying that Tang Meng acted privately, which was not the original intention of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, but to appease the people. At the same time, Sima Xiangru suggested that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty develop the barbarians in the southwest, which could bring great benefits to the Han Dynasty. Emperor Wu appointed Sima Xiangru as a corps commander and sent him to the southwest of China. Sima Xiangru was warmly welcomed when he arrived in the southwest of China. His father-in-law, Zhuo Wangsun, thought that his son-in-law was really showing off his family background, so he gave Zhuo Wenjun a lot of possessions so that he and his son could enjoy the same treatment.
Sima Xiangru successfully completed his mission, and many small countries in southwest China bowed to this man. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was very satisfied with Sima Xiangru's ability to handle affairs. In fact, Sima Xiangru once wavered, because after he arrived in Shu County, many elders in Shu County said that it was useless to develop southwest Yi, which was a waste of people's money. Sima Xiangru also thinks what they say is reasonable, but this is his own idea. If you go back on your word, Emperor Wu will not spare himself easily, so he thought of a way to kill two birds with one stone and wrote an article explaining his original intention of going to Southwest Yi, the worries of Shu people and his own countermeasures. After reading this article by Sima Xiangru, everyone forgot his own opinion and agreed with Sima Xiangru. Many people lament that people can write so beautifully, which not only carries forward the virtue of Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty, but also makes the ins and outs of things clear.
Sima Xiangru is not perfect. His articles are beautiful, his language is fluent, and his writing style is like a mountain stream, but he lacks real insight into governing the country. Many articles are aimed at eulogizing Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, lacking the ambition to take the world as his own responsibility. Once he tried to give up his wife, he was insulted by the world, but this did not affect his becoming a great writer. Accepting the imperfections of others is the attitude of life.
A person's history, a family's words.