Dongfang Shuo said that there is a legendary insect called "weird" that has all five senses and is transformed by resentment. This explanation is not scientific and cannot be trusted. But what he said was actually borrowing from ancient satire and taking history as a guide to admonish Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to implement benevolent policies and not to harm innocent people and arouse resentment and resistance among the people. The reason why the Qin Dynasty fell after two generations was precisely because "the common people were worried and resentful", which should be taken as a lesson. The following is the classical Chinese translation of Guaizai Chong, please refer to it! Translation of Strange Insects in Classical Chinese
Classical Chinese Essays on Strange Insects
Emperor Wu was lucky enough to see a red insect in the sweet spring, with its head, eyes, teeth, ears and nose all missing, and no one could recognize it. The emperor asked Dongfang Shuo to look at it and said: "This insect has a strange name. In the past, innocent people were detained, and the common people were worried and resentful. They looked up and sighed and said, 'What a weird thing!' It moved the heavens, and it was born out of anger. , so the name is strange. This place must be the prison of Qin." According to the map, it is true. He also asked: "How to get rid of the worms?" Shuo said: "Anyone who is worried can be relieved by drinking wine. Drinking wine will eliminate it." So he asked people to take the worms and put them in wine, and they would disperse in a moment.
Vernacular translation
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty once went to Ganquan Palace and saw a kind of insect on the road. It was red and had a head, eyes, teeth, ears, and nose. ( But) none of the followers knew what it was. (So) Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty called Dongfang Shuo and asked him to identify (what it was). Dongfang Shuo replied: "This insect is called 'Guizai'. (Because) In the past, the Qin Dynasty imprisoned innocent civilians, and the people were filled with sorrow and resentment. They looked up. Sighing: "How strange! How strange!" The people's sighs moved God, and God was angry, so this insect was born. This place must be the place where the prison of the Qin Dynasty was located. I asked someone to check the map, and sure enough, it was true. Emperor Wu asked again, "Then how to get rid of this kind of insect?" Dongfang Shuo replied: "Any sorrow can be relieved by drinking wine, so if you drink this kind of insect with wine, it will die." So Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty asked people to put the strange insect in the In the wine, after a while, the bugs disappeared.
Dongfang Shuo and the "Weird" Story
Volume 140 of "Summary of the General Catalog of the Complete Collection of Siku Quanshu", under the item "Jian Jie Lu" Zeng Yun:
"Written by He Guangyuan of Shu. The Story of Dongfang Shuo's Identification of Strange Things (case: the novel has been lost, this article can be found in Chapter 473 of "Taiping Guangji"), which has been attached." The "novel" mentioned here should be the "Novel" compiled by Nanliang Yinyun. Although it has been lost for a long time, we can see the edited version. In addition to Lu Xun and Yu Jiaxi, Zhou Lengjia also edited the book. In the edition compiled by Zhou Lengjia, the "Weird" story comes from "Shuo Yong", and the original annotation is "Zhu Shuo Zhuan". I guess it refers to "Dongfang Shuo Biography":
Emperor Wu was lucky enough to visit Ganquan Palace in Chidao. There are insects, red in color, with heads, teeth, ears, and noses, which the observer cannot recognize. The emperor sent Shuo to look at it and said: "This is 'strange'. In the old Qin Dynasty, innocent people were detained, and the common people were worried and resentful. They looked up and sighed and said: 'What a weird thing!'! Gai moved heaven and was so angry. It was born, so it was called "Guai Zai". This place must be the prison of Qin." According to the map, it is the prison of Qin. He asked again: "Why do we get rid of the worms?" Shuo said: "Anyone who is worried can be relieved by drinking wine. Drinking wine will eliminate it." So he asked people to take the worms and put them in the wine. After a while, the fruit was minced and scattered. (Item 60 of Volume 2 of "Yin Yun Novels", published by Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House in 1984)
This "weird" story is one of the best stories of Dongfang Shuo. It can be seen that its compiler Yin Yun is really awesome. Zhou Lengjia edited the preface of "Yin Yun's Novels" and quoted "Southern History" and so on, saying that he has a "free and easy temperament and does not stick to details." From this sketch, it can be seen that Yin Yun also has a rare imagination and outstanding satirical power to write it. So wonderfully written. Perhaps, because of this, it appears many times in other books. At present, I have collected only these five versions:
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was lucky enough to see an insect in the road... The emperor made Dongfang Shuo look at it and said to him: "This insect has a strange name. In the past, When innocent people are detained, this place must be the prison of Qin." He clicked on the map and believed what he said. ... Take the insects and put them in wine, and they will disperse in a moment. (Volume 473 of "Taiping Guangji", published in "Novel")
Dongfang Shuo's Biography says: Emperor Wu was lucky to have a sweet spring, and there were insects covering the ground in the Changping Slope Road, like red liver. Shuo said: "It must be the prison of Qin. Those who are worried can be relieved by drinking wine." He took the insects and put them in the wine to eliminate the moose. Give a hundred pieces of silk. There is wine in the car at the back, for this reason. ("Taiping Yulan" Volume 818·Bubo Part 5)
Dongfang Shuo's Biography says: Emperor Wu was lucky to have a sweet spring, and there were insects in the Changping Slope Road, red as liver, and the leader was well-spoken, and the pioneer was galloping In return, the envoy looked at it, but he didn't know it. When Shuo was in the chariot, he went to look at it. Shuo said: This is called a strange gas, and it must be the prison of Qin. The envoy looked at the map and found the prison of Qin. Asked Shuo how he knew this, Shuo said: If a husband has accumulated worries, he can get rid of them by drinking wine. He takes insects and puts them in the wine, which immediately eliminates them. He gives Shuo a hundred pieces of silk and puts the wine in the car behind him. This is why. (Volume 72 of "Yi Wen Lei Ju", Food Department, Volume 845 of "Taiping Yulan", Food Department 3 is also cited, with slightly different words)
"Prefecture and Country Chronicles" says: Fifteen miles north of Xianyang County, Yongzhou, there is Changping Ban, where Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was lucky enough to have a sweet spring. There were insects covering the ground along the road, as red as raw liver. Asked Dongfang Shuo, Shuo said: "The prison of Qin is full of grievances. I heard that wine can relieve sorrow." If you pour it with wine, the fruit will be gone. ("Taiping Yulan" Volume 53·Dibu 18·Han)
"Guang Wuxing Ji" says: Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was lucky enough to see an insect in the Ganquan Palace, with a red head and no eyes or nose.
The onlookers didn't know it, but the emperor sent Dongfang Shuo to look at it and said to him: "In the Qin Dynasty, innocent people were detained, and the common people were worried about death. They looked up and sighed and said, "It's weird, so it's clear. This must be the prison of Qin." Shuo also said. He said: "Any worry can be relieved by drinking wine, and the fertile wine should be used to eliminate it." So he took the insects and put them in the wine, and they dispersed in a moment. ("Taiping Yulan" Volume 944·Chongzhi Part 1)
Among them, the first type of "Novel" has little difference in words. Secondly, the three versions are all based on "Dongfang Shuo Biezhuan", but there are some differences between them: the former says "there are insects covering the ground", the latter does not mention the word "covering the ground"; the former says "the husband is worried", the latter says "the husband is worried" A worrier".
The fourth type of "Chronicles of Prefectures and States" is probably the "Chronicles of Prefectures and States" in the "Continuation of Hanshu" written by Ma Biao of Jin Dynasty. In this way, the record of "Weird" in this book is much earlier than that of "Yiyuan".
The fifth version of "Guang Wuxing Ji" was written by an unknown person, and the text is more elegant than the above. Volume 220 of "Taiping Guangji" contains an article "A Strange Sickness among the Monks in Jiangzhou", which is also quoted from this book. The full text is as follows:
In Yonghui, there was a monk in Jiangzhou who was sick and choked. Food. After several years of this, when he was about to die, he told his disciples: "After my breath is gone, you can open my chest and throat to see what is there and want to know its root." He died at the end of his words. The disciple opened his eyes according to his words and found something in his chest. It looked like a fish with two heads, and its body was covered with flesh scales. The disciple jumped into the bowl and kept jumping. The various flavors are put into the bowl, and although there is no food, they all turn into water in a moment. Also, all the poisons contained in it will be disposed of immediately. In the middle of summer, when the blue was ripe, people in the temple were making indigo in the water for the first time. A monk went there and threw a small amount of indigo into the bowl. The insect was frightened and ran around the bowl, turning into water in a moment. It is said that indigo water is used to treat choking diseases.
Yonghui is the reign name of Li Zhi, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty (the first year of Yonghui is 650). This book was also cited in Guangji, so it must be a Tang Dynasty work. Judging from this article "Jiangzhou Monk with Strange Disease", the writing style is also not smooth. The plot of the Jiangzhou monk's mind that only indigo can transform is similar to the plot of drinking to eliminate strange things. Maybe the book specializes in potions to cure diseases.