First of all, because of their identity, they just want to do something noble and elegant. Secondly, they are comparing each other. Seeing each other do this, they have to do it themselves. Throughout the ages, moderately famous emperors, generals, ministers, and romantic scribes like to inscribe plaques and write words everywhere. On the one hand, you have absolute confidence in your own calligraphy. On the other hand, there are also people who compliment you, ask for your calligraphy, and love to carry the sedan chair. Up to now, many leaders still have the habit of writing inscriptions, but many people just can't stand their handwriting. Therefore, the latter factor is still the main reason why they write inscriptions everywhere. Cai Jing was the most ranked "Standing Committee member" in the late Northern Song Dynasty. He liked to write, and he also liked to write big characters with a large pen. He kept a huge bamboo pen holder at home with six or seven large pens in it, which was "as big as a rafter arm." But his calligraphy is really good. Lu You's "Notes on Laoxue'an" said that the character "勋" on the forehead of Linping Temple written by Cai Jing is unique. Since the Tang Dynasty, the character "勑" has been written in pursuit of fairness and honesty. However, Cai Jing's character "勑" is of "dangerous strength", with "lai" being long and "li" being short. Everyone called this "勑" character "Caijiayuan" and followed suit one after another. Of course, good handwriting is not enough, you must be praised by others. The bigger the official, the more praise he will receive. Cai Jing had two sitters, one was the calligrapher Mi Fu and the other was the poet He Zhu.
In addition to inscriptions, the ancients also had a hobby, which was to create statues. Idols are basically used for worship. Most of the statues are made of emperors, but there are also some civil servants and generals who have become gods like Guan Gong. The most interesting thing is that the Taiqing Palace was built in the Tang Dynasty. In addition to the statues of Emperor Xuanyuan (Emperor Xuanyuan was Lao Tzu, and the emperor of the Tang Dynasty recognized him as his ancestor) and the statue of Emperor Xuanzong carved from the white stone of Taibai Mountain, the two prime ministers Li Linfu and Chen Xilie were also built. The image is for people to worship.
Later something happened to Li Linfu, and his statue was carried to the backyard and buried, and replaced with a statue of Yang Guozhong. Later, something happened to Yang Guozhong and Chen Xilie, and their portraits were simply smashed. Many years later, Emperor Daizong of the Tang Dynasty rebuilt the Taiqing Palace and dug up the statue of Li Linfu. When everyone looked at the inscription on the back, it was him, so why did it keep it? Smash it. It seems that idols are not safe. When they are worshiped by others, it is common for them to be smashed. In fact, being molded into an idol in the first place is not a good thing. Confucius once said: "The one who created the figurines has no descendants?" This is what he meant.
Yu Yue, the author of "Cha Xiangshi Congchao", researched that the first person to create statues was a Qi man named Yu Qing. This man's father died without being buried. Knowing that he was at fault, he carved a portrait of his father to worship him. There is no need to create idols if "life is provided for". If you know this allusion, I'm afraid no one would want their pictures to be everywhere. Writing inscriptions everywhere is to show off oneself, and erecting statues and monuments is to continue to show off oneself in front of future generations. Most of them are just wishful thinking. In fact, some people have long been open to this. For example, when Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty's son Yang You, King of Qi, died, everyone applied to erect a monument. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty said: "If you want to be famous, a history book is enough. If you can't, just be a stone ear for future generations." People who understand. ah.