Article Duan Honggang
Xue Tao (768-832), a famous female poet in the Tang Dynasty, was one of the few talented women in Chinese history and left many good stories in the history of literature.
The wealth she left to future generations, in addition to the more than 90 poems included in "Jinjiang Collection", also includes "Wangjiang Tower" and a pair of incomplete couplets in Wangjiang Tower. , this couplet is called the eternal absolute, it only has the upper couplet but not the lower couplet. More than 1,200 years have passed, and no one can still match the second couplet, and it still explains to the world what incomplete beauty is.
Wangjiang Tower is located outside the east gate of Chengdu. It was built in the 15th year of Guangxu’s reign in the Qing Dynasty (1889). It was built in memory of Xue Tao. The entire building complex is nestled in a dense bamboo forest with various types of bamboo. There are many, including human-faced bamboo, square bamboo, wheat bamboo, purple bamboo, mian bamboo, Buddha belly bamboo, chicken claw bamboo, Huqin bamboo, solid bamboo, etc.
The reason why Wangjiang Tower is surrounded by bamboo forests is because Xue Tao had a special liking for bamboo throughout his life, and expressed his love for bamboo in many poems. Among them, the five rhymes "Rewarding People" "Playing with Bamboo After the Rain" is the most famous. The poem says:
When it rains in the south in spring, I can see the snow and frost.
All kinds of things are also luxuriant. Be humble and calm.
If Jinxian stays drunk for a long time, he will be sad with Concubine Shun early.
You can reward me in your later years, and you will be energetic and energetic.
The two lines in the poem, "Vigorous and energetic, and capable of self-control with humility" were often used by Xue Tao to encourage himself, hoping that he would have such noble character and virtue as bamboo. There are luxuriant bamboo forests in the garden, and it can be said that later generations helped Xue Tao fulfill his long-cherished wish to love bamboo and have bamboo as his companion.
Since 1889, Chongli Pavilion, Zhuojin Tower, Huanjian Pavilion, Wuyunxian Pavilion, Liubei Pool, Quanxiang Pavilion, Poetry Building, Xue Tao Well, Xue Tao Pavilion have been built in the park. The memorial hall and other antique buildings had reached a considerable scale by the Republic of China, and were opened up as "Wangjiang Tower Park", becoming one of Chengdu's characteristic attractions.
The original name of Wangjiang Tower is "Chongli Pavilion", which comes from the famous line in "Ode to the Capital of Shu" by Zuo Si, a famous writer in the Western Jin Dynasty, "It is both beautiful and respected, and the real name is Chengdu". After the entire building complex was completed, standing on Chongli Pavilion, you can see the water of Jinjiang River flowing southward, so it was renamed "Wangjiang Tower" and it has been used to this day.
According to data, Wangjiang Tower has 4 floors and a total height of 39 meters. The roof ridges and sparrows are richly decorated, including clay sculptures of birds and animals, as well as human sculptures and paintings. The whole building presents the aesthetic feeling of red pillars, green tiles, gilded roofs, carved beams and painted buildings. It combines the majesty of northern architecture and the elegance of Jiangnan pavilions, and has a high artistic flavor.
Xue Tao was born in a scholarly family in Chang'an, the capital. Her father, Xue Yun, was an official in Chang'an City. He was proficient in poetry and had profound knowledge. He urged Xue Tao to read, write and compose poems since she was a child. By the age of 8, Xue Tao had already shown a high talent in literature. Coupled with her quick thinking, she could answer "propositional poems" quite easily. Such excellent performance made Xue Yun very satisfied with this precious daughter. , treat her like a little princess.
However, when Xue Tao was 11 years old, Xue Yun, who was upright and upright, was demoted because he offended the powerful officials in the court. The family had to leave the capital for Shu. Finally, they settled in Chengdu.
When Xue Tao was 14 years old, Xue Yun was sent to Nanzhao, a small country in the southwest, as an envoy. Unfortunately, he contracted miasma on the way and eventually died. The family lost its backbone, putting other people's lives in immediate trouble.
Xue Tao, who was dependent on his mother, had no choice but to join a music company when he was 16 years old. He became a musician and officially started a life of self-reliance.
Historically, there were not many musicians like Xue Tao who were both talented and beautiful and proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting. Therefore, Xue Tao quickly stood out among the many musicians with his own advantages and was deeply loved by literati and poets. Loved by dignitaries. Famous literati of this period, including Bai Juyi, Yuan Zhen, Liu Yuxi, Du Mu, Zhang Ji, Wang Jian and others, all sang with her and even had emotional entanglements with her.
Because Xue Tao has lived in Sichuan for more than 50 years, she can be regarded as an authentic Sichuanese. Therefore, she, Zhuo Wenjun, Mrs. Huarui, and Huang E are called the "Four Talented Women in Sichuan" and are known to future generations. He left many good words.
In addition to poetry, Xue Tao also shows high talent in calligraphy and couplets. The incomplete couplets on Wangjiang Tower are her generous work.
The location where Wangjiang Tower is located was called "Jade Girl Jin" in the Tang Dynasty. It was a famous ferry with people coming and going every day and it was very lively. Every spring, the flowers on both sides of Jinjiang River bloom one after another, making the surrounding area very beautiful. Spring is a good season for spring outings to enjoy flowers. Every spring, many girls board boats from Huanhua Stream, float down the river to Jinjiang River, and then go to Yunujin to complete their spring outing.
According to legend, one spring, Xue Tao came to a building in Yunujin, witnessed the meandering water of Jinjiang River, and casually recited a couplet: Wangjiang Tower, Wangjiang Flow, Wangjiang Tower. Watch the river flow, the river towers will last forever, and the river will flow forever.
Later, for some reason, people didn’t see the second line. Was it because Xue Tao didn’t write it out at the time? Or was it written but lost? It can no longer be verified. Up to now, this first couplet is carved on the door frame in a incomplete form, leaving visitors with endless incomplete beauty.
Xue Tao’s first couplet can be said to be natural. It uses easy-to-understand language and cleverly connects several places of interest to form a picture of ascending to a high place and dominating the world. The perspective is also It changes quickly and contains laments about the shortness of life and the changing of things and people. There are many philosophical thoughts contained in it, making it a catchy read.
Since the birth of this first couplet, many talented people have come here to try it, eager to try to compete with the second couplet, but almost no one has been able to do so.
According to legend, until the 1930s, a talented man named Li Jiyu in Shifang, Sichuan, came to the "Yinyue Well" next to Wangjiang Tower on a full moon night and saw the bright moon in the well. Reflection, this scene suddenly reminded him of the first couplet on Wangjiang Tower, so he had an idea and blurted out:
Yinyue Well, Yinyueyue, Yinyuejingyinyueyue, Yueyueyin thousands of years, The shadow of the moon lasts for thousands of years.
Although the artistic conception of this second couplet is not outstanding enough and seems to be a bit mechanical, compared with other second couplets, it still shows higher skills and connotation. From form to content, it is remarkable. at. So far, only this second line is closest to the true nature of the first line.