Su Shi was born in Meishan, Meizhou (now Meishan City, Sichuan Province), a native of Luancheng, Hebei Province, a writer, calligrapher, gourmet, painter and historical water control celebrity in the Northern Song Dynasty.
Su Shi is a student of Ouyang Xiu. When Su Shi was admitted to Jinshi, Ouyang Xiu was his chief examiner. It can be said that they are a teacher-student relationship. In the history of China literature, talented people like Ouyang Xiu are rare. Ouyang Xiu was full of praise for Su Shi's talent. He said in the famous Book with Mei that "the old man should avoid Taoism and let him (Su Shi) get ahead", which later became a famous idiom-get ahead.
Ouyang Xiu discovered Su Shi and Su Zhe.
In February of the second year of Jia's reign (1057), Ouyang Xiu served as the examiner of Gong Ju of the Ministry of Ritual, and presided over the Jinshi examination as a bachelor of Hanlin. When marking the paper, Ouyang Xiu saw a test paper, which began with the words: "Heaven and earth roll, everything grows, and saints make it." The use of words seems ancient, but it is actually embarrassing. It is nothing more than saying that heaven and earth meet, everything comes into being, and then saints come out. Ouyang Xiu probably belongs to his own student Ceng Gong. This style of writing needs to be encouraged, but it is "one of our own" after all. If I can't get the first place, I'll take this paper as the second. This "self" is actually Su Shi.
After opening the paper, Ouyang Xiu found that the author of the paper was not Ceng Gong, but Su Shi. Su Shi didn't win the first prize, and this regret should be counted on Ouyang Xiu. However, this is a beautiful misunderstanding, and it also embodies Ouyang Xiu's virtue of being strict with himself. Along with Su Shi, he was admitted by Ouyang Xiu, as well as his younger brother Su Zhe and a number of important figures in the literary world of the Northern Song Dynasty. From this point of view, Ouyang Xiu has made outstanding contributions to the Northern Song Dynasty and even the whole history of China literature with his outstanding ability to recognize people. Su Shi wrote a thank-you letter to Ouyang Xiu after he was admitted to Jinshi. Ouyang Xiu praised Su Shi for his good writing style, saying that he "didn't feel sweaty" after reading his letter, and felt that he should avoid this young man for three points. Su Shi lived up to Ouyang Xiu's expectations and eventually became another cultural giant after Ouyang Xiu.
Ouyang Xiu and Su Shi discuss allusions.
Su Shi used an allusion in The Theory of Loyalty and Righteousness: he said "kill it" and Yao said "kill it". This allusion means that Yao was an official in charge of criminal law when he was in power. To put a man to death, Hao Tao said three times that he should be killed, but Emperor Yao said three times in a row that he should be forgiven. Therefore, everyone was afraid of Hao Tao's resolute law enforcement and praised the lenient punishment of Emperor Yao. Ouyang Xiu didn't know this allusion, and later he consulted it many times, but he couldn't find any relevant information. So Ouyang Xiu asked Su Shi about the origin of this allusion.
Su Shi said that he made it up by himself, according to a speculation made by Kong Rong during the Three Kingdoms period. At that time, Cao Cao gave his wife Yuan to his son Cao Pi. Kong Rong said that Zhou Wuwang once gave da ji to the Duke of Zhou. Kong Rong meant to satirize Cao Cao. Cao Cao asked Kong Rong, which scripture said this? Kong Rong replied, judging from the current facts, it should be like this. Therefore, Su Shi explained that things about Yao He are also speculative. Ouyang Xiu was deeply impressed, saying that Su Shi read well and knew how to use the materials in the book. His article will be unique in the future.