During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, metaphysics rose, the style of casual conversation prevailed, and the style of knight-errants declined. During the Western Jin Dynasty, Li Yang was known as a hero in Kyoto, but there is no biography in history. Judging from "Shishuo Xinyu·Gui Zhen" and Liu Xiao's annotated quotation from "Yu Lin", this Li Yang only had a wide circle of friends and a great reputation. It doesn’t match the hero’s reputation. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the spirit of chivalry was still there, but it occasionally shone in a small number of Yuefu poems about frontier fortresses and knights, such as Liang Wujun's "Pheasant Class", Wang Bao's "The Military March", Yu Xin's "The Knight's Journey", Chen Zhangzheng See "Duguan Mountain", Sui Lu Sidao's "Conongjunxing", etc. However, these poets who described knights joining the army did not have any life experience in the frontier fortress. They mostly followed the traditional content of Yuefu in the old titles, which was perfunctory and lacked true feelings.
In the Tang Dynasty, the economy was prosperous, the country's prestige was far-reaching, the mind was active, and life was liberated. The founding fathers of the Tang Dynasty, Li Jing and Li Ji, were both quite chivalrous. "New Book of Tang·Biography of Li Jing": He once said to a relative: "What happened to my husband? If I want to gain wealth through fame, why should I become a Confucian scholar?" 'In the late Tang Dynasty's legendary novel "The Story of the Qiu Bearded Guest", Li Jing is portrayed as one of the three heroes in the world. "The Biography of Li Ji in the Old Book of Tang Dynasty": There were many servants in the family, and they accumulated thousands of grains. Both of them, like his father Gai, were fond of charity and helped the poor, regardless of their relative distance. There is a passage by Li Ji recorded in the volume "Jia Hua of the Sui and Tang Dynasties", describing his process from a ranger to a general: When I was twelve or thirteen years old, I was a rogue and a thief, killing everyone I met; when I was fourteen or five years old, I became a thief and was unhappy. Kill them all; at the age of seventeen or eighteen, he is a good thief, and he goes into battle to kill people; at the age of twenty, he becomes a general in the world, using his troops to save people from death. The most typical one is Guo Zhen. "New Book of Tang·Biography of Guo Zhen": In the eighteenth year of Jinshi, he was named Tongquanwei. Let the knight be angry, remove the small details, steal and sell more than a thousand coins in the department, and pay the guests, and the people are tired of suffering. Empress Wu knew what she had done, and when she wanted to question him, she asked him what he had done and asked for an article about it, which he published in the "Bao Sword Chapter". Later, after reading Jia sigh, he issued an edict to Li Qiao, a bachelor, and others, who immediately appointed You Wuwei Cao Cao to join the army and advance to Fengchen to supervise the city. Later, Guo Zhen successively served as the governor of Liangzhou, the governor of Anxi, the chief commander of Jinshan Road Marching Army, and the chief commander of Shuofang Army. He repeatedly performed extraordinary feats and was promoted to Minister of War (Minister of Defense) and the third rank of Tongzhongshu (prime minister).
The chivalrous style is a major feature of Tang poetry. The image of the knight-errant began to appear in poetry as early as the Han and Wei dynasties, but it was not until the Tang Dynasty, especially in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, that the praise of the knight-errant rose like a peak and became a common song in the whole society. The spirit of Ren Xia in Tang poetry is not an isolated and accidental phenomenon, but has expanded into a generational trend in the poetry world with the arrival of the climax of Tang poetry. There are countless poems about knights and knight-errants. There are nearly 60 poems in "Complete Poems of the Tang Dynasty" with the title "Youth's Journey" alone, and there are no less than a hundred poems that mention the word "xia". Wang Wei, who is famous for his landscape and pastoral poems, also wrote "Four Poems of a Young Man". Tang poetry not only shaped the image of knights and described their words and deeds, but also praised the integrity and spirit of knights. The most representative one is Li Bai's "Xia Ke Xing", "Even if the knight's bones are fragrant, he will not be ashamed of the world's heroes." It clearly reflects the poet's praise and praise for the "chivalrous knight". Even the bitter poet Jia Dao, who had been frustrated in his official career and was in poverty, also wrote in "The Swordsman": "I have sharpened my sword for ten years, but I have never tried the frost blade. Today I show you to the king, who has any injustice?" The spirit of chivalry in Tang poetry It shows us a character full of pioneering spirit, a strong character, and a yearning for ideals and freedom.
In the early prosperous period of the Tang Dynasty, poets Ren Xia became popular. Luo Binwang, Chen Ziang, Wang Han, Wang Zhihuan, Meng Haoran, Gao Shi, Zhang Xu, Wei Yingwu, etc. were all famous for Ren Xia. King Luo Bin's "The Past" claims that young men value heroes and heroes, while weak years despise clothes. Wen Yiduo's "The Self-Redemption of Palace Poems" said: King Luo Bin was born a chivalrous man, he only liked to meddle in other people's affairs, fight injustices, kill people for revenge, make revolutions, and help infatuated women defeat betrayed men. This was all done by him. Lu Zang of the Tang Dynasty said in "Chen's Farewell Biography": "Father Yuan Jing, magnificent and graceful." At the age of twenty, he was known as a hero. The people who belong to the country prevent hunger and scatter ten thousand bells of grain in one day without asking for retribution. ...The heir, Zi Ang, is an outstanding figure, with a majestic appearance. At the beginning, he was the son of a wealthy family, and he was a chivalrous and powerful person. When he was seventeen or eighteen years old, he had no knowledge of the book. "New Book of Tang·Biography of Wang Han": The young man was strong and relied on his talent, and he was a Jinshi, but he liked bean wine. ... I came out as the governor of Ruzhou and moved to Xianzhou to leave. During the day, I drank and played with talented men and heroes, playing drums and having fun. Tang Jinneng's "Preface to the Epitaph of Prince Taiyuan (Zhihuan) of Wen'an County, Wen'an County in the Tang Dynasty": Only the public is filial to his family, his righteousness is known to his friends, he is generous and broad-minded, and suave and talented. Taste or sing the song of joining the army, chanting out of the fortress, chiming with thoughts of the bright moon in the mountains, rustling with the sound of the cold wind in the Yi River, spreading to Yuefu and spreading among the people.
Volume 3 of "The Biography of Talented Scholars of the Tang Dynasty" "Wang Zhihuan": There is little chivalry, and all the people he travels with are young men from Wuling, fencing, lamenting, and drinking with birds. "Preface to the Collection of Meng Haoran" by Wang Shiyuan of the Tang Dynasty: (Meng Haoran) has a pure and clear appearance, and a calm spirit. To save trouble and resolve disputes, to establish righteousness. "New Book of Tang·Biography of Meng Haoran": The young man is fond of integrity and loves to cheer people up in times of trouble. Yinfan of the Tang Dynasty commented on Gao Shi in the volume of "Heyue Yingling Collection": he was unconventional in nature, informal in trivial matters, was ashamed of regular subjects, and disappeared as a scholar, and his talent and fame have spread far and wide. "The Biography of Gao Shi in the Old Book of Tang Dynasty": Shi Xi said that the king would dominate the general strategy, work for fame and honor, and uphold integrity. When times are difficult, take safety as your responsibility. Song Shen Zuozhe's "Biography of the Governor of Buwei (Yingwu)": When he was between Kaiyuan and Tianbao, he stayed in the guard battle, got close to the curtains, and obeyed after being lucky, and he was quite heroic and heroic. Zhang Xu, a great calligrapher and poet, was also a chivalrous man. Li Bai said in "Tiger's Journey": Every time a Chu man talks about Zhang Xu, he has hidden things in his heart that the world does not know. The three uncles of Wu Bang looked forward to it, and the heroes from all over the world followed him.
However, after all, the Tang Dynasty was no longer the Warring States Period, and it was impossible for knights to make great political achievements. On the other hand, the unprecedented strength of the Tang Empire greatly aroused the enthusiasm of the Tang people to join the army and serve the country. It is better to be a centurion than a scholar. He only takes fame from horses. He is truly a heroic husband. This kind of hero worship that emphasizes martial arts over literature, and values ????of life that value meritocracy over Confucianism, inspired poets in the Tang Dynasty to join the army and go to the frontier fortress. King Luo Bin, Chen Zi'ang, Cen Shen, etc. all served in the army twice, and Su Weiwei and Lu Zangyong all served as military officials. Cui Rong once served in Wu Sansi's eastern expedition to Khitan, Li Qiao once supervised the army in Lingnan and quelled the rebellion, and Guo Zhen once led troops in Liangzhou, Anxi, Jinshan, and Shuofang. These places were the main battlefields at that time. Zhang said that he had successively served as the governor of Youzhou, the ambassador of the Tianbing Army, and the minister of the Ministry of War. Cui Hao also served in the army, so the volume of "Heyue Yingling Collection" says: Hao wrote poems when he was young, and his reputation was frivolous. In the later years, he suddenly changed his regular style, but his character was awe-inspiring. He took a look at the fortress and talked about his military career. It is difficult to confirm whether Wang Zhihuan ever joined the army, but the Epitaph says that he sang or sang about joining the army. Judging from Shi Shi's poem "The Reason for Not Encountering Wang Zhihuan and Guo Mi at Jimen to Leave a Gift" and his own masterpiece "Liangzhou Ci", we can see that he at least had been to the frontier fortress and experienced military life. Gao Shi once went to Hexi and served as the secretary-general of Ge Shuhan, the military governor of Hexi. He moved to Jiannan and Xichuan as military governor many times. Wang Wei once went to Hexi as a supervisory censor, and later served as the judge of Hexi Jiedu.
Among the poets of the Tang Dynasty, Li Bai was the most chivalrous and touching. When the Anshi Rebellion broke out, he was full of patriotic passion and joined the army of Yong Wang Li Lin. Unexpectedly, Emperor Suzong of the Tang Dynasty decided that Li Lin was a traitor and sent a large army to encircle and suppress him. King Yong was defeated, Li Bai was imprisoned, and Yelang lived forever. Despite being devastated, his ambition never wavers. In the second year of Shangyuan (761), Li Guangbi went out of Linhuai to pursue Shi Chaoyi. At that time, Li Bai was sixty-one years old and was suffering from illness. However, despite his old age and illness, he was still determined to join the army and serve the country. He wrote "I heard that Lieutenant Li mobilized one million Qin soldiers to march to the southeast. The coward asked for a tassel, hoping to secede the country." The poem "The Nineteenth Rhyme of Cui Shiyu of Jinling" says: "Heaven wins the heart of a strong man, and bids farewell to Wu Jing." The next year, Li Bai died of illness and loneliness in Dangtu.
He said in "Books with Han Jingzhou": Bai Longxi commoners lived in Chu and Han. In the fifteenth year, he learned swordsmanship and traveled all over the feudal lords; in his thirty-third year, he was able to write articles and reach the rank of prime minister. Although he is less than seven feet tall, he is ambitious and ambitious. Wei Hao's "Preface to the Collection of Li Hanlin" written by Wei Hao at the end of the year said: "A young hero can kill many people with his hands." Liu Quanbai of the Tang Dynasty wrote "The Legend of Li Junjie, a Scholar of the Imperial Academy": He was a young knight, not involved in industry, but well-known in the capital. "Li Gongxin's Tombstone" written by Fan Chuanzheng of the Tang Dynasty: A young man is a chivalrous person who takes charge of his own affairs, but there are many gates and the elders are chariots. "New Book of Tang: Biography of Li Bai": He likes vertical and horizontal skills, is a knight in fencing, and cares about wealth but not wealth.
As a knight-errant, Li Bai, in addition to fencing and killing people, was more interested in spreading wealth and making friends with heroes. He said in "Gift to Brother Xiangyang Shaofu Hao": He has no knowledge of things, and all the heroes he has made friends with are heroes. "Historical Records of Pei Chang of Shang'an Prefecture" says: I traveled east to Weiyang in less than a year, and scattered more than 300,000 yuan in gold. I helped all the young masters who were in trouble. This is because Bai is light on wealth and loves to give.
The life of Ren Xia influenced Li Bai's character throughout his life. The chivalrous spirit of hoeing the strong, supporting the weak, and eradicating violence combined with his understanding of the corrupt powerful in real life formed his rebellious spirit of resisting the powerful. Singing the strongest note of the prosperous Tang Dynasty: An Neng bows down to the powerful and makes me unhappy! And made him the greatest romantic poet in China after Qu Yuan.
The reason why the spirit of Ren Xia became a prominent literary phenomenon in the Tang Dynasty was because the social life at that time provided a deep foundation for it.
The prevailing knight-errant ethos in society, once combined with the historical needs and social trends of thought in a specific period, formed a powerful spiritual force, thus affecting people's life ideals and literary ideals. The accumulation of commercial assets and the expansion of the city provided a material basis for the activities of the rangers; the large-scale incorporation and migration of the northern nomadic people not only injected fresh blood into the Chinese culture, but also made their heroic and brave customs penetrate into the inland. . However, the fundamental reason why poets in the prosperous Tang Dynasty invariably drew poetic sentiment from the Ren Xia ethos was that it provided the spiritual power needed in this era and was also a kind of psychological dream for the poets.