During the Zhenzong period of Song Dynasty, Wang Dan once served as prime minister. One day in the year of severe drought, when Wang Dan was returning home from the government office, he passed Pan's flag pavilion. A madman named Wang Xing pointed at Wang Dan and cursed: "The people are living in poverty because of the drought. As a person, Prime Minister, how can you feel at ease?" As he spoke, he hit Wang Dan on the head with the scripture in his hand. Wang Dan's followers captured Wang Xing and handed him over to the government. Wang Dan said: "What he said is indeed my fault. What crime does he have?" and ordered Wang Xing to be released.
The king of the Song Dynasty once served as prime minister during the reign of Emperor Renzong. He was diligent in political affairs and followed etiquette when advancing and retreating. When he returned to his hometown Qingzhou after winning the first prize, the government officials ordered the people to play musical instruments and go outside the city to welcome him. When Wang Zeng heard the news, he changed his clothes, rode on a donkey, and entered the city from another city gate to meet with the government official. He said to the government official: "I was lucky enough to get the number one scholar. How dare I alert the adults and fellow villagers to come here?" Welcome? You are doing this to increase my fault!" The official couldn't help but praise: "You can be called a true champion!"
Fu Bi, a famous minister in the Northern Song Dynasty, was not only talented. , and he is generous. Once, an official in the same dynasty scolded him in front of him. Fu Bi was stunned and pretended not to hear. A friend said to Fu Bi very angrily: "You must punish this person and vent his bad breath!" Fu Bi said nonchalantly: "He is scolding someone else, right? There are many people with the same name and surname in the world!" Later , the person who scolded Fu Bi heard about this conversation between Fu Bi and his friend, felt very ashamed, and sincerely apologized to Fu Bi.
The Prime Minister of the Northern Song Dynasty, Wang Anshi, and his married wife, Wu, lived together without any maids or concubines. One day, Wang Anshi saw a strange woman appearing next to him, and asked: "Who are you?" The woman replied: "My wife ordered me to serve the master." Wang Anshi asked: "Whose family are you from?" The woman replied: "My husband. I was a general who was responsible for transporting military supplies and the ship capsized. The court asked him to compensate for the losses. If it was not enough to offset all the family property, he sold me." Wang Anshi asked again: "How much did my wife spend on you?" Answer: "90. "Wang Anshi immediately sent someone to find the woman's husband and asked him to take his wife away, and told him that the 900,000 yuan paid by his wife would not be refunded.
During the Northern Song Dynasty, the famous calligrapher Mi Fu once ruled Lianshui. Before leaving office, he specially washed the remaining ink on his pen in a pool of water to show that "it is clean and white". When he left office, there were thousands of "Wanmin Umbrellas" given by the people. Later generations also renovated the pool where he washed his pen and ink and named it "Lianchi", which attracted the admiration of countless tourists. There was a poem that said: "Mi Gong washed the ink and purified the soul, leaving the pure energy filling the universe."
So, why were there so many officials with high moral standards in the Song Dynasty?
One of the reasons is that after the Song Dynasty, Neo-Confucianism emerged, which attached great importance to the moral education of officials. Cultivation of moral character was the choice of every intellectual.
The second reason is that the intellectuals in the Song Dynasty received special preferential treatment from the imperial court, and the policy of "not punishing officials" was implemented. Intellectuals believed that they had been favored by the country and had the responsibility and obligation to repay them.
The third reason is that there were many benevolent monarchs in the Song Dynasty, and they were relatively benevolent to intellectuals. Intellectuals are less likely to be punished for their words, and their dignity and face are effectively maintained, so they also respect their status.