Why does Wang Anshi call himself the "Mid-Levels Old Man"?

Wang Anshi was born in Linchuan, Jiangxi (now dongxiang county, Fuzhou). A famous politician, writer, thinker and reformer in the Northern Song Dynasty, he wrote Collected Works of Mr. Linchuan and Collected Works of Wang Wen.

Anyone who knows a little about the history of China's calligraphy knows that, starting with Li Si, a politician and writer in Qin Dynasty who established the artistic status of calligraphy, there are few calligraphers who have no status as politicians, writers, poets and painters in the history of more than 2,200 years. Cai Yong, Lu Ji, Wang Xizhi, Ou Yangxun, Yu Shinan, Chu Suiliang, Yan Zhenqing, Liu Gongquan, Cai Xiang, Su Shi, Mi Fei, Wen Zhiming, Dong Qichang, Chen Jiru, Zhu Da, Fu Shan, Yao Nai, Weng Tonghe ... It is not that words are expensive for people, but that words vary from person to person. People with extraordinary talents must be watertight. Therefore, most of the calligraphy handed down in the world comes from people with historical merits and talents.

Some people may question that Huai Su should not have a part-time job and should not be included in this list. In fact, in the Tang dynasty, Buddhism was equivalent to the state religion, from the emperor to the civil and military officials to the common people. What's the difference between Buddhism and official business? China's calligraphy has a long history. The social environment of each era is different, and people have different aesthetic appreciation angles. With the development of culture, calligraphy also has its own characteristics. In the Tang Dynasty, calligraphers took over the banner of "respecting rhyme" from Jin people, and after hardships, they reached the peak of "respecting law" in China's calligraphy. Song people took the method from the Tang people, but it was different from the Tang people. They condensed the temperament of flying over the eaves and walking on the wall and sprinkled it on silk, thus establishing the unique "Shang Yi" style in the Song Dynasty. The representatives are Su, Huang, Mi, Cai and other "four masters of Song Dynasty". As the prime minister of the former dynasty, Wang Anshi's calligraphy was not as good as that of Su, Huang, Mi and Cai in the Northern Song Dynasty, but according to scattered literature records, it was highly respected at that time. Xuan He Shu Pu records that Wang Anshi "writes a line, he must write a poor book" and "beauty without pity, beauty without withering". Huang Tingjian, a contemporary calligrapher, also commented: "Gong Jing's calligraphy is strange and ancient, like the pen and ink of Jin and Song Dynasties." However, Wang Anshi's calligraphy works are rarely handed down from generation to generation, except Yan Yan Jing Outline?