Since the rebellion of the Eight Kings in the Jin Dynasty, the political situation in the Jin Dynasty has been very unstable, coupled with successive military defeats, making people in the whole era feel very sensitive to discussing political topics.
Play dumb, play dumb, play crazy, and then live in seclusion. ...
For example, the great calligrapher Wang Xizhi, if you want to say that he is confused, I think it is impossible to write the preface to Lanting. But Wang Xizhi's mental state makes people feel that there seems to be something wrong with his old man's brain. This is the representative of playing the fool fully distracted.
Tao Yuanming is a descendant of Tao Kan. He hates political corruption and weakness, but he can't solve it fundamentally. So he lives in seclusion in the mountains and draws a clear line with all political hooligans.
In a word, why is it popular to make it clear? Because they can't change the reality, most people choose this seemingly "small talk and nonsense" way to vent their emotions.