The Eight Great Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties are: Han Yu, Liu Zongyuan, Ouyang Xiu, Su Xun, Su Shi, Su Che, Zeng Gong, and Wang Anshi. Among these eight, except Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan who were born in the Tang Dynasty, the other six were all born in the Song Dynasty, and one of them can be called an eternal Bole. With a pair of discerning eyes, he discovered the other five great masters.
This big brother is the famous Ouyang Xiu. Ouyang Xiu not only learned a lot by himself, but also wrote such famous works as "The Drunkard's Pavilion". He was also very discerning and accomplished in recognizing people. . Next, the author will talk to you about who Ouyang Xiu recommended to be called the eternal Bole. Zeng Gong
Zeng Gong was born in 1019 AD in Nanfeng, Jiangxi Province. He came from a scholarly family. Both his grandfather and father were in official positions, so Zeng Gong had read poetry and books since he was a child, and he He is relatively intelligent, which also laid the foundation for his future fame.
In 1037 AD, 18-year-old Zeng Gong followed his father to the capital, where he met the noble man in his life, Ouyang Xiu. Four years later, Zeng Gong wrote a letter to Ouyang Xiu, a well-known literary figure at that time, and attached it with "Current Affairs Policy". The purpose was to recommend himself and show his talents to Ouyang Xiu, so as to get the recommendation of this literary figure. .
Zeng Gong was mainly good at ancient literature and policy theory, but was not good at imperial examinations. Therefore, he failed in many examinations and never gained fame. He probably couldn't hold it any longer, so he asked Ouyang Xiu for help. After Ouyang Xiu read his article, he appreciated his talent very much and felt that he was a talent that had been buried in the imperial examination. So he specially wrote a "Preface to the Scholar Zeng Gong", not only to encourage him, but also to help him expand his reputation. This is like today when a famous writer writes an article to praise a junior in the literary world. You can imagine how much fame it will bring to this junior.
After that, Ouyang Xiu specially recruited Zeng Gong as his disciple and taught him personally. Under Ouyang Xiu's careful instruction and Zeng Gong's efforts, Zeng Gong finally passed the Jinshi examination in 1057 AD and realized his dream of an official career. Su's father and son
Su Xun, Su Shi, and Su Che, father and son, are destined to be unavoidable figures in the history of Chinese literature. They relied on their talents and learning to create the myth of a three-level Jinshi. However, if Ouyang Xiu was missing, their myth would be doomed to be a bit dim.
Su Xun took the imperial examinations several times in his early years, but just like Zeng Gong, he failed one after another. Later, he studied hard and after several years of studying in seclusion, he finally improved.
In 1056 AD, 48-year-old Su Xun took his brothers Su Shi and Su Zhe with him and his carefully written articles to visit Zhang Fangping, the then magistrate of Yizhou, hoping to get his recommendation. However, Zhang Fangping felt that his literary level was not superb, but he could not refuse the request of the father and son, so he wrote a letter and asked the father and son to take the letter to Ouyang Xiu, a veteran in the literary world.
Su Xun and the others thought they would be satisfied with Zhang Fangping's recommendation, but unexpectedly they had the opportunity to meet Ouyang Xiu. If they could get his appreciation, the effect would be much better than Zhang Fangping's.
As expected, after reading Su Xun's article, Ouyang Xiu said: "The article will be here later!" This is not a low opinion! Then Ouyang Xiu submitted a "Recommendation to Commoner Su Xun" to Song Renzong and recommended Su Xun to the emperor. With Ouyang Xiu's recommendation, Su Xun immediately became famous in the capital.
In 1057 AD, just as Zeng Gong took the imperial examination, Su Shi and Su Che also took part in the imperial examination. This year's examiner was Ouyang Xiu, but then he made an own mistake, which became a legend in the literary world.
Ouyang Xiu came up with a topic for policy analysis. Later, when he was reviewing the test paper, he found an article that was particularly wonderful and very "Meng Ke style". After Ouyang Xiu finished reading it, he felt that it was very amazing. It was definitely the best article in this exam. However, since the names of candidates were affixed in the imperial examinations of the Song Dynasty, it is not known whose article this is.
Because Ouyang Xiu's disciple Zeng Gong also took the exam, he took it for granted that this was Zeng Gong's article. Therefore, he was worried that if he ranked this article first, people would inevitably talk about the unfairness of the imperial examination, so after discussing with everyone, he ranked this article second.
During the re-examination, Ouyang Xiu read another very exciting article, and this time Ouyang Xiu directly rated it first. When the results were finally announced, Ouyang Xiu discovered that the articles he admired most in the two exams were all written by Su Shi, which amazed Ouyang Xiu.
As a big figure in the literary world, Ouyang Xiu was very happy that such a genius had appeared in the literary world. He told others at the time: "Reading Shi's book will make you sweat, so be happy! I should stay out of the way and let him out." "One end of the world." In this way, it helped Su Shi become famous! Wang Anshi
In 1044 AD, Zeng Gong recommended a person to Ouyang Xiu, and this person was his good friend Wang Anshi. In the letter of recommendation, Zeng Gong called Wang Anshi a figure "unusual in ancient and modern times" and brought one of Wang Anshi's articles to Ouyang Xiu. But unfortunately, when this letter arrived, Ouyang Xiu had already left the capital.
Three years later, Ouyang Xiu was demoted to Chuzhou. When Zeng Gong came to visit his mentor, he recommended Wang Anshi again.
This time Ouyang Xiu finally saw Wang Anshi's article. After reading it, Ouyang Xiu praised it greatly and offered to meet Wang Anshi. However, due to various reasons, it could not be seen. However, this did not affect Ouyang Xiu's recognition of his talent. In the following years, Ouyang Xiu recommended Wang Anshi to the emperor several times.
In 1056 AD, Ouyang Xiu returned from his mission to Khitan, and Wang Anshi just returned to Beijing after completing his term. This time they finally met. Then the two wrote letters and poems to each other, just like they had been close friends for many years.
However, they later had some differences in academic opinions, but this did not affect their personal relationship at all. Ouyang Xiu spared no effort to recommend Wang Anshi, and Wang Anshi was forever grateful to Ouyang Xiu for his kindness.
In addition to Zeng Gong, Su Xun, Su Shi, Su Che, and Wang Anshi, Ouyang Xiu also recommended many talents. Great Confucians such as Zhang Zai, Cheng Hao, and Lu Dajun, and even figures such as Bao Zheng, Han Qi, Wen Yanbo, and Sima Guang who had an important influence on the political situation of the Song Dynasty were all discovered by Ouyang Xiu when they were inconspicuous. Ouyang Xiu also indirectly had a very important impact on the politics and culture of the Song Dynasty.
"History of the Song Dynasty" commented on Ouyang Xiu: "Rewards are used to attract the underachievers. If they are afraid of not being able to catch up, they will be recognized and become famous." .