The Southern Song Dynasty poet Lu You and another poet Fan Chengda are known as the "friends of chicken and millet". What is a "chicken-millet acquaintance"?
? First, explain the allusion of "the friendship between chicken and millet". This allusion comes from "Book of the Later Han Dynasty" and is a metaphor for the relationship between friends who keep their promises. The story is that Shi Fan and Zhang Shao hit it off immediately, established a friendship, and agreed to meet at Zhang Shao's house two years later. Two years later, Zhang Shao asked his mother to prepare a sumptuous meal of chicken and millet to entertain him. What my mother said two years ago, are you sure he will come? Zhang Shao made it clear to his mother that Shi Fan was a man whose promise was worth a thousand pieces of gold. Sure enough, on the day promised, the paradigm came as expected.
Before explaining that Lu You and Fan Chengda have a close relationship, we must first understand who Lu You and Fan Chengda are?
The "Four Great Poets of Zhongxing" in the Southern Song Dynasty refer to Lu You, Fan Chengda, Yang Wanli and You Kuan. Of course, Lu You is the most famous, and Fan Chengda is also an outstanding and accomplished poet. Lu You, nicknamed Fangweng, was born in Shanyin (now Shaoxing, Zhejiang) in 1125 AD. In the 23rd year of Shaoxing, AD 1153, he ranked first in the provincial examination. He was later expelled by Qin Hui, and Xiaozong succeeded to the throne and was granted a Jinshi background. He once served as the general magistrate of Longxing and Kuizhou, and became a doctor in the Ministry of Rites. Although his official career was bumpy throughout his life, he always campaigned for the restoration of the Central Plains, and his patriotic pride remained unwavering until his death. Fan Chengda, one year younger than Lu You, was from Wu County (now Suzhou). He passed the Jinshi examination at the age of 29 and served as a member of the Ministry of official affairs. In the sixth year of Qiandao (AD 1170), he was sent to the Kingdom of Jin as a special envoy of the Song Dynasty. Its pastoral achievement is the highest.
It was Lu You's lifelong wish to regain his homeland. However, as he wrote in his poem, "When I wall the Great Wall, I promise to do so in vain, but my temples are already stained in the mirror." He was determined to eliminate border troubles for his country, but he failed to realize his ideal throughout his life. "How many old friends do you have in your life?" Lu You's ambition is hard to fulfill. His grief, anger and heartache are rarely understood by people in that peaceful court, and few can be called close friends. Fortunately, Lu You got acquainted with Fan Chengda, "Lonely loyal and caring", this is Fan Chengda's comfort to Lu You, and it is also his understanding of Lu You. "What's the regret if you die quickly and obey the public?" This is Lu You's admiration for Fan Chengda, and it is also the reward of life and death for a close friend. So, how did Lu You and Fan Chengda meet?
? In the thirty-second year of Shaoxing, 1162 AD, Lu You and Fan Chengda should have known each other. In October of this year, Lu You served as a reviewer at the Classification Office in Lin'an (the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty). Soon after, Fan Chengda also went to Beijing to serve as an official in the same court as him. After getting to know each other, we traveled together and wrote poems together. In particular, I found that their views on the future of the country were surprisingly similar, that is, they both advocated the reunification of the north and the south and the Northern Expedition as soon as possible. Because their political views are very close, their relationship is already very deep.
? Song Xiaozong actually ascended the throne in June of this year. He basically changed the national policy based on peace, advocated the Northern Expedition, redressed Yue Fei's grievances, etc., which gave the warring faction hope. Lu You continued to protest and asked the whole country to resist the Jin Dynasty. However, he also had objections to the two ministers in the court and demanded that they be eliminated as soon as possible. Song Xiaozong felt that Lu You's management was too lenient, so he dismissed Lu You in anger and expelled him from the capital. Fan Chengda always appeared around Lu You during this period, giving him warmth. At the farewell banquet, Fan Chengda wrote a poem to Lu You, which included the sentence "Lonely loyalty is always there to take care of you", and gave him great encouragement, "Fame and fame are in your hands, and things in the world are coincidental."
In the sixth year of Qiandao (AD 1170), Fan Chengda served as a bachelor of Zizhengdian. Song Xiaozong sent him as envoy to the Kingdom of Jin. At this time, it had been more than 40 years since the Northern Song Dynasty was destroyed. Fan Chengda completed his mission and was promoted to Zhongshusheren after returning. When Fan Chengda passed through Jingkou on his mission, Lu You was also at Jingkou and held a banquet in Jinshan for Fan Chengda. Five years later, they met again in Sichuan, and their feelings reached their highest level. In his later years, Lu You once wrote: "Lying stiffly in a lonely village, I don't feel sorry for myself, but I still think about becoming a platform for the country. I lie down at night listening to the wind and rain, and my iron horse falls on the glacier." He has longed to regain his homeland all his life, and he still cherishes it even in his old age. Ambition. But it was his lifelong regret that he could not serve the country on the battlefield. This was one of the reasons why he admired Fan Chengda.
In the third year of Chunxi (AD 1175), Fan Chengda was transferred to Sichuan. Lu You, who was also serving in Sichuan, had another chance to reunite with his old friends. After two years of getting along with each other in Shu, they were inseparable, and their poetry, wine, and singing became a part of the local scenery. In June of 1177 AD, the fourth year of Chunxi's reign, the imperial court issued an order for Fan Chengda to leave Shu for Beijing. Fan Chengda was going to Beijing, and Lu You saw him off for more than ten days and traveled more than 100 kilometers. Because Fan Chengda was promoted to Beijing, Lu You looked forward to him even more. In the poem "Sending Fan Sheren back to the court", there are two lines: "I send you tens of millions of thoughts because of my official duties, and I have already cleared the dust of China." He also proposed the route of the Northern Expedition, "take Guanzhong first and then Hebei". How much did he expect from Fan Chengda! After Fan Chengda entered Beijing, he was promoted to the post of deputy prime minister in the following year. However, due to his political disagreement with Song Xiaozong, he was impeached and dismissed from office, and returned to his hometown of Wu County (today's Suzhou). The mountains and rivers here are beautiful and the scenery is pastoral. Fan Chengda wrote many pastoral poems during this period. Fan Chengda is considered the first-class pastoral poet in the Southern Song Dynasty, and it should be said that he benefited from this period of life.
In the 16th year of Chunxi (AD 1189), Lu You was dismissed from office again and returned to his hometown of Shanyin (today's Shaoxing). While he was out of office and at home, he not only continued to sing poems with Fan Chengda, but also read the diary "Raider Record" written by Fan Chengda when he was on an envoy to the Jin Dynasty, which became his daily lesson. When he read "Zhouqiao", a poem by Fan Chengda, he felt that what he wanted to say in his heart was expressed, and he was moved to tears. The poem "Zhouqiao" says: "The north and south of Zhouqiao are Tianjie, and my father is waiting for his return home in his old age. Holding back tears, he asked the envoy, when will the Sixth Army really come?" In Bianjing, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, there is a Bianhe River, and there is a bridge on it called "Tianhan Bridge" was renamed "Zhouqiao" after the Jin soldiers occupied Bianjing.
When Lu You was reading "Zhouqiao" sadly, someone suddenly came to report that Fan Chengda had passed away. This news was so sudden for Lu You. He never expected that Fan Chengda, who was one year younger than him, would actually leave first. A few days later, Lu You had another magical dream. In the snowy weather, Lu You and Fan Chengda were drinking and saying goodbye in a long pavilion. After waking up from the dream, Lu You was puzzled. Fan Chengda was obviously dead, so how could he say goodbye to him? Thinking of this, I was really heartbroken and cried bitterly. After his emotions calmed down, he wrote a poem "Dream Fan Participating in Politics": "I don't know what time it was in the dream, the long pavilion was bleak and the sky was snowing. There was wine and meat, and there was a lot of noise, and the carriages and horses ended up having fun. I am not allowed to hold public office. Words, but it is unexpected to say goodbye now. How many old friends are there in life? The trombone is full of tears and blood. How much more so when we are separated by spring and millet, and the river is blocked by thousands of miles. Why should I die so soon? I would rather see this great man again. The green lanterns and Gengshan are both cold, and my heart is broken when I write the poem. ”
The death of Fan Chengda was a big surprise to Lu You. Huge blow. In the poem "Fan Shenzheng's Elegy", Lu You wrote: "I am lonely and have few close friends, and I have only a few public servants in my life. I have withered little, and who will I share with you in old age?" The old friend is separated by yin and yang, and stands alone in this world, full of sorrow and anger. No one to talk to. He had no way to serve his country, and all his passion and passion finally came to nothing. In the second year of Jiading, 1209 AD, Lu You was 85 years old. He called his son to his side. With trembling hands, he wrote the last poem of his life, "Shi'er". The poem said: "After death, all things are in vain. But the sorrow was not shared by Jiuzhou. Wang Shibei set the Central Plains day, and he never forgot to tell Nai Weng. "Soon, Lu You passed away."