This statement is not entirely fictitious. Li Bai's advocacy of chivalry has been controversial since ancient times. On the positive side, they are just men and outlaws; on the negative side, they are hooligans and gangsters. From the point of view of the politicians, these chivalrous people are always a security risk, which is not conducive to social security. Most of them will not pay attention to the government.
Li Bai is different from Du Fu. He studied swordsmanship when he was young, and later he liked to carry daggers and swords with him when traveling. Cui Zongzhi, a grateful predecessor of Li Bai, said in the poem "Give Li Twelve White" that Li Bai "has a dagger sword in his sleeve and a Mao Ling book in his arms", and Liu, a disciple of Li Bai, also said in the Preface to the Tombstone of Hanlin Bachelor Li in the Tang Dynasty that "doing less is not doing business".
In fact, it is also shown in Li Bai's works. During the kaiyuan period, he wrote a poem "Give a younger brother a little name of Xiangyang": ... I don't know what I'm doing, but I tried my best. And Qin doesn't reward it. Is it a merit to strike Jinning? "There is a version, followed by" killing people in the world of mortals ". What I said before is obvious. All the people I associate with are heroes. After writing, we will know what these people do. It can also be said that it is Li Bai's ideal to cut people with a knife in downtown.
Of course, he is a knight-errant, and he is successful.
Hao Wei, a poet who was in contact with Li Baiyou, wrote a preface for the Collection of Li Hanlin after Li Bai's death, and there was also a saying that "Ren Xia was missing, but there were more people". That is to say, whether it was Li Bai's own account or the records of his friends before his death, Li Bai killed people, and more than one person was killed.
Li Bai introduced himself in Hanshu Jingzhou and Shang 'an County Peichang History Book. Generally speaking, he was good at Ren Xia since he was a child, and he was ambitious. At the age of fifteen, I practiced fencing, and at the age of twenty, I wanted to be a vassal of the world. Although he is less than seven feet long, he is full of heart. He is warm, loyal and generous. He is often too anxious to do it himself. Travel to Yangzhou, less than a year, scattered more than 300 thousand.
In less than a year, Li Bai spent more than 300 thousand. How did you spend it? As long as any dude is down and out and has no money to eat, I care.
Of course, we can be generous, but we can't help thinking of Chai Jin, the little whirlwind in Water Margin. He also likes to make friends with heroes in the world and help the poor, so he helped many down-and-out heroes, many of whom later joined Liangshan, including Song Jiang and Lin Chong.
Li Bai has always admired chivalrous men. For example, "White Horse": "After drinking, you can compete for the wind, and you can have three cups of treasure. Killing people like grass, playing with Meng. " "Jack's Youth Travel": "I am entrusted to follow the drama, get drunk, and enter Xinfeng. Laugh a glass of wine and kill the whole city. " Chivalrous man: "It takes ten steps to kill one person, but it takes a thousand miles. I brushed my clothes and hid in my name. "
In fact, Li Bai had a group fight, for example, in "Memories of Time Past: A Gift to Jiang Yang Slaughterhouse", he wrote. "I used to be a cockfighting, and even extended Wuling Hao. Invite the phase coverage organization, oh, I'm afraid of losing. It can drive thousands of people, and the pommel horse is easy. I am anxious to clear the constitutional program and get rid of the North Gate. " Generally speaking, we were cockfighting at that time, and we also set up our own organization. As a result, we offended a group of people to make trouble. Everyone is outnumbered and my life is in danger. Fortunately, brother, your divine power is wide open, and you have fought your way out and solved the siege of the North Gate of Chang 'an.
Of course, these are not enough to show that Li Bai is a gangster. After all, there was a special background at that time, and Ren Xia became a routine. Riding a BMW, wearing a sword, drinking, killing people all over the city, these chivalrous acts are enviable.
Li Bai's contemporary poets also wrote many such poems. For example, Cui Hao's "Ranger": "Young people are timid and have the courage to regain knowledge. When you go out with a sword, the lonely city meets the encirclement. Kill people on the Liaohe River and return to China. " Wang Changling's "Miscellaneous Xing": "A righteous man frequently reports his sins and does not lack murder." Du Fu's Farewell: "The white blade is unjust and the gold is wasted. In the world of mortals, the reward is in Xisu. " Among them, some are nostalgic for the past, expressing their yearning for the stories of chivalrous men's pleasure and enmity in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period recorded in Sima Qian's Historical Records, Biography of Rangers and other historical documents.
Emperor Taizong and Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty were emperors who were keen on expanding their territories and opening their borders. They frequently waged wars against neighboring countries. Just like the contemporary "Chinese Dream", the frontier customs made contributions, worshipped the generals and created an immortal Tang Dynasty. Accordingly, the literati of that era also generally had the spirit of martial arts. Killing the enemy at the border has become a heroic feat praised by everyone. At the same time, killing people in the urban world of mortals is not a sinful thing that is condemned by everyone.
This naturally reveals the poet's strong desire to make contributions and leave a legacy for future generations, indicating that the literati of that era generally had the psychology of not being willing to spend their lives in mediocrity.