【The Rise of the Devil】
The late Tang Dynasty, the sixth year of Dazhong, 852 AD.
This year, the hungry people in Banan gathered together as thieves and were tricked by the army into going down the mountain and put down their weapons. Then they were attacked by the army and brutally massacred.
This year, the party members once again invaded the borders of Datang;
In this year, Li Ye, the governor of Hedong Province, "intruded on Zahu and killed those who surrendered" causing "commotion in the north";
This year, our beloved great poet Du Mu died;
This year, the emperor's favorite son, Prince Jinghuai Li Min, died;
This year, there was a great famine in Huainan.
At the end of this year, in Wugou, Dangshan County, Songzhou (today's Dangshan County, Anhui Province), Mr. Zhu Cheng gave birth to his son.
Mr. Zhu Cheng is really a "sir" and a teacher. His father Zhu Xin is also a teacher. As a compliment, Lao Zhu's family can be considered a scholarly family.
Since we are from a scholarly family, we should not be too casual in naming our children. Only uneducated families would let their children be called bricks, tiles, fences, mud, chickens, ducks, cows, sheep and shit.
Zhu Cheng already has two sons, the eldest son Zhu Yu, the second son Zhu Cun, and the third son who was just born. What's the name of the third child? Anyway, it has to have a good meaning and be loud.
At that time, Tang Xuanzong Li Chen was in power, and the princes were named with three dashes of water, such as Li Wen, Li Jing, Li Miao, etc. Li Wen, later Yizong of the Tang Dynasty, changed his name to "Li Miao" after he ascended the throne.
Wen is a good word. Meek, gentle, gentle, warm as spring, gentle, gentle, courteous and thrifty...
Mr. Zhu Cheng jumped on the trend and simply borrowed the word "warm" to get the blessing of the royal family. As a result, the newborn baby boy got a famous name - Zhu Wen.
Zhu Cheng must have never imagined that his child would really be blessed by the Tang royal family. The fortune was so great that it directly wiped out the country Zuo of the Tang Dynasty for nearly three hundred years.
This child named Zhu Wen later got a more resounding title - Liang Taizu.
Zhu Wen should have felt that the compliment of "a scholarly family" was very harsh. If anyone used it to flatter him at that time, it is unlikely that he would have slapped him on the horse's hooves.
At this point, it is necessary for us to have an in-depth understanding of the education system of the Tang Dynasty in order to become familiar with Zhu Wen’s family background and to have a glimpse of his tragic childhood:
There were generally three types of schools in the Tang Dynasty: Chongwen Hall in the Prince's East Palace, Hongwen Hall in Menxia Province, and schools.
The first two - especially the first one, it is easy to see from the words that they are not prepared for ordinary people. No matter how rich you are, you cannot buy a school district house in the "Second Hall". There are only a few dozen enrollment places in the "Second Hall", and the admission requirements are basically for relatives of the royal family and dignitaries. It is a "noble school" in the true sense.
The last one - school, is divided into capital schools and prefecture and county schools.
The Capital School is affiliated to the Imperial College, and consists of six schools: Guozixue, Taixue, Four Schools, Legal Studies, Calligraphy, and Arithmetic, collectively known as the "Six Schools". Therefore, the Capital School is also called the "Two Schools" together with the above-mentioned "Two Schools". Six Studies and Two Halls".
Let’s take a look at the admissions brochure for the “Six Studies”:
Guozixue: third-rank and above and descendants of the Duke, and great-grandsons of second-rank and above;
Taixue: descendants of officials of fifth rank or above;
The four schools: the descendants of sixth- and seventh-grade officials and the outstanding people of the common people (finally open to the common people);
Legal studies, calligraphy, and arithmetic: descendants of eighth- and ninth-rank officials, and common people are familiar with their scholars.
As a national key educational institution, the high threshold is also supported by strong teaching staff. For example, the teacher configuration of "Guozixue" is as follows: five doctors, upper level five, and five teaching assistants, upper level six.
Since the establishment of the imperial examination system in the Sui Dynasty, achieving a counterattack in life through the imperial examination has become the dream of countless poor people. "Be a farmer in the morning, and ascend to the emperor's hall in the evening."
However, in fact, the vast majority of farmers do not have the qualifications to enter the "six schools and two schools", and they can only enter state and county schools.
Prefecture and county schools are schools run by local states and counties. They are small in scale, have relatively weak teaching staff, and do not have many enrollment quotas.
The above are the public schools of the Tang Dynasty. Under normal circumstances, those who can pass the imperial examination and enter the official career basically come from this, and they are mainly based on "six studies and two schools", and the golden students who fly out of the state and county schools Phoenix is already rare.
In addition, there are private schools, private schools, or "gathering students to give lectures". This kind of private education institution has loose admissions conditions, low tuition, sparse teaching staff, and almost zero enrollment rate...
What about Lao Zhu’s house specifically? Zhu Wen's ancestors were poor peasants for the eighth generation, not to mention the eighth generation, and even the eighth generation after that, they were also farmers with their faces facing the loess and their backs to the sky.
It was not until Zhu Wen's great-grandfather's generation that he finally made up his mind to change his destiny with knowledge. So Zhu Wen's grandfather, Zhu Xin, picked up the book and embarked on the road of no return for the imperial examination without hesitation.
After failing the imperial examination three times, he was finally disheartened. In order to support his family, he could only "gather disciples and give lectures" while inspiring the next generation, that is, Zhu Wen's father Zhu Cheng.
Zhu Cheng was very perseverant and took the imperial examination eight times in a row, but failed in all of them.
In a feudal agricultural society, a full-time or semi-full-time labor force was the financial burden for the whole family.
Eight years!
Not to mention the Tang Dynasty more than a thousand years ago, even before the reform and opening up of New China, we often saw this scene: a farmer's son failed the college entrance examination and repeated it for several years. Before the college entrance examination in the new year, his parents said: He said that our family is deeply in debt and cannot support it. If you don't pass the exam this year, you will have to go home and work in the farm. Then the candidate gritted his teeth and finally received an admission notice from a certain university... The specific plot can be seen in the movie "Partners in China".
In order to make a living, Zhu Cheng had to give up the imperial examination and instead taught in the countryside to make a living, "teaching the countryside with the Five Classics", which earned him a slightly joking nickname: Zhu Wujing.
Let’s look at the “school” founded by Teacher Zhu:
School address: Wugouli, Dangshan County, large open-air sunny classroom (under the big tree at the head of the village);
Teaching staff: One all-round talent (principal and lecturer, director of the Academic Affairs Office, security guard, cleaning...) with rich experience in imperial examinations (failed for eight consecutive years)
Course arrangement: Five Classics (courses for primary school students and below);
Charging standard: The price is close to the people (just pay a little).
Therefore, it is best to use words such as "intellectual family" and "scholarly family" sparingly on Zhu Wen. Don't slap people in the face when you hit them, don't expose their shortcomings when you scold them.
The financial situation of Mr. Zhu’s family can also be seen. Poor, so poor!
Two generations of the Zhu family have jumped over the Dragon Gate eleven times and failed without exception. If we want to turn around, we can only rely on the current third generation.
The eldest son, Zhu Quanyu, is honest, dull, simple and pragmatic. He is an honest man and likes to tell the truth: "Dad, we are not good at studying. Grandpa took the exam three times, you took the exam eight times, and you didn't get any honors. You want me to Tell me, don't mess around, just accept your fate."
Hearing these discouraging words, Zhu Cheng was ashamed and angry. Forget it, a tough melon is not sweet, and down-to-earth farming is also a virtue.
By the way, the boss Zhu Quanyu also said two honest words to Zhu Wen in the future. Zhu Wen only listened to one sentence. If he had also listened to the latter sentence, the end would not be so tragic. This is something.
The second son Zhu Cun and the third son Zhu Wen were brave and fierce, often fighting and causing trouble. However, Zhu Wen is quite clever and has more brains than the second child.
Therefore, Zhu Cheng placed all his hopes on Zhu Wen. I hope that one day, he can be named on the gold medal list, return to his hometown in fine clothes, and honor his ancestors.
It's a pity that Zhu Cheng can't wait for that day.
Poverty not only broke Zhu Cheng's spirit, but also his body.
In the seventh year of Xiantong in the Tang Dynasty, 866 AD, 44-year-old Zhu Cheng ended his miserable and short life, leaving behind four children: 18-year-old Zhu Quanyu, 16-year-old Zhu Cun, 15-year-old Zhu Wen, 13-year-old ’s little daughter (no name available, let’s call her “Little Pink Zhumei”).
The wife and children knelt down in front of the hospital bed, sobbing.
What they were crying about was the departure of their husbands and fathers, and they were also crying about themselves. How will they live next?
The family only has more than ten acres of thin farmland, orphans and widowers. The pillar of the family suddenly collapsed. How can they make a living in troubled times?
Zhu Cheng, it’s easy for you to die alone, but it’s hard for our family to survive!
