Side Story 2: The famous Northern Song Dynasty official with a million views on the forum...
Forum-style extra chapter 2
Green Water Forum >> Tea Fragrance and Ancient Charm
Title: Has anyone in your area seen that compilation of famous Northern Song Dynasty officials by a well-known video editor? It's only been released two days ago and already has a million views, and it's still rising...
1L Original Poster
This video popped up on my homepage and I clicked to watch it. It truly shocked my whole family; everyone in the video is so good-looking! The chosen editing was also incredibly tasteful, with a strong sense of destiny. I even shed a couple of crocodile tears at the end…
2L
Indeed, this content creator has a knack for selecting the best-looking actors and costumes for each historical figure. It feels like even the famous officials themselves might not look as good as in this video.
3L
What are you thinking upstairs? In ancient times, it was explicitly stated that being an official depended on one's appearance, okay? Famous officials couldn't possibly be ugly, except for those specifically mentioned in history books.
4L
Agreed.
5L
When I first saw Fu Bi appear, alone on his journey to the Liao Kingdom to negotiate the tribute issue, it was incredibly heartbreaking. But then the next scene showed Di Qing storming the Liao palace, standing in the same spot where Fu Bi had stood years before, overlooking the land, and the background music had changed to pipa and war drums. I immediately got goosebumps.
6L
It seems like there were a lot of officials during the reigns of Emperor Renzong and Emperor Shizong; roughly half of them made up the majority. This content creator is clearly biased, lol.
7L
...What kind of people have infiltrated your district after you canceled the registration system for answering questions? Upstairs, let me ask you this: the fact that textbooks list so many reigns of Emperor Renzong and Emperor Shizong, doesn't that mean the textbooks are biased?
8L
Reading the *History of the Song Dynasty* without reading about the reign of Emperor Shizong is like reading the Four Great Classical Novels without reading *Dream of the Red Chamber*—you'll forget the middle parts, and you'll forget the end. Anyway, just bear with it if you're unhappy. In thousands of years of Chinese history, Emperor Shizong's restoration is unique. Why don't you ask other emperors why they didn't have the same talent for discovering and nurturing talent as Emperor Shizong?
9L
Seriously, it feels like there were so many talented people during Emperor Shizong's reign. Fan Zhongyan, Fu Bi, Ouyang Xiu, Wang Anshi, Sima Guang, Su Shi, Su Xun, Fan Chunren, Shen Kuo, Zhao Zongshi, Zeng Gong, Li Qiu...
10L
Zhang Zai was missed upstairs!
Although he never held an official position, he had a good relationship with Emperor Shizong. He spent his whole life helping Emperor Shizong publish papers. He was Emperor Shizong's second author and corresponding author. Who else could it be?
11L
There's also the legendary ace, Su Zhen.
From the moment he received his first official title, he was always the highest-ranking member of his family. Su Shi finally entered the Privy Council as Prime Minister at the age of thirty-two, but his sister had already invented the train, winning the Song Dynasty's Lifetime Achievement Award. Entering court without bowing, receiving praise without using one's name—Su Zizhan, you should learn from that…
12L
Poor Su Zhe 23333
One step behind leads to another! Although he was over forty and held the position of prime minister, he was rarely nominated among the officials during the reign of Emperor Sejong. There was no way around it; the three officials above him, Guan Hui, were simply too dazzling.
13L
I've read many novels about Su Zhe (Su Shi) who time-traveled to the Song Dynasty, and they all start with Su Shi crying and begging to go with his father on a trip to Bianjing (Kaifeng). My story is about using this opportunity to meet Su Zhe, becoming his study companion, and ultimately achieving great success.
14L
Su Su has become the only designated golden finger in your Song Dynasty time-travel novels. Male transmigrators either become companions at the Zishan Hall or classmates at the Imperial Academy, basically becoming Su Su's close (and sometimes chaperone) friends. Female transmigrators meet Su Su through the Eldest Princess. Some are dream girls, some are purely focused on their careers, but winning over the Eldest Princess is always a safe bet.
15L
The person upstairs forgot to mention that there's another type of story where the protagonist transmigrates into the body of a princess and effortlessly ascends to the pinnacle of life.
16L
There are also those who transmigrate into the body of a famous minister's son/brother/nephew, and are then carefully nurtured by Su Su, who points to their forehead and says, "This child is destined for greatness."
17L
Who told Su Su to be the biggest time traveler in your dynasty? (lol)
18L
Who can blame SuSu for having a hobby of discovering talent? (Just kidding)
19L
Moreover, he was truly indiscriminate; he wanted all kinds of talent. Let's not even mention a hardcore individual like Su Zhen, who was incredibly skilled at writing poetry. He discovered Shen Kuo, who became a leading figure in biographies and documentaries. And then there was Li Qingzhao, who was just a six-year-old girl at the time; Su Zhen personally met with her and encouraged her to write poetry. She later indeed became a master of the graceful and restrained style of ci poetry.
20L
If Su Su were in the modern era, she could be a producer.
21L
SONG48?
Bianjingban?
The Great Song Dynasty 101?
22L
That's hilarious...
23L
No, wait a minute, isn't it a kind of talent show to take money out of one's private coffers every year and award it to the person who has made the most contributions in fields such as literature, science and technology, people's livelihood, and military affairs?
24L
The prize money was secondary; the key was the opportunity to meet Su Su in person and have dinner with him! At that time, all the people of the Song Dynasty adored Su Su, so it was like I was being paid and invited to his handshake event... Just thinking about it made me so happy.
25L
Then Su Su isn't a producer, she's the idol herself, right?
26L
He not only discovered talents within the Song Dynasty, but also those outside of it.
27L
A tribute to the legendary mercenary Wanyan Shilu.
28L
Look at my IP address. The first time this place belonged to China was during the time when Su Su was in power.
29L
Wanyan Shilu was more pragmatic; after all, he hadn't witnessed the power of gunpowder balls firsthand, but he had heard that Su Su had used them to conquer Western Xia and the Sixteen Prefectures, so he remained obediently under their control and dared not act rashly. But by Aguda's generation, for some reason, he insisted on provoking the Central Plains and was thoroughly humiliated.
30L
Well, after all, Su Su and his group of famous ministers had been gone for a long time by the time of Aguda.
31L
Why are you all talking about King Sejong? Isn't this a post promoting a famous minister's video?
32L
There's no way around it; if those famous officials were still alive, they would recommend Su Su themselves. Take Su Shi, for example. When his students compiled his writings after his death, they found a few unpublished articles praising Su Su and showed them to her.
Historical records say that Su Su's expression at the time... was hard to keep up. She said, "Luckily, he didn't use me to disgust me while he was alive," but she still couldn't help but shed two tears.
Every time I see this part, my heart aches QAQ
33L
[Smoke][Smoke][Smoke][Smoke][Smoke]
34L
Help, it looks so painful...
35L
Su Su must have already abdicated and handed over the reins to a more capable person by then. I wonder what he felt as he listened to his old friends leaving one by one.
36L
Wait a minute, I'm a newbie who just registered in your area. I want to ask why SuSu said the article praising the emperor was "disgusting"? I know SuSu and Zizhan are close friends who often tease each other.
37L
Because Su Su... is afraid of being praised by others.
38L
This event is also recorded in Fan Zhongyan's notes.
39L
?What's the meaning?
40L
Urban legend has it that Su Su was allergic to praise; he would become very shy no matter who complimented him. Both Emperor Renzong and Fan Zhongyan knew of this trait of Su Su's, and sometimes they would deliberately praise him to tease him, making him so shy that he couldn't speak.
Zizhan probably knew this, and Susu probably knew that Zizhan knew this, which is why she said something like, "I wish you were alive and would disgust me."
41L
Oh my god... Hearing this explanation only made it more heartbreaking.
42L
From Su Shi's perspective, if those eulogistic essays were published, they would be interpreted as deliberately intended to amuse the emperor. Only by writing them, hiding them away, and having them unearthed by later generations could his sincerity be proven. He absolutely and genuinely admired Su Shi, his friend and emperor.
43L
Help! It's raining knives from the sky!
44L
+1 My eyes are drooping.
45L
I watched the video recommended by the original poster, but halfway through, I noticed a heated argument in the comments section. What happened?
46L Original Poster
Reply to 44L: My eyes are also sore.
Reply to 45L: Hmm? I'll go check what's going on.
47L
Oh, so the original poster is still here! They've been lurking in the chat the whole time. I thought they'd just left after posting the recommendation.
48L
+1
49L Original Poster
Back to the same old story. Because the video made by the editor was focused on looks, I chose a few outrageously bad but surprisingly stunning looks from various dramas. Then, history buffs, drama fans, and actor fans all started a chaotic battle in the comments section.
50L
...Pfft. Was it expected?
51L
I also joined the crowd and took a look; the fighting is comparable to Syria. But it's quite rare to see history buffs overwhelming drama fans and actor fans.
52L
After all, the Song Dynasty is a hot topic in historical circles, with countless fans of its famous ministers, so its popularity has never waned. Not to mention the support from fans of Su Su.
53L
It's truly a bit of a regret that Su Su didn't create something like Emperor Xuan of Han's eleven meritorious officials in the Qilin Pavilion or Emperor Taizong of Tang's twenty-four meritorious officials in the Lingyan Pavilion to record these people. That would have given future generations something to admire.
54L
It's probably because of the rankings that everyone is in a difficult position.
55L
Political actions require political objectives. Ranking someone arbitrarily might lead to misunderstandings. For example, the ranking of Di Qing is quite delicate. Ranking him too high would offend the sensitivities of civil officials, while ranking him too low would be interpreted as "discarding the bow after the birds are gone" or "valuing civil officials over military ones." It's better to avoid touching on this sensitive topic altogether.
56L
There might have been some considerations involved, but it seems Su Su had no intention of avoiding the sensitive topic of civil officials. During her time as emperor, she openly associated with Di Qing in front of everyone, causing "the officials to be astonished." Later, after becoming emperor, she stopped pretending altogether, directly appointing Di Qing as the Privy Councilor, which Di Qing refused to decline no matter how much he tried.
The ministers, whose sensitive skin had been irritated by the poking, even went to the Emperor Emeritus. The Emperor Emeritus said, "I am just an old man who cultivates his mind and enjoys gardening. Don't come looking for me. If you have any problems, go to my son."
57L
233333 So cool, SuSu
58L
Emperor Renzong truly relinquished power completely. Initially, when Di Qing pacified Guangyuan Prefecture, the reward system followed the old precedent, with no intention of giving military generals any real power. Yet, he accepted it without batting an eye; Su Su must have persuaded him.
59L
From its founding, the Song Dynasty under Emperor Wude declined, at one point even losing the Western Xia. The turning point that allowed it to prosper again was the period when it heavily relied on Di Qing.
60L
This was during the period when Su Su heavily relied on Di Qing (key point).
61L
Speaking of which, I have to digress a bit: why did "The Secret History of the Song Dynasty" have to use that outrageous conspiracy theory?! It's clearly the cutest version of Su Su from "East Palace" that I've ever seen, but they had to portray the father and son as constantly wary of each other. I was initially captivated by their good looks, but after a couple of seconds of understanding the plot, I wanted to gouge my eyes out.
Why would anyone poison such delicious food? Why...?
62L
Touch 61L
Don't worry, with such a popular theme, no one should give up on remaking it. As long as you live long enough, you'll eventually see a more suitable and adorable version of Su Su.
63L
Wiping away tears, thank you for the comforting words upstairs. It seems my top priority is to stay alive.
64L
Wait, why is there another argument under that video?
65L
Did the internet just come on upstairs?
This building has been discussing this for a long time.
66L Original Poster
Oh dear, I took another look, and it really is... there's another debate under that video about who is the number one famous minister of the Song Dynasty.
Wait, how did the topic turn to this?
67L
A comment from an actor's fan in the comments section, "My idol XXX perfectly portrayed the demeanor of the greatest minister of the Song Dynasty," was like a bait-and-switch tactic, and history buffs, undeterred by the strong bait, readily took the bait. Okay, now it's time for some cyber-cricket fighting again.
68L
No, after all these years, haven't we had enough of fighting?
69L
Fighting with others is endlessly enjoyable!
70L
I also checked out the comments section and couldn't stand it anymore. How could there be so much blatant praise? They have no real achievements; they rely entirely on the thick halo of hindsight and posthumous praise.
...No, I have to go join the war too.
71L Original Poster
? ? ?
72L
23333 The original poster never expected that instead of driving traffic to the video, they would drive traffic to the comment section.
73L
Well, at least it increased the number of views.
74L
No, I can't stand it anymore. I want to go too.
75L OP
? ? ? ? ?
76L
I've also opened a thread next door. Anyone interested in cricket fighting, come join me!
Link: Who is Song Chenyi?
77L
It's here!
78L
Wait for me, I'm coming too!
79L Original Poster
...I'll go join in the fun too.
80L
Hahahaha! So the original poster was still defeated by magic after all?
Forum-style extra chapter 2 complete
Author's note: There should be one more forum-style post! [Applause]
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