It was probably after Tang Xianzu resigned from his official position and returned to his hometown in the 26th year of the Wanli reign that he devoted himself to drama creation. The Peony Pavilion was not published until the 45th year of the Wanli reign.
At this time, Tang Xianzu, who had just started his career, was full of longing for success in the imperial examinations next year and a peaceful and harmonious future. He did not know that he would not become an outstanding official in the future, but would be famous for his plays and be known as the Shakespeare of the East.
Therefore, he would not know that the most important and highlight part of his most important masterpiece had been shamelessly plagiarized by Mr. Zhao on the opposite side.
"Sorry, I didn't mean it." Young Master Zhao thought to himself, "If I knew you were there, I would definitely attack Hong Sheng and Kong Shangren..."
Therefore, Master Zhao said to Master Tang in a particularly pleasant manner: "It doesn't matter. If you like it, I'll give you this "Zha Luo Pao"."
"What should I do then..." Tang Xianzu said hurriedly in fear and trepidation.
"Listen to me." Young Master Zhao waved his hand and said with a smile, "I was drunk yesterday and I don't remember how this song came about. Besides, I don't know how to compose music. It would be a pity not to write such a natural masterpiece into the play. Since this song was stolen from your heart, I will return it to you today. I hope you can write it into a complete script, and the first scene must be performed in the Lotus Pond."
His words were very sound, and he only hoped that they would not affect the publication of "The Peony Pavilion", which is an indispensable treasure of Chinese culture.
"Your generosity and magnanimity really impress me deeply." Upon hearing this, Tang Xianzu bowed deeply. He felt an inexplicable emotion of regaining what he had lost, and he couldn't help but shed tears again.
"I will definitely write it out soon, so as to live up to your high expectations!"
"It's okay. I'm counting on you." Zhao Hao smiled and helped Tang Xianzu up. He felt that simply returning the property to its original owner was not enough to make up to the other party, so he planned to use the great prophecy technique to tell his fortune.
Although this man had a handsome face, he had a wild and unrestrained look similar to Li Zhi. Luo Rufang and He Xinyin were also like this, which showed that every one of the Taizhou School was a heretic.
Of course, if Li, Luo and He are considered to be the fourth stage of heretics, he is at most the first stage, and is still in the early benign heretic stage.
But this alone was enough to make his fate bumpy. If he did not intervene, Tang Xianzu would fail the imperial examination next year. Feeling deeply inadequate, he went to Jiangnan to visit famous teachers and study hard. Six years later, he had become a world-renowned talent, and picking up a scholar was like picking grass.
However, when he went to Beijing with great ambition, he was spotted by Zhang Xiangyu because he was too famous, and wanted to marry his daughter to him... Dawu wanted him to make friends with his sons. He also hinted that if he agreed, he would be given the top scholar.
An ordinary person would have loved it, but the Taizhou School and Zhang Juzheng were born incompatible, so Xiao Tang refused.
Tang Xianzu dared to refuse Bugu's love, so the imperial examination would naturally refuse him, and he was bound to fail. As a result, Shen Maoxue, who agreed to be friends with the little Bugu, won the first place, and Zhang's second son Sixiu won the second place...
Three years later, Tang Xianzu went to Beijing again to take the imperial examination. Bu Gu was still persistent and wanted him to be friends with his son. Because Jingxiu and Maoxiu were going to take the imperial examination this time... Tang Xianzu still refused, so he failed again, while Maoxiu won the first place.
Finally, he passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi only after Zhang Juzheng passed away.
Mr. Zhao wanted to tell you to stop being so stubborn in the future. What's wrong with being friends with my future brother-in-law? Wouldn't it be great to be the top scholar? What did I say when I tried so hard to be his son-in-law...
But on second thought, it seems that without these life setbacks, he would not have become the greatest dramatist of the Ming Dynasty. If I changed his life trajectory, it seems that I would still harm him...
Thinking of this, Zhao Hao said nothing in the end. He just patted him on the shoulder silently and said, "Work hard and strive to make Shakespeare known as the 'Tang Xianzu of the West'..."
"Yes." Tang Xianzu nodded heavily, but he couldn't help but wonder in his heart, how could Mr. Zhao, who was elegant to the core, suddenly say such vulgar words?
Could this be his true nature?
~~
At this time, Xuelang finally arrived with a dozen little monks. He wanted to take Zhao Hao's boat to Jeju Island.
Fearing that he would change his mind, Master Zhao quickly ordered his men to sail. Fortunately, they left early and the ladies hadn't gotten up yet, otherwise they would have to go through the same farewell ritual again...
Because the Tang father and son were going back to Jiangxi, the two sides took different routes and said goodbye to each other after crossing the Yulin River.
Luo Wanhua and He Xinyin went on the Science with Li Zhi and Zhao Hao.
As soon as Xuelang got on board, he went into the cabin to catch up on his sleep. He was exhausted from being busy with the affairs of the Lotus Terrace Immortal Meeting recently.
Mr. Zhao also planned to sleep together... Of course, they slept separately, but he was pestered by Li Zhi. He said that Luo Wanhua and He Xinyin had something to discuss.
The Taizhou School does not emphasize the ethics of teachers and students, and everyone in the school, regardless of age, treats each other as friends.
Zhao Hao knew that Li Zhi's bringing two heretics on board was definitely not just to save the boat fare. But he was also very interested in chatting with some real Enlightenment thinkers.
Although it was late autumn, the weather was fine and there was no wind on the river, so Mr. Zhao entertained his guests on the bow deck.
After a while, Luo Rufang and He Xinyin came up. Both old gentlemen were in their fifties. The former wore a Tang Dynasty scarf and a round collar, just like a teacher. The latter wore wooden clogs and a short brown coat, with his trouser legs rolled up high, revealing a pair of strong legs, and a patched tattered hat hung around his neck.
If Mr. Zhao hadn't known that he was the famous hero He, he would have thought that it was the professional mage Liu Haizhu who came.
"Hey, Master... Oh no, where is the hero's great sword?" Seeing that He Xinyin had an unfriendly look on his face, Master Zhao hurriedly asked with a smile.
"They were searched by your guards." He Xinyin said unhappily, "They also tried to get through my back door. How could I hide a hidden weapon in your place?"
"Sorry, sorry." Zhao Hao hurriedly apologized for Gao Wu and the others. But he could understand it, because Hero He was obviously not a good person.
Besides, he was indeed a wanted criminal. The Jiangxi Provincial Procuratorate issued a warrant for his arrest, and they were hunting him down with pictures and figures...
If the hero knew that there were four pistols secretly aimed at him and could be shot dead immediately if he made the slightest movement, how would he feel?
"Hmph." Under any other circumstances, He Xinyin would have just left, but since he needed help from others, he had no choice but to endure it.
Zhao Hao invited the two and Li Zhi to sit around the round table, brewed some Kung Fu tea himself, and said with a smile, "I have heard a lot about the Taizhou School of Thought for a long time, and today I can finally ask for your advice."
"Oh, Mr. Zhao doesn't regard us as heretics?" Luo Rufang couldn't help but ask with a smile.
"Isn't science also considered heresy? We have a lot in common." Zhao Hao poured bright red tea into the teacups in front of the three people.
"This Geyao gold-thread iron-wire teacup must be worth more than a thousand taels each, right?" He Xinyin said, playing with the teacup for guests with her thick-knotted hands. Is this implying that we have a common language?
"Mr. Fushan is obsessed." Zhao Hao couldn't help cursing inwardly. No wonder Mr. Zhang wanted to kill you. You are so rude. But this man is very useful to him. He wants his madness. Mr. Zhao naturally didn't take it as an offense and said, "Hasn't the Taizhou School always treated fishermen and merchants equally? When I make friends, I never care whether the other party has money or not."
"That's right. No one is as rich as you anyway." He Xinyin curled his lips, retorted and said nothing more.
Luo Rufang had a request to make to Zhao Hao, and fearing that He Kuang's foul mouth might offend him, she quickly took over the conversation and started chatting with Mr. Zhao over tea in the river breeze.
Zhao Hao is very interested in the Taizhou School, not because he admires their wild style, but because this school is really different.
For the first time, they did not explain politics from the perspective of the ruling class.
In the past, all the philosophers and saints served the ruling class. Regardless of Confucianism, Taoism, or Legalism, the ideal blueprint they designed was always based on the beautiful memories of ancient society, the so-called "people in a well-governed world are ignorant and simple and chaotic." In short, they tried every means to make the people become simple rednecks who are illiterate, believe whatever the government says, and completely lose the ability to think independently. The cost of social governance can be greatly reduced, and the so-called well-governed world will come.
However, the Taizhou School was completely different. They broke the mystery and aristocracy of the so-called "Tao", emphasizing that Tao is in the lives of the people, that is, "the people's daily life is Tao". From this, they developed a complete set of populist and people-oriented ideas.
Their "theory of natural desire" opposes the elimination of human desires and the preservation of natural laws, and advocates respecting the legitimate physiological and psychological needs of the common people. They should not only allow themselves to make money and commit adultery, but also prevent the people from being greedy and lustful.
They vigorously eliminated the superstition of ancient saints and books, opposed the dogma of Confucius and Mencius, and advocated that "scholars should sweep away the straw dogs of the ancients and carve out a world in their own hearts, so that they can truly benefit from it. Why should they be willing to be under the feet of dead people?"
They even challenged the traditional ethics of monarch and minister, father and son, believing that everyone should be equal and get along like friends. There is no such thing as who is born to obey whom, or who is born to abuse whom. The so-called "no monarch and no father is not regicide and patricide"...
They also told the people that they did not need to abandon their normal lives to learn from the saints. Instead, the saints should learn from the lives of the people. This doctrine would certainly enhance the self-esteem and self-confidence of the common people, stimulate the awakening of the common people, and make them realize their own existence, understand their own value, and pursue their own happiness for the first time in thousands of years!
If this is not ideological enlightenment, what else can it be? If this is not ideological liberation, what else can it be?
What is even more valuable is that the Taizhou School also broke away from the stereotype of Yangming's followers who only talked about the nature of the mind and practiced teaching and answering questions.
For the first time, we truly achieved the goal of teaching everyone, and devoted ourselves to teaching farmers, peddlers, and ordinary people in the market.
When Wang Gen, the founder of the Taizhou School, gave lectures, he wrote on the door: "This doctrine is not limited to the young or old, noble or humble, foolish or wise. It will be passed on to all willing scholars!"
He had countless disciples throughout his life, among whom there were 487 disciples whose names could be verified, including farmers, woodcutters, potters, salt workers, etc. These nearly 500 disciples continued to go deep into the fields and streets, spreading his teachings of speaking human language, understanding human nature, and inspiring people's hearts throughout the country.
Therefore, Li Zhi was not a special case, he was just a representative of the Taizhou School. His success was based on the silent education of the people by countless fellow students of the Taizhou School. His behavior of accepting female disciples was just an extension of the consistent advocacy of the Taizhou School.
ps. After all the fun, it’s time to enter the sage time. I just finished writing a chapter and don’t want to stay up until after 2 o’clock. I’ll write for a while and get up early tomorrow to continue writing.