"Water Margin" is a protracted novel written by Shi Nai'an, a beginner in the late Yuan and Ming Dynasties, based on the Song Jiang Uprising at the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, and is known as one of the "Four Masterpieces", known as the "Strange Book". In the folk, "Water Margin" is widely circulated, and there is even a saying that "less do not read Water Margin, old do not read the Three Kingdoms".
However, in the eyes of the feudal rulers, "Water Margin" is like a flood beast. During the Taiping Rebellion, the Qing army was often defeated by the Taiping army. Zeng Guofan, the commander of the Xiang Army, was defeated by Shi Dakai many times, and even tried to commit suicide twice. In this regard, Zeng Guofan once said hatefully:
"Tactics of war are rare in the grass. What is the basis for the result of the thief's ruse? There should be two or three cunning thieves, collecting military information in the history of barnyard officials and wild people, imitating it, often effective, and the treasure is a secret that is not passed on. It is based on "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Water Margin" for a lot! ”
And another famous general of the Xiang Army, Hu Linyi, said even more bluntly:
"A 'Water Margin' teaches the powerful and unsuccessful people of the world."
It turned out that in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom War, Yang Xiuqing, Xiao Chaogui and other generals were mostly illiterate, and naturally could not understand the "Art of War of Sun Tzu" and "Liutao" and other military books. Therefore, they often put "Water Margin" on their pillows and regard it as a textbook for their own marching and fighting, army building and government. Since he was a child, Shi Dakai also likes to read Water Margin.
In the eyes of many people, treating novels as soldiers' books is simply nonsense, and it is bound to lose the battle. However, history proves that "Water Margin" can really be used as a textbook for wars and rebellions.
Shi Nai'an, the author of "Water Margin", himself experienced the peasant wars at the end of the Yuan Dynasty and had a close relationship with Zhang Shicheng's forces. His apprentice Luo Guanzhong, the author of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, was an aide to Zhang Shicheng and had long been familiar with military affairs. Unlike the authors of commentaries such as "Speaking of Tang", "Speaking of Yue", and "Yang Jiajun", Shi Nai'an and Luo Guanzhong really understood the military and really knew how to rebel. Therefore, there is no problem in treating "Water Margin" as a military primary textbook.
Since the Northern Song Dynasty, storytelling has been popular in the city. In the past, military books such as "Sun Tzu's Art of War" were military secrets monopolized by the imperial court, and private study of the art of war was to be questioned. However, even if the "Art of War of Sun Tzu" is circulated among the people, in the eyes of the illiterate and unsophisticated people, it is equivalent to the Book of Heaven. Therefore, in the previous peasant wars, the vast majority of peasant leaders did not understand the art of war, and the imperial court was able to easily suppress them.
But after listening to the story of "Water Margin", the people learned the art of war in a subtle way. Once a rebellion is carried out, these illiterate rural villagers can use their strategies to make the officers and soldiers suffer greatly.
In this regard, the Qing Dynasty scholar Liu Luan wrote in his book "Five Stones" "The Curse of water margin novels":
"Zhang Xianzhong's cunning also, the Japanese people said "Three Kingdoms", "Water Margin" books, all ambush attack Xianxiaozhi."
In his opinion, the reason why Zhang Xianzhong can sweep the world is because when he is marching and fighting, he often finds artists to tell him about "Three Kingdoms" and "Water Margin".
But in the peasant war at the end of the Ming Dynasty, Zhang Xianzhong was by no means the only leader who liked "Water Margin". Many rebel leaders used the names or hun names of the Water Margin. For example, in the sixth year of Ming Chongzhen (1633), the "Bingbu Titled Gong Bao Jie Qu Kui and Other Matters" played the day:
"Recognize the head of a famous thief... Zhang Rujin was mixed with Yan Qing, Xu could be mixed with Lei Heng, and Wang Zhongxiao was mixed with Song Jiang. ”
In combat, the peasant army was able to integrate the strategies in "Water Margin". In one battle, the peasant army took advantage of the heavy snow falling from the sky to raid the Ming army camp and captured the commander of the Ming army. In this regard, the commander of the Ming Army once asked the peasant army: "You are illiterate and do not understand the art of war, how do you know when to use this day?" The general of the peasant army replied:
"We don't know the art of war, only that Song Gongming earns Sochao's ears on snowy nights!"
Out of hatred for "Water Margin", from the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, the imperial court began to vigorously prohibit the popularity of "Water Margin". On April 17, 1642, in the fifteenth year of Chongzhen (1642), the Li Qingshan Rebellion broke out in Shandong, and Li Qingshan's rebel army occupied the Liangshan area under the influence of the Water Margin. After Li Qingshan was suppressed, Chongzhen immediately ordered:
"Where the family treasure "Water Margin" is not the original version, it is quickly burned and not allowed to be hidden. ”
At the same time, he also ordered people to measure Liangshan and nationalize it, so that no one would follow Song Jiang's example and launch an uprising in Liangshan.
After the establishment of the Qing Dynasty, it inherited the policy of the Chongzhen Emperor to ban the Water Margin. The Great Qing Law even named the Water Margin directly in the law:
"Wherever fang sells a novel obscene word "Water Margin", it is strictly forbidden to destroy the board and the book. If there is any person who is prohibited from making an engraving, he shall be dismissed from his post by an official; The buyer is fined a thousand sticks by the official. If the official in charge is not found out, he will be fined six months at a time. ”
During the reign of the Qing Dynasty, the "Water Margin" was "banned" 22 times, but it still could not stop the popularity of "Water Margin". After all, "Water Margin" is too good to watch, too attractive, in many places, it is even more handy, it is impossible to burn it all.
The feudal literati saw that the popularity of "Water Margin" was difficult to prohibit, so they took a different path and wrote novels to attack "Water Margin". For example, Jin Shengsi slashed "Water Margin" one hundred and twenty times at the waist, only the first 70 times were retained, and added a section of "Lu Junyi's Nightmare", so that the LiangShan rebels were all killed by the officers. It became the most popular book in the 300 years of the Qing Dynasty.
Subsequently, the reactionary literati Yu Zhonghua wrote a book called "Lang Kou Zhi", in which none of the 108 good men had a good ending. This book was widely circulated and had great influence, and the Taiping Army generals who loved "Water Margin" regarded it as a flood beast. As long as you capture a place, you will burn the "Lang Kou Zhi" to the ground.
However, the charm of "Water Margin" is something that some feudal literati can insult, and the only one who fears "Water Margin" is the lawless feudal regime. To this day, "Water Margin" is still one of the four famous works in China and a must-read book for middle school students in China. Some of these passages have even been included in language textbooks. All educated people are familiar with "Water Margin".
Nowadays, the new pneumonia epidemic, everyone stays at home, it is better to read more, especially to read such good books as "Water Margin", "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", "Journey to the West", and "Dream of the Red Chamber". Therefore, Tao Tao recommends Rongjing Excellent Products 4 volumes of four famous works, with pictures, Zhuyin, and four books at a preferential price of 58 yuan, especially suitable for children to read.
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