During the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, it can be said that there were many talents, including the great general Wei Qing and the champion Hou Huo, who fought super hard and beat the Xiongnu to the point of being unable to fight back; there was Ma Qian, a Taishi company who left behind a history book passed down from century to century; there was Dong Zhongshu, a thinker who proposed "heaven and man induction", "great unification", and "deposing hundreds of families and commending the Six Classics"; there was a great literary hero Sima Xiangru... But today, the person that Little Buddha wants to talk about is Dongfang Shuo, who was recorded by Sima Qian in the "History of The Funny Column".
Dongfang Shuo's fame was different from the others, he came into contact with Emperor Wu of Han by self-recommendation, and then entered the dynasty as an official.
When Emperor Wudi of Han first succeeded to the throne, he was very anxious to make a big cause, but seeing that the ministers in the court were rarely people they could trust, either old ministers left by their fathers, or grandmothers and family members, in order to have the right to speak in the court, Emperor Wudi of Han decided to use new people and take all the trust they had. Therefore, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ordered the whole country to collect "Fangzheng Xianliang Literary Talents". The edict spread to the four directions, and Dongfang Shuo wrote to enlist, claiming that he could be a minister of the imperial court:
Thirteen years of study, three winters of literature and history are fully used. Fifteen learn fencing. Sixteen poems and books were studied, and 220,000 words were recited. Nineteen learning Sun, Wu's art of war, the tools of the battle front, the teachings of the drum... Yong ruo Meng Ben, Jie Ruo QingJie, Lian Ruo Bao Uncle, Xin Ruo Wei Sheng. If so, it can be the Minister of Heaven.
I believe that after everyone looks at it, they will feel that this person is too crazy and exaggerated, does not have a mature and stable appearance at all, and is not suitable for being an official at all. In fact, not only do we think like this, but Emperor Wudi of Han also thinks like this. After receiving a letter from Dongfang Shuo, Emperor Wudi of Han, in order to show his acceptance of the hearts of the people, arranged a position for Dongfang Shuo, who was "not inferior in words and high in self-esteem", and did not receive him.
Emperor Wudi of Han did not see him, he naturally had a way to let Emperor Wudi of Han receive him, who made him the unique Oriental Shuo! By tricking the dwarfs, he was indeed received by Emperor Wu of Han, and persuaded Emperor Wu of Han to give him a promotion, and Dongfang Shuo became a jinma gate (equivalent to a reserve talent) for the Zhao Zhao, and later became a waiter, and slowly became close to Emperor Wu of Han.
Get close to the emperor, recruit the emperor to like, naturally you will get a lot of rewards from the emperor, Dongfang Shuo is no exception, often summoned by Emperor Wu of Han to chat, he can always make Emperor Wu of Han happy (Xiao Buddha estimated that this may be the reason why he was written by Sima Qian into the funny column), and Emperor Wu of Han often allowed him to dine in the palace.
The food in the palace was naturally rich and delicious, and every time Dongfang Shuo couldn't finish eating, he put it in his arms and took it away, making his clothes very dirty. When Emperor Wudi of Han saw him doing this, he simply rewarded him with money and clothing, and Dongfang Shuo naturally laughed at all of them, and when he returned home, he sold all the things that the emperor had rewarded, and the money obtained was used to please his wife. His wife is also different from others, with three characteristics: Chang'an people, young and beautiful, and changing every year. He was told by others that he was a "madman (in today's parlance) that someone chewed the root of his tongue and chewed it to the ear of Emperor Wu of Han.
When Emperor Wu of Han heard about it, he didn't think anything of it: "Ling Shuo is a practitioner who does nothing, if he waits for Ann to reach it!" "What Emperor Wu of Han meant was that Dongfang Shuo was a great wisdom and foolishness, for the sake of incompetent people, if Dongfang Shuo did not commit such an act, no one around him who chewed the root of his tongue could compare with Dongfang Shuo, if everything was done by Dongfang Shuo, the people around Emperor Wu of Han would have nothing to do! Dongfang Shuo originally had a family background, if he showed too much ability, he would be regarded as a competitor and an enemy of many people, and his wife was just self-preservation, showing that he only cared about women.
And Dongfang Shuo, when it is really a clear stream around Emperor Wu of Han, he used all kinds of witty and interesting metaphors to persuade Emperor Wu of Han (without background and family support, if you accidentally lose everything, you will make the emperor unhappy, all your efforts will fail, and Dongfang Shuo's humor is just the way to survive), until his death, he dares to seriously advise Emperor Wu of Han to listen to rumors less, which is not good for governing the country.