In "Water Margin", Song Jiang is called "timely rain" by the good men of the jianghu. As for why there is such a graceful number, the book makes it clear.
In his lifetime, he had to get acquainted with the good men of the rivers and lakes, but some people came to him, and if they were high or low, they did not accept it, so they stayed in Zhuang Shang Guan Gu and chased him all day long, and they did not get tired. If you want to get up and do your best to fund, it is like a splurge. When people ask him for money and things, they do not prevaricate; and they are convenient to do, and every row is difficult to solve, but it is only a matter of human life. Often scatter coffin medicine bait, help people poor, Zhou people urgent, help people's plight, this Shandong, Hebei famous, all call him to do timely rain, but compare him to the timely rain in the sky, can save all things.
There is a place that makes many people wonder: Song Jiang is just a small official with a knife and pen, and his family is not a hereditary nobleman like Chai Jin, where is the money "like money"?
In fact, the answer has long been called out, and I will translate the above passage to you in the vernacular.
In ordinary life, I had to get to know the good guys in the jianghu: this sentence is wonderful in the two words "only", who specifically wants to know the people in the green forest? But Song Jiang is like this, he did not take the upward route of the white road, he wanted to become the big brother of the black road.
Some people come to run, and everything is accepted: no matter how high or low your status is, as long as you dare to come, I dare to pick you up; it doesn't matter if you make a crime outside, come to find brother, I will cover you.
All day long, not tired: not only to provide accommodation, but also to take the next restaurant, visit the high-end club every day, very patient.
If you want to get up and do your best to fund, the end is like a splurge: when you go, you are welcome to come back next time.
Easy to do, every row of difficult to solve, just take care of human life: this sentence is even better. Song Jiang, with his dual identity as an oshi and a big brother of the underworld, became a mediator, specializing in helping people resolve conflicts and make peace from them. Not causing a lawsuit for human life and not causing trouble for the county master is Song Jiang's bottom line.
Helping the poor, the urgency of the people, and the difficulties of helping people: who have difficulties and take the initiative to come to the door to help, do not have money to be forced.
Song Jiang had the power (although the official was small, he was also a member of the ruling class), had a heart, was rich, and was good at creating people, so that his reputation spread far and wide. It has the function of a mediator and effectively replaces part of the administrative law enforcement powers.
To become the umbrella of a good man in the jianghu, do the good men in the jianghu usually want to offer?
After others are exonerated, do they want to give a thank-you fee? For example, after Chao Gai Liangshan divided the gold, he immediately asked Liu Tang to go down the mountain to send money to Song Jiang. Song Jiang casually gave Wu Song ten pieces of silver, which made Wu Song excited and only called out to his brother. Chao Gai gave a few hundred taels enough to spend a long time, right?
When you are a mediator, do you want both sides to charge a benefit fee? Do you dare not give? If you don't give it, let the county lord send someone to arrest you.
Therefore, although Song Jiang was only a small abbot, he was already a superior person in the society at that time. Countless people circled around Song Jiang and took the initiative to send him money for asylum.
And Song Jiang used the power in his hands to not only collect money, but also created a good big brother and a face-saving persona.
It's a mutually reinforcing system, a spiral of ascent. As long as the power is there, someone will always send money.
Blood and tears behind "Timely Rain"
The "Miscellaneous Records of the Bamboo Leaf Pavilion" records a "thief blossoming" thing.
What does that mean? Whenever a theft occurs, the first thing that comes to the servants is not to catch the thief and take the stolen goods, but to designate the rich households around the thieves' homes as the nest stolen households.
These rich households were distributed around like petals and became the target of extortion by the servants. The name "Thief Blossom" is very vivid.
The servants had a reason to throw the rich into prison and lock them up. If you want to be undefiled in prison, you must send money to the servants, otherwise you will be locked in the urinal bucket and you will not sleep well for several days.
In short, those rich families who have been framed can only consider themselves unlucky and obediently pay money. Therefore, don't underestimate the low-level officials, the power of the big fart can also be played out.
Song Jiang is much more powerful than the cell boss, and it is not too easy to make money. In Water Margin, there are many such examples. Lei Heng collected Chao Gai's ten silver and released Liu Tang; Dong Chao and Xue Ba' two public officials were even more selective in enforcing the law, and they used boiling water soup to soup your feet without giving benefit fees.
These petty officials who were in direct contact with the people undermined the fairness of the bottom level much more than the emperor, Gao Qi, and others. Behind the "timely rain", there are bound to be the blood and tears of countless ordinary people. Or a hijacked merchant, or a passerby who has been cut. Low-level public servants like Song Jiang consumed the trust and patience of the people in the imperial court.
Song Jiang revolted under the banner of The Heavenly Path, but he happened to be one of the perpetrators of the officials forcing the people to rebel. This is also the most ironic part of the book.
Wen | Zhang Zhiye