When people talk about Cai Jing's calligraphy, the words used are often "the crown is the best", "no one is out of his right", and even the arrogant Mi Fu once said that his calligraphy is not as good as Cai Jing.
Speaking of this, I also want to mention an interesting thing at that time.
Once When Cai Jing was chatting with Mi Fu, Cai Jing asked Mi Fu, "Who is the best calligrapher today?" Mi Fu replied, "Since Liu Gongquan in the late Tang Dynasty, you and your brother Cai Bian have to be counted." Cai Jing asked, "Secondly?" Mifu said, "Of course it's me." ”
This is evident from this. Cai Jing's calligraphy has survived in the world, such as the Caotang Poetry Inscription, the Jiefu Ti, and the Gong Envoy Ti.
Although Cai Jing is a traitor to the powerful courtiers, we should still give a certain status to Cai Jing's calligraphy and objectively evaluate his calligraphy.
Cai Jing's calligraphy starts from the Tang Dynasty and goes straight back to the "Two Kings", and his brushwork is charming, heroic, and calm, with a unique style. He wields his pen freely but does not indulge, and the stroke structure naturally echoes, the layout is exquisite, and the atmosphere is vivid.
It can be said that the sentence that the word is like its person has no effect on Cai Jing at all.
The era has created four major calligraphers of "Su Huang Mi Cai": Su Shi Natural, Huang Ting Jian Jian Jian, Mi Fu Indulgent, Cai JingZi Charm, each with a demeanor.
However, because Cai Jing is known as the head of the Six Thieves, and the Song calligraphy "Shangyi", paying special attention to personal style and character, people changed Cai Jing to Cai Xiang, but in fact, it should be Cai Jing.
Cai Jing's artistic talent is extremely high, known as a talented man, and has brilliant performances in calligraphy, poetry, prose and other fields.
Cai Jingqi was a sinister and cunning official, fierce in heart, and attacked political enemies; he confused the people and the lords, formed parties for personal gain, and caused the official style to deteriorate and the people to be unhappy; although the Northern Song Dynasty was not directly destroyed in his hands, he was a sinner of the Northern Song Dynasty who perished for thousands of years.
To this day, the evaluation of Cai Jing still basically follows this tone, and even Cai Jing's calligraphy achievements have been removed from his image of a traitor, but from an artistic point of view, we do not need to be so harsh, what is worth appreciating is worth appreciating.
Xi Ning entered the army for three years and the first, first as a magistrate, and then as a Zhongshu Sheren, and changed to Long Tu Ge to be made and knew Kaifeng Province. In the first year of Chongning (1102), he was appointed as the right servant and the menxia shilang (右相), and later the official to the Taishi. Cai Jing has served as minister four times, a total of seventeen years, and can be called the first person in ancient and modern times. Cai Jingxing battled Huashigang; changed the salt method and tea law, and minted ten major coins. At the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, Chen Dong, a student of the Tai Dynasty, wrote a letter calling Cai Jing "the head of the six thieves". After Emperor Qinzong of Song ascended the throne, Cai Jing was demoted to Lingnan and died on the way to Tan Prefecture (潭州, in modern Changsha, Hunan).