Book Review 丨Tian Maojun: The Literary Writing and Heroic Narrative of the Xiangxi Pole Army: Yue Ligong's Interpretation of the White Altar

The literary writing and heroic narrative of the Xiangxi Pole Army

——Yue Ligong's interpretation of the White Altar

Wen 丨 Tian Maojun

Mr. Yue Ligong is a famous writer from Western Hunan province, and has published many literary works, some of which have been adapted into TV series, which have been well received after broadcasting. I haven't met Mr. Yue Ligong yet, only by phone. Last September, I received a new novel from him, "The White Altar", which is a different reading experience and emotional experience than before, and during the reading process, I am often infected by the pride that overflows from the book, or stand or sit, and cannot be calm.

I. Literary reproduction of the history of the Pole Army

The pole army is the existence of a historical fact. Fenghuang County was originally called "ZhenYi", and this "筸" character is not a traditional character for "pole", it is the name of this particular place name. As a kind of military organization with a regular formation of local troops and governments, it is a resounding name that cannot be avoided in the modern history of western Hunan Province, and indeed it is a heavy logo with miscellaneous armies and guerrillas- and it is neither a well-equipped military unit nor a well-trained strong army. However, the heroic story of the bloody battle against Japan in Jiashan and the heroic legend of Shangganling in Korea are well-known in western Hunan Province.

The introduction to the White Altar begins with a discussion of the pole army: "No Xiang is no army, no pole is no Xiang." The Xiang Army is the most famous modern army in China, and in this famous army, there is a mysterious and legendary professional corps, that is, the pole army from western Hunan and known as the 'Xiang Army Changsheng Weihu Battalion'. "There have been many writers who have written about the Xiangxi Pole Army, such as Liu Xiao's "The City of the Pole Army", Luo Wei's "Chen Quzhen, the King of Xiangxi", Li Kangxue's "The Evolution of the Great Xiangxi", Wu Xiyun's "The Pole Army Resisting Japan", "General Zhengan", "Long Yunfei", Zhang Wenzheng's "Anti-Japanese Hero Shu Anqing" and so on. I have read all the above works, which can be described as having their own advantages and characteristics. When depicting the pole army defending the country and fighting in blood, it is all highlighted that the generals of the pole army charged into the battlefield, were brave and fearless, did not fear life and death, and fought the enemy to the death with their flesh and blood, which was shocking.

In contrast, Mr. Yue Ligong's depiction of the pole army is more inked, and he consciously composes it, which is a historical symphony of the emergence, development and demise of the pole army in an all-round way with the three long pieces of the "Xiangxi Trilogy". He said, "I must use my own pen to strive to unveil the mysterious historical veil of Xiangxi, which has been lost for nearly half a century, and restore the true face of her heroic, tragic and painful history." In the face of the outside world's misreading of the history and reality of Western Hunan Province, he should use the pen in his hand as a gun, not spit unhappy, and make a message for the pole army, justify his name, and raise his name.

It is precisely the author's sense of mission with such passion and self-consciousness to correct his name and correct mistakes that makes his pole army history collide with and intertwine with representative figures, and together constitute a bloody and heroic military world. Through this world, the author writes the historical process of the rolling torrent of the times, and pays special attention to the fate and life and death of historical figures as individual roles, in the torrent of history, they are both patriotic and patriotic, loyal and filial, but also reckless and impulsive, not to obscure the "unspoken rules" of the official field, so they are always suspected and used, so that the pole army is constantly "reorganized", and is finally "cleaned up" until it disappears. The work is full of majestic and tragic background color, constructing a solemn and thick literary color and epic lyrical rhyme of "White Altar".

Of course, as a literary creation, the major events depicted by Yue Ligong are at a certain distance from the events that have occurred in history. The author knows that history is not exactly equivalent to literature. He said, "My narrative is not entirely historical. "Yes, the writer is not a historian, and the task of the historian is to record as objectively as possible, to hide and block himself. Unlike the literary scholar, his task is to reproduce the subjective expression of literature, to have his own position, attitude and emotional tendency. However, expression and record can sometimes communicate and integrate with each other, and the author cites a large number of documents and historical materials in this book, including Shen Congwen, who is also a soldier, for the Jiashan Resistance War, "Letter to Several Soldiers in Xiangxi", which constitutes the aesthetic world of virtual reality in this book, and also constitutes a complex world in which reality and fiction, reality and magic, front and rear, subjective individuals and objective worlds are intertwined and coexist. In this world, the novel restores a Xiangxi that is closer to the historical reality, allowing the reader to approach and feel those vivid and warm Xiangxi Pole Army soldiers, as if hearing their painful cries, blood veins beating and rough breathing. The generals of the Pole Army wake up in the author's words, vivid and active, such as historical sculptures and film and television works, flesh and blood, within reach.

Second, the image of the primary and secondary distinctions

Man is the creator of history and the bearer of history. How to express the tragic story of the Xiangxi Pole Army and the heroic and tenacious will and iron-blooded integrity are naturally inseparable from the shaping of the character image and the telling of the heroic legend. A good writer is a master storyteller. Mr. Yue Ligong is such a master. In his pen, Chen Quzhen is the main character depicted in the thick ink and color, becoming an important "arrow-stack" character and the clue to the development of the plot of the novel, Chen connects all sentient beings in the book and runs through the whole process.

As mentioned earlier, this book is a literary description, not a historical record. Chen Quzhen, whose name is Chen Yuxuan in the book, is also the king of Xiangxi and the highest local military and political chief who promotes the "protection of the border and the people" to seek regional autonomy. The author constructs Chen Yuxuan's political career and a complex life with several ups and downs with several plot structures. Chen Quzhen in history had a fighting and harmonious relationship with Chiang Kai-shek, He Jian, Cheng Qian, Zhang Zhizhong, and even various local forces on the Kuomintang side. He Long had even more secret ties to the Communist side. This is also he Jian's crime of attacking Chen for "failing to suppress the red" and "allowing the common sense." Chen Yuxuan in the novel secretly sends money to He Beard to send bullets. In the complex and changeable political whirlpool, he has no shortage of scheming and deep calculations, and he does not lose the personality of the simple and stubborn Xiangxi people. The book depicts him as a political figure in his 60s, still so fleshy and bloody, wronged, running to Chongqing, determined to meet Chairman Jiang, with the purpose of only seeking an explanation for the Xiangxi Pole Army. "I'm determined to die here this time!" I have to find a commenter surnamed Jiang! "This is the xiangxi people's cuteness, straightness, and stupidity!" As a result, he was placed under house arrest by Jiang in Nanchuan. This is the truth of history and the cruelty of reality, and the author's description is so true and lamentable.

There are more than 20 characters portrayed by the author in the book "White Altar", which is naturally dominated by soldiers. Soldiers form the main body and focus of the characters in the book. In addition to the above-mentioned Chen Yuxuan, there are also Gu Ziqi, Long Fei, Long Xiaotian, Han Zhang, Chen Fan, Sun Ping, Dai Tao, Long Yong, Xiao Lao, Xiao Tianshi, Monkey and so on. These images, including the image of the underground party Zhu He, are divided into different classes and different scenes, with colorful paintings, complex structures and clear layers, reflecting the author's exquisite design and conception, leaving an unforgettable impression. Among them, although Gu Ziqi has the shadow of the phoenix historical figure Gu Jiaqi, it is a completely different literary image, and its fate and destiny are very different from gu da in reality. For the dispute between Chen Gu and the historical case about Gu's assassination, the author cleverly avoids and conceives another one, because the final time period of the work is the eve of the victory of the War of Resistance, which is almost 5 years from Gu's death in 1950. Why the historical legend staged in this time period is written may be that the author has another creation and conception. As a peripheral, the book also created a series of merchant images, such as You Guisheng, You Shuisheng, Sun Dawan, Sun Fuquan, Yang Zicai and so on. In terms of storyline and character relationships and the length of the description, in contrast, the image of the soldier is more prominent, the depiction is more colorful, and they are full of personality and lifelike. In particular, the intertwined collision between the male protagonist Xiao Tian and Sun Ping's love and hatred contradictions and the fate of the times is heart-wrenching, twisting and turning, and very exciting.

The image of the businessman in this book is only a supporting role, the ink is slightly inferior, the depiction is not strong, and the relationship between the characters and the arrangement of the ending can be more colorful.

In addition, the book also created several female figures, such as Xuanxuan, Jin Lian, Xiao Mei, Hexiang, etc., and their marriage and love, described in the book, are slightly thin. In the development of the plot, sometimes there is a lack of necessary preparation, the character appearance is also very abrupt, and in the advancement of the story, there are still blunt and reluctant points in the logic of the character and behavior. If Jin Lian did not quit and said goodbye, she traveled thousands of miles and went to the front line alone to find her husband. In the midst of the war, Jin Lian easily found her husband Xiaotian, who was commanding the battle, and actually said, "Xiaotian, I miss you, I want to die." I just want to tell you that I love you. "Where is the time and mind to say these lingering love stories that only two people can say together in that moment of intense fire and danger? This is also reminiscent of some of the plots and dialogues in some of the current anti-Japanese dramas, which is very impressive.

Third, the clever interspersing of customs and customs

Customs and customs are undoubtedly a common object of choice for realist literary writing. The description of different customs and customs is not only the story background and unique context of the novel, but also an important means to shape the character image and show the local culture. Xiangxi for the author, this is his hometown, he was born in Sichuan, once worked in Sichuan, he is very familiar with the customs and customs of Xiangxi. There are many descriptions of the local customs and customs of western Hunan in this book, and the author is familiar with them, such as the purchase and sale of tung oil in commercial customs, as well as the direct description of folk marriage customs and funeral customs. The book is also cleverly interspersed with a large number of folk proverbs and dialects, highlighting the strong characteristics of border folk writing. There are also many folk song quotations and descriptions of witchcraft practices in the book, which strengthen the cultural background of the work and enhance the reader's imagination space and aesthetic effect of reading. For example, the scene of the warrior Xiao Tianshi collecting the corpses and sending the souls of the sacrificed soldiers on the battlefield is moving. When fighting the devil tank, he chanted the Taishang Laojun mantra to stop the enemy, which made people laugh dumbly. The ancient military song of Xiangxi that appears many times in the book: "The cannon has exploded, the horn has blown, and my sister has been said goodbye." We're going to go to war, and no matter if you're a soldier or a ghost, you're no longer your husband! This song has the heroic spirit of Jing Ke, "The wind is xiaoxiao, the water is cold, and the hero will never return" and has become the most moving and colorful chapter in the book.

In short, "The White Altar" is based on the examination of the long river of history, and jumps out of the shackles of history, in the sky of literature, through the creation of character legends and story details, reconstructing or presenting the complexity and thickness of the historical sky. The overall narrative, deep and majestic, is a masterpiece of heart and affection. There are many remarkable and praiseworthy places. In the design of the structural space of the novel and the handling of the details, there are still many flaws, but the flaws are not hidden. As a long novel, with a broad historical span of vision and the shaping of many distinct character images, it can be said that it has completed the successful conclusion of the author's "Xiangxi Trilogy", and it is also a new work with great weight and quality in the contemporary Huxiang literary court. I hope that more readers will read and pay attention to this book, and then walk into the long river of history, and get close to and understand the Xiangxi Pole Army and those legends who have been in the limelight.