Abstract: Influenced by the social atmosphere of the Ming Dynasty, the concept of fate has deeply penetrated "Jin Ping Mei". Manifested in the shaping of character image, there are mainly two forms of "hidden" and "obvious", "hidden" is a static depiction of the character's appearance, and "obvious" is the description of a large number of fatal activities in the novel. "Hidden" and "Visible" are intertextualized and repeatedly dyed, so that the character image can be presented in a multi-dimensional and multi-perspective three-dimensional presentation; In the structure of the novel, the fate judgment plays the role of looping around, predicting the fate and ending of the characters, and serving as the narrative outline of the whole book.
Keywords "Jin Ping Mei"; Physiognomy; character descriptions; Structural art
"Jin Ping Mei" shows readers a colorful picture of Ming Dynasty customs, including folk customs and entertainment activities such as fate, divination, chess, shuanglu, pitching, smear cards, kicking, fighting hundred grass, jumping a hundred ropes, etc.
Colorful is not only a true portrayal of the social life of the Ming Dynasty, but also an artistic means for the author to shape the image of the character and construct the storyline.
For the description of physiognomy activities in "Jin Ping Mei", Professor Chen Dongyou first made an investigation [1],
However, he mainly examines the origin of the twenty-ninth Wu Shenxian Xiangxian assertion and interprets it culturally, in fact, there are many descriptions of divination in the novel, which is worth throwing out a special discussion, and this article will briefly explain its ideological and artistic functions in the novel, so as to teach the Fang family.
1 Reflection of social life in the Ming Dynasty
A large number of depictions of divination appear in "Jin Pingmei", which is closely related to the political environment and social customs of the Ming Dynasty.
During the Yongle period, Xie Xie and others edited the "Yongle Da Dian", which compiled various works on arithmetic before the Ming Dynasty, and the imperial court also attached great importance to such classics and issued them to schools everywhere for all students to study.
The Ming court regarded warlocks as a special talent and attached great importance to it, and according to volume 128 of the Ming Shilu, Zhu Yuanzhang believed that Guibu could be used to "judge the affairs of the state", so he specially appointed the official of Bu Zheng.
Lu Rong said: "Hongwuzhong, the imperial court visits to know the calendar, count the past, and try all the tests, will be made a marquis, and eat 1,500 stones." [2]
Yu Ruji's "Manuscript of the Ministry of Rites" records that in December of the 11th year of Hongzhi, Wu Hao, the supervisor in charge of Qin Tianjian, Shaoqing of Taichang Temple, wrote a letter suggesting that warlocks in astronomy, calendars, faces, birds, plum watching, and character breaking should be visited throughout the country. [3]
The imperial court gave these warlocks high treatment, Jin Zhong, Yuan Jue father and son, Tang Xuan, Shao Yuanjie, Wan Qi, Gu Yi, etc., all of whom reached high positions with the art of divination and physiognomy,
So that the literati and doctors were so envious that everyone gathered together and "mostly talked about public opinion, and also talked about star fortune"[4], and even "everyone can speak, and they will talk about it every day." [5]
Song Lian said in his article "Lu Mei Zhi" that some great Confucians "also love to talk and enjoy talking about it in the Lu Ming family." "[6]
Some major political events in the Ming Dynasty, such as the Battle of Jingjian, the restoration of Yingzong, and the Rebellion of King Ning, etc., were all related to the promotion of warlocks, and the imperial court selected the crown prince, and also attached great importance to the opinions of warlocks.
According to the Ming History · The biography of Yuan Hun contains: "The emperor will build the East Palace, and the intention belongs to him, so he has not decided for a long time, and Emperor Ren said: 'The Son of Heaven is also.'" Prime Minister Xuanzong said: 'Long live the Son of Heaven.' The storage position of the master is fixed. "[7]
If the upper part is good, the lower level will be even worse, and the people will be more prevalent, and there are many people who seek food with skills like carp crossing the river, and Huang Province once said in the "Theory of the Difficult Eight-Character Shooting Decision": "Those who cure their skills, from the Jingshi Domain, each side is no less than tens of millions, although the township is small, there are also hundreds of generations to encroach on it." [8]
Matteo Ricci's Chinese Notes
The Chinese Notes of Matteo Ricci states: "The streets, inns, and all other public places are filled with such astrologers, earth-tellers, fortune-tellers... People of all ages, commoners and nobles, or those who had read books and those who were illiterate, were among the victims, even the high-ranking officials in the city and the emperor himself. ”[9]
Some famous acolytes have a lot of income, such as Lanxi Yangzi Gao coerced the art of physiognomy to go to the world, "family to ten thousand gold". [10]
A large number of words related to physiognomy, such as the so-called "Fuxing Gaozhao", "The Difficult Star is at the Head", "Jiren Has His Own Heavenly Phase", "Red Bird Follows His Fate", and "White Tiger Comes to the Palace", have become oral proverbs, which have had a great impact on folk customs.
People often leave important choices such as marriage and scientific research to warlocks, and Huang Province once lamented when talking about the superstitious practice of fate in the Ming people in "The Theory of the Difficult Eight Character Shooting":
"The people of the first life inherit the mystery, and they all believe in and rejoice, since the secretary of the public as for the common people, everything is not drowned, and the one who is introduced by him shall be the first to be treated, and the one who delays the payment will fall for it, and everyone who gives birth to a son, who runs a piece of business, who has a final illness, who is the official uniform of Hu Tianshui, and Jia Ganli who seeks fame, does not depend on Siliu, and those who eat with engineering and paste, one after another." [11]
Feng Rubi's "Miscellaneous Notes on Youshan" in the "Article Bu Ming" says: "Those who are in a hurry to make a name for themselves are often confused by the theory of the star of fate, and regard it as gratifying." [12]
Some parents even do extremely stupid things in order to let their children be born at a good time, such as Feng Menglong's "Ancient and Modern Tan Overview" in the "Fourth Stupid Department" recorded:
"Suzhou Xu Jianling was old and childless, and in his later years a concubine became pregnant, and when Xu pre-made the Japanese push a good time, because it was still early, he advised him not to give birth, and after the time, both the son and mother died." [13]
In the past, due to fierce competition in the industry, warlocks often deified their techniques as "heavenly machines" and "secrets", the so-called "not relatives do not pass on, do not teach without reason", but with the publication and circulation of various arithmetic works, the so-called "secrets" are no longer secrets.
Through learning, the acolytes can be good at several techniques, and because of the popularization of this knowledge, some young ladies of boudoirs, peasants and village women, and fishermen and woodcutters all know a little or two, or even master this way.
"Jin Ping Mei", which was produced around the time of Wanli, is a product of this social background, and the novel writes about all kinds of destined people, showing their state of existence.
The most famous is Wu Shenxian, who appeared in the twenty-ninth time, who said that he "became a monk from the Zixian Temple of Tiantai Mountain since childhood," and traveled all over the world, because he visited Daizong and passed through Qinghe County, and Zhou Zongbing invited him to his home to treat his mother's eye disease, and Zhou Shoubei recommended it to Ximen Qing to look at the face.
Ximen Qingjian Wu Shenxian "Wearing a green sermon scarf, wearing a cloth robe and straw shoes, a yellow silk double-spike silk at his waist, and a turtle shell fan in his hand, he floated in from outside. He is about forty years old, and he is born as clear as the moon of the Yangtze River, and looks like Taihua Qiao Song."
Ximen Qing asked, "How many yin and yang will the old immortal elder meet?" Dao, how many phases?"
The immortal said: "The poor road knows the thirteen families of Ziping, the good knowledge of the Mai Xiangfa, and the six non divine lessons." Always apply medicine to save people, do not love the world's wealth, and live in the world at any time. ”
When Ximen Qing heard this, he respected it and praised: "True is called a god and immortal." After the end of the day, Ximen Qing sealed the silver five taels to thank, Wu Shenxian resigned again and again, and said: "The poor road travels in all directions, and the wind and food are sleeping, what use do you want this wealth?" Don't dare to take it. (All quotations in this article are from Chongzhen Book)
Ximen Qing had no choice but to take out a big cloth, and the immortals accepted it and bowed their heads to thank him.
It can be seen that this kind of physiognomy has a huge and complex knowledge structure, is proficient in fortune-telling, physiognomy, divination and healing, etc., and uses skills to consult among court officials, similar to the mountain people of the Ming Dynasty, and is treated with courtesy by hired families.
In the seventy-ninth time, Ximen Qing was critically ill, and Wu Yuanniang sent Xiao Wei to Zhou Shoubei's house to ask Wu Shenxian, and Bensi said:
"Don't ask Old Father Zhou's mansion, now Wu Shenxian sees that in front of the land temple outside the door, there is a trigram, practicing medicine and selling trigrams. Whoever invites him, does not fight for goods, goes to see the cure. "Yue Niang quickly asked the piano boy to bring this Wu Immortal, and the reward was also a horse of cloth.
Wu Shenxian's real name is "Xi", and "Immortal" is his nickname, just like "Li Zhuxian" in "Wei Zhongxian's Book of Rebuke of Adultery", "Sai Shenxian" in "Idle Commentary" of Wu Qiao, etc., the nickname indicates his high skill and reputation, and the identity of the Taoist priest and the posture of the immortal wind Dao bone can undoubtedly add points to him.
The author uses the Spring and Autumn brushwork to ridicule Wu Shenxian for pretending to be high, pretentious and pretentious, he not only practices healing but also sells trigrams to look at faces, showing people the impression of "not competing for profit", although he does not accept cash, but does not refuse cloth.
This type of warlock has a high status, plays a role in the communication network of officials and doctors, and in the novel is the mediator of Zhou Shoubei's relationship with Ximen Qing, ironically, after Ximen Qing's death, his attendant Pang Chunmei soon became Zhou Shoubei's wife.
Wu Shenxian appears three times in the novel, namely the twenty-ninth time to look at the face, the sixty-first time Li Pinger is seriously ill (he was going to invite him to come, but he did not show up because he went out) and the ninety-first return to see Ximen Qing, who is critically ill, Li Pinger's death is the turning point of the Ximen family's transformation from prosperity to decline, and Wu Shenxian can be described as a witness of the prosperity and decline of the Ximen family.
Another warlock one level lower than Wu Shenxian is Mr. Huang of the Zhenwu Temple, In the sixty-first time, Li Ping'er was seriously ill and his medication was ineffective, and Ximen Qingxuan immediately sent someone to take Tie'er to the Zhou Shoubei Mansion to ask Wu Shenxian, and the Zhou Mansion replied that Wu Shenxian Yunyou Wudang went, and then recommended the outside of the Zhenwu Temple" Hit a good number, only three dollars of silver, not on people's doors" Mr. Huang,
Ximen Qing, along with Chen Jingji, took three coins of silver, rushed to the house of Mr. Huang, the head of the Zhenwu Temple, and saw that the door was sticking: "Copying is innately easy to count, and each life is worth three dollars."
Mr. Huang may be a Taoist priest of Zhenwu Temple, with his own booth, clearly marked with prices, and refused door-to-door service.
Illustration of "Jin Ping Mei"
For example, after the death of Ximen Qing, Li Yanei took a fancy to Meng Yulou, but Meng Yulou was older than Li Yannei, and the matchmaker Tao's mother was worried that Li Yannei did not want it, so she wanted to give her a fortune.
When the two came, they did not see the gentleman passing by the castanets, but saw a trigram shop far south of the road, with a green cloth tent curtain, hanging two lines of big characters: 'Ziping pushes the noble, and the iron pen judges the glory and withering; Someone came to tell fortunes and bluntly said that there was no mercy.
There was a table under the tent, and in it sat a man who could write fast. The two matchmakers said goodbye to the front, and the gentleman let him sit down.
Sister-in-law Xue said, 'There is a female life tired Mr. to calculate it. The master took out three cents of life money into his sleeve and said, 'It should not be taken lightly, but the gentleman has the right to accept it, and he has not brought more money when passing by.' Grandpa"
His fee is lower than that of Mr. Huang, but like Mr. Huang, they all post advertisements indicating the price or principle of the service, just like the Yuan Shoucheng trigram stall written in "Journey to the West", "The signboard has the name of the book and surname, Mr. Divine Arithmetic Yuan Shoucheng".
The lowest status is the "itinerant vendor", such as the 46th recount, Wu Yuenniang stood first in the gate and saw the wife of a village turtle and child, wearing a hydration jacket, a blue cloth skirt, a black head, and a robe on her back, walking from the street.
The Moon Lady called the little man in, laid a trigram in the second gate, installed the spirit turtle, and said, "You Bu Bu Li."
The wife kowtowed four heads on the ground: "How old is grandma?" Bu Bi, Li Ping'er took out a piece of silver from his sleeve, and Yue Niang and Yulou each had fifty wen with money.
This kind of warlock is the same as the "passing gentleman" mentioned by Sister-in-law Xue in the ninety-first time, walking through the streets and alleys, rattling the gong, swimming in all directions, low status, and when asking Wu Yuanniang's age, he also has to kowtow on the ground.
There is also a category of warlocks who tell fortunes purely out of personal hobbies, such as the 96th Huotou Ye Toutuo of the Shuiyue Temple, who cannot read the scriptures, but only chants the Buddha, and is good at mai. He looked at Chen Jingji and did not ask for any reward.
The above-mentioned salary for the service of warlocks is converted into a "wen" unit according to the official pricing of the Ming Dynasty, Wu Shenxian is 5 million wen, Mr. Huang is 300,000 wen, the warlock who sets up the stall is 3,000 wen, and the wife of the "mobile vendor" is 5,100 wen, which shows that the gap is huge.
Considering that the warlock who set up the stall did not have a price, and the matchmaker claimed that she did not bring money with her when passing by, and that Bu Gui'er's wife received a reward, it is inferred that the warlock with a religious status has the highest status, and the "itinerant vendor" has the lowest remuneration and the lowest status.
Secondly, there are all levels of fate sorcerers who serve the Ximen Qing family, which not only expresses the social atmosphere of people who believe in fate at that time, but also shapes the group portrait of warlocks at that time.
2 The writing function of phase art
As far as novels are concerned, the Han and Wei Six Dynasties notebook novels and the Tang and Song legends are basically narrative physiognomic stories, but Ming Dynasty novels have not only been a carrier for disseminating fateful stories, but internalized the concept of fate-phase as an artistic technique and aesthetic interest.
The influence of fate on the shaping of the character image in "Jin Ping Mei" is mainly manifested in the two forms of "hidden" and "obvious", "hidden" is reflected in the static description of the character's appearance, and "obvious" is the description of a large number of fatal activities in the novel.
The first is most typical of Wu Dalang's physical appearance.
The first time in "Jin Ping Mei" wrote about Wu Dalang: "People saw that he was cowardly and obscene, and he was called three-inch dinggu bark, and his body was rough, and his head and face were narrow and narrow. Just because he is so weak and simple, he bullies more. ”
Pan Jinlian saw that Wu Song was majestic, dignified, and seemed to have thousands of pounds of strength on his body, and thought in her heart: "How can a brother born of a mother give birth to my family's Ding Shu, who is less than a ruler, three points like a person and seven points like a ghost." The plague in the slave world is coming at him!"
It depicts Wu Dalang's figure, face shape, skin and personality, etc., he is short in stature, like a small Ding tree, "narrow head and face", his body shape is inverted T-shaped, and the tip of his head is large, which is the so-called "roe head".
According to the physiognomic concept, this is the evil aspect.
Zhongyun in "Phase Art Integration": "Those who are at the top are unfavorable, and those who are narrow at the bottom are not inferior." [14]
"Evil Death Song" cloud: "The forehead tip gathers through the mouth, and the tiger's mouth meets the jackal." [15]
Jin Zhang Xingjian's "Human Ethics" Yun: "If you want to detect human relations, start with your forehead. Partial and evil. ”
Yuan Xue Yannian noted: "The frontal bone is oblique, narrow and narrow and invades the heavenly part, and it should die; The poor are also evil. Those with sun and moon bone defects, those who are narrow-minded, those who are desperate, thin and vicious. ”[16]
《Phase Art Integration》
Obviously, the author's description of Wu Da Lang's "narrow head and face" implies that he has a low life and will encounter a "rich wolf" and will not end well.
Yao Lingxi pointed out in "Words Outside the Bottle" that the character for "valley" in "Gu Bark" in "Jin Ping Mei" should be the character for "grain," which is phonetically constructed.
The bark of the grain tree can be paper, and the bark of the valley of Wu Da can be read as a valley, and it can be read as a structure, and it should be read as the sound of the valley. The bark of this tree, not only rough, or just like the white of people, commonly known as vitiligo, so it is used to describe the ugly ears of Wuda. ”[17]
It can be seen that "grain bark" is to describe Wu Da Lang's rough skin and white spots, and the old title of the Southern Tang and Song Dynasty Qi Qiu's "Jade Tube Zhao Shen Bureau" in the cloud: "Wisdom examines its fur, bitter pleasure looks at its hands and feet", and notes Yun: "The skin is delicate, the hair is soft, and the Lord is wise." [18] That is, from the texture of a person's skin and the color of his hair, his IQ can be judged.
Physiognomy is influenced by the concept of the unity of heaven and man, which holds that human skin is like the texture of the earth, with delicate and clear as good, roughness and bumps as evil.
Wang Pu's "Taiqing Shenjian" volume five "flesh and bone" cloud: "The flesh desires fragrant and warm, the lust is white and moist, the skin is fine and smooth, and all are beautiful." The flesh is heavy and coarse, the skin is hard and lumpy, the color is dull and withered, the skin is black and smelly, and the one who is so thick is not Ling Xiangye. ”[19]
Therefore, Wu Dalang's skin is rough like grain bark, which not only describes it as ugly, but also shows his low IQ, which is also described in this novel.
The third time I wrote that Wang Po arranged for Ximen Qing and Pan Jinlian to fornicate, there is a poem: "The design of the mother's cage is deep, and Da Lang is stupid and does not know the sound."
The fourth time, Brother Yan called Wu Da Lang a "fat duck", and sat and watched his wife cheat.
When he heard that Pan Jinlian was having an affair, he was going to catch the adulterer, and Brother Yan said:
"Your boss is a man, Yuan Lai has no knowledge! That Wang Po old dog, what profit is afraid of people, how do you get his hands? The two of them also have a code word, seeing you come in and get him, and hide your wife.
That Simon Qingxu is good, beat you like twenty or so. If you can't catch him, eat him a good fist. He is rich and powerful, and he sues you against him, you have to eat a lawsuit against him, and no one is in charge, and it will kill you!"
It can be seen that Wu Da Lang was indeed simple-minded and did not think carefully, and later was kicked in the center by Ximen Qing when he was caught in the rape, bedridden, and threatened Pan Jinlian to inform Wu Song of this matter, which finally prompted Pan Jinlian to kill him.
In short, Wu Dalang's character and fate are hidden in his physical characteristics, similar to the description of Wu Song and so on.
The second is the combination of "hidden" and "obvious", such as Pan Jinlian, when she appeared as Zhang Dahu's handmaiden, "her face was lined with peach blossoms, and her eyebrows were bent into the crescent", and the second time was through the perspective of Ximen Qing, she made a very detailed description of her hair, eyebrows, mouth, nose, cheeks, face, body figure, hands, waist, belly, feet, chest, legs and other limb organs and postures.
It stands to reason that Pan Jinlian's belly, chest and other secret parts are impossible for Ximen Qing to see at this time, so these descriptions are not entirely reasonable, and Professor Zeng Qingyu believes that this is caused by the author's use of the perspective of an intangible narrator. [20]
The author believes that this may be a legacy of the narrative from the omniscient perspective of storytelling, and in storytelling or novels influenced by storytelling, the character is generally described in all aspects as soon as he appears.
In Pan Jinlian's physical characteristics implicit physiognomy code, to a certain extent show some of Pan Jinlian's appearance and personality characteristics, the third time is Wu Shenxian looking, she "only cares about laughing, refuses to come", Wu Shenxian said: "This lady, thick sideburns, light squint to be lewd; The face is bent, and the body does not shake and trembles. If there is a black mole on the face, he will be the torturer; The lip is short, and he will die. ”
The "thick sideburns" and "bent eyebrows" echoed the "sideburns of the black bearded and the eyebrows of the crescent moon" that Ximen Qing saw earlier, and added physical and posture characteristics such as squint, body shaking, and short lips, and predicted that she would "die in the end."
"Mr. Xiyue Xiangfa" Yun "The eyebrows are like a crescent moon song, and the night calls the groom"[21], "Mai Qiutan Moon on Women":
"Thick eyebrows, thick waist folded, privately follow people out of the state... Watching people squint and look back, the lewd spirit is more than enough. Xiang's short hair is thick and his back is exposed, and he has not yet come out of the boudoir, and his knees are shaking and his back is more lewd. "
"Ghost Valley Woman's Song": "When you see people hiding their faces and giggling, they love to call others husbands." [22]
On the volume of the "Great Commandery of Human Ethics", "Those who squint are poisoned by them, and those who gaze at them are self-defeating", Xue Yannian noted the clouds: "Those who look sideways in their eyes will be poisoned and die, or until the soldiers die." [23]
It can be seen that Pan Jinlian's appearance and action characteristics such as bending her eyebrows, squinting, and seeing outsiders laughing all imply her frivolous and lewd character characteristics and the fate of the tragic death knife, and her appearance and personality characteristics are becoming more and more abundant.
"Jin Pingmei Data Collection"
Another example is Meng Yulou's appearance, which is also described through the perspective of Ximen Qing's first meeting:
"Moon painting smoke drawing, pink makeup jade. Jun Pang'er is not fat or thin, and her pretty figure is difficult to reduce and increase. A few slight numbness on the plain forehead, natural beauty; The satin skirt shows a pair of small feet, and Zhou Zheng is pitiful."
Meng Yulou was of a well-proportioned figure, and later Wu Shenxian basically revolved around this characteristic, but there was more important information about "majesty and full wealth and life, and the final master has more than two husbands," but it was not expanded.
It was not until the forty-sixth time that Liu Pozi was a Yulou Bugui that this information was basically clear, and Liu Pozi unveiled the second trigram, "It depicts a woman, with three men: the first small hat is dressed as a merchant; the second official in red; The third one is a showman. He also guards a treasury of gold and silver, and attendants on the left and right."
It is implied that Ximen Qing is not yet her final destination, and her previous husband was a businessman and has died; The second husband, Ximen Qing, was a businessman and official; The third husband was a reader, all of whom were rich and noble.
The ninety-first rewrote that after Ximen Qing's death, Tao's mother and Xue's sister-in-law mediated for Meng Yulou and married Li Gongzi, the county grandfather, but Meng Yulou was six years older than Li Gongzi, and he was afraid that he would not want it, and wanted to change a few years younger, so he found a passing fortune teller to calculate it.
The gentleman pinched his fingers and shook the operator, saying that after Meng Yulou had overcome two husbands, he "will be authoritarian in the future, and will take charge of the life of Mrs. Zhengtang", gave birth to a son at the age of forty-one, died at the age of sixty-eight, was rich and prosperous, and the husband and wife grew old together.
In this way, the message implied by Liu Pozi's trigram is completely clear, and Meng Yulou's story is over, and the author frees up pen and ink to focus on the two important characters Chen Jingji and Pang Chunmei.
When Ximen Qingchu met Li Ping'er, her appearance description was only a few simple sentences: "Born very white, five short figures, melon seed face, thin bay two eyebrows."
It was only when Wu Shenxian looked at the appearance that he refined it, adding such characteristics as "eyes like drunkenness," "eyebrows and eyebrows," "lying silkworms and bright run," "white shoulders and round shoulders," "blue and black mountain roots," and "fine reins of laws."
The forty-sixth Bu Gui, like Meng Yulou, said that she had married three husbands, and drew "a ghost with green face and red hair" next to her and her children, and when her mother-in-law explained it, she said that she "suffered a loss of discord, and will take revenge in everything." "Another thing, your old man's plan this year is the order of the stars, the Lord has a bloody disaster, carefully July and August without crying."
All these indicate that Li Ping'er died after Pan Jinlian's secret calculation and Huazi's false ghost, after the death of his son.
In the 61st time, Li Bottler was seriously ill, and Ximen Qing asked Mr. Huang outside the Zhenwu Temple to tell her fortunes, Huang said that Li Bottler had a fortune telling for her this year, and he had committed the five ghosts of the mourning gate, and the disaster was killed and hyped, according to the explanation of Bu Gui's mother-in-law earlier, and it was judged that Li Ping'er was unlucky.
Ximen Qing and Wu Yueniang wrote the same way, the first time Ximen Qing was written, he simply said that he was "born burly and dashing", "strong in temperament, and deep and treacherous".
The twenty-ninth Wu Shenxian Bingjian, because Ximen Qing was the head of the family, had one more fortune-telling procedure than the others, and the verdict added his appearance and character in more detail, and warned him:
"There should not be too much yin and water in the eight characters, and then in the middle of the jiazi movement, the noon will be broken, and there will be meteors to disturb it, and in less than six or six years, the Lord will have the plague of vomiting blood and the disease of thin bones."
In the 62nd time, Ximen Qing asked the Five Mountains Guan Pan Daoist to exorcise evil spirits for the critically ill Li Ping'er, but Pan Daoist failed to do so, saying that Li Ping'er could not be saved, and when he resigned, he told Ximen Qing not to go to her room tonight, for fear of harm to his own body. But Ximen Qing did not listen to the advice.
By the seventy-ninth time, Ximen Qing's life hung in the balance, and Wu Yuanniang invited Wu Shenxian again, and Wu Shenxian first diagnosed the pulse, saying that "the disease is terminally ill and difficult to treat."
Moon Niang asked, "Sir, does he still have a solution?" Wu Shenxian replied: "The white tiger is in the head, the door is dead, the immortal has no solution, and it is difficult to push it too old." The creation is determined, and the gods and demons cannot be moved. "Ximen Qing's death sentence was completely pronounced.
The twenty-ninth time, Wu Shenxian showed Wu Yueniang her face, saying that she "has a black mole in the Hall of Tears, and if she does not have a hangover disease, she will be punished."
In the forty-sixth time, Wu Yuanniang asked Liu Pozi Bu Gui to further summarize Wu Yuanniang's character characteristics through the explanation of the trigram elephant and Liu Pozi.
Cabinet copy of the book cover of the holographic golden bottle plum
In addition, the character shaping in "Jin Ping Mei", in addition to the embodiment of character language and behavior, the description of fate is another important way, which can be divided into three types:
The first type of depiction is a static description from the perspective of the author, such as Wu Dalang, whose physical characteristics imply his character traits and fate ending;
The second is Li Jiaoer, Ximen eldest sister, etc., before Wu Shenxian looked at the face, their appearance was not described, and the reader's understanding of their appearance and character was basically through the judgment of the acolyte;
The third is Ximen Qing, Pan Jinlian, Meng Yulou, etc., which not only describe the morphology and personality of the characters through the perspective of the author or Ximen Qing, but also enrich and supplement them through the judgments of the acolytes,
"Hidden" and "obvious" intertextual, repeatedly dyed, making the character image more prominent, and laying the groundwork for the later storyline.
Moreover, to some extent, the judgment of the acolyte represents the author's summary and evaluation, which is a special way of criticism, which has the effect of connecting the upper and lower, both summarizing the character's past and revealing his or her later ending.
The concept of fate is degenerated into a multi-dimensional method of shaping the image of the character, which makes the description of the character shape have a full meaning.
3 The structural function of the judgment
Many scholars have pointed out that the Jin Ping Mei has been attacked, transformed, imitated and embedded in many other texts, which is an important intertextual phenomenon.
In fact, the many fortune-telling activities described in the novel, the judgments echo each other, and also form intertextuality with each other, and the judgments are explained, supplemented and deepened by each other, and the author in this way, repeatedly dyeing, makes the appearance and personality characteristics of the characters more delicate and full.
Previous novels such as "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Water Margin" were accustomed to writing the appearance of the characters at once, and the brushwork of "Jin Ping Mei" appeared more swaying; And every fortune-telling activity is a preview and creates suspense for the reader.
The verdict of the warlock has two main functions in shaping the character, one is to summarize the previous description of the person, and to reveal his image characteristics with the finishing touch.
This can be said to be the perspective of a physiognomy, or it can be said to speak for the author or reader, which is a special way of criticism.
For example, the judgment of the twenty-ninth Wu Shenxian Xiang Meng Yulou: "The mouth is like a four-character god clear, and the warmth is like a pearl in the palm of your hand." Mighty and full wealth, the final master has more than two husbands. ”
Zhang Zhupo commented: "One sentence of style, two sentences of temperament, three sentences of fate, and four sentences of the author's tribulation, so the author of Yun was doomed by Shi Gong and wrote a book." [24]
That is to say, these four sentences respectively write Meng Yulou's style, temperament and fate, but Zhang Zhupo's statement that the fourth sentence is "the author's tribulation" is far-fetched, in fact, it implies that Meng Yulou will kill the two husbands.
Another example is the embroidery like this Li Jiaoer's judgment eyebrow criticism cloud: "Only 16 characters, describing Li Jiao'er is unbearable", Pan Jinlian's judgment eyebrow criticism cloud: "Yan even, Mei Shi", Li Pinger's judgment eyebrow criticism cloud: "cute" and "painting", Pang Chunmei's judgment eyebrow criticism cloud: "Four languages is a small portrait of Chunmei." [25]
It can be seen from this that the Ximen Qingtou has the function of writing people, Ximen Qingtou has a short round neck, strong physique, towering heavenly court, square circle of the earth pavilion, soft and plump skin, male and female eyes, greedy and deceitful, and dissipation in middle age;
Wu Yueniang's face is like a full moon, her lips are like red lotuses, her voice is clear, her hands are like dried ginger, there are black moles in the tear hall, and there are wrinkles under her eyes;
Sister Ximen's nose is low, her voice is like a broken gong, her face is tense, her actions are like joy, etc., all of which describe the appearance and personality of the characters from multiple perspectives and aspects in the form of fatal judgments.
Mr. Liu Yongqiang pointed out: "Wu Shenxian's comments on Ximen Qing and his wife and concubine, which are external to the specific description, can be regarded as the author's comments." [26]
That is to say, the author commented on Ximen Qing and his wife and concubines through Wu Shenxian's endorsement, which can also be said to be a temporary summary for the reader to some extent.
The verdict also reveals the subtle relationships between the characters, such as Wu Shenxian Xiangbi, Ximen Qing returned to the back hall and asked Yue Niang: "What is the relationship between everyone?"
Yuenniang thinks that her daughter Ximen Eldest Sister and Chunmei are not accurate, especially Chunmei: "I just don't believe that he Chunmei wore a pearl crown later, and he was a lady." Our family has no officials, so please come to the crown? There's a crown of pearls, and it's not his turn. ”
It stands to reason that Pang Chunmei is a maid, not Ximen Qing's wife and concubine, although she has been adopted by Ximen Qing, but she has no reputation, the lowest status, and she is not qualified to participate, Ximen Qing taught Wu Shenxian to her, which has already shown that his relationship with Chunmei is extraordinary,
Ximen Qing smiled and explained to Yuenniang, saying that Pang Chunmei was standing next to me, maybe Wu Shenxian mistook it for my daughter, and then went to sit on the chair outside, so that Chunmei brought a pot of plum soup to drink, for half a day, "I saw Chunmei often showing her head, wearing a silver silk cloud bun, wearing a Maoqing cloth gown, a pink summer cloth skirt, carrying a pot of honey-fried plum soup, and came with a smile",
Chunmei heard that Ximen Qing had drunk plum soup in the back room, so she took the plum soup and surged it in the ice, then handed it to Ximen Qing, and fanned for him, and asked the content of the conversation between Yuenniang and Ximen Qing, Ximen Qing told the truth, Chunmei said:
"That Taoist priest said to wear a crown of pearls. The teacher lady said, 'If there is a crown of pearls, I am afraid that it will not be his turn.'
As the saying goes, 'Mortals shall not look good, and the sea shall not be measured.' 'The circle that never spins and does not cut the circle, and each skirt clothes and food, how can it be expected? It's better to be a slave in your house in the long run!"
This dialogue copies the mood of Ximen Qing and Pang Chunmei at this time, "plum soup" has the same word as Chunmei's name, Ximen Qing has drunk it in Wu Yue's mother's room, and after coming out, he designated Chunmei to mention a pot of plum soup to drink, which shows Ximen Qing's favor for her.
And because the judgment of the acolyte is very good, Chunmei is also in a good mood, "smiling and coming over" but worried about offending Wu Yueniang, so she really wants to know Wu Yueniang's opinion. After listening to Ximen Qing's relay, Pang Chunmei's words highlighted her personality of "only wide heart".
Second, fatality verdicts play a more important role in the structure of the novel.
The twenty-ninth time, Wu Shenxian told fortunes to Ximen Qing's wife and concubine, The forty-sixth time, a village wife gave Wu Yueniang, Meng Yulou, Li Ping'er Bu Gu'er,
The forty-seventh return to the monk of Bao'en Temple in Tokyo, outside the Yangzhou Miaoyuan,
The sixty-first time, Mr. Huang, who is proficient in innate easy numbers in the Zhenwu Temple, told fortunes for Li Pinger,
Ye Toutuo of the 96th Zenkai Mai Shenxiang looked at Chen Jingji.
In particular, the collective physiognomy activities of the twenty-ninth and forty-sixth rounds are the most important, which are reflected in the Huimu in the Dictionary Book and the Chongzhen Script, and the Twenty-ninth Episode of the Dictionary Book is "Wu Shenxian Noble and Cheap Face",
Chongzhen was originally "Wu Shenxian Ice Identification for Life"; The forty-sixth episode of the dictionary "wives and concubines laughing at the turtle trigram" and the Chongzhen book "wives and concubines laughing at the turtle children" all indicate that this is an important content of this time, and other physiognomic activities are not outstanding.
Zhang Zhupo pointed out that the 29th "Episode" is a major key. The people who wrote it out one by one in the twenty-eight times above have so far been far from the results of the return party. The author of the cover is afraid that the text will be written by hand, or cause confusion, so a certain scale, the following are the result of this number of people. The results of these people are finished, and the book is finished. ”[27]
Through Wu Shenxian's judgment, the main characters written in the first twenty-eight episodes "one by one made a remote judgment result", that is, to make a small summary, and at the same time, for the following content "a certain scale, the following results are also according to this number of people",
That is to say, Wu Shenxian's judgment foreshadows the fate of the main characters in the novel, and from the author's point of view, it not only loops around in structure, but also becomes the narrative outline of the whole book, and creates suspense.
For example, in the twenty-ninth palindromic dragon commentary:
"The author borrowed his acolytes to break everyone's life, but the jade building had a good result. How can you elaborate on its warm things? If they all point out that Jin Lian murdered her own husband, and Bottle Er killed her husband, not only is there no such reason, but there is no such immortal. If there is no such thing as this, books are not wonderful. ”[28]
The forty-sixth palindrome dragon also commented: "Therefore, by borrowing the layer of turtles, first show the results of the women." Turtle Po may not be such a god, but also like the former immortal talk about Xiang Yuner. ”[29]
From the reader's point of view, this undoubtedly lays a number of lines for the rest of the text, sets up all kinds of suspense, and becomes the driving force for the reader to continue reading, and these main characters have results, and the whole book is over.
Gao Tsuru Tangben "Bamboo Slope Gossip"
Zhang Zhupo pointed out the forty-sixth time: "This time since Wu Shenxian, it is another result." [30]
This sentence can be understood from two perspectives, one is that the forty-sixth is a relatively large-scale fortune-telling activity after the twenty-ninth, which once again foreshadows the "result" of Yue Niang and others;
Second, between the twenty-ninth and forty-sixth cycles, many events occurred, which fulfilled some of Wu Shenxian's judgments, "Bu Gui'er, Zhiyue Niang, Yulou, and Bottle, but the result of the golden lotus is said by himself, it is obviously the aftermath, and it is not bad." And the viewer stops gossiping, and takes care of the above-mentioned fairy appearance, and merges into one." [31]
That is, in line with the twenty-ninth "Care of Ye———, the aftermath of Yueniang, Yulou, and Bottler was recounted through Bu Gui, but Pan Jinlian said it through her own mouth.
The article wrote that as soon as Liu Pozi left, Pan Jinlian and her eldest sister came out from behind, and Pan Jinlian said with a smile: "I said that I didn't see the back, so you all came forward."
Yue Niang said, "We just sent Master Father out to make this turtle." If you come one step earlier, teach him to be with you. ”
Jin Lian shook her head and said, "I don't know him. As the saying goes: 'If you count your fate, you can't do it.' 'I want to see the Taoist priest the day before yesterday and say that my life is short! What's the matter? The person who said it was shadowy in his heart. As he buried in the dead street tomorrow, buried in the dead road, and fell into the ditch, it is a coffin. ”
As a result, Pan Jinlian finally died under Wusong's sharp blade, and the corpse was violently buried on the street, and no one was buried.
In the 96th time, Zhang Zhupo commented again:
"This time, Ye Dao met each other, and the single knot paid respect. Cover the back ice book for everyone to describe, and then return to the turtle to draw another depiction, Fang took everyone away. If the husband conceals the honor in the Ximen Qingwen, there is no need to rush to end the honor.
Now I let go and write my respects, which is used to go to the garrison, that is, to end it like the ice book and the turtle, so that the following will be put and closed. ”[32]
That is to say, Chen Jingji is an important character in the novel, he is Ximen Qing's son-in-law, Ximen Qing called him "my son", when Ximen Qing died, he also wore hemp and wore filial piety as his son, especially after Ximen Qing's death, Chen Jingji and Pang Chunmei became the "main brain" of the novel.
In the twenty-seventh round, Zhang Zhupo approved the clouds:
"This time, after the four of Jinlian, Yulou, Ping'er, and Chunmei got together, they also added a description.
Yulou is a person specially approved by the author, so he writes about his coldness but not his lewdness, and Chunmei is specially left by the author as the master brain of the second half, so he writes about his favor but not about his lewdness. ”[33]
That is, Chunmei's lewdness is not rendered in the front, which is to leave room for the back.
In the twenty-ninth time, when Wu Shenxian looked at the Ximen family collectively, only Chen Jingji was omitted, and according to Zhang Zhupo's explanation, first, "the result of Gai's eldest sister respecting each other has passed halfway." Therefore, it is not the same as Chen Jingji", and the second is that "Gaisemon treats Jingji half as a slave, so he does not enter Jingji". [34]
That is to say, Sister Ximen has already met, and from her judgment, Chen Jingji's information can already be known; Secondly, Ximen Qing regarded Chen Jingji as a slave and would not give him a chance to look at him.
In fact, the most important thing is that in the design of the characters, Chen Jingji is Ximen Qing's "successor"35] and "heir to the mantle"[36], and Su Manshu said that he is Ximenqing's "reflection"[37] .
It is an extension of Ximen Qing's adulterous career, and became the narrative center after Ximen Qing's death, continuing the story of the Ximen family, so it was added later as his "ice and smelting, so that the novel is written with rich changes."
Ye Toutuo's verdict was not only a knot for Chen Jingji in the first half of his life, but also foreshadowed the end of his imminent entry into the garrison and eventual killing, which is the so-called "receiving" and "release".
Zhang Zhupo's comments point out the structural function of the description of fortune-telling activities in the 29th, 46th, and 96th episodes throughout the book, which shows that the author uses the method of mutual seeing to remind the fate of important characters in the novel several times through the description of fortune-telling.
"Words Outside the Bottle"
"Jin Ping Mei" not only reflects the social reality at that time through the description of fate, shapes the characters and structure of the whole text, but also promotes the concept of fatalism, which is one of the keynotes of "Jin Ping Mei",
In addition to physiognomy, the novel also uses proverbs and so on as a line, such as the sixty-first episode when Ximen Qing wants to have sex with the sick Li Bottler, Li Bottler is entangled, and laughs: "Who believes your false mouth." I'll die tomorrow, and you won't bear me." ”
The twenty-first time wrote that Ximen Qing and all his wives and concubines guessed the order, and each person's wine order implied his own personality and destiny, such as Pan Jinlian's wine order: "Bao Laoer, when you grow old, you have broken the three principles and five constants." Ask him if he is a traitor or a thief. ”
On the 31st time, Ximen celebrated the birth of an official son, and on his birthday there was a banquet to celebrate, and there was a performance, and Xue and Liu ordered the lyrics, either for "sighing that Fusheng is like a dream", or for "thinking that the most bitter thing in life is parting". When Li Ping'er died, Count Ying and Ximen Qing both dreamed that the jade was broken.
There are many such examples, which reinforce the theme of color emptiness and exhortation and punishment in the novel.
The words and phrases start from the fact that Xiang Yu and Liu Bang are greedy and mistaken things, introduce the main topic, and narrate the story of Pan Jinlian.
Chongzhen's words begin with Lü Dongbin's poem, discussing and boiling down to everything that has a way, like a dream bubble, "It is better to cut off the six purity, put on a collared robe, see through the empty world, polish and penetrate the mechanism of life and death, go straight beyond the superior, do not fall into the right and wrong, pour a leisurely and comfortable, do not somersault in the fire pit." ”
The ending is by Pujing Zen Master Illusion, Yue Niang Enlightenment, Shezi became a monk, and atonened for Ximen Qing's sins, but the word book is different from the 100th return of the Chongzhen book, the word book is "Pu Jing Shi recommended the group of grievances" Chongzhen book is "Pu Jing Shi Illusion Degree Xiao Geer",
Looking back, the word book emphasizes the group to solve the wrongs, while the Chongzhen book pays more attention to Ximen Qing's personal sins.
In short, the novel begins with the Jade Emperor's view and ends with Yongfu Temple, one hot and one cold, karma, alluding to persuasion and punishment, in the Ximen family, only the so-called "virtuous" Yue Niang and the "gentle and gentle" Yulou have a better ending.
This structural method of "Jin Pingmei" was later imitated by many novels such as "Little Curious Acid Zhi" and "Awakening Yin and Yang Dream", among which "Dream of Red Mansions" is the most prominent, and the ninth episode of Hasbao's "New Translation of Dream of Red Mansions" "Xixian Ji Miaozhi Tong Joke Peony Pavilion Yanqu Police Fangxin" criticized:
When I read "Jin Ping Mei", I always admire it when I read about it. Now when I read this book, I realize that the kind of appreciation is excessive.
The prophetic ending in "Jin Ping Mei" is that one person counts everyone, while in "Dream of Red Mansions", each of them tells his own ending, teaching him to say it, how can he say it himself? The prophecy in "Jin Ping Mei", superficial; The prophecy in "Dream of Red Mansions" is profound. So it's a bad job. ”[38]
Haas can be described as a torch, compared with "Jin Ping Mei", "Dream of Red Mansions" can be described as unobtrusive and more ingenious.
Professor Chen Dongyou has pointed out that the judgments of Wu Shenxian and other physiognomists are mostly plagiarized from "Divine Miracle Fu" and other physiognomy classics[39]
In this way, sometimes the author will inevitably think badly, copy without making corresponding changes, so as to match the fate and ending of the characters in the novel, so sometimes there will be incongruous phenomena, such as Ximen Qing's "Heavenly Court is towering, there is no loss in life, the earth pavilion is round, and the glory of the old age is determined." ”
Ximen Qing died violently at the age of thirty-six, which is inconsistent with the "glory in old age".
Another example is that Ximen Qing "had two sons to send him to old age when he was dying", and Guan Ge'er was born at the most glorious moment in Ximen Qingjia's Guan Jinjue's life, but died soon after, Xiao Ge'er was Ximen Qing's widow, and later became a monk for the dead Ximen Qing, and Ximen Qing died without a son.
Some people may understand that the warlock touts Ximen Qing's sycophants, but from the description of the novel, Wu Shenxian, Huang Daoist and other warlocks are not greedy for money and flattery, that is, Liu Pozi's verdict, which is also the truth, there is no lack of bad judgment, and most of them have been fulfilled later, so this can only be understood as a mistake that the author did not plug when he copied the photo book.
In other words, the description of the fate activities in "Jin Ping Mei" is not only a reflection of the social reality at that time, but also the author uses the concept of Ming Xiang to portray the character image and construct the storyline, which can be described as a snap and a lot, which is of great benefit to the reader's deepening of the novel.
By examining the relationship between Jin Pingmei and the art of physiognomy, we can broaden our research horizons, which is not only an incision to examine the society of the Ming Dynasty, but also a good perspective to understand how the concept of fate is internalized as a novel art technique and aesthetic taste.
"Compilation and Interpretation of Historical Materials of Chinese Novel Criticism"
References
[ 1 ] [39] Chen Dongyou. The Aesthetic Relationship between Face and Ancient Chinese Novel Art——— Starting from the Episode of Face Face in the Words of the Golden Bottle Mei Word[ J]. Chinese Classics and Culture,1995(3):94-101.]
[ 2] Lu Rong. Shuyuan Miscellaneous Volume 1[M]. Beijing:Zhonghua Book Co., 1985:8.
[ 3] Yu Ruji. Manuscripts of the Ministry of Rites, Volume 89[ O]. Qing Wenyuange Siku Complete Books.
[ 4] LI Le. See Miscellaneous Notes Volume 9[M]. Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House,1986:739.
[ 5] ZHU Guozhen. Yongdao Sketch, Volume 25 Chair Notes, Novel Daguan, Part 22, Part 7[C]. Taipei:New Wenfeng Publishing Company,1979:4856.
[ 6] SONG Lian. Lu Ming Zhan [ C] Chair Song Bachelor Complete Collection Volume 27 Chair Series Collection, New Edition. Taipei:New Wenfeng Publishing Company,1985:270.
[ 7] History of the Ming Dynasty, Volume 299 Biography of Yuan Jue[ M]. Zhonghua Bookstore,1974:7643.
[ 8 ] [11] Huang Sheng. Wuyue Mountain Ren Collection Volume 29[ C] Chair Shen Naiwen, editor-in-chief. Mingbetsu Series, Volume 2, Volume 35. Hefei:Huangshan Books,2013:468.
[ 9] Matteo Ricci. Matteo Ricci Chinese Notes[ M]. Beijing:Zhonghua Book Co., 2005:91.
[10] XIE Zhaoxuan. Five Miscellaneous Tricks, Volume 5[ M]. Shanghai:Shanghai Bookstore,2001: 168.
[11] Wu Zimu. Mengliang Records Volume 20[ M] Chair Notes Novel Daguan Volume 3. Yangzhou:Guangling Ancient Book Engraving and Printing Society, 1983.
[12] FENG Ruyi. Mr. Yuyama's Collected Works, Volume 10[ C] Chairming Series, Volume 2, Volume 50. Hefei:Huangshan Books,2013:622.
[13] Feng Menglong. Ancient and modern Tan[ M]. Beijing:Literary and Ancient Books Publishing House, 1955:162.
[14] [15] [21] [22] Gu Jie, editor-in-chief. Integration of God[ M]. Chongqing: Chongqing Press,1993:66,197,11,12,29.
[16] [18] [19] [23] Zhang Xingjian. Renren Da Tong Chair Four Library Mathematics Series ( VIII)[ C]. Shanghai:Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House,1991:833,,,834,721,806,838.
[17] Yao Lingxi. Words outside the bottle[M]. Tianjin:Tianjin Bookstore,1940:104.
[20] Zeng Qingyu. On the Difference of Other Perspectives of the Inner Realm Image of Ximen Qing's Text[ J]. Ming and Qing Dynasty Novel Research,2007(1):144鄄152.
[24] [25] [27] [30] [31] [32] [33] [34] HOU Zhongyi,WANG Rumei. Compilation of Jinpingmei data[ M]. Beijing:Peking University Press, 1985:103,300,102,120,121,189,100,102.
[26] LIU Yongqiang. Journal of Peking University,1996(4):68-46.)
[28] [29] ZHU Yixuan. Compilation of Jinpingmei data[ M]. Tianjin:Nankai University Press,2002:602,615.
[35] Cheng Xinxin. "Jin Ping Mei" New Theory of Characters[ M]. Hefei: Huangshan Books,2001:95.
[36] MENG Chao. "Jin Ping Mei" characters[ M]. Beijing: Beijing Press, 2011:129.
[37] [38] HUANG Lin, eds. LUO Shuhua. Compilation and interpretation of historical sources of Chinese novel criticism[ M]. Nanchang:Baihuazhou Literature and Art Publishing House,2009:737, 616.
Author's affiliation: Yangzhou University
This paper is a major project of the National Social Science Foundation of China, "Theoretical Terminology Interpretation and Genealogical Construction of Ancient Chinese Novels" (19ZDA247). Published with the author's permission, the original article was published in Journal of North China University of Technology (Social Science Edition), No. 2, 2021. Please indicate the source of forwarding.