In the history of literature, the image of female characters is extremely rich, but the obvious paradox is that they always come in groups and endless streams, appearing in various literary works with various faces, postures, and feelings, however, in the real world, this group is often in a hidden state, and we rarely see their figures in the literary world.
Throughout the history of ancient Chinese literature for thousands of years, only a few ones, such as Yoshimitsu Katayu, occasionally flashed, fulfilling the ancient adage that "a woman's lack of talent is virtue". The sky is full of stars, and only with affectionate hope can we have the luck to see the splendor and loneliness of a few shooting stars crossing the night curtain. From the beauty who "smiled delicately" in the "Book of Poetry" to the beautiful woman who was "posthumous and independent" sung in the mouth of the blind later, "Yingying upstairs woman, bright as a window." E'e red pink makeup, slim out of plain hands" ("Qingqing Riverside Grass")... They live in a vast sea of literary dictionaries, which make future generations think about it, although they have brocade embroidery, they rarely leave a word of themselves, and their life deeds are difficult to investigate and verify.
Zhuo Wenjun is probably one of them, and she left the famous "White Head Yin" behind her:
Like snow on the mountain, like the moon among the clouds.
Wen Jun had two intentions, so they decided against each other.
Today's cocktail fight, Mingdan ditch water head.
On the ditch, the ditch water flows east and west.
Bleak and miserable, there is no need to marry.
I wish to have one heart, and the white head is not separated.
Bamboo poles He Yin, fish tail He tufts.
The man is angry, how to use the money knife.
But the true face of the poem is now full of doubts. Male talent and female appearance, always chaotic and abandoned... This ultimate version of the human story, in the process of being passed down, is always accompanied by various rumors and repeatedly deviates from the course of emotions. Ban Jieyu is counted as one, full of talent, and her life is like a fan. Cai Wenji is also counted as one, as "Hujia Eighteen Beats", with a bad fate, first taken away for the Xiongnu, finally returned, and suffered humiliation. Xie Daoyun of the Southern Dynasty "Yong Su into Poems" is famous, but none of his poetry has survived. There was a talented woman in the Southern Song Dynasty named Zhu Shuzhen, alias "Youqi Resident Shi", with clear words and lingering feelings, and was on a par with Li Qingzhao. She did have a copy of the "Broken Intestine Collection" in existence, but due to the unfortunate marriage life, she died of depression, and most of her poems were burned by her parents after her death. Later generations accused his poems of being "desolate and obscene, wantonly writing", and Yang Shen in the Ming Dynasty even seriously rebuked Zhu Shuzhen in his "Words".
In later generations, the most familiar female poet is Li Qingzhao, who is highly educated and known as the "Gentle Poet Sect", although her works have been printed at that time, but most of them are scattered, or mixed with fish, and were not collected and sorted into books until the Republican period... The reasons for this situation are varied, the most important of which is, of course, the artificial squeeze of women's living space by patriarchal society. We can say that the mind is a dojo, but for ancient women, the dojo of their hearts has always been closed to the outside and kept secret.
Slightly different from previous dynasties, the Tang Dynasty was a dynasty with a relatively open social atmosphere, and women's living space gradually shifted from private to public sphere, from Wu Zetian to Princess Taiping, and then to Princess Yuzhen, they were happy to organize literati banquets before their deaths, and women's figures and voices gradually appeared in many public occasions. The volume of Li Zhao's "Supplement to the History of the Tang Kingdom" says: "Chang'an customs, since Zhenyuan extravagant banquets. "In fact, not only Zhenyuan, but also the Tang world, the banquet and drinking in the Liangjing region have become the trend. Qushui Liuyu, Chongyang Shooting Garden, Pavilion Xincheng, Five-Day Color Line, Qixi Pink Feast, etc., festivals and good days, it is not to invite guests and friends, and put on a banquet. Farewells, promotions, birthdays, and marriages are all reasons for the literati to gather, and in these gatherings, most of them are haunted by women, and their unique and beautiful timbre has been preserved intermittently.
This change may be partly due to the imperial examination system of poetry selection since the Tang Dynasty, so that women who were originally in purdah were more or less influenced by poetry. In short, by this time, women are no longer just stunners for human character to play with in palace poetry, nor are they just tassels on the prosperous picture scroll, but have transformed into a group of thoughtful, emotional, and even enlightened people.
Written by | Zhang Zhihao
Source: "Better to read poetry", author: Zhang Zhihao, edition: Changjiang Literature and Art Publishing House, January 2023
"Prostitutes" with emancipated personalities?
In the Tang Dynasty, Taoism was adopted as the state religion, and monastic Taoism was not among the "four people" (scholars, farmers, industry, and commerce), and female Taoists could interact with figures of different classes without restrictions, and women's deeds became another secret link between secular and religious spaces. The style of entering the Dao of aristocratic women in the Tang Dynasty prevailed, and Princess Yuzhen was the first to open the trend. Subsequently, in the generations of Emperor Xuanzong, Daizong, Dezong, Shunzong, Xianzong, and Muzong, there were princesses who successively became female crowns. Someone has made statistics that among the two hundred and ten princesses of the Tang Dynasty, twelve were women. The poet Wang Jian wrote in "Tangchang Guan Yurui Flower": "The female crown looks for incense at night, only to see the broken moon in front of the steps." "It is precisely such a prevailing social atmosphere, the bright moon is cool, and the female road is sluggish. Just as the so-called upward and downward effect, driven by this world style, other noble women have also followed suit, and for various reasons have entered Taoist temples and Buddhist temples. In this new space, which is both reclusive and accessible, women's lives are no longer as restrictive as before, they become relatively free, and they are subject to much less moral requirements when interacting with men than before.
For more than 290 years of the Tang Dynasty, it is said that there are 207 female poets who have recorded their poetry deeds, among which Li Ye, Xue Tao, Liu Caichun, and Yu Xuanji are the most famous, they are called the "Four Great Female Poets of the Tang Dynasty" by later generations, except for Liu Caichun who is an artist, the other three have entered the Tao.
"In the Xiantong era, material and extravagant goods were happily killed. Bankruptcy competes to stay in the sky, and casts mountains compete to buy flowers in the cave. The silver lamps of the banquet were closed, and the fairy swam back to Biyue. People seem to know today's events, and urgently urge the string orchestra to send the New Year. This is the last victory of the Tang Dynasty described by the late Tang poet Wei Zhuang: it is the so-called "Great Prosperity", less than 20 years before and after, Tubo, Uighur and other four Yidi have ceased to exist, and the people have finally lived a short period of good years. The Tang people, who have experienced the suffering of troubled times, realized the preciousness of life, so they had fun in time, drunken gold fans, and chasing butterflies and dreams became the common mentality of people in that era, and the luxury in decadence, the fear and trepidation in pleasure, and the dirtiness and violence under the joy also heralded the coming of a century-old era of great division and great turmoil.
Yu Xuanji appeared in such a historical situation, and her short life completely corresponds to the spiritual representation of that era.
Qing Gaiqi "Yuanji Poetic Intent"
Tang Emperor Fu's "Three Waters Little Stick" contains: "Xijing Xianyiguan female Taoist Yu Xuanji, the character is young, and the daughter of the Chang'an family is also." It is also called, "The color is pouring into the country, the mind is in the spirit, and he likes to read books and literature, especially in a chant and a chant." "Huangfu lived about the end of the Tang Dynasty to the time after the death of the Tang Dynasty, not far from the era of Yu Xuanji's life, so when discussing Yu Xuanji in later generations, he mostly used his "Three Waters and Little Mu" as a reference. However, most of the contents collected in this book are strange people, gods and ghosts that were widely circulated in society at that time, so it is not enough to be treated as a history of letters.
In the Qing Dynasty, which paid attention to evidence, the story and life of Yu Xuanji were compiled into the "All Tang Poems": "Yu Xuanji, the character is young, the word Hui Lan, the daughter of the Chang'an family, likes to read, has talent." Que Li Yina was a concubine, loved to decline, and then subordinated to Xianyiguan. Later, he killed the girl Lu Qiao and was killed by Jing Zhao Wenzhang. One volume of poems today. Comparing the two, it can be seen that the "Quan Tang Poems" is more detailed and the wording is more cautious, especially the word "love decline", which highlights the turning point of Yu Xuanji's fate. This text provides us with three characters, Li Yi, Luqiao and Wen Zhang, who constitute the three key nodes in Yu Xuanji's life.
Yu Xuanji's poems have been passed down in later generations, which should be attributed to the famous publisher of the Southern Song Dynasty, Chen Qi, who is the earliest known person to collect and publish the poems of Yu Xuanji, and it is through Chen Qi's hand that a copy of "Tang Girl Yu Xuanji Poems" was engraved and printed, which contains nearly fifty poems by the author, so that this female poet avoided the fate of turning into powder after death, and her life was thus continued in the form of poetry. I don't know what Chen Qi had in mind, but he gave Yu Xuanji a rather playful title in this poetry collection: girl. In my personal impression, the title of "girl" is really rare to see anywhere else, except for the appearance in the "Mulan Poem" ("Twelve years together, I don't know that Mulan is a girl"). From "woman", to "female crown", to "girl", this change in title conveys a faint message to us, that is, the editor Chen Qi really has pity for Yu Xuanji, and in addition, he intends to show that Yu Xuanji is a woman who is full of vitality, talent, and not bound by stereotypes. In fact, the various interpretations of Yu Xuanji in later generations, as well as the deduction of her experience before her death, are also consistent with our understanding of the word "girl" in our minds now.
One of Yu Xuanji's most famous poems is "Gift to the Neighbor Girl":
Shame covers the sleeves, and the spring is lazy to put on makeup.
Easy to ask for priceless treasures, rare to have a heart.
Tears lurk on the pillow, and the intestines are broken between the flowers.
If you can peep at Song Yu, why hate Wang Chang.
Because the last alliance "can spy on Song Yu, why hate Wang Chang", Yu Xuanji was defined by later generations as a "prostitute" with a liberated personality, and some people even said that she was thief and adulterous. According to the "Three Waters Little Mou", this poem was written by Yu Xuanji in prison in Xiantong Chunzhengyue (868), and is a masterpiece poem by the poet; However, Sun Guangxian, the author of "Northern Dream Trivia" in the early Song Dynasty, believes that this poem was written by Yu Xuanji out of resentment against his lover Li Yi, and it is not a masterpiece; "Quan Tang Poems" regarded it as a prison poem, and "The Legend of Tang Caizi" regarded it as a resentful poem... And what the truth is, we have to look at it from the origin of Yu Xuanji's emotions.
"Tang Girl Taoist Fish Yuan Machine Little Shadow"
Yu Xuanji and Wen Tingjun
In the spring of the ninth year of Xiantong (868), a sensational murder occurred in Chang'an City, which occurred in Xianyiguan, where the imperial prince and nobles practiced at that time. Xianyiguan is located in Qinrenfang in Tang Chang'an City, which was originally the royal residence of Tang Ruizong Li Dan before he ascended the throne, and it was also a place where famous families and ministers gathered to drink and have fun, and An Lushan, Guo Ziyi, Liu Zongyuan and others all lived here. In the first year, the place was transformed into the "Suming Taoist Temple", and in the first year of Baoying, because Princess Xianyi entered the temple practice, it was renamed "Xianyi Nuguan Guan", from which the name Xianyiguan was derived. This view is located next to Hirayasangbo, where geisha live, and this area has always been a bustling place in Kyoto. In the spring of that year, Yu Xuanji, a female Taoist priest who avoided the view due to emotional frustration, flogged and killed the maid Luqiao, but was denounced, imprisoned, and finally sentenced to death.
This well-known story has been continuously interpreted and rewritten by many wild histories and legendary strange works, some rudely defining this case as "a nun committing crimes", while others have painstakingly poured tears for the protagonist Yu Xuanji, for example, late Ming playwright Ye Xianzu wrote the story of the late Tang poets Du Lang and Zhao Wenshu, Wen Tingjun and Yu Xuanji in his masterpiece "Luanji", and the poets involved in the play are all historical, but they are no longer the original. In this drama, Yu Xuanji is portrayed as an innocent and chivalrous image.
Yuanren Xin Wenfang wrote "The Biography of Tang Caizi", in this book, the author changed a perspective and restored the poetic appearance of Yu Xuanji as much as possible: "Xuanji, Chang'an people, female Taoist priests." Sexually intelligent, good at reading, especially rhyme, affectionate. Xiantong Zhong and Xuan, for Li Yi to make up for the pet. Madame is jealous, can not tolerate, billions of subordinates to Xian Yiguan wear. There is a complaint Li Shiyun: 'It is easy to ask for priceless treasures, and it is rare to have a heart. 'In the same alley as Li Yingduangong, the residence is close, and the poetry tube is reversed. Fu and Wen Tingjun traveled, and there were articles sent together. Taste the south building of Chongzhenguan, see the inscription of the new scholar, and give the poem: 'Yunfeng is full of spring love, and the silver hook is born under the fingers. Self-hatred Luo Yi covered up the verse, raised his head to envy the middle name. 'The author appreciates his passion for the passion, so that as a man, he will be useful. Shi Jingshi and all the palace girls, all of them are handsome, and the stars and the moon are dragged, but they are self-reliant with chanting, and their mysteries are outstanding, and they are often rewarded. There is a volume of poetry, this biography. This text clearly explains Yu Xuanji's life, her talent and talent, her emotional changes, and the poets she interacted with during her lifetime.
In the history of literature, the appearance of every female poet is almost accompanied by various gossip, just as the world relishes the stories of Li Ye and Jiaoran, Xue Tao and Yuan Shu, and there are also various versions of the stories of Yu Xuanji and Wen Tingjun.
Song Fan Anren "Fish Algae Scroll"
Volume 8 of the "Biography of Tang Caizi" mentions Yu Xuanji's relationship with Li Ying and Wen Tingjun to sing peace, which is recorded in Yu Xuanji's surviving poems, such as "Rewarding Li Ying for Summer Fishing Return": "Although the residence is the same alley, it has not passed through the years. Clear words to persuade old women, fragrant cinnamon fold new ke. Taoism deceives ice and snow, Zen heart laughs at Qiluo. On the trail of the sky, there is no way to catch the smoke wave. From this poem, we learn that Li Ying once lived in the same street with Yu Xuanji, and once, Li Ying wrote a poem on the grounds of "returning from fishing" and gave Yu Xuanji a gift, but we see that Yu Xuanji's reply in the poem is quite decent, and he has the intention of self-possession of Qing cultivation. "Wen Li Duangong Fishing Back Gift" is another poem written by Yu Xuanji to Li Ying, "I am ashamed that I am not as good as the Mandarin Duck couple, but I have to be close to fishing for both sides", but in this poem, Yu Xuanji reveals a certain envy of life outside the world, which is closer to her real inner world than the previous one.
As for Wen Tingjun, she is a poet that Yu Xuanji respects and admires very much, and legend has it that when she was ten years old, she met Wen Tingjun, who was already very famous at that time, and maintained long-term contacts, and there were many poetry rewards between them. As a man in his thirties, Wen Tingjun may be the discoverer and recommender of her talent, even if Yu Xuanji has affection for him, he will definitely not develop to the point of double flight and double accommodation in the imagination of the world. Wen Tingjun was talented when he was alive, famous in Beijing, known as "Wen Bayun", but talent is talent, in fact, he has always been depressed, often lingering in various places of wind and moon, it is said that he looks ugly, "the morale is dusty, not slender" ("The Old Book of Tang Wen Tingjun Biography"), known as "Wen Zhongkui". When Yu Xuanji was about fifteen years old, through Wen Tingjun's matchmaking, she married Li Yi as a concubine. As for why Wen Tingjun wanted to bring them together, as well as Li Yi's family affairs, temperament, personality, etc., there is no detailed record in the history books.
In the poem "Sending Wen Feiqing on a Winter Night", Yu Xuanji wrote:
Pondering and searching for poetry under the lamp, sleepless long nights afraid of the cold.
The full court of wood leaves is sad, and the moon sinks through the screen window.
The evacuation was not idle, and the wish was fulfilled, and the prosperity and decline were empty.
In the place of the sycamore, the twilight sparrow chirps around the forest.
It should be said that this is a high-quality poem of all the surviving works of Yu Xuanji, showing the poet's lofty ambition, just as she felt when she watched the poems inscribed by the new scholars in You Qujiang: "Self-hatred covers up the verses, and raises your head to envy the middle of the list." ("You Chongzhen Guan Nanlou Seeing the New and the First Title") Creation and decorating people, ancient and modern, if it were not for the body of the daughter, what kind of fate would the fish mystery in our eyes be? Wen Tingjun's poetry collection contains a six-word poem "Send Li Yidong Back": "The Yellow Mountain is far away from the Qin tree, and the Forbidden Purple Slope leads to Weicheng." The green willows on the other road are weak, and the desert moss in the front stream. The gentle wind returns to the guests, and the setting moon is attentive and the early warbler. Ba Shang Jintaru has not drunk, and Yan Ge has already heard it. This is an ordinary farewell poem, neither can see Li Yi's identity, nor any clues show that there was an emotional intersection between Wen Tingjun and Yu Xuanji, moreover, none of the poems that Wen Tingjun survived were directly gifted to Yu Xuanji, but Yu Xuanji also wrote a poem "Send Feiqing": "Ji Jun lazy book, the substrate comforts autumn love." It can be seen from this that Wen Tingjun, who has always been lazy and sleepy, did not leave much room for Yu Xuanji to miss love, even if Yu Xuanji was intentional, Wen Tingjun was also a prodigal son.
Books are in people
Among the group of female poets of the Tang Dynasty, Yu Xuanji is not necessarily the best written, nor the most famous in the world, but it is certainly the most representative and the most prominent poet. Although the world is open, the status of women has improved, the existence space of this group is getting bigger and bigger, and even women have come to the forefront of the public stage from time to time, but on the whole, the power of women's poetry is still very weak, especially compared with those strong male poets who roared away and came one after another, it is easy to see their shortcomings, whether in the subject matter, or in the way of expression and depth of thought, they are decent, reasonable and reasonable, and rare outside reason. Li Ye's "Eight Solstice" can be regarded as an exceptional work: "Near to far east, deep to shallow clear stream." The highest as tomorrow and the moon, the closest relatives to estranged couples. "But this unique discovery and sensibility is still a rarity at that time." Most women's poetry is wordless, intentional, affectionate but lacking in emotional impact. Tang society generally believed that poetry would make people "disturbed", especially not suitable for women, and this concept did not gradually change until the Song Dynasty.
Yu Xuanji has written many poems with the theme of "Sending Zi'an", or looking forward to the rolling Han water, or standing in Jiangling to hope, these poems are basically poems of resentment in purdah, from hope to loss, from lovesickness to sorrow: "Maple leaves are thousands of branches, and the river bridge hides the twilight sail late." The memory of the Jun is like the water of the West River, flowing east day and night. ("Gangneung Sorrow Hope Sending Zi'an") is good in appearance and has meaning, but there is little novelty. If you read the song "Love Letter Sending Li Zi'an to Make Up for the Que" she gave to her lover in her early years: "Drinking ice and eating tillers is useless, and the Jin kettle is locked up in a dream." Qin Jing wants to share the worries of the fallen Magpie, and Shunqin will complain about Fei Hong. The autumn rain is singing on the leaves by the well, and the silver lamp under the window is dimly windy. The letters are asked, and the sky is empty. "We can't help but wonder, how did that childish and sweet young woman become a fish trick who later maneuvered and flirted among the men?" And before the drunken veneration, the sorrow and happiness of the past are the same as today. After such doubts, we found that perhaps it is not a problem at all, because the inheritance model of human culture is also quietly shaping the pattern of personal destiny, and Yu Xuanji's fate seems to have been predetermined for a long time, even if she does not marry Li Yi as a concubine, she may not be able to win the life she yearns for.
Qing Zhu Zhu "Fish and Duck Picture Scroll" (partial)
Let's go back to that spring in 868 AD. After Yu Xuanji killed the maid Luqiao, she buried her corpse in the backyard and continued her daily life, chanting poetry or receiving guests and friends. In spring, the weather is getting warmer, and the grass grows and warblers fly. One day, a neighbor saw flies flying in her backyard and drove them back. Because he didn't see the green warp for many days, and Yu Xuanji's reply always flashed his words, he sued the official suspiciously.
"The bright moon shines in the gap, and the breeze opens the short." Now we can only imagine that Yu Xuanji is in prison, from hatred because of love to hatred because of jealousy, this female poet who has been crushed by emotions all her life has not got rid of the demons that ordinary women often have. The death of Lu Qiao was later interpreted into another version of "Chi Wei" in the 130th volume of "Taiping Guangji" (quoted in "Sanshui Xiaomu"), and the Green Qiao in the story was portrayed as a fierce woman, whose style far overshadowed the mystery of the fish. This is not surprising at all. Strangely, Jing Zhao Yin Wenzhang, who tried Yu Xuanji after the case, was actually from the Wen family of "one family and three princes", and was a prominent descendant of the Wen family with Wen Tingjun. According to historical records, Wen Zhang was a standard cool official, known for his brutal style. It is said that after Yu Xuanji fell into the law, Wen Zhang suddenly had killing intent, but he remained silent on the surface. From spring to autumn, he waited quietly to see who would intercede with the famous crown of the capital. Because the year of Wen Tingjun's death is unknown, two versions have been circulated in later generations: first, Wen Tingjun died two years before Yu Xuanji's death, and he could not intercede with Wen Zhang for her, and Yu Xuanji was beheaded on time after the autumn; Second, after the incident, Wen Tingjun rushed back to Chang'an from Jiangdong, where he was exiled, and managed to rescue Yu Xuanji. Either way, these two versions are just an end to Yu Xuanji's fate, the difference is only that the previous period is drawn with ink pens, and the latter one is painted with colored pens.
In 1916, Yuan Kewen used one percent of the inheritance left to him by his father Yuan Shikai, about 800 silver dollars, to buy the "Tang Girl Yu Xuanji Poem", which had been in the hands of Chen in the Song Dynasty for hundreds of years, and finally came to the early 20th century, which caused quite a stir in the bibliophilic world at that time. The book is in people, and such an ending is not in vain for this "girl" who has only lived in the world for more than twenty years.