Preface
Zhu Qi, as the tenth grandson of Zhu Yuanzhang, remained incognito for 60 years, and eventually became a generation of masters, and was even more famous in the United Nations. However, his life is full of ups and downs and legends, and he uses pen and ink to record his inner grief and indignation, and express his longing for his homeland.
So, how did a royal nobleman hide his name, evade pursuit, and finally achieve the extraordinary life of a generation of painting masters? Let us walk into the legendary life of Zhu Qi, a descendant of the Ming Dynasty royal family, and appreciate his artistic achievements and noble sentiments.
Sixty years of incognito
In 1644, Li Zicheng's peasant rebel army captured Beijing, and the Ming Dynasty fell. As the tenth grandson of Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Qi was only 19 years old at the time. This was undoubtedly a huge blow for this young descendant of royalty.
The Ming Dynasty was overthrown, and his family was in a crisis of life and death. In order to avoid the pursuit of the Qing court, Zhu Qi had no choice but to make a difficult decision - to shave his rank as a monk, change his name and surname, and remain incognito from then on.
Zhu Qi became a monk from his mother and took on the heavy responsibility of taking care of his mother and younger brother. The family traveled all over Jiangxi, first taking refuge in the Gengxiang Temple in Yichun, and Zhu Qifa was called "Xue", and he was a monk here for five years. During these five years, he devoted himself to studying Buddhism, and at the same time made great progress in painting.
However, the good times did not last long, Zhu Qi's father died of illness, and the family lost support. He had to shoulder the burden of supporting his family on his own, and he moved again with his mother and younger brother. In order to avoid the search and arrest of the Qing soldiers, Zhu Qi moved to Hongya Temple. Here he continued to live as a monk for four years.
In the past four years, Zhu Qi has become more focused on painting creation, and his painting skills have matured day by day, and he has gradually gained some fame in the local area. However, Zhu Qi was always worried that his identity would be discovered, so he decided to migrate again.
In 1652, Zhu Qi came to the suburbs of Nanchang and lived in seclusion here for eight years. These eight years were the most stable period of his life. He devoted himself to taking care of his mother and younger brother, while devoting himself to learning and practicing his painting skills.
Zhu Qi's painting skills have developed by leaps and bounds in the past eight years, and his paintings have begun to attract the attention of the world. However, the good times did not last long, Zhu Qi's mother died of illness, and the family was in trouble again. He had to migrate with his younger brother again, and finally found an excellent retreat in Tianningguan, fifteen miles outside the city of Nanchang.
Zhu Qi renamed Tianning Temple as Qingyunpu, settled here, and turned from a monk to a Taoist priest, becoming the founder of this Taoist temple. In order to completely conceal his identity, he called himself "Bada Shanren" to the outside world, and named his younger brother "Niu Shihui". Isn't the "eight" and the "ox" connected together just "the "Ox"? This was done by Zhu Qi on purpose, using this obscure way to commemorate his ancestor Zhu Yuanzhang.
Art expresses the feelings of family and country
Since childhood, Zhu Qian has shown an extraordinary talent for painting. His grandfather, Zhu Duowei, was a famous painter in the late Ming Dynasty and was proficient in landscape and bird painting. Under the influence of his grandfather, Zhu began to learn painting at a very young age, and made rapid progress. However, God was jealous of talents, and before Zhu Qi became famous, the Ming Dynasty perished.
As a descendant of the Ming Dynasty royal family, Zhu Qi always had a sense of pride and sadness in his heart. He often drank alone on the streets, using alcohol to kill his sorrows, and showed a state of madness. After getting drunk, Zhu Qi will wave a big pen and wave a painting in time. Although his paintings are obscure, they are full of his enthusiasm and feelings for his family and country.
Zhu likes to add a strange symbol to his paintings, which resembles "March 19th". This symbol is in the shape of a white crane, and people don't understand the meaning of it. It wasn't until many years later that people understood that the original symbol meant "March 19". The day Emperor Chongzhen hanged himself was March 19, 1644. Zhu Qi used this special way to commemorate his homeland and express his infinite nostalgia for the Ming Dynasty.
The birds and fish in Zhu Qi's pen are all sketched with a few brushstrokes, but they always shrink their bodies and stare at their round eyes, as if they are rolling their eyes to the world. The trees he paints always have a few thin branches on the dead branches, giving people a sense of desolation and loneliness. These are all portrayals of Zhu Qi's inner grief and indignation. He can't express his heart directly, he can only express his heart in this obscure way.
Although Zhu Qi's paintings are difficult to understand, he is happy to give paintings to ordinary people. The poor, farmers, orphans, and woodcutters in the streets and alleys, as long as they ask Zhu Qi for paintings, he will not hesitate to give them away. And those dignitaries, even if they came to ask for paintings, Zhu Qi ignored them.
This kind of behavior of "being rich and being rich and being poor and cheap" is exactly a portrayal of Zhu Qi's arrogance. Although he is a descendant of the royal family, he is willing to be in the company of ordinary people, to meet friends with paintings, and to express his aspirations with poetry. In his own way, he expressed his nostalgia for the old dynasty and sympathy for the common people.
Although Zhu Qi's paintings are not understood by the world, they have deeply touched many painters in later generations. They draw nourishment from Zhu Qi's paintings and understand life from his brushwork. Famous painters such as the "Eight Monsters of Yangzhou" in the Qing Dynasty, Qi Baishi and Zhang Daqian in modern times have all benefited greatly from Zhu Qi's posthumous works.
A generation of grandmasters passed away alone
In Qingyunpu, Zhu Qian spent the last twenty years of his life. During this time, he lived a life without controversy and devoted himself to the study of the art of painting. His paintings are becoming more and more mature and profound, and have been widely praised by the world.
However, God is jealous of talents, and Zhu Qi's life is destined to be lonely. Despite his fame, he has always maintained a low-key style. Many dignitaries and nobles came to visit Zhu Qi, but he refused them one by one. Zhu Qi would rather be in the company of ordinary people than clinging to the powerful.
Zhu Daoming's younger brother Zhu Daoming was also an excellent painter. Under Zhu Qi's careful teaching, Zhu Daoming's painting skills became more and more sophisticated, and he became Zhu Qi's right-hand man. However, God did not fulfill people's wishes, and Zhu Daoming died young and passed away. Zhu Qian lost his beloved brother and was grief-stricken, and he became even more lonely from then on.
In his later years, his health deteriorated, and he knew that his time was running out. However, even when he was dying, Zhu Qi still remembered the art of painting. He dragged his sick body, set up the painting case in front of the bed, splashed ink, and created a series of amazing works.
In 1705, Zhu Qian died in Qingyunpu at the age of 80. He walked peacefully, with a faint smile on his face, as if he was reunited with his old friend in a dream. Zhu Qian lived incognito for more than 60 years, and finally passed away alone, but his artistic achievements are immortal.
In 1985, UNESCO listed Zhu Qi as one of the top ten cultural celebrities in ancient China in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the art of painting. Although Zhu Qi is in adversity, he has always maintained his noble sentiments and proud character.
epilogue
Zhu Qi's life is a legend of joys and sorrows. He has experienced the ups and downs of life and tasted the ups and downs of the world.
Zhu Qi's story tells us that even in the most difficult circumstances, as long as we insist on ourselves, maintain noble sentiments and proud spirits, we will definitely be able to create immortal achievements.
In his own way, he insisted on himself in the turbulent times, and finally achieved the extraordinary life of a generation of grandmasters. This kind of spirit is worthy of our eternal learning and admiration.