Kong Rong, this name is a household name in traditional Chinese culture. Known as a "prodigy" since he was a child, he became famous in the literary world early on with his outstanding talent and brilliant mind. However, what is unexpected is that this elegant scholar has such a strong and straightforward personality, not only daring to speak out, but also ruthlessly scolding people. How could such a child, who has shown great talent and intelligence since childhood, become so "fearless" when he grows up? What did he end up with? Let's find out.
The carp eventually becomes a dragon: Kong Rong's early prodigy encounter
Kong Rong has been regarded as a child prodigy since he was a child, and his family background is remarkable. As a descendant of Confucius, Kong Rong is extremely talented, elegant and elegant, and has shown extraordinary intelligence since he was a child. He was born in the first year of Zhongping (184) of Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and his ancestors were once in a prominent family, and his ancestor Kong Ba once taught in Emperor Yuan of the Han Dynasty. Although Kong Rong's generation is no longer glorious, he is still famous for his family history.
Kong Rong was an avid reader since he was a child, and was able to recite many classics at the age of 6 and knew the Confucian classics by the age of 9. The young Kong Rong was versatile, not only reading and writing, but also good at writing poetry. According to historical records, Kong Rong traveled to Luoyang with his father when he was 8 years old, and when he first saw the minister, he was skillful and eloquent. The ministers of Luoyang all sighed for it.
When he was 10 years old, Kong Rong once again shined when he visited Luoyang's minister Li Fake with his father. The doorman didn't know his identity and didn't stop him, so Kong Rong claimed to be a relative of the Li Mansion and deceived the doorman to see Li Fake. When they met, Li Fake asked about the origin of the two, and Kong Rong was ashamed to say the bizarre saying that "the ancestor Confucius and Lao Tzu are teachers and students", which involved Li Fake Zushang and Lao Tzu, which caused a burst of laughter. Kong Rong's intelligence is amazing, which makes Li Fake full of praise.
Chen Wei, who was present, scoffed at this and ridiculed "You are smart when you are young, but you may not be productive when you grow up." When Kong Rong, who was only 10 years old, heard this, he immediately replied, "You must have been very smart when you were a child." This kid is open-mouthed and eloquent, which is really surprising. In just a few words, Chen Wei's words were choked back. This wonderful scene, coupled with the strong support of the minister Li Fake, has made Kong Rong famous among the government and the opposition since then.
It can be seen that Kong Rong has been famous for his outstanding intelligence and eloquence since he was a child, and he deserves to be called a "prodigy". However, his precocious and willful side is also gradually revealed in this series of events. This child, who is so "fearless" at a young age, will be more unrestrained and open-mouthed in the future, and we will wait and see his wonderful performance in the future.
Singing in the waves: Kong Rongcai's youthful years
Kong Rong's youth can be described as the most brilliant time of his life. Inheriting the family history, he studied hard since he was a child, read a wide range of books, and knew people. Coupled with his wit and eloquence, Kong Rong caused a sensation in Luoyang in Beijing in his early years and was known as a "prodigy". As a young man, his talent and talent gradually emerged, becoming a fire that shines in the world.
In his early 20s, Kong Rong was selected as the protégé of the famous scholar Yang Ci with his outstanding literary talent and handsome talent. Yang Ci was a famous Confucian at that time, and many talents gathered under his disciples, and Kong Rong was able to surpass and surpass all the way, which shows that his talent is extraordinary. However, Kong Rong's fierce and fierce personality became more and more evident during this period.
One year, He Jin was promoted to general, and Yang Ci sent Kong Rong to congratulate him. Who knew that the guards abused their power and did not pass on. Kong Rong was humiliated by this, although he only had a cloth coat, but he also brushed his sleeves away, unwilling to give in. He Jin's subordinates were furious and asked for instructions to punish Kong Rong. But He Jin was wise, listened to the persuasion of the doorman, and pulled Kong Rong over in a "courteous" way. This incident shows that although he is young and vigorous, Kong Rong is talented after all, which is enough to attract competition.
The young Kong Rong was proud of his talent and was finally reused by Cao Cao. At that time, Cao Cao was centralizing power, Kong Rong was famous and famous, and Kong Cao was eager to be talented, and invited Kong to integrate into his command. First, he can use the name of Kong Rong to recruit talents, and secondly, he can also monitor and control this talented man in the government and the field. However, where is Kong Rong so easy to mess with? After he followed Cao Cao, his words and deeds were still pungent and dissolute, outspoken, and without scruples.
At that time, Yuan Shao died of illness, and Zhen Mi, the wife of the second son Yuan Xi, was beautiful and moving, and was taken by Cao Cao as his own. Kong Rong hated this, so he wrote a letter to satirize Cao Cao, talking about the allusion that when King Wu was defeated, he gave the beauty Daji to his younger brother Zhou Gongdan. Cao Cao was stunned when he heard this, and then realized that Kong Rong was mocking him. However, for the sake of the many benefits attracted by Kong Rong, Cao Cao could only swallow his anger for the time being.
Later, Cao Cao wanted to abstain from alcohol to show frugality, but it was inconvenient to speak out, so he used "losing morality" as the reason. After Kong Rong learned about it, he wrote a letter to mock Cao Cao, saying that Xia Wei Shang was lustful and died, so it was better to simply prohibit people from getting married. Kong Rong was open-mouthed, and even wolf Gu warriors like Cao Cao had to temporarily suppress their anger once again and completely endure Kong Rong's rude words.
This series of intimidating deeds, coupled with Kong Rong's unique position in the literary world as the leader of the "Seven Sons of Jian'an", shows that Kong Rong was indeed famous and transcendent at that time. He is unrelenting in his eloquence and scruples about scolding people, becoming a breeze between the government and the opposition. The young and vigorous Kong Rong burst out of talent in his youth, and his pungent and flamboyant personality was displayed without scruples, attracting countless attention and side eyes.
Sailing against the current: Kong Rong's arduous journey of fighting against the dictatorship of eunuchs
Although Kong Rong was talented in the young talent period, it was this arrogance that caused trouble. His outspoken personality, coupled with his dissatisfaction and hatred for the dictatorship of the eunuchs, led him to a difficult process of rebellion against the dictatorship of the eunuchs.
In the middle of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the eunuchs were tyrannical and domineering, the government was corrupt, and the people were poor. Seeing the country's declining status, Kong Rong was furious and decided to personally subvert the power structure of the eunuch's administration. At the age of about 30, Kong Rong joined forces with fellow Daoists Bao Xuan, Liu Yuan, Liu Yu and others to impeach Ding, Wang, Hou and other important ministers many times, in an effort to overthrow the eunuch regime.
However, Ding Feng and other eunuch ruling circles rebounded from the disintegration of right and wrong, and they held a grudge and decided to put Kong Rong to death. Once, Ding Feng slandered Kong Rong and others in the court meeting with the intention of rebellion, and tried to kill them all. After learning of this letter, Kong Rong and others were furious, so they had to lead their family members and servants to flee to the end of the world, exiled to other places, and lived a life of wandering and homeless.
Although Kong Rong was in exile, he did not give up hope of fighting. After Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty ascended the throne, the power of the eunuchs declined slightly, and Kong Rong took this opportunity to support the Han family. At that time, Cao Cao was in the Central Plains and his momentum was booming, and Kong Rong decided to take refuge in Cao Cao and disrupt the eunuch group from within. However, Kong Rong is in a dilemma where he can't choose whether he should follow Cao Cao's ambitions?
At first, Kong Rong thought that Cao Cao was the force to maintain the Han family, so he risked his life to join Cao Cao's command. Gradually, however, Kong Rong discovered that Cao Cao's ambitions had been gradually exposed. Cao Cao not only conquered many counties, but was in fact an enemy of the Han family. Kong Rong was furious, and after many times to no avail, he finally decided to go to Cao Cao in person.
In the face of Cao Cao, Kong Rong attacked him for his ambition without scruples: "You are now in command of the army, and you have surpassed the status of a general, which shows that you already have a bad heart in your heart." Cao Cao was dumbfounded by Kong Rong. Later, Kong Rong reprimanded Cao Cao to his face: "You have now killed innocents indiscriminately, and you have done all kinds of evil!" listed Cao Cao's atrocities and crimes one by one, making Cao Cao embarrassed.
These scaring words naturally angered Cao Cao, and he ordered Kong Rong to be imprisoned. However, out of admiration for Kong Rong's talent, Cao Cao still did not punish Kong Rong. Kong Rong, who was in prison, was still full of courage to fight, and wrote countless harsh words accusing Cao Cao, and scolded Cao Cao fiercely. Until the end, Kong Rong was released by Cao Cao.
Although this struggle failed to turn the situation around, Kong Rong still pleaded for the people's lives and unswervingly pursued justice and ideals. This arduous process of resisting the tyranny of eunuchs has witnessed Kong Rong's sincere fighting spirit and tenacious character. He has the courage to speak out, dare to intimidate the powerful, even if he is doing it step by step, he must remove the scourge of corrupt officials and corrupt officials for the people of the world.
Watching and helping each other: Helping fellow workers in life-and-death battles
Kong Rong has a strong personality and is not afraid of authority, but he has incomparable loyalty and protection to his fellow friends. It was precisely because of his unhesitating efforts to help his persecuted friends that an existential tragedy was caused.
At that time, the famous scholar Zhang Jian was framed by Taishou for bluntly saying that he had been framed by Taishou and was sentenced to a heavy punishment. Zhang Jian was originally Kong Rong's best friend, and Kong Rong was indignant when he heard the news. He immediately set off to seek justice for Zhang Jian and redress his grievances. When Zhang Jian was in prison, Kong Rong immediately destroyed his shackles and personally escorted Zhang Jian out of prison.
This act of angering the powerful completely annoyed the local county order. Although Zhang Jian was temporarily rescued, he was later recaptured and imprisoned. After hearing the news, Kong Rong went to prison again and tried to rescue Zhang Jian alive. Fierce clashes broke out between the two sides, and the jailers were injured one after another. In the end, Kong Rong had to leave with his injuries, and Zhang Jian was still imprisoned.
Zhang Jian's wife then committed suicide by throwing herself into the river in anger, and his son Zhang Jian also killed himself and died in the clouds. Kong Rong lost his mind and was full of grief. He vowed to avenge Zhang Jian's blood and hatred, so he personally went to Beijing to avenge Zhang Jian. However, as soon as Kong Rong entered Beijing, he was arrested and severely tortured by prison officials.
After being released from prison, Kong Rong was still unwilling, he wrote countless letters of injustice, and did not hesitate to splash ink to accuse the county guard, intending to show snow for Zhang Jian. However, the helpless elite is deeply entrenched, and the road to redress grievances is difficult. In the end, news came from the Jingshi that Zhang Jian was sentenced to hanging.
Upon learning of this news, Kong Rong was almost crazy. He was generous and decided to go to Huangquan together. At this juncture, an impact struck - after hearing the news, Kong Rong's biological brother Kong Qi also decided to go to Miluo to throw himself into the water and die. The two brothers looked at each other and wept.
At this critical moment, an edict was handed down to make a final verdict on the crimes of Kong Rong's family. The edict sentenced Kong Rong's brother Kong Qi to death, and Kong Rong and his nephews were exiled to the far north. The twists and turns of this unjust case are shocking and inexplicable.
Finally, under the trial presided over by Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty himself, this eye-catching unjust case was finally settled. Sadly, Kong Rong spoke up this time to save his fellow friends, but not only failed to uphold justice for Zhang Jian, but instead caused a tragedy in which his family was ruined and his brother paid the price of his life. This is undoubtedly the most heart-wrenching blow in Kong Rong's life.
In his prime: Kong Rong's middle-aged achievements in science are at the pinnacle
Kong Rong's life can be described as magnificent, experiencing ups and downs, and witnessing brilliant achievements. One of the most noteworthy is his pinnacle achievement in science in middle age. It was this period of time full of wisdom crystallization that made Kong Rong's reputation spread far and wide in China.
After the heavy blow of Zhang Jian's murder case, Kong Rong once suffered a major blow. However, he did not give up, but regained hope in the vast dark night and devoted himself to academic research. Through the quiet years of frontier soldiers, Kong Rong immersed himself in the study of classics such as the Book of Changes and the Analects, and finally gained an epiphany of the science of life in middle age.
Some people commented that Kong Rong "is eloquent and rare". It can be seen from his writings that he integrated Yi Li and had a unique and novel view of the Confucian classics. His philosophical ideas were broad and profound, and their influence on later generations was far-reaching.
In fact, as early as when Kong Rong was in his twenties, he already had some of his own opinions on Confucianism. At that time, although he was still young and vigorous, he was already a genius boy known as a "prodigy". Even in his thirties, he fought bravely and for justice. But there is no doubt that Kong Rong's real pinnacle achievement in science was in his early forties and middle age.
During this period, Kong Rong experienced the vicissitudes of life and experienced internal and external troubles. In his inner world, he has just lost his best friend and suffered the blow of the destruction of his family; In real life, he also suffered the ordeal of degrading exile. It is this experience full of ups and downs that has allowed him to continue to sublimate in the wisdom of life, and finally reach a new peak of science.
Kong Rong's main achievement at the peak of middle-aged science was to create a new system of easy explanations. He integrated the theories of yin and yang and the five elements with the traditional Confucian concepts, and expounded his unique views on the human affairs of heaven. He believes that the alternation of yin and yang in heaven and earth has created the renewal and innovation of all things. A gentleman should follow the way of heaven, be born from revolution at any time, and keep pace with the times.
This theoretical thought was called "the theory of revolution and innovation" by later generations. In this way, Kong Rong revealed the eternal law of the endless growth of all things in the universe, focused on humanistic practice, and expounded a new concept that transcends the confinement of old thinking. He proposed that people should conform to the trend of the times, dare to break through stereotypes and bad habits, and respond to social changes with an open and inclusive mindset.
To a certain extent, Kong Rong's thought is also a theoretical sublimation of his personal life experience. He stood up for the struggle several times, abandoned the ignorance of the tyranny of the powerful, and had the courage to seek innovation and change. After that, he experienced the heavy blow of the destruction of his family, gave up everything in the past, and set out again to embark on the road of seeking enlightenment. It was this courage and open-mindedness that allowed him to finally reach the pinnacle of science.
Although Kong Rong's ideas of science come from individuals, their influence is eternal. Countless scholars in later generations regarded his thought as the pinnacle of immortality, which was crucial to the status of Confucianism in history. It can be said that it was Kong Rong's brilliant achievements in middle age that made his reputation spread far and wide, and he became the well-deserved head of the "Seven Sons of Jian'an".