Xu Yan and Huang Gongwang

Recently, I read the article "Yuanqu Three Family Examinations" by Professor Yuan Shishuo of Shandong University, and I have gained a lot. Two of them were from Dongping, one was Yan Zhongzhang, who was born in Dongping Province, "Jinshi", and had long served as a scholar of Jixian and Hanlin Academy; the other was Zhang Ziyi, who was born as a bureaucrat in Dongping Province, and was later a veteran of the army and the Punishment Department Shangshu, and after his death, he was given to Zhang Fang, who participated in the political affairs. In Mr. Yuan's examination of the two, he involved Xu Yan, another celebrity in Dongping. Xu Yan (c. 1220 AD – 1301 AD), zi fang, a native of Dongping, was one of the four "jinshi" pre-selected for the literary leader Yuan Haowen. Xu Yan had little literary talent, studied under Yuan Haowen, and studied in Dongping Province. From the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty, he was recommended to enter the dynasty and served in the Taichang Temple, and later became Langzhong of Shaanxi Province. In the 23rd year of the Yuan Dynasty (1286 AD), he was a probationary envoy to The Southern Province of Lingbei Hunan, and in the 28th year of the Yuan Dynasty (1291 AD), he moved to Jiangnan and Zhejiang Province to visit the government and visit the government, during which he built a academy at the "former site of Song Taixue" in Hangzhou, named Xihu Academy. Xu Yan was respected by the southeastern scholars with his literary talents. In the Yuan Dynasty, Zhejiang West included seven roads, and Hangzhou was one of them, which was the most economically developed area in the Yuan Dynasty, and also a gathering place for literati, calligraphers and painters. Wang Feng, a famous poet in the late Yuan Dynasty, recorded most of the activities of officials, literati, and painters in this area in his Wuxi Collection. Many of the characters in western Zhejiang involved in this book have contributed to history, but unfortunately they are ignored by the "History of Yuan", so fortunately Wang Feng records their stories in the book. As described in this article, Xu Yan and Huang Gongwang are one of the stories.

　　Huang Gongwang, Zijiu, a native of Hangzhou. As one of the four masters of Yuan painting, due to a momentary frustration in the official field, he built a house next to the ShauJi Spring and named it "Great Fool's Temple" and called himself "Great Fool". His masterpiece "Fuchun Mountain Residence Map" is well-known on both sides of the Taiwan Strait and is a national treasure among national treasures. It was this Huang Da who was obsessed with "Zhi Yuanzhong, Zhejiang West Lian's visit made Xu Yan a scrivener." (Wanli Hangzhou Chronicle)

　　The story begins at the beginning, in the spring of the 30th year of Kublai Khan of the Yuan Dynasty (1293 AD), a list of recommended sages was posted outside the gate of Qinchuan County, which was the only way for ordinary scholars to enter the army after the abolition of the imperial examination system in the Yuan Dynasty, so it attracted special attention from all walks of life. After some famous sages recommended, the twenty-five-year-old Huang Gongwang became the best candidate. Xu Yan, who presided over the Lian visit to Si Yamen, saw Huang Gongwang's recommended resume and deeds and thought that he was a good seedling, so he summoned Huang Gongwang. The young Huang Gongwang was originally a talent of the Imperial Examination, and his profound knowledge was revealed between the conversations, and there was also a natural artistic temperament, lean and calm, otherworldly, just the talent that Xu Yan was looking forward to. He was then identified as his scribe. Huang Gongwang also knew that Xu Yan was an inquisitive student of Yuan, and was one of the "Four Masters of Dongping" in the important northern town. Xu Yan was generous and generous, respected by scholars and officials, and represented the image of the officials of the Yuan Dynasty. Therefore, Huang Gongwang regarded Xu Yan as a rare division commander, so he worked diligently and handled the documents very appropriately. During this period, Huang Gongwang met another young talent, he was Ni Zhaokui. This person was Xu Yan's staff member, the elder brother of the great painter Ni Zhan. Therefore, Huang Gongwang and Ni Zhaokui soon became confidants, and after work, they were inseparable, and both of them were talented, chanting poems and answering, and they were like-minded. Shortly after Huang Gongwang knew Ni Zhaokui, an incident occurred that changed the relationship between Xu Yan and Huang Gongwang. It turned out that Ni Zhaokui's family was well-off and wealthy, and he only wanted to familiarize himself with the officialdom and get some experience in Xu Yanmu's mansion, and his ideological tendency was to believe in Taoism. At that time, Hangzhou had the Ten Great Avenues Temple, and Ni Zhaokui had long been closely related to the Quanzhen Daoist Master. One day, Ni Zhaokui finally took off his official clothes and resolutely entered the Taoist Temple and became a Taoist. This incident was a stimulus to Xu Yan and had a great impact on Huang Gongwang, because he and Ni Zhaokui were not only colleagues, but also friends who were in agreement. Although Ni Zhaokui became a Taoist monk, Huang Gongwang and his friend yang Zai had free time, so they gathered together to play the flute and write poems, feast and sing. Once they lived together in The Yuyang Temple, and talked with the dustless real people, which was very close. The Dustless Man asked people to bring three new Robes, and each of them gave one, so the three of them wore them separately, and they painted with poetry and wine. Before I knew it, it was dawn. Huang Gongwang hurried to the Gate of the Integrity Division, and before he could change his Robe, he was bumped into by his superior, Xu Yan. Xu Yan's face was angry, and naturally he criticized Huang Gongwang fiercely, and other colleagues also laughed in shame when they saw the situation. Huang Gongwang could not withstand such humiliation, so he simply walked into his room, wrote a resignation letter to Xu Yan with a pen, and then packed his bags and strode out of the official palace.

　　Xu Yan also had some remorse for Huang Gongwang's departure, and he could not rest assured. Whenever he thought of Huang Gongwang's rare talent, his heart inevitably felt a faint pain; he had high hopes for this young man, because the two of them were both talents who loved each other in their bones, and they knew each other in the depths of their souls. In the summer of the third year of Yuan Dade (1299 AD), the imperial court appointed Xu Yan as the hanlin scholar of the capital city, and before leaving Hangzhou, The only person Xu Yan was worried about was Huang Gongwang. Therefore, he specially invited Zhang Lu, the political secretary of Pingzhang in Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, and entrusted Huang Gongwang to him. Zhang Lu also greatly appreciated Huang Gongwang's talent and ability, coupled with Xu Yan's solemn trust, he quickly agreed to it.

　　In the spring of the fifth year of Yuan Dade (1301 AD), Zhang Lu found an opportunity to employ people, so he summoned Huang Gongwang, appointed him again as a scribe, and repaired a letter to inform Xu Yan. At this time, Xu Yan was seriously ill and bedridden, and when he learned that Huang Gongwang had been re-recruited as a scrivener, he was naturally very pleased. Shortly thereafter, Xu Yan died at the age of eighty-one.

　　It was really a long time, until ten years later, in the fourth year of the Great Age (1311 AD), at a banquet, Zhang Lu suddenly expressed his friendship with Xu Yan, and Xu Yan asked him to take care of Huang Gongwang. Everyone present lamented Xu Yan's death. Huang Gongwang suddenly realized that he truly cared for him and pitied him. The benefactor who valued him was Xu Yan. Thinking of this, I couldn't help but cry bitterly, and the tears stained my clothes.

　　Later, Huang Gongwang was already a world-famous painting master, and he was grateful for Xu Yan's kindness to his acquaintance, so he went alone, carrying a painting bag, and did not spare thousands of miles to come to Dongping, Shandong, and drank wine in front of Xu Yan's tomb and made sacrifices repeatedly. Before leaving, he gave his elaborate landscape paintings to Xu Yan's descendants to express his friendship with Xu Yan's mountains and rivers. (Restoration)