At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, there was a man named Wang Mian who was a native of Zhuji Fengqiao, Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province. When he was seven years old, his father died, and his mother provided him with needlework for his studies. It lasted for three years, when the crown was ten years old. One day, my mother said to Wang Mian sadly: Son, my mother has the heart to provide you with reading, but I only rely on these needlework to make money, and I really can't afford to provide you with reading. You might as well go and herd cattle for the Qin family next door, so that you will not only have ready-made food every day, but also earn some money every month. Wang Mian replied: The mother works hard at home, and the child is not comfortable in the school, so it is better to go to the cattle, but it is more comfortable. I can also take my books with me to herd cattle so that I don't delay reading.
The next day, her mother sent the crown to her neighbor Qin's house. The Qin family still took good care of the mother and son, and the owner of the Qin family pulled out a buffalo and handed it to Wang Guan, pointed to the door and said: Not far in front of it is Qiliu Lake, the water and grass are beautiful, and there are many tall willow trees, which can shade and be cool. If the cow is thirsty, you can drink water by the lake, and you will herd the cattle there later. I'll feed you two meals a day and give you some more money, but you have to be diligent and not lazy.
Since then, Wang Mian has herded cattle for the Qin family during the day and did not return home until the evening. Sometimes the Qin family would give him some pickled fish or bacon for him to eat, and he was reluctant to enjoy it exclusively, so he wrapped it in lotus leaves and took it home for his mother to eat. I was not willing to spend every month's salary, and after saving up for two months, I went to the school to buy a few old books. Every day is a book while herding cattle.
In the blink of an eye, three or four years have passed. One day the crown was herding cattle, and suddenly it began to rain heavily, and he sat under the tree to rest. After a while, the rain stopped, the dark clouds gradually dissipated, and a few rays of daylight appeared in the sky, reflecting on the surface of the lake, illuminating the whole lake red. The mountains on the lakeside are colorful, the leaves that have just been washed by the rain, and the green is lovely. There are some lotus flowers in the lake, and the water droplets on the petals slip off, and the water droplets roll back and forth on the lotus leaves. Looking at this beautiful scenery, Wang Mian thought to himself: The master said, "People are in the painting, it is really good, if I can paint this lotus flower, it must be very interesting." ”
From then on, Wang Mian stopped buying books, but entrusted people to the city to buy some paper and rouge lead powder and the like, and concentrated on learning to paint lotus flowers. At first, he drew very poorly, and after about a few months of practice, he drew lotus flowers as if they were plucked from the lake and put on paper. The people in the village saw that Wang Mian had painted so well, so they came to buy his paintings, and Wang Mian sold the paintings for money and bought all kinds of delicious filial piety to his mother. In this way, Wang Mian became a famous painter in their local area. At the age of seventeen or eighteen, Wang Mian stopped herding cattle for the Qin family, and every day he painted a few paintings and read some poems of the ancients, so that he no longer had to worry about his livelihood, and his mother was also happy for him.
Wang Mian was born with talent and intelligence, and when he was not yet twelve years old, he had a high opinion on astronomical geography and economic history. But unlike other readers, he did not want to take the exam, nor did he make friends, and he studied behind closed doors all day. Sometimes he also imitated Qu Yuan's dress, wearing wide clothes, high hats, singing songs, and carrying his mother around in an ox cart in sunny seasons. The children of the township followed behind and laughed at him, and he did not care. It can be seen that Wang Guan is a noble man, does not care about the eyes of the world, and is a dashing and uninhibited man.
One day Wang Mian was chatting with Elder Qin, only to see a man wearing a corrugated hat and a green cloth coat outside. This man was a servant in the county, and some were compradors. This man was very close to Qin Lao, and he was also the father of Qin Dahan, the son of Qin Lao, so he often came to the countryside to visit Qin Lao, and Qin Lao warmly entertained this comprador with the surname Zhai, and also boiled tea and killed chickens, and left Wang Mian here as a companion. After greeting each other, Zhai's comprador said to Wang Mian: The county master wants to collect twenty-four paintings to send to his superiors, and let me handle this matter. Just ask Wang Xianggong to draw a picture. Half a month later, I came to get the painting and sent it to you with the reward. Wang Mian was not happy, and looked at Elder Qin's face and reluctantly agreed. I went home and drew twenty-four paintings with my heart, and I mentioned poems on them. After that, Zhixian handed over twenty-four taels of silver to Zhai comprador, and Zhai comprador withheld twelve taels, and handed the remaining twelve taels to Wang Guan and took the painting away. It can be seen how treacherous Zhai Comprador is!
Shi Renzhi county gave the painting to the teacher Wei Su as a greeting gift. Wei Su liked Wang Tian's painting very much and loved it. But he wanted to know who had made the words, so he invited Shizhi County to his home to inquire. Shi Zhixian did not dare to hide it, and said: This is the painting of a peasant in this county, his name is Wang Mian, but he is just a beginner. Wei Su sighed after hearing this, "I have been away from home for too long, and I am ashamed that I did not know that there was such a talent in my hometown." Can you please invite the crown to me to meet you?" Shi Zhixian promised with a full mouth: No problem, I will send someone to please, he will definitely feel very honored. When Shi Zhixian returned to Yamen, he sent Zhai comprador to ask Wang Mian for help. Zhai's comprador immediately rushed to the countryside and told Wang Mian the ins and outs of the matter. After hearing this, Wang Mian smiled and said, "Please go back and tell you lord, my crown is just a farmer, and I don't dare to meet the adult." After Zhai comprador heard this, he immediately turned his face and said: Lord, who dares not to go? Besides, this painting is what I recommended to the old man, you should thank me again, and now the old man asked me to invite you, but you pushed three or four, which made me how to go back to my life, is the old man as the lord of a county please not move a flat-headed people? However, Wang Guan did not show weakness: If I break the law and the old master passes on me, how dare I not obey? Now you are sent to invite me, not to force me to go, so if I don't go, he will understand. Zhai Comprador said angrily: Use orders to pass you on before you go, and use invitations to invite you not to go, it is really ignorant to lift! Elder Qin also came to help at this time: This is really a troublesome problem, Wang Xianggong refused to go, and the family could not go back to his life. I have a way, I also hope that when my relatives go back to their lives, they will not say that Wang Xianggong will not go, but he is sick and cannot come, and when he is well, he will arrive immediately. Elder Qin had a warm hospitality to the Zhai compradors, and only after strict persuasion did he send away the errands.
ZhiXian got the report and thought to himself, it must be that this Zhai comprador is again in the fox fake tiger wei, so that wang guan is afraid and does not dare to come. I have promised the teacher that if I ask him not to come, I will not be laughed at. It is better that I personally invite him, so that the teacher will praise me for my diligence after knowing. So the next morning, Shi Zhixian led a group of people ma Hao to Wang Mian's house. The countrymen saw this and came out to see the hilarity. Zhai comprador preemptively knocked on the door of Wang Mian's house, and learned from Wang Mian's mother that Wang Mian had gone to drink water in the morning and had not returned. The comprador turned back to report to the old master, and asked Zhixian to go to the mansion to rest for a while, and then go to pass on the crown of the king. So the comprador helped Jiaozi pass behind Wang Mian's house, and saw a shepherd boy in the distance, riding a buffalo upside down, so he hurriedly asked: Xiao Er once saw Wang Mian, And Xiao Er replied: Uncle Wang went to drink twenty miles away, and this cow was the cow he entrusted me to drive back. Zhixian was very angry when he found out, and decided to return to the county to teach Wang Mian a lesson.
In fact, Wang Mian did not travel far, and when Zhixian left, he returned home. Elder Qin came over and complained: You shouldn't be so sloppy with Zhi County, he is the lord of a county! Wang Mian said: Shizhi County is bullying people and doing everything, and I will not make friends with such a person. But he will be angry this time, I am afraid it will not be good for me, and I will hide elsewhere for a while. It's just that the old mother is at home, and I can't rest assured. His mother comforted him and said: Over the years, I have also saved up some silver for the poems and paintings you sold, and I am not worried about my livelihood, although I am old, there is no disaster, although you are relieved to leave, not to mention that you have not committed a crime, the government will not arrest me as an old woman.
Elder Qin felt that the Queen Mother was reasonable, so he advised Wang Mian to say: Although you are talented, but no one reuses you, it is better to go to the state capital to break in, maybe you can meet someone who appreciates you. The affairs of your family are wrapped up in me, so you can go with confidence.
So Wang Mian worked hard all the way to Jinan Province, Shandong Province. At this time, there was little left, so I had to rent a small façade and sell calligraphy and paintings to make a living, and although life was hard, I could still get by.
Half a year passed. There were several rich people in Jinan Province, who also liked Wang Guan's paintings, and often sent people to buy paintings, and these rough people shouted at every turn, which made Wang Mian very tired. To express his displeasure, he drew a cow and inscribed a poem to satirize them.
One morning, as soon as Wang Mian opened the door of the shop, he saw many people crying and passing through the street, one by one, yellow-skinned and thin, and their clothes were ragged, and when they asked, they knew that it was the Yellow River that flooded, the people's fields and houses were destroyed, and the government did not care about the lives of the people, they could only flee. Seeing the tragic situation of these victims, Wang Mian couldn't help but sigh: The river is flowing north, and from now on the world will be in chaos, what am I still doing here? So he packed his bags and went home
Walking to the territory of Zhejiang, Wang Mian heard that Wei Su had already returned to the imperial court, and Shi Zhixian had also been promoted and left, so he returned home with confidence, and from then on, Wang Mian wrote poems and painted and raised his mother.
After another six years, my mother was old and sick and bedridden. Wang Mian searched for a good doctor to heal his mother, but he never got better. One day, his mother called him to bed and told him, "I'm dying." Over the years, there have always been people who have advised you to become an official, and your mother knows that you have a bad temper and that being an official may cause trouble. Therefore, you must remember your mother's words and must not go out to become an official. Wang Tian tearfully agreed, and his mother died soon after. Wang Mian was so grief-stricken that he took care of his mother's affairs and kept filial piety for three years.
After the expiration of the three-year mourning period, after only a year or so, the world fell into a state of chaos, Fang Guozhen occupied Zhejiang, Zhang Shicheng occupied Suzhou, Chen Youyu occupied Huguang, and Zhu Yuanzhang raised troops to occupy Nanjing and established himself as the King of Wu. Zhu Yuanzhang defeated Fang Guozhen and made Zhejiang his sphere of influence.
One day at noon, Wang Mian had just returned from the grave when he saw a dozen people on horseback coming to the village. I saw only one person at the head, dressed as an officer, dressed in a battle robe, looking white and heroic, and had the appearance of an emperor. The man dismounted in front of the door, gave a deep salute to Wang Guan, and asked, "Where is Wang Mian's house, may I ask?" The crown replied: The villain is the crown, and this is the dwelling place under it. The man was pleasantly surprised: this is very good, I have come to see Mr. Li on purpose. This heroic young man was Zhu Yuanzhang, who came to visit because he admired the great name of the crown. The two talked and talked until the sun went down before they said goodbye.
However, within a few years, Zhu Yuanzhang put an end to the chaos, unified the world, and established the Ming Dynasty. In the fourth year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang formulated the law of eight shares and promulgated it to the world. One night, Elder Qin had a drink on the night of Wang's crown moon and discussed the imperial court's talent selection policy. Holding a wine glass in one hand and pointing to the stars in the sky, Wang Mian said to Elder Qin: If you look at the stars in the sky, the literati will have disasters! This is the result of what Wang Guan saw from the policies promulgated by the imperial court.
Half a year later, the imperial court did send officials to the village with edicts. Elder Qin led the officials to Wang Mian's house, pushed open the door and looked at it, only to see that the cobwebs were all over the room, and the ground was full of weeds, and it was already empty for people to go to the house. The official sighed and went back to his life.
Since then, Wang Mian has been buried in the mountains, and later he fell ill and died, and the neighbors gathered some silver and buried him at the foot of the mountain, and this year, Elder Qin also died at home.
Wang Mian is a gentleman of Gengjie, he is quite talented, indifferent to fame and fortune, uninhibited, filial piety to his mother, and harmonious neighbors. So what kind of person do you think Wang Guan is?