Editor's Note
Today, we continue to reprint the special report of "Honest Government Lookout", and look at it with readers, taste yipin, in the long time, Zuo Guangdou's incorruptibility, integrity, loyalty and other spiritual bones, blended with the customs of the homeland, what kind of cultural symbol has become...
As early as the beginning of 2016, the Tongling Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection began comprehensive preparations for the construction of the Zuo Guangdou Memorial Hall. In the exhibition work of the memorial hall, it is mainly carried out around two aspects: one is responsible for organizing and planning the exhibition work of the memorial hall; the other is responsible for the work of "three texts", that is, the collation and writing of the outline of the museum's literature and history (exhibition), the collection and screening of Zuo Guangdou cultural relics, and the excavation and research of Zuo Guangdou culture. In the process of searching for cultural relics and historical materials, Wu Qingsheng and colleagues, Zuo Guangdou cultural research expert and leader of the Exhibition Group of Zuo Guangdou Memorial Hall, have experienced many unforgettable and touching things, and zuo Guangdou's historical image has become clearer and more vivid in their continuous verification.
Zuo Guangdou and Yang Lian who were more fierce
Wu Qingsheng believes that Zuo Guangdou's personality is influenced by the culture of Fengyang Confucianism and Chivalry.
Integrity Watch
Official Inspection Room
In the "Six Gentlemen", posterity often compares Zuo Guangdou with Yang Lian, saying that Yang Lian is "straight" and Zuo Guangdou is "plotting", how do you see the personality of these two people?
The so-called Yang "straight" and left "plot" come from Chen Zilong, a minister of the late Ming Dynasty, a famous scholar, and a national hero, whose original words were "Ming has Yang Zuo, Yang Yiqi, and Left Yimou." And those who gave almost the same evaluation were Zuo Guangdou's fellow townsmen who had fought with Wei Zhongxian, and Fang Zhenru, a minister at the end of the Ming Dynasty, who said that "gong shen has a big strategy", and Zha Jizuo, a scholar and historian who resisted the Qing dynasty in the late Ming Dynasty, said: "At that time, Yang Zuo was called Yang Zuo, and Yang was straight and left and dense. It can be seen that there was a consensus at that time that there was a difference between Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou, as well as the deep and strategic Zuo Guangdou.
The reasons for the difference between Yang and Zuo, especially zuo Guangdou, which are official characteristics, are nothing more than two. The first is the institutional reason. Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou were jinshi in the same year (Yang Lian was three years older), and they were both born in the third class and gave the same jinshi. After each of them went through a period of imperial court internship, and then either released or returned to the inside, the two became officials of the same dynasty again, and both were in the supervision system. However, Yang is the Household Branch, while the left is the Zhejiang Provincial Inspector Yushi. Yang Lian was initially a "speech official" and needed to "speak bluntly as a point," which gave people the feeling that he was "straight" and "angry"; while Zuo Guangdou was a "inspector official", he naturally had to be cautious about the identification of officials, and it was impossible to speak lightly, so it gave people the feeling that he was "deep", "deep", "deep", and even "plotting".
Wu Qingsheng
Is there a personality reason?
Personality reasons are also one of them. Yang Lian's personality is indeed more extroverted, more straightforward and dare to say and dare to do. Taking the "palace transfer case" as an example, Yang Lian achieved Zheng Guifei's transfer of palace by angrily scolding Zheng Guifei's nephew Zheng Yangsheng, and Li Xuanshi's transfer of the palace was also the first person to speak quickly and the first to go up after listening to Zuo Guangdou's analysis; in the struggle against the castration party, it was also Yang Lian who took the lead and impeached Wei Zhongxian's twenty-four major crimes. Although Zuo Guangdou's personality was outward in his early years, he gradually became calm under the tempering of his father and the teachings of Fang Shi, so he saw the problem very thoroughly, and he was also very wise in his struggle, and he was able to avoid the momentary spirit and must succeed. Also taking the "palace transfer case" as an example, Yang Lian's performance was not taken seriously by Li Xuanshi, and Zuo Guangdou's subsequent Shangshu pointed out that the essence of Li Xuanshi's occupation of the Qianqing Palace was to "listen to the government", so that Li Xuanshi was beaten back to his original form, which finally promoted the transfer of the palace.
In the struggle against the eunuch clique, Zuo Guangdou realized that if Wei Zhongxian's henchmen were not cut off, they would still have the possibility of resurgence, so he neglected the thirty-two beheadings of Wei Zhongxian and his henchman Wei Guangwei; and in the emperor's place, at the beginning of his term as an official, he risked losing his official position and killing his head at the risk of losing his official position and killing his head, and went to "The Danger of the Sect Society in Skinning", which compared with the general omission of the emperor's ascension to the dynasty, his omission pointed out the fact that there was castration inside and there was an edge of urgency outside, so he had more insight and a greater vision.
It cannot be said that Zuo Guangdou did not have the courage to fight, but plotted behind his back and secretly commanded others, as can be seen from the above examples, his struggle is equally direct, his courage is unprecedented, and he attaches great importance to the wisdom of struggle. In the comparison of Yang Zuo's personality, there is no question of who is higher and who is lower, Yang Lian's directness and fierceness, and Zuo Guangdou's thoroughness and thoroughness, only when the two cooperate can they form a powerful struggle force and win the struggle even more.
The "false accusation" case is newly solved
The history books record that Wei Zhongxian framed Zuo Guangdou and others for embezzling tens of thousands of taels of silver to chase out the stolen money, and finally Zuo Guangdou was "falsely subdued" under severe torture. Some people feel that this "false accusation" is very unjust, and some people feel that it is a pity, how to look at this matter?
Regarding the "false accusations" of the "six gentlemen" in prison, there are many doubts, which need to be seriously examined and cannot be easily asserted. At present, the only records of "false obedience" that can be seen are in the two books "Ming Shi Zuo Guangdou Biography" compiled by Zhang Tingyu and Ma Qichang's "Zuo Zhongyi Gong Annals Final Edition". Both books say that Yang Lian and other "six gentlemen" did not admit it at first, but later, for fear of being tortured to death, they all confessed to accepting bribes in order to be transferred from the zhao prison to the punishment department and thus save their lives.
In particular, it should be noted that except for the History of the Ming Dynasty, no corroboration has been found in any other books. However, the "Chronicle of Zuo Zhongyi", which was written in the same year as the "History of Ming" (the fourth year of Qianlong) and compiled by Zuo Guangdou's great-grandson Zuo Zai, also has no record of this incident. However, Zuo Zai did record another incident, saying that some people in the castration party thought that the use of torture against the "Six Gentlemen" for several days was too much, so he proposed to forward it to the Punishment Department to discuss the punishment, which made Wei Zhongxian very annoyed. Zuo Zai's statement is supported by a variety of historical materials, such as the Biography of Ming Shi Cui Jingrong.
The historical fact derived from clear historical data is that the "six gentlemen" were sent to the Punishment Department, not the "six gentlemen" who falsely submitted them, but the official Shangshu Cui Jingrong mobilized the castration party's capable cadre Wei Guangwei to put forward. For this obvious historical fact, the Ming Shi Zuo GuangDou Biography turned a blind eye, and used two very different records of the "Six Gentlemen" sent to the Punishment Department in the Zuo Guang Dou Biography and the Cui Jingrong Biography, resulting in contradictions. Therefore, the idea of "false convincing" cannot stand up.
Taking ten thousand steps back, even if the existence of "false accusations" exists, it does not mean that the "six gentlemen" are afraid of death and submit, but only a temporary measure, so that the case can be overturned at the time of interrogation in the Punishment Department. We can also see Zuo Guangdou's several prison blood letters that he had a resolute attitude and view of life and death after he was imprisoned at that time. In a letter to his eldest son Zuo Guozhu, he said, "Since you have fought desperately, why should you touch the front and die?" At this time, Zuo Guangdou absolutely did not have the slightest greed for life and fear of death, and the so-called "false obedience" was probably just a mistake in the record of the "History of Ming".
Wei Zhongxian and the left deputy capital of the same party, Yushi Wang Shaohui, imitated the way of the "Water Margin", and compiled one hundred and eight people of the Donglin Party as the "Records of the Generals of the Eastern Forest Points", and Zuo Guangdou was listed as "Tianxiong Star Leopard Head". What do you think of the list?
The "Records of the Generals of the Eastern Forest Points" was fabricated by the eunuch clique in order to fabricate the charges of some virtuous courtiers, and it was a "fabrication" of the eunuch clique, so there is no justice to speak of, and there is no reason to speak of. Although because of the internal struggles of the eunuch clique, some eunuchs were also put into it, this did not change the absurdity of the "Records of the Eastern Forest Points" as a whole. The trick of trapping people in sin in the style of "Donglin Dian will record" deserves vigilance and reflection. "Donglin is not a party" is a reliable conclusion seriously studied by historians, and "Zuo Guangdou is not involved in Donglin" is even more historical fact. Zuo Guangdou's inclusion in this list shows that he occupies one of the most important positions in the struggle against the eunuch clique.
The cultural fusion of Confucianism and Chivalry
What do you think Tongling's ability to produce such a daring advisor as Zuo Guangdou has to do with the local human geography?
Tongling Fir Yang this place, historically known as "the house of articles, the town of integrity". Its "House of Articles" is because Zongyang is the birthplace of the "Tongcheng School" prose; while the "Hometown of Integrity" is because Zuo Guangdou and a group of famous courtiers have an indomitable spirit of struggle.
An earlier description of Fengyang was very popular in the folk, that is, "Dongxiang Martial Arts, Saigo Article". "Dongxiang Martial Arts" is the intangible cultural heritage of Anhui Province today, but it has been passed down since the Song Dynasty, and has a history of 300 or 400 years by the time of Zuo Guangdou. Xixiang is close to the original county town - Tongcheng, since the Song Dynasty, it has been the foothold of some family families, and it is also the residence of the rural scholars after the development, so the literary style is flourishing and the humanistic atmosphere is very strong. The two cultures of dongxixiang have been intertwined and integrated in Zongyang.
Zuo Guangdou was born in Dongxiang, and when he was a teenager, he was naturally influenced by the martial style of Dongxiang, and his ancestors had already started with brave martial arts before they moved to Zongyang, such as the distant ancestor Zuo Kuangzheng went to the "Six Counties of Juhaojie BaojiangNan" as a cloth cloth, and some were known for their chivalry after moving, such as the seventh ancestor Zuo Chang'er who participated in the rebel army against Zhu Di, and his great-grandfather Zuo Qi went to the capital as a squire to ask for tax cuts for the people. The superimposed influence of this regional martial arts culture and the ancestral culture of the clan made Zuo Guangdou quite different from the ordinary literati, that is, he had more chivalrous qi in him. When Zuo Guangdou was a teenager, his father moved his family to Tongcheng, and he was infiltrated by the Style of Saigo.
This style of writing is based on Confucian culture, and while attaching importance to the study of articles, special attention is paid to people's moral discipline, which also creates Zuo Guangdou's integrity of "preferring to be crushed by jade, not for the whole". It can be said that although there are differences between Confucian culture and chivalrous culture, zuo Guangdou is parallel and intermingled with each other, and he is a "composite" of Confucian culture and chivalrous culture.
Source: WeChat public account "Official Inspection Room"
Photo editor: Cheng Tao
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General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly stressed the importance of drawing on the excellent culture of integrity in China's history. Understanding the ancient culture of honest government and examining the successes and failures of anti-corruption and clean government in history can give people profound enlightenment and help us use historical wisdom to promote the construction of anti-corruption and clean government. This year, the magazine "Integrity Outlook" specially planned the "Clean and Honest China Tour", aiming to excavate the national integrity culture and provide reference and enlightenment for today. The 12th issue of "Integrity Outlook" in 2020, which has just been published, has made a heavy report on the construction of the Zuo Guangdou Memorial Hall in our city and the life deeds of Zuo Guangdou and his spiritual character.
Founded in 1989, Integrity Outlook is a journal on the theme of clean government under the Sichuan Daily Newspaper Group, and the only anti-corruption journal in all provinces (municipalities and autonomous regions) in China. Closely combined with major current political events and hot topics of concern to readers, through heavy theme planning, exclusive case disclosure, in-depth focus reporting, and sharp comments on current politics, it has formed the characteristics of "real, refined, deep, live and new", and the image of "the most attractive anti-corruption magazine in the country" is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and has been awarded China's annual top ten influential periodicals and media for many years.