In sharp contrast and contrast with Wang Bi's outstanding achievements in metaphysical thought, he was proud of his personality, and the unfortunate fate of hitting a wall and dying young after mistakenly entering the official field.
Statue of Wang Bi
It is entirely conceivable how conceited and arrogant such a remarkable young hero can be. History says that Wang Bi "laughed at people with his strengths, so he was sick with gentlemen at the time." Of course, from a logical point of view, Wang Bi himself does have enough capital to laugh at the academic community. However, in the interpersonal circles of the Confucian cultural background, it is also very common for such arrogance to be hated by people, and such jealousy will inevitably bring trouble to their own social development.
Originally, Wang Bi was not deeply involved in the world, and all his interests were in studying academia, and he did not understand politics and was not interested. However, because He Yan himself is both an academic master and an official politician. He Yan, who was in a high position in the official field, out of sincere love for Wang Bi and disregarding Wang Bi's own wishes and interests, not only pushed Wang Bi to the academic circles, but also dragged Wang Bi into the dirty and dirty official field.
Ho Yan statue
During the first years of Wei Zheng, the position of Huang Menlang (equivalent to personal secretary), who was in charge of the emperor's close attendants, became vacant, which was a good time for He Yan, who was then serving as the official Shangshu (head of the personnel department of the highest organization of the state), to install and cultivate his own henchmen. After promoting Jia Chong, Pei Xiu, and Zhu Zhen in succession, he planned to place Wang Bi in the position of Huang Menlang. However, after the death of Emperor Ming of Wei, Cao Shuang became one of the two auxiliary ministers and promoted his close confidant Ding Mi. He Yan's plan to place Wang Bi in Huang Menlang's post was resisted by his political enemy Ding Mi. Ding Mi recommended his close confidant Wang Li to Cao Shuang. Therefore, Cao Shuang appointed Wang Li as Huang Menlang, and Wang Bi as Tailang.
Although Wang Bi did not enter the position of Huang Menlang as he wished, he finally entered the high-level political situation of the country as a replacement Tailang. This should also be a good development opportunity for a person who has a strong desire for career. But for Wang Bi, this is not only not an opportunity for fate to develop, but on the contrary, it has become a defeat on the road of life.
The great success on the stage of Qing Tan Metaphysics made Wang Bi completely revel in this great sense of happiness and achievement. He thought that with his outstanding knowledge and brilliant eloquence, he would certainly be invincible and invincible in the official arena like the mighty and powerful people in the qingtan place. But what he never expected was that the officialdom was not an academic field. He thought that the most precious knowledge and ideas in the world were nothing more than a pile of dung in the dimwitted officials!
Cao Shuang like
After Wang Bi took office, he went to visit the auxiliary minister Cao Shuang according to the procedure. For Cao Shuang, although Wang Bi was not an official recommended by his close associate Ding Mi, he was also promoted by Shangshu He Yan, who was in charge of the state personnel organization. He also wanted to touch Wang Bi's bottom through the opportunity of the interview to see if he could become his governing helper. Therefore, after the meeting, Cao Shuangping withdrew and wanted to have a private conversation with Wang Bi, hoping that Wang Bi could put down his ideological baggage and give full play to his political views. However, what Cao Shuang never expected was that Wang Bi, who had been completely overwhelmed by the great success of metaphysics, did not have a single sentence in the whole conversation that Cao Shuang hoped to hear about the concept of governance or the content of loyalty to himself, but it was completely the theoretical problems of metaphysics such as "nobility", "talent", "speech and meaning" that Wang Bi himself was most enthusiastic about and was good at. This made Cao Shuang extremely unhappy, and before Wang Bi could contribute all his scientific research experience, he angrily interrupted Wang Bi. After a reprimand and ridicule, before Wang Bi could return the taste, Cao Shuang had already issued an eviction order. In this way, Wang Bi's famous achievements and reputation not only did not become a pass to the bright career, but became the decisive basis for entering the blacklist in Cao Shuang's heart. This failed meeting amounted to a sentence of Death sentenced Wang Bi to death in the official arena. Since then, he has not been promoted in the official arena. Later, Wang Li fell ill and died, and according to He Yan's recommendation and Wang Bi's status as a replacement Tailang, Wang Bi should at least take over Wang Li's position as Huangmenlang as a substitute. However, due to that failed meeting with Cao Shuang, Cao Shuang was firmly opposed to Wang Bi succeeding Wang Li, and instead used Wang Rou's grandson Wang Rou and wang Shen, the son of Wang Ji of Dongjun Taishou, to fill the vacancy. Since then, coupled with Wang Bi's youth and shallow official qualifications, he has been completely marginalized in the official field.
In the face of such a misfortune for Wang Bi, He Yan, the peer who had always discovered and promoted Wang Bi, expressed deep sighs and regrets on the one hand, and on the other hand, he also secretly blamed himself for bringing Wang Bi into this filthy world. Of course, as a generation of metaphysical masters, Wang Bi himself can still draw spiritual strength from the metaphysical ideas he is familiar with, and look down on these different rights and wrongs in the world. However, the dirty officialdom did not let Wang Bi go because he had been snubbed. In the first ten years (249), Sima Yi launched the Gaopingling Incident, and Cao Shuang was arrested and killed. However, Wang Biming had been snubbed by Cao Shuang to the edge of the political situation, but he was demoted as a henchman of Cao Shuang and completely expelled from the official field.
Tomb of Wang Bi of Yanshi, Henan
The proud son of heaven who could have soared freely in the garden of thought on the "occasion of heaven and man" could not bear the insults and trampling on his life and human dignity by this dirty officialdom. Shortly after Cao Shuang's death, the 24-year-old Wang Bi fell ill with a furuncle (leprosy, known as plague) and died.
Perhaps Wang Bi did not understand on his deathbed: Why did a top scholar who had reached the pinnacle of the academic circles and an academic authority worshipped by all the people actually fold the sand in the official arena and drink and die?!
Cover of the second issue of Literature and History Knowledge in 2020
Literature and History Knowledge, No. 2, 2020
(This article is excerpted from "Why did Wang Bi, the academic giant worshipped by all the people, die young?") ", in Knowledge of Literature and History, No. 2, 2020)