On the way back from the Song Dynasty, King Zhuang of Chuzhuang withdrew his troops, Sun Shuao fell ill. When he returned to the Chu Kingdom, Sun Shuao's condition worsened and he never got up again. Before his death, he called his son Sun An to explain his funeral arrangements. Sun Shuao said:
"The king has sealed me many times, but I have not accepted it. After I die, the king will think of me. When the time comes, he will seal you, and he will also seal a good place to you. You must not accept it. If you really want to
Accept it, accept a place that no one wants."
Sun An asked: "A place that no one wants must be very poor. Father, why do you want such a poor place?"
Sun Shuao said: "No one will compete with you for this broken place, and it will stay in your hands for a long time in the future."
Sun An asked again: "So, what place is there that no one wants?"
Sun Shuao said: "Between Chu and Yue, there is a place called Qiuqiu. This place has poor mountains and rivers, barren land, and a very bad reputation. The princes and nobles all hate this place, and it is famous for being a bad place. If the king grants you a title, and
If you really want it, then sleep on the hill."
Sun An still wanted to ask, but saw that Sun Shu'ao was already furious. He quickly stopped. The female relatives were kneeling aside, originally sobbing quietly, but now someone started crying. Sun An turned around and glared at them, as if to say
, people are not dead yet, why are you howling in mourning?
Suddenly, Sun Shu'ao opened his eyes again. He turned his head weakly, half-closed his dimming eyes, and looked at his relatives. He wanted to speak, but felt weak. Everyone held their breath to see if he was still there.
What did you say? Sure enough, Sun Shuao told Sun An again: "There is one more thing you should remember. Don't be an official. You must go home and farm."
Sun An shed tears and nodded repeatedly. Sun Shuao showed a smile, and then closed his eyes forever.
King Zhuang of Chu personally went to Sun's family to express his condolences. He thought of Sun Shuao's contribution to the Chu State, and also remembered that from now on, he had lost a right-hand man. He couldn't help but feel sad and shed tears. Before leaving, he asked Sun An
: "Are you willing to serve as an errand in the imperial court?"
Sun An kowtowed and said, "I have little talent and little knowledge, so I'm afraid I might delay important national affairs. My father told me before he died that I must go home and farm."
King Zhuang of Chu said: "Sun Lingyin is being humble. I want to hear your thoughts."
Sun An said: "I obey my father's last wish."
King Chuzhuang frowned, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he said nothing. He glanced at the Sun family, said, "My condolences," and then left with a large group of followers. Along the way, King Chuzhuang
Depressed, in addition to feeling sad for losing a humerus minister, there was another point, that is, Sun Shuao's final confession stimulated him. King Chuzhuang felt that Sun Shuao seemed to have some dissatisfaction or complaint, or some kind of worry. King Chuzhuang thought,
As a king, he has done a good job. Even in the relationship between him and Sun Shuao, he can't find any fault. But why doesn't Sun Shuao let his son become an official?
Because of this knot, King Chuzhuang never granted Sun An the title. He thought, I don’t believe you, Sun An, don’t want to be an official. Just wait, one day you will come to beg me.
However, Sun An never came to beg him. After he took care of Sun Shuao's funeral, he took his family back to Mengze, Sun Shuao's hometown. He repaired the house, bought land, and started farming himself.
In the blink of an eye, a year passed. The King of Chuzhuang seemed to have forgotten about Sun An and never mentioned the matter of sealing him. But Sun An had worked hard in the countryside for a year and had become a full-fledged farmer.
One day, Youmeng, the "musician" in the palace of Chuzhuang, passed by Mengze and heard that Sun An was doing farm work in the countryside, so he went to visit him. At that time, Sun An had just returned from the fields after doing farm work. He had a mess of hair.
, tanned, wearing short clothes, trousers rolled up to his calves, his feet stained with mud. The elegant demeanor he had when he was Young Master Yin was completely gone.
Youmeng was deeply stimulated and asked: "Your father has been a lingyin for so many years, but the family has no savings? How did you get to this point?"
Sun An smiled and said: "My father has been honest all his life. The king has tried to bestow him with a title many times, but he has not accepted it. Now that I am farming, I am following my father's wishes."
Youmeng sighed and said: "Sun Lingyin has done so many good things for the Chu country, how can the common people not praise him? But now his descendants are living such a life. If you tell them, it will bring shame to the king."
Sun An said calmly: "My father is my father, and I am me. I farm and study in the countryside, enjoying the breeze and the bright moon. I am free and carefree."
You Mengcai didn't believe this nonsense. He felt that Sun An was just "stewed duck in a casserole - the meat is rotten but the mouth is rotten". But he couldn't tell the truth. So he secretly made up his mind and stood up to leave.
Youmeng is good at playing and singing, is clever and eloquent, very funny, and has a sense of justice. He often makes up some humorous rap jokes to ridicule King Chuzhuang. King Chuzhuang does not embarrass him because he can make himself happy.
Sima Qian wrote a paragraph:
King Chuzhuang had a particularly beloved horse. The saddle was engraved with patterns and the horse was covered with exquisite decorations. It lived in a luxurious stable and slept on carpets. The food was even better, including fodder and grain.
There were also red dates. It turned out that the horse was too obese because it ate too much, and eventually died of obesity.
King Chuzhuang was very sad. He went to express his condolences himself, but also asked the ministers to express their condolences. He also ordered that the horse be put into a coffin and buried according to the funeral standards of a doctor.
As soon as the news came out, the ministers felt that they were very embarrassed, so they all came to remonstrate with them. When there were many people who tried to dissuade them, King Chuzhuang became annoyed. He also issued an order: "If anyone dares to come to me again to remonstrate with me, I will
Give him death sentence." In this case, no one dared to speak.
When everyone did not dare to speak, Youmeng went to remonstrate. As soon as he entered the door, he looked up to the sky and cried. King Chuzhuang asked him why he was crying. Youmeng said: "The horse is the king's favorite, dignified Chu, what do you want?
There is nothing, but it is too simple to bury your beloved horse with the etiquette of a doctor. Please make it more luxurious and bury the horse according to the funeral standards of a monarch."
King Chuzhuang reacted, and he thought that if the princes knew about this, they would definitely say that King Chu regarded people as lowly and horses as noble. He smiled and said: "I am so sad to see you.
Turn the corner."
At the end of the story, Sima Qian wrote: "So the king sent the horse to the eunuch, and the world heard about it for a long time." This means that the king of Chuzhuang sent his beloved horse to the imperial kitchen and handed it over to him.
The group of chefs asked them to handle it. They also told the cooks to get rid of this matter quickly and don't let the world talk about it all the time.
Why did King Chuzhuang send his horses to the cooks? Because food was scarce in ancient times, horses, cattle, sheep, chickens, pigs, and dogs all ended up in the kitchen. Horses are one of the six domestic animals and should have gone into the kitchen. King Chuzhuang
Of course, he didn't want to let his beloved horse turn into braised pork. He wanted to give it a decent burial, but the ministers objected, so he chose a compromise method, which was to ask the cooks to handle it. He knew that the cooks would not dare to give it to him.
Not only did he not dare to make horses into dishes, they would also bury his horses properly. In this way, he expressed his position to the world that he did not regard horses as nobler than humans, and at the same time he satisfied his desire to bury the horses.
My wish is to have the best of both worlds. Wonderful!
Let's talk about Youmeng. He returned to Yingdu from Mengze. Because he wanted to fight for Sun An, he started writing a joke again. After writing, he organized a rehearsal. He personally played the leading role. After the rehearsal, he invited King Chuzhuang to come and see it.
show.
There is a section in the plot that depicts the friendship between King Chuzhuang and Sun Shuao. The character who plays the role of King Chuzhuang gives an emotional monologue: "Sun Shuao, you will serve the country all your life and will be loyal until death. It's a pity that I am not rich in blessings. God has taken it away from me."
My helper. Xizai, Xizai! Hi..."
When King Chuzhuang saw this paragraph, his nose began to feel sour.
The actor on the stage read again: "I miss you so much. Every time I drink alone in the night sky, your voice and smile will appear. Hey, the joy of the past has gone to the east, and I can no longer chat with you over wine..."
At this time, You Meng came on stage. He played the role of Sun Shuao. The hat he wore, the clothes he wore, the jade pendant he hung, and the sword he hung were all exactly the same as Sun Shuao's. His voice, expression, walking style, etc., all looked exactly like Sun Shuao's.
Just like Sun Shuao, it was as if Sun Shuao had come to life again.
King Chuzhuang was so excited that he stood up and went up to the stage. He took Youmeng's hand and said, "Sun Shu'ao, I finally see you again."
You Meng said: "Your Majesty, I am You Meng, not Sun Shu'ao."
King Chuzhuang seemed to have not recovered, and continued: "Come back, come back and continue to be an official."
Youmeng said: "I can't be an official. Even if I want to be an official, I can't do it like Sun Shu'ao."
King Chuzhuang woke up and asked: "What did you say? If you don't learn from Sun Shu'ao, what kind of official do you want to be?"
You Meng said: "What I want to do is to be a corrupt official." King Chuzhuang raised his eyebrows and was about to scold him when You Meng said: "Your Majesty, please go back and sit down first. Please listen to me sing a piece."
You Meng sang along with the music:
There are always many corrupt officials, who enjoy the people's favor.
There will still be glory, and the descendants will not have to worry about hard work.
Ridiculous Sun Shuao,
Being poor yet happy with Taoism,
Not seeking fame or money,
Be honest till the end of your life.
This person passed away and drifted with the wind.
The descendants are hoeing and digging in the soil.
Jingshan is green and dream is far away.
Some people also say that Sun Shuao...
When King Chuzhuang heard this, he couldn't sit still anymore. He called out to stop, stood up, swung his sleeves, and walked away. Everyone looked at each other, only You Meng had a smile.
One day later, King Zhuang of Chu called Youmeng, asked about Sun An, and asked him to go to Mengze, and Sun An to Yingdu.
When Sun An arrived in the capital of Ying, King Zhuang of Chu asked him: "Sun Lingyin has been gone for more than a year, why haven't you asked me for a title?"
Sun An said: "As an official, my father only wanted to strengthen the country and make the people rich, and he never considered his own wealth. A good reputation is not easy to come by. As a son, I should cherish it. So I dare not ask the king for a title."
King Zhuang of Chu felt ashamed, and said: "Sun Lingyin has done a lot of good things for the Chu country, and his hard work has made him great. I should repay him. I will grant you a title now. Well, there are many good places. Whichever one you choose, I will grant it to you."
Which one is yours?"
Sun An kowtowed and thanked him, and then said: "If your Majesty wants to grant me the title, please grant me the title of Qiu Qiu."
King Chuzhuang was stunned and said: "The sleeping hill has a bad reputation. No princes or nobles want it. Why do you want that place?"
Sun An said: "I dare not hide it. This is actually my father's wish."
King Chuzhuang suddenly realized something and said with a smile: "Sun Shu'ao is really smart. Well, I will grant you the title of Qiu Qiu."
From then on, Sun An stayed in Qiuqiu peacefully and managed his restaurant in a decent manner. The dignitaries in Yingdu looked down upon this place, and no one ever thought of him. Therefore,
On the contrary, Sun Shuao's descendants lived a very comfortable life.
There is a comment in "Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals": "Sun Shu'ao knows that he knows not to use profit for profit. He knows that what others dislike is what he likes. This is why a Taoist person is different from the vulgar."
I have to say that Sun Shuao is indeed extraordinary.