In May of the second year of Xining, Su Shi raised objections to the imperial court's law change, causing an uproar. Shenzong's commendation concealed doubts, Su Shi misjudged the situation and fell into a political whirlpool.
In May of the second year of Xining, a storm of change was brewing in the imperial court. After months of silence and silence, Su Shi finally stood up to challenge the imperial court's imperial examination reform. At this turbulent moment, he took the lead in speaking out with the "Parliamentary School Tribute Petition" as a spear, completely rejecting the reform proposal of abolishing poetry and replacing it with the theory of economic righteousness. The reform of the imperial examination was a rare change that was approved by Wang Anshi and Sima Guang, and Su Shi's opposition caused quite a stir.
In fact, Su Shi's opposition was not due to his disgust with the change itself, but from his misunderstanding of the emperor's summons. While Shenzong praised him, he did not realize that he might become a member of the opposition. However, the purpose of the Divine Sect was not to value Su Shi's dissenting opinions, but to encourage other courtiers to actively participate in the discussion of the new law. Su Shi mistakenly thought that the emperor valued him, so he took the initiative to jump into the whirlpool of law change.
In August, Su Shi used two "Autumn Trial Questions on Chinese Studies" to implicitly criticize Wang Anshi's arbitrary government and the "new law" for deliberately seeking personal gain. Wang Anshi sensed his hostility and decided to transfer him to the position of governor of the Kaifeng Prefecture, trying to trouble him through troubled actions. However, he underestimated Su Shi's wisdom. In his new position, Su Shi is not only decisive and shrewd, but his popularity has become more and more widespread, and he has also found time to participate in political discussions.
In December, Su Shi sent advice to Shenzong because the imperial court wanted to sell the "Zhejiang lanterns" on the market, and the emperor accepted his criticism and immediately corrected the purchase of lamps. After testing the emperor's attitude, Su Shi wrote the "Book of Emperor Shangshenzong", and in February of the following year, he wrote "The Book of the Emperor Again", which became a representative work against the new law.
However, Su Shi's miscalculation called into question his political integrity. At the beginning of the change, his actions were surprising. When he wrote the "Petition for Tribute to the Parliamentary School", the old party was opposing the new law, and Lu Zhi and others vigorously attacked Wang Anshi's character. On the occasion of writing "The Book of the Emperor of Shangshenzong" and "The Book of the Emperor Again", the Qingli elders Han Qi and Ouyang Xiu opposed the Qingmiao Law. Su Shi changed his previous position and cooperated with the old to launch an attack on Xinfa and Wang Anshi, which made Shenzong's opinion of him extremely poor.
Su Shi's 180-degree change shifted his political views to the anti-change camp, which further deepened Shenzong and Wang Anshi's negative views of him. Qingli elder Han Qi's opposition to the new law brought great pressure to Shenzong and Wang Anshi. Su Shi originally proposed a change, but in the above book, he personally attacked Wang Anshi, who had a grudge against him in the past, which made the emperor's impression of him worse.
In August of the third year of Xining (1070), Wang Anshi's in-law and the governor of the imperial history, Xie Jingwen** Su Shi, carried the goods during the funeral, that is, private salt, and pretended to be sent by the imperial court to borrow soldiers from the local government, and ordered eight roads to ask. This incident was believed by later generations to be instructed by Wang Anshi, but it is worth pondering that Su Shi and Su Zhe walked together, but ** only targeted Su Shi alone. Shenzong did not have any objection to the battle of "Eight Roads by Water and Land by Land", which showed that he was not optimistic about Su Shi's view.
In fact, Shenzong's opinion on Su Shi was revealed in his conversation with Sima Guang. After the "Eight Ways to Ask" decree was issued, Sima Guang was angry because of this, and the next day he met Shenzong and resolutely resigned. The difference in Shenzong's opinion of Su Shi was reflected in his conversation with Sima Guang. Sima Guang's misunderstanding of Su Shi made Shenzong confused, and he couldn't help but say: "Su Shi is not a good man, and Qing misunderstands it." This is undoubtedly a question of Su Shi's political position, and it also reveals that his status in the emperor's heart is not as good as before.
Su Shi's political misjudgment tarnished his image of actively participating in the reform of the law. Although his behavior was influenced to a certain extent by the Qingli bosses, he joined the camp of opposition to the new law in the middle of his feelings, and his support for the major policy of changing the law became ambiguous. In particular, in the previous book, he shifted his attention from political advocacy to personal attacks, which caused him to lose political trust in the eyes of the Divine Sect.
Overall, Su Shi's political actions in Xining's two to three years make it difficult to call it impeccable. His misjudgment not only affected his relationship with the Divine Sect, but also called his political stance. In the turmoil of the imperial court reform, Su Shi's political trajectory became a controversial topic, and it also left a deep mark on later history.
Su Shi's political actions in Xining during the second to third years were a controversial period in Chinese history, and a political chapter worthy of in-depth consideration. His anti-reform stance, as well as his relationship with Shenzong and Wang Anshi, provided rich research material for later historians.
First, Su Shi's opposition shows the complex attitudes of intellectuals toward reform in feudal China. The imperial examination system was the core of ancient Chinese society, but Su Shi objected to the reform of the imperial examination. This attitude not only reflects the adherence of some intellectuals to the traditional system, but also may be influenced by the old party. In the article, Su Shi questioned the reform proposition of abolishing poetry and replacing it with the theory of economic and righteous policy, which shows that he believes that the value of traditional literature lies in its uniqueness and should not be easily replaced. However, this stance also exposed his misunderstanding of the reform policy, which led him to a difficult political maelstrom later.
Secondly, Su Shi's political misjudgment was not only manifested in his attitude towards the change of law, but also in his interactions with Shenzong and Wang Anshi. He mistakenly believed that Shenzong's reward for him was a personal tribute to him, but he failed to understand the emperor's real intention in encouraging him to participate in the discussion of the new law. This misunderstanding caused Su Shi to vacillate in his political position, causing him to lose some support within the imperial court. At the same time, his opposition to Wang, especially through personal attacks, caused him to lose some political trust in the eyes of the reformers.
In addition, Su Shi's political actions during the second to third years of Xining also highlighted the complexity of the power struggle in feudal society. Xie Jingwen** Su Shi's incident is believed to be at the behest of Wang Anshi. Behind this conspiracy may be a more complex political game, and Su Shi has become a victim of this game. This also shows that in feudal society, political struggles are not only limited to the debate of ideas, but also involve personal grievances, power calculations, etc.
Overall, Su Shi's political trajectory during the two to three years of Xining is a topic of deep historical significance. His opposition, misunderstanding with Shenzong, and confrontation with Wang Anshi provide us with a window into the political struggles of feudal society and the role of intellectuals in them. The complexity of this history also allows us to better understand the uniqueness of China's ancient political system.
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