The book of Nanqi is special, and the author almost became an emperor
The Book of Southern Qi is an important historical work of the Northern and Southern Dynasties in China, written by Xiao Zixian. Xiao was one of the great surnames during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and among the four Southern Dynasties regimes of Song, Qi, Liang and Chen, two founding emperors were surnamed Xiao.
Xiao Daocheng, the founding emperor of the Southern Qi Dynasty, and Xiao Yan, the founding emperor of the Southern Liang Dynasty, are all descendants of the Xiao family. Xiao Zixian was born in the royal family, is Xiao Daocheng's own grandson, and is also Xiao Wei's descendant son.
If Xiao Wei inherits the throne, then Xiao Zixian may become the emperor. However, the state of the Southern Qi Dynasty was only twenty-four years old, and when Xiao Zixian was thirteen years old, he was overthrown by Xiao Yan, who was a local assassin.
Emperor Wu of Liang Xiao Yan annihilated Qi Jianliang, and in the face of the orphans of the previous dynasty, most of the new emperors would choose to cut the grass and eradicate the roots, leaving no future troubles. However, Xiao Yan is different, he is compassionate and treats the former Qi royal family preferentially.
Especially for the thirteen-year-old Xiao Zixian, because of his outstanding talent, he paid special attention and courtesy, and even let him hold an important position in the imperial court. Although Xiao Zixian did not have much interest in work, in his short life, he compiled five major historical books, including the Book of the Later Han Dynasty, the History of the Jin Dynasty, the Book of Southern Qi, the Records of the Ordinary Northern Expedition, and the Biography of Guijian.
However, with the exception of the Book of Nanqi, all other works have been lost.
During the Liang period of the Southern Dynasty, there was an emperor named Xiao Yi, Emperor Yuan of Liang, who was very fond of collecting books, especially cherishing the collection of 140,000 volumes. However, before his country was ruined and he died, he did something distressing—he burned all the books in his collection, including the ones that may contain Xiao Zi's remarkable works.
Fortunately, although Xiao Zixian's "Book of Nanqi" was legendary, it was eventually handed down and became a rare work of juvenile historians in ancient times. Although Xiao Zixian was only fifteen years old when he wrote the Book of Southern Qi, he was able to refer to the works of Shen Yue, Xiong Xiang, Wu Jun and others, which provided great convenience for his writing.
Although the process of writing the book was very smooth, Xiao Zixian faced difficulties in his ideas.
Emperor Xiao Daocheng of Qi Gao Image) Xiao Zixian of the Southern Qi clan was not only the grandson of the founding emperor of Southern Qi, but also the minister of Southern Liang. When he wrote the Book of Southern Qi, he had to maintain the image of the Southern Qi royal family, but also not be rude to Emperor Wu of Liang in Southern Liang.
Therefore, in the book, he defended the emperor of Southern Qi, believing that the death of Southern Qi was due to the mandate of heaven, not the fault of the monarch. At the same time, he had reservations about the fact that Xiao Yan usurped the throne, revealing traces slightly.
Although Xiao Zi was obviously talented and wrote very good articles, in the Book of Nanqi, he had great limitations. He mercilessly criticized Chu Yuan, the prime minister of the Southern Song Dynasty, Wang Yan, the minister of the Southern Qi Dynasty, and Xiao Chen, the general, and pointed out their mistakes in betraying the emperor's trust and participating in the rebellion.
However, these criticisms do not involve foul language, but are expressed in flowery rhetoric and elaborate diction. Shen Yue was a contemporary writer and the author of the Book of Song, which is the one that precedes the Book of Nanqi.
Shen Youcai is eight buckets tall and proud, but he highly respects Xiao Zixian's "Book of Southern Qi" and appreciates its exquisite writing, which is comparable to "Historical Records" and "Book of Han". During the Southern Liang period, the literary atmosphere was strong, and Xiao Zixian was a clear stream among them.
During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, there was a literary group called "Jingling Eight Friends", and Xiao Zixian was one of them. Emperor Xiao Yan of Liang Wu was versatile and eloquent, and was a cultural leader of his time.
As a result of his advocacy, there was a nationwide upsurge in literary creation. Therefore, Xiao Zixian's gorgeous writing may not only be his personal characteristics, but may also reflect the cultural atmosphere of his time.
Finally, let's take a closer look at Xiao Zixian, a cultural celebrity.
Xiao Zixian, the emperor's celebrity, a member of the court, and the door of the mansion is often full of guests. However, he didn't care about it. In the preface to the Book of Nanqi, he said: "Whenever I climb high and look into the distance, the water returns, the spring breeze blows the spring flowers, the moonlight is bright and the autumn night, the first geese return to the nest, and the fallen leaves are scattered, these wonderful scenes always fascinate me." ”
He loves nature, likes to stand on a high place, see the flowing water, and like the breeze to stir the spring flowers. He likes the bright moon, the tranquility of autumn, the wild geese returning home, and watching the flowers bloom and fall.
In turbulent times, only the tranquility of nature can allow him to find a moment of peace. He didn't want to talk much about the guests who came to visit, but just waved the fan in his hand to show his friendliness.
In 537 AD, Xiao Zixian died of illness, nicknamed "Jiao". The word "pride" almost sums up his life. Most of the literati in ancient times were not afraid of death, and they were more at ease in the face of death than those famous generals who had been in the field for a long time.
As historians, they have a whole new understanding of time.
The reason why they are not afraid of death is that in the process of researching and creating literature, they have a new understanding of death. For example, Xiao Zixian and others, they firmly believe that there must be something in the world that can transcend the shackles of life and death and break the law of death.
This kind of thing may be spiritual, it may be thought, or it may be the poetry they left behind. Therefore, although their bodies will perish and their flesh will decay, they are convinced that even if ten years, a hundred years, a thousand years have passed, they will live forever in another way.
This is not a feudal superstition, but a belief in primitive life. As mysterious as it sounds, Xiao Zixian undoubtedly did just that. Now, when we open the "Book of Nanqi", we can see the personable and conceited Nanliang talent, whose image spans time and space, and has always lived in our memory.