Chapter 45 Volume 8 Strange Tales: Stories of the Tang Dynasty People

There is such a subtle record in "Youyang Miscellaneous Zu": "Wildgrass is also called Licao, also known as Nvcao, and in the rivers and lakes it is called baby grass. Beauty is called baby, so it is named." I don't want to think about this kind of grass. Beauty grass, but want to talk about the word "jianghu" mentioned here. "Jianghu" was first seen in: "Today, I have a gourd with five stones, why don't you think it is a big bottle and float in the rivers and lakes!" From the specific context, the "jianghu" here can be used as a free world, which is in line with Zhuang Zhou's "Xiaoyao" "swim" dream.Later, the word symbolized Linquan Gaoyi, which was opposite to Gongque's official career.

Buddhism flourished in the Tang Dynasty. After the Sixth Patriarch Huineng, two epoch-making great Zen masters appeared in the middle Tang Dynasty: Mazu Daoyi who taught the Dharma in Jiangxi and Shitou Xiqian who taught the Dharma in Hunan.For a time, worshipers from all over the world went to Jiangxi and Hunan like clouds, which is the original meaning of the word "walking the rivers and lakes". The scope of "Jianghu" has thus been narrowed, and it has become a specific designation beyond a certain fixed life, and is limited to a state with a folk nature.It was also from this time that this word appeared more and more in Tang poetry.Du Mu: "The rivers and lakes carry wine, Chu's waist is slender and light in the palm." Li Shangyin: "I will always remember the rivers and lakes with white hair, and I want to go back to the world and enter the boat."

Why did "jianghu" frequently appear in people's mouths and writings in the middle and late Tang Dynasty? It involves a "butterfly effect" problem.Probably no one would have noticed that the source of the secrecy was the "Partisan Struggle between Niu and Li" that lasted for nearly half a century at that time.The leader of the Li party is Li Deyu, who was born in an aristocratic family, and the leader of the Niu party is not the usual Niu Sengru, but another minister Li Zongmin.At that time, when the "Li Party" gained power, the members of the "Bull Party" were swept out of the court; and vice versa.Therefore, the ministers were relegated to other places like a revolving lantern, and the spiritual structure of the scholars also undergone tremendous changes: due to being implicated, relegated to other places, and frustrated in their careers, the Jianghu complex became more and more serious.

At that time, the feudal lords and towns were separated, the roads were dangerous, and there were many thieves.Their figures appear frequently in the wilderness, which makes the rivers and lakes become a uniquely charming legend: the smoke and trees are vast, the sky is high and the water is far away, and the negative sword is wandering... This is the change of a word in time. "Youyang Miscellaneous Zu" specially opened up the section of "thieves and chivalrous men", recording the strangers of that era. Duan Chengshi had a friend named Guangsheng, a monk of Chang'an Ci'en Temple. He was originally from Sichuan, and he once told a story about a hidden weapon.According to memories: In the last years of Emperor Dezong of Tang Dynasty Zhenyuan (785-805 A.D.), there was a monk named Lingjian in Langzhou, Sichuan, who was good at shooting mud balls with his fingers.Certainly not ordinary mud balls.The mud pill in this monk's hand is made with the following recipe:

Three catties of sand from the shore of Dongting Lake, three taels of charcoal powder, one tael of porcelain powder, half a tael of elm bark, two spoons of swill, two taels of purple ore (a leguminous plant), three ounces of fine sand, rattan paper ( Five sheets of paper made from ancient vines, and half a pack of Ketuo juice (something unknown) (one tenth of a liter). Stir the nine raw materials evenly, pound them with at least three thousand pestles, and then make them into pellets, and dry them in the shade, and you're done. The subsequent story is related to this kind of hidden weapon: "Guang Sheng, a monk of Ci'en Temple, said that at the end of Zhenyuan, Lingzhou monk Lingjian was good at bullets. One tael at the end, half tael of elm skin, two spoonfuls of swill, two taels of purple ore, three parts of fine sand, five sheets of rattan paper, half of thirsty juice, nine flavors and three thousand pestles, Qishou pills, and dry in the shade. When Zheng Hui was the governor, there was Yin, who was famous in the family, read books, was good at drinking, and was very important to Hui. Later, he became a thief and died when the incident happened. Yin tasted the Lingjian corner and played bombs. Yin pointed to a branch, and the programs were dozens of steps apart. Said: "If you hit it, you will get five thousand." Once it hits the bullet, the bullet will not be broken, but the spiritual mirror will be trapped and the bullet will be broken."

Zheng Hui, the governor of Langzhou, has a diner named Yin, who is good at drinking, reading, and can dance with spears and sticks. He is good at all kinds of hidden weapons and is highly valued by Zheng Hui.It's just that he later transferred to Lin Mang and became a robber, and finally died in the incident.When Yin was alive, he had a duel with monk Lingjian. In the summer afternoon of the Tang Dynasty, the breeze came slowly, and the flowers and leaves were not startled.In the governor's courtyard, friends sat idle, and maids shuttled among them from time to time.Yin got up and came to the steps, pointed to a certain branch of a pine tree dozens of steps away, and said to Lingjian: "Zen Master! If I hit it, I will win you 5,000 yuan, and vice versa!"

Zheng Hui and his friends agreed. After Yin finished speaking, he took out a mud pellet from the pouch, clamped his middle finger and index finger, threw it out and hit it, and then the mud pellet bounced back without breaking. When it was Lingjian's turn, the monk stood up, holding the clay pellet made of special materials between his fingers, silent as a coincidence, and suddenly exerted force, his wide sleeves fluttered, startling the flying birds.Everyone was surprised, the Niwan had hit the target and was deeply shattered in the tree. Isn't the mud pill in Lingjian's hand made of nine kinds of materials? Why is it still broken?The Niwan is naturally fine, the reason why it shattered into the tree can only be said that the spiritual sword is more ruthless and has stronger internal strength.Everyone in the martial arts knows that the most difficult thing is to hit the target and break it with a pill-shaped concealed weapon.To achieve this level requires special skills.

Ling Jian can be described as a master. After the mud pellet hit the tree, it neither bounced back nor shattered outside the tree, but shattered deeply into the hardwood. So speculated, what would it be like if it hit someone's head?Compared with Lingjian, Yin's skill at hand is still young, no wonder he didn't become a good robber later.If you have the skill of spiritual mirror, you can shoot a few pellets back when you run away, and you will kill the arrester quickly, and you won't be caught and executed in the end. Ling Jian possesses such unique skills, you can hardly tell that he is an ordinary monk.It is not surprising if he has a background in the world, and even a more surprising real identity.The protagonist in the following story is also good at using bullets. During a trip, he met a monk with a suspicious identity.

It was in the early years of Tang Dezong's Jianzhong period (780-783 A.D.), when Wei Sheng, a scholar, moved to Ruzhou. He met a monk in the wilderness, and the two chatted happily.It was getting late at that time, and the monk pointed to the road ahead and said, "In a few miles, there will be my Buddhist monastery, can you visit me?" Wei Sheng agreed to ask his family members to go first, and himself and the monks to follow.After walking for more than ten miles, but still not there, Wei Sheng asked the monk, who pointed to a forest smoke ahead and said, "That's it."

After walking for a while, it was already dark, and Wei Sheng began to doubt.Wei Sheng has always been good at the slingshot skill, and he hits a hundred shots, so he quietly took out the slingshot from his boots, loaded it with copper projectiles, and said to the monk: "I have a certain schedule on my journey. Your invitation has traveled more than 20 miles, but it still hasn't arrived, what do you mean?" The monk just said, "Follow me." The monk walked forward for more than a hundred steps. Wei Sheng knew that he was a gangster, so he fired a bullet from behind and hit the back of his head.The monk didn't seem to feel anything, Wei Sheng fired again and again, and all five bullets hit his head. The monk touched the back of his head and said, "Stop playing pranks, okay?" In the middle, Xu said: "Lang Jun, don't play tricks.")

Wei Sheng knew that he had met a master, so there was nothing he could do. When the two went to a village, dozens of people held torches to welcome them.The monk La Weisheng came to the middle hall and said, "Young master, don't be afraid." Afterwards, the monk asked the left and right: "Has the young master's family arrangements been made?" So left and right led Wei Sheng to see, and the latter saw that his wife and daughter were not in the same room, and they were well arranged.When Wei Sheng returned to the central hall, the monk shook hands and said, "I am indeed a great thief. I walked with you. I didn't have any good intentions. I wanted to do harm, but the young master has unique skills and is admired by the poor monk. Of course, it is me. If you meet Others have been knocked down by you long ago. The bullets are all here—" After finishing speaking, the monk touched the back of his head, and there was a sound of five bullets falling to the ground, but there was no scar on his head. In the Tang Dynasty, many thieves wore the clothes of monks.Tang Xuanzong's elder brother Ning Wang once went hunting in Hu County. When searching the mountains and forests, he found a large cabinet with a particularly strong lock in the grass.King Ning asked someone to open the cabinet and found a beautiful girl inside.The girl said that she and her uncle lived in front of Zhuangzi, and last night they encountered robbers, two of whom were monks, who carried her here to seek harm.At that time, King Ning had just captured a black bear, so while taking the girl away, he put the black bear into the cabinet and locked it again. Three days later, a piece of news came: In Hu County, two monks carried a cabinet and stayed in a luxurious inn. their interior.In the middle of the night, bystanders heard the sound of fighting in the room where the monk lived.After dawn, the owner felt strange. When he poked his head in, he felt the wind blowing in his ears, and a black bear rushed out. Looking at the two monks, they had been gnawed until their bones were exposed. Of course, there is a big difference between the monk eaten by the bear and the monk Wei Sheng met.The former is just a little womanizer, while the latter is a highly qualified martial arts master. But that night, the monk invited Wei Sheng to a banquet and said, "I have some brothers, and I would like to introduce them to you." After a while, five or six big men in red came in, listed at the bottom of the steps. The monk said: "Come and pay respects to the young master, if you meet him, your brains will be smashed to pieces." After eating, the monk said: "Although I am a monk, I have been a thief for a long time. I am old and want to change my past, but unfortunately there is a rebellious son named Feifei, whose skills have surpassed mine. I will let him quit the world. But it doesn't work, can you help me get rid of it tonight to avoid future troubles?" Just as he was talking, Feifei came out: "I know there is an expert coming, I want to compete with him." Feifei was only sixteen or seventeen years old. He was dressed in green and had long sleeves. His complexion was fat, and he looked weak, but his gaze was like an eagle watching a wolf. The monk scolded: "Stand back, and treat each other in the back hall!" After Feifei left, the monk took out a long sword and picked up the bullets on the ground and handed it to Wei Sheng, saying, "I hope you will use all your martial arts skills to kill Feifei for me." Seeing that the monk had a sincere intention to kill, Wei Sheng went into the back hall and locked the door behind him.At this time, Feifei was standing in the hall with a whip in his hand, and candles were lit at the four corners of the house.Wei Sheng drew his bow and fired the bullet, thinking that he must be able to hit Feifei. As a result, the bullet jingled and fell, and Feifei appeared on the beam and was walking along the wall.Wei Sheng was shocked, and fired another bullet, but it was ineffective. He raised his sword to stab, but missed.Feifei was always more than a foot away from Wei Sheng. In the end, although Wei Sheng cut off the whip in Feifei's hand, he could not hurt him. Wei Sheng came out ashamed, and the monk felt lost, and said to Fei Fei who tilted his head: "You will be a thief for the rest of your life! What can you do?" The monk comforted Wei Sheng, and talked with him about sword skills and projectile hidden weapons that night ("The matter of the monk and Wei discussing swords and arrows all night, the day will dawn, the monk will send Wei Sheng to the intersection, give a hundred pieces of silk, weep and say goodbye ").But it can be imagined that there is always Feifei's shadow hovering between the two.Feifei's story had a great influence on later martial arts novels, and Wang Xiaobo also rewrote it into short stories. Monks are well-qualified gangsters.I am a master of martial arts, and I have a group of brothers.But the blue comes out of the blue, and his son Feifei is already a master of masters even though he is young.Wei Sheng's swordsmanship is outstanding, and he can't miss a shot, but he can't hurt his body in the end. Such young masters were not uncommon at the time: "Taste a bowl of precious jade in the horse's servant. The summer flies are not close, and the water is kept for a period of time. It does not rot or consume. If the eyes hurt, it will heal immediately. Taste the box in the bed. , There was a young slave who was seven or eight years old, who stole and fell into the ground. When the horse came out and did not return, the left and right were frightened, and suddenly lost the little slave. The horse knew that he was furious, and whipped him hundreds of times, and would kill the little slave. He searched for it in three days, but did not Acquired. There is a servant girl who is in charge of the land in the morning, sees the purple belt hanging under the bed, and regards it as a little slave who stretches his bed and bears it, and does not eat for three days without losing strength..." After stealing and smashing the master's jade bowl, the little slave hid under the bed and carried it on for three days without exhaustion.But he is only seven or eight years old.In the end, the owner still culled it: "It's fine to break my bowl." It means that breaking a bowl is fine, but if such a child grows up and takes the road of thieves, no one will be able to surrender. In Feifei's story, there are two reasons why the monk asked Wei Sheng to help him get rid of Feifei. First, Feifei is his son after all. Another reason may be that the monk could no longer compete with Fei Fei at this time, so he had to resort to people in the rivers and lakes, and found Wei Sheng in his search. The sigh is fate itself.When Wei Sheng was unable to kill Fei Fei in the locked room, Fei Fei's fate as a thief was already doomed.Another detail in the story is that when the monk saw that Wei Sheng was unable to kill Fei Fei, he had no choice but to accept this reality, and that night La Wei Sheng discussed the sword under the lamp.It can be seen that people in the arena at that time paid more and more attention to swordsmanship. As a result, some strange swords are appearing more and more in people's field of vision. Zheng Yunda, a native of the Tang Dynasty, got a sword with carved scales on the hilt and stars carved on the nose. When dancing, it roared with the wind.One day while playing in the courtyard, "Suddenly a man came down from the tree in the garden. He was dressed in red and purple, with curly hair, and stood standing with his sword exposed, with black air all over his body, like a heavy fog."Zheng Su had the guts to pretend he didn't see it. The man said, "I'm from the upper world, and I know that you have a different sword. I would like to take a look..." Also, Zhang Cun, a commoner in Gaoyou, made a living by picking lotus root.I once found dry lotus root on a slope, which was as big as an arm. When I dug it hard, it was two feet deep, so big that my arms encircled it. It seemed inexhaustible, so I cut it off and got a sword in the lotus root. The following story further supports this point. In the middle Tang Dynasty, Wei Xinggui once served as governor of Xingzhou.When he was a teenager, he had extraordinary skills and the style of a hero. He was best at bows and arrows, and he hit a hundred shots with a hundred shots.When I reached middle age, I recalled a past event: At that time, he was young and energetic, loved chivalry, visited famous teachers, searched for opponents, and traveled to the western suburbs of Chang'an for a day, and it was getting late.It was about early autumn at that time, the yellow leaves were falling, and Wei Xinggui was standing in the cold field, suddenly feeling bleak, like entering a picture scroll of autumn night. In the vagueness, there is a small inn in front of it, with dim lights.Wei Xinggui galloped to a stop in front of the shop, wanting to eat something.Under the pale moonlight, he dragged his long silhouette into the inn.After walking around the yard, Wei Xinggui couldn't help but gasped when he didn't find the owner here.Just as he was about to leave, he felt someone pat him on the shoulder behind him, turned around suddenly, but there was no one there, and looked sideways, and saw an old man leaning against the stable, smiling at him strangely: "Do you want to stay at the hotel? " Wei Xinggui thought for a while and said, "I'm just passing by, I don't want to stay, and I'm about to move on now." He suddenly wanted to leave here as soon as possible. The old man said: "I advise you not to travel at night. Chang'an Xiye has high mountains and deep grass, and there are many robbers here." Wei Xinggui had already turned around and walked without looking back: "I have a bow and arrow with me, there is nothing to be afraid of." The old man didn't speak any more, just laughed "hehe". Wei Xinggui rode for dozens of miles, it was already dark, the grass on both sides was getting darker, and the road ahead seemed to have no end.Except for the chirping of owls and the movement of grass, there is only a piece of silence that belongs to the wilderness.Wei Xinggui felt something was wrong, secretly, he felt that someone was sneaking in the grass behind him, following him all the time.Thinking of this, his heart suddenly trembled. Wei Xinggui shouted loudly: "Who is it?!" There was no movement behind.Wei Xinggui turned his head suddenly, but there was a figure swaying in the grass, he fired several arrows, but the person still did not retreat like a ghost.Soon, the arrows in Wei Xinggui's pocket were gone, and he felt frightened immediately, so he galloped on his horse.Not long after, the wind and rain came.The further he ran, the denser the rain. After Wei Xinggui got off his horse, he took shelter under a big tree.At this time, there was lightning flashing in the sky, which gradually approached the top of the tree, and then thunder broke out.Wei Xinggui felt that in the lightning, there was a black shadow on the tree like a man, dancing with a long sword in his hand.Frightened, he felt the branches and slivers fall one after another, and they were buried in his knees in a short while. Wei Xinggui was really scared this time, he threw away the bow in his hand, and bowed to the sky. The lightning faded away, and the wind and thunder stopped.Wei Xinggui looked at the big tree again, all the branches fell off, as if cut by a long sword.And his saddle was gone. Wei Xinggui collapsed under the tree. When it was almost dawn, Wei Xinggui returned to the small shop with a depressed mood, and saw the old man repairing wooden barrels in the yard. Wei Xinggui knew that he was a stranger, so he knelt down on the ground. The old man smiled and said, "Don't think that knowing how to shoot a bow and arrow is enough. A great man must know swordsmanship." Wei Xinggui nodded hastily. The old man led Wei Xinggui to the backyard, where his saddle was on the ground.The old man pointed to a piece of staves on the ground. Wei Xinggui stepped forward to look at it. All the arrows he shot last night were stuck in it.Wei Xinggui wanted to worship the old man as his teacher, but was rejected.The old man just told him about the relationship between knights and kendo. Wei Xinggui was not allowed to be an apprentice, and after leaving the small shop, the red sun had already risen from the distant mountains.Looking back at the small shop in the west of Beijing, it is still hidden in the cold autumn forest... On the night of the middle and late Tang Dynasty, when the trees were vast and smoky, the first batch of swordsmen appeared in the rivers and lakes.They are the source of later martial arts and fairy sword novels.From then on, among true masters, "Xia" and "Sword" have become inseparable.Another example is an old man in Lanling in Chang'an. During the Tang Dynasty (762-779 AD), Li Gan served as Jing Zhaoyin, also known as the mayor of Chang'an.In the Tang Dynasty, he held this official position for the longest period of eight years.The way this person entered the official career was very strange, because he was neither a Jinshi, nor a descendant of a wealthy family, but relied on astrology and divination. Chun Gong.This is one of the reasons for his bad reputation. The historical evaluation is: he has a sinister temperament and is good at heresy.However, some people also said that Li Gan was good. During his eight-year tenure, although he was mean, he handled affairs efficiently and managed Chang'an in an orderly manner. Regardless of these, let's just say that this happened during his tenure: One year into the summer, there is no rain in Chang'an, and Li Gan organizes people to pray for rain on the banks of the Qujiang River, with thousands of spectators.Why are there so many people?Because Li Gan, the mayor of Chang'an, will personally act as a wizard and pray for rain on the stage.When Mayor Li's convoy arrived, everyone ran away, except for an old man standing there with a cane.Li Gan was furious and ordered someone to beat the old man twenty sticks, but the old man didn't seem to respond and turned away. The torturer reported to Li Gan that hitting the old man with the stick was like hitting soft leather.Li Gan suspected that the old man was unusual, so he asked the old soldiers around him to investigate.Go to Lanling, search left and right, enter a small door, and hear the old man's voice: "I was humiliated today, you get me some hot water." Li Gan was very frightened when he heard this, and hurriedly changed into plain clothes, and rushed to Lanling in the evening of the same day. After entering the hospital, he immediately bowed down and excused himself: "I am the mayor of Chang'an. If I lose all my dignity, it is not because I am an official." Dao. You are among the people, unless you have insight, you can’t recognize it. Now, I have committed a crime, if you don’t forgive me, you don’t have the heart of a righteous man.” The old man smiled and said, "Is that the old man's fault?" Li Gan didn't agree with him.The old man didn't ask any more questions, and then set up a banquet and drank together.In the middle of the night, Li Qian was in awe of the old man talking about the way of immortality and chivalry. At the end, the old man said: "Do you know the Big Dipper?" Li Ganben was born in divination, so he naturally knew the astrology, so he nodded. The old man said again: "Do you know the names of the seven stars?" This really stopped Li Gan, and hurriedly asked for advice. The old man changed the subject and said: "This old man has a skill, please allow me to perform for you." Then he went into the house and went out for a long time. He had changed into purple clothes, held seven long and short swords in both hands, and danced in the court.Leaping and leaping, swinging up and down, the light of the sword twinkles like stars and moons, chopping wherever it goes, consciously breaking the plate and breaking the stone.The old man spun rapidly like a top, only seeing the light of the sword but not the person.During this period, the sword's edge brushed past Li Gan's face from time to time, making the latter tremble.Finally, the old man threw the sword in the air, and after it fell, the seven swords stuck on the ground in the shape of the Big Dipper. The old man said to Li Gan: "Now, I can tell you the names of the seven stars, Zhiyin, Yeyi, Shijin, Refusal, Fangwu, Kaibao, and ostentatious." Li Gan bowed again and said, "My life is bestowed by you, I hope I can learn from you." The old man said: "Although you are courageous, you have no morals in your bones, so you cannot be accepted as a disciple." After finishing speaking, he turned and went into the house. Li Gan returned home feeling lost, looked in the mirror, and found that the old man had shaved off his beard by more than an inch.The next day, Li Gan went to Lanling to search again, but there was no one in the courtyard. At that time, Li Gan had a close relationship with the favored eunuch Liu Zhongyi, and wanted to change the crown prince.After the crown prince (Dezong) came to the throne, he disguised himself many times, slipped out of the mansion, and met with Liu in secret.Finally, one time, this old man in disguise was caught straight, offended Emperor Dezong, and exiled him far away. On the way, he added an order: give Lantianyi to death. No one knows whether Li Gan in Lantian Station will remember the scene in Lanling: where did the old sword fairy go?Can the old man magically appear in front of him and save him?The old man finally did not come, only the phantoms of the seven swords were flying in the sky at the end of his life, and one of them really belonged to him.However, what is wanted is not his beard, but his life.