"Apricot Garden" is an important work painted by the court painter Xie Huan of the Ming Dynasty in 1437. It is an image representation of the "Apricot Garden" event in Yang Rong's private garden on March 1, the second year of the orthodox year. The activities and images of the gathering involved nine court officials in office at the time, including important court officials such as Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, Yang Pu, Wang Zhi, and Wang Ying.

Peng Mei News has learned that "A Collection of Apricot Gardens" is currently on display in the Liaoning Provincial Museum's "Humanity and Realm—An Elegance in the Garden of Ancient Literati". According to Liao Bo, this is the first loan exhibition of this classic masterpiece in the past 20 years. This paper sorts out the backgrounds of the characters in the painting objects, and finds that these characters are not the so-called "Guange Zhu Gong" in the general sense, but have strong regional political characteristics. The author discusses for the first time the deep meaning of the "Xingyuan Elegant Gathering" activity and the image mode of "Xingyuan Gathering Picture".

introduction

Xie Huan (1377-1452), a painter of the Ming Dynasty in the 15th century, wrote "A Collection of Elegant Collections in Xingyuan", which involved the triple relationship of history, imagery and literature. Taking the "Apricot Garden Collection" collected by Zhenjiang Museum as an example, Yang Shiqi (1366-1444), an important court official in the Ming Dynasty, "Apricot Garden Collection Preface" and Yang Rong (1371-1440) "Apricot Garden Collection Collection" Preface It is history, and "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" is not only an image related to "history", but also an image related to "art", and the poems of the nine literati who coexist with the image are literature. Of course, behind the pictures and texts of "Apricot Garden" is often imagined as the existence of "history itself".

In fact, even if there is no "Xingyuan Yaji Tu" and its copy, as a historical research, it is still possible to confirm the "Xingyuan Yaji" incident from the relevant texts of Yang Shiqi's "Sequel to the East" and Yang Rong's "Wenmin Ji" historical existence. But this is a study of historical significance, not art-historical significance. So far, there has been no historical research on the event of "Xingyuan Gathering". The research on "Apricot Garden", which is the main line of history, and "Xingyuan Garden", which is the main line of art history, may overlap, but they cannot replace each other. Due to the real existence of the "Xingyuan Yaji" event, the content of "Xingyuan Yaji Tu" is based on "reality" rather than imagination, which seems to be different from the controversial "Xiyuan Yaji Tu" .

First of all, this paper is part of the "Xingyuan Yajitu" series of studies on the Ming metabolic ring. The original research purpose is to discuss the concept of "Xingyuan Yaji" and the generation process and transformation process of "Xingyuan Yaji Tu" as a text and image in historical time, and also want to expand the scope of thinking to the entire cultural space of East Asia. inside. This is a complex study. Nine civil officials headed by Yang Shiqi created the concept of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" in 1437, and Xie Huan produced images of the same concept. The concept of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" can be spread through the literary system alone, while the hand-painted "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" volume is spread in the collection system, and the print version of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection", as Xu Lun (1487- 1559)'s "Er Garden Collection" (that is, "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" and "Bamboo Garden Shou Collection", printed in the 1560s) disseminated in a wider range of printing and publishing systems and reading systems.

This is the generative history of words and images of nine civil servants and a painter (whose position was military attache at the time) in the Ming Dynasty. But this way has been replicated and transformed in the reading of images and words. In 1477, Ni Yue (1444-1501) and Li Dongyang (1447-1516) watched the "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" volume at the same time, Ni Yue held a "Hanlin same year meeting" at this time, and invited the painter Gao Sixun to paint. "Hanlin same year meeting map", he wrote "Hanlin same year meeting map"; Li Dongyang held the "Tenth same year meeting" in 1503, and asked the painter to draw the "Tenth same year map" volume. In 1499, the Book of Zhou (1440-1510), the minister of households, held the "Bamboo Garden Shou Ji", and 14 civil officials, including Wu Kuan (1435-1504) and Xu Jin (1437-1510), invited court painters to paint the "Bamboo Garden". The Collection of Longevity in Bamboo Garden, Vol. Wu Kuan had seen the "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" and participated in the "Five Congregations" in 1503. Wu Kuan wrote "The Preface to the Five Congregations". Xu Jin, who participated in the "Bamboo Garden Shouji", his son Xu Lun saw a "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" in Taiyuan in 1550, and in the 1560s he collected the "Bamboo Garden Shou Collection" and "Apricot Garden". "Garden Elegant Collection" was engraved and published as a print. In 1791, Weng Fanggang (1733-1818) saw the volume of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" (now in Zhenjiang Museum) collected by Chu Pengling (?-1825), and he wrote a long inscription on it. Ni Qian (1414-1479), who was acquainted with Xie Huan, was also the father of Ni Yue, who imitated Xingyuan Yaji and did the "Hanlin Same Year Meeting". Civil servants have poems and sings and activities. Later, Zhang Ning (1426-1496) went to Korea on a diplomatic mission in 1459, and he exchanged poetry with Li Chao's civil officials. Ni Qian and Zhang Ning are both civil servants who have some understanding of Xie Huan. I wonder if they will also pass on the information of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" in their exchanges with North Korean civil servants? Of course, that's another study.

1. The Biography and Model of Xingyuan Elegant Collection

(one)

This article is limited to the hand-painted version of "Xingyuan Yajitu" (now in the collection of Zhenjiang Museum, Jiangsu Province) and the print version of Xu Lun's "Second Garden Collection" (now in the Library of Congress) discuss. Because they have consistent image patterns. This pictorial pattern has been influential over and over again throughout history. From the research of Taiwan scholar Wu Songfen, it can be determined that this is the image mode of Xie Huan's original work. I basically agree with this view. This basic pattern of images and text is enough for us to study art history.

Figure 1: Ming Xiehuan's "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" is cited in the collection of Zhenjiang City Museum

The four big characters "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" in the hand-painted version of "Xingyuan Yajitu" are not found in Xu Lun's print version of "Two Gardens" (Figure 1). This is to emphasize the location and nature of the event. The location is Yang Rong's home in Dongcheng, Beijing, and the nature is a gathering of literati. It can also be seen from Yang Shiqi's "Preface to Elegant Collection in Xingyuan" that he paid more attention to the activity of "Elegant Collection" rather than images. What Yang Rong (1371-1440) wrote is "Post-Preface to the Pictures of the Elegant Collection of Xingyuan", which emphasizes the images and the facts in the images, which is almost equivalent to the description of the images. The time of the gathering was March 1, 1437. It is the season when the apricot flowers are blooming, and this day is the rest day of the civil servants. In addition to the painter Xie Huan (who is a military attache), there are 9 civilian officials. One cannot but think that the civil officials headed by Yang Shiqi (1366-1444) were deliberately imitating Bai Juyi (772-846) "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui" of the Tang Dynasty. What kind of image is this? Entertainment or politics? In other words, what impression does it want the viewer to get?

(two)

In the late Qing Dynasty, Cantonese writer Huang Yujie (1803-1844) once collected a volume of "Map of Mingxian Poetry Society", and asked Cai Shaoshu (an unknown date of birth and death) from Gui'an, who was active in Xuannanfang, Beijing, to write an inscription. There are twenty-four figures in the picture. Cai Shaoshu said that this picture has been verified by Chen Wenshu of Qiantang (1771-1843), and he believes that two paintings are mounted together, creating the illusion of one painting. One group of figures was active in the Ming Dynasty Yongle (1403-1424), Hongxi (1425), and Xuande (1426-1435), and another group was active in Tianshun (1457-1464), Chenghua (1465-1487) and Hongzhi (1488) —1505) period. "The first ten people are all dressed in chapter clothes, and the last ten people are all in casual clothes, which is incomprehensible." Cai Shaoshu replied: "The two pictures were not made at the same time, so the clothes in the pictures are also different." Cai Shaoshu claimed to be the "same year" as stated by Chen Wen (but Chen Wenshu did not pass the jinshi, perhaps the "same year" of the township examination.), the time of Chen Wenshu's inscription is "June 10 of Daoguang Jihai", the time of Cai Shaoshu's inscription is "two days before Jihai Qixi", Daoguang Ji Hai is the nineteenth year of Daoguang (1839). It is exactly 402 years since Xie Huan (1377-1452) created the volume of "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection Tu", the second year of Orthodox (1437).

In fact, the first half of the volume of "Mingxian Poetry Club" in the line drawing of "the top ten people are all in suits" is exactly "Xingyuan Elegant Collection", and the second half is "Zhuyuan Longevity Collection". According to the inscription and postscript, this picture is the old collection of Chen Yixi (1648-1709), a civil official and a master of calligraphy in the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty, obtained in Anyi (now Anyi Town, Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province). Chen Yixi re-installed this picture in the "October of Guiyou". This line drawing has "Xiao Si Nong", "Chen Xi Liu Qian", "Maid Xin Gu", "Last Night Xiangyan" and "Nanjia Zang" printed in five directions. It should be Chen Yixi's collection seal. Chen Wenshu believed that this "Guiyou" was the eighteenth year of Qianlong (1753), which was a mistake in his calculation. At this time, Chen Yixi had passed away for 43 years. Therefore, the time when Chen Yixi installed this picture is the "Gui You" in the 32nd year of Kangxi, that is, 1693.

This framed "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" is "on paper, line drawing. Today's foot is eight inches high and one foot, three feet and four inches wide." Converted to today's popular size, it is 26.66 cm in length and 303.33 cm in width. . The characters have inscriptions, namely 1, "Xie Juntingxun" 2, "Taihe Chen Gongxun" 3, "Ancheng Li Gongshimian" 4, "Ji Shui Zhou Gongshu" 5, "Taihe Wang Gongzhi"6, "Luling Yang Gongshiqi"7 , "Jian'an Yang Gongrong" 8, "Jinxi Wang Gongying" 9, marked "original lack" 10, "Wenjiang Qiangongxi ceremony". This is exactly the image pattern of the "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" in Xu Lun's (1487-1559) "Second Garden Collection" (Fig. 2). "Second Garden Collection" is now in the Library of Congress.

Figure 2: Ming "Second Garden Collection" Collection of the Library of Congress

Figure 2: Ming "Second Garden Collection" Collection of the Library of Congress

The so-called "Mingxian Poetry Club" volume was written by friends of Huang Yujie (Rongshi), followed by Chen Wenshu, Cai Shaoshu, Dai Xi (1801-1860), Liang Tingnan (1796-1861), Chen Feng (1810-1882) ), Chen Zuozhou (1788-?), Chen Qikun (date of birth and death unknown, active in Jiaqing and Daoguang). Except Chen Wenshu and Dai Xi are from Hangzhou, Cai Shaoshu is from Gui'an County (now Nanxun District, Huzhou City, Zhejiang), and the rest are Cantonese. Liang Tingnan and Chen Feng are both scholars. It can be considered that from Chen Yixi in the Kangxi period to Chen Qikun in the Daoguang period, the first half of the so-called "Mingxian Poetry Club" volume cannot be identified as the famous "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" volume. But no one in this reading system recognized that this image pattern originated from the "Apricot Garden" by Xie Huan, a court painter in the Ming Dynasty. At least, scholars and artists from Zhejiang and Guangdong have no relevant knowledge. Although they have distinguished that the two groups of figures belong to different periods and may be two paintings, they have not achieved the same progress as Weng Fanggang, who was also in the Qing Dynasty.

Huang Yujie's original line drawing of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" (titled "Mingxian Poetry Club") has disappeared today, but the painting was recorded by Fang Ruiyi (1815-1889) and was copied by his screen friends Tang Dunzhi and Xu Shuping. Gao Shiqi (1645-1704) compiled the "Dream Garden Calligraphy and Painting Records" based on the example of "Jiangcun Sales Xia Lu".

(three)

However, Weng Fanggang (1733-1818), who was active in the Qianlong (1736-1795) and Jiaqing (1796-1820) periods of the Qing Dynasty, was more than Chen Yixi in the Kangxi period (1662-1722) and Huang Yujie and his friends in the Daoguang period (1821-1850). Fortunately, in 1791, he saw the "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" volume (now in the Zhenjiang Museum, referred to as Zhenjiang Ben) collected by Chu Pengling (?-1825), and wrote a long inscription for this. The introduction of this painting has four big characters "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection", from which it is easy to think of the "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" mentioned by Huang Zuo (1490-1566) in the book "Hanlin Ji" in the Ming Dynasty :

In March of the second year of the orthodox year, the members of the pavilion passed through the Yanji Collection of Apricot Garden where Yang Rong lived, and wrote poems into a volume. The forerunners were Sanyang, Erwang, Qian Xili, Li Shimian, Zhou Shu, Chen Xun, and Xie Tingxun, a thousand householders in Jinyi. Glory resumed the question thereafter. People keep a copy, which is also the lingering cloud of Luoshe.

In fact, Zhenjiang Edition provides all the poems and inscriptions. As an erudite Weng Fanggang, he will soon be able to think of Yang Rong's article "Aftermath of the Elegant Collection of Xingyuan" compiled by Huang Zongxi (1610-1695) in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. He Tongshu Volume 344 received Li Dongyang's article "After the Book and Xingyuan Elegant Collection". Also in the forty-third volume of "Huangming Wenheng" edited by Cheng Minzheng (1446-1499), Yang Rong's "Aftermath of the Apricot Garden" is also included. Of course, he can also find Yang Shiqi's "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" on the "Sequel to the East" published by Yang Shiqi's descendants (Weng Fanggang mentioned Yang Shiqi's "Dongli Collection" and Wang Zhi's "Yi'an Collection" in the long postscript , it should be "The Sequel to the East"). These materials were enough for Weng Fanggang to write a textual inscription in the fifty-sixth year of Qianlong (1792).

Wu Songfen, a Taiwanese scholar, once wrote three papers discussing the "Apricot Garden Collection", she said: "At present, the "Apricot Garden Collection" circulating in the world includes the Zhenjiang Museum edition, Weng Wange edition and "Er Garden Collection". Three editions, including prints." Weng Fanggang saw at the home of Chu Pengling (?-1825) and is now in the collection of Zhenjiang City Museum in Jiangsu Province. There are ten figures in the engravings. Now, Weng Wangeben's "Apricot Garden" in the Metropolitan Museum of America has nine figures, but the artist Xie Huan himself is missing. The "Apricot Garden Collection" in the print form of "Second Garden Collection" is highly consistent with the Zhenjiang edition's "Apricot Garden Collection" except for the difference in clothing. And Huang Yujie's collection of line drawing "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" is exactly the pattern of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" in the print edition "Second Garden Collection".

From the perspective of the history of image concept, Weng Fanggang has effectively constructed the basic understanding of the "Xingyuan Yajitu", and it is still continuing. Regarding Zhenjiang's "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" [Figure 3], Weng Fanggang identified the following concepts:

1. Xingyuan Gathering has existed historically.

2. This activity has pictures handed down from generation to generation.

3. The author of the picture is Xie Huan, a painter who was working in the court at that time. This person is not recorded in the history of painting.

4. The gathering was called by Yang Rong, the owner of the garden.

5. The address of Xingyuan is unknown, and Weng Fanggang has not been able to research it, but can only confirm that it is in Dongcheng.

6. Yang Shiqi, Wang Zhi, Qian Xili, and Wang Ying all lived in Xicheng, about five or six miles west of Chang'anmen.

7. There is no doubt that this "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" is authentic and has been passed down to Yang Rong's descendants.

8. Weng Fanggang failed to research Xie Huan's life.

It is certain that there is a brief biography of Xie Huan in Peiwenzhai Painting and Calligraphy, which was written in the forty-seventh year of Kangxi (1708), but Weng Fanggang should not have seen it. This brief biography is quoted from "The Sequel to the East" and "The History of Painting". The five-volume "Painting History Huiyao" was compiled by Zhu Mouya in the late Ming Dynasty. It was written in the fourth year of Chongzhen (1631) and was written in the style of Tao Zongyi's "Shu Shi Hui Yao". "Painting History Hui Yao" said: "Xie Huan , courtesy name Tingxun, a native of Yongjia. Shanshui Zong Jing Hao, Guan Tong, Mi Fu. Dongli Yang Shaoshi said that he was clear and concise, so his views were more important than that at the time. There is a "Jade Mountain Map" handed down." From this point of view , Weng Fanggang did not see the Ming edition of "Painting History Huiyao".

Figure 3: Ming Xiehuan's "Apricot Garden" Collection of Zhenjiang Museum

Figure 3: Ming Xiehuan's "Apricot Garden" Collection of Zhenjiang Museum

Figure 3: Ming Xiehuan's "Apricot Garden" Collection of Zhenjiang Museum

Figure 3: Ming Xiehuan's "Apricot Garden" Collection of Zhenjiang Museum

According to Wu Songfen's speculation, the original print version of "Apricot Garden" may be the collection of Chen Xun's descendants. This speculation may be true. Chen Yiyue, a descendant of Chen Xun during the Wanli period, who was the prefect of Tongren, Guizhou, compiled the "Fangzhou Collection" for Chen Xun. Those who have been sent to the emperor, after they have been collected and scattered, only have one ear." Chen Xun was sent to Tieling in the northeast by the court during the restoration of Yingzong, and his family was ruined.

Weng Wangeben's "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" model was read in the tenth year of Jiaqing (1805) in the Qing Dynasty, and Zhang Jian (1768-1850) from Wucheng, Zhejiang wrote "Thousand Households in Ming Brocade Clothes" in "The Second Collection of the Holly House". According to Wu Songfen's research, Xie Tingxun's painting of the elegant collection of Xingyuan, it is "highly likely" that what Zhang Jian saw was Weng's book. After that, Weng Tonghe saw this pattern in the fourteenth year of Guangxu (1888). There is no Xie Huan in Weng Wangeben's "Apricot Garden", which is inconsistent with the description of Yang Rong and Xie Huan. It can be considered that the "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" painted with ten people should be the "original" model. This is consistent with Yang Rong's account. Therefore, Weng Wangeben's "Apricot Garden" with nine figures is inconsistent with this, so it will not be discussed here.

The pattern of the print edition was read during the Kangxi and Daoguang periods, and the scroll paintings of the line drawing edition ("Mingxian Poetry Club") also continued this pattern. If we apply the number of people mentioned by Chen Wenshu during the Daoguang period and the expressions of "zhangfu" and "casual clothes", the two image modes of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" can be summarized as follows [Table 1]:

Table 1: Information comparison of various editions of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Tu"

After sorting out the two modes of "Xingyuan Yaji Tu", we want to interpret the identity mode of the picture. That is to say, the Zhenjiang edition of the "Apricot Garden Collection", the print edition of the "Xingyuan Yajitu", and the "Xingyuan Yajitu" (the first half of "Mingxian Poetry Club") found in the described line drawing have roughly the same In the same mode, the biggest difference between them is in "chapter clothes" and "casual clothes". The difference between Zhenjiang Ben and the latter two lies in the presence or absence of name lists. According to Yang Rong's article, "The ten people are all dressed in elegant clothes and show off their hair." Therefore, the print version of "Apricot Garden" is closer to the original model. Except for the casual clothes, the rest of the Zhenjiang version of "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" is closer to the coloring of the original work. Weng's book is the furthest from the original model, and is not even closely related. Therefore, to discuss the imaginary Xie Huan's "Xingyuan Elegant Collection", it is easy to solve the problems that will be involved. Two types of facsimiles are used to present the meaning of the original.

2. "Apricot Garden" and "Jiangxi Civilian Group"

(one)

It must be pointed out that the "Apricot Garden" itself is an image rather than a history. The presented scene is not a documentary photography, the actual gathering scene should be transformed into the long scroll form of traditional calligraphy and painting. Therefore, it is the pictorial expression of the scroll. The real elegant gathering scenes are not lined up, forming a long narrow space that stretches from right to left. The three-dimensional space is adjusted in the flat frame of the banner, and the picture is like an extension and expansion of a long shot of a movie. Let the viewer be in a state of "tourism", and let the vision and mind be restored to the original three-dimensional space through the plane. The long scroll is a stage, and the characters are like actors. Dramatic effects permeate the picture.

The Arhat bed, table and chairs in the painting, including incense set, tea set, wine set, stationery and other items should be pre-arranged. These items are not suitable for long-term storage in the open air. They should be moved from indoor to outdoor. It is understood as the requirement of painting. The most suitable items for long-term outdoor placement are mostly stone materials, such as stone tables and stone chairs. The indoor utensils are placed outdoors, and the solemnity and drama of the elegant collection are presented at the same time.

Outdoor plants, animals, flowing water, stone screens, small bridges and other objects have the characteristics of private gardens. Aside from the costumes of the characters, looking at these elements alone does not determine whether the owner is a hermit or an official. The "zhangfu" officials who filled the garden immediately determined the nature of the garden (Figure 4).

Figure 4: Zhenjiang version of "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" (part), the display scene is collected by Zhenjiang Museum

From a historical perspective, where exactly is Yang Rong's apricot orchard located in Beijing? Weng Fanggang took the test to find out the approximate location, in the East City of Beijing. Yang Rong, known as "Dongyang", naturally lives in Dongcheng. Weng Fanggang said: "There is a sentence in the volume of 'Beauty in the East City', then Jian'an Yanggong Apricot Garden should be in the east corner of the city." Sun Chengze of the Qing Dynasty wrote in the "Chunming Dream Yulu": "Yang Wenmin (Yang Rong) Xingyuan: Wenmin is driving north, giving Wangfu Street next to Xingdi, and it will become a forest after a long time." The specific location of Wangfu Street, the result of the textual research in the "Jingshifang Lane Chronicle" by Zhu Yixin, a scholar in the late Qing Dynasty, is in Taiji. factory. In the Ming Dynasty, it should belong to Nanxunfang. Yang Rong has accompanied him on several expeditions to the north, but he does not know what year the apricot orchard was given by Zhu Di, the ancestor of Ming Chengzu (Figure 5).

Figure 5: Map of Beijing in Ming Dynasty and the location of the apricot orchard

(two)

The civil officials in the picture are divided into three groups. The figures in the middle group are the core part of the scroll painting. Among the three groups of figures, the central figures in the middle group are Doctor Ronglu, Shaofu, Minister of War and scholar of Huagaidian University. Yang Shiqi. Yang Shiqi is the most distinguished guest in this elegant gathering. On the left of Yang is the owner of the garden, doctor Ronglu, young master, minister of the Ministry of Industry and a scholar of the temple. Yang Shiqi and Yang Rong were both civil servants from the first rank, but Yang Shiqi was the first assistant in the cabinet at that time. To the right of Yang Shiqi is the official fourth-rank official, Zhan Shifu, Shao Zhan Shifu Wang Zhihe (Editor's Note: "He Dao" is combined into one word, the same below) (1379-1462). Yang Shiqi lived in Jinchengfang, Xicheng, Beijing from the nineteenth year of Yongle (1421). His home was five or six miles west of Chang'anmen. In addition, according to Wang Zhi's "Migration and Poetry Preface", "Mr. Yang Shiqi lives in Jinchengfang in Xicheng." Wang Zhi lived in the opposite door of Yang Shiqi since the 21st year of Yongle (1423). The man opposite Yang Shiqi's residence was Wang Lu, a member of the Criminal Division. He left Beijing in the 21st year of Yongle to worship the Shaanxi Councillor. On June 2 of the same year, Wang Zhi moved to Wang Lu's old house and lived opposite Yang Shiqi. Later, Yang Shiqi and Wang Zhi both moved out of Jinchengfang and went to Qingchengfang. Wang Zhi (He Dao) once said: "I have been in the capital for 20 years since I was in the official capital. ... Gongzai's brother's work was edited by the Hanlin, and he lived with Yu in the Clarification Square, which is very different." Clarifying Fang, this is what Weng Fanggang did not research, and he still set Yang Shiqi's residence at Jinchengfang in the late Yongle period. Wang Zhi said in the "Preface to Send Li Tong Sentenced and Reinstated": "After a long time, Mr. Yang entered the Ministry of War and the Grand Scholar of Huagai Palace, and moved to the Qingmingfang. Xun Ru is the long history of Yuefu, and the great use is Yingtianfu. After passing the judgment, Chaozong went to teach in Jiujiang, Zongru returned with old age and illness. Yu, Shiyan and Zonglian moved to Chunfang, and they learned Kui and rituals and used them in the Hanlin. The people who were with him at the same time dispersed. The merits have also moved to the east, and all their residences have changed hands.” Yang Shiqi and Wang Zhi have always had daily exchanges, and on the fifteenth day of the first month of the fourth year of Xuande (1429), the two went to the market to watch the lights together, and Yang Shiqi also brought them with him. His two sons, Yang (He Dao) and Yang Yu, were only nine years old at the time. It can be speculated that now Yang Shiqi and Wang Zhi (He Dao) came to Yang Rong's apricot garden together (Figure 6).

Figure 6: From left to right in the middle part of Zhenjiang's "Apricot Garden" are Yang Rong, Yang Shiqi and Wang Zhi

The second group of characters on the left are Wang Ying (1376-1449), a civil official of the "Zheng Sipin", Da Zongbo of the "Zheng Erpin", Yang Pu (1372-1446), the Minister of Rites, and Qian Xi, a student of the "Cong Wupin". Li (1373-1461). Yang Pu was in the middle, Wang Ying and Qian Xili were sitting on the left and right. Yang Pu's specific residence is unknown. He is called "Nan Yang" and should live in Nancheng. Yang Pu worked with Chen Xun in the early years of Xuande, and it is estimated that he was living in Nanxunfang at this time. Wang Ying and Qian Xili both lived in Jinchengfang in Xicheng when they first came to Beijing, and they were neighbors with Yang Shiqi. Wang Zhi (He Dao) lived in Dongcheng, so he was called "East King", and Wang Ying was called "West King". Perhaps Wang Ying was still living in Jinchengfang at this time. From this, we can further infer that Wang Ying and Qian Xili should have also come to Xingyuan together (Figure 7).

Figure 7: From left to right, the second group of characters in Zhenjiang's "Apricot Garden" are Wang Ying, Yang Pu, and Qian Xili

The third group of figures are Zhou Shu (?-1439), Li Shimian (1374-1450) and Chen Xun (1385-1462), a total of three. Zhou Shu once lived in Jinchengfang, next to Yang Shiqi, but his current residence is unknown. Li Shimian's residence at this time is also unknown. Chen Xun lived in the west of Yuhe Bridge from the early years of Xuande, belonging to Nanxunfang, and moved to a point west of Yuhe Bridge, close to the South City Wall, both residences were given by Xuanzong of the Ming Dynasty. Judging from the picture, at least Zhou Shu entered the Xingyuan at the same time as Li Shimian and Chen Xun, giving a visual impression of an appointment. Zuo Shuzi Zhou Shu, Li Shimian, a scholar of the study, and Chen Xun, a scholar of the lecture, they are all civil officials of the "Zhengwupin" and "Congwupin". They both worked in the Hanlin Academy at the same time, making it easier to connect (Figure 8).

Figure 8: From left to right, the third group of characters in Zhenjiang Edition's "Apricot Garden" are Zhou Shu, Li Shimian, and Chen Xun

Judging from the residences that can be tested, there are five people in the picture who used to live in Jinchengfang, Beijing, and they are all Yang Shiqi's neighbors. Yang Shiqi, Wang Zhi (He Dao), Wang Ying, Qian Xili, and Zhou Shu, who used to live in Jinchengfang, have been in contact for a long time. Although they may not all live together at this time, it is more likely that they will come to Yang Rong's apricot orchard. You can make an appointment with Yang Rong to come to the elegant gathering the day before the meeting (Picture 9).

Figure 9-1: The living location of the participants in the 21st year of Yongle (produced by Shao Jun)

The painter Xie Huan is independent of the three groups. According to Yang Rong, Xie Huan came last. Xie Huan once lived in Zhaohuifang. Hu Yan's (1360-1443) "Le Jingzhai Ji" said that Xie Huan "resides in the Zhaohui Square in Beijing today", that is, the east side of Nanluogu Lane in the Dongcheng District of Beijing today, and the Jinggong Square on the west side. Hu Yan's statement about "Zhaohuifang" follows the old theory of the Yuan Dynasty. In the early Ming Dynasty, Zhaohui Square and Jinggong Square were combined into one square, that is, Zhaohui Jinggong Square.

Figure 9-2: The living location of the participants in the second year of Orthodoxy (produced by Shao Jun)

(three)

From the images, none of the participants in Xingyuan Gathering were civil officials from northern China, such as Northern Zhili, Shandong, Shanxi and Henan. The 1499 "Bamboo Garden Shou Ji Tu" features civil servants from Shandong, Shanxi and Henan. Although Ming Chengzu Zhu Di (1360-1424) began to crack down on the southern landlord groups after 1403, the gathering in Beijing in 1437 was dominated by civilian officials from southern China. Among the southerners, there are no civil servants from today's Zhejiang, Anhui and Jiangsu regions. Except for Yang Rong, the owner of the garden, who is from Jian'an, Fujian (now in Jian'ou City), among the other eight participants, Yang Pu is from Huguang. Shishou people, the rest are all from Jiangxi:

Yang Shiqi is from Taihe County, Jiangxi Province.

Wang Zhi is from Taihe County, Jiangxi Province.

Chen Xun was born in Taihe County, Jiangxi Province.

Wang Ying is from Jinxi County, Jiangxi Province.

Qian Xili was born in Jishui County, Jiangxi Province.

Li Shimian was born in Anfu County, Jiangxi Province.

Zhou Shu, a native of Jishui County, Jiangxi Province.

This combination piqued my interest. This is not an elegant gathering of the patriarchs in the ordinary sense. Weng Fanggang's poem in the title and postscript of Zhenjiang's "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" contains the sentence "Seven sages help Jiangxi". Zhang Jian (1768-1850), the author of "The Second Collection of the Holly House", pointed out keenly in "Illustrations of the Collection of Xie Tingxun's Paintings in the Apricot Garden of Ming Jinyi Thousand Households", "Of the nine people, seven of them are all in Jiangxi, and many of them are in the same year. Three Yangs and Two Yangs also served as the same officials in the same year, and Yaji is not a generalist.” If the subject of Xie Huan's "Apricot Garden Collection" is from a mixed province, we can basically assume that this is a holiday collection of ordinary courtiers. For example, the courtiers depicted by Lv Wenying and Lv Ji's "Bamboo Garden Shouji Tu" (Fig. 10) in 1499, Zhou Jing (1440-1510) came from Shanxi, Tu Hu (1440-1512) and Min Gui (1430-1512) 1511) from Zhejiang, Lu Zhong (1440-1511) from Shandong, Xu Jin (1437-1510), Li Mengyang (1432-1509), Wang Ji (date of birth and death unknown) from Henan, Gu Zuo (1443-1509) and Qin Minyue (1436-1512) was from Anhui, and Wu Kuan (1435-1504) was from Suzhou Prefecture in southern Zhili. Similarly, the figures shown in another elegant collection map "Ten Years of the Same Year" (Figure 11) made in 1503 also came from different provinces. Li Dongyang (1447-1515), a scholar at the Imperial Palace of the Ministry of Household Affairs, was from Beijing, Dai Shan (1437-1505), the left capital of the Imperial Court, was from Fuliang (now Jingdezhen), Jiangxi Province, and Liu Daxia (1436-1516), the minister of military affairs, was from Huguang Huarong (now part of Hunan), Minister of Punishment Min Gui was from Wucheng (now Wuxing), Zhejiang, Zeng Jian (1434-1507) of Minister of Engineering was from Huguang Guiyang (now part of Hunan), and Wang Shi (1439— 1506) from Huguang Public Security Bureau (now Hubei), Jiao Fang (1435-1517), the left servant of the Ministry of Personnel, from Biyang, Henan, Chen Qing (1438-1521), the right servant of the Ministry of Household, from Yidu, Shandong, Xie Duo (1435), the right servant of the Ministry of Rites Year-1510) from Taiping, Zhejiang, and Zhang Da (1432-1505), the right servant of the Ministry of Industry, from Taihe, Jiangxi. All ten people were Jiashenke Jinshi in the eighth year of Tianshun Yingzong (1464), that is, the "same year". Nine of them, including Li Dongyang, worked in Beijing, while Wang Shi worked in Nanjing. On March 25, the sixteenth year of Hongzhi (1503), when Wang Shi came to court, ten people gathered at Min Gui's house.

Figure 10: Ming Lu Wenying and Lu Ji's Collection of Longevity in the Bamboo Garden, collected by the Palace Museum

Figure 11: Ming Dynasty "Ten Years of the Same Year" Collection of the Palace Museum

Not only that, the Jiangxi civil servants in the "Apricot Garden" come from a more concentrated area. Except for Wang Ying, who came from Fuzhou Prefecture, which is adjacent to Ji'an Prefecture, the Jiangxi civil servants who participated in the Xingyuan Gathering were all from Ji'an Prefecture, concentrated in Taihe County, Jishui County and Anfu County [Table 2].

Table 2: The regions of Jiangxi civil servants in the "Apricot Garden"

Yang Shiqi, Wang Zhi, Chen Xun, Zhou Shu, Qian Xili, and Li Shimian were six fellows from Ji'an Prefecture, Jiangxi Province. Wang Zhi and Chen Xun, like Yang Shiqi, were all fellow villagers in Taihe County, Ji'an Prefecture. Wang Zhi's family and Yang Shiqi's family have been friends from generation to generation. "Yang's family lived in Taihe for four hundred years. The two gates were close to each other, and they had friends from generation to generation, and their marriage was cured." Chen Xun's uncle Chen Yijing and Yang Shiqi belonged to the same family. Emperor Zhu Di of Yongle marched north, with Prince Zhu Gaochi supervising the country in Nanjing, while Huang Huai, Yang Shiqi and Wang Zhi stayed in Hanlin to help the crown prince. Therefore, they all belong to the civil servants of the "Prince Faction" and have accumulated a solid political foundation. Chen Xun was not a Jinshi in the second year of Yongle (1404), he was a Jinshi in the thirteenth year of Yongle (1415), and ranked first in the palace examination. The chief examiner of the meeting was Yang Shiqi's in-law, Hanlin Xiuzhuan Liang Qian, who was also from Taihe County, Ji'an Prefecture. Chen Xun later became the attendant of Ming Chengzu Zhu Di. At the time of the gathering in Xingyuan, he was a bachelor of lecturer (from the fifth grade) of the Hanlin Academy, and was the youngest civil servant in the gathering, at the age of fifty-three.

In "Xingyuan Elegant Collection", Wang Ying (1376-1449), Wang Zhi (1379-1462), Li Shimian (1374-1450), Zhou Shu (?-1439), they are not only from Jiangxi, but also In 1404 (the second year of Yongle), Jinshi of the same department ("the same year") had a very close relationship. The main examiners of this year's meeting are Xie Jin and Huang Huai, and Yang Shiqi is the paper reader. Zhou Shu, Wang Ying, Wang Zhi, Li Shimian and other twenty-nine scholars entered Wenyuan Pavilion to study in the first month of the third year of Yongle (1405), and were called "Twenty-Eight Residents" (Zhou Chen was added later, which was actually 29 people) . In the fifth year of Yongle (1407), Wang Zhi and Wang Ying were appointed officials for the Hanlin Academy (from the sixth grade). In February of the first year of Hongxi (1425), Wang Zhi mentioned that Wang Ying was a senior scholar of Zuo Chunfang (the fifth grade), Wang Zhi was the son of Youchunfang (the fifth grade), and Zhou Shu was the Zuoyu of Zuo Chunfang. De (from the fifth grade) and Li Shimian were the attendants (the sixth grade). Wang Zhi and Wang Ying, who were in the second year of orthodoxy, were already civil officials of the fourth rank - Shao Zhan Shi of Zhan Shifu. At this time, Zhou Shu was Zuo Shuzi (Zhengwu Rank), and Li Shimian was a bachelor (from 5th Rank). Yang Shiqi formed a close teacher-student relationship with Zhou Shu, Wang Ying, Wang Zhi, and Li Shimian. Although Wang Ying is not Yang Shiqi's hometown in Ji'an, he is a big hometown. The key point is that his relationship with Yang Shiqi is the relationship between "student" and prospective "mentor".

Above, we have made a double expression of "history" and "painting".

(Four)

Since 1402, when King Zhu Di of Yan defeated Zhu Yunwen (1377-?) and captured Nanjing, the pattern of civil servants has changed a lot. Jiangxi Civilian Group gradually replaced Zhejiang Civilian Group. During the period of Zhu Yuanzhang, the warriors mainly used the Anhui system, and the literati mainly used the Zhejiang system. The literati landlords of the Jiangsu system (then Su-Song areas) were initially excluded because of Zhang Shicheng (1321-1367), and this situation did not change until the middle and late Ming Dynasty. Zhao Yi of the Qing Dynasty was also involved in the "Notes on the Twenty-two Histories".

The Zhejiang Civilian Group was represented by Song Lian (1310-1381) and Liu Ji (1311-1375). Later, the civil servants of the Zhejiang Department were attacked, but in the period of Emperor Hui of the Ming Dynasty Zhu Yunwen (1398-1402), Song Lian's student Fang Xiaoru (1357-1402) He was employed by Ming Huizong and became the spiritual leader of the civil servants. In the cabinet after 1403, except Huang Huai (1367-1449) who was from Zhejiang and Yang Rong who was from Fujian, the other five members were Xie Jin (1369-1415), Hu Guang (1369-1418), Yang Shiqi, Jin Youzi ( 1367-1431) and Hu Yan (1360-1443) were both from Jiangxi. During the 42 years from 1403 to the year of Yang Shiqi's death in 1444, except for Yang Rong who served as the first assistant for 6 years, the other three Jiangxi natives, Xie Jin, Hu Guang and Yang Shiqi, served as the cabinet leaders. auxiliary. It can be said that in the civil service pattern since Zhu Di came to power, the civil service bureaus from Jiangxi were the dominant ones, with a weak element of Fujian and Zhejiang (Huang Huai represented Zhejiang and Yang Rong represented Fujian).

From the Yongle period (1403-1424), the Jiangxi Civilian Group gradually gained political advantages, as well as literary advantages. The so-called "Taiwan style" literature is the Jiangxi style literature represented by Yang Shiqi. However, Jiangxi Civilian Group did not gain absolute advantage in calligraphy and painting. Although Su Shi (1037-1101) and other civil service groups in the late Northern Song Dynasty did not gain political advantages, they achieved absolute advantages recognized by later generations in literature, calligraphy and painting. The "Wu Tonghui Tu" in 1503 reflects some of the advantages of the civil service group in Jiangsu in the mid-Ming Dynasty, but it still cannot be compared with the absolute advantage of the Jiangxi civil service group shown in the "Xingyuan Yaji Tu" in 1437.

"Apricot Garden" just shows the strong position of Jiangxi civil officials in the court. In the previous "Fragrant Mountain Jiu Lao Tu" and "Xiyuan Yaji Tu", the regional colors of "Jiu Lao" and civil officials were very mixed, not as clear and prominent as "Xingyuan Yaji Tu", which is based on Jiangxi An elegant collection with civil servants as the core.

As early as 1422, the "Xicheng Banquet" in Beijing was also an elegant gathering with Jiangxi Hanlin officials as the core. There were 17 people who participated in the "Xicheng Banquet", except for Yang Shiqi, which was basically in 1404 (the second year of Yongle). jinshi group. Attending this elegant gathering were Zeng Di (1372-1432), Wang Ying, Yu Xuekui, Qian Xili, Zhang Zonglian, Chen Xun, Zhou Chen, Peng Xianren, Zhou Xu, Hu Wei, Liu Chaozong, Yu Zhengan, Xiao Xingshen ( The above are from Jiangxi, 14 people), Chen Jingzong, Gui Zongru, Zhang Chang (the above are from Zhejiang, 3 people). Among them, Hu Huang was the son of the cabinet minister Hu Guang, who entered the Hanlin Academy in 1418. Hu Guang was the earliest cabinet minister in the Yongle period, and he was also a native of Jiangxi. Hu Guang was the chief assistant of the cabinet from February of the fifth year of Yongle (1407) to the death of May of the sixteenth year (1418). Yang Shiqi, Wang Ying, Qian Xili and Chen Xun who participated in the "Xicheng Banquet" participated in the famous "Xingyuan Gathering" 15 years later. Yang Shiqi wrote a poem "Preface to Xicheng Banquet" for "Xicheng Banquet", which was included in his "Dongli Collection". Since there was no artist involved in this collection, no images were handed down. It can be seen from this that Yang Shiqi's Jiangxi civil servants were based on the Jinshi group who took the imperial examination in 1404 (the second year of Yongle). They not only participated in the "Xicheng Banquet", but some of them also participated in the "Xingyuan Gathering" in the future. In the two elegant gatherings, there were a group of scholars from Jiangxi who belonged to the same discipline in 1404. The venue for this elegant gathering was the private residence of Chen Jingzong[21], a native of Cixi County, Ningbo Prefecture, Zhejiang Province.

This cannot be a coincidence, but an intentional arrangement. In a sense, this Gathering can be understood as a "community gathering" with a hidden nature, which is completely different from another public gathering. Circa 1503, "Five Tonghui Tu" [Fig. 12] shows the gathering of civil officials from Suzhou Prefecture in Beijing. Wu Kuan (1435-1504), Wang Shu (1450-1524), Chen Ju (1440-1506), Li Jie (1443-1517), Wu Hong (1445-1522) were from Changzhou and Wuxian County, both of which belonged to Suzhou Prefecture. , Changshu and Wujiang. This is definitely a hometown gathering. As in the "Xicheng Banquet" held by Yang Shiqi at Chen Jingzong's home in 1422, fourteen of the seventeen were from Jiangxi. The other three are from Zhejiang. The chosen meeting place was not a hometown in Jiangxi or his own home, but the private residence of Chen Jingzong, a native of Zhejiang.

Figure 12: Ming Dynasty "Five Congregational Associations" Collection of the Palace Museum

From the poems and prose of the patriarchs of the pavilion, it is not clear who the initiator of this elegant gathering is. Weng Fanggang later identified the initiator as Yang Rong. Because Yang Rong is the owner of the garden, he is naturally regarded as the initiator of Yaji. The so-called "Guange lords have given to each other" seems to be understood to mean that the guange lords came to Yang Rong's apricot orchard, and did not disclose the information that Yang Rong took the initiative to invite the guange lords. The public reasons for going to Yang Rong’s house for the party: 1. This is the season when the apricot flowers are blooming. Yang Rong’s apricot orchard is famous for its apricot trees and it is the best place to appreciate the red apricot flowers. 2. Yang Rong’s apricot orchard is in the Near the Taiji Factory a little east of Chang'anmen, the location is relatively central, which is very convenient for civil servants from different directions.

It is understandable that this time, Yang Shiqi, the elegant gathering of Xingyuan, took advantage of Yang Rong’s (Fujian) private garden, Xingyuan, and made an appointment with Yang Pu, and the holiday party was not a holiday party for the civil ministers of the imperial court in the general sense, but a hidden one. A gathering of fellow villagers of the Jiangxi Civilian Group of Colors. Seven Jiangxi people and two non-Jiangxi cabinet ministers jointly held the Apricot Garden Gathering. The actual leader of the Jiangxi Civilian Group is Yang Shiqi. This painting highlights the regional characteristics of Ming politics at that time.

The central paragraph is highlighted in the three paragraphs of "Apricot Garden", and Yang Shiqi is highlighted in the central paragraph. Although Yang Shiqi and Yang Rong belonged to the same "cong Yipin" civil servant at this time, because Yang Shiqi was the former teacher of Ming Renzong Zhu Gaochi (1378-1425) and Ming Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji (1398-1435), he accompanied these two at that time for many years. The crown prince and his son stayed in Nanjing and had a very close relationship. Yang Shiqi became the de facto chief minister of the cabinet from 1424 to 1444. In 1437, Yang Shiqi's political life was at its peak. At this time, Ming Yingzong Zhu Qizhen (1427-1464) was only ten years old, and the whole country was under the control of Renzong Empress Zhang (?-1442) and the civil service group led by Yang Shiqi. Therefore, the convener of this elegant gathering may be Yang Shiqi, who is sitting in the center, with the highest status (Shoufu) and the oldest (73 years old). Yang Shiqi had the habit of using other people's private houses to hold elegant gatherings. In 1422 and 1437, the two "gracious gatherings" with the color of "Jiangxi Civilian Group" were not held at Yang Shiqi's house, but at Chen Jingzong and Chen Jingzong from Zhejiang. It was held at the private residence of Yang Rong from Fujian. Another point is more important, these two important "gatherings" were not arranged in the private residence of any civil servant from Jiangxi, which shows that Yang Shiqi's intentions are very deep.

From a textual point of view, both Yang Shiqi and Yang Rong's prefaces highlight political implications. Yang Shiqi said at the beginning: "The gentleman in ancient times, he lived alone for a day and forgot the world and the country." Yang Rong said at the end: "I am grateful and report it, because of feasts and abstain from idleness, even though I am old , I hope that the princes will give encouragement later!" The beginning and the end are all political expressions. The same meaning can be read from every poem.

Judging from the images, it seems that the costumes of the characters in the "Apricot Garden Collection" (Fig. 13) in the print edition are more in line with the description in Yang Rong's preface. Clothes are often associated with the bureaucracy and represent the political and social relations and status of the characters. In the Daoguang period, the line drawing book still maintains the pattern of "dressing with dignity". And in Yang Rong's "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Map", the official position of each person is particularly emphasized - Duke Yang of Bonan County, Shao Zhan, Prince of Linchuan, Duke Wenjiang Qian of Shidu, Duke Zhou of Jishui, Zuo Shuzi, Shidu Bachelor An Cheng Li Gong, serving as a bachelor? And Chen Gong, and finally Xie Jun, his official Jinyiwei, thousands of households. Such a strict hierarchy, it seems that this is not the sequence of friends but the sequence of officialdom. This is different from the rule of the nine elders in Huichang, where the ranks of the nine elders are not ordered by their years, but they deliberately emphasize their in-service status, highlighting that this is not an elegant gathering for retirement, but a holiday gathering for serving civil servants and government affairs. The name of the gathering is similar to "Xiyuan Gathering", the number and month of the gathering are similar to the "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui", and the main body of the gathering is the "Jiangxi Civilian Group" headed by Yang Shiqi and two other important civil servants. All of them are serving ministers.

Figure 13: Comparison of chapter clothes and casual clothes

Why did the gathering of a "Jiangxi Civilian Group" take such a covert form? What political situation has led to this covert state? Is it to hide the color of Jiangxi by expressing the ministers of the pavilion, is it to avoid the impeachment of the "party formation" of the fellow villagers? In addition to the hidden "Jiangxi Civilian Group", what else is hidden in the history and images of "Apricot Garden" and "Xingyuan Garden"?

3. The deep meaning of "Apricot Garden" and "Xingyuan Garden"

(one)

There is only one word difference between "Apricot Garden" and "West Garden". The "West Garden", which is said to be Wang Zheng, represents the past, while Yang Rong's "Apricot Garden" is the reality. For these civil servants who are very sensitive to words and semantics, it seems that it is not a simple word to use "Xingyuan" to correspond to "West Garden". game.

Since the concept of "Xiyuan Gathering" was ostensibly borrowed, in Yang Shiqi's time, how did the civil servants understand the Xiyuan Gathering? First of all, we should investigate whether Yang Shiqi and the civil servants who participated in the Xingyuan Gathering have the concept of "Xiyuan Gathering" and whether they have seen any form of "Xiyuan Gathering Picture" (Fig. 14).

Figure 14: A copy of Song Liu Songnian's "Elegant Collection of the West Garden" in the National Palace Museum, Taipei

Figure 14: A copy of Song Liu Songnian's "Elegant Collection of the West Garden" in the National Palace Museum, Taipei

There are many ways for Yang Shiqi to know about "Xiyuan Yaji" and "Xiyuan Yaji Tu". Yang Shiqi once read Huang Qian's (1277-1357) "Shugutang Ji", which is exactly the "Xiyuan Yaji". content. Huang Qian was a great scholar in the Yuan Dynasty and the teacher of Song Lian. In addition, Yang Shiqi has also read the poem written by Xiong Penglai (Tian Nuan) in Yuzhang for Li Gonglin's "The Elegant Collection of the West Garden". Xiong Penglai was a professor in Yang Shiqi's hometown of Luling County in Jiangxi during the Yuan Dynasty.

Yang Shiqi had seen a copy of Liu Songnian of Li Gonglin's "Elegant Collection of the West Garden" at the house of the Marquis of Guangping. He also mentioned that Fan Long and Zhao Boju, the painters of the Southern Song Dynasty, copied Li Gonglin's book. In the Battle of Jingnan, Yuan Rong, who followed Zhu Di and established military exploits, once married Zhu Di's daughter, Yong'an County Lord. Yuan Rong was named the Marquis of Guangping in the first year of Yongle, and at this time Yong'an County Lord was promoted to Yong'an Princess. Yuan Rongyue died in Xuande. In the spring of the 20th year of Yongle, Yuanrong, Hou of Guangping, was seriously ill, and the Taiyuan Hospital sentenced Jiang Yongwen to recover after several months of treatment. Yang Shiqi wrote an essay to praise Jiang Yongwen. Yang Shiqi may have had a positive relationship with the Marquis of Guangping and thus was able to view the works of Liu Songnian in his collection.

In addition, Zhu Mengyuan, a painter from Min County, Fujian, likes to paint "Xiyuan Elegant Collection". Zhu Mengyuan is described by the history of painting as a follower of Li Gonglin's figure painting style, and he is good at writing figures and horses. Yang Shiqi's junior fellow countryman and student Zeng Heling (1383-1441) was the champion of the nineteenth year of Yongle (1421) (Yang was the chief examiner of the nineteenth year of Yongle). Zeng Heling had seen Li Gonglin's "Li Gonglin" by the painter Zhu Mengyuan in Fujian. "The Elegant Collection of the West Garden". And Zhu Mengyuan Lin Li Gonglin's "Elegant Collection in the West Garden" that I have seen may be the same painting as Zhu Mengyuan's "Elegant Collection in the West Garden" collected by Yang Shiqi. Yang Shiqi's collection was donated by Chen Deng (Si Xiao), a member of Zhongshu She. Chen Deng was from Changle, Fujian (now Fuzhou), and died as an official during the Xuande period (1426-1435). During the Yongle period, he was recommended to the Hanlin Academy, and he was awarded the Zhongshu Sheren. The time when Chen Deng gifted Zhu Mengyuan's "The Elegant Collection of the West Garden" to Yang Shiqi should be between Yongle and Xuande, and it can be affirmed before the second year of Zhengtong (1437). It is said that the Fujian painter Zhu Mengyuan had contacts with the Hanlin Xiuzhuan Lin Zhi (1378-1427), the Zhongshushe Ren Chen Deng, and the Prince Shaofu Yang Rong. He may be a Fujian painter active in Beijing. Zhu Mengyuan was a follower of Li Gonglin's painting style. He once sent a copy of "Yuanming Returning and Returning" to Yang Rong, for which Yang wrote a postscript.

Both Yang Shiqi's collection and Zeng Heling's "Xiyuan Elegant Collection" by Zhu Mengyuan are painted with 16 figures. Obviously, Zeng Heling and Yang Shiqi are highly consistent in the reading and identification of the "Xiyuan Elegant Collection" painted (copied) by Zhu Mengyuan, a painter from Fujian County.

Table 3: Comparison of Yang Shiqi and Zeng Heling's Character Recognition in "The Elegant Collection of the West Garden"

It can be seen that the image recognition systems of Yang Shiqi and Zeng Heling came from the system of Huang Qian's "Shu Gu Tang Ji", and Huang's system came from Zheng Tianmin's description, not the system of Mi Fu's "Xiyuan Yaji Tu Ji". These two slightly different systems were slightly noticed during Wang Shizhen's time. In Qiu Yinglin's "Xiyuan Yaji Tu" inscribed by him, there was no Chen Shidao but Zheng Jiahui. Wang Shizhen had read the text of Yang Shiqi's postscript Zhu Mengyuan's "Xiyuan Elegant Collection", and noticed that there was Chen Shidao in Yang Shiqi's character sequence but not Zheng Jinglao (Jiahui). Wang Shizhen clearly pointed out that "this picture is also written by Qiu Yingshi's father in Wu County." Yang Shiqi mentioned that four characters, Zhang Lei, Li Zhiyi, Chen Shidao and Chao Buzhi, were missing from Liu Songnian's "Xiyuan Yaji Tu" that he saw at the house of Yuanrong, Hou of Guangping. This shows the difference between knowledge and image systems in the process of historical transmission. When Yang Shiqi mentioned Zhu Mengyuan's "Xiyuan Yaji Tu", "I have seen Xiong Tiannan's inscription on Bo Shi's poems in the West Garden and Huang Wenwengong's "Shugutang Ji". The document is based on Zheng Tianmin's record. In the Jiawu period, there is no doubt that it can be levied.”

Furthermore, Jiangxi civil servant and Hanlin minister Zou Ji had collected a piece of "The Elegant Collection of the West Garden", which Yang Rong and Jin Youzi had both seen and wrote inscriptions and poems for respectively. The painting is for twelve people. In other words, Yang Rong, the owner of Xingyuan Garden, also has the knowledge and concept of "Xiyuan Elegant Collection".

Whether it is "Shugutang Tu" or "Xiyuan Yaji Tu" in the writings of Yang Shiqi and Yang Rong in the Ming Dynasty, did they have political significance? This is critical.

(two)

After careful inspection, it can be seen that Xingyuan Yaji and Xiyuan Yaji are only similar in name and have no actual connection. Moreover, in the interpretation of Jiangxi civil servants, Xiyuan Gathering does not conform to the political meaning of the early years of orthodoxy. The name is close, the reality is far away. There are 16 people in Xiyuan Gathering, and 9 people in Xingyuan Gathering. In common, all painters are involved. There are Li Gonglin and Wang Xu in the elegant collection of Xiyuan, and Xie Huan (the only painter) in the collection of Xingyuan. It can be seen that the concept of "Xiyuan Yaji" seems to have the function of concealing the original intention of "Xingyuan Yaji".

Interestingly, the concept of Xingyuan Gathering seems to imitate Xiyuan Gathering on the surface, but in the poems it mentions the Fragrant Hills Jiu Laohui many times. Since the actual number of people who participated in the Xingyuan Gathering was ten people, there is a saying of "Ten Friends of Xingyuan Garden" in later generations, which downplayed the fact that the Xingyuan Gathering was actually a gathering of nine civil officials in the second year of the orthodox era. Xie Huan was a military attache at that time - Jin Yiwei Thousands of households. It can be seen that this elegant gathering is imitated by the Fragrant Hills Nine Elders Association. So, why did the nine civil servants revisit the Xiangshan Jiu Lao Hui in the Tang Dynasty?

Similarly, did the patriarchs who participated in this elegant gathering have the concept of "Fragrant Mountain Nine Elders Association" at that time? Yang Rong, the owner of the apricot orchard, has seen the "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain", which is a collection of Boyi Zhongtian, the head of the Ministry of War in Nanjing. In addition, Jiangxi civil officials Wang Zhi and Li Shimian, who have participated in the Xingyuan Gathering, have respectively seen the collection of Shao Xinzhi, a fellow in Suzhou Prefecture. Shi Mian has written inscriptions. Neither of the inscriptions mentioned who made the picture. It seems that Shao Xinzhi, a fellow confidant of Suzhou, showed "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain" to several Beijing officials, and Wang Zhi and Li Shimian both left records in their respective collections.

Does Yang Shiqi have the concept of "Fragrant Mountain Nine Elders"? On October 16, the 31st year of Hongwu (1398), Yang Shiqi compiled and wrote the preface to the Collection of Poems of Qi Le for his teacher Liang Lan (Ting Xiu). Liang Lan has been living in seclusion in his hometown of Taihe County. He is the father of Liang Qian, a Hanlin civil servant. Liang Lan's "Qile Poems" contains a poem "Nine Old Man":

Hao Shou received thanks and chose to chat with himself. The landscape is already good, but the spring sun is also late. Or a single father Qin, and even gambling on yellow chess. Enjoy the rest of the day, and shake Mu Yongxi. Pampering and humiliation can be forgotten, but the reason is ignorant. Tu Zizi Jue Chong, I am afraid that future generations will scoff. The majestic Weichuan Weng, holding a pole is not a chi.

From this, it can be considered that Yang Shiqi already had a clear concept of "Nine Elders of Fragrant Mountain" at the latest in 1398, and Yang Rong mentioned "Nine Elders of Fragrant Mountain" and "Jiying of Luoyang" in "Post-Preface to the Collection of Elegant Collection of Xingyuan". "These two concepts, and in the elegant poems, it is mentioned that "in memory of the Luo Zhonghui, the nine elders are all looking forward to it." At the same time, Zhou Shu, who participated in the "Xingyuan Elegant Collection", also mentioned in his poem that "Gao Feng is understandable and can be pursued, and is willing to merge with Luo Zhong".

In the texts of Yang Rong, Wang Zhi, and Li Shimian, there is little reference to the meaning of "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain" (Fig. 15) and their own candid understanding. Wang Zhi and Li Shimian also saw another painting of "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain" collected by Shao Xinzhi, a colleague of Suzhou Prefecture, and wrote inscriptions to it respectively. They also did not give a deeper interpretation than Yang Rong. The key point of their understanding was Bai Juyi's wisdom of "a gentleman who knows how to advance and retreat" and the moral mind of "graceful elegance". Carefully read Yang Rong, Wang Zhi and Li Shimian's inscriptions and postscripts to "Xiangshan Jiu Lao Tu", we can't see that they have any special understanding of the picture, and naturally they can't understand why "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" imitates "Xiangshan Jiu Lao Tu". The special intention of "hui" cannot decipher the deep meaning of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Picture".

Figure 15: Song Ma Xingzu's "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain" Collection of Freer Art Museum, USA

Figure 15: Song Ma Xingzu's "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain" Collection of Freer Art Museum, USA

There is no clear record in Yang Shiqi's anthology whether Yang Shiqi has seen the "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain". In addition to the above-mentioned three who participated in the Xingyuan Gathering, who have seen the "Nine Old Man on Fragrant Mountain", who among the people who have the closest relationship with Yang Shiqi has seen "The Nine Old Man on Fragrant Mountain"? He is Liang Qian (1366-1418), the son of Liang Lan who wrote the poem "Nine Old Man" mentioned above. Yang Shiqi was good to Liang Qian's classmates when he was young, and later he was with the official Hanlin, and he was also the assistant of the East Palace. The relationship is very different. generally. They are in-laws, and Yang Shiqi's eldest daughter, Yang Group, married Liang Qian's son, Liang Ji. Yang Shiqi's daughter-in-law is the daughter of Liang Qian's younger brother Liang Chuang. The "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain" that Liang Qian saw was a collection for Wang Zicheng during the incident. Liang Qian was outspoken and honest, and he was imprisoned and died in Yongle sixteen (1418) for "advising the prince Youque". Therefore, his understanding of the "Fragrant Mountain Jiu Lao Tu" is very important, which can help researchers find the inner connection between "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Tu" and "Xiangshan Jiu Lao Tu". The full text is as follows:

Looking at Nan Huasheng's words, he said: "A person who is quiet and quiet, lonely and inactive is the peace of the heaven and the earth and the highest morality." He also said: "If there is no action, Yu Yu, Yu Yu will be unable to deal with troubles, and he will live longer." The nine elders of Xiangshan Mountain are all Yu Yu. The highest of the nine elders is Yuan Shuang, and the difference between them is Letian. After 30 years of Lotte's official tour, he retired to Luo and joined the Nine Elders to become the Shang Te Society. Luoyang is the gigantic beauty in the world, and the Nine Elders are very romantic for a while. Between Shilou and Fragrant Hills, on the Longmen Eight-section Beach, the little star Yu Yu rides on the awning and wears splendid clothes, and the guests are wandering in a mess, playing happily, or playing the qin and playing the business sound of autumn thoughts, or calling the family boy to play the neon clothes. The Ministry of Law may order the little prostitutes to sing the new words of the willows, and they will stop at the end of their excitement, and they will suddenly mention the gains and losses of the world. They used to be enough to tire their hearts. They regard Liu Bolun as hearing the words of the woman and do not listen, and Wang Wugong is drunk and does not return. And An Neng seems to have a happy life. Those who believe in the so-called Yu Yu, although people only know that the nine old men are old, but they do not know that the nine old men are still young, they know that the nine old men are very happy, but they do not know that the nine old men are deeply worried and have not forgotten. At that time, Tang Gang was relieved, the vassal town was domineering, castrated and erect, and the Jin gentry repelled him. Although Duke Pei Jin was in danger of the country, he was also able to spit out the injustice in his chest. Therefore, it is too late for the nine old people to sit down and rely on themselves to linger and give up. How can their hearts be strong, and they are strong and self-beneficial. Moreover, in the world of Luoyang, the place where the four sides will fight by force will be unfortunate like the day before. If you are in An Shi, then the victory of the Taixie Garden is a lush grass, and if you can keep it happy, I know that although the nine old people are still in decline, I will not think about you. Room, Qi Hao at the age of eighty, and appointed the crown prince in the Han family. Although the nine old men are old, they have no intention of taking care of the world, but Yu Yu, the nine old men, is a so-called relative. Those who make the world's will to serve the monarch do not entrust themselves to the nine elders. The nine elders have nothing to do with it, but there are monks who are full of monks in the nine elders. They are dead now, and they are suspected to be the wengs of the Hongwen Pavilion. Half, unknown if. Zhongshu Sheren Xie Jin has ordered the end, and the Prince of Zhongshi has ordered it afterward, so it is said.

There is a very classic interpretation in it, "At that time, Tang Gang was relieved, the vassal town was domineering, the eunuch was arrogant, and the gentry expelled him. Although Duke Pei Jin was in danger of the country, he was also able to spit out the injustice in his chest. ." Directly pointed out the background of the times when Bai Juyi and other "nine elders" lived in seclusion and feasted. In fact, Bai Juyi retired at the age of sixty-eight, in the fourth year of Emperor Wenzong's opening (839), four years after the famous "Nanlu Change". It is impossible for Yang Shiqi not to know the "change of Ganlu". Four years before Bai Juyi's resignation (835), the famous "Nanlu Incident" occurred in history - an unsuccessful incident to eliminate eunuchs, which ended with the failure of Tang Wenzong and the civil officials. Eunuchs have full control over the country and the emperor. The so-called "castrate the vertical to gain power, the Jin gentry repelled it". The opposite of the dictatorship of the eunuch (eunuch) is the emperor and the civil servants. Liang Qian's text concerns both history and reality. So what kind of reality is involved? Liang Qian died on September 17, the 16th year of Yongle's reign, and his "Inscriptions on Fragrant Hills Nine Old Men" should have been written before the 16th year of Yongle's reign, and the location should have been in Nanjing. He once lived in the same courtyard with Chen Xun. Liang Qian was the chief examiner of the general examination for the thirteenth year of Yongle. This year, Chen Xun and Di Ding were selected as champions in the palace examination. Relationship. Yang Shiqi should be well aware of the background involved in "Fragrant Mountain Nine Old Man". Especially the danger of eunuch power and the fate of civil servants in the court. In November of the seventeenth year of Yongle's reign (1419), that is, the second year after Liang Qian's death, Yang Shiqi wrote the "Nanlu Table" to praise the virtues of Ming Chengzu Zhu Di. As auspiciousness, "Ganlu" did not only appear in 1419. It appeared once in the tenth year of Yongle (1412). Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Jin Youzi contributed "Ganlu Fu", "Ruiying Ganlu Poem" and "Ganlu Poem" respectively. When Liang Qian was convicted, Yang Shiqi did not stand up to defend him. In the seventeenth year of Yongle, that is, the second year after Liang Qian's death, two Jiangxi civil servants, Yang Shiqi and Wang Zhijin, presented the "Nanlu Table" and "Ruiying Ganlu Poem", because these two were Liang Qian's Taihe County Fellow villagers and close friends, is this a euphemistic reminder to Ming Chengzu to link the "Nanlu" of Ruixiang at this time with the "change of Ganlu" in the late Tang Dynasty? unknown.

Judging from Yang Rong's inscription and postscript, his understanding of "Fragrant Mountain Nine Old Man" is far less profound than that of Liang Qian. He said, "This is also enough to see that the Tang family has been in peace for a long time, and the four directions are safe, and the scholars and officials can advance and retreat with courtesy, and travel to Yanxiu to finish the rest of their teeth. How prosperous is this!" It's not too late to find this joy." He understood the "Fragrant Mountain Nine Old Man" as simply "the joy of retreat". In addition, Yang Rong confused the "Jiu Lao Hui" in March of the fifth year of Huichang (845) with another "Jiu Lao Hui" in the summer of the same year. Li Yuanshuang and Di Jianmo did not participate in the "Jiu Laohui" at the same time. Li Yuanshuang participated in the "Jiu Laohui" in the summer of Huichang five years, while Di Jianmo participated in the "Jiu Laohui" in March of the same year ( Nine people participated, but Di Jianmo and Lu Zhen were both less than seventy years old, so there is a saying of the "Seven Elders Association").

It can be considered that the blueprint imitated by "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" is "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui". Perhaps compared with the five-year-old "Xiangshan Jiu Lao" in Huichang, the participants of Xingyuan Gathering are generally younger, and only Yang Shiqi is over 70 years old. According to the standard of "old" at the age of seventy in the Tang Dynasty, it can only be called "one old society". Compared with the Nine Elders Association in the summer of the fifth year of Huichang, Yang Shiqi, the oldest participant in Xingyuan Gathering in 1437, was only seventy-three years old, and Bai Juyi, the youngest participant in the Nine Elders Association in AD 845. One year older than Yang Shiqi [Table 4].

Table 4: Age list of participants of Xingyuan Gathering

It seems that the participants of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" deliberately blurred the age issue, highlighting the correspondence between "Nine Masters" and "Nine Laos". In Yang Rong's postscript, nine civil ministers were called "gong" and one military officer was called "jun". Such as "Luling Yang Gong", "㤗 He Wang Gong", "Nanjun Yang Gong", "Linchuan Wang Gong", "Wenjiang Qian Gong", "Jishui Zhou Gong", "Ancheng Li Gong", "㤗 He Wang Gong", and finally the painter Xie Huan is called For "Thank you". Therefore, "Xingyuan Yaji Tu" can also be called "Xingyuan Jiu Gong Tu". It is worth noting that the time selected for "Xingyuan Gathering" is the same as the time of the first gathering of "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui", which is in the spring of March. In the historical memory at that time, the time of the "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui" was March in the fifth year of Huichang in the Tang Dynasty. It can be seen from Yang Rong's inscription. In addition, Liang Lan's poem "Nine Old Man" also mentioned that "Chun Yang is also late", which proves the fixed relationship between "Jiu Laohui" and "Yangchun March".

(three)

What is Liang Qian's subjective understanding of the reality of "Fragrant Mountain Nine Old Man"? Is there any potential connection with the "castration" he mentioned? Yang Shiqi's "Inscription on Liang Yongzhi's Tomb" reveals a bit of information:

In the fifteenth year of Yongle's reign, the car toured Beijing, and Emperor Renzong was in the erotic palace, supervising Nanjing. As for all the common affairs in the south, only the civil and military affairs, the worship of the four barbarians, and the dispatch of the border police, please do. There are illnesses on the top, the two capitals are thousands of miles apart, and the people who support the prosperous and strange people are fortunate within, and they pretend to be deceitful. Live day and night. Relying on Ming Sheng, it will be safe in the end, the villain's plan can't work, but its meaning is endless.

Who is the "prostitute" referred to here? It actually refers to Zhu Gaojiu, the king of Han and Zhu Gaojiu, the king of Zhao. Who is "Huangxing" referring to? According to historical records, we can see that the so-called "Xuanxing" refers to Huang Yan, the eunuch of the lijian. The "History of the Ming" written by the Qing Dynasty's biography about Emperor Renzong clearly stated:

In February of the second year of Yongle's reign, he was summoned to Beijing and established as the crown prince. Chengzu made several northern expeditions, ordered him to supervise the country, and ruled the government. Famine, drought and drought in the four quarters, they dispatched Zhenshi, and the benevolence was great. And Gao Xu, Gao Sui and their party day waited and slandered. Or ask the prince: "I know there are people who slander Ping?" He said: "I don't know, but I know that I have done my job as a son."

In ten years (should be twelve years), the Northern Expedition was returned, and the prince sent an envoy to the later period, and the writing was missing, and all the palace officials Huang Huai were imprisoned. In fifteen years, Gao Xu relocated to Le'an for his crimes. Next year, Huang Yan and other slandered crown princes are good at pardoning sinners, and many palace officials will sit on the dead. The waiter, Hu Xun, was ordered to investigate him, and the prince of secret sparseness, sincerity, filial piety, and sincerity, listened to the seven things. Afterwards, Huang Yan and others planned to set up Gao Sui, and they felt that he was being put to death.

The two feudal lords Zhu Gaojiu and Zhu Gaojiu and the crown prince Zhu Gaochi and later Emperor Renzong fought fiercely for the throne during the Yongle period. In the 12th year of Yongle (1414), this struggle led to the imprisonment of Huang Huai, Yang Pu and others. and in-laws), Zhou Mian was killed. When Emperor Yongle was on his northern expedition, Liang Qian and Yang Shiqi stayed behind in Nanjing to assist Prince Zhu Gaochi. At least in the knowledge pedigree of Emperor Qianlong (1711-1799) of the Qing Dynasty, there is similar knowledge, such as "the prince of the time supervises the country, Huang Yan of the Huan Temple and other parties, the king of Zhao, conspiracy to seize the heir, the prince who is good at pardoning sinners, the emperor's anger, He tutored You Que with (Liang) Qian and (Zhou) Mian, and was imprisoned to death.” Huang Yan was originally the eunuch of Yan Wang's mansion and was very trusted by Emperor Yongle. In the early Yan Wangfu period, he had close relations with Zhu Gaojiu and Zhu Gaojiu, and had a bad relationship with Zhu Gaochi. After effectively attacking Huang Huai and Yang Pu and other members of the East Palace, Liang Qian, who was closely related to Zhu Gaochi of the East Palace, became a new target. Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi once wrote two poems to Liang Qian. Wang Zhi, a Jiangxi civil official who also participated in the "Xingyuan Gathering", said when talking about Liang Qian: "Emperor Renzong's sage study, morality and morality are becoming more and more new, and he is serious about literary affairs. The knowledge should be extensive, and the prose is elegant and correct, and his words are more in line with the heart . During the Yongle period, as Yang Shiqi said, "the officials who are forbidden to close the country and those who guard the country live in the morning and evening." It can be seen from this that the "feudal town" mentioned in Liang Qian Qian's "The Queen of the Nine Old Men of Xiangshan" corresponds to Yongle. During the period of Zhu Gaojiu and Zhu Gaojiu, the "castrated vertical" corresponded to the eunuch Huang Yan, while the "jinshen" corresponded to the civil servants Huang Huai and Yang Pu who had been in distress, as well as Yang Shiqi and Liang Qian themselves who were in danger at the time. Therefore, when Liang Qian interprets "The Nine Old Men of Fragrant Hills", what he said about "the vassal towns are domineering, the eunuchs are arrogant, and the gentry are expelling them" is a reality and state of mind that he empathizes with. Liang Qian, who is "a scholarly scholar" (Wang Zhiyu), should be familiar with the "New Book of Tang". "The Biography of Pei Du", the original text is "When the eunuch is good at power, the emperor has a virtual weapon, and the gentleman is mourning." This is the true background of the "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui". The opposition and struggle between civil officials (jinshen) and eunuchs (eunuchs)—at least this is the interpretation of a Jiangxi civil official who had the closest personal relationship with Yang Shiqi during the Yongle period. Wang Shizhen of the late Ming Dynasty even believed that the eunuch Huang Yan was removed when Renzong of the Ming Dynasty ascended the throne (1424). Yang Shiqi and Liang Qian have the same understanding of the dangers of eunuchs, and they face the same background and destiny. The two of them were the counselors and assistants of the prince who stayed in Nanjing. However, Yang Shiqi was more cautious and kept a low profile. In September of the 20th year of Yongle's reign (1422), Yang Shiqi was briefly imprisoned for "mentoring a queer" and was released shortly after. In December of the same year, he held a "Xicheng Banquet" with the young civil servants who lived in Xicheng at the home of Chen Jingzong, a native of Zhejiang. At this time, it has been 4 years since Liang Qian died.

There are nine participants in the "Xingyuan Elegant Gathering", which is the same as the number of "Xiangshan Jiu Lao". "Xingyuan Gathering" is held in March, which is the same month as "Xiangshan Jiu Lao Hui". The poems of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" refer to "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui" many times. Liang Qian's interpretation allows us to connect the "Fragrant Mountain Nine Old Man" and "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection". The crux of the problem is not Liang Qian's interpretation, but whether the participants in the "Apricot Garden Gathering" in 1437 were still in the same situation as Liang Qian's interpretation of the "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain".

"Apricot Garden Gathering" took place on March 1, the second year of the orthodox year. At this time, the emperor was only ten years old. Except for Yang Shiqi, who was seventy-three years old, the rest of the participants in the elegant gathering were under seventy and over fifty-three. Except for Yang Rong among the nine people, all of them were the "Prince Group" during the Yongle period. At this time, the political situation has changed. The one who has the closest relationship with the little emperor is not the Empress Dowager Zhang Tai and the civil service group headed by Yang Shiqi, but the eunuch Wang Zhen, who is called "Mr. Wang" by Zhu Qizhen. Wang Zhen obtained the same official position as Huang Yan, the eunuch of the year. Since Zhu Qizhen came to the throne, the power of the eunuch Wang Zhen began to rise. Wang Zhen was appointed as the eunuch of the Si Lijian in September of the tenth year of Xuande (1435), ranking first among the twenty-four yamen of eunuchs. In December of the first year of orthodoxy (1437), Wang Zhen instigated the nine-year-old emperor Zhu Qizhen to arrest Wang Ji, the minister of military affairs, and Kuang Ping, the minister of military affairs. Since then, the officials have spied on Wang Zhen's intentions to impeach the court officials and convict them. The civil service group headed by Yang Shiqi has begun to clash with the eunuch group headed by Wang Zhen.

Historical records say that Yang Shiqi and Wang Zhen had a confrontation in the first month of the second year of the orthodox year, and Yang Shiqi was so angry that he did not go out for three days. Empress Dowager Zhang Tai denounced Wang Zhen in public at the court and almost killed Wang Zhen. The struggle between civil servants and eunuchs has begun. On March 1, the "Jiangxi Civilian Group" headed by Yang Shiqi held an elegant gathering in Yang Rong's garden. On the surface, it borrowed the concept of "Xiyuan Gathering", but actually echoed the "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui" of the Tang Dynasty. concept. And the background of "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui" in the interpretation of "Jiangxi Civil Service Group" has the deep meaning of "evil and scorn, and scolded by the gentry". Regarding the result of the "change of Ganlu", "Zizhitongjian" volume 245 states: "Since everything in the world depends on the Northern Division (eunuch), the prime minister only writes documents. If you look at the prime minister, the mausoleums are like grass." The clues behind the "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" connect the eunuch Qiu Shiliang in the late Tang Dynasty, the eunuch Huang Yan in the Yongle period, and the eunuch Wang Zhen in the orthodox period. When the power of Wang Zhen, the eunuch of the Sili Supervisor in the early years of orthodoxy, rose, Yang Shiqi might think of Huang Yan, who was also the eunuch of the Sili Supervisor. I also think of the basic situation of eunuch politics faced by Bai Juyi, who resigned after the "Nanlu Incident". The most dangerous eunuchs before and after the "Nanlu Change" were Wang Shoucheng, Chen Hongzhi, and Qiu Shiliang. They are all "rebels" who killed Tang Xianzong and Tang Jingzong. The government was controlled by eunuchs. At the beginning of the second year of orthodoxy, it can be said that Yang Shiqi and other civil servants had a small victory in stages. Wang Zhen was almost killed by the Empress Dowager Zhang Tai. Is the Xingyuan Gathering held on March 1, the second year of the orthodox year, a celebration of the first time the eunuch Wang Zhen was hit hard? In the third month of the old calendar, it is both Yangchun and Qingming. At this time, Yang Shiqi can easily think of the late Liang Qian in his limited joy. "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" vaguely declares the power of "Guange Zhu Gong" with "Jiangxi Civilian Group" as the main body. The Civil Service Group had to rely on the strength of the Empress Dowager Zhang Tai for the initial advantages of the eunuchs, which was a hidden worry in the future. The "Guange Zhu Gongs" with the "Jiangxi Civilian Group" as the main body are worried about the future situation of "the castration of the vertical and the ostentation of the gentrified". It was a ten-year-old little emperor who cried and rescued Wang Zhen in front of the Empress Dowager Zhang Tai. Zhu Qizhen's pro-government soon after would mean that Wang Zhen was more powerful, and history proved that the hidden worries of the civil service group eventually became a reality.

From this point of view, the "Apricot Garden" is a political painting that deeply hides the opposition between the civil servants and the eunuchs. Politics is hidden in entertainment, real meaning is hidden in classical meaning.

4. The conditions and basis of painter Xie Huan's painting expression

(one)

Whenever one unfolds the picture scroll of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection", the first thing to see is not the nine civil servants, but Xie Huan, the witness and painter of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection". He is guiding us to "watch", both "Apricot Garden" and "Apricot Garden".

If the "Apricot Garden" is understood as a picture of political power in 1437, how to understand the particularity of the painter Xie Huan? Xie Huan is from Zhejiang, not Jiangxi. He and Jiangxi Civilian Group appeared in Xingyuan Gathering at the same time, which is very intriguing. The two painters Lv Wenying (1421-1505) and Lv Ji (1477-?) who created "Shou Ji Tu in Bamboo Garden" in 1477 were both from Zhejiang, not Jiangxi. Xie Huan and Yang Shiqi have a good relationship, and the bridge between them is Huang Huai, a Zhejiang native who once served as the first assistant. From 1403 to 1414, Huang Huai and Yang Shiqi and other Jiangxi civil officials jointly tutored the crown prince Zhu Gaochi and the crown prince Zhu Zhanji. Huang Huai was Xie Huan's Yongjia fellow. According to research by Wenzhou scholar Zhang Ruyuan, Huang Huai recommended Xie Huan to enter the Nanjing court in about the third year of Yongle (1405) and became a professional painter[40]. Yang Shiqi was not a scholar, but came to the court by recommendation, and Xie Huan also entered the court in the same way. The person who recommended Yang Shiqi was not from Jiangxi, but Wang Shuying (?—1402) from Zhejiang. Wang and Fang Xiaoru (1357—1402), a famous scholar from Zhejiang, were good friends. Therefore, Yang Shiqi had some connection with the literati in Zhejiang from the very beginning.

Huang Huai was the main figure connecting Jiangxi Civilian Group and Zhejiang painters. Huang Huai's relationship with the Jiangxi Civilian Group was maintained until after 1427, when he retired and returned to his hometown of Zhejiang, Yongjia. In fact, when the "Jiangxi Civilian Group" was formed in the early years of Yongle, Huang Huai had frictions with Jiangxi civil servants such as Xie Jin, Hu Guang, and Yang Shiqi. Xie Jin and Huang Huai were both the chief examiners of the second-year Yongle examination. In the early years of Yongle, they were the most trusted civil servants of Ming Chengzu. Xie Jin hired and promoted a group of civil officials from Jiangxi. According to the records in the "Three Dynasty Sages' Records", Hu Guang mentioned the following plots in the fifth winter of Yongle: "(Huang) Huai has political talents, (Yang) Shiqi is excellent in literature, and Jian Jing has no snobbery. Xie Jin was heavy on (Yang) Shiqi and his ministers, but light on Huai, so Huai had regrets." When he left Beijing in 1427, Jiangxi civil servants Yang Shiqi, Zeng Di (1372-1432), and Wang Ying all wrote to Huang Huai Send a poem. In 1430, the lotus flower in the pond in front of the Shouzheng Temple in Huanghuai's hometown opened, and Wang Zhi, a civil official from Jiangxi Province, wrote the Preface to Rui Lian Poems. Huang Huai wrote a preface to Yang Shiqi's Dongli Collection in 1440, and when Yang Shiqi died in 1444, Huang Huai wrote a sacrificial essay ("Sacrificing Yang's Young Master Dongli Yang Gongwen"). Huang Huai recommended not only Xie Huan, but also other Yongjia fellows Guo Chun (1370-1444) and Hu Zongyun, who became court painters and calligraphers. In addition, Chen Zongyuan (1370—?) from Tiantai, Zhejiang was recommended to enter the Hanlin Academy as an official. Guo Chun had a relationship with Yang Shiqi, and Yang Shiqi wrote the article "Pu Zhai Ji" for Guo Chun's study "Pu Zhai" in 1425.

There is another civil official from the Zhejiang Department who needs to be mentioned. He was not involved in the previous study of painting history at all—Jiang Ji (1378-1430) from Qiantang (now Hangzhou), Zhejiang, who kept in touch with Huang Huai all the time. In 1427, Huang Huai retired and returned to his hometown to pass through Hangzhou. Dai Jin came to visit at the hotel, and then Huang Huai returned to his hometown in Yongjia. In 1428, Jiang Ji sent a letter from Beijing, talking about Dai Jin's entry into the court. He had a study in Beijing called "Bamboo Snow Study Room" and asked Huang Huai to write a preface for Dai Jin, namely "Bamboo Snow Study Room". It can be speculated that Dai Jin's entry into the court was related to Huang Huai's recommendation. Yang Shiqi and Yang Rong both wrote poems for Dai Jin's Zhuxue study. Xie Huan wrote a poem for Dai Jin's painting "Pine Stone Pavilion". When Dai Jin left Beijing, Wang Zhi, a civil official from Jiangxi, wrote a farewell poem for Dai Jin. When Jiang Ji wrote to the retired Huang Huai, he was a bachelor of lecturer at the Hanlin Academy. He and Hu Guang, Yang Rong, Jin Youzi, and Yang Pu were all Jinshi in the same department in 1400 (the second year of Jianwen). In 1430, Jiang Ji died suddenly after serving as a servant of the Ministry of Rites for 26 days. For this reason, Huang Huai also wrote "Jiang Gongwen, the servant of the Ministry of Rites" for him. Among them, "Huai also headed north of Beijing, returned to Dao, and said: According to the words "under the tomb", according to "Zhejiang Tongzhi" citing "Wanli Hangzhou Fuzhi", it is said that his tomb is in Xianzhi Mountain in Yusili, Hangzhou. It should be written by Huang Huai in the summer of the eighth year of Xuande (1433) when he returned from Beijing to Yongjia and passed Hangzhou. Before this, Huang Huai was the first examiner of Xuande's eighth-year examination as a retired bureaucrat. Jiang Ji may have directly recommended Dai Jin to enter the court, and at the same time he had used the power of Huang Huai. In other words, Huang Huai introduced Dai Jin to Jiang Ji, and Jiang Ji recommended him to Yang Rong, Yang Pu, Jin Youzi, etc. in the same year. From Dai Jin's acquaintance with Xie Huan and Yang Shiqi, Huang Huai still played a role.

In 1437, the Xingyuan Gathering was held in Beijing Xingyuan. Although Huang Huai did not participate, his influence was still there. Although he is a civil official from Zhejiang, he has always maintained a close relationship with the Jiangxi Civilian Group. Wang Ying, Wang Zhi, Li Shimian, and Zhou Shu who participated in the Xingyuan Gathering were all jinshi in the same department in 1404 (the second year of Yongle). Although Yang Shiqi himself was the paper reader for this exam, the chief examiners of the exam were Xie Jin from Jiangxi and Huang Huai from Zhejiang. Xie Jin died in 1415, and Huang Huai was still alive in 1437 when the Xingyuan Gathering was held. Huang Huai was the living "mentor" of the Jinshi group in 1404, and they were all Huang Huai's "disciples". Huang Huai is not only Xie Huan's hometown, but also his teenage friend. Huang Huai's "Book Dreams and Yintang Collection" said: "Tingxun and Jutongli, young and small relatives and gathering places to play, see their gentleness and simplicity, and think that they will be great tools in the future. How do you encourage yourself?" "When I was in Nanjing later, the court spent a lot of free time, talking about poems several times, and occasionally making strange words, fresh and graceful, and every time I hit the festival."

(two)

If "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" and "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Picture" have the deep meaning of "grooming upright, shunned by the gentry", how can it be proved that the painter Xie Huan can understand these meanings in advance?

Xie Huan and Huang Huai maintained a close relationship during the Nanjing period. Huang Huai was imprisoned in the 12th year of Yongle's reign for tutoring the prince "Youque", and was released 10 years later when the prince Zhu Gaochi ascended the throne as Renzong. The fate of Huang Huai is linked to that of the prince, and the struggle between Zhu Gaojiu, Zhu Gaojiu and the prince made him deeply immersed in it. On April 17, the eighth year of Xuande's reign (1433), Yang Shiqi wrote "After the Collection of Huang Shaobao's Provincial Trespasses" for Huang Huai's collection of essays "The Collection of Provincial Trespasses". The full text is as follows:

As for the repeated reading of "Poems of the Province" written by my friend Shaobao Huanggong Yongle, it is almost a pain in the ass, and I can't stop shedding tears from the past.

At the beginning, Emperor Taizong visited Beijing and summoned Jianyi, Minister of Civil Affairs and Zhan Shi, Jin Zhong, Minister of War and Zhan Shi, Huang Huai, a scholar of Youchunfang and a scholar of the Hanlin, and Yang Shiqi of Zuo Yude of Zuochunfang and a lecturer of the Hanlin. The decree said: "It is important to stay in the office. Today, among the civil servants, Jane has left you four to help and supervise the country. In the past, when Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty helped supervise the country, he must pay Fang Xuanling. They were all worshipped and ordered. Afterwards, when they issued seals and decrees, they must be heard by the four ministers. At that time, Emperor Renzong was in the East Palace, so he treated the four ministers very generously. And there were those who stayed in the Beijing residence with hidden ambitions to seize the successor, and watched the gaps day and night. Therefore, Zhang Xu is arrogant, thinking that it is a fault in the supervision of the country; and he is close to help the internal. The sage is bright, and he is not confused in the end, but he is a court official, and he is often seen in the litigation department. Although the four ministers are unavoidable, they may be Ten days, or months, only Huai has been stagnant for ten years. It is also because of what Zoumeng said is caused by inaction. Fumo is due to inaction, how can a gentleman be in the heart! He also asks all ears. The reason for this province's guilt is My ambition. Ouch! The four ministers, Jian Huang Ergong and Shi Ao are still alive today, and they are all gifts from the two saints. But the ancients never forget the precepts of danger, and the gentleman reciprocates the sincerity of self-cultivation, which is in me. It is impossible to do it in a day! Therefore, I will write it down in the back of the collection, so that I can return to Duke Huang and use it as a warning to myself.”

The texts in it are such as "And there are people who stay in the Beijing residence with hidden aspirations to seize the successor, and they watch the gap day and night, so they make false statements, thinking that they are overseeing the country's faults; The text of the Tomb Inscription is very similar. These past events made Yang Shiqi "almost after remorse" and "can't stop crying." Liang Qian's "Inscription on Fragrant Mountain Nine Old Man" refers to the eunuch as "eunuch", and Yang Shiqi's cryptic expression for the eunuch in "Liang Yongzhi's Tomb Inscription" is "fortunate", but here it is It is "near". Yang Shiqi's writing still reinforces the narrative mode of vassal kings, eunuchs, and civil servants. Therefore, Xie Huanhui, who has a close relationship with Huang Huai, fully understands the connection between the reason why Huang Huai was imprisoned in the 12th year of Yongle and the eunuch Huang Yan.

So, did Xie Huan and Liang Qian, who was killed in Yongle's sixteenth year, have had a relationship before? Liang Qian once wrote "Poetic Building Records" for Xie Huan, in which he talked about his interactions with Xie Huan, "Tingxun (Xie Huan's name) lives in the capital (Nanjing) now, I have tasted it, and Suoqi's paintings, grass, insects, flowers and feathers It is like reading the ancient "Poetry·Bingfeng" and writing "Erya" ." Liang Qian was in trouble after Huang Huai and others. Xie Huan's hometown friends Huang Huai and Liang Qian were all related to Huang Yan. Xie Huan, who has always been politically sensitive, has a deeper understanding of this.

Xie Huan and Yang Shiqi, Hu Guang, Jin Youzi, Hu Yan, Liang Qian, Zeng Di, Zhou Shu, Wu Yuqing, Wu Jiajing, Zhou Qifeng, Zhou Xu, Wang Ying, Wang Zhi, Li Shimian, Qian Xili, Chen Xun has contacts. Among them, Yang Shiqi, Hu Guang, Jin Youzi, Hu Yan and Huang Huai were all cabinet ministers in the early Yongle period. Zeng Di, Zhou Shu, Wang Ying, Wang Zhi, and Li Shimian were all Jinshi in the second year of Yongle, and they were students of Huang Huai. Zeng Di was the champion of the year. He died in the seventh year of Xuande (1432), so he was not able to participate in the Xingyuan Gathering in 1437. The other four "same year" scholars all participated in the Xingyuan Gathering. The above-mentioned Qian Xili and Chen Xun also participated in the Xingyuan Gathering.

When Xie Huan and Yang Shiqi were in Nanjing, according to Yang Shiqi's statement: "The court has always been good and good, and those who have tasted the wall have lived for many years. The old name Mijiachuan where they lived, I used Han Molin to change it." Yang Shiqi once wrote for Xie Huan I have seen five articles in his collections: "Two Landscapes of Xie Tingxun's Works", "Inscription Xie Tingxun's Collection of Meng Duanzhu", "Han Molin Ji", "Xie Tingxun's Image Praise" and "Gong Inscription Xie Tingxun After the Imperial Poetry Volume". . Judging from the likes written by Yang Shiqi and Huang Huai for Xie Huan, Xie Huan has political sensitivity, so he can paint this political painting that looks like an "elegant collection".

The Orthodox Second Year is an extraordinary year. In the first month, Wang Zhen was almost killed. In March, the elegant gathering in Xingyuan Garden. In May, Yang Shiqi became seriously ill. In September, Yang Shiqi was in a trance. He recalled Hu Guang, a Jiangxi civil official and cabinet chief assistant who had been dead for 20 years. He wrote "Introduction to Reconciliation in the Snowy Night" and asked Xie Huan to paint "Xueye Qingxing" for him. . Hu Guang died in May of the sixteenth year of Yongle at the age of forty-nine. Hu Guang did not die in September, why did Yang Shiqi dream of Hu Guang in September? In addition to Hu Guang and Liang Qian, the Jiangxi civil servants who died in Yongle's sixteenth year were both closely related to Yang Shiqi. Liang Qiancai died in September. In 1437, Yang Shiqi recalled that the September of Hu Guang was the same month that Liang Qian was killed twenty years ago. At the same time, September was also the month that Huang Huai was convicted and escorted to Beijing 23 years ago, when Yang Shiqi was dismissed. This article, which is rich in personal secrets, was not included in Yang Shiqi's "Dongli Collection" before his death. Xie Huan painted Yang Shiqi's "Xing Ye Qing Xing Tu", which shows Yang's trust in Xie Huan. From this point of view, it is very possible that Yang Shiqi invited Xie Huan to Xingyuan to paint "A Collection of Apricot Garden" in March.

Has Xie Huan ever seen "The Elegant Collection of the West Garden" or "The Nine Old Men of Fragrant Mountain"? unknown. The Cleveland Museum of Fine Arts in the United States collects a piece called Xie Huan's "Nine Old Man in Fragrant Mountain" (Fig. 16) (I have not seen the original work), and this painting cannot be found in any records of the same period in the Ming Dynasty. It is said to have been collected by Xiang Zijing (1525-1590) in the late Ming Dynasty. From Yang Shiqi's "Han Molin Ji" and Jin Yu's "Han Molin Seven Watches", I learned that Xie Huanfu has collected famous paintings from the Tang and Song Dynasties. I don't know if his collection includes works such as "The Elegant Collection of the West Garden" or "The Nine Old People in Fragrant Mountain"? Judging from the "Apricot Garden Collection" collected by Zhenjiang Museum, Xie Huan should be very familiar with the paintings on the theme of elegant collections.

Figure 16: Xie Huan's "Fragrant Mountain Nine Olds" Cleveland Museum of Art, USA

Figure 16: Xie Huan's "Fragrant Mountain Nine Olds" Cleveland Museum of Art, USA

Xie Huan's handed down works are very few. Sun Xingyan (1753-1818) recorded a "Picture of Xuansheng Deeds" in "Secretary of Pingjin Museum". "Xuansheng deeds map" is "Confucius's deeds map", Emperor Ping of the first year of Yuanshi (1 AD) posthumously named Confucius as Duke Xuan of Baocheng. Since then, successive dynasties have respected Confucius as a saint, and are often referred to as "Xuansheng" in poetry. There is no record of Xie Huan painting this painting from the Jiangxi Civilian Group's collection of works. In Yang Shiqi's knowledge pedigree, Li Gonglin painted "Portraits of Xuan Sheng and His Disciples", and Zhang Zijun, a scholar in the middle of the eighth year of Xuande (1433), copied this painting of Li Gonglin for Yang Shiqi. In addition, according to the records of "Painting History Huiyao", Zhu Moucha of the late Ming Dynasty said that Xie Huan had "Yuhushan Tu" handed down. Considering that Xie Huansu had close contacts with Jiangxi civil officials from Ji'an, the Jade Mountain he painted should be the Jade Mountain near Ji'an. Hu Yan, Yang Shiqi, Jin Youzi, etc. all mentioned Yuhu Mountain in their poems. Jin Youzi has written "Yuhushan Fu", and Hu Yan has written several poems with the theme of returning to Yuhushan, such as "Autumn comes and spring is just like this, there is only a false name in people's ears, there is a good tomb field in front of Yuhushan, why not return to the empty space old". Jade Mountain is often associated with hermits or Taoism.

(three)

Due to Xie Huan's special relationship with Yang Shiqi and his Jiangxi civil service group, his political stance should be very clear. Xie Huan, who has the background of "the family of the Song and Yuan Dynasty", has always regarded himself as a scholar. In the confrontation between the civil servants and the eunuchs, the position of the civil service group at that time was naturally chosen.

On the other hand, because of his understanding of "Fragrant Mountain Nine Old Man", in "Xingyuan Elegant Collection", Xie Huan highlighted three groups of civil servants, and placed himself in the position of "later" and "bystander" (Fig. 17). It seems to indicate that he is a witness of the contemporary "Xiangshan Nine Elders Association", rather than the main character of this elegant gathering. According to "Heyang Xie's Family Collection", Xie Huan once wrote "Apricot Garden Poems", but it did not appear after the "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" in Zhenjiang or the print edition, and the nine civil servants who participated in the collection All have poems (Fig. 18). From this point of view, Xie Huan has predicted the connection between this elegant gathering and the "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui".

Figure 17: The station of Xie Huan in Zhenjiang Ben's "Apricot Garden"

Figure 18: Part of the inscription and postscript of the Zhenjiang edition of "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection"

Figure 18: Part of the inscription and postscript of the Zhenjiang edition of "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection"

Figure 18: Part of the inscription and postscript of the Zhenjiang edition of "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection"

Figure 18: Part of the inscription and postscript of the Zhenjiang edition of "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection"

In addition, due to his special relationship with the Jiangxi Civilian Group, Jiangxi civil servants were treated in a low-key manner in the picture of "Apricot Garden". He put the three Jiangxi civil officials (Zhengwupin and Congwupin) with relatively low status together, and the higher-status Jiangxi civil officials (except Qian Xili, who is Congwupin, and others are above the fourth grade, according to public opinion The uniform system should wear red robes) was divided into two groups, and each group was mixed with a non-Jiangxi senior civil servant. The regional color of Jiangxi is relatively diluted.

Official clothing (zhang clothing) deliberately emphasizes the status and identity of serving civil servants, and the entire garden presents a relaxed and happy atmosphere. From the hint of the picture name, it seems that this is a historical continuation of the West Garden Collection. Xiange banquet, take a cup and raise a cup. Poems sing harmony, enjoy flowers and smell fragrance. As a witness and illustrator of this elegant gathering, Xie Huan's historical function is to "entrust one's feelings with one's heart, and talk about today's affairs".

Remarks: Open and Secret

Is "Xingyuan Gathering" a public gathering or a secret gathering? This question has never been asked before. This question is related to the nature of "Xingyuan Yaji Tu". The reason for this question is that there is no mention of "Xingyuan Yaji" or "Xingyuan Yaji Tu" in the texts that have been published publicly during the Orthodox years.

Yang Shiqi's "Dongli Collection" ("Dongli Poems" and "Dongli Literature Collection") were compiled during his lifetime. However, there are no poems directly related to Xingyuan Elegant Collection, such as "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Poems" and "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Preface" in "Dongli Collection". "Dongli Poetry Collection" was transcribed by Yang Ting, the grandson of Yang Shiqi, who came to the capital, and Yang Shiqi wrote the "Preface to Dongli Poetry Collection". The "Dongli Poetry Collection" was compiled in May of the first year of Zhengtong (1436), and naturally it would not be included in the "Xingyuan Elegant Collection of Poems" for the second year of Zhengtong, but Yang Shiqi lived to the ninth year of Zhengtong and could still be included in it during his lifetime. "Dongli Collection" should be compiled in the fifth year of the Orthodox (1440). Yang Shiqi asked Huang Huai, who had retired in Yongjia, to write a preface to his "Dongli Collection". According to Li Dongyang's " Huailutang Poems": "Yang Wenzhengong's "Dongli Ji", hand-selected, engraved in Guangdong, and entered into several chapters. Later, his descendants engraved it as a sequel, which is not public." 25 The volume of the "Dongli Collection" has a block version of the orthodox period. In other words, the Preface to Xingyuan Elegant Collection, written in the second year of Zhengtong, was not included in the fifth year of Zhengtong. The poems related to "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" are all included in "The Sequel to the East" compiled by later generations. The earliest edition of "The Sequel to the East" that I have seen so far was from the Tianshun period, and is now in the National Books of Beijing. Hall. In the first month of the forty-fourth year of Qianlong (1779), the literati who wrote the summary of the "Siku Quanshu" also said , "However, the sequel is a work that Shiqi has abandoned, and it is not a work of pride. Because of its rich collection, it is still Its old and recorded together." In addition, Yang Shiqi's self-edited "Dongli Collection" did not include "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Preface" but included "Xicheng Banquet Collection Poem Preface". From the perspective of literature and politics, in fact, "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Preface" is far away It is more important than the Preface to the Poems of Xicheng Banquet Collection. Yang Shiqi insisted not to include it in the Dongli Collection of Works, so it is speculative. In addition, Yang Rong's "Wen Min Ji" was edited by his son after his death. Wang Zhi, Zhou Xu and Qian Xili wrote the prefaces to "Wen Min Ji" respectively. Only Wang Zhi stated the time of writing the preface. - In the eleventh year of the orthodox year (1446), on the December day of the winter, Yang Rong had been dead for 6 years. "Wen Min Ji" did not include Yang Rong's "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Poems", but included "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Picture Post-Preface". The exact date of the publication of "Wen Min Ji" is unknown. At present, the engraved version of the tenth year of Zhengde (1515) can be seen, 74 years after Yang Rong's death. Except for Qian Xili's collection of poems and essays, which have been lost, Wang Zhi's "Yi'an Collection", Wang Ying's "Wang Wenan Gong's Collection of Poems", and Li Shimian's "Gulian Collection" do not include their works written in the second year of orthodoxy. Garden Poems.

In the second year of Jingtai (1451), Zhou Shu's "Dongshu Poems", Yang Pu's "Yang Wendinggong's Poems" published in the fifth year of Chenghua (1469), and Chen Xun's "Fangzhou Poems" published in the 21st year of Wanli (1593) "Includes their respective "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Poems". The time of engraving is fourteen years after the orthodoxy. In addition, these three collections of poetry were so unpopular that they were not included in the Siku Quanshu in the Qing Dynasty (Fig. 19).

Figure 19: Ming Zhou Shu "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" "Dongshu Poetry Collection" in the second year of Ming Jingtai (1451) engraved edition

According to the images and texts of the "Xingyuan Yaji", the people who participated in the Yaji in 1437 entered the Xingyuan in batches, and the first batch was Yang Shiqi and Wang Zhi. The second group is Yang Pu, Wang Ying and Qian Xili. The third group is Zhou Shu, Li Shimian and Chen Xun. All vaguely showed signs of a secret meeting. Yang Pu was one of the "Jin gentry" that Liang Qian said was expelled in 1414, and the rest were Yang Shiqi's Jiangxi compatriots. Was it out of the consideration of the secret society? Xie Huan finally entered the park. As a close friend of Huang Huai, another "jinshen" who was expelled that year, Xie Huan witnessed and painted the "Apricot Garden Collection".

The poems and images related to the "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" were published in the thirteenth year of Chenghua (1477), and Ni Yue (1444-1501) mentioned this in "Illustration of the Same Year Meeting in Hanlin". In the ninth year of Hongzhi (1496), Li Dongyang mentioned the "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" again. Li Dongyang saw four paintings of the same style in the hands of the descendants of Yang Shiqi, Wang Ying, Yang Pu and Yang Rong, who were participants in the "Xingyuan Elegant Collection". "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection". On April 24, the 12th year of Hongzhi (1499), Wu Kuan compared the "Chrysanthemums in Winter" painted by Du Jin in October of the second year of Hongzhi (1489) with the "Apricot Garden". That is to say, the "Xingyuan Yaji Tu" with poems and inks appeared in the Chenghua and Hongzhi periods between 1477 and 1496. The text and images of "Xingyuan Gathering" only became public knowledge in the eras of Ni Yue, Li Dongyang, and Wu Kuan. In the Jiajing period, Huang Zuo wrote "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" in the book "Hanlin Ji".

Therefore, we have reason to speculate that the poems about "Xingyuan Yaji" and "Xingyuan Yaji Tu" were secretly kept in the families of 10 parties and their descendants from the second year of Zhengtong (1437) to the fourteenth year of Zhengtong (1449). . In May of the second year of the orthodox year, Yang Shiqi was seriously ill enough to write a will. In the same year, Zhou Shu died in Renxu, the tenth month after the elegant gathering. Looking at the "Sequel to the East", we can see that Yang Shiqi made two wills, once in the ninth year of Zhengtong (1444), the year when Yang Shiqi died of illness, and once in May of the second year of Zhengtong (1437), which is "Xingyuan Ya. 2 months later in the same year of the episode, Yang Shiqi became seriously ill. The last line of the orthodox two-year will is very intriguing and is quoted as follows:

After I passed away, I was never allowed to do good deeds from the secular way. Because in my life, I have only held the heart of respecting the king and loving the people, and I have done nothing that hurt people or things, but I cannot help but be jealous of evil, and I should be righteous. Therefore, although I have not been able to do good, I have not done evil. If there is a hell, I will not enter. My descendants are not allowed to slander me with the words of ordinary people. To disobey my life is to be unfilial. I die with a spirit, and I will not bless you.

This will is called "Written while sick in the second year of the Orthodox", and in terms of tone, it was written to his eldest son Yang Ji. This will vaguely reflects Yang Shiqi's state of mind in May of the second year of the orthodox year. What happened before Yang Shiqi became seriously ill? No results were found.

In July of the fifth year of the orthodoxy (1440), Yang Rong died in Hangzhou because of the eunuch Wang Zhen's request to investigate the matter of accepting a gift from the King of Jingjiang on his way back to the provincial tomb in his hometown. In November of the sixth year of orthodoxy, Ming Yingzong came to power, and Wang Zhen's forces had an advantage from then on. In the eighth year of orthodoxy (1443), Liu Qiu, a civil official in Jiangxi (a fellow countryman with Li Shimian), responded to the edict of Chen Yan against Wang Zhen. Liu Qiu was recommended by Yang Shiqi in his early years (Figure 20).

Figure 20: Rubbings of Wang Zhen's Stone Carvings at Zhizhihua Temple

Yang Shiqi seems to have deliberately concealed the poems of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" in the "Dongli Collection" compiled in the fifth year of Zhengtong (1440). There is also no narration about "Xingyuan Yaji" and "Xingyuan Yaji Tu" in the texts of the same period. Can we think that since the second year of Jingtai (1451), the poems about "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" began to appear sporadically, and "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" only gradually surfaced in the thirteenth year of Chenghua (1477). What about the water? From the orthodox six years (1441) of Yingzong's pro-government to the orthodox fourteenth (1449) years of "Yingzong Beishou", the politics of eunuchs had become quite serious. Obviously, this period of time was not the time when the poems of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" or "Xingyuan" were not published. The right time for "Garden Collection". Or it can be speculated that, due to the political situation at the time, "Xingyuan Elegant Collection" was a secret gathering related to the eunuch Wang Zhen. This speculation is based on their deliberate imitation of "Xiangshan Jiu Laohui". From the pictures to the poems, on the one hand, it praises the ten-year-old little emperor, on the other hand, it shows a relaxed and happy atmosphere, and on the other hand, it conceals the true meaning of "Apricot Garden Collection" and its images. Therefore, such poems and images can only be circulated secretly in the families of the ten parties involved.

The "Heyang Xie Family Collection" published during the Kangxi period in the Qing Dynasty preserved a Xie Huan's "Xingyuan Elegant Collection Poem", which disclosed another password of "Xingyuan Elegant Collection". During the year, it is enough to revitalize the Qing Dynasty." It has already hinted at the allusions of "Party Confinement" and "Qingyi" in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. After the ten-year-old Han Lingdi Liu Hong (157-189) ascended the throne, the Empress Dowager Dou came to the court to claim the throne. The eunuch launched a palace coup, hijacked the Empress Dowager Dowager, and held Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty hostage. Eunuchs control the government. In the second year of orthodoxy, Ming Yingzong Zhu Qizhen was also ten years old. Empress Dowager Zhang Tai and the civil service group controlled the government, and the power of eunuchs was on the rise. Does Xie Huan hope that "Apricot Garden Elegant Collection" will play a role in "sufficiency to promote clear discussion" in the "long hundred years old"?

As Zhao Yi, a scholar in the Qing Dynasty said: "The Eastern Han Dynasty and the three dynasties of the Tang and Ming Dynasties, the eunuchs were the most serious, but there are differences. ." Also thinking about the history of eunuchs, painter Xie Huan's poems refer to the Eastern Han Dynasty, Jiangxi civil official Liang Qian's inscriptions refer to the Tang Dynasty, and the main characters in "Apricot Garden" are faced with The political situation of the gradual dictatorship of eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty.

In 1437, Xie Huan's "Gorgeous Collection of Xingyuan" was a political painting with rich connotations, explicit and implicit, and very good. At the same time, "Apricot Garden" is also a rare realistic painting in history that hides the real theme and deep meaning. The effect is similar to the subjective design of "Hide the truth" in "A Dream of Red Mansions". Is this the artistic expression that Chen Tingzhuo (1853-1892) said in "Bai Yuzhai Ci Hua", "if it is looming, wanting to reveal it but not revealing it, repeatedly lingering, and finally not allowing it to be revealed in a single word"?

October 28, 2015 in Beijing

"The Pictorial History of Knowledge Generation"

(This article is selected from Yin Jinan's "Image History of Knowledge Generation" with the authorization of the author, Sanlian, Life, Reading Sanlian Bookstore, first edition in June 2022. When The Paper was published, the annotations were not included.)