1
Zhuge Liang (181-234) in history was originally an outstanding statesman and military strategist during the Three Kingdoms period at the end of Han Dynasty. He was born in the troubled times of the late Eastern Han Dynasty. At the age of fourteen, he left his hometown of Langxieyangdu (now Yinan, Shandong) with his uncle Zhuge Xuan and moved to Jingzhou controlled by Liu Biao. At the age of seventeen, Zhuge Xuan died of illness. Although Zhuge Liang was still young at this time and was related to Jingzhou Shepherd Liu Biao and his general Cai Mao, he was ambitious and ambitious and did not want to take shelter in a wealthy family, so he took his younger brother Zhuge Jun and resolutely lived in seclusion in Long In the middle of the country (it belonged to Deng County, Nanyang County, Jingzhou in the Han Dynasty, and now belongs to Xiangfan City, Hubei Province), while cultivating Longmu, he paid attention to world affairs and studied the way of governing the country and using troops for ten years. In the twelfth year of Jian'an (207), after half a lifetime of struggle and repeated setbacks, Liu Bei, who was relying on Liu Biao and stationed troops in new fields and was weak, visited the thatched cottage three times and asked Zhuge Liang, who was only 27 years old, for advice. Zhuge Liang put forward the famous "Longzhong Dui", which incisively analyzed the general trend of the world, and made a plan for Liu Bei to occupy Jing and Yizhou first, forming a three-pointed force. He would tie up with Sun Quan externally and cultivate politics internally. When the time was right, he would divide his troops into two. Expedition to the north and captured the Central Plains in order to achieve hegemony's strategic policy. Under Liu Bei's sincere urging, Zhuge Liang stepped in to assist and has since become the pillar of the Liu Shu Group, displaying his ambitions on the stage of history and creating extraordinary achievements.
In the autumn of the thirteenth year of Jian'an (208), Cao Cao personally led the army to the south. Liu Biao died of illness. His second son Liu Cong succeeded to the throne and surrendered without a fight. Liu Bei was defeated and fled Jiangxia. At this critical moment, Zhuge Liang took the initiative to send an envoy to Jiangdong, persuaded Sun Quan, established an alliance between Sun and Liu, and defeated Cao's army in the Battle of Chibi. Liu Bei took advantage of the opportunity to seize the four Jiangnan counties in Jingzhou, and soon "borrowed" the territory occupied by Sun Quan. South County. After that, he assisted Liu Bei in capturing Yizhou and successfully achieved the first strategic goal of dividing Jing and Yi into three parts of the world, bringing the Liu Shu Group to its heyday. In the twenty-fourth year of Jian'an (219), Guan Yu lost Jingzhou, reducing the Liu Shu Group's territory by nearly half; in the second year of Zhangwu (222), Liu Bei suffered a disastrous defeat in the Battle of Yiling. The following year, he was entrusted to Zhuge Liang. He died of illness in shame, anger and regret. In this critical autumn, Zhuge Liang, with great courage and superb wisdom, single-handedly shouldered the historical mission of maintaining the national destiny of Shu Han. He was far-sighted, diligent and pragmatic, worked hard to govern, was honest and upright, and managed Shu Han in an orderly manner; he adhered to the principles of "harmony" and "pacification" and the principle of "attacking the heart first", quickly pacified the Nanzhong area, and handled ethnic relations well He was not afraid of hardships and dangers, and made repeated Northern Expeditions, always maintaining an offensive posture against the powerful Cao Wei; he was good at running the army, strict in rewards and punishments, attached great importance to the innovation of equipment and improvement of tactics, and created the amazing "Wooden Ox and Flowing Horse" and "Eight Formations". Figure"; he was loyal to his duties, self-denying and dedicated to the public, and truly achieved the goal of "devoting his whole life until death." Chen Shou, an outstanding historian of the Western Jin Dynasty, spoke highly of it at the end of "Three Kingdoms? Book of Shu? Biography of Zhuge Liang":
Zhuge Liang was the prime minister of the country, caring for the people, showing rituals, appointing officials, and obeying the authority system. Be sincere and impartial; those who are loyal and beneficial will be rewarded even if they are bewildered; those who break the law and neglect will be punished even if they are close to each other; those who admit guilt and lose love will be released even if they are serious; those who use rhetoric and clever words will be killed even if they are light; those who do good deeds will not be rewarded, and those who are evil will not be rewarded. He who has no delicacy but is not derogatory; who is concise in his common affairs, sticks to the basics of physics, follows the name and responsibility, and is disdainful of hypocrisy; who ends up in the country, is fearful but loves him, who has no resentment in spite of severe punishment and administration, is admonished by his calm intentions. Mingye. It can be said that he is a talented person who knows how to govern, and Guan and Xiao are inferior to each other.
Zhuge Liang’s noble character was not only deeply respected by the Shu Han people, but also respected by his enemies. Among his many outstanding qualities, two are the most prominent: one is wisdom, which is embodied in "Longzhong Dui"; the other is loyalty, which is embodied in "Chu Shi Biao". In short, he is indeed worthy of being a wise prime minister, and his reputation will last forever.
二
For more than a thousand years after Zhuge Liang's death, intellectuals with great ambitions and concerned about state affairs of all generations have cherished and praised him affectionately, and the general public has passed on his praises from generation to generation. His achievements and various popular literature and art have repeatedly told and exaggerated his story.
Luo Guanzhong inherited this social psychology of respecting Zhuge Liang. On the basis of historical facts, he absorbed the beneficial elements of popular literature and art, and added his own genius creation to successfully create an image of Zhuge Liang that is elegant, wise, full of ideals and artistic charm. , a glorious image that is well-known to every household. Although this image of Zhuge Liang is based on the historical figure Zhuge Liang, it has been greatly modified. It is taller and more beautiful than its historical prototype. It has become a noble example of outstanding intellectuals in ancient times and a symbol of the Chinese nation's loyal character and incomparable wisdom. The incarnation has become an immortal image admired by people at home and abroad.
In order to create a good artistic image of Zhuge Liang, Luo Guanzhong spent a lot of pen and ink and mobilized various artistic methods. He mainly made efforts in the following aspects.
(1) Fully highlight Zhuge Liang’s key position and role in the Liu Shu Group
In history, although Zhuge Liang had a "close relationship" with Liu Bei as soon as he came out of the mountain, he was favored by Liu Bei. full trust; but his status in the Liu Shu Group has gradually improved. According to the usual political mechanism, this is also natural. His identity when he first came out of the mountain is not recorded in "The Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms? The Book of Shu? The Biography of Zhuge Liang". He is probably a guest of the secretariat or something like that. After the Battle of Chibi, Liu Bei captured the four counties south of the Yangtze River in Jingzhou, and Zhuge Liang became the military advisor. At this time, Guan Yu was the governor of Xiangyang and the general of the Dang bandits. He had already been granted the title of Marquis of Shouting of the Han Dynasty. Zhang Fei was the governor of Yidu and the general of the army. With the title of Marquis of Xinting, Zhuge Liang's status was slightly lower than that of Guan and Zhang. In the 19th year of Jian'an (214), Liu Bei settled in Yizhou. Zhuge Liang was promoted to General of Military Affairs and was in charge of the affairs of General Zuo's Mansion (in charge of the affairs of General Zuo's Mansion. At this time, Liu Bei's official title was "General Zuo leads the two prefectures of Jing and Yi"). His official rank is on the same level as Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, but his actual status in the Liu Shu Group exceeds that of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. It was not until Liu Bei became emperor (221) and Zhuge Liang became prime minister that he officially became the number one minister of Shu Han. Moreover, before Liu Bei became emperor, although Zhuge Liang had participated in planning, he spent most of his time behind the scenes, providing enough food and troops, and never took charge of the military.
However, in "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Luo Guanzhong wrote Zhuge Liang as a commander who was inferior to one person and superior to ten thousand people, with great power and commanded everything from the beginning, which greatly improved his status among the Liu Shu Group status and role. Not long after he came out of the mountain, Xia Houchun led an army of 100,000 to the new field. This was the first test he faced. At this time——
Xuande asked Kongming to discuss. Kongming said: "But I'm afraid that Guan and Zhang will not listen to my orders. If my lord wants to march with his troops, please ask for a fake sword seal." Xuande paid Kong Ming with the sword seal. Kongming then gathered all the generals to listen to the order. ..."The Lord has invited an army as backup. Everyone must act according to the plan and make sure there are no mistakes." (Chapter 39)
In this fledgling first battle, Liu Bei was very good at the beginning. The command was handed over to Zhuge Liang; Zhuge Liang was very confident and dispatched the generals one by one, and even Liu Bei had to accept his arrangements. The victory of Huo Shao Bowang established Zhuge Liang's prestige and established his position in commanding everything. From then on, his command authority in the Liu Shu Group was unbreakable and had never been questioned. Whenever major events happened, Liu Bei always obeyed his advice, and all civil and military officials always followed his orders with sincerity. During the Chibi War, he was on an envoy to Soochow for several months. Liu Bei actively prepared for the war. After everything was ready, he still had to wait for him to rush back to command and dispatch:
It is said that Liu Xuande was waiting for Kong Ming's return in Xiakou. ...The ship arrived in a moment, and Kong Ming and Zilong landed. Xuande was overjoyed. After greetings, Kongming said, "I have no time to tell you anything else. Have you arranged the troops, horses, and warships that the former agreed on?" Xuande said, "It's been a long time since we packed it up. We're just waiting for the military advisor to call us." Kongming, Xuande, and Liu Qisheng sat down in the tent. Ding... (Chapter 49)
No one can disobey Zhuge Liang's orders. Even the number one general Guan Yu with a special status was ordered to be beheaded by Zhuge Liang because he violated military orders and released Cao Cao privately. However, because Liu Bei interceded and hoped to allow Guan Yu to atone for his crime, "Kong Ming just spared his life
". (Chapter 50-51) These descriptions greatly surpass historical records, making Zhuge Liang always at the core of the Liu Shu Group, with a status significantly higher than all civil and military officials, and making readers feel credible.
Zhou Yu was respectful and jealous of him. He tried to get rid of him many times, but he calmly resolved them one by one. He was as calm as Mount Tai. He not only made Zhou Yu helpless, but also maintained the Sun-Liu alliance and ensured the victory of the battle. The result of the battle of wits tells people: Cao Cao is not as smart as Zhou Yu, and Zhou Yu is not as smart as Zhuge Liang. Therefore, Zhuge Liang is the number one hero with great wisdom and bravery.
In plot units such as "Three Qi Zhou Yu", "Liu Bei's Battle to Capture Hanzhong", "Seven Captures of Meng Huo", "Six Expeditions from Qishan" and other plot units, Luo Guanzhong also arranged many fictional plots. Starting from this angle, Zhuge Liang's wisdom and strategy are displayed in an exquisite way. In political struggles with opponents, he is always good at grasping the overall situation, adapting to changes, taking advantage of the situation, and firmly grasping the initiative to win. In military contests, he always knows himself and the enemy, attaches great importance to grasping intelligence, is good at mobilizing the opponent, is good at psychological warfare, and is good at "using surprise", whether it is ambushes, sneak crossings, disguises, or attacks, the virtual and the real are ever-changing, time and time again. to win. "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu said: "Those who are good at making surprises are as infinite as heaven and earth, and as endless as rivers." ("Military Situation") "Soldiers have no constant momentum, and water has no constant shape. Those who can win due to the changes of the enemy are called gods." ("Virtual Reality Chapter") Zhuge Liang is proficient in these military principles, and he is really like a god in using troops. ?In order to highlight Zhuge Liang's strategy, works often use artistic techniques such as contrast and foil. Zhou Yu, who was arrogant and arrogant, sighed many times: "Kong Ming is so clever and clever, I can't do any better!" Until his death, he also lamented "Since Yu is born, how can Liang be born", which strongly expressed his feelings of trying to overpower Zhuge Liang but being helpless. Cao Cao, who was good at using troops, was always suspicious when fighting Zhuge Liang, and was defeated again and again. The wily Sima Yi even admitted many times: "I'm not as good as Kong Ming!" Even after Zhuge Liang's death, the Shu army retreated, and Sima Yi led his troops to chase him. Give birth to Zhongda". Through the comparison between these first-class talents and Zhuge Liang, Zhuge Liang's "infinite as heaven and earth" strategy is expressed to the extreme.
(3) Various ways of portraying Zhuge Liang’s loyal character
In the second half of Zhuge Liang’s life, from “White Emperor Tuogu” to “Autumn Wind Wuzhangyuan” (223~234), this On the one hand, it is increasingly strengthened. During these twelve years, Zhuge Liang single-handedly supported the political situation of the Shu Han Dynasty, took care of every situation, and worked tirelessly to achieve the goal of reviving the Han Dynasty. After pacifying the south, he personally led the army to the northern expedition. Before leaving, he presented the famous "Departure Order", earnestly warning his successor, and expressed with emotion:
The former emperor was cautious when he knew his ministers, so he sent important events to his ministers before his death. Since receiving the order, I have been worried day and night, fearing that the entrustment would not be effective and would harm the late emperor's wisdom. Therefore, I crossed Lu in the fifth month and reached a barren depth. Now that the south has been secured, and the armor and troops are sufficient, it is time to reward the three armies, and to the north to secure the central plains, to eliminate the common people and the dull, to eliminate the traitors, to revive the Han Dynasty, and to return to the old capital: This is why I repay the late emperor and serve your majesty loyally. (Chapter 91)
On the long journey of "Six Out of Qishan", Zhuge Liang achieved victory after victory, but also suffered unexpected defeats. Although the first Northern Expedition was overwhelming and captured three counties in a row, due to Ma Di's own initiative and the loss of street pavilions, the Shu army had to retreat quickly, and the gains were ruined. Afterwards, Zhuge Liang not only adhered to his principles and beheaded Ma Su with tears; he also had the courage to take responsibility and demoted himself to the third level; and sincerely told his subordinates: "From now on, everyone who has long-term concerns for the country must attack my faults diligently and take responsibility for them." If I am short, the matter can be settled, the thieves can be eliminated, and the merits are ready." (Chapter 96) In the difficult situation of strong enemies outside and mediocre masters inside, he used great wisdom and peace. Perseverance has resulted in extraordinary achievements. Until the last Northern Expedition, when he became ill due to overwork and vomited blood, knowing that his life was in danger, his first thought was still the safety of the Shu army and the survival of the Shu Han. He carefully arranged the withdrawal deployment, recommended his successor, and "strengthened the sick body". , ordered the left and right to get on the cart, and went out of the stronghold to inspect all the camps." During this last inspection of the military camp, he sighed with infinite regret: "I can no longer fight against thieves in battle! The sky has its own destiny!" When death was about to come, everyone from the king to the subordinates, and nearly He had considered everything from the current military retreat to the future policies and plans, but he rarely thought about his wife, children, and children.
The author's emotional brushstrokes and vivid descriptions vividly express Zhuge Liang's noble character of loyalty, self-denial and devotion to public service, as well as his dedicated and dedicated fighting spirit. After writing about Zhuge Liang's sudden death, the work narrates the sad scenes of Liao Li and Li Yan who were deposed by Zhuge Liang after learning the bad news, to highlight Zhuge Liang's rigorous conduct, fairness in dealing with things, and strong charisma. Not only that, the author also tried his best to exaggerate the sad atmosphere at this time: "It is night, the sky is sad and the earth is miserable, the moonlight is dull, Kong Ming is dying." (Chapter 14) It is true that every word is bloody and the voice is full of emotion. Tears and feelings of condolences are beyond words, making it heart-wrenching to read. At this point, Zhuge Liang's glorious image has firmly stood in the hearts of readers.
三
For hundreds of years, the image of Zhuge Liang in "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms" has been deeply loved by readers and has strong artistic charm. However, some people have criticized this image. Among them, the most influential one is this passage from Mr. Lu Xun: "As for writing about people, it is also quite wrong...it seems that Zhuge Zhi is so wise that he is almost a demon."
How should we understand this?
I think Mr. Lu Xun was right to point out that "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms" went too far in showing Zhuge Liang's "much wisdom" according to strict realist standards. The so-called "near demon" means that there are Zhuge Liang's strategy is exaggerated in some places, showing a tendency to deify; but this does not mean that the work has fundamentally failed in shaping Zhuge Liang's image. Overall, the work is still very successful in shaping Zhuge Liang's image. The following points should be emphasized here:
First, comprehensively grasp the creative method of "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms". I once emphasized that:
In terms of creative method, "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms" does not belong to what is called realism or romanticism today, but the spirit of classical realism and romantic sentiment. , a combination of legendary colors.
Looking at the whole book, Luo Guanzhong firmly grasps the basic trajectory of historical movements, roughly reflecting the appearance of the historical period from the accession of Emperor Ling of the Eastern Han Dynasty (168 years) to the unification of the country in the Western Jin Dynasty (280 years). A series of major events in the historical period... Luo Guanzhong paid attention to them, and roughly followed the basic framework and development trend of historical facts, and made varying degrees of narration and description. For a series of important figures in this historical period, Luo Guanzhong strived to achieve an essential consistency between the artistic image and his historical prototype when grasping the tone of their characters. In this way, the work has a strong sense of history and shows a strong spirit of realism. This is the fundamental reason why people generally recognize that "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms" "artistically reproduces the history of the Three Kingdoms in the late Han Dynasty". However, when specifically weaving the plot and shaping the characters, Luo Guanzhong mainly inherited the tradition of popular folk literature and art, boldly used romantic imagination, made a lot of artistic fiction, and used exaggeration to show a strong romantic sentiment and legendary color.
The image of Zhuge Liang in the work not only achieves "essential consistency with his historical prototype", but is also fully idealized and "shows a strong romantic sentiment and legendary color". This romantic sentiment and legendary color not only reflect Luo Guanzhong's own "curious" aesthetic tendency, but also inherit and carry forward the "shangqi" artistic tradition of Chinese classical novels. From this perspective, it is understandable that "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms" strives to exaggerate Zhuge Liang's wisdom and strategy.
Secondly, "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms" exaggerates and exaggerates Zhuge Liang's resourcefulness. It can be said that it has its own origin. As early as the end of the Western Jin Dynasty, Liu Hong, the general of Zhennan, went to Longzhong, erected a monument for Zhuge Liang's former residence, and ordered Taifu Li Xing to write an article, in which he wrote:
My son is so heroic, he only contains the spirit of heaven. Isn't it just a god, or is it the essence of a human being? What a deep thought, how pure a virtue! ...The eight formations of pushers are not found in Sun and Wu; the wonders of the wooden ox are extraordinary. The power of the divine crossbow is so subtle! Thousands of wells are gathered together, so what’s the secret? !
Here has been cast a mysterious color on Zhuge Liang's talents and strategies. Moreover, Pei Songzhi also cited many pieces of material to exaggerate Zhuge Liang's strategy. By the Tang Dynasty, Zhuge Liang was known as the "wise general".
If someone gets the impression that Zhuge Liang's image is "near-monster" from such works, it cannot all be written down in "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms".
In short, although there are a few inappropriate points in the description of Zhuge Liang in "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms", they can only be regarded as minor flaws. Overall, Zhuge Liang's image is still the most successfully created in the book and the most beloved immortal artistic model, forever inspiring and inspiring future generations.