GBP Chapter 360: The East Wind is Evil, and the Joy is Thin
Chapter 360: The East Wind is Evil, and the Joy is Thin
Ruan Dacheng didn't want to make a big deal out of it, so he let Li Xiangjun go. Afterwards, Li Xiangjun was moved to the palace and became a singing girl, which was of course also planned by Ruan Dacheng.
Li Xiangjun thought she would never see her husband again in this life. In 1645, the Qing army captured Yangzhou and Nanjing also fell. Li Xiangjun followed the fleeing people out of the palace gate and met her master Su Kunsheng at Changban Bridge, and then followed him to Suzhou.
In 1646, Li Xiangjun, who had suffered from the war, became a Taoist nun in Qixia Mountain. In the same year, Hou Fangyu came to Qixia Mountain and met Li Xiangjun, whom he had not seen for a long time.
She married Hou Fangyu as a concubine as a woman of the Wu family. After marrying into the Hou family, Li Xiangjun got along very well with Hou Fangyu's original wife. During these 8 years, Li Xiangjun spent the happiest time of her life.
However, when Li Xiangjun's identity as a Qinhuai prostitute was exposed, Hou Fangyu's father, Hou Xun, drove her out of the house in anger. At this time, she was already pregnant. Due to the displacement and separation from her husband, her health deteriorated and she eventually contracted a serious disease and died at the age of 30. When Hou Fangyu learned of Li Xiangjun's death, he was very sad. At the age of 37, he also died of depression due to missing her.
Sadly, due to Li Xiangjun's humble origins, the two were not buried together, and the lovers never stayed together until their death. In this era of broken mountains and rivers and drifting catkins, love affairs are just a drop in the ocean and not worth mentioning.
[The first female scientist in the Qing Dynasty, famous abroad, but little known in China. Historical trivia and historical figures]
She was a female scientist in ancient my country and was rated abroad as one of the 50 female scientists who influenced world history, ranking even higher than Madame Curie.
Although she was well-known abroad, she was little known in China and her name never appeared in history textbooks. She could write poetry, understand mathematics, medicine, and astronomy. She was a learned and talented woman.
Many of her works have played a great role in the development of science in later generations. She is the "Daughter of the Stars", Wang Zhenyi, the first female scientist in the Qing Dynasty.
Wang Zhenyi was born in Tianchang and Jiangning in 1768. At that time, the West was carrying out a great ideological enlightenment movement, and European merchant ships eager to trade with China were seeking how to knock on China's door.
When she was a child, China was at the height of the Qing Dynasty. The idea that "women are virtuous if they are not talented" was deeply rooted in people's minds. Women were confined to their homes, not going out of the front door or the back door, and spent their entire lives preparing to get married. However, Wang Zhenyi's family was slightly different.
Her grandfather, Wang Zhefu, was a prefectural official and a powerful figure. Despite his advanced age, he loved studying, especially astronomy.
Her father, Wang Qichen, had a difficult career, but he was also a renowned scholar in the Qing Dynasty. Later, he devoted himself to studying medicine and became a famous doctor.
Even her grandmother and mother were from scholarly families, they were proficient in poetry and had extraordinary temperament. The superior and open family environment created a paradise for Wang Zhenyi to thrive.
Wang Zhenyi's grandfather, Wang Zhefu, was fond of studying astrology, was proficient in calculations, and had a large collection of books at home. After Wang Zhenyi was born, he became her enlightenment teacher, often taking her to watch the stars and introducing various legends of the stars.
Wang Zhenyi not only inherited her parents' intelligence, but was also full of curiosity about this new world. Under the guidance of her grandfather, she read widely at a young age and began to study the art of calendar in depth.
In ancient times, astronomy and calendar were important means for feudal dynasties to spy on the secrets of heaven and predict good and bad luck. The movement of the stars could even affect imperial power.
Random research would cause big trouble. In the Qing Dynasty, the management in this regard was slightly looser, but it was still only allowed with official authorization. Ordinary people were not allowed to study. Wang Zhenyi had no choice but to read it secretly at home.
In 1779, with a sudden change, Wang Zhenyi's life also changed.
Her grandfather, Wang Zhefu, was exiled to Jilin for observing the turmoil and unfortunately died. Wang Zhenyi and her grandmother rushed to Jilin to take care of the funeral and inherited the 72 collections of books left by her grandfather, including a large amount of astronomy, geography, and mathematics. This experience gave her a deeper understanding of the world.
During the five years she lived in Jilin, in addition to studying hard, she also learned archery and horse riding from the wives of local Mongolian generals, and galloped on the battlefield with great vigor.
When the night was still, Wang Zhenyi was immersed in the vast universe. At the age of 16, she traveled to the northern frontier with her father and enjoyed the scenery of the north. When passing through Pizhou, she wrote "The skin is thin, the yellow stone city is sweet, and the evening breeze blows.
The horn sounds cold, the boat is small, spring sorrow is extraordinarily broad. People often say that "reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles". At the age of 18, Wang Zhenyi was already well-versed in classics and had traveled all over China to appreciate the beauty of mountains and rivers. No matter where she went, she never forgot to read and learn, and wrote many poems to express her feelings.
Lines such as "I have traveled thousands of miles and read thousands of books, and often surpass my husband with ambition" and "After experiencing hypocrisy, who says my children are not heroes?" fully express her unwillingness to be bound by the constraints of women at that time.
As a rebel of her time, Wang Zhenyi proved that women could also make achievements in the field of science. In 1786, at the age of 18, she ended her wandering life and settled in Nanjing.
Since she was unable to attend school to receive formal education, Wang Zhenyi had to teach herself mathematics. She combined the research results of arithmetic learned in Anhui to form unique insights.
She is proficient in trigonometry and has written popular science books such as "Solutions to the Stock Triangle", "A Simple Collection of Calendar Calculations", and "Easy to Understand Calculations", turning the originally obscure and profound mathematical knowledge into content that is easy to understand.
Astronomy and astrology also deeply attracted her. Without sophisticated scientific instruments, she used tables, distant views and crystal lamps to conduct experiments, and finally successfully simulated the formation process of a lunar eclipse and wrote "Explanation of Lunar Eclipses".
Through in-depth study, she successively created astronomical works such as "On the Spherical Earth" and "Changes of Venus", and became the first person in the world to understand "the sky is round and the earth is square" from the combination of the macro and micro perspectives of the universe.
However, after achieving scientific results that were enough to subvert the social cognition of the time, Wang Zhenyi failed to receive sufficient recognition and honor.
She focused on science, pursued self-esteem, was not bound by the traditional way of raising a husband and children, and insisted on free love. This new trend of thinking was criticized and abused at the time.
But Wang Zhenyi didn't mind. She quietly opened a private school, taught and advocated gender equality, and actively fought for opportunities for women to receive education.
In 1793, she met her ideal lover, Zhan Mei, a student from Xuancheng who was from a poor family but had a broad mind. Although their married life was poor, Wang Zhenyi and her husband co-wrote the only academic masterpiece we know today, Defengting Chuji.
Although the couple treated each other with respect, the pressure of reality and the burden of life still put Wang Zhenyi under tremendous pressure. She had to make a living and devote herself to academic research.
In 1797, the talented Wang Zhenyi died of illness at the age of 29. The brilliant starry sky under the telescope seems to be a microcosm of her short but dazzling life.
This woman who devoted her life to exploring the mysteries of the starry sky was as dazzling as the shooting stars she looked up at, and her academic achievements were immeasurable. History says that "after Ban Zhao, there is only one person like her", which shows her greatness.
However, although Wang Zhenyi's life was short, she used her wisdom of 29 years to break the feudal shackles and ignite the light of hope for many women. Her name is well-known overseas and praised by Western countries.
The influential academic journal Nature praised her as "a female scientist who laid the foundation for the development of science."
The International Astronomical Union even named a crater on Venus after her, putting her on a par with Marie Curie, who won the Nobel Prize twice. She was also included in the American bestseller "Go Forward: Stories of 50 Outstanding Women Scientists Who Changed the World."
However, this female scientist who is well-known in the Western world is little known in China, which makes people think: How many such women have been lost in the long river of time? Their achievements may be taken away by others, or they may remain unknown. What do you want to say when talking about Wang Zhenyi?
[Will you be happy if you marry a mama's boy? Even if you love each other, it cannot overcome the obstacles of the secular world. Historical trivia and historical figures]
Will you be happy if you marry a mama's boy? Perhaps the ancients have already given the answer. Childhood sweethearts, in love with each other, the young couple should have lived a sweet and loving life, but they were forced to separate because of a word from the mother-in-law. This famous talented woman, with a tear, lingered throughout the history of Southern Song literature.
She was gifted, gentle and virtuous, but she died because of her deep love. This poem is famous in ancient and modern times, and it makes people study it endlessly and appreciate it sadly. She is Tang Wan, a talented woman in the Southern Song Dynasty.
Tang Wan, courtesy name Huixian, was born in Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province, into a family of officials. Her father was Tang Hong, the magistrate of Zhengzhou, and her grandfather was Tang Yi, the junior minister of the Imperial Academy. In the 16th year of Shaoxing, the -year-old Tang Wan grew up to be a graceful and beautiful lady, well-read, talented, and well-known for her talent.
Since ancient times, "a beautiful lady is the ideal match for a gentleman", and many people came to the Tang family, including princes and nobles, as well as children of aristocratic families. The Tang family chose Lu You, the third son of the local Lu family, who was a good match for them. At this time, Lu You was 19 years old, also talented and famous, and had reached the age to get married. His parents were very satisfied with Tang Wan, the only daughter of the Tang family.
So, Lu You gave Tang Wan a phoenix hairpin passed down from his ancestors as a token of love. Both parents were very satisfied, which seemed to indicate that this marriage between two well-matched people would be very happy. This marriage, arranged by the parents and the matchmaker, was grand and well-mannered, and everything was perfect.
Their married life was as expected, with the couple in love and inseparable. However, as time went on, Lu You's mother became increasingly angry when she saw that Lu You was indulging in his romantic life and neglecting important matters such as bringing honor to the family and supporting the country. So she deliberately made trouble for Tang Wan.
Tang Wan, who had been spoiled since childhood, tried her best to change, but after marrying into the Lu family, she had to face her mother-in-law's groundless accusations all day long, making the relationship between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law increasingly tense.
Lu You was caught in the middle, unable to appease his mother's anger or comfort his wife's grievances. He could only watch the conflict escalate. In the end, Lu You's mother asked him to divorce Tang Wan on the pretext that "there are three unfilial acts, and the worst is to have no descendants."
Facing his wife who lived with him day and night, Lu You was reluctant to leave her, so he thought of a compromise. So, he bought a separate courtyard outside and placed Tang Wan in the courtyard, just like keeping a mistress.
However, the fact that they were living secretly outside was soon exposed. Lu You's mother was furious, and Tang Wan had to return to her parents' home sadly with a divorce letter. Lu You, who was in awe of his parents, was powerless to resist the injustice of fate. At the age of more than 20, he could neither support the small world of the couple nor protect his beloved.
Despite their deep friendship and harmonious relationship, they could not overcome the obstacles of the secular world. Lu You was torn between family responsibility and love, and finally chose the former, abandoning his wife and this beautiful marriage.
Tang Wan returned to the Tang family and was still the apple of her parents' eyes, but the broken marriage always lingered in her heart and she could not forget it for a long time. Living in the rational Song Dynasty, a wife who was divorced by her husband returned to her parents' home. Even if her parents did not say anything, she still had to endure all kinds of rumors.
In contrast, men were freer and were not subject to many restrictions when divorcing their wives and remarrying. Not long after Lu You divorced Tang Wan, he married another woman.
Tang Wan, who was disheartened, gradually felt relieved. At this moment, Zhao Shicheng, a disciple of the imperial clan, quietly arrived. He felt the same way as Tang Wan, and this understanding gradually brought the two closer.
Zhao Shicheng, the fifth-generation grandson of Emperor Taizong of Song, Zhao Guangyi, was the great-great-grandson of Zhao Defang and served as the military commander of Wudang. As a member of the royal family, he was of noble birth, good character, and unmarried. He did not care about Tang Wan's past at all, but regarded her as a treasure and solemnly promised to marry her.
However, Zhao Shicheng's royal status and Tang Wan's misfortune of being divorced for infertility made their marriage highly controversial. But Zhao Shicheng, despite the pressure, insisted on marrying Tang Wan in a sixth-rank sedan chair.
After marriage, Zhao Shicheng took great care of Tang Wan, which gradually made her feel relieved. His gentleness soothed Tang Wan's heartache, and his open-mindedness accepted Tang Wan's past. Tang Wan finally walked out of the haze and lived a peaceful and happy life with Zhao Shicheng.
In 1151, when the garden was full of pink peach blossoms and green willows, Tang Wan suddenly felt like visiting Shen Garden, and Zhao Shicheng accompanied her. During this visit, she ran into Lu You, whom she had not seen for several years, in the corridor of the garden.
As a flower protector for his beloved wife, Zhao Shicheng ordered Lu You to present Huangteng wine and seasonal delicacies. Lu You saw that Tang Wan was still as beautiful as a willow swaying in the wind and a delicate flower reflecting in the water, just like yesterday. However, the person accompanying her now was no longer himself, but Zhao Shicheng. Lu You was filled with regret and left a deep and affectionate poem "Chai Tou Feng" on the wall of Shen Garden:
Red tender hands, yellow rattan wine, the whole city is full of spring colors and willows on the palace walls. The east wind is bad, the joy is thin, a heart full of sorrow, several years of separation, wrong, wrong, wrong.
Spring is the same as before, but I am thinner and thinner, and the red tears have faded away. Peach blossoms have fallen, and the pool pavilion is empty. Although the mountain oath is still there, it is difficult to entrust a letter to someone, no, no, no.