A Thousand Miles Journey·Third Stop·The Ancient City of Luoyi and "Luo Shen Fu"

A Thousand Miles Journey·Third Stop·The Ancient City of Luoyi and "Luo Shen Fu"

Cities on the map are just circles or dots. If there are no transportation lines connecting each other, Simply indifferent and irrelevant. However, along the way in reality, when you cross the passionate mountains and rivers, you will feel that the great rivers and mountains are by no means what can be described on paper.

From Jinan, Shandong to Yuntai Mountain in Jiaozuo, Henan, and then to Luoyang, these two journeys total more than 600 kilometers. We took a total of about 9 hours in two days, which is equivalent to starting from dawn and arriving at dusk. Along the way, I had a strong feeling. In the new era, we drive cars to solve traffic problems. It is easy to travel thousands of miles a day. In ancient times, land transportation could only rely on one pair of legs or with the help of animal power such as oxen and horses. Long-distance travel was destined to wander on the road for many years. Therefore, the ancients' worship of the thousand-mile horse is by no means an empty lie. A thousand-mile horse is hard to come by, but so is a thousand-mile ox. "The Book of Jin·Biography of Gou Xi" records such an incident: "Xi... every time he gets a treasure, he will be rewarded by relatives and nobles from the capital. Going from Yanzhou to Luo for five hundred miles, I'm afraid it won't be delicious. He raised thousands of miles of cattle, and every time he sent a message, Gou Xi was a famous general in the late Western Jin Dynasty. He led his troops to march and fight. Every time he got something valuable, he would give it to his relatives and nobles in the capital. At that time, his garrison in Yanzhou was five hundred miles away from the capital Luoyang. Worried that long-distance transportation would take too long and affect the freshness, he found a way to get a cow that could travel thousands of miles a day. Every time this cow delivers something, it can go back early and come back late. This is such an awesome cow that Fang Xuanling, the Prime Minister of the Tang Dynasty, who cherished ink as much as gold, specially made a note of it here. I just don't know how often Gou Xi uses it. Doing it every day will definitely not work. Today's cars don't have this concern. Coincidentally, our trip this time was also from Yanzhou to Luoyang. The difference is that we travel thousands of miles one way, on a flat and comfortable highway; but that cow had to turn back in one day, and it is unknown what kind of road conditions it was traveling on. If it is a post road, it should be fairly straight.

Every era has limitations. If anyone in the ancient times could have foreseen the convenient and comfortable life we ??have today, they would have lamented that they were born at the wrong time. The development of the times and the advancement of science and technology are constantly improving people's lives. Today we laugh at the clumsiness of the ancients. Not only do they seem a bit stupid, they are also a bit cowardly. "The future will look at the present just as the present looks at the past." (Wang Xizhi, "Preface to the Lanting Collection"). What more advanced method will future generations use to replace everything we are proud of today? I'm a human being, I can't say. This can only be answered by the continuous advancement of technology.

When we arrived in Luoyang, it was almost evening. We settled into our accommodation, ate the famous Henan braised noodles at a street shop, and then burped and wiped our sweat while wandering around the oldest imperial city in China. At night, the "Imperial City" is brightly lit, with tall buildings overlapping each other, roads and bridges with cars and horses, and shops facing the street with bright windows and cabinets, giving it a strong modern and civilized city atmosphere. Going west along Jiudu East Road, not far ahead is the ancient city of Luoyi.

Luoyang, the oldest royal city in China. In the early years of the Western Zhou Dynasty, Duke Zhou assisted the king. In addition to Haojing (Chang'an, today's Xi'an), he also built a new eastern capital here, which was called "Luoyi" at the time. This antique "钒" character was an alternative character for "Luo" in ancient times, and many people don't recognize it. Nowadays, after more than three thousand years of wasted time, the historical objects on the original site have long been wiped out, but the land of Luoshui Yang will last forever. People miss the past, and new retro buildings are built here, allowing people who come to pay their respects to talk and express their feelings.

Now is the peak tourist season, and the ancient city is very popular. Even at night, there are still many tourists. People come here for sightseeing, dining, shopping and entertainment. The strong commercial atmosphere is permeated with deep historical and cultural connotations, making people immersed in it never want to leave. Just one idiom "Luoyang paper is expensive" has derived many business opportunities. Pens, ink, paper, inkstones, books, paintings, silk, fans... anything related to paper and calligraphy has become an important series of the commodity community here, which is refreshing. These things related to art and beauty can improve people's cultivation and sentiment in a way that other ordinary daily commodities cannot match. Nowadays, it advocates "business setting up a stage and culture singing opera", which puts forward higher requirements for tourism development. I have been to some places where the scenic spots are naturally rich, but the supporting businesses are obviously out of balance. Setting up stalls in scenic spots is probably just to satisfy the local population’s food, clothing and employment needs, and has nothing to do with spreading culture. As a result, the products on sale are all wholesale goods from a famous domestic small commodity distribution center, so tourists don't have to worry about missing out and not being able to buy them. A friend even told me that he almost bought a shirt with the words "I climbed the Great Wall" printed on it from a store at the foot of Mount T. Of course this is a joke. Tourism business that lacks historical and cultural support is just a dry commodity transaction without a soul.

However, what surprised me the most was the open dance drama about "Luo Shen Fu".

When we arrived at Wenfeng Tower, the performance was already in progress. From a distance, I saw so many people surrounded by darkness in front of me. It turns out that the place beside Tongji Pier and under the Zhuangyuan Bridge, which was originally a resting place for Japanese people, was transformed into a dreamy and confusing small stage under the cover of blue lights and artificial fog. On the stage, two actors, a man and a woman, dressed in long-sleeved and wide-sleeved Hanfu, performed the plot in conjunction with the chanting on the external broadcast. The male protagonist is tall, handsome and dignified, while the female protagonist is graceful and graceful.

The warm and heavy broadcast outside the screen echoed in the night sky, as if the poetry came from the distant sky, telling the story of the author's encounter with the goddess by the Luoshui River. The two people on the stage were clearly immortals, and their movements perfectly matched this extraterrestrial voice. I suddenly felt as if I was being held by something, and I couldn't help but be moved. I felt like I was being taken to a fairyland, to the Luoshui River, and to Cao Zijian nearly 1,800 years ago. The audience couldn't help but record the show on their mobile phones while enjoying the show, save it, take it back to chew on and savor it again, or recommend it to their relatives and friends.

Is this an authentic cultural specialty? Performed in the native place of literary and artistic themes, it feels authentic and particularly "sticky". There are no deliberately complicated decorations or messy extras. The scene is simple and simple, but the theme is prominent. This is probably the most powerful inheritance, interpretation and promotion of local culture. Isn’t this what we have come thousands of miles to look for?

I have some understanding of Cao Zhi and "Luo Shen Fu", but it is not an in-depth study. "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River" describes the story of Cao Zhi, who had just been crowned King of Juancheng, and his encounter with Concubine Mi, the God of Luoshui. Unfortunately, there was no communication between humans and gods, which ultimately turned into a pity. The author is full of frustration and loneliness. I don’t know whether Mi Fei is alive or not. Therefore, the author’s unrequited love can only be realized here. What does he miss? Do you think of his wife Cui, who was sentenced to death by her father Cao Cao, who advocated simplicity, because her clothes were too gorgeous? It's possible. Because the concubine Mi in the article is graceful, luxurious and extremely beautiful. Thirty-year-old Cao Zhi had a deep love for his old sword and missed his late wife. It is understandable that he wrote this poem to commemorate her. This is probably the most straightforward interpretation.

However, Chinese people, especially Chinese literati, have always had high aspirations and believed that they were born to do great things. Indulging in personal affairs between men and women will be regarded as too small and unworthy of being a husband. Therefore, many people thought that it was a waste of talent for the great and talented Cao Zhi, who was a king, to write such a masterpiece for a woman. Therefore, while denouncing good steel for not being used on blades, he tried his best to connect it with the political ideals and ambitions of a person in his social role, as if this was the only way to be considered noble. This kind of logic makes perfect sense within the scope of our traditional cognition.

To understand from this perspective, it is necessary to supplement the relevant historical background. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Cao manipulated everything in troubled times, succeeded in hundreds of battles, and earned a huge fortune. After reaching old age, it is natural to consider the issue of successor. Although he had many sons, most of them were young, and the only suitable candidates were Cao Pi and Cao Zhi. Naturally, palace battles between the two brothers were inevitable. Cao Cao originally liked Cao Zhi. However, because Cao Zhi was willful and unruly, he did some extraordinary things, which greatly disappointed Cao Cao. The battle for the crown prince finally ended with Cao Pi winning. After Cao Pi came to the throne, he began to liquidate Cao Zhi. Not only did he kill his closest associates, but he also frequently changed his fiefdom, causing him to suffer the pain of migration. It is said that it is thrilling to write a poem in seven steps, and there must be a lot of pressure and persecution from other aspects. It was against this background that in the third year of Huangchu (222), Cao Zhi was granted the title of Queen of Juancheng. On his way back to the fiefdom from Luoyang, he composed "Fu on the Goddess of the Luo River".

People in difficult situations have particularly strong dreams and expectations. Just like the "little match girl", before she died, she imagined a warm stove, a roast goose waddling with a knife and fork on its back, and a kind grandmother. This is the desire for warmth, food and family love. Is Cao Zhi also longing for something? Is he missing his father's love and care for him when he was in power? Or do you expect your brother to care about brotherhood and be accommodating to him? Or maybe he really remembered his wife who died young and transformed her into the Goddess of Luo? Hard to say, maybe a bit of both. Therefore, the Luoshen in the article should be a complex of many aspects of beautiful yearning.

Cao Zhi returned to Juancheng by carriage and horse, feeling hesitant and confused along the way. The two cities of Luoyang and Juancheng are not far apart, but they seem to be separated by thousands of rivers and mountains. I don't know how long he has been walking. It is conceivable that as he walked, he turned back all the way, eager to return to the dreamland and see Luo Shen again. But I found that the place that was created by the dream had already changed.

Should he be reluctant to give up? Or should we flee? well!