Dong Qiao: Wang Tao's mood.

Wang Tao's Random Notes on Wandering records his feelings when he 1862 came to Hong Kong at the beginning of the year, saying that he arrived in Hong Kong the next afternoon, where the mountains were heavy and concrete, the people were lonely, and the language was extremely unbearable at first. Later, although I lived halfway up the mountain and planted many banyan trees, there were several bananas outside the window, which were bright green and lovely, but I was still not used to it and often missed my hometown. When writing home letters at night, there are always singers dragging the huqin on the partition wall, and their voices are loud and resounding. The joy of the other party is only sadness! He said that sadness and homesickness are certainly the reasons; Another reason is that Wang Tao was accused of being a thief by the Qing government because he wrote a letter to the Taiping Army. He wanted to arrest him, so he fled to Hong Kong in a hurry, and his mood was naturally not much better. After his arrival, he assisted James Legge, Dean of Huaying College, in translating various China classics and getting in touch with western cultural knowledge. He gradually felt at ease in his life and work, and his mood gradually improved. He has lived in Hong Kong for more than five years. Wang Tao returned to Hong Kong two years after his trip to Europe. He not only compiled 14 volumes of the Battle of Popularizing Law, but also raised funds to buy printing equipment for Huaying College, organized the China Printing General Administration, and finally founded Circular Daily, where he published an editorial in the first column every day and became famous at one fell swoop. The unbearable mood at first sight must have dissipated.

Whether you like a place or not depends on whether you have a stable life, increased knowledge and job satisfaction during your stay in this place. Scholars pay special attention to these three things. With these three things, your mood will definitely be better, and those uncomfortable trifles around you will be easier to bear, and you often don't want the environment to change from now on. Some people say that the Thai people's concern about the change of the status quo in Hong Kong is not unreasonable. Wang Tao may not want to leave Hongkong and go back to China to taste the fate of God, the disaster of words, the strangeness of words and the taste of ghosts. However, Wang Tao's attachment to the motherland has never changed. He hopes that China will make full use of Tessie's strengths and make the reform stronger, but he will not blindly worship and flatter foreign countries; It is also believed that imitating western laws is extremely prosperous today; However, in fact, it is still superficial. Some people learn without learning, while others learn without learning. In Britain, what he envies is the practical learning spirit and system of the British; For China, what he expects is economic construction; Governing the people without being rich and strong is not knowing how to govern. The London Art Gallery asked him to take a photo as a souvenir. There is a link in his poem after the portrait: I still want to serve my country with my head on, but I am willing to lose others. Although it is not a good sentence, it has integrity.

Zhong Shuhe wrote an article "Once at Sea, Seeing the World" for Wang Tao's "Wandering with Fusang", and mentioned that Wang Tao wrote a letter to his wife and brother Yang Xingtong in England, describing the ideological changes in his life. In the past century, Chinese scholars have been impacted by western academic science and technology and deeply realized the benefits of enriching the people and strengthening the country. But because of the political system, they have never been on the track, and it is not easy for them to serve the world. Finally, they often sneak into the side room or back garden from the palace of orthodox culture, always reluctant to go crazy. These people, calling them cowards, are really persistent; Zhong Shuhe said that Wang Tao, a returnee, has changed from a romantic Tang Bohu to a Wei Silent who cares about the country and the people. I think it has something to do with his persistent temperament.

Among the scholars in China, there are other ways to be an official, regardless of it; The screen is full of posts and things, and life is not dull. There are no four or five turning points in the mature process of life. Rainbow Tao: I thought a lot when I was young, and I was very happy at court, but I just didn't know it! If you go out to make a living, you can only get 500 gold, which can be used as a plan to return to farming. When your career has no roots, it is inevitable to travel one by one, and you will always think of a woman who has drunk in Xinling. When people of the same age jump up, they will become rich and famous, trying to move the world. Finally, when they reach middle age, their thoughts are like wine. They realize that scholars are born in the world, and they should not only look at themselves with articles, but also pay attention to the way of applying what they have learned. Expectations make Chinese and foreign languages harmonious, and the academic skills of western countries are carried forward in China.

Scholars don't engage in politics, which is neither good nor bad for the social country; It is also good that a bowl of bitter medicine can play the role of licorice; If someone wants that bowl of medicine on purpose, it's too bitter to drink, that's all right. Wang Tao's wife and children were under the rule of the Taiping Army at that time. It may be true that Wang Tao wrote to the Taiping Army only for peace. It is said that Zeng Guofan and Li Hongzhang both tried to attract him, but the Qing court still regarded him as a basket case and failed. After the case was dismissed, Wang Tao returned to Shanghai to die, which also showed his true nature as a scholar. As a scholar, it is hard to say whether Wang Tao's political discourse in his life is enough to represent public opinion: every word is his mood, as true as usual. It is usually the official intention that leads to public opinion. Officials plan to plant trees on both sides of the street to green the city; If people like it, it will become public opinion; In case the people can't bear it, it's not public opinion. Living halfway up the mountain, seeing a few bananas outside the window, I feel green and lovely. This is neither public opinion nor official intention, but mood!