Full-text translation of Zuo's anecdote

Zuo anecdote

The first gentleman tasted the words, left his hometown and learned from Gyeonggi. One day, the snow was very cold, so he rode out of the boat and entered the ancient temple. In the next life, he was prone on his desk, and the literary side became grass; After public reading, release the mink and hide the household. Knock on the monks in the temple, and then the teacher can learn the law. And try, officials call Shi Gong by his name, and the public sees it in a volume, that is, the face comes first. Called in, made his wife worship and said, "My son is mediocre, and he will follow my will every day, but not in this life."

And Zuo Gong went to the factory prison, and the history was outside the prison; It is very strict to guard against castration, although domestic servants are not allowed to get close. For a long time, I heard that Zuo Gong was branded and died one day. Holding 50 gold, crying for a ban, the pawn feels embarrassed. One day, Shi was covered with grass, carrying a basket and a long shovel. In order to remove the impurity, he introduced it and pointed to the office on the left. Then I sat on the ground against the wall, and the denomination was unrecognizable, and all the bones and muscles below my left knee were taken off. Prehistoric kneeling, holding the knee sobbing. The public can't open their eyes, but they are bravely pointing to the corner of their eyes; Angry, angry: "Slave, where is this?" Before you come! The matter of the country, erosion at this point. I am old, but you are strong and ignorant. Who can support me in the world? If you don't leave soon, I'll kill you today before the traitor is trapped! "Because he met the criminal equipment on the ground, he shot. Xu Shi didn't dare to make a sound and rushed out. Later, I often told people this with tears, saying, "My teacher's lungs and liver are made of stone! "

At the end of Chongzhen, Zhang, a rogue, often appeared in Taiwei, Huang, Qian and Tong. Stone Bow Defense and Lu Feng Road Defense. Every time there is a policeman, it will take several months to let the strong men have more rest and sit outside the curtain. Choose ten healthy people, let two people crouch on their backs, and change the drums if they miss them. Stand up every cold night and shake your clothes, and the frost on your nails will fall loud and clear. Or advise him to take a break. On a public day, he said, "I'm afraid going to court will embarrass my teacher."

When Shi Gong was in charge of the army, when he traveled to Tongcheng, he would bow to Gong Di to the left, and wait for Tai Gong and Tai Mu to stay and worship his wife.

Yu Zong is the nephew of old Tu Shan and Zuo Gong. He is kind to the former gentleman and is called prison language, which is closely related to Shi Gongyun.

Vernacular translation

My late father once said: when Zuo was studying in Beijing, it was windy and snowy one day, and the weather was particularly cold. He took a few attendants on horseback, made a modified trip and walked into an ancient temple. A scholar in the wing fell asleep at his desk, and the article (on the desk) had just been drafted. Zuo Gong took off his mink coat and closed the door for him. Zuo Gong asked the monk in the temple that it was Shi Kefa. The exam came, the officer called Shi Kefa's name, and Zuo Gong stared at him in surprise. When handing in the papers, Zuo Gong personally approved him as the first, and called him into the inner room to see his wife, saying, "My sons are all mediocre and incompetent, and only this student can inherit my ambition and career in the future." When Zuo Gong was put into Dongchang prison, Shi Kefa waited outside the prison all day. Wei Zhongxian, the eunuch, was very strict with the prison guards, and even the servants of Zuo's family could not get close to him. After a long time, Shi Kefa heard that Zuo Gong had been tortured by branding and would die sooner or later, so he took five hundred and twenty pieces of silver and discussed with the jailer the way to visit him in tears. The jailer was moved by him. One day, the jailer asked Shi Kefa to change into shabby clothes and sandals, with a bamboo basket on his back and a long shovel in his hand, pretending to be a garbage sweeper, and took him to prison. (The jailer) quietly pointed to where Zuo was. I saw Zuo Gong sitting on the ground, leaning against the wall, his face and forehead burned badly and he couldn't recognize (the original appearance). From the left knee down, all his bones and muscles fell off. Shi Kefa stepped forward and knelt down, holding Zuo Gong's knee and crying in a low voice. Zuo Gong recognized Shi Kefa's voice, but he couldn't open his eyes, so he raised his arm hard and opened his eyelids with his fingers. His eyes were as bright as torches. He said angrily, "useless slave! What is this place? Come here! If the affairs of state deteriorate to this point, my old man will be finished, and you are a man who is intellectual fit and doesn't understand the righteousness. Who can support national affairs? Don't go, don't wait for the traitor to constitute a crime to frame you, I will kill you now! " As he spoke, he touched the instruments of torture on the ground and shot. Shi Kefa silent dare not make any noise, quickly came out. Later, he often told others about it with tears, saying, "My teacher's lungs and liver are made of stone!" "

In the last years of Chongzhen, Huangzhou, Qian Shan, Tongcheng and other places, a rogue Zhang appeared. As a Taoist, Shigong was ordered to guard Fengyang and Luzhou. Whenever there is an alarm, he always stays up in the dormitory for months, letting the soldiers take turns to rest, but he sits outside the tent. He chose ten able-bodied soldiers, told two of them to squat down with their backs to them, and took turns in each shift. Every cold night, as soon as he stood up and shook his clothes, the frost on his armor fell off and made a crisp sound. He was advised to have a rest. Shi Gong said, "I'm afraid of failing the imperial court, but I'm afraid of being sorry for my teacher."

During the battle, Shi Gong led his troops through Tongcheng, so he had to personally go to Zuo Gong's house to greet Tai Gong and Tai Mu and visit his wife in the class.

My cousin Tu Shan is Zuo Gong's son-in-law and friendly with my late father. He said what Zuo Gong said in prison was from Shi Gong himself.

Writing background

During Zuo Yi's anecdote period, eunuchs intervened in state affairs, and the disaster became more and more serious. Wei Zhongxian set up the East Factory, arrested court officials under the guise of the emperor's orders, and excluded dissidents. Zuo Guangdou was at the forefront of the struggle against eunuchs at that time and was killed and imprisoned to death. Left, refers to the left fight. Zhong was posthumously awarded posthumous title by the court after his death. In feudal society, after the death of a court minister or social celebrity, the court gave it to posthumous title according to his performance and contribution before his death. The "anecdote" in Zuo's Anecdote is written for something that is not recorded in the official history, that is, anecdotes. These stories are generally trivial, but they can illustrate the quality and personality of the reporter.