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Han Yu, a famous writer in the Tang Dynasty, is one of the Eight Great Masters of Tang and Song Dynasties.

A leading figure in the classical prose movement and a true ancestor of the literary world.

Han Yu's life was full of ups and downs and changes.

He had both ambitious academic achievements and a bumpy career.

His writing style is straightforward and sharp. He speaks out against the injustice in the world and often goes against mainstream ideas.

He is an angry young man and also a polemical person who dares to challenge authority.

But it did not affect him at all. He left a significant mark in the history of Chinese literature and profoundly led to great changes in the literary style of later generations.

Looking back on Han Yu's life, we can see that he experienced times of confusion and sadness.

After thirty years in officialdom, he has always maintained his own character regardless of good or bad times.

It is precisely this stubbornness in his character that makes him live forever in the yellowed history books.

Su Shi once commented on Han Yu: His literature revived the decline of eight generations, his teachings saved the world from drowning, his loyalty offended the lord's anger, and his bravery won him the title of commander-in-chief of the three armies.

Such an evaluation from Su Shi is unique in ancient and modern times, which shows the greatness of Han Yu's life and his legendary status.

"Han Yu's luck has not been very good since he was born."

"Soon after he was born, his mother left him."

“When I was three years old, my father also passed away.”

"When I was ten years old, my elder brother Han Hui was demoted and died not long after."

"There are only a widow and an orphan left in the family, relying on each other for survival."

"After many twists and turns, the eldest sister-in-law Zheng took the young Han Yu back to his hometown Xuancheng, where they still had some property and found a place to settle down."

"At the age of ten, Han Yu experienced the two greatest pains of life: separation from loved ones and death, and displacement."

"These disappointments in life not only sharpened Han Yu's tenacious character, but also gave him a deep understanding of the hardships of the common people."

"Any scholar who has studied hard for many years will choose to take the imperial examination and seek an official position, and Han Yu is no exception."

"In Xuancheng, he prepared for ten years and took the exam four times before he passed the imperial examination."

"But not long after, he failed several times in the erudite and eloquent examination."

"There was no other way. He wrote to the prime minister of the dynasty, hoping to get his recommendation."

"He sent a letter every month for three consecutive months, but there was no response."

"Life not only didn't open a door for him, but even locked the windows."

"It would be a lie to say that Han Yu had no resentment at this time. He was more confused and depressed about the future."

"In the quiet night, he tossed and turned, thinking about his way out."

"In order to survive, he had to serve in the Jiedushi's government twice and worked as a staff member for several years."

"But the work of a staff member is boring and tedious. It can neither support his family nor satisfy his political needs. Is it going to continue like this?"

"Seeing that time was passing quickly and he had not achieved anything, Han Yu thought for a long time and decided to quit his job."

"He returned to Chang'an and resolutely took the fourth civil service examination, and this time he finally passed."

"He first served as a doctor of the four subjects of the Imperial Academy, and soon he was recommended by Li Shi, the prefect of Jingzhao, and was promoted to the position of Supervisory Censor, responsible for supervising all officials."

"As his official position rose step by step, Han Yu was no longer depressed, and he became full of vigor and vitality."

“All the setbacks and hardships I have experienced in the past have become steps under my feet and accumulated into the depth of my life.”

"He was full of confidence and determined to hold the sword in his hand, sweep away the filth in the court, and restore the glory of the Tang Dynasty."

"But soon after taking office, I encountered a difficult problem."

"It was this problem that caused his situation, which had just started to improve, to take a sharp turn for the worse."

Su Shi: His legendary life from an angry teenager to a literary master!

After the An-Shi Rebellion, the Tang Dynasty remained in turmoil, literary style gradually declined, and Confucianism was no longer the mainstream.

Seeing that the literary world was on the verge of collapse, fortunately, Han Yu died in Mengzhou City, Henan Province that year.

He was born into a family of officials, and his grandfather Han Xiang once served as the governor of Yingzhou.

His family was quite influential at the time, and his father loved him very much and had high hopes for him.

However, in the game of life, Han Yu's novice period was not smooth.

Han Yu was still young and ignorant, and his father Han Zhongqing died early.

The family's fortunes quickly declined, and before he was old enough to go to school, he moved in with his brother and his wife.

In the blink of an eye, he reached school age, and his sister-in-law Zheng wanted to give him a name that was both beautiful and elegant.

I looked through the books and thought about it over and over again, but I couldn't find a suitable one.

When Han Yu saw that his sister-in-law was in trouble, he blurted out the word "Yu".

Coincidentally, Han Yu's eldest brother was named Jie and his second brother was named Hui. Yu also starts his name with the character "Ren", which is appropriate.

Han Yu's lonely childhood experience became the background of his life, making him extremely independent at a young age.

Han Yu was intelligent and talented since childhood. He could read at the age of seven and write at the age of thirteen.

He studied hard on his own, determined to pass the imperial examination and achieve success.

He devoted himself to the study of Confucian classics, and gradually showed extraordinary talent in thought and literature.

He was destined to be an angry young man, eradicating the ills of this dynasty, whether in the literary or political arena.

However, like most scholars of that era, Han Yu's road to the imperial examination was not smooth.

At the age of 19, Han Yu went to Beijing to take part in the imperial examination for the first time. He took the exam and promoted his literary ideas along the way.

Han Yu arrived in the capital and took part in the imperial examination with full confidence, but unexpectedly he failed repeatedly.

It was not until Han Yu was 27 years old that he finally passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi, the highest honor under the imperial examination system of the Tang Dynasty.

This achievement was hard-won and was undoubtedly a major turning point in Han Yu's life.

Han Yu at this time was ambitious. He felt that he could finally realize his ambitions. As an angry young man from the lower class, he must have the opportunity to speak.

However, reality gave him a resounding slap in the face.

According to Tang law, after passing the college entrance examination, one must also take the Ministry of Personnel's Boxue Hongci examination.

Han Yu participated three more times, but failed all three times.

If you can’t pass the exam, you can’t become an official.

Similarly, Han Yu passed the fourth exam.

By the end of autumn that year, Han Yu was already thirty-four years old.

He was appointed as a doctor of four subjects in the Imperial College, which marked the beginning of his entry into the government institutions in the capital.

However, the complexity and cruelty of officialdom far exceeded his imagination.

After years of taking exams and seeking an official position, Han Yu's horizons broadened. He witnessed with his own eyes how extravagant the literary world was at that time.

During the Six Dynasties, parallel prose was popular, which focused only on gorgeous words and not practicality. Even the poetry that the Tang Dynasty was most proud of was not as good as before.

As an angry young man, Han Yu had to speak out.

During this period, he expounded his proposition of closely combining the ancient prose movement and the Confucian revival movement, which is also his representative work of initiating and launching the ancient prose movement.

The article fell into oblivion and did not receive the response he had expected.

"In 803 AD, there was a severe drought in Guanzhong, and the people suffered from hunger and were displaced."

"The streets were full of starving people, and people were living in misery."

"Li Shi, the prefect of Jingzhao, blocked the news and lied that the grain harvest was good and the people were healthy."

"When Emperor Dezong heard that everything was fine, he rescinded the decree to reduce rent and taxes, which made Han Yu, who had witnessed the serious disaster with his own eyes, extremely angry."

"On one side is Li Shi, who has been very kind to me, and on the other side are the people who are struggling to survive by selling their children."

"Han Yu had already made his own judgment on what was more important."

"Early the next morning, Han Yu presented his "On the Drought and the Famine" in the palace, laying out the true situation in front of Emperor Dezong."

"Unexpectedly, Emperor Dezong not only did not blame Li Shi, but also believed his slander and demoted Han Yu to Yangshan County in Guangdong."

"It's wild and remote, sparsely populated, and when you come here, you're almost isolated from the world."

"To be so loyal and devoted, yet to be treated like this, anyone would feel depressed and frustrated."

"Han Yu experienced such severe demotion more than once."

"In 805 AD, Han Yu returned to Kyoto from Yangshan, but his career was still not going well."

"He has been in the political arena for more than ten years, and ups and downs are normal."

"By 819 AD, he had suffered a setback in his political career."

"At that time, Emperor Xianzong of Tang was obsessed with Buddhism and Taoism, hoping to achieve immortality."

"So there were six pagodas built to welcome the Buddha's bones."

"This move sparked a Buddhist craze in Chang'an."

"Originally, religious matters are not about right or wrong, and officials are too lazy to care about them."

"Besides, everyone can see that Emperor Xianzong highly respects Buddhism, so who would rush to cause trouble?"

"But the arrival of Buddhism made people in Chang'an restless and society uneasy."

"How could Han Yu just sit back and watch as the flatterers of Buddhism ruined the country?"

"So he picked up his pen and wrote the 'On the Buddha's Bones', which was a sharp statement and called for the Buddha's bones to be burned."

"How could he not know that his actions would undoubtedly anger Emperor Xianzong and bring disaster, but he still did it."

"Sure enough, after reading the memorial, Emperor Xianzong flew into a rage and ordered Han Yu to be executed."

"Faced with the emperor's wrath, Han Yu was incredibly stubborn and never changed his words."

"Immediately, Han Yu was demoted to Chaozhou and was immediately on his way without being allowed to stay."

"He was demoted twice, both times because of his words. This shows Han Yu's character."

"Even though he had been immersed in the officialdom for decades and had seen through all the twists and turns in it, he was unwilling to integrate into it."

"I don't care about people's faces or face, and I have to tell the truth even if it means offending the powerful."

"His behavior may seem serious, but it is actually good advice that is hard to hear and is good medicine."

"I am in the world of fame and fortune, but I am not trapped by it. I just want to say and do what I can with a clear conscience."

Xin Qiji: Han Yu, the first literary giant of the Tang Dynasty, had such a rough life. Han Yu presented an article to the powerful Taiwei Li Deyu at that time, expecting to be appreciated, but what awaited him was a cold reception.

Li Deyu did not respond to his article, which made Han Yu very disappointed.

In his poem, he expressed his helplessness about his talent not being put to good use. What's the point of writing? It would be better to go home.

Han Yu did not lose heart. He was determined to change the literary style of the Tang Dynasty by revitalizing ancient Chinese literature and leaving truly valuable texts for future generations.

To this end, he put forward the idea of ​​using literature to convey moral ideas.

It emphasizes that the true value of an article lies in spreading Confucian morality, rather than in the embellishment of rhetoric.

His thoughts were more systematically expounded in "Jingxuejie".

Excellence is achieved through diligence, and wasted through playfulness; success is achieved through thinking, and ruined through carelessness.

Through this simple language, he encouraged students to study hard and opposed flashy and frivolous writing style.

He also actively recommended young literary people, dared to be a teacher, and taught many disciples.

This move was criticized by the literati at that time, and criticism poured in like a flood. Han Yu responded with writing.

Thus, "On Teachers", a great masterpiece in Chinese history that expounds the teacher's way, was born.

Han Yu's influence in literature reached its peak with the publication of his masterpiece "On Teachers".

Han Yu's angry young man character was displayed to the extreme, and he ruthlessly mocked those scholar-officials who were ashamed to be fortune-tellers.

In the article, Han Yu starts by saying that a teacher’s purpose is to impart knowledge, accept students, and resolve doubts.

Through this article, he not only expressed his admiration for Confucian education, but also criticized the phenomenon of despising teachers and worshipping vanity at that time.

"On Teachers" is a concentrated expression of Han Yu's idea that writing can convey moral principles. He believed that the highest purpose of education and writing is to pass on morality, resolve doubts and teach, rather than pursuing vanity.

The publication of "On Teachers" triggered widespread discussion.

Many students were moved by his emphasis on the dignity of teachers, which also won Han Yu a lofty position in the literary world.

In that era, it took some courage to ignore the customs and not be afraid of being laughed at and insulted.

In the year after writing "On Teachers", Han Yu was promoted to Censor-in-Chief.

The Censor-in-Chief was responsible for supervising all officials and inspecting counties.

Being in a position to do one's job, this position is perfect for an angry young man.

Despite his rising fame in the field of literature, Han Yu's official career was still full of twists and turns.

Han Yu took office immediately and served as Censor-in-Chief.

After only two months in office, Han Yu went on a secret visit and was heartbroken to see starving people everywhere and people displaced.

However, Li Shi, the Jingzhao Yin who was in charge of the administration of the capital at the time, blocked the news and reported to the court that Guanzhong had a good harvest of grain and the people lived and worked in peace and contentment.

As an old angry young man, how can I tolerate other people's grandiose nonsense?

In a rage, he wrote a letter to the emperor, but he was slandered by Li Shi and others and was demoted to the magistrate of Yangshan County, Lianzhou in December.

Han Yu served as the magistrate of Yangshan for three years, and during his tenure he enjoyed himself with the people.

He also recruited many apprentices, recited poems and discussed philosophy with young students, and wrote many poems and essays.

In a short time, his political reputation spread far and wide and his fame rose rapidly.

Han Yu was recalled to Chang'an, and served as Doctor of the Imperial College, Yuanwailang, and Zhongshu Sheren.

As the military commander, Han Yu assisted Prime Minister Pei Du in suppressing the Huaixi Rebellion and was promoted to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice for his military achievements.

At this time, Han Yu was a high-ranking official with great honors.

Not only was his political career going smoothly, he also dominated the literary world.

"Han Yu has his own set of principles for dealing with the world he lives in."

"When he was convicted for speaking out, although he could face his own heart, he could not help but feel chilled and sad."

"On the way to Chaozhou, he expressed all his frustration and confusion in his poems."

"He thought he would never be able to return to Chang'an in this lifetime. If that was the case, he would focus all his energy on Chaozhou."

"Han Yu built dikes and canals, controlled floods, established education, and liberated slaves, doing many things that benefited the people."

"Among them, there is a story about a crocodile being driven away by a sacrificial offering, which is widely circulated in the local area and is regarded as a good story."

"At that time, there were many crocodiles in Chaozhou. They not only ate domestic animals, but also often injured people."

"The people hated and feared this, and they complained bitterly."

"When Han Yu heard about this, he took out his best skill, the pen, and planned to drive the crocodile away with his writing."

"He led the people, threw a few cattle and sheep into the river, and stood in front of the river holding a sacrificial text."

"Faced with the ferocious crocodiles underwater, I am not afraid at all."

"First he appealed to their emotions and reason, then he rebuked them harshly."

"And the amazing thing is that seven days later, the crocodile actually left Chaozhou just as Han Yu said."

"Han Yu took office for only eight months, but he brought about a radical change in the local customs and practices."

"However, just as he was preparing to continue to benefit the local area with drastic measures, fate handed him a ticket to Chang'an."

"Eight months later, Han Yu was transferred back to Chang'an and served as the Imperial College Priest."

"Two years later, Zhenzhou rioted. The imperial court and the rebels were at a stalemate, so they sent people to negotiate peace."

"The rebel general was so ruthless and vicious that all the ministers feared this was a Hongmen Banquet and retreated, not daring to move forward."

"Only Han Yu came out and asked to go to Zhenzhou for negotiations."

"On the way, the imperial court sent people to catch up with him and told him not to rush into the country to avoid any misfortune."

"But Han Yu just said calmly, 'Stop, it is the kindness of the king; die, it is the duty of the minister.'"

"This year, Han Yu spoke sincerely and based his words on history."

"I ended up stopping the war on my own and fulfilling my mission."

"In December 824 AD, Han Yu died of illness at home."

"A great writer of his generation has fallen just like that."

"Throughout his life, every step Han Yu took was extremely difficult."

"I lost my father when I was young, my brother when I was a teenager, and I failed the exams repeatedly when I was young. Later, I was demoted twice."

"Every time my career takes a turn for the better, it fades away like fireworks in the blink of an eye."

"Some people say he is ignorant of worldly affairs, but as a person who has been in the officialdom for decades and is well versed in the principles of writing, how could he not understand the ways of the world? He just doesn't want to go against his own conscience."

"Perhaps it was this stubbornness that supported him through the ups and downs of life, leaving behind a lonely and timeless figure for the world."

Fan Zhongyan: Han Yu had a tough life. He was indifferent to life and death. He would fight against anyone who refused to obey him. Yet, he was so gentle to his wife.

Han Yu's ancient prose movement was in full swing, and his achievements in poetry were also considerable.

As long as you retire with honor, you can return to your hometown and enjoy your old age.

However, Han Yu, who was an angry young man by nature, could not stand injustice.

Han Yu was appointed as the chief academic officer of the Imperial Academy, in charge of the education of the Imperial Academy.

In order to consolidate his rule, Emperor Xianzong decided to bring the Buddha's bones into the palace to win over the hearts of the people, and a Buddhist craze swept the capital.

Han Yu found this ridiculous, so he resolutely wrote a letter to denounce Buddhism as unreliable.

It would have been fine if he just expressed his opinion, he even suggested destroying the Buddha's bones.

It is understandable to have objections to things the emperor likes, but it is recommended to throw them into fire and water.

This is not even touching the emperor's reverse scale, this is pulling out the scales of the emperor!

When Emperor Xianzong received the memorial, he was furious and wanted to execute Han Yu.

Fortunately, Prime Minister Pei Du and other ministers in the court interceded for him, and Han Yu escaped the death penalty and was demoted to the governor of Chaozhou.

At this time, Han Yu felt as if he had fallen from heaven to earth. He poured out all his distress and frustration into his writing.

At this time, Han Yu had made up his mind to die, even if it meant death.

He was also unwilling to give up his ideals or his position as an angry young man.

Chaozhou, located in Lingnan, is a desolate place far away from the central power center.

The local people lived in hardship. After Han Yu came here, he quickly took steps to improve people's livelihood.

He advocated Confucian education, educated the people, built roads and bridges, and spread Confucianism to remote areas.

Han Yu served as the governor of Chaozhou for eight months. In general, he drove away crocodiles and eliminated harm for the people.
Hire teachers and set up local schools; use labor service to pay off debts and free slaves;

He led the people to build water conservancy projects and carry out drainage and irrigation.

For more than a thousand years, Chaozhou has developed into a regional culture with unique characteristics, and the Chaozhou area has become a country of etiquette and a famous cultural city!

Han Yu's good governance in Chaozhou made him respected as Han Wengong by the local people.

This period of exile not only caused Han Yu to experience political hardships, but also brought his literature and thoughts to new heights.

Han Yu's exile ended and the court re-employed him and appointed him as the Minister of War.

He was later promoted to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, responsible for the country's personnel management.

During this period, although Han Yu's official position gradually rose, he attached more importance to the dissemination of literature and ideas.

He once said in "Jingxuejie" that success comes from thinking and failure comes from following.

This passage not only reflects his personal experience, but also reveals his profound understanding of learning and life.

In his later years, Han Yu not only made achievements in politics, but also reached the peak of his literary creation.

His poetry and prose style became more mature and profound, especially in his prose writing.

Works such as "Jinxuejie" are representative works of this period, which fully reflect his literary proposition of using literature to convey moral ideas.

He wrote "Nanshan Poetry", which is full of deep thoughts on life.

How high is Nanshan, as high as an imperial palace. I walk under Nanshan, and the trees on the mountain are filled with sorrow.

These poems show his open-minded attitude towards worldly affairs. The once angry young man Han Yu has now become a wise man who sees through worldly affairs.

Han Yu ended his glorious life and died of illness in Chang'an at the age of 57.

Let’s look at Han Yu’s life again, from his hard study as a teenager and his failure in the imperial examination to his rough middle age and constant exile.

From his later years as a literary master to a great thinker, he always demonstrated his indomitable spirit and independent thinking.

He was a great angry young man. As the leader of the ancient prose movement, Han Yu spent his life expounding the true meaning of literature as a vehicle for truth. (End of this chapter)