Chapter Two: Trees and Mulberry Trees (Mulberry Village and Liu Bei's Childhood)
At that time, there were mulberry trees and catalpa trees around almost everyone's yard, so "mulberry" was often used to represent hometown and hometown. It's just that this mulberry tree is particularly strong, lush in summer and sheltered by the sun; Leaves turn yellow in autumn and winter. At this time, the cool wind rustled the leaves, which instantly disturbed the hurried footsteps of passers-by. So this big mulberry tree looks "beautiful in the forest" in Zhuo County, especially in autumn and winter, and it looks like a huge and gorgeous hood from a distance. No one can tell its origin, but they all envy it for producing a lot of mulberry leaves.
I don't know which year, month and day, a charlatan named Li Ding passed by the tree and made a prediction in the era of underdeveloped science: "There will be a noble person in this family!" But how expensive it is and when it will be, the charlatan didn't explain it clearly. This prophecy, in Zhuo Jun County, which lacked the gossip, quickly spread from one mouth to ten, and everyone was waiting for it. I hope I can wait for this noble person to follow suit in my lifetime.
Tonight becomes history with time, and history becomes legend with time. Just when people are about to forget, this family really has a celebrity. A young man named Xiong Liu, filial to his parents and dignified, was praised as a dutiful son by the county.
? "Filial piety" refers to filial piety to parents; "Honesty" means honesty and diligence. After promoting integrity, promotion is often faster. At first, filial piety was based on counties. The Emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty adopted the suggestions of Ding Hong and Liu Fang and changed the population into a unit. The population of the county is less than 65,438+10,000. Three years old (years old), one is Lian Xiao; Give it to 1 person for less than 200,000 years, and give it to 1 person for 200,000 years; Four hundred thousand for two people; Up to1206,000 people. According to Five Counties and Five Kingdoms in Han Dynasty, there are 1022 18 households with 637,754 people in Zhuo Jun and seven cities. So there are six filial piety positions every year.
When Xiong Liu was promoted as a dutiful son, the procuratorial supervision system was still in normal operation, which showed that Xiong Liu was good enough to be a model for Zhuo Jun. Those who are promoted to filial piety will go to court for examination. There are two kinds of examination methods: countermeasure (proposition examination) and shooting (lottery examination). Countermeasures are mostly used to test candidates, and shooting strategies are mostly used to test doctoral students. Xiong Liu took the countermeasure exam. Xiong Liu lived up to expectations and achieved excellent results. The emperor ordered him to be the county magistrate of Fanxian County, East County of Yanzhou.
? After ten years of hard work, no one cares. Once you become famous, everyone knows it. Liu is a benchmark and model for local scholars. Scholars in the village often ask Liu Xiong for advice. Lu Zhi, Cui Lie and other aspiring young people, looking at Xiong Liu's name, are excited to see Siqi and hope to be promoted to filial piety in the future. Xiong Liu left his hometown and came to Fan County. His official products, like his personality, have been praised by local people. Just when people were expecting his career in by going up one flight of stairs, his career ended here.
People in the village realized that Xiong Liu should not be a legendary aristocrat. Xiong Liu's son, Ricas, was a virtuous official in the county when he was young. The villagers began to think that ricas might be talking about the long-awaited aristocrat.
Ricas heard other people's comments and didn't care too much. He looked at the big mulberry trees at home and thought more about how many mulberry leaves and silkworms he could produce this year. Soon, Ricas's son was born, and Ricas named him "Bei". Ancient people were born famous, but when they came of age, they had words. And "word" is often the explanation and supplement of "name". At this time, Liu Bei only had a name, but no words.
Liu Bei was not born like Liu Bang recorded in Historical Records: "Liu Wei tasted the evil of osawa and dreamed of wandering. When the thunder was dim, the squire looked at it and saw the dragon on it. I have a body and I have a great-grandfather. " Nor is it like Zhu Yuanzhang's record in Ming History: "The room is full of red light, and at night, the room emits red light. When the neighbors saw it, they thought it was on fire and rushed to the rescue. " These are of course full of exaggeration and fabrication. The tracing back of Liu Bei's "good omen" in the History of the Three Kingdoms is nothing more than the prediction of "noble people" under the big mulberry tree, which is much more real.
In fact, in that era when the family raised mulberry trees, there were not a few people who were more majestic and strange than Liu Bei's big mulberry trees. Li Ding's life prediction may be many. How much has it been achieved? Left in the gravel of history, no one knows. However, history truly recorded this prophecy, which was probably told by Liu Bei to others, which is enough to infer that this prophecy had a great influence on Liu Bei. The prediction that "the nobles will go out", like a psychological suggestion, has planted the seeds of being unwilling to be mediocre and positive in Liu Bei's heart.
The young Liu Bei also had a happy childhood, so he had the experience of beautiful clothes, but the time was short and his memory was vague. When Liu Bei was still in his prime, his father died of illness and the pillar of his family fell. At this time, Ricas's brothers will take care of Liu Bei's mother and son, and often help them in life, so that Liu Bei's mother and son will not starve.
Liu Bei's mother doesn't want to live on family support. The facts are in front of us, and how the clan treats him is also a kind of support; Even if the clan does not have a condescending posture, it is impossible to have proud capital as a receiver. She is young and competitive, making a living by weaving mats and selling shoes. The shoes here should not be straw sandals. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Liu Xi, a famous Confucian scholar and exegetist, recorded in Interpretation of Names that the interpreter was also detained, so he was also detained. People who walk on stilts can easily walk on stilts. Those who don't borrow are cheap and easy to get, and those who don't borrow are also. ? Straw sandals are also called "don't borrow" because of their convenient production and simple materials. Therefore, Liu Mu should weave silk shoes.
Liu Bei was deeply influenced by Liu Mu's self-reliance and self-improvement. Coincidentally, the founding fathers of the three countries all lost their mothers in their early years, Cao Cao lost his mother in his childhood, and Sun Quan lost his father in his childhood. At that time, because of illness, war and corvee, it was not uncommon to lose his father and mother in his early years. Compared with most lonely people, Liu Bei, Cao Cao and Sun Quan have a better life. Cao Cao's family is rich and his father's position is high; Sun Quan has a brave and wise brother who can be called the overlord. Liu Bei has a self-reliant and far-sighted mother.
China people generally have the psychology of ancestor worship, which has been the case since ancient times. Even an illiterate pauper, as long as there are only a few celebrities in his ancestors, he will show off anytime and anywhere. Not to mention the rich, even if there are no dignitaries in their ancestors, they will be far-fetched and trap themselves.
Liu Bei's villages are all surnamed Liu, and his ancestors can be traced back to Liu Bang, the ancestor of Emperor Gaozu. Moreover, due to the estrangement of blood, he is more inclined to emphasize his own blood. The signs of the Han family, even to the so-called famous families, can also be addicted to them, and can also use self-comfort to smooth out some realistic gaps.
Liu Bang's story is circulated everywhere in the village. Whenever the sunset glow is accompanied by Xia Hong, the old people in the village will tell the story of Liu Bang at the head of the village, such as Liu Bang's marriage, Pei County's battle, the battle between Chu and Han, and the elimination of the king with a different surname. The real history has a mysterious interpretation, and even a little more logic of the storyteller's imagination. Although the same story is repeated every day, it still attracts countless children to listen carefully.
Those aristocratic children born with the "golden key" are reading classics in their own study, and when their family heard that Vanity Fair was derailed, Liu Bei was still immersed in the story of the old man. He thought of himself, his grandfather who was proud of the villagers, his father who died young, and the mulberry tree surrounded by prophecy.
Sometimes, the elders in the family may regret to say, "If Ricas hadn't died young, he might have surpassed his father". Whenever I hear this, the young Liu Bei will inevitably feel sad, and at the same time, he has an unspeakable sense of mission, which gives Liu Bei a psychological hint that I am a noble person in their mouth! I want to finish what grandpa and dad didn't finish! I want to be a person who makes the villagers proud!
This thought is also reflected in Liu Bei's daily behavior. One day, Liu Bei and his friends were playing under the big mulberry tree beside the yard. Mulberry trees rustle in the wind, and Liu Bei is in a good mood. Looking at his friends around him, he remembered the poor emperor Liu Bang. Liu Bei seemed to see that he was all smiles, returned home dressed in rags, and was still singing "the wind is surging." ...
Young Liu Bei couldn't tell fantasy from present, so he excitedly said to his friends, "One day, I will get on a car, and the roof of the car is as gorgeous as this mulberry tree." Just then Liu Bei's uncle Liu Yuanqi passed by. Hearing Liu Bei's words, he looked at all the mulberry leaves in Huang Cancan and was taken aback.
Liu knows that only the emperor can use yellow, and only the emperor can get on the yellow canopy car. Liu Bei's words can be said to be a big violation of the Tao. As we all know, in osawa township 300 years ago, a warm-blooded young man named Bobby Chen said something similar: "The prince would rather have seeds." Thinking of this, Liu Yuanqi had no time to think much, and directly reprimanded Liu Bei and said, "Don't say such things again in the future, it will kill the nation."
At this time, Liu Bei could not have thought that he would become an emperor. He has never seen the emperor's ceremonial chariots and horses. He probably only knows that the higher the official position, the bigger the roof of the carriage. As soon as the wind passes, the violent noise is like the rustling of mulberry trees.
Liu Yuanqi didn't criticize Liu Bei's ideas, but told him to pay attention to the way he spoke. Liu taught Liu Bei to keep a low profile and not speak openly. Liu knows that his nephew is ambitious and unwilling to be mediocre. If he is ambitious, he may not succeed. If he has no ambition, he won't succeed. Since then, Liu Yuanqi has taken more care of Liu Bei's family and encouraged his son to be close to Liu Bei.
Liu's wife saw that her husband was so kind to Liu Bei's mother and son, and she was considerate and loving to a housewife. Of course, for her husband's purse, she said to Liu, "Everyone has their own family, so don't mind their own business."
Liu's wife is kind by nature, and even feels jealous, so she explains, "Having such a child in my family will be great in the future." When Liu's wife heard about it, she knew that her husband had his own reasons for doing so, so she stopped.
Judging from the available information, Liu is the first person who thinks that Liu Bei has a "promising future". Liu Bei was very excited to hear his uncle's evaluation, which made Liu Bei unforgettable and became the most important part of his childhood memory. ...