Chapter 12 Chapter Eleven: The Dark Corner of History

one There is a large group of very important figures in Chinese history who have certainly been overlooked by us historians. These characters are not heroes, nor are they necessarily culprits.Their social status can be extremely low or very high.In terms of education level, they may be illiterate or they may be scholars.It is hard to say that they are good or bad, but because of their existence, many vivid historical images gradually become limp, confused, and irritable; many simple historical events become chaotic, ambiguous, and dirty; Slowly changing tension, embarrassment, and danger, many resounding historical propositions have become dim, chaotic, and absurd one by one.They have played such a huge role, but they have no clear political views, and all their actions have not left a clear mark of behavior. They never want to be responsible for anything, and indeed they cannot be held accountable.They are a mass of corrosive gas that lingers and disappears without trace, they are a bunch of erratic voices and eyebrows.You finally got angry, and gathered Wanjun Thunder to prepare for the bombardment. Unexpectedly, these voices and eyebrows were also angry with you, and you suddenly lost the target of the bombardment.You don't want to pay attention to it and turn your head away, but the corrosive gas is still leisurely and endless.

I believe that when many politicians and military strategists who are like cast iron in history finally passed away in sorrow, what they hated the most was not their clear political enemies and opponents, but the many good words and sudden changes that they had given themselves In the end, they couldn't tell whether they were enemies or friends.Politicians and military strategists on the verge of death can't wait to die, and with trembling lips, they struggle to spit out a word villain, yes villain.This is the protagonist of my article. What is a villain?If they can be clearly defined, they will not be so hateful.A small person is a kind of existence that is difficult to locate and grasp. What can be said roughly is that this small person neither refers to age nor status.Little people and little people are two different things.

I saw a past event in Europe in a magazine.A harmonious village that has been like a family for hundreds of years suddenly has endless troubles in the relationship between neighbors. The villagers who used to say good morning sincerely when they meet each other are now glaring at each other.It didn't take long before almost every household became enemies. Provocations, fights, revenge, and curses filled the area every day, and everyone was trying their best to escape from this terrible abyss.Maybe the priest of the church became suspicious, and spent a lot of energy investigating the reason, and finally the truth came out. It turned out that the wife of a policeman who had just moved to the village was a gossip, and all the bad results came from her innocence. Responsible whispers.The villagers knew that they had been duped, and ignored the woman, and she moved away soon afterwards.But it never occurred to me that the harmonious relationship among the villagers could never be repaired.Some misunderstandings have been cleared up, some rumors have been clarified, and the superficial relationship is no longer tense. However, since then, people's smiling faces are no longer natural, and even behind the polite words, there are still a pair of invisible doubting eyes shaking.Everyone seldom communicates, and at night, the door is closed early, and no one pays attention to anyone.

When I read this material, decades had passed. The author wrote that until today, the interpersonal relationship in this village is still stiff and astringent, lukewarm. For the whispering woman, the villagers have forgotten what she said, and even her face and name.Call her a bad person, and value her, but she has really sowed the seeds of evil that will never be purged.Let's say she did it on purpose, that also strengthened her, and she may not have any attempt to fight for some kind of power in this village.To say that she was merely inappropriate in words would be to forgive her too much, for she did these evil things with an instinctive impulse.For such a woman, all we can give is that vocabulary: villain.

The villain's living conditions and social consequences can be seen from this. Because of the sharp contrast between the past and the past in Europe, and the painstaking investigation of the priest, an answer can still be found.However, everyone understands that this is a rare case in villain incidents.Such a priest and such an answer cannot be found in the vast majority of villainous events.We just need to close our eyes for a while and think about how many large and small, visible and invisible villages have been ruined by villains throughout the ages, far and near, and we can't find the beginning and end of the matter?

From this, I cannot but sincerely admire Confucius and other pre-Qin philosophers. They drew the line between a gentleman and a villain so early.It is true that these two concepts are somewhat vague, and the connotation and extension of each other are quite flexible, but a large number of newly created social categories in later generations have not been able to completely replace this classical division. Confucius provided this division, of course, to promote gentlemen and guard against villains, but when we abandon this division for a long time, villains will be like thieves who have lost their surveillance, or floods breaking through banks.As a result, I don't want to talk more about the history of the villain, but the shadow of the villain is getting stronger and stronger.They form many dark corners densely layered on the side of the crossing road, making the already very difficult national trekking gait, where they stagger, confuse, even turn around, or drag the ground.Even the brilliance of wisdom and the blood of warriors can do nothing about these moss-stained corners.

two However, a truly great historian does not let a villain escape.Sima Qian discovered this historical crux when he was writing "Historical Records", so he couldn't help bursting out a kind of anger from time to time in his calm narration.As we all know, Sima Qian made drastic choices of historical plots, but he often described the actions of villains in detail, so that history can remember these seemingly insignificant parts.For example, Sima Qian wrote about an event that happened in 527 BC.That year, King Chu Ping of the state of Chu wanted to marry a daughter-in-law for his son, and the girl he chose was in the state of Qin, so he sent a doctor named Fei Wuji to marry her.Fei Wuji saw that the girl was extremely beautiful, and as soon as he rolled his eyes, he began to use his brain halfway.

I would like to interrupt here a little, and guess together with the readers what kind of brain he is using, which will help us understand the behavioral characteristics of the villain.Seeing that the girl is beautiful, she probably will be favored by the prince, so she flattered her in every possible way along the way in order to leave a good impression. Although this kind of mind is not noble, it is not evil. It belongs to the ordinary worldly mentality. What we call a villain; seeing a beautiful girl, fantasizing about it, trying to contaminate her, secretly forming some kind of personal relationship, this kind of brains, dare to treat the prince of a country as a rival in love, it is simply audacious, but if it is put into practice, it will be a shame. It can be regarded as a big deal in life, ignoring life for the sake of lust, even if it is absurd, it is not the act of a villain.Fei Wuji's mind was completely different. He thought that such a beautiful girl should be dedicated to King Ping of Chu in his prime.Even though the prince's marriage was known to all the country, even though the wedding convoy was approaching the capital, and even though the ceremony in the Chu Palace was well prepared, Fei Wuji rode a fast horse and went straight to the palace first, and described the story of Qin Dynasty to King Ping of Chu. The beauty of the girl, anyway, the prince has not met this girl at this moment, why don't the king marry her first, and then find a good one for the prince.King Ping of Chu was lustful, and was moved by Fei Wuji's words, but he also felt that it was related to the image and inheritance of the country and society, so he had to be careful, so he entrusted Fei Wuji to take care of it.Three times and two times, this girl who originally wanted to be the prince's wife became the concubine of the father-in-law King Chuping in an instant.

Speaking of things here, we can already analyze several important behavioral characteristics of the villain: First, villains can't see beauty.Small people can also discover beauty, sometimes even more keenly than others, but it is impossible to be sincerely devoted to beauty.They always squint their eyes to look at beautiful things, their eyes sometimes turn red and sometimes green, sometimes stare at and sometimes dodge, as long as possible, they can't help disturbing and passing on (Fei Wuji's behavior is really passing on The best footnote of this term), trying to use it as a bargaining chip for some kind of hidden transaction.Beautiful things may encounter all kinds of disasters, but the most unbearable is the deeds of villains.The ignorant may cause the pearl to be cast secretly, the savage may cause the jade to be destroyed, and the villain will secretly turn all good things into scandals.Therefore, beautiful things can be buried in the wild grass and night, and can be exposed in front of the reckless people in the rivers and lakes, but they must not let the villains get their hands on them and pass their eyes.

Second, villains can't see power.No matter what the situation is, the villain's attention will always go round and round to the balance of power, and they can go around where others think it is impossible to get around.On the surface, they are going through hardships for the sake of those in power, but in fact they only think about the power in the hands of those in power, but as villains, they are not fascinated by power itself, only the possible benefits behind power.Therefore, at first glance, it seems that they are seeking refuge, betraying whom, loyal to whom, and betraying whom, but in fact they have no concept of human beings at all, only actual self-interest.If someone has a concept, then King Ping of Chu is the father of the prince and has the dignity and taboos that a father should have. However, Fei Wuji only regards him as the embodiment of some kind of power and interests, so he doesn't care about human relationships and interpersonal consequences.There is no concept of a person for others, and the same is true for yourself, so you must not demand them based on character and personality. The original meaning of a proposition.

Third, villains are not afraid of trouble.Considering the above matter according to normal logic, even if you want to do it, you will be scared off by terrible troubles, but villains are not afraid of troubles.The villain knows that the more troublesome it is, the easier it is to confuse things. As long as you are not afraid of trouble, there will always be people who are afraid of trouble.When the prince finally felt the trouble of marrying a girl from the state of Qin, and when the ministers clearly realized the trouble of resisting advice, the matter was settled. Fourth, the villain is efficient.The villain is eager to get things done and doesn't follow the rules. He is covered up by open and secret cover-ups. He hardly encounters resistance when doing things, and he can get things done quickly and flexibly like a swimming snake.They are good at understanding the hidden worries and selfish desires that those in power can express, and resolve everything in an instant, so in the eyes of those in power, their efficiency is doubled.They are more effective when supported by those in power.It is an example that Fei Wuji was able to launch a terrifying action to change the direction of the royal marriage on the way to marry the prince, and it succeeded quickly. Let's talk about these four behavioral characteristics for now. Sima Qian's description of this matter is not finished yet, let us continue to follow his gaze After completing this matter, Fei Wuji was both excited and flustered.King Chu Ping trusted him more and more, which made him satisfied, but he thought about it quietly, the prince was the most hurt in this matter, and the prince will take power sooner or later, so how will he live in the future? He began to whisper small words in King Chu Ping's ear: After that incident, the crown prince hated me to the bone, that's all, I am nothing, the problem is that he also hates you, the king, and the king is on guard.The prince already holds the military power, with the support of the princes outside, and his teacher Wu She to help plan the painting inside, maybe one day there will be a mutiny! King Chu Ping originally felt that he had done something wrong to his son, and that his son would definitely do something. Now that he heard what Fei Wuji said, he thought that as expected, he immediately ordered the killing of the prince's teacher Wu She and Wu She's eldest son Wu She. Shang wanted to hunt and kill the prince, so the prince and Wu She's second son Wu Yuan (Wu Zixu) had to flee from Chu. Since then, successive years of war have surrounded Chu.The prince who escaped was a man with military strength, so he would not be reconciled, while Wu Yuan vowed to avenge his father and brother. He had repeatedly led Wu soldiers to attack Chu, and there were many famous military campaigns that even the most careless historians had to pay attention to. . However, the people of Chu State remembered that the villain Fei Wuji was the one who first ignited the great fire. Everyone gritted their teeth and executed this villain with capital punishment, but the whole country was already devastated.Here I'm going to chime in again.Following the development of the incident, we can continue the behavioral characteristics of the villain in several items: Fifth, the villain will not let the victim go.Villains are timid in nature, and their way of action makes them not have to be afraid of specific operational failures, but they have to be afraid of revenge.The imaginary avengers are, of course, the ones they hurt, and their mission is therefore destined to continually hurt the victim.If you are hurt once by a villain, then just wait, the second and third times are waiting for you, because the villain lacks a sense of security if you don’t do this.In the case of Chu State, the crown prince was undoubtedly the one who was hurt, and Fei Wuji knew this very well.Therefore, there is no way to settle down, and you must put it to death before you can rest assured.The villain has no mercy, no remorse, only fear, but the more afraid, the more vicious, one way to the end. Sixth, villains need to win sympathy.Robbers who fight with open flames and executioners who kill without batting an eye are villains, not villains. Villains do not have such courage and need to cover up and hide.They repeatedly explain to others that they are the ones who have suffered the most in the world, that they are weak, that they cannot be weaker, as if they were born to be bullied by others.When they try to devour other people's property rights, reputation and even their lives, they even let their deep guttural voice, tearful eyes, trembling cheeks, and hesitant tones go into battle together, and choke when the logic doesn't make sense How can you not sympathize with choking up and fooling the past?The Fei Wuji-style villain goes a step further, trying to dress himself up as a person who only cares for others and for the sake of his superiors and suffers disasters, which is naturally more worthy of sympathy.Due to my position, there is nothing I can do. One end is the king and the other is the prince. What can I do as a servant?Painstaking mediation but being angry at both ends, why bother?Haven't we heard such words from ancient times to the present? Seventh, the villain must use rumors to create an atmosphere. If the villain wants to use the hands of the powerful or the mouth of the bully to defend himself, he must lie about the enemy's situation vividly.Fei Wuji lied about the prince and his teacher's attempt to rebel and attack the city, which was the direct cause of the great historical disaster that followed.Lying and spreading rumors are the survival instincts of villains, but most villains are intelligent. To win the trust of power and public opinion, the lies and rumors they fabricate must be generally in line with superficial logic, so that people who are not used to empirical research can listen to them immediately. Create an emotional response.Therefore, the genius of the villain lies in his ability to skillfully make lies and rumors reasonable.They are a group of skilled craftsmen who have the ability to lure the great and the mediocre alike into a maze of lies and rumors from which they never return. Eighth, the villain can't control the situation in the end.The villain is shrewd and lacks foresight, so when they create specific evil effects one by one, they don't think about what kind of ending these evil effects will eventually lead to when they are combined.In the early stage when they kept instigating power and public opinion, everything seemed to be developing according to their will, and when the power and public opinion finally exploded and unleashed violence, even they couldn't help but stare blankly and ride a tiger.The villain has no general demeanor and can't control the situation at all, but unfortunately, people will not forget them who are the first responsible for all the disasters.In all fairness, when Chu State was suddenly attacked by neighboring countries and had to live on iron and blood for many years, Fei Wuji was helpless, unable to do anything good or bad.But he was still the one who received the death penalty in the end, and it was also he who left him infamous for thousands of years with great disgust.The tragedy of the villain lies here. three By analyzing Fei Wuji, we can get a glimpse of some behavioral characteristics of villains, but this is far from enough to understand the whole world of villains.The villain, has not been fully studied. I understand my comrades, no one wants to dive deep into the villain's world, because this is indeed a stuffy and even disgusting thing.Since it is not far away to avoid villains in life, why should I let my pen contaminate them for a long time? But avoidance is obviously not the answer.Since so many noble souls in history have been covered by this shadow and want to cry without tears, since countless people of our nation have been poisoned by this pile of filth and caused a serious decline in overall quality, since China has had a large number of elites in the field of humanities. All elegant buildings have been soiled or buried by this mud, since the generosity we have finally reawakened has been blown away time and time again by this dark wind, since we have often seen this not only in the annals of history, but also on the street and around us. A humanoid figure, since much of the right and wrong of the past and today has been disturbed by the noise of this corner, since we feel depressed whenever we think of this part of the social organism, no matter day or night, since the power of civilization is in conflict with this force In the contest, often can not become the winner.Since such hidden reefs cannot be completely ruled out in all aspects of our social development until the next century, since people have encountered this nightmare but there is no one to call out, since a few shouts may be able to temporarily expel the nightmare, since temporary expulsion is helpful To strengthen people's confidence to fight against this shadow, so why avoid it? In my opinion, the villain should not be regarded as just a deformity of personal moral character.This is a social and cultural phenomenon with great historical inevitability, which deserves the attention of cultural anthropologists, social psychologists and political scientists.The full presentation of this phenomenon in Chinese history reflects the subtle combination of the autocratic rule of man in Chinese feudal society and the inferior groups in the lower classes of society.Although the status of the two sides is very different, they need each other and complement each other, and finally combine into a unique psychological and ecological way. The feudal rule by man is secretive and changeable, requiring a large number of special characters who can not only cover up the secret skillfully but also properly decorate the secret to show the world, and can flexibly adapt to changes and solemnly turn their faces in the change Not recognizing people, can not only despise all nobleness from the bottom of the heart, but also wash the mood and material desires of feudal rulers into clean norms.This large group of special characters needs to have keen perception, quick judgment, careful association and effective operation, but they must not have stable social ideals and personal morality.In this sense, political villains are not born naturally, but fill and satisfy a systemic need. "Biography of Cool Officials" in "Historical Records" records that Du Zhou, a close minister of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, was friendly on the surface, but in fact he was so bad that no words can be said.He is in charge of the law, and as long as he finds out who the emperor doesn't like, he will do everything possible to frame him with vicious methods; on the contrary, as long as the emperor doesn't hate the most heinous criminals, he can also be acquitted.One of his disciples felt that this was too much, and he asked: Who made the law?It is nothing more than the words of the previous emperors. Then, the words of the future emperors are also the law. Where is there any other law?It can be seen from this that although Du Zhou was a court villain who ruined social order, his logic is not absurd in an autocratic system. Du Zhou didn't listen to the previous emperors, only the descendants, so once the descendants changed, who would he listen to?Of course, he had to find a new master and take his breath.Logically speaking, if there is a relatively stable administrative structure based on rationality, it is perfectly normal for administrative officials at all levels to adapt to multiple people in power who are constantly changing. The situation is quite different.Every change of master means the complete destruction of the past, and the rebirth of one's official life, and the level of the process depends on whether all these can be done neatly and painlessly.When I closed my eyes and thought about it, the first thing that came to my mind was Feng Dao from the troubled times of the Five Dynasties. I don't know why I remember him so firmly. Feng Dao was originally the prime minister under Emperor Min of Tang. Li Congke attacked Emperor Min of Tang in AD 934. Feng Dao immediately came forward and begged Li Congke to become emperor. Others said that Emperor Min of Tang was still alive. How can you be a prime minister and invite the enemy to become emperor? ?Feng Dao said: I only care about winning or losing, and I should be pragmatic.Sure enough, as Feng Dao expected, Li Congke finally proclaimed himself emperor and became the last emperor of the Tang Dynasty. He asked Feng to be Sikong, who was in charge of sweeping the floor during sacrifices. Others were afraid that he would be angry, but he happily said: As long as you have an official name, you can sweep the floor. also. Later, Shi Jingtang became the son-in-law under the control of the Liao Kingdom. If he wanted to send someone to the Liao Kingdom to pay homage to his father and emperor, who would he send?Shi Jingtang thought of Feng Dao, Feng Dao, as a lackey's lackey, got things done. After the Liao Kingdom destroyed the Jin Dynasty, Feng Dao went to pay respects to Yelu Deguang, the leader of the Liao Dynasty. The Lord of the Liao Dynasty knew a little about his history and asked jokingly: "What kind of old man are you?"Feng Dao replied: I am a foolish old man with no talent and no morals.The Lord of Liao liked him so much that he humiliated himself, so he gave him the official position of Taifu. Living in troubled times, Feng Dao actually worked for ten monarchs one after another. Naturally, his ability is far more than slippery, and he has to betray him repeatedly.The old master, who was betrayed by him again and again, could hate him deeply but had no power to punish him, and most of the new masters were also what he said were pragmatic people, who only took his practical value and did not predict his future. betrayal of oneself.Therefore, Feng Dao still has the possibility of living for a long time and constantly turning and betraying. I just cite Feng Dao’s example to illustrate that to fully adapt to the political life of China’s feudal society, a person’s personality expenditure will be very thorough, so thorough that he hardly resembles a person.Compared with Feng Dao, Du Zhou, Fei Wuji and others, many loyal ministers and righteous men are very painful.Loyal ministers and righteous men will bow their knees for a long time on weekdays, but when they can't bear it, they will suddenly speak out and remonstrate desperately. This is actually a kind of maladaptive reaction, which proves that they still retain their own perception system and final personality structure.Later dynasties will also praise these loyal ministers and righteous men, but this is only a minor supplement to the feudal political life. As for the normal needs of the feudal political life, it is still Feng Dao, Du Zhou, and Fei Wuji.They are the real adaptors. After crushing their own personality structure, they gained a kind of relaxation. No matter what they do, there is no psychological barrier. Human nature, morality, reputation, promises, and oaths are all completely discarded. Feelings of love, shame, and compassion can all be put aside one by one. This is a free man nurtured by the extremely unfree feudal autocracy. This kind of free man found echoes in certain groups of China's lower society.The groups I am talking about do not refer to the poor. The toiling masses are a group of people who are overwhelmed by material constraints and natural constraints. ;I don't even mean robbers. Although robbers are evil, they also have their own moral norms. It cannot be compared with it; I am certainly not referring to prostitutes. Although the price paid by prostitutes is not life, it is specific and painful enough. In most aspects of life, they are more chaste than bureaucrats. Those who can echo and have a profound counterpoint to Feng Dao, Du Zhou, and Fei Wuji are the inferior groups of the lower class of society: evil slaves, beggars, hooligans, and literary ruffians. Apart from them, there is no other more intimate social and psychological basis for the villains in the officialdom.Once the evil slaves, beggars, hooligans, and cultural ruffians get a glimpse of the important officials of the court who behave like themselves, they will be greatly encouraged and become the most qualified relatives of the emperor in Chinese feudal society to claim to be someone in the court. This remote correspondence produces a vast middle ground.Just like the magnetic field formed between the two poles of electromagnetism, a huge psychological effect of degrading people and despicableness appeared strongly on the land of China.There are imperial models on the top and social roots on the bottom, so let’s breed and spread. What power can stop it?Most of the villains that people encountered later were not imperial court officials, nor professional slaves, beggars, hooligans, or literary ruffians. omnipresent.The social system at the upper level can be changed, and the social dregs at the lower level can be removed, and the existence of this middle ground will be a vast and malignant inheritance that is difficult to stop. According to my observation, in terms of nature, a large number of villains in the middle zone can also be divided into the evil slave type, beggar type, hooligan type, and literary ruffian type. Let me try to describe them separately. Slave villain. Originally, being a slave is also a social formation, and there is nothing to be ashamed of or to show off. However, some of them, when they become slaves, rely on the reputation of their masters to bully others. While being pleasing to the master, he is constantly spying on the various possibilities of overthrowing and engulfing the master. This is an evil slave, and an evil slave is a very typical villain.Xie Guozhen's "A Study of the Party and Society Movement during the Ming and Qing Dynasties" has an article "A Study of the Change of Slaves in the Ming Dynasty", which describes in detail the scene of the domestic slaves in the Jiangnan area of ​​the Jiangnan area in the late Ming Dynasty making troubles. It also involves the familiar Zhang Pu, Qian Qianyi, Gu Yanwu, Dong Qichang and other cultural celebrities' domestic slaves.These domestic slaves either took advantage of their power to bully others, or went to the government to falsely accuse their masters, or made a noise and swept away their property, making the political situation even more chaotic in an era that was already chaotic.For this reason, Meng Sen once wrote an article "Reading the Examination of the Slave Transformation in the Ming Dynasty", explaining that this kind of slave transformation was actually not a class struggle, because at that time, there were many people in the south of the Yangtze River who were unwilling to be slaves, but there were also many who were clearly slaves. People who don’t have to be slaves but must be slaves, this is the popular trend of seeking refuge with wealthy families. Originally, life is quite good, but if they want to rely on wealthy families to avoid taxes and run rampant in the countryside, they come in groups to sign contracts and sell themselves as slaves. slave.That's how the word prostitution came about.Meng Sen said that the former group of slaves had just made a violent disturbance, and the latter group happily came to join them as slaves. What kind of class struggle is this? People usually come into contact with a large number of evil slave-type villains who have not signed a contract of prostitution.Their characteristic is that they are permanently looking for objects to take refuge in and curry favor with.At the beginning of taking refuge, you can say anything good. Once you succeed in taking refuge, you will fully and thoroughly use the social power and public effectiveness of the object of refuge in order to succeed. , rebellion, and betrayal of capital, but after rebellion and betrayal, he is still a slave.Such people, no matter how vicious and ruthless they are, no matter how good they are, they can't get rid of the backers behind them. In terms of personality, they can't stand on their own in the world. No matter how big they are, they can only be regarded as villains. Beggar type villain. It is sympathetic to beg for survival due to a temporary famine, but begging becomes a habitual occupation, which in turn breeds a group psychological and cultural way, which will inevitably become a social nuisance and has no positive meaning at all.The basic point of the beggar's psychology is to use self-deterioration and self-weakness as means to complete the possession of other people's property bit by bit and quickly.Beggar-type villains do not have a clear concept of ownership in their minds. They think that everything in the world is not their own, and they are all their own. As long as they are willing to sacrifice their personality image to gain people's pity, things that are not their own may be converted into own stuff.Their feet are always stepping on the pulley of changing ownership. Before they get it, their tone of voice is so sincere that it makes people cry. After they get it, they immediately turn their faces and deny anyone.This approach will of course be criticized by people, and their way of facing the blame is to save themselves by being a scoundrel.They will swear to God, insisting that the thing they just begged for is theirs, and accuse the donator of destroying it.Shouting attracts onlookers, and bored onlookers like to hear dramatic events that go against common sense, so a looter who doesn't need to rob robs a victim who can't be robbed, what an incredible and sensational story it is.The beggar-type villain, as the protagonist of this story, is deeply satisfied by being watched for a long time together with the frustrated giver.Different from the villains in the market, beggar-type villains will never abandon their pitiful appearance, or show off their stumps, or show off their clothes, or emphasize aging. last line of defense. Once beggars gather in groups, no one is easy to deal with. "Qing Barnyard Banknotes‧Beggars" contains: Huai, Xu, Hai and other places in Jiangsu, there are hundreds of people who flee from famine as a job every year, begging in various counties and counties, and to neighboring provinces, the most in the early Guangxu period.The weirdest thing is that this group of beggars in northern Jiangsu still carry passports with official seals, and begging in a place has become a dignified official business.After begging, they will inevitably go to the government to ask for it, and get another official seal, which will become a visa for begging at the next stop. Covered chapters one by one.Associating from this example, as long as someone is determined to use beggar's methods to obtain something in life, sooner or later the goal will be achieved.Seemingly pitiful but with piercing eyes, humble but insatiable, and once obtained, he immediately cheats. This is the basic ecology of a beggar-type villain. The rogue villain. Every villain is full of hooliganism. When the evil slaves are finally expelled by the last master, when the beggars finally refuse to pretend to be pitiful one day, when these villains completely lose their social status and lose Even when they pretend to be value principles, they become the most presumptuous and illogical harassers against the social order. This is the rogue villain. The vitality of the rogue villain comes from shamelessness.Some people in the West say that human beings are the only animals that have a sense of shame. This sentence is not suitable for rogue villains. "History of the Ming Dynasty" records a man named Cao Qincheng, who obviously had already become the county magistrate of Wujiang, but also asked someone to recognize the eunuch Wei Zhongxian as his father. In the end, even Wei Zhongxian himself couldn't stand the ugliness of flattery, and called him a scum. After resigning from his official position, he actually said on the spot: The righteousness of the monarch and his ministers is gone, and the kindness of father and son is unforgettable.Soon after Wei Zhongxian's conspiracy was revealed, Cao Qincheng was regarded as an accomplice and imprisoned in death row. He was fine, he robbed other criminals' food in prison every day, and had enough to eat.This Cao Qincheng was undoubtedly a villainous villain at first, but after losing his master and being on death row, he naturally transformed into a villainous villain.What if I was a county magistrate?Still dare to snatch the food from the murderer's mouth and stuff it into his mouth!Are you here to fight?I've already swallowed it, anyway, sooner or later, I'm going to be beheaded, so I'm afraid of being beaten?When a person reaches this stage, it can really be said that he has entered a certain realm. The rogue-type villains who have not been in prison are more active than other types of villains. They alternately play with their hands like framing, spreading rumors, slandering, eavesdropping, intimidating, bullying, reneging on their promises, treachery, leading snakes out of their holes, making noises, etc. Waiting for the technique, others were bloodied by all this, but they talked and laughed freely, and they didn't take it to heart at all.One of their great advantages is that they are not only proficient in hooligan techniques, but also familiar with the normal rules of the world, so they are good at deliberately confusing the two, luring good people who don't know the bottom line into thinking that there is room for reason, and argue with them.Think they don't know the truth, but actually they already knew it; think they misunderstood for a while, but in fact they never misunderstood.You reason with them, and what they want to despise is all reason.When you knew the secret, and just wanted to turn around, they enthusiastically handed over the most normal truth, making people feel that it is you who will despise the truth in the end.Qu Yanbin's "History of Beggars in China" once quoted many examples collected in Lei Junyao's "Painting Deceitful Tales", and concluded that it is nothing to do with this kind of people.This remark may appeal to many readers.On the other hand, there are some people around us who have been together for many years without incident, and some people who post affectionately as protégés, and after a short period of time, endless troubles arise. They are probably rogue-type villains. . Rogue-type villains seem to be mostly young people at first glance, but they are not necessarily.What they have done is the result of time, so they are probably a little older.Xie Guozhen once recorded that at the end of the Ming Dynasty, a man named Gu Shenqing in Shaxi, Taicang, Jiangsu, worked as a domestic slave, sold smuggled salt, and worked in the yamen. Common people, the evaluation of him in history books is three words: old and sly, which succinctly summarizes the typical example of a truly rogue villain.Those youths with hooligan aura in the market are generally not in the scope of our discussion. Wen ruffian villain. When the above-mentioned villains acquire a kind of cultural carrier or cultural mask, they become literary villains.I think it is not difficult to name a long list of villains with excellent literary talents in Chinese history.宋真宗釣了半天魚釣不上來正在皺眉，一個叫丁謂的文人立即吟出一句詩來：魚畏龍顏上釣遲。詩句很聰明，宋真宗立即高興了。在宮廷裡做文化侍從，至少要有這樣的本事。至於這樣的文化侍從是不是文痞，還要看他做多少壞事。 文痞其實也就是文化流氓。與一般流氓不同的是他們還要注意修飾文化形象，時不時願意寫幾筆書法，打幾本傳奇，冒充一下學術輩分，拂拭一塊文化招牌，偽稱自己是哪位名人的師長，宣揚自己曾和某位大師有過結交。更重要的是，他們知道一點文化品格的基本經緯，因而總要花費不少力氣把自己打扮得慷慨激昂，好像他們是民族氣節和文化品格的最後代表，是路見不平、拔刀相助的今日義士。他們有時還會包攬詞訟，把事情搞顛倒了還能蒙得一個主持正義的美名。作為文人，他們特別知道輿論的重要，因而把很大的注意力花費在謠言的傳播方式和傳播手段上。在古代，造出野心家王莽是天底下最廉潔奉公的人，並把他推上皇帝寶座的是這幫人；在現代，給弱女子阮玲玉潑上很多髒水而使她無以言辯，只得寫下人言可畏的遺言自盡的也是這幫人。這幫人無德、無行、無恥，但偏偏隔三差五地要打扮成道德捍衛者的形象，把自己身上最怕別人說的特點倒栽在別人身上。他們手上有一支筆，但幾乎沒有為中華民族的文化建設像模像樣地做過什麼，除了阿諛就是誹謗。記得一位閱世極深的當代藝術大師臨終前曾經頗有感觸地說：一個文化人，如果一輩子沒有做成任何一件實實在在的文化事業而居然還在文化界騙得一點小名，那他到老也只能靠投機過日子，繼續忙忙顛顛地做文痞。文痞型小人腳跨流氓意識和文化手段之間，在中國這樣一個文化落後的國家裡特別具有偽裝，也特別具有破壞性，因為他們把其它類型小人的局部性惡濁，經過裝潢變成了一種廣泛的社會污染。試想，一群街邊流氓看到服飾齊整一點的行人就丟石子、潑髒水、瞎起鬨，這種很容易看出來的惡行如果由幾個舞文弄墨的人在哪本雜誌上換成文縐縐的腔調來幹，有多少人能看出來呢？說不定都被看成是文藝批評和藝術討論了。 Four 上文曾經說過，封建專制制度的特殊需要為小人的產生和活動提供了廣闊的空間，這種現象久而久之也就給全社會帶來一種心理後果：對小人只能防、只能躲、不能糾纏。於是小人如入無人之境，滋生他們的那塊土壤總是那樣肥沃豐美。 值得研究的是，有不少小人並沒有什麼權力背景、組合能力和敢死精神，為什麼正常的社會群體對他們也失去了防禦能力呢？如果我們不把責任全部推給封建王朝，在我們身邊是否也能找到一點原因呢？ 好像能找到一些。 第一，觀念上的缺陷。不知從什麼時候開始，我們社會上特別痛恨的都不是各種類型的小人。我們痛恨不知天高地厚、口出狂言的青年，我們痛恨敢於無視親友鄰里的規勸死死追求對象的情種，我們痛恨不顧一切的激進派或巍然不動的保守派，我們痛恨跋扈、妖冶、窮酸、迂腐、固執，我們痛恨這痛恨那，卻不會痛恨那些沒有立場的遊魂、轉瞬即逝的笑臉、無法驗證的美言、無可驗收的許諾。很長時間我們都太政治化，以某種政治觀點決定自己的情感投向，而小人在政治觀點上幾乎是無可無不可的，因此容易同時討好兩面，至少被兩面都看成中間狀態的友鄰。我們厭惡愚昧，小人智商不低；我們厭惡野蠻，小人在多數情況下不幹血淋淋的蠢事。結果，我們極其嚴密的社會觀念監察網絡疏而不漏地垂顧著各色人等，卻獨獨把小人給放過了。 第二，情感上的牽扯。小人是善於做情感遊戲的，這對很多勞於事功而深感寂寞的好人來說正中下懷。在這個問題上小人與正常人的區別是，正常人的情感交往是以袒示自我的內心開始的，小人的情感遊戲是以揣摩對方的需要開始的。小人往往揣摩得很準，人們一下就進入了他們的陷阱，誤認他們為知己。小人就是那種沒有一個真正的朋友卻曾有很多人把他誤認為知己的人。到後來，人們也會漸漸識破他們的真相，但既有舊情牽連，不好驟然反臉。 我覺得中國歷史上特別能在情感的迷魂陣中識別小人的是兩大名相：管仲和王安石。他們的千古賢名，有一半就在於他們對小人的防範上。管仲輔佐齊桓公時，齊桓公很感動地對他說：我身邊有三個對我最忠心的人，一個人為了伺候我願做太監，把自己閹割了；一個人來做我的臣子後整整十五年沒有回家看過父母；另一個人更厲害，為了給我滋補身體居然把自己兒子殺了做成羹給我吃！管仲聽罷便說：這些人不可親近。他們的作為全部違反人的正常感情，怎麼還談得上對你的忠誠？齊桓公聽了管仲的話，把這三個小人趕出了朝廷。管仲死後，這三個小人果然鬧得天翻地覆。王安石一生更是遇到過很多小人，難於盡舉，給我印象最深的是諫議大夫程師孟，他有一天竟然對王安石說，他目前最恨的是自己身體越來越好，而自己的內心卻想早死。王安石很奇怪，問他為什麼，他說：我先死，您就會給我寫墓誌銘，好流傳後世了。王安石一聽就掂出了這個人的人格重量，不再理會。有一個叫李師中的小人水平更高一點，在王安石推行新法而引起朝廷上下非議紛紛的時候，他寫了長長的十篇《巷議》，說街頭巷尾都在說新法好，宰相好。本來這對王安石是雪中送炭般的支持，但王安石一眼就看出了《巷議》的偽詐成分，開始提防他。只有像管仲、王安石這樣，小人們所布下的情感迷魂陣才能破除，但對很多人物來說，幾句好話一聽心腸就軟，小人要俘虜他們易如反掌。 第三，心態上的恐懼。小人和善良人們往往有一段或短或長的情誼上的蜜月期，當人們開始有所識破的時候，小人的耍潑期也就來到了。平心而論，對於小人的耍潑，多數人是害怕的。小人不管實際上膽子多小，耍起潑來有一種玩命的外相。好人雖然不見得都怕死，但要死也死在戰爭、搶險或與匪徒的格鬥中，與小人玩命，他先潑你一身髒水，把事非顛倒得讓你成為他的同類，就像拉進一個泥潭翻滾得誰的面目也看不清，這樣的死法多窩囊！因此，小人們用他們的骯髒，擺開了一個比世界上任何真正的戰場都令人恐怖的混亂方陣，使再勇猛的鬥士都只能退避三舍。在很多情況下小人不是與你格鬥而是與你死纏，他們知道你沒有這般時間、這般口舌、這般耐心、這般情緒，他們知道你即使發火也有熄火的時候，只要繼續纏下去總會有你的意志到達極限的一刻，他們也許看到過古西臘的著名雕塑《拉奧孔》，那對強勁的父子被滑膩膩的長蛇終於纏到連呼號都發不出聲音的地步。想想那尊雕塑吧，你能不怕？ 有沒有法律管小人？difficult.小人基本上不犯法。這便是小人更讓人感到可怕的地方。 《水滸傳》中的無賴小人牛二纏上了英雄楊志，楊志一躲再躲也躲不開，只能把他殺了，但犯法的是楊志，不是牛二。小人用卑微的生命粘貼住一具高貴的生命，高貴的生命之所以高貴就在於受不得污辱，然而高貴的生命不想受污辱就得付出生命的代價，一旦付出代價後人們才發現生命的天平嚴重失衡。這種失衡又倒過來在社會上普及著新的恐懼：與小人較勁犯不著。中國社會上流行的那句俗語我惹不起，總躲得起吧，實在充滿了無數次失敗後的無奈情緒。誰都明白，這句話所說的不是躲盜賊，不是躲災害，而是躲小人。好人都躲著小人，久而久之，小人被一些無知者所羨慕，他們的隊伍擴大了。 第四，策略上的失誤。中國歷史上很多不錯的人物在對待小人的問題上每每產生策略上的失誤。在道與術的關係上，他們雖然崇揚道卻因政治思想構架的大一統而無法真正行道，最終都陷入術的圈域，名為韜略，實為政治實用主義。這種政治實用主義的一大特徵，就是用小人的手段來對付政敵，用小人的手段來對付小人。這樣做初看頗有實效，其實後果嚴重。政敵未必是小人，利用小人對付政敵，在某種意義上是利用小人來撲滅政治觀點不同的君子，在整體文明構建上是一大損失。利用小人來對付小人，使被利用的那撥小人處於合法和被弘揚的地位，一旦成功，小人的思維方式和行為邏輯將邀功論賞、發揚光大。中國歷史上許多英明君主、賢達臣將往往在此處失誤，他們獲得了具體的勝利，但勝利果實上充滿了小人灌注的毒汁。他們只問果實屬於誰而不計果實的性質，因此，無數次即便是好人的成功也未必能構成一種正當的文明積累。 小人是不可多加利用的。雷君曜的《繪圖騙術奇談》中記述了不止一人先被小人利用，後來發覺後認為有利可圖，將錯就錯地倒過來利用小人的事例，結果總是小人逃之夭夭，企圖利用小人的人成了最狼狽的民間笑柄。我覺得這些故事帶有寓言性質，任何歷史力量若要利用小人成事，最終自己必將以一種小人化的醜陋形態被歷史和人類所奚落。 第五，靈魂上的對應。有不少人，就整體而言不能算是小人，但在特定的情勢和境遇下，靈魂深處也悄然滲透出一點小人情緒，這就與小人們的作為對應起來了，成為小人鬧事的幫手和起鬨者。謠言和謊言為什麼有那麼大的市場？按照正常的理性判斷，大多數謠言是很容易識破的，但居然會被智力並不太低的人大規模傳播，原因只能說是傳播者對謠言有一種潛在需要。只要想一想歷來被謠言攻擊的人大多數是那些有理由被別人暗暗嫉妒、卻沒有理由被公開詆毀的人物，我們就可明白其中奧秘了。謠言為傳播、信謠者而設，按接受美學的觀點，謠言的生命扎根於傳謠、信謠者的心底。如果沒有這個根，一切謠言便如小兒夢囈、腐叟胡謅，會有什麼社會影響呢？一切正常人都會有失落的時候，失落中很容易滋長嫉妒情緒，一聽到某個得意者有什麼問題，心裡立即獲得了某種竊竊自喜的平衡，也不管起碼的常識和邏輯，也不作任何調查和印證，立即一哄而起，形成圍啄。更有一些人，平日一直遺憾自己在名望和道義上的欠缺，一旦小人提供一個機會能在攻擊別人過程中獲得這種補償，也會在猶豫再三之後探頭探腦地出來，成為小人的同夥。如果僅止於內心的些微需要試圖滿足，這樣的陷落也是有限度的，良知的警覺會使他們拔身而走；但也有一些人，開始只是說不清道不明的內心對位而已，而一旦與小人合夥成事後又自恃自傲，良知麻木，越沉越深，那他們也就成了地地道道的小人而難以救藥了。從這層意義上說，小人最隱秘的土壤，其實在我們每個人的內心，即便是吃夠了小人苦頭的人，一不留神也會在自己的某個精神角落為小人挪出空地。 five So what to do? 顯然沒有消解小人的良方。在這個棘手的問題上我們能做的事情很少。我認為，文明的群落至少應該取得一種共識：這是我們民族命運的暗疾和隱患，也是我們人生取向的分道所在，因此需要在心理上強悍起來，不再害怕我們害怕過的一切。不再害怕眾口鑠金，不再害怕招腥惹臭，不再害怕群蠅成陣，不再害怕陰溝暗道，不再害怕那種時時企盼著新的整人運動的飢渴眼光，不再害怕幾個很想成名的人長久地纏著你打所謂名人官司，不怕偷聽，不怕恐嚇，不怕獰笑，以更明確、更響亮的方式立身處事，在人格、人品上昭示著高貴和低賤的界限。經驗證明，面對小人，越是退讓，麻煩越多。那麼，只好套用一句熟語了：我們死都不怕，還怕小人麼？ 此外，有一件具體的事可做，我主張大家一起來認認真真地研究一下從歷史到現實的小人問題。把這個問題狠狠地談下去，總有好處。 想起了寫《吝嗇鬼》的莫里哀。他從來沒有想過要根治人類身上自古以來就存在的吝嗇這個老毛病，但他在劇場裡把吝嗇解剖得那麼透徹、那麼辛辣、那麼具體，使人們以後再遇到吝嗇或自己心底產生吝嗇的時候，猛然覺得在哪裡見過，於是，劇場的笑聲也會在他們耳邊重新響起，那麼多人的笑聲使他們明白人類良知水平上的事非。他們在笑聲中莞爾了，正常的人性也就悄沒聲兒地上升了一小格。 忘了是狄德羅還是柏格森說的，莫里哀的《吝嗇鬼》問世以來沒有治好過任何一個吝嗇鬼，這是毫無疑問的；但是只要經歷過演出劇場那暢快的笑，吝嗇鬼走出劇場後至少在兩三個星期內會收斂一點，不是吝嗇鬼而心底有吝嗇影子的人會把那個影子縮小一點，更重要的是，讓一切觀眾重見吝嗇行為時覺得似曾相識，然後能快速給以判斷，這就夠了。 吝嗇的毛病比我所說的小人的痼疾輕微得多。鑒於小人對我們民族昨天和今天的嚴重荼毒，微薄如我們，能不能像莫里哀一樣把小人的行為舉止、心理方式用最普及的方法袒示於世，然後讓人們略有所悟呢？既然小人已經糾纏了我們那麼久，我們何不壯壯膽，也對著他們鼓噪幾下呢？ 二十世紀臨近末尾，新的世紀就要來臨。我寫《山居筆記》大多是觸摸自以為本世紀未曾了斷的一些疑難文化課題，這是最後一篇，臨了的話題是令人沮喪的：為了世紀性的告別和展望，請在關注一系列重大社會命題的同時，順便把目光注意一下小人。 是的，小人。 appendix 秋雨按：拙文《歷史的暗角》發表後，大陸報刊多方轉載，產生了有趣的反應。上海《文匯報》的編者曾給我看過著名作家張賢亮先生推薦拙文的一篇長文，後來不知怎麼我沒有看到該文的發表。張賢亮先生談了對小人問題的一系列精采看法後認為，我對於如何對付小人，態度還嫌消極。他認為，小人做盡壞事，但在今天卻難於剝奪我們的生存權，而只要我們的生存權未被剝奪，我們就應該聯合起來與他們鬥，萬不可退讓躲避。剛讀完張賢亮先生的文章，我又在《文匯書周報》上讀到了衛建民先生的《談小人》，他的意見正恰與張賢亮先生相反，認為對小人完全不必理會，應該沉默以對。兩位先生的意見其實都很有道理，這是兩種不必統一的道理。我至今還在這兩種意見中徘徊，估計還會長久徘徊下去。對於一切最常見的社會歷史命題，深刻的答案往往是處於徘徊狀態的。如果答案簡單，它就早已解決，不可能常見了。 張賢亮先生的文章一時找不到，且附衛建民先生的文章供讀者參考。