The guiding ideology of Romance of the Three Kingdoms is to respect Liu and suppress Cao, and Liu Bei appeared as a eulogized figure, occupying a great space in the works. The Water Margin is about a peasant uprising in the late Northern Song Dynasty. As the leader of the peasant uprising, Song Jiang certainly became the protagonist of the work, and the author's attitude towards this role is basically positive. Luo Guanzhong and Shi Naian lived at roughly the same time. The same social environment, the same world outlook and creative ideas make Liu Bei and Song Jiang have many similarities or similarities in their works. There have been a lot of discussions about the two artistic images of Liu Bei and Song Jiang, but generally they are only analyzed separately. Even if there are occasional comparisons, it is only a few words. This paper attempts to make a comprehensive analysis from the ideological character of these two artistic images and the social and historical situation reflected by them.
Liu Bei was born in a declining feudal prince's family and scattered among the people. The dross thought of "being the son and grandson of the dragon" in feudal times was completely revealed in him from an early age. He is proud of his background and shows off his family background everywhere. As soon as he appeared, he said to Zhang Fei, "I am a Han clan"; He sent troops to suppress the Yellow Scarf Army, and was retained by Ada by "saying sects". Looking at the thatched cottage, the first sentence is to call yourself "the end of the Han Dynasty"; ..... As he expected, in the society at that time, although the peasant uprising was a serious blow to the Han family, among the rich nobles, warlords, literati and even ordinary people, the status of "emperor" would bring him benefits. When Yuan Shao gave him a seat among the princes for such a small county magistrate, he said frankly, "I don't respect you famous officials, I respect your ears in the emperor's office." Tao Qian gave Xuzhou to him, largely out of the consideration of "men are Han". Even Kong Rong, who was the first in The Romance of the Three Kingdoms to call Liu Xuande a contemporary hero, kept saying that he was a Han clan. When Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty recognized him as a clan uncle, the title of "imperial uncle" made him worth a hundred times. Liu Bei won a certain reputation and status with his "good" background, which opened up a new situation for his career. People who miss the Han Dynasty and are willing to work for it all take refuge in him.
Song Jiang achieved the same goal and effect with his money. Song Jiang was born in a wealthy landlord family. He worked as a local contractor and had oil and water. Money is not a problem for him. He is also a man who knows how to use money. Therefore, money has brought him a good reputation of "sparing money and helping others" and won him the reputation of "timely rain". For ordinary people, show small favors, such as giving him money to buy medicine and a coffin, so that they can't be grateful to him; For the boss and subordinates, after using money to get through the joints and killing Yan Poxi, the county magistrate actually protected him wholeheartedly; For Jianghu hawkers, he is more generous and thinks he is "loyal enough". Back to write 37 sung river was escorted to jiangzhou, "since the knot with the central human feelings, poor to a single room, send him 12 silvers; The camp management office doubled the number of personnel sent; The people in charge of the camp and the soldiers who ordered them all sent some money to buy tea. Therefore, everyone is not in the river. "Huarong Road sent people to serve Song Jiang's closest relatives. "No one doesn't love him" because he is rich; Li Kui jy felt that he was "generous in aiding needy people and deserved it" because Song Jiang gave him 12 taels of silver to repay his gambling debts. Xue Yong "bowed his head" to him, but because others saw him busking but didn't give him money, Sung River gave him five taels of silver. Money makes the mare go, and "money makes the mare go" is really clear. Heroes of the Water Margin are respectful to Song Jiangdu, and often call themselves "brothers" and "bow their heads", which is a praise for his "helping the poor". His reputation of "helping others" is at least because of this, if not entirely because of money. I'm afraid I won't be so famous if a versatile person is not as rich as he is, or not as knowledgeable about money as he is.
Whether in ancient times or now, the role of public opinion is enormous, and the establishment of the banner is essential for those who want to succeed. Let's have a talk before the war to show that our teacher is famous. It is only natural that the emperor should list a lot of merits and demerits when rewarding or punishing ministers. For Liu Bei and Song Jiang, two people who were not famous in the past, in ancient society, what other methods can make them win fame faster, so as to get ahead and make a difference? Liu Bei doesn't have the money of Song Jiang, and Song Jiang doesn't have Liu Bei's good background, but both of them know the benefits that a good reputation will bring to them, and they can make every effort to make use of their favorable realistic conditions, and both of them have achieved great success. Although the methods are different, the effect is the same.
Liu Bei and Song Jiangdu are lean people. In turbulent times, in the complicated political struggle and power struggle, their education and bumpy experience made them all hypocritical, cruel, cunning, insidious and forbearing. In the end, they all made certain achievements: Liu Bei ascended the throne of Shu and Song Jiang ascended the position of the first leader of 108 hero.
Song Jiang used money to buy people's hearts, mainly for personal pursuit of fame and fortune, but he always showed a pious, generous and heroic look. He sponsored the lonely and helpless Yan Po to bury her husband. When Wang Po told him that Yan Po wanted to marry his daughter, he refused at first. After a few more words, Wang Po "agreed" and finally made a farce to kill him. Li Kui jy's mother was eaten by a tiger, and Sung River had no sympathy. It turned out that everyone "laughed" that Li Kui jy killed four tigers, which was "an appropriate celebration". In order to soothe the thunderbolt fire Qin Ming, he fought bravely and killed countless kind people and the youngest son of the Qin family. There was no way out, which made Qin Ming have to go up the mountain in desperation. Song Jiang refused to stop there and even set a honey trap. He decided to marry Huarong's sister to Qin Ming and win him over. Cruel and vicious-as for this! He knew that the water margin people refused to accept Lu Junyi, because Lu Junyi was a big landlord in Hebei and had sworn enemies with the water margin. He would not be sidelined from the throne of the shanzhai boss, but he hypocritically said that he would follow the last words of King Chaotian and made way for Lu Junyi again and again. Investigate its root cause, just to convince Lu Junyi's pride, so as to consolidate his already indestructible position. After Song Jiang surrendered to the imperial court, his men killed officials who embezzled imperial grain and insulted Liangshan heroes. He was afraid of "bringing trouble to everyone", so he cut the military school to the top and pretended to curse: "I broke my brother for the first time since I went to Liangshan." In fact, there is absolutely no need to "break your brother." Seeing that Liangshan heroes were killed one by one, he just shed a few tears, and the court poisoned him with alcohol. He also sent someone to call Li Kui jy in Runzhou to "go to Chuzhou on a starry night" to trick Li Kui jy into taking chronic poison.
Emperor Liu Bei, who was born in the royal family and was more ambitious, was even more hypocrite than Song Jiang, who was born in the city and was somewhat wild with the greenwood. His method is more subtle, more ingenious and less subtle. On the 41st time, "Liu Xuande led his troops across the river and rode alone to save Zhao Zilong", and with Liu Bei's military strength at that time, it was difficult to escape the pursuit of Cao Cao's army. But he still wants to mobilize hundreds of thousands of people, "walk slowly", "walk only ten miles a day and rest", and persuade Liu Bei to "abandon the people first", but he began to cry: "Those who achieve great things must be people-oriented, and today's people belong to me. I would rather "support ten thousand people and travel more than ten miles a day" and "want to throw myself into the river" when the people are in trouble. Its moving scene is enough for Liu Bei to win the Oscar for Best Actor. Is the death of the people Cao Cao's fault or Liu Bei's responsibility? Is Liu Bei the savior and hope of the people, or has the people become Liu Bei's shield and savior? Zhao Yun attacked Changbanpo and died dozens of times in Cao Cao's army of hundreds of thousands, saving Mrs. Gan and her life. Liu Bei actually threw Adou to the ground. " For you, a good boy, you hurt me several times! "In a panic, Zhao Yun hurriedly picked up an underground bucket and cried,' Although the cloud has spread all over the floor, you can't report it!' The two-part allegorical saying "Liu Bei wrestles-buys people's hearts" clearly reveals the nature of Liu Bei's posturing. Who is Zhang Song in the Three Kingdoms? And what heroes are Zhao Yun and Guan Yu? Liu Bei specially sent Zhao Yun and Guan Yu to meet Zhang Song, who was frustrated and discouraged, and "invited Long Fu and Feng Chu to meet him personally", with obvious intentions. However, after being kind to him for three days, he didn't mention anything about Sichuan. Zhang Song instead tried to "persuade" him to give up. In fact, Liu Bei refused to give up because Liu Zhang was a family. What he said to Zhang Song was true: "If you have something in the future, you will be rewarded.". What can better illustrate Liu Bei's treacherous character is that he imitated Liu Biao's method of entrusting orphans before he died. On the one hand, he wanted Zhuge Liang to do his best to assist his son Liu Chan, and on the other hand, he was afraid that Zhuge Liang would seize his "possessions" after his death, so he put the words in front, "If you can add heirs, you can add them; If he is incompetent, you can be the master of Chengdu. " Zhuge Liang was so scared that he "sweated all over, his hands and feet were flustered, and he cried and fell to his knees, saying,' I dare to spare no effort to do my loyalty and then die! "When you're finished, you kowtow and bleed." In feudal society, what an emperor said to his officials is more terrible than this?
Liu Bei is scheming, shrewd and flexible. When the time is not ripe, he can bear it and hold his breath. When his strength was not enough to fight against Yuan Shu, he didn't make a move and accepted the advice of Lu Bu Yuanmen, but before long, he defeated Yuan Shu and Yuan Shu died. When Xu Tian was hunting, he was afraid that he was not strong enough to hurt Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty, so he stopped Guan Yu in time and didn't kill Cao Cao. But he immediately took an active part in the conspiracy of Dong Cheng, Ma Teng and others, which he will never forget. When I lived under Cao Cao's fence, "in order to prevent Cao Cao from killing people, I went to the backyard to grow vegetables and water myself, thinking it was a plan to hide my strength and bide my time." Guan and Zhang said,' Brother doesn't know what's going on in the world, but learns from villains. "Why," said Liu Bei, "my second brother doesn't know this." "Growing vegetables in the backyard is to' let Cao Cao know that I have no ambition'. As for Cao Cao's theory of cooking wine, it shows that Liu Bei's talent is deep and agile. " I was shocked when I inadvertently said something called a hero. "I was afraid that Cao would get suspicious, so I covered my ears with fear of thunder, and finally made Cao Cao" not doubt Xuande. " "
As a figure of the same class as Liu Bei, Song Jiang will exercise restraint when necessary, but Liu Bei started from his career, and Song Jiang can be said to be a temporary grievance for survival. Back to the 39th, Huang Wenbing presented Song Jiang's anti-poem to Cai Jiu, the magistrate, explaining the nursery rhymes in Kyoto. Cai Jiu's magistrate ordered Dai Zong to capture Song Jiang, and Song Jiang's life was in danger, so he accepted Dai Zong's statement of "cheating demon", "Let my hair fall freely and roll in the urine pit", full of nonsense: "I am the son-in-law of the Jade Emperor. My husband taught me to lead hundreds of heavenly soldiers to kill you Jiangzhou people, with King Yamaraja as the pioneer. After the five generals were put together, there was a gold seal of more than 800 kilograms. " This situation is not much worse than that of Sun Bin. I really want to achieve great things and have something extraordinary. However, most of the time, Song Jiang couldn't stand it. His revenge is very strong, and he has the wildness of the green forest that Liu Bei does not have. Song Jiang was killed by Liu Gongren. After he escaped, he killed Gao Liu without feeling revenge. "Only that bitch didn't kill her, she was angry"; Being framed by Huang Wenbing and rescued by classical people, he refused to delay for a moment, so he had to take revenge first. When I caught Huang Wenbing, I pretended to be kind: "Which brother will do it for me?" It seems that even people will not be killed.
Song Jiang wrote a poem "Xijiang Moon" on Xunyang Tower: "I studied classics since I was a child and grew up with strength. Like a tiger lying on a barren hill, its hidden minions endure. It's a pity that tattooed cheeks deserve Jiangzhou. If he had taken revenge that year, he would have fought a bloody battle at the mouth of Xunyang River. " He also wrote a four-line poem: "My heart is in Shandong, my body is in Wu, and I am floating in Pengjiang Lake. If he is so smart, dare to laugh at Huang Chao's husband! " His poems won him praise from many heroes of the Water Margin! It has also become an important argument for many critics, thinking that this is the concentrated expression of Song Jiang's rebellious thoughts. In fact, this is precisely Song Jiang's ingenious means of pursuing fame and fortune. What happened to Song Jiang was different from what happened to Lin Chong. Sung River was sentenced to be sent to Jiangzhou, a land of fish and rice, for killing Yan Poxi, and the county magistrate sheltered him blindly without giving him any pain. It was Zhang Qianli who escorted him, not Dong Chao Xue Ba, but as a prisoner for him all the time; In this prison city, his money makes "everyone has no river"; With Mr. Dai's support, he can eat, drink and have fun everywhere like other rich people. Such a handsome banishment should be said to be unparalleled in heaven and earth, right? This makes people feel that it is unreasonable that "if he took revenge in those days, he would have bloodbath Xunyang estuary". He thinks that wearing a locked cangue is not playing in the net; Rebellion on the mountain is playing in the net; He thinks that going to court is a blessing in disguise for him. How can a person like him have the mind and ambition of "If I am Di Qing next year, I will report the peach blossom" (Huang Chao's Chrysanthemum)? If he has the intention of rebellion, at least when Jiangzhou crosses Liangshan, he can bite his teeth and run away. Why do you have to win Jiangzhou to "endure the lurking minions"? With his strong revenge, with his murderous look of "blood stained Xunyang estuary", how can he wait until "another year" to avenge himself when he can completely use Liangshan forces? What's more, the torture he suffered was entirely caused by himself. He described himself as a humiliating hero of "a tiger lying on a barren hill", and he was completely boastful and boastful.
Liu Bei's rough experience, of course, is due to his limited talent, but also because his opponent's power is too strong, which has not brought shame to his own river. However, the way to flatter yourself everywhere, suppress competitors and flaunt yourself is exactly the same. When Liu Bei first heard Feng Chu's name in Wolong, he was always worried. Everyone asked if it was "Mr. Wolong" or "Mr. Feng Chu". Is really Pang Tong to take refuge in him. "Seeing that he is ugly, his heart is not happy", so he had to ask Pang Shiyuan to be a small county magistrate. He and Pang Tong boasted about French snails: "Now Cao Cao is my enemy in fire and water. Fuck with urgency, I am wide; Fighting violence with violence, I am benevolent; Fuck with praise, I with loyalty: every time contrary to fuck, things can be done. I can't bear to lose confidence in the world for petty profits. " Luo Guanzhong's thought of "respecting Liu and restraining Cao" is too bizarre, even if it is "contrary to Cao Cao, it is possible". But the reality of the tripartite confrontation between the three countries is that Liu Bei's Shu kingdom is the weakest and Cao Cao's side is the strongest, both militarily and economically. Liu Bei is really not "breaking faith in the world for petty profits", but trying to dominate. What he said is all good, all generosity and benevolence are his, and all violent criticism is Cao Cao's. As a lean generation, how can his insidious and vicious nature be worse than Cao Cao's? He could not bear to take Jingzhou, but took it; Can't bear to take Yizhou, but also take its right; I couldn't bear to ascend to the throne, but I finally did. Let others urge him to "endure" and "endure" because he can't stand it. How did Cao shine? Song Jiang kept saying that he respected Classical as the leader, and made him "do it for him" on the pretext that the leader of the cottage could not easily go down the mountain. So in the imperial court and Jianghu, he only knew that there was "timely rain" but didn't know that there was "King Tota", and everyone followed him, thus achieving the goal of raising the classical style. Under the banner of "doing justice for heaven" and "protecting the environment and protecting the people", he attacked another peasant uprising army, Fang La, for the imperial court, killing innocent people indiscriminately and countless heroes. Liu Bei and Song Jiangdu claim to be representatives of benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom, faithfulness, loyalty and courage, and at the same time they are doing many things that are unkind, unjust, unbelieving and brave, which is inseparable from their class nature.
Although Liu Bei's image is far less perfect and plump than Cao Cao's, it is not as prominent as Zhang Fei and Zhuge Liang. Although Song Jiang is not as vivid and touching as Lin Chong, Lu, and Lu, their personalities are complex and rich in connotation. They have the hypocrisy and ferocity of a feudal ruler, and they also have the mind and ability to be a politician. They can be polite to corporal, be good at employing people and be loyal to others. They know that the key to the success of their career lies in people's hearts, so they try their best to win people's hearts. Liu Bei knows how to care for the people and let them live and work in peace. Song Jiang used to help the poor with money. Every time he sent troops to Dan Liang, he always made a gesture of "no offense in autumn" to the people. When he conquered the city, he "urgently ordered not to kill the people" and "distributed food and rice" to help the poor, so he was very popular. Treat subordinates, sung river is to get along with their brothers, solve their worries. Going to Liangshan is a rebellion and a big sin of beheading. Those who have wives and children will have worries. Unlike the Three Kingdoms period, talented people can be reused wherever they go, and they don't have to worry about the safety of their families. So Sung River always leads Xu Ning, Guan Sheng and others up the mountain to join the partnership by proper or improper means, and on the other hand, sends someone to escort their families up the mountain safely, which can lead them down the next road and reassure them. Liu Bei's courtesy corporal, thirsty for talent, is famous throughout the ages. Xu Shu is his indispensable assistant, but Liu Bei sent him away with a farewell feeling for the reunion of Xu Shu's mother and son. In order to get Kong Ming, he fasted and bathed and looked after him in the thatched cottage. The third time, when Kongming was sleeping, he stood quietly under the steps and waited for more than an hour. This pious attitude, which is not afraid of wind and rain, mountains and roads, finally moved Mr. Wolong, who didn't ask Wen Da to be a vassal, to go out of the mountains and do his best for him, and finally completed the three-point hegemony. Throughout his life, he never doubted Zhuge Liang's strategy and tactics, internal and external policies in every battle. Ma Su's judgment is even more accurate than Zhuge Liang's. The cooperation between monarch and minister is so harmonious that it is really hard to see through the ages. The first time I saw Zhao Yun, I was "very close to him and reluctant to part with him". I couldn't bear to leave him, so I "held my hand and cried." Liu Bei was overjoyed when Zhao Yun came back. In the Changbanpo rebellion, most people suspected that Zhao Yun had defected to Cao Cao. Even Zhang Fei said to him, "He saw that we were exhausted, but he turned against Cao Cao just to get rich." Liu Bei still firmly believes that "Zilong is in trouble from me, and his heart is as hard as stone, and wealth cannot be shaken." He really has the excellent character of an enlightened emperor. The reason why Liu Bei is praised by most people is that he can practice benevolent government and courtesy to corporal.
Due to the limitation of the mode of production, the ancient working people could not imagine a new social structure outside the feudal system; At the same time, due to the limitations of the times, I can't see my great power to create and dominate history. Therefore, I hope that there will be a good emperor who can use the good and get rid of the evil, and an honest and upright official who is dedicated to the people like Bao Zheng. The people hope that the emperor and his ministers can implement benevolent policies, take care of the people's interests within a proper scope, reduce punishment, provide a stable living and production environment for the people, and provide a place for those who are interested in serving the country and achieving something. People in feudal society only wanted a "good emperor" and a more enlightened rule. Great progressive poets, such as Du Fu, wish to "make the monarch Yao Shun superior, and then make the customs pure", and Du Mu also claimed that "he is willing to make up for life", which still belongs to the ideological category of feudalism. Therefore, when the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was circulated among the people, the people started from their own wishes for the monarch and beautified Liu Bei; Song Jiang, who used to be a "brave madman" in the story of Water Margin, has evolved into a "loyal reward for Zhao Jiaguan" and wants to be an upright Song Jiang who saves the people. It is on this basis that Luo Guanzhong created the image of "good emperor" like Liu Bei and surrender Jiang according to his own wishes and purposes. Song Jiang in Water Margin is not a rebellious hero, but his ideal is to be a loyal minister and a good official of the imperial court, improve official management and assume the function of an honest official. He didn't ask for changing the ownership of the means of production at all, and he didn't expect to overthrow the Song Dynasty. Instead, he "wooed the country wholeheartedly" and "wooed the country while it was early, with no other distractions". He only has some conditions to become a leader of the peasant uprising, but he lacks the most fundamental essence of being a leader of the peasant uprising and his rebellion against social order and ethics. His tragic character can never lead the peasant uprising to win the regime change, nor can he fight to the end and die heroically in a difficult situation. He can only take the road of surrender. Therefore, Liu Bei and Song Jiang, especially Song Jiang, reflected the fate of the peasant uprising in China.
There are only three fates for the peasant uprising in China feudal society. One is that the rebel forces of the whole society are beneficial to the peasant uprising army, and the leaders of the uprising can also formulate a series of correct programs, principles and policies, have outstanding art of organization and command, and finally overthrow the old dynasty and establish a new dynasty, such as Liu Bang, the ancestor of Liu Bei, and Zhu Yuanzhang, an entrepreneur in the Luo Guanzhong era. The second is that the contrast of class power is unfavorable to the peasant uprising, or the leader of the rebel army made a serious mistake and was brutally suppressed by the ruling class, which led to tragic consequences, such as Liu Bei's strong participation in the suppression and the Yellow Scarf Uprising, the Huang Chao Uprising that Song Jiang tried to keep up with, and the Fang La Uprising that was later slaughtered by Song Jiang for "doing justice for heaven". The third is that the rebels lack clear and progressive ideals and political goals. Like Liang Shanbo, they are satisfied with the life of "weighing gold and silver, changing clothes, drinking in a big bowl and eating meat in large pieces", maintaining emotional ties with loyalty in the rivers and lakes, without the same goal of seizing political power. Under the threat and temptation of the rulers, the rebel leaders were bound by feudal ideas and wavered and surrendered at the critical moment of life and death. The Liangshan Uprising led by Song Jiang lasted for a short time, and did not leave their base areas during the Juyi period, just like the feudal captaincy of the separatist party. Their slogan is "Help the sky, protect the environment and protect the people", and their goal is to crack down on corrupt officials and big landlords. Their actions are full of revenge, and they all attack the city and plunder the pool just to save a person or avenge themselves. What's more, Song Jiang only regarded the growth of Liangshan power as his capital to accept the favor of the court. So the Liangshan Uprising led by Song Jiang is doomed to failure.
Righteousness is an important moral standard in feudal society. The "Zi" organizations formed by the rangers admired by Sima Qian, such as Mohism, Jia Zhu and Guo Jie, are all people who pay attention to loyalty, speak out when they see injustice, and draw out their swords to help each other. "His words must be true, his deeds must bear fruit, and his words must be sincere, instead of cherishing his body, he will go to the danger of scholars" ("Historical Records, Biography of Rangers"), so he is sympathized and loved by the people. The "righteousness" in people's minds is combined with the virtues of selflessness, clear grievances, self-sacrifice and loyalty among people. Because in the dark age of feudal rule, people lived a precarious and stormy life. They realized from practice that we must join hands, lose confidence, support each other, and * * * must cope with the "catastrophe" of class oppression and alien invasion that will come at any time and place. Therefore, "loyalty" is widely rooted among the masses, and the phenomenon of loyalty is widespread in the past society. Rulers use the simple and pure thoughts and feelings of the people to gradually infiltrate the elements that are beneficial to them. The image-building of Liu Bei and Song Jiang vividly reflects the special elements of China culture. The main reason why their stories are widely circulated among the people is their ideological character of "loyalty".
When Taoyuan became sworn, Liu Bei was a self-reliant worker who was engaged in "weaving shoes and selling seats", Zhang Fei was a common citizen who sold wine and killed pigs, and Guan Yu was a desperate driver who was caught in a lawsuit. According to their social status, they are all sentient beings who have fallen into the bottom of society. Their friendship is purely a deepening of friendship, a spiritual fit and an emotional exchange. There is no question of who is higher or lower, which is not based on mutual utilization or interest combination. After becoming sworn, the three of them "ate at the same table, slept in the same bed, and were as close as brothers", which reflected the consciousness of equality and mutual assistance of small producers. What is particularly commendable is that this kind of morality, which was born in a difficult and tired time, can last from beginning to end. After Liu Bei ascended the throne, Guan and Reng Zhang were "brothers in name". Hearing that Guan Yu was killed by Sun Quan, Liu Bei "screamed and fainted to the ground" and repeatedly said that he was "isolated and helpless, not an only child". Regardless of the difference between the monarch and the minister, he "kissed the south gate to summon souls to pay homage and wailed all day long". As soon as he ascended the throne, he concentrated his national forces to avenge Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, even at the expense of hurting the vitality of Shu. Liu Bei's loyalty is not limited to Guan and Zhang, but also includes others. Xu Shu once tentatively advised Liu Bei to let others ride his "Lu" horse, which must have hurt a master, and then rode it after hurting the last master. However, Liu Bei changed his color: "When I first arrived here, I taught myself to be selfish and harm others without teaching me the right path."
Song Jiang was helped by Liu San, and became brothers with 107 brave men, men, women and children in the water margin. Although he later showed himself everywhere and put classical works on the shelf in order to establish his position, letting classical works go in Chapter 18 was indeed a move of attaching importance to loyalty and neglecting law. When he learned that Chao Gai's seven people robbed the birthday program, he quickly designed to stabilize He Tao and galloped to tell Chao Gai: "Save your life." "You can't delay. What can you do if there is any negligence! " Chao Gai was the victim of Shi Wengong in Zengtou City. He was "bereaved, crying his head out", "drawing public mourning every day, not caring about the cottage", and then tried his best to avenge Chao Gai. Liangshan and Shui Bo, under the leadership of Song Jiang, basically did not have the problem of infighting. Song Jiang has never done anything to frame his buddies for his fame and fortune, and he is more obedient to Wu Yong. Although it was precisely because of his surrender thought that Liang Shanbo accepted the appeal of the court, the premise was that the two brothers could not be dispersed. Of course, Liu Bei's loyalty is different from Song Jiang's loyalty, and Song Jiang's loyalty has a broader and more practical connotation. Liu's oath embodies the desire of the oppressed class in feudal society to unite in the war of resistance, and the loyalty of the water margin represented by Song Jiang further embodies the determination and courage of the oppressed class to resist oppression.
These two artistic images, Liu Bei and Song Jiang, are not only the product of the author, but also the product of folk creation, especially the product of China history, especially in the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties. Zhu Yuanzhang, who was originally the leader of the peasant uprising army, was completely transformed into the agent of the feudal landlord class after the establishment of the Ming Dynasty. He killed the hero, and the literary inquisition rose, which is unique in the history of China. Luo Guanzhong longed for a good emperor. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, the leaders of several rebel armies were drafted into the army, and Song Jiang's surrender was indeed true in history. Shi Naian reflected on history, learned from experience and lessons, and combined with the real society at that time, he also created such an artistic image-Song Jiang, which was far away from historical figures. Liu Bei and Song Jiang have the hypocrisy, treachery, Machiavellian and cruel attributes of their class, the courage and mind to recognize people and bear the burden of humiliation, and the excellent quality of working people's loyalty and trustworthiness. Although there are differences between them, they are more similar, and both of them are a synthesis of good and evil. The evaluation of them can neither be completely denied nor completely affirmed, but should be analyzed in detail.