1. Shang Zhongyong

From "Shang Zhongyong" by Wang Anshi (Song Dynasty)

There was a man named Fang Zhongyong in Jinxi, whose family had been farming for generations. For industry. When Zhongyong was five years old, he did not know writing tools. Suddenly one day Zhongyong cried and asked for these things. His father was surprised by this and asked a neighbor to lend him those things. Zhongyong immediately wrote four sentences and wrote his name on them. This poem, with the theme of supporting parents and uniting people of the same clan, was shown to all the scholars in the township.

From then on, when Fang Zhongyong was asked to write poems about certain things, he could finish them immediately, and the literary grace and truth of the poems were both worthy of appreciation. People in the county were surprised and his father gradually became a stranger to his father. Some people even offered money and gifts for Zhong Yong's poems. Fang Zhongyong's father thought it was profitable, so he took Zhongyong around to visit people in the same county every day and refused to let him study.

I've been hearing this for a long time. During the Ming Dynasty, I followed my late father back to my hometown and met Fang Zhongyong at my uncle's house. He was already twelve or thirteen years old. I asked him to write poems, but the poems he wrote were no longer worthy of his former reputation. Another seven years later, I came back from Yangzhou and went to my uncle's house again. I asked about Fang Zhongyong and replied: "His talent has disappeared and he is no different from ordinary people."

Wang Anshi Said: Fang Zhongyong’s wisdom and understanding were innate. His talent is much better than that of ordinary talented people; but in the end he becomes an ordinary person because the education he received has not met the requirements.

The talent he received is so good, but he has not received normal acquired education, and he has become an ordinary person; then, now those who are not born smart, are ordinary people, and do not accept acquired education. Education, is it enough to become an ordinary person?

2. Jiang Lang’s talents are exhausted

From Zhong Rong’s "Poetry" (Wei and Jin Dynasties)

Jiang Yan of the Southern Dynasties became a famous poet when he was young. A litterateur, his poems and articles received high praise at the time. However, as he got older, his articles were not only not as good as before, but also deteriorated a lot. His poems were bland and unremarkable, and he held the pen for a long time but still could not write a single word. Occasionally, inspiration came and he wrote poems, but the sentences were boring and the content was so bland that there was nothing to be gained from it.

In fact, it is not that Jiang Yan’s talent has been used up, but that after he became an official, on the one hand, he was busy with government affairs, and on the other hand, because of his successful career, he no longer needed to write pens by himself. . Over time, the article will naturally become inferior and lack talent.

3. Liu Chan

Liu Chan, Liu Bei's son, succeeded to the throne and became the emperor of Shu after Liu Bei's death. The military and state ministers successively appointed Zhuge Liang, Jiang Wan and others with full powers. Zhuge Liang and other wise ministers successively After his death, Liu Chan was unable to control the state affairs. The eunuch Huang Hao began to take power, and the Kingdom of Shu gradually declined. After the Wei State launched a large-scale attack on Shu, Liu Chan surrendered and moved his family to Luoyang. He was named An Le Gong and died a few years later.

Liu Chan is mediocre and incompetent. In the early days of his reign, he mainly relied on Zhuge Liang to govern the country. He sent troops to the Northern Expedition several times to attack Wei, but all failed. After Zhuge Liang's death, Jiang Wan and Fei Yi assisted the government. They followed Zhuge Liang's established policy, united the internal forces, and did not use troops easily. They once maintained a relatively stable situation in Shu.

After Jiang Wan and Fei Yi, Jiang Wei came to power and used troops against Wei many times to no avail, which depleted the country's power. Since the death of Zhuge Liang, Liu Chan has become even more foolish and ignorant. He is greedy for pleasure and ignores the affairs of the state. The eunuch Huang Hao took the opportunity to gain favor and gain power, and formed cliques for personal gain. The state affairs were deteriorating day by day. Even Jiang Wei invited himself to Tazhong (today's Gannan, Gansu) for fear of being killed. Northwest of Zhouqu) grew wheat to avoid disaster. At this point, the foundation of Shu has been greatly shaken.

The enlightenment brought to people by the above deeds:

Education is crucial to whether a person can become a talent. Prodigies and geniuses, without the proper environment and continuous efforts, will not be able to become talented, or even become mediocre. Even if you are not a genius, as long as you work hard enough, you will eventually become a talent, surpass those so-called geniuses, and win people's respect.

Talent is important, but without good hard work, no matter how good the talent is, it is impossible to realize it. This also tells us that hard work and education are very important for the cultivation of talents. Whether a person can become a successful person is not only related to his talent, but also to his acquired education and his own efforts.