When Bao Longxing finally defeated Fang, a super litigator, and was contemplating how to convict Chang Wei who raped Qi's mistress, Aunt Bao, who always knew only about making trouble, suddenly came to court and flashed a "Fang Shangjian" to help her son. Bao Longxing grabbed the sword brought by his mother and ran after Chang Wei in court, which also scared Li out of a cold sweat at the hearing.
However, after a period of chaos, people suddenly discovered that the Bao family's "Fang Shangjian" actually came from the former emperor Chongzhen. This "Fang Shangjian" has no legal effect on the Qing court. On the contrary, he may be convicted of insurrection. Embarrassed Bao Longxing had to swallow the "tiny place" at Li's request, which was lucky to resolve this inexplicable crisis.
"Sword on the Square" is a deep-buried symbol in the whole movie "Do the Sesame Officer". In the film, Bao Yi first mistook a salted fish for a sword, and then became a monk in kind at the end of the play, which eventually led Bao Longxing to mistakenly use "Ming Jian to kill an honest official". However, the interesting question is: What is the origin of Fang Shangjian? Can you really "cut the king and cut the minister" as the movie said? Can the ancestors of the Bao family really get this unknown "sword" from Emperor Chongzhen?
First of all, let's talk about the literal meaning of Fang Shangjian in Han Dynasty.
Needless to say, the "sword" is a treasure given by the emperor. However, the word "Fang Shang" is worth investigating. In ancient times, many official positions or positions in charge of court affairs had the word "Shang". For example, Shangliu, which was established in the Qin Dynasty, was basically a housekeeper group dedicated to serving the emperor. From bathing, dressing to eating, these six institutions are all in charge. On the other hand, it is a bit like the Royal Academy of Arts and Crafts. According to Yan Shigu, a scholar in the Tang Dynasty, this place is mainly responsible for "imperial utensils" and "skillfully making gold and silver". In other words, it is a specialized factory in the palace.
The main officials in the party are called Shangfangling. Cai Lun, who was famous for papermaking, was probably the most famous person who held this position in the whole Han Dynasty. Improving papermaking was a national scientific research plan implemented during Cai Lun's tenure as "Fang Shang", and its achievements were later regarded as one of the great creations in the history of China. It can be seen that the technical ability of "Fang Shang" is not just the toy workshop of the emperor. It is said that when Cai Lun was in office, as long as it was "Fang Shang", it was "exquisite and secret".
It is not clear in ancient books what Fang Shang is making. However, this royal factory does have a famous product called "Fang Shang Ma Jian". It is said that artisans working in the square will specially choose to cast this sword during the eclipse.
It seems that the remains of the "Fang Shangjian" in the Han Dynasty can no longer be found. However, in the Song Dynasty, there was a scholar named Xue who had seen this thing. According to Xue, the sword he saw had a sword box. After more than a thousand years, it didn't rust. In Xue's view, this kind of technical ability is "beyond the reach of modern people". Even people in the Song Dynasty did not understand how this Fang Jian was made. Obviously, Fang Fang did master some unique metallurgical methods in the Han Dynasty. [ 1]
Second, did Bao Qingtian have "Fang Shangjian" in Song Dynasty? What Xue saw was the sword of the Han Dynasty. So, did the Song Dynasty have its own "Fang Shangjian"? This question is really a bit complicated. In the TV series "Bao Qingtian" that many people are familiar with, Bao Gong, with a dark face, always takes out this "Fang Shangjian" at a critical moment and shouts "Fang Shangjian, if I come in person!" Whether you are arrogant Pang Taishi or ungrateful Xu, you should kneel at this juncture. In this way, the "Fang Shangjian" authorized by the emperor seems to be very similar in the Song Dynasty.
▲ Screenshot of TV series Bao Qingtian: Fang Shangjian, if you come in person.
However, an article with a different title was circulated on major websites, saying that it was not until the Ming emperor granted the power of life and death to his men through the "Fang Shangjian", so it was impossible for Bao Gong of the Song Dynasty to have a "Fang Shangjian" that allowed him to "act first". If we think that the series of novels or folk operas adapted from Bao Qingtian are actually the creations of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, then this statement does have some truth. Although these works are also based on history, many times they actually reflect the author's time and space background, not necessarily the true face of historical facts.
Nevertheless, Song people did have their own "Fang Shangjian". As mentioned earlier, the "Fang Shangjian" in the Han Dynasty is actually a high-quality sword made by the royal factory. After the Han Dynasty, although not all yamen in charge of similar work were officially named "Fang Shang", ancient literati still used the name "Fang Shang", and the sword given by the emperor was still often called "Fang Shang Jian". We read a poem given by Li Gang, the prime minister of the Southern Song Dynasty, to Han Shizhong, a famous soldier. It was once said that it was "a sword given by the Shang Dynasty", which shows that there was still such a saying at that time.
It was quite common for the emperor to give swords in ancient times. But this gift may have no other benefits, just to give you face. Therefore, having a bright imperial sword seems to have no other function than showing off your bravery to others. However, if the scholar takes the initiative to ask the emperor for the "Shangfang sword", this situation is another matter.
Let's look at an example in the piling record of reconstruction in the Southern Song Dynasty:
During the reign of Song Xiaozong, Xu Jinguo in the north sent envoys to celebrate the emperor's birthday in Qing 'an Palace. When the envoy entered the Song Dynasty, he relied on the prestige of the Jin State at that time and was overbearing. The officials who received him were also humiliated and bored.
At that time, there was a small official named Ding Feng. When he heard about this bullying, he somehow joined forces with the enemy, so he taught Xiaozong a lesson, "Seek the sword on the side", saying that he would rush over and shoot the Jurchen envoy with his sword. According to the situation at that time, Xu Jinguo was not easy to offend. Naturally, it was impossible for the small court of Southern Song Dynasty to agree to Ding Feng's request. However, I appreciate the style of Ding Feng, a group of court officials, so I was promoted by the central authorities all the way, and my career was smooth and happy. [2]
▲ Records of Ding Feng's deeds in Piling in Spring.
Not borrow anything, but borrow "Fang Shangjian" from the emperor ── This story shows that Ding Feng actually regarded Fang Shangjian as a royal right to kill. In fact, before Ding Feng, many China literati had pinned similar ideals on Fang Shangjian (for example, Mr. Di Renjie, who will talk about it later). Although we haven't seen a successful case of borrowing a sword in the literature, theoretically speaking, if Bao Gong, with a black face, really intends to borrow a "sword on the side" from the emperor in order to cut a bad man in half, then his wish is reasonable in the historical time and space of the Northern Song Dynasty-only this order has to be "acting first" rather than "acting first".
On the other hand, why on earth was Fang Shangjian regarded by ancient literati as the designated prop for the emperor to shovel evil? Let's keep watching.
Third, the demonstration significance of Zhu Yun's Seeking Sword made time to go back temporarily return to "Fang Shang Ma Jian" in the Han Dynasty. The story of this sword's debut in classical literature goes like this:
At the end of the Western Han Dynasty, there was a scholar named Zhu Yun, who was famous for his integrity. This has always been the case. An honest and frank guy, as long as he engages in politics and is in opposition, will certainly offend many people. Zhu Jun's official career naturally rises and falls because of his unpleasant style.
After Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty succeeded to the throne, Zhu Yun suddenly went to see the emperor, and then swore in front of the officials of the Manchu Dynasty. I only heard his brother's righteous scolding: the current court officials, in my opinion, are simply a pile of vegetarian junk. In order to correct this bad political atmosphere, I ask your majesty to "give Fang a sword and kill a traitor" ── in other words, Zhu Jun wants to ask the emperor to authorize him to kill a big traitor in the court with his sword. In this way, other small treacherous court officials may converge a little, and there will be hope for the future of the Han Dynasty!
Zhu Yun, who wanted to kill people with a sword in public, naturally failed to get a sword from Emperor Han Chengdi. On the contrary, his behavior almost got him into trouble. However, although Zhu Yun's behavior seems quite reckless, later scholars have always liked this story recorded in Hanshu. "Zhu Yun's quest for a sword" has since been regarded as a model of sages by scholars, and at the same time, "Fang Shangjian" has become synonymous with the power granted by the emperor to his subordinates. In the future, ministers often quoted the allusion of "Zhu Yun begging for a sword", saying that they intended to imitate Zhu Yun's practice and do everything for the country and uphold justice.
For example, a few years ago, Di, a famous minister of the Tang Dynasty who played detective in various film and television works, did something similar. When Di was a small official in the local area, he had a conflict with Zhang Guangfu, a big shot sent by the central government. Halfway through the quarrel, Di Renjie felt very angry, so he put down a cruel sentence: "If you get the sword from your superior and put it around your neck, you will die!" 」
It's so noisy that I want to cut off someone's head. It's really serious. It is worth noting that Di Renjie did not mention other magic weapons here, but only mentioned the "sword on the side". Obviously, he is declaring that the reason why he wants to kill Zhang Guangfu is not just because of personal grievances. But DE is following the example of the wise ministers of the Han Dynasty, to eliminate a great worry for the country!
De only lost such a sentence, and Zhang Guangfu was labeled as a traitor ── this is the bickering language of China literati. With a few numbers, he put himself together with the ancient sages, and the guy who bickered with him was doomed to bad luck. In a word, the example of Di illustrates the symbolic significance of the story of Jian He in the history of China. As long as anyone moves out of this sword's prestige, it is equivalent to declaring that he is a follower of the ancient sages and always stands on the side of justice, just like the guy who flies to avoid phosphorus climbing. The halo of the scolded guy suddenly becomes shorter and he can only be a grandson and cool.
▲ The left is the portrait of Di Renjie; On the right is Andy Lau's Di Renjie in Di Renjie Empire.
After Di Renjie, scholars in China still kill scenes in public from time to time. Usually, these guys will list their opponents' crimes in the memorial presented to the emperor, and then attach a sentence, "I hope I can ask Fang Shangjian to kill this thief immediately!" " "Such malicious words. Throughout the ages, many historical celebrities have received such threats. Ouyang Xiu, for example, was once scolded to pieces by an admonisher in North Korea, saying that he would use Fang Shangjian to directly correct the Dharma. In addition, Ye, a famous soldier in the late Ming Dynasty, wrote twice in Yong Huai Lu that he would cut his head with a sword. On one occasion, this incident was known by the Korean people, and Yuzryha Gao Xiang felt "ashamed" and had to submit his resignation to Ming Xizong. [3]
Of course, just like the story of "Zhu Yun wants a sword", in most quarrels, the emperor usually won't agree to his courtiers' requests. Therefore, such things as "Please respect your sword" are usually just empty talk to decorate your just position. In fact, for China literati, "Fang Shangjian" does not need to be a tangible weapon. As part of the quarrel, they only need to mention the name and meaning of "Fang Shangjian" in their words, and you will get what you want!