Write Su Dongpo’s clever remarks

1. In the first year of Zhezong (1086), Su Dongpo finally abolished the Young Crop Loan Law.

In Su Dongpo's view, such incomplete measures are still unsatisfactory, and their disadvantages are no less severe than in the past. On the fourth day of August, he submitted another request to the emperor, first requesting that the Young Crops Law be completely abolished, and secondly requesting that all debts owed by the poor people, including principal and interest, be forgiven. "Since I met Xining, I have implemented the two laws of young crops and exemption from military service for more than 20 years. The law has become increasingly bad, the people have become poorer, the punishment has become more troublesome, and theft has become more and more fierce... and the officials are lawless. When they are dismissed, they must be ordered to There are drums and prostitutes in the wine service, or there are people who sell wine. However, every time the green seedlings are scattered, the number of wine classes increases, and the ministers see them with tears."

2. When Su Dongpo was an official, he did some strange things:

A businessman was tried for debt. The defendant was a young man, and Su Dongpo asked him to explain his plight.

The defendant said: "My family opened a fan shop. Last year my father passed away and left some debts. This spring it was cloudy and rainy, and people didn't buy fans. It's not that I refused to repay the debts."

Su Dongpo paused, his eyes lit up, and he had a plan in mind. When he saw the pen and inkstone on the table, he suddenly felt itchy.

He said to the young man: "Bring a bundle of your fans, and I will sell them for you."

The man went back and brought twenty plain silk fans in a blink of an eye. . Su Dongpo picked up the pen on the table and began to write cursive script on the fan, drawing a few dead trees in winter, thin bamboo and rocks. It took about an hour to finish painting ten round fans. He handed the fans to the young man and said, "Take it to pay the debt."

The young man was overjoyed. He did not expect such good luck and asked the prefect. I thanked him profusely, and ran out of the official hall with my fan in my arms. It had already been spread outside that the prefect had painted fans for sale. As soon as he walked out of the Yamen, many people surrounded him, vying for a thousand dollars to buy him a fan. Within a few minutes, all the fans were sold out, and those who came a little later were helpless.

3. Once, a scholar who came to Beijing from the countryside to take the exam was arrested on suspicion of fraud. The scholar brought with him two large pieces of luggage, which were written on the top and addressed to Su Shilang Ziyou, Zhugan Lane, Kyoto, and the bottom was signed Su Dongpo. It's clearly fraud.

Su Dongpo asked him: "What is in the luggage?"

The scholar replied: "I really feel sorry for you, sir. The people from my hometown gave the student two hundred pieces of silk, which is considered a gift. The student knows that these silks will be taxed by the tax collectors along the way, and I am afraid that only half of them will be left in Kyoto. The student thinks that the most famous and generous scholar is you, Su Clan Erkunzhong, so I dare to use your two masters' money. Name. If you are arrested, you will be considerate and release the student. Please forgive me. I won’t do it next time.”

Su Dongpo smiled slightly and ordered the secretary to tear up the old note on the luggage. Go ahead and write the name and address of the recipient and sender yourself. He also wrote a short message to Ziyou and gave it to the scholar with trembling hands. He said to the scholar: "Old senior, don't worry this time. Even if someone takes you to the emperor, I will guarantee that you are safe and sound. Don't forget me if you pass the exam next year."

That poor man The old scholar was surprised and extremely grateful. Sure enough, he passed the exam. When I returned home, I wrote a letter to the poet Dongpo to thank him for his kindness. Su Dongpo was very happy about this adventure. Ask him to stay at home for a few days.

4. There are 500,000 people in Hangzhou, but there is no public hospital. Hangzhou is located at the mouth of the Qiantang River, where travelers from both sea and land gather, and epidemics are often prevalent. Some prescriptions have been proven to be effective, and he has made them public. When Su Dongpo was an official in Mizhou, he once had useful prescriptions copied in large characters and posted in the town square as an official document so that ordinary people could know about them.

5. Su Dongpo was most concerned about the water problem of Hangzhou residents. Su Dongpo consulted experts, measured the height of the canal, and drew up a plan to prevent silt sedimentation and keep the canal area clean. This was his first project in Hangzhou. It started in October, three months after he took office, and was completed in April of the following year.