Is it true that Meng Jiangnu cried down the Great Wall in history?

The popular story Meng Jiangnu cried at the Great Wall is a famous folk legend in ancient my country. It has been widely circulated in the form of dramas, ballads, poems, raps, etc., and it can be said to be a household name. It is said that during the reign of Qin Shihuang, labor was heavy. Three days after the wedding of young men and women Fan Xiliang and Meng Jiangnu, the groom was forced to set out to build the Great Wall. He soon died of hunger, cold and fatigue, and his bones were buried under the Great Wall. Meng Jiangnu, carrying cold clothes on her back, went through many hardships and traveled thousands of miles to find her husband and came to the Great Wall, but what she got was the bad news about her husband. She cried bitterly under the city for three days and three nights. The city collapsed, revealing Fan Xiliang's body. Meng Jiangnu threw herself into the sea and died in despair.

Some people think that the story of Meng Jiangnu comes from the wife of Qi State military general Qiliang in "Zuo Zhuan: The Twenty-Three Years of Duke Xiang". She has no name and no surname, and is called Qiliang's wife. "When the Marquis of Qi returned, he met Qiliang's wife in the suburbs and asked her to hang her in the suburbs. He said: 'I am guilty of colonization, why should I insult my order? If I am exempted from the crime, my ancestors' huts will still be there, and my concubines will not be allowed to hang in the suburbs. "The Marquis of Qi mourned Qi Liang in his family." That is, Qi Liang's wife asked the Marquis of Qi to pay formal condolences to Qi Liang in the clan. There is neither "crying" nor the Great Wall or city walls, nor any plots such as "city collapse" or "throwing into the water".

The plot of "crying" can be traced back to Zengzi's mention in "Book of Rites Tan Gong": "When Qiliang died, his wife welcomed his coffin on the road and cried in sorrow." Liu Xiang's "Shuo Yuan·Shan Shuo Pian" added the content of "collapse of the city": "In the past, Hua Zhou and Qiliang died in the battle. His wife mourned him and cried to the city. The corner collapsed because of it, and the city was in misfortune. ."

Then Liu Xiang added the plot of "Throwing into the Zi River" in "The Biography of Lieutenants": "Qiliang's wife has no children and no relatives inside or outside the family. She has no family to return to." He cried over his husband's body lying under the city. His sincerity moved people. Everyone who passed by would shed tears for him. Within ten days, the city collapsed. Everyone who passed the road shed tears for it. After ten days of burial, he said, "Where can I go? I am just dead, so I went to Zishui to die."

Some poems also have lyrical descriptions of Qiliang’s wife. During the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Zhi said in the "Order of the Sixth Year of Huangchu" that "Qi's wife cried for Liang, and the mountain collapsed." Among the Sui and Tang Dynasty Yuefu discovered in the Dunhuang Grottoes, there is the "Song of Sending Clothes", which adds the content of sending cold clothes.

The poem "Qiliang Wife" by Guan Xiu of the Tang Dynasty moved the story time to the Qin Dynasty for the first time, and changed the "collapse of the city" into the "collapse of the Great Wall": "The Qin Dynasty has no way, and the seas are dry, and the Great Wall is built to cover up. Beihu. People have built thousands of miles of earth, and the loyal wife of Qiliang is crying. She has no father in the middle, and she is alone without a son. The first city collapsed and the bones of Qiliang were unearthed. The hungry souls are chasing each other back, and the young man on the road is no stranger." The content at this time is almost the same as the subsequent story. Qiliang was later transformed into Wan Xiliang or Fan Xiliang, and his wife became Meng Jiangnu. Zheng Qiao of the Southern Song Dynasty said: "The wife of Qi Liang and what the scriptures said were dozens of words, but the other was translated into thousands of words..."

The story of Meng Jiangnu began to be put on the stage in the Yuan Dynasty. .

Gu Yanwu's "Rizhilu" explains the evolution of Meng Jiangnu's story. Gu Jiegang published "Research on the Story of Meng Jiangnu", which elaborated on the evolution of the story in more detail.

The story of Meng Jiangnu takes place in Qi State. Qi was the feudal state of Jiang Taigong. Anyone who has read "The Chronicles of the Kingdoms of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty" will know that the "Meng Jiang" who appears in the book is always from Qi. Meng Jiang is the eldest daughter of the Jiang family. Her story was first seen in "Zuo Zhuan". Meng Jiang was the wife of Qi Liang, a general of Qi. Liang died in battle in Ju in 549 BC. Duke Zhuang of Qi met Meng Jiang outside Xiaowai and expressed his condolences to her. Meng Jiang believed that the countryside was not a place for mourning and refused to accept it, so Duke Zhuang accepted her opinion and went to her home to express his condolences. In addition to knowing etiquette, Meng Jiang was also good at crying. Chunyu Kun said: "Qiliang's wife was good at crying for her husband and changed the national custom." Meng Jiang's crying tune was produced in Qi. In the Western Han Dynasty, there was a record of Meng Jiangnu "crying to the city after her husband died, and the city collapsed" (Liu Xiang's "Shuoyuan" and "Biography of Lienu"). As for the location of the collapsed city wall, although there are different theories from Jucheng, Qiliang and Liangshan, they are all located in Qi, not the Great Wall of Qin. Li Daoyuan's "Shui Jing Zhu" believes that it was Jucheng where Meng Jiangnu died crying. Around the Tang Dynasty, this theme evolved into the story of Meng Jiangnu searching for her husband thousands of miles away and tearing down the Great Wall, which took the prototype it has today. "The Story of Zhou Xian" moves the story to the State of Yan. Meng Jiang was named Meng Zhongzi, and Qiliang became Qiliang. Qi Liang accidentally entered Meng Chao's back garden in order to escape from the battle of building a city. Meng's daughter Zhongzi was taking a bath. The ancients had a very strong concept of chastity and believed that their daughter's body could only be seen by her husband, so the two became husband and wife.

Later, Qi Liang returned to the Great Wall construction site and was executed and buried under the Great Wall. So Zhongzi traveled thousands of miles to search for her husband, cried when the Great Wall collapsed, and blood was dripped from the bones for examination, and her husband's remains were finally found. ?In ancient times, wars were frequent, corvee work was heavy, and the grudges of husbands and wives separated were the traditional themes. Chen Lin at the end of the Han Dynasty wrote "Drinking Horses in the Great Wall Cave": "Drinking horses in the Great Wall Cave will hurt the horse's bones because of the cold water. I used to call the officials of the Great Wall, but be careful not to keep Taiyuan soldiers behind... You can't see the bones of the dead leaning on each other under the Great Wall?" "Poets of all subsequent dynasties have praised his story. Guan Xiu, a poet in the Tang Dynasty, wrote "Qiliang's Wife", which actually sang about Meng Jiangnu crying at the Great Wall. Later, this theme entered the writings of many poets, which contributed to the widespread spread of this story. From the Yuan Dynasty, the story of Meng Jiangnu began to be put on the stage.

This is recorded in Tao Zongyi's "Records of Stopping Farming in Nancun" and Zhong Sicheng's "Records of Ghosts". In these operas, Meng Jiang transformed into Meng Jiangnu, and Qiliang derived his names such as Qiliang, Fan Qiliang, Fan Xilang, Fan Xilang, and Wan Xiliang.

With the spread of the story of Meng Jiangnu, temple building fever began in various places. It is now known that the earliest temple of Meng Jiangnu was built in the Northern Song Dynasty. Inscriptions on the reconstruction of Jiangnu temples in Xiangfu and Jiaqing years of the Northern Song Dynasty have been found in Xushui, Hebei and Tongchuan, Shaanxi. Many local chronicles describe Meng Jiangnu as a local. There are tombs of Meng Jiangnu in Linzi, Tongguan (Tongchuan), Ansu (Xushui), Shanhaiguan and Tongguan. When Shanghai was building roads in the late Qing Dynasty, a sarcophagus was excavated at the foot of the old North Gate, with a stone statue lying in it and the words "Wan Qiliang" on the chest. It was buried during the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty when Shanghai was built. According to the "Meng Jiang Fairy Treasure Scroll", the First Emperor built the Great Wall, and the Taibai Star descended from the nursery rhyme: "There is Wan Xiliang in Gusu, one person can withstand the death of ten thousand people. Later, he was granted the title of Great King of the Great Wall, and the Great Wall will always be strong." Emperor Qin captured the city. Xi Liang triggered the story of Meng Jiangnu searching for her husband thousands of miles away and crying down the Great Wall. Emperor Qin allowed Meng Jiang to do three things: build a bridge, build a tomb, and offer sacrifices. Meng Jiang denounced the tyrant and then drowned himself. In this story, Meng Jiangnu became a Songjiang native. The story of Meng Jiangnu reflects the people's hatred of feudal tyranny and their desire and pursuit for a free and happy life. It has gone through more than two thousand years of spread and evolution to form what it is today.

Meng Jiangnu cried at the Great Wall is based on real people and true stories, and has been propagated orally for thousands of years. However, it has gradually been misrepresented, so that it has become so popular that the authenticity of Meng Jiangnu has been compromised. Don't hesitate! In fact, Meng Jiangnu was a native of Qi State in the Spring and Autumn Period, and she married Qiliang, a native of Linzi. Qi Liang was extremely filial to his mother. He was also very powerful and famous for his bravery. He was just from a commoner family, had no official position, and made a living by farming.

At that time, Duke Zhuang of Qi wanted to revive Duke Huan of Qi's hegemony, so he sent troops to attack Ju. In order to motivate the soldiers, Duke Zhuang of Qi rewarded two warriors, Zhou Chuo and Jia Ju, each of whom was given a five-horse chariot. Zhou Chuo and Jia Ju were very happy. Jia Ju also recommended that there were Hua Zhou and Qiliang in Linzi, and they were also very brave. So Duke Zhuang of Qi summoned Hua Zhou and Qiliang. Upon seeing them, they seemed to be warriors. So a chariot drawn by one horse was given to Huazhou and Qiliang. After meeting, he retreated. Hua Zhou was very unhappy and said to Qiliang: "We also rewarded warriors. We gave Zhou Chuo and Jia Ju a five-horse chariot, but only gave us two a one-horse chariot. For us, It's not a reward, it's an insult. Why don't you run away and find another place?" When Qi Liang heard this, he hesitated and said to Hua Zhou, "I still have my old mother at home. Let me go back and tell her. , but it’s not too late to run away.”

Qi Liang went home and told his mother the cause and effect of the incident. His mother taught Qi Liang a lesson and said, "If you have no merit in life and are not famous when you die, even if you ride in a five-horse chariot, people will laugh at you. If you have great merit and die in a noisy manner, Lie, then even those who ride in the five-horse chariot are not as good as you. You can't violate your orders, so you should go and fight hard." Qi Liang told Hua Zhou what his mother said, and Hua Zhou sighed, "Woman. Everyone understands the truth, but I don’t understand it. I’m so ashamed!”

So Hua Zhou and Qi Liang rode in the same car and waited for orders in Qizhuang Gong’s camp. On this day, Duke Zhuang of Qi mobilized his troops and generals to prepare for departure. Hua Zhou and Qiliang volunteered to be the vanguard. Duke Zhuang of Qi asked: "How many infantry do you want? How many chariots?" The two men replied: "We don't need soldiers or chariots. We will ride on the chariots you gave us. One chariot for two people is enough." ." Qi Zhuanggong wanted to see how brave the two of them were, so he laughed and agreed. Qiliang and Qi Liang left the tent and agreed to take turns driving. Before leaving, they said that if one person could guard the right side of the car, they would definitely be able to defeat an army.

At this time, a soldier named Xi Houzhong came forward and was willing to accompany him. So one person drove the car, one person held the weapon on the left side of the car, and the other person held the weapon on the right side of the car, and marched towards the capital of Ju State.

Li Bigong, the king of Ju State, heard that the Qi army was about to arrive, so he personally led 300 infantrymen to inspect the city. They happened to meet Qi Liang. The three people from Qiliang opened their eyes and shouted, saying that I am Qi General, who of you dares to come up and fight to the death? Li Bigong did not expect the Qi army to arrive so quickly, and was shocked. When he looked carefully, he saw that there was only one car and no successors. So he ordered three hundred infantry to surround the three men. Qi Liang and Hua Zhou said to Xi Houzhong, "You beat the drums in the car to cheer us up and see how we kill the enemy!" So the two jumped off the chariot, holding halberds in hand, and rushed into the siege. They clashed with each other, and the halberds swept across them, making them invincible. The two men killed more than half of the three hundred soldiers. Li Bigong was greatly amazed and said to the two of them: "Stop fighting. I know how powerful you two are. As long as you submit to the Kingdom of Ju, I will divide the Kingdom of Ju into two and give you half." The two of them laughed. He said: "Abandoning the country and surrendering to the enemy is disloyal; accepting military orders and not obeying them fully is unbelief. Being unfaithful and unbelieving and pursuing personal gain is not what we are." After saying this, he slashed with his halberd. Li Bigong could not resist the enemy and fled in defeat.

When Duke Zhuang of Qi heard that the two had defeated Duke Li Big, he quickly sent an envoy with a light horse and express train to express his condolences and promised a large reward. Qiliang and Qi Liang laughed and said, "Your Majesty rewarded others with a five-horse chariot, but only rewarded us with a one-horse chariot. He thought that we were not brave. Now he rewards us with heavy profits, because he thinks that we value profits over righteousness." Are we really of such low moral character?" So he drove away the messenger, abandoned his carriage and walked towards the capital of Ju.

Lebi Gong knew that he could not defeat the three of them. So a trench was dug in the narrow passageway of the city gate, and the trench was filled with red-hot charcoal. The charcoal was so blazing that people could not move at all. Xi Houzhong said: "In ancient times, those generals who can leave their names in history must not be afraid of death. I can let you pass." So Xi Houzhong carried his shield, lay down on the charcoal, and asked Qi Liang and his two men to walk away from the shield. Pass. After the two of them passed by, when they looked back, Xi Houzhong had been burned to death. The two cried loudly and rushed into the city gate with halberds. Duke Lebig had already ambushed archers at the city gate and fired thousands of arrows. The two men from Qiliang rushed in with arrows in their bodies and killed twenty-seven more people. The soldiers guarding the city stood around the city, all shooting arrows downwards. Qi Liang died of his injuries first. Hua Zhou was captured after all his efforts.

The state of Ju was frightened by the three men. When Duke Zhuang of Qi's army arrived, he was defeated without a fight. Duke Zhuang of Qi returned in triumph. Qi Zhuanggong buried Qi Liang's body in the suburbs. Just as he was about to enter the suburbs, Qi Liang's wife Meng Jiang came to greet her husband's body. Duke Zhuang stopped the car and sent people to mourn in front of Meng Jiang. Meng Jianghan said with a face: "Is the funeral hanging in the suburbs? Which family's etiquette is this?" Duke Zhuang of Qi was greatly ashamed, so he buried Qiliang's body at his home and went to mourn. When Meng Jiangnu mourned, she left the coffin outside the city gate and slept in the open for three days. Meng Jiangnu held the coffin and cried loudly, shedding tears until she bled from crying. Suddenly, the capital of Qi collapsed several feet. "It is caused by the urgency of grief and sincerity." Later, Mencius, the Asian sage, said, "The wife of Qiliang in the Hua Zhou Dynasty was good at crying for her husband and changed the customs of the country." This is what he said. Xiangjian Zuozhuan's "Twenty-Three Years of Duke Xiang". Also note: Maybe crying is a real thing, and the wall falling is also real, but there is definitely no inevitable connection between crying and the wall falling, it is just a coincidence.

One theory is that the story of Meng Jiangnu crying at the Great Wall is purely fictional, because the Shanhaiguan Great Wall was built after the Qin Dynasty. The Great Wall built during the Qin Shihuang era was hundreds of miles north of Shanhaiguan. Since there was no Great Wall in the area at that time, the crying about the Great Wall was naturally a myth.

One theory is that the story of Meng Jiangnu happened in the Spring and Autumn Period. According to the "Zuo Zhuan·Twenty-three Years of Duke Xiang" records: In the fourth year of Qi Zhuang Gong (550 BC), Qi attacked Wei and Jin, and when he returned to attack Ju, Qi Liang, a Qi official, died in battle. Qiliang's wife mourned in the suburbs. According to legend, she cried for her husband for ten days, and the city wall collapsed. Later generations used false rumors to describe Qiliang's wife as a person from the time of Qin Shihuang, interpreting the story of crying at the Great Wall.

Some people point out that the story of Meng Jiangnu crying at the Great Wall has mutated with the changing times and customs of the past dynasties. During the Warring States Period, crying tunes were popular in Qidu. Qiliang (later evolved into Xi Liang) died in battle and his wife greeted him, which is the material of tragedy. During the Western Han Dynasty, the theory of yin, yang, five elements, and the connection between heaven and man was popular. The misery of Qiliang's wife caused the reaction of cities collapsing and mountains splitting. During the Six Dynasties, Sui and Tang Dynasties, there were songs about sending clothes in Yuefu, so the content of sending cold clothes was added. It can be seen that the story of Meng Jiangnu crying at the Great Wall gradually became fuller in the long-term cultural evolution.

The construction of the Great Wall was the most cruel and representative form of labor among the various feudal dynasties of the past dynasties. From the Spring and Autumn Period to the Ming Dynasty, during the nearly two thousand years, the Great Wall was repaired and repaired many times, and the people were forced to do so. Having killed countless civilians, something like Meng Jiangnu might happen to her at any time. Therefore, Jiang Nu and Qi Liang are two typical characters created by the working people who endured unlimited labor. They embody the disasters of millions of lower-class people who were forced to have their families destroyed and their wives separated from their children by labor. The moving story of "Crying the Great Wall" is an indictment of the tyrannical behavior of the feudal ruling class, and also a praise of the enslaved people's fearlessness and unyielding spirit. Just like the couplet written by Wen Tianxiang, a famous minister of the Southern Song Dynasty, next to the statue of Meng Jiangnu: "The Emperor of Qin is safe, and the Great Wall has built a grudge; Jiangnu is still alive, and the fragments of stone will be remembered for thousands of years." This is a correct theory.

Her husband's name

Due to the spread of the story and the misinformation among the people, Meng Jiangnu's husband's name is somewhat inconsistent. Some of them are called Fan Qiliang, Wan Xiliang, Fan Xiliang, Wan Qiliang, Qi. Liang, Fan Qiliang, Fan Xilang, Fan Xilang.

This article is unified as Fan Xiliang.

Suspected historical figure

Qiliang: Yizuo Qizhi (BC?-550 BC), a senior official of Qi State in the Spring and Autumn Period. When he was attacking Ju State, he rushed forward with arrows and was killed by several arrows in his body. It is said that his wife Meng Jiang cried for her husband for ten days and the city wall collapsed. Later generations made up the story of "Meng Jiangnu crying at the Great Wall" and mistakenly thought that she was Wan Qiliang or Fan Qiliang or Fan Xiliang.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, "In the 23rd year of Duke Xiang, the Marquis of Qi returned from the Jin Dynasty, but failed to enter, so he attacked Ju, and when the door was closed, he retreated wounded..." ("Zuo Zhuan") Qi General Qiliang and the king of Ju State fought fiercely at Qieyumen, and Qiliang died in the battle. When the bad news reached Linzi, Qiliang's wife was so distraught that she cried for her husband for ten days. The city wall collapsed and Qiliang's wife threw herself into the Zi River and died. Zuo Fen of the Jin Dynasty praised: "When my husband died in Ju, he was in mourning in the suburbs, and the city collapsed..." Later, out of hatred for the tyrant Qin Shihuang, people attached the story to Qin Shihuang three hundred years later.