Shajiabang Celebrity Database (3): Honest and strict officials

Text/Yu Guang

? Langcheng has a close relationship with Yan Ne, a historical and cultural celebrity. Yan Na (1511-1584), named Minqing and named Yangzhai. A native of Tang City. Xin Chou in Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty (1541) became a Jinshi, was taught editing and editing, and moved to study as an attendant. Good at writing, calligraphy, and meticulous flower-and-bird painting. At that time, the Sanwu area was repeatedly invaded by Japanese pirates and suffered from famine. The people were displaced and almost half of the local population died. However, local officials still stepped up their efforts to collect grain and collect money. After Yan Na learned about it, he wrote a letter to express his feelings and expressed his plight for the people. The imperial court agreed to exempt him from the tax. Later he was awarded a bachelor's degree in the Hanlin Academy, and successively served as the Minister of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel on behalf of the Ministry of Rites and the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. Faced with Yan Song's autocratic power, Yan Ne was not afraid of the powerful, reformed the government, seriously punished the unhealthy tendencies in the officialdom, and made a "three-law agreement" with the court officials to put an end to cliques. He appointed people on their merits and promoted talents in an exceptional manner, such as Hai Rui, Lu Guangzu, etc., which gave the officialdom a new look. Later, he concurrently served as a bachelor of Wuyingdian and joined the aircraft maintenance department. Later, he resigned due to illness and returned to his hometown to support his parents. After Yan Na's death, the imperial court presented Shaobao with the title "Wen Jing". There are "Yan Wenjing Gongji" and "Spring and Autumn Guohua". Participated in the study of "Chengtian Dazhi" and "Yongle Dadian". His second son Yan Cheng (Yan Tianchi) is the founder of Yushan Qin School. His granddaughter Yan was the wife of Mao Jin, a book engraver and publisher in the late Ming Dynasty. According to "Chang Zhao He Zhi" records: Yan Na was born in Wuqiu Mountain near the market town of Tangshi. During his childhood, he stayed with his uncle in Langcheng Village and studied at Fahua Temple. Children are playful, especially in the summer. As long as the teacher is not around, they sneak away to Xinjing to play in the water and swim.

One day, the teacher came back from visiting guests. Yan Ne was not seen in the classroom, so he went to the river to look for him. I saw clothes hanging on the branches. The teacher muttered: "Tall trees are clothes hangers." Unexpectedly, the students in the reeds responded: "The long rivers are like bathtubs." This student was Yan Ne. The students are smart and teachable, and the teacher appreciates them very much, but if they violate school rules and disciplines, they have to be punished. The teacher punished Yan Ne to write a poem. The child thought hard for a while, and he actually wrote an autumn song on a hot day. The title was "Reading on an Autumn Night in Langcheng": "In the dead of night, people are quiet, and a bright moon shines high in the sky. There is no sound. When we get to the countryside, the wind blows away and the scent of ducks and stoves caresses the green flowers. A new string tune is pointed out, the water flows high in the mountains, and cranes dream of the treetops. I am surprised to realize that the song is over, and I suddenly feel sad and annoyed at the white house. Qingdeng, so young. Looking up to the sky and roaring, there must be a golden horse and jade hall, it is difficult to reach the Wenlin Tiger and Leopard. After all, it is a flea of ??teeth and claws. Is it possible for thousands of poems and books to be discussed? "The teacher saw that the child was speaking well and praised it greatly. Later generations commented that Yan Na's childhood work has the appearance of a luan and a phoenix, which can make the water and soil of Langcheng colorful. Xu Chao, a scholar of the Qing Dynasty, wrote a poem "Autumn Songs of Langcheng" for this purpose: "There is a bay with sloping water in the west of the small city, and there are two beautiful flowers and moons in the autumn. This was the land of habitat in the previous dynasty, and the lyrics were passed down by thousands of mouths." He also praised his predecessors. This childhood poem by Chao Yanne. There are many stories about Yan Na's official career from being an official to prime minister, and he was a civilized and martial artist. The most popular story among the people is that he engaged in demolition in his hometown after his retirement. Seeing that the education in his hometown was backward, Yan Ne decided to build a school. After choosing the foundation of the house, I discovered that there was a dilapidated private house in the circle, which was a small shop selling tobacco, alcohol and vegetables. Yan Ne's housekeeper said to the head of the household: "Prime Minister Yan wants to build a school here and wants to buy your house. Please set a price so that you won't suffer a loss." The head of the household said, "The house is handed down from our ancestors. If I sell it, people will laugh at me, but I won’t sell it,” the steward reported to the prime minister. Yan Ne said: "He refuses to sell, don't force him. You start building other houses first, and then let him move." The housekeeper asked if there was any way. Yan Na said: "You are constructing, you need to eat and drink, calculate the price, and pay in advance."

A few days later, a lot of construction work was started. The construction site was busy with people coming and going. Dozens of people ate and drank, all catered by that shop, and the business of this small shop was booming. His family was overwhelmed and hired help. It didn’t take long for him to make a lot of money, and the house was filled with wine, meat and vegetables. Before the work on the construction site was even half done, the hut was no longer sufficient. On this day, the housekeeper said to the shopkeeper: "Sir, we have to add a lot of people to our construction site, and your business will be more prosperous in the future!" The shopkeeper said sheepishly: "Thanks to Prime Minister Yan for taking care of us, we are where we are today. The Prime Minister used to He wanted to buy my small house, but I didn't agree. It was really inappropriate. Now I will move." Yan Ne asked the supervisor to find a spacious new house nearby and give it to the shop owner. The family moved soon. Prime Minister Yan cared about people's sentiments and was considerate, which became a good story. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, the publisher Feng Menglong compiled this incident into his famous book "Wisdom Tank", and the wisdom of being strict and caring but not disturbing the people spread throughout the world.