The name of this book is Rong Baozhai. As a title, this book describes the rise and fall of Rong Baozhai, a century-old shop, from the capture of Tongzhou by British and French allied forces in the Second Opium War to the eve of the founding of New China, and the rise and fall of the business of three generations of Rong Baozhai's grandparents and grandchildren. Author Dou Liang made a sensation with his military novels such as Sword, legend of mir and The Wolf Smoke in Beiping. In a sense, this book can almost be regarded as his transformational work (I don't care if he agrees with this statement).
If fruit is taken as an example, I would like to describe it as a bunch of purple grapes: at the beginning of the novel, we set a grand tone so that you can know the weight of the bunch of grapes without weighing; Layout a huge and organized plot, as lush as those juicy and closely arranged grapes; At the end, the style of writing went down all the way, and finally ushered in a bright direction, like the gradual harvest of grapes without losing a bumper harvest.
The structure of the novel is also like a grape: the main line of two famous paintings handed down from ancient times leads to several branches and twigs, presenting the story of that turbulent historical period to readers in a scattered way-an old shop and two famous paintings, which run in the family, Four Treasures of the Study, five elements and eight achievements, nine turns into success ... You can not only understand what an old shop with a long history of more than 300 years has experienced, but also enjoy eating, drinking and keeping birds in cages in old Beijing. You can also see many wonderful stories of seemingly independent but interrelated celebrities, such as Wang Jingwei, Zhang Daqian, Xinyu Pu, Shan Yan, Wang Guowei, Gu Hongming, Luo Zhenyu, etc ... Their star level is not inferior.
Just as grapes have an extremely attractive visual feeling, this book also has a strong sense of lens. For example, the appearance of Zhang Linyou, a young owner, said: "Thirty-four years have passed since Zhang Yangshan saved Zheng Yuanpei. Zhang Linyou, the grandson of Zhang Yangshan, hurried out of the house. He didn't pay attention to his feet and almost fell when he crossed the threshold. Zhang is sixteen years old this year. " The transformation of time and space between grandparents and grandchildren is accomplished at this moment, just like Jiang Wen's wonderful pen on a sunny day.
The language follows the consistent characteristics of Dou Liang, which is heavy but not heavy, popular but not vulgar. Although there are not many classic languages, they are pleasant to read throughout, as if each branch bears the same sweet grapes, which not only quenches thirst, but also nourishes, and will neither sour teeth nor get angry.
For those who are good at making up stories, my heart is always full of respect, but as a critical reader, I still can't help but make some harsh comments-just like eating grapes, how can a novel with hundreds of thousands of words not spit out its skin? How can there be some unsatisfactory places? Although the story is fascinating, the weakening of some characters is still an obvious defect of this novel.
The hero Zhang was a playboy when he was young. He followed his uncle to eat, drink and be merry, but he was honest and kind, and dared to be chivalrous. Especially after meeting Huo Zhenting, the development of personality is even more remarkable. But after entering middle age, the whole person's image is lukewarm, and the second half is almost a walk-on. This arrangement is somewhat regrettable.
His mother, Zhang Lishi, is sensible and ordered to be a broad-minded woman. However, there are fragments of her appearance, but almost every scene is full of tears, making it difficult to unify her image with her historical mission. Mother and son are exactly the same as Mrs. Hebai in The Big House, but there are obvious differences in the brushwork and skills of characterization.
His brother Zhang Jilin is an ambitious young man who studied hard and worked hard when he was young. As an adult, his face is vague and has no luster and characteristics. Even died young and confused, making people confused.
But the images of some supporting roles, such as Huo Zhenting, Zuo Ye and Song Huairen, are lifelike. Zhang's uncle, Zhang, in particular, walked leisurely through the city with a birdcage in his hand, despite the bullets in Eight-Nation Alliance. The image of the hooligan who finally vowed to eat, drink and be merry makes people itch with hate and can't help but marvel.
After tasting the sweetness of grape pulp, let's talk about the feelings of reading this book at two points. Nowadays, grape seed is a rare thing. It is said that it not only resists aging and oxidation, but also softens blood vessels and prevents allergies!
First, what is more precious than money is people's character.
The twists and turns and final destination of Song Huizong Evonne's Six Valley Map and Huai Su's Notre Dame de Xiling played a role in this book. These two masterpieces are also like a touchstone, detecting the ugly souls behind many hypocritical faces, but what surrounds them is more truth, goodness and beauty in human nature. We saw the supreme nature of Zhang Yangshan, the supreme feelings of the autumn moon, and Zhang Lishi's struggle and choice between a promised daughter-in-law and an ordinary mother. .....
There is such a plot in the book: Zhang gave Notre Dame de Xiling to Prince Susan in order to rescue Wang Jingwei. Zhang's public relations strategy is correct. Shan Yan is a person who loves words, but in the end, Shan Yan solemnly returned the baby. He said: a gentleman does not take away the love of others. I have been an official all my life and have never confiscated any ill-gotten gains. You can't put me in an unfair position. .....
This scene, which exudes the fragrance of the soul, moved me for a long time. Zi Han in Zuo Zhuan once said, "I treasure greed and jade. If you give it to me, you will lose your treasure. If people have their treasures. "
Yes, people have boundaries and are self-contained.
Second, what is more important than learning is the human mind.
The owners, from Zhang Yangshan, whose ancestors were obsessed with seal cutting, to Zhang, whose grandchildren were free of thought, were unfamiliar with the management mode, but it was a miracle that it could be passed down after a hundred years of wind and rain.
On the surface, it was the shopkeeper in Rong Baozhai who created this miracle. Because they are all professional and dedicated, whether they are Lin, Zhuang Huchen or Wang Renshan, they all take prosperity as their responsibility and work hard. But from a deeper perspective, it is the Zhang family's mind, trust and loyalty to others that prop up this old shop.
The shopkeeper is meritocratic and honest, which gives the shopkeeper the space to display his talents to the maximum extent; Treat people generously, treat them as your own, and avoid the worries of the shopkeeper; There is no doubt that trust comes first. Several shopkeepers will work hard for him, and Zhang Xier will finally lay down his life to protect the shop. .....
It is the owner's luck to have a good master; Rong Baozhai is lucky to have a good shopkeeper. This is the result of changing people's hearts.
And more often, don't we often fall into this or that misunderstanding, thinking that knowledge can carry everything and ignore other things? Just like educating children, we always try to instill in them how powerful knowledge is, which seems to be big enough to shake the whole earth, but we forget what kind of fulcrum it needs. .....
I suddenly found that these two feelings are essentially the same, and this is exactly the theme that the author finally wants to express-
Be generous and fair.