In this poem, Cao Cao compares himself to the Duke of Zhou, hoping that all the wise men in the world will join him, and the ambition of the overlord and the talent of the poet are fully revealed. Many people think that his "Short Song" was written to attract talents from all over the world. Is this right or wrong? Right and wrong. It is true that this poem does have the meaning of recruiting talents, but his original intention of writing this poem is not aimed at the world's talents, but at Sun Quan and Liu Bei, which is wrong. Why do you say that? Let's analyze the specific content of this poem.
First, the historical background of Cao's management of short songs
When was this "Short Song Line" written? It is not recorded in the history books, but it is mentioned in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. In the autumn of the thirteenth year of Jian 'an, Cao Cao led the army south, taking Xiangyang first and Jiangling later. Millions of troops are approaching Jiangdong, Serenade can be sharp, and the unification of the world is just around the corner. At this time, Cao Cao gave a big banquet on the Yangtze River and was in high spirits. He also wrote songs. The song is "Short Song". According to the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, it was the eve of Battle of Red Cliffs.
If Romance of the Three Kingdoms is a novelist's story, we can take a look at Su Shi's Fu on the Front Red Wall. In Fu, it is said that "perilla and the guest are boating under the red cliff." The guest said, "There are few stars on the moon, and blackbirds fly south." Isn't this a poem by Cao Mengde? ..... Only when it breaks Jingzhou and Jiangling, can it travel thousands of miles downstream to the east, wear banners, drink Linjiang wine and write horizontal poems ... "
It can be seen that as early as Su Shi's time, everyone thought that "Short Songs" was written by Cao Cao before Battle of Red Cliffs. Therefore, the statement in Romance of the Three Kingdoms is not far-fetched.
Second, the general idea of "short songs"
"A line of short songs" is an old topic in Yuefu, which means that this poem was sung with music at that time. Besides "short songs", there is also "Long song" in Yuefu. As for the difference between these two topics, some people say that Long song's short songs are about the life span of people. For example, short songs are lamenting the shortness of life. It is also said that Long song's short songs were originally meant to express the length of singing, but Cao Cao's "short songs" lamented the shortness of life and had a great influence. When future generations wrote "short songs", they were involuntarily influenced by him and all came to express this lament.
Han Yuefu is sometimes divided into "music interpretation", that is, music movements, similar to what we are talking about now. The four sentences in this "Short Song" are a solution, and every four sentences rhyme.
"When drinking songs, life geometry? For example, the first explanation of morning dew is mainly to lament that life is short. Like morning dew, it works at sunrise and stops at sunset. More and more days disappear, and the remaining time is getting shorter and shorter. Why do you sigh like this? Cao Cao is ambitious. Although he said he didn't want to be emperor, he never concealed his ambition to rule the country. He was fifty-four years old when he was in Battle of Red Cliffs, and he was already an old man. Time is running out, but his ambition has not been realized, so he will feel this way.
"Generous and unforgettable. Du Kang is the second way to solve the problem, which means that the inner feelings are very exciting, and the short sadness in life is always unforgettable. What can eliminate this sadness? Only Du Kang. Du Kang refers to wine. It is said that Du Kang was the first person to make wine, so the ancients often used his name to refer to wine.
"Qingqing leisurely from jumping in my heart. But because of you, I have been thinking about the third solution. The first two sentences are from The Book of Songs Guo Feng Ji Zi. "Green" is the color, and "Ji Zi" refers to the uniforms of ancient students, usually blue, so it is called "Green Ji Zi". These four sentences mean that young and talented people, I admire you in my heart, because of you, I have been thinking about it.
"Yo yo Luming Literature, wild apple. I have a guest, blowing sheng "is the fourth solution. These four sentences are from The Book of Songs, Xiaoya and Luming Literature, and describe the harmonious and beautiful relationship between monarch and minister. It means that the deer croaked and told its partner to eat the wormwood leaves on the yuan leaves. I have guests coming, and I have a banquet for blowing sheng.
"It seems like a month, when can I wait? Trouble comes from this and can't be cut off "is the fifth solution. It means you are as bright as the moon in the sky. When can I pick you up for me? Every time I think about it, I feel very worried, day and night.
"Buildings, waste each other. Talking about Yan and thinking about old grace "is the sixth solution. Both "money" and "mo" refer to roads, "saving" refers to caring and mourning, "seven outlines" refers to parting, and "Tan Yan" refers to gathering. These words mean that I have walked a long way for you and care about you. We all left and got together again, thinking about our old feelings all the time.
"The moon is thin and the black magpie flies south. Turn around the tree three times, what branches can you rely on "is the seventh solution." There are few stars in the moon, and blackbirds fly south. They flew around the tree again and again. Which branch is more suitable for habitat?
"The mountain will never be too high and the sea will never be too deep. The eighth solution, the duke of Zhou vomited, and the world returned to the heart. The first two sentences are from "Guanzi Situation Solution": "The sea does not hesitate to water, so it can become big; Mountains don't care about earth and stone, so they can be high; The wise master never tires of others, so he can become a crowd. " The last two sentences quoted the allusion of "Duke Zhou spat". The meaning of these words is obvious. The mountain will never feel too high, and the sea will never feel too deep. I will be like Duke Zhou, and the whole world will join me.
3. Why is this poem written for Sun Quan and Liu Bei?
As can be seen from the content of this poem, except that the first and second explanations are lamenting that life is short and time is running out, the following chapters are all expressing the will to recruit talents. So does this will have a specific object? Of course, it has to be seen in the historical background at that time, which is why the first part of this article should be written first.
As I said before, the "green scorpion" in the Book of Songs refers to young students, but here it actually refers to young talents. Who does this young talent refer to? It refers to Sun Quan and Liu Qi.
As we all know, before Battle of Red Cliffs, Cao Caoxian hit Jingzhou. At that time, Liu Biao was a shepherd in Jingzhou. Unfortunately, Liu Biao died as soon as Cao Cao called, and his youngest son, Liu Cong, had no backbone, so that Cao Cao got Jingzhou almost effortlessly. Liu Qi, the eldest son of Liu Biao, refused to surrender and took refuge in Liu Bei, uniting with Sun Quan to resist Cao Cao. At that time, Sun Quan and Liu Qi were both around 27 or 28 years old, and they were very young talents in Cao Cao's eyes. That's why Cao Cao said, "Qingqing, leisurely in my heart." But for your sake, I've been thinking about it, which means I wanted you a long time ago. Why haven't I given in to you?
"Yo yo Luming Literature, the back of the wild apple. I have a guest, blowing sheng ",but also full of tricks. These four sentences are the first four sentences in the first article of Xiaoya, describing the joy of the monarch and his subjects. Cao Cao means that if you surrender to me, I will treat you with songs, dances, wine and delicacies, and share the joy of the monarch and his subjects. He gave himself, Sun Quan and Liu Qi a title.
The fifth and sixth solutions are aimed at Liu Bei. Let's look at the fifth scheme first. What does "as clear as the moon" mean here? Anyone who has read Romance of the Three Kingdoms or History of the Three Kingdoms knows that Cao Cao appreciates Liu Bei very much. On one occasion, when they were talking about heroes in the world, Cao Cao once said, "Heroes in the world are only for the monarch to listen." It can be seen that we attach importance to Liu Bei and compare him with ourselves. "Clear as the moon" here is to praise Liu Bei's talent.
When Liu Bei was desperate, he briefly took refuge in Cao Cao. Although he had not made a fortune at that time, Cao Cao had realized his talent, so he wanted to win him over at all costs, hoping to use it for himself. Cao Cao sent troops to help Liu Bei defeat Lu Bu, recaptured his two wives, and asked the emperor to let Liu Bei be a shepherd in Yuzhou. But even so, Liu Bei finally became Cao Cao's opponent. So Cao Cao said, "As bright as the moon, when can you forget it?" Just ask Liu Bei when he will submit to himself. When he thinks of Liu Bei, he will "worry from it and can't stop", which shows his obsession with Liu Bei.
The sixth solution is to recall Liu Bei's past. Cao Cao tried his best to help Liu Bei send troops to fight, but in vain. Liu Bei finally left him, which is why he said, "The more you cross the road, the more you use it." But Cao Cao went on to say, "Talk about your face and remember your old gratitude", which means that although you left me, we also had a party to cook wine and talk about heroes. I still value you as much as I did then, and you shouldn't forget my help and kindness. This is obviously playing emotional cards.
The seventh solution implies the exhortation that "a good bird chooses a wood to live in, and a good minister chooses a master to walk", while the eighth solution compares the Duke of Zhou and urges Sun Quan, Liu Bei and others to come and submit quickly.
From this poem, we can see that Cao Cao is full of confidence in Battle of Red Cliffs, and he is sure to win the battle, and his domineering nature is naturally revealed. It's a pity that people are not as good as heaven. No one expected that Cao Cao, who occupied an absolute advantage, was defeated in Chibi, and his ambition to unify the whole country was shattered, and the situation of three points in the world was laid from then on. The only consolation for Cao Cao is that although Battle of Red Cliffs failed, this "Short Songs" has become a classic of later generations, which can be regarded as a lost mulberry tree in the east corner.