Xun Zhi Zhai Collection

Author: Fang Xiaoru (1357—1402), styled Xizhi, also styled Xigu, of Ninghai, Zhejiang (now Xiangshan County, Zhejiang Province), Ming Dynasty. Disciple of Song Lian. Appointed as Professor of Hanzhong Prefecture in the 25th year of Hongwu. Invited by the Prince of Shu to be the teacher of the heir apparent, naming his study "Zhengxue" and being known as the "Zhengxue Master." During the Jianwen era, served as Academician and Lecturer at the Hanlin Academy. When Prince Yan Zhu Li led his rebellion, many of the imperial edicts and decrees were drafted by him. When the Yan army entered the capital (now Nanjing) and proclaimed himself emperor (the Yongle Emperor), he was ordered to draft the accession edict, but he refused. The Yongle Emperor looked to his sides and handed the brush and paper to him, saying, "The edict cannot be drafted by anyone but you." Fang Xiaoru threw the brush to the ground and said, "To die is to die, but I will not draft the edict." He was subsequently executed, and ten clans of his family and relatives were implicated and executed, totaling 847 people. During the time of the Prince of Fu, he was posthumously honored as Wen Cheng. He wrote the "Xunzhi Zhai Collection" in 24 volumes. Fang Xiaoru emphasized the unique style of the writer in his literary theory, arguing against the imposition of uniformity. He said, "When people write, are they intentionally different? Their forms vary from person to person, their voices and expressions vary from person to person, and their words cannot be forced to be the same" (Preface to Zhang Yanhui's Collection). He believed that good writing is an artistic creation and cannot rely on imitating the ancients. He said, "Zhuangzi's writings, Li Bai's poetry, are unrestrained and follow their desires, yet nothing is unsatisfactory. Could they have learned to write like this? Their hearts silently resonate with the divine, so they do not need to use their intellect and skill, yet no intellect and skill in the world can surpass them. Zhuangzi and Li Bai are divine in literature. When these two wrote, they were unaware of their thoughts emerging from their hearts and responding to their hands, let alone being aware of their divine essence? Those who imitate the writings of the ancients are not skilled writers; only those whose hearts resonate with the divine can do so." (Preface to Su Tai Shi's Collection). Therefore, his writings are robust and unrestrained, often full of originality. In the prose "The Yue Witch," through the story of a Yue witch who tricks people with his "treatise on exorcism" only to be frightened to death by a ghost, he mocks the despicable and pitiful nature of sorcerers who deceive others and themselves, as well as those who deceive society with their pretense and fame. In the essay "The Wu Scholars," he writes about the "Wu Scholars" whom Zhang Shicheng employed. These scholars "loved to boast about their abilities, especially discussing military matters, always praising Sun Tzu and Wu Qi," yet they actually had no real skills in commanding troops. Whenever they faced battle, they "fled without daring to resist." Through this, he satirizes those who boast without substance. At the end of the essay, the author writes, "The two essays 'The Yue Witch' and 'The Wu Scholars' show that many people in the world die from their own falsehood and exaggeration without realizing their faults throughout their lives. Is this not confusing? While traveling in Wu and Yue, I heard these two stories from travelers and recorded them as a warning to the world." The purpose of his writing is evident here. In the essay "The Mosquito Debate," through the arguments of a child, he uses vivid metaphors to compare exploiters and oppressors in human society with mosquitoes in the animal kingdom, pointing out that the former are even more cruel and shameless than the latter, which holds certain realistic significance.