Why did the scholar-officials in Song Dynasty have the strongest personality? Scholars and celebrities in the history of Song Dynasty

On the "oath tablet" of the ancestral temple, Song Taizu and Zhao Kuangyin instructed future generations not to kill literati and writers. This intellectual policy, which was praised by later generations, was implemented in the Song Dynasty, and under this umbrella, how did the literati in the Song Dynasty do it? Yu is a professor at the School of Humanities, Shanghai Normal University, and has been responsible for studying the history of the Song Dynasty for many years. In his view, the reason why the scholar-officials flourished most in the Song Dynasty was inseparable from the umbrella of the basic national policy at that time, the sound institutional procedures and the rise of the self-awareness of the scholar-officials class.

What is the reason why Song Taizu set up an "oath tablet" not to kill the literati? Does this national policy have anything to do with what we call social changes in the Tang and Song Dynasties? Yu, an "intellectual", was called a scholar-bureaucrat or scholar-bureaucrat in ancient China. There are two substantive contents in "Song Taizu Shi Bei": one is to give preferential treatment to the descendants of Zhao Songchan in the later Zhou Dynasty; The second requirement is not to kill literati and writers; Article 3 warns his descendants to abide by the first two articles, or "the sky will fall" and will be punished by God. The first is aimed at the descendants of the old regime he received, and the object is quite limited; Article 2 is of overall significance to intellectuals participating in the new regime.

First of all, after the Anshi Rebellion in the mid-Tang Dynasty, the world fell into a separatist situation. According to Song Taizu, in the Five Dynasties, there were many surnames and a dozen emperors. In fact, military commanders are manipulating regime change. This kind of world can rely on strong competition, but when stronger opponents appear, the regime will change hands. Song Taizu himself was a soldier, and the Song Dynasty was established by this means. Of course, he must take into account that the Zhao and Song Dynasties will not become the sixth dynasty to repeat the same mistakes. In order to maintain the long-term stability of his regime, he felt it necessary to end military politics.

Second, the biggest change in the political structure in the Tang and Song Dynasties was the demise of aristocratic politics before the middle Tang Dynasty, and the status of the monarch also changed. After the mid-Tang Dynasty, there appeared an unidentified landlord class in Buyi, which eventually replaced the identity landlord class that withdrew from the historical stage and became the foundation of the whole regime after the Tang and Song Dynasties. After the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the imperial examination system was further expanded and improved in the Song Dynasty. This imperial examination system of "taking scholars regardless of family background" actually opened the possibility of taking scholars into the ruling circle through the imperial examination to all levels of society. The direct consequence of social changes in social class relations in Tang and Song Dynasties was to cultivate a relatively independent scholar-bureaucrat class with the help of imperial examinations. After the formation of this class, it will inevitably enter the bureaucratic circle and express its political demands. Song Taizu's "Don't kill scholar-officials, treat others with books" in Shi Bei not only reflects this social change, but also further promotes this policy change.

Third, Song Taizu's personal factors. Although Zhao Kuangyin was a military commander, he realized the importance of culture and scholar-officials. When he was in Nantang, he specially collected a large number of books and dragged them back to the camp with his own car. In response to Zhou Shizong's strange and jaw-dropping problems, Zhao Kuangyin said: I have a great responsibility, and I am often afraid that I can't do it, so I collect books to read, "I want to know more". After the founding of the People's Republic of China, he put forward that "the prime minister must use scholars" and realized that force can seize the world, but force can never rule the world. Of course, Song Taizu's move also has its own ruling considerations. He said to Zhao Pu: The five generations of houses were really abused, and the people suffered greatly. I sent more than 100 capable civil servants to divide and rule and divide all the princes. Even if they are corrupt officials, their harm is not as good as that of military personnel. Literati are corrupt at most. Once the soldiers make an insurrection, the people will suffer from war. Obviously, he also made a choice from the perspective of the lesser of two evils.