The Research On Zhang Xikong And "Yi Qing Tang Ji"

The transitional period between Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty is a special period in Chinese history. In those unrest days, scholars had three options:to hermit or rejuvenate Ming Dynasty or conform to the new government, staying quiet for self-protection. At the same time, the Huizhou civilization in Ming and Qing Dynasties reached its peak and appeared a large number of scholars. The research object in this paper-Zhang Xikong lives in such a complex but not quiet environment. Affected by family environment and various aspects, Zhang Xikong choose to conform to the new dynasty. In1649, shunzhi period, he took the imperial examination and became a third-class chinshih, being in a position of xing bu principal officer and shanxi inspector. But Zhang Xikong didn’t like being an official, when the expiration time came, he returned back to Beijing, content with a hermetic life in the mountains, devoting himself to study and write quite abundant. These works not only have high literature values, but also provide very valuable sources for us to understand the political opportunities and special state of mind about scholars in the late Ming and early Qing dynasty as well as the development of the Huizhou culture and heritage in those periods.The whole life of Zhang Xikong can be roughly divided into3periods:namely supporting family in youth, being an official in middle age, being secluded in his late years. The paper attempts to give a textual research on Zhang Xikong and four chapters are included:his life and lineage; his works; his friends and lastly "Yi Qing Tang Ji". The author attempts to restore the historical features of Zhang Xikong through this textual research.The preface of the paper provides a brief overview of the purpose and significance of the paper and previous studies on Zhang Xikong,,which is the basis for a comprehensive understanding of this paper. According to available information, the previous study on Zhang Xikong is very less. Records on his life, friends andliterary creation are extremely fragmented, which is not systematic and comprehensive. Furthermore, Zhang Xikong is no anonymity in Huizhou literary world. Based on the above discussion, the paper is worth researching.The first chapter is a detailed research about Zhang Xikong’s life and his family. Firstly it is a textual research on his family, presenting Zhang Xikong’s family background, then it is about his whole life. Zhang Xikong has a wealthy family background, but with the passing away of his father and grandmother in childhood, his family began to decline. When he was very young, he had to support family through teaching people, In1649, shunzhi period, he took the imperial examination and became a third-class chinshih. being in a position of xing bu principal officer and shanxi inspector. When the expiration time came, he returned back to Beijing, content with a hermetic life in the mountains, devoting himself to study and write quite abundant.The second chapter is mainly about Zhang Xikong’s literary contributions. This famous scholar produces a lot in his whole life. There are9works that are known to people,6works available. These preserved works are relatively intact. They not only record his daily life but also reflect his deep thoughts. This chapter classifies his existing works in four aspects, that is Classics, History, Philosophy, and Literary Collections through which we can better understand his thoughts and communication situation.The third chapter is about Zhang Xikong’s communication in various circumstances. Concerning this aspect, the present literature all consider his good at making friends. However, from the textual research on his works, we find it slightly different from recorded literature. Both scholars and literary pushovers are associated with Zhang Xikong. The textual research on his friends is divided into two parts:a detailed account and a brief account., attempting to elaborate his social situation.Chapter four is the study on "Yi Qing Tang Ji". Just as the so-called poetryambition, the creation of poetry can reflect the aspirations, tastes and characters of the writer."Yi Qing Tang Ji" is an important representative work of Zhang Xikong’s literary creation, collecting a large number of literary works. The works included in the anthology is abundant in style and extensive in selection, providing a wealth material for the study of Zhang Xikong’s literary creation. This chapter is mainly a detailed textual research on Yi Qing Tang Ji from main content and artistic characteristics perspective.