The full name of Zhao orphan is Zhao orphan, also known as Zhao orphan revenge. The synopsis of the plot is as follows: The discord between Tu'an Gu, a general of Jin State, and Zhao Dun, a civilian, often hurts Zhao Dun's heart. Tarnum, an advanced soldier, stabbed Zhao Dun with a knife over the wall, and Tarnum touched the tree and died. He also trained the God Mastiff in Xirong to chase and bite Zhao Dun in the imperial court, and Timmy chopped the dog with a melon. Thanks to Zhao Dun's help, he was saved. Falsely called an unfaithful and unfilial liar, he killed him with 300 people, forcing his son Zhao Shuo, a surnamed Xu in the State of Jin. Before she died, Zhao Shuo named the baby in the princess's womb orphan Zhao, and urged the princess to adopt an adult to avenge Zhao's death. The princess was imprisoned in the mansion and gave birth to an orphan named Zhao. Cheng Ying, a doctor from Caoze, was entrusted to put it in a medicine box to save her. In order to protect Cheng Ying from worries, the princess hanged herself. Tu'an Gu's next general, Han Biao, was originally promoted by Zhao Dun. He was very dissatisfied with Tu'an Gu's killing Zhongliang and disturbing Tianjin. Tu'an Gu sent him to keep a close watch on the government gate in case someone stole the baby from the house. Cheng Ying went out alone. Han Jue rummaged through the box three times, found the orphan, and let Cheng Ying run away with the orphan. Cheng Ying didn't trust him, so he ran back and forth twice, begging Han Jue to take him in and get a reward like an orphan. Han Jue told Cheng Ying to hide orphans in the mountains. "Teaching adults, practicing martial arts and writing, retaking the three armed forces, and catching thieves, the two places broke the first place, and the death penalty did not mean that you and I stepped on the wrong door and were in danger." In order to reassure Cheng Ying that he was alone, Han Jue committed suicide. Tu'an Gu found that orphans were rescued by the government and ordered the arrest and killing of babies under half a year old. Cheng Ying, who protects orphans, came to Gongsun Chujiu's home in Taiping Zhuang because he was dissatisfied with the treacherous court official. The two men agreed on a plan to save the orphans. Cheng Ying raised orphans as parents, sent them to Gongsun Chujiu's home as orphans, and then told Tu'an Gu that Gongsun Chujiu was hiding orphans. Tu'an Gu forced Gongsun Chujiu to death, destroyed the "orphans" he found, regarded Cheng Ying as a confidant, and regarded the orphans hidden by Cheng Ying as adopted sons. Twenty years later, when the orphan grew up, Cheng Ying named him Cheng Bo and Tu'an Gu named him Tu Cheng. He practiced martial arts in front of Tu'an Gu during the day and studied literature in front of Cheng Ying at night. Tu'an Gu has no children and intends to let him "kill Gong Ling and seize the state of Jin"; Cheng Ying painted the fallen loyal minister as a "hand scroll", telling orphans and teaching them to kill thieves for revenge. Finally, Tu'an Gu was removed from office, and loyal officials were appointed.
Zuo Zhuan, Shi, Liu Xiangxin's Preface and Shuo Yuan all recorded the story of Zhao's orphan. Ji wrote "The Orphan of Zhao" based on historical facts, but there were also many changes: the time of the story was changed from Jin Jinggong to Jin Jinggong; As for the relationship between characters, Han Jue was originally an orphan who asked for a seal when he grew up. In the drama, he was changed to put down Cheng Ying, who was protecting orphans, and committed suicide. Cheng Ying and Gongsun Chujiu used to be Zhao Dun's public guests, but in the zaju, Cheng Ying was changed to Dr. Cao Ze who was influenced by Zhao Shuoqing, and Gongsun Chujiu was changed to an old Zaifu who was dissatisfied with the traitor Tu'an Gu and sympathized with the loyal minister Zhao Dun. From the plot, the orphan was rescued by Cheng Ying instead of hiding in the palace, and the orphan grew up in the mountains instead of in Tu'an Gu's home. In details, Cheng Ying forced Gongsun Chujiu to hit with a cane, and Cheng Ying replaced orphans with other people's babies, not his own. These changes are helpful to deepen the theme, express the characters and strengthen the drama conflict.
On the surface, this play shows the struggle between loyal and treacherous officials, but in fact, the struggle between loyal and treacherous officials is only the beginning of the conflict in the whole play. The whole play shows the spirit of self-sacrifice to protect revenge from being extinguished, which is also the "righteousness" repeatedly emphasized in the play. The whole drama festival revolves around orphans. Write the struggle between loyalty and treachery first, paving the way for the dramatic conflict after the birth of orphans. This is the so-called "Phoenix Head"; Then the struggle between protecting orphans and finding orphans, the so-called "pig belly", is the center and focus of the whole play; Finally, I wrote the battle for orphans, which is the aftermath of the whole drama and also a "leopard tail" (there is a so-called "leopard tail with a crested pig belly" in China's ancient literary creation). Princess, Han Biao and Gong Sun, three loyal ministers who gave their lives to save the orphans, are the loyal ministers praised by the author. On the other hand, Cheng Ying is an honest man, and he tries his best to run through the whole play. He is the protagonist in the play.
When Cheng Ying appeared, more than 300 people in the Zhao family had been killed, the princess was imprisoned in the palace, and the orphans were about to be mutilated. His position is not high, and he is Dr. Cao Cao. He was full of sympathy for Zhao's family because Xu's family was not treated well by ordinary people. He accepted the princess's entrustment and hid the orphan in the medicine box. Han Xian, a loyal minister, helped him with his death, which enabled him to successfully rescue the orphans in the house. But this is not the end of the matter, but the beginning of the problem becoming complicated and serious. Tu'an Gu had to rescue orphans from the magistrate, and in order to exterminate the roots, he ordered all babies under six months to be arrested and taken to Shuaifu, and whether they were orphans or not, they should be chopped into three parts by hand. Tu'an Gu's cruelty was further exposed, and the situation of orphans became very dangerous. This struggle to find and save orphans has also taken on the color of being anti-people and protecting the people. If Cheng Ying starts to accept the entrustment of the princess just out of sympathy and gratitude, there are still many concerns. Now, in order not to let an orphan go, Tu'an Gu would rather kill all the babies in the world, and suddenly pushed Cheng Ying to the moral peak of risking his life for righteousness. He resolutely decided to give his life and the life of a baby before the full moon, save orphans and save the lives of young people under half a year old in the countryside. The "righteousness" here is no longer the narrow "righteousness" in traditional feudal morality, but a lofty virtue that is not limited by time and space and is pursued and respected by the broad masses of people in different times, countries and nationalities. This is the fundamental reason why Orphan of Zhao Can has been widely circulated for a long time, and it is also the secret of its shocking artistic effect.
Gongsun Chujiu, the reclusive old Zaifu of Taiping Zhuang, has the same chivalrous heart as Cheng Ying. Look at a conversation between them:
Cheng Ying, how old are you now? Cheng Yingyun is forty-five years old. (It's just the end of the cloud) This little guy has been counting for twenty years. Only in this way can his parents hate him. You are only sixty-five years old if you live for another twenty years; I will be twenty, but I'm not ninety yet. At that time, life and death were unknown, so how could he take revenge on Zhao Jiabao? Cheng Ying, your child, the person you are willing to give up, will be given to me in the future. You turn yourself in and tell Tu'an Gu that Gongsun Chujiu in Taiping Zhuang is hiding an orphan named Scott. Then Tu'an Gu led the army school to get it, and I will die with your own son. It's just a long-term plan for you to promote your orphan Zhao to an adult and get back at his parents. (Cheng Yingyun) Old Zaifu, yes, yes, how hard is it for you? Just report my baby's fake makeup as an orphan of Zhao's, and wait for my father and son to die together. (This is the last cloud) Cheng Ying, I have made up my mind, so there is no need to doubt it.
(Cheng Yingyun) Old Zaifu, you are fine at home. I, Cheng Ying, don't know how to go forward or backward. I put this sad bag on your old Zaifu for no reason, and I can't rest assured. Cheng Ying, where are you talking? I am a 70-year-old man, and death is a common occurrence. I don't care about this sooner or later.
Finally, Gongsun Chujiu also said to the nervous Cheng Ying: "I have never kept my promise as heavy as 1,000 yuan, so I was sent to the mountains with swords and swords, beginning and ending." "Cheng Ying, you can rest assured that the orphan who flattered me will avenge his parents when he grows up, and what's the point of the old man's death?" Here, although it can be seen that there are obvious differences between Gongsun and the idea of saving orphans, the "righteousness" of giving one's life is broader and higher than Gongsun's. But their unswerving spirit of sacrifice, like a tragic duet, struck a chord with the audience. Their conversation is so ordinary, but their feelings are so real. The truer the feelings are, the more ordinary the words are, and the more they can arouse the enduring emotions in the hearts of the audience.
Gongsun Chujiu persuaded Cheng Ying with ordinary truth; Cheng Ying convinced the cunning Tu'an Gu of his words, on the grounds that the ordinary seems to be in line with human nature: "I came to save the lives of ordinary children; Secondly, the villain has five in lent, and recently gave birth to a son, not yet full moon. Marshal's military orders, dare not hand them over, but I'm not a villain, am I? I think that being an orphan of Zhao will not harm the life of a country, and even the son of a villain will be fine, so it is the first. " "Sue adults to suspend anger, this is the reason of Gao Shou; Although I saved my life, I am actually afraid that the Cheng family will never die. "I sacrificed myself for others, but I have to say that I sacrificed others for myself; Obviously, it is a sincere rescue, but it has to be said that it is full of selfishness. This kind of "deceptive" language art comes from the great wisdom and courage of self-sacrifice and saving others. This art of speaking made Tu'an Gu, who was angry, show a proud smile. The audience's heart relaxed a little, but they were deeply moved by Cheng Ying's spirit. Because the more deceptive Cheng Ying's speech is, the more sincere he is to give up his life.
Believing in the whereabouts of orphans does not mean believing in Cheng Ying himself; The success of the first announcement does not mean the realization of all schemes. Self-sacrifice to save others, from thought to fact, has to go through a severe test. Gongsun Chujiu has long been ready to be tortured, and easily confessing to hiding orphans will make Tu'an Gu suspicious and may make the plan to save orphans fail; Denial can make Tu'an Gu take fakes seriously, but it will be brutally tortured. Gongsun Chujiu chose the latter. Tu'an Gu was beaten in Gongsun Chujiu, but he didn't confess. He went into a rage and even said, "I'm so angry! Annoyed! " But he immediately had a plan, and ordered the "first" Cheng Ying to personally take the staff to deal with Gongsun Chujiu, so as to force Gongsun Chujiu to hand over the orphans and further "test" the true face of the first Cheng Ying. This unexpected test suddenly fell on Cheng Ying. Cheng Ying began to want to use Dr. Kusawa's weak wrist as an excuse to refuse, but Tu'an Gu didn't give in, forcing him to say, "You can't insist. Are you afraid that your fingers will climb out of you?" This is the key to protecting orphans, so Cheng Ying had to promise to walk with crutches. He picked a thin stick, Tu'an Gu said; "I'm afraid hitting him will hurt him. Do you want to climb down? " He picked a big stick, and Tu'an Gu said, "If you kill it three or two times, you can't do anything well." Cheng Ying said; "It's hard for me to be a man twice", showing the passive psychology of not knowing how to deal with sudden attacks. Tu'an Gu seized this favorable opportunity to continue the attack. While ordering Cheng Ying to hit with a medium stick, he told Gongsun Chujiu: "Cheng Ying is walking with a medium stick." . This is a terrible move, which is beyond Gongsun Chujiu's expectation. He couldn't stand Cheng Ying's beating with a stick, and almost exposed his true feelings. Cheng Ying didn't want to walk with crutches, but in order to win Tu'an Gu's trust, he had to walk with crutches, and the sticks became denser and denser, and the more he shouted "Come on!" Since then, the contradiction has become more complicated and acute than ever, and the situation has become more severe than ever. You know, Gongsun Chujiu is a 70-year-old man. His physical endurance and mental agility are far less than those of young people. Once he regrets Cheng Ying's walking stick, all his plans will be ruined. However, Gongsun Chujiu withstood the test of physical torture, and the words came to his mouth and he swallowed them. Because he found that although Cheng Ying drank loudly and beat him with a stick, he was very upset and flustered once he realized that he had revealed the truth almost in an instant. "Tiger's legs are shaking," he seems to understand the reason why Cheng Ying walks with a cane. Gongsun Chujiu stood firm at this critical moment, denying that the two had just conspired. Although he was beaten "raw and exhausted", he didn't mention climbing Cheng Ying. Tu'an Gu barked; "I'll kill you old man if you don't tell me" sounds aggressive, but it's actually equivalent to declaring your plot bankrupt and showing your inner despair.
Just then, the soldier reported that Scott's orphan had been found in the cave, and Tu'an Gu smiled proudly again. Anxious to get rid of the roots, he did it himself and angrily cut the child into three sections. Gongsun Chujiu couldn't bear to see it, and he crashed into the steps and died; Tu'an Gu thought that his goal had been achieved, and he expressed his desire for life; Only Cheng Ying, watching her own flesh and blood chopped into three sections, could neither vent her hatred like Gongsun Chujiu denounced Tu'an Gu, nor die as quickly as Gongsun Chujiu hit the steps. He silently endured great mental torture! The playwright wrote Cheng Ying's Tears Covering Festival, "My heart is pouring like hot oil, and Pearl dare not pour tears on people, so she has to press it on her back." "Silence is better than sound", the more silent it is, the more it hurts the audience. Gongsun Chujiu's physical torture is tempting, while Cheng Ying's mental torture is even more irritating. Cheng Ying's own son was savagely chopped into meat paste, and Cheng Ying's moral monument, which saved people's lives, has also established a lofty position in the hearts of people in different times and countries.
Tu'an Gu left Cheng Ying at home as a bosom friend. He raised Zhao Soliton as his adopted son, taught Zhao orphans to practice martial arts in front of him, and studied literature in front of him. He provided an excellent environment for orphans to grow up, but it also made it difficult for Cheng Ying to tell the truth. But the fake can't be true, it can't be true, the overwhelming of the fake is really only a superficial temporary phenomenon, and the real victory over the fake is the internal permanent destination. Cheng Ying ignited the fire of revenge twenty years ago, and then ignited the fire of revenge twenty years later. I was going to teach my son regicide to seize power, but I didn't expect to be killed by the orphan Zhao who was chased twenty years ago. The flower of Cheng Ying's morality, which saved his life, bears the fruits of victory in punishing evil and promoting good.
This play describes the cruelty of Tu'an Gu's murder, but it doesn't make people feel terrible; I wrote that a large number of righteous men died one after another, but they didn't make life desperate. The reason is that the orphans are still there, Cheng Ying, who rescued the orphans, is still there, and there is still hope for revenge. Zhao, an orphan in the play, is no longer a symbol of feudal patriarchal concept in history books, but the embodiment of just power to eliminate evil and protect good. Under the conditions at that time, it was in line with the historical truth that loyal officials and righteous men pinned their hopes on him to punish evil and promote good. Orphans are bitter and bitter, and once they are adults, there is no room for reconciliation with treacherous court officials, which is different from those loyal officials who have no bitterness or enmity. The orphans in the play are also like a golden thread, connecting many dazzling but scattered pearls together to form a dazzling whole, and connecting the moving scenes of the tragic sacrifice of many loyal ministers and righteous men into a unified artistic whole. The author promotes the negative characters first and then suppresses them, and suppresses the positive characters first and then promotes them; The whole play is tragic and moving first, with a happy ending.
Since the mid-Qing Dynasty, The Orphan of Zhao has been adapted and put on the stage, enjoying a high reputation in China. As early as130s, it spread to France and Britain. British playwright Richard wrote in "To Orphans in China" adapted from "The Orphan of Zhao": "There is some truth here, even the most famous plays in Europe still can't catch up". It can be seen that its achievements are high and its influence is great.