Original text: Fan Zhongyan was orphaned when he was two years old. His mother was poor and helpless, so he suited the Zhu family of Changshan.

When he grew up, he learned about his family. He wept and bid farewell to his mother. He went to Nandu and entered the school.

He studied hard day and night, and for five years he never took off his clothes to go to bed, or he was too lazy to eat.

Then he understood the purpose of the Six Classics, and he aspired to the world. He often recited to himself: "A scholar should worry about the world's worries first, and rejoice in the world's happiness later." Translation: Fan Zhongyan lost his father when he was two years old, and his family was poor and had no support.

The mother remarried to the Zhu family of Changshan.

When he grew up, he learned about his family background and was moved to say goodbye to his mother in tears. He left for Nandu and entered a school.

He studied hard day and night. He never undressed and slept well for five years. Sometimes he felt dizzy and tired, so he would wash his face with cold water. He often couldn't even eat gruel, and he didn't start eating until after the sun passed noon every day.

So he understood the essentials of the "Six Classics" and was generous and ambitious for the world. He often said to himself: "A scholar should worry before the world is worried, and be happy after the world is happy." Fan Zhongyan, also known as Xiwen.

In the same dynasty as Bao Zheng, he was a famous official in the Northern Song Dynasty and a native of Wuxian County (now part of Jiangsu). He was a poor boy but eager to learn. When he was a scholar, he often took the world as his own responsibility and had a reputation for speaking out.

He wrote many letters criticizing the prime minister at that time, and was demoted three times.

During the reign of Emperor Renzong of Song Dynasty, he was an official who participated in political affairs and was equivalent to deputy prime minister.

Yuan Haofan took Shaanxi as a direct scholar of Longtuge and Xia Song. His orders were strict and the Xia people did not dare to violate them. The Qiang people called him Longtu Laozi, and the Xia people called him Xiaofan Laozi.

In 1043 (the third year of Qingli reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty), Fan Zhongyan was extremely distressed by the shortcomings of the government at that time, and proposed the "Ten Matters", advocating the establishment of a strict official system, paying attention to farming and mulberry crops, rectifying military equipment, promoting the legal system, and reducing servitude.

Song Renzong adopted his suggestions and implemented them one after another, which is known as the "Qingli New Deal" in history.

Unfortunately, it could not be realized soon due to the opposition of conservatives, so he was demoted to Shaanxi Province as the fourth propaganda envoy. Later, he died of illness on the way to Yingzhou and was given the posthumous title of Wenzheng.

He was a famous politician and commander-in-chief in the Northern Song Dynasty, as well as an outstanding litterateur and educator.

The Qingli Reform Movement he led became the prelude to Wang Anshi's Xifeng Reform; his improvement of certain military systems and strategic measures stabilized the western frontier defense for a long period of time; a large number of scholars recommended by him became the academic leaders of the Song Dynasty.

The foundation for its heyday was laid; the thought of worrying first and rejoicing later and the integrity of people with lofty ideals that he advocated are shining spiritual wealth in the history of Chinese civilization: Zhu Xi called him the first-class figure in the history of heaven and earth! For thousands of years, Fan Zhongyan's remains have been preserved in various places.

Always protected and commemorated.

Isolated and poor since childhood, he studied hard. On the second day of August in the second year of Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty (989), Fan Zhongyan was born in Xuzhou.

His father, Fan Yong, was the secretary of the Ningwu Army Jieduzhang at that time, the secretary to the military commander of Xuzhou.

Fan Yong first married the Chen family and then the Xie family.

Zhong Yan is his third son.

The second year after Fan Zhongyan was born.

The father then died of illness.

Xie was so poor that she had no choice but to hold her infant Zhong Yan in her arms.

She remarried into a family named Zhu in Changshan County, Zizhou City, Shandong Province (near today's Zouping County, Shandong Province).

Fan Zhongyan also changed his surname to Zhu Shuo and grew up in Zhu's family.

Fan Zhongyan has been studying very hard since he was a child. The Zhu family is a wealthy family in Changshan, but for inspiration, he often goes to the nearby Liquan Temple in Changbai Mountain to stay and study, morning and evening.

Then read and recite.

His unremitting spirit in reading pieces left a deep impression on the monks: at that time, his life was extremely difficult. He only cooked one pot of thick porridge every day.

Come on, make half a cup of vinegar and continue reading after eating.

But he didn't mind this kind of poor life, and spent all his energy looking for his own fun in books.

After almost three years of this, the books in Changbai Mountain Township could no longer meet his needs.

An accidental incident exposed the secret of Fan Zhongyan's family background.

He was shocked to discover that he was originally the son of the Fan family in Suzhou. Over the years, he had been relying on the care of his stepfather.

This incident deeply stimulated and shocked Fan Zhongyan. Feeling guilty and angry, he decided to leave the Zhu family and establish his own family. After he established a successful career in the future, he would take his mother back to raise him.

So he hurriedly packed a few simple clothes, put on his piano and sword, and despite the obstruction of the Zhu family and his mother, he shed tears and resolutely bid farewell to his mother, left Changshan, and went to study on foot.

In the fourth year of Zhenzong's Dazhong Xiangfu reign (1011), 23-year-old Fan Zhongyan came to Suiyang Yingtianfu Academy (now Shangqiu County, Henan).

Yingtianfu Academy is one of the four famous academies in the Song Dynasty. It has 150 school buildings and a collection of thousands of volumes.

What's more important is that there are many teachers and students with great ambitions and talents gathered here.

To study in such a college, you can have famous teachers to consult with, many classmates to learn from each other, and a large number of books to read. Moreover, the college is free to study, which is what Fan Zhongyan, who is financially strapped, can only dream of.

Yingtianfu was later renamed Nanjing, and Yingtianfu Academy was also called Nandu Academy.

Fan Zhongyan cherished the new learning environment very much and studied day and night.

Once, Emperor Zhenzong passed by Nanjing. Everyone rushed to watch, but Fan Zhongyan stayed behind closed doors and sat there as before.

A classmate blamed him for missing the opportunity to see the emperor, but he replied: "It's not too late to see you again in the future." One of Fan Zhongyan's classmates and the son of Nanjing Liushou (the highest official in Nanjing) saw that he ate porridge all year round, so he gave some to him.

Give him good food.

He didn't even taste it and allowed the food to get moldy.

It wasn't until people began to blame him that he bowed his head and thanked me and said: "I have settled for a life of eating porridge. Once I enjoy a good meal, I am afraid that I will not be able to eat hard in the future.