The most legendary figure in Northern Qi Master Hui Jiong

The most legendary figure of Northern Qi: Master Hui Jiong. Below, the editor of Historical Encyclopedia will bring you a detailed article introduction.
With the global popularity of the Harry Potter series, this magical story full of magic has been adapted into a film and television work and released around the world. When it comes to Harry Potter, everyone’s impression is of a bespectacled young man sitting on a broom and wandering in the sky. However, little known is that the “prototype” of Harry Potter had already appeared in China during the Northern Qi Dynasty 1500 years ago.
The legendary story of this person is not inferior to the bizarre legends written by JK Rowling. Today, I will take you closer to the ancient Chinese Harry Potter – Master Hui Jiong.
The image of Master Hui Jiong comes from the “Records of the Five Elements of Ancient and Modern China”. He was the most legendary figure in the Northern Qi Dynasty. Master Hui Jiong’s body is different from ordinary people. He has a leg disease and walks like a cripple. No one knows where Master Hui Jiong came from, as if he had emerged out of thin air and suddenly appeared in front of people one day. Master Hui Jiong has a very magical spell, which is that he can use a thin bamboo pole as a horse, sit on the pole, and use a whip to control the pole to fly.
Speaking of which, have you noticed any similarities between this person and Harry Potter? His’ mount ‘is quite similar to Harry Potter’s broom, even in terms of operation, except that one rides on a broom and the other rides on a bamboo pole. Every day, Master Hui Jiong would show off on the street, riding his bamboo pole back and forth without a trace, flying through the city like a gust of wind. If any modern person has such a unique skill, even if they are not invited by scientific research institutions to do research, they can become the world-renowned ‘Master Hui’.
However, people at that time lacked this aesthetic perspective, and they regarded the skilled Hui Jishi as mentally ill, fearing to avoid him. Qi Ren Hui Jishi has a different hobby from normal people, which is liking black affairs. Whether it’s dark clouds, crows passing by him, or black wild boars in the woods, whenever he encounters something black, he will stop and carefully examine it, and show a humble attitude towards black affairs.
No one knows why Master Hui Jiong likes black so much, in short, the performance of the extraordinary person is so different from ordinary people. Master Hui Jiong has admirable skills, and it is inevitable that he will become arrogant and complacent. Hui Jiong often boasts to the locals and says that he has missed out on his talents and has not met Bo Le, who has a keen eye for talent. Sometimes, Master Hui Jiong would talk to others about his old history, calling himself a Yangtze River pirate lurking in Northern Qi.
Once, Hui Jiong Shi ran up to the chief in charge of criminal investigation and said to him, “The situation in a certain place is very tense. Why don’t you ask me to act as a scout and spy on the enemy’s military situation?” However, such self introductions were all taken seriously because Hui Jiong Shi’s strange words and actions were treated as a joke. After Master Hui Jiong finished speaking incoherently, without waiting for the official’s instructions, he put down his bamboo pole and left through the air.
For a moment, Master Hui Jiong became a topic of conversation among the people of Northern Qi, and everyone regarded him as a joke. Have you heard? There was a madman who could fly in Northern Qi. Later, even the common people in the capital heard about the “glorious deeds” of Master Hui Jiong. Unfortunately, when people talk about him, they only call him a “madman” and no one knows the name of Master Hui Jiong. Seeing the people commenting on him, Master Hui Jiong is not angry and always laughs it off.
In the Northern Qi Empire at that time, there was a scene of singing and dancing, and no one expected the imminent war. Master Hui Jiong has the ability to predict in advance, and he has calculated the upcoming unforeseeable events that the country will face. In order to save Northern Qi, Hui Jishi flew to the capital and approached Tang Yong, the person in charge at that time. He urgently told him to quickly mobilize troops to the eastern city, as the Wu people were about to invade in the near future. Although the deeds of Master Hui Jiong are well-known, everyone thinks he is a mentally ill person, and no one takes his words seriously.
After reporting the situation, Hui Jishi flew up to the city wall alone and guarded day and night. As expected, a few days later military intelligence came from the east, saying that the Wu people had already attacked Huai Chu, and the court immediately sent troops to suppress them. At this point, Hui Jishi had already flown to the front line and began to investigate military intelligence. Huizhu’s army flew to Baibi and waited for the arrival of the Northern Qi reinforcements.
At that time, the leader of the army was King Qi An of Northern Qi, Gao Jingde. Hui Jishi told Gao Jingde that the enemy would use the strategy of water attack and must prevent the enemy from occupying the riverbank to avoid drowning the Seventh Army. However, Gao Jingde insisted that this guy was a madman and didn’t care about his words at all. Later, the Wu people indeed used a water meter to flood the Northern Qi army camp, resulting in heavy casualties for the Northern Qi army.
Gao Jingde suffered a defeat and feared punishment from the emperor, so he attributed all the blame to Master Hui Jiong, claiming to have been influenced by him. Huizhu Shi, who suffered unjustly, was placed under house arrest in Tianping Temple. The emperor sent heavy troops to guard and prevent Huizhu Shi from escaping. Master Hui Jiong lives in the temple and still leads a crazy life. Anyway, no one understands what I’m saying, and even if they do, no one will believe me, “Hui Jiong comforted himself.
Master Hui Jiong had nothing to do, so he chatted with Monk Da De in the temple. The two of them started from chaos and talked about the Four Books and Five Classics. Master Hui Jiong’s analysis was very ingenious, which made Monk Da De fall to the ground. Master Hui Jiong repeatedly reminded us not to share their conversation with outsiders, as the secrets of heaven cannot be revealed, otherwise it will inevitably lead to fatal consequences. Da De Monk is a kind-hearted person who wants more people to know about the magical Master Hui, so he stepped out of the door and told the others about their conversation.
However, the independent and unconventional Hui Jiong was greatly angered when he heard that his high teachings had been leaked by the monk. When the monk returned, Master Hui Jiong smashed Da De to death with a stone. Before the monk’s death, Master Hui Jiong said, “I told you before that the secrets of heaven cannot be revealed. Your fate is purely your own fault!” After the incident, the temple brought the matter to the court, hoping that the emperor could punish Master Hui Jiong severely. However, after hearing about this, the emperor believed that Master Hui Jiong did the right thing and forgave his crimes.
In the late Northern Qi Dynasty, the emperor built a Hongshan Temple in the North Palace and arranged for Master Hui Jiong to reside there. However, the uncontrolled Hui Jishi caused quite a few troubles.
One night, Hui Jishi flew into the Empress Dowager’s palace on his bamboo pole and was caught on the spot by the patrolling imperial guards. Huizhu Shi shouted loudly, ‘Soon everyone will be able to freely enter and exit here. I just came earlier than everyone else. Why did you arrest me?’ The imperial guards handed Huizhu Shi over to the emperor, hoping that the emperor would punish the madman severely. However, the emperor felt that there was no need to argue with someone as unreasonable as Hui Jishi, so he forgave him.
Hui Jiong’s strange words and deeds are as numerous as a feather, and his style of action is very frivolous. At that time, there was a regulation in the Northern Qi Palace that on the first and fifteenth day of each lunar month, concubines and female relatives of the imperial family were required to pay their respects to the emperor. These women dressed up beautifully and came to the palace in grand attire.
Every time, Master Hui Jiong followed behind the carriage, teasing these imperial relatives and nobles, and even saying to these women, “Anyway, this country is about to end, you can be my wife in the future.” The palace maid used a stick to drive Master Hui Jiong away, while he continued to tease with thick skin while dodging. When this matter reached the ears of the Empress of Northern Qi, she was amused and burst into laughter, saying that the true toad of Master Hui Jiong wanted to eat swan meat and even wanted to marry a concubine based on his appearance?
Because the former monk Da De betrayed Master Hui Jiong, later Master Hui Jiong hated monks very much. Whenever Master Hui Jiong sees a bald head, he will pick up the stones and tiles around him, and without a doubt, he will smash them all, causing the monks to take a detour and give way to him.
The common people of Northern Qi have become accustomed to the presence of Hui Jishi. It seems that without this madman, life would lack flavor.
Once, Master Hui Jiong went missing while playing with everyone and disappeared for several days without a trace. Later, people discovered Master Hui Jiong in the thatched cottage and found him unkempt, eating and living there. Subsequently, Hui Jiong Shi published his own high opinion: “There were so many yamen offices and armies throughout Northern Qi, why not register them all? The national territory cannot be seen on the map, why is that?” People have long been accustomed to Hui Jiong Shi’s crazy words, and no one takes them seriously.
From the perspective of later generations, we know that every word spoken by Master Hui Jiong is a prophecy. In the days when everyone was drunk and Huizhu Shi woke up alone, the Northern Qi welcomed the fate of destruction. The last time people saw Master Hui Jiong was in front of a portrait of the Empress Dowager of Northern Qi. Master Hui Jiong clasped his hands together, tears streaming down his face, and cried out, “The country and state have been destroyed, and the laws and regulations no longer exist.” After speaking, Master Hui Jiong lay on the ground and did not get up for a long time. Everyone saw sadness in Master Hui Jiong’s eyes.
Since then, no one has seen the ancient and mysterious Hui Jishi again. Just like he came out of nowhere, Hui Jishi disappeared from people’s sight and never appeared again.
The story of Master Hui Jiong is truly fascinating. What kind of “superpower” does he possess to predict what is about to happen? Why can’t such a strange person gain the understanding and respect of others? Perhaps ancient prophets were as insane as Master Hui Jiong, a mental illness in the eyes of ordinary people, and their reckless behavior was also difficult to accept.
Obviously, in the real history of Northern Qi, Hui Jiong did not exist. His story may be based on a visionary politician, and his image may be a microcosm of multiple historical figures of Northern Qi. It is astonishing that as early as 1500 years ago, Chinese literati had such a big “brain hole” to construct a legendary figure like Hui Jishi, which is truly breathtaking.
I wonder how British female writer JK Rowling would feel when she reads the authentic “Chinese version of Harry Potter” by Hui Jiong Shi? I believe that she will definitely be impressed by the wonderful story of Master Hui Jiong.