La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep (1723 - 1804, Kim Song Truong commune, Can Loc, Ha Tinh) was a student of Xuan Quan Cong Nguyen Nghiem (1708 - 1775) but was a brother-in-law of Toan Quan Cong Nguyen Khan (1734 - 1786).
Xuan Quan Cong Nguyen Nghiem and Toan Quan Cong Nguyen Khan were two influential figures in Vietnamese history during the Le Trung Hung period. Although they had a close relationship, La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep had a different lifestyle, behavior, and response to the times.
Nguyen Nghiem Church in Tien Dien (Nghi Xuan - Ha Tinh). Photo: document.
1. First of all, for Xuan Quan Cong Nguyen Nghiem, Nguyen Thiep was his student. The person who sent Nguyen Thiep to be a student of Hoang Giap Nguyen Nghiem was Doctor Nguyen Hanh (1701 - ?). Not only was Nguyen Thiep a student of Nguyen Nghiem, but he was also a brother-in-law of Nguyen Khan - the eldest son of Hoang Giap Nguyen Nghiem. Nguyen Thiep's wife's real name was Nghi, Nguyen Khan's wife's real name was Ve, both were daughters of Thai Boc Tu Khanh Dang Thai Bang, from Uy Vien commune, Nghi Xuan district.
Although he was a student, Nguyen Thiep did not ask his “teacher” to become his Prime Minister. Several times Nguyen Nghiem considered and recommended Nguyen Thiep to be an official, but he hesitated and refused. It was not until 1756, when he was 33 years old, that Nguyen Thiep agreed to accept the position of Anh Do Instructor.
Professor Hoang Xuan Han said: "Looking at the Nguyen Tien Dien family tree, we see that the year before (At Hoi, 1755), Nguyen Nghiem returned to be the deputy governor of Nghe An. Perhaps it was because of him that this appointment was made." However, in the "Hanh Am Ky" poem, Nguyen Thiep clearly stated: "In the year Binh Ty (1756), because I was old and passed the exam, I was appointed as the instructor of Anh Do."
The bronze statue of La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep shows the majesty of a talented teacher (photo taken at La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep Temple in Luy village, Kim Song Truong commune, Can Loc district - Ha Tinh).
Then, even when it came to taking the Hoi examination, Nguyen Thiep was not interested: “In the year Canh Hung Quy Hoi, at the age of 21, he passed the Huong exam. Every spring, they argued endlessly. The Left Prime Minister (referring to Nguyen Nghiem) kept saying to him: “The incense burner is still there. Why don’t you listen?” He replied: “Because I don’t have the heart for the stone.”
In 1766, when Nguyen Thiep went to Bac Ha, he visited Nguyen Nghiem's house and saw two big words "Phu Duc" in the Prime Minister's residence. He wrote a poem as follows:
Wealth, wealth, wealth, money, rice, treasures, and property of a group of people, although one of the five blessings, is still a storehouse of resentment; do not ask for it, do not do it, whatever happens will happen.
Virtue, virtue, virtue, benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, rules, laws, if you can correct it, you are a saint, if you do wrong, you are a monster; you must worry, you must try, and virtue will naturally come.
For a student to have the intention to remind and advise his teacher, moreover, the teacher was an official holding the position of Prime Minister of the dynasty, with high position and power, perhaps only La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep had the courage to do so.
La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep Temple (Luy village, Kim Song Truong commune, Can Loc district - Ha Tinh), seen from above.
2. In La Son Phu Tu , Professor Hoang Xuan Han wrote: "The genealogy of the Nguyen Huy family in Truong Luu commune recorded that: Tran Chanh Ky, a native of Thuan Hoa, passed the bachelor's degree (huong cong) and went to the capital (Thang Long). He met with Thai Bao Nguyen Nghiem and asked about the talents of the South. The Thai Bao replied: "In terms of profound learning, there is Lap Phong, in terms of literature and rules, there is Tam Hoa Nguyen Huy Oanh, and in terms of multi-talented and multi-skilled youth, there is only Nguyen Huy Tu."
Regarding the story of Tran Van Ky going to Thang Long to take the Hoi exam, Hoang Le Nhat Thong Chi recorded: "Ky was from Thuan Hoa, had a literary background, was a famous scholar in Nam Ha. In Dinh Dau year (1777) of Canh Hung era, Ky took the exam in town and passed the exam as the top prize. In Mau Tuat year (1778), Ky went to the capital to take the Hoi exam, the scholars in Bac Ha, Ky had some acquaintances...".
Through the above excerpt, we can see that Tran Van Ky went to Thang Long in 1778, while Xuan Quan Cong Nguyen Nghiem died in 1775. Thus, here, Professor Hoang Xuan Han made a mistake, Tran Van Ky could not have met and asked Prime Minister Nguyen Nghiem. The person Tran Van Ky met here was Toan Quan Cong Nguyen Khan.
Thus, although he knew that Tran Van Ky intended to help Tay Son, Nguyen Khan still introduced him to the Northern scholars, among whom the first person to be introduced was Lap Phong Xu Si, namely La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep. This showed that Toan Quan Cong Nguyen Khan, although at that time very much loved by the Trinh lords, was a high-ranking and powerful mandarin, but still respected the talent of La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep - a person who did not hold any position in the court at that time. Nguyen Khan's introduction of La Son Phu Tu was certainly not because the two men were "family", but above all, the talent and virtue of La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep had touched the capital, even people like Hiep Tran Bui Huy Bich also admired him and gave him poems, Huy Quan Cong Hoang Dinh Bao knew him and recommended him to Lord Trinh Sam. Professor Hoang Xuan Han also explained: "Perhaps at that time he was famous for his mastery of fortune telling like the Trinh mandarin of the past, so the lord wanted to ask him a question about his fate...".
In memory of the great contributions of La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep, the descendants of the family and the people of the surrounding area day and night burn incense to worship their ancestors.
3. In 1756, when his family fell into "poverty, his mother was old, because of the restrictive clothing", Nguyen Thiep agreed to become an official, holding the position of Anh Do Instructor. Looking back at that time, we can see that at this time, Nguyen Thiep's wife's family was in a period of prosperity, with his father-in-law Dang Thai Bang being a high-ranking official in the court, and his brother-in-law Nguyen Khan's family also being very wealthy, yet Nguyen Thiep's family had to suffer poverty, "because of the restrictive clothing".
In terms of family relationships, this is quite strange because Vietnamese people have a tradition of loving, protecting, and helping each other, especially in the relationship between father and son, and relatives. The heroic Nguyen Thiep may not have accepted help from his wife's family, but for his wife, not accepting help from her maternal family is also a rare thing. Through this, it shows that when she married Nguyen Thiep, she accepted sacrifice, endured poverty, left behind a life of luxury, followed her husband to the countryside, mountains and forests to live in seclusion. This is also a very valuable quality of Vietnamese women under the monarchy, and is also a great lesson for us today.
The La Son Mausoleum of Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep (and his wife Dang Thi Nghi) was built on Bui Phong Mountain (belonging to Thien Nhan range) in Nam Kim commune, Nam Dan district, Nghe An province.
4. Through some thoughts on the relationship and behavior between Xuan Quan Cong Nguyen Nghiem and Toan Quan Cong Nguyen Khan with La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep, it can be seen that no matter what the circumstances, La Son Phu Tu always shows extremely noble qualities. Even though life is difficult, despite the many temptations of glory and advancement opportunities, he is always pure, maintains a pure soul, integrity, and does not care about material things or fame and fortune.
Nowadays, mentioning Nguyen Thiep is mentioning the soul of a man with a far-sighted vision. Although he was in seclusion, he always followed the times, was concerned about the suffering of the people, and wished for a wise dynasty so that all people could benefit. Although he was a hermit, La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep's seclusion was not because he liked leisure. Nguyen Thiep lived in seclusion, not only to hide his illness as a reason, but also to wait for the right time, the time he longed for: "When the righteous path comes and goes freely".
It was during his years of hiding in the countryside that Nguyen Thiep came into contact with the lives of poor, but healthy and simple working people. This helped him understand the people's wishes. This was also the ideological basis for Nguyen Thiep to later cooperate with Tay Son.
La Son Phu Tu Nguyen Thiep "hidden but not hidden" is for this reason.
Nguyen Tung Linh
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