清康熙二十三年甲子(1684),朝鮮使臣南九萬(남구만,1629-1711)出使中國,後撰《甲子燕行雜錄》,內云:「又見錢牧齋謙益與人詩云:『請看典午陽秋例,載記分明琬琰垂。』又云:『知君恥讀王裒傳,但使生徒廢蓼莪。』如此等作,鏤板流布,不以為罪,豈北人無文,見之而不覺耶?」南氏所述錢謙益(牧齋,1582-1664)詩句,見其〈和徐禎起〉、〈簡侯研德并示記原〉二詩,乃〈冬夜假我堂文宴詩(有序)〉十一首中之二首。南氏何以認為上述詩句有犯清諱之嫌?「北人」若看懂,當以為罪?本文順南氏之話頭,展開對牧齋此二詩之探論,發現牧齋此二詩之寓意的確深邃:〈和徐禎起〉一首,囑禎起述明清之際史事,須嚴守《春秋》夷夏之辨,尊明攘清;〈簡侯研德并示記原〉一首,勉勵研德有所作為,莫忘其伯侯峒曾、其父侯岐曾抗清死節。牧齋詩,向稱難懂,此二詩出以廋辭讔語,索解匪易,今之學者釋〈簡侯研德并示記原〉一首,猶不盡不實,而朝鮮文士南九萬於十七世紀述此二詩,卻能拈出其中最關鍵之二聯,識見不凡。可見中土東國,「同文夢」久,文化傳統,相互淵源深遠,可資比較研究之課題亦多。
Throughout history, Korean kingdoms had been considered as the "model" tributary state in China's tribute system. In Ming times, China received tribute missions from the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910) of Korea three times each year. The Joseon dynasty chose to establish a relationship with the Qing dynasty (1644-1912), recognizing a China now ruled by Manchurian emperors, yet proudly regarded itself as the true protector of Confucian culture. This ambivalent attitude towards the Manchus was amply reflected in Jiazi Yanxing zalu, a journal written by Nam Gu-man (남구만 南九萬, 1629-1711), a famous scholar-official of the late Joseon dynasty, about his 1684 tribute visit to Beijing. After fulfilling his duty, Nam enjoyed life in the capital, visiting restaurants, bookstores, and the like. Nam was amused to find several politically sensitive lines in Qian Qianyi's (Muzhai, 1582-1664) collection of poetry (Qian's posthumous collection Youxue ji was most likely published in 1674). In Nam's opinion, that such poems were allowed to be published and circulated without censorship was evidence of "a lack of culture among the Northerners," by whom he meant the Manchus. The poems that Nam referred to appear in Qian's 1654 poem cycle titled "Dongye Jiawotang wenyanshi" (Party Poems, Written on a Winter's Night at Jiawotang). Indeed, Qian's poems carry subtle, yet potent, political overtones. In this essay, I shall try to reconstitute the circumstances in which Qian wrote these poems, offer close readings of texts, and evaluate Nam's remarks.