The Gay Genuis-Ch23-25
Ch 23：Friend of the people - 百姓之友
Ch 24：Second persecution - 二度迫害
Ch 25：Home in Exile - 岭南流放
果然是一朝天子一朝臣，随着太后的薨逝，十八岁的年轻皇帝宋哲宗亲政，决心回复宋神宗的经济政策，新朝口号 “绍述”（回复祖宗家法），意味着当年的王安石旧部与亲信重新上台，而苏东坡则首当其害，先后四次遭贬谪，流放岭南。
年届五十七的苏东坡，虽经此大波折，内心却依旧强大，且不改本心。前往岭南谪居的辛苦旅途，被他视为一次愉快的旅行，大饱沿途美景之眼福。登高望远之余，感慨人类的渺小，迎面的山风便可将俗念一扫而光。在苏东坡看来：
It has seemed to me that there is no greater human happiness than two things, freedom from sickness in the body, and freedom from worries in the mind.
可不是吗？人活一世，及至最后，所求不过身无病，心无忧而已。
这几章节读下来，最大的思考在于，何以苏东坡能有这样的超脱心性来面对人生中的大起大落呢？
我想这和他不独拘于某一家思想的心性有很大的关系吧。他的身上既有儒家的修养，“居其位谋其事”，乃至在谪居期间，不在其位也要做一个关心公务的百姓；还有着佛道的旷达，不执着于世俗/得失/荣辱，而是关注于精神的禅修与自由，随遇而安。
特别喜欢苏东坡写的一篇酒颂《浊醪有妙理赋》中的一句话：
The best food fills your belly, but cannot stimulate your spirit; the best dress gives you warmth, but cannot delight your soul.
[刍豢饱我而不我觉，布帛燠我而不我娱]
这句话值得细细品味，多读几次有助于将自己从买买买的焦虑中解脱出来~
Words and Expressions:
He was being shorn of his power.
be shorn of something，表示 “被剥夺...”，to have something valuable or important taken away from you; 如 be shorn of one's prestige - 威信扫地
例句：Though shorn of some of its powers, the party remains in control.
shorn 的动词原形 shear, 表示 “剪（羊毛），修剪”，与 cut 近义；
动词短语 shear off，表示 “切断，剪切，(使金属等)断裂”，to become separated suddenly because of great force；
例句：The aircraft's wings were sheared off in the crash.
例句：The left wing had been almost completely sheared off.
Suffice it to say that by a frame-up, the queen was accused of practicing the black art.
suffice it to say that, 表示 “一言以蔽之”，used to say that the statement that follows is enough to explain what you mean, even though you could say more；
例句：Suffice it to say that working with Kelvin was not a very pleasant experience.
black art, 名词，也可写为 the black arts，表示 “妖术，魔法”，与 black magic 同义；
例句：She practices the black arts.
About thirty palace maids were almost flogged to death.
flog，及物动词，表示 “鞭打...”，to beat or whip (someone) severely；原文句子里的意思便是，近三十名宫女几乎活活被鞭笞而死；
值得注意的是，flog something to death，英式口语中表示 “反复地说...让人厌烦”，to repeat a story or use an idea etc so often that people become bored with it；
例句：Don't flog your product to death, otherwise your customers will lose interest.
be flogging a dead horse，口语中表示 “徒劳无益”，to be wasting time or effort by trying to do something that is impossible；
例句：It is useless to flog a dead horse. [鞭死马无益；勿旧调重弹]
Edicts for dismissals, banishments, and confinements flew thick and fast.
thick and fast, 表示 “大量而密集地，接连不断地”，arriving or happening very frequently, in large amounts or numbers
例句：Entries have been coming in thick and fast.
仿句：Exams comes thick and fast while approaching the end of the semester.
Though he had had a run of good luck in the nine years of the Empress Dowager’s regency, he had constantly moved about and had always spent his salary.
a run of good luck, 表示 “一连串的好运气”，a period of time when good bad things happen to you；反义短语：a run of bad luck，一连串的坏运
例句：Losing his job was the start of a run of bad luck that year.
