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宋 Song · 诗 Poem

题赣州重建思贤阁

Inscribed on the Rebuilt Pavilion of Remembering the Worthy, Ganzhou

杨万里

Yang Wanli

怀贤Remembering the Worthy 题咏Inscription 颂德Praising Virtue 乡情Local Pride

赵公遗爱虎头城，直到张公续此声。
前赵后张俱可阁，赣民不用羡西京。

Duke Zhao left his loved memory in the Tiger-Head City,
Until Duke Zhang came and carried on that name.
The former Zhao and the later Zhang, both worthy of a pavilion—
The people of Gan need not envy the Western Capital.

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Meaning

A quatrain inscribed on the rebuilt Pavilion of Remembering the Worthy in Ganzhou. Duke Zhao (Zhao Bian, the 'Iron-faced Censor'), who governed Ganzhou with lenient and pure governance, 'left his loved memory in the Tiger-Head City' (the local name of Ganzhou, so called because the character qian resembles a tiger); Duke Zhang, his successor in good government, 'carried on that name.' Both the former Zhao and the later Zhang are worthy of a pavilion to commemorate them, and 'the people of Gan need not envy the Western Capital'—the worthy officials of one's own prefecture rival those of the capital. The poem praises the line of good governors and the local pride of the people of Ganzhou, in plain words yet with deep feeling.

赵公的恩德遗爱,留在了虎头城虔州。直到张公到来,又接续了赵公的声名德政。前后相继的赵公张公,都值得建阁纪念。赣州的百姓,不必去羡慕西京洛阳的名臣贤士。

Appreciation

Twenty-eight characters, its craft all in the 'answering' of words. The first line, 'Duke Zhao left his loved memory in the Tiger-Head City,' sets 'loved memory' (yiai) as the bone of the whole poem; the second line, 'until Duke Zhang came and carried on that name,' sets the word 'carried on' (xu) to link Duke Zhao's good government with Duke Zhang's, one 'left' and one 'carried on,' like a zither string joined, their sound answering each other, writing the passing on of good governors and the unbroken line of virtuous rule—the most skillful stroke of the poem. The third line, 'the former Zhao and the later Zhang, both worthy of a pavilion,' gathers the preceding with the three words 'former,' 'later,' and 'both,' and points to the word 'pavilion,' answering the title, declaring that both deserve a pavilion in their memory. The last line, 'the people of Gan need not envy the Western Capital,' suddenly opens out, using the famous talents of the Western Capital (Luoyang) to set off in reverse the worthy governors of Ganzhou itself—one release and one gathering, the spirit bold yet modest. The whole begins on 'Zhao' and 'Zhang,' carries on with 'the former Zhao and the later Zhang,' and closes with 'the people of Gan,' the thread clear; and the folk name of 'Tiger-Head City' and the elegant 'Western Capital' mingle the common and the refined.

【白话串讲】杨万里写赣州重建的思贤阁：“赵公遗爱虎头城，直到张公续此声”。“前赵后张俱可阁，赣民不用羡西京”——他写两位贤臣的遗爱。【意象与手法】四句全以「照应」立骨:「遗爱」开宗,「续」字绾合前后两任贤守,如琴瑟接弦;「前赵后张俱可阁」以「前」「后」「俱」三字收束点题;结句「赣民不用羡西京」忽然宕开,以洛阳名臣反衬本土贤守,一放一收。全诗以「虎头城」之俗称与「西京」之雅称并用,雅俗相济,四句如常山之蛇,首尾相衔。【情感与主旨】此诗题咏赣州重建的思贤阁,颂扬前后相继的赵、张两位贤守。杨万里以「遗爱」立骨,以「续声」写德政传承,末以「不用羡西京」收束,把对先贤的追怀化为乡邦的自豪:本土自有贤才,何须外慕名都。语浅而情深,既见诚斋以俗为雅、翻空出奇的笔法,亦寄托一方百姓安居乐业、以贤守为荣的真挚情感。【名句点睛】「赣民不用羡西京」:以「不用羡」三字以退为进,他邦名臣反衬本土贤守,不卑不亢,自豪之情溢于言表,把一座思贤阁的纪念意义升华到乡土文化自信的高度。

Background

Yang Wanli, courtesy name Tingxiu, hao Chengzhai, a native of Jishui, Jizhou, passed the jinshi in the twenty-fourth year of Shaoxing (1154) and rose to Scholar of the Baomo Pavilion; with Lu You, Fan Chengda, and You Mao he is one of the 'Four Great Masters of the Southern Song.' This poem was inscribed on the rebuilt Pavilion of Remembering the Worthy in Ganzhou. Ganzhou was the ancient Qian prefecture, renamed Ganzhou in the twenty-third year of Shaoxing (1153) because the character qian carried an unlucky meaning; as the lower part of the character qian resembles a tiger, the old name of Qian prefecture was the 'Tiger-Head City,' as recorded in Wang Xiangzhi's Yudi Jisheng, whence the poem's 'Tiger-Head City.' The pavilion was built by the people of Ganzhou to remember the worthy governors who had shown virtue in the prefecture, and rebuilt after its ruin, and Yang Wanli inscribed this poem. The 'Duke Zhao' and 'Duke Zhang' were two worthy governors in succession: Zhao Bian, whose biography in the History of the Song records that when he governed Qian prefecture he ruled with lenient, simple, pure discipline and won the people's hearts, known in later ages as the 'Iron-faced Censor'; Zhang was the one who continued Zhao's good rule of Qian, whose name is hard to fix but was certainly a worthy governor.

杨万里,字廷秀,号诚斋,吉州吉水人,绍兴二十四年进士,历知奉新县、常州诸地,官至宝谟阁学士,与陆游、范成大、尤袤并称「南宋四大家」。此诗题咏赣州重建的思贤阁。赣州即古虔州,南宋绍兴二十三年因「虔」字义涉不祥而改名赣州;因「虔」字字形如虎,旧俗称虔州为虎头城,王象之《舆地纪胜》于此有载,故诗中径称「虎头城」。「思贤阁」者,盖赣州士民为追怀有德政于本地的先贤守臣而建,后圮而重建,杨万里途经或居官此地,遂题此诗。诗中所咏「赵公」「张公」,为前后相继两任贤守:赵公盖指北宋赵抃,《宋史·赵抃传》载其知虔州时,以宽简清节治郡,深得民心,后世称其「铁面御史」;张公则当为继赵而善治虔州者,名氏虽难确考,要之亦贤守无疑。全诗以「遗爱」立骨,以「续声」写传承,末以「不用羡西京」收束,颂扬本土贤守不逊京城名臣,语浅而情深,是诚斋题咏诗中兼怀贤颂德与乡土情怀的佳作。

Art

The art lies wholly in the 'answering' of words. The first line sets 'loved memory' as the bone of the whole; the second line links Zhao's good government with Zhang's with the word 'carried on,' one 'left' and one 'carried on,' like a zither string joined, their sound answering each other—the most skillful stroke. The third line gathers the preceding with 'former,' 'later,' and 'both,' and points to the 'pavilion,' answering the title. The last line opens out with the Western Capital in reverse, setting off the worthy governors of Ganzhou itself. The whole begins on Zhao and Zhang, carries on with the former and the later, and closes with the people of Gan, the thread clear; and the mingling of the folk 'Tiger-Head City' and the elegant 'Western Capital' shows Chengzhai's art of the plain and the refined together.

此诗二十八字,章法精妙,全在「照应」二字。首句「赵公遗爱虎头城」,立一「遗爱」为全诗之骨;次句「直到张公续此声」,着一「续」字,把赵公的德政与张公的善治前后绾连,一「遗」一「续」,如琴瑟接弦,声气相通,写贤守相传、德政不坠,是本诗最见工力的一笔。第三句「前赵后张俱可阁」,以「前」「后」「俱」三字收束前文,点出「阁」字,呼应诗题,表彰二人皆有建阁纪念的资格。末句「赣民不用羡西京」,忽然宕开,以「西京」之名都贤才,反衬赣州本土的贤守,一放一收,情致豪迈而不失谦和。全诗以「赵」「张」起,以「前赵后张」承,以「赣民」结,线索明晰;而「虎头城」之俗语、「西京」之雅称,雅俗并用,恰见诚斋「活法」之妙。二十八字中,叙事、怀古、颂贤、乡情,浑然一体,虽系题咏小诗,而含蕴深厚,非率尔操觚之作。且通篇以「阁」为实,以「贤」为魂,起笔写人,承笔续声,转笔立论,合笔申情,四句如常山之蛇,首尾相衔,绝句章法之精,于此可窥一斑。

Allusions

The allusions, most important being 'Tiger-Head City' and 'Western Capital.' 'Tiger-Head City' is not a general name but the folk name of Qian prefecture: because the lower part of the character qian resembles a tiger, the people called it the Tiger-Head City, as recorded in Wang Xiangzhi's Yudi Jisheng and in Southern Song records; the poet's use of the local name in verse is intimate and full of local color. 'Loved memory' (yiai) comes from the Zuozhuan's 'the loved memory of the ancients,' said of Zi Chan, and in later ages came to mean the official who left virtue and favor among the people; the poem uses it of Zhao Bian, elegant and solemn, and covertly uses the History of the Song's account of Zhao Bian governing Qian. 'The Western Capital' is Luoyang, the Western Capital of the Northern Song, where famous ministers retired, as Fu Bi and Wen Yanbo's assembly of the elders, famed in its day; 'the people of Gan need not envy the Western Capital'—the worthy governors of one's own prefecture rival those of the capital.

诗中用典,最要者为「虎头城」与「西京」两事。「虎头城」非泛称,乃虔州之俗名:因「虔」字下半形似虎字,故民间呼为虎头城,此说见王象之《舆地纪胜》赣州条下,亦见于南宋人所记,诗人以本地俗称入诗,亲切而有乡土气息。「遗爱」一语,本于《左传》子产「古之遗爱也」之论,后世遂以「遗爱」称去任而有德惠于民的地方官,此诗用之以称赵抃,雅切而庄重,且暗用《宋史》赵抃知虔州事,为有实可据之典。「西京」指洛阳,北宋以洛阳为西京,名臣致仕,多居于此,如富弼、文彦博等耆英之会,传为佳话;诗人谓赣民不必羡慕西京,盖言本土赵张之贤,足与西京耆英相颉颃,一反「远香近臭」之常情,于颂贤之中,寄寓乡邦之自豪。两典一俗一雅,一实一虚,皆能妥帖入诗,正是诚斋用典「以故为新、即事即典」的一贯作风。此外,诗中不着一生僻字、不使一冷僻典,而「遗爱」「续声」「俱可阁」「不用羡」诸语,层层递进,义脉贯通,如叙家常,而分量自在,尤见诚斋「诗家之味,在平淡中」的创作理想。

Commentary

This inscription of Chengzhai's, though rarely specially noted by the poetic commentaries, holds its fresh charm among the Song poems inscribed on pavilions in memory of the worthy. The first line sets 'loved memory,' the second sets 'carried on,' already with the brush of history; the last two lines, 'the former Zhao and the later Zhang, both worthy of a pavilion; the people of Gan need not envy the Western Capital,' write the praise in the common speech of everyday, exactly Chengzhai's 'a mouth at the tip of the pen,' the art of the common as the refined. The Siku General Catalogue's comment on the Chengzhai ji, that his poetry 'opens its own path and does not fall into the old ruts,' fits this poem: in four lines of twenty-eight characters it writes two worthy governors, one high pavilion, and the feeling of a prefecture, turning and turning with ease, full of flavor.

此诗为诚斋题咏之作,历代诗话虽少专评,然置诸宋人题阁怀贤诗中,自有其清新可喜处。首句立「遗爱」,次句着「续」字,已具史笔;末二句「前赵后张俱可阁,赣民不用羡西京」,以寻常口语写颂扬之意,正是诚斋「笔端有口」、以俗为雅的本色。《四库全书总目》评《诚斋集》,谓其「诗自辟蹊径,不落前人窠臼」,此诗以四句二十八字,写两任贤守、一座高阁、一方民情,而转折如意、情味盎然,正可当此评。尤妙者,在以「不用羡西京」收束,不卑不亢,既颂赵张之德,亦见赣民之志,较之一般应酬题咏的空泛颂语,高出远甚。要之,此诗虽小,而诚斋性情、笔法、襟抱俱在,是研究诚斋体题咏诗不可多得的短章,置之《诚斋集》中,亦自成一格,无愧名家。尤须留意者,题咏应酬之诗,最难者在不落套;此诗却以「遗爱」「续声」「不用羡」三转折,化应酬为真赏,化颂语为乡情,读来毫不觉其板,此正是诚斋一生追求「活法」、力破应酬诗死局的明证。

Prosody

Form Seven-character quatrain七言绝句

Rhyme Rhymes on the level-tone geng-qing group (cheng, sheng, jing), the first line entering the rhyme, one rhyme to the end押平声庚青部（城、声、京）,首句入韵,一韵到底

Tone pattern Beginning on a level tone and ending on a level; the four lines all fit the standard form of the seven-character quatrain, the sound even and bright, fitting the form of the inscription平起平收式,四句平仄全合七绝常格,音调和畅明快,称其题咏之体

Reading note A seven-character quatrain, first line in rhyme, throughout on the geng-qing group of level rhymes—the rhyme words cheng, sheng, jing, one muddy, one clear, one grand, fitting the even and bright tone of praising virtue and remembering the worthy.此诗为七言绝句,首句入韵,通押庚青部平声韵,韵字「城、声、京」,一浊一清一宏,与颂贤怀德的中正情致、乡土自豪的明快口吻正相配合。格律取平起平收之常格,四句平仄无一失律,见诚斋于近体声律之精熟。声调上的特点,在于句中虚实的排布:首句「赵公遗爱虎头城」,平仄平平仄仄平,以「遗爱」二字为声之缓冲,读来庄重从容;次句「直到张公续此声」,仄仄平平仄仄平,「直到」两仄声领起,于平稳中微起波澜,正配「续此声」的转折;第三句「前赵后张俱可阁」,平仄仄平平仄仄,仄收而陡顿,为结句蓄势;结句「赣民不用羡西京」,仄平仄仄仄平平,仄声「不」「用」之后归于平韵「京」字,如强弩之末,回响悠然。四句一平一折,一顿一放,声情与文情相生,是七绝声律运用上的稳妥之作,亦是诚斋「以声传情」的又一佐证。

Line by line

赵公遗爱虎头城

Duke Zhao left his loved memory in the Tiger-Head City, (The first line sets 'loved memory' as the bone of the whole poem, naming Duke Zhao's virtue in the folk name of the Tiger-Head City.)

赵公的恩德遗爱,留在了虎头城虔州。

Lord Zhao's grace is bequeathed to the Tiger-head city.

起句七字,立定全诗之骨。「赵公」以公称之,尊崇之意自见;「遗爱」用子产之典,称其去任而德泽长存,是古人颂美循吏的至公之辞;「虎头城」以虔州俗称入诗,亲切而有地方色彩。三事并置,一位清节惠政、深得民心的贤太守形象,便呼之欲出。尤妙在「遗爱」与「城」字相连:爱而能「遗」于城,是言其德泽深入城邑、历久不灭,不仅当时百姓感戴,即后人登阁凭吊,犹能想见其风采。此句为全诗之纲,后文「续声」「俱可阁」「不用羡西京」,皆由此「遗爱」二字生发,一句开宗,全局皆活,是七绝起句立骨的好例。

The opening seven characters establish the bone of the whole poem. Lord Zhao, addressed as lord, the meaning of reverence appears of itself; bequeathed grace uses Zichan's allusion, praising that after leaving office his virtue and grace remain, the most impartial word of the ancients praising the good official; Tiger-head city enters poetry with the common name of Qianzhou, warm with local color. The three set side by side, the image of a wise prefect of pure integrity and kindly rule, deep in the people's hearts, is as if about to call out. What is more fine is the link of bequeathed grace with the city: grace that can be bequeathed to the city means his virtue and grace entered deep into the city, not fading with time, not only the people of the time feeling and wearing it, but later generations climbing the pavilion to mourn, still able to imagine his bearing. This line is the poem's outline; the later continuing the renown, both fit for a pavilion, and no need to envy the Western Capital all spring from these two words bequeathed grace, one line stating the thesis and the whole game alive, the fine example of the quatrain's opening establishing the bone.

直到张公续此声

Until Duke Zhang came and carried on that name. (The second line links Zhao's good government with Zhang's with the word 'carried on,' one 'left' and one 'carried on,' writing the passing on of good governors and the unbroken line of virtuous rule.)

直到张公到来,又接续了赵公的声名德政。

Until Lord Zhang came to continue this renown.

此句是全诗最见匠心的「承」笔。一个「续」字,把赵公之「遗爱」与张公之善治前后绾连,如接力传炬,声气相通,写出了贤守相继、德政不坠的宝贵传统。「直到」二字,更暗含时间之长与期盼之深:仿佛赣州百姓苦候多时,终于等来了一位能接续赵公德声的贤守,其间或有一时无贤守的怅惘,或有得人而治的欣慰,皆在「直到」二字的神情之中。且「此声」承「遗爱」而来,声与爱呼应,见张公之政,正是赵公德泽的延续与回响。七字之中,叙事、怀贤、称颂三层意思齐备,而措辞从容不迫,正是诚斋笔力举重若轻之处。

This line is the poem's most artful carrying brush. The single word continue links Lord Zhao's bequeathed grace with Lord Zhang's good rule before and after, like passing the torch in a relay, the breath and tone communicating, writing the precious tradition of wise prefects succeeding one another and kindly rule not falling. The two words until further secretly hold the length of time and the depth of expectation: as if the Ganzhou people waited long, and at last waited for a wise prefect able to continue Lord Zhao's virtuous renown, within which there may be the wistfulness of a time without a wise prefect, or the relief of winning the man and ruling, all within the expression of the two words until. Moreover, this renown follows bequeathed grace, renown and grace echoing, showing that Lord Zhang's rule is exactly the continuation and echo of Lord Zhao's virtue. In seven characters, the three layers of narrating, cherishing the worthy, and praising are all complete, the wording unhurried, exactly Chengzhai's place of bearing the heavy as light.

前赵后张俱可阁

The former Zhao and the later Zhang, both worthy of a pavilion, (The third line gathers the preceding with 'former,' 'later,' and 'both,' and points to the 'pavilion,' answering the title, declaring that both deserve a pavilion in their memory.)

前后相继的赵公张公,都值得建阁纪念。

Zhao before and Zhang after - both are fit for a pavilion.

第三句以「前」「后」二字,把赵张两位贤守并置,以「俱可阁」三字,点出「阁」字,绾合诗题「思贤阁」,是全诗由叙事转入议论的枢纽。「可阁」之「可」,是判断之辞:是否值得建阁奉祀,千秋功罪,自有公论,而赵张二人「俱可」,可见其德政之隆、民心之悦,如出一辙。「前」「后」相对,不仅是时间上的先后,更暗示一种德政相传的序列,与上句「续」字丝丝入扣。此句平平道来,不着赞语而赞意已足,且以「阁」字坐实,使抽象的颂扬落于具体的建筑之上,笔法虚实相生,正是题咏诗点题而不露痕迹的妙手。

The third line uses the two words before and after to set Lord Zhao and Lord Zhang side by side, and the three words both fit for a pavilion point out the character pavilion, binding the title's Pavilion for Missing the Worthy, the hinge of the whole poem turning from narrative to argument. The word fit in fit for a pavilion is the word of judgment: whether it is worth building a pavilion to sacrifice, the merit and guilt of a thousand autumns have their own public verdict, and Zhao and Zhang both fit, showing the loftiness of their kindly rule and the joy of the people, as if from one mold. Before and after are set against, not only the sequence of time, but secretly hinting a sequence in which kindly rule passes on, fitting thread by thread with the upper line's continue. This line speaks plainly, no word of praise yet the praise sufficient, and through the character pavilion it is made solid, landing the abstract praise on a concrete building, the brush of void and solid feeding each other, exactly the fine hand of an inscribed poem pointing out the title without a trace.

赣民不用羡西京

The people of Gan need not envy the Western Capital. (The last line opens out with the Western Capital in reverse, setting off the worthy governors of Ganzhou itself—the people's local pride and the praise of the line of good governors.)

赣州的百姓,不必去羡慕西京洛阳的名臣贤士。

The people of Gan need not envy the Western Capital.

结句以「不用羡」三字,翻出一层乡邦的自豪,是全诗情味的高潮。「西京」洛阳,是北宋名臣耆英荟萃之地,富弼、文彦博诸公致仕居洛,声望之隆,天下仰之;诗人却说赣民有赵张这样的贤守,又何必羡彼远方名都?这一笔,以他邦之贤,反衬本土之贤,把颂扬赵张之意,写得又高又满,却又不失分寸——不是贬低西京,而是说「不用羡」,意思是我家自有贤才,何须外慕。此种措辞,正是诚斋「活法」中「翻空出奇」的本领,于结句处忽然振起,余味悠长,把一座思贤阁的纪念意义,升华到乡土文化自信的高度。

The closing line uses the three words no need to envy to turn out a layer of local pride, the climax of the poem's affection. The Western Capital Luoyang was the place where the Northern Song's famous ministers and elders gathered; Lords Fu Bi and Wen Yanbo retired to dwell in Luo, the loftiness of their renown gazed up to by the world; the poet yet says the Gan people have wise prefects like Zhao and Zhang, why envy that distant great city? This brush sets off the local worth with another region's worth, writing the praise of Zhao and Zhang the higher and the fuller, yet not losing the measure - not belittling the Western Capital, but saying no need to envy, meaning my house has of itself worthy men, why crave without. This wording is exactly Chengzhai's house-craft in his living method of turning out the void and making the marvel; at the closing line it suddenly rises, the aftertone long, raising the commemorative meaning of a pavilion for missing the worthy to the height of local cultural confidence.

Study

Word focus

遗爱 Loved memory. From the Zuozhuan's 'the loved memory of the ancients,' said of Zi Chan, the virtue and favor an official leaves among the people; the poem sets it as the bone of the whole, naming Duke Zhao's good government. 「赵公遗爱虎头城」之「遗爱」,是通篇立骨之字。「遗爱」典出《左传》,子产卒,仲尼闻之出涕曰:「古之遗爱也。」此后遂成为颂美良吏的专门语汇,含有德泽遗留、后世追怀之意。诗人用此二字称赵公,一则崇其位分,一则定其政绩,轻轻两字,已把赵公的清节惠政、赣民的感戴追思,一齐包举。且「遗爱」之「遗」,与下句「续此声」之「续」,一遗一续,血脉相连:正因有「遗」,才需有「续」,才可续、值得续,二字在上下句间构成一种内在的逻辑张力。用典之雅切,谋篇之绵密,于此可见,是诚斋炼字中「一字立骨、通体皆活」的范例。

续 Carried on. The most skillful word of the poem: 'until Duke Zhang came and carried on that name'—one 'left' and one 'carried on,' like a zither string joined, writing the passing on of good governors and the unbroken line of virtuous rule. 「直到张公续此声」之「续」,是全诗承转的枢纽字,也是诗眼所在。「续」有接续、承继之义,写张公之政,不是另起炉灶,而是承赵公之余绪、接赵公之声名,把两位贤守连成一条德政的链条,写出了地方良治代有传人的可贵。若易为「继」「绍」,虽义近而少神情;唯「续」字,带着一种自然的、不勉强的接续感,仿佛赵公德泽如一线不断,张公只是顺流而续,水到渠成。且「续此声」之「声」,承「遗爱」而来,声与爱对举,见德政有声、有口皆碑之意。一字之力,使全诗由颂一人变为颂一脉,立意顿然开阔,是诚斋于虚字实字间见工力的妙笔。

俱 Both. 'The former Zhao and the later Zhang, both worthy of a pavilion'—the word gathers the two worthy governors, declaring that both deserve a pavilion in their memory, answering the title. 「前赵后张俱可阁」之「俱」,是以少总多的一个全称字。「前」「后」写时间之序,「俱」则总括赵张二人,言二人之德政,皆够格建阁纪念,无一或缺。着一「俱」字,一方面写出赵张并贤、前后辉映的盛况,一方面也见出诗人立论之持平公正:不偏袒前贤,不抑此后任,凡有德于民者,一体推崇。此字在声气上,更有一种郑重的判断意味,仿佛是对着满城父老,缓缓说出「俱可阁」三字,分量极足。且「俱」与首句「赵公」、次句「张公」遥相照应,一人一人地叙来,再以一个「俱」字总收,章法上正是「分而后合」的经典结构,诚斋诗看似信口道来,实处处有章法在。

羡 Envy. 'The people of Gan need not envy the Western Capital'—the worthy governors of one's own prefecture rival those of the capital, the people's local pride in one word. 「赣民不用羡西京」之「羡」,是全诗翻出深意的一个活字。「羡」有羡慕、欣慕之义,诗人偏说「不用羡」,一个否定,把赣州本土之贤与西京名臣作了不着痕迹的比较,既无谄媚他邦之态,亦无妄自尊大之嫌,措辞极有分寸。若直说「胜过西京」,便落了下乘;「不用羡」三字,以退为进,言外之意是:我赣州自有赵张这样的贤守,何须眼热他处?这种以否定句表达肯定的手法,正是诚斋「活法」的拿手好戏,语浅而味深。且「羡」字从心,暗写赣民之情:民心向贤,如草从风,见贤守则安,此「不用羡」三字背后,是一方百姓安居乐业的欣慰,其情感含量,远超字面。