SuaveG – The Gentle Path

Chinese mythology, folktales, and literature

  • The Tragic Fall of General Yang Ye

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    Juan

    The Ill-Fated Northern Expedition Following the conquest of Northern Han, the Song army was jubilant, and Emperor Taizong, intoxicated by victory, proposed an immediate campaign against the Liao Dynasty. Since Shi Jingtang of the Later Jin had ceded the strategic Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun to the Liao, recovering these lost territories had…

  • Wenyuan Yinghua

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    Ana

    Wenyuan Yinghua (Finest Blossoms in the Garden of Literature) is one of the Four Great Books of Song, a monumental literary anthology commissioned by Emperor Taizong of the Northern Song dynasty and compiled between 982 and 986 CE. Led by the chief editor Li Fang, along with scholars such as Song Bai and Xu…

  • Taiping Guangji

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    Ana

    Taiping Guangji (Extensive Records of the Taiping Era) is a massive Chinese encyclopedic collection of classical tales and anecdotes, compiled under imperial order during the early Northern Song dynasty. Commissioned by Emperor Taizong, it was edited by a team of scholars led by Li Fang, along with 13 other officials, and completed rapidly between…

  • Taiping Yulan

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    Ana

    Taiping Yulan (Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era) is a monumental Chinese encyclopedia compiled during the early Northern Song dynasty. Commissioned by Emperor Taizong of Song, it was edited by a team of scholars led by Li Fang, along with Li Mu, Xu Xuan, and others. Work began in 977 CE (the second year…

  • The Covenant of the Golden Casket and the Shadow of the Axe

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    Juan

    The Sudden End and the Succession Puzzle By 976, the Song Dynasty’s strategy of “First South, Then North” was nearly complete. The southern kingdoms of Jingnan, Later Shu, Southern Han, and Southern Tang had fallen, leaving only Wuyue. The Northern Han remained the stubborn enemy in the north. However, before the northern campaign could…

  • Yu Meiren – When Will Spring Flowers and Autumn Moons End?

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    Ana

    When will spring flowers and autumn moons cease?How many past joys can I bear to recall?Last night, again, the east wind blew through my small tower – And I dared not look back toward my lost land.