— By Su Shi [Song Dynasty] Viewed from the front, it is a mountain range; viewed from the side, towering peaks.From afar, near, high, or low, it always appears different.I cannot recognize Mount Lu’s true face,Simply because I am standing right inside this mountain. Note The Author and the “wall poem” Tradition Su Shi…
Preface:On the Mid-Autumn Festival of the Bingchen year, I drank joyfully until dawn, became deeply intoxicated, and wrote this piece, also thinking of Ziyou. When did the bright moon first appear?Holding my wine cup, I ask the blue sky.I do not know, in the palaces of heaven,What year it is tonight. I long to…
This page analyses Bai Juyi’s poem On Freeing Speech No.3. Using Zhou Gong and Wang Mang examples, it argues true human character can only be judged by long‑term observation rather than superficial moments.
River Snow by Liu Zongyuan is one of China’s most famous winter poems. Written while the author was politically exiled, it paints a silent snow world empty of birds and people. The lone angler on the cold river symbolizes the poet himself, preserving his moral integrity against hardship.
Han Feizi tells exiled Jin minister Zhonghang Wenzi avoided an old acquaintance, a county magistrate who once gifted him zithers and jade to curry favor. The official later seized Wenzi’s carriages to ingratiate his ruler, exposing sycophants’ self-serving betrayal.
— Luo Binwang Of autumn the cicada sings; In prison I’m worn out with care. How can I bear its blue black wings Which remind me of my grey hair? Heavy with dew it cannot fly; Drowned in the wind, its song’s not heard Who would believe its spirit high? Could I express my…
— Liu Yuxi Gone with yellow chrysanthemums last year, You come back when cicada’s song I hear. Your soughing wakes me from dreams at midnight, A year’s wrinkles are seen in mirror bright. Steeds missing frontier grass with bristles rise; Eagles longing for clouds open sleepy eyes. I’ll gaze my fill into the boundless…
In 189 AD, He Jin, the most powerful consort clan member of the Eastern Han Dynasty and holding the position of Grand General, was assassinated by eunuchs. Soon after, Dong Zhuo, the Governor of Bingzhou, entered the imperial capital.