vrcanaries Chapter 257 Li Qingzhao's Circle of Friends
Chapter 257 Li Qingzhao's Circle of Friends
"But youthful days pass by in the blink of an eye. In July of 831 AD, Yuan Zhen suddenly fell ill and left this world just one day later."
"When Bai Juyi learned of this, he wept bitterly. He personally wrote Yuan Zhen's epitaph and donated the fine horses, silks, and other items that Yuan Zhen's family had sent to Xiangshan Temple. These items were originally left to him by Yuan Zhen."
Bai Juyi hoped that his actions would accumulate merit and good fortune for Yuan Zhen, and also hoped that he could visit Xiangshan Temple with Yuan Zhen again in the next life.
"After Yuan Zhen left, Bai Juyi often missed him. Sometimes he felt so sad that he felt the two of them were like one person, and he didn't want to live anymore! How can the shadow remain after the form is gone!?"
"At the same time, Bai Juyi also compiled his poems and lyrics exchanged with Yuan Zhen over the years, naming it 'Yuan Bai Yin Ji Ji' (Collected Works of Yuan and Bai)."
"The Song Dynasty poet Yang Wanli was very puzzled after reading this book. How could these two grown men have such a good relationship?!"
Yang Wanli, after reading the collected works of Yuan Zhen and Bai Juyi: ? ????……
"Eight years after Yuan Zhen's death, Bai Juyi dreamed of him again, and in the dream, they seemed to have returned to decades ago."
"Back then, we were young, serving as officials together in Chang'an, playing together, and composing poems together. It seemed like we would never get tired of those times."
"But dreams always end, so Bai Juyi woke up and wept bitterly again, then picked up his pen and wrote: 'You lie buried beneath the spring, your bones turned to dust; I remain in this world, my head covered in snow.'" (Meng Weizhi)
A farming expert from the Song Dynasty: This friendship between the two is so sweet!!!
A bystander in the Ming Dynasty commented: "There's a saying that true friends are hard to find, but it just sounds so sad!"
A spoiled young man from the Tang Dynasty: It must be quite painful to hear that your best friend has passed away before you!
In another timeline, Bai Juyi and Yuan Zhen, who were still pursuing their dreams in Chang'an, heard Lin Ke's sigh through a small light screen and thought to themselves that they were still young at this time!
Little did he know that decades later, Yuan Zhen and his brother Bai would be separated by death!
Then they smiled at each other, realizing that instead of worrying about the distant future, it's better to live in the present!
……
The live broadcast continues.
"The content we've discussed so far has been a bit heavy. Now let's move on to the Song Dynasty and tell the story of Li Qingzhao, the free-spirited female poet of the Song Dynasty!"
Before we tell you some interesting stories about her, let's take a look at Li Qingzhao's background and network of relationships.
"First of all, her maternal grandfather, Wang Gui, once served as the prime minister of the Northern Song Dynasty. His eldest daughter married Li Gefei, and their child was Li Qingzhao. He also had two granddaughters who married very famous men, although their reputations were not very good."
"These two grandsons-in-law were the notorious traitors Cai Jing and Qin Hui. In other words, they were Li Qingzhao's cousins/brothers-in-law. Cai Jing had a younger brother named Cai Bian, and his father-in-law was the infamous traitor Wang Anshi."
A farming expert in the Song Dynasty: Old Wang was the father-in-law of the younger brother of the husband of Li Qingzhao's uncle's daughter!
Wang Anshi of the Northern Song Dynasty: ...
"Li Qingzhao's mother died early, and her father, Li Gefei, remarried. She also came from a scholarly family, and her grandfather was Wang Gongchen, the top scholar in the eighth year of the Tiansheng era during the reign of Emperor Renzong of Song."
"Wang Gongchen's brother-in-law was Ouyang Xiu, one of the Eight Great Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties. Simply put, Ouyang Xiu was Li Qingzhao's maternal great-uncle."
"But Su Shi, a student of Ouyang Xiu, was almost killed in the Wutai Poetry Case, in which Li Qingzhao's maternal grandfather, Wang Gui, was involved. The relationship is really too complicated."
"Lastly, Li Qingzhao's first husband, Zhao Mingcheng, had a relative named Zhao Shicheng. His wife, Tang Wan, greatly admired Li Qingzhao, so she took this opportunity to become his student."
A spoiled young man from the Tang Dynasty: This is exactly what it means to be entangled in a mess!
Tang Wan's first husband was the patriotic poet Lu You. These relationships demonstrate that Li Qingzhao's social connections spanned almost the entire Song Dynasty, both the Northern and Southern Dynasties. One has to admire the breadth of Li Qingzhao's network!
"There's also a rumor that Emperor Huizong of Song once pursued Li Qingzhao, which is really a bit outrageous!"
An old farmer from the Ming Dynasty exclaimed: "My goodness! This is an incredibly wide range of people!"
A spoiled young master from the Tang Dynasty: Especially since there are both good and bad relationships involved. But if he were to have his entire family executed, wouldn't that mean half the Song Dynasty court would be wiped out?
Emperor Zhao Kuangyin of the Song Dynasty: Damn! I really didn't expect this!
A bystander from the Ming Dynasty: Then wouldn't Su Shi be her advisor?!
……