Chapter 322

【Lu You was born after the Jingkang Incident and witnessed from a young age the fragmentation of his country, the Jin invasion, and the displacement of the people.

His greatest ambition in life: to expel the Jin soldiers, recover the lost territory of the Central Plains, return to the old lands of the Han and Tang, build merit, and protect his country.

He was unwilling to see the Southern Song court retreat to a corner and kneel for peace; he longed to wear armor, gallop on the battlefield, kill the enemy, and recover the occupied northern mountains and rivers.

He longed to build merit for his country all his life, but was repeatedly squeezed and suppressed by the peace faction; his ambitions were hard to fulfill, and he could only write his full blood and concern for his country into his poems.】

"Recover the Central Plains, return to the old lands of the Han and Tang."

Liu Che read this sentence, a flash of admiration in his eyes,

"What a great ambition! Although this person is a scholar, he has the courage of a general!"

Liu Xiu also sighed: "The four words 'ambitions hard to fulfill' are the most sigh-inducing."

"He has the heart to serve his country, but is powerless to turn the tide; this kind of pain is probably harder to bear than dying on the battlefield."

Ying Zheng suddenly spoke: "Why didn't he raise an army himself?"

As soon as this was said, everyone in the hall was stunned.

Gu Shanhe explained: "Your Majesty First Emperor, the situation in the Southern Song period was not quite the same as in your era."

"Although the court retreated, its control over the localities was still very strong."

"Raising a private army is equivalent to rebellion; not only would it not help the country, but it would instead become an enemy of the country."

"Lu You was a loyal official; he would only serve his country through the court's channels and would never be a traitor."

Ying Zheng was silent for a moment: "Understood."

Liu Bang nodded: "That's no wonder."

"He wanted to serve his country, but the court didn't give him the chance, so he could only write poetry."

"This is a bit like that Meng Haoran—both wanted to do things but couldn't, and in the end, they relied on poetry to leave their names."

Li Shimin, however, said: "Your Majesty Gaozu's words make sense, but I think there is still an essential difference between Lu You and Meng Haoran."

"Meng Haoran wanted to be an official but couldn't, so he turned to landscapes; Lu You wanted to serve his country but couldn't, yet he never gave up hope until his death."

"One let go, the other couldn't let go; this is the biggest difference."

Wei Zheng agreed deeply: "Your Majesty is right."

"From the four words 'never wavering until death', one can see that Lu You was a person who fought all his life."

"He may not have held a sword to kill the enemy, but the pen in his hand was his sharpest weapon."

On the sky screen, the scene changed again—

A young man stood by the window, looking north, his eyes full of unwillingness and anger.

The bullet comments also began to become active—

【Bullet Comment · Song Dynasty Netizen】: Lu Fangweng! The backbone of our Great Song!

【Bullet Comment · Ming Dynasty Netizen】: The Jingkang Incident... every time I read this history, I want to travel back and chop those surrenderists to pieces.

【Bullet Comment · Modern Netizen】: Lu You's life is a history of the suffering of the Southern Song.

【Bullet Comment · Bystander】: Count me in for the one who said they want to chop the surrenderists!

In the Sui Dynasty plane, Emperor Wen of Sui, Yang Jian, looked at the sky screen, his brows locked.

"The Jingkang Incident..."

Yang Jian whispered these four words, his face solemn.

He himself was someone who walked out of troubled times and knew deeply the pain of national division and foreign invasion.

He turned to look at Dugu Qieluo beside him, "Empress, what do you think of this Lu You?"

Dugu Qieluo thought for a while and said: "Your Majesty, I think that although this person failed to build merit, his spirit is worthy of admiration."

"A country cannot have only generals and no scholars, nor can it have only scholars and no generals."

"Lu You, as a scholar, harbored the ambitions of a general; this is the backbone of the Great Song."

Yang Jian nodded: "The Empress is right."

"It's a pity this person wasn't born in my Great Sui; otherwise, I would definitely give him a chance to kill the enemy on the battlefield."

Dugu Qieluo smiled slightly: "Is Your Majesty looking to recruit talent again?"

Yang Jian stroked his beard and laughed: "The Empress knows how much I love talent."

The Sui Dynasty monarchs and ministers also discussed it, but most people still held a positive attitude toward Lu You.

On the sky screen, the scene changed again.

A spirited Lu You appeared before everyone—

He was dressed in military uniform, a long sword hanging at his waist, standing on the city wall of Nanzheng, looking at the distant mountains, flames of revenge burning in his eyes.

The five achievements Lu You attained in his life:

【1. Poetry achievements crowned the Southern Song Dynasty

Over 9,300 poems exist, the highest number among ancient poets, with a wide range of subjects; patriotic poems, pastoral poems, love poems, and landscape poems are all exquisite.】

【2. Pioneered the peak of patriotic poetry

With patriotic feelings as the core, the style is vigorous and tragic, the momentum is generous, pushing patriotic poetry to a new height and influencing countless scholars and aspirants of later generations.】

【3. Official career and military experience

Once joined the army, personally visited the anti-Jin front line, and wrote a large number of military poems;

During his time as an official, he sympathized with the people, was upright and dared to speak, and his heart was tied to the suffering of the people.】

【4. Literary all-rounder

His lyrics, prose, and historical works all have masterpieces; he authored "Weinan Collection" and "Jiannan Poetry Draft," which have extremely high historical value.】

【5. Personality passed down through the ages

He upheld his integrity all his life, was patriotic until death, and did not forget his country on his deathbed, becoming a symbol of the Chinese nation's patriotic spirit.】

Seeing the number "over 9,300," Liu Che couldn't sit still anymore.

"Over 9,300?!"

Liu Che stood up abruptly and walked around the hall twice.

"My famous Han Fu works are only a few, and he wrote over 9,000 poems alone?!"

"This is simply not human; this is a poetry-writing machine!"

Liu Bang was also choked and coughed repeatedly,

"Over 9,000... I've lived for most of my life, and the words I've spoken don't add up to that many..."

Liu Xiu was relatively calm,

"A large quantity is indeed astonishing, but the key is still the quality."

"If over 9,000 are all masterpieces, then this person is indeed a genius of the ages."

Li Shimin pondered: "The four words 'crowned the Southern Song' show that in the Southern Song period, his poetry was undoubtedly the first."

"And he is the pioneer of the peak of patriotic poetry; this status is not just the Southern Song, but the height of the entire history of Chinese poetry."

Du Ruhui added: "I noticed that he is not only a poet but also a historian, having authored historical works."

"This shows that his learning is very comprehensive, not a partial talent who only knows how to write poetry."

Ying Zheng suddenly spoke: "Has this person fought in a war?"

Gu Shanhe replied: "Strictly speaking, it doesn't count as fighting in the true sense."

"But he did go to the front line and lived in the army camp in the Nanzheng (now Hanzhong, Shaanxi) area for a period of time.

He also personally saw the battlefield where the Song and Jin confronted each other and participated in some military actions.

This experience had a great influence on him, and many of the military poems he wrote later were based on this experience."

Ying Zheng nodded: "Seeing the battlefield with one's own eyes and not seeing it—what is written is different."

Liu Bang laughed: "The First Emperor is judging others by himself."

"You personally led troops to fight, so you naturally understand battlefield matters better than anyone."

Ying Zheng actually didn't refute this time.