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Preface
In the long river of history, Li Yu, the lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty, the literati monarch who was praised by later generations as the "Emperor of Ancient Words", left a strong mark with his extraordinary literary talent and tragic fate.
His poems, like bright stars, have illuminated the night sky of thousands of years of culture.
However, deep in the heart of this literati, there is an unknown struggle and helplessness.
How did he go from a talented man who loved literature to being forced to ascend to the throne and eventually become a victim of fate?
It's a story full of drama and tension, let's lift the curtain on history and find out.
Chapter 1: Unexpected accession to the throne, unwilling to be king
In 961, the spring was getting stronger, and in the Southern Tang Palace, there was an atmosphere of sorrow and music.
Li Yu, the young prince, stood in front of the spirit of his father, King Li Jing, his face was pale, and his eyes showed deep melancholy.
He was originally a man of letters, entertaining himself with poetry, and never had the slightest interest in the struggle for power.
However, the cruel hand of fate propelled him to the throne.
On the mourning hall of his father, hundreds of civil and military officials stood solemnly, and there was both awe and expectation in their eyes.
Li Yu's different pupils flickered with a strange light in the candlelight, as if to foreshadow his extraordinary fate.
He took the heavy jade seal, and the disappointment in his heart was like the cold wind in winter, piercing his heart.
At the beginning of his ascension to the throne, Li Yu tried to find the long-lost "Neon Clothes and Feather Song", hoping to recreate the glory of the Tang Dynasty.
He held a grand banquet in the court, with music and dancing, as if he had really returned to that prosperous era.
However, it was just a dream for him to escape from reality.
The exhortations of the officials of the DPRK and China were ignored by him one by one like the falling leaves of the autumn sun, and he was still immersed in his own literary and artistic world, turning a blind eye to the crisis of the Southern Tang Dynasty.
Chapter 2: Cutting the Emperor, still doing his own thing
In the autumn of 971, the Great Zhou (Song Dynasty) in the north rode south, the war drums shook the sky, and the atmosphere in Jinling City was tense and depressing.
Li Yu stood on the high tower of the city, looking at the approaching enemy army, his heart was full of fear and uneasiness.
He hurriedly called himself sick, cut off his imperial title, and tried to exchange his identity as the "lord of Jiangnan" for a moment of peace.
However, Li Yu's heart was not calmed because of this.
He continued to live a dissolute life at court, ignoring the warnings of the courtiers.
When the news came that the Song army was manufacturing weapons and warships on the border, he not only did not take action, but suppressed these voices.
In the face of Zhao Kuangyin's envoy, he even withdrew the kiss that symbolized the king's power, but in private, he still insisted on his literary and artistic pursuits, unwilling to face the reality of the imminent demise of the Southern Tang Dynasty.
In the dead of night, Li Yu often stood alone in an empty palace, looking at the starry sky, his heart was full of nostalgia for his homeland and confusion about the future.
His life, like an endless dream, is both beautiful and cruel.
And the fate of Nantang is also like the stars in the night sky, twinkling and will eventually disappear.
Chapter 3: The country is immortal, and the blood stains the altar of words
In 975, the flames of war finally reached the border of the Southern Tang Dynasty.
Zhao Kuangyin's iron cavalry swept like a raging storm, and the cities of the Southern Tang Dynasty were lost one after another, and the news came, and there was chaos in Jinling City.
Li Yu stood at the highest point of the palace, looking at the beacon fire in the distance, and his heart was full of powerlessness.
He knew that in this war, Nantang had already lost.
The decision to surrender without a fight filled Li Yu's heart with humiliation.
He was escorted to the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty and began a long life under house arrest.
There, he ceased to be the lord of a nation, but a conquered marquis, a prisoner who had lost his freedom.
His heart was full of longing for his homeland and deep self-reproach for the pain of losing his country.
During the days of house arrest, Li Yu pinned his soul on poetry.
His lyrics, like drops of blood and tears, record the despair and helplessness in his heart.
He wrote in "Poppy Beauty": "When is the spring flower and autumn moon, how much do you know about the past."
Each line of poetry is his reminiscence of the past years and a silent cry for the future fate.
However, these emotionally charged words did not make his incarceration any easier.
The ambition to restore the country revealed in his words aroused Zhao Kuangyin's vigilance.
Li Yu's heart has always burned with loyalty to Nantang and a desire for freedom, and even when he is in prison, his soul has never succumbed.
Chapter 4: Li Yu's Literati Temperament and the National Crisis
During the days of house arrest, Li Yu's literati temperament became more and more prominent.
His dedication to poetry is like his persistence in life.
In his cell, he recorded his thoughts and feelings with pen and ink, and those poignant words and phrases, like the brightest stars in the night sky, illuminated his gloomy life.
However, this literati's persistence has also become a shackle that he cannot get rid of.
His cowardice and evasion made Nantang seem powerless in the face of crisis.
He tries to escape reality through poetry, but finds that he can't escape the pain and guilt inside.
In the middle of the night, Li Yu faced the wall of his cell alone, his heart filled with remorse for his past.
He remembered his decisions, and those escapist behaviors were now irreparable mistakes.
His tears dripped down the paper and turned into a song of pathos.
He knows that his life has been determined by fate, and all he can do is to find the last solace in poetry.
However, just as Li Yu is immersed in his literary world, an even bigger storm is quietly approaching.
His poetry, his fame, and even his life will be tested like never before.
In this storm of fate, how will Li Yu deal with himself? Can his poetry become his final salvation? These questions are like a bright moon hanging in the night sky, waiting for the answer to be revealed.
Chapter 5: Li Yu's literati temperament and the struggle of fate
During the years of house arrest, Li Yu's literati temperament was like a faint light, struggling to flicker in the darkness.
His poems are no longer just a consolation for escapism, but have become a weapon for him to fight against fate.
Every word, every line of poetry, is his call and cry for the lost freedom, dignity and homeland.
During those long nights, Li Yu was often alone, facing the moonlight outside the window, reciting his works.
His words are full of nostalgia for the past, hopelessness for the future, and deep dissatisfaction with reality.
He used poetry to construct a spiritual world of his own, where he could temporarily forget the pain of being imprisoned and fly freely.
However, Li Yu's struggle did not bring him real relief.
Although his poems spread all over the country, his personal freedom was still severely restricted.
In the dead of night, he felt a deep sense of powerlessness and despair.
He began to wonder if his poems could really change anything, and could his fate really be influenced by these words?
Chapter 6: Li Yu's Last Years and the Light of Eternity
With the passage of time, Li Yu's body and spirit gradually weakened.
In his poems, he began to feel the impermanence of life and completely give up on the future.
He knew his time was running out.
In the last stage of his life, Li Yu's lyrics became deeper and more tragic.
On a cold winter night, Li Yu sat alone in the dim light, holding a pen in his hand, and a blank piece of paper in front of him.
His heart is full of reluctance to give up on life and unwilling to the future.
He picked up his pen and slowly wrote a new poem.
This poem is full of contemplation of life and death, helplessness of fate, and infinite love for literature.
At the moment when this poem was completed, Li Yu felt an unprecedented calm.
He knew that his mission had been accomplished, and that his poems had become an eternal light, illuminating the path of future generations.
He put down the pen and quietly closed his eyes, as if waiting for something.
And in the distant future, Li Yu's poems have really become eternal.
His words have been praised by later generations and have become treasures in the treasure house of Chinese culture.
His name, along with those great literati and writers, will always be remembered.
Although Li Yu's life is short and tragic, his poems are like immortal stars, illuminating the night sky for thousands of years.
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