Song Zhiwen and Du Zhenyan were both famous poets of the early Tang Dynasty, and they were both like-minded in literature, working together on the creation of Vinaya poetry, and also had a common view on politics. In 698, Du Zhenyan was demoted to Jizhou Sihu to join the army for his crimes. Hearing this news, Song Zhiqian, who was lying ill at home, wrote a poem entitled "Farewell to Du Zhenyan", the original text is as follows:
Lying on the sick is desperate, and the king is all the way.
The river bridge does not send each other, and the river tree is far away.
Don't chase Sun Chu, Wei Zhou hangs Qu Ping.
Unfortunately, the Longquan Sword was lost in Fengcheng.
"Lying sick and desperate, oh jun thousands of miles", I was bedridden because of illness, cut off social interaction; I was deeply sighed when I heard the news that you had been degraded to Jizhou. The poet first pointed out his own state, since he was sick in bed, the car and horse in front of the door were cut off, and he felt lonely and lonely. In this case, the poet can hear the news that his friend has been degraded to Jizhou, which shows that the friendship between the two is deep. After hearing the news, the poet had mixed feelings in his heart, and could not help but sigh deeply, sad for the encounter of his friend, sad for the upcoming separation, and even more emotional for the ups and downs of the officialdom. The poet sets a sad and heavy tone for the whole poem with a "嗟" character.
"The river bridge does not send each other, the river trees are far away", I could not go to the river bridge to feed you due to illness; after the senders dispersed, only the trees by the river still contained a feeling of farewell. As a friend, the poet should have been entertaining for his friends, but because he was bedridden, he could only be absent, and how sad and regretful he should have in his heart. Thus, the poet imagines the scene after the farewell ceremony, when the people who sent off the farewell dispersed, the friends embarked on the road of debasement alone, and only the trees on the bank of the river were still clinging to the farewell. In the poet's imagination, the tree that clings to other trees seems to be his own embodiment, showing the deep friendship between the two in a combination of virtual and real.
"Don't chase Sun Chu, WeiZhou hangs Qu Ping", you trace Sun Chu's footprints on the way to Jizhou; like Jia Yi, moor the boat on the bank of the Xiang River to hang Qu Yuan. In this union, the poet uses allusions to Sun Chu and Jia Yi to imagine the whereabouts of his friends. Sun Chu was a famous literary scholar in the Western Jin Dynasty, but he was discouraged because of his arrogant temperament. Jia Yi was demoted to the title of Prince Taifu of Changsha because of jealousy, passing through the Xiang River and writing "Hanging Qu Yuanfu", relying on Qu Yuan, who was degraded for rumors. The poet uses these talented but despised predecessors as a metaphor for the highly learned talents of friends, but the journey is bumpy, expressing the poet's regret for his friends and his indignation at the world.
"It's a pity that the Longquan Sword is lost in Fengcheng", but unfortunately, like the Sword of Longquan, you are not appreciated and wandered in Fengcheng, Jiangxi. In this union, the poet uses the allusion to the sword of Longquan, according to the Book of Jin. Before being discovered, the sword qi of Longquan and Tai'a's two swords went straight to the bullfight, and was later found under the Fengcheng Prison by Lei Huan, a Yuzhang man. The poet uses the dragon spring sword metaphor to refer to the high learning of friends, and the loss and recovery of the longquan sword, alluding to the fact that one day, friends will also be discovered by people of insight and thus stand out. This shows the poet's comfort and expectation for his friends.
Wang Bo lamented in the "Preface to the Pavilion of the King of Teng": Guan Shan is difficult to cross, who is sad to lose the road; Pingshui meets, all are guests of his hometown. When frustrated, I feel the loneliness and loneliness of life. Compared with Wang Bo, Du Zhenyan is lucky, even if he has encountered depreciation, he still has a sincere friendship to encourage him. I believe that he can also be as confident as Wang Bo in "poor and strong, not falling into the ambition of Qingyun".