Vast drifting clouds veil all the distant sight; O’er thousand hills the sinking sun sheds sombre light. The court itself quenched hopes of state revival; The general’s frontier zeal proved futile. The loyal subject’s grievance remained unavenged to the end; Traitors wove deep snares with cunning schemes laid. Only a box of accounts of steadfast loyalty remains; I gaze and weep, unable to restrain my grief.
Man Jiang Hong — Man Jiang Hong — Inscription on a Reproduction of Emperor Gaozong of Song’s Handwritten Edict to Yue Wumu
By Wen Zhengming (Ming Dynasty)
I wipe the weathered stele; The imperial words to Yue Fei remain faintly legible. What sorrow! Once the Emperor relied on him so deeply, Yet later dealt with him with such pitiless cruelty!
Was the hero truly meant to die once his work was done? Alas, the harm is done; no words can atone. Utterly undeserved, hateful, and more pitiable still: The Fengbo Pavilion wrongful prison case!
Did he not grieve the shrinking Central Plains? Did he not lament the humiliation of Emperors Hui and Qin? Yet if the two captive sovereigns returned, Where would his own throne stand!
After a thousand years, speak no more of the mistaken retreat south; Back then, he feared the recovery of the Central Plains. Do not overrate trivial Qin Hui’s power; He merely catered to the Emperor’s desire.
Reflections on Visiting Yue Wumu’s Shrine
By the Eight-Fingered Dhuta (Qing Dynasty)
After the retreat south to a precarious peace, the state was already lost; Trees round his shrine and tomb stand dark and green today. Without noble virtue, men leave no enduring name; Where loyal souls dwell, the very grass breathes fragrant fame. Wind and rain sweep lake and hills, where lingering grievances stay; Woodcutters, herdsmen passing by, taste sorrow on their way. If the two captured emperors had come back in their earthly span, Who then would shed such bitter tears in the setting sun?