Xie Daoyun, a female talent in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, came from a famous family. She was the daughter of General Xie Yi of Anxi, and her husband was Wang Ningzhi, the son of calligrapher Wang Xizhi. At that time, the Wang and Xie families were the most prosperous, and they were the most prosperous family at that time, until they were executed during the reign of Emperor Wu of Liang. The glory of Wang Xie's family was also wiped out. Xie Daoyun has been very talented since she was a child, and she is smart and loves to learn. Once her uncle Xie An asked her: "Which line in "Mao's Poems" is the best?" Xie Daoyun's answer greatly praised her uncle. It is a great honor to be praised by Xie An, because even the noble Li Bai only obeyed Xie An in his life. It seems that Xie An is also a capable person.
Another story about Xie Daoyun is even more famous in the world. On a cold winter day, when the snow outside was falling non-stop, Xie An gathered his family together to discuss poetry with the younger generations. After a while, the snow became heavier and heavier, and Xie An impromptuly asked: "What does this falling snow look like?" His nephew Xie Lang took advantage of the situation and said: "The falling snow is like spreading salt into the air." His brother's Daughter Xie Daoyun said: "I think it is better to compare the falling snowflakes to catkins blown up by the wind." Xie An was very happy after hearing this vivid comparison.
In fact, Xie Lang's metaphor of comparing snow to salt is quite good, but the author later explained Xie Daoyun's identity as the daughter of Taifu Xie's brother and the wife of Wang Ningzhi, which shows that Xie An prefers Xie Daoyun's answer. The falling snow is as light as catkins, but the texture of the salt may be a little thicker. Since then, the phrase "It's not like catkins blowing in the wind" has become a favorite saying in the world.
Wang Ningzhi, whose birth date is unknown and died in 399, was the second son of the famous calligrapher Wang Xizhi. Influenced by his father, Wang Ningzhi was also accomplished in calligraphy. He was good at cursive script and official script and was an official in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Compared with his brothers, Wang Ningzhi's talent is the least outstanding, but he is the happiest in his love life, because his wife is Xie Daoyun, the first talented woman in ancient times, a strange woman who combines talent and beauty. .
The Wang and Xie families could be said to be well-known aristocrats during the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Xie Daoyun’s uncle was the Prime Minister Xie An. When choosing a husband for Xie Daoyun, they considered them from the same family and hoped that their niece would marry Wang Xizhi. son. When he was first looking for his niece's son-in-law, Xie An chose Wang Xizhi's fifth son, Wang Huizhi. However, he soon heard that Wang Huizhi was careless and did not pay attention to details, so he chose his second son, Wang Ningzhi. Wang Ningzhi's marriage to Xie Daoyun was truly a blessing from his previous life, and his wife also added a lot of fame to him.
After the two got married, Xie An once asked Xie Daoyun how Wang Ningzhi was like. Xie Daoyun said: "There is a king in the sky." Based on this sentence, people guessed that Xie Daoyun did not love Wang Ningzhi. , and some people say that Wang Ningzhi is not worthy of Xie Daoyun. Can we judge that the relationship between husband and wife is not good just based on this sentence? The answer is obviously wrong. The relationship between the two is very good. This complaint is a reflection of the love between husband and wife. During the decades that Xie Daoyun was Wang Ningzhi's wife, she gave birth to four boys and one girl to the Wang family. The couple stayed together and had a loving wife by their side. Not to mention how happy they were.
During the Sun En Rebellion, Wang Ningzhi and several of his children were killed, and only Xie Daoyun and his grandson survived. After that, Xie Daoyun lived as a widow in Kuaiji, never leaving home, occasionally writing poems and articles, and spent the rest of his life alone like this.