His father, Chen Bangyan, was one of the founders of Guangdong's anti-Qing struggle at the end of Ming Dynasty and the beginning of Qing Dynasty, and he was also a famous scholar. Influenced by his father's thoughts since childhood, he studied poetry books under his guidance and was good at writing poems and fu. In the first year of Li Yong (1647), his father was captured and put to death by the Qing army after his defeat, and all his family were killed at the same time except Chen Gongyin, who narrowly escaped. Later, he took part in the anti-Qing struggle to avenge his family, traveled to and from Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and other places, and contacted the anti-Qing rebels. In the 12th year of Li Yong (1658), he went to Yunnan-Guizhou to see Li Yong, the emperor of Nanming, but he didn't see him, so he returned to Zengcheng to settle down. In the 16th year of Li Yong (1662), Li Yong, Emperor of the Southern Ming Dynasty, was captured and executed by the Qing court. Chen Gongyin suspended contact with anti-Qing people. He lived in seclusion in his hometown for more than ten years. In the meantime, I had a deep acquaintance with the famous poet Qu Dajun, and had a poetic exchange with Shang Kexi, the king of Pingnan. In the thirty-second year (1678), Li Yong was arrested and imprisoned by the court because of his old friendship with Shang Kexi and suspected of participating in the "San Francisco Rebellion". After being detained for half a year, he was released from prison and settled in the south of Guangzhou. From then on, he became depressed and turned to writing poems and songs, and formed a poetry club with friends to sing with each other. At that time, people called him "the seven sons of Lingnan". Chen Gongyin's poems are especially good at seven laws. Most of his poems are based on his understanding of his own life experience, his determination to fight against the Qing Dynasty, his reflection on people's sufferings and his description of Lingnan scenery. In his later years, although he often sang with the powerful people of the Qing court, he refused to be an official of the new dynasty. He named his residence "Dulutang" as a metaphor for his family feud and his ambition to recover. His official calligraphy was the first person in Guangdong in the early Qing Dynasty. His posthumous works include Dulu Tangji.
After the death of Nanming, Chen Gongyin settled in Guangzhou, and made enemies with his friends He Heng, He Jiang, Tao Zan and Liang Zan to study. He was called "the fifth son of Kita". After the "San Francisco Rebellion" broke out, Qu Dajun defected from Wu Jun to Guangxi. Chen Gongyin and Qu intersect deeply, "taking fame as the purpose". In the thirty-second year of Li Yong (1678), Chen Gongyin was arrested and imprisoned for 200 days before being released. From then on, I was afraid, my ambition faded away, and I avoided seclusion, calling myself "Luofu Buyi". In his later years, he sent love poems and wine, and sang with the dignitaries of the Qing court. He was once scolded by Liang Kun to his face, "Why did the servant go?" He was also ridiculed that "the poor generation is arrogant and mistakenly thinks that Houmen is the first grandson." But Chen Gongyin didn't change his tune. He was an official all his life. Feng explained in his biography that singing with powerful people is Chen's self-protection strategy: "I must get rid of it, and I am afraid that I will not be tolerated by the world." I built a house in the south of Yangcheng to entertain myself with poetry; If you have a discount, you will receive it, not polite. " So crown, everyone's heart is good. The discussant may be suspicious of changing things before and after, not knowing how to avoid disasters, but being close to the heart and suffering. "This is why Chen Gongyin named himself" Half Peak "before, indicating that the ambition of the old mountain forest was renamed" Dulu "in his later years, but the pain of his life experience was even deeper. In his later years, Chen Gongyin built a small Yushan residence in Yuxianfang, Guangzhou, and died as a adherent. In the thirty-ninth year of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty (1700), he died in Guangzhou and was buried at the southern foot of Xiangyun Mountain in the suburbs.