In 672, in the twenty-second year of Zhenguan, Emperor Taizong was dying, and he still remembered the Preface to Lanting. Before he died, he summoned Prince Li Zhi and said, "I want something from you. If you are sincere and filial, how can it go against my wishes?" Gao Zong said: What is it? Taizong said, "I want the Lanting Pavilion, but I go with a bow and an arrow." At the behest of his father, Li Zhi put Preface to Lanting in a jade box and buried this peerless Mo Bao as a funerary object in Zhaoling, the mausoleum of Emperor Taizong.
Extended data:
After the creation of Preface to Lanting Collection, Wang Xizhi regarded it as a family heirloom, which was handed down from generation to generation until the seventh generation of Wang's grandson put it to use. After becoming a monk, Zhiyong passed it on to his disciples on his deathbed and treasured it in the dark sill between the beams.
During the prosperous Tang Dynasty, Li Shimin had a soft spot for calligraphy, especially Mo Bao, the "sage of calligraphy". He used the convenience of the emperor to collect Wang Xizhi's works all over the world.
When Emperor Taizong learned that the eloquence monk had an original preface to Lanting Collection, he tried his best to get it. Emperor Taizong Yu Shiyi made a special trip to Yuezhou to design and defraud the original. After being cheated, eloquence died of fright.
After Li Shimin got the original script of Preface to Lanting, Yu Shinan, Chu Suiliang, Feng Chengsu, Ou Yangxun and other famous artists at that time copied the original script of Preface to Lanting and gave it to the princes. This is the origin of the Tang dynasty handed down from generation to generation.
References:
Baidu Encyclopedia-Preface to Lanting Collection (Calligraphy Works)