The missing moon hangs on the sparse tung trees, and the missing moon breaks one's initial tranquility.
I only saw secluded people coming and going alone, misty and lonely shadows.
When you start, you look back. There is no one to forgive you for your hatred.
I picked up all the cold branches and refused to live on them, and the lonely sandbank was cold.
——Su Shi Bu Suanzi
During the Shaosheng reign of Emperor Zhezong of the Northern Song Dynasty, there lived a man with two temples in a few thatched cottages at Baihe Peak in Huizhou (now Huizhou City) on Guangnan East Road. Feishuang's old man and his family. During the day, he cleared wasteland and farmed beside the thatched house; at night, he read or recited poems and lyrics under an oil lamp. This old man was Su Shi, a famous minister of the dynasty. For most of his life, he was caught between the struggle between the new party and the old party. Because he was upright and outspoken, he was repeatedly demoted. In the eighth year of Emperor Zhezong's reign (1093), the so-called new party came to power. They persecuted Su Shi as an old party, demoted him again and again, and finally demoted him to the position of Sima Huizhou of the Jianchang Army. Su Shi felt that there was no hope of returning to the north, so he bought several acres of land in Baihe Peak, built a few thatched houses, and settled down temporarily.
Oddly enough, whenever night falls, a young woman secretly comes to Su Shi's window and eavesdrops on him reciting poems and composing poems. She often stands silently until late at night. The dew wetted her shoes and socks, but she didn't notice it, still listening attentively. When she heard the important words, she couldn't help but read along in a low voice, shaking her head like an old scholar. The uninvited guest in the middle of the night was quickly discovered by his host. One night, when the girl came secretly, Su Shi gently opened the window and wanted to talk to her and find out what happened. Unexpectedly, as soon as the window opened, the girl ran away like a frightened bird. She nimbly jumped over the short courtyard wall and disappeared into the night.
The Baihe Peak area is sparsely populated and there are only a few households. It didn’t take long for Su Shi to figure out the whole story. It turned out that not far from Su Shi's house, there lived a prisoner Wen. He had a daughter named Chaochao, who was twenty-eight years old. She was born elegant, handsome, well-educated and courteous. She especially liked to read the poems and poems of Bachelor Dongpo. She often read them without putting the book down. She knew all Su Gong's works by heart. , to the point of obsession. She made up her mind not to marry anyone other than a talented scholar like Su. Therefore, although he has passed the age of 15, he has not yet married. Ever since Su Shi was demoted to Huizhou, she had been looking for opportunities to meet Master Su, but she had never met Mr. Su. Although Su Shi was demoted, he was still a court official after all. And he was the daughter of a small eunuch, so how could he meet others casually? Besides, men and women are different. Therefore, she had no choice but to take advantage of the cover of night, regardless of the cold wind and frost, to stand on the dirt and listen to Master Su reciting poems. For her, it was really a great enjoyment.
Su Shi was very moved after learning the true love. He thought to himself, how can I, Su Shi, be so virtuous and capable of attracting the favor of a talented woman like this? He made up his mind to fulfill this beautiful and talented daughter of the governor. Su Shi knew a scholar named Wang. He was a suave man, well-read in poetry and books, and had extraordinary ambitions. Su Shi found an opportunity and said to Wen Dujian: "I want to draw a red line between the prince and your daughter, so that your daughter can fulfill her wish early." Wen Dujian and his daughter were very happy. From then on, Wen Chaochao would study behind closed doors, or do needlework, waiting for good news.
Who knows, disaster will fall from the sky. The persecution of Su Shi by those in power did not end. Just as Su Shi and his family were initially settling down in Huizhou, in April of the fourth year of Shaosheng's reign (1097), Zhezong issued another imperial edict and demoted Su Shi to Qiongzhou Biejia Changhua Army resettlement. Qiongzhou is far away in Hainan, with "no charcoal in winter and no cold springs in summer". It is a remote and barren land. The government officials did not allow Su Shi to make any preparations and urgently urged him to go on the road. Su Shi had no choice but to leave his family in Huizhou and set off for Qiongzhou alone with his youngest son Su Guo. The whole family went to the riverside and said goodbye with tears. Su Shi couldn't help but feel sad when he thought that his chance of surviving was extremely small. He left in such a hurry, and his mood was so bad, how could he care about Wang Lang and Wen Chaochao's marriage?
Su Shi was suddenly demoted to Hainan, which was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue for Wen Chaochao. She felt that not only had she lost a good marriage, but she had also lost forever the opportunity to associate with the scholar Su whom she admired. From then on she became demented and depressed. He often went to Xuexue Su's old house in Baihe Peak and stood there for half a day. Gradually she stopped eating and sleeping, and finally fell ill. Before she died, she asked her family to go to Baihe Peak to see if Xuexianshi Su had returned. She left this world full of infatuation, full of talent and infinite regrets. In accordance with her will, her family buried her next to a sand dune in front of Baihe Peak, with the grave facing Hainan. She hoped that even if she died, her soul would be able to see Xuexiang Su returning from Hainan.
In the third year of Yuanfu (1100), Huizong succeeded to the throne and granted amnesty to the world, and Su Shi was able to return to the mainland. When Su Shi returned to Huizhou, Wen Chaochao's grave was covered with weeds. Standing in front of Chaochao's tomb, Su Shi had mixed feelings and couldn't help but shed tears. He hated himself for not being able to fulfill Chaochao's wish. Now, he could no longer comfort this suffering soul. He recited this poem full of guilt.