Lin Zexu (1785～1850), also known as Shaomu. A native of Houguan, Fujian (now Fuzhou). Politician in the late Qing Dynasty. Jiaqing Jinshi. He once promoted the study of managing the world with Gong Zizhen, Huang Juezi, Wei Yuan and others. He served as the governor of the East River and once presided over the repair and maintenance of the Yellow River. Later, he served as governor of Jiangsu, and also built water conservancy projects such as Baimao River and Liuhe River. In the 18th year of Daoguang's reign (1838), he was appointed governor of Huguang and banned opium smoking, which was very effective. Xuan was appointed as the imperial minister and went to Guangdong to ban the import of opium. The following year, he went to Guangdong and strictly ordered British and American cigarette dealers to hand over 2.37 million kilograms of opium and destroy it in public in Humen. He also actively prepared for coastal defense, promoted volunteerism, and repeatedly repelled armed provocations by the British army. In January 1840, he was appointed governor of Guangdong and Guangxi. In June, the British launched a war of aggression. Seeing that Guangdong was heavily defended, the British army took the opportunity to invade Dinghai and invade Dagu in the north. He was dismissed from his post because he was framed by the capitulationists. The following year, he was sent to Zhejiang to plan coastal defense, and soon he was sent to Xinjiang. Establish water conservancy projects and cultivate farmland in Xinjiang. Later he was appointed governor of Shaanxi and promoted to governor of Yunnan and Guizhou. He resigned due to illness and returned home. In 1850, he was appointed as an imperial envoy to Guangxi to supervise military affairs. He died of illness on the way to Chaozhou. Able to write poetry. His works include "Collected Works of Lin Wenzhonggong", "Xin Ji Lu", etc. Lin Zexu's poems have been selected and annotated by many people, and the good and bad are mixed.
Going to the garrison to tell family members, the first of the two choices
With weak strength and heavy responsibilities, the spirit will be exhausted, and if it continues to be exhausted and mediocre, it will definitely fail.
If you want to benefit the country's life and death, how can you avoid it because of misfortunes and blessings?
Relegated residence is a sign of kindness from the king, and it is appropriate to cultivate the weak and strong in the garrison.
The play tells stories with the mountain wife, and the old man loses his scalp by trying to chant.
Crafted in the 22nd year of Daoguang (1842). Lin Zexu suffered persecution and was demoted to Xinjiang. In the seventh month of the lunar calendar that year, I set out from Xi'an for Yili to write poems to comfort my family. This poem is the most famous one among Lin Zexu's poems in history.
The first couplet of this poem says: I have shouldered heavy responsibilities for the country with my meager strength, and I have long felt tired. If you continue, no matter your weak physique or mediocre talents, you will definitely not be able to support it. (At this time, Lin Zexu had just suffered a serious illness in Xi'an. This statement may have been true, not necessarily ironic.) If the couplet is expressed in modern language, that is, "As long as it is beneficial to the country, I will do it even if it means death; How can we escape because of fear of disaster?" This couplet has become a famous saying that has been widely praised for more than a hundred years. The neck couplet expresses the politician's open-minded and calm mind about the ups and downs of the officialdom: My heart is exhausted, I am going to Xinjiang to relax, and I also want to thank the Holy Father for taking care of me. As a garrison soldier, you can support yourself without being in the limelight. The last couplet ingeniously quotes a story from Zhao Ling's "Hou Xiaolu", comparing it to Yang Pu, a hermit in the Song Dynasty. The ancients often ended their poems with retreat to show a detached state of mind. For example, Zhang Han misses the beauty of sea bass in his hometown; Yan Ziling goes fishing in the Fuchun River and so on. Lin Zexu used Yang Pu's wife's limerick to express his intention of retreat, which was a bit cynical.