Zhang Jun decided to send troops to the Northern Expedition, and requested the imperial court to issue an imperial edict, calling on the people of the Central Plains to rise up against Japan and cooperate with Song Jun to recover lost territory. Lu You, the editor of the Privy Council at that time, was very literate, so Zhang Jun sent Lu You to draft this imperial edict.
Lu You was a famous patriotic poet in the Southern Song Dynasty, who was born in Yinshan, Zhejiang. When he was young, it was the time of the demise of the Northern Song Dynasty. The nomads from the south of the Yangtze River robbed and plundered. Lu You has tasted the pain of national disaster since he was a child, and he has also seen and heard many touching stories of Jiangnan soldiers and civilians fighting against the nomads from the Yangtze River. In his young mind, he had a deep affection for the motherland and the nation.
As a teenager, Lu You was able to write excellent articles because of his diligent study. At the age of twenty-nine, he won the first place in the middle of Zhejiang Province. Coincidentally, Qin Yun, the grandson of Qin Gui, also took the exam. Qin Gui hinted to the examiner before the exam that he hoped Qin Feng would win the first place. The examiner didn't buy his account, but he acted impartially and let Lu You win the first place.
This incident made Qin Gui very angry. In the second year, Lu You went to Lin 'an, the capital, to take the exam. The examiner found Lu You's literary talent and wanted him to be among the best. Qin Gui became even angrier when he learned about it. He arrogantly ordered the examiner to cancel the qualification of Lu You exam, and also investigated the responsibility of Zhejiang and Zhejiang examiners. Since then, Qin Gui has held a grudge against Lu You and refused to let him participate in state affairs. It was not until Qin Gui died that he went to Lin 'an as the editor of the Privy Council.
Lu You enthusiastically supported the Northern Expedition. But Zhang Jun, the commander in chief, lacks command ability. The two commanders in Zhang Jun were suspicious of each other, resulting in friction. Not long after Song Jun sent troops, he lost the first world war in R&F (now Suxian North, Anhui Province), and Song Jun was completely defeated.
After the failure of the Northern Expedition, the ministers who always advocated peace attacked Zhang Jun in front of Song Xiaozong, saying that the war in Zhang Jun was encouraged by Lu You. Later, Zhang Jun was removed from the court, and Lu You was dismissed from office and returned to his hometown in Yin Shan.
Under the threat of nomads from Song Xiaozong, the determination to resist gold will be shaken. The next year, he signed a humiliating peace treaty with the ruler. After that, he never dared to mention the Northern Expedition again.
Almost ten years later, Wang Yan, the general in charge of Sichuan and Shaanxi, heard about Lu You's reputation and invited him to be a staff officer in Hanzhong. Hanzhong is very close to the anti-gold front. Lu You thought that if he went there, he might have the opportunity to participate in the War of Resistance Against Gold and make some contributions to recovering lost land. He was glad to accept the appointment. When he got there, he once rode to the edge of the third pass to observe the area occupied by the Jin people. In Wang Yan's yamen, he often saw with his own eyes that ordinary people in the occupied areas of Jin Jun risked their lives to send military information to Song Jun ... These scenes made him full of hope for Jin's future.
After a detailed investigation, he put forward a plan to Wang Yan. He thought that in order to restore the Central Plains, Chang 'an must be recovered first, and asked Wang Yan to keep stores in Hanzhong, train his own team, make all preparations and be ready to attack at any time. However, the Southern Song Dynasty court in Lin 'an at that time had no intention of the Northern Expedition. Most generals in Sichuan and Shaanxi are arrogant and corrupt, and Wang Yan can't do anything about it, let alone send troops according to Lu You's opinion. Lu You was full of hope and failed again.
Soon, Wang Yan was transferred, and Lu You was transferred to Chengdu, where he served as a senator under Fan Chengda, the Anfu ambassador. Fan Chengda is his old friend. Although it is a superior-subordinate relationship, it does not pay attention to general official etiquette. Lu You's desire to resist gold cannot be realized, and he is depressed. He often drinks and writes poems to express his patriotic feelings. But people in officialdom generally don't like him, saying that he is rude and decadent. Hearing this, Lu You simply gave himself a personal number called "Weng Fang". Later people called him Lu Fangweng.
Twenty or thirty years later, two emperors changed in the Southern Song Dynasty-Zhao Dun in Song Guangzong and Zhao Kuo in Song Ningzong. The Southern Song Dynasty never made up its mind to recover lost territory. Lu You lived an idle life for a long time, and he pinned his patriotic enthusiasm on his poetry creation.
In a.d. 1206, Han tu ZH-u (not ZH-u) became prime minister and launched a large-scale northern expedition. This makes Lu You very excited. However, due to the inadequate preparation for the Northern Expedition of Han Biaozhou and the internal contradictions in the imperial court, the last Northern Expedition failed again. Song Ningzong and a group of capitulationists killed Han Tuozhou, gave his head to the rulers and made a humiliating peace treaty.
Lu You's strong desire to recover lost territory and reunify the motherland has never been realized. He can only use poetry to express his love for the motherland and his worries about the nation. He worked hard all his life and left behind more than 9,000 poems. Among the poets in China, his works are the most abundant.
In A.D. 12 10, the 86-year-old patriotic poet was seriously ill. On his deathbed, he was still obsessed with restoring the Central Plains. He called his children and grandchildren to the bedside and read his last touching poem "Show Your Son":
I didn't know everything was empty until I died, but I was sad to see Kyushu.
Therefore, when the great Song Jun team recaptures the Central Plains, you will hold a home banquet ceremony. Don't forget to tell me the good news!