The writing background of "Prison Song":
Ye Ting became the commander of the New Fourth Army after the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War. At the same time, he commanded the troops to advance behind enemy lines in central China and carry out guerrilla warfare.
In May 1939, he presided over the establishment of the New Fourth Army Jiangbei Command in Wanzhong (central Anhui), commanding the troops to advance behind enemy lines in eastern Anhui and establish an anti-Japanese base area.
In early October 1940, the Japanese army invaded the headquarters of the New Fourth Army in Yunling, Jing County, southern Anhui Province. He commanded the troops directly under the army to fight tenaciously and push back the enemy.
In January 1941, he was imprisoned by the Kuomintang during the "Southern Anhui Incident" and wrote the famous "Ye Ting Prison Song" in prison.
After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, he was rescued by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and released on March 4, 1946.