jīng zhōng bào guó : "serve the country loyally"
okay. don't ask me why am i doing this. i'm doing an article on this historical figure. from china. yup. some dead china man (hey no offence, he was great, but it's a fact that he's DEAD). for the sake of SPM and I. but it WAS prety interesting to me. *wwink* and HE is...
Yuè Fēi
i have no friggin idea why is his name yue fei. but according to my dad (who i deem to be a reliable source), a bird flew across when his mum gave birth to him, that was why his mum named him 飞, which means fly. perhaps, in this case, SOAR.
what's with the 精忠報國?
According to legend, Yue Fei's mother tattooed four characters 精忠报国: jīng zhōng bào guó which mean "serve the country loyally" on his back before he left home. for war (duh).
so this yue fei dude man was a really famous general from the Song Dynasty. back in those days, the Song Dynasty was defending against the forces of Jin Dynasty, the Jurchen invaders, also known as BARBARIANS (no, seriously).
'Yue Fei had an extremely disciplined army who “would not occupy civilian houses even if they froze to death and would not take food from civilians even if they starved to death”. For this, Yue Fei’s army was known as the “Army of Yues” among the Song people and even the Jinn General once made the remark that “it is easier to shake a mountain than it is to shake the Army of Yues”.'
okay. to cut it short, Yue Fei had been in 126 battles and won them all. the important part is this peom he wrote called:
Man Jīang Hóng: "Entirely Red River"
i think red refers to blood. i THINK. so anyway, yea, i have to study poems like this for SPM. this poem tells of his hatred towards the Jins. the Jins were so strong that to end the conflict, Song Dynasty's emperor signed an agreement called the
Treaty of Shaoxing.
under it Southern Song agreed to tribute 250,000 dollars and 250,000 packs of silk to Jin every year (until 1164). Emperor Gaozong was also forced to execute Yue Fei. another rationale behind yue fei's rage was the
Jingkang Incident, also known as the Humiliation of Jingkang.
Basically what happened was, the Jin forces abducted Emperor Qinzong, his father Emperor Emeritus Huizong, along with many members of the imperial court. Jingkang was the era name (throne name) for Emperor Qinzong. thus, the term Humiliation of Jingkang.
Yue Fei was then given the general post, where he led troops to drive the Jurchen invaders out from Song's territory. I guess, he felt so inspired by his hatred that one day, he decided to express his intense desire to recover the lost Song territories and wipe off the shame with that 滿江紅 (Man Jīang Hóng) poem.
I wont elaborate the poem considering how LONG this post has gotten. but nevertheless, here are two lines from the poem.
1.莫等閒 白了少年頭，空悲切。
mò děngxián bái le shàonián toú, kōng bēiqiè.
So do not sit by idly, for young men will grow old in regret.
2. 壯志飢餐胡虜肉，笑談渴飲匈奴血。
zhuàngzhì jī cān Húlu ròu, xiào tán kě yin Xiōngnú xiě.
There we shall feast and drink barbarian flesh and blood.
for the full poem with pinyin and english translation, click on the chinese characters.
my dad told me that the 'Prime Minister' at that time, Qin Hui, was corrupted. he was bribed by the Jins. By that time, Yue Fei has already driven the Jurchen invaders out of Song's territory, in fact, across the border. Qin Hui persuaded the Emperor (i think by telling the Emporer how he would lose power when Yue Fei brings back the abducted Emperor and his father) to order Yue Fei back to the capital.
'As soon as Yue Fei came back, he was removed of duty. He was then accused by the Prime Minister, Qin Hui, and soon executed. At the news, General Han Shizhong asked Qin Hui, “What crime did Yue Fei commit?” To this, Qin Hui replied evasively, “mo xu you” which meant “something quite possible”. Ever since then, the phrase “mo xu you” became a synonym for false accusation.'
have you ever eaten 油炸檜 (mandarin: yóuzhá Huì / canto: yau ja gwai)?
please tell me you know what it is. haha. it literally means oil-freid Hui, with Hui referring to Qin Hui, or oil-freid devil. it is said that the food represents Qin Hui and his wife, both having a hand in collaborating with the enemy to bring to Yue Fei's execution.
Qin Hui could not find a logical reason to execute Yue Fei. however, his wife suggested that since the emperor held absolute power, Qin Hui having the authority of the emperor, needed no reason to execute Yue Fei. beee-yatch power!
back then, the population were afraid to openly declare their contempt towards the corrupt official, therefore, the food became a tool of expressing contempt. frying the couples and eating them. besides urinating at their grave etc.
okay. I gotta go study now. less than a month to trials. I KNOW!.
