Zhang Rong
Encyclopedia
For the Chinese-British writer, see Jung Chang
Zhang Rong was a Chinese official and poet.
A native of Jiangsu
, he entered upon official life as secretary to the Prince of Xin'an. When the Emperor Xiaowu of Liu Song
was building a shrine to the memory of his favourite concubine, the Prince's mother, Zhang would only subscribe a hundred cash. This caused the Emperor to say sarcastically that he must be provided with some well-paid post, and to send him to Fengxi (封溪) in Annam
. Zhang declared at starting that he had no fear as to returning; his only fear was that he might be sent back again. On the road, he fell into the hands of bandits; but when they were about to cut his head off, they found him quietly inditing a poem, at which they were so astonished that they let him go. He managed to reach Huế
after a long passage, during which he composed a famous poem, called Song of the Sea (海賦), admitted by Xu Kaizhi (徐凱之) to be superior to his own work under the same title. On his return, he was raised to high office, and was subsequently a great favourite with the Emperor Gao of Southern Qi
, who said that he could not do without one such man, nor with two. In spite of his exalted rank he dressed so poorly that on one occasion his Majesty sent him an old suit of clothes, with a message that a tailor had been instructed to take his measure for a new one. The Taoist priest Lu Xiujing (陸修靜) also gave him a fan made of white egret feathers, saying that strange things should be given to strange people.
Jung Chang
Jung Chang is a Chinese-born British writer now living in London, best known for her family autobiography Wild Swans, selling over 10 million copies worldwide but banned in the People's Republic of China....
Zhang Rong was a Chinese official and poet.
A native of Jiangsu
Jiangsu
' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name...
, he entered upon official life as secretary to the Prince of Xin'an. When the Emperor Xiaowu of Liu Song
Emperor Xiaowu of Liu Song
Emperor Xiaowu of Liu Song , personal name Liu Jun , courtesy name Xiulong , nickname Daomin , was an emperor of the Chinese dynasty Liu Song. He was a son of Emperor Wen. After his older brother Liu Shao assassinated their father in 453 and took the throne, he rose in rebellion and overthrew Liu...
was building a shrine to the memory of his favourite concubine, the Prince's mother, Zhang would only subscribe a hundred cash. This caused the Emperor to say sarcastically that he must be provided with some well-paid post, and to send him to Fengxi (封溪) in Annam
Annam
Annam may refer to:* A name of Vietnam used prior to 1945.* Annam , a former subdivision of French Indochina, now the central region of Vietnam*Annam , a female given name of Arabic origin...
. Zhang declared at starting that he had no fear as to returning; his only fear was that he might be sent back again. On the road, he fell into the hands of bandits; but when they were about to cut his head off, they found him quietly inditing a poem, at which they were so astonished that they let him go. He managed to reach Huế
Hue
Hue is one of the main properties of a color, defined technically , as "the degree to which a stimulus can be describedas similar to or different from stimuli that are described as red, green, blue, and yellow,"...
after a long passage, during which he composed a famous poem, called Song of the Sea (海賦), admitted by Xu Kaizhi (徐凱之) to be superior to his own work under the same title. On his return, he was raised to high office, and was subsequently a great favourite with the Emperor Gao of Southern Qi
Emperor Gao of Southern Qi
Emperor Gao of Southern Qi , personal name Xiao Daocheng , courtesy name Shaobo , nickname Doujiang , was the founding emperor of the Chinese dynasty Southern Qi...
, who said that he could not do without one such man, nor with two. In spite of his exalted rank he dressed so poorly that on one occasion his Majesty sent him an old suit of clothes, with a message that a tailor had been instructed to take his measure for a new one. The Taoist priest Lu Xiujing (陸修靜) also gave him a fan made of white egret feathers, saying that strange things should be given to strange people.