Chapter 37 217 Upright Song

After the Yuan army captured Yashan, Zhang Hongfan summoned the generals to hold a celebration banquet and invited Wen Tianxiang.At the banquet, Zhang Hongfan said to Wen Tianxiang: "Now that the Song Dynasty has perished, the Prime Minister has exhausted his last piece of loyalty. As long as you change your mind and submit to our Great Yuan Emperor, you can still maintain your position as Prime Minister." Wen Tianxiang said with tears in his eyes: "The country was ruined and the family was destroyed. As a minister of the Song Dynasty, I was unable to restore the situation. If I die, there will still be sins. How can I still covet my life?"

Zhang Hongfan repeatedly persuaded him to surrender, but to no avail, so he had to send someone to escort Wen Tianxiang to Dadu. After half a year, Wen Tianxiang was taken to Dadu, and the Yuan Dynasty ordered him to be sent to a high-class hotel, where he was entertained with fine wine and good food.A few days later, Yuan Dynasty Prime Minister Bo Luo sent Liu Mengyan, a surrender official, to persuade him to surrender.Wen Tianxiang hated this traitor for a long time, and now he was so cheeky to persuade him to surrender that he became even more furious.Before Liu Mengyan could open his mouth, he scolded so severely that Liu Mengyan couldn't lift his head, and walked away in despair.

The Yuan Dynasty failed to persuade Wen Tianxiang to surrender, so he was transferred to the Bingmasi Yamen, where he was shackled and handcuffed, and lived a life of a prisoner. A month later, Bo Luo referred Wen Tianxiang to the Privy Council of the Yuan Dynasty for interrogation in person. Wen Tianxiang was escorted by soldiers and came to the lobby of the Privy Council, where he saw Bo Luo sitting on it with a fierce face.Wen Tianxiang didn't even look at him, he raised his head, straightened his waist and walked forward.Soldiers on the left and right yelled at him to kneel down, but Wen Tianxiang refused.

Bo Luo was furious, and he ordered his left and right hands to act.The soldiers pulled and pushed Wen Tianxiang, and pushed Wen Tianxiang to the ground. "What else do you have to say?" Boro said. Wen Tianxiang said frankly: "Since ancient times, countries have risen and fallen, and ministers have been destroyed and killed. Which dynasty has not? I am a courtier of the Song Dynasty. Now that I have failed, I only want to die early. " Afraid of a deadlock in the interrogation, Bo Luo wanted to ease the atmosphere, so he said, "Since Pangu to the present, how many emperors have there been? Let me tell you."

Wen Tianxiang snorted, and said, "A Seventeen Histories (referring to seventeen history books such as "Historical Records"), where do we start? I'm not here today to take the exam, so I don't have the heart to chat with you." Boluo was robbed by Wen Tianxiang of saying a few words, making it boring, and unreasonably asked Wen Tianxiang why he lost Lin'an and fled, and why he wanted to establish another two kings (referring to Zhao Shi and Zhao Bing).Wen Tianxiang refuted them one by one, and finally he said impassionedly: "I, Wen Tianxiang, fell into your hands today, and I was ready to die a long time ago, so why bother!"

Bo Luo was so angry that he blew his beard and stared at his eyes, and ordered Wen Tianxiang to be escorted back to the Military Division.He wanted to kill Wen Tianxiang.But Yuan Shizu was afraid that Wen Tianxiang would be killed, and the people would not accept him and did not agree to kill him. The dungeon where Wen Tianxiang was imprisoned was short, narrow, dark and damp.On rainy days, the roof leaks and the ground is covered with water; in summer, the ground emits bursts of steam, making it even hotter.Next to the cell, there was the jailer's stove and the old barn, which gave off smoke and mildew, plus the smell of excrement in the toilet and the smell of dead rats, which made people extremely uncomfortable.

Wen Tianxiang was locked in this cell. The harsh environment can only torture his body, but it can't destroy his will.He believes that as long as there is a righteous spirit of patriotism and love for the nation, all harsh environments can be overcome. In his cell, he wrote the "Song of Righteousness" that has been chanted through the ages.In that poem, he cited some examples of loyal ministers and righteous men who insisted on justice and were not afraid of sacrifice in history, and believed that these were all manifestations of righteousness.In his poem he wrote: There is righteousness in the world, mixed with manifolds.

The lower part is Heyue, and the upper part is the sun star. To people, it is called Haoran, and Peiran is in the sky. ... When the season is poor, it is seen (same as the word "present"), and the pictures are drawn one by one. (It means: There is a kind of righteousness between heaven and earth, which manifests itself in various objects, such as underground rivers and mountains, and stars in the sky. In human beings, it manifests as the aura of majesty, which fills the universe.  …At a critical moment Only then did they show his integrity, and their deeds will be recorded in the annals of history one by one.) In the third year of Wen Tianxiang's imprisonment, a peasant uprising broke out in Zhongshan Prefecture, Hebei.The leader of the uprising claimed to be a descendant of the royal family of the Song Dynasty. He gathered thousands of people and called on everyone to enter Dadu and rescue Prime Minister Wen.

This frightened the Yuan Dynasty. If Wen Tianxiang was not killed, there might be a big mess.Yuan Shizu didn't give up the illusion of surrendering, and decided to personally persuade Wen Tianxiang to surrender. One day, Wen Tianxiang was escorted out of the cell and taken to the palace. When Wen Tianxiang saw Yuan Shizu, he refused to kneel down and just bowed.Yuan Shizu asked him what else to say.Wen Tianxiang said: "I am the Prime Minister of the Great Song Dynasty, and I did my best to help the court. Unfortunately, the treacherous ministers betrayed the country and made me useless as a hero. I can't restore the country, but I will be captured and humiliated. After I die, I will not be reconciled." Saying, gnashing teeth, He kept beating his chest.

Yuan Shizu persuaded with a pleasant face: "I fully understand your loyalty. Now, if you can change your mind and become a courtier of the Yuan Dynasty, how about I still let you be the prime minister?" Wen Tianxiang said generously: "I am the prime minister of the Song Dynasty, so there is no reason to serve the two dynasties. If I am not dead, how can I have the face to meet the loyal ministers and martyrs underground?" Yuan Shizu said: "You don't want to be the prime minister, how about being a privy envoy?" Wen Tianxiang replied decisively: "I only want to die, and I have nothing else to say."

Yuan Shizu knew that there was no hope of persuading him to surrender, so he asked his attendants to take Wen Tianxiang out. The next day, Wen Tianxiang was ordered to be executed. On this day, the north wind howled and the clouds were thick.The execution ground in Chaishi, the capital city, was heavily guarded.When the citizens heard the news that Wen Tianxiang was about to die, they spontaneously gathered in Chaishi, and 10,000 people gathered at once to surround the execution ground.I saw Wen Tianxiang coming to the execution ground wearing shackles and looking calm.He asked the people nearby which side was the south.The people pointed it out to Wen Tianxiang. He bowed towards the south for a few times, sat down upright, and said to the beheading officer: "My business is over." In January 1283, the 47-year-old national hero finally died. At the moment of national peril, he showed his awe-inspiring righteousness.