In 1283, the 47-year-old Wen Tianxiang was killed in Yuanda. By this time, his wife and daughter had also been reduced to official slavery. After learning that he was killed, his wife Ouyang came to collect his body, and accidentally found a small poem written on his body, and his wife committed suicide in tears after reading this poem.
Wen Tianxiang, born in 1236 AD, was deeply influenced by Confucian culture at a very young age, so he was interested in some of the famous Confucian figures in history. When he learned that their nicknames were all "loyalty", he admired them even more and aspired to be like them.
However, in order to obtain the title of "loyalty", it was necessary to make unimaginable efforts, which was for Wen Tianxiang at that time, and he did not know what price he would have to pay.
In the era when Confucianism was prevalent, if you want to get ahead and make a difference, the best way is to study and gain fame. Therefore, Wen Tianxiang worked hard and studied diligently, and soon found his own path in the imperial examination.
In 1256, Wen Tianxiang became the champion, and his future was bright, which made countless people envious. However, at this time, the news of Wen Tianxiang's father's death came, and he could only return to his hometown to worry.
Two years later, Wen Tianxiang officially entered the officialdom, but his career was not smooth sailing. Wen Tianxiang was influenced by his father, had a resolute personality, was honest, and offended many traitorous ministers. In his more than 10 years of service, he was dismissed from office three times.
It was not until the age of 38 that Wen Tianxiang was reappointed to Ganzhou. If it can be so stable, it is actually very good.
In 1275, Kublai Khan led the Yuan Dynasty army to defeat the Southern Song navy and approached the capital Lin'an. The Southern Song court was immediately thrown into chaos, and many officials fled.
The emperor hurriedly ordered to recruit soldiers for reinforcements, but no one responded. When Wen Tianxiang learned the news, he immediately decided to sell his property in order to raise military expenses. At the same time, he recruited troops in the area of Ganzhou, Jiangxi, and went to Jizhou to gather troops.
Many people responded to Wen Tianxiang's call and eventually formed a considerable force and prepared to rush to the front line against the enemy.
Just when Wen Tianxiang wanted to fight with the Mongolian people, the empress dowager issued an order and appointed Wen Tianxiang as the right prime minister to negotiate with the Mongolians on behalf of the imperial court.
At the negotiation table, Wen Tianxiang was awe-inspiring. Yuan Ren first coerced and seduced, and when he saw that he was soft and hard, he locked him up. On the way to the capital of Yuandu, Wen Tianxiang took advantage of the chaos to escape. To the south, he contacted the small court of the Southern Song Dynasty and recalled his old ministry in an attempt to turn the tide.
Under the resistance of Wen Tianxiang, the small imperial court recovered more than ten county towns in Jiangxi and Fujian. Wen Tianxiang hoped that the spark could start a prairie fire, but he only waited for the internal morale to dissipate and disintegrate.
In 1278, after two years of struggle, his mother and eldest son died due to the plague, Wen Tianxiang was betrayed by his men, and he was again captured by the Yuan army.
He had just been arrested, and he would rather die than give in, and tried to commit suicide by swallowing the dragon's brain, but was rescued, and the Yuan army wanted to use Wen Tianxiang to persuade the small court of the Southern Song Dynasty to surrender. But they were doomed to disappointment. Subsequently, he was escorted to Chaoyang to meet Zhang Hongfan, the chief general of the Yuan army.
Zhang Hongfan was still arrogant when he saw him in such a situation, and refused to bow down to him, but also showed some respect and treated him with courtesy.
Later, Zhang Hongfan wanted Wen Tianxiang to write a letter to persuade other recalcitrant people in the Southern Song Dynasty to surrender, but he refused. After three or four times, Wen Tianxiang wrote "Crossing Zero Ding Yang" to show his ambition.
In the second year, Wen Tianxiang was taken to witness the tragic battle of Yashan in person. Seeing that the last hope of the imperial court was gone, Wen Tianxiang only wanted to follow them and never wanted to surrender again.
Kublai Khan also heard that Wen Tianxiang was very talented, and wanted to subdue him for his own use, so he asked his two captured daughters, Liu Niang and Huanniang, to write to him to persuade him to surrender. After receiving this letter, Wen Tianxiang's heart was like a knife, but he was still indestructible before the national righteousness.
Kublai Khan, who originally wanted to let him go, decided to behead him directly under the idea that Wen Tianxiang might organize anti-Yuan soldiers again and cause trouble for them.
In 1283, Kublai Khan ordered Wen Tianxiang to be taken to the execution ground. After the execution, his wife, Ouyang, was allowed to collect the body.
She carefully put away her husband's body and saw a poem written on the pocket: his praise said: Kong said to be benevolent, Meng said to take righteousness, but his righteousness is exhausted, so benevolence is to the end. What do you learn when you read the books of the sages? Now and then, you are almost worthy of it! Song Cheng Prime Minister Wen Tianxiang is a masterpiece.
After seeing this poem, Ouyang remembered that she had persuaded her husband to surrender, and felt very ashamed, and after burying him, she also committed suicide.