The Grave of Yue Fei and the War against Jin

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The grave of Yue Fei is located at the north bank of the west section of Beishan Road, at the northwest corner of West Lake by the south side of Qixia Hill in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. It’s the place to commemorate the national hero, Yue Fei. Yue Fei(1103-1142) grew up in Tangyin County of Henan and became a major figure in Southern Song(1127-1279) as a general in the war against Jin. Yue Fei came from a peasant family. He is extremely obedient and followed the slogan that his mother punctured on his back,”loyal to the country.”He had been abiding by this rule all his life. He joined the army in 1126 and repeatly gained battle achievements. He was promoted from a soldier to a marshal. He established the Yue Troop, which was very disci-plined and brave. Their spirit made the Jin (1115-1234) soldiers moaned,”It’s easier to shake a mountain than to shake the Yue Troop!”Yue Fei commanded 12 6 battles in his life and neveronce was defeated. He once led his troop and reoccupied the fallen capital Jiankang(Nanjing).

He had led his troop north and reoccupied Luoyang and Shangzhou. But each vistory was destroyed by the court of Southern Song that preferred to enjoy peace and feared war.

In 1140，General Wuzhu of Jin led four troops to conquer the South.The Yue Troop fought vigorously and achieved victory in Yancheng.They occupied Zhuxian Town and were just 45 kilometers from Kaifeng.They claimed to destroy the head quarter of the enemy and celebrate afterwards.However，the Song Emperor Zhao Gou and Prime Minister Qin Hui wanted to sue for peace and commanded Yue Fei to return after the vistory. Yue Fei returned with tears in his eyes and deeply sighed,”Ten years of effort is down the drains in one day. All the acquired states are finished in one day. It is hard for our country to prosper again. We have lost the world!”Yue Fei was immediately dismissed from his post. Zhao Gou and Qin Hui then instigated Zhang Jun and Moqi Xie to make false testimony and frame a case against Yue Fei.

Yue Fei was put to prison for the accusal of rebellion. Yue Fei griefly wrote”The sun can clear the evidence! The sun can clear the evidence!”to express his emotions. Wuzhu then passed theinformation,”Song must kill Yue Fei and they will agree to peace.”Zhou Gou and Qin Huicomplied to the enemy’s indication and decided to kill Yue Fei. In 1142, Yue Fei, his son Yue Yun, and his subordinate Zhang Xian were killed at Fengbo Kiosk. Yue Fei was at the age of 39. Another general Han Shizhong interrogated Qin Hui what crime Yue Fei had committed. Qin Hui answered reluctantly,”Might be.”Han Shizhong solemnly said,”How can ‘ might be’ persuade the country?”After Yue Fei was killed, some loyal people moved the corpses out and buried them at the bank of West Lake. After 21 years, the unjust charge of Yue Fei was reversed during the Xiaozong reign and Yue Fei was homaged as Lord E. The glorious battle achievements and the tragic end of Yue Fei aroused admiration and sympathy of the Chinese people through time. He was regarded as number one hero in Chinese history. The poetry he wrote during his northern expedition is very well known through the following centuries till today: The Whole River Red Rage bristling under the cap, I lean against the railing; The rushing rain has ceased.

The grave of Yue Fei lies in the Temple of Yue Fei today and it has become a tourist site.The Temple of Yue Fei was constructed from 122 1 of the Southern Song Dynasty.Today’s temple had been reconstructed twice in the Qing Dynasty（1644-1911）and during the Republic of China（1912-1949）.The temple appears majestic.Inside the hall stands the polychrome statue of Yue Fei.A huge plaque is hung above with Yue Fei’s grass style calligraphy，“Return my country.”At the right hand side of the hall is the grave of Yue Fei，surrounded by blocks.On the gravestone is the characters that says”the grave of Lord E Yue Fei.”His son Yue Yun’s grave is right beside his grave.On the sides of the grave path are terracotta warriors，stone horses，stone tigers, and stone sheep by Ming artists. Down the stairs of the grave path on both sides are four kneeling statues in iron fence. They are Qin Hui, Qin Hui’s wife Wang, Moqi Xie, and Zhang Jun, who plot the murder of Yue Fei. They are each with their hands behind their back, kneeling before the grave and receiving everyone’s spit and curse. Just as a couplet inscripted before the Yue Fei grave says,”The green mountains have the fortune to bury the loyal bones, the white iron is relentless to cast the evil minister.”On a wall at the front of the grave path, Ming artist Hong Zhu had written the characters “loyal to the country.”On the north and south sides are halls of steles, displaying hundreds of stone steles of different dynasties. There is another temple of Yue Fei in Yue Fei’s homeland, Tangyin of Henan.

The Southern Song Dynasty is a weak regime constituted in Hangzhou by Zhao Gou after Northern Song was destroyed by Jin. Facing intimidation from the Jin, the group that claimed for peace and the group that claimed to fight had undergone long term and vigorous confrontation. The group that claimed for peace was represented by Zhao Gou and Qin Hui.

And the group that claimed to fight was represented by Yue Fei, Han Shizhong, Liu Qi, and Hu Quan. Although Southern Song was weak, it possesses the rich land of southern China, plenty of fund and grains, experienced and adamant troops led by Yue Fei and Han shizhong, and the aspiration of Chinese people to reoccupy the north. If the government was united and in good faith, the war against the Jin was optimistic. They discarded the holy responsibility to defend the country and the people. They had become sinners forever. Throughout the Southern Song Dynasty, the opposition between the two parties had existed the whole time. It had become the lifeline of Southern Song and had been sung by Song poets repeatly. When the country was in peril, Yue Fei stood out boldly and dedicated his life to the country. He held back the invasion of the Jin troops and became the national hero forever.