Feng Zizhen (1251-1348), also known as Haisu, also known as Weiwei Taoist, also known as Yingzhou Ke, was a sanquist, poet and calligrapher in the Yuan Dynasty. A native of Xiangxiang (now part of Hunan Province), some say he was from Youzhou (now Youxian County, Hunan Province). "Feng's Genealogy" also records that he was born in the first year of Baoyou (1253).
Since childhood, he has been "well versed in classics and history, and has read everything in books." In the second year of Dade of Emperor Chengzong of the Yuan Dynasty (1298), he became a Jinshi at the age of 47 and was known as a "late bloomer". The imperial court valued his talents and learning, and first called him a bachelor and minister of Jixian Academy to "take turns to be on duty to prepare advisors"; he was subsequently appointed as minister of succession, and was re-elected as envoy of Baoning and Zhangde Jiedushi. He returned to his hometown and wrote in his later years. Posthumous Wenjian. When the official reaches the end of his career, he will serve as a minister, and he will collect talents and wait for the system. He is a man who knows a lot and has a strong memory, and is full of talents; he is quick in writing and can write thousands of words, relying on his horse to wait; he dominates the world with his articles.
He has been addicted to alcohol all his life. Whenever he is drunk and his ears are hot, he becomes very enthusiastic about poetry and writes it immediately while sitting at his desk. No matter how much paper is stored in his desk, he will finish it in one go. "History of the Yuan Dynasty: Biography of Confucianism" says: "The poems and prose written by Chen Fu in Tiantai were mostly arbitrary and did not need to be carved. Feng Zizhen of Youzhou had the same handsomeness as Fu, but Fu was in awe of him and thought he was unreachable. Zizhen was famous all over the world. He wrote down everything in the book; when he was writing, he was drunk and his ears were hot, so he ordered two or three people to write in Jian, Zizhen, according to the case, and the number of papers was all gone in an instant. The words are powerful and upright, and the Hong title is magnificent. Later scholars praised him as: "Haisu Feng Gong, he can write thousands of words with one stroke of his pen, and he can never write less than a thousand words. He is truly a hero of his lifetime." Yangzhou's "Stele Inscription of the Han Shouting Temple" was written by Su Changling, Feng Zizhen and Zhao Mengfu. It was praised as one of the "Three Uniques" by later generations.
Feng Zizhen once visited Zhao Mengfu in Wuxing, Zhejiang. While drinking, he happened to see a poem and painting of plum blossoms made by Zhao. He then wrote and composed poems, including "Remembering Plum Blossoms", "Dream of Plum Blossoms", "Friends of Plum Blossoms", "Send Plum Blossoms" and other 100 poems. "My home is in the south of the Yangtze River, my friends are orchids, and plum blossoms are my favorite. Friendships are inseparable from each other in life, and I cherish the spring as the cold of the year." The sentence became popular for a while. He analyzed this work with the eminent monk Zhongfeng. When he arrived in Qiantang, Zhongfeng also wrote a hundred poems about plum blossoms in Xingbu rhyme. After reading it, Zhao Mengfu admired it so much that he titled it "Ode to Two Plum Blossoms" and asked someone to engrave and publish it.
Feng was good at composing poetry, and he was especially talented in sanqu. Although the content mostly described his personal leisure life, each poem expressed his noble artistic conception. His calligraphy was famous for his cursive calligraphy.
