Xin Qiji

Led 50 horsemen into the Jin camp to seize a traitor; after returning south he became a poet of the heroic-abandon school.

Life

Jinan loyalist army

Xin Qiji was born in Jinan under Jin rule. In 1161, at 21, he gathered 2,000 followers and joined the anti-Jin volunteer army led by Geng Jing.

Seized a traitor with 50 horsemen

In 1162 he was sent south to make contact with the Song court. On his way back he learned that Geng Jing had been killed by the traitor Zhang Anguo. Leading some 50 horsemen, he burst into a Jin camp of 50,000, captured Zhang Anguo alive, and brought him south as a prisoner, winning instant renown.

Hero of ci poetry

In the Southern Song he repeatedly submitted strategies for a Northern Expedition but was long denied important posts, and was several times dismissed and lived in retirement at Shangrao and Yanshan. He poured his longing to serve his country into his ci poems, with lines such as "Drunk, I trim the lamp to look at my sword" and "swallowing ten thousand li like a tiger," making him the leading figure of the heroic-abandon school. He died in 1207.

Legacy

Xin Qiji was the leading figure of the heroic-abandon school of Song ci poetry and is paired with Su Shi as "Su and Xin"; his lyrics are full of the ambition to recover the Central Plains.

Major works & achievements

• "Po Zhen Zi"
• "Yong Yu Le: Reflections on the Past at Beigu Pavilion in Jingkou"
• "Qing Yu An: Lantern Festival"

Did you know? More than 600 of his ci poems survive, the most of any Song dynasty ci poet.

Key dates

• 1161Joined Geng Jing's volunteer army
• 1162Burst into the Jin camp to seize a traitor; returned south
• 1181Dismissed and lived in retirement at Shangrao
• 1205Wrote "To the Tune of Yong Yu Le: Recalling the Past at Beigu Pavilion in Jingkou"
• 1207Died