Writers › Writer / Poet

Yan Shu

Northern Song chief minister and lyric poet, admitted to office as a child prodigy, who brought Fan Zhongyan, Han Qi and Fu Bi into government

Also known as Zi Tongshu · Linzi Gong · Yuan Xian

Yan Shu, courtesy name Tongshu, came from Linchuan in Fuzhou and could compose prose at seven. Early in the Jingde era he was recommended as a child prodigy, sat the palace examination with a thousand candidates and was granted jinshi status by Emperor Zhenzong. Under the regency of Empress Dowager Liu he angered her by opposing Zhang Qi's appointment to the Bureau of Military Affairs, and after striking an attendant with his court tablet he was sent to govern Xuanzhou. He became head of the Bureau of Military Affairs in the Kangding era and in the Qingli years served as chief minister as well, while Fan Zhongyan, Han Qi and his son-in-law Fu Bi were brought into the government. After his dismissal he spent years in provincial posts and died in the capital in 1055, receiving the posthumous name Yuanxian. His song lyrics survive as Pearls and Jade (Zhuyu ci), and his son Yan Jidao also became known for his lyrics.

Life and times

  1. 991 CEBornSong
  2. 1055 CEDied

Works

  1. Literature · Lyrics10
    1. Silk-Washing Stream (A Cup of Wine with a New Song)SongYan Shu's short lyric: a cup in a small garden and the quiet return of what time takes away
    2. Butterflies Love Flowers · A Winding Railing by Green TreesSongA spring lyric that moves from a garden at Qingming to a sweet dream broken by birdsong
    3. Treading the Grass · Red Grows Sparse on the Little PathSongYan Shu's late-spring lyric of idle sorrow, told through scenery and left unspoken
    4. Silk-Washing Stream · This Brief Life and Its Measured YearsSongYan Shu's short ci on the brevity of life and the wisdom of cherishing those at hand
    5. Peace and Happiness · Small Characters on Red NotepaperSongYan Shu's short ci of a love letter that cannot be sent and a lonely watch from the west tower
    6. +5 more
      1. Peace and Happiness · The Autumn Wind Blows SoftSongYan Shu's short ci of early autumn: new wine, a deep nap and the season's first faint chill
      2. Magnolia Blossom · After Swallows and Geese, the Orioles LeaveSongYan Shu's short ci on life's fleeting meetings, ending in advice to get drunk among the flowers
      3. Magnolia Blossom · Green Pond Water, a Warm BreezeSongYan Shu's short ci recalling a first meeting in song and dance, and the friends since lost
      4. Magnolia Blossom · Green Willows on the Road by the Long PavilionSongYan Shu's short ci of a woman left behind, whose longing outlasts the ends of the earth
      5. Treading the Grass · Farewell Songs at the Parting FeastSongYan Shu's short ci of a farewell at the long pavilion, watching the boat until sunset
  2. Literature · Sayings3
    1. As If Met BeforeSongIdiom from Yan Shu's Silk-Washing Stream: a feeling of having met before
    2. Helplessly the Flowers FallSongIdiom from Yan Shu's Silk-Washing Stream: helpless as beauty fades or the tide turns
    3. Swallows Return, as if Known BeforeSongLine from Yan Shu's lyric to Huanxisha: flowers fall, familiar swallows return
  3. Literature · Poetry1
    1. Feelings Lodged in WordsSongYan Shu remembers a past meeting and a love he can no longer reach, even by letter

Family tree

  1. Direct kin
    Yan Shu
    Youngest son
    Yan Jidao