Picture scroll of Li Tang picking Wei

[Li Tang Picking Flowers]

The Painting of Picking Flowers, written by Song and Li Tang, in silk, with light color in ink, 27.2 cm vertically and 90.5 cm horizontally
This is a painting with a historical theme, which is based on the story of Boyi and Shuqi in the late Yin Dynasty who “ate nothing”. In the Records of the Historian written by Sima Qian, there are “biographies of Boyi”. Boyi and Shuqi are the two sons of Gu Zhu Jun, the vassal of the Yin Dynasty (the country is now in the south of Lulong, Hebei Province). Gu Zhu Jun made his third son Shuqi his successor. After the death of Guzhujun, Shuqi wanted to give his inheritance to his brother Boyi, who refused to accept it, saying that it was his father’s order and should not be violated, and finally ran away. Shuqi also ran away from home. After leaving, the two brothers defected to Xibo Jichang (King Wen of Zhou). Soon after Jichang died, his son Jifa (King Wu of Zhou) wanted to send troops to fight against King Zhou. Boyi and Shuqi stopped Jifa’s horse head to remonstrate, believing that the vassals rebelled against the king and were immoral. After King Wu defeated Zhou, Boyi and Shuqi were deeply ashamed. They expressed their determination not to eat the food grown from the land of the Zhou Dynasty, so they fled to Shouyang Mountain (in Yongji County, Shanxi Province) and ate wild vegetables to satisfy their hunger. Finally, they both starved to death in the mountains, Before he died, he also wrote a song of picking the rose: “Climb the western mountain, pick the rose! Be violent, and I don’t know whether it is wrong! The Shennong Yu Xia suddenly disappeared, and I will go back safely? In the end, my life will decline!” It expressed the determination not to yield
The Painting of Picking Weeds painted by Li Tang focuses on portraying these two ancient characters who would rather die than lose their integrity. In the picture, Boyi and Shuqi are sitting opposite on a slope between the cliffs. Boyi holds his knees with both hands, and his eyes are bright and firm; Shuqi leaned forward and said he was willing to follow. Boyi and Shuqi were both beautiful, thin and physically tortured by living in the wild and feeding on wild vegetables, but they were not overwhelmed by hardship in spirit. Without much ink, the author vividly portrayed the expressions of Boyi and Shuqi in a specific environment, reaching a very high level
Li Tang used this historical story to praise those who kept their integrity and denounce the surrender and treachery. At that time, when the Southern Song Dynasty faced off with the Jin State, it could be said that it was “using the past to satirize the present”, with good intentions