By Manfield & Lisa

　　I've written something about one of the three nationwide famous towers of China, the Yellow Crane Tower, located in Wuhan municipality lying across both Yangtze riversides. And in this issue of Chinaweek, I want to introduce another tower called Teng-Wang-Ge (Teng-Prince-Pavilion). The Chinese character Ge with more meanings, one of which is usually a 2-storeyed building in ancient China. However, the pavilion-like building of Prince Teng was a 9-storeyed magnificent one with a 12-meter-high rampart as its steady foundation. It covered 9,400 square meters, and situated near the bank of Ganjiang River. At first, it was established in 653 (the Tang-Dynasty) while Prince Teng was appointed as the first top leader or governor of Hongzhou (today's Nanchang, the capital of East China's Jiangxi Province). Prince Teng was one of the sons of the first emperor Li Yuan, the Tang Dynasty. And the original ancient building or tower had been destroyed or burnt for several times. The present one was rebuilt and patterned upon the Song Dynasty's classic style in 1989. The top roof, the flying-like eaves and all the green-glazed tiles are especially characteristic of the ancient Chinese architecture. Seen from the outside, it is a 3-storeyed pavilion with winding corridors but its inner is of a 7-storeyed structure with four secret floors, which stands on a 2-layer rampart to form a 9-layer building in all used to symbolize the 9-layer-heaven.

　　At the gateway hangs an inscribed board with four Chinese characters [gui-wei-jue-te] gorgeous, sublime, unique and peculiar?quoted from a classic litterateur Hanyu's (768-824) verse. The 4.5 meter-long couplets written by Chairman Mao on both of the red pillars read the rosy fading clouds and a lonely wild duck fly together, the colors of the autumn water and the vast sky mergesintosone?quoted from poet Wang Bo's Foreword to the Pavilion). Inside the pavilion, the white marble sculpture writes up the Chinese characters time and again the breeze comes to cherish the Pavilion? retelling poet Wangbo's story related to the Pavilion. From the second-floor to the sixth, there are different kinds of exhibition contents such as (a) Jiangxi-Province's remarkable Historical Figures? (including 80 famous portraits from the period of Pre-Qin to the end of the Qing Dynasty), (b) the dramatic story adapted from peony Pavilion?written by the eastern Shakespeare, Tangxianzu (1550-1616), (c) the Rich Land?(displaying not only natural landscapes or scenic spots with good views in Jiangxi but also a land being pregnant with beauty and genius), and so on. And on the fifth floor, a bird-eye view will cover the vast and hazy river, the verdant mountains, the floating clouds as well as the whole city with busy people and rushing vehicles. In the west hall of the sixth floor are displayed various replicas of China's ancient musical instruments from which visitors can enjoy different sweet and pleasant melodies.

　　Why do the Chinese people know the Pavilion so well? One of the most important reasons is related to the poet genius Wang Bo (650-676) who wrote a sensational poetic prose as a foreword or prologue to the Pavilion of Prince Teng.

　　Poet Wang Bo was once invited to an official banquet in the Pavilion while he kept his father Wang Fuzhi company to take up an official post, (a top leader or governor of Jiaozhi County in today's northern part of Vietnam). Wang Bo was excited to make an extemporaneous Pianwen [a poetic style of prose full of antithetical words or expressions, usually with a matching of both sound and sense in two lines or sentences with the same parts of speech.]

　　It's poet Wang Bo's literary talent that has brought glory to the Pavilion of Prince Teng.

　　Nowadays most people may have no opportunity to visit it, but they can recite some lines of poet Wang Bo's Foreword to the ancient pavilion. Actually, Wang Bo's writing charm with magic power has aroused the Chinese people to form a beautiful picture in mind that is an eternal power to attract them to have a look at it. And me, too. I have forgot a lot of literary works in our regular schooling textbooks, however, still not forgot reciting Wang Bo's lines. For example:

　　The autumn river shares a scenic hue with the vast sky;

　　The evening glow parallels with a lonely duck to fly.

　　Wang Bo's Foreword to the Teng-Prince-Pavilion has won universal praise, which is still to enjoy great popularity and be on everybody's lips.

　　His prose is made out of just 726 Chinese characters.

　　The following are much more popular lines often to be quoted by the Chinese people.

　　The bright produce connected with the heavenly treasure store;

　　The efficaciously natural land can foster the remarkable people.

　　Good friends arrive repeatedly as clouds float.

　　Distinguished guests are all present at banquet.

　　It is the ninth month with the full moon

　　As the third one of the autumn season.

　　The Liao River turned dry, the cool lake clear;

　　The sunset hilltop covered by the violet vapor.

　　............

　　The lofty pointed hills in dark green

　　Seemed to be climbing the heaven.

　　The flying-like pavilion in vermilion

　　Seemed to be a no-ground mansion.

　　The settling-down cranes on the islet

　　Were managing to linger and hover over it.

　　Both laurel temples and sandalwood palaces

　　Were arranged to situate along the hill-ridges

　　With the embroidered gates

　　And carved roofs.

　　The mountains and plains have eyesight widen;

　　Twisting creeks and rippling pools in the curious vision.

　　The rich homes?doors lie along every street and lane;

　　The bell ringing, the food in pot-tripod had well done.

　　Uncountable heavy boats work at the ferry often

　　With the bow like bird and the stern like dragon.

　　The clouds are vanishing away with no rain,

　　Under the sky shining brightly is the sun.

　　............

　　Fishermen are singing a song at dusk

　　To be spreading across the Boyang lake.

　　With a sudden cold the wild geese start to fly

　　In a long line, over the H-wetland, losing their cry.

　　From his above lines written in the Chinese Pianwen-style, it is not hard for us to know some information about the Prince Teng's Pavilion with its surroundings nearby. As an ancient youngest litterateur and poet, Wang Bo wrote the Foreword to the Pavilion just at age of 25. He completed the poetic prose on the double-ninth day in 675 (the ninth day of the ninth month, namely, September 9 in the Chinese lunar calendar). And a year later he died young when he was 26 years old. Although his article has been 1326 years old, still he is a young talented poet living in the Chinese people's mind.

　　As a saying goes, the writing mirrors the writer.That's true. Within 726 Chinese characters or words of his writing, not only could we know the beautiful landscape in vivid detail, but also we might learn something about his great ambitions that never had come true in his ancient times. On one hand we all envy his great talent, on the other hand we all show great sympathy to his unfortunate fate with some bitter sufferings. In addition to describing some good views around the Pavilion, also he was excited to talk his own mind and take a series of historical events with some talented persons as examples. None of them had had any good opportunity to be a key person playing an important role in China's history. One was a knight named Feng Tang serving in the army during the period of Hanwudi (Emperor Liu Che (156BC-87BC)). He had been in a lower position for a very long time. When the Emperor wanted to find a military man to be appointed as a higher officer in the court, Feng Tang was recommended as a candidate who was 90 years old. Another was Li Guang who had not appointed to be a marquis despite his great warring contribution in plenty. And still another was Jia YI appointed just as a tutor teaching the prince in Changsha though he was a great litterateur contributing a great deal to the Han Dynasty. Wang Bo mentioned one after another historically well known persons being so versatile and gifted in many ways that they might threaten those who were commonplace but toadying to the emperor or other higher officials. As for his own experience, he complained about no opportunity to join the military army as a brave fighter as Zhong Jun (a famous learned person in the Han Dynasty) being ordered to capture a king of the enemy in history though they were both at age of 20. However, he had never stopped to seek for carrying out his great ambition with his strong will until he passed away abruptly.

　　Why do Chinese people love Wang Bo so much that his legend has been still told all over China. From the Yellow Crane Tower, we know a legend that the yellow crane was carrying a fairy whose name was Wang Zian. As everybody knows, Wang Zian is not the other but Wang Bo. Originally Wang Bo styled himself Wang Zian. The legend tells us our great poetic genius, Wang Bo has never been separated from the Chinese common people all over China. When he was young, he had been extremely rich in the Chinese historical events and stories as well as other fields of knowledge. He had a good command of all kinds of information in his own times. Therefore he could write such an article that would last forever. We have every reason to be proud of him and it is he that has brought great glory to the Chinese culture both in prose and poetry.