Song Melody

The stars have shifted countless times, and the years are too many to recount. For three hundred years, the Song realm stretched for thousands of miles. Its armies were well equipped and well supplied. It commanded the lands of the Baiyue in the east and held back the western tribes, controlled the southern peoples, and stood behind strong northern fortresses. Yet when fortune failed, it fobbed off its foes with brothers, uncles, and nephews. When disaster struck, it gave away its land and treasures. And the western barbarians grew ever bolder. A dead tree and a cold crow cry mournfully into the west wind; a lone wild goose among the clouds gazes down upon the mountains and rivers and sings a long lament. The people gave their lives to build a three-thousand-mile Great Wall; eighty thousand soldiers stood ready under their commanders, bows in hand. How could we cede land and sue for peace? How could we bow our heads and bend our backs? Blood congealed in the ravines, and beacon smoke rose to the clouds. The people cursed by the roadside, while ruler and ministers sat secure in the court. How can summer insects understand ice? With a paulownia lute, how can one sing of little bridges and flowing streams? Ah, for iron steeds and golden spears, let the northern melodies ring out! With a cup of rough wine and a long sword, one may survey the rivers and mountains; yet gazing in all directions, how can one fulfill the ambitions of a seven-foot man? Buddhist shrines resound with chants and drums, and we have heard tell of the music of paradise. Old tunes and new lyrics do no more than console the heart of the Azure Emperor. The Song realm was the richest under heaven, with hundreds of thousands of imperial troops stationed within its borders. Yet they could not repel foreign invaders from without or purge treacherous officials from within. Should we reform the law to save the realm, or overturn heaven and earth to revive China?【【【Please support and collect this new novel】】】