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There is a group of people who have always been discriminated against in Chinese history. They are eunuchs, who are often associated with the words "sinister", "evil" and "shrewd". Some historians even regard "eunuchs interfering in politics" as one of the signs of the country's demise. However, there are exceptions to everything. Many virtuous eunuchs are not only capable assistants to the monarch, but also accelerate the progress of history. The most famous of them is Gao Lishi.

Gao Lishi, whose real name was Feng Yuanyi, was born in the first year of Guangzhai (684). When he was 9 years old, the Feng family was involved in a conspiracy case, and he was convicted and castrated and sent to the palace. Such a "hell start" would be difficult for an ordinary person to survive, but he met a noble person in his life, and his life began to "take off". This person wasGao Yanfu。

Gao Yanfu was also born in Lingnan, and was a fellow villager of Feng Yuanyi, so he adopted him as his son and named him Lishi. With Gao Yanfu's introduction, Gao Lishi was able to meet Li Longji, which paved the way for him to enjoy wealth and glory in the second half of his life. Gao Lishi's wisdom in dealing with people, participating in government affairs, and even dealing with people were all taught to him by Gao Yanfu, and Gao Yanfu was also the most virtuous eunuch in history.

He served four emperors, Wu Zetian, Tang Zhongzong, Tang Ruizong, and Tang Xuanzong, and was highly favored and even granted the title of Duke of Bohai County. In the 14th year of Kaiyuan (726), Gao Yanfu died of illness. Tang Xuanzong was so sad that he stopped attending court for several days and personally issued an imperial decree.Gao Lishi, Su LingzhiWriting the inscription, this is the origin of "Epitaph of Gao Yanfu".

The full name of this epitaph is "Epitaph and Preface of the Late Tang Dynasty Zhongdafu Shounei Shi Shangzhuguo Bohai Gaofujun", which is 74 cm long and 75 cm wide, with 27 lines, 27 characters per line, 729 characters, and a character diameter of about 3 cm. Su Lingzhi was the leading calligrapher in the reign of Emperor Xuanzong. His contemporaries praised his calligraphy as being superior to Yan Zhenqing and Li Yong: "Compared to Beihai, he is more solemn, and compared to Taishi, he is more witty."

The Xuanhe Calligraphy Collection even believes that the beauty of his calligraphy is not inferior to that of Xixian: "The running script has the style of the two Wangs, but the achievement is sudden and free". This tombstone has been buried deep underground since its completion and was not discovered until the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. The then Shaanxi Provincial Surveillance Commissioner and collector Bi Yuan spent 20,000 coins to buy it: "This stele used to be in a farmer's house and was almost used as a pillar. In the fifth month of the Xinchou year of the Qianlong period, I bought it for 20,000 coins and now it has been moved to Lingyan Mountain Pavilion."

After being restored by Bi Yuan, this stele looks brand new, and the original rubbing has become our first choice for studying this stele.Unfortunately, the original rubbing flowed into Japan and was treasured by the island country's royal family for generations as a "family heirloom", and was only recently made public for the first time.

The clarity of the stroke details in the first copy is clearer than that of the original stele today. It has not been damaged by later generations.Almost every character looks as if it was newly carved, and even the concave and convex "stone flowers" are clearly visible.The Epitaph of Gao Yanfu is solemn and rigorous, with a touch of running script in the regular script, and is in the same vein as the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion and the Preface to the Sacred Teachings. The momentum of the strokes is high in the air, and the strokes are vigorous and beautiful. The twists at the beginning and end of the strokes and the straight strokes all restore the style of the Wei and Jin Dynasties.

Looking at this stele as a whole, it combines the beauty and elegance of the Two Wangs' running script with the solemnity and neatness of the Tang regular script. Each character is a "standard textbook", containing the orthodox brushwork and charm of the Jin and Tang dynasties.

Now, after much effort, we have reproduced the original copy in ultra-high definition 12 colors and launched this exclusive folding package.And add explanations one by one, which is very convenient for you to copy and appreciate. If you are interested, please click the link below to have a look!