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Ch’en Tzu-ang (661–702) was a censor at the court of Empress Wu, and Ts’ui Jung was editor of the court diary and calendar. In 696 Ts’ui was also assigned as court secretary to the army sent to pacify the Khitans. Dark skies of windblown loess are common in fall in North China, and “White Dew” is the name of a solar period in early September. A poem in the Book of Odes envisions the army as a tool for pacification rather than for war, and Lao-tzu says, “Fine swords aren’t auspicious tools” (31). The fifth and sixth lines refer to areas of Hopei province, including the Pohai seacoast, occupied by the Khitans. Lulung Pass was just inside the Great Wall east of Beijing, and the walls of Unicorn Hall were covered with portraits of heroes by Emperor Hsuan (r. 73–49 B.C.).

Seeing Off Editor Ts’ui Marching East

CH’EN TZU-ANG

Golden skies have turned forbidding

white dew marks the start of your mission

the empress’s armies don’t enjoy war

her generals shun fine swords

but ocean storms trouble the South

and border winds sweep the North

don’t sell out at Lulung Pass

or seek your fame at Unicorn Hall