Complete Tang Ci

Bai Juyi (772–846), courtesy name Letian and styled Xiangshan Jushi, was born in Xinzheng, Henan, with ancestral roots in Taiyuan. A leading Tang dynasty realist poet, he championed the New Yuefu movement together with Yuan Zhen, and the two were known as "Yuan-Bai"; he is also paired with Liu Yuxi as "Liu-Bai." Bai Juyi served as a Hanlin academician and Left Remonstrator, among other posts. His wide-ranging work includes satirical poems on the hardships of ordinary people and long narrative and lyrical songs. Masterpieces such as "Song of Everlasting Sorrow," "Song of the Pipa," and "The Charcoal Seller" are noted for their plain, natural language and sincere feeling, and have exerted a lasting influence on later poetry. His Bai Shi Changqing Collection survives, and this library holds 77 of his works, including poems, prose collections, and verse groups such as Poems from Qin and Spring by the Xunyang River, commonly classed under ancient poetry, classic works, and inspirational growth.

Wen Tingyun was a poet and ci lyricist of the Tang dynasty. Public sources offer limited information about his life, and details such as his birth and death dates and native place cannot be reliably established. The library holds 17 related works, including Wen Tingyun Ci Collection, Wen Tingyun Ci Collection and Wei Zhuang Ci Collection, and Among the Flowers, as well as appearances in anthologies such as the Ci Series and Essential Records of Ci Masters Through the Ages; they are generally classified under classical poetry, literary appreciation, and classic works. Wen Tingyun's ci are known for their gentle, ornate style; he excelled at layering imagery and depicting moods in polished, restrained language, and he had a profound influence on the development of the Among the Flowers style. His poetry also has merit, touching on travel, farewell, and personal reflection. Overall, he is regarded as an important figure in the development of the ci genre in the late Tang, and his works are frequently mentioned in later anthologies and ci scholarship.