The poetess selected a writing brush and found a smooth space on one of the building's pillars. She wrote:
Bitterly I search for the right words,
For this poem, written under my lamp.
I cannot sleep the long night,
Fearing the lonely coverlets.
In the garden outside
Is the soft rustling of the autumn leaves.
The moon shines forlornly
Through the gauze window panes.
The poetess Yoo-lan wrote those lines during the course of a party celebrating Autumn in one of Robert Van Gulik's marvelous historical mysteries about Judge Dee, a district magistrate and (eventually) senior government official in T'ang dynasty China. At the time, Yoo-lan was a prisoner, although one given great privileges. She was being transported to the ancient capital of China, nearly 15 centuries ago, where she would be put on trial to determine whether she was guilty of murdering a servant girl. Her poem will play a significant part in the mystery you'll find in Robert Van Gulik's final book about Judge Dee. The book is called Poets and Murder, first published in 1968, the year after its author's death, and it is the subject of my audio review today on the Classic Mysteries podcast. You are invited to listen to the complete podcast by clicking here.
Judge Dee was, in fact, a real Chinese official in the T’ang dynasty, known and revered in Chinese literature and history as a brilliant detective and statesman. He lived between the years 630 and 700. In the 20th century, a Dutch diplomat and Orientalist, Robert Van Gulik, wrote a series of historical mysteries with Judge Dee as the protagonist.
Poets and Murder is set in the fictional district of Chin-hwa, where Magistrate Lo is planning a celebration in honor of the Mid-Autumn Festival. He has invited several distinguished poets and scholars to stay with him for the celebration as his guests. Also invited: his colleague and friend, Judge Dee, the magistrate of the neighboring district of Poo-yang. But even as the two magistrates discuss Lo’s plans for the event, they are interrupted by news of a murder in the town: a young man, a student named Soong, has been found with his throat slashed. Magistrate Lo is distraught – an amateur poet himself, he has been looking forward to sharing his poems with the distinguished guests. His primary duty, however, must be to investigate this murder. Judge Dee volunteers to help him collect facts about the crime. And so we follow Judge Dee as he asks questions, and uncovers facts about additional murders, while juggling the exact and unbending social protocols involved with acting as host to such distinguished guests – one or more of whom may be a murderer.
That’s only a bare outline of the plot, which is definitely on the dark side. As always, a great deal of enjoyment will be found in the depiction of the way of life in seventh century China, as seen through Judge Dee’s eyes. Robert Van Gulik was extremely knowledgeable about the social history of dynastic China, and there is a great deal to be learned and enjoyed in his telling of this story of Poets and Murder. I recommend it to you.
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