天真烂漫 — “Innocent and artless”

During the late Southern Song Dynasty, there was a painter named Zheng Sixiao. As a student of the imperial academy, he once participated in the imperial examinations for scholars. Later, when the northern Mongol nobles invaded from the south, he submitted a memorial to the court advocating resistance, but his proposal was not adopted.

After the fall of the Southern Song Dynasty, he changed his name to "Sixiao." The character "Xiao" ( 肖) is a radical of "Zhao" ( 赵), the imperial surname of the Song dynasty, indicating his eternal longing for the Southern Song. He then lived in seclusion in a temple in Suzhou.

In his dwelling, Zheng Sixiao hung a large plaque inscribed with four characters he personally wrote: "Ben Xue Shi Jie" ( 本穴世界). This was a clever way to express his continued allegiance to the Song Dynasty; "Ben" ( 本) is composed of "Da" ( 大) and "Shi" ( 十), and by placing "Shi" inside "Xue" ( 穴), it forms "Song" ( 宋), thus signifying "Great Song." This showed that he still considered himself living within the territory of the Great Song.

One day, he painted two scrolls of ink orchids, each about five inches tall and over ten feet long. The ink orchids in the painting naturally had no roots in the soil. He also inscribed eight characters on the painting: "Pure gentlemen, absolutely no villains." After appreciating this painting, everyone praised it enthusiastically, unanimously commending its pure, natural, and vibrant quality, reflecting the "innocent and artless" spirit.