Chinese poet, Xu Jun (徐骏), during the Qing dynasty.
Xu Jun said at a parting with a friend:
明月有情还顾我，清风无意不留人
“If the bright moon has feelings it will look after me; if the cool breeze has no intentions it will not keep people.”
This couplet was understood by the Emperor as expressing allegiance to the previous Ming dynasty (明 míng = bright) rather than the current Qing dynasty (清 qīng = clear, cool).
At another time the poet wrote:
清风不识字，何故乱翻书
“Why is the cool breeze ruffling the book when it cannot read?”
While this is a beautiful poetic image, it helped lead to the poet’s execution. It was saying that the Manchu conquerors (the ‘cool breeze’, that is, the Qing) were illiterate.
(Source: Quora)
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