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This song is taken from the section “Biography of Zhang Ba” (《张霸传》) in History of the Latter Han Dynasty (《后汉书》) by Fan Ye (范晔, 398-445). The book’s brief introduction to the song says, “In the middle of the Reign Yongning, Zhang Ba was appointed prefect of Kuaiji. When he arrived in Yue, he found the prefecture in chaos because of the rebellion, therefore he had notices posted to make clear the government’s policy, to arouse the local people and to warn the rebels. To people’s delight, he soon made the rebels surrender without resorting to arms. Hence there’s the ballad in praise of him.”