Wang Bo

Wang Bo (648-675 or 649-676) was a literary writer of the Tang Dynasty. A native of Jiangzhou, Longmen (now Hejing, Shanxi), he was also known as Zi'an. The grandson of Wang Tong, Wang Bo was a prodigy child who could write essays at six. In early Lingde reign he was top in an oral test on current topics. He took up the office of adjutant administrator of Guozhou. Proud of his own talent and slighting others, he aroused jealousy and envy. Soon he faced the death penalty for some crime but the sentence was commuted to dismissal from office by an amnesty order. In 675 he went to see his father at Jiaozhi. As he was on his way via Nanchang, he was asked to write the Preface to Prince Teng's Pavilion on the spur of the moment. The writing took the entire audience of guests by surprise, since it was so well written that not even a punctuation mark could be added. He was drowned when crossing a sea.