A monument to heroes

Before Zhuge's first expedition, he sent a report to the throne, Liu's son, the new emperor, outlining his reasons for undertaking the expedition and expressing his lifelong devotion to the task of reunifying China.

His devotion to his country, as expressed in the article, influenced patriots of later generations, the most well-known being Yue Fei (1103-42), a national hero of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279).

Yue's famous poem The Whole River Red can be seen on a wall as visitors enter the main entrance to the temple.

The poem shows the general's determination to wipe out the enemies from northern China who toppled the Southern Song Dynasty and removed the royal family of the Northern Song Dynasty to the north, and reclaim the vast tracts of land lost to his enemies.

Zhuge's devotion to his country also influenced Liu Xiang, whose tomb is in a corner of the park to the west of the cultural relics area of the temple. Although Sichuan was not occupied by the invading Japanese army during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, it contributed greatly to the struggle.

Even though Sichuan soldiers were poorly equipped, often wearing straw sandals, they were nonetheless involved in almost all of the big battles against the invading Japanese.