Mi Heng - in Popular Culture

In Popular Culture

A number of stories detailing Mi Heng's insulting manner survive from traditional China. Perhaps the most famous is a story carried in the Book of the Later Han, where Cao Cao attempts to shame Mi Heng by making him a drum master to play at the imperial court. The previous drum master warned Mi Heng always to turn up dressed in fresh attire; however he arrived at the next court party dressed in shabby robes and played Triple Tolling of Yuyang, a poignant sad piece that reduced to tears all the guests. Halfway through the performance, a court attendant asked why he had not changed his clothes. Mi Heng stripped naked and continued playing without ever appearing ashamed. Cao Cao remarked that his attempt to shame Mi Heng had boomeranged back on him.

Another story carried by both the Book of the Later Han and Taiping Yulan describes Mi Heng sitting outside Cao Cao's command tent, banging on the ground with a branch and yelling out disparaging remarks about Cao Cao and his ancestors. A third story describes Mi Heng's demeanour at Huang Zu's banquet, sitting and eating before his elders and those of higher rank, and playing with his food as soon as he had eaten his fill.

Li Bai wrote a poem called Looking at Parrot Island, Remembering Mi Heng. Parrot Island was the reputed burial site of Mi Heng.