The sweet syllables of poetry transport me across Dongting Lake. "The stirring solemnity of the serious-minded Fan Zhongyan could not contrast more sharply with the frolicky wit of the roguish Lu Dongbin. In the words of the mainland Chinese author Yu Qiuyu, a meeting of these two would certainly have been like" a bookworm crossing paths with a soldier. "
余秋雨說他兩人，一個端莊執著，一個頑潑曠達，悲壯與滑稽，格格不入，范仲淹遇到呂洞賓，「真是秀才遇到兵」。