As the Kuomintang government receded to Taiwan in 1949, Pu Hsin-Yu arrived from Zhejiang and became a professor at the Arts Faculty of the National Taiwan Normal University. His achievement in art education was profound with numerous students including Wu Yung-Hsiang, Liu He-Bei and Chiang Chao-Shen. In an article written by reputable scholar Dong Qiao in commemorating his friendship with Chiang Chao-Shen, he wrote that Chiang took Pu's teaching to his heart and quoted from the teacher, "Manner comes first, studies come next. Literature and calligraphy is just a hobby, but we cannot forego our fortune for its pleasure." Chiang said that Pu was a hermit in character without regard to material pleasure, and this could be observed from his poems and his art.

This work was painted in 1952 with a disrupting sentiment over the turbulence in his hometown. Such uncertainty of the future caused variations in his emotions. Pu's persistence enabled him to paint with close resemblance to ancient scholar paintings, as a remembrance towards old times. The work uses predominantly the left side and the style is close to a sketch. Dried brush was used for axe-cun and hemp strokes, to depict the rugged hills and highrise mountains. Blank spaces suggest thick haze which hides distant mountains, and enhances the elusiveness of Nature. Two old pines rose from the steep cliff in the foreground. Their curvaceous trunk twisted with one another and in harmony. Dense and fine strokes were used as leaves, which is typical of Pu's style. The stillness of the scenery was enhanced by a small boat sailing smoothly across the river. The whole painting is peaceful and tranquil. Inscription at the top suggests that the work was completed at night in winter, where he was alone yet peaceful in mind. Such state of mind echoes with the style of the Northern School, making this painting one of the classics of Pu Hsin-Yu.