Different scholars have different views. It is mainly because he was in love with the people and concerned about the life of the working people.
The mainstream idea of Upper River During Qingming Festival is to glorify the wisdom and strength of the lower class working people who created history and social wealth through the depiction of the prosperous economic life and folk customs of Bianliang, the capital city of the Northern Song Dynasty.
Ms. Cao Xingyuan, author of "In the Same Boat***: <Qingming Shanghe Tu> and the Conflict of Compromise in Northern Song Society," argues, "It is possible that Qingming Shanghe Tu was a response to the unspecified "Picture of a Displaced People" at the behest of the Emperor Shenzong. The artwork is an unobtrusive representation of the richness and peacefulness of the people of Tokyo during the Qingming Festival, rather than the dilemma of destitution and poverty. Or perhaps the Qingming Riverside Scroll was commissioned by some minister who had figured out the mind of the Emperor to please him."
But Mr. Yu Hui, the author of "Hidden Worries and Qu Qu Qu: <Qingming Riverside Scroll> Decoding Record," suggests that "Qingming Riverside Scroll" "profoundly reveals all the ills and hidden dangers of the city of Kaifeng, and it has a certain degree of social criticality. Painter's worries hidden in the heart of the depth of the painting advice now on the frame of the euphemism, only for the people of the time to recognize, and difficult for future generations to break. Its meaning is so deep and long that those who appreciate it can't bear to cover up the scroll." With Cao Xingyuan's insights can be described as tit-for-tat.
There is a high platform painted outside the city of Qingming Shanghe Tu, and Mr. Yu Hui pointed out that this is the fire lookout tower of Tokyo in the Song Dynasty: "The only fire lookout tower in the painting has been set up with tables and benches for relaxation, and there is no one downstairs to keep watch, and the fast horses that reported the fire are nowhere to be found." This is thought to be a hint of the artist in the city of Tokyo fire facilities in disrepair.