Guo Songtao,(1818 - 1891), also known as Yunxian, was born in Xiangyin, Hunan. In 1847, he was admitted to the Jinshi, and in 1853, he followed Zeng Guofan to form "Xiang Yong". In 1856, he served as Nanshufang Wandering, in 1863, he served as governor of Guangdong, and in early 1875, he served as governor of Fujian. He was China's first diplomat stationed abroad.

At the beginning of 1853 (the end of the second year of Xianfeng), he organized a regiment training with Zeng Guofan. In 1863 (the second year of Tongzhi), he served as governor of Guangdong and was deposed due to a loss of peace with Governor Rui Lin. In 1875 (the first year of Guangxu), he served as Fujian Provincial Justice and Assistant Minister of the Ministry of War.

In 1876, Liu Xihong was the first envoy to the United Kingdom, and he served as deputy envoy. On January 21, 1877 (the eighth day of December, the second year of Guangxu), he left Shanghai for Britain. In 1878, he served as Minister to France. He was recalled by the Qing government in August 1878 and lived idle since then. He died in 1891. Advocate learning Western science and technology. He is the author of "Yangzhi Bookstore Daoji","Shixi Ji Cheng","Records of the Historian","Questions on the Book of Rites", as well as poetry collections, memorials, etc.