Literary and classical — almost exclusively in Tang–Song poetry and historical writing. Modern Chinese uses 士兵 (shìbīng, soldier) or 旅人 (lǚrén, traveler) instead.
history
A staple image of Tang frontier poetry (边塞诗): the lonely soldier garrisoned at the empire's edge. 王昌龄's 征人 lines and Li Bai's 关山月 both center on this figure.
