1
Xiao He came from Pei. Because his paperwork was impeccable, he was appointed chief clerk to Pei’s chief administrator. While Liu Bang was still a commoner, Xiao He more than once used his office to shield him from trouble. After Liu Bang became a village head, Xiao He habitually looked out for him. When Liu Bang, as a conscripted clerk, went to Xianyang for corvée duty, his colleagues each gave him three hundred cash for the road; Xiao He alone gave five hundred. The Qin censor who oversaw the commandery, and the clerk who served under him, took up administrative questions with him. He was posted as a clerk in the Sishui commandery office and placed first in the assessment. The censor meant to recommend him to the court for appointment, but Xiao He held firm and was spared from having to go.
2
When Liu Bang was proclaimed Duke of Pei, Xiao He served as his assistant magistrate in charge of administration. When the Duke of Pei entered Xianyang, his generals rushed to loot the treasuries; Xiao He alone went straight to the archives and secured the Qin government’s statutes, ordinances, maps, and registers. Liu Bang knew the lie of the land—its defiles, population, relative strength, and the people’s grievances—only because Xiao He had preserved the Qin maps and records.
3
初，諸侯相與約，先入關破秦者王其地。 沛公既先定秦，項羽後至，欲攻沛公，沛公謝之得解。 羽遂屠燒咸陽，與范增謀曰：「巴蜀道險，秦之遷民皆居蜀。」 乃曰：「蜀漢亦關中地也。」 故立沛公為漢王，而三分關中地，王秦降將以距漢王。 漢王怒，欲謀攻項羽。 周勃、灌嬰、樊噲皆勸之，何諫之曰：「雖王漢中之惡，不猶愈於死乎？」 漢王曰：「何為乃死也？」 何曰：「今眾弗如，百戰百敗，不死何為？ 周書曰『天予不取，反受其咎』。 語曰『天漢』，其稱甚美。 夫能詘於一人之下，而信於萬乘之上者，湯武是也。 臣願大王王漢中，養其民以致賢人，收用巴蜀，還定三秦，天下可圖也。」 漢王曰：「善。」 乃遂就國，以何為丞相。 何進韓信，漢王以為大將軍，說漢王令引兵東定三秦。 語在信傳。
The rebel lords had agreed among themselves that whoever first broke through the passes and overthrew Qin would rule that territory. Liu Bang was first to subdue the Qin heartland; when Xiang Yu arrived later and meant to strike him, Liu Bang apologized and defused the threat. Xiang Yu then sacked and torched Xianyang. With Fan Zeng he reasoned, “The routes into Ba and Shu are treacherous, and Qin’s exiles have been settled in Shu.” So they declared, “Shu and Hanzhong still count as territory inside the passes.” They named Liu Bang King of Han, carved the Guanzhong region into three kingdoms for Qin’s surrendered generals, and set those kings there to hem him in. Enraged, the King of Han prepared to march against Xiang Yu. Zhou Bo, Guan Ying, and Fan Kuai urged him to fight, but Xiao He objected: “Even Hanzhong is preferable to annihilation.” The King of Han asked, “What makes you say that would mean our death?” Xiao He replied, “Our forces cannot match his. Fight a hundred times and you lose a hundred times—what then but death? The Documents of Zhou say, ‘What Heaven bestows, if you refuse it, you bring blame on yourself. The very phrase ‘Han of Heaven’ is a splendid omen. Tang and King Wu could submit to one ruler for a time and ultimately rise above the sovereign of ten thousand chariots. I urge Your Majesty to accept Hanzhong, cherish the people and draw men of talent to you, draw on the resources of Ba and Shu, then strike east to secure the Three Qin—the whole realm can still be yours.” The King of Han said, “Well spoken.” He went to his new domain and appointed Xiao He chancellor. Xiao He recommended Han Xin, whom the King of Han named grand general. Han Xin then persuaded the king to let him lead the army east and conquer the Three Qin. The full story is told in the biography of Han Xin.
4
As chancellor, Xiao He stayed behind to consolidate Ba and Shu, keep order, issue instructions, and provision the army. In the second Han year, while the King of Han campaigned against Chu with the allied lords, Xiao He held Guanzhong, attended the heir apparent, and ran the government from Liyang. He promulgated laws and rules, founded the imperial temple, the altars of state, palaces, and county seats, and routinely memorialized the throne; whatever the Sovereign approved, he carried out; when there was no time to wait for approval, he acted at his own discretion for the emergency and informed the Sovereign afterward. He levied taxes by household, ran the grain barges, and kept the armies fed; each time the King of Han’s host was shattered and he fled, Xiao He raised fresh levies in Guanzhong to replace the losses. The Sovereign therefore left the entire administration of Guanzhong in Xiao He’s hands.
5
In the third Han year, locked with Xiang Yu between Jing and Suo, the Sovereign repeatedly sent messengers to console his weary chancellor. Bao Sheng warned Xiao He, “The King endures hardship in the field yet keeps sending messengers to inquire after you—he is testing your loyalty. Send every able-bodied son, brother, and kinsman you have into his camp; only then will he truly trust you.” Xiao He did so, and the King of Han was delighted.
6
In the fifth Han year, with Xiang Yu dead, Liu Bang took the throne. Merit titles were debated, the ministers squabbled over precedence, and for more than a year nothing was settled. The Sovereign judged Xiao He’s service supreme and first enfeoffed him as Marquis of Zan with eight thousand households. The generals protested: “We wore armor and bore arms—some through a hundred fights, others dozens—we took cities and ground, each according to his deserts. Xiao He never rode a charge or drew a bow; he only shuffled documents. How can he rank above us?” The Sovereign asked, “Do you know hunting?” They said, “We know.” “And hunting dogs?” They said, “We know.” The Sovereign said, “In a hunt, the hounds run down the game; the hunter slips the leash and shows them where to strike. You only run the quarry down—you are the hounds’ share of the credit; Xiao He tracked the game and gave the signal—that is the hunter’s share. Besides, you followed me with only your own persons, two or three at most; Xiao He brought his entire clan, dozens of kinsmen, into my service. Never forget that debt!” The assembly fell silent and dared not answer.
7
列侯畢已受封，奏位次，皆曰：「平陽侯曹參身被七十創，攻城略地，功最多，宜第一。」 上已橈功臣多封何，至位次未有以復難之，然心欲何第一。 關內侯鄂千秋時為謁者，進曰：「群臣議皆誤。 夫曹參雖有野戰略地之功，此特一時之事。 夫上與楚相距五歲，失軍亡眾，跳身遯者數矣，然蕭何常從關中遣軍補其處。 非上所詔令召，而數萬眾會上乏絕者數矣。 夫漢與楚相守滎陽數年，軍無見糧，蕭何轉漕關中，給食不乏。 陛下雖數亡山東，蕭何常全關中待陛下，此萬世功也。 今雖無曹參等百數，何缺於漢？ 漢得之不必待以全。 柰何欲以一旦之功而加萬世之功哉！ 蕭何當第一，曹參次之。」 上曰：「善。」 於是乃令何第一，賜帶劍履上殿，入朝不趨。 上曰：「吾聞進賢受上賞，蕭何功雖高，待鄂君乃得明。」 於是因鄂千秋故所食關內侯邑二千戶，封為安平侯。 是日，悉封何父母兄弟十餘人，皆食邑。 乃益封何二千戶，「以嘗繇咸陽時何送我獨贏錢二也」。
After the ranked marquises had received their enfeoffments, the court submitted a proposed order of precedence. Everyone said, “Cao Shen, Marquis of Pingyang, personally suffered seventy wounds while storming cities and seizing territory. His merit was the greatest, and he should rank first.” The emperor had already overruled the meritorious ministers to give Xiao He the larger fief. He had no further argument when it came to precedence, though he still wanted Xiao He ranked first. E Qianqiu, Marquis Guannei, then a court usher, stepped forward: “They are wrong. Cao Shen’s battlefield conquests matter only for a single campaign. For five years the Sovereign grappled with Chu, again and again shattered and fleeing alone, while Xiao He repeatedly refilled his ranks from Guanzhong. Without waiting for an edict, Xiao He repeatedly assembled tens of thousands of men just when the emperor's forces were depleted. Years at Xingyang without grain in camp—yet Xiao He’s barges from Guanzhong never let the men go hungry. You lost Shandong again and again, but Xiao He kept Guanzhong whole for your return—that is merit for the ages. Had we lacked a hundred men like Cao Shen, would the dynasty have suffered? The house of Han would not have lacked for conquest even without them. How can you rank a day’s fight above a lifetime’s stewardship? Xiao He must be first; Cao Shen second.” The Sovereign said, “Agreed.” He ranked Xiao He first, allowed him to wear sword and shoes in the audience hall, and waived the rule that he must trot into court. He added, “They say recommending talent wins the highest reward. Xiao He’s greatness needed Lord E’s voice to be recognized.” On the two-thousand-household Guannei estate E Qianqiu already held, he was now created Marquis of Anping. That same day he granted fiefs to more than ten members of Xiao He's family, including his parents and brothers. He added two thousand households to Xiao He’s fief, “for the time when, bound for corvée at Xianyang, he alone gave me two hundred cash more than the others.”
8
When Chen Xi rose in revolt, the Sovereign took the field in person and marched to Handan. Meanwhile Han Xin plotted revolt inside Guanzhong. Empress Lü used Xiao He’s stratagem to put Han Xin to death. The details are recorded in Han Xin’s biography. Learning of Han Xin's death, he promoted Xiao He to minister of state, added five thousand households to his fief, and assigned him a guard of five hundred soldiers under a commandant. His colleagues offered congratulations; only Zhao Ping came to condole. Zhao Ping was the former Marquis of Dongling under Qin. After Qin’s fall he lived as a commoner in poverty, growing melons east of Chang’an so fine that people still speak of “Dongling melons,” after him. Zhao Ping told Xiao He, “Your troubles start here. The Sovereign braves the frontier while you sit in the capital, never dodging arrows or stones, yet he enlarges your fief and stations guards about you—because the Marquis of Huaiyin has just risen inside the passes, he no longer trusts you. Those guards are not posted for your glory. Refuse the extra enfeoffment and pour your private fortune into the war effort instead.” Xiao He obeyed, and the Sovereign was pleased.
9
That autumn Qing Bu rebelled; the Sovereign took the field against him and kept sending messengers to ask what Minister of State Xiao He was doing. The reply was, “Since the Sovereign is with the army, I am comforting and encouraging the people and devoting everything I have to support the campaign, just as I did during the affair of Chen Xi.” Another adviser warned him, “You are courting extermination for your whole line. You are minister of state and already first in merit—there is nowhere higher to climb. Yet from the day you entered the passes you won the people’s hearts, and more than ten years have passed. They still look to you, and you keep burnishing your popularity. Each time he asks after you, he is gauging whether you might sway Guanzhong against him. Why not buy up land and deal in disreputable loans, deliberately blackening your name? Only then will he feel secure.” Xiao He followed the advice, and the Sovereign was greatly relieved.
10
上罷布軍歸，民道遮行，上書言相國彊賤買民田宅數千人。 上至，何謁。 上笑曰：「今相國乃利民！」 民所上書皆以與何，曰：「君自謝民。」 後何為民請曰：「長安地狹，上林中多空地，棄，願令民得入田，毋收稿為獸食。」 上大怒曰：「相國多受賈人財物，為請吾苑！」 乃下何廷尉，械繫之。 數日，王衛尉侍，前問曰：「相國胡大罪，陛下繫之暴也？」 上曰：「吾聞李斯相秦皇帝，有善歸主，有惡自予。 今相國多受賈豎金，為請吾苑，以自媚於民。 故繫治之。」 王衛尉曰：「夫職事苟有便於民而請之，真宰相事也。 陛下柰何乃疑相國受賈人錢乎！ 且陛下距楚數歲，陳豨、黥布反時，陛下自將往，當是時相國守關中，關中搖足則關西非陛下有也。 相國不以此時為利，乃利賈人之金乎？ 且秦以不聞其過亡天下，夫李斯之分過，又何足法哉！ 陛下何疑宰相之淺也！」 上不懌。 是日，使使持節赦出何。 何年老，素恭謹，徒跣入謝。 上曰：「相國休矣！ 相國為民請吾苑不許，我不過為桀紂主，而相國為賢相。 吾故繫相國，欲令百姓聞吾過。」
On the way home from the Qing Bu campaign, commoners mobbed the road with petitions accusing Minister of State Xiao He of bullying thousands of families into selling land and houses for a pittance. When the Sovereign reached the capital, Xiao He came to audience. The Sovereign laughed and said, “So my minister of state has been fleecing the people for their own good!” He handed Xiao He the sheaf of petitions and told him, “You may apologize to them yourself.” Later Xiao He pleaded for the people: “Chang’an is crowded, while the Shanglin hunting park lies largely empty; let commoners till those fields, and do not collect the straw as fodder for the beasts.” The Sovereign exploded: “The minister of state has been bribed by merchants to beg for my hunting preserve!” He had Xiao He clapped in fetters and handed to the commandant of justice. A few days later Commandant Wang of the palace guard, on duty at court, stepped forward: “What grave offense could warrant clapping the minister of state in irons like a common criminal?” The Sovereign said, “They say Li Si, as Qin’s chancellor, credited the throne with every success and himself with every failure; Now my minister of state is said to have taken merchants’ gold to beg my hunting park—plainly to buy popularity. So I had him arrested.” Wang answered, “When an officer petitions for anything that helps the people, that is precisely what a chief minister should do. How can you imagine he lined his pockets from shopkeepers? For years you faced Chu in the field; when Chen Xi and Qing Bu rose, you marched yourself—while the minister of state held Guanzhong. Had that heartland wavered, nothing west of the passes would still be yours. If he meant to profit from crisis, he had his chance then—would he wait to scrape cash from peddlers? Qin lost the empire because its ruler never heard of his faults. Why imitate Li Si’s practice of assuming blame for his sovereign? You misjudge your chancellor badly.” The Sovereign’s face darkened. That same day he sent an envoy with imperial credentials to free Xiao He. Old and habitually deferential, Xiao He came barefoot to beg forgiveness. “Enough, minister of state,” said the Sovereign. Had I refused your plea for the people, I would have ranked with Jie and Zhou, while you stood as the good minister. I jailed you so the realm would hear of my mistake.”
11
After Gaozu’s death Xiao He served Emperor Hui. When Xiao He fell ill, the Sovereign came to his bedside and asked, “When you are gone, who can take your place?” He answered, “No one knows his servant better than his master.” “What of Cao Shen?” asked the Emperor. Xiao He kowtowed. “Your Majesty has chosen well. I may die content.”
12
Whenever Xiao He bought land or houses, he picked poor, unfashionable neighborhoods and left his walls and roofs unrenovated. He explained, “If my heirs prove worthy, they may learn thrift from this; if they prove worthless, powerful families will not covet these holdings.”
13
孝惠二年，何薨，諡曰文終侯。 子祿嗣，薨，無子。 高后乃封何夫人同為酇侯，小子延為筑陽侯。 孝文元年，罷同，更封延為酇侯。 薨，子遺嗣。 薨，無子。 文帝復以遺弟則嗣，有罪免。 景帝二年，制詔御史：「故相國蕭何，高皇帝大功臣，所與為天下也。 今其祀絕，朕甚憐之。 其以武陽縣戶二千封何孫嘉為列侯。」 嘉，則弟也。 薨，子勝嗣，後有罪免。 武帝元狩中，復下詔御史：「以酇戶二千四百封何曾孫慶為酇侯，布告天下，令明知朕報蕭相國德也。」 慶，則子也。 薨，子壽成嗣，坐為太常儀牲瘦免。 宣帝時，詔丞相御史求問蕭相國後在者，得玄孫建世等十二人，復下詔以酇戶二千封建世為酇侯。 傳子至孫獲，坐使奴殺人減死論。 成帝時，復封何玄孫之子南讀長喜為酇侯。 傳子至曾孫，王莽敗乃絕。
In the second year of Emperor Hui’s reign Xiao He died; his posthumous title was Marquis Wenzhong. His son Lu inherited the title, then died without issue. Empress Lü thereupon made Xiao He’s widow Tong Marquis of Zan and his younger son Yan Marquis of Zhuyang. In Emperor Wen’s first year Tong was stripped of her fief and Yan was reassigned as Marquis of Zan. When Yan died, his son Yi succeeded. Yi died childless. Emperor Wen then named Yi's younger brother Ze heir; Ze was later dismissed for an offense. In Emperor Jing’s second year the throne ordered the censor: “Xiao He, late minister of state, was a pillar of the August Emperor’s rise; with him the founder won the realm. His line now lacks heirs to tend his shrine, and We grieve for it. We therefore create his grandson Jia a ranked marquis with two thousand households at Wuyang.” Jia was Ze’s younger brother. Jia died; his son Sheng inherited, then lost the title for a crime. Under Emperor Wu, in the Yuanshou period, another edict ran: “With twenty-four hundred households at Zan We enfeoff Xiao He’s great-grandson Qing as Marquis of Zan and publish this so the world knows We honor the house of Minister Xiao.” Qing was Ze’s son. Qing died; Shoucheng succeeded but was dismissed because, as Grand Master of ceremonies, his sacrificial animals were judged too lean. Emperor Xuan ordered the chancellor and censor to locate any surviving descendants of Minister Xiao; twelve men were found, among them Jianshi, whom the court again enfeoffed at Zan with two thousand households. The title passed to a son and then to the grandson Huo, who was convicted of ordering a slave to kill a man but received a sentence one degree below death. Under Emperor Cheng, Xi, a sixth-generation descendant of Xiao He and chief of Nanluan, was again named Marquis of Zan. The title passed to his son and eventually to his great-grandson; the line ended only when Wang Mang fell.
14
Cao Shen came from Pei. Under the Qin he served as jail clerk while Xiao He was chief clerk; together they ranked as the county’s foremost officers. When Liu Bang became Duke of Pei, Cao Shen joined him as an inner attendant. He fought at Huling and Fangyu, routed the army of Qin’s local inspector, and broke it utterly. He marched east to Xue and attacked the Sishui governor’s force west of the city wall. He attacked Huling again and captured it. He was reassigned to hold Fangyu. When Fangyu went over to Wei, he struck it back. When Feng declared for Wei, he attacked it. He was awarded the seventh rank of grandee. He drove north against Sima Xin’s host east of Dang, seizing Hufu and the Qishan courier post. He pushed west from Xiayi to Yu and engaged the chariotry and horse of Qin’s Zhang Han. At Yuanqi and Kangfu he led the first assault over the walls. He was raised to fifth grandee. He relieved Dong’e in the north, shattered Zhang Han’s battle line, and chased him to Puyang. He took Dingtao and captured Linji. Marching south to Yongqiu, he crushed Li You's army, slew Li You, and captured a Qin scout. After Zhang Han destroyed Xiang Liang, the Duke of Pei and Xiang Yu led their troops eastward. King Huai of Chu named the Duke of Pei governor of Dang and gave him command of its army. Cao Shen was then raised to the Chu rank of Zhibo and styled Lord Jiancheng. He was promoted to lord of Qi township under Dang commandery.
15
Later he joined the strike on the eastern commandery’s commandant and routed him south of Chengwu. He hit Wang Li south of Chengyang, then stormed Gangli and broke it. He chased the fugitives west to Kaifeng, defeated Zhao Ben, and penned him inside the city. West of the lines he smashed Yang Xiong’s Qin army at Quyu and took one major and one censor prisoner. He was advanced to the rank of jade sceptre. He followed the advance on Yangwu, seized Huanyuan and Goushi, and severed the Yellow River crossing. He defeated Zhao Ben’s force north of Shi. Turning south he fought the Nanyang governor Yi east of Yangcheng, broke his line, captured Wan and Yi himself, and secured the commandery. He pressed west through Wu Pass and Yao Pass and carried both. South of Lantian he routed the Qin host, then by night smashed their northern division, marched into Xianyang, and finished Qin.
16
項羽至，以沛公為漢王。 漢王封參為建成侯。 從至漢中，遷為將軍。 從還定三秦，攻下辨、故道、雍、斄。 擊章平軍於好畤南，破之，圍好畤，取壤鄉。 擊三秦軍壤東及高櫟，破之。 復圍章平，平出好畤走。 因擊趙賁、內史保軍，破之。 東取咸陽，更名曰新城。 參將兵守景陵二十三日，三秦使章平等攻參，參出擊，大破之。 賜食邑於寧秦。 以將軍引兵圍章邯廢丘； 以中尉從漢王出臨晉關。 至河內，下脩武，度圍津，東擊龍且、項佗定陶，破之。 東取碭、蕭、彭城。 擊項籍軍，漢軍大敗走。 參以中尉圍取雍丘。 王武反於外黃，程處反於燕，往擊，盡破之。 柱天侯反於衍氏，進破取衍氏。 擊羽嬰於昆陽，追至葉。 還攻武彊，因至滎陽。 參自漢中為將軍中尉，從擊諸侯，及項王敗，還至滎陽。
When Xiang Yu came up he named the Duke of Pei King of Han. The King of Han enfeoffed Cao Shen as Marquis of Jiancheng. He accompanied the court to Hanzhong and was promoted general. On the campaign to reconquer the Three Qin he took Xiabian, Gudao, Yong, and Tai. South of Haozhi he broke Zhang Ping, besieged the town, and seized Xiang township. He smashed Three Qin forces east of Xiang and at Gaoli. He besieged Zhang Ping again until Zhang Ping broke out of Haozhi and fled. He followed up by crushing the armies of Zhao Ben and Interior Secretary Bao. He seized Xianyang to the east and renamed it New City. Cao Shen held Jingling for twenty-three days; when Three Qin generals led by Zhang Ping attacked, he sallied and shattered them. He received a food fief at Ningqin. As general he led the siege that penned Zhang Han in Feiqiu. as colonel of the guard he escorted the King of Han through Linjin Pass. In Henei he reduced Xiuwu, crossed the ford at Weijin, and eastward defeated Long Ju and Xiang Tuo at Dingtao. He drove east to take Dang, Xiao, and Pengcheng. There he collided with Xiang Yu’s host and the Han army was routed. As colonel of the guard Cao Shen besieged and took Yongqiu. Wang Wu rose at Waihuang and Cheng Chu at Yan; Cao Shen marched against them and crushed both revolts. When the Pillar-of-Heaven marquis mutinied at Yanshi, Cao Shen advanced, broke him, and occupied the town. He fought Yu Ying at Kunyang and chased him to Ye. On the withdrawal he stormed Wuqiang and then fell back on Xingyang. From Hanzhong onward Cao Shen held the ranks of general and colonel of the guard, campaigned against the lords, and when Xiang Yu fell he was back at Xingyang.
17
漢二年，拜為假左丞相，入屯兵關中。 月餘，魏王豹反，以假丞相別與韓信東攻魏將孫速東張，大破之。 因攻安邑，得魏將王襄。 擊魏王於曲陽，追至東垣，生獲魏王豹。 取平陽，得豹母妻子，盡定魏地，凡五十二縣。 賜食邑平陽。 因從韓信擊趙相國夏說軍於鄔東，大破之，斬夏說。 韓信與故常山王張耳引兵下井陘，擊成安君陳餘，而令參還圍趙別將戚公於鄔城中。 戚公出走，追斬之。 乃引兵詣漢王在所。 韓信已破趙，為相國，東擊齊，參以左丞相屬焉。 攻破齊歷下軍，遂取臨淄。 還定濟北郡，收著、漯陰、平原、鬲、盧。 已而從韓信擊龍且軍於上假密，大破之，斬龍且，虜亞將周蘭。 定齊郡，凡得七十縣。 得故齊王田廣相田光，其守相許章，及故將軍田既。 韓信立為齊王，引兵東詣陳，與漢王共破項羽，而參留平齊未服者。
In the second Han year he was named acting left chancellor and sent into Guanzhong to garrison troops. A month later King Bao of Wei rebelled; Cao Shen, still acting chancellor, joined Han Xin in a separate column, struck Wei general Sun Su at Dongzhang, and shattered him. He pressed on to Anyi and took Wei general Wang Xiang prisoner. At Quyang he engaged King Bao of Wei, chased him to Dongyuan, and took him alive. He took Pingyang, captured Wei Bao's mother, wife, and children, and pacified all fifty-two counties of Wei. The court awarded him a revenue fief at Pingyang. He then followed Han Xin, routed Zhao's chancellor Xia Yue east of Wu, and killed Xia Yue. While Han Xin and Zhang Er drove through Jingxing against Chen Yu, Cao Shen was sent back to bottle up Zhao’s general Qi in Wu. When Qi broke out and ran, Cao Shen overtook him and cut him down. He then marched to join the King of Han. After Han Xin crushed Zhao he was named chancellor of state and turned east on Qi; Cao Shen served under him as left chancellor. He shattered the Qi host at Lixia and captured the capital Linzi. He secured Jibei on the way back, recovering Zhu, Luoyin, Pingyuan, Ge, and Lu. He next followed Han Xin against Long Ju at Jiami, broke his army, slew Long Ju, and took Zhou Lan, his second-in-command, prisoner. He brought the whole of Qi under control—seventy counties. He captured Tián Guāng, chancellor to Tián Guǎng, the former King of Qi; Xu Zhang, the acting chancellor; and Tian Ji, a former general. After Han Xin was made King of Qi he marched east to Chen to help the King of Han destroy Xiang Yu, while Cao Shen stayed to mop up Qi’s holdouts.
18
When Liu Bang took the throne, Han Xin was moved to the kingship of Chu. Cao Shen handed back his chancellor’s seal. Gaozu made his eldest son Liu Fei king of Qi and named Cao Shen minister of state to him. In Gaozu’s sixth year he split the tally with the lords and enfeoffed Cao Shen at Pingyang with 10,630 households in perpetuity.
19
As Qi’s minister of state Cao Shen defeated Chen Xi’s general Zhang Chun. When Qing Bu rose, Cao Shen led a hundred twenty thousand chariots and horse for Prince Liu Fei (Daohui), joined Gaozu, and shattered Qing Bu’s army. He drove south to Qi, then on the withdrawal secured Zhuyi, Xiang, Xiao, and Liu.
20
21
In Emperor Hui's first year, the office of minister of state in the vassal kingdoms was abolished, and Cao Shen was redesignated chancellor of Qi. When Cao Shen governed Qi, the state had seventy cities. The empire had just been settled; King Dao Hui was still young. Cao Shen summoned all the elders and various masters and asked how to settle and gather the people. Qi's established Confucian scholars numbered in the hundreds, and each offered different advice, leaving Cao Shen unsure what policy to adopt. He heard that in Jiaoxi there was Master Gai, skilled in Huang-Lao teachings, and sent someone with generous gifts to invite him. When Cao Shen met Master Gai, the scholar explained that government should prize purity and tranquility, allowing the people to settle themselves, and developed the principle in detail. Cao Shen then yielded the main hall and lodged Master Gai there. His governing essentials used Huang-Lao methods; therefore he served as chancellor of Qi for nine years, Qi was settled and gathered, and he was greatly praised as a worthy chancellor. When Xiao He died, Cao Shen heard of it and told his house attendants to hurry and prepare for the journey: "I am about to enter the chancellorship." Before long, an envoy indeed summoned Cao Shen. When Cao Shen departed, he entrusted his successor, saying, "Take the prisons and markets of Qi as your charge; be careful not to disturb them." The successor said, "Is there nothing greater in governing than this?" Cao Shen said, "Not so. Prisons and markets must make room even for dubious people. If you meddle with them, where will such people go? That is why I put this first."
22
In obscurity Cao Shen had been close to Xiao He; once both held the chancellorship they fell out. Yet on his deathbed Xiao He’s sole recommendation was Cao Shen. Cao Shen succeeded Xiao He and altered nothing—he enforced Xiao He’s rules to the letter. He filled the chancellery with stolid local officers—men of few words, plain style, and steady habit. Slick rhetoricians angling for fame he dismissed at once. He passed his days and nights in his cups. From senior ministers down, staff and visitors saw the chief minister idle and came hoping to remonstrate. He plied each with strong wine; if they tried to speak he poured again until they reeled home—so no one ever got a word in, and that became routine.
23
The chancellery garden backed onto the clerks' quarters, where they drank, sang, and shouted every day. His aides fretted but could not silence them, so they asked Cao Shen to tour the garden. They hoped he would hear the noise and order a crackdown. Instead he brought out wine, sat among them, and joined the roar.
24
參見人之有細過，掩匿覆蓋之，府中無事。
He smoothed over small mistakes so that the ministry stayed free of scandal.
25
His son Cao Zhu held the post of palace counselor. Emperor Hui wondered at the minister of state not governing affairs, thinking “Does he belittle Us?” He said to Cao Zhu, “When you go home, try privately and calmly asking your father: ‘The High Emperor has only just left his ministers, and the emperor is still young. You, as chancellor, drink every day and request no affairs of state; how does this show concern for the realm? Say nothing of my instructions.” After his ritual bath Cao Zhu waited for a private moment and spoke as the emperor had coached him. Cao Shen thrashed him two hundred strokes with the rod and barked, “Back to your post—state business is not yours to discuss.” At the next audience Emperor Hui reproached him: “Why did you beat Cao Zhu? I sent him to reason with you.” Cao Shen removed his cap and asked, “How do Your Majesty's wisdom and martial ability compare with those of the High Emperor?” “I dare not compare myself to him,” said the emperor. “And how do I measure against Xiao He?” asked Cao Shen. “You fall short,” the emperor admitted. “Then we agree,” said Cao Shen. The Late Emperor and Xiao He set the laws in clear order. Your Majesty has only to fold your hands on the throne; we ministers need only hold the line without blunder—is that not enough?” “Well said,” said Emperor Hui. You may leave off.”
26
Cao Shen served as chancellor for three years, then died; he was given the posthumous title Marquis Yi. The people sang of him, saying, "When Xiao He made the laws, they were uniform as if drawn with one stroke; when Cao Shen replaced him, he held them without loss. He carried on his purity and tranquility, and the people were at peace."
27
Cao Zhu inherited the title and under Empress Lü rose to imperial censor in chief. The line passed to great-grandson Xiang, who under Emperor Wu campaigned against the Xiongnu as a general and died. His son Zong inherited but was convicted and sentenced to penal labor building walls. Under Emperor Ai, Benshi, a grandson of Cao Shen’s great-great-grandson, was enfeoffed as Marquis of Pingyang with two thousand households; he died in Wang Mang’s time. His son Hong was among the first to submit in Hebei during the Jianwu era and was enfeoffed as Marquis of Pingyang. By the compilers’ time the house had produced eight marquises.
28
The summation runs: Xiao He and Cao Shen began as humble Qin clerks, undistinguished men who had yet shown no extraordinary distinction. When the Han rose, they caught the founder's reflected glory: Xiao He faithfully guarded the state's keys while Cao Shen campaigned with Han Xin. After victory they rode popular hatred of Qin’s laws to begin anew; of one mind they brought peace within the seas. With the Marquis of Huaiyin, Qing Bu, and the others gone, only Xiao He and Cao Shen towered above the ministers. Their names endured as the great ministers of their age, and their good fortune reached even collateral descendants. How splendid!