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卷二 顯宗孝明帝紀

Volume 2: Annals of Emperor Xianzong Xiaoming

Chapter 4 of 後漢書 · Book of Later Han
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1
Emperor Ming—temple name Xianzong, posthumous epithet Xiaoming—was Liu Zhuang, the fourth son of Emperor Guangwu. His mother was Empress Yin. He was born with a prominent chin—an auspicious sign—and at the age of ten had mastered the Spring and Autumn Annals; Guangwu regarded him with wonder. In Jianwu 15 he received the title Duke of Donghai; in Jianwu 17 he was raised to king; in Jianwu 19 he was named crown prince. He studied under the academician Huan Rong as a formal pupil and gained a thorough command of the Book of Documents.
2
On wuxu in the second month of Zhongyuan 2 (57 CE) he ascended the throne at the age of thirty. The empress was elevated to empress dowager. In the third month, on dingmao, Emperor Guangwu was interred at the Yuanling mausoleum. Officials presented a memorial, and his dynastic temple name was fixed as Shizu.
3
穿 穿
In summer, on bingchen in the fourth month, an edict said: "I, the last and little child, inherit the sacred enterprise; morning and night I tremble in awe and dare not lapse into ease. The Former Emperor received the mandate and restored the dynasty; his virtue matched the ancient sovereigns and kings, he harmonized the myriad states, and he reached above and below. Jia means to reach. It is pronounced ge. He soothed and harmonized the hundred spirits and showed kindness to widowers and widows. Huai means to pacify. Rou means to harmonize. The Rites says, "All mountains and forests able to raise clouds and bring rain are called spirits; one who possesses All Under Heaven sacrifices to the hundred spirits"; this is soothing and harmonizing the hundred spirits. The Documents says: "He was kind to widowers and widows." I have received the great fortune, succeeded to the body of the state, and guard its civil pattern. A founder who lays the foundation honors martial achievement in order to settle disorder; the successor who comes next and inherits the body of the state guards civil virtue. The Guliang Tradition says: "Receiving the brightness and succeeding to the body of the state: this is a lord who guards the civil pattern." I do not know the hardships of sowing and reaping, and fear that there may be neglect and failure. His parting counsel weighed the whole realm and put the common people first. How, then, will you ministers and officials help me where I am lacking? Let every man in the realm receive two steps in noble rank; award three steps to each village elder, each recognized paragon of filial piety and brotherly love, and each outstanding farmer; The Three Elders, Filial and Fraternal, and Diligent Farmers were all names of village offices. The Three Elders were established by Emperor Gao; Filial and Fraternal and Diligent Farmers were established by Empress Gao, to encourage and guide the villages and help complete moral transformation. Emperor Wen’s edict said: "Filial and fraternal conduct is the great obedience of the realm. Diligent farming is the root of livelihood. The Three Elders are teachers of the people. Let posts be established in proportion to the number of households." The matter appears in the Former Book. anyone whose rank already exceeds gongcheng may pass the excess to a son, a full brother, or a brother's son; and grant one step to vagrants without household registration who come forward to settle their status; distribute ten hu of grain to each widower, widow, orphan, person living alone, and person gravely disabled. Commute or pardon all convicts and corvée laborers in the provinces whose crimes predated the jimao amnesty of Zhongyuan 1 but who were arrested only later. Border women who during the disorders had married into inner provinces and whose unions predated that same jimao amnesty shall all be free to return to their home regions if they wish. For officials from full two-thousand-bushel rank down to those with yellow ribbons, under the Han system, those of two hundred bushels and above had bronze seals and yellow ribbons. those reduced in rank or sentenced to ransom penalties were all restored to rank and had their ransom payments returned. Now above there is no Son of Heaven, and below there are no regional lords. The Gongyang Tradition says: "Above there is no Son of Heaven, and below there are no regional lords." The edict cited this as an expression of humility. It is like crossing deep water without boat or oars. The ruler of ten thousand chariots bears the utmost weight, yet one in youthful vigor is light in judgment. The emperor modestly said that he was still young and vigorous, shallow in thought, and therefore needed worthy men to assist him. I truly depend on men of virtue to aid this little child. Lai means to rely on. Zuoyou means to assist. The Marquis of Gaomi, Deng Yu, stands first in founding merit, and King Cang of Dongping is broad-minded and wise in counsel; both can receive the charge of a six-chi child and face a great crisis without yielding. Six chi means one aged fifteen or below. Great crisis means a great matter. Nao means to bend. It is pronounced by the fanqie nyu-xiao. Appoint Yu grand tutor and Cang general-in-chief of agile cavalry. Grand Commandant Xi announced the posthumous title at the southern suburb. This was Zhao Xi. Ying Shao’s Fengsu Tong says: "In ritual, ministers and sons have no principle by which they confer rank or posthumous titles on their lord or father; therefore the assembled ministers gather up his merits and virtues, and on the day of burial they send the Grand Commandant to the southern suburb to report to Heaven and give him the posthumous title." Minister over the Masses Xin attended to settling the catalpa-wood coffin. This was Li Xin. A "catalpa palace" means a coffin made of catalpa wood. The Fengsu Tong says: "A palace is where one dwells while alive; following the living in serving the dead, it was used as the name." Minister of Works Fang led the officers in replacing the earth. This was Feng Fang. "Led the officers" means that he commanded the troops of the five colonels in digging the tomb pit. The Pronunciation and Meaning of the Former Book says: "Replacing the earth refers chiefly to the work of digging and filling the tomb pit. It means that after the coffin has been lowered, earth is put back to make the mound; therefore it is called replacing the earth." Enfeoff Xi as Marquis of Jiexiang, Xin as Marquis of Anxiang, and Fang as Marquis of Yangyi."
4
西 西調 歿
In autumn, the ninth month, the Shao Dang Qiang struck Longxi and routed local forces at Yunjie. Prisoners in Longxi were pardoned one degree, and the year's rent and irregular levies were waived. The three thousand conscripts raised from Tianshui were likewise excused from the rotating labor levy for that year. Court envoy Zhang Hong was ordered against rebel Qiang at Yunwu; his force was shattered and he fell in battle. In winter, the eleventh month, Dou Gu of the gentlemen of the household was placed in command of Ma Wu, general who captures barbarians, and two other generals to crush the Shao Dang Qiang.
5
使
On jiayin in the twelfth month an edict ran: "With spring comes the season of restraint; the people should turn to tillage and silkworms. Let officials honor the seasons in their orders and give the people no needless harassment. Fugitives facing death or lesser capital charges may redeem themselves: twenty bolts of silk for the death sentence; ten for mutilation down to shaved-head hard labor; three for lesser corvée sentences. Those who surrender before discovery, once the edict reaches them, pay only half the standard ransom. Recommendations are dishonest, sycophants remain in office, great houses peddle influence, harsh subordinates prey on the weak, and ordinary folk nurse grievances with no redress. Let officials report offenses plainly and hold recommenders accountable as well. When counties and commanderies call up labor or taxes, they often line their pockets, shifting costs onto the feeble and squeezing the destitute hardest. Their duty is equity; let there be no arbitrary cruelty."
6
In Yongping 1, in spring, in the first month, the emperor led the dukes, ministers, and those below them to hold court at Yuanling, following the ceremony of the New Year audience. The Han Official Ceremonies says: "In antiquity there were no sacrifices at tombs. Qin Shihuang built sleeping halls beside tombs, and the Han followed this without changing it. At all imperial tomb sleeping halls, meals were offered on the last and full-moon days, the twenty-four solar terms, the three fu periods, the she and la sacrifices, and the four seasons. The palace attendants assigned to the imperial tombs arranged quilts and pillows by drum and water-clock, prepared washing water, and set out the grooming implements. When the Son of Heaven went up to Yuanling in the first month, the dukes, ministers, hundred officials, feudal kings, and commandery and kingdom accounting officials all stood below the carriage rail and reported grain prices in their commanderies and kingdoms and changes in the four quarters, wishing the Former Emperor’s soul and spirit to hear it." The New Year audience ceremony appears below.
7
In summer, the fifth month, Grand Tutor Deng Yu died. On wuyin the king of Donghai, Liu Qiang, died; Minister of Works Feng Fang went with imperial credentials to supervise the rites and received for the obsequies the highest emblems—plumed hearse escort, bell-carriage, and dragon standards. On yimao in the sixth month the late King Gong of Donghai was laid to rest.
8
In autumn, the seventh month, Ma Wu and allied generals smashed the Shao Dang Qiang. Recruits were sent to hold the Longxi frontier, each paid thirty thousand cash. On wuzi in the eighth month Prince Liu Jing of Shanyang was transferred to Guangling and ordered to his fief.
9
使
The same year Liaodong governor Ji Yong used Xianbei allies against the Chishan Wuhuan, routed them, and executed their leader. The Gufu tribe at Yuexi rose; provincial forces put down the revolt.
10
使 西
Yongping 2, xinwei in the first month of spring: Guangwu was worshipped at the Bright Hall; emperor and nobles wore full court regalia—caps, gowns, jade pendants, and formal shoes—for the first time at such a rite. When the service ended, they climbed the Spirit Terrace. The overseer of the masters of writing, bearing credentials, instructed the general-in-chief of agile cavalry and the three dukes: "On this auspicious day of an ordered month we have sacrificed to Emperor Guangwu in the Bright Hall, pairing him with the Five Thearchs. Every ritual instrument was in place; the eight kinds of instruments sounded in harmony; hymns praised Heaven's grace, dances celebrated virtue, the seasons were proclaimed, and the feudatories were charged to obey. Afterward they mounted the Spirit Terrace to read the clouds, sound the seasonal pitch-pipes, and scan portents in nature. The full bureaucracy, imperial kin, tribute-bearing commanderies, and frontier peoples—including Wuhuan and Hui Mo—joined the rites; even the Xiongnu heir kept at court and the bone-cap nobles stood in the secondary ranks. All of this flows from the merit of our sage forebear. In my ignorance and meagerness, I inherit the great enterprise, personally hold the gui and bi jades, and reverently sacrifice to Heaven and Earth. The Rites of Zhou says: "The four-pointed gui is one chi and two cun long, and is used to sacrifice to Heaven." It also says: "With the dark-green bi one rites Heaven; with the yellow cong one rites Earth; with the blue-green gui one rites the east; with the red zhang one rites the south; with the white hu one rites the west; with the black huang one rites the north." Looking up, I reflect that the Former Emperor received the mandate, restored the dynasty, ordered chaos and returned it to correctness, and thereby pacified All Under Heaven. Bo means to order. The Gongyang Tradition says: "For ordering an age of chaos and returning it to correctness, nothing comes closer than the Spring and Autumn." He performed the feng sacrifice at Mount Tai, built the Bright Hall, established the Biyong, raised the Numinous Terrace, expanded the great Way, and spread it to the eight extremities; The Huainanzi says: "Outside the Nine Provinces are the Eight Yin; outside the Eight Yin are the Eight Cords; outside the Eight Cords are the Eight Extremities." yet his heir has none of the substance of Cheng and Kang. Emperor Ming meant that in the age of Cheng and Kang punishments were set aside and unused for more than forty years. The assembled ministers lack the plans of Lü and Dan; washing and presenting the cup, I am reverent and ashamed. Zheng Xuan’s commentary to the Analects says: "Cujíe describes reverent respect." Guan is pronounced guan. By nature I am stubborn and rustic; facing affairs I only grow more fearful—hence "the gentleman is calm and broad; the petty man is always anxious." Therefore let every sentence short of the most gruesome death, even for rebellion and lese-majesty, be remitted throughout the realm. Ministers and regional shepherds: perfect your offices, heed the seasons, reverence High Heaven, and so give rest to the people."
11
In the third month he visited the Hong Academy and held the great archery ceremony for the first time.
12
In autumn, the ninth month, the kings Fu of Pei, Ying of Chu, Kang of Jinan, Yan of Huaiyang, and Zheng of Donghai arrived for audience.
13
鹿 祿
On renzi in the tenth month of winter he visited the Hong Academy and first celebrated the old-age banquet rite. An edict declared: "Emperor Guangwu ordained the triple-court ritual but never lived to preside at the feast himself. I, least of men, have been charged with that same sacred work. On a chosen day in late spring I first held the great archery; then on the new moon of an ordered month I entered the Hong Academy again. I received the three elders as fathers and the five "more-aged" as elder brothers, sent cushioned carriages for them, and myself adjusted their sashes and lent an arm. Princes set out condiments, ministers spread rare dishes, I carved the roast with bared shoulder, and poured the cleansing libation with my own hands. Attendants watched lest the elders choke on the food before them or swallow amiss behind. Musicians sang "Deer Call" from the gallery and played "New Palace" below; the eight files of dancers moved in the full wan dance in the court. My virtue is thin—how dare I think myself worthy of such honor? The Book of Changes warns against riding when one should walk; the Odes mock those who overreach themselves; I carry that reproach in my heart and cannot forget it. Third Elder Li Gong is venerable in years and eminent in scholarship. Fifth More-Aged Huan Rong taught me the Book of Documents. The Odes say, "No kindness lacks its reward, no word lacks its reply." Grant Huan Rong rank as marquis within the passes with income from five thousand households. The three elders and five more-aged shall each draw a two-thousand-picul stipend for life. Let every village elder in the realm receive a stone of wine and forty pounds of meat. Let officials care for the very old, succor orphans, and comfort the widowed, that they may reflect my will."
14
The king of Zhongshan, Liu Yan, went to his fief for the first time.
15
西
On jiazi he began a western progress, visited Chang'an, offered sacrifice at Gaozu's temple, and worshipped at all eleven Western Han tombs. He inspected the towns along the route, called in local officials, feasted them, and had music played.
16
使
In the eleventh month, on jiashen, envoys sacrificed with an ox-and-sheep offering at the shrines of Xiao He and Huo Guang. Touring the mausoleum precincts, he halted his carriage before their tombs in the prescribed show of respect. He went on into Hedong, bestowing gifts on every official from two-thousand-picul rank down to clerks, each according to grade. On guimao the court returned to the capital. In the twelfth month Dou Lin, colonel director of the Qiang, was imprisoned and died there.
17
That year the court first welcomed the qi of each season at the five suburban stations. Yin Feng, son of privy treasurer Yin Jiu, murdered his wife, Princess Liyi; his father then took his own life.
18
Yongping 3, guisi in the first month of spring: an edict said, "After the suburban rites I climbed the Spirit Terrace, consulted the court astronomers, and aligned the calendar and instruments. Spring opens the year. If the start is true, the other three seasons will prosper. Lately floods and droughts have broken their seasons; frontier folk go hungry; bad government above brings suffering below—let officials harmonize their orders with the seasons, push plowing and silkworms, clear away insect pests and vermin from the fields; review sentences with care, weigh uncorroborated testimony, toil early and late, and so match my purpose."
19
On jiayin in the second month Grand Commandant Zhao Xi and Minister of Education Li Xin were removed from office. On bingchen Guo Dan, governor of Zuo Fengyi, was appointed minister of education. On jiwei Yu Yan, governor of Nanyang, was made grand commandant. On jiazi Lady Ma was raised to empress and Prince Da named crown prince. Every man in the realm received two steps in noble rank; three steps each for village elders, recognized paragons of filial piety and brotherly love, and outstanding farmers; one step for any unregistered vagrant who wished to take up legal residence; five hu of grain for each widower, widow, orphan, person alone, the gravely disabled, and the destitute who could not live by their own means.
20
On xinyou in the fourth month of summer Prince Jian became King of Qiansheng and Prince Xian King of Guangping. On dingmao in the sixth month a comet appeared north of the Celestial Boat asterism. Celestial Boat is the name of an asterism. The Xu Han zhi says: "Celestial Boat governs water; when a comet emerges from it, there will be great floods. That year, the Yi and Luo rivers overflowed as far as Jincheng Gate." The Fuhou gujin zhu says: "The comet was about three chi long; it was visible for thirty-five days before it disappeared."
21
宿
On wuchen in the eighth month of autumn the court renamed the imperial music bureau from "Great Music" to "Great Grant Music." At month's end, on renshen, the sun was eclipsed. An edict read: "I inherit the work of my ancestors, yet my rule has brought little good. Heaven shows eclipses of sun and moon; comets streak the sky; rains and droughts ignore the seasons; the harvests fail; households have no reserves; the people groan under hardship. Though I think on it night and day, my wit is not equal to the task. King Zhuang of Chu needed no disaster to teach him fear; Duke Ai of Lu knew catastrophe, yet Heaven withheld its rebuke. These portents we see today may yet be answered if we mend our ways. Let every office search its conscience and help redeem my want of virtue. In antiquity high ministers brought poems to court and artisans spoke blunt truth. Whoever memorializes on policy shall not fear to speak the whole truth."
22
In the tenth month of winter the winter offering was made at Guangwu's temple, and for the first time the court danced the suites 《Wen Shi》, 《Wu Xing》, and 《Wu De》. On jiazi the emperor accompanied the empress dowager to Zhangling to visit her childhood home. On wuchen in the twelfth month he returned from Zhangling. That year work began on the Northern Palace and the new ministry compounds. Seven great floods struck the capital and the provinces. If the person recommended was not suitable, the guilt of the recommender was also corrected.
23
宿 宿
Yongping 4, xinhai in the second month of spring: an edict said, "I have turned the furrow in the sacred field myself to pray for the crops. Through the winter the capital saw no lasting snow; spring brought no steady warm rains; I have wearied the bureaucracy with repeated intercessory rites. Yet Heaven has twice sent seasonable rain, and the winter wheat has drunk deep. Let the dukes and ministers receive half their normal stipends as a token of thanks. Let officials align their work with the seasons and keep justice even-handed."
24
On wuyin in the ninth month of autumn King Jian of Qiansheng died.
25
On yimao in the tenth month of winter Minister of Education Guo Dan and Minister of Works Feng Fang were dismissed. On bingchen Fan Qian of Henan became minister of education and Grand Coachman Fu Gong minister of works. In the twelfth month Liang Song, Marquis of Lingxiang, was imprisoned and died there.
26
He was implicated for posting anonymous writings in the county that slandered the throne. An anxious heart means being constantly fearful and cautious. Jian sheng means overcoming treacherous flatterers.
27
Yongping 5, gengxu in the second month of spring: Liu Cang, king of Dongping, was relieved as general-in-chief of agile cavalry and sent back to his kingdom; the king of Langye, Liu Jing, departed for his fief. Maotou is discussed in the Annals of Guangwu. Luan are bells, placed on the bridle-bit. A banner with intertwined dragons was a qi, used only by the Son of Heaven; here it was specially granted for the burial.
28
In the tenth month of winter he traveled to Ye. There he joined the king of Zhao, Liu Xu. A Changshan village elder told the emperor, "Your Majesty was born in Yuanshi; we ask a special favor for that place." The court replied: "Feng, Pei, and Jiyang are where the dynasty first received Heaven's mandate; it is right to heap favors on them. Yet under my Yongping rule the people nurse grievance, while local clerks still ask for tax holidays—an embarrassment that invites ridicule. Still, out of respect for Yuanshi's loyalty, remit land tax and irregular levies there for six years, and reward its clerks and gate guards." He then returned from Ye.
29
In the eleventh month the Northern Xiongnu struck Wuyuan; in the twelfth month they raided Yunzhong until the Southern Shanyu counterattacked and threw them back. That year frontier folk who had been moved inland were sent home with twenty thousand cash each for expenses.
30
Yongping 6, first month of spring: the kings Fu of Pei, Ying of Chu, Cang of Dongping, Yan of Huaiyang, Jing of Langye, Zheng of Donghai, Xu of Zhao, Xing of Beihai, and Shi of Qi all attended court.
31
使 使 礿
In the second month a ritual tripod surfaced on Mount Wangluo; the governor of Lujiang sent it to the throne. On jiazi in the fourth month of summer an edict said: "Yu once took bronze from the nine provinces and cast tripods to represent all creatures, so men could tell spirit from fraud and avoid malignant influences. In the time of Yu of Xia, he ordered distant regions to draw the strange things of mountains and rivers and had the governors of the Nine Provinces present metal to cast tripods representing them, so people would know the forms of spirits and the hundred creatures and be prepared against them; therefore, when people entered mountains, forests, rivers, and marshes, chi-mei and wang-liang sprites could not confront them. Malignant influences refers to such beings as wang-liang. The matter appears in the Zuo Zhuan. Under true virtue they flourished and passed to Shang and Zhou; when Zhou's virtue declined, the tripods sank away and were lost. Good omens appear only to answer virtuous rule. Today policy is skewed in many ways—what have we done to deserve such a sign? The 《Book of Changes》 likens the tripod to the three dukes—are my highest ministers failing in their charge? Let the minister of rituals set the tripod in the ancestral temple on the day of the spring offering, among the full set of vessels. Award the three dukes fifty bolts of silk each and the nine ministers and two-thousand-picul officials half as much. My father's edict barred memorials from calling anyone "sage," yet petitions lately brim with hollow praise; henceforth the masters of writing shall file away all such sycophancy unread, to show that the court will not humor toadies."
32
使
In the tenth month of winter he journeyed to Lu and offered sacrifice at the tomb of the late King Gong of Donghai; there he was joined by the kings Fu of Pei, Ying of Chu, Kang of Jinan, Cang of Dongping, Yan of Huaiyang, Jing of Langye, and Zheng of Donghai. In the twelfth month, on the return journey, he stopped at Yangcheng and dispatched envoys to worship the sacred peak of the center. On renwu the court was back in the capital. Liu Cang of Dongping and Liu Jing of Langye had accompanied the tour and now attended the empress dowager.
33
Yongping 7, guimao in the first month of spring: Empress Dowager Yin died. On gengshen in the second month she was buried with the posthumous title Empress Guanglie.
34
使
On wuchen in the eighth month of autumn King Xing of Beihai died. That year the Northern Xiongnu asked for peace and a marriage alliance. In the eighth year, in spring, on jimao in the first month, Minister over the Masses Fan Qian died. The Han Official Ceremonies says that Qian’s courtesy name was Zilü and that he was a man of Pei. On xinmao in the third month, Grand Commandant Yu Yan became Minister over the Masses, and Chamberlain for the Palace Garrison Zhao Xi acted in the affairs of Grand Commandant.
35
使
Zheng Zhong, chief commandant of the swift riders, was sent as ambassador to the Northern Xiongnu. The court first created the post of general who crosses the Liao, with headquarters at Manbai in Wuyuan. Emperor Zhao had appointed Fan Mingyou as General Who Crosses the Liao; at this point the post was reestablished. The palace gentleman-general Wu Chang acted as General Who Crosses the Liao. Manbai was a county, located in present-day Yincheng County of Shengzhou. That autumn fourteen provinces reported flood damage from rain. In the tenth month of winter the Northern Palace was finished.
36
便
On bingzi he went to the Hong Academy for the old-age rites honoring the three elders and five more-aged. After the rites he told the three dukes to collect from the provinces condemned prisoners facing death, commute their sentences one degree, spare them the rod, and march them to the general who crosses the Liao for garrison duty on the Shuofang and Wuyuan frontier; wives and children might follow and settle on the frontier; if parents or full brothers wished to take one another's place in exile, the court would allow it. Those guilty of lese-majesty and special capital crimes were to be castrated instead of executed. Fugitives might buy off their sentences on a fixed scale. Every man sent to the border received bow, crossbow, clothing, and rations.
37
At month's end on renyin the sun was totally eclipsed. An edict said: "Without merit I hold the throne, yet my faults stir resentment below and disturb sun, moon, and stars above. A total eclipse is the gravest of omens—the sort the 《Spring and Autumn Annals》 and apocryphal charts count as Heaven's sternest warning. The blame rests on me alone. Let every minister perfect his duty and speak without reserve." At once the whole bureaucracy filed sealed memorials on what was right and wrong in government. The emperor read each paper, shouldered the fault himself, and circulated the bundle to the full court. He then issued an edict: "Every charge these men have laid is mine. I have left injustices unredressed and let clever clerks run wild; I have wasted labor on palace work, come and gone without measure, and let pleasure and anger overshoot decency. The 《Odes》 warn that when the outer gate stands unguarded, the age is rotten; and thistledown blown on the wind is what the Viscount of Wei lamented. I study those old lessons and tremble. I fear only that thin virtue, if prolonged, will slide into slackness."
38
西
The Northern Xiongnu raided the commanderies west of the Yellow River.
39
Yongping 9, xinchou in the third month of spring: death-row convicts in the provinces were to be commuted and resettled with their families in Wuyuan or Shuofang; if any died en route, their father-in-law or one adult clansman of the husband was excused taxes for life; if a wife had no father or brothers and only a mother survived, that mother received sixty thousand cash and exemption from the poll tax.
40
On jiachen in the fourth month of summer each province was told to assign public land to the needy according to need. The metropolitan commandant and the regional inspectors were to nominate yearly one magistrate of three years' standing whose record was outstanding, to travel with the tribute accounts; and to report as well any magistrate conspicuously incompetent.
41
That year the harvests were abundant. The court founded schools for the four-surname lesser marquises and appointed instructors in each of the Five Classics.
42
Yongping 10, second month of spring: Liu Jing, king of Guangling, was found guilty and took his own life; his kingdom was struck from the rolls.
43
宿
On wuzi in the fourth month of summer an edict declared: "Last year the five grains piled high in the granaries; this year silkworms and wheat have again prospered; I therefore grant a general amnesty. Midsummer is the season of growth; sweep away old guilt in return for the farmers' labor. Let every household work silkworms and fields against famine and flood. Let officials honor their posts and not grow slack."
44
鹿 鹿
In the intercalary month, on jiawu, he began a southern progress, visited Nanyang, and offered sacrifice at Zhangling. At the summer solstice he worshipped again at the old family compound. The sun reaching the north means the summer solstice. He also sacrificed at the old residence. When the rites ended he called the academy students to play classical music, including the piece "Lu Ming" from the Odes, while he himself played clay ocarina and bamboo chi in accompaniment for his guests. Xiao means school. Lu Ming is the title of a poem in the Xiao Ya section of the Odes, a poem for feasting assembled ministers and honored guests. Zheng Xuan's commentary on the Rites of Zhou says: "The xun is made of fired clay and is as large as a goose egg." Zheng Zhong says: "It has six holes." The Shiben says: "Lord Baoxin made the chi; it is made of bamboo, one chi and four cun long, and has eight holes." On the way back he stopped at Nandun, feasted the three elders and local staff, and distributed gifts.
45
輿
In the eleventh month of winter Prince Yan of Huaiyang was ordered to Pingyu and Prince Fu of Pei to Suiyang for imperial conferences. On jiawu in the twelfth month the court returned to the capital.
46
Yongping 11, first month of spring: the kings Fu of Pei, Ying of Chu, Kang of Jinan, Cang of Dongping, Yan of Huaiyang, Yan of Zhongshan, Jing of Langye, and Zheng of Donghai came to audience. In the seventh month of autumn Metropolitan Commandant Guo Ba was jailed and died there.
47
That year gold surfaced in Chao Lake; the governor of Lujiang sent it to court. Qilin, white pheasants, sweet springs, and exceptional grain were reported from several regions.
48
西
Yongping 12, first month of spring: the Ailao tribes beyond the Yizhou frontier pledged allegiance en masse; the court created Yongchang commandery and abolished the western colonel of Yizhou. In the fourth month of summer Wang Wu of the works directorate was ordered to restore the Bian canal from Xingyang to the sea mouth near Qiansheng.
49
On bingchen in the fifth month every man received two noble steps, three for elders and moral exemplars, one for vagrants who registered; three hu of grain for each widower, widow, orphan, solitary person, the gravely disabled, and the destitute with no kin. An edict read: "Zengzi and Min Ziqian once served their parents with full devotion; Emperor Xuan first allowed the assembled ministers to submit sealed memorials, in order to know conditions below. The sealed memorials had a principal and duplicate seal; those supervising the Masters of Writing first opened the duplicate seal, and if what was said was not good, they set it aside and did not submit it. Later Wei Xiang memorialized to remove the duplicate seal, to guard against obstruction and concealment. Confucius buried his son with only an inner coffin and no outer shell. Mourning values true sorrow; rites favor restraint over display. Today commoners vie to bankrupt themselves on funerals. Families who cannot fill a peck-measure at home pour every coin into burial mounds. They cannot afford meat for the seasonal festivals yet heap sacrificial beasts on one tomb service. They squander ancestral savings on a morning's display while children starve—surely the dead never wished for this. Carriages and dress likewise run to every extravagance eye and ear can crave. Xie means together. Those summoned were ordered to come up together with the accounting clerks. Fields go untilled while idlers multiply. Let officials publish the sumptuary laws that fit the times and send them to every commandery."
50
On yihai in the seventh month of autumn Minister of Works Fu Gong was removed. On yiwei Grand Minister of Agriculture Mou Rong was appointed minister of works. In the tenth month of winter Metropolitan Commandant Wang Kang died in prison.
51
That year the realm was at peace, corvée was light, harvests ran in succession, grain sold for thirty cash a hu, and cattle and sheep blanketed the pastures.
52
Yongping 13, second month of spring: the emperor turned the sacred furrow. After the rite he fed the crowd that had watched. In the third month Xue Zhao, governor of Henan, was imprisoned and died.
53
使 西
In the fourth month of summer the Bian canal works were finished. On xinsi he traveled to Xingyang to review the river dikes and canal. On yiyou an edict said: "More than sixty years have passed since the Bian canal broke; lately unseasonable rains have pushed its course eastward until the old sluices lie midstream in a sheet of flood with no visible bank—utter chaos. The people of Yan and Yu are drowning in it and complain that the state ignores their plight while starting other works. Some argue that diverting the river into the Bian helps You and Ji, that strengthening one levee weakens another, and that both banks should not be forced lest lowlands suffer; they say we should let the flood spread and move people to high ground, sparing the treasury endless dredging while commoners escape the deluge. Counselors disagree—north against south—and I have hesitated too long. Now embankments and sluices divide the Yellow River from the Bian and restore the old courses; north of Taoqiu the silt is turning to good soil; I therefore offer jade and clean beasts to the spirit of the river. East of the Luo ford I pause to honor Yu's labors. The north side of a river is called rui. Luo-rui is the place where the Luo River enters the Yellow River. Ji means merit. The Yellow River and the Luo were both places to which Yu applied his merit, and therefore the emperor sighed over them. Now that the suitability of the five soils has returned to its proper color, the Rites of Zhou says, "Mountains and forests, rivers and marshes, hills and mounds, raised and level ground, and plains and lowlands are called the five soils." Color means such kinds as yellow, white, blue-green, and black. Kong Anguo said, "Where the water has withdrawn, the soil returns to its nature." Give the low fields beside the canals to the poor, and do not allow the powerful to secure the benefit for themselves. Bin means near. Powerful households means great families. May this continue Emperor Shizong’s work at Huzi." Huzǐ was the name of a dike. In the second year of Yuanfeng under Emperor Wu, he mobilized several tens of thousands of soldiers to block the Yellow River breach at Huzi, sank a white horse and jade bi, and ordered the assembled ministers all to carry brushwood to fill the river. It was west of present-day Puyang county in Puzhou. He then crossed the Yellow River. He ascended the Taihang and proceeded to Shangdang. On renyin the court returned to the palace.
54
使
At month's end on renchen in the tenth month of winter the sun was eclipsed. The three dukes laid aside their caps and offered resignations. The emperor replied: "Keep your caps; no resignations. Portents pile up; the fault is mine; I am anxious and do not know the remedy. Are my ministers hiding the truth so that I am blinded and the people cannot be heard? Wei once had honest ministers, and Duke Ling kept his throne because of them. How shall we harmonize yin and yang and lift this curse? Let every inspector and governor review prisons, right injustice, care for the widowed and orphaned, and weigh his charge carefully." In the eleventh month, King Ying of Chu plotted rebellion; he was deposed, his kingdom abolished, and he was moved to Jing county. Jing county belonged to Danyang commandery; it is present-day Xuanzhou county, and its old city lay east of the county. There is a Jing River, which rises at Wuhu; the county was named from the river. Those implicated, executed, or exiled numbered several thousand. That year, King Shi of Qi died.
55
鹿
Yongping 14, jiaxu in the third month of spring: Minister of Education Yu Yan was dismissed and took his own life. On dingsi in the fourth month Xing Mu of Nanyang, governor of Julu, became minister of education. Liu Ying, the former king of Chu, committed suicide. In the fifth month of summer Yuan Shou, son of the late Prince Jing of Guangling, was enfeoffed as Marquis of Guangling.
56
Construction began on the emperor's own tomb, Shouling.
57
Yongping 15, gengzi in the second month of spring: he set out on an eastern progress. On xinchou he stopped at Yanshi and offered ransom scales for fugitives down to capital crimes: forty bolts of silk for death, ten for mutilation sentences, five for lesser hard labor; those who surrendered when the edict arrived paid half. Prince Fu of Pei was ordered to Suiyang. He continued to Pengcheng. On guihai he plowed the sacred field at Xiapi.
58
In the third month Princes Jing of Langye and Cang of Dongping were summoned to Liangcheng and Yangdu, and the Marquis of Guangling with his three brothers to Lu. He sacrificed at the tomb of King Gong of Donghai. On the return journey he visited Confucius's home, offering sacrifice to the Master and his seventy-two disciples. He entered the lecture hall and had the crown prince and the kings discourse on the classics. He visited Dongping again. On xinmao he reached Daliang and Dingtao and worshipped at the tomb of King Gong of Dingtao. On gengzi in the fourth month of summer the court returned to the capital.
59
鹿
Xindu commandery became the kingdom of Lecheng and Linhuai became the kingdom of Xiapi. Princes Gong, Dang, Yan, Chang, Bing, and Chang received Julu, Lecheng, Xiapi, Runan, Changshan, and Jiyin respectively. Every man in the realm received three steps of noble rank; palace gentlemen and attendants of twenty years' service received one hundred bolts of silk; those with ten years or more received twenty; those with fewer than ten received ten bolts; bureau clerks received five; scribes received three. The court ordered five days of public feasting across the realm. On yisi came a sweeping amnesty that even covered many capital crimes previously excluded.
60
輿
In winter the imperial hunt was held in Shanglin Park. In the twelfth month Dou Gu, bearer of the coach, and Geng Bing, consort-escort commandant, were posted to Liangzhou. The Former Book says that the commandant of imperial carriages managed the imperial equipage, and the commandant of attached horses managed the Son of Heaven’s spare horses. Fu means spare. Both posts were established by Emperor Wu and ranked at two thousand bushels.
61
Yongping 16, second month of spring: Ji Yong marched from Gaoyu, Dou Gu from Jiuquan, Geng Bing from Juyan, and Lai Miao from Pingcheng against the Northern Xiongnu. In the sixteenth year, in spring, in the second month, the grand coachman Ji Rong was sent out through Gaoque. Gaoque is the name of a mountain; the pass was named from it and lay north of Shuofang. Commandant of Imperial Carriages Dou Gu went out from Jiuquan, and Commandant of Attached Horses Geng Bing went out from Juyan. This was originally a Xiongnu place-name; Emperor Wu used it as the name of a county belonging to Zhangye commandery, northeast of present-day Zhangye county in Ganzhou. Cavalry Commandant Lai Miao went out from Pingcheng to attack the Northern Xiongnu. Dou Gu defeated the Huyan king at Tianshan. Huyan was the title of a Xiongnu king. Tianshan is Mount Qilian, also called Snow Mountain and now called Mount Zheluohan, north of Yizhou. Qi is pronounced shi. He left troops to garrison the city of Yiwulu. This had originally been a place-name among the Xiongnu; after Huyan was defeated, its territory was taken and the commandant of Yihe was established there for military colonies; it is the old city of Yiwu in present-day Xizhi county, Yizhou. Geng Bing, Lai Miao, and Ji Yong achieved nothing and withdrew.
62
西
In the fifth month of summer Prince Yan of Huaiyang plotted revolt; the plot was uncovered. On guichou Minister Xing Mu and Han Guang, consort-escort commandant, were jailed for their part in the affair and died; a host of others were executed for complicity. He was implicated for plotting together with Yan. At month's end on wuwu the sun was eclipsed. On bingyin in the sixth month Wang Min of Xihe, grand minister of agriculture, became minister of education.
63
In the seventh month of autumn Prince Yan of Huaiyang was demoted to king of Fuling.
64
On dingmao in the ninth month death-row convicts in the provinces were commuted one degree, spared the rod, and sent to garrison Shuofang and Dunhuang; wives and children might follow; parents or full brothers who wished to join them were free to do so; married daughters were not to accompany them. The order did not apply to treason and lese-majesty.
65
That year the Northern Xiongnu struck Yunzhong; Governor Lian Fan repulsed them.
66
Yongping 17, first month of spring: sweet dew was reported at Ganling. Liu Mu, king of Beihai, died. On yisi in the second month Minister of Education Wang Min died. On guichou in the third month Bao Yu, governor of Runan, was appointed minister of education.
67
殿 西 西
That year sweet dew fell again and again, boughs bent inward in token of submission, lingzhi sprouted before the palace, and five-colored "divine sparrows" flocked to the capital. Southwestern peoples—the Ailao, Dan'er, Jiaojiao, Panmu, Bailang, Dongnian, and other tribes—sent tribute one after another in token of devotion; and the Western Regions sent royal hostages to the Han court. On wuzi in the fifth month of summer the high ministers, citing the emperor's power to win the far barbarians and Heaven's clear answer in omens, thronged the hall, raised their cups, and wished him long life. Longevity is what people desire; therefore, when inferiors respectfully present cups and offer wine, they all speak of wishing long life. He replied: "Heaven sends prodigies to signal a true king; distant peoples come to civilization only when the throne is virtuous. I am shallow and unworthy—how dare I claim such honors? I accept only because the sage virtue of Gaozu and Guangwu draws these signs; I cannot refuse that legacy. Let the cups be raised in due form, and let the minister of rituals choose a lucky day to memorialize the ancestors in the imperial shrines. Grant two noble steps to every man, three to elders and moral exemplars, one to vagrants who take up registered residence; three hu of grain to each widower, widow, orphan, solitary soul, the gravely disabled, and the destitute; ten bolts of silk to every palace gentleman or attendant with ten years of service; refund all fines and salary-forfeitures paid since last year by officials from two thousand piculs down to yellow-seal rank."
68
On bingyin in the eighth month of autumn convicts in Wuwei, Zhangye, Jiuquan, Dunhuang, and the Zhangye dependent state who had been sentenced to military labor short of death were pardoned of further prosecution and marched to the camps.
69
西 西
In the eleventh month of winter Dou Gu, Geng Bing, and Liu Zhang marched from Dunhuang through Kunlun Pass, destroyed the White Mountain tribes on Lake Pulei, and pushed into Cheshi. The court first appointed a protector-general of the Western Regions and Wu-Ji colonels to hold the frontier. Emperor Xuan first established the post, with Zheng Ji as protector-general, protecting the thirty-six states; its rank was equivalent to two thousand piculs. Emperor Yuan established the Wu-Ji colonels; they had one assistant and one major each, with rank equivalent to six hundred piculs. Wu and ji correspond to the center and suppress and cover the four quarters; this appears in the Han guan yi. They were also stationed in the Western Regions to garrison and pacify the various states. Tianshui commandery was renamed Hanyang.
70
Yongping 18, dinghai in the third month of spring, an edict ordered: "Fugitives facing death or lesser capital crimes might buy release for thirty bolts of silk down to five for minor hard labor; officials and commoners who surrendered when the edict arrived paid half the listed sums."
71
宿
On jiwei in the fourth month of summer an edict said: "Since spring the seasonal rains have failed; winter wheat is withering; autumn seed cannot go into the ground; policy has lost the middle way, and I am anxious. Let every man receive two steps of rank and every unregistered wanderer who settles one step; grant three hu of grain to each widower, widow, orphan, solitary person, the gravely disabled, and the destitute. Review unjust jailings and free those held on light charges. Let each two-thousand-picul official pray at his region's great mountains and rivers. Where within commandery borders there are famous mountains and great rivers able to raise clouds and rain, the Rites of Zhou says: "The Officer of Regions manages the lands under Heaven. In Yangzhou, its mountain is called Kuaiji, and its river system the Three Rivers. In Jingzhou, its mountain is Hengshan, and its rivers are the Yangzi and Han. In Yuzhou, its mountain is Hua, and its rivers are the Xing and Luo. In Qingzhou, its mountain is Yishan, and its rivers are the Huai and Si. In Yanzhou, its mountain is Dai, and its rivers are the Yellow River and Ji. In Yongzhou, its mountain is Yue, and its rivers are the Jing and Rui. In Youzhou, its mountain is Yiwulü, and its rivers are the Yellow River and Ji. In Jizhou, its mountain is Huo, and its river is the Zhang. In Bingzhou, its mountain is Heng, and its river is the Hutuo." This refers to the famous mountains and great rivers of the Nine Provinces. the senior officials should each purify themselves, fast, pray, and request, hoping to receive timely rain." The Shuowen says: "Timely rain is what moistens and gives life to the myriad things." The Huainanzi says: "When spring rain pours down, among the myriad things there is no place it does not moisten and no thing it does not bring to life." Shu is pronounced by the fanqie zhi-shu.
72
On jiwei in the sixth month a comet appeared in the Supreme Tenuity asterism.
73
西
Yanqi and Kucha attacked Protector-General Chen Mu and annihilated his army. The Northern Xiongnu and the rear king of Cheshi surrounded Colonel Geng Gong.
74
殿
On renzi in the eighth month of autumn the emperor died in the front hall of the Eastern Palace. He was forty-eight years old. His final edict forbade a separate imperial temple; his spirit tablet was housed with Empress Guanglie's in her robing side-chamber. When he first planned Shouling he decreed a plain grave with running water only, a stone outer coffin twelve feet wide and twenty-five long, and no piled tumulus. After his death offerings should be only a swept floor, well water, dried meat, and meal cakes. After the hundred days' mourning only the seasonal libations should continue, with a few men to keep the site swept; do not build new approach roads. Anyone who raises new works on the tomb shall be prosecuted under the statute forbidding unauthorized changes to imperial shrines.
75
宿
He held strictly to the Jianwu precedents, and no one dared overstep them. Consort kin were barred from marquisates and from meddling in policy. The Dongguan Records says: "Guangwu grieved that in the previous age powerful ministers had been too strong and imperial relatives by marriage had participated in government, above clouding enlightened rulers and below endangering ministers and sons; among the empresses’ kin, the Yin and Guo houses did not go beyond the Nine Ministers, and the honors and ranks of their relatives could not reach even half those of the Xu, Shi, and Wang clans." Princess Guantao was Guangwu’s daughter. She requested a gentleman’s post for her son; it was not granted, but she was given ten million cash. He told the assembled ministers: "Gentlemen officials correspond above to the arrayed stars and go out to govern a hundred li. The Records of the Historian says that the twenty-five stars behind the Taiwei Palace are the positions of gentlemen. If the wrong man holds the post, then the people suffer the harm; this is why I make it difficult." Hence officials took pride in their titles, commoners kept to their trades, the realm stood in awe, and the census rolls swelled.
76
The historian remarks: Emperor Ming understood law and government; his regulations were lucid. He held court into the gloaming so that even hidden grievances reached the throne. Court and countryside knew no crooked favoritism, and he wore no haughty air. His judgments caught the truth; later ages ranked him far above earlier emperors in that art. Later reformers always invoked Jianwu and Yongping as their model. Yet critics like Zhongli Yi and Song Jun harped on petty scrutiny—perhaps his large-mindedness still fell short of the ideal?
77
The verse praise runs: Xianzong inherited the great charge in trembling awe. Mindful and reverent, his rule was strict and broke treason. He perfected court ritual and kept his tomb plain. He revived forgotten rites and humbled himself before the Way. He climbed the Spirit Terrace to read the clouds and entered the Hong gate to honor the old. He built on the imperial legacy and brought fresh glory to his father Wen.
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