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Guo Tai, whose courtesy name was Linzong, 〈(Because Fan Ye's father was named Tai, the historian renders the name with this character "tai" instead. The same substitution applies to the name of Zheng Gongye.)〉 He came from Jiexiu in Taiyuan commandery. 〈(Present-day Jiexiu is Fenzhou county.)〉 His family was poor and of humble station. Orphaned while still young, he was to be put to clerking in the county offices—his mother's plan. 〈(The Cangjie Pian glosses the graph: "ting means straight." The Shuowen defines it: "ting is the court's center." The Fengsu Tong adds: "ting means upright. Thus county courts, commandery courts, and the imperial court all draw on the sense of fairness and rectitude.")〉 Linzong replied: "Would a man of stature tie himself to mean clerk's work—fit for a peck basket and dipper?" —and refused the post. He went to Chenggao to study under Qu Boyan; three years later he had mastered the curriculum and could move fluently through the classics. He excelled at discourse, and his voice and bearing commanded attention. He set out for Luoyang. On his first meeting with Li Ying, the governor of Henan, Ying saw something remarkable in him; the two became fast friends, and Guo Tai's name soon resounded through the capital. When he went home, gowned scholars turned out in force to see him to the river—thousands of carriages lined the way. Linzong alone boarded a boat with Li Ying; the crowd on the bank watched the pair cross as if they were watching immortals.
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司徒黃瓊辟，太常趙典舉有道。 或勸林宗仕進者，對曰：「吾夜觀乾象，晝察人事，天之所廢，不可支也。」 〈《左傳》晉汝叔寬之詞。 支猶持也。〉 遂並不應。 性明知人，好獎訓士類。 身長八尺，容貌魁偉，襃衣博帶，周遊郡國。 甞於陳梁閒行遇雨，巾一角墊， 〈音丁念反。 周遷《輿服雜事》曰：「巾以葛爲之，形如幍，音口洽反。 本居士野人所服。 魏武造幍，其巾乃廢。 今國子學生服焉。 以白紗爲之。」〉 時人乃故折巾一角，以爲「林宗巾」。 其見慕皆如此。 〈泰別傳曰：「泰名顯，士爭歸之，載刺常盈車。」〉 或問汝南范滂曰：「郭林宗何如人？」 滂曰：「隱不違親， 〈介推之類。〉 貞不絕俗， 〈柳下惠之類。〉 天子不得臣，諸侯不得友，吾不知其它。」 〈《禮記》曰：「儒有上不臣天子，下不事諸侯。」〉 後遭母憂，有至孝稱。 〈謝承書曰：「遭母憂，歐血發病，歷年乃瘳。」〉 林宗雖善人倫，而不爲危言覈論， 〈《禮記》曰：「擬人必於其倫。」 鄭玄注曰：「倫猶類也。」 論語孔子曰：「邦有道，危言危行。 邦無道，危行言孫。」 覈猶實也。〉 故宦官擅政而不能傷也。 及黨事起，知名之士多被其害，唯林宗及汝南袁閎得免焉。 遂閉門敎授，弟子以千數。 建寧元年，太傅陳蕃、大將軍竇武爲閹人所害，林宗哭之於野，慟。 旣而歎曰：「『人之云亡，邦國殄瘁』。詩大雅之詞。『瞻烏爰止，不知于誰之屋』耳。」詩小雅也。言不知王業當何所歸。
Huang Qiong, the Minister of Education, offered him appointment; Zhao Dian, the Minister of Ceremonies, nominated him as a man "worthy of the Way." To those who urged him into office he said: "At night I read the sky; by day I read the world. What Heaven has cast aside no man can shore up." 〈(The line echoes Ru Shukuan of Jin in the Zuo Zhuan. Here zhi means to prop or sustain.)〉 He declined both summonses. He had a gift for reading character, and he took pleasure in lifting up and guiding other scholars. Eight chi in height, imposing in build, he wore ample robes and wide belts as he moved from one commandery to the next. Walking once between Chen and Liang in a downpour, he folded one corner of his headcloth upward— 〈(Reading: ding-nian fanqie. Zhou Qian's Miscellany on Carriages and Dress says: "The headcloth is made of kudzu fiber, shaped like a zhao, pronounced kou-qia fanqie. Rustic scholars and countrymen had worn it first. After Cao Cao of Wei introduced the formal zhao cap, the old headcloth went out of fashion. Students at the Imperial Academy wear it today. The cap is white gauze.")〉 Fashion followed: men deliberately cocked one corner of the headcloth and called the style the "Linzong fold." Such was the admiration he inspired. 〈(Tai's separate biography says: "Tai's name was manifest; scholars vied to attach themselves to him; visiting cards loaded on carts were always full.")〉 Fan Pang of Runan was once asked, "What kind of man is Guo Linzong?" Pang answered: "In withdrawal he does not wrong his parents— 〈(like Jie Zhitui.)〉 In integrity he does not turn his back on the world— 〈(like Liuxia Hui.)〉 The Son of Heaven cannot enlist him as a subject, the lords cannot claim him as a friend. As for the rest—I would not know how to rank them." 〈(The Liji puts it: "the true scholar neither becomes the emperor's minister nor bends to a feudal lord.")〉 After his mother's death he mourned with such devotion that his filial piety became proverbial. 〈(Xie Cheng's Book says: "When he suffered his mother's death, he vomited blood and fell ill; only after a full year did he recover.")〉 Linzong read men shrewdly, yet he avoided incendiary language and cutting verdicts— 〈(The Liji: "Judge a man only against his kind." Zheng Xuan glosses lun as "kind" or "class." The Analects quotes Confucius: "When the state follows the Way, speak and act with bold integrity; when it does not, keep your conduct upright but humble your words." Here he means "searching" or "probing to the truth.")〉 So even when the eunuchs held the reins, they could not touch him. When the proscription struck, most eminent scholars were ruined—Linzong and Yuan Hong of Runan alone were spared. He shut his doors to teach, and students flocked to him by the thousand. In the first year of the Jianning era, Grand Tutor Chen Fan and Grand General Dou Wu were murdered by eunuchs. Linzong mourned them in the open country, overcome with grief. Then he sighed and said, "'When good men perish, the state and realm waste away'—a line from the Da Ya of the Book of Songs. 'The crow gazes and alights—who knows at whose house?'" This is from the Xiao Ya: he meant that it was unclear to whom the royal enterprise would now return.
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The following spring he died at home at the age of forty-two. Over a thousand men of learning traveled from every quarter to attend his burial. 〈(Xie Cheng's Book says: "Tai died in the first month of the second year of the Jianning era; from west of the Hongnong Hangu Pass to north of Tangyin in Henei, for two thousand li book-bearers and shoulder-pole carriers filled the roads; carts of brushwood and reed matting blocked the way—perhaps ten thousand came.")〉 His admirers raised a stone stele with an inscription by Cai Yong, who later told Lu Zhi of Zhuojun: "I have composed countless epitaphs, and most leave me uneasy about my own character—only Guo Youdao's leaves me untroubled."
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Every man he singled out for praise turned out just as he had foreseen. 〈(Xie Cheng: "once Guo Tai pronounced on a man, opinion settled; prediction preceded proof, and everyone deferred to his judgment.) In Chenliu he befriended Fu Rong; at the Imperial Academy he studied under Qiu Jizhi; in Chen he grew close to Wei Lang; in Runan he joined Huang Xian. When Guo Tai first came south, he called on Yuan Hong but stayed no night; with Huang Xian he lingered for days on end. Someone asked him why. Guo Tai said: "Yuan Hong is like a clear spring in a hollow—bright enough, and easy to dip from. Huang Xian is like a thousand acres of still water: clarify it and it does not clear, churn it and it stays pure—too deep to measure.』 Events proved him right, and that judgment made Guo Tai's name known across the realm.")〉 Later admirers embroidered the record with flourishes and tall tales, so much of what circulates is overwrought, unhistorical stuff that reads like fortune-telling manuals. Here I include only episodes that plainly hold up, set at the end of this chapter. 〈(The reduplication zhangzhang means clearly or plainly.)〉
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左原者，陳留人也。 爲郡學生，犯法見斥。 林宗甞遇諸路，爲設酒肴以慰之。 謂曰：「昔顏涿聚梁甫之巨盜，段干木晉國之大駔，卒爲齊之忠臣，魏之名賢。 〈《呂氏春秋》曰：「顏涿聚，梁父大盜也，學於孔子。」 《左傳》曰：「晉伐齊，戰于黎丘，齊師敗績，親禽顏庚。」 杜預注曰：「黎丘，隰也。 顏庚，齊大夫顏涿聚也。」 又曰：「晉荀瑤伐鄭，鄭駟弘請救於齊。 齊師將興，陳成子屬孤子，三日朝，設乘車兩馬，繫五邑焉。 召顏涿聚之子晉，曰：『隰之役，而父死焉，以國之多難，未汝恤也。 今君命汝以是邑也，服車而朝，無廢前勞。』」 《呂氏春秋》曰：「段干木，晉國之駔。」 《說文》曰：「駔，會也。 謂合兩家之賣買，如今之度巿也。」 《新序》曰「魏文侯過段干木之閭而軾之，遂致祿百萬，而時往問之。 國人皆喜，相與誦之曰：『吾君好正，段干木之敬； 吾君好忠，段干木之隆。』 秦欲攻魏，司馬唐諫曰：『段干木賢者也，而魏禮之，天下莫不聞，無乃不可加兵乎？』 秦君以爲然」也。 駔音子朗反。〉 蘧瑗、顏回尚不能無過，況其餘乎？ 〈《論語》曰：「蘧伯玉使人於孔子，問之曰：『夫子何爲？』 對曰：『夫子欲寡其過而未能也。』」 又曰：「顏回好學，不貳過。」〉 慎勿恚恨，責躬而已。」 原納其言而去。 或有譏林宗不絕惡人者。 對曰：「人而不仁，疾之以甚，亂也。」 〈《論語》孔子之言也。 鄭玄注云：「不仁之人，當以風化之。 若疾之以甚，是益使爲亂也。」〉 原後忽更懷忿，結客欲報諸生。 其日林宗在學，原愧負前言，因遂罷去。 後事露，衆人咸謝服焉。
Zuo Yuan came from Chenliu. A student in the commandery academy, he broke the rules and was expelled. Guo Tai met him on the road once and laid out food and wine to comfort him. He told him: "Yan Zhuoju was a notorious brigand on Mount Liangfu; Duan Ganmu was Jin's leading broker—yet one became a loyal minister of Qi, the other a paragon in Wei. 〈(The Lüshi Chunqiu calls Yan Zhuoju a Liangfu outlaw who became Confucius's pupil." The Zuo Zhuan records Jin's campaign against Qi at Liqiu—a rout, with Yan Geng taken alive." Du Yu identifies Liqiu with Xi. Yan Geng is Qi minister Yan Zhuoju." Elsewhere: when Xun Yao of Jin attacked Zheng, Si Hong of Zheng begged Qi for help. As Qi mobilized, Chen Chengzi mustered the war orphans: three days of court, chariots and pairs of horses, five towns pledged to the cause. He called in Yan Jin, son of Yan Zhuoju: 『Your father fell at Xi; the realm was in such turmoil we never properly honored his sacrifice. Now your lord invests you with this town—ride to court and do not dishonor your father's service.』 "The Lüshi Chunqiu adds: Duan Ganmu was Jin's market broker." The Shuowen defines zang as "agent" or "go-between. It denotes the middleman who brings buyer and seller together, as in a licensed market today." The Xin Xu tells how Marquis Wen of Wei bowed from his chariot at Duan Ganmu's lane, granted him a vast stipend, and called on him often. The capital sang: 『Our lord loves uprightness—see how he honors Duan Ganmu; our lord loves loyalty—see how he exalts Duan Ganmu.』 When Qin planned to strike Wei, Sima Tang objected: "Duan Ganmu is a worthy man, and Wei treats him with ceremony—the whole world has heard of it; is it not perhaps impermissible to apply arms?" The Qin ruler agreed." (Gloss: zang, reading zi-lang.)〉 Even Qu Boyu and Yan Hui slipped sometimes—what mortal does not? 〈(The Analects: Qu Boyu sent a man to Confucius, who asked him, 『What has the Master been doing?』 The answer: 『He is trying to have fewer faults—and still cannot manage it."』 "And Yan Hui "never made the same mistake twice.")〉 Do not nurse bitterness—look to your own conduct." Zuo Yuan took the advice and left. Some faulted Guo Tai for not shunning wrongdoers outright. He answered: "If a person is not humane, to hate him to excess is to bring disorder." 〈(A line from Confucius in the Analects.) Zheng Xuan glosses the passage: "the unworthy ought to be reformed by example and teaching, not crushed. To pursue him with bitter hatred only drives him further into rebellion.")〉 Zuo Yuan later nursed a fresh grudge and recruited bravos to settle scores with the school. Guo Tai happened to be at the academy that day; shamed by his own earlier pledge, Zuo Yuan abandoned the plot. When the plot came to light, the community acknowledged Guo Tai's foresight with gratitude.
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Mao Rong, courtesy name Jiwei, came from Chenliu. In his forties he still farmed; caught in a shower with companions under a tree, the rest lounged in casual poses— 〈(Here yi means flat or level— The Shuowen says: "ju means to squat.")〉 Mao Rong alone sat bolt upright, the picture of respect. Guo Tai noticed, struck by the contrast, spoke with him and asked to stay the night. At dawn Mao slaughtered a fowl; Guo Tai assumed it was for him, but the meat went to Mao's mother while host and guest shared plain vegetables. 〈(Here cao denotes coarse forage.)〉 Guo Tai rose and bowed: "You are a true gentleman!" He urged him into scholarship, and Mao Rong matured into a man of virtue.
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Meng Min, courtesy name Shuda, was a native of Yangshi in Julu commandery. 〈(The Thirteen Provinces gazetteer places Yangshi north of Wei commandery as it is today.)〉 He was living in Taiyuan as a sojourner. His steamer slipped from his shoulder; he walked on without a backward glance. Guo Tai asked why he had not stopped. Meng Min said: "The pot is shattered. Staring at the shards helps nothing." Guo Tai marked him as exceptional and urged him to study abroad. Within a decade his name was known; all three highest offices called him, and he declined every time.
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Yu Cheng, courtesy name Shiyou, hailed from Yanling in Yingchuan. As a youth he worked the county gate as a clerk-guard. 〈(Here shi denotes the gate watchman.)〉 Guo Tai noticed him, urged him into the Imperial Academy, and he paid his way by working for fellow students. He grew able to hold his own in debate; out of modesty he always took the back bench, yet scholars and doctors flocked to him for answers—until the academy made a virtue of sitting low. He ignored every summons and came to be known as the "recluse who refused appointment."
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Song Guo, courtesy name Zhongyi (or Zhongwen—see note), 〈(In Xie Cheng's Book "yi" is written "wen".)〉 He was from Fufeng. He was hot-tempered and lived to settle other men's feuds—local officials loathed him. Guo Tai taught him the right way and warned him where violence would end. Song Guo repented, kowtowed in acknowledgment of his wrongs, and reformed his life. He won a reputation for stern integrity, entered the central administration, rose to attendant censor and inspector of Bing, and left a record of moral sway wherever he served.
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Jia Shu, courtesy name Zihou, came from Guo Tai's home district. His clan had worn official caps, but he was vicious, and the neighborhood lived in fear of him. 〈(Xie Cheng: "Jia Shu had avenged his maternal uncle Song Yuan in town, been arrested, and faced the death cell— Guo Tai spoke with him until Jia Shu wept with remorse. Guo Tai went to Magistrate Ying Cao and argued that Jia had acted from righteous duty in a blood feud. Though an amnesty had passed, the county would not release him until the commandery appealed—then he was spared."〉 When Guo Tai mourned his mother, Jia Shu came to offer condolences—soon joined by Sun Weizhi from Julu. Sun took offense that so worthy a man would admit a known villain; he turned on his heel without entering. Guo Tai overtook him and explained: "Jia Shu has an ugly past, but he is trying to mend his ways. Confucius did not turn away the village of Hu—so I accept his coming." 〈(Huxiang was a place-name— "Huxiang is hard to talk with; a boy was received to see [Confucius], and the disciples were perplexed. Confucius said: approve the man who comes having cleansed himself—do not hold his old sins against him.』")〉 Jia Shu took the lesson to heart, reformed, and became a respected man. Whenever neighbors faced disaster, Jia Shu threw himself into relief work and won praise across the canton.
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Shi Shubin came from Chenliu. Even young he enjoyed outsized fame. Guo Tai remarked to others: "Tall walls on shallow footings—whatever he wins now, he will lose." He was later disgraced when his opinions proved crooked and self-serving.
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Huang Yun, courtesy name Ziai, was from Jiyin. His brilliance made his name. Guo Tai told him: "You have gifts few can match—you could be a man of consequence. But unless you hold the moral course firmly, you will throw it all away." Minister Yuan Kui later sought a husband for his niece; one look at Huang Yun drew a sigh: "A son-in-law like him would satisfy any family." Huang Yun divorced his wife of the Xiahou clan to clear the way. She told her mother-in-law: "Before the Huangs cast me out, let me face my kin once to say goodbye." She invited three hundred guests, took the seat of honor, pushed up her sleeves, and recited fifteen of Huang Yun's secret shames—then stepped into her carriage and left. Huang Yun was ruined in the eyes of his generation.
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Xie Zhen, courtesy name Ziwei, hailed from Shaoling in Runan. He and Bian Rang of Chenliu were famed debaters with glittering reputations. Their visits to Guo Tai routinely stretched from dawn past midnight. Guo Tai told students: "Both men brim with brilliance, yet neither will commit to the true path—what a waste!" Xie Zhen later scorned small scruples and fell from favor. Bian Rang insulted Cao Cao and paid with his life.
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Wang Rou (courtesy Shuyou) and his brother Wang Ze (courtesy Jidao) were from Jinyang—Guo Tai's home commandery. Still in their youth they called on Guo Tai to learn where their talents pointed. Guo Tai said: "Rou will rise through public service, Ze through scholarship—stray from those paths and neither will fulfill his promise." So it proved: Wang Rou commanded the Xiongnu protectorate; Wang Ze governed Dai.
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He spotted Zhang Xiaozhong herding cattle and Fan Tizu working the post road— 〈(The Shuowen says: "you means a relay house on the border for transmitting documents." The Guangya says: "you means post-horse relay." The graph zhi likewise denotes a post station. The Fengsu Tong says: "The Han changed you to zhi. Stations were spaced according to distance.")〉 He picked Shao Gongzi and Xu Weikang from the butcher's stall and Sima Ziwei from the ranks; together with Guo Changxin, Wang Changwen, Han Wenbu, Li Zizheng, and Cao Ziyuan of the same commandery, Zhou Kangzi of Dingxiang, Wang Jiran of Xihe, Qiu Jizhi of Yunzhong, Hao Lizhen, and the rest, sixty men in all made their names. 〈(Xie Cheng's Book says: "Guo Changxin, Wang Changwen, Changwen's disciple Zishi, Han Wenbu, Li Zizheng, Cao Ziyuan of Taiyuan, Zhou Kangzi of Dingxiang, Wang Jiran of Xihe, Qiu Jizhi of Yunzhong—personal name Lingju. Zishi rose to Minister of Education; Jiran became Governor of Beidi; most of the rest held provinces and commanderies.")〉
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The historian comments: Zhuangzi observed that human hearts are trickier than mountain passes—outward motion is easy to read, but what lies hidden resists scrutiny. 〈(Here zheng means to bring to light— Shen here means depth.)〉 So the deepest characters belie their faces; 〈(Gui: to diverge or conflict.)〉 Even the sage-kings struggled to judge men aright. 〈(The "emperor" alluded to is Yao— as the Shang shu says, "Knowing men is to be wise—only for the sovereign is it difficult.")〉 Yet Guo Tai read high and low without error—did he possess an almost uncanny clarity? He spoke softly, acted cautiously, and thrived by hiding his light through dark times— 〈(Heng: to succeed or prevail.)〉 Guiding disciples with gentle persistence until they hungered for renown—even Mozi and Mencius could scarcely have surpassed that gift. 〈(The text means Mozi and Mencius— jue: to surpass.)〉
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Fu Rong, courtesy name Weiming, came from Junyi in Chenliu. His first job was a low clerkship in the commandery seat—he quit out of shame. 〈(According to the Xu Han zhi, the metropolitan investigator policed wrongdoing among the bureaucracy. Fu Rong resigned rather than hold that post.)〉 He then entered the Imperial Academy and took Li Ying, the Minister of the Household, as his master. Li Ying was austere and aloof; whenever Fu Rong called, he sent other visitors away to hear him speak. Fu Rong wore a scholar's headwrap, gestured with sweeping sleeves, and let argument pour forth like a cloudburst— 〈(The "wrapped headcloth" is a single width of fabric— xiu is the old form of "sleeve." "Like clouds" describes eloquence that surges out.)〉 Li Ying would clasp his hands and sigh in admiration. When Guo Tai first reached the capital, nobody knew him; Fu Rong recognized his quality at once and introduced him to Li Ying—that was how Guo Tai's name spread. 〈(Ancient etiquette required an introduction— "Introduce" here means to bring two parties together through a third. Xie Cheng's Book says: "When Rong saw Linzong, he immediately befriended him. then presented him to Li Ying as a pearl still hidden in the sea, a phoenix whose wings had not yet spread. Li Ying received Guo Tai with the rites due to a teacher and friend, and Guo's reputation shook the realm—that was Fu Rong's doing.")〉
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Jin Wenjing of Hanzhong and Huang Ziai of Liang had been trading on clever reputations in Luoyang, pretending to be ill and refusing visitors. Fashionable officials camped on their doorsteps to ask after their health and still could not get in. 〈(Xie Cheng: the pair had fixed their market value, ignored appointments, "convalesced" in the capital, and barred callers— while grandees sent pupils day and night and junior officials clogged the lane—still no audience.")〉 The Three Ducal Offices deferred to the pair on every nomination—approval or veto followed their word. Fu Rong saw through the fraud, went to the academy with Li Ying, and said: "These men have no record of merit; they pose as prodigies while ministers grovel at sickbeds. I fear petty imposture is corrupting public trust—empty fame needs exposing." Li Ying agreed. Their stock fell, their retinues thinned; within days they slunk away in disgrace. Both turned out to be worthless men, ruined by scandal.
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Fu Rong's own reputation soared. He turned down provincial honors, the filial-and-incorrupt nomination, and repeated calls from the capital. Governor Feng Dai, a respected official, asked to see him on taking office. Fu Rong went once and put forward Fan Ran, Han Zhuo, and Kong Zhou— 〈(Reading: same syllable as in "helmet.") Xie Cheng's Book says: "Feng Dai's style name is Deshan. a generous man of unusual civil and military gifts. When Feng took office, Fu Rong nominated Fan Ran as merit assessor, Han Zhuo as chief clerk, and Kong Zhou as chief accountant." Yuan Shansong adds: "Han Zhuo, courtesy Zizhu— on the winter offering day a slave stole food for ancestral rites; Han Zhuo judged the motive honorable and freed him that day.")〉 Fu Rong then pleaded illness and broke off contact. The faction proscription caught him as well.
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When his wife died he could not afford a funeral; neighbors offered a coffin and shroud, but he refused. He said: "The ancients left the dead in the open field. 〈(The Yijing Xici: early burials wrapped the dead in brush and laid them in the wild.)〉 Only family may carry out my wish—a simple earthen burial is enough." 〈(Xie Cheng: Zhang Yuanzu of Yingchuan, a man of principle, visited to condole and said, "Ancient simplicity has its appeal— but the rites prescribe coffins, mourning staffs, and insignia—Confucius said he would follow the Zhou model." He offered his own ox-cart for the procession, and Fu Rong accepted.")〉
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Tian Sheng of the same district—courtesy Zhongxiang—shared Guo Tai's interests and gift for reading men; both lived out their years without serving.
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Xu Shao, courtesy name Zijiang, came from Pingyu in Runan. 〈(Gloss: Yu, fourth tone.)〉 Young and strict in matters of integrity, he loved ranking character and passed judgment often. Fan Zizhao and He Yangshi were among those whose fame his verdicts helped establish. 〈(The Records of Wei: "He Qia, courtesy Yangshi, from Xiping in Runan— recommended as filial and incorrupt, he declined the generalissimo's summons— and when Wei was founded he became a palace attendant.")〉 Hence everyone who spoke of talent-spotting paired "Xu and Guo."
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He began as merit assessor under Governor Xu Qiu, who held him in high regard. 〈(Xu Qiu: reading qiu.)〉 When word spread that Xu Shao would take office, every clerk in the yamen cleaned up his act. Yuan Shao, returning from Puyang in a grand train, dismissed his escort at the border: "I will not parade finery before Xu Shao." He rode home alone in a plain cart.
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Visiting Yingchuan, he paid his respects to every notable except Chen Shi. When Chen Fan brought his wife home for burial, the whole district turned out—Xu Shao stayed away. Asked why, he said: "Chen Shi casts his net wide—too wide to cover everything; Chen Fan is rigid—rigidity leaves little room for nuance. So I keep my distance from both." Such was the edge of his judgments.
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Xu Shao's great-uncle Jing, Jing's son Xun, and Xun's son Xiang had all reached the three highest posts; Xiang, because he could flatter the eunuchs, reached the high offices and was enfeoffed as a marquis, and repeatedly sent to invite Shao. Xu Shao despised his conduct and never answered the invitations.
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Li Kui, a fellow townsman, was blunt and proud—Xu Shao befriended him, then fell out; he also quarreled with his cousin Xu Jing— 〈(The Records of Shu: "Xu Jing and his cousin were both famous talent-spotters but privately at odds— when Xu Shao became merit assessor he struck Xu Jing from the rolls, leaving him to earn a living at a horse mill.")〉 Public opinion faulted Xu Shao for pettiness. The cousins had once shared fame for monthly rankings of local men—the "Yuedan" verdicts that gave Runan its proverbial "monthly critique."
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The Minister of Works Yang Biao summoned him; he was recommended for upright and plain virtue and received an imperial summons, but he accepted none of these. When urged to serve, he said: "Petty men are ascendant; the court will soon convulse. I mean to take my family to safety between the Huai and the sea." He fled south to Guangling. Governor Tao Qian of Xuzhou honored him lavishly. Xu Shao mistrusted him and told his followers: "Tao Qian courts fame but lacks substance. His hospitality will not last. We should leave." They joined Liu Yao, the Yangzhou inspector, at Qu'a. 〈(Liu Yao, courtesy Zhengli.)〉 Tao Qian soon rounded up refugee scholars as Xu Shao had feared. 〈(Yu: sojourning, lodging.)〉 When Sun Ce conquered Wu, Xu Shao fled with Liu Yao to Yuzhang and died there at forty-six.
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Encomium: Guo Tai bore his gifts inwardly and judged men with a jeweler's eye. 〈(Zhen here means to discriminate and clarify— Zao suggests polish or adornment.)〉 He roamed from dawn to dusk, ever true to the temper of his age. 〈(The phrase mingfa refers to rising from nightfall to dawn— as Confucius "circled the realm" in the Lüshi Chunqiu.)〉 Fu Rong saw through pretense; Xu Shao set the measure of men. Both prized integrity and honor—and both stepped back from office. 〈(Qunxun: to decline appointment, to hold aloof.)〉
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校勘記
Textual collation notes
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二二二六頁六行形如* (幍)**[□]*。 按：注云「音口洽反」，則字當作「□」，今改，下同。
Collation note: page 2226, line 6—character form as marked with asterisk in the critical edition. (Editorial note: graph read as zhao, a type of cap.) Editor's note: "the gloss gives the kou-qia reading, so the character should be emended accordingly; revised here and in parallel passages below."
34
Collation entry: p. 2227, lines 10–12, covering the passage from Guo Tai's arrival south to his fame in the world. Note: a seventy-four-character commentary block was wrongly embedded in the main text in the Ji and Palace editions. The Jiajing-era Wang Wensheng print is correct, as is the Fujian reprint, which derives from it.
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Collation: p. 2227, line 11, at "pi" (compared to). (Variant character fan in some editions.) On gui-lan: Hui Dong (cited in the commentary) follows Jiang Gao—"fan" should read "gui"; popular editions corrupted the graph in stages. Wang Xianqian says that in Huang Xian's biography "fan-lan" is written "gui-lan", meaning a gui spring and a lan spring. The text is emended on this authority.
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二二二七頁一一行擾之不濁。 按：殿本「擾」作「撓」，御覽七十二引續漢書同。
Collation: p. 2227, line 11, at "rao". The Palace edition reads "nao" (stir) for "rao"; Taiping Yulan 72 cites the Xu Hanshu the same way.
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Collation: p. 2227, line 15, the name Duan Ganmu. Note: "the surname Duan was misprinted; emended." Same correction in the commentary.
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Collation: p. 2228, line 4—supplement "Zheng's Si Hong" in the Zuo Zhuan quotation. The commentary dropped "Zheng's Si Hong"; the line is restored from the received Zuo Zhuan.
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Collation: p. 2228, line 8, Sima Tang's remonstrance. Note: the collation supplement cites Liu Congchen's view, stating that "Sima Tang" in the present Xin Xu is written "Sima Tangju".
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Collation: p. 2228, line 13, Mao Rong's courtesy name. Note: the collation supplement says "wei" is also written "wei" [different graph]. Liu Congchen identifies him with Mao Jiwei, pupil of Huang Qiong, in the Fengsu Tong.
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二二二九頁三行鉅鹿楊氏人也。 按：「楊」原斗「揚」，逕改正。 注同。
Collation: p. 2229, line 3, "of Yangshi in Julu." Note: Yang (the place name) was misprinted as the homophone "raise"; corrected. Same correction in the commentary.
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二二二九頁七行勸遊學* (宮) **[官]*刊誤謂：案文「宮」當作「官」。 今據改。
Collation: p. 2229, line 7, the cited passage. (Misprint gong "palace" for guan "office.") The Errata: "palace" should read "bureau" or "academy office" (guan). Emended accordingly.
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二二三０頁一二行於是大集賓客三百餘人。 按：校補引柳從辰說，謂袁紀作「請親屬及賓客二十餘人」。
Collation: p. 2230, line 12, the gathering of three hundred guests. Note: the collation supplement cites Liu Congchen's view, stating that Yuan's Annals reads "invited kin and guests—more than twenty".
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二二三四頁九行鄉人* (必) **[畢]*至據汲本、殿本改。
Collation: p. 2234, line 9, the cited passage. (Misprint bi "must" for bi "all, entirely.") Emended to "all arrived" (bi) per the Ji and Palace editions.
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二二三四頁一三行君清平之奸賊亂世之英雄。 按：三國魏志裴注引世說，作「治世之能臣，亂世之奸雄」。
Collation: p. 2234, line 13, Xu Shao's verdict on Cao Cao. Pei Songzhi's Wei zhi commentary, citing the Shishuo xinyu, gives the familiar "capable minister / treacherous hero" wording.
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Collation: p. 2235, line 7, Minister Yang Biao. Note: the surname Yang was misprinted as the homophone "raise"; corrected.