Volume 105 Biographies 43: Cheng Cai, Ren Xiongxiang, Kong Fan son: Zheng, Fan Gong, Zhang Yongzhi, Liu Shu, Wang Shu, Yang Boxiong cousin: Boyuan, Xiao Gong, Wendihandida, Zhang Han, Ren Tianchong

程寀，字公弼，燕之析津人。祖冀，仕遼廣德軍節度使。冀凡六男，父子皆擢科第，士族號其家為「程一舉」。冀次子四穆，遼崇義軍節度使。寀，四穆之季子也。自幼如成人。及冠，篤學，中進士甲科，累遷殿中丞。天輔七年，太祖入燕，授尚書都官員外郎、錦州安昌令，累加起居郎，為史館修撰，以從軍有勞，加少府少監。熙宗時，曆翰林待制，兼右諫議大夫。寀上疏言事，其略曰：「殿前點檢司，古殿岩環衛之任，所以肅禁禦，尊天子、備不虞也。臣幸得近清光，從天子觀時畋之禮。比見陛下校獵，凡羽衛從臣，無貴賤皆得執弓矢馳逐，而聖駕崎嶇沙礫之地，加之林木叢郁，易以迷失。是日自卯及申，百官始出沙漠，獨不知車駕何在。瞻望久之，始有騎來報，皇帝從數騎已至行在。竊惟古天子出入警蹕，清道而行。至於楚畋雲夢，漢獵長楊，皆大陳兵衛，以備非常。陛下膺祖宗付託之重，奈何獨與數騎出入林麓沙漠之中，前無斥候，後無羽衛，甚非肅禁禦之意也。臣願陛下熟計之。後若複獵，當預戒有司，圖上獵地，具其可否，然後下令清道而行。擇沖要稍平之地，為駐蹕之所，簡忠義爪牙之士，統以親信腹心之臣，警衛左右。俟其麋鹿既來，然後馳射。仍先遣搜閱林藪，明立標幟，為出入之馳道。不然，後恐貽宗朝社稷之憂。」

Cheng Cai, whose style name was Gongbi, came from Xijin in the Yan region. His grandfather Ji had served as military governor of the Guangde Army in Liao service. Ji had six sons altogether, and father and sons alike won places on the civil examinations, so the literati nicknamed the household "the Chengs who pass in one sitting." Ji's second son, Simu, served as military governor of the Chongyi Army under the Liao. Cai was Simu's youngest son. Even as a child he conducted himself like a grown man. When he came of age he devoted himself to learning, placed in the highest class of the jinshi examination, and rose through successive appointments to Palace Attendant. In the seventh year of Tianfu, after Taizu took Yan, he received appointment as vice director of punishments in the Ministry of Works and as magistrate of Anchang in Jinzhou; he was later made attendant of the heir apparent and compiler at the Historiography Institute, and for distinguished service on campaign was promoted to vice director of the palace workshops. Under Emperor Xizong he held posts as Hanlin academician awaiting orders and as right remonstrating grand master at the same time. Cai submitted a memorial on affairs of state, which in summary said: "The Palace Front Inspection Office carries the ancient charge of guarding the imperial precincts—to enforce the inner prohibitions, honor the Son of Heaven, and guard against the unforeseen. I have had the good fortune to stand near Your Majesty and accompany you in observing the seasonal hunt. Recently, when Your Majesty went on a training hunt, every guard and attendant official, high or low, was allowed to take up bow and arrow and ride in pursuit, while the imperial carriage was on rough ground of sand and gravel amid thick woodland where one could easily lose the way. That day, from early morning until mid-afternoon, the officials at last came out of the desert still not knowing where the imperial carriage was. After a long wait, a rider at last arrived to report that the emperor, with only a few horsemen, had already reached the temporary encampment. I reflect that in antiquity, whenever the Son of Heaven went abroad, the route was cleared and guarded with warnings and halts. When the Chu hunted in Yunmeng or the Han at Changyang, they all deployed large military escorts against the unforeseen. Your Majesty bears the weighty trust your ancestors placed in you—how can you ride out alone with only a few horsemen into forest, hill, and desert, with no scouts ahead and no guards behind? That falls far short of what enforcing the inner prohibitions requires. I urge Your Majesty to weigh this matter carefully. If Your Majesty hunts again, you should first instruct the responsible offices to map the hunting grounds and report what is feasible, and only then order the route cleared. Choose a level spot at a strategic point for the halt of the imperial carriage, select loyal and resolute warriors, place them under trusted inner ministers, and post them as guards on either side. Wait until the deer have gathered, and only then ride out to shoot. Moreover, send men ahead to search the woods and thickets, set up clear markers, and lay out riding lanes for entry and exit. Otherwise, I fear the ancestral court and the altars of state may yet suffer for it."

又曰：「臣伏讀唐史，追尊高祖以下，諡號或加至十八字。前宋大中祥符間亦加至十六字，亡遼因之，近陛下亦受'崇天體道欽明文武聖德'十字。臣竊謂人臣以歸美報上為忠，天子以追崇祖考為孝。太祖武元皇帝受命開基，八年之間，奄有天下，功德茂盛，振古無前，止諡'武元'二字，理或未安，何以示將來？臣願詔有司定議諡號，庶幾上慰祖宗在天之靈，使耿光丕烈，傳於無窮。」

He also wrote: "Having studied the Tang histories, I find that in posthumous honors from Gaozu onward, epithets were sometimes extended to as many as eighteen characters. Under the former Song, in the Dazhong Xiangfu period, epithets likewise reached sixteen characters; the fallen Liao followed suit, and recently Your Majesty received the ten-character style 'Revering Heaven, Embodying the Way, Respectful and Bright in Civil and Military Sagely Virtue.' I would say that when ministers return praise to their ruler they show loyalty, and when the Son of Heaven honors his forebears he shows filial piety. Taizu the Martial Yuan Emperor received the Mandate and founded the dynasty; within eight years he held the realm. His achievements were abundant and without parallel in history—yet he bears only the two-character epithet Martial Yuan. That may not yet be fitting; what lesson does that teach posterity? I urge Your Majesty to order the responsible offices to deliberate and fix a posthumous title, so that the spirits of your ancestors in Heaven may be comforted and their bright glory and great deeds handed down forever."

又曰：「古者天子皆有巡狩，無非事者。或省察風俗，或審理冤獄，或問民疾苦，以布宣德澤，皆巡狩之名也。國家肇興，誠恐郡國新民，逐末棄本，習舊染之汙，奢侈詐偽，或有不明之獄，僭濫之刑，或力役無時，四民失業。今鑾輅省方，將憲古行事，臣願天心洞照，委之長貳，厘正風俗，或置匭匣，以申冤枉，或遣使郡國，問民無告，皆古巡狩之事。昔漢昭帝問疾苦，光武求民瘼，如此則和氣通，天下丕平可坐而待也。」

He also wrote: "In antiquity every Son of Heaven made inspection tours, and none were idle excursions. Some inspected local customs, some reviewed unjust cases, some inquired into popular hardship, spreading virtuous favor in the name of the inspection tour. Since the dynasty was founded, I truly fear that in the provinces the new subjects may chase profit and abandon the fundamentals, cling to old corruptions, grow extravagant and deceitful, leave cases unclear, impose punishments beyond measure, or demand labor without regard to season so that the four classes lose their livelihood. Now that the imperial carriage is touring the realm and will act as the ancients did, I pray that Heaven's favor may shine through: entrust the work to your chief deputies to rectify customs, set up complaint boxes for the wronged, or send envoys through the provinces to hear those with no advocate—all duties of the ancient inspection tour. When Emperor Zhao of Han inquired into hardship and Emperor Guangwu sought the people's afflictions, harmony followed and great peace could be awaited at ease."

又曰：「臣聞，善醫者不視他人之肥瘠，察其脈之病否而已；善計天下者不視天下之安危，察其紀綱理否而已。天下者人也，安危者肥瘠也，紀綱者脈也，脈不病雖瘠不害，脈病而肥者危矣。是故，四肢雖無故，不足恃也，脈而已矣。天下雖無事，不足矜也，綱紀而已矣。尚書省，天子喉舌之官，綱紀在焉。臣願詔尚書省，戒勵百官，各揚其職，以立綱紀。如吏部天官以進賢退不肖為任，誠使升黜有科，任得其人，則綱紀理而民受其賜，前代興替，未始不由此者。」

He also wrote: "I have heard that a skilled physician does not judge by another's fat or thin frame but examines whether the pulse is sound; and one skilled at governing the realm does not look at surface safety or danger but examines whether its institutions are in order. The realm is the body, safety and danger are its fat or leanness, and statutes are the pulse: if the pulse is sound, leanness does no harm; if the pulse is diseased, even fatness is perilous. Therefore, though the four limbs show no ailment, they cannot be trusted—only the pulse matters. Though the realm seems untroubled, that is no cause for pride—only the institutions matter. The Department of State Affairs is the Son of Heaven's voice; within it lie the institutions of governance. I urge Your Majesty to decree to the Department of State Affairs that it admonish and encourage every official to perform his duty and thereby establish sound institutions. As the Ministry of Personnel, the celestial office, exists to advance the worthy and remove the unworthy—if promotion and demotion follow clear standards and the right men hold office, institutions will be sound and the people will benefit; the rise and fall of every former age has turned on this."

又曰：「虞舜不告而娶二妃。帝嚳娶四妃，法天之四星。周文王一後、三夫人，嬪禦有數。選求淑媛以充後宮，帝王之制也。然女無美惡，入宮見妒，陛下欲廣嗣續，不可不知而告戒之。」

He also wrote: "Yu Shun took two consorts without informing his parents. Emperor Ku took four consorts, following the pattern of Heaven's four stars. King Wen of Zhou had one queen and three chief ladies, with fixed numbers for consorts and attendants. Choosing virtuous ladies to fill the inner palace is the established practice of kings and emperors. Yet whether fair or plain, once a woman enters the palace she meets jealousy. If Your Majesty wishes to extend the succession, you must know this and instruct and warn them."

又曰：「臣伏見本朝富有四海，禮樂制度，莫不一新。宮禁之制，尚未嚴密，胥吏健卒之輩，皆得出入，莫有呵止，至淆混而無別。雖有闌入之法，久尚未行，甚非嚴禁衛、明法令之意，陛下不可不知而必行。」

He also wrote: "I observe that this dynasty holds the four seas and has renewed rites, music, and institutions throughout. Palace security is not yet strict: clerks and strong soldiers alike come and go without challenge, until all distinction is lost in confusion. Though laws against unlawful entry exist, they have long gone unenforced—far from the intent of strict palace guard and clear law. Your Majesty must know this and enforce it without fail."

疏奏，上嘉納之，於是始命有司議增上太祖尊諡。皇統八年十二月，由翰林侍講學士為橫海軍節度使，移彰德軍節度使。卒官，年六十二。寀剛直耿介，不諂奉權貴以希苟進，有古君子之風雲。

When the memorial was submitted, the emperor praised and accepted it, and then first ordered the responsible offices to deliberate on augmenting Taizu's posthumous honors. In the twelfth month of the eighth year of Huangtong he moved from Hanlin attendant lecturer to military governor of the Henghai Army, and was later transferred to military governor of the Zhangde Army. He died in office at the age of sixty-two. Cai was upright and principled; he would not flatter the powerful for advancement, and bore the manner of the gentlemen of old.

任熊祥

Ren Xiongxiang

任熊祥，字子仁。八代祖圜，為後唐宰相。圜孫睿，隨石晉北遷，遂為燕人。熊祥登遼天慶八年進士第，為樞密院令史。太祖平燕，以其地畀宋，熊祥至汴，授武當丞。宋法，新附官不厘務，熊祥言于郡守楊皙曰：「既不與事，請止給半俸以養親。」皙雖不許，而喜其廉。金人取均、房州，熊祥歸朝，複為樞密院令史。時西京留守高慶裔攝院事，無敢忤其意者，熊祥未嘗阿意事之。其後杜充、劉筈同知燕京行省，法制未一，日有異論，熊祥為折衷之。曆深、磁州刺史，開封少尹，行台工部郎中，同知汴京留守事。天德初，為山東東路轉運使，改鎮西軍節度使。是時，詔徐文、張弘信討東海縣，弘信逗遛，稱疾不進，決杖二百。熊祥被詔為會試主文，以「事不避難臣之職」為賦題。及禦試，熊祥複以「賞罰之令信如四時」為賦題，海陵大喜，以為翰林侍讀學士。大定初，起為太子少師。時契丹賊窩斡竊號，北鄙用兵未息，上以為憂，詔公卿百官議所以招伐之宜。眾皆異議，熊祥徐進曰：「陛下以勞民為憂，用兵為重，莫若以恩信招懷之。」上問：「孰可使者？」對曰：「臣雖老，憑國威靈，尚堪一行。」上曰：「卿老矣，無煩為此。」七年，複致仕。熊祥事母以孝聞，母沒時，熊祥年已七十，不食三日，人皆稱之。卒於家。

Ren Xiongxiang, whose style name was Ziren. His ancestor Yuan, eight generations back, had been chief minister of Later Tang. Yuan's grandson Rui moved north with the Later Jin and thus became a native of Yan. Xiongxiang passed the jinshi examination in the eighth year of Liao Tianqing and served as a clerk in the Bureau of Military Affairs. When Taizu pacified Yan and ceded the region to Song, Xiongxiang went to Bian and was appointed assistant magistrate of Wudang. Under Song law, newly submitted officials were not assigned duties. Xiongxiang told the prefect Yang Xi: "Since I am given no duties, I ask only for half salary to support my parents." Xi did not agree, but was pleased by his integrity. When the Jin took Jun and Fang prefectures, Xiongxiang returned to court and again served as a clerk in the Bureau of Military Affairs. At that time Gao Qingyi, regent of the Western Capital, held acting charge of the bureau; no one dared cross him, yet Xiongxiang never curried favor with him. Later Du Chong and Liu Kuo served as co-administrators of the Yanjing Branch Secretariat; laws were not yet unified and disputes arose daily, which Xiongxiang mediated. He served in turn as prefect of Shen and Cizhou, junior administrator of Kaifeng, director in the works section of the branch secretariat, and co-administrator of the Bianjing regency. At the beginning of Tiande he became transport commissioner of the Eastern Shandong Circuit and was later made military governor of the Zhenxi Army. At that time Xu Wen and Zhang Hongxin were ordered to attack Donghai County; Hongxin lingered, pleaded illness, and refused to advance, and was sentenced to two hundred strokes of the staff. Xiongxiang was ordered to serve as chief examiner of the metropolitan examination, with the rhapsody topic "A minister's duty is not to shun hardship in affairs." At the palace examination Xiongxiang again set the topic "Rewards and punishments are as trustworthy as the four seasons." Emperor Hailing was greatly pleased and appointed him Hanlin attendant reader. At the beginning of Dading he was recalled and appointed junior tutor to the heir apparent. At that time the Khitan rebel Wohe had declared himself ruler and fighting on the northern frontier had not ceased. The emperor was troubled and ordered the chief ministers and officials to discuss how best to win him over or subdue him. Everyone offered differing views. Xiongxiang stepped forward slowly and said: "Your Majesty is concerned for the people's labor and weighs the use of arms heavily—nothing is better than winning them with favor and trust." The emperor asked: "Who can be sent?" He replied: "Though I am old, relying on the state's authority I could still make the journey." The emperor said: "You are too old; do not trouble yourself with this." In the seventh year he retired from office again. Xiongxiang was renowned for filial devotion to his mother. When she died he was already seventy and fasted for three days, and all praised him. He died at home.

子拯

His son Zheng

拯字元濟。天德二年，定襲封衍聖公俸格，有加于常品。是歲立國子監，久之，加拯承直郎。大定元年卒。弟總襲封，加文林郎。

Zheng, whose style name was Yuanji. In the second year of Tiande the salary scale for the hereditary Duke Yansheng was fixed, with emoluments above the usual rank. That year the Directorate of Education was established; after some time Zheng was made gentleman for direct service. He died in the first year of Dading. His younger brother Zong inherited the title and was made gentleman of letters.

總字元會。大定二十年，召總至京師，欲與之官。尚書省奏：「總主先聖祀事，若加任使，守奉有闕。」上曰：「然。」乃授曲阜縣令。明昌元年卒。子元措襲封，加文林郎。

Zong, whose style name was Yuanhui. In the twentieth year of Dading Zong was summoned to the capital, and the emperor wished to appoint him to office. The Department of State Affairs reported: "Zong presides over the sacrifices to the Former Sage; if he is given another appointment, his ritual duties will suffer." The emperor said: "That is so." He was therefore appointed magistrate of Qufu County. He died in the first year of Mingchang. His son Yuancuo inherited the title and was made gentleman of letters.

元措字夢得。三年四月詔曰：「衍聖公視四品，階止八品，不稱。可超遷中議大夫，永著於令。」四年八月丁未，章宗行釋奠禮，北面再拜，親王、百官、六學生員陪位。承安二年正月，詔元措兼曲阜縣令，仍世襲。元措曆事宣宗、哀宗，後歸大元終焉。

Yuancuo, whose style name was Mengde. In the fourth month of the third year an edict said: "The Duke Yansheng is treated as fourth rank, yet his grade remains eighth—this is unfitting. He may be promoted to grand master of palace discourse and this shall be permanently written into the statutes." On dingwei day in the eighth month of the fourth year, Emperor Zhangzong performed the libation sacrifice to Confucius, bowed twice facing north, with princes, officials, and students of the six schools in attendance. In the first month of the second year of Cheng'an, an edict appointed Yuancuo concurrently magistrate of Qufu County, with the post still hereditary. Yuancuo served Emperors Xuanzong and Aizong; later he submitted to the Great Yuan and ended his life there.

四十八代端甫者，明昌初，學士党懷英薦其年德俱高，讀書樂道，該通古學。召至京師，特賜王澤榜及第，除將仕郎、小學教授，以主簿半俸致仕。

Duanfu of the forty-eighth generation: at the beginning of Mingchang Academician Dang Huaiying recommended him for his advanced years and virtue, his love of learning and the Way, and his mastery of classical studies. He was summoned to the capital, specially granted a pass on Wang Ze's examination list, appointed gentleman for initial service and professor of the primary school, and retired on half a registrar's salary.

范拱，字清叔，濟南人。九歲能屬文，深于《易》學。宋末登進士第，調廣濟軍曹，權邦彥辟為書記，攝學事。劉豫鎮東平，拱撰謁廟文，豫奇之，深加賞識。拱獻《六箴》。

Fan Gong, whose style name was Qingshu, came from Jinan. By the age of nine he could already write essays, and he had an exceptional grasp of the Book of Changes. Near the end of the Song dynasty he earned his jinshi degree, took up a post in the Guangji Army, and was recruited by Quan Bangyan as a secretary, serving concurrently in academic administration. When Liu Yu was stationed at Dongping, Gong wrote an inscription for a temple visit. Liu Yu was impressed and held him in high regard. Gong submitted his Six Admonitions.

齊國建，累擢中書舍人。上《初政錄》十五篇：一曰《得民》，二曰《命將》，三曰《簡禮》，四曰《納諫》，五曰《遠圖》，六曰《治亂》，七曰《舉賢》，八曰《守令》，九曰《延問》，十曰《畏慎》，十一曰《節祥瑞》十二曰《戒雷同》，十三曰《用人》，十四曰《禦將》，十五曰《禦軍》。豫納其說而不能盡用也。久之，權尚書右丞，進左丞，兼門下侍郎。

After the Qi state was founded, he rose through successive promotions to the post of Secretariat Drafter. He presented Records of Early Governance in fifteen sections: "Winning the People," "Appointing Generals," "Simplifying Ritual," "Accepting Remonstrance," "Long-range Planning," "Order and Disorder," "Advancing the Worthy," "Prefects and Magistrates," "Extended Inquiry," "Reverence and Caution," "Restraining Auspicious Omens," "Warning against Mechanical Conformity," "Employing Men," "Controlling Generals," and "Controlling the Army." Liu Yu accepted his advice but was unable to implement it entirely. Before long he was appointed Acting Vice Director of the Right in the Department of State Affairs, then promoted to Vice Director of the Left while also serving as Vice Minister of the Chancellery.

豫以什一稅民，名為古法，其實裒斂，而刑法嚴急，吏夤緣為暴。民久罹兵革，益窮困，陷罪者眾，境內苦之。右丞相張孝純及拱兄侍郎巽，極言其弊，請仍因履畝之法，豫不從。巽坐貶官，自是無複敢言者。拱曰：「吾言之則為党兄，不言則百姓困弊。吾執政也，甯為百姓言之。」乃上疏，其大略以為「國家懲亡宋重斂弊，什一稅民，本務優恤，官吏奉行太急，驅民犯禁，非長久計也」。豫雖未即從，而亦不加譴。拱令刑部條上諸路以稅抵罪者凡千餘人，豫見其多，乃更為五等稅法，民猶以為重也。

Liu Yu levied a ten-percent tax on the people under the name of restoring an ancient practice, but in truth it was heavy extraction. Punishments were severe, and officials abused their power to commit abuse. The people had endured war for years and were growing poorer. Convictions mounted, and suffering spread throughout the realm. Right Chancellor Zhang Xiaochun and Gong's elder brother Xun, a vice minister, pleaded vigorously against the policy and urged a return to field-acreage taxation, but Liu Yu refused. Xun was demoted for his outspokenness, and after that no one dared raise the issue again. Gong said, "If I speak out, I will be charged with favoring my brother; if I stay silent, the people will continue to suffer. As one who holds office, I would rather speak on behalf of the people." He then submitted a memorial arguing that although the ten-percent tax had been meant to avoid the ruinous exactions of the fallen Song and to provide relief for the people, officials were enforcing it so harshly that they were driving people into crime—a policy that could not be sustained in the long run. Liu Yu did not adopt the proposal at once, but neither did he punish Gong for it. Gong had the Ministry of Punishments catalog more than a thousand people throughout the circuits who had been convicted for tax offenses. When Liu Yu saw the number, he replaced the system with a five-tier tax law, but the people still regarded it as burdensome.

齊廢，梁王宗弼領行台省事，拱為官屬。宗弼訪求百姓利病，拱以減稅為請，宗弼從之，減舊三分之一，民始蘇息。拱慎許可，而推轂士，李南、張輔、劉長言皆拱薦也。長言自汝州郟城酒監擢省郎，人不知其所以進，拱亦不自言也。以久病乞近郡，除淄州刺史。皇統四年，以疾求退，以通議大夫致仕。齋居讀書，罕對妻子。

After the Qi state was dissolved, Prince Zongbi of Liang assumed control of the Regional Secretariat, and Gong served on his staff. When Zongbi sought to learn what policies were harming or helping the people, Gong petitioned for tax reduction. Zongbi approved, cutting taxes by one-third, and the people finally began to recover. Gong was sparing with his endorsements, but he actively promoted talent; Li Nan, Zhang Fu, and Liu Changyan were all men he recommended. Changyan rose from overseeing the wine monopoly in Jia County, Ruzhou, to a post in the central bureaucracy, and though no one knew how he had been promoted, Gong never said a word about it. Citing chronic illness, he asked for a nearby post and was appointed prefect of Zi Prefecture. In the fourth year of the Huangtong era, he requested retirement on grounds of illness and left office with the rank of Grand Master for Extended Discussion. He lived simply at home with his books and seldom saw even his wife and children.

世宗在濟南聞其名。大定初，拱上封事。七年，召赴闕，除太常卿。議郊祀。或有言前代都長安及汴、洛，乙太、華等山列為五嶽，今既都燕，當別議五嶽名。寺僚取《崧高》疏「周都酆鎬，以吳嶽為西嶽」。拱以為非是，議略曰：「軒轅居上穀，在恆山之西，舜居蒲阪，在華山之北。以此言之，未嘗據所都而改嶽祀也。」後遂不改。拱嘗言：「禮官當守禮，法官當守法，若漢張釋之可謂能守法矣。」故其議論確然不可移奪。九年，複致仕，卒於家，年七十四。

While in Jinan, Emperor Shizong heard of his reputation. Early in the Dading era, Gong submitted a memorial to the throne. In the seventh year he was summoned to court and made Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. He took part in deliberations on the suburban sacrifices. Some argued that when past dynasties had capitals at Chang'an, Bian, and Luoyang, they had designated Mount Tai, Mount Hua, and others as the Five Sacred Mountains, and that now, with the capital at Yan, a new set of five mountains ought to be chosen. Officials in the court cited a commentary on Song Gao stating that when Zhou had its capital at Feng and Hao, Mount Wu had served as the Western Peak. Gong disagreed, arguing in outline: "The Yellow Emperor lived at Shanggu, west of Mount Heng, and Shun lived at Puban, north of Mount Hua. From this it is clear that they never changed which mountains were worshipped simply because they moved their capital." In the end the designations were not changed. Gong once remarked, "Ritual officials should uphold ritual, and legal officials should uphold the law. In the Han dynasty, Zhang Shizhi showed what it meant truly to uphold the law." His opinions were therefore firm and not easily swayed. In the ninth year he retired once more, then died at home at the age of seventy-four.

張用直

Zhang Yongzhi

劉樞，字居中，通州三河人。少以良家子從軍，屯河間。同輩皆騎射，獨樞刻意經史。登天眷二年進士，調唐山主簿。改飛狐令，蔚州刺史恃功貪污無所顧忌，屬邑皆厭苦之，樞一無所應，乃摭以他事系獄，將致之死。郡人有憐樞者，導樞脫走，訴於朝。會廉察使至，守倅而下皆抵罪廢，獨樞治狀入優等，躐遷奉直大夫。張浩營建燕京宮室，選樞分治工役。遷尚書刑部員外郎，鞫治太原尹徒單阿裏出虎反狀，旬日獄具。轉工部郎中，進本部侍郎。正隆末，從軍還自江上。大定初，與左司郎中王蔚、右司員外郎王全俱出補外，樞為南京路轉運使事。初，世宗欲複用樞等，御史台奏：「樞等在正隆時皆以巧進，敗法蠹政，人多怨嫉之。」上以樞等頗幹濟，猶用之，戒之曰：「能悛心改過，必加升擢。不然，則斥汝等矣。」是時，阿勒根彥忠為南京都轉運使，不閑吏事，故用樞以佐之。遷山東路轉運使，改中都路轉運使。大定四年，卒於官。

Liu Shu, styled Juzhong, was from Sanhe in Tongzhou. As a young man from a respectable family, he entered military service and was stationed at Hejian. While his comrades devoted themselves to horsemanship and archery, Shu alone applied himself to the classics and histories. He passed the jinshi examination in the second year of the Tianjuan era and was appointed recorder of Tangshan County. He was reassigned as magistrate of Feihu. The prefect of Yu Prefecture, emboldened by his past service, was corrupt and feared no restraint, and every subordinate county resented him. When Shu refused to cooperate, the prefect fabricated charges, threw him in prison, and sought to have him executed. A sympathetic local man helped Shu escape, and Shu appealed to the central court. When an integrity commissioner arrived, the prefect, his deputy, and their subordinates were all convicted and removed from office. Shu alone received the highest rating for his governance and was promoted directly to Grand Master for Direct Counsel. When Zhang Hao oversaw construction of the palaces at Yanjing, Shu was chosen to help manage the labor assignments. He was promoted to Vice Director in the Ministry of Punishments and investigated the treason case of Taiyuan Governor Tushan Ali Chuhu, completing the trial within ten days. He moved to Director in the Ministry of Works and then rose to Vice Minister of the same ministry. Near the end of the Zhenglong era he returned from military service along the Yangzi. Early in the Dading era, he was sent out with Left Department Director Wang Wei and Right Department Vice Director Wang Quan to provincial posts; Shu became Commissioner of Transport for the Nanjing Circuit. When Emperor Shizong wished to reappoint Shu and the others, the Censorate reported, "During the Zhenglong era, Shu and his colleagues had risen through flattery, undermining the law and corrupting government, and they were widely resented." The emperor, judging them still capable administrators, reappointed them anyway, warning, "If you truly repent and reform, you will be promoted; otherwise I will dismiss every one of you." At the time, Aligen Yanzhong served as Chief Commissioner of Transport for Nanjing but lacked experience in administration, so Shu was appointed to assist him. He was promoted to Commissioner of Transport for the Shandong Circuit, then reassigned as Commissioner of Transport for the Central Capital Circuit. In the fourth year of the Dading era, he died while still in office.

王翛，字翛然，涿州人也。登皇統二年進士第，由尚書省令史除同知霸州事。累遷刑部員外郎。坐請囑故人奸罪，杖四十，降授泰定軍節度副使。四遷大興府治中，授戶部侍郎。世宗謂宰臣曰：「王翛前為外官，聞有剛直名。今聞專務出罪為陰德，事多非理從輕。又巧幸偷安，若果剛直，則當忘身以為國，履正以無偏，何必賣法以徼福耶？」尋命賑濟密雲等三十六縣猛安人戶，冒請粟三萬余石，為尚書省奏奪官一階，出為同知北京留守事。上曰：「人多言王翛能官，以朕觀之，凡事不肯盡力，直一老奸耳。」二十四年，遷遼東路轉運使。歲餘，改顯德軍節度使。以前任轉運使拽辱倉使王祺致死，追兩官解職，敕杖七十，降授鄭州防禦使。

Wang Xiao, styled Xiaoran, was from Zhuo Prefecture. After passing the jinshi examination in the second year of the Huangtong era, he rose from a clerk in the Department of State Affairs to Vice Administrator of Ba Prefecture. He was promoted through successive posts to Vice Director in the Ministry of Punishments. He was convicted of using personal influence to reduce charges against an old acquaintance in a treason case, flogged forty strokes, and demoted to Vice Military Commissioner of the Taide Army. After four further promotions he became Administrator of Daxing Prefecture and was appointed Vice Minister of Revenue. Emperor Shizong told his chief ministers, "When Wang Xiao served in the provinces, he had a reputation for uncompromising integrity. Now I hear he specializes in acquitting the guilty as a form of secret merit, lightly dismissing cases that ought to be punished. He is also adept at looking out for himself. If he were truly upright, he would risk himself for the state and apply the law without favor—why would he distort the law to curry favor?" Soon after, he was tasked with distributing relief to military colonist households in thirty-six counties including Miyun. He fraudulently claimed more than thirty thousand shi of grain and was stripped of one rank by memorial from the Department of State Affairs, then demoted to Vice Administrator of the Northern Capital Military Commission. The emperor said, "Many praise Wang Xiao as an able official, but from my perspective he never applies himself fully to anything. He is nothing but a crafty old opportunist." In the twenty-fourth year he was transferred to Commissioner of Transport for the Liaodong Circuit. A little over a year later he was reassigned as Military Commissioner of the Xiande Army. Because as a former transport commissioner he had humiliated Warehouse Commissioner Wang Qi to the point of death, he was stripped of two ranks, dismissed from office, ordered flogged seventy strokes, and demoted to Defense Commissioner of Zheng Prefecture.

章宗即位，擢同知大興府事。審錄官奏，翛前任顯德潔廉剛直，軍吏斂跡，無訟獄。遷禮部尚書，兼大理卿。使宋還，會改葬太師廣平郡王徒單貞。貞，章宗母孝懿皇后父也。帝欲用前代故事，班劍、鼓吹、羽葆等儀衛。宰臣以貞與弑熙宗誅死，意難之。於是詔下禮官議。翛言：「晉葬丞相王導，給前後羽葆、鼓吹、武賁、班劍百人。唐以來，大駕鹵簿有班劍，其王公以下鹵簿並無班劍，兼羽葆非臣下所宜用，國朝葬大臣亦無之。」上先知唐葬大臣李靖等皆用班劍、羽葆，怒曰：「典故所無，固可從，然用之亦不過禮。」一日，詔翛及諫議大夫兼禮部侍郎張暐詣殿門，諭之曰：「朝廷之事，汝諫官、禮官即當辯析。且小民言可采，朕尚從之，況卿等乎？自今議事，毋但附合尚書省。」

When Emperor Zhangzong took the throne, he was promoted to Vice Administrator of Daxing Prefecture. A review officer reported that during Xiao's earlier tenure at Xiande he had been incorruptible and resolute, so that military officials held themselves in check and lawsuits disappeared. He was promoted to Minister of Rites while also serving as Director of the Court of Judicial Review. After returning from an embassy to the Song, he arrived just as Grand Preceptor Tushan Zhen, Prince of Guangping, was being reinterred. Zhen was the father of Empress Xiaoyi, the mother of Emperor Zhangzong. The emperor wished to follow precedents from earlier dynasties by granting ceremonial guards, a musical escort, feathered parasols, and other such honors for the funeral. The chief ministers objected on the grounds that Zhen had been executed for involvement in Emperor Xizong's assassination. The emperor then ordered the ritual officials to deliberate on the matter. Xiao argued, "When the Jin dynasty buried Chancellor Wang Dao, the funeral included feathered parasols, a musical escort, military guards, and a hundred sword-bearers in ceremonial dress. From the Tang dynasty onward, gilded swords appeared only in the emperor's procession. Lesser ranks were not granted them, and feathered parasols were never appropriate for subjects. Our dynasty too has never granted such honors at the funerals of ministers." The emperor, already aware that Tang ministers such as Li Jing had been granted gilded swords and feathered parasols at their funerals, said angrily, "What your precedents omit may be set aside, but granting these honors would not exceed proper ritual." One day he summoned Xiao and Remonstrating Grand Master Zhang Wei, who also served as Vice Minister of Rites, to the palace gate and told them, "On matters of state, you as remonstrating and ritual officials should speak your minds clearly. When even commoners offer useful advice, I listen. How much more should I hear from officials such as you? From now on, when you deliberate, do not simply echo whatever the Department of State Affairs proposes."

明昌二年，改知大興府事。時僧徒多游貴戚門，翛惡之，乃禁僧午後不得出寺。嘗一僧犯禁，皇姑大長公主為請，翛曰：「奉主命，即令出之。」立召僧，杖一百死，京師肅然。後坐故出人罪，複削官解職。明年，特授定海軍節度使。諭旨曰：「卿賦性太剛，率意行事，乃自陷於刑。若殿年降敘，念卿入仕久，頗有執持，故特起於罪謫之中，授以見職。且彼歲歉民饑，盜賊多，須用舊人鎮撫，庶得安治。勉晝乃心，以圖後效。」未幾，表乞致仕。上曰：「翛能幹者，得力為多。」不許。複申請，從之。泰和七年，卒，年七十五。

In the second year of the Mingchang era he was reassigned as Administrator of Daxing Prefecture. At the time many monks spent their afternoons visiting the mansions of great families. Xiao despised the practice and forbade monks to leave their temples after noon. When one monk broke the rule, the Grand Eldest Princess, the emperor's aunt, interceded on his behalf. Xiao replied, "If I must obey Her Highness, I will release him at once." He then had the monk brought out, flogged a hundred strokes until he died, and the capital fell silent. Later he was again stripped of rank and dismissed for improperly acquitting offenders. The following year he was specially reappointed Military Commissioner of the Dinghai Army. The edict read, "Your nature is too unyielding; acting on impulse, you brought punishment upon yourself. By seniority alone you would remain demoted, but considering your long service and your firmness of character, I am restoring you from disgrace to an active post. That region has suffered failed harvests, famine, and widespread banditry. It needs an experienced man to restore order. Apply yourself wholeheartedly and prove your worth anew." Before long he submitted a memorial requesting retirement. The emperor said, "Among capable officials, Xiao is one of the most useful." The request was denied. When he petitioned again, the emperor agreed. In the seventh year of the Taihe era he died at the age of seventy-five.

翛性剛嚴，臨事果決，吏民憚其威，雖豪右不敢犯。承安間，知大興府事闕，詔諭宰臣曰：「可選極有風力如王翛輩者用之。」其為上所知如此。

Xiao was stern and forceful, decisive in action, and feared by officials and commoners alike—even the powerful did not dare cross him. During the Cheng'an era, when the post of Administrator of Daxing Prefecture fell vacant, the emperor instructed his ministers, "Choose someone with exceptional force of character, a man in the mold of Wang Xiao." Such was the esteem in which the throne held him.

楊伯雄

Yang Boxiong

楊伯雄，字希雲，真定槁城人。八世祖彥稠，後唐清泰中為定州兵馬使。後隨晉主北遷，遂居臨潢。父丘行，太子左衛率府率。

Yang Boxiong, whose style name was Xiyun, came from Gaocheng in Zhending Prefecture. Eight generations back, his ancestor Yanchou had served as military commissioner of Dingzhou during the Qingtai reign of Later Tang. He later followed the Jin court in its northward move and made his home at Linhuang. His father, Qiu Xing, held the post of captain in the Left Guard Office of the Heir Apparent.

伯雄登皇統二年進士，海陵留守中京，丘行在幕府，伯雄來省視，海陵見之，深加器重。久之，調韓州軍事判官。有二盜詐稱賈販，逆旅主人見欺，至州署陳訴，實欲劫取伯雄。伯雄心覺其詐，執而詰之，並獲其党十餘人，一郡駭服。遷應奉翰林文字。是時，海陵執政，自以舊知伯雄，屬之使時時至其第，伯雄諾之而不往也。他日海陵怪問之，對曰：「君子受知于人當以禮進，附麗奔走，非素志也。」由是愈厚待之。

Boxiong placed on the jinshi rolls in the second year of Huangtong. While Hailing was holding Zhongjing as regent, Qiu Xing served on his staff; when Boxiong came to visit his father, Hailing met him and came to hold him in high regard. Before long he was appointed military affairs adjudicator at Hanzhou. Two robbers had posed as traveling merchants. Their victim, the innkeeper, came to the prefectural yamen to lodge a complaint—a complaint that was in fact a ruse to waylay Boxiong. Boxiong sensed the fraud at once. He seized the men and questioned them, then rounded up more than a dozen of their accomplices as well, leaving the whole district stunned into respect. He was promoted to Hanlin drafter in the Responding to Imperial Command Academy. Hailing was then in charge of the government and, claiming an old tie with Boxiong, asked him to visit his house often. Boxiong assented—and never went. On another occasion Hailing asked him why. Boxiong answered, "When a gentleman has won another's esteem, he should approach him through proper ceremony. To hang on his patron's sleeve and scurry about at his command—that was never what I meant to become." After that Hailing treated him with even greater favor.

海陵篡立，數月，遷右補闕，改修起居注。海陵銳於求治，講論每至夜分。嘗問曰：「人君治天下，其道何貴？」對曰：「貴靜。」海陵默然。明日，複謂曰：「我遷諸部猛安分屯邊戍，前夕之對，豈指是為非靜邪？」對曰：「徙兵分屯，使南北相維，長策也。所謂靜者，乃不擾之耳。」乙夜，複問鬼神事。伯雄進曰：「漢文帝召見賈生，夜半前席，不問百姓而問鬼神，後世頗譏之。陛下不以臣愚陋，幸及天下大計，鬼神之事，未之學也。」海陵曰：「但言之，以釋永夜倦思。」伯雄不得已，乃曰：「臣家有一卷書，記人死複生，或問冥官何以免罪，答曰，汝置一曆，白日所為，暮夜書之，不可書者是不可為也。」海陵為之改容。夏日，海陵登瑞雲樓納涼，命伯雄賦詩，其卒章雲：「六月不知蒸鬱到，清涼會與萬方同。」海陵忻然，以示左右曰：「伯雄出語不忘規戒，為人臣當如是矣。」再遷兵部員外郎。丁父憂，起複翰林待制，兼修起居注。遷直學士，再遷右諫議大夫，兼著作郎，修起居注如故。

Within months of Hailing's usurpation, Boxiong was made Right Supplements Censor and then transferred to compiler of the imperial diary. Hailing was eager to govern well, and their discussions often ran deep into the night. He once asked, "When a ruler sets the realm in order, what principle should he value above all?" Boxiong answered, "Stillness." Hailing said nothing. The next day he said, "I have been relocating the tribal meng'an to scattered border garrisons. Last night, when you praised stillness—were you saying that policy is wrong?" Boxiong replied, "Dispersing troops along the frontier so that north and south hold each other up—that is sound long-term policy. By stillness I meant only that the people should not be disturbed." Deep into the night he raised the subject of ghosts and spirits again. Boxiong stepped forward. "When Emperor Wen of Han received Jia Yi at midnight and drew his mat close, he asked about ghosts and spirits rather than the people—a choice later ages have not ceased to mock. Your Majesty has been kind enough not to despise me as dull and unlearned, and to consult me on the great affairs of the realm. Ghosts and spirits, however, I have never studied." Hailing said, "Say what you will—it will break the tedium of a long night." Unable to refuse, Boxiong said, "At home we have an old book that tells of a man who died and came back to life. When someone asked the judge of the dead how to avoid guilt, the answer was: Keep a ledger—write down each day's deeds each night. What you cannot write down, you must not do." Hailing's face changed at the words. One summer day Hailing climbed Ruiyun Tower to escape the heat and asked Boxiong for a poem. Its closing lines ran: "Even in the sixth month, let no one feel the weight of the heat—may coolness be shared with all under Heaven. Hailing was delighted and showed the poem to his attendants. "Even in verse Boxiong never forgets to admonish," he said. "That is how a minister ought to be." Boxiong was soon promoted again, to vice director in the Ministry of War. After his father's death he observed mourning, then was recalled to serve as Hanlin awaiting orders while continuing as compiler of the imperial diary. He rose to direct academician, then to right remonstrating grand master, also serving as author and compiler while retaining his post on the imperial diary.

六年，上幸西京，欲因往涼陘避暑，伯雄率眾諫官入諫。上曰：「朕徐思之。」伯雄言之不已，同列皆引退，久之乃起。是年，至涼陘，徼巡果有疏虞。上思伯雄之言，及還，遷禮部尚書，謂近臣曰：「群臣有幹局者眾矣，如伯雄忠實，皆莫及也。」上謂伯雄曰：「龍逄、比干皆以忠諫而死，使遇明君，豈有是哉！」伯雄對曰：「魏徵願為良臣，正謂遇明君耳。」因顧謂宰相曰：「《書》曰：'汝無面從，退有後言。 '朕與卿等共治天下，事有可否，即當面陳。卿等致位卿相，正行道揚名之時，偷安自便，徼幸一時，如後世何？」群臣皆稱萬歲。

In the sixth year the emperor went to the Western Capital and planned to continue on to Liangjing for the summer. Boxiong led his fellow remonstrators in urging him not to go. The emperor said, "I will think it over." Boxiong would not leave off. His colleagues slipped away one by one; he alone remained, and only after a long while did he rise to go. That year, when the emperor reached Liangjing, the security around him proved dangerously slack—as Boxiong had warned. Remembering Boxiong's counsel, the emperor on his return made him minister of rites and told his inner circle, "Plenty of ministers know how to manage affairs, but for steadfast loyalty like Boxiong's, none can compare." He said to Boxiong directly, "Long Feng and Bi Gan died for speaking truth to power. Under a clear-sighted ruler, would such men have to die?" Boxiong answered, "Wei Zheng spoke of wanting to be a true minister—because he had found one." Turning to his chief ministers, he quoted the Book of Documents: "Do not nod assent to my face and murmur against me afterward. I and you govern this realm together. When something is right or wrong, say so to my face. You stand at the height of power, the moment to serve honorably and leave a name. If you settle for comfort and chase quick advantage, what will history say of you?" The court cried "Long live the emperor!"

十二年，改沁南軍節度使，召為翰林學士承旨。丞相石琚致仕，上問：「誰可代卿者？」琚對曰：「伯雄可。」時論以琚舉得其人。複權詹事，伯雄知無不言，匡救弘多。後宮僚有詭隨者，人必稱楊詹事以愧之。除定武軍節度使，改平陽尹。先是，張浩治平陽，有惠政，及伯雄為尹，百姓稱之，曰：「前有張，後有楊。」徙河中尹。卒，年六十五。諡莊獻。弟伯傑、伯仁，族兄伯淵。

In the twelfth year he was appointed military commissioner of the Qinnan Army, then recalled to serve as chief Hanlin academician. When Chief Minister Shi Kui retired, the emperor asked him, "Who can take your place?" Shi answered, "Boxiong." Opinion at the time agreed that Shi had named the right man. He also served as acting grand tutor, speaking without reserve and offering steady corrective counsel. When a palace official acted evasively, people would invoke Grand Tutor Yang to shame him. He was made military commissioner of the Dingwu Army, then magistrate of Pingyang. Zhang Hao had earlier governed Pingyang with real benevolence. When Boxiong took the post, the people said, "First there was Zhang—then there was Yang." He was later transferred to magistrate of Hezhong. He died at sixty-five. He was posthumously titled Zhuangxian ("Solemn and Offering"). His younger brothers were Bojie and Boren; his cousin was Boyuan.

族兄伯淵

Boyuan, a cousin of the clan

伯淵字宗之。父丘文，遼中書舍人。伯淵早孤，事母以孝聞，疏財好施，喜收古書。天會初，以名家子補尚書省令史。十四年，賜進士第，曆吏、禮二部主事、御前承應文字，秩滿，除同知永定軍節度使事。召為司計郎中。知平定軍，用廉，遷平州路轉運使。知泰安軍，有惠政，百姓刻石紀其事。四遷山東東路轉運使。正隆末，群盜蜂起，州郡往往罹害，獨濟南賴伯淵保全。大定三年，致仕，卒於家。

Boyuan's style name was Zongzhi. His father, Qiu Wen, had served the Liao as a secretariat drafter. Orphaned young, Boyuan was known for devotion to his mother, for generosity with his money, and for collecting antique books. At the start of the Tianhui era he entered the Department of State Affairs as a clerk, benefiting from his family's standing. In the fourteenth year he received jinshi rank, served as section chief in the ministries of personnel and rites and as imperial drafter, and at term's end was made deputy military commissioner of the Yongding Army. He was recalled to serve as director in the Department of Revenue. As administrator of the Pingding Army he won promotion to transport commissioner of Pingzhou Circuit on account of his integrity. At Tai'an Army he governed with benevolence, and the people set up a stone inscription to record it. After four further promotions he became transport commissioner of Eastern Shandong Circuit. In the late Zhenglong era bandits swarmed across the land and prefectures fell one after another; only Jinan, under Boyuan's protection, remained secure. In the third year of Dading he retired and died at home.

蕭貢，字真卿，京兆咸陽人。大定二十二年進士，調鎮戎州判官，涇陽令，涇州觀察判官。補尚書省令史。舊例，試補兩月，乃補用。貢至數日，執政以為能，即用之。擢監察御史。提刑司奏涇州有美政，遷北京轉運副使。親老，歸養。左丞董師中、右丞楊伯通薦其文學，除翰林修撰。上書論：「比年之弊，人才不以器識、操履，巧於案牘，不涉吏議者為工。用人不務因才授官，惟泥資敘。名器不務慎與，人多僥倖。守令不務才實，民罹其害。伏望擢真才以振澆俗，核功能以理職業，慎名器以抑僥倖，重守令以厚邦本。然後政化可行，百事可舉矣。」詔詞臣作《唐用董重質誅郭誼得失論》，貢為第一，賜重幣四端。貢論時政五弊，言路四難，詞意切至，改治書侍御史。丁父憂，起複，改右司員外郎，尋轉郎中，遷國子祭酒，兼太常少卿，與陳大任刊修《遼史》。改刑部侍郎，曆同知大興府事、德州防禦使，三遷河東北路按察轉運使。大安末，改彰德軍節度事。坐兵興不能守城，亡失百姓，降同知通遠軍節度使。未幾，改靜難軍節度使，曆河東北路、南京路轉運使、御史中丞，戶部尚書。南京戒嚴，坐乏軍儲，詔釋不問。興定元年，致仕。元光二年卒，諡文簡。貢好學，讀書至老不倦，有注《史記》一百卷。

Xiao Gong, whose style name was Zhenqing, came from Xianyang in the Jingzhao region. Placed on the jinshi rolls in the twenty-second year of Dading, he served successively as adjudicator at Zhenrong Prefecture, magistrate of Jingyang, and surveillance adjudicator at Jing Prefecture. He was appointed a clerk in the Department of State Affairs. By custom a clerk served a two-month probation before formal appointment. Gong had been there only a few days when the chief ministers, judging him capable, gave him a formal post at once. He was promoted to investigating censor. When the circuit intendant's office reported exemplary governance at Jing, he was made vice transport commissioner of the Northern Capital. With elderly parents at home, he resigned to care for them. Left Vice Director Dong Shizhong and Right Vice Director Yang Botong commended his scholarship, and he was made Hanlin compiler. In a memorial he wrote: "Among recent abuses is this: men are judged not by character or conduct but by paperwork—whoever handles documents cleverly without stirring administrative debate is called capable. Appointments follow seniority alone, not the fit between man and post. Honors are handed out without care, and opportunism spreads. Prefects and magistrates are chosen without regard to real ability, and the people pay the price. I pray Your Majesty will raise true talent to revive a corrupted age, weigh men by what they accomplish, guard honors jealously to curb opportunism, and choose local officials with care to strengthen the realm's foundation. Only then can policy take root and every undertaking succeed." The court ordered the literati to write "On the Pros and Cons of Tang's Use of Dong Chongzhi to Execute Guo Yi." Gong's essay ranked first, and he received four bolts of fine silk. His discussion of five current abuses and four obstacles to candid speech was pointed and forceful; he was made supervising censor in the secretariat. After mourning his father he was recalled to serve as vice director and then director in the right office, then as chancellor of the directorate of education and vice minister of rites, and he joined Chen Daren in editing the History of Liao. He became vice minister of punishments, served as deputy administrator of Daxing Prefecture and defensive commissioner of Dezhou, and after three promotions was made surveillance and transport commissioner of Northeastern Hedong Circuit. Near the end of the Da'an era he was made military commissioner of the Zhangde Army. When war broke out he failed to hold the city and lost the populace; he was demoted to deputy military commissioner of the Tongyuan Army. Soon he was made military commissioner of the Jingnan Army, then transport commissioner on the Northeastern Hedong and Nanjing circuits, censor-in-chief, and minister of revenue. During Nanjing's military emergency he was faulted for inadequate grain stores, but an edict excused him from punishment. In the first year of Xingding he retired. He died in the second year of Yuanguang and was posthumously titled Wenjian ("Literary and Simple"). Gong loved learning and read without ceasing into old age; he left a hundred-scroll commentary on the Records of the Grand Historian.

溫蒂罕締達

Wendihandida

溫蒂罕締達，該習經史，以女直字出身，累官國史院編修官。初，丞相希尹制女直字，設學校，使訛離剌等教之。其後學者漸盛，轉習經史，故納合椿年、紇石烈良弼皆由此致位宰相。締達最號精深。大定十二年，詔締達所教生員習作詩、策，若有文采，量才任使，其自願從學者聽。十三年，設女直進士科。是歲，徒單鎰等二十七人登第。十五年，締達遷著作佐郎，與編修官宗璧、尚書省譯史阿魯、吏部令史張克忠譯解經書。累遷秘書丞。十九年，改左贊善，以母老求養。顯宗使內直丞六斤謂締達曰：「贊善，初未除此官，天子謂孤曰：'朕得一出倫之才，學問該貫，當令輔汝德義。 '既數日，贊善除此官。自謂親炙德義，不勝其喜。未可去也，勿難於懷。」久之，轉翰林待制，卒。明昌五年，贈翰林學士承旨，諡文成。

Wendihandida was deeply learned in the classics and histories. Having entered service through the Jurchen-script examination track, he rose to compiler at the National History Institute. Chief Minister Xiyin had first devised the Jurchen script, opened schools, and assigned Elila and others to teach it. Students soon multiplied and moved on to the classics and histories—paths by which Nahe Chunnian and Heshelie Liangbi both reached the chancellorship. Of them all, Dida was considered the most deeply accomplished. In the twelfth year of Dading an edict directed Dida's pupils to practice poetry and policy essays; those who showed literary talent were to be employed according to their abilities, and others who wished to join the study were allowed to do so. In the thirteenth year the court established the Jurchen jinshi examination. That year Tushan Yi and twenty-six others placed on the examination rolls. In the fifteenth year Dida was promoted to assistant gentleman at the Office of Drafting and, together with compiler Zong Bi, Department of State Affairs translator Aru, and Ministry of Personnel clerk Zhang Kezhong, worked on translating and annotating the classics. He rose through successive appointments to deputy secretary. In the nineteenth year he was made Left Mentor but asked to leave office to care for his aged mother. Prince Xianzong sent Inner Attendant Director Liujin to tell Dida: "Left Mentor—when this post was first discussed, it had not yet been conferred on you. The Son of Heaven told me, 'I have found an extraordinary talent, comprehensively learned; he should guide you in virtue and righteousness. Within days the Left Mentor received the appointment. I shall be warmed at close hand by virtue and righteousness—my joy is beyond measure. You cannot go yet; do not burden your heart with this." In time he was made Hanlin attendant-in-waiting and later died. In the fifth year of Mingchang he was posthumously made chief attending scholar of the Hanlin Academy, with the posthumous title Wencheng.

子二十，章宗即位，以為符寶典書，累官左諫議大夫。貞祐四年，上疏，略曰：「今邊備未撤，徵調不休，州縣長吏不知愛養其民，督責征科，鞭笞逼迫，急於星火，文移重複，不勝其弊，宜敕有司務從簡易。兵興以來，忠臣烈士，孝子順孫，義夫節婦，湮沒無聞者甚眾，乞遣史官一員，廣為採訪，以議褒嘉。」興定元年，遷武勝軍節度使，改吏部尚書，知開封府。坐縱軍人家屬出城，當杖，詔解職。四年，複知開封府，複坐以事囑警巡使完顏金僧奴，降為鄭州防禦使。未幾，複為知開封府事。

His son Ershi entered service when Zhangzong took the throne as keeper of seals and treasures and rose to left remonstrating grand master. In the fourth year of Zhenyou he memorialized the throne, writing in part: "With frontier garrisons still unmustered and exactions unending, local magistrates no longer cherish the people they rule. They hound them for taxes, whip and drive them with fire-alarm urgency, and bury them under duplicate orders—the harm is intolerable. Command the responsible offices to simplify their ways. Since the wars began, countless worthy souls—loyal ministers, martyrs, filial sons, dutiful grandsons, faithful husbands, and chaste wives—have vanished without renown. Send a historiographer to seek their stories widely, so the court may decide how to honor them." In the first year of Xingding he became military governor of the Wusheng Army, then minister of personnel and prefect of Kaifeng. For permitting soldiers' families to leave the city he was liable to beating with the staff; an edict stripped him of office. In the fourth year he was again prefect of Kaifeng, but once more—for pressing Patrol Commissioner Wanyan Jinsengnu to take up a personal matter—was demoted to defender of Zheng Prefecture. Soon he was reappointed administrator of Kaifeng.

張翰，字林卿，忻州秀容人。大定二十八年進士，調隰州軍事判官。有誣昆弟三人為劫者，翰微行廉得其狀，白於州釋之。曆東勝、義豐、會川令，補尚書省令史，除戶部主事，遷監察御史。丁母憂，服闋，調山東路鹽使。丁父憂，起複尚書省都事、戶部員外郎。大安間，平章政事獨吉思忠、參知政事承裕行省戍邊，翰充左右司郎中，論議不相協。處置乖方，翰屢爭之不見省。承裕就逮，衛紹王知翰嘗有言，召見撫慰之。改知登聞鼓院，兼前職，遷侍御史。貞祐初，為翰林直學士，充元帥府經歷官。中都戒嚴，調度方殷，改戶部侍郎。宣宗遷汴，翰規措扈從糧草至真定，上書言五事：「一曰強本。謂當裒兵徒、徙豪民，以實南京。二曰足用。謂當按蔡、汴舊渠以通漕運。三曰防亂。謂當就集義軍假之官印，使相統攝，以安反側。四曰省事。謂縣邑不能自立者宜稍並之，既以省官，且易於備盜。五曰推恩。謂當推恩以示天子所在稱幸之意。」上略施行之。翰雅有治劇才，所至輒辦。遷河平軍節度使、都水監、提控軍馬使，俄改戶部尚書。是時，初至南京，庶事草略，翰經度區處，皆有條理。是歲卒，諡達義。

Zhang Han, style name Linqing, came from Xiurong in Xin Prefecture. After placing on the jinshi rolls in the twenty-eighth year of Dading, he was posted as military affairs adjudicator of Xi Prefecture. When three brothers were falsely charged as bandits, Han investigated in secret, learned the truth, and persuaded the prefecture to release them. He served as magistrate of Dongsheng, Yifeng, and Huichuan in turn, entered the Department of State Affairs as a clerk, was appointed director in the Ministry of Revenue, and rose to investigating censor. After mourning his mother he was posted as salt commissioner of the Eastern Shandong Circuit. Called back from mourning after his father's death, he was made department director and vice director in the Ministry of Revenue. In the Da'an era, as Grand Councillor Dujishi Zhong and Vice Grand Councillor Chengyu held a frontier provincial commission, Han served as director in the left and right departments, but their counsels did not align. Policy went awry, and though Han protested again and again, his views were ignored. After Chengyu was taken into custody, Emperor Weishao, knowing Han had spoken up, summoned and reassured him. He was made administrator of the Hall for Striking the Drum of Grievances while retaining his prior duties, then promoted to attending censor. Early in Zhenyou he became Hanlin direct academician and administrative officer on the field marshal's staff. As the Central Capital came under martial law and logistics grew urgent, he was made vice minister of revenue. When Xuanzong relocated to Bian, Han arranged provisions for the imperial entourage as far as Zhending and memorialized five proposals: "First, strengthen the foundation. Gather troops and colonists and relocate prominent households to bolster the Southern Capital. Second, secure adequate supply. Clear and restore the old Cai and Bian canals to reopen grain transport. Third, guard against unrest. Organize the Jiyi Army on the spot, lend them official seals, and let them command one another to pacify wavering elements. Fourth, simplify government. Merge counties too weak to stand alone—fewer officials, and bandits easier to suppress. Fifth, extend imperial grace. Bestow favors to show that wherever the Son of Heaven tarries should be honored as a place of his gracious presence." The emperor adopted most of these measures. Han had a gift for hard administration and finished whatever he took in hand. He rose to military governor of the Heping Army, director of waterways, and commissioner controlling military horses, then soon became minister of revenue. The court had only just reached the Southern Capital and everything was still improvised; Han organized it all with clear method. He died that year and received the posthumous name Dayi.

任天寵

Ren Tianchong

任天寵，字清叔，曹州定陶人也，明昌二年進士，調考城主簿，再遷威戎縣令。縣故堡寨，無文廟學舍，天寵以廢署建。有兄弟訟田者，天寵諭以理義，委曲周至，皆感泣而去。調泰定軍節度判官。丁父憂，服闋，調崇義軍節度判官。補尚書省令史、右三部檢法司正，遷監察御史。改右司都事，遷員外郎。改左司諫，轉左司郎中，遷國子祭酒。貞祐初，轉秘書監兼吏部侍郎，改中都路都轉運使。時京師戒嚴，糧運艱阻，天寵悉力營辦，曲盡勞瘁，出家貲以濟饑者，全活甚眾。監察御史高夔、劉元規舉天寵二十人公勤明敏，有材幹，可安集百姓。遷戶部尚書。三年，中都不守，天寵繼走南京，中道遇兵，死之。諡純肅。

Ren Tianchong, style name Qingshu, came from Dingtao in Cao Prefecture. He took the jinshi in the second year of Mingchang, served as chief clerk of Kaocheng, and rose twice to magistrate of Weirong County. The county was once a fortified outpost without temple or school; Tianchong built both in a disused yamen. When brothers came to court over land, Tianchong reasoned with them gently and thoroughly until both left in tears. He was posted as military commissioner's adjudicator of the Taiding Army. After mourning his father he was assigned as military commissioner's adjudicator of the Chongyi Army. He entered the Department of State Affairs as a clerk and director of the inspection law bureau of the three right departments, then rose to investigating censor. He moved to director in the right department and then to vice director. He became left remonstrator, then director in the left department, and finally chancellor of the National University. Early in Zhenyou he became secretary supervisor and concurrent vice minister of personnel, then transport commissioner of the Central Capital Circuit. With the capital under martial law and grain routes blocked, Tianchong strained every nerve to supply it, spending his own fortune to feed the hungry and saving countless lives. Censors Gao Kui and Liu Yuangui recommended Tianchong, praising his public diligence, sharp intelligence, and capacity to settle and reassure the people. He was made minister of revenue. In the third year, when the Central Capital fell, Tianchong fled toward the Southern Capital and was killed by soldiers on the way. He received the posthumous title Chundu.

贊曰：程寀、任熊祥，遼之進士，孔璠、范拱事宋、事齊，太祖皆見禮遇，而金之文治日以盛矣。張用直，海陵父子並列舊學。劉樞之練達，王翛之強敏于事，楊伯雄之善諷諫、工辭藻，蕭貢、溫蒂罕締達之文藝適時，之數人者迭用於正隆、大定、明昌之間。張翰、任天寵之經理調度，宣宗南遷，猶賴其用焉。金源氏百餘年所以培植人才而獲其效者，於斯可概見矣。

The encomium says: Cheng Cai and Ren Xiongxiang were Liao jinshi; Kong Fan and Fan Gong served Song and Qi in turn. Taizu honored them all, and from that hour Jin letters flourished. Zhang Yongzhi numbered both Hailing and his son among his pupils in the old learning. Liu Shu brought seasoned judgment; Wang Xiao, force and speed in office; Yang Boxiong, remonstrance raised to art and a polished pen; Xiao Gong and Wendihandida, letters fitted to their age—these men served in turn through Zhenglong, Dading, and Mingchang. Zhang Han and Ren Tianchong supplied the logistics and planning on which Xuanzong still depended after the southern move. In these lives one may glimpse how the house of Jin, across more than a century, cultivated men of talent—and what that cultivation yielded.

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