Volume 99 Biographies 69: Huan Xuan; Bian Fanzhi; Duan Zhongwen

桓玄，字敬道，一名靈寶，大司馬溫之孽子也。其母馬氏嘗與同輩夜坐，於月下見流星墜銅盆水中，忽如二寸火珠，冏然明淨，競以瓢接取，馬氏得而吞之，若有感，遂有娠。及生玄，有光照室，占者奇之，故小名靈寶。妳媼每抱詣溫，輒易人而後至，雲其重兼常兒，溫甚愛異之。臨終，命以為嗣，襲爵南郡公。年七歲，溫服終，府州文武辭其叔父沖，沖撫玄頭曰：「此汝家之故吏也。」玄因涕淚覆面，眾並異之。及長，形貌瑰奇，風神疏朗，博綜藝術，善屬文。常負其才地，以雄豪自處，眾咸憚之，朝廷亦疑而未用。年二十三，始拜太子洗馬，時議謂溫有不臣之跡，故折玄兄弟而為素官。

Huan Xuan—courtesy name Jingdao, also known as Lingbao—was the illegitimate son of Grand Marshal Huan Wen. Once at night his mother, Lady Ma, sat among companions and watched a shooting star fall into a bronze basin of water in the moonlight; it looked suddenly like a bead of flame two inches across, dazzlingly bright and clear. They scrambled to scoop it up with ladles; Lady Ma caught it and swallowed it, felt something stir within her, and conceived. At his birth light filled the room; diviners pronounced it a marvel, which is why his infant name was Lingbao. Whenever his nurse brought him to Huan Wen, she would switch carriers before they arrived, claiming the boy weighed twice what a normal infant did; Wen adored him all the more as something remarkable. On his deathbed Wen designated him heir, and he succeeded to the ducal title of Nanjun. When he was seven and Wen's mourning had ended, the civil and military officers of headquarters paid their respects to his uncle Huan Chong; Chong stroked Xuan's head and said, "They are the old retainers of your house. At that Xuan wept until tears streamed down his face; everyone was struck by him. As an adult he cut an extraordinary figure, carried himself with ease and clarity, mastered many arts, and wrote well. He leaned on his gifts and family stature and acted the fearless hero; officials dreaded him, and the court hesitated to give him real responsibility. At twenty-three he was appointed groom-in-waiting to the heir apparent; court gossip held that Wen had revealed ambitions beyond his station, so Xuan and his brothers were sidelined into ornamental posts.

太元末，出補義興太守，鬱鬱不得志。嘗登高望震澤，歎曰：「父為九州伯，兒為五湖長！」棄官歸國。自以元勳之門而負謗於世，乃上疏曰：

Late in the Taiyuan period he was posted prefect of Yixing, where he brooded, thwarted in his ambitions. Once he climbed a height to look out over Lake Zhen and cried, "My father stood astride the realm; I am nothing but steward of the lakes! He threw down his office and went home to his fief. Believing his house had earned great merit yet was maligned in public opinion, he presented a memorial:

臣聞周公大聖而四國流言，樂毅王佐而被謗騎劫，《巷伯》有豺獸之慨，蘇公興飄風之刺，惡直醜正，何代無之！先臣蒙國殊遇，姻婭皇極，常欲以身報德，投袂乘機，西平巴蜀，北清伊洛，使竊號之寇系頸北闕，園陵修復，大恥載雪，飲馬灞滻懸旌趙魏，勤王之師，功非一捷。太和之末，皇基有潛移之懼，遂乃奉順天人，翼登聖朝，明離既朗，四凶兼澄。向使此功不建，此事不成，宗廟之事豈可孰念！昔太甲雖迷，商祚無憂；昌邑雖昏，弊無三孽。因茲而言，晉室之機危于殷漢，先臣之功高於伊霍矣。而負重既往，蒙謗清時，聖世明王黜陟之道，不聞廢忽顯明之功，探射冥冥之心，啟嫌謗之塗，開邪枉之路者也。先臣勤王艱難之勞，匡復克平之勳，朝廷若其遺之，臣亦不復計也。至於先帝龍飛九五，陛下之所以繼明南面，請問談者，誰之由邪？誰之德邪？豈惟晉室永安，祖宗血食，于陛下一門，實奇功也。

"I have heard how even the Duke of Zhou, sage among sages, faced rumor across the states; how Le Yi, pillar of the throne, was torn down by slander; how the ode "Lane Keeper" rails at jackals, how "Whirling Wind" flays hypocrisy—the crooked always despise the upright: what age has ever been free of it? "My late father enjoyed singular honors from the court and kinship with the throne; he burned to repay that debt with his life—strike west to settle Ba and Shu, sweep north to clear the Yi and Luo, drag pretenders in shackles to the capital gates, repair the imperial tombs, expunge national shame in one campaign, water horses along Ba and Chan and raise standards through Zhao and Wei. Forces raised for the king win no single decisive clash alone. "When at the close of Taihe the dynasty seemed about to slip from its foundations, he obeyed Heaven and the human tide and helped elevate this sacred court; once legitimate radiance returned, every malignant faction was swept away. "Had that work not been done, how could the imperial ancestral cult even have been spoken of? "Ancient Taijia wandered from duty, yet Yin sacrifices continued untroubled; "the Prince of Changyi was dull, yet his misrule never matched threefold disaster. "By that measure the Jin throne faced sharper peril than Yin or Han ever knew, while my father's restoration towered above the deeds of Yi Yin and Huo Guang. "Yet once maligned, he stood accused in an enlightened reign—true kings reward and punish fairly; they do not bury shining deeds, probe unknowable motives, invite reckless rumor, or widen avenues of intrigue. "If the court chooses to forget my father's sacrifices to rescue the throne and his victories of restoration, I will say no more. "But when you ask who placed the late emperor on the throne—who allowed Your Majesty to face south and inherit the mandate—the answer is plain. "Through whose merit? "This secured more than lasting peace for Jin and continued offerings to the imperial shrines—it delivered Your Majesty's line an extraordinary debt.

自頃權門日盛，醜政實繁，咸稱述時旨，互相扇附，以臣之兄弟皆晉之罪人，臣等復何理可以苟存聖世？何顏可以屍饗封祿？若陛下忘先臣大造之功，信貝錦萋菲之說，臣等自當奉還三封，受戮市朝，然後下從先臣，歸先帝于玄宮耳。若陛下述遵先旨，追錄舊勳，竊望少垂愷悌覆蓋之恩。

"Today magnates swell their influence while misrule grows worse; each mouths current slogans and eggs the others on, branding my brothers Jin's traitors—under what right could we linger disgracefully at court? "How could we still collect stipends and titles without shame? "Should Your Majesty discard my father's foundational deeds and credit twisted hearsay, we will surrender our three noble jurisdictions and face the executioner's blade in the marketplace, then join our father among the dead below. "If instead Your Majesty honors earlier pledges and restores past honors, I pray only for a modest measure of kindly indulgence.

疏寢不報。

His memorial drew no answer.

玄在荊楚積年，優遊無事，荊州刺史殷仲堪甚敬憚之。及中書令王國寶用事，謀削弱方鎮，內外騷動，知王恭有憂國之言，玄潛有意于功業，乃說仲堪曰：「國寶與君諸人素已為對，唯患相弊之不速耳。今既執權要，與王緒相為表裏，其所回易，罔不如志。孝伯居元舅之地，正情為朝野所重，必未便動之，唯當以君為事首。君為先帝所拔，超居方任，人情未以為允，咸謂君雖有思致，非方伯人。若發詔征君為中書令，用殷顗為荊州，君何以處之？」仲堪曰：「憂之久矣，君謂計將安出？」玄曰：「國寶奸凶，天下所知，孝伯疾惡之情每至而當，今日之會，以理推之，必當過人。君若密遣一人，信說王恭，宜興晉陽之師，以內匡朝廷，己當悉荊楚之眾順流而下，推王為盟主，僕等亦皆投袂，當此無不回應。此事既行，桓文之舉也。」仲堪持疑未決。俄而王恭信至，招仲堪及玄匡正朝廷。國寶既死，於是兵罷。玄乃求為廣州，會稽王道子亦憚之，不欲使在荊楚，故順其意。

Xuan spent years idle in Jing and Chu; Yin Zhongkan, who governed Jingzhou, respected him greatly—and feared him. Once Wang Guobao dominated the Secretariat and schemed to clip provincial power, capital and regions alike seethed; seeing Wang Gong poised to move for the dynasty's sake, Xuan secretly sought glory and urged Zhongkan: "Guobao and your circle have long been enemies—he only laments you have not destroyed each other sooner. Now he grips authority and works hand in glove with Wang Xu; every reshuffle answers his whim. Wang Gong—the emperor's maternal uncle—commands moral prestige throughout court and countryside; Guobao will hardly strike him first—you will be his opening blow. You owe your frontier command to the late emperor's sudden favor; people still doubt you truly belong in such a post—they concede your wit yet insist you lack the backbone of a governor. "What will you do if an edict recalls you to be Palace Writer and gives Jingzhou to Yin Yi? Zhongkan replied, "That fear has gnawed at me—what course do you advise?" Xuan answered, "Guobao's villainy is notorious; Wang Gong hates wickedness to the bone—by rights his outrage must outstrip ours. Send a confidential envoy urging Wang Gong to raise troops like those at Jinyang and sweep the capital clean while you march every man Jing and Chu can spare downstream and install Wang as league chief—we will all rally—and none will refuse. "Victory would crown deeds worthy of the great hegemons Huan and Wen. Zhongkan wavered and could not commit. Presently Wang Gong's summons arrived, calling Zhongkan and Xuan to restore imperial authority. Once Guobao fell, the armies dispersed. Xuan applied for Guangzhou; Prince Daozi of Kuaiji likewise dreaded keeping him in Jing-Chu and indulged the request.

隆安初，詔以玄督交廣二州、建威將軍、平越中郎將、廣州刺史、假節，玄受命不行。其年，王恭又與庾楷起兵討江州刺史王愉及譙王尚之兄弟。玄、仲堪謂恭事必克捷，一時回應。仲堪給玄五千人，與楊佺期俱為前鋒。軍至湓口，王愉奔於臨川，玄遣偏將軍追獲之。玄、佺期至石頭，仲堪至蕪湖。恭將劉牢之背恭歸順。恭既死，庾楷戰敗，奔于玄軍。既而詔以玄為江州，仲堪等仲皆被換易，乃各回舟西還，屯于尋陽，共相結約，推玄為盟主。玄始得志，乃連名上疏申理王恭，求誅尚之、牢之等。朝廷深憚之，乃免桓脩、復仲堪以相和解。

Early in Long'an an edict named him governor of Jiao and Guang, General Who Inspires Awe, Interior Colonel for Pacifying the Yue, prefect of Guangzhou, with plenary authority—Xuan took the appointment yet refused to travel south. That same year Wang Gong joined Yu Kai in arms against Jiangzhou prefect Wang Yu and Prince Shangzhi of Qiao with his brothers. Xuan and Zhongkan assumed Gong would prevail and pledged immediate support. Zhongkan gave Xuan five thousand troops; together with Yang Quanqi they formed the spearhead. When the force reached Penkou, Wang Yu bolted for Linchuan; Xuan detached a column that ran him down and took him captive. Xuan and Quanqi advanced on Jiankang's Stone bastion while Zhongkan closed on Wuhu. Wang Gong's commander Liu Laozhi switched sides and surrendered. Once Gong died, Yu Kai lost in the field and fled into Xuan's camp. Soon an edict handed Jiangzhou to Xuan and reshuffled the others; each fleet sailed back west to Xunyang, swore a pact, and elected Xuan league chief. Flush with success, they jointly memorialized to vindicate Wang Gong and demand death for Shangzhi, Laozhi, and company. The court quailed and placated them by removing Huan Xiu from office and reinstating Zhongkan.

初，玄在荊州豪縱，士庶憚之，甚於州牧。仲堪親黨勸殺之，仲堪不聽。及還尋陽，資其聲地，故推為盟主，玄逾自矜重。佺期為人驕悍，常自謂承藉華胄，江表莫比，而玄每以寒士裁之，佺期甚憾，即欲於壇所襲玄，仲堪惡佺期兄弟虓勇，恐克玄之後復為己害，苦禁之。於是各奉詔還鎮。玄亦知佺期有異謀，潛有吞併之計，於是屯于夏口。

Earlier Xuan had bullied Jingzhou until scholars and commoners feared him more than their nominal governor. Zhongkan's inner circle begged to kill Xuan; Zhongkan refused. Back at Xunyang they leaned on his fame and status to make him league chief, and Xuan grew insufferably proud. Quanqi was proud and violent, insisting no southern lineage surpassed his own, yet Xuan dismissed him as minor gentry; Quanqi nursed a bitter grudge and wanted to strike Xuan at the oath site. Zhongkan detested the brothers' ferocity and worried that after crushing Xuan they would turn on him, so he forbade any move. Each man then obeyed the recall and returned to his command. Xuan knew Quanqi nursed separate ambitions and quietly plotted to absorb him, so he camped at Xiakou.

隆安中，詔加玄都督荊州四郡，以兄偉為輔國將軍、南蠻校尉。仲堪慮玄跋扈，遂與佺期結婚為援。初，玄既與仲堪、佺期有隙，恆臣掩襲，求廣其所統。朝廷亦欲成其釁隙，故分佺斯所督四郡與玄，佺期甚忿懼。會姚興侵洛陽，佺期乃建牙，聲雲援洛，密欲與仲堪共襲玄。仲堪雖外結佺期而疑其心，距而不許，猶慮弗能禁，復遣從弟遹屯于北境以遏佺期。佺期既不能獨舉，且不測仲堪本意，遂息甲。南蠻校尉楊廣，佺期之兄也，欲距桓偉，仲堪不聽，乃出廣為宜都、建平二郡太守，加征虜將軍。佺期弟孜敬先為江夏相，玄以兵襲而召之。既至，以為諮議參軍。玄於是興軍西征，亦聲雲救洛，與仲堪書，說佺期受國恩而棄山陵，宜共罪之。今親率戎旅，逕造金墉，使仲堪收楊廣，如其不爾，無以相信。仲堪本計欲兩全之，既得玄書，知不能禁，乃曰：「君自沔而行，不得一人入江也。」玄乃止。

During Long'an an edict enlarged Xuan's brief to four Jingzhou counties and named his elder brother Huan Wei General Who Supports the State and Colonel of the Southern Man. Zhongkan dreaded Xuan's high-handedness and sealed the bond by marrying into Quanqi's family. Once relations with Zhongkan and Quanqi soured, Xuan quietly plotted raids and pushed to widen his jurisdiction. The court likewise hoped to widen the breach and carved four counties from Quanqi's supervision for Xuan; Quanqi raged and trembled. When Later Qin's Yao Xing pressed Luoyang, Quanqi unfurled banners claiming relief for the capital while secretly planning with Zhongkan to ambush Xuan. Zhongkan outwardly sided with Quanqi yet distrusted him, declined joint action, and still doubted he could hold Quanqi in check—so he stationed his cousin Yin You on the northern frontier to block him. Unable to strike alone and unsure of Zhongkan's mind, Quanqi stood down. Southern Man colonel Yang Guang, Quanqi's elder brother, wanted to fight Huan Wei, but Zhongkan refused; instead he posted Guang as prefect over Yidu and Jianping with the added title General Who Subdues the Foe. Quanqi's younger brother Yang Zijing had been magistrate of Jiangxia until Xuan struck, seized the district, and summoned him in. After he arrived Xuan named him advisory aide. Xuan then mobilized a western relief army—again claiming rescue for Luoyang—and wrote Zhongkan charging Quanqi with betraying imperial grace by neglecting the royal tombs, urging joint condemnation. "I now march in person on Jinyong; Zhongkan must arrest Yang Guang—otherwise no pact holds. Zhongkan had hoped to keep both sides alive; Xuan's ultimatum showed restraint was futile, and he answered, "March down the Han if you wish—not one soldier crosses the Great River. Xuan halted.

後荊州大水，仲堪振恤饑者，倉廩空竭。玄乘其虛而伐之，先遣軍襲巴陵。梁州刺史郭銓當之所鎮，路經夏口，玄聲雲朝廷遣銓為己前鋒，乃授以江夏之眾，使督諸軍並進，密報兄偉令為內應。偉遑遽不知所為，乃自齎疏示仲堪。仲堪執偉為質，令與玄書，辭甚苦至。玄曰：「仲堪為人不得專決，常懷成敗之計，為兒子作慮，我兄必無憂矣。」

Soon afterward catastrophic floods struck Jingzhou; Zhongkan fed the starving until his granaries ran dry. Xuan seized the opening and struck, first sending columns against Baling. Liangzhou inspector Guo Quan's route to his post ran through Xiakou; Xuan announced the court had assigned Guo as his van, handed him Jiangxia's troops to coordinate every advance, and secretly told his brother Huan Wei to rise inside as fifth column. Wei panicked; clutching his memorial he fled to Zhongkan. Zhongkan seized Wei as hostage and forced him to pen an anguished appeal to Xuan. Xuan scoffed, "Zhongkan cannot commit; he forever weighs odds for his sons—my brother faces no real peril.

玄既至巴陵，仲堪遣眾距之，為玄所敗。玄進至楊口，又敗仲堪弟子道護，乘勝至零口，去江陵二十里，仲堪遣軍數道距之。佺期自襄陽來赴，與兄廣共擊玄，玄懼其銳，乃退軍馬頭。佺期等方復追玄苦戰，佺期敗，走還襄陽，仲堪出奔酂城，玄遣將軍馮該躡佺期，獲之。廣為人所縛，送玄，並殺之。仲堪聞佺期死，乃將數百人奔姚興，至冠軍城，為該所得，玄令害之。

When Xuan reached Baling, Zhongkan's defenders broke before him. Xuan pressed to Yangkou, routed Zhongkan's nephew Yin Dao Hu, and drove within twenty li of Jiangling at Lingkou; Zhongkan threw multiple blocking lines against him. Quanqi marched from Xiangyang with his brother Guang to strike Xuan; Xuan gave ground to their momentum and pulled back to Matou. They renewed the pursuit and fought savagely; Quanqi broke and fled toward Xiangyang while Zhongkan bolted for Zengcheng; Xuan ordered Feng Gai to run Quanqi down and take him. Others bound Guang and delivered him to Xuan; both brothers died. Learning Quanqi had fallen, Zhongkan fled toward Later Qin with a few hundred riders but Feng Gai seized him at Champion; Xuan had him executed.

於是遂平荊雍，乃表求領江、荊二州。詔以玄都督荊司雍秦梁益寧七州、後將軍、荊州刺史、假節，以桓脩為江州刺史。玄上疏固爭江州，於是進督八州及楊豫八郡，復領江州刺史。玄又輒以偉為冠軍將軍、雍州刺史。時寇賊未平，朝廷難違其意，許之。玄於是樹用腹心，兵馬日盛，屢上疏求討孫恩，詔輒不許。其後恩逼京都，玄建牙聚眾，外托勤王，實欲觀釁而進，復上疏請討之。會恩已走，玄又奉詔解嚴。以偉為江州，鎮夏口；司馬刁暢為輔國將軍，督八郡，鎮襄陽；遣桓振、皇甫敷、馮該等戍湓口。移沮漳蠻二千戶於江南，立武寧郡；更招集流人，立綏安郡。又置諸郡丞。詔征廣州刺史刁逵、豫章太守郭昶之，玄皆留不遣。自謂三分有二，知勢運所歸，屢上禎祥以為己瑞。

With Jing and Yong subdued, he memorialized to take both Jiang and Jing provinces himself. The court named him governor over seven western provinces as General of the Rear and inspector of Jingzhou with plenary powers, assigning Jiangzhou to Huan Xiu. Xuan protested until the court expanded his mandate to eight provinces plus eight Yang–Yu commanderies and restored Jiangzhou to him. Without permission he then named Huan Wei General Who Vanquishes the Enemy and governor of Yongzhou. Rebels still roiled the realm; the court could hardly refuse. He packed offices with confidants while his armies swelled, pestering the throne for permission to crush Sun En—each edict refused. When Sun En threatened the capital, Xuan hoisted banners and massed troops, professing loyalty while watching for advantage, and again begged leave to strike. Once Sun En withdrew, another edict lifted mobilization. He posted Huan Wei to Jiangzhou with headquarters at Xiakou; named Sima Diao Chang General Who Supports the State over eight commanderies with base at Xiangyang; and detached Huan Zhen, Huangfu Fu, Feng Gai, and others to hold Penkou. He resettled two thousand Ju-Zhang barbarian households south of the river and formed Wuning commandery; He also settled displaced people and founded Sui'an commandery. He installed assistant prefects across those jurisdictions. The court ordered Guangzhou governor Diao Kui and Yuzhang prefect Guo Changzhi to the capital; Xuan held every one of them back. He fancied that two-thirds of the land was already his, that destiny favored him, and kept memorializing ill omens turned good as his own portents.

初。庾楷既奔于玄，玄之求討孫恩也，以為右將軍。玄既解嚴，楷亦去職。楷以玄方與朝廷構怨，恐事不克，禍及於己，乃密結于後將軍元顯，許為內應。元興初，元顯稱詔伐玄，玄從兄石生時為太傅長史，密書報玄。玄本謂揚土饑饉，孫恩未滅，必未遑討己，可得蓄力養眾，觀釁而動。既聞元顯將伐之，甚懼，欲保江陵。長史卞范之說玄曰：「公英略威名振於天下，元顯口尚乳臭，劉牢之大失物情，若兵臨近畿，示以威賞，則土崩之勢可翹足而待，何有延敵入境自取蹙弱者乎！」玄大悅，乃留其兄偉守江陵，抗表率眾，下至尋陽，移檄京邑，罪狀元顯。檄至。元顯大懼，下船而不克發。玄既失人情，而興師犯順，慮眾不為用，恆有回旆之計。既過尋陽，不見王師，意甚悅，其將吏亦振。庾楷謀泄，收縶之。至姑孰，使其將馮該、苻宏、皇甫敷、索元等先攻譙王尚之。尚之敗。劉牢之遣子敬宣詣玄降。

It began thus: Once Yu Kai had thrown in with Xuan, Xuan named him General of the Right for the proposed Sun En expedition. When Xuan stood down mobilization, Kai resigned as well. Yu Kai believed Xuan remained at war with Jiankang and worried that defeat would drag him down; he secretly dealt with Rear General Sima Yuanxian and offered inside help. Early in Yuanxing, Yuanxian trumpeted orders to strike Xuan; Xuan's cousin Huan Shisheng, chief clerk to the Grand Tutor, slipped him warning. Xuan counted on famine in Yangzhou and Sun En still raging, figuring the throne could not yet march west; he meant to gather strength and watch for an opening. Learning Yuanxian meant to move against him, he panicked and thought to dig in at Jiangling. Bian Fanzhi told Xuan, "You command awe across the land; Yuanxian is a child; Laozhi has forfeited every bond of loyalty. March to the suburbs, brandish reward and terror, and the court will fall apart without effort—why invite the foe inside and hand them the advantage?" Delighted, Xuan posted Wei at Jiangling, unfurled his banner, descended to Xunyang, and circulated a manifesto indicting Yuanxian. The manifesto reached the capital. Yuanxian quailed—he stepped aboard yet could not weigh anchor. Xuan knew he had alienated people by rebelling, doubted his troops would fight, and kept ready to wheel about and retreat. Beyond Xunyang he met no royal forces; relief surged through him and his commanders. When Yu Kai's conspiracy surfaced, Yuanxian clapped him in chains. At Gushu he ordered Feng Gai, Fu Hong, Huangfu Fu, Suo Yuan, and others to strike Prince Shangzhi of Qiao first. Shangzhi broke. Liu Laozhi dispatched Liu Jingxuan to offer submission to Xuan.

玄至新亭，元顯自潰。玄入京師，矯詔曰：「義旗雲集，罪在元顯。太傅已別有教，其解嚴息甲，以副義心。」又矯詔加己總百揆，侍中、都督中外諸軍事、丞相、錄尚書事、揚州牧，領徐州刺史，又加假黃鉞、羽葆鼓吹、班劍二十人，置左右長史、司馬、從事中郎四人，甲杖二百人上殿。玄表列太傅道子及元顯之惡，徙道子于安成郡，害元顯於市。於是玄入居太傅府，害太傅中郎毛泰、泰弟遊擊將軍邃，太傅參軍荀遜、前豫州刺史庾楷父子、吏部郎袁遵、譙王尚之等，流尚之弟丹陽尹恢之、廣晉伯允之、驃騎長史王誕、太傅主簿毛遁等於交廣諸郡，尋追害恢之、允之於道。以兄偉為安西將軍、荊州刺史，領南蠻校尉，從兄謙為左僕射、加中軍將軍、領選，脩為右將軍、徐兗二州刺史，石生為前將軍、江州刺史，長史為卞範之為建武將軍、丹陽尹、王謐為中書令、領軍將軍。大赦，改元為大亨。玄讓丞相，自署太尉、領平西將軍、豫州刺史。又加袞冕之服，綠糸戾綬，增班劍為六十人，劍履上殿，入朝不趨，贊奏不名。

Xuan's arrival at Xinting scattered Yuanxian without a fight. Entering Jiankang, Xuan counterfeited an edict: "Loyal hosts mass—the crime is Yuanxian's alone. The Grand Tutor has sent other orders—disband troops and lay aside weapons in keeping with that righteous aim." Another bogus edict named him overseer of every ministry—Palace Attendant, grand marshal of inner and outer armies, chancellor, chief of the Secretariat, Yangzhou governor with Xuzhou added, plus the golden axe, imperial pennons, a twenty-man sword escort, four chief clerks, and two hundred guards permitted on the hall steps. He indicted Sima Daozi and his son, exiled the Grand Tutor to Ancheng, and executed Yuanxian in public. Next he seized the Grand Tutor compound and slaughtered Mao Tai, Mao Sui, Xun Xun, the Yu Kai household, Yuan Zun, Prince Shangzhi, and more; he shipped Yin brothers and allied officials south before assassinating key exiles en route. Kin packed high posts: Huan Wei ruled Jingzhou; Huan Qian ran personnel; Huan Xiu held Xu-Yan; Huan Shisheng took Jiangzhou; Bian Fanzhi governed Danyang; Wang Mi commanded the imperial guard. He declared empire-wide amnesty and renamed the reign Dahang. He resigned nominal chancellor yet styled himself Grand Commandant, Pacifier of the West, and governor of Yuzhou. He claimed robe-and-cap regalia, green cords, sixty sword pages, blade-on-steps privilege, unhurried audiences, and immunity from reciting his name.

玄將出居姑孰，訪之于眾，王謐對曰：「《公羊》有言，周公何以不之魯？欲天下一乎周也。願靜根本，以公旦為心。」玄善其對而不能從。遂大築城府，台館山池莫不壯麗，乃出鎮焉。既至姑孰，固辭錄尚書事，詔許之，而大政皆諮焉，小事則決於桓謙、卞範之。

Before relocating headquarters to Gushu Xuan polled ministers; Wang Mi answered with Gongyang: "Why did the Duke of Zhou stay away from Lu? Because he wanted the realm unified through Zhou. Anchor your base as Duke Dan anchored Zhou." Xuan applauded yet ignored the counsel. He threw up fortress walls, mansions, lakes—sumptuous—and ruled from Gushu. At Gushu he ostensibly refused the Secretariat recorder title—approved—but every weighty decision still passed his desk while Qian and Bian handled trivia.

自禍難屢構，干戈不戢，百姓厭之。思歸一統。及玄初至也，黜凡佞，擢俊賢，君子之道粗備，京師欣然。後乃陵侮朝廷，幽擯宰輔，豪奢縱欲，眾務繁興，於是朝野失望，人不安業。時會稽饑荒，玄令賑貸之。百姓散在江湖采穭，內史王愉悉召之還。請米，米既不多，吏不時給，頓僕道路死者十八九焉。玄又害吳興太守高素、輔國將軍竺謙之、謙之從兄高平相朗之、輔國將軍劉襲、襲弟彭城內史季武、冠軍將軍孫無終等，皆牢之之黨，北府舊將也。襲兄冀州刺史軌及甯朔將軍高雅之、牢之子敬宣並奔慕容德。玄諷朝廷以己平元顯功，封豫章公，食安成郡地方二百二十五里，邑七千五百戶；平仲堪、佺期功，封桂陽郡公，地方七十五里，邑二千五百戶；本封南郡如故。玄以豫章改封息升，桂陽郡公賜兄子浚，降為西道縣公。又發詔為桓溫諱，有姓名同者一皆改之，贈其母馬氏豫章公太夫人。元興二年，玄詐表請平姚興，又諷朝廷作詔，不許。玄本無資力，而好為大言，既不克行，乃雲奉詔故止。初欲飾裝，無他處分，先使作輕舸，載服玩及書畫等物。或諫之，玄曰：「書畫服玩既宜恆在左右，且兵凶戰危，脫有不意，當使輕而易運。」眾咸笑之。

Years of disaster and war had exhausted the people. They hungered for reunification. Early on Xuan purged toadies, lifted talent—something like honest rule—and Jiankang welcomed him. Soon he humiliated the throne, expelled ministers, reveled in luxury, and churned out intrusive orders until hopes collapsed and trade stalled. Kuaiji starved; Xuan commanded grain relief. Peasants had scattered harvesting shore grasses; Interior Prefect Wang Yu forced everyone home. They pleaded for rice—stores ran low and clerks delayed distribution—so corpses lined the roads, nearly everyone dying. He next murdered northern-command cohort—Gao Su, Zhu Qianzhi, Zhu Langzhi, Liu Xi, Liu Ji Wu, Sun Wuzhong—everyone tied to Liu Laozhi. Liu Gui, Gao Yazhi, and Liu Jingxuan bolted to Southern Yan's Murong De. He coached edicts rewarding himself Duke of Yuzhang—two hundred twenty-five li of Ancheng grain lands and seventy-five hundred households; plus another dukedom at Guiyang—seventy-five li and twenty-five hundred mouths—for defeating Yin Zhongkan and Yang Quanqi; the old Nanjun dukedom stayed untouched. He handed Yuzhang to his son Huan Sheng, Guiyang to nephew Huan Jun, and trimmed collateral heirs to county rank. He forbade anyone to bear Wen's name like his father and honored Lady Ma as dowager duchess. Yuanxing II saw Xuan fake a western campaign petition while prompting refusal from the throne. Cash-stricken but boastful, he blamed imperial orders when nothing marched. Planning baggage trains, he prioritized barges of robes, curios, and calligraphy. Critics objected; Xuan retorted, "Art and wardrobe belong beside me; war is peril—if disaster strikes I must travel light." Everyone mocked him.

是歲，玄兄偉卒，贈開府、驃騎將軍，以桓脩代之。從事中郎曹靖之說玄以桓脩兄弟職居內外，恐權傾天下，玄納之，乃以南郡相桓石康為西中郎將、荊州刺史。偉服始以公除，玄便作樂。初奏，玄撫節慟哭，既而收淚盡歡，玄所親仗唯偉，偉既死，玄乃孤危。而不臣之跡已著，自知怨滿天下，欲速定篡逆，殷仲文、卞範之等又共催促之，於是先改授群司，解琅邪王司徒，遷太宰，加殊禮，以桓謙為侍中、衛將軍、開府、錄尚書事，王謐散騎常侍、中書監，領司徒，桓胤中書令，加桓脩散騎常侍、撫軍大將軍。置學官，教授二品子弟數百人。又矯詔加其相國，總百揆，封南郡、南平、宜都、天門、零陵、營陽、桂陽、衡陽、義陽、建平十郡為楚王，揚州牧，領平西將軍、豫州刺史如故，加九錫備物，楚國置丞相已下，一遵舊典。又諷天子御前殿而策授焉。玄屢偽讓，詔遣百僚敦勸，又云：「當親降鑾輿乃受命。」矯詔贈父溫為楚王，南康公主為楚王后。以平西長史劉瑾為尚書，刁逵為中領軍，王嘏為太常，殷叔文為左衛，皇甫敷為右衛，凡眾官合六十餘人，為楚官屬。玄解平西、豫州，以平西文武配相國府。

When Wei died Xuan piled titles on him and slid Huan Xiu into his place. Cao Jingzhi feared the Xiu brothers spanning palace and camps; Xuan listened and posted Huan Shikang over Jingzhou instead. The moment Wei's mourning lifted Xuan threw banquets. Music began with theatrical tears, then feasting—Wei had been his lone pillar; without Wei he teetered. Seeing mutiny inevitable and hatred empire-wide, Xuan rushed toward coup—Zhongwen and Bian pressed—so he reshuffled ministers, bumped Prince of Langye to Grand Tutor, stacked Qian, Wang Mi, Yin, Xiu across key seals. He opened schools for hundreds of elite youths. Another fake edict crowned him Chu prince over ten commanderies, Yangzhou governor, western pacifier, Yuzhou inspector, nine insignia, full Chu bureaucracy. He staged an audience where the emperor handed him the patent. He played coy until ministers mobbed him with rehearsed pleas, insisting he would accept only if the emperor's coach descended." Forged honors raised late Huan Wen to Chu prince and Princess Nankang to queen. Sixty-odd offices became Chu ministry—Liu Jin, Diao Kui, Wang Jia, Yin Shuwen, Huangfu Fu among them. He folded his western headquarters into the Chu chancellery.

新野人庾仄聞玄受九錫，乃起義兵，襲馮該於襄陽，走之。仄有眾七千，于城南設壇，祭祖宗七廟。南蠻參軍庾彬、安西參軍楊道護、江安令鄧襄子謀為內應。仄本仲堪黨，桓偉既死，石康未至，故乘間而發，江陵震動。桓濟之子亮起兵于羅縣，自號平南將軍、湘州刺史，以討仄為名。南蠻校尉羊僧壽與石康共攻襄陽，仄眾散，奔姚興，彬等皆遇害。長沙相陶延壽以亮乘亂起兵，遣收之。玄徙亮於衡陽，誅其同謀桓奧等。

When Xinye's Yu Ze heard the nine honors he attacked Feng Gai at Xiangyang and routed him. Seven thousand strong, he sacrificed south of Xiangyang to seven ancestral temples. Yu Bin, Yang Daohu, and Deng Xiangzi planned internal support. Yu Ze had backed Yin Zhongkan; with Wei gone and Shikang absent he seized the moment, rocking Jiangling. Huan Liang mustered Luo county as "Pacifier of the South" to crush Yu Ze. Yang Shoushou and Shikang took Xiangyang; Yu Ze fled to Later Qin; conspirators died. Changsha's Tao Yanshou arrested Liang for rabble-raising. Xuan exiled Liang to Hengyang and killed co-conspirators such as Huan Ao.

玄偽上表求歸籓，又自作詔留之，遣使宣旨，玄又上表固請，又諷天子作手詔固留焉。玄好逞偽辭，塵穢簡牘，皆此類也。謂代謝之際宜有禎祥，乃密令所在上臨平湖開除清朗，使眾官集賀。矯詔曰：「靈瑞之事非所敢聞也。斯誠相國至德，故事為之應。太平之化，於是乎始，六合同悅，情何可言！」又詐云江州甘露降王成基家竹上。玄以歷代咸有肥遁之士，而己世獨無，乃征皇甫謐六世孫希之為著作，並給其資用，皆令讓而不受，號曰高士，時人名為「充隱」。議復肉刑，斷錢貨，回復改異，造革紛紜，志無一定，條制森然，動害政理。性貪鄙，好奇異，尤愛寶物，珠玉不離於手。人士有法書好畫及佳園宅者，悉欲歸己，猶難逼奪之，皆蒱博而取。遣臣佐四出，掘果移竹，不遠數千里，百姓佳果美竹無復遺餘。信悅諂譽，逆忤讜言，或奪其所憎與其所愛。

He scripted resignations, scripted counter-edicts to refuse, scripted fresh pleas—pure theater. He delighted in counterfeit petitions that cluttered every inbox. Wanting omens for usurpation, he rigged reports that Linping Lake had cleared and staged mass congratulations. A bogus edict sniffed, "We should not hear such miracles. Yet they arise from the chief minister's virtue—history echoes him. Harmony begins; all under heaven rejoices—beyond words!" He also faked sweet dew on Wang Chengji's bamboo in Jiangzhou. Unable to find hermits, he press-ganged Huangfu Xizhi into a staged refusal of salary—the "supplemental recluse." He toggled between mutilation law, currency bans, policy reversals—chaotic rules that paralyzed government. Voracious and vulgar, he fondled gems constantly. He coveted art and estates but dice games masked seizure. Agents uprooted prize fruit and bamboo across provinces until locals had nothing left. He rewarded sycophants, punished candor, confiscated from hated houses and gifted allies.

十一月，玄矯制加其冕十有二旒，建天子旌旗，出警入蹕，乘金根車，駕六馬，備五時副車，置旄頭雲罕，樂儛八佾，設鐘虡宮縣，妃為王后，世子為太子，其女及孫爵命之號皆如舊制。玄乃多斥朝臣為太宰僚佐，又矯詔使王謐兼太保，領司徒，奉皇帝璽禪位於己。又諷帝以禪位告廟，出居永安宮，移晉神主於琅邪廟。

Eleventh month: counterfeit regalia—twelve-crown tassels, imperial banners, full motorcade, six-horse chariot, ritual dancers, palace music; wife elevated queen, son heir—noble ladies titled per Jin law. He demoted ministers into Grand Tutor hangers-on and scripted Wang Mi handing him the jade seal. He staged abdication rites, packed the emperor off to Yongan, and relocated ancestral tablets to Langye shrine.

初，玄恐帝不肯為手詔，又慮璽不可得，逼臨川王寶請帝自為手詔，因奪取璽。比臨軒，璽已久出，玄甚喜。百官到姑孰勸玄僭偽位，玄偽讓，朝臣固請，玄乃于城南七里立郊，登壇篡位，以玄牡告天，百僚陪列，而儀注不備，忘稱萬歲，又不易帝諱。榜為文告天皇后帝云：「晉帝欽若景運，敬順明命，以命于玄。夫天工人代，帝王所以興，匪君莫治，惟德司其元，故承天理物，必由一統。並聖不可以二君，非賢不可以無主，故世換五帝，鼎遷三代。爰暨漢魏，咸歸勳烈。晉自中葉，仍世多故，海西之亂，皇祚殆移，九代廓寧之功，升明黜陟之勳，微禹之德，左衽將及。太元之末，君子道消，積釁基亂。鐘于隆安，禍延士庶，理絕人倫。玄雖身在草澤，見棄時班，義情理感，胡能無慨！投袂克清之勞，阿衡撥亂之績，皆仰憑先德遺愛之利，玄何功焉！屬當理運之會，猥集樂推之數，以寡昧之身踵下武之重，膺革泰之始，托王公之上，誠仰藉洪基，德漸有由。夕惕祗懷，罔知攸厝。君位不可以久虛，人神不可以乏饗，是用敢不奉以欽恭大禮，敬簡良辰，升壇受禪，告類上帝，以永綏眾望，式孚萬邦，惟明靈是饗。」乃下書曰：「夫三才相資，天人所以成功，理由一統，貞夫所以司契，帝王之興，其源深矣。自三五已降，世代參差，雖所由或殊，其歸一也。朕皇考宣武王聖德高邈，誕啟洪基，景命攸歸，理貫自昔。中間屯險，弗克負荷，仰瞻巨集業，殆若綴旒。藉否終之運，遇時來之會，用獲除奸救溺，拯拔人倫。晉氏以多難薦臻，歷數唯既，典章唐虞之准，述遵漢魏之則，用集天祿於朕躬。惟德不敏，辭不獲命，稽若令典，遂升壇燎於南郊，受終於文祖。思覃斯慶，願與億兆聿茲更始。」於是大赦，改元永始，賜天下爵二級，孝悌力田人三級，鰥寡孤獨不能自存者穀人五斛。其賞賜之制，徒設空文，無其實也。初出偽詔，改年為建始，右丞王悠之曰：「建始，趙王倫偽號也。」又改為永始，復是王莽始執權之歲，其兆號不祥，冥符僭逆如此。又下書曰：「夫三恪作賓，有自來矣。爰暨漢魏，咸建疆宇。晉氏欽若歷數，禪位於朕躬，宜則是古訓，授茲茅土。以南康之平固縣奉晉帝為平固王，車旗正朔一如舊典。」遷帝居尋陽，即陳留王處鄴宮故事。降永安皇后為零陵君，琅邪王為石陽縣公，武陵王遵為彭澤縣侯。追尊其父溫宣武皇帝，廟稱太廟，南康公主為宣皇后。封子升為豫章郡王，叔父雲孫放之為甯都縣王，豁孫稚玉為臨沅縣王，豁次子石康為右將軍、武陵郡王，秘子蔚為醴陵縣王，贈沖太傳、宣城郡王，加殊禮，依晉安平王故事，以孫胤襲爵，為吏部尚書，沖次子謙為揚州刺史、新安郡王，謙弟脩為撫軍大將軍、安成郡王，兄歆臨賀縣王，禕富陽縣王，贈偉侍中、大將軍、義興郡王，以子浚襲爵，為輔國將軍，浚弟邈西昌縣王。封王謐為武昌公，班劍二十人，卞範之為臨汝公，殷仲文為東興公，馮該為魚復侯。又降始安郡公為縣公，長沙為臨湘縣公，盧陵為巴丘縣公，各千戶。其康樂、武昌、南昌、望蔡、建興、永脩、觀陽皆降封百戶，公侯之號如故。又普進諸征鎮軍號各有差。以相國左長史王綏為中書令。崇桓謙母庾氏為宣城太妃，加殊禮，給以輦乘。號溫墓曰永崇陵，置守衛四十人。

Fearing refusal, he forced Prince Bao to extract an autograph edict and snatched the seal. Come audience day the seal already sat in his hands—Xuan exulted. Officials begged him south of Gushu; after scripted refusals he built an altar, mounted it, declared himself emperor, sacrificed black ox—but botched ritual: no "long live," no taboo update. Placards claimed: "The Jin sovereign reveres destiny and orders Huan Xuan to succeed. Heaven tasks mankind—thus dynasties rise; without virtuous master there is no rule—succession must unify the mandate. Twin sagely lines cannot share one throne; ages rotated the Five Thearchs and Xia-Shang-Zhou passed the cauldrons. Han and Wei alike enthroned merit. Mid-Jin chaos—Prince Yi's deposition nearly ended the line—Nine-reign restoration and Shengming reforms alone, like Great Yu's floodwork, kept civilization from barbarian dress. Late Taiyuan saw decent men silenced and old grudges seed rebellion. Long'an brought disaster to every class and shattered moral bonds. Banished to common life yet stirred by justice, how could he withhold passion? Purging traitors and steadying the throne rested on his father's legacy—Xuan claimed no credit. Fortune aligned and acclaim gathered; though unworthy he assumed martial succession, mounted reform, and ruled above princes—borrowing his father's foundation. He feigned dread and reverence—nowhere to settle his heart. Throne and sacrifices demand a ruler—so he staged abdication, chose a day, ascended the altar, and announced heaven." He proclaimed that heaven-earth-man cooperate, legitimacy demands unity, and imperial ascent runs deep. Since mythic ages dynasties varied yet converged on one mandate. His father King Xuanwu opened the great enterprise and bore heaven's charge. Hard years nearly broke them; the legacy seemed precarious as dangling threads. Through reversal's luck and timely union he purged rebels and rescued society. Jin's mandate exhausted; modeling Yao-Shun and Han-Wei forms, he claimed the celestial salary. Feigning modesty yet obeying ritual, he burned offerings at the southern altar and received abdication at Wenzu temple. He vowed renewal with the myriad people. He declared amnesty, renamed the reign Yongshi, raised ranks, and granted grain to the destitute. The promised largesse stayed ink on paper—nothing real. His first bogus era Jianshi echoed Sima Lun's usurpation—Wang Youzhi protested. Renaming Yongshi replayed Wang Mang's opening year—another ill omen. He invoked the classical "three guest" enfeoffments for former dynasties. Han and Wei alike granted their royal houses domains. Jin yielded the throne—he must enfeoff them per precedent. He demoted the Jin emperor to Prince of Pinggu at Pinggu with former princely honors. He banished the emperor to Xunyang like Cao-Wei's puppet prince. He stripped titles from the empress and Sima princes to county nobility. He canonized Huan Wen as Emperor Xuanwu and Princess Nankang as empress. A flurry of princely titles: Huan Sheng and kin across the clan—Huan Shikang, Huan Wei, Huan Qian, Huan Xiu, and posthumous honors to Huan Chong, Huan Wei, with sons and nephews ennobled per convoluted Jin parallel. Wang Mi became Duke of Wuchang; Bian Fanzhi Linru; Zhongwen Dongxing; Feng Gai marquis of Yufu. Commandery dukedoms shrank to county-level fiefs at one thousand households. Other noble domains shrank to token hundred-household grants while titles lingered. Expeditionary ranks climbed by staged promotions. Wang Sui took the Palace Writer seal. Qian's mother Lady Yu became dowager of Xuancheng with carriage honors. Huan Wen's tomb was renamed Yongchong with a forty-man guard.

玄入建康宮，逆風迅激，旍旗儀飾皆傾偃。及小會於西堂，設妓樂，殿上施絳綾帳，縷黃金為顏，四角作金龍，頭銜五色羽葆旒蘇，群臣竊相謂曰：「此頗似輀車，亦王莽仙蓋之流也。龍角，所謂亢龍有悔者也。」又造金根車，駕六馬。是月，玄臨聽訟觀閱囚徒，罪無輕重，多被原放。有幹輿乞者，時或恤之。其好行小惠如此。自以水德，壬辰，臘于祖。改尚書都官郎為賊曹，又增置五校、三將及強弩、積射武衛官。元興三年，玄之永始二年也，尚書答「春蒐」字誤為「春菟」，凡所關署皆被降黜。玄大綱不理，而糾摘纖微，皆此類也。以其妻劉氏為皇后，將修殿宇，乃移入東宮。又開東掖、平昌、廣莫及宮殿諸門，皆為三道。更造大輦，容三千人坐，以二百人舁之。性好畋遊，以體大不堪乘馬，又作徘徊輿，施轉關，令回動無滯。既不追尊祖曾，疑其禮義，問於群臣。散騎常侍徐廣據晉典宜追立七廟，又敬其父則子悅，位彌高者情理得申，道愈廣者納敬必普也。玄曰：「《禮》雲三昭、三穆，與太祖為七，然則太祖必居廟之主也，昭穆皆自下之稱，則非逆數可知也。禮，太祖東向，左昭右穆。如晉室之廟，則宣帝在昭穆之列，不得在太祖之位。昭穆既錯，太祖無寄，失之遠矣。」玄曾祖以上名位不顯，故不欲序列，且以王莽九廟見譏于前史，遂以一廟矯之，郊廟齋二日而已。秘書監卞承之曰：「祭不及祖，知楚德之不長也。」又毀晉小廟以廣台榭。其庶母蒸嘗，靡有定所，忌日見賓客遊宴，唯至亡時一哭而已。期服之內，不廢音樂。玄出遊水門，飄風飛其儀蓋。夜，濤水入石頭，大桁流壞，殺人甚多。大風吹硃雀門樓，上層墜地。

Entering the palace a gale flattened banners and ritual gear. West-hall banquet with gold-thread curtains and dragon canopy corners reminded ministers of funeral wagons and Wang Mang's omens. They muttered about "the soaring dragon's regret"—ill augury. He commissioned the six-horse golden state coach. That month he staged a jail review and freed prisoners wholesale. Even beggars sometimes received his petty charity. Such was his taste for small benevolences. Claiming water-phase cosmology he observed la rites at the imperial shrine. Renamed ministries for "bandits" and bloated palace armies. A Secretariat typo—"spring hunt" written "spring hare"—triggered mass demotions. He neglected policy yet punished trivia. Naming Lady Liu empress, he seized the heir's Eastern Palace quarters. Palace gates were carved into triple avenues. A litter designed for three thousand sitters required two hundred porters. Too heavy to ride, he invented a swiveling hunting sedan. Unsettled on ancestral temples, he polled the court. Xu Guang urged seven shrines per Jin canon—revere fathers to delight sons. Xuan argued ritual zhao-mu ordering places founding ancestor at axis. Canonical layout faces the founder east with zhao and mu flanks. Jin already installs Emperor Xuan in zhao-mu rows—not central ancestor. Misaligned ranks leave no seat for the primal ancestor. Ashamed of obscure forebears and dodging Wang Mang's nine-temple ridicule, he recognized only one shrine with minimal fasting. Bian Chengzhi quipped: neglecting ancestors doomed Chu. He tore down auxiliary Jin temples for pleasure buildings. Concubine mother's rites lacked stable altars; taboo anniversaries meant parties save one token wail. Even in mourning white he kept musicians playing. A gust stripped his canopy at Water Gate. Night tide smashed Stone fortress bridges and drowned crowds. Gales toppled the Zhuque Gate upper floor.

玄自篡盜之後，驕奢荒侈，遊獵無度，以夜繼晝。兄偉葬日，旦哭晚遊，或一日之中屢出馳騁。性又急暴，呼召嚴速，直官咸系馬省前，禁內嘩雜，無復朝廷之體。於是百姓疲苦，朝野勞瘁，怨怒思亂者十室八九焉。於是劉裕、劉毅、何無忌等共謀興復。裕等斬桓脩於京口，斬桓弘於廣陵，河內太守辛扈興、弘農太守王元德、振威將軍童厚之、竟陵太守劉邁謀為內應。至期，裕遣周安穆報之，而邁惶遽，遂以告玄。玄震駭，即殺扈興等，安穆馳去得免。封邁重安侯，一宿又殺之。

Post-usurpation he reveled, hunted day and night. Wei's funeral morning brought tears, evening brought hunts. Temper tantrums filled the palace yard with tethered horses and chaos. Exhaustion and hatred gripped nine households in ten. Liu Yu, Liu Yi, and He Wuji conspired revival. Liu Yu slew Huan Xiu and Hong while Xin Huxing, Wang Yuande, Tong Houzhi, Liu Mai promised interior aid. Zhou Anmu carried word; Liu Mai betrayed the plot to Xuan. Xuan slaughtered conspirators while Zhou Anmu fled. He briefly titled Liu Mai marquis then murdered him overnight.

裕率義軍至竹裏，玄移還上宮，百僚步從，召侍官皆入止省中。赦揚、豫、徐、兗、青、冀六州，加桓謙征討都督、假節，以殷仲文代桓脩，遣頓丘太守吳甫之、右衛將軍皇甫敷北距義軍。裕等於江乘與戰，臨陣斬甫之，進至羅落橋，與敷戰，復梟其首。玄聞之大懼，乃召諸道術人推算數為厭勝之法，乃問眾曰：「朕其敗乎？」曹靖之對曰：「神怒人怨，臣實懼焉。」玄曰：「人或可怨，神何為怒？」對曰：「移晉宗廟，飄泊失所，大楚之祭，不及于祖，此其所以怒也。」玄曰：「卿何不諫？」對曰：「輦上諸君子皆以為堯舜之世，臣何敢言！」玄愈忿懼，使桓謙、何澹之屯東陵，卞範之屯覆舟山西，眾合二萬，以距義軍。裕至蔣山，使羸弱貫油帔登山，分張旗幟，數道並前。玄偵侯還云：「裕軍四塞，不知多少。」玄益憂惶，遣武衛將軍庾頤之配以精卒，副援諸軍。于時東北風急，義軍放火，煙塵張天，鼓噪之音震駭京邑。劉裕執鉞麾而進，謙等諸軍一時奔潰。玄率親信數千人聲言赴戰，遂將其子升、兄子浚出南掖門，西至石頭，使殷仲文具船，相與南奔。

Liu Yu advanced on Zhuli; Xuan retreated to the high palace with ministers afoot. He issued hollow amnesty, gave Qian command against Liu Yu, replaced Xiu with Zhongwen, sent Wu Fuzhi and Huangfu Fu north. At Jiangcheng Liu Yu killed Wu Fuzhi; at Luoluo Bridge slew Huangfu Fu. Terrified, Xuan consulted sorcerers and asked ministers if ruin loomed. Cao Jingzhi said gods and people alike despised him. Xuan asked why heaven would bother. Answer: relocating Jin shrines and omitting Chu founder rites angered heaven. Xuan demanded why none warned him. Answer: courtiers pretended a golden age—who dared speak? He deployed Qian, Danzhi, and Fanzhi with twenty thousand against Liu Yu. Liu Yu feigned weakness—oiled cloaks on Jiangshan slopes and banners everywhere. Scouts reported Liu Yu surrounding them—numbers unknown. He threw Yu Yizhi's crack troops into the line. A northeast gale fed Liu Yu's fires—smoke blotted the sky over Jiankang. Liu Yu waved his broadaxe; Qian's lines shattered. Xuan pretended to fight but slipped out Nanxu Gate toward Stone fortress with Sheng and Jun, Zhongwen arranging boats for escape.

初，玄在姑孰，將相星屢有變；篡位之夕，月及太白，又入羽林，玄甚惡之。及敗走，腹心勸其戰，玄不暇答，直以策指天。而經日不得食，左右進以粗飯，咽不能下。升時年數歲，抱玄胸而撫之，玄悲不自勝。

At Gushu court stars had foretold trouble; usurpation eve moon and Venus invaded the imperial guard asterism—ominous. Retreat advisors begged him to fight; he merely pointed his riding crop skyward. He starved, choking on coarse rice. Young Sheng hugged him as he sobbed.

劉裕以武陵王遵攝萬機，立行台，總百官。遣劉毅、劉道規躡玄，誅玄諸兄子及石康兄權、振兄洪等。

Liu Yu set Prince Zun as regent with mobile headquarters. Liu Yi hunted Xuan's kin—executing nephews and Huan Zhen's circle.

玄至尋陽，江州刺史郭昶之給其器用兵力。殷仲文自後至，望見玄舟，旌旗輿服備帝者之儀，歎息曰：「敗中復振，故可也。」玄於是逼乘輿西上。桓歆聚党向曆陽，宣城內史諸葛長民擊破之。玄於道作起居注，敘其距義軍之事，自謂經略指授，算無遺策，諸將違節度，以致虧喪，非戰之罪。於是不遑與群下謀議，唯耽思誦述，宣示遠近。玄至江陵，石康納之，張幔屋于城南，署置百官，以卞范之為尚書僕射，其餘職多用輕資。於是大修舟師，曾未三旬，眾且二萬，樓船器械甚盛。謂其群黨曰：「卿等並清塗翼從朕躬，都下竊位者方應謝罪軍門，其觀卿等入石頭，無異雲霄中人也。」

At Xunyang Guo Changzhi armed him. Zhongwen mocked the imperial display amid flight. He compelled the emperor's train westward. Huan Xin's march on Liyang failed before Zhuge Changmin. En route he penned a diary blaming generals for ruining his perfect plans. Too rattled for council he drowned in rewriting edicts and broadcasting them everywhere. At Jiangling Huan Shikang hosted him; Xuan pitched imperial tents, staffed a shadow court with Fanzhi as vice-president and lightweight placemen elsewhere. Within a month he massed nearly twenty thousand sailors with formidable fleet trains. He boasted his allies would march Jiankang while usurpers groveled outside camp.

玄以奔敗之後，懼法令不肅，遂輕怒妄殺，人多離怨。殷仲文諫曰：「陛下少播英譽，遠近所服，遂掃平荊雍，一匡京室，聲被八荒矣。既據有極位，而遇此圮運，非為威不足也。百姓喁喁，想望皇澤，宜弘仁風，以收物情。」玄怒曰：「漢高、魏武幾遇敗，但諸將失利耳！以天文惡，故還都舊楚，而群小愚惑，妄生是非，方當糾之以猛，未宜施之以恩也。」玄左右稱玄為「桓詔」，桓胤諫曰：「詔者，施於辭令，不以為稱謂也。漢魏之主皆無此言，唯聞北虜以苻堅為'苻詔'耳。願陛下稽古帝則，令萬世可法。」玄曰：「此事已行，今宣敕罷之，更為不祥。必其宜革，可待事平也。」荊州郡守以玄播越，或遣使通表，有匪寧之辭，玄悉不受，仍乃更令所在表賀遷都。

Paranoia after rout bred arbitrary executions. Zhongwen pleaded that Xuan once commanded reverence and restored Jiankang. Misfortune stemmed not from weak awe. People still hungered for mercy—policy should soften hearts." He snapped that Liu Bang and Cao Cao lost battles yet endured. Blaming astrology he insisted terror, not kindness, would tame rumor. Courtiers called him "Edict Huan"; Yin protested the misuse. Only Former Qin jest titled Fu Jian "Edict Fu." Yin begged him to model ancient kings. Xuan claimed stopping midstream augured worse luck. Change could wait until victory. Regional governors offered condolences for his exile; Xuan refused and forced congratulations on his "move."

玄遣遊擊將軍何澹之、武衛將軍庾稚祖、江夏太守桓道恭就郭銓以數千人守湓口。又遣輔國將軍桓振往義陽聚眾，至弋陽，為龍驤將軍胡譁所破，振單騎走還。何無忌、劉道規等破郭銓、何澹之、郭昶之于桑落洲，進師尋陽。玄率舟艦二百發江陵，使苻宏、羊僧壽為前鋒。以鄱陽太守徐放為散騎常侍，欲遣說解義軍，謂放曰：「諸人不識天命，致此妄作，遂懼禍屯結，不能自反。卿三州所信，可明示朕心，若退軍散甲，當與之更始，各授位任，令不失分。江水在此，朕不食言。」放對曰：「劉裕為唱端之主，劉毅兄為陛下所誅，並不可說也。輒當申聖旨于何無忌。」玄曰：「卿使若有功，當以吳興相敘。」放遂受使，入無忌軍。

He tasked Danzhi, Zhizu, Daogong under Guo Quan to defend Penkou. Zhen's levy at Yiyang collapsed before Hu Hua. Loyal fleets routed Quan's coalition at Sangluo Isle then sailed toward Xunyang. Two hundred war barges left Jiangling under Fu Hong and Shoushou. He elevated Xu Fang to lobby Liu Yu's coalition. Fang promised reinstatement for rebels who disarmed. The river hears my oath—I keep faith." Fang countered that Liu Yu would never trust him after Liu Yi died. I will convey your orders to He Wuji alone." Xuan promised Wuxing prefecture for success. Fang rode into Wuji's camp.

魏詠之破桓歆于曆陽，諸葛長民又敗歆於芍陂，歆單馬渡淮。毅率道規及下邳太守孟懷玉與玄戰于崢嶸洲。于時義軍數千，玄兵甚盛，而玄懼有敗衄，常漾輕舸於舫側，故其眾莫有鬥心。義軍乘風縱火，盡銳爭先，玄眾大潰，燒輜重夜遁，郭銓歸降。玄故將劉統、馮稚等聚黨四百人，襲破尋陽城，毅遣建威將軍劉懷肅討平之。玄留永安皇后及皇后于巴陵。殷仲文時在玄艦，求出別船收集散軍，因叛玄，奉二後奔于夏口。玄入江陵城，馮該勸使更下戰，玄不從，欲出漢川，投梁州刺史桓希，而人情乖阻，制令不行。玄乘馬出城，至門，左右於暗中斫之，不中，前後相殺交橫，玄僅得至船。於是荊州別駕王康產奉帝入南郡府舍，太守王騰之率文武營衛。

Xin fled north across the Huai after twin defeats. Liu Yi joined Daogui and Meng Huaiyu at Zhengrong sandbank. Though outnumbered, Liu Yu's men burned to fight; Xuan tethered escape boats and killed morale. Wind-fed fires shattered Xuan's fleet; Quan defected. Bandits seized Xunyang until Liu Huaisu crushed them. He stranded both queens at Baling. Zhongwen defected midstream and spirited the consorts to Xiakou. At Jiangling refused another stand and hoped to reach Liangzhou via Han—but controls collapsed. Ambush at the gate nearly killed him before he reached boats. Wang Kangchan sheltered the emperor while Tengzhi mustered defense.

時益州刺史毛璩使其從孫祐之、參軍費恬送弟璠喪葬江陵，有眾二百，璩弟子脩之為玄屯騎校尉，誘玄以入蜀，玄從之。達枚回洲，恬與祐之迎擊玄，矢下如雨。玄嬖人丁仙期、萬蓋等以身敝玄，並中數十箭而死。玄被箭，其子升輒拔去之。益州督護馮遷抽刀而前，玄拔頭上玉導與之，仍曰：「是何人邪？敢殺天子！」遷曰：「欲殺天子之賊耳。」遂斬之，時年三十六。又斬石康及浚等五級，庾頤之戰死。升云：「我是豫章王，諸君勿見殺。」送至江陵市斬之。

Mao Fan's kin feigned escorting a corpse convoy to lure Xuan west. At Meihui Isle Mao loyalists raked him with arrows. Catamites absorbed volleys for him. Boy Huan Sheng plucked shafts from his father's flesh. Xuan offered his jade pin and whimpered. Who strikes the Son of Heaven?" The man killing the counterfeit emperor," Feng replied. They cut him down at thirty-six. Shikang and Jun died too; Yu Yizhi fell fighting. Young Sheng begged for life as prince. Soldiers marched him to Jiangling and killed him.

初，玄在宮中，恆覺不安，若為鬼神所擾，語其所親云：「恐己當死，故與時競。」元興中，衡陽有雌雞化為雄，八十日而冠萎。及玄建國于楚，衡陽屬焉，自篡盜至敗，時凡八旬矣。其時有童謠云：「長幹巷，巷長幹，今年殺郎君，後年斬諸桓。」其凶兆符會如此。郎君，謂元顯也。

He confessed dread that death chased him. A hen crowed like rooster for eighty days—omens piled. From usurpation to ruin totaled eighty days. Street rhyme augured Yuanxian's death and clan wipeout. Omens lined up exactly. "Young lord" mocked Sima Yuanxian.

是月，王騰之奉帝入居太府。桓謙亦聚眾沮中，為玄舉哀，立喪庭，偽諡為武悼皇帝。毅等傳送玄首，梟於大桁，百姓觀者莫不欣幸。

Tengzhi housed the emperor at the treasury compound. Qian staged funeral rites for Xuan as emperor. They spiked Xuan's head on Jiankang bridge amid cheers.

何無忌等攻桓謙於馬頭，桓蔚于龍洲，皆破之。義軍乘勝競進，振、該等距戰於靈溪，道規等敗績，死沒者千餘人。義軍退次尋陽，更繕舟甲。毛璩自領梁州，遣將攻漢中，殺桓希。江夏相張暢之、高平太守劉懷肅攻何澹之於西塞磯，破之。振遣桓蔚代王曠守襄陽。道規進討武昌，破偽太守王旻。魏詠之、劉籓破桓石綏于白茅。義軍發尋陽。桓亮自號江州刺史，侵豫章，江州刺史劉敬宣討走之。義軍進次夏口。偽鎮東將軍馮該等守夏口，揚武將軍孟山圖據魯城，輔國將軍桓山客守偃月壘。劉毅攻魯城，道規攻偃月壘，無忌與檀祗列艦中流，以防越逸。義軍騰赴，叫聲動山谷，自辰及午，二城俱潰，馮該散走，生擒山客。毅等平巴陵。毛璩遣涪陵太守文處茂東下，振遣桓放之為益州，屯夷陵，處茂距戰，放之敗走，還江陵。

Wuji shattered Qian at Matou and Wei on Dragon Isle. Assault on Lingxi ford bloodied Liu Yu's advance. They fell back to Xunyang to rebuild fleet. Mao Fan seized Liangzhou and killed Xi in Hanzhong. Zhang and Huaisu smashed Danzhi's river pickets. Zhen posted Wei at Xiangyang. Daogui took Wuchang from Wang Min. Yongzhi beat Shisui at White Reed marsh. The loyal fleet weighed anchor at Xunyang. Liang's Jiangzhou bid collapsed before Jingxuan. Columns closed on Xiakou. Feng Gai barred Xiakou; Meng Shantu Lu city; Shanke crescent wall. Yi and Daogui stormed twin citadels while Wuji sealed the river. Morning assault broke both forts; Shanke taken. They cleared Baling. Flanking moves traded blows along the Yangzi corridor.

義熙元年正月，南陽太守魯宗之起義兵襲襄陽，破偽雍州刺史桓蔚。無忌諸軍次江陵之馬頭，振擁帝出營江津。魯宗之率眾於柞溪，破偽武賁中郎溫楷，進至紀南。振自擊宗之，宗之失利。時蜀軍據靈溪，毅率無忌、道規等破馮該軍，推鋒而前，即平江陵。振見火起，知城已陷，乃與謙等北走。是日，安帝反正。大赦天下，唯逆黨就戮，詔特免桓胤一人。桓亮自豫章，自號鎮南將軍、湘州刺史。苻宏寇安成、廬陵，劉敬宣遣將討之，宏走入湘中。二月，桓謙、何澹之、溫楷等奔于姚興。桓振與宏出自溳城，襲破江陵，劉懷肅自雲杜伐振等，破之。廣武將軍唐興斬振及偽輔國將軍桓珍，毅於臨鄣斬偽零陵太守劉叔祖。桓亮、苻宏復出冠湘中，害郡守長吏，檀祗討宏於湘東，斬之，廣武將軍郭彌斬亮于益陽，其餘擁眾假號皆討平之。詔徙桓胤及諸党與于新安諸郡。

Yixi 405 Lu Zongzhi routed Huan Wei at Xiangyang. Zhen marched the puppet emperor out to the Jiang ford camp. Zongzhi smashed Wen Kai and pressed Ji city's southern flank. Zhen beat Zongzhi in the field. Liu Yi punched through Lingxi and retook Jiangling. Smoke told Zhen the city had fallen; he bolted with Qian. The same day Emperor An was restored. Amnesty everywhere save usurper families—only Yin pardoned. Liang reasserted southern titles from Yuzhang. Fu Hong skirmished south until Jingxuan chased him into the Xiang backcountry. Qian, Danzhi, and Kai ran to Later Qin. Zhen and Hong retook Jiangling briefly until Huaisu repulsed them. Tang Xing killed Zhen; Liu Yi took Shuzu's head. Mopping up: Tan Zhi killed Hong; Guo Mi slew Liang; stragglers purged. Surviving Huan kin were banished to Xin'an.

三年，東陽太守殷仲文與永嘉太守駱球謀反，欲建桓胤為嗣，曹靖之、桓石鬆、卞承之、劉延祖等潛相交結，劉裕以次收斬之，並誅其家屬。後桓謙走入蜀，蜀賊譙縱以謙為荊州刺史，使率兵而下，荊楚之眾多應之。謙至枝江，荊州刺史劉道規斬之，梁州刺史傅歆又斬桓石綏，桓氏遂滅。

Yin Zhongwen's 408 plot to restore Yin saw every accomplice exterminated. Qian served Qiao Zong's bid from Sichuan. Daogui and Fu Xin ended the Huan line.

卞范之

Subsection title: Bian Fanzhi.

卞范之字敬祖，濟陰宛句人也，識悟聰敏，見美於當世。太元中，自丹陽丞為始安太守。桓玄少與之游，及玄為江州，引為長史，委以心膂之任，潛謀密計，莫不決之。後玄將為篡亂，以範之為丹陽尹。范之與殷仲文陰撰策命，進範之為征虜將軍、散騎常侍。玄僭位，以範之為侍中，班劍二十人，進號後將軍，封臨汝縣公。其禪詔，即范之文也。

Bian Fanzhi of Wancun was celebrated for quick wit. Taiyuan promotions took him from Danyang aide to Shian governor. Xuan trusted Fanzhi with every conspiracy once Jiangzhou fell to him. As coup neared Xuan installed him at Danyang. He and Zhongwen forged abdication scripts and seized generalships. Usurpation won Fanzhi palace rank and Linru dukedom. His pen authored every abdication document.

玄既奢侈無度，范之亦盛營館第。自以佐命元勳，深懷矜伐，以富貴驕人，子弟慠慢，眾咸畏嫉之。義軍起，范之屯兵於覆舟山西，為劉毅所敗，隨玄西走，玄又以范之為尚書僕射。玄為劉毅等所敗，左右分散，唯範之在側。玄平，斬於江陵。

As Xuan spent recklessly Fanzhi threw up rival estates. Fanzhi preened as founding hero; his brash kin earned universal loathing. Liu Yi routed Fanzhi at Fuzhou; Fanzhi fled with Xuan and regained vice presidency. At the rout only Bian Fanzhi stayed with Xuan. With Xuan gone Fanzhi lost his head at Jiangling.

殷仲文

Subsection title: Yin Zhongwen.

殷仲文，南蠻校尉覬之弟也。少有才藻，美容貌。從兄仲堪薦之于會稽王道子，即引為驃騎參軍，甚相賞待。俄轉諮議參軍，後為元顯征虜長史。會桓玄與朝廷有隙，玄之姊，仲文之妻，疑而間之，左遷新安太守。仲文于玄雖為姻親，而素不交密，及聞玄平京師，便棄郡投焉。玄甚悅之，以為諮議參軍。時王謐見禮而不親，卞範之被親而少禮，而寵遇隆重，兼于王、卞矣。玄將為亂，使總領詔命，以為侍中，領左衛將軍。玄九錫，仲文之辭也。

Zhongwen was Yin Jizhi's younger brother. Young Zhongwen wrote well and looked striking. Yin Zhongkan introduced him to Prince Daozi as adjutant-cavalry. He rose to advisory aide then Yuanxian's secretary. Kinship to Xuan cost him Xin'an exile. He betrayed Xin'an to join Xuan's coup. Xuan welcomed him as strategist. Zhongwen outranked Wang Mi and Fanzhi in Xuan's esteem. He drafted Xuan's palace orders and commanded imperial guards. Zhongwen penned the nine insignia memorial.

初，玄篡位入宮，其床忽陷，群下失色，仲文曰：「將由聖德深厚，地不能載。」玄大悅。」以佐命親貴，厚自封崇，輿馬器服，窮極綺麗，後房伎妾數十，絲竹不絕音。性貪吝，多納貨賄，家累千金，常若不足。玄為劉裕所敗，隨玄西走，其珍寶玩好悉藏地中，皆變為土。至巴陵，因奉二後投義軍，而為鎮軍長史，轉尚書。

When Xuan's throne collapsed through the floor Zhongwen spun it as virtue too heavy for soil. Xuan glowed at the flattery. He looted titles, stacked concubines, and dressed like an emperor. He hoarded bribes yet never felt rich. Buried loot dissolved to mud on his flight. At Baling he defected with consorts and Liu Yu named him secretary.

帝初反正，抗表自解曰：「臣聞洪波振壑，川無恬鱗；驚飆拂野，林無靜柯。何者？勢弱則受制於巨力，質微則無以自保。於理雖可得而言，於臣實非所敢譬。昔桓玄之代，誠復驅逼者眾。至如微臣，罪實深矣，進不能見危授命，亡身殉國；退不能辭粟首陽，拂衣高謝。遂乃宴安昏寵，叨昧偽封，錫文篡事，曾無獨固。名義以之俱淪，情節自茲兼撓，宜其極法，以判忠邪。會鎮軍將軍劉裕匡復社稷，大弘善貸，佇一戮於微命，申三驅於大信，既惠之以首領，又申之以縶維。于時皇輿否隔，天人未泰，用忘進退，是以僶俯從事，自同令人。今宸極反正，唯新告始，憲章既明，品物思舊，臣亦胡顏之厚，可以顯居榮次！乞解所職，待罪私門。違離闕庭，乃心慕戀。」詔不許。

He memorialized self-indictment with classical metaphors. Storms leave no calm branches. Why so? Weak things fall prey to power. Theory fits others—not his cowardice. Usurpation press-ganged many. He confessed failing to martyr himself for Jin. Nor did he starve on Shouyang like worthy recluses. He accepted Xuan's puppet offices without protest. He deserved execution for moral collapse. Yet Liu Yu spared him despite guilt. Anarchy forced him to collaborate. Restoration exposed his shame. He begged demotion and house arrest. He claimed nostalgia for court despite resignation. Throne refused his resignation.

仲文因月朔與眾至大司馬府，府中有老槐樹，顧之良久而歎曰：「此樹婆娑，無復生意！」仲文素有名望，自謂必當朝政，又謝混之徒疇昔所輕者，並皆比肩，常怏怏不得志。忽遷為東陽太守，意彌不平。劉毅愛才好士，深相禮接，臨當之郡，遊宴彌日。行至富陽，慨然歎曰：「看此山川形勢，當復出一伯符。」何無忌甚慕之。東陽，無忌所統，仲文許當便道修謁，無忌故益飲遲之，令府中命文人殷闡、孔寧子之徒撰義構文，以俟其至。仲文失志恍惚，遂不過府。無忌疑其薄己，大怒，思中傷之。時屬慕容超南侵，無忌言于劉裕曰：「桓胤、殷仲文並乃腹心之疾，北虜不足為憂。」義熙三年，又以仲文與駱球等謀反，及其弟南蠻校尉叔文伏誅。仲文時照鏡不見其面，數日而遇禍。

Before Liu Yu's locust he mourned his career. Peers he once snubbed now outranked him. Demotion to Dongyang embittered him. Liu Yi feted him lavishly before posting. He prophesied another Sun Ce-style warlord from Fuyang. Wuji idolized him. Wuji staged literary welcome Zhongwen skipped. Distracted Zhongwen bypassed Wuji's headquarters. Wuji read snub and plotted revenge. Wuji urged Liu Yu to purge Yin before worrying Later Yan. In 407 Liu Yu executed Zhongwen brothers for conspiracy. Mirrors stopped reflecting his face—then came arrest.

仲文善屬文，為世所重，謝靈運嘗云：「若殷仲文讀書半袁豹，則文才不減班固。」言其文多而見書少也。

Xie Lingyun quipped he read too little. Much prose, little scholarship.

史臣曰：桓玄纂凶，父之余基。挾奸回之本性，含怒於失職；苞藏其豕心，抗表以稱冤。登高以發憤，觀釁而動，竊圖非望。始則假寵于仲堪，俄而戮殷以逞欲，遂得據全楚之地，驅勁勇之兵，因晉政之陵遲，乘會稽之酗ＪＴ，縱其狙詐之計，扇其陵暴之心，敢率犬羊，稱兵內侮。天長喪亂，凶力實繁，逾年之間，奄傾晉祚，自謂法堯禪舜，改物君臨，鼎業方隆，卜年惟永。俄而義旗電發，忠勇雷奔，半辰而都邑廓清，逾月而凶渠即戮，更延墜曆，復振頹綱。是知神器不可以暗幹，天祿不可以妄處者也。夫帝王者，功高宇內，道濟含靈，龍宮鳳曆表其祥，彤雲玄石呈其瑞，然後光臨大寶，克享鴻名，允彳奚後之心，副樂推之望。若桓玄之麼麼，豈足數哉！適所以幹紀亂常，傾宗絕嗣，肇金行之禍難，成宋氏之驅除者乎！

The historian traces Xuan's villainy to Huan Wen's legacy. Spite drove him after demotion. He masked ambition with martyr rhetoric. He climbed power on others' crises. He used Zhongkan, murdered Yin, exploited eastern decadence, then marched on Jiankang. For one shining moment he believed his dynasty eternal. Liu Yu smashed him within weeks. Regalia and mandate resist theft. True sovereigns earn cosmic omens before enthronement. Petty usurpers scarcely merit mention. He only paved Liu Song's rise.

贊曰：靈寶隱賊，世載凶德。信順未孚，奸回是則。肆逆遷鼎，憑威縱慝。違天虐人，覆宗殄國。

Verse brands Lingbao a born rebel. Faith never touched him—guile did. He stole thrones by terror. Heaven and folk abandoned him—clan perished.

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