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卷八十三 列傳第三十三: 郭孝恪 張儉 蘇定方 薛仁貴 程務挺 張士貴 趙道興

Volume 83 Biographies 33: Guo Xiaoke, Zhang Jian, Su Dingfang, Xue Rengui, Cheng Wuting, Zhang Shigui, Zhao Daoxing

Chapter 87 of 舊唐書 · Old Book of Tang
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1
Guo Xiaoke, Zhang Jian, Su Dingfang, Xue Rengui, Cheng Wuting, Zhang Shigui, and Zhao Daoxing
2
祿西西 便 西 退 西
Guo Xiaoke was a native of Yangzhai in Xu Prefecture. Even as a young man he showed firm purpose and moral backbone. When the Sui dynasty was collapsing, he led several hundred neighbors to join Li Mi. Mi was delighted and told him, "People used to say Runan and Yingchuan breed remarkable men — they were not wrong." " He then assigned him, together with Xu Shiji, to hold Liyang. After Li Mi's defeat, Shiji sent Xiaoke to the Tang court to submit. He was created Duke of Yangzhai and made prefect of Songzhou. He and Xu Shiji were charged with governing everything east of Wulao Pass, with authority to appoint officials in the prefectures and counties they took. Later, when Dou Jiande marched to relieve Wang Shichong, Xiaoke presented a plan to Emperor Taizong at Qingcheng Palace: "Shichong grows more desperate every day; his strength and stratagems are spent. He is ready to surrender at a word — we need only wait." Jiande has come a long way to support a tyrant, and his supply lines are already broken. Heaven itself is turning against him. If we hold Wulao firm, camp at Sishui, and respond flexibly as events unfold, both enemies can be destroyed with ease. " The emperor accepted the plan. After Jiande was defeated and Shichong subdued, Taizong held a grand banquet for his generals in Luoyang and declared, "Guo Xiaoke's scheme to take Jiande and Wang Changxian's feat of securing grain below Longmen both outshine everyone else's contributions." " He went on to serve as prefect of Bei, Zhao, Jiang, and Jing in turn, earning a name for competence wherever he was posted. He was recalled to the capital as vice minister of the imperial treasury, then promoted to general of the Left Xiaowei Guard. In 642 he was given the rank of Grand Master of Splendid Happiness with Golden Seal and Purple Ribbon and appointed acting Protector-General of Anxi and prefect of Xizhou. The region was the former capital of Gaochang, where educated exiles, banished convicts, and frontier garrisons lived side by side, separated from the heartland by vast deserts. Xiaoke governed them with open sincerity and won their deep loyalty. When the imperial army had earlier destroyed Gaochang, an edict ordered that all seven hundred Yanqi people whom Gaochang had seized be sent home. The king of Yanqi soon rebelled and submitted to the Western Turks; tribute from Yanqi all but ceased. The court told Xiaoke to watch for an opening and he memorialized asking permission to strike. Xiaoke was appointed commander of the Anxi campaign force and led three thousand foot and horse soldiers along the Yinshan route against Yanqi. Xiaoke stormed the city at night and took its king, Long Tuqizhi, prisoner. Taizong was overjoyed and sent a sealed letter of praise: "You have crushed Yanqi and taken its pretender king. Your achievements match the trust I placed in you." Yanqi lies at the edge of the empire, shielded by the Tianshan range. Trusting in its remoteness, it dared to rebel. You bear heavy rank and high reputation, and your loyalty runs deep. You crossed the battlefields of the west to carry out imperial punishment. You seized their fortified walls in less than a single morning; you swept away the scattered enemy so that not a single bandit was left. When I think of the effort you must have expended, I know the hardship was immense. To succeed across such dangers is truly admirable. " Shortly afterward Xiaoke was made deputy supreme commander of the Kunqiu campaign against Kucha and captured its capital. Xiaoke stayed behind to hold the city while the other columns pressed on. The Kucha chancellor Nali fled with his followers. Because the countryside had not yet submitted, Xiaoke moved his camp outside the walls. A Kuchean came to warn him: "Nali has long been the people's choice as minister. Now that he is at large in the hills, he is sure to plot an uprising. Many inside the city are of doubtful loyalty. You should take precautions." " Xiaoke paid no heed. Nali did in fact rally more than ten thousand men and secretly coordinated with Turkic collaborators inside the city. Xiaoke had been careless with his sentries. The rebels were already storming the gates with drums and shouts before he realized what was happening. He rushed into the city at the head of a thousand men and fought hand to hand. The townspeople rose for Nali and turned on Xiaoke. Xiaoke fought his way to the royal quarters, then fought his way out again at the gate, where a stray arrow killed him. His son Daizhao fell beside him in the melee. The rebels eventually fled, and General Cao Jishu recaptured the city. When Taizong heard the news, he first blamed Xiaoke for failing to take precautions, which had led to disaster; but later he took pity on him and ordered mourning for the family. After Gaozong's accession, Xiaoke was posthumously made Protector-General of Anxi and Duke of Yangzhai; Daizhao was posthumously made general of guerrilla warfare, and the family received three hundred rolls of goods as condolence gifts. Xiaoke was by nature extravagant: his servants, concubines, and furnishings were always as lavish as possible, and even on campaign his camp was fully appointed with bedding and hangings. He once tried to send gifts to the supreme commander Ashina She'er, who refused every one. Taizong remarked when he heard of this, "Here you see how three commanders differ in character. Guo Xiaoke has now been cut down by the enemy — he brought it on himself." " His second son Daifeng rose under Gaozong to general of the Left Leopard Bow Guard. During the Xianheng period he joined Xue Rengui in a campaign against Tibet, was defeated at Dafeichuan, and was spared execution only to be stripped of rank and office. His youngest son Daipin later served as prefect of Songzhou in the Chang'an period.
3
使 便 西 祿
Zhang Jian came from Xinfeng in Yong Prefecture and was the grandson of Zhang Wei, the Sui prefect of Xiangzhou who had been enfeoffed as Duke of Wancheng. His father Zhi had been general of chariots and cavalry and Duke of Liancheng. Jian was a cousin of Emperor Gaozu on the maternal side. Early in the Zhenguan reign he was promoted on merit to prefect of Shuozhou. The Qaghan Jieli, confident in his power, would send demands couched as if they were imperial orders. Border prefectures had been complying one after another. When Jian took office he refused outright. Taizong heard of it and praised him. Jian also expanded military farming colonies, delivering a hundred thousand bushels of grain a year until frontier stores were plentiful. When frost and drought struck, he urged the people to help one another, so that famine was averted and his prefecture alone remained calm. He was later made acting governor of Shengzhou but resigned to observe mourning for his mother. While he was at Shuozhou, after Li Jing's defeat of the Turks, the impoverished and scattered Sijie tribe came under his care; he gathered and settled them through gentle persuasion. Those who stayed away, some living north of the desert, continued to visit relatives across the border. Jian did not punish them; he merely upheld basic order and kept them loosely tied to the empire. After Jian was transferred, local officials assumed the tribe was about to rebel and rushed a report to the capital. The court debated sending troops, but instead recalled Jian as envoy to investigate the situation on the spot. Riding alone, Jian entered their camps in good faith, summoned the chiefs, and spoke frankly to them. They came forward prostrate, and he relocated them to Daizhou. He was promptly made acting governor of Daizhou. He persuaded them to farm military colonies, and harvests were abundant year after year. Fearing that private wealth would breed arrogance, he petitioned for government grain purchases to fill the frontier granaries. The tribesmen were delighted. The frontier armies profited greatly. He was transferred to governor of Yingzhou and made protector of the Eastern Yi. When Taizong prepared to campaign against Liaodong, he sent Jian ahead with tribal auxiliaries to harry the enemy. Jian reached Liaoxi but could not cross the flooded Liao River for a long time. Taizong took this for timidity and ordered him back. Jian went to Luoyang, explained the strategic situation in person, and described pasture, terrain, and routes in detail. Taizong was delighted, reappointed him campaign commander, put him at the head of the tribal cavalry, and made him vanguard of the six armies. A captured Goguryeo scout reported that Molizhi was marching on Liaodong. Jian was ordered to ambush him on the Xincheng road, and Molizhi never dared advance. Jian then crossed the Liao, drove on Jian'an, routed the enemy, and took several thousand heads. For his merits he was enfeoffed as Duke of Wancheng and richly rewarded. Later the office of Eastern Yi colonel was elevated to Eastern Yi protector-general, and Jian retained the post. Early in the Yonghui era he was given the rank of Grand Master of Splendid Happiness with Golden Seal and Purple Ribbon. In the fourth year of Yonghui he died in office at the age of sixty. His posthumous name was Mi. Jian's elder brother Dash rose through military service to minister of the imperial stud, prefect of Huazhou, and Baron of Wugong. His younger brother Yanshi was made grand general of the Left Guard early in Yonghui and enfeoffed as Duke of Fanyang. Yanshi was frugal, careful, and conscientious. He commanded the Feathered Forest garrison for more than thirty years without a single blemish on his record, for which the court praised him. He died in office in 663, was posthumously made governor of Jingzhou with the posthumous name Jing, and was buried near Taizong's Zhaoling tomb. Under Tang custom, officials of third rank and above displayed ceremonial halberds at their gates. All three Zhang brothers' households bore them, and contemporaries honoured them as "the Zhang family of three halberds."
4
西 使 綿 使 祿 祿 祿西 西 西 使 西 退 殿西 鹿 退 使
Su Dingfang was a native of Wuyi in Ji Prefecture. His father Yong, at the end of the Sui, led several thousand local men in suppressing bandits on behalf of the prefecture. Dingfang was ferociously strong and utterly fearless. Before he was fifteen he rode with his father on punitive expeditions, always first over the wall and into the enemy ranks. After his father's death the prefect put Dingfang in command. He defeated the rebel Zhang Jincheng south of the prefecture and killed him with his own hand, then routed Yang Gongqing to the west, pursued the fugitives for more than twenty li, and killed or captured a great host. The region owed its safety to him. He later entered the service of Dou Jiande, whose general Gao Yaxian took a liking to him and adopted him as a son. When Yaxian campaigned with Liu Heidan in seizing towns, Dingfang distinguished himself in every battle. After Heidan and Yaxian were killed, Dingfang went home. Early in Zhenguan he became a frontier colonel of Kuangdao and joined Li Jing's surprise attack on the Turk qaghan Jieli at Qikou. Jing sent Dingfang ahead with two hundred horsemen. They rode through fog until, a li from the enemy camp, the mist lifted and revealed the royal tent. They charged and killed scores of men. Jieli and the Sui princess fled in disorder while the rest threw themselves down. When Jing's main force arrived, the whole army surrendered. On the army's return he was made a commander in the Left Martial Guard. During Yonghui he was transferred to the Left Guard and joined Grand General Cheng Zhijie in the campaign against Helu as commander of the vanguard. At the Yingsuo River twenty thousand Turk horsemen blocked their path. Commander Su Haizheng engaged them in a seesaw fight. Then another Turk force led by Shunishi arrived with more than twenty thousand additional horsemen. Dingfang was resting his horses a ridge away, some ten li from Zhijie, when he saw dust on the horizon. He led five hundred cavalry in a charge that routed the enemy. He pursued twenty li, killed more than fifteen hundred men, and captured two thousand horses; the dead horses and abandoned arms littered the hills beyond count. Deputy commander Wang Wendu, jealous of his success, told Zhijie, "Even if the enemy was beaten, our own men were killed and wounded. Battles should decide the outcome, not reckless gambles. Why allow such rashness? From now on we should march in square formation, keep supplies inside the column, deploy on all sides with men and horses in armour, and fight only when the enemy comes — that way we are perfectly safe. Do not take risks that bring casualties." He also forged a separate imperial order, alleging that Zhijie was rash and overconfident, and had Wendu placed in command over him; the army was then pulled back and forbidden to press deep into enemy territory. Day after day the men sat mounted in armour in battle formation; horses wasted away and died in large numbers, the troops were exhausted, and fighting spirit vanished. Dingfang told Zhijie, "We set out to destroy the enemy, and now we are only holding defensive positions. With starving horses and exhausted men, we will be beaten the moment we meet the foe. With such timidity, how can we accomplish anything! Besides, you are the commander-in-chief, with full authority in the field. It makes no sense that a separate deputy would be sent to take sole control of the orders. Wendu must be arrested and bound, and an urgent report sent to the throne." Zhijie refused. At Hengdu City some tribesmen surrendered. Wendu again proposed, "Once our army withdraws, they will turn bandit again. We should kill them all and seize their property." Dingfang replied, "That would make us the bandits. How would that count as putting down rebellion?" Wendu would not listen. When the loot was distributed, Dingfang alone took nothing. After the army returned, Wendu was condemned to death for his conduct, though the sentence was later commuted to dismissal from office. The following year Dingfang was appointed Grand General on Campaign for another expedition against Helu, with Ren Yaxiang and the Uyghur leader Boren as his deputies. Marching from north of Mount Jin, he struck the Chumukun tribe and inflicted a crushing defeat. The yabghu Nandulu submitted with more than ten thousand tents of his people. Dingfang received them kindly, then took a thousand of their horsemen and pressed on into Turgish territory. Helu mustered nearly one hundred thousand men from the Holuwi, Shefat, Shunishi Chuban, and Chumukun Qulu yabghus and the On Ok confederation to block the imperial army. Dingfang led a force of more than ten thousand Uyghur and Han troops against them. The enemy, thinking Dingfang's force too small, closed in from all sides. Dingfang had his foot soldiers hold the high ground with spears bristling outward, while he personally drew up the Han cavalry on the northern plain. The rebels assaulted the infantry first but failed to break through after three charges. Dingfang counterattacked at the right moment and routed them completely. He pursued thirty li, killing tens of thousands of men and horses. The next day he regrouped and pressed forward. Holuwi and the other On Ok leaders then surrendered with their full forces. Helu alone fled west with the Chumukun Qulu yabghu and a few hundred horsemen. The remaining Dulu tribes, learning of Helu's defeat, each submitted to Buzhen by the southern route, and the western frontier was fully pacified. Only Helu and Jieyun escaped with the remnants of the royal guard. Dingfang pursued them and fought another great battle on the Ili River, killing or capturing nearly the entire force. Helu and Jieyun fled by night with barely a dozen horsemen. Dingfang sent Deputy Commander Xiao Siye in pursuit all the way to the Stone Kingdom, where he captured them and brought them back. Emperor Gaozong received the captives at the palace. Dingfang, still in armor, presented Helu before the throne. The conquered territory was organized into prefectures and counties as far as the Western Sea. For his achievements Dingfang was promoted to Grand General of the Left Xiaoqi Guard and enfeoffed as Duke of Xing. His son Qingjie was enfeoffed as Duke of Wuyi County. Soon afterward the Sijie yabghu Dudman, who had once governed the western tribes, rallied his own people together with Kashgar, Jujpan, and the Onion Range and rebelled again. Dingfang was appointed Pacification Commissioner and ordered to lead an expedition against them. When he reached the Yeya River, the rebels were entrenched at Matou River. He selected ten thousand elite troops and three thousand horses for a forced march and surprise attack, covering three hundred li in a day and a night and arriving ten li west of the city at dawn. Dudman was taken completely by surprise and marched out to fight before the city gates. His army was beaten and fell back to Mabao City, where the imperial forces encamped at the gates. By nightfall the rest of the army had arrived and invested the city on all sides. Trees were cut for siege engines and deployed beneath the walls. Seeing no way out, Dudman came out with his face bound in surrender. Dingfang returned with his captive to the Eastern Capital. Emperor Gaozong received him at Qianyang Hall, and Dingfang presented Dudman before the throne. All lands west of the Onion Range were now pacified. For this achievement he was granted an additional five hundred households in Julu District of Xing Prefecture. In the fifth year of Xianqing, while accompanying the emperor to Taiyuan, he was appointed Grand General of the Ungjin Route and ordered to lead a campaign against Baekje. Dingfang put to sea from Mount Cheng and reached the mouth of the Ungjin River, where Baekje forces were encamped along the shore. Dingfang landed on the eastern shore, formed his battle line on the heights, and joined battle. Ships with sails spread wide covered the sea as they arrived in continuous waves. The Baekje army was routed; several thousand were killed and the rest fled in disorder. Riding the incoming tide, the fleet linked ships and entered the river. Dingfang held his formation on shore while land and sea forces advanced together, oars flashing and drums thundering, driving straight for the capital at Sabi. Some twenty li from the city the Baekje army mustered its full strength to resist. Dingfang broke them in a pitched battle, killing or capturing more than ten thousand men, and drove the fleeing enemy through the outer walls. King Uija and Crown Prince Nulji fled to the northern frontier while Dingfang advanced to besiege the capital. Uija's second son Tai declared himself king. The legitimate heir Wensii said, "The king and crown prince may have left the city, but they are still alive. My uncle has seized command and made himself king. If the Tang army withdraws, my father and I will not survive." He then led his attendants over the wall in surrender, and the townspeople followed. Tai could not stop them. Dingfang had his soldiers climb the walls and raise banners. Tai then opened the gates and prostrated himself in surrender. General Niceul also brought Uija in to surrender. Crown Prince Nulji and the governors of the outlying cities all submitted as well. Baekje was fully conquered and its territory divided into six prefectures. The captives Uija, Nulji, Tai, and the others were presented at the Eastern Capital. In three campaigns Dingfang had destroyed three kingdoms and captured each ruler alive. He was showered with treasures beyond count. His son Qingjie was appointed Palanquin Attendant of the Imperial Carriage, and Dingfang was soon promoted to Grand General of the Left Wuwei Guard. He died in the second year of Qianfeng at the age of seventy-six. When Emperor Gaozong heard the news, he was deeply grieved and told his ministers, "Su Dingfang served the state with distinction and should by custom have received posthumous honors. None of you raised it, and so he was denied the recognition he deserved. Even to speak of it fills me with sorrow." He immediately issued an edict posthumously appointing Dingfang Governor of You Prefecture with the posthumous title Zhuang.
5
宿 殿使 使 使 便 穿 便 使
Xue Rengui was a native of Longmen in Jiang Prefecture. At the end of the Zhenguan era, when Emperor Taizong personally marched against Liaodong, Rengui sought out General Zhang Shigui to enlist and asked to join the campaign. At Andi, Commandant Liu Jun'ang was in dire straits, surrounded by the enemy. Rengui rode to his rescue, charged straight in, beheaded an enemy commander with his own hand, and hung the head from his saddle. The enemy cowered before him, and Rengui's name became known. When the main army besieged Andi, the Goguryeo regent Yeon Gaesomun sent Generals Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen with two hundred fifty thousand men to meet them. The enemy encamped on the hills, and Taizong ordered his generals to attack from all four sides. Confident in his prowess, Rengui sought a feat that would set him apart. He dressed in white, took up a halberd, strung a bow at his waist, and with a great shout led the charge. Nothing stood in his way, and the enemy broke and fled before him. The main army pressed the advantage, and the enemy routed completely. Taizong saw this from afar and sent a messenger to ask who the white-clad warrior leading the charge was. He summoned Rengui personally, granted him two horses and forty bolts of silk, and appointed him Mobile General and Guoyi of Yunquan Prefecture, with permanent garrison duty at the North Gate, along with ten captives. When the army returned, Taizong told him, "My veteran generals are growing old and can no longer bear the burden of field command. I have long sought a bold champion to promote, and none compare to you. I am not so glad to have Liaodong as I am to have found you." He was soon promoted to Commandant of the Right Leading Army while retaining his North Gate garrison post. In the fifth year of Yonghui, Emperor Gaozong was staying at Wannian Palace when, during the first watch of the night, a mountain flood burst through and struck the Xuanwu Gate. The palace guards panicked and fled. Rengui cried, "How can the Son of Heaven be in danger while we stand by fearing for our lives?" He climbed the gate tower and shouted at the top of his lungs to rouse the palace. Gaozong rushed out to higher ground. Moments later the flood reached the sleeping quarters. The emperor sent word to Rengui: "Your shouting saved me from drowning. Now I know what a loyal minister looks like." He was rewarded with an imperial horse. During Su Dingfang's campaign against Helu, Rengui submitted a memorial: "I have heard that an army without a just cause cannot succeed. Make it clear who the enemy is, and they can be brought to heel. The Nishu tribe, allied with Sugan, refused to submit to Helu. Helu defeated them and seized their wives and children. Our soldiers have taken Nishu families from among Helu's tribes and plan to keep them as bondsmen. These captives should be found and returned, with gifts added as compensation. That would show mercy for their unjust suffering, make the people understand that Helu is the real enemy, and demonstrate the breadth of Your Majesty's benevolence." Gaozong agreed and ordered the Nishu families found and returned. The Nishu then volunteered to follow the army and fight to the death. In the second year of Xianqing, Rengui was ordered to serve under Cheng Mingzhen in Liaodong operations. He defeated Goguryeo at Guiduan City and took three thousand heads. The following year he fought alongside Liang Jianfang and Qie Heli against the Goguryeo general Wenshamen at Hengshan. Rengui charged in alone on horseback, and every man he shot fell at the twang of his bow. A Goguryeo marksman below Shicheng had killed more than ten Tang soldiers. Rengui charged him alone. The man's bow failed, his hands went limp, and Rengui took him alive. Soon afterward he and Xin Wenling defeated the Khitan at Black Mountain, captured the Khitan king Abu Gu and his chieftains, and brought them to the Eastern Capital. For his achievements he was enfeoffed as Baron of Hedong County. He was soon ordered to lead a campaign against the Nine Surname Turks at Mount Tian. Before he departed, Gaozong brought out a suit of armor from the inner palace and had Rengui try it. The emperor said, "Legendary archers could pierce seven layers of armor. Try five." Rengui's arrow pierced clean through. Gaozong was astonished and presented him with an even sturdier suit of armor. The Nine Surname Turks mustered more than one hundred thousand men and sent several dozen champions forward to challenge the Tang army. Rengui loosed three arrows and killed three men. The rest dismounted and surrendered on the spot. Fearing they would cause trouble later, Rengui had them all buried alive. He then crossed into the northern desert to pacify the remaining tribes, captured the three brothers of the pretender yabghu, and returned. The army sang: "Three arrows from the general settled Mount Tian; the warriors marched home in song through the Han passes." From that day the Nine Surname Turks declined and never again troubled the frontier. At the beginning of Qianfeng, the Goguryeo general Cheon Gwon Yeon defected with his forces. Gaozong sent Generals Pang Tongshan and Gao to receive him. Yeon's younger brother Yeon-geon rallied the kingdom's forces to attack Pang Tongshan. Rengui was ordered to bring up the rear with reinforcements. Pang Tongshan reached Xincheng but was ambushed by the enemy that night. Rengui rushed forward with his best troops and took several hundred heads. Pang Tongshan pressed on to Jinshan but was defeated, and Goguryeo pressed their advantage. Rengui struck them from the flank and routed them completely, taking more than fifty thousand heads. He then captured the cities of Nansu, Mudi, and Cangyan and at last linked up with Yeon. Gaozong wrote him a personal commendation: "At Jinshan the enemy force was vast and fierce. You led from the front without regard for your own life, charging left and right with nothing able to stand in your way. The whole army took heart from your example and won this victory. Continue to build on this achievement and preserve the renown you have earned." Pressing his advantage, Rengui led two thousand men against Fuyu City. The other generals said the force was too small. Rengui replied, "Victory depends on how the commander uses his men, not on their number. " He led the vanguard himself. The enemy came out to meet him, and he counterattacked and routed them, killing or capturing more than ten thousand men and taking Fuyu City. More than forty cities in the Fuyu River valley, awed by his momentum, surrendered all at once. Rengui then swept along the coast, seizing territory until he joined Li Ji's main army at Pyongyang. After Goguryeo surrendered, Rengui was ordered to garrison Pyongyang with twenty thousand men alongside Liu Rengui. He was appointed Grand General of the Right Weiwu Guard, enfeoffed as Duke of Pingyang Commandery, and named Acting Protector-General of Andong. He moved his headquarters to Xincheng and cared for the orphaned and elderly; Capable men were given posts suited to their talents. Acts of loyalty, filial devotion, integrity, and righteousness were all publicly honored. The people of Goguryeo welcomed the change with evident satisfaction.
6
退 耀 使 西 輿
In 670, when Tibet invaded, Rengui was again appointed grand commander of the Luosa Route army. He took the field with Generals Ashina Daozhen, Guo Daifeng, and others to drive them back. Daifeng had previously held Shan City as garrison commander and resented serving under Rengui, so he often defied his orders. When the army reached Dafeichuan and prepared to march on Wuhai, Rengui told Daifeng: "Wuhai lies far across difficult terrain, and wagons move slowly. If we drag our supply train along, we will lose our chance to strike. Even if we defeat the enemy and turn back, we will still face the burden of resupply." The region is thick with miasma; we should not stay there long. Dafei Ridge is a good place for fortified camps. Leave twenty thousand men to build two stockades and keep the baggage inside. The rest of us will take only light troops and move at forced march. We can strike before the enemy is prepared and destroy them outright." Rengui marched ahead with the vanguard. At the river mouth he met the enemy, routed them, and killed or captured nearly the entire force, seizing more than ten thousand head of cattle and sheep. He then withdrew to Wuhai City to wait for the follow-on columns. Daifeng ignored Rengui's orders and advanced with the supply train anyway. By the time he reached Wuhai, more than two hundred thousand Tibetans had marched to the rescue. They intercepted Daifeng's column, routed his force toward the hills, and seized all the grain and baggage. Rengui pulled his army back and encamped at Dafeichuan. Tibet sent another four hundred thousand men to give battle. The Tang army suffered a crushing defeat, and Rengui negotiated a truce with the Tibetan general Lun Qinling. Rengui sighed and said, "This year falls under the kangwu cycle, and an army that moves against the year's sign is doomed — that is why Deng Ai died in Shu. Now I understand why we lost." Rengui was dismissed and struck from the rolls. Soon the Goguryeo people rose in revolt again, and the court recalled Rengui as commander of the Jilin Route to restore order. During the Shangyuan period he was exiled to Xiang Prefecture for an offense, then released and allowed to return when an amnesty was proclaimed. Missing his past service, Gaozong summoned him again in 681 and said, "When the flood hit Jiucheng Palace, I would have drowned if not for you." You campaigned north against the Nine Surnames and east against Goguryeo. It was your strength that brought the peoples north of the Han and in Liaodong under our sway. You have your faults — but how could I forget what you have done? Some say you held back below Wuhai City and failed to attack, which is what cost us the battle. That is the one thing I hold against you. The western frontier is unsettled, and the routes to Guazhou and Shazhou lie cut off. Can you really sleep peacefully at home and leave me without a commander?" The emperor restored him as chief administrator of Guazhou, then promoted him to general of the Right Leading Army Guard and acting military governor of Daizhou. He led troops against the Türk leader Yuan Zhen at Yunzhou, taking more than ten thousand heads, twenty thousand captives, and over thirty thousand camels, horses, cattle, and sheep. When the enemy learned Rengui had returned to command, they dispersed at once — they had long feared his name and dared not stand against him. That same year Rengui died of illness at seventy. He was posthumously made general of the Left Xiaowei Guard; the court provided a funeral carriage and travel passes to send his family home. His son Ne is treated in a separate biography.
7
Cheng Wuting was a native of Ping'en in Ming Prefecture. His father Cheng Mingzhen served Dou Jiande as magistrate of Pule at the end of the Sui. He was so capable that local rebels did not dare touch his district. He soon abandoned Jiande and returned to Tang allegiance. Gaozu appointed him magistrate of Yongnian by remote commission and ordered him to lead troops in pacifying Hebei. Mingzhen launched a night raid on Ye County and returned with more than a thousand captives. Eighty li from Ye, he found more than ninety nursing mothers among the captives and released them all. The people of Ye were so moved by his mercy that they held a feast in his honor to repay his kindness. Only after Jiande's defeat did he take up his official appointment. When Liu Heita soon captured Ming Prefecture, Mingzhen and Prefect Chen Junbin fought their way out and returned to the Tang court. On the way his mother, Lady Pan, and his wife, Lady Li, were seized by the rebels and fell into Heita's hands. Mingzhen joined Taizong's campaign against Heita. While Heita was moving supplies by land and water through Ji, Bei, Cang, and Ying to block the Tang army, Mingzhen led a thousand men in ambush and destroyed every boat and wagon. Enraged, Heita executed Mingzhen's mother and wife. After Heita fell, Mingzhen asked to kill him with his own hand and offer his head before his mother's spirit. For his service Mingzhen was made chief secretary of the Yingzhou Protectorate headquarters, created Duke of Dong Commandery, and rewarded with two thousand bolts of silk and three hundred taels of gold. He went on to serve as prefect of Ming Prefecture. When Taizong prepared to campaign against Liaodong, he summoned Mingzhen for strategic counsel. Mingzhen's first answers missed the mark. Taizong's face darkened and he pressed him sharply. Mingzhen answered with growing force and clarity until the emperor's mood softened. Taizong told his attendants, "Fang Xuanling stands before me every day, yet even he loses his composure when I scold someone else. Mingzhen has never met me before. I just rebuked him, and he answered with wit and nerve. That is a remarkable man." That same day he was made general of the Right Xiaowei Guard and appointed grand commander of the Pyongyang Route army. He captured Sabicheng and broke the Dushan line, winning every fight against larger forces, and came to be ranked among the dynasty's great commanders. In 655 he was appointed military governor of Ying Prefecture and concurrently Protector-General of the Eastern Barbarians. He also defeated Goguryeo at the Guiduan River, burned their new city, and inflicted heavy casualties. He later served as prefect of Jin and Pu in turn. He died in 662. He was posthumously made grand general of the Right Guard and given the posthumous name Lie ("Fierce").
8
殿 使
Wuting campaigned with his father from boyhood and earned a reputation for bravery. He rose to commandant of the Right Leading Army Guard. During the Yonglong era, the Türk leader Shifunian rebelled. The Dingxiang Route commanders Li Wenjian, Cao Huaishun, and Dou Yizhao were defeated one after another. The court then ordered Minister of Rites Pei Xingjian to take the field against him, with Wuting as his deputy and acting military governor of Feng Prefecture. Shifunian was encamped at Golden Tooth Mountain. Wuting and Deputy Commander Tang Xuanbiao marched ahead to confront him. Fearful he could not hold out, Shifunian slipped away by a hidden route and surrendered to Pei Xingjian, who promised to spare his life. Chief Councillor Pei Yan argued that Shifunian had surrendered only because he feared Wuting's army, not because of Pei Xingjian's achievement. Shifunian was executed anyway. For his service Wuting was promoted to general of the Right Guard and created Duke of Pingyuan. In 683, Bai Tieyu of Chenping County in Sui Prefecture led the followers of tribal chief Qizhi in seizing the county seat. He declared himself a ruler, appointed a full bureaucracy, and raided Suixi, killing officials, looting the countryside, and burning villages. The court ordered Wuting and Wang Fangyi, military governor of Xia Prefecture, to crush the rebellion. Wuting stormed the rebel stronghold, took Bai Tieyu alive, and wiped out the rest of the faction. For this victory he was made grand general of the Left Xiaowei Guard and acting commander of the Left Imperial Forest Army. At the start of the Sisheng reign, he and Zhang Qianxu, grand general of the Right Leading Army and acting commander of the Right Imperial Forest Army, received Wu Zetian's secret orders. They led troops into the palace court, deposed Emperor Zhongzong as Prince of Luling, and enthroned Prince Yu as emperor. After Wu Zetian took power, he received repeated honors; his son Qizhi was specially appointed master of the imperial stud. Wuting wept and asked that the honor be given to his younger brother instead. Wu Zetian praised his generosity in an edict and appointed his brother Wuzhong, secretary of Yuan Prefecture, as mentor to the crown prince. The following year Wuting was made grand general of the Left Martial Guard and pacification commissioner of the Chanyu Route to command the defense against the Türks. Wuting excelled at winning men over and keeping order. His authority ran deep, and officers at every rank served him loyally. The Türks feared him so much that they fled in bands and dared not approach the border. When Pei Yan was thrown into prison, Wuting sent a secret memorial in his defense — and thereby ran afoul of the empress. Wuting had long been close to Tang Zhiqi and Du Qiuren, and enemies claimed he was in secret contact with Pei Yan and Xu Jingye. Wu Zetian sent General Pei Shaoye to the army to execute him on the spot and seized his family's property. When the Türks learned Wuting was dead, they celebrated across the steppe. They even built a shrine in his name and prayed there before every campaign.
9
Between the Zhenguan and Yonghui eras, two other military officers whose careers deserve note were Zhang Shigui and Zhao Daoxing.
10
祿
Zhang Shigui was a native of Lushi in Guo Prefecture. His original name was Huyu. He was an expert horseman and archer, with strength beyond ordinary men. At the end of the Sui he gathered a band of raiders and attacked towns across the region. People far and near feared them, and they were known as the Huyu Bandits. Gaozu sent an offer of amnesty, and Shigui surrendered with his followers. He was appointed Right Grand Master for Splendid Happiness. His repeated battlefield successes earned him the title of Duke of Xinye. After the eastern capital was taken, he was made prefect of Guo Prefecture. Gaozu told him, "I wanted you to ride home in glory." He was soon recalled to the capital as general of the Right Martial Inspector Guard. In 633, returning from a campaign against rebellious Liao tribes, Taizong praised him: "I hear you took arrows and stones in person and led from the front. What ancient general could do more?" I have heard that men who give their lives for the state hold life cheap. I had heard the saying but never seen the truth of it — until now, in you." He went on to become grand general of the Left Leading Army and was created Duke of Guo. He died early in the Xianqing period. He was posthumously made military governor of Jing Prefecture and buried near Zhaoling.
11
宿 使
Zhao Daoxing was a native of Jiuquan in Gan Prefecture. He was the son of Zhao Cai, grand general of the Sui Right Martial Inspector Guard. In the early Zhenguan years Daoxing rose to commandant of the Left Martial Inspector Guard. He was sharp and thorough in palace security and widely regarded as excellent at his post. Taizong once told him, "Your father served the Sui as a Martial Inspector general and earned a fine reputation in office." You have inherited his craft in full. You have not let the family name slip." On the spot Taizong made him general of the Right Martial Inspector Guard and created him Viscount of Tianshui. He kept his father's old offices exactly as they were, which people at court considered a mark of honor. Daoxing once pointed to his reception hall and said, "This is General Zhao Cai's hall — and here sits General Zhao Cai's son." Court and country laughed at him, and the story became a standing joke. During the Yifeng period he rose to grand general of the Left Golden Crow Guard. In the Wenming year he retired to his home on account of age and illness. His son Jiao also became a Golden Crow general. Three generations of the family held that post, to wide praise.
12
The historian writes: Xiaoke was shrewd and decisive in the chaos of founding the dynasty. He built merit and devised strategy with a brilliance that stood above his peers. Yet he made luxury a habit and did not reach full excellence; he lost discipline over his troops — was that not folly? Lord Zhang had a natural gift for strategy. He promoted agriculture and good order and achieved solid results. Alas, he died in middle age before his talent was spent. Duke Xing's strategy was bold and far-reaching; his grand designs settled the realm. He helped the dynasty through its early crises and saw the work through to the end. His enfeoffments and promotions never quite matched the full measure of his merit — a gap remains in the record. Rengui was ferocious and fearless, a champion of his generation, loyal to the core and bold in counsel — a man who could rise to the moment. Alas, Guo Daifeng's disobedience wrecked what might have been a complete victory. Confucius said, "You can establish a man in office, but you cannot always trust him with discretion." " Yet when the emperor gave him a clear commission, he achieved great deeds after all. A ruler who knows his man — how true that is! Wuting was brave, strong, and resolute in his father's mold, with a heroic spirit that served the throne and carried on a great family legacy. Yet because he had taken part in the deposition of an emperor, he was at last destroyed by slander. The ancients said, "When calamity comes, it spreads like fire across a plain — no one can stand before it." " Was this not exactly his case! Shigui and Daoxing seized their moment, gave full play to loyal courage, and saw their efforts crowned with success; and in the Zhao family, three generations in the Golden Guard — what could be finer!
13
In praise: Five formidable commanders, each with frontier glory to his name. The Zhang and Su families sustained their renown from first to last. Guo, Xue, and Cheng staked everything on desperate feats of arms. Their example reaches the remotest borders — yet no army wins forever.
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