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卷八十四 列傳第三十四: 劉仁軌 郝處俊 裴行儉

Volume 84 Biographies 34: Liu Rengui, Hao Chujun, Pei Xingjian

Chapter 88 of 舊唐書 · Old Book of Tang
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1
Liu Rengui, Hao Chujun, and Pei Xingjian (His son Guangting)
2
使 沿 退 輿
Liu Rengui came from Weishi in Bianzhou. As a youth he was dutiful and studious, but the turmoil at the end of the Sui left him no leisure for sustained study. Wherever he went, sitting or walking, he would trace characters on the ground, and in this way he gained a wide acquaintance with letters and history. Early in the Wude era, Ren Gui, circuit ambassador for Henan and Duke of Guan, was preparing a policy memorial. Rengui saw the draft and corrected several phrases. Ren Gui was so struck by this that he had Rengui appointed military aide in Xizhou by special warrant. He was soon made assistant magistrate of Chencang. One man under his jurisdiction was the militia commander Lu Ning, who, relying on his senior rank, behaved with arrogant license and whom no previous magistrate had been able to control. Rengui admonished him sternly and warned that there must be no repeat offense, but Ning grew even more violent, and Rengui finally had him beaten to death. When the prefectural authorities reported the matter, Emperor Taizong flew into a rage. "What sort of assistant magistrate," he demanded, "dares kill one of my militia commanders! " He had Rengui summoned at once. After speaking with him and marveling at his firm integrity, he promoted him to assistant magistrate of Liyang. In Zhenguan 14, when Emperor Taizong was about to visit Tongzhou for a military hunt while the harvest was still unfinished, Rengui submitted a memorial of remonstrance: "I have heard that when the roof leaks above, those who know it are below; and that the plans of foolish men are chosen by sages. That is why the King of Zhou sought counsel from grass cutters and the ruler of Yin from a wall-builder, and so they prolonged their reigns, secured their succession, proclaimed their merit in the ancestral temple, and passed their blessings to later generations. Your Majesty is by nature benevolent and loving, practices economy in person, and keeps the people always in mind; if even one creature is deprived, you grieve as though you had fallen into a moat. I have heard that Your Majesty intends to visit Tongzhou for military exercises. I know that the seasonal hunts of former kings were a standing institution, yet circumstances change and precedent need not always be followed. This year the rains came on time and the autumn harvest is abundant; black and yellow grain cover the fields, yet only one or two parts in ten have been gathered; even with every effort at reaping, after half a month the work is still not done; poor households lack the strength to do more, and only now beneath the standing grain are they planning to sow wheat. Even the usual levies and summons already burden the farming households. Now they must supply the hunt and also repair bridges and roads; even with every simplification, tens of thousands of laborers will be required at once, and the harvest will truly leave the people in desperate straits. I beg Your Majesty to withhold the imperial progress for a little while, heed the words of one humble subject, and delay for nearly ten days until the harvest is complete; then the people will have leisure and every household peace. When the wheels move at last, both public and private affairs will flourish together. " Emperor Taizong sent down a special imperial letter of commendation: "Though your post is humble, you serve the state with full devotion. What you have set forth, I greatly commend. " He was soon appointed magistrate of Xin'an and, after successive promotions, became supervising secretary.
3
便 退 西便 便 使 使
In Xianqing 4 he was appointed prefect of Qingzhou. In the fifth year, when Emperor Gaozong campaigned against Liaodong, Rengui was placed in charge of the navy. He was dismissed for arriving late but was specially allowed to follow the army as a commoner and redeem himself by service. By then Su Dingfang had pacified Baekje and left Commandant Liu Renyuan to garrison the Baekje capital, while appointing Wang Wendu of the Left Guard as governor of Xiongjin to pacify the remaining people. Wendu crossed the sea but died of illness on the way. In Baekje the monk Dojun and the former general Fukushin raised a new rebellion, enthroned the former prince Buyeo Pung as king, and besieged Renyuan in the prefectural city. Rengui was ordered to serve as acting prefect of Daifang, replace Wendu in command, and by the direct route mobilize Silla troops to relieve Renyuan. Fighting as he advanced, Rengui kept his army in strict order, and every place he attacked fell. Dojun and his allies then lifted the siege of Renyuan and withdrew to Jiren Castle. Soon Fukushin killed Dojun, absorbed his forces, and recruited deserters and rebels until his power grew still greater. Rengui then united with Renyuan and gave the army a rest. At that time Su Dingfang, by imperial command, attacked Goguryeo, besieged Pyongyang without success, and withdrew. Emperor Gaozong wrote to Rengui: "The Pyongyang army has withdrawn; one city cannot be held alone. You should pull out to Silla and share garrison duty there. If Kim Beopmin asks you to remain and garrison the place, you may stay for the time being; if he does not need you, then you should cross the sea and return at once. " The officers and soldiers all wanted to return home. Rengui said, "The Spring and Autumn Annals teach that when a minister goes beyond the border, if he can secure the altars of state and benefit the realm, he may act on his own authority. How much more when we are beyond the eastern sea, hard upon the enemy's lair! Moreover, a subject who advances should think only of exhausting his loyalty: death, but never disloyalty; for the state's benefit, whatever can be done must be done. Our sovereign wishes to destroy Goguryeo, and has first struck Baekje and left troops to garrison it and control its heartland. Though rebels fill the land, our defenses are strong; we should sharpen our weapons, feed our horses, and strike where they do not expect us. If they are unprepared, what attack can fail? Once we fight and win, the soldiers will regain their confidence. Then we can divide our forces to hold the passes, display our strength, send urgent dispatches to the throne, and request more troops and ships. When the court sees that we are succeeding, it will surely send armies and appoint generals; as soon as reinforcements arrive, the rebels will be destroyed. We would not only preserve what has been won; we would truly pacify the lands beyond the sea for good. Now that the Pyongyang army has withdrawn and Xiongjin has been abandoned, the embers of Baekje will flare up again within days. When will Goguryeo ever be destroyed? Moreover, with only one city we sit in the heart of the enemy; one misstep and we become prisoners. If we withdraw into Silla, we become guests in another's house; if things go wrong, there will be no undoing it. Moreover Fukushin is brutal and cruel beyond measure, while Pung is suspicious and divided within; like birds of prey caged together, they are bound to destroy one another. We should hold firm, watch for changes, and strike when opportunity offers; we must not move yet. " The troops agreed. Buyeo Pung and Fukushin then reinforced Jinsheng Castle, which stood on high ground above the river at a vital point. Rengui led Silla troops and under cover of night approached the city. On all sides they climbed the slopes by grasping the grass; by dawn they had taken the city and opened the Silla grain route. Soon Pung killed Fukushin in a surprise attack and sent envoys to Goguryeo and Japan to request troops against the imperial army. Sun Renshi, general of the Right Majestic Guard, was ordered to lead troops across the sea as reinforcement. Once Renshi joined Rengui, the army's morale soared. The generals then met in council. Some said, "Jialin Castle commands both land and water routes; we should attack it first. " Rengui replied, "Jialin is strong and dangerous; a hasty assault will cost us men, and a siege will drag on. Better to attack Zhouliu first. Zhouliu is the rebels' lair where their leaders gather; to destroy evil one must strike at the root. If we take Zhouliu, the other cities will fall of themselves. " Renshi, Renyuan, and King Kim Beopmin of Silla then led the land army forward. Rengui separately led Du Shuang and Buyeo Yong with the navy and grain ships from the Xiongjin River to the Ba River to join the land army at Zhouliu. At the mouth of the Ba River Rengui met the Japanese fleet, won four battles in succession, and burned four hundred ships until smoke filled the sky and the sea ran red; the enemy army broke in rout. Pung fled for his life, and they captured his ceremonial sword. The pretender princes Buyeo Chungsung and Chungji, together with men and women, Japanese troops, and envoys from Tamna, all surrendered at once. All the cities of Baekje submitted again. The rebel leader Chi Suseung held Jiren Castle and refused to submit.
4
使
Earlier, after Su Dingfang's army withdrew, the Baekje leaders Shazha Xiangru and Heichi Changzhi had gathered scattered forces and held the passes in support of Fukushin; now they led their men to surrender. Rengui won them over with kindness and trust, ordered them to lead their own followers to take Jiren Castle, and offered to send troops to help. Sun Renshi objected, "Xiangru and the others have the hearts of beasts and cannot be trusted; if we arm them, we are arming the enemy. " Rengui replied, "In my view Xiangru and Changzhi are loyal, brave, and shrewd men who feel gratitude. If they follow us they will succeed; if they turn against us they will perish. This is the day for them to prove themselves; there is no need for doubt. " He gave them grain and arms, sent troops with them, and Jiren Castle was taken. Chi Suseung abandoned his family and fled to Goguryeo, and the last embers of Baekje were extinguished. Sun Renshi and Liu Renyuan led the army home in good order, while Rengui was ordered to remain and garrison the territory. After Fukushin's rebellion, Baekje lay wasted throughout its borders, with corpses strewn one after another. Rengui first ordered the dead gathered, buried, and mourned. He registered households, appointed local officials, opened roads, restored villages, built bridges, repaired dikes and ponds, encouraged farming, relieved the poor, and cared for orphans and the aged. He proclaimed the imperial ancestral taboos and established the royal altars of state. The people of Baekje each returned to their livelihoods. He then established military colonies, stored grain, comforted the troops, and prepared for operations against Goguryeo. When Renyuan reached the capital, the emperor said to him, "In the east your memorials were always apt, and they are elegantly written besides. You are a military man by training. How did you manage this? " He replied, "The words were Liu Rengui's, not mine. " The emperor sighed in admiration, promoted Rengui six ranks in one leap, formally appointed him prefect of Daifang, granted him a residence in the capital, richly rewarded his family, and sent an imperial letter of commendation. Rengui submitted another memorial:
5
西 西 西使 西 西 西 調 調
I have received Your Majesty's gracious favor, been employed despite my faults, given investigative authority, and placed in command of allied forces. My talent is slight for so heavy an office, and my responsibility weighs on me all the more. I long to repay your favor even in the smallest measure, yet my abilities are limited and I have achieved nothing. Long abroad, I have followed many campaigns and learned something of military affairs. I set forth the details in this sealed memorial and beg Your Majesty to examine them closely. I see the men now being recruited: many are slow and heavy of limb, few are vigorous and eager; there are old and weak among them, poorly clothed, longing only to return home with no will to fight. I asked them, "In former days west of the sea I saw everyone volunteering for service, competing to join the campaign; some even refused government supplies and brought their own clothing and grain to enlist. Why are today's recruits so feeble and unwilling? " They all answered, "Today's government is not what it once was, and people's hearts have changed. In the Zhenguan and Yonghui eras, when men died on campaign east or west, imperial envoys mourned them, offices were granted posthumously, and even those reported dead who returned alive had ranks given to their sons. From Xianqing 5 onward, when men died on campaign, no one took notice. In earlier days, anyone who crossed the Liao Sea could earn a step up in merit rank. But from Xianqing 5 on, men who crossed the sea repeatedly went unrewarded. When the counties sent out conscripts, the young and strong who had money and knew how to deal with officials could dodge here and there and slip free. Those who could not bribe their way through were dragged in—old or weak, they came at a shove. In Xianqing 5, when rewards were promised for crushing Baekje and for the bloody fighting toward Pyongyang, the generals' calls promised high rank and rich bounty, soliciting recruits by every means imaginable. But once they reached the western shore, they found only chains and forced detention, stolen rewards and denied merit, endless summons from local officials with no respite—public and private misery beyond words. Some men already killed themselves or fled on the day they were sent west across the sea; flight did not begin only after they reached overseas. Men might have thought campaign service would bring merit rank and honor, but after years of conscription they received only hollow merit titles while suffering the same drudgery as any ordinary soldier. This, above all, is why the people refuse to march to war. Your Majesty raised armies again, crushed Baekje, stationed troops to hold the land, and set out to subdue Goguryeo. When the people talk like this, how can you finish what you have begun? I have heard that when the harp and lute are out of tune, one must restring them; in governing, policy must suit the hour. Without generous rewards and stern punishments, how can you succeed? I also asked, 'The men now under arms who used to garrison for five years still managed to get by; you have served only one year—why are you so poorly clothed?' They all told me, 'When we left home we were given supplies for only one year, yet we have been away for two years already. At Chaoyang and Ungjin we were sent shuttling grain; crossing the sea we met storms, and many perished.' I found men too lightly clothed to survive the winter and issued them garments left behind when the main army withdrew, enough to last one winter. After next autumn, there is nothing further set aside for them. If Your Majesty means to destroy Goguryeo, you cannot abandon Baekje's lands. With Yu Feng in the north and Yu Yong in the south, Baekje and Goguryeo have long been allies; though Wa lies far away, they sway one another—without our armies, they would reunite as one kingdom. You must garrison and farm the land alike; the work depends on soldiers who stand together. The soldiers already speak of these grievances; you must not cling stubbornly to the old course—you should restore their merit ranks for crossing the sea and their rewards for crushing Baekje and fighting toward Pyongyang. Beyond that, grant further honors, issue clear orders of thanks and encouragement, and win back the will to serve. If you keep to the present arrangements, I fear the army will tire and achieve nothing. I have read what the histories tell of how Jin conquered Wu. Within the court were Emperor Wu and Zhang Hua; in the field were Yang Hu and Du Yu—all plotting together in counsel. Wang Jun and his fellows had fought ten thousand li; their tower ships already stood at Shitou. Yet Jia Chong, Wang Hun, and men like them still wanted Zhang Hua's head to pacify the realm. Emperor Wu answered, 'The plan to conquer Wu came from me; Zhang Hua merely shared my view—it was not his scheme alone.' Even on right and wrong they could not agree; the court was torn like this. After Wu fell, they still tried to bring Wang Jun to harsh account; only Emperor Wu's protection saved him. Without Emperor Wu's wisdom, Wang Jun would have lost his life. Whenever I read those pages, I cannot help but sigh from the depths of my heart. Your Majesty has taken Baekje and aims at Goguryeo; you need the court and the field of one mind, high and low striving as one, every measure well laid—only then can you succeed. The people already murmur thus; you should change course all the more. I fear such unwelcome truths go unsaid to Your Majesty. I am old and ill, and my days are few. Should I die soon, I would carry regret to the grave; therefore I lay bare my heart and risk my life to speak before you.
6
西 使
The Emperor took his counsel deeply to heart. The Emperor also sent Liu Rengyuan across the sea with troops to relieve the old garrison, appointed Buyeo Rong commander of Ungjin, and charged him with rallying the remaining loyalists. Buyeo Yongzhe, younger brother of Buyeo Rong, had fled to Wa and was regarded as a rallying point for Buyeo Feng's faction; Rengui reported this in a memorial. Then Rengui sailed west across the sea and returned. When Rengui was about to leave Daifang Province, he told others, 'Heaven will soon make this old man rich and honored!' He asked the provincial office for a calendar scroll and the imperial taboo names; when people wondered why, he said, 'I mean to pacify the lands beyond the sea, impose our calendar, and make those barbarian ways bow to it.' And so it all came to pass as he had said.
7
使浿 祿 使 西 使 祿
In Longde 2, at the Mount Tai rite, Rengui led chieftains from Silla, Baekje, Tamna, and Wa; Gaozong was delighted and made him Grand Censor of State. In Qianfeng 1 he became Right Chancellor and acting Left Central Guard of the Crown Prince; for his accumulated victories he was enfeoffed Baron of Lecheng. In year three he was Pacification Commissioner of the Ungjin Circuit and commander of the Paek River Circuit, serving under Li Ji in the conquest of Goguryeo. In Zongzhang 2, after the army returned, he resigned on grounds of illness, was granted Golden Seal and Purple Girdle Grand Master, and allowed to retire. In Xianheng 1 he was again made Prefect of Longzhou. In year three he was summoned as Left Vice Director of the Crown Prince's Household, given third rank at court, and charged with supervising the national history. In year five he became Grand Commander of the Jilin Circuit and marched east against Silla. Rengui led his army straight across the Hulu River and seized their great northern stronghold, Sevenfold Wall. For this feat he was raised to duke; three sons and nephews were also made Senior Pillars of State. His home district took pride in this and called his neighborhood Three-Pillar Lane in Lecheng Township. In Shangyuan 2 he was made Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs with third rank at court, concurrently Guest of the Crown Prince, and continued to oversee the national history. In Yifeng 2, when Tibet raided the frontier, Rengui was made field commander and garrison commissioner on the Taohe River. Rengui found many of his memorials blocked by Chief Minister Li Jingxuan, and the two grew estranged. Knowing Jingxuan was no frontier commander, Rengui sought to undermine him and declared that only Jingxuan could hold the western garrison against Tibet. Gaozong promptly ordered Jingxuan to take his place. Jingxuan reached the Taohe garrison and was soon beaten by the Tibetans. In Yonglong 2 he also became Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince. Soon he asked to retire on account of age; allowed to step down as Left Vice Director, he continued in government as Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince. In Yongchun 1, when Gaozong went to the Eastern Capital and the Crown Prince remained in Chang'an as regent, Rengui was left with Pei Yan and Xue Yuanchao to assist him. In year two, when the Crown Prince went east, Imperial Grandson Zhongzhao was left in Chang'an and Rengui again served as his deputy. When Wu Zetian took the regency, she granted him Special Advancement, again made him Left Vice Director with third rank, and put him in sole charge of the capital regency. Rengui memorialized again, pleading age and asking to be released from the regency, citing the ruin brought by Empress Lü as a warning. Wu Zetian sent Wu Chengsi to Chang'an with an imperial letter of consolation, saying, 'The Emperor is in mourning and cannot speak; I govern in his place for now. Your far counsel moves me, yet you again plead illness—I am both astonished and troubled, uncertain what to do. When you cite Empress Lü's shame in later ages and the disaster Lu and Chan brought upon Han—the analogy cuts deep, and I feel both reproach and gratitude. Your loyalty has never wavered; your uncompromising integrity is seldom matched in any age. At first I was shaken to hear it; yet on reflection I see it as a mirror for my own conduct. As chief minister you set the example for all officials, and as an elder statesman of the prior reign, the realm looks to you. I ask you to govern in the spirit of loyal counsel, and not to insist on retirement in your old age.' Soon after he was promoted to full duke of a commandery. In Chuigong 1, under the new titles he became Left Minister of the Palace Secretariat with third rank at court. He died soon after, at eighty-four. Wu Zetian halted court for three days and ordered the capital officials to mourn in turn; posthumously she enfeoffed him Grand Master of Honor with Ceremony equal to the Three Ducal Ministers and Grand Governor of Bingzhou, granted burial at Qianling, and gave his household three hundred tax households. Though Rengui stood at the pinnacle of office, he never grew proud. Whenever he met old friends from his poor days, he still treated them as he had in common clothes. When he was a clerk at Chencang, the physiognomist Yuan Tiangang told him, 'You will rise to the very threshold of the chief ministers, and live nearly ninety years.' And so it proved. Rengui lived through the chaos at the end of Sui, gathered what he had seen and heard, and wrote the Record of Years, which circulated widely.
8
His son Jun rose to Middle Attendant of the Crown Prince. In Chuigong 2 cruel officials framed him; he was executed, and his wife and children were seized. When Zhongzong took the throne, he posthumously made Rengui Grand Marshal in remembrance of their days in the Eastern Palace. Jun's grandson Mian, Vice Director of the Secretariat in the Kaiyuan era, petitioned for a stele to Rengui and gave him the posthumous title Literary Offering.
9
忿
The historian Wei Shu wrote: People say Liu Lecheng and Dai Zhide both held the chief ministership; Liu won favor with pleasant words and courted reputation. Dai kept a stern face toward subordinates and credited merit to the throne. So Liu's renown still lingers, while Dai's accomplishments go unspoken. Alas! Great fame and flattering praise may travel far because men polish their reputations; while deep virtue and true devotion may never be known because men hide their light. This is not true of Liu and Dai alone—it has been so since antiquity. Hence Confucius said, 'What all men praise, examine closely; what all men condemn, examine closely.' Without the wisdom of a sage, few escape confusion. Moreover, Liu Rengui gave rein to private resentment, pressed charges beyond what justice allowed, and in the end only shamed the realm—can this be the way of loyalty and forbearance?
10
滿 浿 西 使 殿 便 祿 殿 西西
Hao Chujun was a native of Anlu in Anzhou. His father Xiang Gui; at the end of the Sui, he and his father-in-law Xu Shao held Xia Prefecture and submitted to the Tang. For his service he became Prefect of Chuzhou and was enfeoffed as Duke of Zenshan County. Chujun was barely ten when his father died at Chuzhou. His father's former officials sent lavish funeral gifts—over a thousand bolts of silk in all—and he refused every one. When grown, he loved the Book of Han and could recite much of it by heart. During Zhenguan he passed the provincial jinshi examination. Minister of Personnel Gao Shilian took great notice of him; he entered office as Assistant Editorial Director and inherited the title Duke of Zenshan County. He and his brothers were deeply close and served their maternal uncles with scrupulous care. Transferred twice, he became a Companion to the Prince of Teng; ashamed to serve as a prince's retainer, he resigned and returned to the fields. After some time he was summoned as Palace Gentleman for Discussion in the Heir Apparent's Household; after five promotions he reached Vice Minister of Personnel. In the second year of Qianfeng he became Assistant Director of the Bureau of Appointments. When Goguryeo rebelled, Li Ji was made Grand Commander of the Paekchon River Circuit and Chujun his deputy. Once, while encamped near an enemy city before battle lines could be formed, enemy troops rushed in and the army panicked. Chujun alone sat on a folding stool, still eating dry rations; he quietly picked elite troops and routed the enemy, and the officers and men admired his nerve and foresight. In the second year of Zongzhang he became Vice Director of the Eastern Terrace and soon held Third Rank at both Eastern and Western Terraces. Early in Xianheng the Emperor went to the Eastern Capital while the Crown Prince stayed at Chang'an as regent. All the attendant ministers—Dai Zhide, Zhang Wenguan, and the rest—were left with the Prince; only Chujun went with the Emperor. At the time Route Commander Gao Kan defeated Goguryeo remnants at Anshi and reported that a Goguryeo monk had spoken of calamities in China; execution was requested. The Emperor said to Chujun: "A ruler, I hear, should see with the eyes of the empire and hear with its ears—to widen his knowledge. Heaven sends calamities and omens precisely to warn a ruler. If the portent is real, what crime lies in speaking of it? If the report is false, those who hear it still have reason to take warning. Shun set up a blame board for public grievances, and with good reason. Can one truly silence every mouth in the empire? That alone is not grounds for a charge. He ordered them pardoned on the spot. He then told Chujun: "A true king knows no 'outside'; why lean on walls and guards? Even so, double gates and watchmen's clappers guard against surprise; one sees that palace security rests on strict discipline. I once thought even Qin law was too lax—Jing Ke was a mere commoner, yet when he drew his hidden dagger the First Emperor was terrified and no one stopped him. Was that not the fruit of long slack habit? Chujun answered: "That came from law being too harsh, not from laxity." The Emperor asked: "How do you know?" He said: "Qin law punished anyone who entered the hall unbidden with extinction of three kindreds." Everyone feared for their kin—who would dare resist? By Emperor Wu of Wei, law was still severe. I have read in the Wei Code: 'When the capital is disturbed, the Nine Ministers each stay in their own office.' Later Yan Cai rebelled; with dozens of followers he attacked the Left Flanking Gate. Emperor Wu watched from the Bronze Bird Terrace—and no one dared move to help. Wang Xiu was then Director of Ceremonial; hearing the alarm he called for a carriage, but before it came he marched his staff to the palace gate on foot. Emperor Wu saw him and said: 'That must be Wang Xiu coming!' Wang Xiu read the crisis and broke the rule to answer the emergency. Had each merely kept the letter of the law, disaster would have followed. A ruler's laws and teaching, then, must not be too harsh. Lax rule breeds contempt; harsh rule leaves people at their wit's end. The sage king's way balances mercy and severity. The Odes say, 'Unwearying in office, the people's resting-place'—that is benevolent rule; and again, 'Stop the robber and tyrant; do not let evil grow'—that is stern punishment. The Great Plan says, 'What is bright is subdued by softness; what is hidden is subdued by firmness'—that is the middle way. The Emperor said: "Well said." A foreign monk, Luojia Ayiduo, was ordered to brew a longevity potion, and Gaozong meant to take it. Chujun remonstrated: "Life and death are fated. A sovereign should not lightly swallow barbarian drugs." At the end of Zhenguan the late Emperor had the Brahmin Narayanasvamin brew an elixir of life by his homeland's recipe. The foreigner's arts took years—rare herbs and secret stones gathered before the brew was done. The late Emperor took it with no wondrous result; at the end even famous physicians could do nothing. Opinion then blamed the foreigner and called for capital punishment, but fear of ridicule from the frontier peoples stayed the sentence. Such is the mirror before you; I beg Your Majesty to look hard at it. Gaozong took his advice, made Luojia a General Who Pacifies Transformation, and did not take the drug. Soon the official titles returned to their former names. Chujun was made Vice Director of the Palace Secretariat. In the third year he received Silver Azure Light Steeds Grand Master and became Vice Director of the Chancery. In the fourth year he supervised revision of the national history. In the first year of Shangyuan Gaozong watched the great feast from the Xianluan Pavilion east of Hanyuan Hall. The four capital counties and the Directorate of Music were split into east and west teams; Prince Xian of Yong led the east and Prince of Zhou the west, vying for victory as sport. Chujun remonstrated: "Ritual teaches children not to lie, lest deceit take root." Your two sons are still young and unsettled; they should defer to each other and treat one another with equal respect. Now they are split into rival teams and boast against one another. Jesters and low characters speak without restraint; after heavy drinking they cannot be checked. They may quarrel over wins and losses and mock one another beyond all propriety. That is no way to teach benevolence and righteousness or show harmony. Gaozong started and said: "Your foresight is beyond what most men can reach." He ordered it stopped at once. Soon he replaced Yan Liben as Director of the Chancery. After a year he also served as Tutor to the Heir Apparent and Acting Minister of War.
11
祿 耀 使 輿
In the third year Gaozong, afflicted with wind rash, wished to abdicate and let the Empress Wu govern; he discussed this with his chief ministers. Chujun replied: "I have read in the Ritual Canon: 'The Son of Heaven administers the yang way; the Empress administers yin virtue.'" Emperor and Empress are like sun and moon, yang and yin—each keeps its own domain. If Your Majesty breaks this rule, I fear Heaven above will reprove you and men below will find it strange. Emperor Wen of Wei left orders that even after his death the Empress might not rule from court—how can Your Majesty now hand the realm to Empress Wu? Moreover the realm belongs to the two sages Gaozu and Taizong—not to Your Majesty alone to give away. Your Majesty should guard the ancestral temples and pass the realm to your sons and grandsons—not give the state away for the sake of the Empress's kin. I humbly beg Your Majesty to weigh this carefully and accept it. Vice Director Li Yiyan said: "Chujun's scriptural citations can be relied on; if Your Majesty's mind is firm, the people will be greatly fortunate." The Emperor said: "Yes." And so the plan was dropped. In the second year of Yifeng he received Gold and Purple Light Steeds Grand Master, served as Acting Left Assistant to the Heir Apparent, continued in governance, and oversaw the national history. In the fourth year he replaced Zhang Wenguan as Palace Attendant. Frugal and plain, almost austere in person, once he entered government he always answered the Emperor with citations from the classics; his counsel often helped, and he truly bore himself as a chief minister should. Palace Attendant Xu Tushi, Duke of Ping'en, was his maternal uncle; they were from the same district and both rose high in office. Fellow townsmen, the Tian and Peng families, were known for amassing wealth. Peng Zhijun, in Xianqing, offered twenty thousand bolts of silk and cloth from his household to aid the army; the court accepted ten thousand bolts, made him a Gentleman for Advising, and proclaimed it empire-wide. Hence the saying in the Jianghuai region: "Noble as the Xu and Hao; rich as the Tian and Peng." Chujun was made Junior Tutor of the Heir Apparent. He died in the first year of Kaiyao at seventy-five; posthumously he received Grand Master of Splendid Opening with Three Excellencies ceremonial and Great Governor of Jingzhou. Gaozong grieved deeply and told his attendants: "Chujun was loyal and upright in heart and well learned besides." Ornaments and fine trappings—though he knew they were useless, most men cannot give them up and love luxury; Chujun always kept to plain living, unchanged to the end. He was no founding minister who shaped the dynasty, yet he served faithfully for many years. His final memorial showed concern for the state above his own household; now that he is gone, the loss is grievous. He mourned at the Gate of Glorious Compliance for a day and held no audience; the final rites used the lesser offering; he granted eight hundred bolts of silk and cloth and eight hundred measures of grain. He ordered officials to attend the mourning, supplied the funeral bier, sent the household home by official relay, and paid for the burial. His son Beishou, a Secretariat Gentleman, petitioned to refuse the gifts and relay transport; Gaozong refused. Palace Attendant Pei Yan said: "At Chujun's deathbed I visited him; he told me: 'Living, I did little for the realm—after death why burden the state with expense?' After I close my eyes, should there be imperial gifts, relay escort home, or work on burial day, I do not wish officials burdened on my account.' Gaozong admired this deeply, followed his last wish, and added only the gifts. His grandson Xiang Xian, a Palace Attendant for Communications to the Heir Apparent under Chuigong, was executed for an offense; at the block his words were defiant. Empress Wu flew into a rage, had him beheaded and dismembered, opened his parents' graves and burned their corpses; Chujun too was implicated—his coffin was hacked open and bier destroyed. Thereafter, whenever the courts were about to execute a prisoner, they first stuffed a wooden gag into the mouth and only then applied the sentence. The custom endured through Wu Zetian's reign.
12
祿 西 西西 祿 西 西 使便 使 西西 紿 使 使 使使 西
Pei Xingjian came from Wenxi in Jiangzhou. His great-grandfather Bo Feng had served Zhou as Cavalry General-in-Chief, governor of Fenzhou, and Duke of Langye. His grandfather Ding Gao was prefect of Fengyi and inherited the dukedom of Langye. His father Renji had been Left Grand Master of Glorious Happiness under the Sui. Trapped in Wang Shichong's domain, he later plotted to rejoin the Tang court; the plot was discovered and he was put to death. In the Wude period he was posthumously appointed military governor of Yuanzhou and given the posthumous name Loyal. In youth Xingjian entered the Hongwen Academy through hereditary privilege. During Zhenguan he passed the Mingjing examination and was appointed warehouse clerk in the Left Garrison Guard. Su Dingfang was then a great general. He took a keen interest in Xingjian and taught him every secret of his art of war. In the second year of Xianqing, after six promotions, he became magistrate of Chang'an. When Gaozong was preparing to depose Empress Wang and elevate Consort Wu, Xingjian judged that national disaster would begin there. He spoke of it in private with Grand Preceptor Zhangsun Wuji and Left Vice Director Chu Suiliang. Yuan Gongyu of the Court of Judicial Review informed Consort Wu's mother, the Lady of Rong State, and Xingjian was demoted to chief secretary of the Western Prefecture Protectorate. In the second year of Linde he rose to Grand Protector General of Anxi. Many western kingdoms submitted in admiration of his authority, and he was recalled to serve as Vice Minister of the Court of Literary Scholars. During Zongzhang he was moved to Vice Director of the Court of Ceremonial. At the start of Xianheng, when the old titles were restored, he became Vice Minister of Personnel and served alongside Li Jingxuan as his deputy. For more than ten years the two men jointly ran selection, earning a great name for competence; contemporaries spoke of them as Pei and Li. Xingjian first instituted the long-register roster, citation and appointment rules, and related methods, and also fixed the ranking of prefectures and counties and the grades of office and emolument—practices that thereafter became precedent. In the second year of Shangyuan he received the additional rank of Silver Grand Master of Glorious Happiness. Gaozong admired Xingjian's skill in cursive script. On one occasion he gave Xingjian a hundred rolls of silk and had him write out the Wen Xuan in cursive. The emperor read the work, praised it, and rewarded him with five hundred bolts of silk. Xingjian once remarked, "Chu Suiliang will not write unless the brush and ink are perfect. Of those who can write beautifully and swiftly without caring what tools they use, only Yu Shinan and I remain." In the third year, when Tibet rebelled, an edict made Xingjian Left Second Army Commander on the Taozhou route. Soon afterward he was also appointed Right Army Commander of the Taizhou pacification force, both commands falling under the Prince of Zhou as supreme commander. In the second year of Yifeng, Ashina Fuyan Duzhi, khaghan of the Ten Tribes, and Li Zhefu stirred up the frontier tribes, threatened Anxi, and allied with Tibet. The court debated sending an army against them. Xingjian proposed: "Tibet is in revolt and unrest continues. Jingxuan and Shenli broke discipline and lost their lives—why should we stir up new trouble in the west?" The Persian king is dead, and his son Nipour, held as hostage in the capital, asks that an envoy be sent to invest him. The road runs through the lands of both rebel peoples; if we seize the opportunity as we go, we can surely succeed. Gaozong accepted the plan and ordered Xingjian to escort and invest the Persian king, appointing him at the same time envoy to pacify the Arabs. On the road through the Mohe-Yan Desert, wind and sand blotted out the sky and the guides lost their way. Xingjian ordered camp struck, offered a solemn sacrifice, and told officers and men that water was not far off. Soon the clouds lifted and the wind fell. After a few hundred paces they came upon rich grass and water. Later travelers could never find the spot again. The men were won over entirely, and likened him to General Li of the Ershi. At Xizhou, officials and clerks met him outside the walls. Xingjian called up more than a thousand sons of the local magnates to march west with him. He then deceived his subordinates with a public announcement: "The heat is at its worst and the hot passes are impossible to cross. We can move only after the cool of autumn." Duzhi learned of this through spies and made no preparations. Xingjian then summoned the chieftains and magnates of the four garrisons and the frontier tribes and said, "I remember these lands from my earlier service and never tired of them. Though I returned to the capital, I never forgot them for a moment." On this journey I mean to revisit old pleasures. Who will hunt with me?" Nearly ten thousand sons of tribal chieftains volunteered. Xingjian feigned a hunting expedition and drilled them in formation. After several days he doubled his pace and pressed forward. A little more than ten li from Duzhi's camp, he first sent one of Duzhi's intimates to inquire after his health, outwardly at ease as though no attack were planned; then he sent another messenger to summon him to a meeting. Duzhi had already conspired with Zhefu and planned to resist the imperial envoy by mid-autumn. When the army appeared without warning and he could think of no countermove, he led more than five hundred mounted followers—sons, nephews, and chieftains—to the camp to pay respects, and was seized on the spot. That same day, by passing on his command arrows, he brought every tribal chieftain to submit; all were sent under guard to Suyab. He picked out elite horsemen, traveled light, and pressed forward day and night to take Zhefu. On the road he captured Duzhi's returning envoy, traveling together with Zhefu's messenger. Xingjian released Zhefu's messenger and sent him ahead to warn his master and report that Duzhi had already been captured. Zhefu soon surrendered as well. Officers and men then raised a stele at Suyab to record the victory, and returned with Duzhi and Zhefu as captives. Gaozong received him at court and praised him: "Because the western lands were still unsettled, I sent you to command troops in pursuit. You advanced deep into enemy country with a lone force, traveling ten thousand li on the road." Your resourcefulness is well known, and your loyalty long established. Without drawing blood you destroyed the rebel faction. To punish rebels and win over those who submit—this fully fulfills what I entrusted to you." He soon granted a banquet as well. He told Xingjian, "You combine civil and military talent. I therefore grant you two offices at once." That same day Xingjian was appointed Minister of Rites and concurrently Inspector General of the Right Guard.
13
調 西 使
In the first year of Tiaolu, the Turk Ashide Wenfu rebelled. Twenty-four prefectures within the Protectorate of the Khaghan rose with him, fielding several hundred thousand men. Protector-General Xiao Siye marched against them and was defeated in turn. Xingjian was then made Great General on Campaign of the Dingxiang route. He led Vice Director of the Imperial Stud Li Siwen, Military Governor of Yingzhou Zhou Daowu, and others with one hundred eighty thousand men, while Cheng Wuting of the western force and Li Wenjian of the eastern force brought the total to more than three hundred thousand. The columns stretched unbroken for thousands of li, all under Xingjian's command. The Tang had never mounted so great an expedition. When Xingjian reached Shuozhou and learned that Xiao Siye's grain convoys had been raided and many soldiers had starved, he set out three hundred decoy grain wagons. Five stalwart men lay hidden in each wagon, armed with modao and powerful crossbows. A few hundred weak soldiers escorted the train while elite troops waited in ambush on difficult ground. The rebels came down in force. The weak escort abandoned the wagons and fled. The rebels drove the wagons toward a spring. They unslung saddles to graze their horses and were about to seize the grain when the men in the wagons struck together and the ambush closed in. Nearly all were killed or captured; the rest broke and fled. After that, no one dared approach the grain convoys. When the army reached the country north of the Protectorate of the Khaghan, it encamped at dusk. The trenches had barely been finished when Xingjian suddenly ordered the camp moved to a high ridge. Officers and men protested that the troops had just settled and should not be disturbed, but Xingjian refused and ordered the move accelerated. That night a violent storm burst upon them. The former camp site stood more than ten feet deep in water, and officers and men marveled. The rebels made their stand at Black Mountain. Xingjian fought again and again and won every engagement, killing and capturing beyond count. The pretender khaghan Nishou Fu was killed by his own followers, who brought his head in surrender. Xingjian also captured the great chieftain Fengzhi and returned. The remaining rebels fled to Lang Mountain. After Xingjian returned, Ashina Funian again proclaimed himself khaghan, joined Wenfu, and rallied the remnant forces. The next year Xingjian again took command of the armies to suppress them. He halted at the Pass of Daizhou and spread counter-intelligence to set Funian and Wenfu against each other. Funian, in fear, secretly sent terms of surrender and offered to prove his loyalty in deed. Xingjian kept the matter secret and memorialized the throne privately. A few days later a cloud of dust filled the sky as a column approached. Alarmed scouts reported, but Xingjian assembled the three armies and said, "This is Funian bringing Wenfu in surrender—nothing else." Still, to receive a surrender is like facing an enemy—we must remain on strict guard." He sent a lone envoy forward to welcome and reassure them. Before long Funian indeed arrived with his followers, Wenfu bound, and asked punishment at the camp gate. The remaining Turk forces were completely pacified. Gaozong was greatly pleased and sent Minister of Revenue Cui Zhiti to the army to offer praise. Chief Minister Pei Yan, envious of Xingjian's achievement, and the commanders Cheng Wuting and Zhang Qianxu memorialized: "Funian surrendered only because his son was hard pressed and because the Uyghurs north of the desert and others pressed him from the south. He submitted in desperation." On this account Xingjian's victory went unrecorded, and Funian and Wenfu were beheaded in the capital market. Xingjian sighed and said, "What Hun and Jun did—such deeds have shamed every age." I fear that once surrendered men are killed, none will ever come again." He pleaded illness and withdrew from public life. For his merit he was enfeoffed Duke of Wenxi County. In the first year of Yongchun, Che Bo, pretender khaghan of the Ten Tribes, rebelled. An edict again made Xingjian Great General of the Jinya route and ordered him to lead ten generals against him. The army had not yet set out. In the fourth month of that year Xingjian died of illness at sixty-four. He was posthumously appointed military governor of Youzhou and given the posthumous name Xian. A special edict ordered the Crown Prince to assign a sixth-rank capital official to oversee the household, continuing for five or six years until the grandchildren had grown, and then to stop. When Zhongzong took the throne, Xingjian was further posthumously made Grand Military Governor of Yangzhou.
14
祿 調 便 使便
He left collected works in twenty juan and a Miscellaneous Forms of Cursive Characters of tens of thousands of words; both circulated in later ages. He also compiled the Register of Selection in ten juan and forty-six maxims on camp deployment, battle formation and unit organization, calculating victory and defeat, and judging talent and capacity. Empress Wu ordered Palace Library Director Wu Chengsi to his residence, and all were secretly taken into the palace archives. Xingjian was especially skilled in yin-yang lore and calculation, and possessed a keen eye for human character. From his years managing selection through his service as great general, whenever he met worthy talent he discovered and promoted them. Whenever he prepared to meet an enemy and destroy a foe, he always fixed the day of victory in advance. The rising writers Yang Jiong, Wang Bo, Lu Zhaolin, and Luo Binwang were then celebrated for their prose. Vice Minister Li Jingxuan praised them lavishly and presented them to Xingjian. Xingjian said, "They have talent and fame, but rank and salary will be thin." Yang will rise at most to district magistrate; the others will scarcely come to good ends." Su Weidao and Wang Ju were then still unknown. When they came up for selection, Xingjian saw them once and honored them with special regard. He told them, "I have sons born late in life, and regret that I shall not see them grown." Within ten years or so you two will hold the highest offices of state. Remember these men for me." In time they served in succession as Ministers of Personnel. All came to pass exactly as he had said. Among the staff officers Xingjian had promoted were Cheng Wuting, Zhang Qianxu, Cui Zhibian, Wang Fangyi, Dang Jinpi, Liu Jingtong, Guo Daifeng, Li Duozuo, and Heichi Changzhi—all became famous generals, and dozens rose to prefect or general. Those he recognized and rewarded were mostly of this sort. Xingjian once had a physician compound medicine and requested rhinoceros horn and musk. The messenger lost them by mistake and fled in secret terror. An edict also bestowed a horse and new saddle. A clerk galloped it recklessly; the horse fell and the saddle broke, and the clerk fled as well. Xingjian had his intimates bring them back and said, "Do you think so little of me?" They were all mistakes, nothing more. He treated them exactly as before. After pacifying Duzhi and Zhefu they had taken a great haul of rare treasures. Tribal chiefs and officers asked to see them, and Xingjian set a feast and brought everything out, item by item, for all to view. Among them was an agate platter more than two feet across, its colors and patterns beyond compare. Army clerk Wang Xiulie bore the platter up the steps in haste; he caught his robe, stumbled, and fell — the platter shattered with him. Xiulie was terrified and kowtowed until his forehead ran with blood. Xingjian laughed and said, "You didn't mean to — why take it so hard! " He never let it show on his face. An edict awarded Duzhi and his party more than three thousand pieces of property and gold vessels, with camels and horses to match. Xingjian divided the lot among kin, friends, and everyone down to his deputy envoys — within days it was all spent. His youngest son Guangting became chief minister under Kaiyuan and, by imperial favor, had Xingjian posthumously ennobled as Grand Marshal.
15
婿 使 祿
Guangting was orphaned young. His mother, Lady Kudi, was summoned to court under Wu Zetian and treated with exceptional favor; on that account Guangting rose steadily until he reached vice director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Later, as Wu Sansi's son-in-law, he was implicated by association and demoted to secretary in Ezhou. Early in Kaiyuan, after six promotions he became a commander in the Right Leading Guard Office, then was elevated to director in the Ministry of Justice's Gate Office. A year later he transferred to director in the Ministry of War. Guangting was reserved and sparing of words, with few friends. He had already held prestigious posts, yet at first people did not think much of him. Once he took up his duties and put official business in good order, everyone came to admire him. In the thirteenth year, as the emperor prepared the fengshan at Mount Tai, Chief Minister Zhang Yue argued that with the imperial procession touring east the capital would stand empty and barbarians might seize the moment to strike. He proposed reinforcing the frontier against surprise and summoned Guangting to discuss military affairs. Guangting said, "The fengshan is meant to announce success. Success means grace reaching everywhere, the people secure in all things, and every state under heaven filled with goodwill. Now, on the eve of announcing success, you fear barbarians — how does that display virtue? To launch great labor and conscription to guard against surprise is hardly to settle the people. Just as you plan a gathering of all states, you would chill the hearts of the frontier peoples — that is not to draw the distant near. With these three things, name and reality would part. Moreover, among the frontier states the Turks are foremost; tribute and gifts have passed back and forth for years in a wish to preserve goodwill. If you now send a single envoy summoning their chief ministers to the assembly, they will surely come gladly. Once the Turks accept the edict, the frontier lords will surely follow one after another. Even with banners lowered and drums stilled, you may rest your head on your pillow with room to spare. " Yue said, "Excellent. This is beyond me. " He memorialized the plan and put it into effect; soon afterward Guangting was made vice minister of Rites for guest affairs. After returning from the eastern fengshan, he was promoted to vice minister of War. In the seventeenth year he was appointed vice minister of the Secretariat, co-equal under the Secretariat-Chancellery, and soon also censor-in-chief. Before long he was promoted to vice minister of the Chancellery, still handling state affairs. After accompanying the tour of the five tombs, he was made chief minister, concurrently minister of Civil Appointments, and also made a scholar of the Hongwen Institute. Guangting then compiled one scroll each of Guidelines from the Jade Mountain and Earlier Paths to the Rampart City and submitted them by memorial. The emperor's own hand praised him and granted five hundred bolts of silk; he ordered the crown prince and those below to meet Guangting at Guangshun Gate, to honor the admonitory intent. Guangting also brought in Shou'an assistant Li Rong, remonstrance official Zhang Qi, left secretary Sima Libin, and others, assigning them to the Hongwen Institute to compile Continuations to the Spring and Autumn Annals. He memorialized that the classic be treated as imperially authored while Guangting and the others would write the commentary in Zuo's style; the emperor again personally commended him. Guangting entrusted the writing to Li Rong; the book was never finished. At the time someone submitted that the imperial house should be assigned the Metal phase; Chief Minister Xiao Song memorialized to assemble the hundred officials for full deliberation. Guangting held that the dynasty's mandate had long been recorded in the histories; to change it would invite later scholars' reproach. He secretly memorialized to keep the old designation, and an edict halted the assembly. In the twentieth year, accompanying the sacrifice to Earth at Houtu, he was made Grand Master for Splendid Happiness and ennobled Baron of Zhengping. Soon after he died, at fifty-eight; a special edict posthumously made him Grand Preceptor, and court was suspended for three days. Earlier, Guangting and Xiao Song had vied for power and did not agree. When he became minister of Civil Appointments, he memorialized use of the seniority regulations, pressing the selection deadline to the thirtieth of the first month; external placements also required Chancellery approval. After Guangting died, Song again memorialized to abolish all this; Guangting's appointees were all sent to outside posts. There was Chancellery clerk Yan Linzhi, Guangting's trusted man, solely handling Civil Appointments selections; whatever Linzhi decided, Guangting would sign — people said, "Linzhi's mouth, Guangting's hand. " Grand Master of Sacrifices Sun Wan was about to deliberate Guangting's posthumous name; holding that seniority regulations were not the way to reward merit, he proposed the name Ke. Men of the day thought this flattered Song's wishes. The emperor heard and issued a special edict granting the posthumous name Zhongxian, ordering Chief Minister Zhang Jiuling to compose his epitaph. Historian Wei Shu held that changing the posthumous name was wrong, and argued: "The principle of the Spring and Autumn Annals is that when feudal lords die in the ruler's service, their burial receives one rank higher — honoring their merit without extending to the reward due them. Down through Han and Wei, grave goods included seals and cords; favor extended to the tomb — only virtue was praised. How could such titles be given in vain! In recent times honors at death know no bounds — sometimes for lofty rank everything is lavishly bestowed; sometimes because descendants prosper, by favor's precedent — worthy and foolish, hollow and solid, treated alike. Pei Guangting, a law-keeping clerk, suddenly reached the chancellorship and tread the scales of power — should he not feel much shame? To grant him the Grand Preceptor — how excessive! Duke Yan of Zhang had merit supporting the throne, long served as tutor-advisor, rank reached ninefold honors, offices spanned both ends — yet critics still called his posthumous gifts excessive. How much farther was Guangting from such standing — what gross presumption to seize such a title! To lend titles and insignia to the unworthy — this is what sages of old lamented.
16
The historian remarks: When the Jin ruler chose generals, he took those versed in the Rites and Music who cherished the Odes and Documents — and had good reason. Strategy and tactics are the great constant of warfare; nations live or die by them; government waxes or wanes accordingly — how then lightly grant the general's baton to those who rely on numbers and brute force, on pig-fury and tiger-violence! Wang Meng and Zhuge Liang rose from poor lanes, drove heroes before them, commanded with a glance left or right, and mapped out dominion — not by another path, but because their intellect, power, and adaptive skill were exactly what the hour demanded. Liu of Leycheng and Pei of Wenxi — in culture, grace, and strategy they yield nothing to past worthies; in governing armies and securing borders they had ample craft — heroic scholar-generals. When the Empress Dowager held power, punishments were deep as ravines and most sought favor through flattery — yet Leycheng and Zengshan spoke plainly to set things right; had there been no gentlemen then, who would have ventured such words? Lord Zhengping assessed clerical talent; in letters and governance he showed real depth. Yet earlier histories mock his mistaken posthumous name — does this not touch Chen Shou's slight against the Martial Marquis on adaptability? That is not a fair judgment.
17
Praise runs: Yin received his minister at the scale-beam; Zhou took Lü Shang as teacher. The king's weapon, the scholar's general. Leycheng and Wenxi — where humanity called, they did not yield. Talk of Guan and Ge — that is the pattern of my own mind.
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