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李華字遐叔,趙郡人。 開元二十三年進士擢第。 天寶中,登朝為監察御史。 累轉侍御史,禮部、吏部二員外郎。 華善屬文,與蘭陵蕭穎士友善。 華進士時,著含元殿賦萬餘言,穎士見而賞之,曰:「景福之上,靈光之下。」 華文體溫麗,少宏傑之氣,穎士詞鋒俊發,華自以所業過之,疑其誣詞。 乃為祭古戰場文,熏汙之如故物,置於佛書之閣。 華與穎士因閱佛書得之,華謂之曰:「此文何如?」 穎士曰:「可矣。」 華曰:「當代秉筆者,誰及於此?」 穎士曰:「君稍精思,便可及此。」 華愕然。 華著論言龜卜可廢,通人當其言。
Li Hua, whose courtesy name was Xiashu, came from Zhao commandery. In 735 he passed the jinshi civil examination. During the Tianbao reign he entered court service as a supervisory censor. He rose in turn to attendant censor and to vice director in both the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel. Hua excelled at literary composition and was on friendly terms with Xiao Yingshi of Lanling. While still a jinshi candidate, Hua composed a Rhapsody on the Hanyuan Hall of more than ten thousand characters. Yingshi read it and exclaimed, "It ranks above the Jingfu and below the Lingguang." Hua wrote in a warm, elegant style with little of the grand and heroic, whereas Yingshi's diction was sharp and brilliant. Hua thought his own work the better and suspected that Yingshi's praise was insincere. He therefore composed his Lament for an Ancient Battlefield, smoked and smudged the manuscript until it looked like an old relic, and hid it among Buddhist texts. While Hua and Yingshi were leafing through Buddhist books they came upon it. Hua asked him, "How do you rate this essay?" Yingshi replied, "It will do." Hua asked, "Among the leading writers of our day, who could match this?" Yingshi answered, "If you give the matter a little more thought, you could write at this level yourself." Hua was dumbfounded. Hua wrote a treatise arguing that tortoise-shell and milfoil divination ought to be abandoned, and thoughtful men endorsed his position.
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祿山陷京師,玄宗出幸,華扈從不及,陷賊,偽署為鳳閣舍人。 收城後,三司類例減等,從輕貶官,遂廢於家,卒。 華嘗為魯山令元德秀墓碑,顏真卿書,李陽冰篆額,後人爭模寫之,號為「四絕碑」。 有文集十卷,行於時。
When An Lushan seized the capital, Emperor Xuanzong fled the court. Hua failed to join the imperial entourage, fell into rebel hands, and was given a false appointment as Secretariat Drafter. After the capital was retaken, the Three Offices classified his offense at a reduced grade and demoted him leniently. He was then dismissed to live at home, where he died. Hua once wrote the epitaph for Yuan Dexiu, magistrate of Lushan; Yan Zhenqing penned the inscription and Li Yangbing cut the title in seal script. Later generations copied it eagerly, and it became known as the "Stele of Four Excellences." His collected works in ten juan circulated widely in his day.
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蕭穎士者,字茂挺,與華同年登進士第。 當開元中,天下承平,人物駢集如賈。 曽席豫、張垍、韋述軰皆有盛名,而穎士皆與之遊。 由是縉紳多譽之。 李林甫採其名,欲拔用之,乃召見。 時穎士寓居廣陵,毋䘮,即縗麻而詣京師,徑謁林甫於政事省。 林甫素不識,遽見縗麻大惡之,即令斥去。 穎士大忿,乃為伐《櫻桃賦》以刺林甫云:「擢無用之剿質,蒙本枝而自庇; 汨群林而非據,專廟庭之右地。 雖先寢而式薦,豈和羹之正味?」 其狂率不遜,皆此類也,然而聰警絶倫。 甞與李華、陸據同遊洛南龍門,三人共讀路側古碑,穎士一閲即能誦之,華再閲,據三閲方能記之。 議者以三人才格髙下亦如此。 是時,外夷亦知穎士之名,新羅使入朝,言國人願得蕭夫子為師,其名動華夷,若此終以誕傲褊忿困躓而卒。 華宗人翰,亦以進士知名。 天寳中,寓居陽翟。 為文精密,用思苦澁。 常從陽翟令皇甫曽求音樂,每思涸則奏樂,神逸則著文。 禄山之亂,從友人張巡客宋州,巡率州人守城,賊攻圍經年,食盡矢窮方䧟。 當時薄巡者,言其降賊,翰乃序巡守城事迹,撰張巡、姚誾等傳兩卷,上之肅宗。 方明巡之忠義士,友稱之。 上元中,為衛縣尉,入朝為侍御史。 陸據者,周上庸公騰六代孫。 少孤,文章俊逸,言論縱横。 年三十餘,始遊京師,舉進士。 公卿覽其文,稱重之。 辟為從事,累官至司勲員外郎。 天寳十三載,卒。 開元、天寳間,文士知名者,汴州崔顥,京兆王昌齡、高適,㐮陽孟浩然,皆名位不振,唯高適官逹,自有傳。 崔顥者,登進士第。 有俊才無士行,好蒱博飲酒。 及遊京師,娶妻擇有貎者,稍不惬意即去之,前後數四。 累官司勲員外郎。 天寳十三年,卒。 王昌齡者,進士登第,補秘書省,校書郎。 又以博學宏詞登科,再遷汜水縣尉,不護細行,屢見貶斥,卒。 昌齡為文緒微而思清,有集五卷。 孟浩然,隠鹿門山,以詩自適。 年四十來遊京師,應進士不第,還。 襄陽張九齡鎮荆州,署為從事,與之唱和,不逹而卒。 元德秀者,河南人,字紫芝。 開元二十一年登進士第。 性純朴,無緣餙,動師古道。 父為延州刺史。 德秀少孤貧,事母以孝聞。 開元中,從鄉賦,歳遊京師,不忍離親,毎行則自負板輿,與母詣長安。 登第後,母亡,廬於墓所,食無鹽酪,藉無茵席,刺血畫像寫佛經。 乆之,以孤㓜牽於禄仕,調授邢州南和尉。 佐治有惠政,黜陟使上聞,召補龍武録事參軍。 德秀早失恃怙,縗麻相繼,不及親在而娶。 既孤之後,遂不娶婚。 族人以絶嗣規之,德秀曰:“吾兄有子,繼先人之祀。” 以兄子婚娶,家貧無以為禮,求為魯山令。 先是,墮車傷足,不任趨拜,汝郡守以客禮待之。 部人為盗,吏捕之,繋獄。 會縣界有猛獸為暴,盗自陳曰:“願格殺猛獸以自贖。” 徳秀許之。 胥吏曰:“盗詭計茍免,擅放官囚,無乃累乎?” 徳秀曰:“吾不欲負約,累則吾坐,必請不及諸君。” 即破械出之。 翌日,格猛獸而還。 誠信化人,大率此類。 秩滿,南遊陸渾,見佳山水,杳然有長往之志,乃結廬山阿。 歳屬饑歉,庖厨不㸑,而彈琴讀書,怡然自得。 好事者載酒餚過之,不擇賢不肖,與之對酌,陶陶然遺身物外。 琴觴之餘,間以文詠,率情而書,語無雕刻。 所著《季子聽樂論》、《蹇士賦》,為高人所稱。 天寳十三年卒,時年五十九,門人相諡為文行先生。 士大夫高其行,不名,謂之元魯山。 王維,字摩詰,太原祁人。 父處㢘,終汾州司馬,徙家于蒲,遂為河東人。 維開元九年進士擢第。 事母崔氏以孝聞。 與弟縉俱有俊才,博學多藝亦齊名,閨門友悌,多士推之。 歴右拾遺、監察御史、左補闕、庫部郎中。 居母䘮,柴毁骨立,殆不勝䘮。 服闋,拜吏部郎中。 天寳末,為給事中。 禄山䧟兩都,玄宗出幸,維扈從不及,為賊所得。 維服藥取痢,偽稱瘖病。 禄山素憐之,遣人迎置洛陽,拘於普施寺,迫以偽署。 禄山宴其徒於凝碧宫,其樂工皆梨園弟子、教坊工人。 維聞之悲惻,潛為詩曰:「萬户傷心生野煙,百官何日再朝天? 秋槐花落空宫裏,凝碧池頭奏筦絃。」 賊平,陷賊官三等定罪。 維以凝碧詩聞于行在,肅宗嘉之,會縉請削己刑部侍郎以贖兄罪,特宥之,責授太子中允,乾元中,遷太子中庶子、中書舍人,復拜給事中,轉尚書右丞。 維以詩名盛於開元、天寶間,昆仲宦遊兩都,凡諸王駙馬豪右貴勢之門,無不拂席迎之,寧王、薛王待之如師友。 維尤長五言詩。 人有得奏樂圖,不知其名,維視之曰:「霓裳第三疊第一拍也。」 好事者集樂工按之,一無差,咸服其精思。 維弟兄俱奉佛,居常蔬食,不茹葷血,晚年長齋,不衣文綵。 得宋之問藍田别墅,在輞口,輞水周於舍下,别漲竹洲花塢,與道友裴廸浮舟往來,彈琴賦詩,嘯詠終日。 甞聚其田園所為詩,號輞川集。 在京師日飯十數名僧,以玄談為樂。 齋中無所有,唯茶鐺、藥臼、經案、繩牀而已。 退朝之後,焚香獨坐,以禪誦為事。 妻亡不再娶,三十年孤居一室,屏絶塵累。 乾元二年七月卒。 臨終之際,以縉在鳳翔,忽索筆作别縉書,又與平生親故作别書數幅,多敦厲朋友奉佛脩心之旨,捨筆而絶。 代宗時,縉為宰相,代宗好文,常謂縉曰:「卿之伯氏,天寳中詩名冠代,朕嘗於諸王座聞其樂章。 今有多少文集,卿可進來。」 縉曰:「臣兄開元中詩百千餘篇,天寳事後,十不存一。 比於中外親故間相與編綴,都得四百餘篇。」 翌日上之,帝優詔襃賞。 縉自有傳。 李白字太白,山東人。 少有逸才,志氣宏放,飄然有超世之心,父爲任城尉,因家焉。 少與魯中諸生孔巢父、韓沔、裴政、張叔明、陶沔等隠於徂徠山,酣歌縱酒,時號「竹溪六逸」。 天寳初,客遊會稽,與道士吳筠隱於剡中。 旣而玄宗詔筠赴京師,筠薦之於朝,遣使召之,與筠俱待詔翰林。 白旣嗜酒,日與飲徒醉於酒肆。 玄宗度曲,欲造樂府新詞,亟召白,白已臥於酒肆矣。 召入,以水灑面,即令秉筆,頃之成十餘章,帝頗嘉之。 嘗沉醉殿上,引足令高力士脫靴,由是斥去。 乃浪迹江湖,終日沉飲。 時侍御史崔宗之謫官金陵,與白詩酒唱和。 嘗月夜乘舟,自采石達金陵,白衣宮錦袍,於舟中顧瞻笑傲,傍若無人。 初賀知章見白,賞之曰:「此天上謫仙人也。」 祿山之亂,玄宗幸蜀,在途以永王璘為江淮兵馬都督、揚州節度大使。 白在宣州謁見,遂辟爲從事。 永王謀亂,兵敗,白坐長流夜郎。 後遇赦得還,竟以飲酒過度,醉死於宣城。 有文集二十卷,行於時。 杜甫,字子美,本襄陽人,後徙河南鞏縣。 曽祖依藝,位終鞏令。 祖審言,位終膳部員外郎,自有。 父閑,終奉天令。 甫天寳初應進士不第。 天寳末,獻《三大禮賦》,宗奇之,召試文章,授京兆府兵曹叅軍。 十五載,禄山䧟京師,肅宗徴兵靈武,甫自京師宵遁赴河西謁肅宗,於彭原郡拜右拾遺。 房琯布衣時與甫善,時琯為宰相,請自帥師討賊,帝許之。 其年十月,琯兵敗於陳濤斜。 明年春,琯罷相,甫上疏言琯有才,不宜罷免。 肅宗怒,貶琯為刺史,出甫為華州司功叅軍。 時關畿亂離,糓食踊貴,甫寓居成州同谷縣,自負薪採稆,兒女餓殍者數人。 乆之,召補京兆府功曹。 上元二年冬,黄門侍郎、鄭國公嚴武鎮成都,奏為節度叅謀檢校尚書工部員外郎,賜緋魚袋。 武與甫世舊,待遇甚隆,甫性褊躁無器度,恃恩放恣,甞慿醉登武之牀瞪視武曰:「嚴挺之乃有此兒!」 武雖急暴,不以為忤。 甫於成都浣花里種竹植樹,結廬枕江,縱酒嘯詠,與田夫野老相狎,蕩無拘檢,嚴武過之,有時不冠,其傲誕如此。 永泰元年夏,武卒,甫無所依。 及郭英乂代武鎮成都,英乂武人粗暴,無能刺謁,乃遊東蜀依高適。 旣至而適卒。 是歲,崔寧殺英乂,楊子琳攻西川,蜀中大亂。 甫以其家避亂荊、楚,扁舟下峽,未維舟而江陵亂,乃泝沿湘流,遊衡山,寓居耒陽。 甫嘗遊嶽廟,為暴水所阻,旬日不得食。 耒陽聶令知之,自棹舟迎甫而還。 永泰二年,啗牛肉白酒,一夕而卒於耒陽,時年五十九。 子宗武,流落湖、湘而卒。 元和中,宗武子嗣業,自耒陽遷甫之柩,歸葬於偃師縣西北首陽山之前。 天寶末詩人,甫與李白齊名,而白自負文格放達,譏甫齷齪,而有飯顆山之嘲誚。 元和中,詞人元稹論李、杜之優劣曰:予讀詩至杜子美而知小大之有所總萃焉。 始堯、舜之時,君臣以賡歌相和。 是後詩人繼作,歷夏、殷、周千餘年,仲尼緝拾選揀,取其干預教化之尤者三百,餘無所聞。 騷人作而怨憤之態繁,然猶去風、雅日近,尚相比擬。 秦、漢已還,採詩之官旣廢,天下妖謠民謳、歌頌諷賦、曲度嬉戲之辭,亦隨時間作。 至漢武賦柏梁而七言之體具。 蘇子卿、李少卿之徒,尤工為五言。 雖句讀文律各異,雅鄭之音亦雜,而辭意簡遠,指事言情,自非有為而為,則文不妄作。 建安之後,天下之士遭罹兵戰,曹氏父子鞍馬間為文,往往橫槊賦詩,故其遒壯抑揚、冤哀悲離之作,尤極於古。 晉世風概稍存。 宋、齊之間,教失根本,士以簡慢翕習舒徐相尚,文章以風容色澤、放曠精清為高,蓋吟寫性靈、留連光景之文也,意義格力無取焉。 陵遲至於梁、陳,淫豔刻飾、佻巧小碎之詞劇,又宋、齊之所不取也。 唐興,官學大振,歷世之文,能者互出。 而又沈、宋之流,研練精切,穩順聲勢,謂之為律詩。 由是之後,文體之變極焉。 然而莫不好古者遺近,務華者去實,効齊、梁則不迨於魏、晉,工樂府則力屈於五言,律切則骨格不存,閑暇則纖穠莫備。 至於子美,蓋所謂上薄風、騷,下該沈、宋,言奪蘇、李,氣吞曹、劉,掩顏、謝之孤高,雜徐、庾之流麗,盡得古今之體勢,而兼人人之所獨專矣。 使仲尼考鍛其旨要,尚不知貴其多乎哉! 苟以為能所不能,無可無不可,則詩人已來未有如子美者。 是時山東人李白,亦以文奇取稱,時人謂之李、杜。 予觀其壯浪縱恣,擺去拘束,模寫物象,及樂府歌詩,誠亦差肩於子美俟。 至若鋪陳終始,排比聲韻,大或千言,次猶數百,詞氣豪邁,而風調清深,屬對律切,而脫棄凡近,則李尚不能歷其藩翰,況堂奧乎! 予嘗欲條析其文,體別相附,與來者為之準,特病懶未就爾。 自後屬文者,以稹論為是。 甫有文集六十卷。
Xiao Yingshi, whose courtesy name was Maoting, passed the jinshi examination in the same year as Li Hua. During the Kaiyuan reign, the empire was at peace and talented men flocked together like traders at a fair. Zeng Xiyu, Zhang Yong, Wei Shu, and their circle all enjoyed great fame, and Yingshi moved in all their company. Because of this, many court officials spoke well of him. Li Linfu heard of his reputation, wanted to advance and employ him, and summoned him to an audience. At the time Yingshi was living in Guangling. His mother had just died, so he set out for the capital in hemp mourning dress and went directly to call on Li Linfu at the administrative secretariat. Li Linfu had never met him before. Seeing him in hemp mourning garb, he took an instant dislike to him and had him sent away at once. Yingshi was furious and wrote a satirical "Rhapsody on Felling Cherry Trees" to attack Li Linfu, saying: "Raising up useless pruned wood, sheltering yourself under the parent branch; Flooding the grove without rightful claim, seizing the honored place in the temple courtyard. Though laid out first and borne forward for presentation, is it the true flavor for the harmonizing broth?" His reckless bluntness and lack of deference were all of this kind, yet his brilliance was unmatched. He once visited Longmen south of Luoyang with Li Hua and Lu Ju. The three of them read an old stele by the roadside together: Yingshi could recite it after a single reading, Hua after two, and Ju only after three. Commentators took the relative standing of the three men's talent and character to match this exactly. At that time even foreign peoples knew Yingshi's name. When a Silla envoy came to court, he said his countrymen wished to have Master Xiao as their teacher. His fame stirred both China and the borderlands, yet in the end he died thwarted by his own arrogance, insolence, and narrow-spirited resentment. Han, a kinsman of Li Hua's, also won renown as a jinshi graduate. During the Tianbao reign he made his home as a guest in Yangdi. His prose was meticulous, and the labor of composition was bitter and arduous. He often asked Huangfu Zeng, magistrate of Yangdi, for music. Whenever his thoughts dried up he would have music played; when his mind was at ease he would write. During the An Lushan rebellion he followed his friend Zhang Xun as a guest in Song prefecture. Xun led the people of the prefecture in defending the city; the rebels besieged it for a year, and it fell only when food and arrows were exhausted. Those who at the time looked down on Xun claimed he had surrendered to the rebels. Han thereupon recounted Xun's deeds in defending the city, wrote biographies of Zhang Xun, Yao Yin, and others in two scrolls, and submitted them to Emperor Suzong. In this way Xun's loyal and righteous character was made clear, and his friends praised Han for it. During the Shangyuan reign he served as sheriff of Wei county, then entered court as an attendant censor. Lu Ju was a sixth-generation descendant of Teng, Duke of Shangyong of Zhou. Orphaned in youth, he wrote with brilliance and ease and spoke with bold, sweeping eloquence. Not until he was in his thirties did he first go to the capital and sit for the jinshi examination. When leading officials read his work, they spoke highly of him. He was recruited as a staff officer and rose through successive posts to vice director in the Ministry of Personnel. He died in 754. During the Kaiyuan and Tianbao reigns, well-known men of letters included Cui Hao of Bianzhou, Wang Changling and Gao Shi of Jingzhao, and Meng Haoran of Xiangyang. None of them rose to commensurate rank and standing except Gao Shi, who attained high office and has his own biography. Cui Hao passed the jinshi civil examination. He had outstanding talent but little of a gentleman's conduct, and was fond of gambling and drink. When he went to the capital he married for beauty, choosing attractive women, and if he was the least dissatisfied he would cast them off—he did this four or five times in all. He rose through successive posts to vice director in the Ministry of Personnel. He died in 754. Wang Changling passed the jinshi examination and was appointed collator in the Secretariat. He also passed the erudite-literary examination, was later transferred to sheriff of Sishui county, failed to watch his lesser conduct, was demoted and censured repeatedly, and died. Changling wrote in a finely wrought style with lucid thought, and left a collection of writings in five scrolls. Meng Haoran lived in seclusion on Mount Lumen and found his fulfillment in poetry. At forty he traveled to the capital, failed the jinshi examination, and went home. When Zhang Jiuling of Xiangyang governed Jingzhou, he appointed Meng Haoran as a staff officer and exchanged poems with him. Meng died without attaining high office. Yuan Dexiu came from Henan; his courtesy name was Zizhi. In 733 he passed the jinshi civil examination. He was plain and unpretentious by nature, shunned artificial adornment, and always modeled himself on the ancient way. His father served as prefect of Yanzhou. Dexiu was orphaned and poor as a youth; he cared for his mother and became known for filial devotion. During Kaiyuan, when he went up each year for the provincial examinations, he could not bear to leave his mother behind. Each time he made the journey he carried her in a palanquin on his own back all the way to Chang'an. After he passed the examination, his mother died. He lived in a hut beside her grave, ate no salt or dairy, slept on straw without even a mat, pricked his blood to paint her portrait, and copied Buddhist sutras. Eventually, the need to earn a living as an orphan drew him into official service, and he was posted as assistant magistrate of Nanhe in Xingzhou. His assistance in governance brought benevolent rule; the touring inspector reported this to the court, and he was summoned to serve as recorder-adjutant of the Longwu Army. Dexiu had lost both parents early; periods of mourning followed one after another, and he had never married while they were alive. Once orphaned, he never married at all. Kinsmen warned that he would leave no heir, but Dexiu said, "My elder brother has a son to carry on the ancestral rites." When his brother's son was to marry and the family could not afford the ceremony, he sought appointment as magistrate of Lushan. He had earlier fallen from a cart and injured his foot, so he could not perform the quick ceremonial bow; the prefect of Ru treated him with the courtesy due a guest. A local man turned to theft; officers arrested him and held him in prison. Just then a fierce beast was terrorizing the county border. The thief stepped forward and said, "I am willing to kill the beast to earn my pardon." Dexiu agreed. A clerk said, "This is only a ruse to escape punishment. If you release a prisoner on your own authority, will we not all be blamed?" Dexiu replied, "I will not break my word. If blame falls, I alone shall answer for it—I promise it will not reach any of you." He immediately removed the man's restraints and set him free. The next day the man killed the beast and returned. He transformed people through sincerity and good faith; most of his conduct was of this sort. When his term ended, he traveled south to Luhun. Struck by the beautiful landscape, he felt a deep longing to withdraw from the world for good and built a hut in a mountain hollow. In a year of famine his kitchen went cold, yet he played the zither and read books, entirely content. Enthusiasts came bearing wine and food. He made no distinction between the worthy and the unworthy, drank with them freely, and in easy joy left the world behind. Between zither and wine cup he sometimes turned to verse, writing straight from feeling without ornamental carving of language. His works "On Prince Ji Listening to Music" and "Rhapsody on the Limping Scholar" won praise from leading men of letters. He died in Tianbao 13, aged fifty-nine; his disciples posthumously honored him as Master Wenxing. Scholar-officials revered his character and, rather than use his personal name, called him Yuan of Lushan. Wang Wei, whose courtesy name was Mojie, came from Qi in Taiyuan. His father Chulian ended his career as vice administrator of Fenzhou; the family then moved to Pu and became natives of Hedong. Wei passed the jinshi examination in Kaiyuan 9. He served his mother, Lady Cui, and was known for his filial devotion. He and his younger brother Jin were both gifted; their broad learning and many talents won equal renown, and within the household they were devoted brothers, so scholars widely praised them. He served successively as Right Reminder, investigating censor, Left Supplementation-er, and director in the Ministry of Revenue. While mourning his mother he wasted away to skin and bone, nearly unable to endure the grief. When mourning ended, he was appointed director in the Ministry of Personnel. Near the end of Tianbao he served as Supervising Secretariat Drafter. When An Lushan seized the two capitals, Emperor Xuanzong fled the court. Wei failed to join the imperial entourage and was captured by the rebels. Wei took medicine to induce dysentery and pretended to be mute from illness. An Lushan had always favored him, sent men to bring him to Luoyang, confined him at Puji Monastery, and forced him to accept a false appointment. An Lushan feasted his followers at Ningbi Palace; the musicians were all Liyuan disciples and craftsmen of the Directorate of Music. Wei heard this and was stricken with grief. Secretly he composed a poem: "In ten thousand homes sorrow rises with wild smoke—when will the hundred officials again bow to the Son of Heaven? Autumn locust blossoms fall in the empty palace; at the head of Ningbi Pool, pipes and strings are played." After the rebellion was suppressed, officials who had served under the rebels were judged under the three grades of culpability. Wei's Ningbi poem reached the emperor at the traveling court, and Emperor Suzong praised it. At the same time Jin asked to surrender his own post as Vice Minister of Justice to redeem his brother's offense, and Wei was specially pardoned and demoted to Palace Companion to the Heir Apparent. In the Qianyuan era he rose to Palace Attendant to the Heir Apparent and Secretariat Drafter, was again appointed Supervising Secretariat Drafter, and then became Vice Director of the Right in the Ministry of Revenue. Wei's poetic fame flourished during Kaiyuan and Tianbao. The brothers held office in both capitals, and at the gates of princes, imperial sons-in-law, and powerful nobles none failed to sweep the mat and welcome them; the Princes of Ning and Xue treated them as teachers and friends. Wei was especially accomplished in five-character poetry. Someone acquired a painting of a musical performance but did not know its title. Wei looked at it and said, "This is the first beat of the third movement of 'Rainbow Skirts.'" Enthusiasts assembled musicians to perform the piece accordingly, and not a single note was wrong. All marveled at his keen musical insight. Wang Wei and his brother both devoted themselves to Buddhism. They ordinarily ate vegetarian food and abstained from meat; in later years Wang Wei kept long fasts and wore no fine patterned silks. He acquired Song Zhiwen's villa at Lantian, at the mouth of Wang River, where the river wound around his dwelling below. There he laid out separate bamboo islets and flower embankments, and with his spiritual companion Pei Di he drifted back and forth in boats, playing the zither, composing poetry, and singing through the day. He once collected the poems he had written at his country estate and titled the collection Wangchuan ji. While in the capital he daily shared meals with a dozen or so monks and took pleasure in abstruse Buddhist discussion. His study held almost nothing—only a tea kettle, a medicine mortar, a sutra desk, and a rope bed. After leaving court he would burn incense and sit alone, devoting himself to meditation and chanting. After his wife died he never remarried. For thirty years he lived alone in a single room, shutting out worldly cares. He died in the seventh month of 759. On his deathbed, learning that Wang Jin was at Fengxiang, he suddenly asked for a brush and wrote a farewell letter to him. He also wrote several parting letters to lifelong friends, mostly urging them to devote themselves to Buddhism and spiritual cultivation, then set down the brush and died. During the reign of Emperor Daizong, Wang Jin served as chief minister. Daizong loved literature and often said to him, "Your elder brother's poetry was the finest of his age during the Tianbao reign. I once heard his compositions performed before the princes. How much of his collected writings survives? You may submit it to me." Wang Jin replied, "My brother wrote more than a hundred poems during the Kaiyuan reign, but after the Tianbao upheavals fewer than one in ten survived. Recently, by gathering what we could from relatives and friends inside and outside court, we recovered more than four hundred pieces." The next day he submitted the collection, and the emperor responded with a gracious edict of praise and reward. Wang Jin has his own biography elsewhere. Li Bai, whose courtesy name was Taibai, came from Shandong. From youth he possessed exceptional talent, a bold and expansive spirit, and an air of one who meant to rise above the world. His father served as district magistrate of Rencheng, and the family made its home there. In his youth, together with the scholars of Lu—Kong Chaofu, Han Mian, Pei Zheng, Zhang Shuming, Tao Mian, and others—he withdrew to Mount Culaishan, singing freely and drinking without restraint. At the time they were known as "the Six Recluses of Bamboo Creek" At the beginning of the Tianbao reign he traveled as a guest to Kuaiji and lived in seclusion in Shan with the Daoist Wu Yun. Before long Emperor Xuanzong summoned Wu Yun to the capital. Yun recommended Li Bai at court, and the emperor sent envoys to summon him. Li Bai and Wu Yun both served as Hanlin academicians awaiting imperial edicts. Li Bai was devoted to wine and spent his days drinking himself drunk with companions in taverns. When Emperor Xuanzong composed a tune and wanted new Music Bureau lyrics written for it, he urgently summoned Li Bai—but Li Bai was already asleep in a tavern. When he was brought in, attendants splashed water on his face and immediately told him to write. In a short time he produced more than ten pieces, and the emperor was greatly pleased. Once, while drunk in the palace hall, he stretched out his foot and ordered Gao Lishi to pull off his boots. For this he was sent away from court. Thereafter he wandered the country, drinking without restraint day after day. At that time the attendant censor Cui Zongzhi had been demoted to a post at Jinling, and he exchanged poems and wine with Li Bai. Once, on a moonlit night, he took a boat from Caishi to Jinling dressed in white palace brocade robes, looking about the boat with a proud, laughing air as though no one else were present. When He Zhizhang first met Li Bai, he praised him and said, "This is an immortal banished from heaven." During the An Lushan rebellion, Emperor Xuanzong fled to Shu. En route he appointed Prince Yong (Li Lin) commander of the Jiang-Huai armies and military commissioner of Yangzhou. Li Bai went to Xuanzhou to pay his respects and was recruited as an aide on Prince Yong's staff. When Prince Yong plotted rebellion and his forces were defeated, Li Bai was sentenced to long-term exile in Ye Lang. He later received an amnesty and was able to return, but in the end he drank himself to death at Xuancheng. His collected writings in twenty scrolls circulated widely in his day. Du Fu, whose courtesy name was Zimei, was originally from Xiangyang and later moved to Gong county in Henan. His great-grandfather Du Yiyi served to the end of his career as magistrate of Gong. His grandfather Du Shenyan served to the end of his career as assistant director in the Ministry of Rites; he has his own biography elsewhere. His father Du Xian ended his career as magistrate of Fengtian. At the beginning of the Tianbao reign Du Fu took the jinshi examination but failed. Near the end of the Tianbao reign he submitted the Three Great Rites Fu. Emperor Xuanzong was impressed, summoned him for a literary examination, and appointed him military staff officer of the capital prefecture. In 755 An Lushan took the capital. Emperor Suzong mustered troops at Lingwu. Du Fu slipped away from the capital by night, made his way west of the river to see Suzong, and at Pengyuan was appointed remonstrance officer of the right. Fang Guan had been friendly with Du Fu when they were commoners. Now Fang was chief minister and asked to lead an army himself against the rebels; the emperor agreed. That October Fang Guan's army was defeated at Chentao Slope. The following spring Fang Guan was dismissed as chief minister. Du Fu memorialized the throne that Fang had talent and ought not be removed. Suzong was angered, demoted Fang Guan to provincial governor, and sent Du Fu out as secretary in Huazhou. The capital region was then in turmoil and grain prices soared. Du Fu lived in Tonggu county, Chengzhou, carrying firewood and gathering wild grains on his back; several of his children starved to death. After some time he was recalled and appointed secretary of the capital prefecture. In the winter of 762 Yan Wu, vice censor of the yellow gate and duke of Zheng, held Chengdu. He memorialized that Du Fu be made staff planning officer and acting vice minister of works, and Du Fu was granted the purple robe and fish insignia. Yan Wu and Du Fu were old family friends, and Yan Wu treated him with great generosity. Du Fu was narrow-minded, quick-tempered, and lacking in forbearance; trusting in favor he grew reckless. Once, drunk, he climbed onto Yan Wu's couch, stared at him, and said: "So Yan Tingzhi had a son like this!" Though Yan Wu was hot-tempered and rough, he did not take it amiss. At Huanhua Lane in Chengdu Du Fu planted bamboo and trees and built a hut beside the river, drinking freely and chanting poetry, mingling freely with farmers and rustics without restraint. When Yan Wu visited, he sometimes received him bareheaded—so insolently unrestrained was he. In the summer of 765 Yan Wu died, and Du Fu was left without support. When Guo Yingyi replaced Yan Wu at Chengdu, Yingyi was a rough soldier and brutal; Du Fu could not manage the formal courtesies and so traveled east in Shu to rely on Gao Shi. He had scarcely arrived when Gao Shi died. That year Cui Ning killed Guo Yingyi, Yang Zilin attacked western Sichuan, and Shu fell into great disorder. Du Fu took his family to flee the turmoil into Jing and Chu, boarded a small boat to descend the gorges, and before he could moor, Jiangling erupted in disorder. He then went upstream along the Xiang, visited Mount Heng, and settled at Leiyang. Du Fu once visited the temple on Mount Heng and was cut off by sudden floodwaters; for ten days he had nothing to eat. The magistrate of Leiyang, surnamed Nie, learned of this and himself rowed out to bring Du Fu back. In 766, after eating beef and drinking white liquor, he died one night at Leiyang, aged fifty-nine. His son Zongwu, adrift in Hunan and the Xiang region, also died. During the Yuanhe era Zongwu's son Siye moved Du Fu's coffin from Leiyang and had it reburied at the foot of Mount Shouyang, northwest of Yanshi county. Among poets at the end of Tianbao, Du Fu was as renowned as Li Bai. But Li Bai, confident in his free and unrestrained literary style, mocked Du Fu as cramped and petty, giving rise to the jibe about Fanke Mountain. In the Yuanhe era the writer Yuan Zhen discussed the relative merits of Li Bai and Du Fu, saying: "When I read poetry and reach Du Zimei, I understand that great and small each have their summation." From the age of Yao and Shun, rulers and ministers answered one another in successive songs. Thereafter poets continued to write. Over more than a thousand years from Xia, Yin, and Zhou, Confucius gathered and sifted them, keeping three hundred that most served moral instruction; of the rest nothing survives. When Sao-style writers appeared, resentful and indignant tones multiplied, yet they were still not far from the Feng and Ya in time and could still be measured against them. From Qin and Han onward the office for collecting poems was abolished, and throughout the realm demon songs, folk airs, hymns of praise, satirical rhapsodies, and lyrics for tunes and playful verses also appeared from time to time. When Emperor Wu of Han composed the Cypress Beam rhapsody, the seven-character form was fully established. Su Ziqing, Li Shaoqing, and men like them were especially adept at five-character verse. Though their phrasing and metrical rules differed and refined and popular tones were mingled, their language was plain and far-reaching, naming events and expressing feeling; unless writing with purpose, they did not compose at random. After the Jian'an period scholars throughout the realm suffered warfare. The Cao father and son wrote between saddle and horse, often brandishing spears while composing poetry; hence their forceful, surging works of grievance, sorrow, and parting rank among the greatest of antiquity. In the Jin dynasty something of that spirit still remained. Between Song and Qi instruction lost its foundation; scholars came to esteem simplicity, negligence, and leisurely ease. Literature prized graceful bearing, sensuous polish, freedom, and refined clarity—writing that merely voiced one's inner nature and lingered over passing scenery, with nothing to commend in meaning, force, or stature. Decline continued into Liang and Chen, where voluptuous ornament and frivolously clever, finely fragmented lyrics greatly multiplied—what even Song and Qi had rejected. When the Tang rose, official learning flourished greatly, and in successive reigns capable writers appeared in turn. Then the likes of Shen Quanqi and Song Zhiwen refined their craft with precision, smoothing and ordering sound and rhythm—what came to be called regulated verse. From this point onward literary forms changed to their fullest extent. Yet those who favored antiquity neglected the recent; those who pursued ornament abandoned substance. In imitating Qi and Liang they fell short of Wei and Jin; skilled in yuefu they exhausted their strength in five-character verse; with metrical precision skeletal structure was lost; with leisurely ease dense richness was incomplete. As for Zimei, he may be said to reach up to the Feng and Sao, encompass Shen and Song below, in wording surpass Su and Li, in spirit swallow Cao and Liu, overshadow the solitary loftiness of Yan and Xie, blend the flowing elegance of Xu and Yu, fully command the formal resources of ancient and modern, and combine what each poet had exclusively mastered. If Confucius were to examine and refine his essential meaning, would he not still value how much he encompasses! If one holds that he could do what others could not and was bound by nothing yet could do everything, then since poets began there has never been anyone like Zimei. At that time Li Bai of Shandong was also celebrated for his literary strangeness, and people of the time spoke of Li and Du. I observe that in his bold, unrestrained freedom, casting off constraint, depicting objects and scenes, and in his yuefu songs and ballads, he indeed stands nearly shoulder to shoulder with Zimei. But when it comes to laying out beginning and end, arranging parallel sound and rhyme—at greatest a thousand words, at minimum still several hundred—with diction heroic and expansive yet tonal atmosphere clear and deep, with parallel structure and metrical precision while casting off the commonplace—Li Bai cannot yet even pass through his outer gate, how much less enter the inner hall! I once wished to itemize and analyze his writings, classify them by form and attach them accordingly, and set a standard for those who come after, but in the end laziness kept me from completing it. Thereafter writers took Yuan Zhen's judgment as authoritative. Du Fu's collected writings ran to sixty juan.
4
吳通玄,海州人。 父道瓘為道士,善教誘童孺,大曆中,召入宮,為太子諸王授經。 德宗在東宮,師道瓘,而通玄兄弟,出入宮掖,恆侍太子遊,故遇之厚。 通玄與兄通微,俱博學善屬文,文彩綺麗。 通玄幼應神童舉,釋褐祕書正字、左驍衞兵曹、大理評事。 建中初,策賢良方正等科,通玄應文詞清麗,登乙第,授同州司戶、京兆戶曹。
Wu Tongxuan came from Haizhou. His father Daojian was a Daoist priest skilled at teaching children. In the Dali reign he was summoned to court to instruct the crown prince and the imperial princes in the classics. When Dezong was still crown prince he studied under Daojian. The Tongxuan brothers moved freely within the inner palace and constantly attended the prince in his pastimes, and for this they won exceptional favor. Tongxuan and his elder brother Tongwei were both learned and skilled at literary composition, their style rich and ornate. In youth Tongxuan passed the Child Prodigy examination. His first offices were Regular Scribe in the Secretariat, clerk in the Left Courageous Guards, and reviewer in the Court of Judicial Review. Early in the Jianzhong reign, at the examination for worthies and upright men, Tongxuan entered the category for elegant literary phrasing, placed in the second tier, and was appointed registrar of Tong prefecture and household registrar of the capital district.
5
貞元初,召充翰林學士。 遷起居舍人、知制誥,與陸贄、吉中孚、韋執誼等同視草。 陸贄富詞藻,特承德宗重顧,經歷艱難,通玄弟兄又以東宮侍上,由是爭寵,頗相嫌恨。 贄性褊急,屢於上前短通玄,又言:「承平時工藝書畫之徒,待詔翰林,比無學士,只自至德後,天子召集賢學士于禁中草書詔,因在翰林院待進止,遂以為名。 奔播之時,道途或豫除改,權令草制。 今四方無事,百揆時序,制書職分,宜歸中書舍人。 學士之名,理須停寢。」 贄以通玄援引朋黨,於禁中叶力排己,故欲廢之,德宗不許。 會贄權知兵部侍郎,知貢舉,乃正拜之,罷內職,皆通玄譖之也。
Early in the Zhenyuan reign he was summoned to serve as a Hanlin academician. He was promoted to diarist-attendant and drafter of edicts, and together with Lu Zhi, Ji Zhongfu, Wei Zhiyi, and others shared the duty of drafting imperial documents. Lu Zhi was richly gifted in language and enjoyed Dezong's special trust because he had shared the hardships of exile. The Tongxuan brothers had likewise attended the emperor when he was crown prince. The two sides therefore competed for favor and came to resent one another deeply. Zhi was narrow and quick-tempered by nature. He repeatedly denounced Tongxuan before the throne and argued: "In peaceful times craftsmen, painters, and calligraphers merely waited on the emperor in the Hanlin. There were no 'academicians' as such. Only after the Zhide era did the Son of Heaven gather worthy scholars within the palace to draft edicts in draft script. Because they waited in the Hanlin Academy for orders, the title came into use. In times of flight and disorder appointments were sometimes made on the road in advance, and drafting was entrusted to them only as an expedient. Now the realm is at peace and every ministry is in its proper course. The duty of drafting edicts should return to the Secretariat drafters. The title of Hanlin academician ought by rights to be abolished." Zhi believed Tongxuan had brought in a faction of allies and was working within the palace to exclude him, and for that reason he wished to abolish the Hanlin Academy. Dezong would not allow it. When Zhi was placed in charge of the Ministry of Personnel and conducted the civil service examinations, he received a formal appointment and was removed from inner-court duties — all because Tongxuan had slandered him.
6
七年,自起居郎拜諫議大夫、知制誥。 通玄自以久次當拜中書舍人,而反除諫議,殊失望。 陸贄與宰相竇參相惡。 參從子給事中申,參尤寵之,每預中書擬議,所至人呼申為「喜鵲」。 申,嗣虢王則之從父甥也。 申與則之親善。 則之為金吾將軍,好學有文,申與則之潛結吳通玄兄弟,為參共傾陸贄。 則之令人造謗書,言贄考試舉人不實,招納賄賂。 時通玄取宗室女為外婦,德宗知之。 既聞申、則之譖陸贄,綱紀伺之,果與通玄結構其謀,帝大怒,罷竇參知政事,尋貶郴州司馬,竇申錦州司戶,李則之昭州司馬,通玄泉州司馬。 帝召見之,親自臨問,責以污辱近屬。 行至華州長城驛,賜死。 尋以陸贄為中書侍郎、平章事,代竇參。
In the seventh year he was promoted from diarist to Remonstrator and Drafter of Edicts. Tongxuan had expected that after long seniority he would be appointed Secretariat Drafter, but was made Remonstrator instead and was deeply disappointed. Lu Zhi and the chief minister Dou Can were bitter enemies. Can's nephew by marriage, Attendant-in-waiting Shen, was especially favored by Can and took part in every Secretariat deliberation. Wherever he appeared people called him "the Magpie." Shen was a paternal cousin of Li Zezhi, heir to the princedom of Guo. Shen and Zezhi were close friends. Zezhi was a general of the Imperial Guards, fond of learning and skilled in letters. Shen and Zezhi secretly joined the Wu Tongxuan brothers in a plot to bring down Lu Zhi on Dou Can's behalf. Zezhi had someone compose a libelous letter accusing Zhi of conducting the examinations dishonestly and accepting bribes. At the time Tongxuan had taken an imperial clanswoman as an illicit consort, and Dezong already knew of it. When the emperor learned that Shen and Zezhi had slandered Lu Zhi, investigators watched them and confirmed that they had plotted with Tongxuan. The emperor was enraged. He removed Dou Can from the chief ministership and soon demoted Can to secretary at Chen, Shen to registrar at Jin, Li Zezhi to secretary at Zhao, and Tongxuan to secretary at Quan. The emperor summoned Tongxuan for a personal audience, questioned him himself, and rebuked him for dishonoring the imperial clan. When he reached Great Wall Post in Huazhou, he was ordered to take his own life. Soon afterward Lu Zhi was appointed vice director of the Secretariat and Grand Councilor in Dou Can's place.
7
通微,建中四年自壽安縣令入為金部員外,召充翰林學士。 尋改職方郎中,知制誥。 與弟通玄同職禁署,人士榮之。 七年,改禮部郎中,尋轉中書舍人。 通玄死,素服待罪於國門,帝特宥之,通微竟不敢為喪服。
Tongwei, in the fourth year of Jianzhong, rose from magistrate of Shou'an to outer-court director in the Ministry of Revenue and was then summoned as Hanlin academician. Soon he was transferred to director in the Ministry of Personnel and drafter of edicts. He served in the same forbidden secretariat as his younger brother Tongxuan, to the envy of the scholarly world. In the seventh year he was made director in the Ministry of Rites and soon afterward promoted to Secretariat Drafter. When Tongxuan died, Tongwei appeared at the capital gate in plain robes to await punishment. The emperor specially pardoned him, yet Tongwei still did not dare observe mourning for his brother.
8
通玄詞藻婉麗,帝尤憐之。 貞元初,昭德王皇后崩,詔李紓為諡冊文,宰相張延賞、柳渾為廟樂章。 及進,皆不稱旨,並召通玄重撰。 凡中旨撰述,非通玄之筆,無不慊然,重之如此。
Tongxuan's diction was graceful and elegant, and the emperor favored him above all others. Early in the Zhenyuan reign Empress Zhaode died. The court ordered Li Shu to draft her posthumous title and eulogy, and the chief ministers Zhang Yanshang and Liu Hun to compose the temple hymns. When the drafts were submitted none satisfied the throne, and Tongxuan alone was summoned to rewrite them. For every important drafting assignment from the throne, if the text was not Tongxuan's the emperor was never content — such was the regard in which he was held.
9
王仲舒字弘中,太原人。 少孤貧,事母以孝聞。 嗜學工文,不就鄉舉。 凡與結交,必知名之士,與楊頊、梁肅、裴樞為忘形之契。
Wang Zhongshu, whose courtesy name was Hongzhong, came from Taiyuan. Orphaned while young and poor, he became known for filial devotion to his mother. He loved learning and excelled at letters, but refused to sit for the provincial examination. He would befriend only men of established reputation. With Yang Xian, Liang Su, and Pei Shu he formed friendships without reserve.
10
貞元十年,策試賢良方正能直言極諫等科,仲舒登乙第,超拜右拾遺。 裴延齡領度支,矯誕大言,中傷良善,仲舒上疏極論之。 累轉尚書郎。 元和五年,自職方郎中知制誥。 仲舒文思溫雅,制誥所出,人皆傳寫。 京兆尹楊憑為中丞李夷簡所劾,貶臨賀尉。 仲舒與憑善,宣言於朝,言夷簡掎摭憑罪,仲舒坐貶硤州刺史。 遷蘇州。
In 794, at the examination for worthies and upright men able to speak frankly and remonstrate boldly, Zhongshu placed in the second tier and was promoted directly to Right Remonstrator. Pei Yanling headed the Revenue Commission. With boastful falsehoods he slandered the worthy, and Zhongshu submitted a memorial denouncing him at length. He rose in succession through director posts in the central ministries. In 810 he advanced from director in the Ministry of Personnel to Drafter of Edicts. Zhongshu wrote with a warm, elegant mind, and every edict that left his desk was copied and circulated. The capital intendant Yang Ping was impeached by the censor-in-chief Li Yijian and demoted to district defender of Linhe. Zhongshu was on friendly terms with Ping and declared openly at court that Yijian had manufactured charges against him. For this Zhongshu was demoted to prefect of Xia. He was later transferred to Suzhou.
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穆宗即位,復召為中書舍人。 其年出為洪州刺史、御史中丞、江南西道觀察使。 江西前例榷酒私釀法深,仲舒至鎮,奏罷之。 又出官錢二萬貫,代貧戶輸稅。 長慶三年冬,卒于鎮。 崔咸。 字重易。 博陵人、祖安石。 父鋭,位終給事中。 咸元和二年進士擢第,又登博學宏詞科。 鄭餘慶、李夷簡辟為賔佐,待如師友。 及登朝,歴踐臺閣,獨行守正,時望甚重。 敬宗欲幸東都,人心不安,裴度以勲舊自興元隨表入覲,既至,李逢吉不欲度復入中書,京兆尹劉栖楚,逢吉黨也,栖楚等十餘人駕肩排度,而朝士持兩端者日擁度門,一日,度留客命酒,栖楚矯求度之歡曲,躬附裴耳而語,咸嫉其矯,舉爵罰度曰:丞相不當許所由官呫囁耳語! 度笑而飲之,栖楚不自安趨出,坐客皆壮之。 累遷陜州大都督府長史,陜虢觀察等使,自旦至暮,與賔僚痛飲,恒醉不醒,簿領堆積,夜分省覽,剖判決斷,無毫釐之差,胥吏以為神人。 入為右散騎常侍、秘書監,太和八年十月卒初,鋭佐李抱真為澤潞從事,有道人自稱盧老,曽事隋朝雲際寺李先生,預知過往未來之事,屬河朔禁遊客,鋭館之於家,一旦辭去且曰:我死當與君為子。 因指口下黒子,願以為志。 咸之生也,果有黒子,其形神即盧老也,父即以盧老字之。 既冠,棲心髙尚,志於林壑,往往獨遊南山,經時方還。 尤長於歌詩,或風景晴明,花朝月夕,朗吟意愜,必悽愴霑襟,㫖趣高奇,名流嗟挹,有文集二十卷。 唐次,并州晉陽人也,國初功臣禮部尚書儉之後。 建中初進士擢第,累辟使府。 貞元初,歷侍御史,竇參深重之,轉禮部員外郎。 八年,參貶官,次坐出為開州刺史。 在巴峽間十餘年,不獲進用。 西川節度使韋臯抗表請為副使,德宗密諭臯令罷之。 次久滯蠻荒,孤心抑鬱,怨謗所積,孰與申明,乃採自古忠臣賢士,遭罹讒謗放逐,遂至殺身,而君猶不悟,其書三篇,謂之辨謗略,上之。 德宗省之,猶怒,謂左右曰:「唐次乃方吾為古之昏主,何自諭如此!」 改夔州刺史。 憲宗即位,與李吉甫同自峽內召還,授次禮部郎中。 尋以本官知制誥,正拜中書舍人,卒。 章武皇帝明哲嫉惡,尤惡人朋比傾陷,嘗閱書禁中,得次所上書三篇,覽而善之,謂學士沈傳師曰:「唐次所集辨謗之書,實君人者時宜觀覽。 朕思古書中多有此事,次編錄未盡。 卿家傳史學,可與學士類例廣之。」 傳師奉詔與令狐楚、杜元穎等分功脩續,廣為十卷,號元和辨謗略,其序曰:臣聞乾坤定而上下分矣,至於播四時之候,遂萬物之宜,在驗乎妖、祥之二氣,祥氣降則為豐為茂,妖氣降則為沴為災。 君臣立而卑高隔矣,至於處神明之奧,詢獻納之辭,在審乎邪、正之二說,正言勝則為忠為讜,邪言勝則為讒為諛。 故詩云:「萋兮斐兮,成是貝錦。」 刺其組織之甚巧也。 語曰:「邪徑敗良田,讒口亂善人。」 惡其莠言之蠹政也。 蓋謂似信而詐,似忠而非,便便可以動心,捷捷可以亂德,豈止鶗鳺彫卉,薏苡惑珠者哉! 況立國家,自中徂外,道偏則刑罰不中,讒勝則忠孝靡彰。 逖覽前聞,緬想近古,招賢容鯁,遠佞嫉邪,慮之則深,防之未至。 伏惟睿聖文武皇帝陛下,垂衣御宇,化洽文明,謨猷博訪於縉紳,旌賁屢臻於巖穴。 尚復廣四目,周四聦,制理皆在於未萌,作範將垂於不朽。 乃詔掌文之臣令狐楚等,上自周、漢,下洎隋朝,求史籍之忠賢,罹讒謗之事跡,敘瑕釁之本末,紀謠諑之淺深,編次指明,勒成十卷。 昔虞舜有堲讒之命,我皇脩辨謗之書,千古一心,同垂至理。 將俟法宮退日昃之政,別殿備乙夜之觀,則聖慮先辨,謗何由興,上天不言,而民自信矣。 憲宗優詔荅之。 次子扶、持。 扶,字雲翔。 元和五年進士登第進士登第,累佐使府。 入朝為監察御史,出為刺史。 大和初,入朝為屯田郎中。 五年,充山南道宣撫使,至鄧州,奏:「內鄉縣行市、黃澗兩場倉督鄧琬等,先主掌湖南、江西運到糙米,至淅川縣於荒野中囤貯,除支用外,六千九百四十五石,裛爛成灰塵。 度支牒徵元掌所由,自貞元二十年,鄧琬父子兄弟至玄孫,相承禁繫二十八年,前後禁死九人。 今琬孫及玄孫見在枷禁者。」 勑曰:「如聞鹽鐵、度支兩使,此類極多。 其鄧琬等四人,資產全已賣納,禁繫三代,瘐死獄中,實傷和氣。 鄧琬等並疏放。 天下州府監院如有此類,不得禁經三年已上。 速便疏理以聞。」 物議嘉扶有宣撫之才。 俄轉司勳郎中。 八年,充弘文館學士,判院事。 九年,轉職方郎中,權知中書舍人事。 開成初,正拜舍人,踰月,授福州刺史、御史中丞、福建團練觀察使。 四年十一月,卒于鎮。 扶佐幕立事,登朝有名,及廉問甌、閩,政事不治。 身歿之後,僕妾爭財,詣闕論訴,法司按劾,其家財十萬貫,歸於二妾。 又嘗枉殺部人,為其家所訴。 行己前後不類,時論非之。 持,字徳守。 元和十五年擢進士第,累辟諸侯府。 入朝為侍御史、尚書郎。 大中末,自工部郎中出為容州刺史、御史中丞、容管經略招討使。 入為給事中。 大中末,檢校左散騎常侍、靈州大都督府長史、朔方節度、靈武六城轉運等使。 進位檢校戶部尚書、潞州大都督府長史、昭義節度、澤潞邢洺磁觀察處置等使,卒。 子彦謙,字茂業。 咸通末應進士,才高負氣,無所屈降,十餘年不第。 乾符末,河南盜起,兩都覆沒,以其家避地漢南。 中和中,王重榮鎮河中,辟為從事。 累奏至河中節度副使,歷晉、絳二州刺史。 彥謙博學多藝,文詞壯麗,至於書畫音樂博飲之技,無不出於輩流。 尤能七言詩,少時師溫庭筠,故文格類之。 光啟末,王重榮為部下所害,朝議責參佐,彥謙與書記李巨川俱貶漢中掾曹。 時楊守亮鎮興元,素聞其名,彥謙以本府參承,守亮見之,喜握手曰:「聞尚書名久矣,邂逅於茲。」 翌日,署為判官。 累官至副使,閬、壁二郡刺史。 卒於漢中。 有詩數百篇,禮部侍郎薛廷珪為之序,號鹿門先生集,行於時。 子渙,位亦至郡守。 次弟歡、款、欣。 款貞元六年登進士第,累辟使府,登朝為御史,出為郡守,卒。 子枝。 枝字己有,會昌末,累遷刑部員外,轉郎中,累歷刺史,卒。 劉蕡,字去華,昌平人。 父勉。 蕡寳歴二年進士擢第。 博學善屬文,尤精左氏春秋。 與朋友交,好談王霸大畧,耿介嫉惡,言及世務,慨然有澄清之志。 自元和末,閽寺權盛,握兵宮闈,橫制天下,天子廢立,由其可否,干撓庶政。 當時目為南北司,愛惡相攻,有同水火。 蕡草澤中居常憤惋。 文宗即位,恭儉求理,太和二年策試賢良曰:朕聞古先哲王之理也,玄黙無為,端拱思道,陶民心以居簡,凝日用而不宰,厚下以立本,推誠而建中。 是天人通,隂陽和,俗躋仁壽,物無疵癘。 噫,盛徳之所臻,夐乎莫可及也。 三代令王,質文迭䆒,百偽滋熾,風流寖微,自漢而降,定徴蓋寡。 朕顧惟昧道,祗荷丕構,奉若謨訓,不敢怠荒。 任賢惕厲,宵衣旰食,詎追三五之遐軌,庻紹祖宗之鴻緒。 而心有所未逹,行有所未孚,由中及外,闕政斯廣。 是以人不率化,氣或堙厄,災旱竟歲,播植愆時。 國廪罕蓄,乏九年之儲; 吏道多端,微三載之績。 京師,諸夏之本也,将以觀理,而豪猾時踰檢; 太學,明教之源也,期於變風,而生徒多惰業。 列郡在乎頒條,而干禁或未絕; 百工在乎按度,而滛巧或未衰。 俗墮風靡,積訛成蠧。 其擇官濟理也,聽人以言,則枝葉難辨; 御下以法,則耻格不形。 其阜財發號也,生之寡而食之衆,煩於令而鮮於理。 思所以䆒此繆盭,致之治平,兹心浩然,若渉泉水。 故前詔有司,博延群彦,佇啓宿懵,冀臻時雍。 子大夫識逹古今,明於康濟,造廷待問,副朕虛懷。 必當箴主之闕,辨政之疵,明綱條之致紊,稽富庶之所急。 何施斯革於前弊,何澤斯惠乎下土,何脩而理古可近,何道而和氣克充,推之本源,著於條對。 至於夷吾輕重之權,孰輔於理; 嚴尤底定之䇿,孰叶於時; 元凱之考課何先; 叔子之克平何務。 推此龜鏡,擇乎中庸,期在洽聞,朕將親覽。 時對策者百餘人,所對止循常務,唯蕡切論黄門太横,将危宗社,對曰:臣誠不佞,有匡國致君之術,無位而不得行; 有犯顏敢諫之心,無路而不得進。 但懷憤鬱抑,思有時而一發耳。 常欲與庶人議於道,商旅謗於市,得通上聽,一悟主心,雖被妖言之罪,無所悔焉。 況逢陛下以至德嗣興,以大明垂照,詢求過闕,咨訪謨猷,制詔中外,舉直言極諫者。 臣旣辱斯舉,專承大問,敢不悉意以言。 至於上之所忌,時之所禁,權倖之所諱惡,有司之所與奪,臣愚不識。 伏惟陛下少加優容,不使聖朝有讜直而受戮者,乃天下之幸也。 謹昧死以對。 伏惟聖策,有思先古之理,念玄默之化,將欲通天人以齊俗,和陰陽以煦物,見陛下慕道之深也。 臣以為哲王之理,其則不遠,惟陛下致之之道何如爾。 伏惟聖策,有祗荷丕構而不敢荒寧,奉若謨訓而罔有怠忽,見陛下憂勞之志也。 若夫任賢惕厲,宵衣旰食,宜黜左右之纖佞,進股肱之大臣; 若夫追蹤三五,紹復祖宗,宜鑒前古之興亡,明當時之成敗。 心有所未達,以下情塞而不得上通; 行有所未孚,以上澤壅而不得下浹。 欲人之化也,在脩己以先之; 欲氣之和也,在遂性以導之。 救災患在致乎精誠,廣播植在視乎食力。 國廩罕蓄,本乎冗食尚繁; 吏道多端,本乎選用失當。 豪猾踰制,由中外之法殊; 生徒墮業,由學校之官廢。 列郡干禁,由授任非人; 百工淫巧,由制度不立。 伏以聖策,有擇官濟理之心,阜財發號之歎,見陛下教化之本也。 且進人以行,則枝葉安有難別乎? 防下以禮,則耻格安有不形乎? 念生寡而食衆,可罷斥惰游; 念令煩而理鮮,要察其行否。 博延群彥,願陛下必納其言; 造廷待問,則小臣安敢愛死。 伏以聖策,有求賢箴闕之言,審政辨疵之念,見陛下咨訪之勤也。 遂小臣屏姦豪之志,則弊革於前; 守陛下念康濟之心,則惠敷於下。 邪正之道分,則理古可近; 禮樂之方著,而和氣克充。 至若夷吾之法,非皇王之權; 嚴尤所陳,無最上之策。 元凱之所先,不若唐、虞之考績; 叔子之所務,不若重華之舞干。 且俱非大德之中庸,未為上聖之龜鑑,何足以為陛下道之哉! 或有以繫安危之機,兆存亡之變者,臣請披瀝肝膽,為陛下別白而重言之。 臣前所謂「哲王之理,其則不遠」者,在陛下慎思之,力行之,終始不懈而已。 臣謹按春秋:「元者,氣之始也; 春者,歲之始也。」 春秋以元加於歲,以春加於王,明王者當奉若天道,以謹其始也。 又舉時以終歲,舉月以終時,春秋雖無事,必書首月以存時,明王者當奉若天道,以謹其終也。 王者動作終始必法於天者,以其運行不息也。 陛下旣能謹其始,又能謹其終,懋而脩之,勤而行之,則可以執契而居簡,無為而不宰,廣立本之大業,崇建中之盛德矣。 又安有三代循環之弊,而為百偽滋熾之漸乎? 臣故曰「惟陛下致之之道何如耳」。 臣前所謂「若夫任賢惕厲,宵衣旰食,宜罷黜左右之纖佞,進股肱之大臣」者,實以陛下憂勞之至也。 臣聞不宜憂而憂者,國必衰; 宜憂而不憂者,國必危。 今陛下不以國家存亡之事、社稷安危之策,而降於清問。 臣未知陛下以布衣之臣不足以定大計耶? 或萬機之勤,而聖慮有所未至耶? 不然,何宜憂而不憂者乎? 臣以為陛下宜先憂者,宮闈將變,社稷將危,天下將傾,海內將亂。 此四者,國家已然之兆,故臣謂聖慮宜先及之。 夫帝業旣艱難而成之,故不可容易而守之。 昔太祖肇其基,高祖勤其績,太宗定其業,玄宗繼其明,至于陛下,二百有餘載矣。 其間明聖相因,憂亂繼作,未有不委用賢士,親近正人,而能紹興其徽烈者也。 或一日不念,則顛覆大器,宗廟之耻,萬古為恨。 臣謹按春秋,人君之道在體元以居正,昔董仲舒為漢武帝言之略矣。 其所未盡者,臣得為陛下備而論之。 夫繼故必書即位,所以正其始也; 終必書所終之地,所以正其終也。 故為君者,所發必正言,所履必正道,所居必正位,所近必正人。 臣又按春秋「閽弒吳子餘祭」,不書其君。 春秋譏其疏遠賢士,昵近刑人,有不君之道矣。 伏惟陛下思祖宗開國之勤,念春秋繼故之誡。 將明法度之端,則發正言而履正道; 將杜篡弒之漸,則居正位而近正人。 遠刀鋸之賤,親骨鯁之直,輔相得以專其任,庶職得以守其官。 奈何以褻近五六人,總天下大政,外專陛下之命,內竊陛下之權,威懾朝廷,勢傾海內,群臣莫敢指其狀,天子不得制其心。 禍稔蕭牆,姦生帷幄,臣恐曹節、侯覽,復生於今日,此宮闈之所以將變也。 臣謹按春秋,魯定公元年春王不言正月者,春秋以其先君不得正其終,則後君不得正其始,故曰定無正也。 今忠賢無腹心之奇,閽寺持廢立之權,陷先君不得正其終,致陛下不得正其始。 況皇儲未建,郊祀未脩,將相之職不歸,名分之宜不定,此社稷之所以將危也。 臣謹按春秋「王札子殺召伯、毛伯」。 春秋之義,兩下相殺不書。 而此書者,重其專王命也。 且天之所授者在君,君之所授者在命。 操其命而失之者,是不君也; 侵其命而專之者,是不臣也。 君不君,臣不臣,此天下所以將傾也。 臣謹按春秋,晉趙鞅以晉陽之兵叛入于晉。 今威柄凌夷,藩臣跋扈。 或有不達人臣之節,首亂者以安君為名; 不究春秋之微,稱兵者以逐惡為義。 則政刑不由乎天子,攻伐必自於諸侯,此海內之所以將亂也。 又樊噲排闥而雪涕,爰盎當車以抗詞,京房發憤以殞身,竇武不顧而畢命,此皆陛下明知之矣。 臣謹按春秋,晉狐射姑殺陽處父。 襄公不能固陰重之機,處父所以及戕賊之禍,故春秋非之。 夫上漏其情,則下不敢盡意; 上泄其事,則下不敢盡言。 傳有「造膝」「詭辭」之文,易有「殺身」「害成」之戒。 今公卿大臣,非不能為陛下言之,慮陛下必不能用之。 陛下旣忽之而不用,必洩其言; 臣下旣言之而不行,必嬰其禍。 適足以鉗直臣之口,重奸臣之威。 是以欲盡其言,則起失身之懼; 欲盡其意,則有害成之憂。 故徘徊鬱塞,以俟陛下感悟,然後盡其啟沃耳。 陛下何不以聽朝之餘,時御便殿,召當時賢相與舊德老臣,訪持變扶危之謀,求定傾救亂之術。 塞陰邪之路,屏褻狎之臣,制侵凌迫脅之心,復門戶掃除之役,戒其所宜戒,憂其所宜憂。 旣不能治於前,當治於後; 旣不能正其始,當正其終。 則可以虔奉典謨,克承丕構,終任賢之効,無旰食之憂矣。 臣前所謂「若夫追蹤三五,紹復祖宗,宜鑒前古之興亡,明當時之成敗」者。 臣聞堯、舜之為君而天下之人理者,以其能任九官四嶽十二牧,不失其舉,不貳其業,不侵其職。 居官惟其能,左右惟其賢。 元凱在下,雖微必舉; 四凶在朝,雖強必誅。 考其安危,明其取捨。 至秦之二代,漢之元、成,咸欲措國如唐、虞,致身如堯、舜,而終敗亡者,以其不見安危之機,不知取捨之道,不任大臣,不辨姦人,不親忠良,不遠讒佞。 伏惟陛下察唐、虞之所以興,而景行於前; 鑒秦、漢之所以亡,而戒懼於後。 陛下無謂廟堂無賢相,庶官無賢士。 今紀綱未絕,典刑猶在,人誰不欲致身為王臣,致時為太平,陛下何忽而不用之耶? 又有居官非其能,左右非其賢,其惡如四凶,其詐如趙高,其姦如恭、顯,陛下又何憚而不去之耶? 神器固有歸,天命固有分,祖廟固有靈,忠臣固有心,陛下其念之哉! 昔秦之亡也,失於強暴; 漢之亡也,失於微弱。 強暴則賊臣畏死而害上,微弱則姦臣竊權而震主。 伏見敬宗皇帝不虞亡秦之禍,不翦其萌; 伏惟陛下深軫亡漢之憂,以杜其漸。 則祖宗之鴻業可紹,三五之遐軌可追矣。 臣前所謂「陛下心有所未達,以下情塞而不能上通; 行有所未孚,以上澤壅而不得下浹」者。 且百姓塗炭之苦,陛下無由而知; 則陛下有子育之心,百姓無由而信。 臣謹按春秋書「梁亡」,不書取者,梁自亡也,以其思慮昏而耳目塞,上出惡政,人為寇盜,皆不知其所以然,以自取其滅亡也。 臣聞國君之所以尊者,重其社稷也; 社稷之所以重者,存其百姓也。 苟百姓之不存,則社稷不得固其重; 苟社稷之不重,則國君不得保其尊。 故治天下不可不知百姓之情。 夫百姓者,陛下之赤子也。 陛下宜令仁慈者親育之,如保傅焉,如乳哺焉,如師之教導焉。 故人信於上也,敬之如神明,愛之如父母。 今或不然。 陛下親近貴倖,分曹補署,建除卒吏,召致賔客,因其貨賄,假其氣勢。 大者統藩方,小者為牧守。 居上無清惠之政。 而有饕餮之害; 居下無忠誠之節,而有姦欺之罪。 故人之於上也,畏之如豺狼,惡之如讎敵。 今海內困窮,處處流散,饑者不得食,寒者不得衣,鰥寡孤獨者不得存,老幼疾病者不得養。 加以國之權柄,專在左右,貪臣聚斂以固寵,姦吏因緣而弄法。 冤痛之聲,上達于九天,下流於九泉,鬼神怨怒,陰陽為之愆錯。 君門萬里而不得告訴,士人無所歸化,百姓無所歸命。 官亂人貧,盜賊並起,土崩之勢,憂在旦夕。 即不幸因之以疾癘,繼之以凶荒,臣恐陳勝、吳廣不獨起於秦,赤眉、黃巾不獨起於漢,故臣所以為陛下發憤扼腕,痛心泣血爾。 如此則百姓有塗炭之苦,陛下何由而知之; 陛下有子育之心,百姓安得而信之乎? 致使陛下「行有所未孚,必有所未達」者,固其然也。 臣聞昔漢元帝即位之初,更制七十餘事,其心甚誠,其稱甚美。 然而紀綱日紊,國祚日衰,姦宄日強,黎元日困者,以其不能擇賢明而任之,失其操柄也。 即陛下御宇,憂勤兆庶,屢降德音,四海之內,莫不抗首而長思,自喜復生於死亡之中也。 伏惟陛下慎終如始,以塞萬方之望。 誠能揭國權以歸其相,持兵柄以歸其將,去貪臣聚斂之政,除姦吏因緣之害,惟忠賢是近,惟正直是用,內寵便僻,無所聽焉。 選清慎之官,擇仁惠之長,敏之以利,煦之以仁,教之以孝慈,導之以德義,去耳目之塞,通上下之情,俾萬國歡康,兆民蘇息,則心無不達,行無不孚矣。 臣前所謂「欲兆人之化也,在脩己以先之」者。 臣聞德以脩己,教以導人,脩之也則人不勸而自至,導之也則人敦行而率從。 是以君子欲政之必行也,故以身先之; 欲人之從化也,故以道御之。 今陛下先之以身而政未必行,御之以道而人未從化,豈不以立教之旨未盡其方也。 夫立教之方,在乎君以明制之,臣以忠行之,君以知人為明,臣以匡時為忠,知人則任賢而去邪,匡時則固本而守法。 賢不任則重賞不足以勸善,邪不去則嚴刑不足以禁非,本不固則民流,法不守則政散,而欲教之使必至,化之使必行,不可得也。 陛下能斥姦邪不私其左右,舉賢正不遺其疏遠,則化浹於朝廷矣; 愛人以敦本,分職而奉法,脩其身以及其人,始於中而成於外,則化行於天下矣。 臣前所謂「欲氣之和也,在於遂性以導之」者,當納人於仁壽也。 夫欲人之仁壽也,在乎立制度,脩教化。 夫制度立則財用省,財用省則賦斂輕,賦斂輕則人富矣; 教化脩則爭競息,爭競息則刑罰清,刑罰清則人安矣。 旣富矣,則仁義興焉; 旣安矣,則壽考至焉。 仁壽之心感於下,和平之氣應於上,故災害不作,休祥荐臻,四方底寧,萬物咸遂矣。 臣前所謂「救災旱在致乎精誠」者。 臣謹按春秋,魯僖公七月之中,三書不雨者,以其君有恤人之志也; 魯文公三年之中,一書不雨者,以其君無憫人之心也。 故僖公致精誠而旱不害物,文公無卹憫而旱則成災。 陛下誠能有卹人之心,則無成災之變矣。 臣前所謂「廣播植在視乎食力」者。 臣謹按春秋:「君人者,必時視人之所勤。 人勤於力,則功築罕; 人勤於財,則貢賦少; 人勤於食,則百事廢。」 今財食與人力皆勤矣,願陛下廢百事之勞,廣三時之務,則播植不愆矣。 臣前所謂「國廩罕蓄,本乎冗食尚繁」者。 臣謹按春秋「臧孫辰告糴于齊」,春秋譏其國無九年之蓄,一年不登而百姓饑。 臣願斥游惰之人以篤其耕植,省不急之費以贍其黎元,則廩蓄不乏矣。 臣前所謂「吏道多端,本乎選用失當」者,由國家取人不盡其才,任人不明其要故也。 今陛下之用人也,求其聲而不得其實; 故人之趨進也,務其末而不務其本。 臣願覈考課之實,定遷序之制,則多端之吏息矣。 臣前所謂「豪猾踰檢,由中外之法殊」者,以其官禁不一也。 臣謹按春秋,齊桓公盟諸侯不以日,而葵丘之盟特以日者,美其能宣明天子之禁,率奉王官之法,故春秋備而書之。 夫官者,五帝、三王之所建也; 法者,高祖、太宗之所制也。 法宜畫一,官宜正名。 今又分外官、中官之員,立南司、北司之局,或犯禁於南,則亡命于北,或正刑于外,則破律於中,法出多門,人無所措,實由兵農勢異,而中外法殊也。 臣聞古者因井田而制軍賦,間農事以脩武備,提封約卒乘之數,命將在公卿之列,故兵農一致而文武同方,可以保乂邦家,式遏禍亂。 暨太宗皇帝肇建邦典,亦置府兵,臺省軍衛,文武參掌,居閑歲則櫜弓力穡,將有事則釋耒荷戈,所以脩復古制,不廢舊物。 今則不然。 夏官不知兵籍,止於奉朝請; 六軍不主兵事,止於養勳階。 軍容合中官之政,戎律附內臣之職。 首一戴武弁,嫉文吏如仇讎; 足一蹈軍門,視農夫如草芥。 謀不足以翦除凶逆,而詐足以抑揚威福; 勇不足以鎮衛社稷,而暴足以侵軼里閭。 羈絏藩臣,干凌宰輔,隳裂王度,汨亂朝經。 張武夫之威,上以制君父; 假天子之命,下以御英豪。 有藏姦觀釁之心,無伏節死難之義。 豈先王經文緯武之旨耶! 臣願陛下貫文武之道,均兵農之功,正貴賤之名,一中外之法,選軍衛之職,脩省署之官,近崇貞觀之規,遠復成周之制,自邦畿以刑于下國,始天子以達于諸侯,則可以制豪猾之強,無踰檢之患矣。 臣前所謂「生徒墮業,由學校之官廢」者,蓋以國家貴其祿而賤其能,先其身而後其行,故庶官乏通經之學,諸生無脩業之心矣。 臣前所謂「列郡干禁,由授任非其人」者。 臣以為刺史之任,理亂之根本繫焉,朝廷之法制在焉,權可以抑豪猾,恩可以惠孤寡,強可以禦姦寇,政可以移風俗。 其將校有曾經戰陣,及功臣子弟,各請隨宜酬賞。 如無治人之術者,不當授任此官,則絕干禁之患矣。 臣前所謂「百工淫巧,由制度不立」者。 臣請以官位祿秩,制其器用車服,禁人金銀珠玉錦繡雕鏤不蓄於私室,則無蕩心之巧矣。 臣前所謂「辨枝葉」者,考其言以詢行也。 臣前所謂「形于耻格」者,導德而齊禮也。 臣前所謂「念生寡而食衆,可罷斥惰遊」者,已備之於前矣。 臣前所謂「令煩而理鮮,要察其行否」者。 臣聞號令者,乃理國之具也,君審而出之,臣奉而行之,或虧上旨,罪在不赦。 今陛下令煩而理鮮,得非持之者有所蔽欺乎? 臣前所謂「博延群彥,願陛下必納其言; 造廷待問,則小臣不敢愛死」者。 臣聞晁錯為漢畫削諸侯之策,非不知禍之將至也。 忠臣之心,壯夫之節,苟利社稷,死無悔焉。 今臣非不知言發而禍應,計行而身戮,蓋所以痛社稷之危,哀生人之困,豈忍姑息時忌,竊陛下一命之寵哉! 昔龍逢死而啟殷,比干死而啟周,韓非死而啟漢,陳蕃死而啟魏。 今臣之來也,有司或不敢薦臣之言,陛下又無以察臣之心,退必受戮於權臣之手。 臣幸得從四子於地下,固臣之願也。 所不知殺臣者,臣死之後,將孰為啟之哉? 至於人主之闕,政教之疵,前日之弊,臣旣言之矣。 若乃流下土之惠,修近古之理,而致其和平者,在陛下行之而已。 然上之所陳者,實以臣親奉聖問,敢不條對。 雖臣之愚,以為未極教化之大端,皇王之要道。 伏惟陛下事天地以教人敬,奉宗廟以教人孝,養高年以教人悌長,字百姓以教人慈幼,調元氣以煦育,扇大和於仁壽,可以逍遙無為,垂拱成化。 至若念陶鈞之道,在擇宰相而任之,使權造物之柄; 念保定之功,在擇將帥而任之,使修分閫之寄; 念百度之未貞,在擇庶官而任之,使專職業之守; 念百姓之愁痛,在擇長吏而任之,使明惠育之術。 自然言足以為天下教,行足以為天下法,仁足以勸善,義足以禁非,又何必宵衣旰食,勞神惕慮,然後以致其理哉! 是歲,左散騎常侍馮宿、太常少卿賈餗、庫部郎中龎嚴為考策官,三人者,時之文士也,覩蕡條對,歎服嗟悒,以為漢之晁、董無以過之。 言論激切,士林感動。 時登科者二十二人,而中官當途,考官不敢留蕡在籍中,物論喧然不平之。 守道正人,傳讀其文,至有相對埀泣者。 諌官御史,扼腕憤發,而執政之臣,從而弭之,以避黄門之怨。 唯登科人李邰謂人曰:「劉蕡不第,我軰登科,實厚顔矣。」 請以所授官讓蕡,事雖不行,人士多之。 令狐楚在興元,牛僧孺鎮襄陽,辟為從事,待如師友。 位終使府御史。 李商隱,字義山,懷州河內人。 曾祖叔恒,年十九登進士第,位終安陽令。 祖俌,位終邢州錄事參軍。 父嗣。 商隱幼能為文。 令狐楚鎮河陽,以所業文干之,年才及弱冠。 楚以其少俊,深禮之,令與諸子遊。 楚鎮天平、汴州,從為巡官,歲給資裝,令隨計上都。 開成二年,方登進士第,釋褐秘書省校書郎,調補弘農尉。 會昌二年,又以書判拔萃。 王茂元鎮河陽,辟為掌書記,得待御史。 茂元愛其才,以子妻之。 茂元雖讀書為儒,然本將家子,李德裕素遇之,時德裕秉政,用為河陽帥。 德裕與李宗閔、楊嗣復、令狐楚大相仇怨。 商隱既為茂元從事,宗閔黨大薄之。 時令狐楚已卒,子綯為員外郎,以商隱背恩,尤惡其無行。 俄而茂元卒,來遊京師,久之不調。 會給事中鄭亞廉察桂州,請為觀察判官、檢校水部員外郎。 大中初,白敏中執政,令狐綯在內署,共排李德裕逐之。 亞坐德裕黨,亦貶循州刺史。 商隱隨亞在嶺表累載。 三年入朝,京兆尹盧弘正奏署掾曹,令典箋奏。 明年,令狐綯作相,商隱屢啟陳情,綯不之省。 弘正鎮徐州,又從為掌書記。 府罷入朝,復以文章干襜,乃補太學博士。 會河南尹柳仲郢鎮東蜀,辟為節度判官、檢校工部郎中。 大中末,仲郢坐專殺左遷,商隱廢罷,還鄭州,未幾病卒。 商隱能為古文,不喜偶對。 從事令狐楚幕。 楚能章奏,遂以其道授商隱,自是始為今體章奏。 博學強記,下筆不能自休,尤善為誄奠之辭。 與太原溫庭筠、南郡段成式齊名,時號“三十六”。 文思清麗,庭筠過之。 而俱無持操,恃才詭激,為當涂者所薄。 名宦不進,坎壈終身。 弟羲叟,亦以進士擢第,累為賔佐。 商隱有表狀集四十卷。 温庭筠者,太原人,本名岐,字飛卿。 大中初應進士,苦心硯席,尤長於詩賦。 初至京師,人士翕然推重,然士行塵雜,不脩邉幅,能逐絃吹之音為側艶之詞。 公卿家無賴子弟裴誠、令狐滈之徒,相與蒱飲酣醉終日,由是累年不第。 徐商鎮襄陽,往依之,署為巡官。 咸通中,失意歸江東,路由廣陵,心怨令狐綯在位時不為成名。 既至,與新進少年狂遊狹邪,乆不刺謁,又乞索於楊子院,醉而犯夜,為虞候所撃,敗面折齒方還。 揚州訴之,令狐綯捕虞候治之,極言庭筠狹邪醜迹,乃兩釋之。 自是汙行聞于京師。 庭筠自至長安,致書公卿間雪寃,屬徐商知政事,頗為言之。 無何,商罷相,出鎮楊,收怒之,貶為方城尉,再遷隋縣尉,卒。 子憲,以進士擢第。 弟庭皓,咸通中為徐州從事。 節度使崔彦魯為龎勛所殺,庭皓亦被害。 庭筠著述頗多,而詩賦韻格清㧞,文士稱之。 薛逢,字陶臣,河東人。 父倚。 逢㑹昌初進士,擢第釋褐,祕書省校書郎崔罷相鎮河中,辟為從事。 鉉復輔政,奏授萬年尉,直文舘,累遷侍御史尚書郎。 逢文詞俊㧞,論議激切,自負經畫之畧,乆之不逹。 應進士時,與彭城劉瑑尤相善,而瑑詞藝不迨逢,逢每侮之。 至大中末,瑑揚,歴禁署,逢愈不得意,自是相怨。 俄而瑑知政事,或薦逢知制誥,瑑奏曰:「先朝立制兩省,官給事中舍人,除拜湏先歴州縣,逢未甞治郡,宜先試之。」 乃出為巴州刺史。 既而沈詢、楊收、王鐸由學士相繼為将相,皆同年進士,而逢文藝最優。 楊収作相,後逢有詩云:「湏知金印朝天客。 同是沙隄避路人。 威鳯偶時皆瑞聖,濳龍無水謾通神。」 收聞,大衘之。 又出為蓬州刺史。 收罷相,入為太常少卿給事中。 王鐸作相,逢又有詩云:「昨日鴻毛萬鈞重,今朝山嶽一塵輕鐸。」 又怨之,以恃才褊忿,人士鄙之。 遷祕書監,卒。 子廷珪,中和中,登進士第。 大順初,累遷司勲員外郎,知制誥正,拜中書舍人。 乾寧三年,奉使太原,復命昭宗幸華州,改左散騎常侍。 移疾,免客遊成都。 光化中,復為中書舍人,遷刑部吏部二侍郎,權知禮部貢舉,拜尚書左丞。 入梁,至禮部尚書。 李拯,字昌時,隴西人。 咸通十二年登進士第。 乾符中,累佐府幕。 黄巢之亂,避地平陽。 僖宗還京,召拜尚書郎,轉考功郎中、知制誥。 僖宗再幸寳鷄,拯扈從不及。 在鳯翔,襄王僭號,逼為翰林學士,拯既汚偽署,心不自安。 後朱玫秉政,百揆無叙,典章濁亂。 拯甞朝退,駐馬國門,望南山而吟曰:「紫宸朝罷綴鴛鸞,丹鳯樓前駐馬看。 唯有終南山色在,晴明依舊滿長安。」 吟已涕下。 及王行瑜殺朱玫,襄王出奔。 京城亂,拯為亂兵所殺。 妻盧氏知書能文有姿色,拯既死,伏其屍慟哭,賊逼之,堅哭不動。 又臨之以兵,至於斷一臂,終不顧,為賊所害,人皆傷之。 李巨川,字下已,隴右人。 國初十八學士道玄之後,故相逢吉之姪曽孫。 父循,大中八年登進士第。 巨川乾符中應進士,屬天下大亂,流離奔播,切於禄位,乃以刀筆從諸侯府。 王重榮鎮河中,辟為掌書記。 時車駕在蜀,賊據京師,重榮匡合諸藩,叶力誅冦,軍書奏請,堆案盈几。 巨川文思敏速,翰動如飛,傳之藩隣,無不聳動,重榮收復功,巨川之助也。 及重榮為部下所害,朝議罪叅佐,貶為漢中掾。 時楊守亮帥興元,素知之聞巨川至,喜謂客曰:“天以李書記遺我也!” 即命管記室,累遷幕職。 景福中,守亮為李茂貞所攻,城䧟,以部下數百人欲投太原。 入秦,為華軍所擒。 巨川時從守亮,亦被械繫。 在途,巨川題詩於樹葉以遺華帥韓建,詞情哀鳴,建欣然解縛。 守亮誅,即命為掌書記。 俄而李茂貞犯京師,天子駐蹕於華。 韓建以一州之力,供億萬乘,慮其不濟,遣巨川傳檄天下,請助轉餉,同匡王室,完葺京城。 四方書檄,酬報輻湊,巨川灑翰陳敘,文理俱愜,昭宗深重之,即時巨川之名聞于天下。 昭宗還京,特授諌議大夫,仍留佐建。 光化初,朱全忠䧟河中,進兵入潼關。 建懼,令巨川見全忠送欵,至河中,從容言事。 巨川指陳利害,全忠方圖問鼎,聞巨川所陳,心惡之。 判官敬翔,亦以文筆見知於全忠,慮得巨川減落名價,謂全忠曰“李諌議文章信美,但不利主人。” 是日為全忠所害。 司空圖,字表聖,本臨淄人。 曽祖遂,密令。 祖彖,水部郎中。 父輿,精吏術。 大中初,戸部侍郎盧弘正領鹽鐵,奏輿為安邑兩池榷鹽使、檢校司封郎中。 先是,鹽法條例疎闊,吏多犯禁; 輿乃特定新法十條奏之,至今以為便。 入朝為司門員外郎,遷戸部郎中,卒。 圖咸通十年登進士第,主司王凝於進士中尤奇之。 凝左授商州刺史,圖請從之,凝加器重,洎廉問宣歙,辟為上客。 召拜殿中侍御史,以赴闕遲留,責授光祿寺主簿,分司東都。 乾符六年,宰相盧攜罷免,以賔客分司,圖與之遊,攜嘉其高節,厚禮之。 嘗過圖舍,手題于壁曰:「姓氏司空貴,官班御史卑,老夫如且在,不用念屯奇。」 明年,攜復入朝,路由陝虢,謂陝帥盧渥曰:「司空御史,高士也,公其厚之。」 渥即日奏為賔佐。 其年,攜復知政事,召圖為禮部員外郎,賜緋魚袋,遷本司郎中。 其年冬,巢賊犯京師,天子出幸,圖從之不及,乃退還河中。 時故相王徽亦在蒲,待圖頗厚。 數年,徽受詔鎮潞,乃表圖為副使,徽不赴鎮而止。 僖宗自蜀還,次鳳翔,召圖知制誥,尋正拜中書舍人。 其年僖宗出幸寶雞,復從之不及,退還河中。 龍紀初,復召拜舍人,未幾又以疾辭。 河北亂,乃寓居華陰。 景福中,又以諫議大夫徵。 時朝廷微弱,紀綱大壞,圖自深惟出不如處,移疾不起。 乾寧中,又以戶部侍郎徵,一至闕廷致謝,數日乞還山,許之。 昭宗在華,徵拜兵部侍郎,稱足疾不任趨拜,致章謝之而已。 昭宗遷洛,鼎欲歸梁,柳璨希賊旨,陷害舊族,詔圖入朝。 圖懼見誅,力疾至洛陽,謁見之日,墮笏失儀,旨趣極野。 璨知不可屈,詔曰:「司空圖俊造登科,朱紫升籍,旣養高以傲代,類移山以釣名,心惟樂于漱流,仕非專於祿食。 匪夷匪惠,難居公正之朝; 載省載思,當徇棲衡之志。 可放還山。」 圖有先人别墅在中條山之王官谷,泉石林亭,頗稱幽棲之趣。 自考槃高卧,日與名僧高士遊詠其中。 晚年為文,尤事放逹,甞擬白居易醉吟傳為休休亭記曰:司空氏禎貽溪之休休亭,本名濯纓亭,為陝軍所焚。 天復癸亥歲,復葺於壞垣之中,乃更名曰休休。 休,休也,美也,旣休而具美存焉。 蓋量其才一宜休,揣其分二宜休,耄且聵三宜休。 又少而惰,長而率,老而迂,是三者皆非濟時之用,又宜休也。 尚慮多難不能自信,旣而晝寢,遇二僧謂予曰:「吾嘗為汝師。 汝昔矯於道,銳而不固,為利慾之所拘,幸悟而悔,將復從我於是溪耳。 且汝雖退,亦嘗為匪人之所嫉,宜耐辱自警,庶保其終始,與靖節、醉吟第其品級於千載之下,復何求哉!」 因為耐辱居士歌,題於東北楹曰:「咄咄,休休休,莫莫莫,伎倆雖多性靈惡,賴是長教閑處著。 休休休,莫莫莫,一局棋,一爐藥,天意時情可料度。 白日偏催快活人,黃金難買堪騎鶴。 若曰:『爾何能?』 荅云:『耐辱莫。』」 其詭激嘯傲,多此類也。 圖既脱柳璨之禍還山,乃預為壽藏終制。 故人來者,引之壙中,賦詩對酌,人或難色,圖規之曰:“逹人大觀,幽顯一致,非止暫遊此中。 公何不廣哉!” 圖布衣鳩杖,出則以女家人鸞臺自隨。 歲時村社雩祭祠禱,鼓舞會集,圖必造之,與野老同席,曾無傲色。 王重榮父子兄弟尤重之,伏臘饋遺,不絶於途。 唐祚亡之明年,聞輝王遇弑于濟隂,不懌而疾,數日卒,時年七十二。 有文集三十卷。 圖無子,以其甥荷為嗣。 荷官至永州刺史。 以甥為嗣,甞為御史所彈,昭宗不之責。 贊曰:國之華彩,人文化成。 間代傑出,奮藻摛英。 騏驥逸步,咸、韶正聲。 燦流緗素,下視姬、嬴。
When Emperor Muzong ascended the throne, Zhongshu was recalled and appointed Secretariat Drafter. That same year he was sent out as prefect of Hong, imperial censor-in-chief, and observation commissioner of Jiangnan West Circuit. Jiangxi had long enforced harsh laws against private brewing under the wine monopoly. When Zhongshu took up his post he memorialized to repeal them. He also drew twenty thousand strings from official funds to pay taxes for impoverished households. In the winter of 823 he died at his post. Cui Xian. His courtesy name was Chongyi. He was from Boling; his grandfather was Anshi. His father Rui ended his career as a supervising censor. In 807 Xian passed the jinshi examination and also passed the examination in erudite learning and grand literary composition. Zheng Yuqing and Li Yijian recruited him as an aide and treated him like a teacher or friend. Once he entered court service, he held successive posts in the central offices, upright and independent in conduct, and enjoyed great standing at the time. When Emperor Jingzong wished to visit the Eastern Capital, public unease spread. Pei Du, a meritorious elder, came from Xingyuan with a memorial to attend audience. Once he arrived, Li Fengji did not want Du to reenter the Secretariat. Liu Qichu, the metropolitan prefect of Jingzhao and a member of Fengji's faction, together with more than ten others, shouldered one another to crowd Du aside. Meanwhile court officials who hedged their bets daily thronged Du's gate. One day Du kept guests and ordered wine. Qichu affectedly sought a favorite tune of Du's, leaned close to Pei's ear, and spoke to him. Xian resented the affectation, raised his cup, and penalized Du, saying, "The chief minister ought not permit a petty official to whisper in his ear!" Du smiled and drank; Qichu, ill at ease, hurried out, and the seated guests all admired Xian. He was repeatedly promoted to chief administrator of the Shaan prefecture metropolitan command and commissioner of the Shaan-Guo observation circuit. From dawn to dusk he drank heavily with his staff, constantly drunk and never sober. Official documents piled up; at midnight he reviewed them, adjudicated and decided cases without the slightest error, and the clerks regarded him as a divine man. He entered court as Right Regular Mounted Attendant and Director of the Secretariat. In the tenth month of 834 he died. Previously, Rui had served Li Baozhen as an aide in Ze-Lu. A Daoist who called himself Old Lu had once served Master Li at Yunji Temple in the Sui dynasty and could foreknow past and future events. Because the Hebei region forbade travelers, Rui lodged him at home. One day he took leave and said, "When I die I shall become your son." He pointed to a black mole below his mouth and asked that it be taken as a mark. When Xian was born, he indeed had a black mole; his form and spirit were exactly those of Old Lu, and his father therefore gave him the style name Old Lu. Once capped, he set his heart on lofty pursuits and aspired to forests and ravines, often wandering alone in the Southern Mountains and returning only after long intervals. He was especially skilled in songs and poetry. When the scenery was clear and bright, on flower mornings and moonlit evenings, if he chanted aloud with contentment, he would inevitably be moved to sorrow and wet his collar. His intent was lofty and singular, and eminent men sighed in admiration. He left a collected writings in twenty juan. Tang Ci was a man of Jinyang in Bing prefecture, a descendant of Jian, Minister of Rites and an early founding merit-holder. At the beginning of the Jianzhong era he passed the jinshi examination and was repeatedly recruited to commissioner staffs. At the beginning of the Zhenyuan era he served as attendant censor. Dou Can deeply valued him and transferred him to Vice Director of the Ministry of Rites. In 792, when Can was demoted, Ci was implicated and sent out as prefect of Kai prefecture. For more than ten years among the Ba gorges he did not obtain further advancement. Wei Gao, military governor of Xichuan, submitted a forceful memorial requesting him as deputy commissioner, but Dezong secretly instructed Gao to withdraw the request. Ci long lingered in the barbarian wilds, solitary and depressed, with resentments and slanders accumulating and no one to clarify them. He therefore gathered loyal ministers and worthy men of old who had suffered slander, exile, and banishment, even to the point of losing their lives while their rulers still failed to understand, and composed three treatises called A Brief Account for Refuting Slander, which he submitted. Dezong reviewed them and was still angry, saying to those around him, "Tang Ci is comparing me to an ancient benighted ruler—why would he admonish me in this way!" He was reassigned as prefect of Kui prefecture. When Emperor Xianzong took the throne, he and Li Jifu were summoned back together from within the gorges and Ci was appointed Director of the Ministry of Rites. Soon, while retaining his original office, he was made drafting secretary; he was then formally appointed Secretariat drafter and died. Emperor Zhangwu was wise, discerning, and hated evil, especially detesting factional collusion and framed accusations. Once in the inner palace he came upon the three treatises Ci had submitted, read them with approval, and said to Academician Shen Chuanshi, "The book Tang Ci compiled on refuting slander is indeed something a ruler should read at the proper time. I think ancient books contain many such cases, and Ci's compilation is not exhaustive. Your family transmits the study of history; you may, with the academicians, broaden it by category and example." Chuanshi received the edict and, with Linghu Chu, Du Yuanying, and others, divided the labor of revision and continuation, expanded it to ten juan, and titled it the Yuanhe Brief Account for Refuting Slander. Its preface says: I have heard that once Heaven and Earth were fixed, high and low were divided; as for spreading the seasons of the four times and completing what is fitting for the myriad things, this lies in testing the two qi of portent and blessing—when blessing qi descends there is abundance and luxuriance, when portent qi descends there is pestilence and disaster. Once ruler and minister were established, high and low were separated; as for dwelling in the inner mystery of the divine and examining words of submission and remonstrance, this lies in scrutinizing the two doctrines of perverse and upright—when upright words prevail there is loyalty and forthright counsel, when perverse words prevail there is slander and flattery. Therefore the Odes say, "Luxuriant, patterned—thus is the shell brocade made." This satirizes how very artfully such things are woven together. A saying goes, "A crooked path ruins good fields; slanderous mouths overturn good men." This condemns how weedy words are pests to government. It means that what seems trustworthy is deceitful, what seems loyal is not; what is convenient can move the heart, what is glib can disorder virtue—this is not limited to the cuckoo staining flowers or coix seed confusing pearls! Moreover, in establishing a state, from the center to the outer reaches, if the Way is skewed punishments will not hit the mark; if slander prevails loyalty and filial piety will not be displayed. Looking far back at former reports and thinking closely on recent antiquity, they recruited the worthy and tolerated blunt counsel, kept the sycophantic at a distance and hated the perverse, yet though they pondered deeply, they did not reach the point of prevention. I humbly consider that Your Sagely, Wise, and Martial Majesty, draped in rule over the realm, with transforming influence reaching refined civilization, broadly seeks plans among the gentry and repeatedly sends honors to recluses in mountain caves. You further broaden the four eyes and extend the four ears, so that regulation and order are all addressed before they sprout, and the model you establish will be handed down imperishably. Thereupon you ordered the literary officials Linghu Chu and others, from Zhou and Han above down through the Sui dynasty, to seek in historical records loyal and worthy men and the traces of those who suffered slander, narrate the beginning and end of faults and offenses, record the depth and shallowness of rumor and slander, arrange them in order with clarity, and compile them into ten juan. Formerly Yu Shun had the command to eliminate slander; our emperor has revised the book for refuting slander—through a thousand ages one mind, together handing down supreme principle. When the imperial palace withdraws from governance at the slanting of the sun and a separate hall is prepared for reading deep into the second watch, then sagely consideration will first discern slander—how can slander arise? Heaven does not speak, yet the people will trust of themselves. Xianzong replied with a gracious edict. His second sons were Fu and Chi. Fu, whose courtesy name was Yunxiang. In 810 he passed the jinshi examination and repeatedly served on commissioner staffs. He entered court as a supervisory censor and went out as a prefect. At the beginning of the Dahe era he entered court as Director of the Directorate of Waterways and Agriculture. In 831 he was made pacification commissioner of the Shannan circuit. Reaching Deng prefecture, he memorialized, "The warehouse supervisors Deng Wan and others of the Xingshi and Huangjian markets in Neixiang county previously managed husked rice transported from Hunan and Jiangxi, stored in the wilds at Xichuan county; apart from what was disbursed, six thousand nine hundred forty-five shi rotted into dust. The Ministry of Revenue issued a warrant to pursue the original responsible officials. From 804, Deng Wan's father, sons, brothers, down to great-great-grandsons, were successively imprisoned for twenty-eight years; nine persons died in confinement. Wan's grandson and great-great-grandson are now still in cangue and imprisonment." An edict said, "As I hear, the salt-iron and revenue commissioners have extremely many cases of this kind. As for Deng Wan and the other four men, their assets have all been sold and paid in; three generations were imprisoned and died wasted in prison—this truly harms harmonious qi. Deng Wan and the others are all to be released. In prefectures and circuits throughout the realm, if prison wards have cases of this kind, imprisonment may not extend three years or more. Quickly review and report." Public opinion praised Fu for having talent as a pacification commissioner. Soon he was transferred to Director of the Directorate of Merit. In 834 he was made academician of the Hongwen Institute and handled institute affairs. In 835 he was transferred to Director of the Directorate of Military Appointments and acted as Secretariat drafter. At the beginning of Kaicheng he was formally appointed drafter; after a month he was made prefect of Fuzhou, censor-in-chief, and military training and observation commissioner of Fujian. In the eleventh month of 839 he died in his post. Fu had established himself assisting in staffs and had a name upon entering court, but when he conducted inspection tours in Ou and Min his governance was not well ordered. After his death, servants and concubines fought over property, went to the palace gate to plead, and the legal offices investigated; his household wealth of one hundred thousand strings went to two concubines. He had also once wrongly killed a subordinate, and was sued by that man's family. His conduct before and after was inconsistent, and contemporary opinion criticized him. Chi, whose courtesy name was Deshou. In 820 he passed the jinshi examination and was repeatedly recruited to feudal staffs. He entered court as attendant censor and director in the ministries. At the end of the Dazhong era he went out from Vice Director of the Ministry of Works as prefect of Rong, censor-in-chief, and military commissioner of Rongguan for pacification and suppression. He entered court as Attendant-in-Ordinary. At the end of Dazhong he was made acting Left Regular Mounted Attendant, chief administrator of the Ling metropolitan command, military governor of Shuofang, and commissioner for transport of the six Lingwu cities, among other posts. He advanced to acting Minister of Revenue, chief administrator of the Lu metropolitan command, military governor of Zhaoyi, and commissioner for observation and disposition of Ze, Lu, Xing, Ming, and Ci, and died. His son Yanqian, whose courtesy name was Maoye. At the end of Xiantong he sat for the jinshi examination. Talented and proud, he would bow to no one; for more than ten years he did not pass. At the end of Qianfu bandits rose in Henan, both capitals fell, and he moved his family to seek refuge in southern Han. In the Zhonghe era Wang Chongrong governed Hezhong and recruited him as an aide. Through repeated memorials he rose to deputy military governor of Hezhong and served as prefect of Jin and Jiang. Yanqian was broadly learned and multitalented; his literary language was vigorous and splendid. In painting, calligraphy, music, and skill at deep drinking, none among his peers did not excel. He was especially skilled in heptasyllabic poetry; in youth he studied under Wen Tingyun, so his literary style resembled Wen's. At the end of Guangqi Wang Chongrong was killed by his subordinates. Court opinion blamed the aides; Yanqian and secretary Li Juchuan were both demoted to clerks in Hanzhong. At the time Yang Shouliang governed Xingyuan and had long heard his name. Yanqian came as a staff member of that prefecture; Shouliang saw him, rejoiced, grasped his hand, and said, "I have long heard of the Minister's name; what a meeting here!" The next day he was appointed judge. Through repeated promotions he reached deputy commissioner and served as prefect of Lang and Bi. He died in Hanzhong. He had several hundred poems; Vice Minister of Rites Xue Tinggui wrote a preface for them, titled Collected Works of Master Lumen, and they circulated at the time. His son Huan also reached prefect. Ci's younger brothers were Huan, Kuan, and Xin. Kuan passed the jinshi examination in 790, was repeatedly recruited to commissioner staffs, entered court as censor, went out as prefect, and died. His son Zhi. Zhi, whose courtesy name was Jiyou. At the end of Huichang he was repeatedly promoted to Vice Director of the Ministry of Justice, then director, successively served as prefect, and died. Liu Fen, whose courtesy name was Quhua, was a man of Changping. His father was Mian. Fen passed the jinshi examination in 826. Broadly learned and skilled in composition, he was especially expert in Mr. Zuo's Spring and Autumn Annals. In friendship he loved to discuss grand strategies of kingship and hegemony; upright and hating evil, when he spoke of public affairs he would sigh with the resolve to bring clarity. From the end of Yuanhe, eunuch power flourished; they held troops within the palace, controlled the realm by force, and whether the Son of Heaven was deposed or enthroned depended on their assent, as they interfered in all government. At the time they were called the Northern and Southern Offices; love and hate attacked one another like fire and water. Living in obscurity, Fen was constantly indignant and resentful. When Emperor Wenzong took the throne, reverent and frugal in seeking good order, in 828 the examination for worthy and good men said, I have heard that the governance of ancient sage-kings was darkly silent and non-active; seated upright they pondered the Way, molded the people's hearts to dwell in simplicity, concentrated daily use without interfering, enriched those below to establish the root, and extended sincerity to build the center. Then Heaven and man were in communication, yin and yang were harmonious, custom reached benevolence and longevity, and things had no blemish or pestilence. Alas, what supreme virtue reaches is far beyond compare. The worthy kings of the Three Dynasties alternated substance and ornament; a hundred falsities grew fierce, refined custom gradually declined; from Han downward, fixed signs were few indeed. I reflect that my understanding of the Way is dim; I reverently bear the great edifice, follow the instructions, and dare not be idle or negligent. Employing the worthy with vigilance, dressing at dawn and eating at dusk, how can I not pursue the distant tracks of the Three and Five, that I may continue the grand line of the ancestors? Yet in my heart there are things not attained, in my conduct things not trusted; from center to outer reaches, neglected governance is wide. Therefore people do not follow transformation; qi sometimes is blocked in distress; drought and disaster last the whole year; planting misses its season. The state granaries rarely store; there is a lack of nine years' reserves; The way of officials is many-branched; the achievement of three years' service is slight. The capital is the root of all the Xia; I intend to observe governance there, yet the powerful and cunning sometimes overstep bounds; The Imperial Academy is the source of enlightened teaching; I expect to change custom there, yet students are mostly idle in their studies. Prefectures depend on promulgating regulations, yet violations of prohibitions are not yet ended; The hundred crafts depend on measuring standards, yet licentious craft has not yet declined. Custom falls and the wind scatters; accumulated error becomes pest. In selecting officials to aid governance, if one listens to people's words, branches and leaves are hard to distinguish; In governing subordinates by law, shame and correction do not appear. In enriching wealth and issuing orders, those born are few and those who eat are many; orders are troublesome while governance is scarce. I think how to untie these knots and errors and bring about ordered peace; this heart is vast, as if wading a spring stream. Therefore I previously ordered the offices to broadly extend eminent men, await the opening of long-held confusion, and hope to reach timely harmony. You gentlemen know past and present and are clear on bringing relief; come to court and await questioning to match my open mind. You must admonish the ruler's faults, distinguish flaws in governance, clarify what causes laws and regulations to fall into disorder, and examine what the prosperous and numerous urgently need. What measure will reform former abuses? What grace will benefit the people below? What cultivation will bring near the governance of antiquity? What Way will fully fill harmonious qi? Trace to the root source and set forth in numbered replies. As for Guan Zhong's weighty and light authority, what aids governance? As for Yan You's plan to settle the frontier, what fits the times? In Yuankai's examination of achievement, what comes first? In Shujizi's task of pacification, what is the business? Push this mirror of tortoise shell; choose the mean; expect comprehensive knowledge—I shall personally review. At the time more than a hundred men answered the examination; their replies merely followed routine affairs. Only Fen sharply discussed the Yellow Gate's excessive power, which would endanger the altars of state. He replied, Your subject is truly unworthy, yet has the art of stabilizing the state and serving the ruler, but no position from which to carry it out; he has the heart to offend the countenance and dare remonstrate, but no road by which to advance. He only harbors indignant depression, thinking to release it at some moment. He has often wished to discuss with common people on the road and have travelers complain in the market, that it might reach the ruler's hearing and awaken the ruler's heart in one stroke—even if punished for perverse speech, he would not regret it. Moreover, encountering Your Majesty succeeding with supreme virtue and shining with great brilliance, seeking faults and oversights and consulting on plans, issuing edicts throughout the realm calling for forthright speech and extreme remonstrance. Your subject has been honored with this summons and specially receives this great questioning—how dare he not speak with full intent? As for what the ruler fears, what the times forbid, what favorites hate, and what offices grant or withhold, your subject in his foolishness does not know. I humbly hope Your Majesty will grant a little indulgence and not let the sagely court have forthright men who are punished—this would be the fortune of the realm. I respectfully risk death in reply. I humbly consider the sagely question: there is thought of the governance of ancient sages and remembrance of darkly silent transformation, intending to join Heaven and man to equalize custom and harmonize yin and yang to warm things—this shows how deeply Your Majesty cherishes the Way. Your subject thinks the governance of a wise king—the rule is not far off; it depends only on how Your Majesty brings it about. I humbly consider the sagely question: there is reverently bearing the great edifice without daring idle ease, following instructions without negligence—this shows Your Majesty's resolve of anxious labor. As for employing the worthy with vigilance and dressing at dawn and eating at dusk, one should dismiss the slender sycophants at the ruler's side and advance the great ministers who are the ruler's limbs; As for pursuing the Three and Five and restoring the ancestors, one should mirror the rise and fall of former antiquity and clarify the success and failure of the present time. Where the heart has not attained, it is because feelings below are blocked and cannot reach above; Your conduct has not won full trust; above, your grace is dammed and cannot reach the people below. If one wishes people to be transformed, one must cultivate oneself first; if one wishes qi to be harmonious, one must follow nature and guide it. Relieving disaster and drought lies in utmost sincerity; broad planting lies in seeing to the people's labor. That the state granaries rarely store lies in redundant eaters still being numerous; The bureaucratic disorder has many branches, but at root it comes from appointing the wrong men. Overbearing wrongdoers exceed all bounds because the rules of court and provinces no longer align; Students neglect their studies because the schools have been left without proper officers. Prefecture after prefecture breaks the law because unworthy men hold office; Artisans chase wasteful luxury because proper standards have never been fixed. Your decree shows Your Majesty's intent to appoint the right officials and your concern to strengthen public finance — the very roots of good governance. If promotions were based on character, how could the worthy and unworthy be hard to tell apart? If subordinates were governed by ritual, would shame not restrain wrongdoing plainly enough? Seeing that producers are few and dependents many, dismiss the idle and the dissolute; Seeing how laws multiply while effective rule grows scarce, examine officials' conduct strictly. You have summoned worthy men widely; I pray Your Majesty will heed what they say. Called to court to answer — how could your humble servant hold back, even at the cost of his life? Your decree shows Your Majesty's desire to seek worthy men, admonish your own faults, and examine policy for defects — proof of your earnest consultation. Then your servant's resolve to drive out wicked magnates would reform abuses before they spread; Uphold Your Majesty's concern for the people's welfare, and blessings would reach every level of society. Separate the wicked from the upright, and the governance of antiquity may be approached again; Establish ritual and music in their proper place, and harmonious order will prevail throughout the land. As for Guan Zhong's methods, they are not the prerogative of a true sovereign; What Yan You proposed was no policy of the highest order. The priorities of Yi Yin and Yu Ya cannot match Yao and Shun's system of evaluating merit; Lu Meng's preoccupations cannot compare with Emperor Shun's triumph over the Miao through ritual rather than arms; None of these measures embodies the golden mean of supreme virtue or offers the sure mirror of the sage — how could they serve as Your Majesty's guide! On matters that touch the pivot of safety and danger and foreshadow survival or ruin, I beg leave to lay bare my heart and speak plainly once more. What I said earlier — "The governance of a wise king: its standard is not far to seek" — depends only on Your Majesty's careful thought, resolute action, and unwavering persistence from start to finish. I respectfully cite the Spring and Autumn Annals: "Yuan is the beginning of vital force; Spring is the beginning of the year." The Annals places yuan before the year and spring before the king's name, showing that a ruler must honor Heaven's Way and be scrupulous at the outset. It marks the season to close the year and the month to close the season; even when nothing happens, it always records the first month to preserve the calendar — showing that a ruler must honor Heaven's Way and be scrupulous to the end. A king's conduct from beginning to end must follow Heaven's model, for Heaven never ceases its course. If Your Majesty can be scrupulous at the beginning and at the end, cultivate this earnestly and act on it diligently, you may hold the tally of rule in tranquil simplicity, govern without force, broadly establish the foundation of the state, and restore the splendid virtue of the Jianzhong reign. How then could the cyclical decay of the Three Dynasties return, or a hundred corruptions take root again! That is why I said, "It depends only on the path Your Majesty chooses to achieve it." What I said earlier — "In employing the worthy with vigilance, rising before dawn and eating after dusk, you ought to dismiss the petty flatterers at your side and advance the chief ministers who are your right arm and thigh" — was truly because Your Majesty's worry and labor have reached their limit. I have heard that when a ruler worries over the wrong things, the state must decline; When a ruler fails to worry over what he ought to worry over, the state must be in peril. Yet Your Majesty has not addressed the questions of the state's survival and the altars' safety in your clear inquiry. I do not know whether Your Majesty thinks a common subject unfit to settle great affairs. Or whether amid the press of ten thousand affairs your sage consideration has not yet reached the heart of the matter? If not, why do you fail to worry over what you ought to worry over? I believe Your Majesty's first concerns ought to be these: the inner palace is on the verge of upheaval, the altars of state are in danger, the realm is tottering, and turmoil is about to engulf the empire. These four are already manifest signs of national crisis; therefore I say Your Majesty's concern ought to reach them first. Since the imperial enterprise was won only through hardship, it cannot be held lightly. Taizu laid the foundation, Gaozu built on his work, Taizong secured the enterprise, and Xuanzong carried forward its brilliance; down to Your Majesty, more than two hundred years have passed. Through that span sage rulers succeeded one another and crises arose in turn; never once did a dynasty survive without entrusting power to worthy men, keeping upright counselors near, and thereby renewing its glory. Neglect it for a single day and the great vessel is overturned — the shame of the ancestral temple becomes an eternal regret. I respectfully cite the Spring and Autumn Annals: the ruler's way lies in embodying the origin and holding the correct position — Dong Zhongshu explained this to Emperor Wu of Han long ago. What he left unsaid, I may now set forth fully for Your Majesty. When a ruler succeeds his predecessor, the accession must be recorded — to set the beginning right; At the end one must record where he died — to set the ending right. Therefore a ruler must speak upright words, walk the upright path, occupy the rightful place, and keep upright men near. I further cite the Spring and Autumn Annals: "The gate commander assassinated Prince Yu of Wu," and does not record him as ruler. The Annals rebukes him for keeping worthy men at a distance and drawing near to executioners — he had ceased to be a true ruler. I humbly urge Your Majesty to reflect on the founding ancestors' toil and heed the Annals' warning on succession. To clarify the foundations of law and order, speak upright words and walk the upright path; To choke off the drift toward regicide, hold the throne in dignity and keep honest men close. Banish the butcher's minions; cherish the blunt counselors who speak truth; let your chief ministers govern, and let every office do its work. How can five or six favored intimates run the empire — issuing Your Majesty's orders in name while seizing your power in fact, awing the court and dominating the realm, so that no minister dares speak and the Son of Heaven cannot control them? Disaster is ripening behind the palace walls; treachery is breeding within the curtained hall. I fear that Cao Jie and Hou Lan live again in our time — this is why the inner palace is on the verge of upheaval. I respectfully cite the Spring and Autumn Annals: in Duke Ding of Lu's first year, spring is recorded but the first month is not — because the former ruler could not end his reign properly, the successor could not begin his properly; hence the Annals says Duke Ding had no legitimate beginning. Today loyal ministers have nowhere to place their trust; eunuch commanders hold the power to make and unmake emperors. They prevented your predecessor from ending his reign in peace and have kept you from beginning yours in legitimacy. Moreover no crown heir has been appointed, the suburban sacrifices have not been performed, the roles of generals and ministers remain unsettled, and rank and title are in confusion — this is why the altars of state are in danger. I respectfully cite the Spring and Autumn Annals: "Wang Zhaozi killed the Earl of Shao and the Earl of Mao" The Annals' principle is that mutual killings between equals are not recorded. Yet this case is recorded — to emphasize his usurpation of the royal command. What Heaven bestows rests with the ruler; what the ruler bestows rests with his command. One who holds the command yet loses it is no ruler; One who encroaches on the command and monopolizes it is no minister. When ruler and minister no longer act as they should, the realm is about to topple — this is why. I respectfully cite the Spring and Autumn Annals: Zhao Yang of Jin led the troops of Jinyang in rebellion against the state. Today sovereign power erodes daily, while the military commissioners grow insolent on their borders. Some who know nothing of a subject's duty take the lead in rebellion in the name of saving the throne; Without heeding the Annals' subtle warnings, those who raise armies claim righteousness in driving out evil. Then government and punishment no longer come from the throne, and war begins with the regional lords — this is why turmoil is about to engulf the empire. Fan Kuai burst through the door in tears; Yuan Ang blocked the carriage with bold remonstrance; Jing Fang spoke in righteous anger and lost his life; Dou Wu ignored all danger and died for his cause — Your Majesty knows all this well. I respectfully cite the Spring and Autumn Annals: Hu Shegu of Jin killed Yang Chufu. Duke Xiang failed to secure the hidden levers of power, and Chufu met a violent death — for this the Annals rebukes him. When the ruler reveals his mind, those below dare not speak their full mind; When the ruler leaks what is said to him, those below dare not speak freely. The Commentary speaks of "approaching the knee" and "deceptive words"; the Changes has the warnings "sacrificing one's life" and "ruining success." Today's chief ministers are not unable to speak — they fear Your Majesty will not act on what they say. If Your Majesty ignores their counsel, you will inevitably leak what they say; If ministers speak and nothing is done, they will surely suffer for it. This only silences upright ministers and strengthens wicked ones. Therefore if they wish to speak fully, they fear for their lives; If they wish to speak their full mind, they fear ruining what good might yet be done. So they hesitate and hold back, waiting for Your Majesty to understand — only then will they offer their full counsel. Why not, between sessions of court, from time to time enter the informal hall, summon the worthy chancellors and venerable ministers of the day, and ask their plans for holding off disaster and restoring order? Block the paths of hidden evil; remove favored intimates; restrain those who encroach and coerce; restore the work of purging faction; warn against what must be warned against; worry over what must be worried over. If you could not set things right before, set them right now; If you could not set the beginning right, set the ending right. Then you may reverently uphold the canonical models, fully inherit the great enterprise, achieve the fruits of employing worthy men, and be free of the worry of toiling past dusk. What I said earlier — "To follow the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors and restore the ancestors' legacy, take as mirror the rise and fall of former ages and learn from present success and failure" — I have heard that Yao and Shun brought order to the realm because they could appoint the nine ministers, the four mountain lords, and the twelve pasture lords — making the right appointments, assigning clear duties, and never encroaching on their offices. Offices went to the capable; the ruler's circle to the worthy. Yi Yin and Yu Ya stood below, yet though humble they were surely elevated; The Four Evils sat at court, yet though powerful they were surely punished. Weigh safety against danger; know what to embrace and what to reject. Down to the two generations of Qin and the Yuan and Cheng reigns of Han — all wished to govern like Yao and Shun, yet in the end perished because they failed to see the pivot of safety and danger, did not know what to embrace and reject, did not entrust great ministers, did not distinguish the wicked, did not keep loyal men near, and did not banish slanderers. I humbly urge Your Majesty to examine why Yao and Shun rose, and take that as your bright model; Take as mirror why Qin and Han fell, and be warned and vigilant hereafter. Do not say that the court lacks worthy chancellors or that the offices lack worthy men. The statutes are not yet broken and the laws still stand — who would not wish to serve as your minister and bring peace to the age? Why does Your Majesty neglect them? And there are men in office beyond their ability and at your side though unworthy — wicked as the Four Evils, deceitful as Zhao Gao, treacherous as Gong Yu and Shi Xian — why should Your Majesty hesitate to remove them? The throne has its rightful holder; Heaven's mandate its proper allotment; the ancestral temple its numinous power; loyal ministers their steadfast hearts — Your Majesty, remember this! Qin perished through excessive harshness; Han perished through excessive weakness. Harshness drives wicked ministers to kill their ruler from fear of death; weakness lets treacherous ministers steal power and intimidate the throne. I observe that Emperor Jingzong did not guard against Qin's disaster and did not cut off its first shoots; I humbly urge Your Majesty to deeply heed the lesson of Han's fall and stop the drift while it can still be stopped. Then the ancestors' great enterprise may be renewed and the distant example of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors may be pursued. What I said earlier — "Your Majesty's mind has not reached every truth; below, the people's feelings are blocked and cannot reach you; Your conduct has not won full trust; above, your grace is dammed and cannot reach the people below." — Moreover the people's suffering in misery — Your Majesty has no way to know it; Then though Your Majesty has a parent's heart for the people, they have no way to believe it. I respectfully cite the Spring and Autumn Annals' record of "Liang perished," and does not record "was taken" — Liang destroyed itself because its rulers' minds were clouded and their ears and eyes blocked; wicked policies issued from above, men became bandits below, and none knew why — and so brought ruin on themselves. I have heard that a ruler is honored because he gives weight to the altars of state; The altars are weighty because the people are preserved. If the people are not preserved, the altars cannot hold their weight; If the altars lose their weight, the ruler cannot preserve his honor. Therefore to govern the realm one must know the people's condition. The people are Your Majesty's own children. Your Majesty ought to have the benevolent nurture them personally — as protector and tutor, as nurse and feeder, as teacher and guide. When people trust their ruler, they revere him as a spirit and love him as a parent. Today it is not so. Your Majesty keeps favored intimates near; they are assigned to offices by department; clerks and clients are summoned and installed; relying on their bribes, you lend them your authority. The greater ones command military regions; the lesser ones serve as prefects and governors. In high office they offer no pure and generous government. Only the harm of gluttonous greed; In low office they show no loyal integrity, only treachery and fraud. Therefore the people fear their rulers like wolves and jackals and hate them like sworn enemies. Now the empire is destitute; people scatter everywhere; the hungry cannot eat, the cold cannot be clothed, widows and orphans cannot survive, and the old, young, and sick cannot be cared for. Moreover the state's power rests solely with those at your side; greedy ministers extort wealth to secure favor, and corrupt clerks manipulate the law for their own ends. Cries of injustice reach up to heaven and down to the underworld; ghosts and spirits seethe with anger, and yin and yang fall out of balance. The ruler's gate is ten thousand li away and grievances cannot be heard; scholars have nowhere to turn, and the people have nowhere to place their trust. Officials are corrupt and the people impoverished; bandits rise on every side; the state is crumbling — disaster may come at any moment. If plague and famine follow, I fear Chen Sheng and Wu Guang will rise again — not only in Qin — and the Red Eyebrows and Yellow Turbans — not only in Han. That is why I beat my breast in anguish and weep blood for Your Majesty. If this is so, the people suffer in misery — how can Your Majesty know it? Your Majesty has a parent's heart for the people — how can they believe it? This is exactly what makes true your own words — "Your conduct has not won full trust; your mind has not reached every truth" — and no wonder. I have heard that when Emperor Yuan of Han first took the throne, he reformed more than seventy institutions; his heart was sincere and his reputation splendid. Yet the statutes grew daily disordered, the dynasty daily declined, wickedness daily strengthened, and the people daily distressed — because he could not select worthy men and employ them, and lost hold of the helm. Since Your Majesty has held the realm, you have toiled in worry and diligence for the myriad masses, repeatedly issuing virtuous pronouncements; throughout the four seas none failed to raise their heads and sigh with relief, rejoicing that they were reborn from among the dead. I beg Your Majesty to be careful at the end as at the beginning, to satisfy the hopes of all under Heaven. If you can truly return state authority to the chancellor and military authority to the generals, remove the government of greedy ministers gathering levies, eliminate the harm of treacherous officials seizing opportunities, draw near only the loyal and worthy and employ only the upright — hear none of the words of inner favorites and convenient flatterers. Select officials who are clear and cautious, choose leaders who are benevolent and gracious, quicken them with benefit, warm them with benevolence, teach them filial piety and kindness, guide them with virtue and righteousness, remove the blockage of ears and eyes, connect the feelings of above and below — then make the ten thousand states joyful and at peace and the myriad masses revive and rest; then what you intend will reach everywhere and what you enact will win trust everywhere. What I said earlier — "if you wish the myriad masses to be transformed, cultivate yourself first to lead them" — I have heard: virtue is for cultivating the self, teaching is for guiding others; cultivate it, then men without exhortation come of themselves; guide it, then men earnestly act and broadly follow. Therefore the noble man wishes government to be carried out, and so he takes the lead with his own person; wishes men to follow transformation, and so he governs them with the Way. Now you take the lead with your person yet government is not necessarily carried out, govern with the Way yet men have not followed transformation — is it that the aim of establishing teaching has not exhausted its methods? The method of establishing teaching lies in the ruler clearly regulating it and the minister loyally carrying it out; the ruler takes knowing men as clarity, the minister takes correcting the times as loyalty; knowing men lies in employing the worthy and removing the perverse, correcting the times lies in securing the foundation and keeping to the law. If the worthy are not employed, heavy rewards are insufficient to encourage good; if the perverse are not removed, severe punishments are insufficient to prohibit wrong; if the foundation is not secure, people scatter; if the law is not kept, government disperses — yet wishing teaching to arrive and transformation to be carried out cannot be obtained. If you can repel treacherous perversity without favoring those at your side, raise the worthy and upright without neglecting the distant — then transformation will soak the court; love others and enrich the foundation, divide duties and keep to the law, cultivate yourself and extend to others, begin within and accomplish without — then transformation will travel the realm. What I said earlier — "if you wish the vital energies to harmonize, follow their nature to guide them" — one should bring the people into benevolence and longevity. If one wishes the people benevolent and long-lived, it lies in establishing institutions and cultivating transformation. When institutions are established, expenditures are economized; when expenditures are economized, levies are light; when levies are light, the people grow wealthy; when transformation is cultivated, contention ceases; when contention ceases, punishments are clear; when punishments are clear, the people are at peace. once wealthy, then benevolence and righteousness arise; once at peace, then longevity arrives. Hearts of benevolence and longevity are moved below, qi of peace and harmony respond above — therefore disasters do not arise, auspicious omens arrive in succession, the four directions reach tranquility, and the ten thousand things all succeed. What I said earlier — "relieving drought and famine lies in attaining utmost sincerity" — I respectfully examine the Spring and Autumn Annals: within the seventh month of Duke Xi of Lu, "no rain" is recorded three times — because that ruler had a mind to care for the people; across three years of Duke Wen, it is recorded only once — because that ruler had no heart of compassion for the people. Therefore when Xi attained sincerity, drought did not harm the crops; when Wen lacked care and compassion, drought became true disaster. If Your Majesty truly has a heart to care for the people, there will be no change that becomes disaster. What I said earlier — "broad sowing and planting depend on observing the people's capacity to produce food" — I respectfully examine the Spring and Autumn Annals: "A ruler must constantly observe what the people labor at. When the people labor at physical strength, public works grow scarce; when they labor at wealth, tribute and levies shrink; when they labor at securing food, the hundred affairs are abandoned." Today wealth, food, and strength are all overstrained. I beg Your Majesty to set aside the toil of the hundred affairs and broaden the work of the three farming seasons — then sowing and planting will not fail. What I said earlier — "the state's granaries hold little because redundant consumption remains excessive" — I respectfully examine the Spring and Autumn Annals: "Zangsun Chen requested grain from Qi." The Annals condemn him for lacking nine years' stores — one year of poor harvest and the common people went hungry. I beg to expel idle wanderers to deepen farming, cut non-urgent expenditures to nourish the people — then granary stores will not run dry. What I said earlier — "the officials' paths multiplying, rooted in wrongful selection and appointment" — this is because the state does not draw on men's full talents, and appointments do not clarify what truly matters. Today in appointing men, Your Majesty seeks reputation but not substance; therefore those who advance attend to show but not to substance. I beg to examine the substance of performance evaluations and fix the system of advancement — then the multiplied paths of officials will subside. What I said earlier — "the powerful and cunning overstepping bounds because inner and outer law differ" — because official prohibitions are not one. I respectfully examine the Spring and Autumn Annals: when Duke Huan of Qi covenanted with the feudal lords, dates were usually omitted; yet the covenant at Kuiqiu is specially dated — praising his ability to proclaim the Son of Heaven's prohibitions and lead the states in keeping to the royal laws; therefore the Annals record it in full. Offices were what the Five Emperors and Three Kings established; laws were what Gaozu and Taizong enacted. Laws should be unified; offices should have correct titles. Now again outer and inner officials are divided in posts, and Southern Bureau and Northern Bureau offices are established — violate a prohibition in the south and flee to the north; be punished outside and break the law within; laws issue from many gates and men have nowhere to turn — truly because military and agricultural power diverge, and inner and outer law are separate. I have heard that in antiquity the well-field system regulated military levies, agricultural seasons were interwoven with military training, fiefs were tallied for chariot and foot numbers, and commanders were appointed from among the chief ministers — thus military and agriculture were one, civil and martial shared one direction, to secure the state and check rebellion. When Emperor Taizong first established the dynastic institutions, he also established the fubing militia; Terrace offices and army guards, civil and martial jointly administered; in peaceful years they sheathed bows and labored in the fields; when trouble arose they set aside plows and took up arms — thereby restoring the ancient system without abandoning the old institutions. Now it is not so. the Minister of War does not know the military registers, and attends court only as a formality; the Six Armies do not preside over military affairs, and exist only to nurture ranks and honors. Military affairs are merged with inner eunuch government; military regulations are attached to inner attendants' offices. One head dons the military cap and hates civil officials like sworn enemies; one foot steps through the army gate and regards farmers as nothing. Their stratagems are insufficient to cut down treacherous rebels, yet their cunning suffices to raise and lower authority and favor; their courage is insufficient to guard the altars of state, yet their violence suffices to prey on lanes and hamlets. They bind feudal ministers, overawe chief ministers, shatter the royal measure, and muddy the constants of court governance. They display the might of warriors to control the ruler and father above; they borrow the Son of Heaven's command to repel heroes below. They harbor treachery and watch for openings, but have no principle of bowing to duty and dying in hardship. Is this the purpose of the former kings in weaving civil and martial together! I beg Your Majesty to thread civil and martial Ways together, equalize military and agricultural achievement, correct titles of noble and base, unify inner and outer law, select army guards' duties, and repair the provincial offices; near at hand honor the regulations of the Zhenguan reign, far off restore the institutions of the accomplished Zhou: from the capital domain discipline the subordinate states, from the Son of Heaven down to the feudal lords — then you can restrain the strong among overbearing and cunning men, and there will be no calamity of overstepping bounds. What I said earlier — "students growing idle because school offices are abandoned" — broadly the state values their stipends and despises their ability, puts position before conduct; therefore the myriad offices lack mastery of the classics, and students have no heart to cultivate their studies. What I said earlier — "the commanderies interfering with prohibitions because the wrong men are appointed" — I hold that the post of regional inspector is where the root of order and disorder lies and where the court's laws and institutions reside; with authority one can repel overbearing strongmen, with kindness benefit orphans and widows, with strength repel treacherous bandits, and with government shift customs and mores. As for commanders and officers who have seen battle, and the sons and younger brothers of meritorious ministers — each asks to be rewarded as appropriate. If one lacks the art of governing men, he should not hold this office — then the calamity of interfering with prohibitions will end. What I said earlier — "the hundred crafts growing excessive in cleverness because institutions are not established" — I ask to regulate implements, vehicles, and dress by office rank and stipend grade, and prohibit gold, silver, pearls, jade, brocade, embroidery, and carving and inlay from being hoarded in private chambers — then there will be no cleverness that unsettles the heart. What I said earlier — "distinguishing branches and leaves" — this is because examining words inquires into conduct. What I said earlier — "taking form in shame and regulation" — this is because guiding through virtue aligns ritual. What I said earlier — "reflecting that producers are few and consumers many, and that idle wanderers may be dismissed" — has already been set forth above. What I said earlier — "orders being numerous yet governance rare, and that the essential is to examine whether they are carried out" — I have heard that commands are the instruments of governing the state: the ruler examines and issues them, ministers receive and carry them out — to violate the superior intent is an unpardonable crime. Today Your Majesty's orders are numerous yet governance is rare — can it be that those who hold them conceal and deceive? What I said earlier — "broadly gather worthy men, and I beg Your Majesty to accept their words; come to court and await inquiry — then would this petty official dare cherish his life" — I have heard that Chao Cuo drew up the plan to reduce the feudal lords for Han — it was not that he did not know disaster was coming. The loyal minister's heart, the stalwart's integrity: if it profits the altars of state, death brings no regret. Now I am not unaware that when words issue disaster follows, and when plans are carried out the body is punished — I grieve the altars' peril and mourn the people's suffering: how could I bear to temporize with the times' taboos and steal one life of Your Majesty's favor! Formerly Long Feng died and Shang was awakened; Bi Gan died and Zhou was awakened; Han Fei died and Han was awakened; Chen Fan died and Wei was awakened. Now in my coming, the responsible offices perhaps dare not recommend my words; Your Majesty again has no means to discern my heart — on retiring I will surely be executed at the hands of powerful ministers. I would be fortunate to follow the Four in the underworld — that is indeed my wish. What I do not know is: when I am killed, after my death, who will awaken them? As for the ruler's faults, the flaws in government and teaching, and the abuses of former days — I have already spoken of them. As for spreading benefit to the lower lands, cultivating governance like that of near antiquity, and attaining peace — it lies in Your Majesty's carrying it out, nothing more. Yet what was set forth above was truly because I personally received the sage inquiry — how could I not respond item by item. Though I am foolish, I hold that it has not reached the great beginning of transformation and teaching, the essential Way of the august kings. I beg Your Majesty to serve Heaven and Earth to teach reverence, attend the ancestral temples to teach filial piety, nurture the aged to teach respect for elders, cherish the people to teach kindness to the young, harmonize the vital energies to warm and nurture, fan the great harmony toward benevolence and longevity — then you may roam free in non-action, fold your arms, and let transformation be accomplished. As for reflecting on the potter's wheel — it lies in selecting chief ministers to entrust with it, letting them wield the handle of creation and transformation; reflecting on securing and stabilizing the realm — it lies in selecting generals and commanders to entrust with it, letting them fulfill the trust outside the frontier passes; reflecting on the hundred measures' lack of correctness — it lies in selecting the myriad offices to entrust with it, letting them focus on keeping to their professional duties; reflecting on the people's grievance and pain — it lies in selecting good local officials to entrust with it, letting them clarify the arts of kindness and nurturing. Then naturally your words suffice to teach the realm, your conduct suffices to model it, your benevolence suffices to encourage good, your righteousness suffices to prohibit wrong — why must you rise at midnight and dine at dusk, toil your spirit and be ever vigilant, only then attain governance! That year Left Regular Attendant of the Cavalry Feng Su, Vice Minister of Rites Jia Su, and Bureau Director of the Storehouses Pang Yan served as examination graders for the policy essays; the three were literary men of the time. Seeing Liu Fen's itemized answers, they sighed in admiration and lamentation, holding them to surpass the ancient Chao Cuo and Dong Zhongshu. The discourse was incisive and impassioned, and the scholar community was deeply moved. At the time twenty-two passed the examination, but inner eunuchs held power and the examiners dared not keep Liu Fen on the roster; public opinion clamored in outrage. Upright men who kept to the Way circulated his text, and some wept face to face as they read it. Remonstrating officials and investigating censors clenched their wrists in indignation, but the ministers in power smoothed matters over to avoid the yellow gate's resentment. Only Li He, who had passed the examination, said to others: "Liu Fen did not place, yet our cohort passed — how thick is our face indeed." He asked to yield the office he had received to Fen; though the matter was not granted, scholars praised him. Linghu Chu was at Xingyuan and Niu Sengru was stationed at Xiangyang; each recruited Liu Fen as a staff member and treated him like a teacher or friend. He ended his career as censor on a military commissioner's staff. Li Shangyin, whose courtesy name was Yishan, came from Henei in Huai prefecture. His great-grandfather Shuhuan passed the jinshi examination at nineteen and ended his career as magistrate of Anyang. His grandfather Fu rose no higher than recording secretary of Xing prefecture. His father was Si. Shangyin could already write essays as a boy. When Linghu Chu governed Heyang as military commissioner, Shangyin presented his writings to him, though he had not yet turned twenty. Chu admired his youth and talent, treated him with exceptional courtesy, and let him mingle with his sons. When Chu served at Tianping and Bian, Shangyin followed him as a staff officer. Chu paid his travel expenses each year and sent him to the capital with the tribute mission to sit for the examination. In 837 he finally passed the jinshi examination, took his first office as proofreader in the Secretariat, and was later transferred to magistrate of Hongnong. In 842 he again distinguished himself in the examination for legal and documentary excellence. When Wang Maoyuan governed Heyang, he recruited Shangyin as chief clerk and secured for him appointment as censor awaiting imperial disposition. Maoyuan admired his talent and gave him his daughter in marriage. Maoyuan had studied the classics and was a Confucian in learning, yet he came from a military family. Li Deyu had long favored him, and while Deyu held power he appointed him commander of Heyang. Deyu was locked in bitter enmity with Li Zongmin, Yang Sifu, and Linghu Chu. Once Shangyin entered Maoyuan's service, Zongmin's faction held him in deep contempt. By then Linghu Chu had died and his son Tao held an outer court post. Tao regarded Shangyin as ungrateful and especially despised his lack of principle. Before long Maoyuan died. Shangyin came to the capital in search of office but remained unemployed for a long time. Soon afterward Supervising Secretary Zheng Ya was sent to inspect Guizhou. He invited Shangyin to serve as administrative aide on the observation staff and acting vice director of the Ministry of Waterways. Early in the Dazhong reign Bai Minzhong came to power, with Linghu Tao in the inner secretariat; together they forced Li Deyu from office. Ya was condemned as a member of Deyu's faction and was demoted to prefect of Xunzhou. Shangyin followed Ya in the far south for several years. Three years later he returned to court. The capital intendant Lu Hongzheng memorialized to place him on his staff and put him in charge of petitions and memorials. The following year Linghu Tao became chief minister. Shangyin repeatedly petitioned to explain his circumstances, but Tao ignored him. When Hongzheng governed Xuzhou, Shangyin again served him as chief clerk. When that appointment ended he returned to court, again pressed his literary writings in search of office, and was appointed Erudite of the Imperial University. Soon the Henan intendant Liu Zhongying was sent to govern the eastern Shu region. He recruited Shangyin as administrative aide on his staff and acting director of the Ministry of Works. Late in the Dazhong reign Zhongying was demoted for an unauthorized execution. Shangyin was dismissed, returned to Zhengzhou, and died of illness not long afterward. Shangyin could write in the ancient prose style and disliked regulated parallel composition. He had served on Linghu Chu's staff. Chu excelled at memorials and edicts and taught Shangyin that craft, after which Shangyin began to write in the contemporary style of court documents. Learned and with a formidable memory, he wrote tirelessly once he took up the brush and was especially skilled at dirges and funeral offerings. His fame stood with Wen Tingyun of Taiyuan and Duan Chengshi of Nancheng; contemporaries called them the "Thirty-six." His literary sensibility was clear and refined, and in this he surpassed Tingyun. Yet both lacked firm moral principle. They relied on talent, behaved with eccentric vehemence, and men in power looked down on them. Neither advanced in official career and both were thwarted to the end of their lives. His younger brother Yishou also passed the jinshi examination and served repeatedly on provincial staffs. Shangyin left a collection of memorials and formal petitions in forty juan. Wen Tingyun came from Taiyuan. His original name was Qi, and his courtesy name was Feiqing. At the start of the Dazhong reign he sat for the jinshi examination, labored over his studies, and excelled above all in poetry and rhapsodies. When he first arrived in the capital, men of letters immediately held him in high regard. Yet his personal conduct was disorderly, he paid no heed to decorum, and he could set sensuous lyrics to the music of strings and pipes. He consorted with the dissolute sons of great families, such as Pei Cheng and Linghu Hao, gambling and drinking with them in drunken revelry all day long. Because of this he failed the examination year after year. When Xu Shang was stationed at Xiangyang, Tingyun went to join his staff and was appointed a touring officer. During the Xiantong reign, disheartened, he returned to the lower Yangzi region. Passing through Guangling, he nursed resentment that Linghu Tao, while in office, had not helped him win renown. Once there, he caroused wildly in the pleasure quarters with young upstarts, long neglected formal calls on officials, and even begged at Yangzi Courtyard. Drunk, he broke the night curfew, was beaten by the night watch, and returned with his face battered and teeth broken. The Yangzhou authorities brought suit. Linghu Tao had the night watch arrested and prosecuted, speaking at length of Tingyun's disreputable conduct in the pleasure quarters, and then released both parties. From then on his disreputable conduct became known throughout the capital. After reaching Chang'an, Tingyun wrote to high officials to clear his name. Xu Shang was then directing state affairs and spoke on his behalf with some effect. Before long Xu Shang was dismissed as chief minister and took up a post at Yangzhou. Shou grew angry with Tingyun, demoted him to magistrate of Fangcheng, later transferred him to magistrate of Sui county, where he died. His son Xian passed the jinshi examination. His younger brother Tinghao served on the staff at Xuzhou during the Xiantong reign. When the military governor Cui Yanlu was killed by Pang Xun, Tinghao was killed as well. Tingyun wrote a great deal, and the tonal craft of his poetry and rhapsodies was clear and refined. Men of letters praised him for it. Xue Feng, whose courtesy name was Taochen, came from Hedong. His father was Yi. Feng passed the jinshi at the start of the Huichang reign, received office, and entered service. When Cui, a proofreader in the Secretariat, was dismissed as chief minister and took up command at Hedzhong, he recruited Feng to his staff. When Xuan again took up chief ministerial duties, he memorialized to appoint Feng magistrate of Wannian and assign him to the Hall of Literature. Feng was later promoted repeatedly to supervising censor and then to a director in the Secretariat. Feng's writing was brilliant and his discourse sharp and impassioned. He prided himself on strategic talent, yet for years he failed to advance. While sitting for the jinshi examination he was especially close to Liu Cuan of Pengcheng. Cuan's literary skill did not match Feng's, and Feng often treated him with contempt. By the end of the Dazhong reign Cuan had risen to fame and served in the inner offices, while Feng grew ever more frustrated. From then on the two bore each other resentment. Before long Cuan took charge of state affairs. Someone recommended Feng for the post of drafter of edicts, but Cuan memorialized: "The former court established that appointees to the drafting and secretariat posts of the Two Departments must first serve in prefectural and county office. Feng has never governed a commandery and should first be tested in such a post." Feng was then sent out as prefect of Bazhou. Before long Shen Xun, Yang Shou, and Wang Duo rose from the Hanlin Academy to become chief ministers and generals in succession. All were jinshi of the same year as Feng, yet his literary talent was the finest. After Yang Shou became chief minister, Feng wrote a poem that ran: "One must know the courtier bearing the golden seal who faces the Son of Heaven. Both alike are passers-by sidestepping the road along the sand embankment. A majestic phoenix appearing at the right moment is hailed as an auspicious sage; a hidden dragon without water vainly claims communion with the divine." When Shou heard of it, he was deeply offended. Feng was again sent out as prefect of Pengzhou. When Shou was dismissed as chief minister, Feng entered court as vice director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and drafting reviewer. When Wang Duo became chief minister, Feng wrote another poem: "Yesterday a goose feather weighed ten thousand jun; today mountains and peaks are lighter than a speck of dust." Duo again resented him. Because Feng relied on his talent and was narrow and quick to take offense, men of standing despised him. He was promoted to director of the Secretariat and died. His son Tinggui passed the jinshi examination during the Zhonghe reign. At the start of the Datong reign he rose through several posts to vice director in the Ministry of Honors, was formally appointed drafter of edicts, and was invested as secretariat drafter. In 896 he was sent on mission to Taiyuan. On reporting back that Emperor Zhaozong had moved to Huazhou, he was appointed left regular attendant. He pleaded illness, resigned from office, and traveled as a guest in Chengdu. During the Guanghua reign he again became secretariat drafter, was promoted to vice minister of both Justice and Personnel, served as acting director of the civil examinations in the Ministry of Rites, and was appointed left vice director of the Secretariat. After entering the service of Later Liang, he rose to minister of rites. Li Zheng, whose courtesy name was Changshi, came from Longxi. In 871 he passed the jinshi examination. During the Qianfu reign he served repeatedly on provincial staffs. During Huang Chao's rebellion he took refuge at Pingyang. When Emperor Xizong returned to the capital, Zheng was summoned and appointed a director in the Secretariat, then promoted to director in the Ministry of Honors and made drafter of edicts. When Emperor Xizong again moved to Baoji, Zheng was unable to accompany him. At Fengxiang the Prince of Xiang usurped an imperial title and forced Zheng to serve as a Hanlin academician. Having been tainted by service under the usurping regime, he could not rest easy in his mind. Later Zhu Mei seized power. The hundred officials fell into disorder, and court institutions sank into chaos. Once, after court was dismissed, Zheng halted his horse at the Gate of the Nation, gazed toward the southern mountains, and recited: "After court at Zichen ends, paired mandarin ducks are strung together; before the Crimson Phoenix Tower I halt my horse to look. Only the color of Mount Zhongnan remains, clear and bright as ever, filling Chang'an." When he finished reciting, tears streamed down his face. When Wang Xingyu killed Zhu Mei, the Prince of Xiang fled. The capital fell into chaos, and Zheng was killed by mutinous troops. His wife, Lady Lu, was learned, could write, and was beautiful. After Zheng died she lay over his corpse wailing. When bandits pressed her, she kept weeping and would not move. They threatened her with weapons and even severed one of her arms, yet she never turned away and was killed by the bandits. All who heard of it mourned her. Li Juchuan, whose courtesy name was Xiayi, came from Longyou. He was a descendant of Li Daoxuan of the founding eighteen scholars and a grandnephew of Li Fengji. His father Xun passed the jinshi examination in 854. Juchuan sat for the jinshi during the Qianfu reign. As the realm fell into great disorder and he wandered in exile, eager for salary and rank, he turned to the pen and entered the staffs of regional lords. When Wang Chongrong was stationed at Hedzhong, he recruited Juchuan as chief secretary. At that time the emperor was in Shu, rebels held the capital, and Chongrong rallied the regional lords to join forces against the bandits. Military dispatches and memorials piled on his desk until they overflowed. Juchuan wrote with swift brilliance, his brush flying across the page. When his dispatches reached neighboring regions, all were stirred. Chongrong's success in recovery owed much to Juchuan's help. When Chongrong was killed by his subordinates, court opinion blamed his staff, and Juchuan was demoted to an aide in Hanzhong. At that time Yang Shouliang commanded Xingyuan and knew Juchuan of old. When he heard Juchuan had arrived, he said joyfully to a guest: "Heaven has sent Secretary Li to me!" [Close quotation.] He immediately appointed Juchuan to manage the secretariat and promoted him through several staff posts. During the Jingfu reign Shouliang was attacked by Li Maozhen. When the city fell, he set out with several hundred followers intending to go over to Taiyuan. Entering Qin, he was captured by Han Jian's army at Hua. Juchuan was then with Shouliang and was shackled as well. On the road Juchuan inscribed a poem on a tree leaf and sent it to Han Jian, commander of Hua. The verse was mournful and moving, and Jian gladly released him from his bonds. After Shouliang was executed, Jian immediately appointed Juchuan chief secretary. Before long Li Maozhen invaded the capital, and the emperor halted at Hua. Han Jian, with the resources of a single province, had to supply the imperial court and feared he could not manage it. He sent Juchuan to circulate a proclamation throughout the realm requesting aid in transporting provisions, so that all might jointly restore the royal house and rebuild the capital. Dispatches and replies poured in from every direction. Juchuan drafted responses with fluent prose and satisfying logic. Emperor Zhaozong held him in deep esteem, and Juchuan's name at once spread throughout the realm. When Emperor Zhaozong returned to the capital, Juchuan was specially appointed remonstrance grandee and remained to assist Han Jian. At the start of the Guanghua reign Zhu Quanzhong captured Hedzhong and advanced into Tong Pass. Jian was afraid and sent Juchuan to see Zhu Quanzhong and offer submission. Arriving at Hedzhong, Juchuan spoke calmly of the situation. Juchuan laid out the advantages and dangers of the situation. Zhu Quanzhong was then plotting to seize the throne, and when he heard Juchuan's analysis he took offense. The aide Jing Xiang, also valued by Zhu Quanzhong for his literary skill, feared that keeping Juchuan would diminish his own standing and said to Quanzhong: "Remonstrance Grandee Li's writing is indeed fine, but it does not serve his master well." [Close quotation.] That same day Juchuan was killed by Zhu Quanzhong. Sikong Tu, whose courtesy name was Biaosheng, was originally from Linzi. His great-grandfather Sui served as magistrate of Mi. His grandfather Luan served as director in the Ministry of Works. His father Yu was skilled in administrative methods. At the start of the Dazhong reign Vice Minister of Revenue Lu Hongzheng oversaw the salt and iron monopoly and memorialized to appoint Yu commissioner of the Anyi two-pool salt monopoly and acting director in the Ministry of Rites. Previously the salt laws were loosely defined, and officials often violated the regulations; Yu then drafted ten articles of new regulations and memorialized them. To this day they are regarded as convenient. He entered court service as vice director in the Ministry of Justice, was promoted to director in the Ministry of Revenue, and died. Tu passed the jinshi examination in 869. The chief examiner Wang Ning regarded him as especially remarkable among the successful candidates. When Ning was demoted to prefect of Shangzhou, Tu asked to accompany him. Ning valued him all the more, and when Ning was assigned to inspect Xuancheng and Shezhou he recruited Tu as chief guest. He was summoned and appointed palace censor. Because he was slow in reaching court he was demoted to registrar in the Court of Imperial Entertainments and assigned to the eastern capital branch. In 879 Chief Minister Lu Xie was dismissed and served as a guest at the eastern capital branch. Tu kept company with him. Xie admired Tu's lofty integrity and treated him with generous courtesy. Once, visiting Tu's house, he wrote on the wall by hand: "The surname Sikong is noble; the rank of censor is low. If this old man were still in office, you need not brood over hardship and obscurity." The next year Xie returned to court. Passing through Shanzhou and Guozhou he said to the Shan commander Lu Wo: "Censor Sikong is a man of lofty character. You should treat him generously." Wo that same day memorialized to appoint Tu to his staff. That year Xie again took charge of state affairs, summoned Tu as vice director in the Ministry of Rites, granted him the crimson robe and fish bag, and promoted him to director in that ministry. That winter Huang Chao's rebels invaded the capital. The emperor fled, Tu was unable to accompany him, and withdrew to Hedzhong. At that time the former chief minister Wang Hui was also at Pu and treated Tu with great generosity. Several years later Hui received orders to take command at Lu and memorialized to appoint Tu his deputy. Hui never took up the post, and the appointment came to nothing. When Emperor Xizong returned from Shu and halted at Fengxiang, Tu was summoned to draft edicts and soon formally appointed secretariat drafter. That year Emperor Xizong moved to Baoji. Tu again could not accompany him and withdrew to Hedzhong. At the start of the Longji reign he was again summoned and appointed secretariat drafter. Before long he again pleaded illness and resigned. When Hebei fell into disorder, he took up residence at Huayin. During the Jingfu reign he was again summoned as remonstrance grandee. At that time the court was weak and institutions were in ruins. Tu deeply felt that leaving retirement was worse than remaining in seclusion, pleaded illness, and refused to take office. During the Qianning reign he was again summoned as vice minister of revenue. He came once to court to offer thanks, but within days begged to return to the mountains and was permitted to do so. When Emperor Zhaozong was at Hua, Tu was summoned and appointed vice minister of war. He claimed a foot ailment that prevented him from performing court bows and merely sent a memorial of thanks. When Emperor Zhaozong moved to Luoyang, Zhu Quanzhong sought to bring him under Liang control. Liu Can curried the usurper's favor, framed members of the old elite, and an edict summoned Tu to court. Tu feared execution, forced himself through illness to reach Luoyang, and on the day of audience dropped his court tablet and lost all decorum. His manner was utterly uncouth. Can knew he could not be bent and issued an edict saying: "Sikong Tu, outstanding in talent, passed the examination and entered the ranks of high office. Having cultivated loftiness to disdain the age, he is like one who moved a mountain to fish for fame. His heart delights only in living as a recluse by flowing streams; office is not his sole pursuit of salary and sustenance. Neither suitable for barbarian lands nor for a benevolent court, he is ill suited to a government of impartial justice; Upon further reflection, he should be allowed to follow his resolve to live in rustic seclusion. He is permitted to return to the mountains." Tu had an ancestral villa in Wangguan Valley in the Zhongtiao Mountains, with springs, rocks, woods, and pavilions well suited to secluded living. From then on he lived in lofty seclusion at Kaopan, daily roaming and composing poetry there with eminent monks and reclusive scholars. In his later writing he especially cultivated free unrestraint. Once, modeling Bai Juyi's Biography of the Drunken Chanter, he wrote Record of the Rest-Rest Pavilion: "The Sikong family's Rest-Rest Pavilion at Zhenyi Stream was originally named Wash-the-Tassel Pavilion and was burned by the Shan army." In the guihai year of Tianfu it was rebuilt amid ruined walls, and its name was changed to Rest-Rest. Rest means repose, and also beauty; in repose, full beauty remains. Broadly speaking: measured by talent, he ought first to rest; measured by allotted fate, he ought second to rest; old and deaf, he ought third to rest. Moreover, idle in youth, unrestrained in maturity, and obstinate in old age—these three qualities are none of them useful for aiding the age, and so again he ought to rest. Still he worried that in troubled times he could not trust himself. Then he napped by day and met two monks who said to him: "We were once your teachers. You once strained after the Way, sharp yet not steadfast, bound by profit and desire. Fortunately you awakened and repented, and will again follow us at this stream. Moreover, though you have withdrawn, you have also been envied by wicked men. You should endure insult and keep yourself warned, so as to preserve your integrity from beginning to end and rank your standing with Tao Yuanming and Bai Juyi a thousand years hence. What more could you seek!" He therefore composed the Song of the Endurance-of-Insult Recluse and inscribed it on the northeast pillar: "Tut-tut! Rest, rest, rest; no, no, no. Though tricks are many, nature and spirit are base; luckily one is long taught to dwell in leisure. Rest, rest, rest; no, no, no. One game of chess, one brazier of medicine—the intent of heaven and the mood of the age can be gauged. The white sun especially urges the merry man onward; gold cannot buy the privilege of riding a crane to immortality. If one says: 'What can you do?' The answer is: 'Endure insult—that is all.'" His eccentric vehemence, whistling defiance, and proud disdain were mostly of this kind. After Tu escaped Liu Can's peril and returned to the mountains, he prepared his tomb and final arrangements in advance. When old friends came, he led them into the burial chamber to compose poetry and drink together. Some showed discomfort, and Tu admonished them, saying: "The man of attainment takes the great view. Dark and bright are one, and this is not merely a brief visit here. Why do you not broaden your view!" [Close quotation.] Tu wore plain cloth and carried a dove-tailed staff. When he went out he was accompanied by the female household member Luantai. At seasonal village rites, rain prayers, sacrifices, and drum-and-dance gatherings, Tu always attended and sat with rustic elders, never showing arrogance. Wang Chongrong and his family especially valued him. Seasonal offerings and gifts never ceased on the road to his door. In the year after the Tang dynasty fell, hearing that Prince Hui had been assassinated at Jiyin, he fell into displeasure and illness. Within days he died, at the age of seventy-two. He left collected writings in thirty juan. Tu had no son and took his nephew He as his heir. He rose to prefect of Yongzhou. Because he had taken a nephew as heir, he was once impeached by a censor, but Emperor Zhaozong did not hold him accountable. The eulogy says: The splendor of the state lies in the forming and completion of human culture. At intervals ages produce outstanding men who stir literary ornament and unfold brilliance. Like swift Qiji they stride in excellence; like Xian and Shao they sound the correct music. Their brilliance flows through silk and plain scrolls, looking down even upon the ages of Ji and Ying.