1
周德威，字鎮遠，小字陽五，朔州馬邑人也。 初事武皇為帳中騎督，驍勇，便騎射，膽氣智數皆過人。 久在雲中，諳熟邊事，望煙塵之警，懸知兵勢。 乾寧中，為鐵林軍使，武皇討王行瑜，以功加檢校左僕射，移內衙軍副。
Zhou Dewei, whose courtesy name was Zhenyuan and childhood name Yangwu, was a native of Mayi in Shuozhou. He first served Emperor Wu as captain of the guard cavalry. Fierce in battle and expert at mounted archery, he surpassed other men in courage, resolve, and cunning. After long service at Yunzhong he knew the frontier inside out; from the dust of distant alarms he could read the enemy's movements at a glance. During the Qianning reign he was made commissioner of the Iron Forest Army. When Emperor Wu campaigned against Wang Xingyu, Dewei was promoted for merit to acting Left Vice Director of the Imperial Secretariat and transferred to deputy commander of the inner guard.
2
光化二年三月，汴將氏叔琮率眾逼太原。 有陳章者，以虓勇知名，眾謂之「夜叉」，言於叔琮曰：「晉人所恃者周陽五，願擒之，請賞以郡。」 陳章嘗乘驄馬朱甲以自異。 武皇戒德威曰：「我聞陳夜叉欲取爾求郡，宜善備之。」 德威曰：「陳章大言，未知鹿死誰手！」 他日致師，戒部下曰：「如陣上見陳夜叉，爾等但走。」 德威微服挑戰，部下偽退，陳章縱馬追之，德威背揮鐵楇擊墮馬，生獲以獻，由是知名。
In the third month of the second year of Guanghua, the Bian general Shi Shuzong marched on Taiyuan with a large force. A warrior named Chen Zhang was famed for savage courage; the troops called him "Yaksha." He told Shuzong, "The Jin depend on Zhou Yangwu. Let me take him, and grant me a commandery as reward." Chen Zhang made himself conspicuous by riding a piebald horse in crimson armor. Emperor Wu warned Dewei, "I hear Chen the Yaksha means to capture you and claim a commandery. Take careful precautions." Dewei replied, "Chen Zhang boasts loudly. We have yet to see who will fall in the hunt!" On the day battle was joined he told his men, "If you see Chen the Yaksha on the field, simply run." Dewei came forward in plain dress to challenge them. His men feigned retreat, and Chen Zhang spurred after them. Dewei swung an iron mace backward, knocked him from his horse, took him alive, and presented him as a captive. From that day his fame spread.
3
天復中，我師不利於潘縣，汴將朱友寧、氏叔琮來逼晉陽。 時諸軍未集，城中大恐，德威與李嗣昭選募銳兵出諸門，攻其壘，擒生斬馘，汴人枝梧不暇，乃退。 天祐三年，與李嗣昭合燕軍攻潞州，降丁會，以功加檢校太保、代州刺史； 代嗣昭為蕃漢都將。 李思安之寇潞州也，德威軍於餘吾。 時汴軍十萬築夾城，圍潞州，內外斷絕，德威以精騎薄之，屢敗汴人，進營高河，令遊騎邀其芻牧。 汴軍閉壁不出，乃自東南山口築甬道樹柵以通夾城，德威之騎軍，倒牆堙塹，日數十戰，前後俘馘，不可勝紀。 梁有驍將黃角鷹、方骨侖，皆生致之。
During the Tianfu reign our army suffered defeat at Pan County, and the Bian generals Zhu Youning and Shi Shuzong advanced on Jinyang. The armies had not yet assembled, and panic gripped the city. Dewei and Li Sizhao picked elite troops and sent them out every gate to strike the enemy camps, taking prisoners and heads. The Bian forces could not hold their ground and withdrew. In the third year of Tianyou he joined Li Sizhao and Yan troops in an assault on Luzhou. Ding Hui surrendered, and for this merit Dewei was made acting Grand Guardian and prefect of Daizhou. He succeeded Sizhao as commander-in-chief of tribal and Han forces. When Li Si'an besieged Luzhou, Dewei encamped at Yuyu. A hundred thousand Bian troops built twin siege cities around Luzhou and cut it off from the outside world. Dewei harried them with elite cavalry, defeated them again and again, advanced his camp to Gaohe, and sent mounted raiders to seize their fodder and livestock. The Bian army held behind their walls. They built a covered road and palisades from the southeastern pass to link the twin cities. Dewei's horsemen tore down walls and filled moats, fighting dozens of skirmishes a day. The prisoners and heads they took could not be counted. Among Liang's fiercest generals were Huang Jiaoying and Fang Gulun; Dewei captured both alive.
4
五年正月，武皇疾篤，德威退營亂柳，武皇厭代。 四月，命德威班師。 時莊宗初立，德威外握兵柄，頗有浮議，內外憂之。 德威既至，單騎入謁，伏靈柩哭，哀不自勝，由是群情釋然。 是月二十四日，從莊宗再援潞州。 二十九日，德威前軍營橫碾，距潞四十五里。 五月朔，晨霧晦暝，王師伏於三垂崗下。 翌日，直趨夾城，斬關破壘，梁人大敗，解潞州之圍。 初，德威與李嗣昭有私憾，武皇臨終顧謂莊宗曰：「進通忠孝不負我，重圍累年，似與德威有隙，以吾命諭之，若不解重圍，歿有遺恨。」 莊宗達遺旨，德威感泣，由是勵力堅戰，竟破強敵，與嗣昭歡愛如初。 以功加檢校太保、同平章事、振武節度使。
In the first month of the fifth year Emperor Wu fell gravely ill. Dewei withdrew his camp to Luanliu, and Emperor Wu died. In the fourth month he ordered Dewei to withdraw the army. Emperor Zhuangzong had only just taken the throne. Dewei still held command of the field armies, and rumor spread at court and in camp alike. When Dewei arrived he rode in alone to pay his respects, prostrated himself before the bier, and wept until he could no longer speak. At that the army's suspicions melted away. On the twenty-fourth of that month he marched with Emperor Zhuangzong to relieve Luzhou once more. On the twenty-ninth Dewei's vanguard encamped at Hengnian, forty-five li from Luzhou. On the first day of the fifth month a dense morning mist hung over the land. The imperial army lay in ambush below Sanchui Ridge. The next day they struck straight at the twin cities, broke the gates and stormed the ramparts. The Liang army was routed and the siege of Luzhou was lifted. Dewei and Li Sizhao had long borne a private grudge. On his deathbed Emperor Wu told Emperor Zhuangzong, "Jintong has served me with loyalty and filial devotion. He has held the siege for years, yet he and Dewei seem estranged. Speak to them in my name. If they do not lift this siege together, I shall die with regret." The emperor conveyed his father's last wish. Dewei wept and threw himself into the fight. At last they broke the enemy, and he and Sizhao were close friends again as before. For this merit he was made acting Grand Guardian, co-director of the Secretariat, and military commissioner of Zhenwu.
5
七年，岐人攻靈夏，遣使來求助，德威渡河以應之； 師還，授蕃漢馬步總管。 七年十一月，汴人據深、冀，汴將王景仁軍八萬次柏鄉，鎮州節度使王鎔來告難，帝遣德威率前軍出井陘，屯於趙州。 十二月，帝親征。 二十五日，進薄汴營，距柏鄉五里，營於野河上。 汴將韓率精兵三萬，鎧甲皆被繒綺，金銀炫曜，望之森然，我軍懼形於色。 德威謂李存璋曰：「賊結陣而來，觀其形勢，誌不在戰，欲以兵甲耀威耳。 我軍人乍見其來，謂其鋒不可當，此時不挫其銳，吾軍不振矣！」 乃遣存璋諭諸軍曰：「爾見此賊軍否？ 是汴州天武健兒，皆屠沽傭販，虛有表耳，縱被精甲，十不當一，擒獲足以為資。」 德威自率精騎擊其兩偏，左馳右決，出沒數四。 是日，獲賊百餘人，賊渡河而退。 德威謂莊宗曰：「賊驕氣充盛，宜按兵以待其衰。」 莊宗曰：「我提孤軍，救難解紛，三鎮烏合之眾，利在速戰，卿欲持重，吾懼其不可使也。」 德威曰：「鎮、定之士，長於守城，列陣野戰，素非便習。 我師破賊，惟恃騎軍，平田廣野，易為施功。 今壓賊營，令彼見我虛實，則勝負未可必也。」 莊宗不悅，退臥帳中。 德威患之，謂監軍張承業曰：「王欲速戰，將烏合之徒，欲當劇賊，所謂不量力也。 去賊咫尺，限此一渠水，彼若早夜以略彴渡之，吾族其為俘矣。 若退軍鄗邑，引賊離營，彼出則歸，復以輕騎掠其芻餉，不逾月，敗賊必矣。」 承業入言，莊宗乃釋然。 德威得降人問之，曰「景仁下令造浮橋數日」，果如德威所料。 二十七日，乃退軍保鄗邑。
In the seventh year the Qi attacked Ling and Xia and sent envoys asking for aid. Dewei crossed the Yellow River to answer them. When the army returned he was appointed overall commander of tribal and Han horse and foot. In the eleventh month of the seventh year the Bian held Shen and Ji. The Bian general Wang Jingren camped at Baixiang with eighty thousand men. Wang Rong, military commissioner of Zhenzhou, sent word that he was in peril. The emperor sent Dewei with the vanguard through Jingxing Pass to encamp at Zhaozhou. In the twelfth month the emperor took the field in person. On the twenty-fifth they pressed close to the Bian camp, five li from Baixiang, and pitched their tents on the Ye River. The Bian general Han led thirty thousand elite troops in armor draped with brocade, gold and silver glittering so that they looked terrifying from afar. Fear showed plainly on our men's faces. Dewei told Li Cunzhang, "The enemy advances in battle order, but their intent is not to fight. They mean only to dazzle us with arms and armor. Our men, seeing them for the first time, think their charge cannot be stopped. If we do not blunt their pride now, our army will never recover its spirit!" He sent Cunzhang to rally the troops and asked, "Do you see this enemy host? They are the Heaven Martial guards of Bianzhou—nothing but butchers, peddlers, and hired hands. Their splendor is empty show. Fine armor or not, ten of them are not worth one of us. Capture them and you will profit." Dewei himself led elite cavalry against both flanks, wheeling left and right and appearing and vanishing again and again. That day they took more than a hundred prisoners, and the enemy crossed the river and withdrew. Dewei told Emperor Zhuangzong, "The enemy's pride is at its height. We should hold our ground and wait for it to fade." The emperor replied, "I have brought a lone army to rescue allies in distress. These three prefectures' men are a mob gathered in haste; our advantage lies in swift battle. If you insist on caution, I fear the moment will pass us by." Dewei said, "The men of Zhen and Ding excel at defending walls. Fighting in open field arrays is not their strength. To defeat the enemy we depend wholly on cavalry. On level plains and open country we can fight to our advantage. If we press close to their camp and let them see our full strength, victory and defeat become uncertain." The emperor was displeased and withdrew to his tent to lie down. Dewei was deeply troubled. He told army supervisor Zhang Chengye, "His Majesty wants a quick battle. He would pit a hastily gathered mob against a formidable foe. That is to misjudge one's strength. We stand a foot from the enemy, with only this ditch between us. If they cross by night on light bridges, our whole army will be taken prisoner. If we withdraw to Gaoyi and lure them from their camp, we can strike when they advance and fall back when they retreat, then send light cavalry to raid their fodder and supplies. Within a month the enemy will surely be broken." Chengye went in and spoke to the emperor, who then accepted the plan with relief. Dewei questioned a prisoner, who said, "Jingren has ordered floating bridges built for several days"—just as Dewei had predicted. On the twenty-seventh the army withdrew to Gaoyi.
6
八年正月二日，德威率騎軍致師於柏鄉，設伏於村塢間，令三百騎以壓汴營。 王景仁悉其眾結陣而來，德威轉戰而退，汴軍因而乘之，至於鄗邑南。 時步軍未成列，德威陣騎河上以抗之。 亭午，兩軍皆陣，莊宗問戰時，德威曰：「汴軍氣盛，可以勞逸製之，造次較力，殆難與敵。 古者師行不逾一舍，蓋慮糧餉不給，士有饑色。 今賊遠來決戰，縱挾糗糒，亦不遑食。 晡晚之後，饑渴內侵，戰陣外迫，士心既倦，將必求退。 乘其勞弊，以生兵製之，縱不大敗，偏師必喪。 以臣所籌，利在晡晚。」 諸將皆然之。 時汴軍以魏、博之人為右廣，宋、汴之人為左廣，自未至申，陣勢稍卻，德威麾軍呼曰：「汴軍走矣！」 塵埃漲天，魏人收軍漸退。 莊宗與史建瑭、安金全等因衝其陣，夾攻之，大敗汴軍，殺戮殆盡； 王景仁、李思安僅以身免，獲將校二百八十人。
On the second day of the first month of the eighth year Dewei led his cavalry to offer battle at Baixiang, hid troops among the village stockades, and sent three hundred horsemen to harass the Bian camp. Wang Jingren marched out with his full army in battle order. Dewei fought while falling back, and the Bian army pressed the pursuit as far as the south of Gaoyi. The infantry had not yet formed their ranks. Dewei lined his cavalry along the river to hold them off. By midday both armies were drawn up. The emperor asked when to attack. Dewei said, "The Bian army's spirit is at its peak. We can overcome them by weariness against rest. A hasty trial of strength will be hard to win. In antiquity armies did not march more than one stop in a day, lest provisions fail and the men go hungry. These foes have marched far to fight a decisive battle. Even if they carry dry rations, they will have no time to eat. By late afternoon hunger and thirst will gnaw at them from within while the battle presses from without. The men's spirit will flag and their commanders will look for a way to withdraw. Strike when they are worn down and fresh troops can master them. Even if we do not rout them utterly, we will surely shatter a wing of their army. In my judgment the advantage lies in late afternoon." The other generals agreed. The Bian right wing was made up of men from Wei and Bo, the left of men from Song and Bian. From mid-afternoon their lines began to give ground. Dewei waved his troops on and shouted, "The Bian army is fleeing!" Dust billowed to the sky as the Wei troops drew back. Emperor Zhuangzong with Shi Jiantang, An Jinquan, and others charged the enemy line and attacked from both sides. The Bian army was routed and nearly annihilated. Wang Jingren and Li Si'an barely escaped with their lives. Two hundred eighty officers and commanders were captured.
7
八月，劉守光僭稱大燕皇帝。 十二月，遣德威率步騎三萬出飛狐，與鎮州將王德明、定州將程嚴等軍進討。 九年正月，收涿州，降刺史劉知溫。 五月七日，劉守光令驍將單廷珪督精甲萬人出戰，德威遇於龍頭崗。 初，廷珪謂左右曰：「今日擒周陽五。」 既臨陣，見德威，廷珪單騎持槍躬追德威，垂及，德威側身避之，廷珪少退，德威奮楇南墜其馬，生獲廷珪，賊黨大敗，斬首三千級，獲大將李山海等五十二人。 十二日，德威自涿州進軍良鄉、大城。 守光既失廷珪，自是奪氣。 德威之師，屢收諸郡，降者相繼。 十年十一月，擒守光父子，幽州平。 十二月，授德威檢校侍中、幽州盧龍等軍節度使。
In the eighth month Liu Shouguang declared himself emperor of Great Yan. In the twelfth month he sent Dewei with thirty thousand foot and horse through Flying Fox Pass, joining Wang Deming of Zhenzhou, Cheng Yan of Dingzhou, and other armies in a punitive campaign. In the first month of the ninth year they took Zhuozhou, and Prefect Liu Zhiwen surrendered. On the seventh day of the fifth month Liu Shouguang sent his fierce general Shan Tinggui at the head of ten thousand men in fine armor. Dewei met them at Longtou Ridge. Earlier Tinggui had told his attendants, "Today I shall capture Zhou Yangwu." When battle was joined and he saw Dewei, Tinggui spurred forward alone with spear in hand to chase him down. As he was about to catch him, Dewei swerved aside. Tinggui pulled back slightly, and Dewei swung his mace and knocked him from his horse, taking him alive. The enemy host was routed. Three thousand heads were taken, and fifty-two great generals including Li Shanhai were captured. On the twelfth Dewei marched from Zhuozhou toward Liangxiang and Dacheng. After losing Tinggui, Shouguang lost all heart for the fight. Dewei's army took commandery after commandery, and surrenders followed in steady succession. In the eleventh month of the tenth year they captured Shouguang and his son, and Youzhou was pacified. In the twelfth month Dewei was made acting Palace Attendant and military commissioner of Youzhou, Lulong, and affiliated armies.
8
德威性忠孝，感武皇獎遇，嘗思臨難忘身。 十二月，汴將劉鄩自洹水乘虛將寇太原，德威在幽州聞之，徑以五百騎馳入土門，聞鄩軍至樂平不進，德威徑至南宮以候汴軍。 初，劉鄩欲據臨清以扼鎮、定轉餉之路，行次陳宋口，德威遣將擒數十人，皆倳刃於背，縶而遣之。 既至，謂劉鄩曰：「周侍中已據宗城矣！」 德威其夜急騎扼臨清，劉鄩乃入貝州。 是時德威若不至，則勝負不可知也。
Dewei was loyal and filial by nature. Grateful for Emperor Wu's favor, he often resolved to face danger without regard for his own life. In the twelfth month the Bian general Liu Yan marched from Huan River to strike Taiyuan while it was exposed. Dewei was at Youzhou when he heard the news and rode at once with five hundred cavalry through Tumen Pass. Learning that Yan's army had reached Leping but halted, he pressed on to Nangong to block the Bian advance. Liu Yan had meant to seize Linqing and cut the supply line from Zhen and Ding. When his army reached Chen Song Ford, Dewei's officers captured several dozen of his men, shaved the blades from their backs, bound them, and sent them back. When they arrived they told Liu Yan, "Attendant Zhou already holds Zongcheng!" That night Dewei raced to seize Linqing, and Liu Yan withdrew into Beizhou. Had Dewei not arrived in time, the outcome of the campaign would have been impossible to predict.
9
十四年三月，契丹寇新州，德威不利，退保范陽。 〈（《遼史·太祖紀》：神冊二年三月辛亥，攻幽州，節度使周德威以幽、并、鎮、定、魏五州兵拒戰於居庸關之西，戰於新州東，大破之，斬首三萬級。 又，《通鑒》：契丹主帥眾三十萬，德威眾寡不敵，大為契丹所敗。）〉 敵眾攻僅二百日，外援未至，德威撫循士眾，晝夜乘城，竟獲保守。 十五年，我師營麻口渡，將大舉以定汴州。 德威自幽州率本軍至。 十二月二十三日，軍次胡柳陂。 詰旦，騎報曰：「汴軍至矣！」 莊宗使問戰備，德威奏曰：「賊倍道而來，未成營壘，我營柵已固，守備有餘，既深入賊疆，須決萬全之策。 此去大梁信宿，賊之家屬，盡在其間，人之常情，孰不以家國為念？ 以我深入之眾，抗彼激憤之軍，不以方略製之，恐難必勝。 王但按軍保柵，臣以騎軍疲之，使彼不得下營，際晚，糧餉不給，進退無據，因以乘之，破賊之道也。」 莊宗曰：「河上終日挑戰，恨不遇賊，今款門不戰，非壯夫也！」 乃率親軍成列而出，德威不獲已，從之。 謂其子曰：「吾不知其死所矣！」 莊宗與汴將王彥章接戰，大敗之。 德威之軍在東偏，汴之遊軍入我輜重，眾駭，奔入德威軍，因紛擾無行列。 德威兵少，不能解，父子俱戰歿。 先是，鎮星犯上將，星占者雲，不利大將。 是夜收軍，德威不至，莊宗慟哭謂諸將曰：「喪我良將，吾之咎也！」
In the third month of the fourteenth year the Khitan attacked Xinzhou. Dewei was defeated and fell back to defend Fanyang. (From the Basic Annals of Taizu in the History of Liao: On the xinhai day of the third month of the second year of Shence the Khitan attacked Youzhou. Military Commissioner Zhou Dewei met them west of Juyong Pass with forces from You, Bing, Zhen, Ding, and Wei. They fought east of Xinzhou and routed the Jin army, taking thirty thousand heads. The Comprehensive Mirror adds: The Khitan ruler led three hundred thousand men. Outnumbered, Dewei suffered a crushing defeat.)〉 The enemy besieged the city for nearly two hundred days while no relief came from outside. Dewei comforted his officers and men and manned the walls day and night until the city was held. In the fifteenth year our army encamped at Makou Ford, preparing a major campaign to conquer Bianzhou. Dewei marched from Youzhou with his own troops to join them. On the twenty-third of the twelfth month the army halted at Huliu Slope. At daybreak a mounted scout reported, "The Bian army has arrived!" The emperor sent to ask how they should fight. Dewei replied, "The enemy has marched at forced pace and has not yet finished their camp. Our palisades are secure and our defenses ample. Having penetrated deep into enemy country, we must choose a strategy that leaves nothing to chance. Daliang lies only a night's march away. The enemy's families are all there. What soldier will not fight with his home and state in mind? If we pit our far-advanced army against troops fighting with desperate fury, victory is doubtful unless we use stratagem. Your Majesty should hold the army behind our palisades while I harass them with cavalry so they cannot make camp. By evening their supplies will fail and they will have nowhere to advance or retreat. Then we strike—that is how we break them." The emperor said, "On the river we challenged them day after day and cursed our luck when they would not fight. Now they come to our door and you counsel delay—that is not the way of a true warrior!" He led his personal guard out in battle order. Dewei had no choice but to follow. He told his son, "I do not know where I will die!" Emperor Zhuangzong fought Wang Yanzhang, a Bian general, and routed him. Dewei's force held the east wing. Bian raiders broke into our supply train, spreading panic until troops fled into Dewei's ranks and the formation dissolved in chaos. Dewei had too few men to restore order. He and his son both fought to the death. Before this, the Stationary Star had encroached on the General Star, and astrologers warned that great commanders would be harmed. When the army withdrew that night Dewei never appeared. Emperor Zhuangzong wept and told his generals, "I have lost a fine commander. The blame is mine!"
10
子光輔，曆汾、汝州刺史。
His son Guangfu later served as prefect of Fen and Ru.
11
符存審，字德詳，陳州宛邱人， 〈（《歐陽史·義兒傳》，惟符存審不在其列，別自為傳。 蓋存審子彥卿有女為宋太宗後，故存其本姓也。）〉 舊名存。 父楚，本州牙將。 存審少豪俠，多智算，言兵家事。 乾符末，河南盜起，存審鳩率豪右，庇捍州裏。 會郡人李罕之起自群盜，授光州刺史，因往依之。 中和末，罕之為蔡寇所逼，棄郡投諸葛爽； 存審從至河陽，為小校，屢戰蔡賊有功。 諸葛爽卒，罕之為其部將所逼，出保懷州，部下分散，存審乃歸於武皇。 武皇署右職，令典義兒軍，賜姓名。
Fu Cunshen, whose courtesy name was Dexiang, came from Wanqiu in Chen Prefecture, (The 《Ouyang History》 places adopted sons in its Biographies of Adopted Sons, but Fu Cunshen is omitted there and given a separate biography. Because Cunshen's son Yanqing had a daughter who became a consort of Song Taizong, his original surname was preserved.)〉 He had formerly been named Cun. His father Chu was a staff officer of the local command. As a youth Cunshen was bold and generous, skilled in calculation, and well versed in military affairs. In the closing years of Qianfu, when bandits rose across Henan, Cunshen rallied local leaders to defend the prefecture. When Li Hanzhi, a man of the command, rose from the brigands and was made prefect of Guang Prefecture, Cunshen went to serve under him. In the final years of Zhonghe, Hanzhi was driven out by Cai bandits, gave up his prefecture, and joined Ge Zhongshu. Cunshen followed him to Heyang, served as a junior officer, and repeatedly distinguished himself against Cai raiders. After Ge Zhongshu died, Hanzhi was driven out by his own officers and fled to Huaizhou, his followers scattering. Cunshen then entered Emperor Wu's service. Emperor Wu gave him a senior post, put him in charge of the adopted-sons corps, and granted him a new surname and name.
12
存審性謹厚，寵遇日隆，自是武皇西征，存審常從，所至立功。 從討赫連鐸，冒刃死戰，血流盈袖，武皇手自封瘡，日夕臨問。 乾寧初，討李匡儔，存審前軍拔居庸關。 明年，從討邠州，時邠之勁兵屯龍泉寨，四面懸崖，石壁險固，存審奮力拔之。 師旋，授檢校左僕射。 副李嗣昭討李瑭於汾州，擒之，以功改左右廂步軍都指揮使。 天祐三年，授蕃漢馬步副指揮使，與李嗣昭降丁會於上黨，從周德威破賊於夾城，加檢校司徒，授忻州刺史，領蕃漢馬步都指揮使。 七年，加檢校太保，充蕃漢副總管。 莊宗擊汴人於柏鄉，留存審守太原。 三月，代李存璋戍趙州。 九年，梁祖攻蓚縣，存審與史建瑭、李嗣肱赴援，屯下博橋，汴人驚亂，燒營而遁，以功遙領邢、洺、磁團練使。
Cunshen was conscientious and steadfast, and imperial favor toward him steadily grew. From then on he accompanied Emperor Wu on every western campaign and won merit wherever he went. During the campaign against Helian Duo he fought through the blades until blood soaked his sleeves. Emperor Wu personally dressed his wounds and visited him morning and night. In the opening years of Qianning, campaigning against Li Kuangchou, Cunshen's vanguard seized Juyong Pass. The next year, on the campaign against Bin Prefecture, he stormed Longquan Stockade, where Bin's best troops held cliffs on every side behind sheer stone walls. When the army returned he was made Acting Left Vice Director of the Imperial Secretariat. Serving under Li Sizhao against Li Tang at Fen Prefecture, he captured the rebel and for this merit was made commander of the left and right boxed foot armies. In Tianyou 3 he became deputy commander of the Han and tribal horse and foot forces. With Li Sizhao he accepted Ding Hui's surrender at Shangdang and, following Zhou Dewei, routed the enemy at Jiacheng. He was promoted Acting Minister of Education, made prefect of Xin Prefecture, and given overall command of the Han and tribal horse and foot. In the seventh year he was promoted Acting Grand Tutor and made deputy commander-in-chief of the Han and tribal forces. When Emperor Zhuangzong attacked the Bian army at Baixiang, he left Cunshen to defend Taiyuan. In the third month he replaced Li Cunzhang as garrison commander at Zhao Prefecture. In the ninth year, when the Liang founder attacked Suo County, Cunshen marched with Shi Jiantang and Li Sigong to the relief, encamped at Xiabo Bridge, and routed the Bian army as it burned its camp and fled. For this he was made titular regimental commissioner of Xing, Ming, and Ci.
13
十二年，魏博歸款於莊宗，遣存審率前鋒據臨清，以俟進取。 莊宗入魏，存審屯魏縣以抗劉鄩。 六月，鄩營莘縣，存審與鎮、定之師營莘西三十里，一日數戰。 八月，率師攻張源德於貝州。 十三年二月，劉鄩自莘悉眾來襲我魏州，存審以大軍踵其後，戰於故元城，大敗汴人，從收澶、衛、磁、洺等州。 秋，邢州閻寶降，授存審安國軍節度、邢洺磁等州觀察使。 十月，戴思遠棄滄州，毛璋以城降，授存審檢校太傅、橫海軍節度使，兼領魏博馬步軍都指揮使。 明年，就加平章事。
In the twelfth year, when Weibo submitted to Emperor Zhuangzong, Cunshen was sent ahead to seize Linqing and hold it for the coming offensive. When Emperor Zhuangzong entered Wei, Cunshen encamped at Wei County to block Liu Yan. In the sixth month Liu Yan encamped at Shen County. Cunshen joined forces from Zhen and Ding thirty li to the west and fought several engagements in a single day. In the eighth month he led his troops against Zhang Yuande at Bei Prefecture. In the second month of the thirteenth year Liu Yan marched from Shen with his full strength to strike Weizhou. Cunshen pursued with the main army, routed the Bian forces at old Yuancheng, and helped recover Cao, Wei, Ci, Ming, and other prefectures. That autumn, when Yan Bao of Xing Prefecture surrendered, Cunshen was made military commissioner of the Anguo Army and observation commissioner over Xing, Ming, Ci, and neighboring prefectures. In the tenth month, after Dai Siyuan abandoned Cang Prefecture and Mao Zhang surrendered the city, Cunshen was made Acting Grand Mentor and military commissioner of the Henghai Army, while also commanding Weibo's horse and foot. The following year he was appointed Grand Councilor on the spot.
14
十四年八月，將兵援周德威於幽州，敗契丹之眾。 冬，破汴將安彥之於楊劉，諸軍進營麻口。 時梁將謝彥章營行台村，莊宗勇於接戰，每以輕騎當之，遇窘者數四。 存審每俟其出，必叩馬諫曰：「王將復唐宗社，宜為天下自愛，搴旗挑戰，一劍之任，無益聖德，請責效於臣。 古人不以賊遺君父，臣雖不武，敢不代君之憂。」 莊宗及時回駕。 十二月，戰於胡柳。 晡晚之後，存審引所部銀槍效節軍，敗梁軍於土山下。 是日辰巳間，周德威戰歿，一軍逗撓，梁軍四集，存審與其子彥圖冒刃血戰，出沒賊陣，與莊宗軍合。 午後，師復集，擊敗汴人。
In the eighth month of the fourteenth year he marched to relieve Zhou Dewei at Youzhou and routed the Khitan army. That winter he defeated the Bian general An Yanzhi at Yangliu, and the allied armies advanced to encamp at Makou. While the Liang general Xie Yanzhang held Xingtai Village, Emperor Zhuangzong repeatedly rode out with light cavalry to fight him and several times found himself in grave danger. Whenever the emperor rode out, Cunshen would grab his bridle and remonstrate: "Your Majesty means to restore the Tang altar and soil. You should cherish yourself for the realm's sake. Snatching banners and offering single combat serves no end but vanity. Leave such work to me. Men of old did not leave such enemies to their ruler and father. Though I am no warrior, how can I fail to bear your worries in your stead?" The emperor then turned his horse and withdrew. In the twelfth month the armies clashed at Huliu Slope. In the late afternoon Cunshen led his Silver Spear Obedient-Faction troops and routed the Liang army below Tushan. Between mid-morning and noon that day Zhou Dewei fell in battle. The army wavered as Liang forces closed in from every side. Cunshen and his son Yantu fought through the blades, breaking in and out of the enemy lines until they rejoined Emperor Zhuangzong's forces. By afternoon the army had regrouped and routed the Bian forces.
15
十六年春，代周德威為內外蕃漢馬步總管，於德勝口築南北城以據之。 七月，汴將王瓚自黎陽渡河寇澶州，存審拒戰，瓚退，營於楊村渡，控我上遊。 自是日與交鋒，對壘經年，大小凡百餘戰。
In the spring of the sixteenth year he succeeded Zhou Dewei as overall commander of the inner and outer Han and tribal horse and foot. At Desheng Ford he built paired north and south fortresses to hold the crossing. In the seventh month the Bian general Wang Zan crossed from Liyang to attack Cao Prefecture. Cunshen beat him back. Zan withdrew and encamped at Yangcun Ford, controlling the upstream crossing against us. From then on the two sides clashed almost daily. They faced each other across the lines for more than a year and fought well over a hundred engagements, large and small.
16
十七年，汴將劉鄩攻同州，朱友謙求援於我，遣存審與李嗣昭將兵赴之。 九月，次河中，進營朝邑。 時河中久臣於梁，眾持兩端，及諸軍大集，芻粟暴貴，嗣昭懼其翻覆，將急戰以定勝負。 居旬日，梁軍逼我營。 會望氣者言，西南黑氣如鬥雞之狀，當有戰陣，存審曰：「我方欲決戰，而形於氣象，得非天讚歟！」 是夜，閱其眾，詰旦進軍。 梁軍來逆戰，大敗之，追斬二千餘級。 自是梁軍保壘不出。 存審謂嗣昭曰：「吾初懼劉鄩據渭河。 偏師既敗，彼若退歸，懼我踵之； 窮獸搏人，勿謂無事。 可開其歸路，然後追奔。」 乃令王建及牧馬於沙苑，劉鄩、尹皓知之，保眾退去，遂解同州之圍。 〈（《歐陽史》：鄩以為晉軍且懈，乃夜遁去。 存審追擊於渭河，又大敗之。）〉 存審略地至奉先，謁諸帝陵，乃班師。
In the seventeenth year, when Liu Yan of Bian attacked Tong Prefecture, Zhu Youqian asked for our aid, and Cunshen and Li Sizhao were sent to the relief. In the ninth month they reached Hezhong and advanced to encamp at Chaoyi. Hezhong had long served Liang, and the local people wavered between the two sides. As our armies gathered, fodder and grain prices soared. Li Sizhao feared a revolt and wanted a swift battle to settle the issue. Within ten days the Liang army had closed on our camp. A diviner of vapors reported black clouds in the southwest shaped like fighting cocks—a sign of battle. Cunshen said, "We mean to fight a decisive battle, and heaven shows it in the signs. Can this be anything but Heaven's approval?" That night he reviewed his troops, and at dawn marched out. The Liang army came out to fight and was routed. The pursuit left more than two thousand dead. After that the Liang army shut itself behind its walls and would not come out. Cunshen told Li Sizhao, "I had feared at first that Liu Yan would hold the Wei River. Now that our advance guard has beaten them, if they withdraw they will fear pursuit; A cornered beast will fight desperately. Do not think them harmless. Let us open their line of retreat and then pursue." He then had Wang Jian graze horses at Shayuan. When Liu Yan and Yin Hao learned of this, they withdrew with their troops and the siege of Tong was lifted. (The 《Ouyang History》 records that Liu Yan believed the Jin army was growing slack and fled by night. Cunshen pursued them to the Wei River and routed them again.)〉 Cunshen pushed forward as far as Fengxian, paid homage at the imperial tombs, and then withdrew.
17
十八年，王師討張文禮於鎮州，李嗣昭、李存進相次戰歿。 十九年，遣存審率師進攻叛帥於城下，文禮之將李再豐陰送款於存審，我師中夜登城，擒文禮之子處球等，露布以獻。 鎮州平，以功加檢校太傅、兼侍中。
In the eighteenth year the imperial army marched against Zhang Wenli at Zhen Prefecture. Li Sizhao and Li Cunjin fell in battle one after another. In the nineteenth year Cunshen was sent to assault the rebel below the walls. Zhang Wenli's officer Li Zaifeng secretly offered surrender. Our troops scaled the walls at midnight, captured Wenli's son Chuchiu and others, and reported victory to court. When Zhen Prefecture was pacified he was promoted Acting Grand Mentor and concurrent Palace Attendant for his merit.
18
二十年正月，師還於魏州，莊宗出城迎勞，就第宴樂。 無何，契丹犯燕薊，郭崇韜奏曰：「汴寇未平，繼韜背叛，北邊捍禦，非存審不可。」 上遣中使諭之，存審臥病羸瘠，附奏曰：「臣效忠稟命，靡敢為辭，但痾恙纏綿，未堪祗役。」 既而詔存審以本官充幽州盧龍節度使，自鎮州之任。 同光初，加開府儀同三司、檢校太師、中書令、食邑千戶，賜號忠烈扶天啟運功臣。
In the first month of the twentieth year the army returned to Wei Prefecture. Emperor Zhuangzong went out to welcome them and hosted a feast at Cunshen's residence. Before long the Khitan invaded Yan and Ji. Guo Chongtao memorialized: "The Bian enemy is not yet subdued and Jitao has rebelled. No one but Cunshen can hold the northern frontier." The court sent a palace envoy to summon him. Bedridden and wasted by illness, Cunshen replied: "Your servant dares not refuse a command out of loyalty, but lingering illness leaves me unfit for duty." An edict then appointed Cunshen military commissioner of Youzhou and Lulong while retaining his existing rank, and he went to his post from Zhen Prefecture. At the opening of Tongguang he was promoted Grand General of the Left with Three Excellencies ceremony, Acting Grand Preceptor, and Secretariat Director, with a fief of one thousand households and the title "Meritorious Subject, Fiercely Loyal, Upholding Heaven and Opening the Age."
19
十月，平梁，遷都洛陽。 存審以身為大將，不得預收復中原之功，舊疾愈作，堅求入覲尋醫，以情告郭崇韜。 時崇韜自負一時，佐命之功，無出己右，功名事望，素在存審之下，權勢既隆，人士輻湊，不欲存審加於己上，每有章奏求覲，即陰沮之。 存審妻郭氏泣訴於崇韜曰：「吾夫於國，粗效驅馳，與公鄉里親舊，公忍令死棄北荒，何無情之如是！」 崇韜益慚戁。 明年春，疾甚，上章懇切，乞生覲天顏，不許。 存審伏枕而歎曰：「老夫曆事二主，垂四十年，幸而遇今日天下一家，遠夷極塞，皆得麵覲彤墀，射鉤斬祛之人，孰不奉觴丹陛，獨予壅隔，豈非命哉！」 漸增危篤，崇韜奏請許存審入覲。 四月，製授存審宣武軍節度使、諸道蕃漢馬步總管。 詔未至，五月十五日卒於幽州官舍，時年六十三，遺命葬太原。 存審遺奏陳敘不得麵覲，詞旨淒惋。 莊宗震悼久之，廢朝三日，贈尚書令。
In the tenth month Liang fell and the capital moved to Luoyang. As a frontline commander Cunshen had missed the conquest of the Central Plain. His old illness flared again, and he urgently asked to come to court for treatment, appealing to Guo Chongtao. Chongtao now prided himself on being the foremost minister of the age. Though his political standing had always been below Cunshen's, none matched his power at court. With officials flocking to him, he did not want Cunshen restored above him and secretly blocked every memorial asking leave to attend court. Cunshen's wife, Lady Guo, wept before Chongtao: "My husband has served the state with what strength he had. You and he are old friends from the same home country. How can you leave him to die in the northern wastes? How heartless!" Chongtao was deeply shamed and alarmed. The next spring, gravely ill, he memorialized urgently begging to see the emperor while he still lived. The court refused. Prostrate on his sickbed Cunshen sighed: "I have served two sovereigns for nearly forty years. Now that the realm is united, even distant barbarians from the farthest frontiers may appear before the throne. Those who once wronged the throne now raise cups at court. Only I am kept away. Is this not fate?" As his condition grew critical, Chongtao memorialized asking that Cunshen be allowed to attend court. In the fourth month an edict appointed Cunshen military commissioner of the Xuanwu Army and overall commander of Han and tribal horse and foot on all circuits. The edict had not yet arrived when he died in his official residence at Youzhou on the fifteenth of the fifth month, at the age of sixty-three. He left orders to be buried at Taiyuan. In his final memorial Cunshen described his failure to appear before the throne in words of deep grief. Emperor Zhuangzong mourned him at length, suspended court for three days, and posthumously made him Minister of the Imperial Secretariat.
20
存審少在軍中，識機知變，行軍出師，法令嚴明，決策制勝，從無遺悔，功名與周德威相匹，皆近代之良將也。 常戒諸子曰：「予本寒家，少小攜一劍而違鄉里，四十年間，位極將相。 其間屯危患難，履鋒冒刃，入萬死而無一生，身方及此，前後中矢僅百餘。」 乃出鏃以示諸子，因以奢侈為戒。
From his early years in the army Cunshen read the moment and adapted to change. On campaign his discipline was strict, his decisions sound, and he never had cause for regret. His fame matched Zhou Dewei's; both were outstanding generals of the age. He often warned his sons: "I came from a poor family. As a youth I left home with a single sword. In forty years I rose to the highest ranks of general and minister. Along the way I faced countless dangers, walked through fire and steel, and escaped a hundred deaths without one assured life. By the time I reached this height I had been struck by arrows more than a hundred times." He then brought out the arrowheads to show his sons, warning them against luxury.
21
存審微時，嘗為俘囚，將就戮於郊外，臨刑指危垣謂主者曰：「請就戮於此下，冀得壞垣覆屍，旅魂之幸也。」 主者哀之，為移次焉。 遷延之際，主將擁妓而飲，思得歌者以助歡。 妓曰：「俘囚有符存審者，妾之舊識，每令擊節，以讚歌令。」 主將欣然，馳騎而舍之； 豈非命也！
In his obscure days Cunshen was once taken prisoner and led out for execution. At the scaffold he pointed to a crumbling wall and asked the officer: "Please kill me here, so a broken wall may cover my body. That would be fortune enough for a man dying far from home." The officer took pity and moved the execution site. While the delay dragged on, the commander was drinking with courtesans and wanted a singer to liven the feast. One courtesan said: "Among the prisoners is a Fu Cunshen, an old acquaintance of mine. I often had him beat time while I sang." The commander was delighted, rode out at once, and spared him; Was this not fate itself!
22
彥超，存審之長子也。 少事武皇，累曆牙職。 存審卒，莊宗以彥超為汾州刺史。 同光末，魏州軍亂，詔彥超赴北京巡檢。 先是，朝廷令內官呂、鄭二人在太原，一監兵，一監倉庫。 及明宗入洛，皇弟存霸單騎奔河東，與呂、鄭謀殺彥超與留守張憲。 彥超覺之，密與憲謀，未決，部下大噪，州兵畢集，張憲出奔。 是夕，軍士殺呂、鄭、存霸於衙城。 詰旦，聞洛城禍變，彥超告諭三軍。 〈（《宋史·張昭傳》云：昭為張憲推官，莊宗及難，聞鄴中兵士推戴明宗，憲部將符彥超合戍將應之。 憲死，有害昭者，執之以送彥超。 彥超曰：「推官正人，無得害之。」 又逼昭為榜，安撫軍民。）〉 明宗又令其弟龍武都虞候彥卿馳騎安撫。 六月，彥超入覲，明宗召見撫諭，尋授晉州留後。 未行，會其弟前曹州刺史彥饒平宣武亂軍，明宗喜，召彥超謂之曰：「吾得爾兄弟力，餘更何憂，爾為我往河東撫育耆舊。」 即授北京留守、太原尹。 明年冬，移授昭義節度使。 四年，授驍衛上將軍，改金吾上將軍。 長興元年，授泰寧軍節度使，尋移鎮安州。
Yanchao was the eldest son of Fu Cunshen. In his youth he served Emperor Wu and rose through the guard ranks. After Cunshen died, Emperor Zhuangzong appointed Yanchao prefect of Fenzhou. Near the end of the Tongguang reign the Weizhou garrison mutinied, and the court ordered Yanchao to the Northern Capital as inspector. Earlier the court had posted two inner eunuchs, Lü and Zheng, at Taiyuan, one to oversee the troops and one the storehouses. When Emperor Mingzong entered Luoyang, the emperor's younger brother Cunba rode alone to Hedong and joined Lü and Zheng in a plot to kill Yanchao and the garrison commander Zhang Xian. Yanchao learned of the plot and conferred secretly with Xian. Before they could act, his men raised an uproar, prefectural troops massed, and Zhang Xian fled. That night the soldiers killed Lü, Zheng, and Cunba in the government compound. At dawn, when news came of the disaster in Luoyang, Yanchao addressed and reassured the army. (From the biography of Zhang Zhao in the 《History of Song》: Zhao served as Zhang Xian's legal aide. When Emperor Zhuangzong fell, he heard that troops at Yezhong were rallying to Emperor Mingzong. Xian's subordinate Fu Yanchao joined the garrison commanders in siding with them. When Xian died, men who meant Zhao harm seized him and brought him before Yanchao. Yanchao said, "The legal aide is an upright man. You must not harm him." He then pressed Zhao to draft a proclamation to reassure the troops and the people.)〉 Emperor Mingzong also sent his younger brother Yanqing, colonel of the Dragon Martial Guard, at speed to reassure the region. In the sixth month Yanchao came to court. Emperor Mingzong received him with words of comfort and soon made him acting governor of Jin Prefecture. Before he could leave, his younger brother Yanrao, former prefect of Cao, pacified the mutinous Xuanyi army. The emperor was delighted and told Yanchao, "With your brothers' help I need fear nothing else. Go to Hedong for me and look after the old retainers there." He was immediately made garrison commander of the Northern Capital and mayor of Taiyuan. The following winter he was transferred to military commissioner of Zhaoyi. In the fourth year of the reign he was made general-in-chief of the Valiant Guard, then reassigned as general-in-chief of the Golden Crow. In the first year of Changxing he was made military commissioner of Taiping, then soon transferred to garrison Anzhou.
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彥超廝養中有王希全者，小字佛留，粗知書計，委主貨財，歲久耗失甚多，彥超止於訶譴而已。 應順元年正月，佛留聞朝廷多事，因與任貨兒等謀亂。 一夕，扣門言朝廷有急遞至，彥超出至廳事，佛留挾刃害之。 詰旦，本州節度副使李端召州兵攻佛留等，殺之，餘眾奔淮南，擒彥超部將趙溫等二十六人誅之。 彥超贈太尉。
Among Yanchao's household staff was Wang Xiquan, nicknamed Foliu, who had some skill with accounts. Yanchao put him in charge of his property, but over the years enormous sums went missing, and Yanchao did no more than scold him. In the first month of the first year of Yingshun, Foliu heard that the court was in turmoil and plotted a revolt with Ren Huo'er and others. One night he knocked at the gate and claimed an urgent dispatch had come from the capital. When Yanchao came out to the main hall, Foliu stabbed him to death. At dawn the deputy commissioner Li Duan rallied prefectural troops against Foliu and his followers and killed them. The survivors fled to Huainan. Twenty-six of Yanchao's officers, including Zhao Wen, were captured and executed. Yanchao was posthumously honored as Grand Commandant.
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存審次子彥饒，《晉史》有傳。 次彥卿，曆官鳳翔節度使、守太師、中書令，封魏王，今居於洛陽。 次彥能，終於楚州防禦使。 次彥琳，仕皇朝為金吾上將軍，卒於任。
The second son, Yanrao, is given his own biography in the 《History of Jin》. Next came Yanqing, who rose to military commissioner of Fengxiang, Grand Preceptor, and Director of the Secretariat, was enfeoffed as Prince of Wei, and now lives at Luoyang. Next Yanneng, who ended his career as defense commissioner of Chuzhou. Next Yanlin, who served the present dynasty as general-in-chief of the Golden Crow and died in office.