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卷一百三十三 世襲列傳二: 高季興 馬殷 劉言 錢鏐

Volume 133: Biographies of Descendents 2 - Gao Jixing, Ma Yin, Liu Yan, Qian Liu

Chapter 133 of 舊五代史 · Old History of the Five Dynasties
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Chapter 133
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1
宿使
Gao Jixing, whose courtesy name was Yisun, came from Xiashi in Shanzhou. He had originally been named Jichang, but when Emperor Zhuangzong of Later Tang acceded to the throne he changed his name to avoid the imperial temple taboo. As a boy he served under Li Qilang, a merchant of Bian; the Liang founder adopted Li Qilang as a son, bestowed a surname on him, and gave him the name Yourang. The Liang founder once noticed Jixing among the household servants—his ears and facial features were slightly unusual—and ordered Yourang to bring him up as his own son. The Liang founder appointed Jixing to the guard corps, and he gradually became adept at horsemanship and archery. During the Tang Tianfu period, while Emperor Zhaozong was at Qizhou, the Liang founder had long besieged Fengxiang; when many urged a withdrawal, Jixing alone dissuaded him—the story is recorded in the 《Annals of the Liang Founder》. In the end the court brought Emperor Zhaozong back to the capital, and Jixing was rewarded with the title of meritorious minister of the imperial escort, honorary Grand Minister of Works, and acting prefect of Songzhou. After accompanying the Liang founder in the pacification of Qingzhou, he was reassigned to administer Suzhou, then promoted to defender of Yingzhou; the Liang founder had him resume the surname Gao and appointed him military intendant of Jingnan. Jingzhou had been ravaged by war ever since the Tang Qianfu years, its towns left in ruins; Jixing rallied the displaced and brought the refugee population back, and the Liang founder, pleased with his work, invested him with full military authority. During the Liang Kaiping period he defeated Lei Yingong at Langzhou and was given the title of Grand Councillor. Jingnan had never had outer fortifications until Jixing built city walls; he then levied heavy taxes, gathered desperadoes, and afterward acted as a rival vassal to Wu and Shu while the Liang court gradually lost control—whereupon he accepted enfeoffment as Prince of Bohai. He once attacked Xiangzhou but was defeated by Kong Xun.
2
西 西使
Once Emperor Zhuangzong had unified the empire, Jixing traveled to Luoyang to pay homage and was further appointed Vice Director of the Secretariat; many at court argued that he should be held, but Guo Chongtao urged that, having only just begun to promote faith and righteousness across the realm, the throne should let him return to his post—so Jixing hurried home. At Xiangzhou, when the wine had gone to his head, he said to Kong Xun, "This trip involved two blunders: paying court was the first blunder, and being sent back was the second." After he reached Jingnan he told his advisers, "The new emperor won the Central Plains only after countless battles, yet he boasts to his meritorious ministers that he copied the 《Spring and Autumn Annals》 by hand; and he holds up a finger and says, 'I won the empire on the tip of this finger. If that is so, all the credit belongs to him alone—what is left for his ministers! And he goes hunting for days on end without returning—how can the court and the realm endure it? I can sleep soundly from now on." He then extended the western outer rampart and stockpiled weapons and supplies to repel invaders. Many veterans of the former Liang armies were lured into his service, so his forces steadily grew and his ambition to defy the throne hardened. The following year he was invested as Prince of Nanping. When Prince of Wei Jiji conquered Shu, he loaded its treasures onto boats bound downriver; at the gorge mouth Zhuangzong met his death, and Jixing seized the entire convoy. After Emperor Mingzong acceded, Jixing again asked that Kuizhou and Xiazhou be placed under his jurisdiction; the court initially agreed, but when it later named official prefects he protested that his sons were already administering those districts and begged that no outside appointees be sent. When his rebellious conduct became unmistakable, an edict stripped him of rank and title. Early in the Tiancheng era the court ordered Fang Ye to recover the three prefectures and sent Liu Xun, military commissioner of Xiangzhou, to besiege Jingnan and punish his rebellion; relentless rains forced a withdrawal. In the winter of the third year Jixing died of gout. His son Conghui succeeded him and sent repeated memorials confessing fault and asking to resume tribute and service. The court thereupon restored Jixing's offices and titles and gave him the posthumous name Wuxin, Martial and Faithful.
3
殿使使使使 使 使 退祿 使 西
Conghui began his career under the Liang, rising through posts from commander of the Palace Crane Guards and deputy of the saddlery office to patrol commissioner, capital envoy, Thousand-Ox general, and overall commander of the Jingnan headquarters, with concurrent appointments as prefect of Haozhou and then Guizhou, until he reached the honorary rank of Grand Mentor. When Jixing was on the verge of rebellion, Conghui often pleaded with tears, but Jixing refused to heed him. In the winter of Tiancheng 3, after Jixing's death, Conghui submitted a memorial of repentance and restored regular tribute. Emperor Mingzong approved and soon recalled him from mourning to appoint him military commissioner of Jingnan and concurrent Palace Attendant. In Changxing 3 he was promoted to honorary Grand Commandant. During the Yingshun era he was enfeoffed as Prince of Nanping. Early in the Qingtai era he was made honorary Grand Preceptor. During the Later Jin Tianfu era he was appointed acting Director of the Secretariat. In the sixth year, when An Congjin rebelled at Xiangzhou, Conghui sent provisions to support the imperial campaign; the throne praised him in edict and soon offered him acting Director of the Department of State Affairs, but he firmly declined; though envoys pressed him, he never accepted. A diviner had warned that calamity threatened his lifespan and that he should step back from high office—hence his refusal. When the Khitans seized Bian, as Emperor Gaozu of Later Han rose at Taiyuan, Conghui sent tribute by a back route with a secret plea: once the throne secured the Yellow River and Bian regions, he asked that Yingzhou be granted as his dependency—the Han founder wavered. After Gaozu entered Bian, Conghui sent tribute again and demanded the promised grant; Gaozu refused. Enraged, Conghui led his troops against Yingzhou; within ten days Yin Shi, the prefect, routed him, and thereafter he sent no more tribute. He dealt with Wu in the east and Shu in the west solely for the profit of their military goods and tribute. In his last years, with Saturn in the Wings and Chariot asterisms, he gave up silk, wore plain cloth, and ate frugally to ward off misfortune. He soon asked An Shenqi of Xiangzhou to intercede for his return to court to await judgment, and the throne showed itself willing to receive him. In the eleventh month of winter, Qianyou 1 of Later Han, he died in office of illness. An edict posthumously made him Director of the Department of State Affairs and gave him the posthumous name Wenxian, Literary and Offering.
4
使
His son Baorong succeeded him, rising to military commissioner of Jingnan, acting Grand Preceptor, Director of the Secretariat, and Prince of Nanping. He died in the autumn of the first year of Jianlong of the Song. He was given the posthumous name Zhenyi, Chaste and Virtuous.
5
涿 涿
Among the generals he relied on was Wang Baoyi. Baoyi was born Liu Qufei, a native of Youzhou. As a youth he served as a county clerk, was violent and unrestrained, trained in horsemanship and archery, and was fearless in combat. Liu Shouqi, son of Liu Rengong, was a fine archer, and only Qufei would concede his skill. When Shouqi's brother Shouguang usurped their father's throne, Shouqi fled to the Khitans and later from there to Taiyuan, and Qufei followed him throughout. During Zhuangzong's campaign against Yan, Shouqi marched with Zhou Dewei; at Zhuozhou the prefect Jiang Xinggan manned the walls; Qufei shouted, "The young Liu of Hedong comes to avenge his father—how dare you resist!" Shouqi doffed his helmet in greeting; Xinggan bowed from the wall and opened the gates in surrender. Jealous of the credit, Dewei secretly told Zhuangzong that Shouqi's loyalty could not be trusted. Zhuangzong recalled Shouqi for consultation; at Tumen Pass Qufei urged him, "You took Zhuo without a fight, yet Zhou Dewei will resent that the credit was not his—slander will follow; you should not go to Taiyuan. Your house has long owed allegiance to Liang; go to them and you will be utterly safe." Shouqi fled to Liang, which made him military intendant of Cangzhou and Qufei campaigning marshal of Heyang. Xie Yanzhang then reassigned Qufei as prefect of Yingzhou. When Zhuangzong conquered the Central Plains, Qufei abandoned his post, joined Gao Jixing as campaigning marshal, and changed his name. Thereafter the Gao father and son treated him as their closest adviser; on every matter of governance and military strategy they followed his counsel. In the summer of Qianyou 1, Gao Conghui had him appointed military intendant of the Wutai Army while retaining his post as Jingnan campaigning marshal, with the honorary rank of Grand Commandant. He later died at Jiangling.
6
使 使 祿 便 使 使 便
Baoxu was Jixing's youngest son. Jixing doted on him above all; when Jixing flew into a rage his attendants dared not look up, yet a single sight of Baoxu would calm him—so the people of Jing nicknamed the boy "All Affairs Cease." He died in the spring of Jianlong 4 of the Song. That same year the Gao lost Jingmen—so the nickname "All Affairs Cease" had been a prophecy. (From the 《Supplement to the History of the Five Dynasties》: Gao Jixing was originally from Shan in Lingzhou. He served the Liang founder as a staff general and was posted as defender of Yingzhou. When Cheng Yun of Jingnan campaigned against Ezhou, met defeat, and died, the Liang founder appointed Jixing military intendant of Jingnan. Soon after he arrived, the Wuling magnate Lei Yingong rebelled; Jixing crushed him and was invested with full authority over Jingnan. When Zhuangzong unified the empire, Jixing was the first regional ruler to pay court, and was made Director of the Secretariat and Prince of Nanping. Once, marching with the Liang founder, Jixing led his men out before dawn; at an inn an old woman met him at the door with a candle and treated him with extraordinary respect. Puzzled, Jixing asked why; she said, "I dreamed someone knocked at the gate shouting, 'Get up, get up—a king who will carve out his own realm is coming. I rose, rinsed my mouth, lit a candle, and opened the door—and here you are. Are you not that king? That is why I dared not receive you casually." Delighted, Jixing later came to Jingnan and was indeed enfeoffed as a prince. Gao Conghui was Jixing's son by a concubine but the eldest by age; he was so generous and mild that even literati could not match him. During Tiancheng, when Jixing rebelled, Conghui argued fiercely against it, but Jixing would not listen. After Jixing's death the court, knowing Conghui's loyalty, let him succeed and again enfeoffed him as Prince of Nanping. In his early days serving Liang, Jixing always took his favorite concubine Lady Zhang on campaign. Once, after a defeat, he fled with her and, in the dark, blundered into a deep gorge. Lady Zhang was pregnant and could not keep pace; fearing she would slow him, Jixing waited until she slept, brought down the bank with his sword to crush her, and rode off. As the bank gave way she woke and cried to Jixing, "I dreamed a mountain fell on me, but a god in golden armor held it up with his spear and I was spared." Hearing this, he decided she would bear a noble son, took her with him, and she later bore Conghui. Liang Zhen was from Shu Commandery. Talented and capable, he settled at Jiangling after passing the civil examinations; Gao Jixing, who had long heard of him, wished to make him chief administrator. Ashamed yet afraid to refuse outright, Zhen told Jixing, "I am only a rustic with no ambition for office; if you will have me, let me join your councils in plain dress as a private adviser—that is enough." Jixing, impressed, agreed; thereafter Zhen attended him, calling himself simply a former jinshi. During Tongguang, when Zhuangzong unified the realm, a fearful Jixing went to court; his staff all urged him on, but Zhen alone objected: "You were a Liang man—the new emperor's hereditary enemy. After twenty years of war he destroyed you. Though the throne is his, his old generals may still wish you harm. Think carefully." Jixing would not heed him. When he arrived, Zhuangzong did intend to detain him, but Guo Chongtao of the Privy Council argued fiercely against it: "The realm is settled. Other lords sent sons and officers to congratulate; only Jixing came in person—an act of honor to the throne. You have not treated him with exceptional honor, yet you would imprison him—who will come from afar after that? If you do this, the empire will disintegrate." Zhuangzong then let Jixing go home. Ten days into his journey Zhuangzong changed his mind and ordered Liu Xun, military commissioner of Xiangzhou, to seize him at the first opportunity. When Jixing reached Xiangzhou and entered his lodging his heart misgave him; he told an attendant, "My mind is in turmoil—has the court sent men to pursue and kill me! Liang Zhen was right: better to flee and risk death than to remain and be killed." He abandoned his baggage train and fled south with several hundred of his fastest troops. At Fenglin Pass, already in darkness, he cut his way through the gate and escaped. That night at the third watch the urgent order reached Xiangzhou; Liu Xun judged that Jixing was too far ahead to catch and gave up the pursuit. Thereafter, nursing his grievance, Jixing seized Jianli and Yusha in Fuzhou by force and had Zhen draft a memorial asking that the Yangzi be made the border. Zhen objected again: "You must not—if you do, the imperial army will come, and that will not serve you." Jixing was furious but made him draft it anyway. The memorial was sent; soon the court dispatched Xia Luqi, Fang Zhiwen, and others to attack him. Jixing climbed the wall, saw how few they were, and wanted to sally out; Zhen remonstrated again: "My lord, have you thought this through? The court is the source of all authority; though their force looks small, its power is vast. Every regional lord wants to swallow his neighbors and only waits for an opening. If you should win a battle, the court will summon armies from every direction—who would not rise to seize your territory in the name of loyalty! Your domain would be finished. The wisest course is to write the commander, send cattle and wine as gifts, and submit a memorial of self-reproach—you may yet save yourself. Otherwise I cannot say what will become of you." Jixing took his advice, and the imperial army withdrew. Zhen's counsel was always of this sort. When Jixing died and Conghui succeeded, Zhen, fearing that a man born to privilege would not know him well, retired to his estate on Long Mountain and called himself a recluse. When summoned, he rode a yellow ox to the hall door and addressed Conghui not by title but simply as "young master." In his last years he loved poetry; befriending the monk Qiji, he sent him a verse: "Chen Lin's brush gladly took the front seat; Jiao Li's clouds recall our shared rest." Thus he expressed his refined tastes.) )〉
7
西 使 使 使
Ma Yin, whose courtesy name was Batu, came from Yanling in Xuzhou. As a youth he worked as a carpenter; when Qin Zongquan of Cai rebelled, he enlisted. He first followed Sun Ru across the Huai and took Guangling. After Sun Ru's defeat at Xuanzhou, Yin followed Liu Jianfeng into Jiangxi, capturing Hong, E, Tan, Gui, and other prefectures; when Jianfeng held all Hunan he made himself commander of Tan. Soon Jianfeng was killed by his own men, and the people of Tan elevated campaigning marshal Zhang Ji. Yin was then besieging Shaozhou; Ji said, "I am no match for Ma Yin." He immediately transferred command of the headquarters to Yin. Yin marched back from Shaozhou, rewarded his troops, executed dozens of Jianfeng's killers, and made himself military intendant. Eventually the court appointed him military commissioner of Hunan, giving him seven prefectures including Tan and Heng. During the Tang Tianfu era, as Yang Xingmi besieged Jiangxia, Du Hong sought aid from Jingnan and Cheng Yun sent a fleet to help. Lei Yingong, military commissioner of Li and Lang, seized the moment to raid Jingzhou, loot its treasures, burn the city, and withdraw. Yingong allied with Xingmi in the east and blocked trade along the Yangzi and mountain routes; Yin and Gao Jixing combined forces to attack him in Li and Lang. Within a few years they captured him and took his territory, appointing Zhang Ji military commissioner of Langzhou; their power grew formidable.
8
In his humble youth Yin had dimly seen a spirit attendant at his side and memorized its features. After he rose to power he visited the Heng Mountain temple and found the deity's statue identical to what he had seen long before. Surely those destined for greatness are guarded by unseen powers—this was no accident!
9
谿 使 使
During Later Jin Tianfu, Xifan was made overall commander of the Jiangnan circuits and Grand General of the Heavenly Stratagem. Peng Shichou, a tribal leader of Xizhou, raided Chen and Li; Xifan defeated him. Shichou surrendered five prefectures to sue for peace, and the terms were inscribed on a bronze pillar. Xifan claimed descent from the Han general Ma Yuan and cast a bronze pillar to emulate his precedent. (Note: this biography is defective; the biographies of 《Ma Xiguang》 and 《Ma Xi'e》 are entirely lost. From the Supplement to the History of the Five Dynasties: Gao Yu was strategist to Prince Wumu; Zhuangzong had long heard of him and, once he ruled the realm, sought to drive a wedge between them. When Prince Wumu sent Xifan to court, Zhuangzong—finding the youth quick-witted and easily provoked—clapped his back and said, "Everyone says the Ma domain will fall to Gao Yu—but with a son like this, how could Yu seize it!" Xifan, who had long resented Yu, took the emperor's words to heart. On returning he urged Wumu to execute Yu; Wumu laughed and said, "The emperor won the realm by war and knows stratagems—he uses Yu to support our power and wants to divide us! It is like when the Liang court stripped Wang Yanzhang of command. Whoever falls for this plot is ruined; if you kill Yu now you walk into the trap—say nothing of it." Thinking Wumu indecisive and disaster imminent, Xifan had Yu falsely accused of treason and his entire clan executed. Thereafter military affairs often fell into disorder, to the grief of the wise. Yu had risen with Wumu from the ranks but grew greedy and arrogant; dissatisfied with his well water, he lined it with silver leaves inside and out in what he called "tuoli"—extravagances of this sort gave Zhuangzong material for slander. Afterward he saw Yu's ghost in the gloom and was ultimately haunted by him.
10
使 殿 殿殿 使
Ma Xifan, Wumu's legitimate son, was extravagant; soon after succeeding he asked to establish a Heavenly Stratagem Bureau on the old model and appointed eighteen able staff members—including Li Duo, Pan Qi, Tuoba Tan, Li Gao, He Zhongju, and Liu Zhaoyu—as academicians. Other commanders, from Yuan Yougong and Zhang Shaodi down, received appointments in turn. All launched vast construction projects for the capital; the grandest were the Nine Dragons and Golden Splendor halls. The completed halls were coated with cinnabar using hundreds of thousands of jin of ore; officials ascending for audience were met by thick fumes of cinnabar—such was the scale of his extravagance. When the order was first issued, the supervisors despaired, for cinnabar could not be procured overnight. Soon a mountain in the east collapsed, spewing cinnabar in heaps like hills, and they gathered it for use. When the Khitans invaded the south and heard of this, they judged Xifan extraordinary and promptly invested him as Imperial Father. Xifan, taking this as Khitan endorsement, gladly accepted the title.
11
使
Ding Sijin was a talented cavalry commander of the Ma house. He was deeply shamed that Xifan accepted Khitan investiture and urged him: "The throne is lost—this is the hour for loyal men to act: proclaim to the realm, march on the capital, drive out the Khitans, restore the emperor, and return in triumph—you would surpass Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin. The moment will not wait—my lord, act at once." Xifan lacked long-range vision and could not bear to abandon his unfinished palaces—he set the plan aside. Sijin, unable to contain his rage, told his intimates, "The ancients feared dying without renown; in this chaos we cannot serve the realm yet cling to a few rooms of a palace! It is heartbreaking." From then on Sijin brooded in discontent.
12
禿
Lady Peng, consort of Prince Wenzhao and enfeoffed as Lady of Qin, often went to Bao'en Temple north of the city to burn incense. The monk Kui, called the elder, asked, "Madam, whose wife are you?" Furious, Lady Peng called for her sedan and rushed home; Wenzhao asked in alarm, "Why so soon?" She said, "What ill luck—a bald old monk asked whose wife I was! Such words are unlucky for any woman—how dare he say them to me!" Wenzhao laughed: "That was a Chan teaching—you should have answered, 'I am a Peng daughter and Ma wife.' That would have met his point—why be angry?" Intelligent as she was, she was ashamed of her failure and said, "Then I showed no insight at all." She blushed for days afterward.
13
姿
He Zhongju was from Yingdao. Handsome and at thirteen already exceptionally gifted, his family was too poor to pay taxes on time; Magistrate Li Gao, enraged, had him shackled and imprisoned for beating. Someone told Gao, "Though young, this boy composes poetry on the spot—please examine him." Gao summoned him and said, "I know you are clever with words; if you can write a self-account without revision, I will spare you." Zhongju wrote at once: "Like jade cast into prison, leaving home for the stocks. Pitiable—two boards clamping a single blossom." Amazed, Gao removed the shackles himself, received him in the hall as an equal, and from then on Zhongju devoted himself to study. During Tiancheng he went to Luoyang, where the Prince of Qin, military commissioner of Henan, prized scholars; Zhongju associated with Zhang Hang and Jiang Wenwei at his court. At the metropolitan examination hundreds competed, but Zhongju alone dominated; he presented a verse: "Azure-cloud lines just leave the hand, purple-palace immortals all nod approval." The prince was delighted and praised him endlessly; Zhongju passed at the top of his class. On returning he found Prince Wenzhao of Ma following Tang Taizong's precedent in appointing eighteen Heavenly Stratagem academicians, with Gao at their head and in power; though Zhongju had passed the central examinations, he never ceased serving Gao, who was moved and promoted him. Soon he stood as Gao's equal in rank and later served as prefect of Quan and Heng. Hunan had many poets—Shen Bin, Liao Ning, Liu Zhaoyu, Qiji, and others—and Zhongju was thought the shallowest; only Li Gao praised him, often reciting before company his "Autumn Evening View": "Trees welcome birds to the deep wilds; clouds drift past distant hills in the slanting sun." He stamped the floor and sighed, "He Zhongju is poetry's true recluse—you officials may judge as you will; the rest are mere hillocks of talent." Grateful for Gao's recognition, Zhongju applied himself and preserved his integrity to the end; critics credited Gao with true discernment.
14
使 退 使 西 使
Ouyang Bin was from Hengshan. His family had served as county clerks for generations, but Bin loved learning and excelled at poetry. When the Ma clan held Hunan, Bin hoped for employment, brought his writings to headquarters, and sought an audience—which required a calling card. The reception officer, known as Guest-Officer Fan, loved bribes; someone secretly told Bin, "You come seeking advancement—can you offer nothing?" Ashamed to buy his way in, Bin refused. Fan flung the card down in anger: "Does a clerk's son think he can solicit princes!" Deeply resentful, Bin wrote: "Without money one begs Guest-Officer Fan; the calling card grows mold and will not pass." He drifted through the streets, consorting with singers and drunkards. The singer Ruiqing, admiring his talent, took him into her home. Ruiqing sang each year at Prince Wumu's birthday banquet. By then Hunan comprised nine prefectures—the seven it had long held, plus Wuling and Yueyang. Bin wrote the 《Song of the Nine Prefectures》 for Ruiqing to perform on the appointed day, hoping in truth to stir Prince Wumu's sympathy. Ma Yin never responded. Bin sighed: "When the empire is torn apart, even servants and hangers-on can lift themselves up—am I so poor that I have sunk to this!" He saw no way forward and thought of slipping into a neighboring circuit, though he did not yet know where to go. Not long after, he learned that a tribute convoy for Western Shu was setting out and decided to go to Shu. He told Ruiqing privately: "My bid for patronage failed, yet I lived in your house without ever showing fatigue—would you abandon me so easily! A gentleman's immortality lies in achievement and renown. If I do not seize this moment, I may regret it forever. I am leaving now. Perhaps I will succeed—do not worry about me." Ruiqing said: "You have not been heartless toward me. Yet now you refuse to let love detain you and go—surely glory is near! I am amazed. Our savings come to only a few strings of cash—not much, but I will give you half for the road." Bin accepted without protest, used everything Ruiqing gave him to bribe the convoy officer, and asked to serve as a boat hand and porter. The officer agreed. On reaching Shu he presented the 《Rhapsody of the Lone Carp Turning toward Heaven》. The Shu ruler was delighted and placed him in an important office. He later became Left Grand Councillor of the Secretariat and was appointed military governor of Kuizhou. By the time he took office in Kuizhou, Prince Wumu was dead and his son Xifan had succeeded. Bin wrote to Xifan, explaining why he had once gone to Shu and asking him to look after his kinsmen at Hengshan. Ashamed after reading the letter, Xifan exempted all of Bin's relatives and friends from taxes and labor service and ordered a search for hidden talent. From then on every scholar who came to court, worthy or not, was welcomed as a guest—all because of Bin. Bin had natural grace. His writing was plain but sound in reasoning, so that even the illiterate understood him at once. He rose to success through that gift.
15
殿 便 簿 便 使
Dai Yan came from Jinling. He wrote poetry and was especially fond of satirical admonition. When the Tang dynasty collapsed he wandered through the Xiang region, where the Ma clan had founded a kingdom. Prince Wenzhao, a young heir who had taken the throne, loved luxury above all. He established the Heavenly Strategies Office and built halls such as Nine Dragons and Golden Splendor; the ring of axes and hammers from construction never stopped, day or night. Yan disapproved. Calling himself the Master of Dark and Yellow, he wrote a hundred 《Fisherman's Poems》 and presented them as satire. One line ran: "Barely swallowing the world down one's throat—extravagance is what brings ruin." Another read: "If you mean to cast it off, cast it off now—do not wait until the wind rises and the water runs deep." Wenzhao read them and was furious. One day he asked his staff: "What sort of man is Dai Yan?" The staff could not read his mood and assumed Yan was in favor. Someone answered: "Yan is a poet whose verses his peers greatly admire. He is poor and wretched now; if Your Highness would show mercy, a minor post among the clerks would be enough." Wenzhao said: "He sent me poems a few days ago. From the look of him, he mainly wants to fish for his own amusement. Grant him Bixiang Lake and let him have his way—that too is how one honors talent." That same day Yan was moved to the lakeshore. Wenzhao secretly forbade officials and commoners alike from having any contact with him. From then on Yan grew hungrier by the day. At his wit's end he told his wife: "We have been married and have a son and a daughter. I expect we will not only be cast into a ditch, but our heads may not stay on our shoulders. We should split up with the children and flee—perhaps some of us may survive. Otherwise we die any day now." He rolled dice with his wife and agreed: "High roll takes the boy, low roll takes the girl." He took the girl, and they parted in tears. Yan was heading for Lingnan when he reached Yongzhou and learned of Wenzhao's death, so he stopped. After that, no one knows what became of him. Li Gao and his younger brother Jie both served on the Hunan staff, and Jie was also a man of letters. Early in the Tongguang era Prince Wumu of the Ma clan was made overall commander of Hunan's circuits and received several hundred war horses by imperial decree. Gao drafted the letter of thanks, but after a hundred-odd characters his phrasing grew stiff and awkward. Jie was at his side. Gao turned to him and said: "I have heard of horses arrayed in whirlwind squadrons—what phrase can I pair with that?" Jie said: "If horses have whirlwind squadrons, armies have crescent-moon camps—what is the problem?" Gao wrote with pleasure: "Soon the crescent-moon camp will be drawn up and deployed as whirlwind squadrons." The memorial was complete, and critics judged this couplet the most apt of all.
16
使
The monk Hongdao was a man of unknown origin. He mastered both secular and Buddhist learning, his conduct was exceptionally lofty, and he was greatly respected. During the Tianfu era he lived in the mountain valleys of Shiyang Town in Hengzhou. When Prince Wenzhao of the Ma clan succeeded to the throne, he heard of Hongdao's fame, summoned him to court, and wanted him to serve as abbot of Baoci Temple. Hong refused the summons. Wenzhao insisted on bringing him in and pressed the local officials. Anxious and at a loss, the elders led fifty or seventy men and escorted him into the prefectural city. When Hongdao learned of this, he took several disciples and moved deeper into the mountains, found a cave, and stopped there for the time being. From the time he left his old dwelling until he reached the cliff, countless birds sang in harmony and followed him. Though the officials lost his trail, some said to one another: "In the deep mountains, why are so many birds singing so beautifully—could the master be there?" They searched and indeed found him at the cave. The elders bowed twice and said: "Master, you are a follower of the Buddha, and the Buddha does not abandon the wishes of the living. The king honors you and wishes to see you, yet you refuse the summons and flee into the mountains. You may get your way—but will the officials and villages not be harassed without end? Can you not show them compassion!" Hongdao nodded at last and said: "If that is how it is, then I will go for your sake." When he arrived at court, Wenzhao received him as National Preceptor. Before long he begged earnestly to return to the mountains. Wenzhao knew he could not be kept and consented. After that, no one knows what became of him. When Hongdao first entered the cave he saw a tigress nursing two cubs there. His disciples were terrified. Hongdao rebuked them: "Do not be afraid—they will leave." As soon as he finished speaking, the tiger took the two cubs in its mouth and hurried from the cave. Such was the power of his conduct.
17
使
When Ma Xifan died, the administrator Li Gao made Xifan's younger uterine brother Xiguang Grand Marshal of the Heavenly Strategies Office, though governing was far from his strength. Senior commander Zhang Shaodi was alarmed and urged that Xiguang's elder half-brother Xie, military commissioner at Wuling, be enthroned instead. He said: "Xie is the elder and proud. He will never serve under the Grand Marshal. At Wuling he is on close terms with the Jiuxi tribes. If he is passed over, he will surely bring barbarian armies to revolt. Please think this through." Li Gao burst out angrily: "What do you people know? The late king was also Grand Marshal, and both were sons of the principal wife. Is it acceptable not to install him and instead put a son of an old maidservant on the throne?" Shaodi said: "State affairs cannot be tied to a single rule. Adaptation is what keeps a kingdom alive. What talk of legitimate versus illegitimate birth? If you insist on enthroning the Grand Marshal, you must devise a shrewd plan to control Wuling and keep him quiet. Otherwise the kingdom is lost!" Gao grew even angrier and refused Shaodi's advice. Shaodi saw there was nothing to be done and withdrew from public life. Before long Xie rebelled from Wuling, leading Dongxi tribesmen in several columns against Changsha. He strangled Xiguang outside the city and had Li Gao torn limb from limb. Hunan plunged into chaos, and within a year the kingdom was destroyed—exactly as Shaodi had warned.
18
使
When Xie first marched on Changsha, Xiguang gave the entire army to his trusted officer Xu Keqiong and ordered him to strike immediately. Keqiong saw how large Xie's army was, panicked, and by night sent flags and drums to surrender. Xie was delighted and, adding Keqiong's troops to his own, marched straight on. Xiguang had always been devoted to Buddhism. On hearing the news he could think of nothing to do. He put on monastic robes, gathered monks, and had them chant the name of Treasure-Victory Tathagata, calling it a rite to avert disaster. Before long fire broke out in the government offices and people panicked, yet the chanting never stopped. Such was his folly. Shaodi had had good reason to worry. Earlier the city streets had been lined mostly with locust trees; willows were scarce. Now inside and outside the city alike had switched to willows, and the locusts were gone. Residents also took to weaving straw sandals at night, and the sound of beating hemp carried into the countryside. Soon a children's rhyme spread: "Hunan's streets run long and fine—all plant willows, none plant locust. The people flee in panic with nothing to do but beat hemp and weave straw sandals." Everyone, young and old, chanted it. Before long the kingdom collapsed. The people fled, and eight or nine out of ten died in ditches and gullies. Only then did those who had heard the rhyme understand. The long avenues signified the roads linking the inner and outer city; locust trees stood for cherishing one another; not planting locust trees foretold discord among brothers, the fall of the kingdom, and the loss of true brotherly love. Straw sandals were for long journeys—a sign that the people would flee far from home. Once enthroned, Ma Xie neglected government and often drank and made merry with his officials. A minor clerk named Xie Tingze had been a household servant. Handsome and favored by Xie, he was seated at every banquet while many senior officials sat below him. The officials were furious and whispered among themselves: "By old custom servants only guarded the gates at banquets. Now they sit with us—what an outrage!" His younger brother Xichong, exploiting the general anger, rose secretly with his faction, seized Xie, imprisoned him at Hengyang, and declared himself ruler. Within days Jiangnan sent Yuanzhou prefect Bian Hao to invade while the kingdom was in turmoil. Xichong knew he could not resist and surrendered.
19
Earlier a solemn rhyme in Changsha ran: "The lash strikes—no time to flee." Before long the kingdom was indeed destroyed by Bian Hao. Bian had once served as a monk spy in Hunan and was especially skilled at playing cymbals. Every dawn he played cymbals while begging, and at city gates he would toss them up to measure how high the gates were. When he returned to Hunan, many people recognized him. The Liao family came from Gan County in Qianzhou. They had three sons: the eldest, Tu; the second, Yan; the youngest, Ning. Tu and Ning were both known as poets. Yan was swift and fearless beyond compare, grew domineering, and came to be feared throughout the countryside. Jiangnan appointed the meritorious official Zhong Zhang as prefect of Qianzhou, and he hated them deeply. Tu and Ning discussed the matter: "From Zhang's conduct, he means to destroy our clan. If we cling to our land, disaster will follow." They then led more than three thousand clansmen and followers, fully armed and in good order. Zhang did not dare pursue them, and they fled to Hunan.
20
使 使 使 使 使
Prince Wumu was then on the throne. Seeing how large their force was, he feared they would be hard to control and wanted to kill them all. Someone said: "Your surname is Ma, and the Liao have come to submit. Liao sounds like fodder. A horse given fodder is sure to grow strong—it is a great omen of the kingdom's rise. How can you kill them!" Prince Wumu was delighted and treated them generously. He appointed Ning prefect of Yongzhou, Tu army march commander, and Yan a column commander of the Heavenly Strategies Office, and granted them estates at Hengshan. Yan styled himself a recluse. Yan could stand upright on horseback, shake out a wet coat, and put it on to show his agility. The second son of Gao Jixing of Jingnan—his name is forgotten—commanded the personal army unit Yunmeng and was known as Young Master Yunmeng. He had heard of Yan's reputation, and when the two states clashed he asked for a duel with him. Yan went gladly. Young Master Yunmeng was skilled with the spear. Seeing Yan small and slight, he despised him, spurred forward, and thrust at him. Just as the point was about to reach him, Yan feigned a fall from his horse. Yunmeng could not check his charge; Yan struck from behind with a halberd, knocked him to the ground, and took him alive. From then on his fame grew even greater. It was thanks to Yan that Prince Wumu was never looked down upon by neighboring states throughout his reign. When his son Xifan succeeded, the Jiuxi tribes rebelled. Xifan ordered Yan to lead troops against them. Yan was struck by a stray arrow and died in the barbarian lands. When news of his death in battle arrived, Xifan sent a messenger to inform his mother, Lady Zhang. Lady Zhang did not weep. She told the messenger: "Please thank the king for me. Our family of more than three hundred souls has received his bounty of food and clothing. Even if we all died we could not repay him—what is one son! I hope Your Majesty will not trouble yourself on our account. When Xifan heard this, he sighed and said, "With a mother like this in the Liao clan, how could they fail to prosper!" He then showered them with generous care and relief, sent envoys to summon Ning, and appointed him a staff officer. When Xifan died, the kingdom collapsed into chaos and was overrun by Jiangnan, and Ning relocated to Jinling. The Tang ruler appointed him Vice Director of the Ministry of Works. He served as magistrate of Lianchang County in Hongzhou. Before long he was transferred again, becoming military training commissioner of Jiangzhou. Ning was free-spirited and loved banter. Once, reading Pei Shuo's 《Poem on Passing Du Gongbu's Tomb》, he came to the line: "I mean to break open that lonely tomb and bring great poetry back to life. He remarked, "By that logic, Pei Shuo is nothing but a tomb robber." Those who heard laughed. While in Jiangzhou, during a sweltering summer, he once suffered from the heat and had a great tub filled with cold water; he would sit in it, sometimes for an entire day. Even when guests came to visit, he would merely poke his head out to chat and laugh with them—so unconventional was he. Earlier Ning had dreamed that someone handed him a seal; as he bowed to receive it, he noticed one corner was chipped away, and he could not discern what it meant. When the Jiangzhou appointment arrived, he at last understood. "The chipped corner on the seal," he said, "must symbolize a deputy command. Deputy military training commissioner—what could be more apt! People of the time found it remarkable. )〉
21
使 使 谿 使使 使
Liu Yan had originally been a garrison officer in Langzhou. When the entire Ma clan was captured by Jiangnan and Langzhou was left without a commander, the troops promoted the officer Ma Guanghui to acting military governor of the Wuping Army, and Guanghui appointed Yan his deputy. Before long Guanghui sank into idleness and extravagance, the army lost faith in him, and he was deposed; Yan replaced him as acting governor. This was autumn of the second year of Guangshun under the Zhou. Once Yan had taken power, he sent envoys north to submit a memorial to Emperor Taizu of Zhou and east to petition Li Jing of Jiangnan for formal investiture with full military authority; Jing refused. Bian Hao held Hunan and secretly sent men with gold and silk to win over the stream-cave tribes of Wuling, hoping to combine forces and attack Langzhou. When Li Jing issued a forged edict summoning Yan to Jinling, Yan feared the trap and refused. On the third day of the tenth month that winter, he joined his deputy commissioner Wang Jinkui, chief of staff He Jingzhen, and commander-in-chief Zhou Xingfeng in leading a fleet against Tanzhou. On the ninth they captured the Yiyang stockade and killed several thousand Huai troops. On the thirteenth they reached the walls of Tanzhou. That evening Bian Hao abandoned the city and fled east with his troops; Jinkui and Jingzhen entered and took possession of it. Yan dispatched the officer Zhang Congsi to submit a memorial to Emperor Taizu of Zhou, explaining that Tanzhou had been nearly burned to ashes in the fighting and begging to move the headquarters to Langzhou; the request was granted. An edict promoted Langzhou to a grand protectorate, ranking above Tanzhou.
22
使 使使 使 便
In the first month of spring in the third year of Guangshun, Yan was appointed Honorary Grand Preceptor, Co-Governor, Grand Protector of Langzhou, Military Governor of the Wuping Army, with authority over military affairs in Wu'an, Jingjiang, and related commands; Wang Jinkui was made military governor of the Wu'an Army and He Jingzhen military governor of the Jingjiang Army, both with the honorary title Grand Guardian; Zhou Xingfeng was made prefect of Jizhou and chief of staff of the Wu'an military command. Before long Yan sent He Jingzhen south to attack Guang bandits; Jingzhen lost control of his troops, fled back to Tanzhou, and was killed by Wang Jinkui. That autumn Jinkui memorialized: "Liu Yan has been in contact with the Huai bandits. He dispatched Commander Zheng Jiao with troops intending to seize control of our route. Zheng Jiao was seized by the soldiers and fled into Wuling. Liu Yan was soon deposed by the armies. I have already reached Langzhou and restored order. Emperor Taizu of Zhou ordered Liu Yan to retire to his private residence and entrusted Wang Jinkui to settle him as he saw fit. Before long Yan was murdered, and the court formally invested Jinkui with control of Langzhou.
23
使使 使
In autumn of the first year of Xiande, Zhou Xingfeng, deputy military governor of the Wu'an Army, was made military governor of Ezhou, provisional administrator of Tanzhou headquarters, and granted the honorary title Grand Guardian. In the first month of spring in the third year, as Emperor Shizong prepared to campaign against the Huai region, Jinkui was ordered to lead troops into Jiangnan territory. In the second month Jinkui set out as ordered and dispatched his officer Pan Shusi with five thousand men as vanguard. When they reached the border of Ezhou, Shusi turned his troops about and struck Langzhou. On hearing this Jinkui raced ahead by forced marches into Wuling, but Shusi promptly assaulted the city. Jinkui was defeated and killed by Shusi. He sent someone to Tanzhou to summon Zhou Xingfeng to Langzhou and had Shusi executed in the market. In the seventh month that autumn Xingfeng was appointed Grand Protector of Langzhou and Military Governor of the Wuping Army, with the additional title of Palace Attendant. From then on the lands of Tan and Lang came entirely under Xingfeng's control. At the beginning of Jianlong under the Imperial Song he was further given the title of Director of the Secretariat. In the fourth year Xingfeng died, and the three armies installed his son Baoquan as commander. Before long the Lang army mutinied and begged the court for aid. When the imperial army pacified Jing and Hu, Baoquan presented himself at court, and the lands of Hunan and Hubei became entirely territory of the throne.
24
使 使 使
Qian Liu came from Lin'an County in Hangzhou. In youth he was bold in combat, delighted in chivalry, and made settling scores his business. During the Tang Qianfu era he served the Yuqian garrison commander Dong Chang as a company officer. As the realm fell into chaos, Huang Chao raided the south; bandits along the Yangzi and Huai gathered in groups—large bands attacking prefectures and counties, small ones plundering villages. Dong Chang gathered troops and rampaged between Hang and Yue. In Hangzhou's eight counties, each county recruited a thousand men as one company; the time called them the "Eight Companies of Hangzhou," to block Huang Chao's vital route. At the time one Liu Hanhong gathered followers, seized Yuezhou, styled himself military governor, and attacked neighboring prefectures; the garrison officer Xue Lang of Runzhou drove out its military governor Zhou Bao and styled himself acting governor. Emperor Xizong of Tang was in Shu and ordered Dong Chang to campaign against them; Chang entrusted military affairs to Liu, led the Eight Companies against Yuezhou, executed Hanhong, turned his blades on Runzhou, and captured Xue Lang. When Jiang and Zhe were pacified, Dong Chang became military governor of Zhedong and prefect of Yuezhou, and memorialized that Liu replace him as prefect of Hangzhou.
25
西使 使 西使 使
During the Tang Jingfu era the court appointed Li Qian military governor of the Zhenhai Army in Zhejiang West Circuit. Sun Ru and Yang Xingmi were locked in mutual turmoil, and battle smoke covered the Huai and sea region for thousands of li. Liu often led troops in defense; Sun Ru held Xuanzhou and dared not invade Jiang and Zhe, and Liu's fame for merit grew daily. After a long time Li Qian never reached his headquarters; the court appointed Liu military governor of the Zhenhai Army, moved the Runzhou military designation to Hangzhou as headquarters, and established the Weisheng Army at Yuezhou with Dong Chang as military governor. Chang gradually grew proud and exalted; he claimed his person matched prophetic signs and was further deceived by the sorcerer Wang Baiyi into usurping a royal title. At Yuezhou he styled himself King of the Luoping State, with the era name Dasheng, and falsely ordered Liu to be commander-in-chief of the Two Zhes. Liu refused the order, reported the situation, and Emperor Zhaozong of Tang ordered Liu to campaign against Chang. In the fourth year of Qianning Liu led the officers and soldiers of western Zhe to break Yuezhou, captured Chang and presented him to the court; the court praised his merit, granted Liu an iron certificate, and appointed the chief minister Wang Pu military governor of the Weisheng Army. The gentry and commoners of the Two Zhes submitted memorials asking that Liu hold both Hang and Yue commands; the court could not restrain them and therefore granted it, changed the Weisheng Army to Zhendong, and Liu then held command over both the Zhenhai and Zhendong circuits. Once Liu held both commands he had thirty thousand elite troops; yet Yang Xingmi raised arms year after year, attacking Suzhou, Huzhou, Runzhou, and other prefectures, wishing to annex the Two Zhes. He was repeatedly defeated by Liu, but also seized several prefectures from Liu—Liu's domain amounted to only thirteen prefectures. In the Tianfu era Liu's great generals Xu Zaisi and Xu Wan rebelled, bringing in Tian Yun, military governor of Xuanzhou, to plot a raid on Hangzhou. Tian Yun and others led troops in a surprise attack to the foot of the walls; Liu roused his soldiers, defeated them in one battle, captured Xu Wan alive, and Tian Yun fled.
26
Liu built mansions in his old home district of Lin'an, extravagantly magnificent; at the seasons he toured the village with a grand procession of chariots and attendants, ten thousand men arrayed in ranks. His father Kuan, whenever he heard Liu was coming, would flee and hide; Liu then went on foot to visit Kuan and asked the reason. Kuan said, "Our family for generations has made its living by farming and fishing; never has anyone risen to such eminence. You are now master of thirteen prefectures, beset on three sides, contending with others for profit—I fear calamity will reach our house, and so I cannot bear to see you. Liu wept and apologized.
27
使殿 使
Under Emperor Zhaozong of Tang Liu rose to Grand Preceptor, Director of the Secretariat, and Prince of his home commandery, with a fief of twenty thousand households. When the Liang founder changed the dynasty, Liu was made Sire Father and King of Wuyue. Under the Last Emperor of Liang he was further given the title Marshal of All Armies of the Circuits. In the Tongguang era he became Grand Marshal of All Armies Under Heaven, Sire Father, and Acting Director of the Secretariat; he was enfeoffed as King of Wuyue and granted a jade register and gold seal. When Emperor Zhuangzong reached Luoyang, Liu lavishly presented tribute and sought to be made king. When the jade-register edict was issued, the responsible offices deliberated in detail, and the ministers all said, "The golden characters on the jade slips belong to the supreme sovereign alone; Qian Liu is a subject—this cannot be. Moreover, since this dynasty began, apart from distant tribes and far frontiers where investiture was granted in the manner of loose control, there might be the title of king—but within the Nine Provinces there has never been such a thing. Guo Chongtao especially would not tolerate the usurpation, but Duan Huai, chief drafter of the Bureau of Military Affairs, a favorite who held power, was able to shift Chongtao's mind and plead Liu's case at length; Chongtao reluctantly assented. Liu then granted the titles of Military Governor of the Zhenhai and Zhendong Armies to his son Yuan Guan, styled himself King of Wuyue, called his residence a palace and his headquarters a court, had his aides address him as minister, and usurped the titles of the great court's officials—only he did not change the era name. He falsely issued edicts of investiture, granting titles to Silla and Bohai, and also sent envoys to perform investiture among the tribal settlements of the sea.
28
便 滿
I respectfully reflect that my father, Grand Marshal of All Armies Under Heaven and King of Wuyue, subject Liu, from the year of Qianfu onward established merit and toil; by the beginning of Tianfu he had already received a fief. Twice he extinguished the usurpation at Mount Ji, repeatedly received the phoenix edicts of praise and elevation, was granted an iron certificate binding his merit as enduring as mountains and rivers, and had his honors stored in the Clear Temple and inscribed on bells and cauldrons. Serving successive sovereigns through many reigns, he exhausted his loyalty without failing in duty, and bore the emperor's grace ever more heavily. With Chu hemp and Wu citrus, he always stood ahead among the vassals; with red leopards and yellow bears, he was not behind the other regions. His portrait was painted at the Cloud Platform, his merit recorded in the League Office; he exerted his strength for the dynasty and devoted his heart to the state. He often admonished us brothers, saying, "You sons must remember these words: your old father rose from the various companies, early pacified many troubles, was always praised for loyalty and courage, and truly rendered hard service; thus he received the sage sovereign's selection for merit and was honored with a fief from the true lord. I constantly harbor fear of fullness and overflow, and forebode the worry of sheltering posterity. Because favor and ritual were exceptionally great and glory reached its height, rank and title already exceeded the five grades, and my years approach eighty, this unreserved talk—you must listen quietly. Moreover, having with my own hands destroyed demonic rebellion and witnessed rise and fall with my own eyes, how could I make myself a source of disaster and again follow a path to ruin? This old body is still hale; let me for now accept the title of king; the heir who inherits the house should only keep to the station of a frontier vassal. We brothers, with tears in the carp courtyard and the geese order written on our sashes, hid it in our hearts and respectfully received the command.
29
仿鹿 使
Recently, when the lord returned to his seat at Jiyin and claimed supremacy in the Liang garden, heroes everywhere imitated one another in turn, each raising the reproach of casting the tortoise, all stirring schemes to contend for the realm. Only my father the king never followed the example. From obscurity to eminence, he wholly received the Son of Heaven's silk edicts; opening land and receiving enfeoffment as king, he kept to a vassal's territory. In the yiyou year we respectfully received from afar Emperor Zhuangzong's descent of the jade register and gold seal, grace added like Qufu and Yingqiu, clearly from the great court coming to enfeoff our small state; there was thus a change and supplement of a strong title, but in truth no harboring of rebellion against the statutes. Moreover, when our envoy Xu Yun and others presented tribute, there were lapses in ritual; we still received pardon and were not subjected to statutory punishment—how could we not cast aside our staffs to blame ourselves and come bearing thorns to beg forgiveness? Moreover, having failed in the rites of a subject and truly departed from the protocol of serving superiors, day and night we are wrapped in shame, sleep and food both abandoned; receiving the edict our spirits tremble, submitting memorials thorns pierce us on every side.
30
便
I respectfully consider that Your Majesty the Emperor is deep in wisdom and literary thought, broad and magnanimous, knowing all things and daily opening the four quarters; having already allowed faults that can be corrected and granted pardon for renewal, weighing merit against faults and setting aside the short for the long—how much less should recent rivalries be grounds for deep suspicion and distant calculation. Moreover, our circuit, though it shares a border with Huainan, has long been bound in enmity; hostility alternates with alliance, ten times overturned and nine times reversed; letting the enemy go has already exceeded three reigns, and ceasing arms has lasted only a few years—it is surely not a lip-and-teeth state, but truly a disease of the heart and vitals. Now that we have received your edict of inquiry and reproof, we ought to set forth the full origin and end of the matter; the account is already spread among many records and need not weary you with exhaustive detail—they are men without propriety, while we, for our part, seek harmony yet stand apart from them. We have recently learned of their encroachment and raids on Jingmen—conduct perverse toward the throne. If the imperial army should call them to account, we wish to lead our forces in a joint attack and will surely strive to be first over the walls, that Your Majesty may witness our future service. Like autumn eagles poised on the wing, we wait only for your command; Like dragons leaping from their sheath, we vow to settle this feud. We are now drilling siege towers and rams, sharpening spears and blades, resolved to support the imperial might and hoping thereby to make our loyalty as subjects plain. I respectfully note that my father, King Liu, has already crossed the sea to court and has since sent urgent memorials. They affirmed father-and-son devotion, bright as the sun in the sky; displaying the great bond between sovereign and subject, pointing upward to the dome of Heaven. We shall continue to send tribute by ship and overland routes, unify chariots and script as your exemplar; should we fail in our duty, Heaven's hidden punishment will come of itself. This spring we already submitted our memorial in full, yet have not promptly received your approval; our land is distant and a full year passes before it arrives, Heaven is high and our earnest pleas are hard to convey. We humbly beg Your sacred grace to grant us your clear command. Enduring frost they grow greener still—thus the steadfast heart of pine and cypress is known; only when success comes on another day will our loyal fidelity be fully revealed. Your subjects Yuanguan and others are overcome with gratitude, praying for grace, trembling in awe, and bound in utmost devotion. We respectfully dispatch a swift courier by secret route to present this silk memorial, stating our petition and expressing our thanks for your attention. Mingzong approved this and issued an edict reappointing Liu as Commander-in-Chief of All Armed Forces Under Heaven, Imperial Sire-Father, and King of Wuyue. Before long, another edict granted him the privilege of not being named when submitting memorials. (The 《Institutional Essentials of the Five Dynasties》 records an edict of the fourth month of the second year of Changxing saying: Zhou had Rong and Lü Wang, who bore the title Imperial Sire-Father; Han honored Xiao He with the ritual of not being named. Qian Xu holds the rank of duke or marquis and rules the Wuyue fief; exceptional favor should be shown and the full ceremonial granted—Qian Xu should be granted the privilege of not being named.)〉
31
Liu resided in Hangzhou for nearly forty years, living in the utmost luxury and splendor. In former days the sea tide of the Qiantang River pressed upon the prefectural city; Liu mustered a great force of laborers, carved stone to fill the river, and leveled the Luocha Rock in midstream, raising towers and pavilions everywhere and expanding the city walls for thirty li around—the throng of houses and the carved splendor of river and hills were truly the finest sights of Jiangnan. Liu studied calligraphy and loved to compose and recite poetry. In Jiangdong there was Luo Yin, famed for poetry and known throughout the realm, who served Liu as a staff adviser. Liu once exchanged verses with Yin; Yin loved satire and once playfully composed a poem about Liu riding an ox and wielding a staff in his humble days—Liu remained placid and unangered. His indulgence and forbearance were such as this. Though Liu in his later years was wasteful and unrestrained, from the Tang dynasty through the Liang and since Zhuangzong's restoration, whenever ships sailed across the sea tribute was never lacking; the central court therefore held this in his favor.
32
Liu died on the twenty-eighth day of the third month of the third year of Changxing, at age eighty-one. An edict said: "The late Commander-in-Chief of All Armed Forces Under Heaven, Imperial Sire-Father, and King of Wuyue, Qian Liu, was an elder statesman of successive reigns and a meritorious worthy of his age; his rank had already reached the summit among subjects, and his name had long stood high in the historical records. Since there is no posthumous office or rank to confer, a change of name should show exceptional honor; the appropriate offices should determine his posthumous title, bury him with royal rites, and grant a spirit-way stele." His posthumous title was Wusu. When Liu first served Dong Chang, he was just entering manhood and his nature was fierce and unyielding. Once a scholar came to call on the commander-in-chief; he had already presented his card, but when he saw Liu he grew somewhat negligent. Liu in anger threw him into the Luocha River. When the usher was about to summon him, Liu falsely said, "The guest has already brushed his robes and departed." When he became commander, someone presented a poem saying, "A single stretch of river flows before the balustrade." Liu was displeased, took it as a satire on himself, and soon had the man killed. Only in his later years did he come to cherish men and honor scholars, devoting himself to the Way; for several decades the age greatly praised him. Liu especially relied on his grandeur and prosperity, dividing the Two Zhes into several prefectures and appointing their military commissioners first, reporting afterward. On his left and right, before and behind, were all sons, grandsons, nephews, and cousins; the halls and steps, dress and adornment, rivaled those of a king. Throughout the Two Zhes the common people all called him "Sea Dragon King." In the Kaiping era of Liang, the people of Zhe petitioned to erect a living shrine to Liu; Emperor Taizu of Liang approved it and ordered Hanlin Academician Li Qi to compose the shrine stele and bestow it. To this day the common people offer sacrifice there and his descendants preserve it—thus he was also a famed king of recent times.
33
使 婿 使 使 使 使 使 使 使
Yuanguan was Liu's fifth son. He began his career as an inspector of the Salt and Iron Transport Office; by memorial he was appointed Director of the Ministry of Revenue's Gold Department and granted the gold seal and purple robe. In the Tianfu era, the local adjutants Xu Zaisi and others rebelled, colluding with Xuancheng Military Commissioner Tian Yun; Yun led troops in a sudden arrival. Liu defeated Zaisi and made peace with Yun. Yun demanded a marriage alliance with Liu; Liu summoned all his sons and asked, "Who among you can become my son-in-law to the Tian clan?" As a rule they showed reluctance, but Yuanguan, then sixteen, stepped forward and said, "I await only the Great King's command." Thereupon he went to Xuancheng to marry. At the beginning of Tianyou of Tang, by imperial order he was repeatedly promoted to Acting Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs and Commander of the Inner Palace Guard; within a few years, suppressing rebels and repelling invaders, he achieved great merit. In the summer of the fourth year of Zhenming of Liang, Liu launched a major campaign against Wu and appointed Yuanguan Commander of All Naval Forces. The battle fleet reached Dongzhou; the Wu sent a naval force to resist. Yuanguan built fire rafts and, riding the wind, scattered ash to blind them; by day it was like fog, the Wu army lost its bearings, and he defeated them, capturing Army Commissioner Peng Yanzhang along with more than seventy officers and taking four hundred warships. The Wu knew they could not contend and made peace with Liu; for his merit he was memorialized and appointed Deputy Military Commissioner of Zhenhai Army and Acting Minister of Education. At the end of Liang he was transferred to Military Commissioner of Qinghai Army, Acting Grand Tutor, and Co-Director of the Secretariat-Chancellery. At the beginning of Tongguang of Later Tang he was further made Acting Grand Preceptor, Concurrent Director of the Secretariat, and Military Commissioner, Observation Commissioner, and Disposition Commissioner of Zhendong and other armies. At that time Liu himself was Commander-in-Chief of All Armed Forces Under Heaven, Imperial Sire-Father, Acting Director of the Secretariat, and King of Wuyue; when Liu retired as Grand Preceptor, Yuanguan repeatedly submitted memorials begging restoration of the former titles, and Tang Mingzong granted this. Liu, now advanced in years, wished to establish a successor; he summoned his sons to each recount their merits and asked that the succession be yielded to Yuanguan. When Liu's illness grew grave, he summoned his generals and officials and said, "My illness will not improve; my sons are all foolish and weak—I fear they cannot be your commander. I have decided this with you all—the commander should be chosen by yourselves." The generals and officials wept aloud and said, "The Heir Apparent has military merit, many worthy deeds, and filial piety; he already commands two prefectures—Great King, why speak of this!" Liu said, "Is he truly fit or not?" They said, "We all wish to serve the worthy commander." He then brought out several baskets of seals and keys before them and said to Yuanguan, "The three armies say you are fit to lead—take these." When Liu died, Yuanguan succeeded to his father's position.
34
祿
In the fourth year of Changxing of Tang, the Director of the Directorate for Palace Buildings Li Hong was sent to restore Yuanguan's offices and rank from mourning, and Vice Director of the Ministry of Revenue Zhang Wenbao was ordered to invest him as Concurrent Director of the Secretariat. At the beginning of Qingtai he was enfeoffed as King of Wu. In the second year he was enfeoffed as King of Yue. In the first year of Tianfu he was granted a gold seal. In the third year he was enfeoffed as King of Wuyue. In the fifth year he was made Commander-in-Chief of All Armed Forces Under Heaven. In the sixth year he was invested as Supreme Commander-in-Chief of All Armed Forces Under Heaven. That summer he fell ill; in autumn the government offices caught fire and were burned to nothing. When they were moved elsewhere, the flames followed and broke out again. Yuanguan, shaken and terrified, went mad; on the twenty-fourth day of the eighth month of that year he died, at age fifty-five. His posthumous title was Wenmu. Yuanguan was clever from youth and skilled in winning men; for fifteen years in command he decided affairs with swift decisiveness and was beloved by soldiers and civilians alike. Yet his extravagant presumption in construction exceeded even his father's, and therefore he suffered the calamity of Huilu. Yuanguan composed a thousand poems; he selected the finest three hundred and titled the collection the 《Jade Tower Collection》; scholars throughout Zhe all circulated it. His son Zuo succeeded him.
35
祿
Zuo, courtesy name Yuanyou, when Yuanguan died succeeded to his position. At the end of Tianfu of Jin, by edict he was made Acting Grand Preceptor, Concurrent Director of the Secretariat, and King of Wuyue; a jade tablet was carved into a patent of investiture and bestowed on him. Jade patents of investiture in former ages had been granted to barbarian kings; in the false Liang they wished to honor Liu richly and first established this as a precedent, so it was retained unchanged. Soon he was made Grand Preceptor of the Palace with the Ceremonial of Three Departments and Acting Grand Commandant. At that time Jian'an was being attacked by Huai bandits; he was made Commander-in-Chief of Southeastern Armed Forces. Zuo soon sent a naval force to advance and attack; the Huai invaders were greatly defeated, and for his merit he was further made Acting Grand Preceptor. When Emperor Gaozu of Han entered Bian, Zuo was first to present precious tribute, setting an example for the eastern circuits; Emperor Gaozu commended this and made him Commander-in-Chief of All Armed Forces of the Circuits. Zuo ruled his domain for seven years in all; within his borders prosperity was abundant, and grandfather, father, and son for three generations had all been commanders-in-chief—the age regarded this as glory. At the beginning of Han he died in office from illness; his posthumous title was Zhongxian. Zuo from youth loved books; his nature was mild and courteous, and he could compose five- and seven-character verse. Whenever his officials encountered fine scenes of snow or moonlight, he always shared banquets and appreciation—thereby winning the hearts of scholars. His official ranks also had rosters from Chancellor downward, but salaries were very meager and few could support themselves. Whenever the court sent down officials, their false titles were removed; if they attended gatherings the public office would assist with servants and horses—affairs were handled in petty, cramped ways, mostly of this sort. Yet what came in by sea amounted to a million in annual tribute; whenever envoys of the king arrived, the gifts given were exceedingly broad—therefore the court favored him, and he stood at the head of all the feudatories. Zuo had a son Yu, five years old and not yet fit for ordinary affairs; therefore his younger brother Zong succeeded to the position.
36
宿
Zong's nature was bright, keen, stern, and resolute. Before he was established he had often thought that because Zuo's nature was lenient and good, those who held military power would be hard to control; when he replaced Zuo as commander he restrained subordinates with ritual and law, and did not greatly honor veteran generals and old merit. The great general Hu Jinsi was quite discontent with this and secretly plotted with his personal troops to remove Zong. In the year Emperor Gaozu of Han entered Bian, in the twelfth month Jinsi led three hundred armored soldiers in a great uproar and burst into the government offices. Zong shut the doors to resist; his attendants fought with them and were all killed by Jinsi. He then moved Zong to a separate lodge, sent armored soldiers to escort him, and imprisoned him in the Yijin Army, establishing Zong's younger half-brother Chu as commander. That summer in the fourth month Jinsi died of a carbuncle on his back; the people of Yue rejoiced, taking it as the hidden spirits' punishment of a traitor.
37
使 使 滿
Chu was Yuanguan's son and Zong's younger half-brother. After Zong was imprisoned by the military officers, Chu was at that time Prefect of Wenzhou; since there was no commander, the multitude welcomed and established him—this was the fifteenth day of the first month of the first year of Ganyou of Han. That August he was first invested as Acting Grand Preceptor and Concurrent Director of the Secretariat, serving as Military Commissioner of Zhenhai, Zhendong, and other armies and Commander-in-Chief of Southeastern Armed Forces. In Guangshun of Zhou he rose through offices to Acting Director of the Secretariat, Director of the Secretariat, and King of Wuyue. At the beginning of Jianlong of the Imperial Dynasty he was again made Grand Commander-in-Chief of All Armed Forces Under Heaven; his subsequent affairs are fully recorded in the Imperial Dynasty calendar. (The 《Supplement to the History of the Five Dynasties》: After Qian Xu was enfeoffed as King of Wuyue, he greatly expanded the government offices; the sounds of ramming earth and wielding axes never ceased day or night, and the soldiers grumbled. Some at midnight secretly used white earth to write large characters on a gate saying, "No end to it—rise early at dawn, return only at dusk." Xu, on seeing it, was pleased and immediately ordered a clerk also to write several characters in white earth beside it saying, "No end to it—spring clothes just finished, then winter clothes again." The people of the age regarded this as divine assistance; from then on the grumbling suddenly ceased. There was a monk named Zhao, versed in numerology and divination, who lived in the Two Zhes and was greatly honored by Qian Xu of Qiantang, who called him State Preceptor. One day he came to call on Xu; a small boy from the palace was playing at the side and dropped several dozen cash. Xu saw this and said to him, "Quick, pick them up—I fear someone may step on and break your money." Master Zhao laughed and said, "If you want that money crushed, you'll need an ox." Chu was delighted and took this as a sign that the realm would endure. Eventually his great-grandson Chu led the entire clan to court, and the kingdom was absorbed. Chu was born in the year of the ox—so the ox did indeed tread the Qian domain underfoot. In his last years Qian Chu went blind in both eyes; a physician of unknown origin appeared, claiming generations of skill in treating cataracts and other eye ailments with needles that never failed. Chu summoned him; the physician said, "I can treat this, but you are no ordinary man—this ailment may be Heaven's gift. To cure it would defy Heaven and may not prolong your life. Think carefully." Chu replied, "I rose from the ranks to rule a region—I've had wealth and honor enough; let me see again—even as a ghost I would be content!" The physician treated him, and his sight cleared immediately. Delighted, Chu offered rewards in the tens of thousands, but the physician refused them all. The following year Chu died. The monk Qiying was from Fujian. He mastered secular and Buddhist learning and was exceptionally quick-witted. Early in the Guangshun era he visited Qiantang. One day he accompanied the King of Wuyue to Bilang Pavilion as the tide reached full flood; boats packed the water as far as eye could see. The king exclaimed, "Wuyue lies three thousand li from the capital—who knew a single waterway could hold such power!" Qiying replied, "Three thousand li away, one river; twice each day, the tide." Contemporaries hailed it as a perfect couplet. Jiangnan was not yet linked by land; the two Zhe regions sent tribute by sea to Qingzhou—hence the three thousand li.) )〉
38
使筿
The historian writes: From the chaos at the end of Tang the realm split apart; Jingnan, Hunan, the Yangzi delta, and Zhejiang each held its own territory, passing power from generation to generation for decades. Why was this so? Because the heartland faced endless hardship and imperial authority could not prevail. When the Song received Heaven's mandate, rebellion at Lang and Ling brought the imperial army in swift campaign; not an arrow was wasted, and both regions submitted. Jade, bamboo, and fine reeds all alike fulfilled their tribute obligations; the Yangzi, Han, Ju, and Zhang all surged with the tide of loyalty to the throne. Why was this so? Because the great mandate had found its rightful heir and the realm was united in peace. Only the Qian clan's hold on Hangzhou and Yue lasted more than eighty years—for their loyalty to the throne and dutiful service to the dynasty set them apart from Jing-Chu and Hunan.
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