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卷二十八 志第四 五行一

Volume 28 Treatises 4: Five Elements 1

Chapter 28 of 明史 · History of Ming
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1
Treatise on the Five Elements, Part One. (Water)
2
Dynastic histories have treated the Five Elements as a formal subject since the Book of Han, which set the pattern of cataloguing wuxing lore together with omens and their supposed political correspondences. Later compilers followed suit. Turn to the Hong Fan: it opens with the Five Elements because nothing under Heaven and earth, nothing among the myriad things, lies outside their scope. Correlated with the human way, they yield the Five Affairs; measured against the celestial way, they yield the various signs. That Heaven and humanity affect one another, and that like kinds answer to like, is not something reason can simply dismiss. The received lore, however, sorts every omen into fine categories, assigns each anomaly to a specific event, and piles on indirect proofs until the argument stretches wherever its authors wish. Even fathers and sons, masters and disciples, contradict one another; whether any of this still serves the Hong Fan's purpose of ordering the categories is doubtful. If rulers truly believed that Heaven's response came faster than shadow or echo, they might weigh every word and deed with care. Used as a warning, the doctrine is not without good intent. Yet Heaven's way is distant and man's way is near; force every event into a one-to-one correspondence, and some cases will fit while others will not. When a predicted correspondence fails, people decide the signs mean nothing and slacken their vigilance. Earlier sages debated this point thoroughly. Confucius compiled the Spring and Autumn Annals: he noted anomalies but refused to spell out their meaning. The systems of Liu Xiang, Dong Zhongshu, and their school leaned heavily on numerology and lucky omens; in themselves they hardly merit retelling. When Ban Gu first opened this treatise category, he had to trace those doctrines to their roots. Later official histories often recycled the same handful of older glosses and pasted them at the head of each entry. Measured against proper historiographical practice, it is hard to see what such material is doing in the annals at all. I have therefore arranged events from the Hongwu reign onward, kept the old Five Elements format in outline, and recorded only the omens themselves; correspondences, earlier theories, and repeated precedents are all omitted.
3
The Hong Fan says: "Water is named moistening and descending." When water fails to moisten and sink, it has lost its proper nature. Earlier histories grouped constant cold, prolonged yin, snow and frost, hail, thunder, fish portents, locusts, pig calamities, dragon-and-snake portents, horse anomalies, human deformities, plague, drum omens, meteorites, floods, transformations of water, and black omens and black auspices under Water; this account follows that taxonomy.
4
▲ Constant Cold
5
綿 西
Jingtai 4, winter/X/wuchen through the next year's early spring: Shandong, Henan, Zhejiang, Zhili, and the Huai–Xu region saw snow several feet deep; the sea off eastern Huai froze for more than forty li; tens of thousands of people and animals died of cold. Jingtai 5/I: Jiangnan prefectures snowed without break for forty days; in Suzhou and Changzhou the dead from cold and hunger were beyond number. That spring Luoshan suffered extreme cold; bamboo, trees, fish, and mollusks all perished. At Hengzhou rain and snow fell in an unbroken spell; many people were hurt, and 36,000 head of cattle and livestock froze to death. Chenghua 13/IV/renxu: Kaiyuan had heavy rain and snow; many animals froze to death. Chenghua 16/VII–VIII: Yuexi saw rain and snow together, with winter-like cold. Hongzhi 6/XI: Yunyang had deep snow; on the night of XII/renxu thunder and lightning broke out violently, thundered again the next day, and only after five more days did the snow stop, leaving more than three feet on level ground; many people and animals froze to death. Zhengde 1/IV: Wuding in Yunnan was struck by falling frost that killed the wheat; the cold was like winter. Wanli 5/VI: Suzhou and Songjiang had unbroken rain, winter-like cold, and damaged crops. Wanli 46/IV/xinhai: Shaanxi had heavy rain and snow; two thousand camels froze to death.
6
▲ Constant Yin
7
Hongwu 18/II: prolonged overcast skies. Zhengtong 5/VII/wuwu, jiwei, and guihai: at dawn the sky hung dark; fog on every side was so thick that people could not be told apart. Zhengtong 8: Pi and Hai prefectures lay under yin fog for a month; much of the summer wheat was ruined. Jingtai 6/I/guiyou: yin fog sealed every quarter; frost then clung to the trees for five days in all. Jingtai 8/I/jiazi: the sky was dim and great fog rolled in; within arm's reach neither person nor object could be made out. Chenghua 4/III: dusk fog veiled the sky; for many day-and-night cycles neither sun nor stars appeared. Chenghua 9/III/jiawu and IV/dingmao: Shandong turned dark as night. Chenghua 20/V/bingshen: Panyu's sky darkened and only after a long while cleared. Chenghua 23/XII/xinmao: heavy fog in which people could not be distinguished. Hongzhi 15/XI: Jingdong had daytime gloom for seven days. Hongzhi 16/IV/xinhai: Gansu was choked by dusk fog; within a few feet neither person nor object could be told apart. Hongzhi 18, autumn: Guangchang had rain and fog for two months running; sickness and death followed one upon another. Zhengde 10/IV: Juye suffered yin fog for six days and lost its grain. Zhengde 14/III/wuwu: overcast, dim skies. Jiajing 1/I/dingmao, at noon: dusk fog closed in on every side. Jiajing 3: north of the Yangtze, dusk fog whose air smelled like medicine. Tianqi 6/VI/bingxu: fog so dense it fell like rain. Intercalary VI/jiwei: the same.
8
▲ Rain, Snow, and Falling Frost
9
西
Hongwu 14/V/dingwei: Jiande had snow. Hongwu 14/VI/jimao: Hangzhou saw snow fall on a clear day. Hongwu 26/IV/bingshen: Yushe was hit by falling frost that damaged the wheat. Jingtai 4: Fengyang's eight guards had unbroken rain and snow in the second and third months; the wheat suffered. Tianshun 4/III/yiyou: heavy snow that did not cease for a month. Chenghua 2/IV/yisi: Xuanfu was struck by falling frost that killed the young shoots. Chenghua 19/III/xinyou: Shaanxi had falling frost. Hongzhi 6/X: Nanjing had rain and snow for ten consecutive days. Hongzhi 8/IV/gengshen: Yushe, Lingchuan, Xiangyuan, Changzi, and Qinyuan were struck by falling frost that killed wheat, beans, and mulberry. Hongzhi 8/IV/xinyou: thirty-five Qingyang prefectures, counties, guards, and garrisons were struck by falling frost that killed wheat, beans, and young grain. Hongzhi 9/IV/xinsi: Yuci was struck by falling frost that killed the grain. That month Wuxiang likewise had falling frost. Hongzhi 17/II/renyin: Yunyang and Junzhou had rain, snow, and hail; the largest flakes measured six inches. Hongzhi 17/VI/guihai: rain and snow together. Zhengde 8/IV/yisi: Wendeng and Laiyang were struck by falling frost that killed the crops. Zhengde 8/IV/bingchen: grain was killed. Zhengde 13/III/renxu: Liaodong was struck by falling frost; the seedlings all perished. Jiajing 2/III/jiazi: Tancheng was struck by falling frost that killed the wheat. Jiajing 2/III/xinwei: grain was killed. Jiajing 22/IV/jihai: Guyuan was struck by falling frost that killed the wheat. Longqing 6/III/dinghai: Nangong was struck by falling frost that killed the wheat. Wanli 24/IV/jihai: Lin County had snow. Wanli 26/XI/xinhai: Zhangde had falling frost but the grass was not killed. Wanli 38/IV/renyin: Guizhou had a blizzard whose flakes were shaped like clay bricks; not one tile remained on the houses. Wanli 44/I: snow fell in red, yellow, and black; on the rooftops there were many giant footprints. Chongzhen 6/I/xinhai: heavy snow more than two zhang deep. Chongzhen 11/V/wuyin: Xifeng Pass had three feet of snow. Chongzhen 13/IV: Huining was struck by falling frost that killed the crops. Chongzhen 16/IV: Yanling was struck by falling frost that killed the wheat.
10
▲ Hail
11
Hongwu 2/VI/gengyin: Qingyang had heavy rain and hail that damaged the seedlings. Hongwu 3/V/bingchen: Yuzhou had heavy rain and hail that damaged the field crops. Hongwu 5/V/guichou night: at Longevity Hill in the Central Capital imperial park, hail fell as large as pellet balls. Hongwu 7/VIII/jiawu: Pingliang, Yan'an, Suide, and Mizhi had rain and hail. Hongwu 7/IX/jiazi: Gongchang had rain and hail. Hongwu 8/IV: Lintao, Pingliang, and Hezhou were hit by hail that damaged the wheat. Hongwu 14/VII/jiyou: Lintao had heavy rain and hail that damaged the crops. Hongwu 18/II: rain and hail.
12
Yongle 7, autumn: Baoding and eastern Zhejiang had rain and hail. Yongle 12/IV: one Henan prefecture and eight counties were struck by hail that killed the wheat.
13
西 西
Zhengtong 3: Xi, Yan, Ping, Qing, Lin, and Gong prefectures and Qin, He, Min, and Jin prefectures had heavy hail from summer through autumn. Zhengtong 4/V/renxu: the capital had heavy rain and hail. Zhengtong 5/IV/dingyou: Pingliang prefectures had heavy rain and hail that injured people, livestock, fields, and grain. Zhengtong 5/VI/renshen–bingzi: the Shanxi regional command and Yuzhou had hail day after day, piling more than a foot deep and damaging the crops. Zhengtong 5/VIII/gengchen: Baoding had heavy rain and hail more than a foot deep, damaging the crops.
14
鹿
Jingtai 5/VI/gengyin: Yizhou's Dafang and neighboring communities were struck by enormous hail over 125 li of cropland; many people and horses were beaten to death. Jingtai 6, intercalary sixth month, yisi: hailstones the size of hen's eggs fell on Shulu, killing countless birds, foxes, and hares.
15
Tianshun 1, sixth month, jihai: hail as large as hen's eggs struck the ground and lay unmelted for a long while; the eastern finial plaque of Fengtian Gate was shattered. Tianshun 8, fifth month, dingsi: hail fell.
16
Chenghua 1, fourth month, gengyin: egg-sized hail ruined the grain. Chenghua 1, fifth month, xinyou: heavy hail fell again. Chenghua 5, intercalary second month, guiwei: hailstones as large as a dou fell on Qiongshan. Chenghua 8, seventh month, bingwu: Longzhou was struck by hailstones as large as goose eggs and hen's eggs alike; five were ox-sized, seven or eight inches long and three or four thick, and did not melt away for six days. Chenghua 9, fifth month, dingsi: hail fell in fist-sized stones. Chenghua 13, spring: heavy rain and hail swept Huguang, and cattle died beyond counting. Chenghua 19, sixth month, yihai: hail fell on Luzhou, the largest stones bowl-sized. Chenghua 20, second month, bingzi: fist-sized hail struck Qingyuan. Chenghua 20, bingxu: thunder and lightning broke overhead, and hail fell again. Chenghua 21, third month, jichou night: wind and thunder erupted over Panyu and Nanhai, hail raining down together; more than ten thousand homes were wrecked and more than a thousand people killed. Chenghua 22, third month, jiayin: goose-egg hail fell on Nanyang.
17
西 西 宿
Hongzhi 1, third month, renshen night: hail shattered city towers, walls, and both military and civilian houses in Rongxian; four were killed. Hongzhi 2, third month, wuyin: hen's-egg hail fell on Binzhou, killing three shepherd boys and wrecking huts and crops. Hongzhi 2, gengchen: great thunder rolled over Anzhuang Guard in Guizhou; rain, snow, and hail followed, destroying the wheat. Hongzhi 2, fourth month, xinmao: rain and hail at Taozhou Guard sent floodwaters surging three zhang high. Hongzhi 4, third month, guimao: hail in Yu and Ru prefectures—some stones as large as wall-pounders, heaped two or three chi deep—smashed houses and crops. Hongzhi 4, fourth month, jiyou: hail and ice blocks fell on Taozhou Guard. The waters rose three or four zhang, drowning the walls and towns, sweeping away houses; crops, livestock, and people for the most part perished in the flood. Hongzhi 5, fourth month, yichou: wine-cup hail struck Ju and Yi prefectures and Anqiu and Tancheng counties, injuring people, livestock, and grain. Hongzhi 6, eighth month, jisi: fist-sized hail fell on Changzi, ruining the grain and killing people outright. Hongzhi 6, xinwei: pellet-sized hail piled on the level ground. Hongzhi 8, second month, renshen: a violent storm struck Yongjia, hail ranging from hen's eggs to pellets and heaping more than a chi deep; white mist rose on every side; houses were wrecked, grain destroyed, and birds died in great numbers. Hongzhi 8, third month, jihai: hail buried Tongcheng five chi deep and killed the second wheat crop. Hongzhi 8, jiyou: wind, rain, and hail swept Huai and Feng prefectures and counties, destroying the wheat. Hongzhi 8, fourth month, yihai: hail five cun deep fell on Changzhou, Si, and Pi, ruining wheat and vegetables. Hongzhi 8, bingzi: hailstones as large as platters and as small as bowls struck Yizhou, killing most of the people and livestock caught in the open. Hongzhi 8, sixth month, yimao: hail fell. Hongzhi 8, seventh month, yiyou: rain and hail at Taozhou Guard destroyed the grain. Floodwaters rushed in; people and livestock for the most part drowned. Hongzhi 8, bingxu: great hail struck Xining in Gansu, killing grain and livestock alike. Hongzhi 9, fifth month, bingchen: hail fell. Hongzhi 10, second month, jimao: rain and hail at Xincheng in Jiangxi left some of the people dead from cold. Hongzhi 10, third month, dingmao: ice a chi deep fell on North Tongzhou. Hongzhi 13, eighth month, wuzi: hail fell. Hongzhi 13, bingwu: hail fell again. Hongzhi 13, ninth month, renxu: hail fell again. Hongzhi 14, fourth month, dingyou: rain and hail left five cun on level ground at Xuzhou, Qinghe, Taoyuan, and Suqian, and the summer wheat rotted away entirely. Hongzhi 14, fifth month, yihai: hail destroyed the grain in Deng and Lai prefectures. Hongzhi 14, seventh month, xinmao: hail fell.
18
Zhengde 1, sixth month, wuchen: hail two chi deep fell on Maying Fort in Xuanfu, ruining the grain entirely. Zhengde 3, fourth month, xinwei: hen's-egg hail wrecked huts, beans, and wheat in Jingzhou. Zhengde 4, fifth month, jiawu: hail a chi deep fell on Fei County, destroying wheat and grain. Zhengde 8, tenth month, wuxu: great hail across Pingyang, Taiyuan, Qin, Fen, and their districts left a zhang of water on level ground, washing away and destroying people, livestock, and dwellings. Zhengde 11, sixth month, jiaxu: great hail in Xuanfu killed the grain outright. Zhengde 11, ninth month, bingshen: great hail fell on Guizhou. Zhengde 12, fifth month, jihai: great hail at Ansuzhou left three chi of water on level ground, injured the grain, and killed some of the people outright. Zhengde 13, fourth month, renwu: violent wind and swift thunder drove goose-egg hail with knife-sharp edges through Hengzhou, shattering houses and shearing trees as if with scissors.
19
滿
Jiajing 1, fourth month, jiashen: hen's-egg hail struck Yunnan Left Guard and its subordinate posts, injuring grain and houses beyond counting. Jiajing 1, fifth month, jiwei: goose-egg hail fell on Pengxi with like devastation. Jiajing 2, fifth month, dingchou: hail fell on Datong Front Guard. Jiajing 4, fourth month, dingwei: hail fell on Datong Guard. Jiajing 4, fifth month, wuzi: hail fell on Gu'an. Jiajing 5, fifth month, jiachen: hail fell on Mancheng. Jiajing 5, sixth month, dingsi: rain and hen's-egg hail fell on Datong County. Jiajing 5, dingmao: hail struck Wanquan Capital Guard and all of Xuanfu—some stones bowl-sized, heaped more than a chi deep. Jiajing 5, seventh month, guiwei: bowl-sized hail fell on Nanfeng, some stones shaped like human faces. Jiajing 5: hail at Suichang piled two chi in moments and destroyed hemp and beans on a vast scale. Jiajing 6, sixth month, guichou: great hail at Zhenfan Guard killed and injured more than thirty people. Jiajing 14, third month, xinsi: hail and falling frost in Hanzhong killed the wheat. Jiajing 14, fourth month, gengzi: hail destroyed the wheat in Kaifeng and Zhangde. Jiajing 18, fifth month, renchen: fist-sized rain and hail left five cun on level ground at Qingdu, Ansuzhou, and Hejian; some people were killed or injured. Jiajing 28, third month, gengyin: great hail at Linqing damaged houses and seedlings. Jiajing 28, sixth month, dingmao: dou-sized hail wrecked huts and injured people and livestock at Yanchuan. Jiajing 34, fifth month, gengzi: great hail in Fengyang ruined commoners' fields and homes. Jiajing 36, third month, guiwei: hail at Yizhou ranged from basin-sized stones to hen's eggs, heaped more than a chi deep across eighty li; people and livestock were injured beyond counting. Jiajing 43, intercalary second month, jiashen: hail fell. Jiajing 43, fourth month, gengyin: hail fell again.
20
Wanli 1, fifth month, xinsi: hail fell. Wanli 4, fourth month, bingwu: fist- and egg-sized hail struck Boxing, and the next day struck again; more than fifty men and women were killed outright, cattle and horses beyond count, and grain and wheat destroyed entirely. Yanzhou likewise suffered ruined grain in succession. Wanli 4, fifth month, yisi: egg-sized hail at Dingxiang destroyed the seedlings entirely. Wanli 9, eighth month, gengzi: hen's-egg hail across Liaodong and other guards injured the grain entirely. Wanli 11, intercalary second month, dingmao: hen's-egg hail at Taizhou and Baoying killed flying birds beyond counting. Wanli 11, fifth month, gengzi: great hail fell. Wanli 13, fifth month, yiyou: great hail at Wanping injured people and livestock by the thousand. Wanli 15, fifth month, guisi: jujube- and chestnut-sized hail at Xifengkou piled more than a chi deep, injuring field grain, melons, and fruit alike. Wanli 19, fourth month, renzi: hail fell. Wanli 21, second month, gengyin: great hail fell on Guiyang prefecture. Wanli 21, tenth month, bingxu: great hail at Wujin and Jiangyin injured the five grains. Wanli 23, fifth month, yiyou: hail at Linyi fell entirely in shapes of men, women, birds, and beasts. Wanli 25, eighth month, renxu: wind and hail. Wanli 28, sixth month: great wind and hail across Shandong struck people and livestock dead and injured the seedlings. Henan likewise saw rain and hail that injured grain and wheat. Wanli 30, fourth month, jiwei: great hail fell. Wanli 31, fifth month, wuyin: hail fell on the Fengyang imperial mausoleum. Wanli 31, seventh month, dingchou: great hail fell. Wanli 34, seventh month, bingxu: great hail fell again. On level ground the water stood three chi deep. Wanli 36, fifth month, wuzi: hail fell. Wanli 41, seventh month, dingmao: great hail in Xuanfu killed the grain. Wanli 46, third month, gengchen: dou- and fist-sized great hail at Changtai and Tong'an battered city walls and dwellings; more than two hundred twenty were crushed dead. Wanli 46, tenth month, renwu: hail fell on Yunnan.
21
Tianqi 2, fourth month, renchen: great hail fell.
22
西
Chongzhen 3, ninth month, xinchou: great hail fell. Chongzhen 4, fifth month: hail at Xiangyuan—some stones like recumbent oxen a full zhang across, others fist-sized—killed people and livestock in great numbers. Chongzhen 4, sixth month, bingshen: great hail fell. Chongzhen 7, fourth month, renxu: hail at Changzhou and Zhenjiang injured the wheat. Chongzhen 8, seventh month, jiyou: hail fell on Lin County for three days, piling more than two chi deep with stones as large as goose eggs, and damaged the crops. Chongzhen 10, fourth month, yihai: great hail fell. Chongzhen 10, intercalary fourth month, guichou: great hail at Wuxiang and Qinyuan—the largest stones elephant-sized, the next ox-sized. Chongzhen 11, sixth month, jiayin: hail at the Qianshi River mountain pasture in Xuanfu killed forty-eight horses. Chongzhen 11, ninth month: hail fell on Shuntian. Chongzhen 12, eighth month: hail swept Baishui, Tongguan, Luonan, Longxi, and other districts for a thousand li, ceased after half a day, and damaged the standing grain. Chongzhen 16, sixth month, dingchou: hail at Qianzhou—stones as large as oxen and as small as dou-measures—smashed walls and houses and killed people and livestock.
23
▲ Thunderclaps
24
殿
Hongwu 6, eleventh month, wushen: thunder and lightning broke out together. Hongwu 13, fifth month, jiawu: thunder struck the Hall of Scrupulous Conduct. Hongwu 13, sixth month, bingyin: thunder struck Fengtian Gate. Hongwu 13, tenth month, jiaxu: thunder and lightning. Hongwu 13, twelfth month, jisi: Guangzhou had great wind, rain, thunder, and lightning. Hongwu 18, second month, jiawu: thunder, lightning, and snow-rain. Hongwu 21, fifth month, xinchou: thunder struck the ridge-beast finials of Xuanwu Gate. Hongwu 21, sixth month, guimao: a violent wind rose, and thunder struck the ridge-beast finials of Hongwu Gate.
25
西
Xuande 9, sixth month, jiazi: thunder struck the ridge-beast finials of the outer west gate of the Altar of Grand Sacrifice.
26
殿 西 殿 殿
Zhengtong 8, fifth month, wuyin: thunder struck the chiwen finials of the Hall of Imperial Heaven. Zhengtong 8, seventh month, xinwei: thunder struck the ridge-beast finials of the west corner gate tower in Nanjing. That same day, as Datong patrol troops reached Shagou, a sudden squall of wind and thunder struck; more than two hundred men suffered split skin and severed fingers. Zhengtong 9, first month, new moon on xinhai: thunder, lightning, and heavy rain. Zhengtong 9, intercalary seventh month, renyin: thunder struck the chiwen finials of the Hall of Imperial Ancestors. Zhengtong 11, twelfth month, renyin: heavy rain with thunder and lightning; it ceased the next day. Zhengtong 14, sixth month, bingchen: wind, rain, thunder, and lightning in Nanjing set the Hall of Scrupulous Conduct ablaze.
27
Jingtai 3, sixth month, gengyin: thunder struck the central gate of the palace courtyard and injured people.
28
殿
Tianshun 2, sixth month, jimao: thunder struck the chiwen finials of the Hall of Grand Sacrifice. Tianshun 4, sixth month, guichou: thunder destroyed four granaries at Jizhou.
29
殿
Chenghua 3, sixth month, wushen: thunder struck the main tower of the Meridian Gate in Nanjing. Chenghua 5, second month, yimao: thunder again struck the ridge-beast finials of the Robing Hall at the Altar of Mountains and Rivers. Chenghua 8, fourth month, xinwei: the season's first thunder. Chenghua 12, eleventh month, guihai: great thunder and rain in Nanjing. Chenghua 13, second month, jiaxu: heavy snow fell on Anqing, then thunder and lightning broke out together. Chenghua 13, eleventh month, xinwei, the winter solstice: Hangzhou had great thunder and rain. Chenghua 13, eleventh month, wuyin: Jingmen prefecture had great thunder, lightning, and snow-rain. Chenghua 17, seventh month, jihai: thunder struck the ridge beasts of Chengtian Gate at the suburban altar. Chenghua 17, eleventh month, dingyou: south of the Yangzi there was great thunder with snow and rain.
30
西 西 殿 殿 殿西
Jiajing 2, fifth month, dingchou: thunder struck the Observatory. Jiajing 4, seventh month, jichou: thunder struck the ridge-beast finials of the left Chang'an Gate in Nanjing. Jiajing 5, fourth month, wuyin: thunder struck the southern corner ridge-beast finials of the Fucheng Gate tower and the flagpole at the ninth northern bay. Jiajing 10, sixth month, dingsi: thunder struck Desheng Gate, shattered commoners' house pillars, and killed four people. Jiajing 10, sixth month, guihai: thunder struck the Meridian Gate corner tower and the pillars of the Xihua Gate tower. Jiajing 15, sixth month, jiashen: thunder struck the ridge-beast finials of the upper west gate in Nanjing and killed more than ten men and women. Jiajing 16, fifth month, wuxu: thunder struck the chiwen finials of the Hall of Scrupulous Conduct. Jiajing 28, sixth month, new moon on dingyou: thunder struck the left finial of the Hall of Imperial Ancestors and the lattice doors of the eastern chamber. Jiajing 33, fourth month, yihai: the season's first thunder. Jiajing 38, sixth month, bingyin: thunder struck the southern and western outer walls outside the Hall of Imperial Ancestors.
31
Longqing 1, eighth month: in great heat, thunderclaps rang out. The next day brought bitter cold like deep winter. That evening thunder rolled without ceasing until dawn. Longqing 4, sixth month, xinyou: thunder struck the chiwen finials of the Gate of Broad Benefit at the Circular Mound Altar.
32
殿 西 西 西
Wanli 3, sixth month, jimao: thunder struck the chiwen finials of the Jianji Hall. Wanli 3, sixth month, renchen: thunder struck the chiwen tail-ornament of Duan Gate. Wanli 6, seventh month, renzi: thunder struck the left eaves of Chengtian Gate in Nanjing. Wanli 13, seventh month, wuzi: thunder struck the Gate of Broad Benefit at the suburban altar, damaging the plaque character "Benefit" and the northern ridge-beast finials of the fasting palace gate. Wanli 16, eighth month, renwu: thunder struck the beast heads of the old Xi'an Gate bell and drum tower in Nanjing. Wanli 19, fifth month, jiaxu: Taiping and Xifeng circuits were both struck by thunder; beacon towers collapsed and officials and troops were injured. Wanli 21, fourth month, wuxu: thunder struck the great trees of the Xiaoling Mausoleum. Wanli 22, sixth month, jiyou: thunder and rain; Xihua Gate burned. Wanli 22, seventh month, renchen: thunder struck the left finial of the eastern heaven gate at the Altar of Prayer for Grain. Wanli 24, second month, jiyou night: great thunder and rain at Ling County; firelight spread over more than ten li. Wanli 25, seventh month, new moon on gengyin: thunder destroyed the ramparts and firearms of Huanghua garrison. Wanli 32, fifth month, guiyou: thunder destroyed the Changling tower and also a beacon tower on Songpeng Road in Jizhen. Wanli 33, fifth month, gengzi: great thunder and lightning struck and destroyed the tall lantern-watch pole at the southern suburban altar. Wanli 37, eighth month, jiayin: thunder split the flagpole atop the western city wall.
33
Taichang 1, tenth month, jiwei: thunder destroyed the Huai'an gate tower.
34
西 西 殿
Chongzhen 6, twelfth month, dinghai: great wind and snow with thunder and lightning. Chongzhen 9, first month, jiaxu: thunder destroyed the trees of the Xiaoling Mausoleum. Chongzhen 10, fourth month, yihai: thunder-fire at Jizhou burned the eastern hills for more than twenty li. Chongzhen 12, seventh month: thunder struck and broke Miyun's city watch-tower; all stored cannon timber was shattered. Chongzhen 12, tenth month, yiwei, the Beginning of Winter: great thunder and lightning arose. Chongzhen 14, fourth month, guichou: thunder-fire rose northwest of Jizhou, burned as far as Zhaojia Valley, and spread more than twenty li. Chongzhen 14, sixth month, bingwu: thunder struck the Xuanfu west gate tower. Chongzhen 15, fourth month, guimao: thunder struck the trees of the Xiaoling Mausoleum in Nanjing, and fire burst from the trees. Chongzhen 16, fifth month, new moon on guisi: thunder rolled all night without ceasing. The next day the spirit tablets of the Imperial Ancestral Temple were found lying on their sides; bronze vessels throughout had been fused by fire into ash. Chongzhen 16, sixth month, bingxu: thunder struck the chiwen finials of the Hall of Imperial Ancestors, split every lattice door, and destroyed all the bronze rings.
35
▲ Fish Prodigies
36
Jiajing 41, second month, yihai: fish rained on the Nine Dragons Temple in Dezhou, the largest several inches long. Chongzhen 10, third month: wooden piles in the Qiantang River turned into fish, some still half timber at head or tail.
37
▲ Locusts and Nymphs
38
西 西 西 西 西 西西
Hongwu 5, sixth month: locusts struck Jinan's subordinate counties and Qing and Lai prefectures. Hongwu 5, seventh month: locusts at Xuzhou and Datong. Hongwu 6, seventh month: locusts across Beiping, Henan, Shanxi, and Shandong. Hongwu 7, second month: locusts at Pingyang, Taiyuan, Fenzhou, Licheng, and Jixian. Hongwu 7, sixth month: locusts across Huaqing, Zhending, Baoding, Hejian, Shunde, Shandong, and Shanxi. Hongwu 8, summer: locusts across Beiping, Zhending, Daming, Zhangde, and their subordinate counties. Jianwen 4, summer: flying locusts at the capital blotted out the sky for more than ten days without ceasing. Yongle 1, summer: locusts across Shandong, Shanxi, and Henan. Yongle 3, fifth month: locusts at Yan'an and Jinan. Yongle 14, seventh month: locusts across the metropolitan region, Henan, and Shandong. Xuande 4, sixth month: locusts across Shuntian prefecture and its counties. Xuande 9, seventh month: locust nymphs a foot deep covered the two metropolitan circuits, Shanxi, Shandong, and Henan, and damaged the crops. Xuande 10, fourth month: locust nymphs at the two capitals, Shandong, and Henan damaged the crops. Zhengtong 2, fourth month: locusts across the northern metropolitan circuit, Shandong, and Henan. Zhengtong 5, summer: locusts across Shuntian, Hejian, Zhending, Shunde, Guangping, Yingtian, Fengyang, Huai'an, Kaifeng, Zhangde, and Yanzhou. Zhengtong 6, summer: locusts across Shuntian, Baoding, Zhending, Hejian, Shunde, Guangping, Daming, Huai'an, and Fengyang. Zhengtong 6, autumn: locusts across Zhangde, Weihui, Kaifeng, Nanyang, Huaqing, Taiyuan, Jinan, Dongchang, Qing, Lai, Yan, Deng, and other prefectures, and the Front and Middle garrisons of Guangning in Liaodong. Zhengtong 7, fifth month: locusts across Shuntian, Guangping, Daming, Hejian, Fengyang, Kaifeng, Huaqing, and Henan. Zhengtong 8, summer: locusts across the two metropolitan circuits. Zhengtong 12, summer: locusts at Baoding, Huai'an, Jinan, Kaifeng, Henan, and Zhangde. Autumn: locusts at Yongping and Fengyang. Year 13, seventh month: flying locusts blotted out the sky. Year 14, summer: locusts at Shuntian, Yongping, Jinan, and Qingzhou. Jingtai 5, sixth month: locusts at Ningguo, Anqing, and Chizhou. Year 7, fifth month: locust nymphs spread through the metropolitan region. Sixth month: great drought and locusts at Huai'an, Yangzhou, and Fengyang. Ninth month: locusts at Yingtian and the seven prefectures of Taiping. Tianshun 1, seventh month: locusts at Jinan, Hangzhou, and Jiaxing. Year 2, fourth month: locusts at Jinan, Yanzhou, and Qingzhou. Chenghua 3, seventh month: locusts at Kaifeng, Zhangde, and Weihui. Year 9, sixth month: locusts at Hejian. Seventh month: locusts at Zhending. Eighth month: drought and locusts in Shandong. Year 19, fifth month: locusts in Henan. Year 22, third month: locusts at Pingyang. Fourth month: locusts in Henan. Seventh month: locusts at Shuntian. Hongzhi 3: locusts in the Northern Metropolitan Region. Year 4, summer: locusts at Huai'an and Yangzhou. Year 6, sixth month: flying locusts moved from southeast toward northwest; for three days the sun was masked. Year 7, third month: locusts in both metropolitan regions. Jiajing 3, sixth month: locusts at Shuntian, Baoding, Hejian, and Xuzhou. Longqing 3, intercalary sixth month: drought and locusts in Shandong. Wanli 15, seventh month: locusts north of the Yangtze. Year 19, summer: locusts at Shunde, Guangping, and Daming. Year 37, ninth month: locusts in the Northern Metropolitan Region, Xuzhou, and Shandong. Year 43, seventh month: drought and locusts in Shandong. Year 44, fourth month: locusts again. Seventh month: locusts at Changzhou, Zhenjiang, Huai'an, Yangzhou, and Henan. Ninth month: locust nymphs rose in great numbers at Jiangning and Guangde; grain, millet, bamboo, and trees were all consumed. Year 45: drought and locusts in the Northern Metropolitan Region. Year 46: the four southern metropolitan prefectures again suffered locusts. Year 47, eighth month: locusts at Jinan, Dongchang, and Dengzhou. Tianqi 1, seventh month: locusts at Shuntian. Year 5, sixth month: at Jinan flying locusts blotted out the sky and field crops were all destroyed. Year 6, tenth month: drought and locusts at Kaifeng. Chongzhen 8, seventh month: locusts in Henan. Year 10, sixth month: locusts in Shandong and Henan. Year 11, sixth month: great drought and locusts at both capitals, Shandong, and Henan. Year 13, fifth month: great drought and locusts at both capitals, Shandong, Henan, Shanxi, and Shaanxi. Year 14, sixth month: great drought and locusts at both capitals, Shandong, Henan, and Zhejiang.
39
▲ Pig calamities.
40
▲ Calamities of dragons and serpents.
41
殿
Chenghua 5, sixth month: when the Yellow River burst at Apricot Blossom Camp, eggs floated on the river as large as human heads, tapered below and round above, blue-white in substance—said to be dragon eggs. Hongzhi 9, sixth month, gengchen: at the southern pass beacon tower of Xuanfu Zhen sudden rain and fire broke out; a dragon rose from within a sword scabbard. Year 18, fifth month, xinmao, at noon: a great whirlwind arose; clouds shrouded the three halls as if someone riding a dragon entered the clouds. Zhengde 7, sixth month, night of dingmao: at Zhaoyuan a red dragon hung in the sky, light like fire, coiling upward; the celestial drum sounded with it. Year 12, sixth month, guihai: at Shanyang a black dragon was seen; one dragon sucked water with a sound heard for several li, lifting boats and boatwomen into the air then dropping them. Year 13, fifth month, guichou: at Yuye Village in Changshu thunder, sudden wind, and lightning; one white dragon and two black dragons rode the clouds down together, spewing fire from their mouths, eyes bright as torches; they swept away more than three hundred dwellings and sucked more than twenty boats into the air. Boat people fell to earth; many died of terror. That night red rain poured like a torrent; it ceased after five days. Year 14, fourth month: flood dragons fought on Poyang Lake. Jiajing 40, fifth month, guiyou: at She Mountain in Qingpu nine flood dragons rose together, surging water into a river. Wanli 14, seventh month, wushen: at Shucheng great thunder and rain; 158 flood dragons arose, their tracks like axe-cleavage; mountains collapsed and fields sank; people drowned beyond count. That year, a Jianchang woodcutter on the mountain met a huge serpent with one horn and six legs like cock spurs; it neither bit nor fled; some said it was the Feiyi. Year 18, seventh month: at Yishi great flood; two dragons fought in a village; abandoned eggs were found, then lost. Year 19, sixth month, jiwei: at Gong'an great flood; a huge serpent like an ox, red head and black body, more than twenty zhang long; wherever it went dikes burst. Year 31, fifth month, wuxu: at Licheng great rain; two dragons fought in the water; mountain rocks all flew; level ground water rose ten zhang. Year 45, eighth month: at Qinghe Village in Anqiu blue-white dragons fought.
42
▲ Horse anomalies.
43
鹿
Yongle 18, ninth month: Zhucheng presented a dragon horse. A commoner had a mare pastured on the seashore; one day clouds and mist darkened; something sinuous coupled with the mare. It foaled a colt bearing dragon markings, blue-green in color, called a dragon horse. Xuande 7, fifth month: at Xinzhou commoner Wu Huan's household a mare foaled a colt with deer ears, ox tail, jade face, and jade hooves, flesh marked over the body like scales. Seventh month: at Cangzhou an official stud mare foaled twin colts; the prefecture took it as auspicious and presented it to court. The Xuan Emperor said: "It is the constant order of things—what is there to marvel at?"
44
Chenghua 17, sixth month: at Xingji a mare foaled twin colts. Hongzhi 1, second month: at Pingfeng Mountain in Jingning strange creatures gathered in herds, large as sheep, shaped like white horses, numbering in the tens of thousands. Head and tail linked, they wound away soaring into the sky. Jiajing 42, fourth month: at Haiyan tens of thousands of sea horses went ashore for more than twenty li. The largest among them was as tall as a tower.
45
▲ Human malformations.
46
宿 宿
Earlier histories often record cases of one birth yielding three sons; yet in recent years there have been many, too numerous to detail in full—only the somewhat unusual are recorded here. Hongwu 24, eighth month: at Longmen in Henan the woman Si Mudan had been dead three years; she revived by borrowing the corpse of Yuan Matou. Xuande 1, eleventh month: at the traveling palace Qi Rong's wife Pi of the Embroidered-Uniform Guard bore four sons in one birth. Tianshun 4, fourth month: a Yangzhou commoner's wife bore five sons in one birth. Chenghua 13, second month: Zhu, wife of Nanjing Yingyang Guard soldier Chen Seng'er, bore three sons and one daughter in one birth. Year 17, sixth month: at Suzhou commoner Zhang Zhen's wife Wang; the right side below the navel split and a son was born. Year 20, twelfth month: at Xuzhou a woman bore a tumor beneath the ribs; after long growth it enlarged; a child emerged from the tumor. Year 21: at Jiashan commoner Zou Liang's wife at first nursing bore three sons, at second nursing four sons, at third nursing six sons. Hongzhi 11, sixth month: Yi, wife of Tengxiang Left Guard centurion Huang Sheng, bore three sons and one daughter in one birth. Year 16, fifth month: at Yingshan commoner Zhang Benhua's wife Cui bore a beard three inches long. At the same time, a Zhengyang merchant's wife bore a beard in three clusters, about a hundred-odd strands. Jiajing 2, sixth month: at Qujing Guard houseman Hu Sheng's wife bore a male child with two heads, four hands, and three feet. Year 4: at Hengjing farmer Kong Fangxie below the navel produced a lump of flesh; when cut open, a child was plainly visible within. Year 5: a Jiangnan commoner's wife bore a monster with six eyes and four faces, horns, limbs each of one joint, single claws, and a ghostly voice. Year 11: a Dangtu commoner's wife bore three sons and one daughter in one birth. Year 12: at Guizhou Anwei Guard soldier Li Hua's wife bore a male child with two heads, four hands, and four feet. Year 27, seventh month: Ma Lu's daughter of Datong Right Guard deputy commander Ma Ji, age seventeen, transformed into a man. Longqing 2, twelfth month: at Jingle the man Li Liangyu transformed into a woman. Year 5, second month: a Tangshan commoner's wife bore a child emerging from the left flank. Wanli 10: a man at Xichuan transformed into a wolf. Year 18: a Nansuzhou commoner's wife bore seven children in one birth, skin and hair in red, white, black, and blue-green hues. Year 37, sixth month: at Fanzhi commoner Li Yi's wife Niu bore twin daughters, heads and faces joined, hands and feet separate. Year 46: a Guangning Guard commoner's wife bore a monkey with two horns and four teeth. At the same time, a Datong commoner's wife bore four sons in one birth. Chongzhen 8, summer: a Zhenjiang commoner's wife bore a child with two heads on the crown and a head growing from the buttocks; mother and child both died. Year 15, eleventh month: a Caoxian commoner's wife bore a child with two heads, eyes atop the head, and hands reaching the knees.
47
▲ Pestilence.
48
西 西 西 西 西 西 西西
Yongle 6, first month: from the previous year through this month pestilence at Jiangxi's Jianchang and Fuzhou and at Fujian's Jianning and Shaowu killed more than 78,400 people. Yongle 8: from the first month to the sixth month pestilence in Ninghai and other districts of Dengzhou killed more than 6,000 people. Shaowu had suffered great pestilence for years; by winter of this year 12,000 households were wiped out. Yongle 9, seventh month: pestilence in Henan and Shaanxi. Yongle 11, sixth month: pestilence in three counties of Huzhou. Seventh month: pestilence in five counties of Ningbo. Zhengtong 9, winter: great pestilence at Shaoxing, Ningbo, and Taizhou; by the following year more than 30,000 had died. Jingtai 4, winter: pestilence at Jianchang, Wuchang, and Hanyang. Jingtai 6, fourth month: pestilence at Xi'an and Pingliang. Jingtai 7, fifth month: pestilence at Guilin killed more than 20,000 people. Tianshun 5, fourth month: pestilence in Shaanxi. Chenghua 11, eighth month: great pestilence in Fujian spread into Jiangxi; the dead were beyond counting. Zhengde 1, sixth month: great pestilence at the four guards of Pingxi, Qingliang, Zhenyuan, and Pianqiao in Huguang; casualties were very heavy. From the seventh month to the twelfth, great pestilence raged in Jingzhou and neighboring districts; from the eighth month Jianning and Shaowu were likewise stricken. Zhengde 12, tenth month: great pestilence at Quanzhou. Jiajing 1, second month: great pestilence in Shaanxi. Jiajing 2, seventh month: great pestilence at Nanjing; soldiers and civilians died in great numbers. Jiajing 4, ninth month: pestilence in Shandong killed 4,128 people. Jiajing 33, fourth month: great pestilence within and beyond the capital. Jiajing 44, first month: famine and pestilence together in the capital. Wanli 10, fourth month: pestilence in the capital. Wanli 15, fifth month: pestilence struck again. Wanli 16, fifth month: Shandong, Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Zhejiang all suffered great drought and pestilence. Chongzhen 16: great pestilence in the capital raged from the second month until it abated in the ninth. The following spring: pestilence in the North Metropolitan Region and Shandong.
49
▲ Drum omens.
50
西 西 西 西 殿西 西 殿
Hongwu 5, eighth month, jiyou: in the empty sky northwest of Xu'gou a sound like thunder was heard. Hongwu 11: at Ruichang a great bell-like sound descended from the sky, though nothing was seen. Tianshun 6, ninth month, yisi night: though the sky was cloudless, the northwest resounded like thunder. Tianshun 7, last night of the second month: a sound in the sky. Grand Secretary Li Xian memorialized, "Sound without visible cause is called a drum omen; when the ruler fails to care for the people, this portent appears." Chenghua 13, first month, jiazi: thunder rolled at Daizhou though no clouds were present. Chenghua 14, eighth month, wuxu: at morning audience the eastern row of officials seemed to hear the clash of arms; they broke ranks in alarm and only after a long while regained order. Hongzhi 6, sixth month, dingmao: though cloudless, Wucheng post station in Shizhou shook twice. Hongzhi 17, sixth month, jiashen: Mount Lu in Jiangxi rumbled like thunder. Jiajing 29, second month, jiazi: the mountain at Zhangshan camp fortress in Longqing prefecture rumbled. Wanli 12, twelfth month, jiwei: a mountain in Xiao county boomed like surging billows and did not cease all night. Wanli 28, eighth month, wuxu: the northwest resounded like thunder. Tianqi 7, eighth month, dingsi: when Zhuanglie acceded, at court a sound like a heavenly drum rolled forth from west of the hall. Chongzhen 12, twelfth month, yiwei: a mountain in Xiao county rumbled. That month the western hills thundered like a gale-driven sea. Chongzhen 13, second month, renzi: the gate of the Zhejiang provincial city rumbled at night. Chongzhen 16, winter: from the owl-tail ornament on Jianji Hall came a turtledove-like voice crying "bitter, bitter"; the sound swelled, then turned to barking, and for three days and nights did not cease. The following year, third month, xinchou: crying was heard at night at Xiaoling—another drum omen.
51
▲ Meteorites.
52
鹿 西
Chenghua 6, sixth month, renshen: thunder at Yangxin whistled like a gale; one meteorite fell and split into three pieces, black outside and green within. Chenghua 14, sixth month, xinhai: the sky boomed over Linjin; a meteorite fell thirty li southeast of the county seat, buried itself three chi deep, was as large as a sheng measure, and was black. Chenghua 23, fifth month, renyin: the sky over Shulu thundered; blue vapor struck the ground. When men dug, they found two black stones—one bowl-shaped, one egg-sized. Hongzhi 3, third month: stones rained without number at Qingyang, ranging from goose-egg size down to foxnut size. Hongzhi 4, tenth month, dingsi: at Guangshan a red flash like lightning streaked from southwest to northeast with a drum-like roar; long afterward it struck earth and turned to stone as large as a dou measure. Hongzhi 10, second month, bingchen: black vapor plunged into the ground at Xiuwu and hardened into stone shaped like a ram's head. Hongzhi 12, fifth month, wuyin: a thunderclap shook Shuozhou; white vapor shot upward and three large stones fell. Zhengde 1, eighth month, renxu: at night a fiery light dropped on Jimo and became a green stone more than a chi high and round. Zhengde 9, fifth month, jimao: a roaring fall at Binzhou left a meteorite. Zhengde 13, first month, jiwei: one meteorite at Linshui. Jiajing 12, fifth month, dingwei: a drum-like sound at Qi county; a fiery streak struck earth and turned to stone. Jiajing 42, third month, guimao: a meteorite at Huaiqing. Longqing 2, third month, jiwei: two black stones fell at Xincheng in Baoding. Wanli 3, fifth month, guihai: two shooting stars fell by day north of Jingzhou city and became black stone. Wanli 17, ninth month, wuwu: black smoke billowed up at Wanzai and a meteorite fell beside the drill ground hall. Wanli 19, fourth month, xinyou: two meteorites at Zunhua. Wanli 44, first month, dingchou: at Yizhou and Zijing Pass a flash of light turned to stone that split apart as it fell. Chongzhen 9, ninth month, dingwei: a meteorite at Taikang.
53
▲ Floods.
54
西 使
Hongwu 1, sixth month, wuchen: great wind and rain at Yongxin prefecture in Jiangxi; a flood dragon was seen; the river poured into the city eight chi deep and many drowned. When word reached court, envoys were sent to give relief. Hongwu 3, sixth month: the river at Lishui county overflowed and swept away dwellings. Hongwu 4, seventh month: the Nanning prefecture river burst its banks and wrecked the city walls. Great rain at Longyou county in Quzhou prefecture floated civilian houses; men and women drowned. Hongwu 5, eighth month: mountain torrents at Sheng, Yiwu, and Yuhang drowned a great many people. Hongwu 6, second month: Chongming county was submerged by the tide. Seventh month: the Yang and Ya rivers at Longyou county in Jiading prefecture rose; the next day Nanxi county's river rose as well, floating away government offices and homes. Hongwu 7, eighth month: the Jiao river at Gaomi county overflowed and damaged the crops. Hongwu 8, seventh month: great floods at Huai'an, Beiping, Henan, and Shandong. Twelfth month: flooding struck Suzhou, Huzhou, Jiaxing, Songjiang, Changzhou, Taiping, and Ningguo in the metropolitan circuit and Hangzhou in Zhejiang. Hongwu 9: great floods in Jiangnan and Hubei. Seventh month: great floods in Huguang and Shandong. Hongwu 10, sixth month: the Luan and Qi rivers at Yongping submerged civilian houses. Seventh month: great floods in eight prefectures of Beiping wrecked city walls. Hongwu 11, seventh month: the sea overflowed at the four prefectures of Su, Song, Yang, and Tai; many drowned. Tenth month, bingchen: the Yellow River broke through at Lanyang. Hongwu 12, fifth month: mountain floods submerged the Qingtian county seat. Hongwu 13, eleventh month: tide at Chongming breached the sand shore; many people and livestock drowned. Hongwu 14, eighth month, gengchen: the Yellow River broke through at Yuanwu. Hongwu 15, second month, renzi: the Yellow River broke through in Henan. Third month, gengwu: the Yellow River broke through at Chaoyi. Seventh month: the Yellow River overflowed Xingze and Yangwu. That year Beiping suffered great flooding. Hongwu 17, eighth month, bingyin: the Yellow River broke through at Kaifeng and spread across several tens of li. That year Henan and Beiping were both inundated. Hongwu 18, eighth month: Henan flooded again. That year Jiangpu and Daming were flooded. Hongwu 23, first month, gengyin: the Yellow River broke through at Guide. Seventh month, guisi: the Yellow River broke through at Kaifeng and swept away dwellings. At Haimen county wind and tide likewise wrecked government and civilian buildings and drowned many. That year Xiangyang, Mianyang, and Anyang were flooded. Hongwu 24, tenth month: floods in the two prefectures of Beiping and Hejian. Hongwu 25, first month: the Yellow River broke through at Yangwu; eleven prefectures and counties around Kaifeng were inundated. Hongwu 26, eleventh month: floods in the three prefectures of Qing, Yan, and Jining. Hongwu 27, third month: the Wen River at Ningyang burst its banks. Hongwu 28, eighth month: Dezhou suffered a great flood that damaged the city walls. Hongwu 30/VIII/dinghai: the Yellow River burst at Kaifeng; water surrounded the city on three sides and reached the storehouses.
55
西
Yongle 1, fifth month: the Luo River at Zhangqiu burst its banks and damaged the crops. Nanhai and Panyu suffered tidal flooding. Eighth month: the Hong River at Anqiu county burst its banks. Yongle 2, sixth month: Suzhou, Songjiang, Jiaxing, and Huzhou prefectures all flooded. Seventh month: Huguang and Jiangxi flooded. Ninth month: the Yellow River burst at Kaifeng and damaged the city. Yongle 3, third month: at Wen county the river burst the dike for more than forty zhang. The Ji and Lao rivers overflowed. Eighth month: many subordinate counties of Hangzhou flooded, drowning more than four hundred men and women. Yongle 7, fifth month: the Jiang at Anlu prefecture overflowed and burst the Xuama Beach embankment for more than 1,600 zhang. Yongle 7, sixth month: at Shouzhou floodwater burst the city wall. That year more than 3,900 zhang of Taixing's Yangtze bank were swallowed by the river. The Hun River burst its banks at Gu'an. Yongle 8, fifth month: at Pingdu prefecture the Wei River and the Floating-Bran River burst, inundating 113 settlements. Seventh month: tidal overflow at Pingyang county swept away dwellings. Eighth month, gengshen: the Yellow River overflowed at Kaifeng. Twelfth month, wuxu: the Yellow River burst at Bianliang and damaged the city. Yongle 9, first month: the nine lakes including Pishe at Gaoyou and the various waters at Tianchang rose violently. Sixth month: in Yangzhou's subordinate prefectures and counties the tides on five rivers rose for four days, sweeping away very many people and livestock. Seventh month: tidal overflow at Haining drowned very many people. Eighth month: the Zhang and Wei rivers burst their dikes and inundated fields. Ninth month: a hurricane and torrential rain at Leizhou inundated Suixi and Haikang, ruining more than 800 qing of fields and drowning more than 1,600 people. That year Huguang and Henan flooded. Yongle 10, seventh month: the Lugou River rose, damaging bridges and embankments and drowning people and livestock. At Baoding county the river bank burst in fifty-four places. Eleventh month: at Wuqiao, Dongguang, Xingji, Jiaohe, and Tianjin dikes burst and damaged the crops. Twelfth month: at Anzhou floodwater burst the Zhiting and other river mouths in eighty-nine places. Yongle 12, tenth month: at Linjin the Su River flowed backward, the Yao Xian canal embankment burst, and water entered the Xiao Pond, inundating commoners' fields and nearly reaching the salt ponds. At Chongming a violent tide came and swept away more than 5,800 dwellings. Yongle 13, sixth month: the Northern Metropolitan Region, Henan, and Shandong overflowed, ruining dwellings and inundating fields, especially at Linqing. The Fu and Zhang rivers swept away the dwellings of Cizhou's people. Yongle 14, summer: rivers at Nanchang's subordinate prefectures rose and damaged commoners' houses. Seventh month: in fourteen prefectures and counties of Kaifeng the Yellow River burst its dikes. The Luan and Qi rivers at Yongping overflowed and damaged people's fields and grain. Funing, Yanping, Shaowu, Guangxin, Raozhou, Quzhou, and Jinhua—the seven prefectures—all had mountain streams rise violently, damaging city walls and houses and drowning very many people and livestock. The Liao River and Daizi River in Liaodong overflowed, inundating city walls, stockades, and forts. Yongle 18, summer and autumn: tides at Renhe and Haining surged, and more than 1,500 zhang of dike were lost to the sea. Yongle 20, fifth month: tidal overflow in Guangdong's subordinate prefectures swept away dwellings, damaged granaries, and drowned more than 360 people. Summer and autumn: the Yangtze at Mianyang in Huguang rose, and the rivers of northern Henan and Fengyang overflowed. Yongle 21, fifth month: the Emei Brook rose and drowned 130 people. Eighth month: tidal overflow at Qiongzhou prefecture drowned very many people. Yongle 22, seventh month: tidal overflow at Huangyan drowned 800 people. Ninth month, gengchen: the Yellow River overflowed at Kaifeng.
56
西
Xuande 1, sixth and seventh months: the Yangtze rose greatly; along the river at Xiangyang, Gucheng, Junzhou, and Yun county half the riverside dwellings were swept away. The Huang and Ru rivers overflowed, inundating ten prefectures and counties of Kaifeng and Nanyang, Ruzhou, and Song county in Henan. Xuande 3, fifth month: Shaoyang, Wugang, and Xiangxiang had violent wind and rain for seven days and nights; mountain streams rose suddenly until level ground stood six chi deep. A great flood at Yongning Guard damaged 400 zhang of city wall. Sixth month: the Hun River overflowed and burst the Lugou River dike for more than 100 zhang. Seventh month: the seven prefectures of the Northern Metropolitan Region all flooded. Xuande 5, seventh month: mountain streams in Nanyang rose broadly, bursting dikes and sweeping away people, livestock, and dwellings. Xuande 6, sixth month: the Hun River overflowed and burst at Xujia and other openings; twenty-nine prefectures and counties of Shuntian, Baoding, Zhending, and Hejian all flooded. The Yellow River burst at Kaifeng and inundated eight counties. Xuande 7, sixth month: at Taiyuan the He and Fen Rivers both overflowed and damaged the crops. Xuande 8, sixth month: the eight riverine prefectures of Jiangxi saw the Yangtze rise, sweeping away commoners' fields and drowning men and women beyond counting. Xuande 9, first month: the Qin River at Qin township rose and burst at Maqu Bend; passing through Huojia and Xinxiang, level ground became a river. Fifth month: the tide burst at Ninghai county and shifted more than 170 qing of land. Sixth month: the Hun River burst the east bank from Langhe mouth to Xiaotun works; Shuntian, Shunde, and Hejian all flooded. Seventh month: Liaodong suffered a great flood.
57
沿 西
Zhengtong 1, intercalary sixth month: Shuntian, Zhending, Baoding, Jinan, Kaifeng, and Zhangde—the six prefectures—all suffered great flooding. Zhengtong 2: Fengyang, Huai'an, and Yangzhou prefectures, Xu, He, and Chu prefectures, and Kaifeng in Henan—in the fourth and fifth months the Huang and Huai rose broadly and swept away residents and crops. Ninth month: the Yellow River burst at Yangwu, Yuanwu, and Xingze. Along the river in Huguang six counties suffered great flooding and burst the Yangtze dikes. Zhengtong 3: the Yellow River burst at Yangwu; the Qin burst at Wuzhi; the Zhang burst at Guangping and Shunde; the Bai River overflowed at Tongzhou. Zhengtong 4, fifth month: a great flood in the capital damaged 3,390 government and private dwellings. Shuntian, Zhending, and Baoding prefectures and counties and Kaifeng, Weihui, and Zhangde prefectures all suffered great flooding. Seventh month: the Hutuo, Qin, and Zhang rivers all burst, damaging dikes at Raoyang, Xian county, Weihui, and Zhangde. Eighth month: the Baigou and Hun rivers overflowed and burst the dikes at Baoding and Anzhou. Su, Chang, and Zhen prefectures all burst; at Raoyang, Xian county, Weihui, and Zhangde the dikes were breached. Ninth month: the Hutuo burst again at Shenzhou, inundating more than 100 li. Zhengtong 5, fifth month through seventh month: the Yangtze in Jiangxi overflowed and rivers in Henan overflowed. Eighth month: the tide burst the seawall at Xiaoshan. Zhengtong 6, fifth month: at Sizhou water rose more than a zhang and swept away dwellings. Seventh month: the Bai River burst the dikes at Wuqing and Juancheng counties in twenty-two places. Eighth month: at Ningxia long rains spread water and damaged very many stockades, forts, and beacon towers. Zhengtong 8, sixth month: the Hun River burst at Gu'an. Eighth month: sea tides at Taizhou, Songmen, and Haimen spread broadly, damaging city walls, official pavilions, dwellings, and military equipment. Zhengtong 9, seventh month: tides on the Yangtze sandbars at Yangzhou rose one to five or six chi, drowning more than 1,000 men and women. Intercalary seventh month: the seven prefectures of the Northern Metropolitan Region and Yingtian, Jinan, Yuezhou, Jiaxing, Huzhou, and Taizhou all suffered great flooding. Mountain streams in Henan poured into the Wei River, inundating dwellings at Weihui, Kaifeng, Huaiqing, and Zhangde and damaging guard-city walls. Zhengtong 10, third month: the Fen River dike at Hongtong burst; the Purun post station was moved to keep distant from the harm. Summer: a great flood in Fujian damaged the city wall of Yanping prefecture guard; fields, grain, dwellings, and people and livestock of three counties were swept away beyond counting. Many prefectures and counties in Henan suffered great flooding. Seventh month: a great flood at Yan'an Guard damaged the moat dike. Ninth month: many guards and posts in Guangdong suffered great flooding. Tenth month: the Yellow River burst at the Yanggu dike at Jinlong mouth in Shandong. Zhengtong 11, sixth month: the Hun River overflowed at Gu'an. The two metropolitan regions, Zhejiang, and Henan all had great rain and flooding for consecutive months. That year Taiyuan, Yanzhou, and Wuchang also all suffered great flooding. Zhengtong 12, spring: Ganzhou and Linjiang suffered great flooding. Fifth month: the Jiang at Ji'an rose and inundated fields. Zhengtong 13, sixth month: the Yellow River burst at Daming, inundating more than 300 li, ruining 20,000 dwellings, and killing more than 1,000 people. Henan, Jinan, Qing, Yan, and Dongchang also all saw the Yellow River burst. Seventh month: Ningxia suffered a great flood. The Yellow River burst the Han and Tang dams. The Bashu mouth burst; water spread through Cao and Pu prefectures as far as Dongchang, damaging the Shawan and other dikes. Zhengtong 14, fourth month: Ji'an, Nanchang, and Linjiang all flooded, damaging altars, temples, and government offices.
58
西
Jingtai 1, seventh month: a great flood at Yingtian inundated commoners' houses. Tianshun 3, sixth month: the Yellow River breached at Sha Bay's White Horse Head for more than seventy zhang. Eighth month: between Xuzhou and Jining the water on level ground stood one zhang high, and common dwellings were destroyed throughout. The Southern Metropolitan Region, Henan, Shandong, Shaanxi, Ji'an, and Yuanzhou all suffered great floods. Tianshun 4, spring and summer: the river repeatedly breached at Sha Bay. Tianshun 5, sixth month: a Yangzhou tidal surge breached the dikes at Gaoyou and Baoying. Seventh month: the six prefectures of Suzhou, Songjiang, Huai'an, Yangzhou, Luzhou, and Fengyang were all inundated. Eighth month: Dongchang, Yanzhou, and Jinan were heavily flooded as the river rose and submerged the fields. Tianshun 6, sixth month: Kaifeng and Baoding both suffered great floods. Intercalary sixth month: Shuntian was inundated, the Luan overflowed and wrecked city walls and dwellings, and Hejian and Yongping were hit especially hard. The prefectures around Wuchang all saw rivers spill over and damage the crops. Tianshun 7, sixth month: the river breached at Kaifeng, and fields and dwellings in Henan and Zhangde were submerged. That year the metropolitan region and Shandong were inundated as well.
59
西
Chenghua 3, sixth month: floodwaters at Jiangxia broke the river-mouth dike and ran to Hankou along a breach more than eight hundred fifty zhang long. Chenghua 5: Huguang suffered a great flood. In Shanxi the Fen River damaged the crops. Chenghua 6, sixth month: the northern metropolitan region was heavily flooded. Chenghua 7, intercalary ninth month: Shandong and Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Huzhou, and Shaoxing in Zhejiang were all overrun by the sea, drowning fields, dwellings, people, and livestock beyond count. Chenghua 9, sixth month: the five southern metropolitan prefectures and Huaqing were all inundated. Eighth month: Shandong suffered a great flood. Chenghua 11, fifth month: Huguang was flooded. Chenghua 12, eighth month: Zhejiang was struck by wind-driven tidal flooding. Huai'an, Fengyang, Yangzhou, and Xuzhou were inundated as well. Chenghua 13, second month, jiaxu: heavy snow fell on Anqing. The next day came torrential rain, and the river surged. Intercalary second month: Henan was heavily flooded. Ninth month: the Huai overflowed, wrecking official quarters and private houses throughout Huai'an prefecture and its counties and drowning people and livestock in great numbers. Chenghua 14, fourth month: the river at Xiangyang overflowed and destroyed the city walls. Fifth month: Shanzhou was inundated and many people drowned. Seventh month: the northern metropolitan region and Shandong were flooded. Ninth month: the river breached fifty zhang of Kaifeng's protective moat dike. Chenghua 18, seventh month: Changping was inundated, forty-nine water-gates at Juyong Pass gave way, and one hundred two stretches of wall, relay buildings, and beacon towers were destroyed. Eighth month: the Wei, Zhang, and Hutuo all overflowed together from Qingping to Tianjin.
60
沿
Hongzhi 2, fifth month: the river breached in six places from Kaifeng's Yellow Sand Mound to Red Boat Bay and poured into the Qin River. Most of the prefectures and counties along its course were devastated, and the provincial capital suffered worst of all. Seventh month: Shuntian, Yongping, Hejian, and Baoding and their subordinate counties and districts were inundated. Eighth month: the Lugou River dike was destroyed. Hongzhi 4, eighth month: Suzhou, Songjiang, and Zhejiang were flooded. Hongzhi 5, summer and autumn: the Southern Metropolitan Region, Zhejiang, and Shandong were inundated. Hongzhi 7, seventh month: Suzhou, Changzhou, and Zhenjiang were overrun by the tide—five chi on level ground, one zhang along the river—and many people drowned. Hongzhi 9, sixth month: mountains collapsed at Shanyin and Xiaoshan and floodwaters burst out, drowning more than three hundred people. Hongzhi 14, fifth month: the waters at Guichi rose, flood dragons appeared, and more than two hundred sixty people drowned; twelve neighboring districts were inundated as well. Seventh month: a sea surge at Lianzhou and Lingshan drowned more than one hundred fifty people. Intercalary seventh month: a hurricane drove the tide over Qiongshan until the water on level ground stood seven chi high. Eighth month: Anqing, Ningguo, Chizhou, and Taiping were heavily flooded; flood dragons appeared and houses were swept away. Hongzhi 15, seventh month: the Yangzi at Nanjing overflowed and lake water poured into the city more than five chi deep. Hongzhi 17, sixth month: at Lushan the water on level ground stood more than one zhang; people of Xingzi and De'an drowned, and Lushan dwellings were swept away in great numbers.
61
西 西
Zhengde 1, sixth month: the river at Huizhou in Shaanxi overflowed, sweeping away residents and livestock. Zhengde 2, sixth month: the river at Guyuan rose until the water on level ground stood four chi high, and people and livestock drowned. Zhengde 3, ninth month: Yan'an and Qingyang suffered great floods. Zhengde 5, ninth month: Anqing, Ningguo, and Taiping were inundated, and more than twenty-three thousand people drowned. Eleventh month: Suzhou, Songjiang, and Changzhou were flooded. Zhengde 6, sixth month: the Si surged, drowning one hundred seventy-six people and destroying more than one hundred seventy sections of city wall. Zhengde 12: Shuntian, Hejian, Baoding, and Zhending suffered great floods. Fengyang, Huai'an, Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou, Zhenjiang, Jiaxing, and Huzhou were all inundated. The Jing and Xiang rivers rose to great heights. Zhengde 15, fifth month: Jiangxi suffered a great flood. Zhengde 16, seventh month: floodwaters at Liaoyang's Tangdie Fort breached the city.
62
西 西 西 西 西 西
Wanli 1, seventh month: Jingzhou and Chengtian were inundated. Wanli 2, sixth month: Yongding in Fujian was flooded and more than seven hundred people drowned. That year the sea at Haiyan surged inland and several thousand people died. Eighth month, gengwu: floods along the rivers at Huai'an, Yangzhou, and Xuzhou damaged the crops. Wanli 3, fourth month: Huai'an and Xuzhou were inundated. Fifth month: the Huai burst its banks on a great scale. Sixth month: a sea surge several zhang high struck Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Ningbo, and Shaoxing, drowning warships, dwellings, people, and livestock beyond count. Eighth month: Huai'an, Yangzhou, Fengyang, and Xuzhou and their districts were inundated as the river breached at Gaoyou, Dangshan, Shaojiakou, and Cao Family Village. Ninth month: Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou, and Zhenjiang were all flooded. Wanli 4, first month: the Qingshui dike at Gaoyou gave way. Ninth month: the river breached at Feng, Pei, Cao, and Shan. Eleventh month: the Huai and the Yellow overflowed together. Wanli 5, intercalary eighth month: the river at Xuzhou silted up, the Huai shifted south, and dikes around the lakes at Gaoyou, Baoying, and elsewhere gave way. Wanli 6, sixth month: the Qinghe overflowed. Wanli 7, fifth month: Suzhou, Songjiang, Fengyang, and Xuzhou were inundated. Eighth month: flooding struck again. That year Zhejiang suffered a great flood. Wanli 9, fifth month: ravines at Conghua, Zengcheng, and Longmen swelled violently, the standing grain was entirely submerged, and men and women drowned beyond count. Seventh month: floodwaters at Fu'an rose above the city walls and swept away nearly all the dwellings. Eighth month: Taixing, Haimen, and Rugao were inundated, ponds, embankments, and slopes all gave way, and very many people drowned. Wanli 10, first month: the sea at the Huai and Yang rose, inundating thirty salt-fields including Fengli and drowning more than two thousand six hundred people. Seventh month: a tidal surge struck six districts of Suzhou and Songjiang, destroying one hundred thousand qing of crops and drowning twenty thousand people. Wanli 11, fourth month: the river at Chengtian surged, sweeping away common dwellings, people, and livestock beyond count. The river at Jinzhou overflowed and submerged the city. Wanli 14, summer: Jiangnan, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Huguang, Guangdong, Fujian, Yunnan, and Liaodong suffered great floods. Wanli 15, fifth month: Zhejiang was inundated. Seventh month: the rivers breached at Kaifeng, Shanzhou, and Lingbao. That year rivers and lakes overflowed across Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Huzhou, Yingtian, and Taiping until the water on level ground stood more than one zhang deep. At the end of the seventh month a great hurricane struck, and for several hundred li in every direction the land lay under water as far as the eye could see. Wanli 16, eighth month: the river breached at the Wei Family Mouth in Dongguang. Wanli 17, sixth month: the sea off Zhejiang seethed; yamen buildings in counties under Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Ningbo, Shaoxing, and Taizhou largely collapsed; official craft, private boats, and warships were smashed, and more than three hundred people were crushed or drowned. Wanli 19, sixth month: Suzhou and Songjiang were inundated and tens of thousands of people drowned. Seventh month: a coastal tide struck Ningbo, Shaoxing, Suzhou, Songjiang, and Changzhou, damaging crops and drowning people. Ninth month: Sizhou was inundated and the prefectural seat stood three chi under water. The Huai stood higher than the city wall, and the imperial ancestral mausoleum was flooded. Tenth month: lakes around Yangzhou and the Huai rose and overflowed, the Shaobo dike breached for more than fifty zhang, and both the north and south sluices at Gaoyou were washed out. Wanli 20, summer and autumn: Zhending, Shuntian, Guangping, and Daming were flooded. Wanli 21, fifth month: Pizhou, Gaoyou, and Baoying were inundated and lake dikes gave way. Wanli 22, seventh month: Fengyang and Luzhou suffered great floods. Wanli 23, fourth month: the Si inundated the imperial ancestral mausoleum. Wanli 24, autumn: Hangzhou, Jiaxing, and Huzhou were inundated. Wanli 29, eighth month: floodwaters at Mianyang poured into the city. Wanli 30, sixth month: the capital was heavily flooded. Wanli 31, fifth month: at Cheng'an, Yongnian, Feixiang, Anzhou, and Shenze the Zhang, Fu, Sha, and Yan rivers all overflowed together; dikes burst and water spread crosswise. At Qizhou and Jinghai city walls and dwellings were nearly all destroyed. Sixth month: great flood at Tai'an; more than eight hundred people drowned. Eighth month: sea water at Quanzhou and its subordinate prefectures surged violently; more than ten thousand people drowned. Wanli 32, sixth month: great flood at Changping; the bridge roads of the various mausoleums were damaged. Seventh month: Yongping, Zhen, and Bao all flooded; men and women drowned beyond count. Eighth month: the Yellow River burst at Sujiazhuang, inundating Feng and Pei; yellow water flowed backward and poured into Jining, Yutai, and Shan County. Wanli 35, sixth month: a flood dragon rose at Huangzhou; Wuchang, Chengtian, Yunyang, Yuezhou, and Changde had great floods and dwellings were swept away. Huizhou, Ningguo, Taiping, and Yanzhou had mountains and rivers surge greatly; many people were swept away. Intercalary sixth month: great flood at the capital; Chang'an Street was five chi deep in water. Wanli 37, ninth month: great flood in Fujian and Jiangxi. Wanli 41, sixth month: the Tonghui River burst. Seventh month: great flood at the capital. The southern metropolitan region, Jiangxi, and Henan all had great floods. Eighth month: Shandong, Guangxi, and Huguang all had great floods. Ninth month: great flood in Liaodong. Wanli 42: Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and the two Guang all flooded. Wanli 44, seventh month: flood in Jiangxi and Guangdong. Wanli 46, eighth month: a great sea hurricane struck the six counties of Chaozhou; more than 12,300 people drowned and 30,000 dwellings were destroyed.
63
宿
Tianqi 3: the Suining River burst. Tianqi 6, autumn: the Yellow River burst at Key-head Bay and poured into Luoma Lake; from Xin'an Town to Pi and Su, dwellings were all submerged. That year Shuntian and Yongping had great floods; many frontier walls collapsed.
64
Chongzhen 1, seventh month, renwu: Hang, Jia, and Shao had a sea roar; tens of thousands of dwellings were destroyed and tens of thousands drowned; Haining and Xiaoshan suffered especially. Chongzhen 3: great flood in Shandong. Chongzhen 4, sixth month: again great flood. Chongzhen 5, sixth month, renshen: the Yellow River burst at Mengjin Ford and spread crosswise for several hundred li. Chongzhen 7, fifth month: Qiong, Mei, and other prefectures and counties had great floods; city walls, farmhouses, people, and livestock beyond count were destroyed. Chongzhen 10, eighth month: great flood at Xuzhou; those who climbed the prefectural hall and high mounds escaped; the rest were all submerged. Chongzhen 13, fifth month: great flood in Zhejiang. Chongzhen 14, seventh month: wind and tide at Fuzhou overflowed widely; many were swept away and drowned. Chongzhen 15, sixth month: the Bian River burst. Chongzhen 15, ninth month, renwu: the Yellow River burst at the Zhu Family Stockade outside Kaifeng. Guimao: the city walls collapsed; several hundred thousand soldiers and civilians drowned.
65
▲ Water Transformations
66
漿 漿 西
Hongwu 5: the Yellow River in Henan dried up; travelers could ford it. Tianshun 2, twelfth month, guimao: the bitter well at Wuqiang turned sweet. Hongzhi 14, eighth month, bingchen: the river water at Rong County was red and turbid like the Yellow River. Tenth month, bingchen: the whirlpool water at the bottom of Ma Lake was white and mirror-clear; the next day it was turbid like rice gruel; what congealed on the sand and stones of both banks was like powdered earth; on the seventeenth day it cleared. Dingsi: the two rivers southeast of Xuzhou were white as snow and thick as gruel for three days. Hongzhi 15, ninth month, bingxu: a well at Puzhou overflowed; sand and earth came out with the water. Zhengde 10, seventh month: the water at Wen'an suddenly stood rigid; that day was severely cold; it formed into ice pillars five zhang in height and girth, hollow with side cavities. Several days later bandits arrived; the people sheltered in the cavities; very many escaped alive. Longqing 6, fifth month: the Dragon-eye Well of the southern metropolitan region turned into wine. Wanli 22, fourth month: the water at Nanjing's Zhengyang Gate was red for three days. Wanli 25, eighth month, jiashen: ponds at Puzhou surged in waves without wind, overflowing three or four chi. The moat water at Linzi suddenly rose; north and south faced each other and fought. Also at Xiazhuang Great Bay the tide suddenly rose; gathering and dispersing were inconstant; when gathered it was more than a zhang; when open the bottom was visible. The Lesser Qing River at Le'an flowed backward. The two sluice gates of brick and plank at Linqing had great waves without wind. Wanli 30, intercalary second month, wuwu: the Yellow River at Lotus Stockade in Hezhou dried up. Wanli 46, fourth month: outside Xuanwu and Zhengyang gates water was red for three li like blood; after a month it stopped. Wanli 47, fourth month: from Xuanwu Gate's sounding sluice to the Eastern Imperial River, the water again turned red. Chongzhen 10: a well at Ningyuan Guard boomed and boiled; after three days it stopped. The Ru River in Henan changed color, deep black with a foul taste; drinkers mostly fell ill. Chongzhen 13: the Wei River at Huayin turned red. Chongzhen 14: the Lu River in Shanxi flowed north for seven days and nights, its force like a surging tide. Chongzhen 15: a well at Dazhou boomed; the moat water turned to blood. Chongzhen 16: Songjiang from fifth month to seventh month had no rain and river water all dried up, yet the Mao waters suddenly rose several chi.
67
▲ Black Calamities and Black Omens
68
西 西 西 西 西 西 宿 西 西 涿
Hongwu 10, first month, dingyou: rain at Jinhua and Chuzhou was like ink juice. Hongwu 14, first month: black qi spanned heaven. Eleventh month, renwu: black qi spanned heaven again. Hongwu 21, second month, yimao: black qi spanned heaven. Xuande 1, second month, wuzi: in the north black qi spanned heaven east and west. Eighth month, xinsi: in Le'an city there was black qi like dead ash. Zhengtong 1, ninth month, xinhai, before the second quarter: black qi spanned heaven from southwest joining northeast. Zhengtong 2, eighth month, jiashen: in the north black qi spanned heaven east and west. Zhengtong 14, eleventh month, jichou, at the second quarter: in the west black qi arose from the ground. Jingtai 1, second month, renyin: black qi spanned heaven north and south. Tenth month, xinwei: in the southwest black qi like smoke and fire spanned heaven north and south. Jingtai 2, fourth month, gengchen: there was black qi like smoke rubbing the ground as it rose. Tianshun 5, seventh month, new moon on jihai: in the east there was black qi; in a moment it covered heaven. Chenghua 7, fourth month, bingchen: rain of black sand like lacquer. Chenghua 8, third month, gengzi: black qi rose in the northwest; Linqing and Dezhou were dim in daytime. Chenghua 12, seventh month, gengxu: a black calamity appeared at the capital. Men and women of the common people slept in the open; there was a creature with golden eyes and a long tail, shaped like a dog or fox, carrying black qi through the window lattice straight to the inner chamber; on arrival people fell unconscious. Alarm and disturbance spread through the whole city; people took up blades, lit lamps, and beat gongs and drums to drive it away, but could not catch it. The Emperor was holding court; guards at Fengtian Gate saw it and clamored. The Emperor wished to rise; Huai'en held the Emperor's robe; after a moment he settled. Hongzhi 5, second month, jisi: in the north black qi spanned heaven east and west. Hongzhi 6, eighth month, renshen: at Nanjing there was black qi more than a hundred zhang east and west. Hongzhi 14, fourth month, xinwei: a black wind blew greatly at Yingzhou. Hongzhi 16, second month, gengzi: at Yiliang black qi filled the sky; at arm's length one could not distinguish a human form. Zhengde 7, sixth month, renxu: a black calamity appeared at Shunde, Hejian, and Zhuo; the large were like dogs, the small like cats; they came out at night and injured people, some even to death. Soon it also appeared at the capital, red-black in form, moving in the wind with sound; residents at night held watch rattles to warn one another until dawn; after more than a month it ceased. Later it again appeared at Fengqiu. Zhengde 12, intercalary twelfth month, night of dingchou: at Ruizhou red qi turned white, shaped like a carpenter's square; inside and outside were two black qi masses that fought for a long time. Jiajing 8, tenth month, guisi: black rain at Hangzhou. Wanli 37, third month: a black calamity appeared at Hengzhou. Longqing 2, fourth month: heaven rained black beans. Longqing 6, fourth month: black fog at Hangzhou; there was a thing winding like a carriage wheel, eyes bright as lightning, hail following it. Wanli 24, twelfth month, xinmao: at Tong'an black hair grew. Wanli 25, second month, guihai: black rain at Huzhou mixed with yellow sand. Chongzhen 10: Shandong had black rain; Xinxiang was likewise. Chongzhen 11: at the capital there was a black calamity shaped like a fox, entering people's houses as a baleful spirit; after half a year it ceased. Chongzhen 13, first month, dingmao: black qi filled the sky for three days.
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