1
齊泰黃子澄方孝孺 〈（盧原質鄭公智林嘉猷胡子昭鄭居貞劉政方法樓璉）〉 練子寧 〈（宋徵葉希賢）〉 茅大芳 〈（周嵒）〉 卓敬 〈（郭任盧迥）〉 陳迪 〈（黃魁巨敬）〉 景清 〈（連楹）〉 胡閏 〈（高翔）〉 王度 〈（戴德彜謝升丁誌方甘霖董鏞陳繼之韓永葉福）〉
Qi Tai, Huang Zicheng, and Fang Xiaoru (Lu Yuanzhi, Zheng Gongzhi, Lin Jiayou, Hu Zizhao, Zheng Juzhen, Liu Zheng, Fang Fa, and Lou Lian)]〉 Lian Zining (Song Zheng and Ye Xixian)]〉 Mao Dafang (Zhou Yan)]〉 Zhuo Jing (Guo Ren and Lu Jiong)]〉 Chen Di (Huang Kui and Ju Jing)]〉 Jing Qing (Lian Ying)]〉 Hu Run (Gao Xiang)]〉 Wang Du (Dai Deyi, Xie Sheng, Ding Zhifang, Gan Lin, Dong Yong, Chen Jizhi, Han Yong, and Ye Fu)]〉
2
○齊泰黃子澄方孝孺 〈（盧原質鄭公智林嘉猷胡子昭鄭居貞劉政方法樓璉）〉 練子寧 〈（宋徵葉希賢）〉 茅大芳 〈（周嵒）〉 卓敬 〈（郭任盧迥）〉 陳迪 〈（黃魁巨敬）〉 景清 〈（連楹）〉 胡閏 〈（高翔）〉 王度 〈（戴德彜謝升丁誌方甘霖董鏞陳繼之韓永葉福）〉
• Qi Tai, Huang Zicheng, and Fang Xiaoru (Lu Yuanzhi, Zheng Gongzhi, Lin Jiayou, Hu Zizhao, Zheng Juzhen, Liu Zheng, Fang Fa, and Lou Lian)]〉 Lian Zining (Song Zheng and Ye Xixian)]〉 Mao Dafang (Zhou Yan)]〉 Zhuo Jing (Guo Ren and Lu Jiong)]〉 Chen Di (Huang Kui and Ju Jing)]〉 Jing Qing (Lian Ying)]〉 Hu Run (Gao Xiang)]〉 Wang Du (Dai Deyi, Xie Sheng, Ding Zhifang, Gan Lin, Dong Yong, Chen Jizhi, Han Yong, and Ye Fu)]〉
3
建文元年，周、代、湘、齊、岷五王相繼以罪廢。 七月，燕王舉兵反，師名「靖難」。 指泰、子澄為奸臣。 事聞，泰請削燕屬籍，聲罪致討。 或難之，泰曰：「明其為賊，敵乃可克。」 遂定議伐燕，布告天下。 時太祖功臣存者甚少，乃拜長興侯耿炳文為大將軍，帥師分道北伐，至真定為燕所敗。 子澄薦曹國公李景隆代將，泰極言不可。 子澄不聽，卒命景隆將。 當是時，帝舉五十萬兵畀景隆，謂燕可旦夕滅。 燕王顧大喜曰：「昔漢高止能將十萬，景隆何才，其眾適足為吾資也！」 是冬，景隆果敗。 帝有懼色，會燕王上書極詆泰、子澄。 帝乃解二人任以謝燕，而陰留之京師，仍參密議。 景隆遺燕王書，言二人已竄，可息兵。 燕王不聽。 明年，盛庸捷東昌，帝告廟，命二人任職如故。 及夾河之敗，復解二人官求罷兵，燕王曰：「此緩我也。」 進益急。
In the first year of the Jianwen reign, the five princes of Zhou, Dai, Xiang, Qi, and Min were stripped of their titles one after another on criminal charges. In the seventh month the Prince of Yan rose in arms; his campaign was called "Pacifying the Difficulties." He named Tai and Zicheng as traitorous ministers. When word reached the court, Tai urged that the Prince of Yan be removed from the imperial clan rolls and that formal charges be proclaimed to justify a punitive campaign. Some raised objections, but Tai said, "Once he is plainly branded a rebel, the foe can be beaten. The court then resolved on war against Yan and issued the proclamation to the empire. Few of the founding emperor's great ministers still lived; the court therefore appointed Changxing Marquis Geng Bingwen grand general and sent him north at the head of several columns, only to be defeated by Yan forces at Zhending. Zicheng recommended Duke of Cao Li Jinglong to take command in his place, but Tai argued fiercely against it. Zicheng would not heed him, and in the end Jinglong was put in command. The emperor then committed five hundred thousand men to Jinglong, convinced that Yan could be wiped out within days. The Prince of Yan glanced back and exclaimed with delight, "Emperor Gaozu of Han could lead only a hundred thousand men at most—what ability has Jinglong? His host will serve nicely as my provisions! That winter Jinglong was indeed routed. Fear showed on the emperor's face; at the same time the Prince of Yan sent up a memorial savagely denouncing Tai and Zicheng. The emperor then dismissed the two from office as a gesture to placate Yan, yet secretly kept them in the capital, where they still joined in confidential counsel. Jinglong wrote to the Prince of Yan that the two had already fled and that he might stand down his arms. The Prince of Yan refused. The following year Sheng Yong won a victory at Dongchang; the emperor reported to the ancestral temple and restored the two to their former offices. After the defeat at Jiahe the two were again removed from office in a bid to halt the war; the Prince of Yan said, "This is meant to stall me. His advance grew only more urgent.
4
始削藩議起，帝入泰、子澄言，謂以天下制一隅甚易。 及屢敗，意中悔，是以進退失據。 迨燕兵日逼，復召泰還。 未至，京師已不守，泰走外郡謀興復。 時購泰急。 泰墨白馬走，行稍遠，汗出墨脫。 或曰：「此齊尚書馬也。」 遂被執赴京，同子澄、方孝孺不屈死。 泰從兄弟敬宗等皆坐死，叔時永、陽彥等謫戍。 子甫六歲，免死給配，仕宗時赦還。
When the plan to pare back the princely domains was first broached, the emperor accepted Tai and Zicheng's advice and judged that with the whole realm in hand, controlling one corner would be easy. After repeated defeats he came to regret it inwardly, and so lost his footing between pressing forward and pulling back. As Yan forces drew nearer day by day, Tai was summoned back once more. Before he could arrive the capital was lost; Tai fled into the outer prefectures to plot restoration. A heavy price was then set on Tai's head. Tai dyed a white horse black and fled; after he had ridden some distance, sweat washed the ink away. Someone cried, "That is Grand Secretary Qi's horse! He was seized and taken to the capital, where he died unbowed together with Zicheng and Fang Xiaoru. Tai's cousins Jingzong and the rest were all put to death by association; his uncles Shiyong, Yangyan, and others were banished to frontier garrison service. His son Pu, only six, was spared execution and assigned in penal service; under Emperor Shizong he was pardoned and allowed to return.
5
會有言周王橚不法者，遂命李景隆帥兵襲執之，詞連湘、代諸府。 於是廢橚及岷王楩為庶人； 幽代王桂於大同； 囚齊王榑於京師。 湘王柏自焚死。 下燕議周王罪。 燕王上書申救，帝覽書惻然，謂事宜且止。 子澄與泰爭之，未決，出相語曰：「今事勢如此，安可不斷？」 明日又入言曰：「今所慮者獨燕王耳，宜因其稱病襲之。」 帝猶豫曰：「朕即位未久，連黜諸王，若又削燕，何以自解於天下？」 子澄對曰：「先人者制人，毋為人制。」 帝曰：「燕王智勇，善用兵。 雖病，恐猝難圖。」 乃止。 於是命都督宋忠調緣邊官軍屯開平，選燕府護衛精壯隸忠麾下，召護衛胡騎指揮關童等入京，以弱燕。 復調北平永清左、右衛官軍分駐彰德、順德，都督徐凱練兵臨清，耿瓛練兵山海關，以控制北平。 皆泰、子澄謀也。 時燕王憂懼，以三子皆在京師，稱病篤，乞三子歸。 泰欲遂收之，子澄曰：「不若遣歸，示彼不疑，乃可襲而取也。」 竟遣還。 未幾，燕師起，王泣誓將吏曰：「陷害諸王，非由天子意，乃奸臣齊泰、黃子澄所為也。」
When reports reached the court that Prince Zhou, Zhu Su, had broken the law, Li Jinglong was ordered to lead troops in a surprise arrest; the case implicated the households of Xiang, Dai, and other princes. Su and Prince Min, Zhu Bian, were thereupon reduced to commoner status; Prince Dai, Zhu Gui, was confined at Datong; Prince Qi, Zhu Fu, was imprisoned in the capital. Prince Xiang, Zhu Bai, burned himself to death. The case was referred to Yan to deliberate Prince Zhou's offenses. The Prince of Yan memorialized in his defense; reading it, the emperor was moved and said the matter ought to rest for now. Zicheng and Tai argued the point to no conclusion; leaving the audience they said to one another, "Matters stand as they do—how can we fail to act decisively? The next day they entered again and said, "Our sole concern now is the Prince of Yan; we should strike while he claims to be ill." The emperor hesitated. "I have not long been enthroned," he said. "Having already demoted prince after prince, if I now move against Yan as well, how can I justify myself to the empire?" Zicheng answered, "He who strikes first controls others; do not let others control you." The emperor said, "The Prince of Yan is wise and brave and skilled at war. Even if he is ill, I fear a sudden strike would be hard to carry off." The plan was abandoned. The court then ordered Regional Commander Song Zhong to move frontier garrisons to camp at Kaiping, drafted the sturdiest guards of the Yan household into Zhong's command, and summoned guards cavalry commanders such as Guan Tong to the capital to weaken Yan. Troops of the left and right Yongqing garrisons in Beiping were redeployed to Zhangde and Shunde; Regional Commander Xu Kai drilled forces at Linqing and Geng Juan at Shanhaiguan, all to hem in Beiping. All of this was the work of Tai and Zicheng. The Prince of Yan was then deeply anxious: his three sons were all in the capital, and he claimed grave illness, begging that they be sent home. Tai wanted to detain them at once, but Zicheng said, "Better send them back, show him we suspect nothing, and then we can strike and take him. In the end the sons were sent back. Before long the Yan army rose. Weeping, the prince swore to his commanders, "The ruin of the princes was not the Son of Heaven's will—it was wrought by the traitors Qi Tai and Huang Zicheng."
6
始帝信任子澄與泰，聚事削藩。 兩人本書生，兵事非其所長。 當耿炳文之敗也，子澄謂勝敗常事，不足慮。 因薦曹國公李景隆可大任，帝遂以景隆代炳文。 而景隆益無能為，連敗於鄭村壩、白溝河，喪失軍輜士馬數十萬。 已，又敗於濟南城下。 帝急召景隆還，赦不誅。 子澄慟哭，請正其罪。 帝不聽。 子澄拊膺曰：「大事去矣，薦景隆誤國，萬死不足贖罪！」
At first the emperor placed his trust in Zicheng and Tai and concentrated policy on reducing the princely domains. Both were scholars by origin, and warfare was not their forte. When Geng Bingwen was defeated, Zicheng said that victory and defeat were common in war and not worth fretting over. He then recommended Duke of Cao Li Jinglong for high command, and the emperor put Jinglong in Bingwen's place. Jinglong proved ever more useless, losing battle after battle at Zhengcunba and on the Baigou River and sacrificing baggage trains, soldiers, and horses by the hundreds of thousands. He was beaten again beneath the walls of Jinan. The emperor urgently recalled Jinglong and spared his life. Zicheng wept bitterly and demanded that Jinglong be punished for his crimes. The emperor refused. Zicheng struck his breast and cried, "The great cause is lost! Recommending Jinglong has betrayed the realm—a thousand deaths would not expiate my guilt!"
7
及燕兵漸南，與齊泰同謫外，密令募兵。 子澄微服由太湖至蘇州，與知府姚善倡義勤王。 善上言：「子澄才足捍難，不宜棄閑遠以快敵人。」 帝復召子澄，未至而京城陷。 欲與善航海乞兵，善不可。 乃就嘉興楊任謀舉事，為人告，俱被執。 子澄至，成祖親詰之。 抗辨不屈，磔死。 族人無少長皆斬，姻黨悉戍邊。 一子變姓名為田經，遇赦，家湖廣鹹寧。 正德中，進士黃表其後雲。
As Yan forces pushed south, he was exiled together with Qi Tai, with secret orders to raise troops. Zicheng traveled in disguise from Lake Tai to Suzhou, where he joined Prefect Yao Shan in rallying loyalists to rescue the throne. Shan memorialized the throne: "Zicheng's ability is equal to the crisis; he must not be left idle in exile to gratify the enemy. The emperor summoned Zicheng again, but before he could arrive the capital fell. He wanted to put to sea with Shan to seek reinforcements, but Shan refused. He then turned to Yang Ren in Jiaxing to plot an uprising; an informer betrayed them and both were arrested. When Zicheng was brought in, the Yongle Emperor questioned him in person. He answered defiantly and would not submit, and was torn apart by execution. Every clansman, young or old, was beheaded, and all connected by marriage were banished to the frontier. One son changed his name to Tian Jing; after an amnesty he settled in Xianning, Huguang. In the Zhengde reign a jinshi named Huang was said to be his descendant.
8
楊任，洪武中由人材起家，歷官袁州知府。 時致仕，匿子澄於家，亦磔死。 二子禮、益俱斬。 親屬戍邊。
Yang Ren entered office in the Hongwu reign through the talent recruitment system and rose to prefect of Yuanzhou. He had by then retired from office and was hiding Zicheng in his home; he too was torn apart by execution. His two sons, Li and Yi, were both beheaded. His kin were banished to frontier service.
9
方孝孺，字希直，一字希古，寧海人。 父克勤，洪武中循吏，自有傳。 孝孺幼警敏，雙眸炯炯，讀書日盈寸，鄉人目為「小韓子。」 長從宋濂學，濂門下知名士皆出其下。 先輩胡翰、蘇伯衡亦自謂弗如。 孝孺顧末視文藝，恒以明王道、致太平為己任。 嘗臥病，絕糧，家人以告，笑曰：「古人三旬九食，貧豈獨我哉！」 父克勤坐「空印」事誅，扶喪歸葬，哀動行路。 既免喪，復從濂卒業。
Fang Xiaoru, styled Xizhi and also known as Xigu, came from Ninghai. His father Keqin was a model local official of the Hongwu reign and has a separate biography. As a boy Xiaoru was quick-witted, with a piercing gaze; his reading piled up inch by inch each day, and neighbors called him "Little Han Yu. When he came of age he studied under Song Lian, and every noted scholar in Lian's school stood beneath him. Seniors such as Hu Han and Su Boheng admitted they could not match him. Xiaoru cared little for literary display and always made it his mission to illuminate the kingly way and bring the realm to peace. Once, ill in bed and without food, he laughed when his family told him: "The ancients ate only nine meals in thirty days—surely I am not the only poor man! His father Keqin was executed in the blank-seal affair; Xiaoru bore the coffin home for burial, and his grief moved all who passed on the road. When mourning was over he returned to Lian and finished his training.
10
洪武十五年，以吳沈、揭樞薦，召見。 太祖喜其舉止端整，謂皇太子曰：「此莊士，當老其才。」 禮遣還。 後為仇家所連，逮至京。 太祖見其名，釋之。 二十五年，又以薦召至。 太祖曰：「今非用孝孺時。」 除漢中教授，日與諸生講學不倦。 蜀獻王聞其賢，聘為世子師。 每見，陳說道德。 王尊以殊禮，名其讀書之廬曰「正學。」
In the fifteenth year of Hongwu he was recommended by Wu Shen and Jie Shu and summoned to court. The founding emperor was pleased with his dignified bearing and told the crown prince, "Here is a man of weight; let his talent mature with years. He was courteously sent home. Later an enemy family implicated him and he was brought to the capital in custody. Seeing his name, the founding emperor ordered his release. In the twenty-fifth year he was summoned again on recommendation. The founding emperor said, "This is not yet the time to use Xiaoru. He was appointed professor at Hanzhong, where he lectured his students day after day without tiring. Prince Xian of Shu, hearing of his reputation, engaged him as tutor to the heir. At every audience he expounded moral principle. The prince honored him with exceptional ceremony and named his study "Correct Learning."
11
建文三年，燕兵掠大名。 王聞齊、黃已竄，上書請罷盛庸、吳傑、平安兵。 孝孺建議曰：「燕兵久頓大名，天暑雨，當不戰自疲。 急令遼東諸將入山海關攻永平； 真定諸將渡盧溝搗北平，彼必歸救。 我以大兵躡其後，可成擒也。 今其奏事適至，宜且與報書，往返逾月，使其將士心懈。 我謀定勢合，進而蹴之，不難矣。」 帝以為然。 命孝孺草詔，遣大理寺少卿薛嵓馳報燕，盡赦燕罪，使罷兵歸藩。 又為宣諭數千言授嵓，持至燕軍中，密散諸將士。 比至，嵓匿宣諭不敢出，燕王亦不奉詔。 五月，吳傑、平安、盛庸發兵擾燕餉道。 燕王復遣指揮武勝上書，伸前請。 帝將許之。 孝孺曰：「兵罷，不可復聚，願毋為所惑。」 帝乃誅勝以絕燕。 未幾，燕兵掠沛縣，燒糧艘。 時河北師老無功，而德州又饋餉道絕，孝孺深以為憂。 以燕世子仁厚，其弟高煦狡譎，有寵於燕王，嘗欲奪嫡，謀以計間之，使內亂。 乃建議白帝：遣錦衣衛千戶張安賫璽書往北平，賜世子。 世子得書不啟封，並安送燕軍前。 間不得行。
In the third year of the Jianwen reign Yan forces raided Daming. The prince, hearing that Qi and Huang had fled, memorialized asking that the armies of Sheng Yong, Wu Jie, and Ping An be stood down. Xiaoru advised, "The Yan army has lingered long at Daming; in this heat and rain it should wear itself out without a battle. Order the Liaodong generals at once through Shanhaiguan to strike Yongping; and the Zhending commanders should cross the Lugou to threaten Beiping, forcing the enemy to turn back. Our main force can then fall on their rear and take them captive. His memorial has just arrived; we should answer it and let a month of back-and-forth correspondence sap their officers' and soldiers' resolve. Once our plans are set and our forces in place, we can press forward and crush them with ease. The emperor agreed. He had Xiaoru draft an edict and sent Vice Minister Xue Yan of the Court of Judicial Review posthaste to Yan with a full pardon and orders to stand down and return to his fief. Xiaoru also composed a proclamation of several thousand words for Yan to carry into the Yan camp and distribute secretly among the officers and men. When Yan arrived he hid the proclamation and dared not release it; the Prince of Yan likewise ignored the edict. In the fifth month Wu Jie, Ping An, and Sheng Yong moved troops to cut Yan's supply lines. The Prince of Yan again sent Commander Wu Sheng with a memorial renewing his earlier plea. The emperor was on the point of granting it. Xiaoru said, "Once an army is stood down it cannot be reassembled—do not let him deceive you. The emperor then executed Sheng to shut off any further overtures from Yan. Before long Yan forces raided Pei County and burned the grain fleet. The Hebei armies were exhausted and achieving nothing, and the supply route to Dezhou was severed; Xiaoru was deeply troubled. Knowing the Yan heir to be mild and his younger brother Gaoxu crafty and favored by the prince—and that Gaoxu had once sought to displace his brother—he plotted to drive a wedge between them and sow internal strife. He therefore proposed that the emperor send Zhang An of the Embroidered Uniform Guard with an imperial letter under seal to Beiping, to be conferred on the heir alone. The heir received the letter unopened and sent it on with An to his father's camp. The stratagem failed.
12
明年五月，燕兵至江北，帝下詔征四方兵。 孝孺曰：「事急矣。 遣人許以割地，稽延數日，東南募兵漸集。 北軍不長舟楫，決戰江上，勝負未可知也。」 帝遣慶成郡主往燕軍，陳其說。 燕王不聽。 帝命諸將集舟師江上。 而陳瑄以戰艦降燕，燕兵遂渡江。 時六月乙卯也。 帝憂懼，或勸帝他幸，圖興復。 孝孺力請守京城以待援兵，即事不濟，當死社稷。 乙丑，金川門啟，燕兵入，帝自焚。 是日，孝孺被執下獄。
The following fifth month, as Yan forces reached the north bank of the Yangzi, the emperor issued an edict mobilizing troops from every quarter. Xiaoru said, "Matters are desperate. Send envoys offering to cede territory and gain a few days' delay; troops raised in the southeast will gradually assemble. Northern armies are weak on the water; a decisive battle on the river might still go either way. The emperor sent the Princess of Qingcheng to the Yan camp to present the offer. The Prince of Yan refused. The emperor ordered his generals to assemble a fleet on the Yangzi. But Chen Xuan surrendered his warships to Yan, and the Yan army crossed the river. This was on the yimao day of the sixth month. The emperor was stricken with fear; some urged him to flee the capital and plot restoration elsewhere. Xiaoru urgently pleaded to hold the capital and await relief; even if all failed, they should die with the altars of state. On yichou the Jinchuan Gate was opened; Yan troops entered, and the emperor burned himself to death. That same day Xiaoru was arrested and thrown into prison.
13
先是，成祖發北平，姚廣孝以孝孺為托，曰：「城下之日，彼必不降，幸勿殺之。 殺孝孺，天下讀書種子絕矣。」 成祖頷之。 至是欲使草詔。 召至，悲慟聲徹殿陛。 成祖降榻，勞曰：「先生毋自苦，予欲法周公輔成王耳。」 孝孺曰：「成王安在？」 成祖曰：「彼自焚死。」 孝孺曰：「何不立成王之子？」 成祖曰：「國賴長君。」 孝孺曰：「何不立成王之弟？」 成祖曰：「此朕家事。」 顧左右授筆劄，曰：「詔天下，非先生草不可」孝孺投筆於地，且哭且罵曰：「死即死耳，詔不可草。」 成祖怒，命磔諸市。 孝孺慨然就死，作絕命詞曰：「天降亂離兮孰知其由，奸臣得計兮謀國用猶。 忠臣發憤兮血淚交流，以此殉君兮抑又何求？ 鳴呼哀哉兮庶不我尤！」 時年四十有六。 其門人德慶侯廖永忠之孫鏞與其弟銘，檢遺骸瘞聚寶門外山上。
Earlier, when the Yongle Emperor marched from Beiping, Yao Guangxiao had begged him concerning Xiaoru: "When the city falls he will surely not submit—please do not kill him. Kill Xiaoru, and the seed of learning in the empire is extinguished. The Yongle Emperor nodded in assent. Now he wished to have Xiaoru draft the accession edict. When he was summoned, his grief and sobbing filled the hall. The Yongle Emperor stepped down from the throne and comforted him: "Sir, do not torment yourself—I mean only to follow the Duke of Zhou in assisting King Cheng. Xiaoru asked, "Where is King Cheng?" The Yongle Emperor said, "He burned himself to death." Xiaoru asked, "Why not enthrone King Cheng's son?" The Yongle Emperor said, "The realm needs a mature ruler." Xiaoru asked, "Why not enthrone King Cheng's younger brother?" The Yongle Emperor said, "That is my family's affair." He turned to his attendants for brush and paper and said, "To proclaim the realm—no one but you, sir, can draft it." Xiaoru flung the brush to the floor and, weeping and cursing, cried, "Death is death—I will not draft your edict." The Yongle Emperor flew into a rage and ordered him torn apart in the marketplace. Xiaoru went to his death with high resolve and composed a final verse: "Heaven sends chaos and separation—who knows its cause? Traitors win their schemes and still govern the realm. Loyal ministers burn with rage, blood and tears streaming down; to die thus for our lord—what more could we ask? Alas! How tragic! May none hold this against me! He was forty-six years old. His disciples, the grandsons Yong and Ming of Marquis Liao Yongzhong of Deqing, gathered his remains and buried them on the hill outside the Jubao Gate.
14
孝孺有兄孝聞，力學篤行，先孝孺死。 弟孝友與孝孺同就戮，亦賦詩一章而死。 妻鄭及二子中憲、中愈先自經死，二女投秦淮河死。
Xiaoru had an elder brother, Xiaowen, who studied hard and lived uprightly and died before him. His younger brother Xiaoyou was executed with him and likewise composed a poem before he died. His wife Zheng and his sons Zhongxian and Zhongyu hanged themselves first; his two daughters drowned themselves in the Qinhuai River.
15
孝孺工文章，醇深雄邁。 每一篇出，海內爭相傳誦。 永樂中，藏孝孺文者罪至死。 門人王稌潛錄為《侯城集》，故後得行於世。
Xiaoru was a master of prose—grave, deep, and boldly expansive in manner. Each new essay set the empire copying and reciting it in rivalry. Under Yongle, hiding Xiaoru's writings was a capital offense. His disciple Wang Zhi secretly compiled them as the Houcheng Collection, which is how they later reached the world.
16
孝孺之死，宗族親友前後坐誅者數百人。 其門下士有以身殉者，盧原質、鄭公智、林嘉猷，皆寧海人。
In the wake of Xiaoru's death, several hundred kinsmen and associates were executed by implication. Among his disciples who died with him were Lu Yuanzhi, Zheng Gongzhi, and Lin Jiayou, all from Ninghai.
17
原質字希魯，孝孺姑子也。 由進士授編修，歷官太常少卿。 建文時，屢有建白。 燕兵至，不屈，與弟原樸等皆被殺。
Yuanzhi, styled Xilu, was Xiaoru's nephew by marriage. A jinshi, he became a compiler and rose to Vice Minister of Imperial Sacrifices. During the Jianwen reign he offered counsel again and again. When Yan forces arrived he refused to submit and was killed together with his younger brother Yuanpu and others.
18
公智字叔貞； 嘉猷名升，以字行。 皆師事孝孺。 孝孺嘗曰：「匡我者，二子也。」 公智以賢良舉，為御史有聲。 嘉猷，洪武丙子以儒士校文四川。 建文初，入史館為編修。 尋遷陜西僉事。 嘗以事入燕邸，知高煦謀傾世子狀。 孝孺間燕之謀，實嘉猷發之。
Gongzhi, styled Shuzhen; Jiayou's given name was Sheng, but he was known by his style. Both studied under Xiaoru. Xiaoru once said, "These two are the men who set me straight. Gongzhi entered office through the worthy-and-good selection and won renown as a censor. In the bingzi year of Hongwu, Jiayou graded examination papers in Sichuan as a Confucian scholar. At the start of Jianwen he entered the Historiography Institute as compiler. He was soon promoted to vice commissioner in Shaanxi. On one mission he entered the Yan residence and learned of Gaoxu's plot against the heir. It was Jiayou who first alerted Xiaoru to Yan's designs.
19
胡子昭，字仲常，初名誌高。 榮縣人。 孝孺為漢中教授時往從學，蜀獻王薦為縣訓導。 建文初，與修《太祖實錄》，授檢討。 累遷至刑部侍郎。
Hu Zizhao, styled Zhongchang, was originally named Zhigao. He came from Rong County. When Xiaoru taught at Hanzhong, Zizhao went to study with him; Prince Xian of Shu recommended him as county instructor. At the start of Jianwen he helped compile the Veritable Records of the Founding Emperor and was appointed reviser. He rose step by step to Vice Minister of Justice.
20
鄭居貞，閩人。 與孝孺友善，以明經歷官鞏昌通判、河南參政。 所至有善績。 孝孺教授漢中，居貞作《鳳雛行》勖之。 諸人皆坐黨誅死。 孝孺主應天鄉試，所得士有長洲劉政、桐城方法。
Zheng Juzhen came from Fujian. A friend of Xiaoru, he entered office through the classics examination and served as subprefect of Gongchang and administrative commissioner of Henan. Wherever he served he left a record of good governance. When Xiaoru taught at Hanzhong, Juzhen wrote "Song of the Phoenix Chick" to encourage him. All were executed as associates of Xiaoru's faction. When Xiaoru presided over the Yingtian provincial examination, among those he passed were Liu Zheng of Changzhou and Fang Fa of Tongcheng.
21
政，字仲理。 燕兵起，草《平燕策》，將上之，以病為家人所沮。 及聞孝孺死，遂嘔血卒。
Zheng, styled Zhongli. When the Yan army rose he drafted a "Plan to Pacify Yan" and was about to submit it, but illness and his family's opposition held him back. On hearing of Xiaoru's death he vomited blood and died.
22
法，字伯通。 官四川都司斷事。 諸司表賀成祖登極，當署名，不肯，投筆出。 被逮，次望江，瞻拜鄉里曰：「得望我先人廬舍足矣。」 自沈於江。
Fa, styled Botong. He served as judicial officer of the Sichuan regional military commission. When the offices submitted congratulations on the Yongle Emperor's accession, he was required to sign but refused, flung down his brush, and walked out. Arrested, he paused at Wangjiang and gazed toward home, saying, "To see my ancestors' dwelling once more is enough. He drowned himself in the river.
23
成祖既殺孝孺，以草詔屬侍讀樓璉。 璉，金華人，嘗從宋濂學。 承命不敢辭。 歸語妻子曰：「我固甘死，正恐累汝輩耳。」 其夕，遂自經。 或曰草詔乃括蒼王景，或曰無錫王達雲。
After killing Xiaoru, the Yongle Emperor charged Reader-in-Waiting Lou Lian with drafting the accession edict. Lian, from Jinhua, had studied under Song Lian. He accepted the order and dared not refuse. At home he told his wife and children, "I am ready to die, but I fear only that I will bring ruin on you. That night he hanged himself. Some say the edict was drafted by Wang Jing of Kuocang; others say by Wang Dayun of Wuxi.
24
練子寧，名安，以字行，新淦人。 父伯尚，工詩。 洪武初，官起居註。 以直言謫外任，終鎮安通判。 子寧英邁不群，十八年，以貢士廷試對策，力言：「天之生材有限，陛下忍以區區小故，縱無窮之誅，何以為治？」 太祖善其意，擢一甲第二，授翰林修撰。 丁母艱，力行古禮。 服闋，復官，歷遷工部侍郎。 建文初，與方孝孺並見信用，改吏部左侍郎。 以賢否進退為己任，多所建白。 未幾，拜御史大夫。 燕師起，李景隆北征屢敗，召還。 子寧從朝中執數其罪，請誅之。 不聽。 憤激叩首大呼曰：「壞陛下事者，此賊也。 臣備員執法，不能為朝廷除賣國奸，死有余罪。 即陛下赦景隆，必無赦臣！」 因大哭求死，帝為罷朝。 宗人府經歷宋徵、御史葉希賢皆抗疏言景隆失律喪師，懷二心，宜誅。 並不納。 燕師既渡淮，靖江府長史蕭用道、衡府紀善周是修上書論大計，指斥用事者。 書下廷臣議，用事者盛氣以詬二人。 子寧曰：「國事至此，尚不能容言者耶？」 詬者愧而止。
Lian Zining, whose given name was An but who was known by his style, came from Xingan. His father Boshang was a skilled poet. In early Hongwu he served as recorder of imperial actions. For blunt speech he was demoted to provincial service and ended his career as subprefect of Zhen'an. Zining was brilliant and stood apart from the crowd. In the eighteenth year, answering at the palace examination as a tribute scholar, he declared forcefully: "Heaven produces talent in limited measure—how can Your Majesty, for petty causes, unleash endless executions and still govern well? The founding emperor approved his point and ranked him second in the first class, appointing him Hanlin reviser. Mourning his mother, he practiced the ancient rites with strict devotion. When mourning ended he returned to office and rose to Vice Minister of Works. At the start of Jianwen he and Fang Xiaoru were equally trusted; he was made Left Vice Minister of Personnel. He made it his duty to advance the worthy and remove the unworthy, and offered much counsel. Before long he was appointed censor-in-chief. When the Yan army rose, Li Jinglong's northern campaign met repeated defeat and he was recalled. Zining seized him in open court, recited his crimes, and demanded his execution. The emperor refused. In a fury he struck his head on the floor in a kowtow and cried, "This traitor is the man who has ruined Your Majesty's cause! I hold a nominal post as chief of law enforcement yet cannot rid the court of a traitor who sells the realm—even death would not expiate my guilt. Even if Your Majesty pardons Jinglong, you will surely not pardon me! He burst into tears and begged for death, and the emperor dismissed court. Imperial Clan Court registrar Song Zheng and Censor Ye Xixian both submitted bold memorials accusing Jinglong of violating discipline, losing armies, harboring divided loyalty, and deserving execution. None of this was heeded. After Yan forces crossed the Huai, Xiao Yongdao, chief clerk of the Jingjiang princely establishment, and Zhou Shixiu, recorder of the Heng establishment, memorialized on grand strategy and denounced those in power. The memorials were referred to the court for discussion, and those in power assailed the two men with furious abuse. Zining said, "Matters have come to this pass—can we still not tolerate men who speak out? The abusers fell silent in shame.
25
子寧善文章，孝孺稱其多學而文。 弘治中，王佐刻其遺文曰《金川玉屑集》。 提學副使李夢陽立金川書院祀子寧，名其堂曰「浩然」。
Zining was a fine writer; Xiaoru praised him as learned and accomplished in letters. In the Hongzhi reign Wang Zuo printed his surviving writings as the Jinchuan Jade Fragments Collection. Education intendant Li Mengyang founded Jinchuan Academy to honor Zining and named its hall "Vast Integrity."
26
徵，不知何許人。 嘗疏請削罪藩屬籍。 燕師入，不屈，並妻子俱死。 希賢，松陽人。 亦坐奸黨被殺。 或曰去為僧，號雪庵和尚雲。
Zheng's place of origin is unknown. He once memorialized asking that guilty princes be removed from the imperial clan rolls. When Yan forces entered the capital he refused to submit; he and his wife and children all died. Xixian came from Songyang. He too was killed as a member of the traitor faction. Some say he fled and became a monk known as Master Xue'an.
27
周璿，洪武末，以天策衛知事建言，擢左僉都御史。 燕王稱帝，與大芳並見收，不屈死。 而大芳子順童、道壽俱論誅，二孫死獄中。
Zhou Xuan, in late Hongwu, offered counsel from his post in the Tiance Guard and was promoted to Left Vice Censor-in-Chief. When the Prince of Yan took the throne, he and Dafang were both arrested and died refusing to submit. Dafang's sons Shuntong and Daoshou were both condemned to death, and two grandsons died in prison.
28
卓敬，字惟恭，瑞安人。 穎悟過人，讀書十行俱下。 舉洪武二十一年進士。 除戶科給事中，鯁直無所避。 時制度未備，諸王服乘擬天子。 敬乘間言：「京師，天下視效。 陛下於諸王不早辨等威，而使服飾與太子埒，嫡庶相亂，尊卑無序，何以令天下？」 帝曰：「爾言是，朕慮未及此。」 益器重之。 他日與同官見，適八十一人，命改官為「元士」。 尋以六科為政事本源，又改曰「源士」。 已，復稱給事中。 歷官戶部侍郎。
Zhuo Jing, styled Weigong, came from Ruian. Quick beyond his peers, he read ten lines at a glance. He passed the jinshi examination in the twenty-first year of Hongwu. Appointed supervising secretary of the household section, he was blunt and upright and spared no one. Institutions were still incomplete, and princes dressed and traveled in a manner fit for the Son of Heaven. Jing seized an opportunity to say, "The capital is what the whole realm takes as its model. Your Majesty has not early distinguished the princes' ranks, yet allows their dress to rival the crown prince's; legitimate and secondary lines are confused and honor and baseness lose order—how can you command the realm? The emperor said, "You are right—I had not yet thought of this." He valued Jing all the more highly. On another day, meeting with his colleagues, there happened to be eighty-one of them; the emperor ordered their title changed to "Primary Scholar." Soon, because the six supervising-secretary sections were the root of government affairs, he changed the title again to "Source Scholar." Later the title reverted to supervising secretary. He rose to Vice Minister of Revenue.
29
敬立朝慷慨，美豐姿，善談論，凡天官、輿地、律歷、兵刑諸家，無不博究。 成祖嘗嘆曰：：「國家養士三十年，惟得一卓敬。」 萬歷初，用御史屠叔方言，表墓建祠。
Jing was forthright at court, handsome in bearing, and eloquent in debate; he had studied every field from astronomy and geography to calendrics, military law, and penal law. The Yongle Emperor once sighed and said, "The state has nurtured scholars for thirty years and gained only one Zhuo Jing. At the start of the Wanli reign, on Censor Tu Shufang's proposal, a marked tomb and shrine were established for him.
30
同時戶部侍郎死者，有郭任、盧迥。
Among the vice ministers of revenue who died at the same time were Guo Ren and Lu Jiong.
31
任，丹徒人，一曰定遠人。 廉慎有能。 建文初，佐戶部。 飲食起居俱在公署。 時方貶削諸藩，任言：「天下事先本後末則易成。 今日儲財粟，備軍實，果何為者？ 乃北討周，南討湘。 舍其本而末是圖，非策也。 且兵貴神速，茍曠日持久，銳氣既竭，姑息隨之，將坐自困耳。」 燕王聞而惡之。 兵起，任與同官盧迥主調兵食。 京師失守被擒，不屈死之。 子經亦論死，少子戍廣西。
Ren came from Dantu, though some say Dingyuan. He was honest, careful, and capable. At the start of Jianwen he served in the Ministry of Revenue. He ate, drank, and slept in the government offices. As the princely domains were being pared back, Ren said, "In governing the realm, put the root before the branches and success comes easily. We are stockpiling wealth and grain and preparing armies—for what end? Yet we campaign north against Zhou and south against Xiang. To abandon the root and chase the branches is no strategy at all. Moreover, war prizes speed; if the campaign drags on, sharp spirit fades, indulgence sets in, and we will trap ourselves. The Prince of Yan heard this and hated him for it. When war broke out, Ren and his colleague Lu Jiong took charge of mobilizing troops and supplies. When the capital fell he was captured and died refusing to submit. His son Jing was likewise condemned to death; his younger son was banished to garrison service in Guangxi.
32
迥，仙居人。 爽朗不拘細行。 喜飲酒，飲後輒高歌，人謂「迥狂」。 及仕，折節恭慎。 建文三年，拜戶部侍郎。 燕兵入，不屈。 縛就刑，長謳而死。 臺人祀之八忠祠。
Jiong came from Xianju. He was open-hearted and cared little for petty proprieties. He loved wine and would sing loudly after drinking; people called him "Mad Jiong." Once in office he restrained himself and became respectful and careful. In the third year of Jianwen he was appointed vice minister of revenue. When Yan forces entered the capital he refused to submit. Bound for execution, he sang at length as he died. The people of Taizhou honor him in the Shrine of the Eight Loyalists.
33
陳迪，字景道，宣城人。 祖宥賢，明初，從征有功，世撫州守禦百戶，因家焉。 迪倜儻有誌操。 辟府學訓導，為郡草《賀萬壽表》。 太祖異之。 久之，以通經薦，歷官侍講。 出為山東左參政，多惠政。 丁內艱。 起復，除雲南右布政使。 普定、曲靖、烏撒、烏蒙諸蠻煽亂，迪率士兵擊破之，賜金幣。
Chen Di, styled Jingdao, came from Xuancheng. His grandfather Youxian served in the founding campaigns with distinction and held a hereditary garrison post at Fuzhou, where the family settled. Di was bold and high-minded, with firm moral resolve. Recruited as prefectural school instructor, he drafted the county's "Memorial Congratulating Long Life." The founding emperor was impressed. In time he was recommended for classical learning and rose to reader at court. Posted as left administrative commissioner of Shandong, he left a record of benevolent governance. He entered mourning for his mother. Recalled from mourning, he was appointed right provincial administration commissioner of Yunnan. When the tribes of Puding, Qujing, Wusa, and Wumeng rose in revolt, Di led local troops to defeat them and was rewarded with gold and silks.
34
建文初，征為禮部尚書。 時更修制度，沿革損益，迪議為多。 會以水旱詔百官集議，迪請清刑獄，招流民，凡二十余事，皆從之。 尋加太子少保。 李景隆等數戰敗，迪陳大計。 命督運軍儲。 已，聞變，趨赴京師。
At the start of Jianwen he was summoned to serve as Minister of Rites. As institutions were being revised, Di contributed many proposals on what to keep, cut, or add. When flood and drought prompted the emperor to summon officials for counsel, Di proposed clearing the prisons, resettling refugees, and more than twenty other measures—all were adopted. He was soon made junior guardian of the heir apparent. After Li Jinglong's repeated defeats, Di laid out a grand strategy. He was ordered to supervise the transport of military supplies. Later, hearing of the crisis, he rushed to the capital.
35
燕王即帝位，召迪責問，抗聲不屈。 命與子鳳山、丹山等六人磔於市。 既死，人於衣帶中得詩及《五噫歌》，辭意悲烈。 蒼頭侯來保拾其遺骸歸葬。 妻管縊死。 幼子珠生五月，乳母潛置溝中，得免。 八歲，為怨家所訐。 成祖宥其死，戍撫寧。 尋徙登州，為蓬萊人。 洪熙初，赦還鄉，給田產。 成化中，寧國知府塗觀建祠祀迪。 弘治間，裔孫鼎舉進士，仕至應天府尹，剛鯁有聲。
When the Prince of Yan took the throne he summoned Di to account for himself; Di answered defiantly and would not submit. He ordered Di, together with his sons Fengshan and Danshan and four others, torn apart in the marketplace. After his death, poems and the "Five Sighs Song" were found in his belt—words of tragic defiance. His servant Hou Laibao gathered his remains and buried them. His wife Guan hanged herself. His infant son Zhu, only five months old, was secretly left in a ditch by his wet nurse and survived. At eight he was denounced by an enemy family. The Yongle Emperor spared his life and banished him to Funing. He was soon moved to Dengzhou and became a man of Penglai. At the start of Hongxi he was pardoned and sent home with fields and property granted. In the Chenghua reign Prefect Tu Guan of Ningguo built a shrine to honor Di. In the Hongzhi reign his descendant Ding passed the jinshi and rose to intendant of Yingtian Prefecture, famed for stern integrity.
36
黃魁，不知何許人。 為禮部侍郎，有學行，習典禮。 迪及侍郎黃觀皆愛敬人。 燕兵入，不屈死。
Huang Kui's place of origin is unknown. He served as vice minister of rites, was learned and upright, and versed in ceremonial law. Both Di and Vice Minister Huang Guan were widely loved and respected. When Yan forces entered the capital he died refusing to submit.
37
有巨敬者，平涼人。 為御史，改戶部主事，充史官，以清慎稱。 與迪同不屈死，夷其族。
There was also Ju Jing, from Pingliang. A censor, then a principal clerk in the Ministry of Revenue and a historiographer, he was known for integrity and care. Like Di he died refusing to submit, and his clan was exterminated.
38
景清，本耿姓，訛景，真寧人。 倜儻尚大節，讀書一過不忘。 洪武中進士，授編修，改御史。 三十年春，召見，命署左僉都御史。 以奏疏字誤，懷印更改，為給事中所劾，下詔獄。 尋宥之。 詔巡察川、陜私茶，除金華知府。 建文初，為北平參議。 燕王與語，言論明晰，大稱賞。 再遷御史大夫。 燕師入，諸臣死者甚眾。 清素預密謀，且約孝孺等同殉國，至是獨詣闕自歸，成祖命仍其官，委蛇班行者久之。 一日早朝，清衣緋懷刃入。 先是，日者奏異星赤色犯帝座，甚急。 成祖故疑清。 及朝，清獨著緋。 命搜之，得所藏刃。 詰責，清奮起曰：「欲為故主報仇耳！」 成祖怒，磔死，族之。 籍其鄉，轉相攀染，謂之「瓜蔓抄」，村裏為墟。
Jing Qing was originally surnamed Geng—the character was corrupted to Jing—and he came from Zhenning. Bold and high-minded, he prized great integrity and never forgot what he read at a single pass. A jinshi under Hongwu, he became a compiler and then a censor. In the spring of the thirtieth year he was summoned to court and appointed acting Left Vice Censor-in-Chief. When a memorial contained a wrong character he carried his seal to correct it, was impeached by a supervising secretary, and thrown into prison. He was soon pardoned. By edict he inspected illicit tea trade in Sichuan and Shaanxi, then was appointed prefect of Jinhua. At the start of Jianwen he served as a councilor in Beiping. The Prince of Yan spoke with him, found his discourse lucid, and praised him highly. He was promoted again to censor-in-chief. When Yan forces entered the capital, many officials died. Qing had taken part in secret plots and had even agreed with Xiaoru and others to die for the state; now he alone presented himself at court to surrender. The Yongle Emperor kept him in office, and for a long time he went through the motions at court. One morning at court Qing entered in scarlet robes with a blade hidden on his person. Earlier the calendar officer had reported a red aberrant star encroaching on the imperial throne—a dire omen. The Yongle Emperor had therefore already suspected Qing. At court Qing alone wore scarlet. He was searched and the hidden blade was found. Under interrogation Qing cried out, "I meant only to avenge my former lord! The Yongle Emperor flew into a rage; Qing was torn apart by execution and his clan exterminated. His home district was registered and guilt spread from house to house in what was called "melon-vine confiscation," until villages lay in ruins.
39
初，金川門之啟，御史連楹叩馬欲刺成祖，被殺，屍植立不仆。 楹，襄垣人。
When the Jinchuan Gate was opened, Censor Lian Ying seized the prince's horse and tried to stab the Yongle Emperor; he was killed, and his corpse stood upright without falling. Ying came from Xiangyuan.
40
胡閏，字松友，鄱陽人。 太祖征陳友諒，過長沙王吳芮祠，見題壁詩，奇之，立召見帳前。 洪武四年，郡舉秀才，入見。 帝曰：「此書生故題詩鄱陽廟壁者邪？」 授都督府都事，遷經歷。 建文初，選右補闕，尋進大理寺少卿。 燕師起，與齊、黃輩晝夜畫軍事。 京師陷，召閏，不屈，與子傳道俱死。 幼子傳慶戍邊。 四歲女郡奴入功臣家，稍長識大義，日以爨灰汙面。 洪熙初，赦還鄉。 貧甚，誓不嫁。 見者競遺以錢谷，曰：「此忠臣女也。」
Hu Run, styled Songyou, came from Poyang. Campaigning against Chen Youliang, the founding emperor passed the shrine of King Wu Rui of Changsha, saw a poem on the wall, marveled at it, and summoned the author to his tent at once. In the fourth year of Hongwu the prefecture presented him as a xiucai scholar and he was received at court. The emperor said, "Is this not the scholar who wrote on the wall of the Poyang shrine? He was appointed chief clerk of the chief military commission and later promoted to registrar. At the start of Jianwen he was made Right Remonstrating Censor and soon promoted to vice minister of the Court of Judicial Review. When the Yan army rose he joined Qi, Huang, and their circle in planning military affairs day and night. When the capital fell he was summoned, refused to submit, and died together with his son Chuandao. His younger son Chuanqing was banished to frontier service. His four-year-old daughter Junu was taken into a meritorious minister's household; as she grew she understood what loyalty meant and daily smeared her face with hearth ash. At the start of Hongxi she was pardoned and sent home. Utterly poor, she vowed never to marry. Those who saw her pressed money and grain on her, saying, "This is a loyal minister's daughter."
41
高翔，朝邑人。 洪武中，以明經為監察御史。 建文時，戮力兵事。 成祖聞其名，與閏同召，欲用之。 翔喪服入見，語不遜。 族之，發其先冢，親黨悉戍邊。 諸給高氏產者皆加稅，曰：「令世世罵翔也。」
Gao Xiang came from Chaoyi. Under Hongwu he entered office through the classics examination and became an investigating censor. During Jianwen he threw himself into military affairs. The Yongle Emperor heard his name and summoned him with Run, intending to employ him. Xiang came before the throne in mourning dress and spoke without deference. His clan was exterminated, his ancestors' tombs desecrated, and all his kin banished to the frontier. All who received Gao family property were taxed extra, with the order, "Let them curse Xiang for generations."
42
王度，字子中，歸善人。 少力學，工文辭，用明經薦為山東道監察御史。 建文時，燕兵起，度悉心贊畫。 及王師屢敗，度奏請募兵。 小河之捷，奉命勞軍徐州。 還，方孝孺與度書，誓死社稷。 燕王稱帝，坐方黨謫戍賀縣，又坐語不遜，族。
Wang Du, styled Zizhong, came from Guishan. As a youth he studied hard and wrote well; recommended through the classics examination, he became investigating censor of the Shandong circuit. During Jianwen, when the Yan army rose, Du threw himself into planning and counsel. After the imperial armies suffered repeated defeats, Du memorialized asking to raise new troops. After the victory at Xiaohe he was ordered to visit the army at Xuzhou. On his return Fang Xiaoru wrote to Du, swearing to die with the altars of state. When the Prince of Yan took the throne, Du was punished as a member of Fang's faction and banished to Hexian; later, for disrespectful speech, his clan was exterminated.
43
度有智計。 盛庸之代景隆，度密陳便宜，是以有東昌之捷。 景隆征還，赦不誅，反用事。 忌庸等功，讒間之，度亦見疏。 論者以其用有未盡，惜之。
Du was shrewd and resourceful. When Sheng Yong replaced Jinglong, Du secretly proposed the strategy that won the victory at Dongchang. Jinglong was recalled, spared execution, and returned to power instead. Jealous of Yong and the others' achievements, he slandered them and drove them apart; Du too fell from favor. Later commentators regretted that his talents were never fully used.
44
戴德彜，奉化人。 洪武二十七年進士。 累官侍講。 太祖諭之曰：「翰林雖職文學，然既列禁近，凡國家政治得失，民生利害，當知無不言。 昔唐陸贄、崔群、李絳在翰林，皆能正言讜論，補益當時。 汝宜以古人自期。」 已，改監察御史。 建文時，改左拾遺。 燕王入，召見，不屈，死之。 德彜死時，兄弟並從京師。 嫂項家居，聞變，度禍且族，令闔舍逃去。 匿德彜二子山中，毀戴氏族譜，獨身留家。 收者至，無所得，械項至京，搒掠終無一言，戴族獲全。
Dai Deyi came from Fenghua. He passed the jinshi examination in the twenty-seventh year of Hongwu. He rose to reader at court. The founding emperor told him: "Though the Hanlin Academy is a literary office, once you stand within the forbidden precincts you must speak without reserve on every gain or loss in government and every harm or benefit to the people. In Tang times Lu Zhi, Cui Qun, and Li Jiang in the Hanlin all spoke boldly and gave forthright counsel that benefited their age. You should hold yourself to that standard. He was later made an investigating censor. During Jianwen he was made Left Reminder. When the Prince of Yan entered the capital he was summoned, refused to submit, and was put to death. When Deyi died his brothers were all with him in the capital. His sister-in-law Xiang was at home; hearing of the crisis, she judged the clan would be wiped out and ordered the whole household to flee. She hid Deyi's two sons in the mountains, destroyed the Dai clan genealogy, and stayed home alone. When arresters came they found nothing; Xiang was shackled and taken to the capital, tortured without uttering a word, and the Dai clan was spared.
45
時御史不屈死者，有諸城謝升、聊城丁誌方。 而懷寧甘霖從容就戮，子孫相戒不復仕。
Among the censors who died refusing to submit were Xie Sheng of Zhucheng and Ding Zhifang of Liaocheng. Gan Lin of Huaining went calmly to his execution; his descendants warned one another never to serve in office again.
46
又董鏞，不知何許人。 諸御史有誌節者，時時會鏞所，誓以死報國。 諸將校觀望不力戰，鏞輒露章劾之。 城破被殺，家戍極邊。 而給事中死者，則有陳繼之、韓永、葉福三人。
There was also Dong Yong, whose place of origin is unknown. Censors of firm resolve would gather at Yong's home and swear to die for the realm. Whenever officers held back and fought half-heartedly, Yong would submit open memorials impeaching them. When the city fell he was killed, and his family was banished to the farthest frontier. Among the supervising secretaries who died were Chen Jizhi, Han Yong, and Ye Fu.
47
繼之，莆田人，建文二年進士。 時江南僧道多腴田，繼之請人限五畝，余以賦民。 從之。 兵事亟，數條奏機宜。 燕兵入，不屈，見殺，父母兄弟悉戍邊。
Jizhi came from Putian and passed the jinshi in the second year of Jianwen. Monks and Daoists in the lower Yangzi region held much fertile land; Jizhi proposed limiting each to five mu and taxing the rest to the people. The proposal was adopted. As war grew urgent he submitted repeated memorials on strategy. When Yan forces entered he refused to submit and was killed; his parents and brothers were all banished to frontier service.
48
永，西安人，或曰浮山。 貌魁梧，音吐洪亮，每慷慨論兵事。 燕王入，欲官之，抗辭，不屈死。 福，侯官人，繼之同年生。 燕兵至，守金川門，城陷，死之。
Yong came from Xi'an, though some say Fushan. Imposing in bearing and resonant in speech, he often spoke passionately about military affairs. When the Prince of Yan entered he offered Yong office; Yong answered defiantly and died refusing to submit. Fu came from Houguan and had passed the examinations in the same year as Jizhi. When Yan forces arrived he defended the Jinchuan Gate and died when the city fell.
49
贊曰：帝王成事，蓋由天授。 成祖之得天下，非人力所能禦也。 齊、黃、方、練之儔，抱謀國之忠，而乏制勝之策。 然其忠憤激發，視刀鋸鼎鑊甘之若飴，百世而下，凜凜猶有生氣。 是豈泄然不恤國事而以一死自謝者所可同日道哉！ 由是觀之，固未可以成敗之常見論也。
The commentator says: The triumph of emperors and kings is granted by Heaven. The Yongle Emperor's seizure of the realm was not something human strength could have withstood. Men such as Qi, Huang, Fang, and Lian were loyal in their counsel for the state yet lacked the strategies to win. Yet their loyal fury was roused; they faced blade, saw, and cauldron as gladly as sweets—and a hundred generations later they still seem vividly alive. Surely they cannot be spoken of in the same breath as those who cared nothing for the realm and offered only a single death in excuse! Seen in this light, they cannot be judged by the common measure of success and failure alone.