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王守仁附:冀元亨
Wang Shouren, with appended biography: Ji Yuanheng
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王守仁
Wang Shouren
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王守仁，字伯安，余姚人。 父華，字德輝，成化十七年進士第一。 授修撰。 弘治中，累官學士、少詹事。 華有器度，在講幄最久，孝宗甚眷之。 李廣貴幸，華講《大學衍義》，至唐李輔國與張後表裡用事，指陳甚切。 帝命中官賜食勞焉。 正德初，進禮部左侍郎。 以守仁忤劉瑾，出為南京吏部尚書，坐事罷。 旋以《會典》小誤，降右侍郎。 瑾敗，乃復故，無何卒。 華性孝，母岑年逾百歲卒。 華已年七十余，猶寢苫蔬食，士論多之。
Wang Shouren, whose courtesy name was Bo'an, came from Yuyao. His father Wang Hua, styled Dehui, had placed first on the jinshi examination in Chenghua 17 (1481). He was appointed a Hanlin expositor. Under Hongzhi he rose through the ranks to Academician and Junior Mentor of the Heir Apparent. Hua was a man of stature and had lectured in the imperial study longer than anyone; Emperor Xiaozong held him in high regard. While the favored eunuch Li Guang was in power, Hua was expounding the Extended Meaning of the Great Learning; when he came to the Tang episode of Li Fuguo and Empress Zhang manipulating affairs from inside and outside the palace, his pointed remarks were cutting indeed. The emperor sent a eunuch with food to reward him for his effort. At the beginning of Zhengde he was promoted to Left Vice Minister of Rites. When Shouren ran afoul of Liu Jin, Hua was sent out as Minister of Personnel at Nanjing and soon dismissed on a charge. He was shortly demoted to Right Vice Minister over a small mistake in the Collected Statutes. After Jin's downfall he was restored to his old post, but died not long afterward. Hua was deeply filial; his mother Lady Cen died at more than a hundred years of age. Though Hua himself was past seventy, he still slept on a mourning mat and ate only plain food, and scholars widely commended him for it.
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守仁娠十四月而生。 祖母夢神人自雲中送兒下，因名雲。 五歲不能言，異人拊之，更名守仁，乃言。 年十五，訪客居庸、山海關。 時闌出塞，縱觀山川形勝。 弱冠舉鄉試，學大進。 顧益好言兵，且善射。 登弘治十二年進士。 使治前威寧伯王越葬，還而朝議方急西北邊，守仁條八事上之。 尋授刑部主事。 決囚江北，引疾歸。 起補兵部主事。 正德元年冬，劉瑾逮南京給事中御史戴銑等二十餘人。 守仁抗章救，瑾怒，廷杖四十，謫貴州龍場驛丞。 龍場萬山叢薄，苗、僚雜居。 守仁因俗化導，夷人喜，相率伐木為屋，以棲守仁。 瑾誅，量移廬陵知縣。 入覲，遷南京刑部主事，吏部尚書楊一清改之驗封。 屢遷考功郎中，擢南京太僕少卿，就遷鴻臚卿。
Shouren was in the womb fourteen months before he was born. His grandmother dreamed of a divine being descending from the clouds with a child, and for that reason he was first named Yun. Until he was five he could not speak; a stranger patted his head, he was renamed Shouren, and only then did he begin to talk. At fifteen he visited as a traveler the passes at Juyong and Shanhai. He would sometimes slip beyond the frontier and take in the lay of the land and its strategic terrain. When he came of age he passed the provincial examination, and his learning made great strides. He grew ever fonder of talking about warfare and was also an able archer. In Hongzhi 12 (1499) he passed the jinshi examination. He was assigned to arrange the funeral of the late Marquis of Weining, Wang Yue; when he returned, court debate was focused on the northwest frontier, and Shouren memorialized eight proposals. He was soon appointed principal clerk in the Ministry of Punishments. After adjudicating capital cases in the Jianghuai north, he pleaded illness and went home. He was recalled to fill a vacancy as principal clerk in the Ministry of War. In the winter of Zhengde 1 (1506), Liu Jin arrested more than twenty Nanjing supervising secretaries and censors, including Dai Xian. Shouren submitted a memorial in their defense; Jin was furious, had him beaten forty strokes in court, and banished him to assistant magistrate at Longchang Station in Guizhou. Longchang was buried in dense mountain forest, with Miao and Lao peoples living intermingled. Shouren civilized and instructed them according to local ways; the tribesmen were delighted and together cut timber to build a dwelling for him. When Jin was put to death, Shouren was transferred to magistrate of Luling. On presenting himself at court he was moved to principal clerk in the Nanjing Ministry of Punishments; Minister Yang Yiqing reassigned him to the Seals and Credentials bureau. He rose through repeated promotions to director in the Bureau of Merit, was then made Junior Director of the Nanjing Court of the Imperial Stud, and soon after Director of the Court of Imperial Entertainments.
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兵部尚書王瓊素奇守仁才。 十一年八月擢右僉都御史，巡撫南、贛。 當是時，南中盜賊蜂起。 謝志山據橫水、左溪、桶岡，池仲容據浰頭，皆稱王，與大庾陳曰能、樂昌高快馬、郴州龔福全等攻剽府縣。 而福建大帽山賊詹師富等又起。 前巡撫文森托疾避去。 志山合樂昌賊掠大庾，攻南康、贛州，贛縣主簿吳玭戰死。 守仁至，知左右多賊耳目，乃呼老黠隸詰之。 隸戰栗不敢隱，因貰其罪，令填賊，賊動靜無勿知。 於是檄福建、廣東會兵，先討大帽山賊。 明年正月，督副使楊璋等破賊長富村，逼之象湖山，指揮覃桓、縣丞紀鏞戰死。 守仁親率銳卒屯上杭。 佯退師，出不意搗之，連破四十余寨，俘斬七千有奇，指揮王鎧等擒師富。 疏言權輕，無以令將士，請給旗牌，提督軍務，得便宜從事。 尚書王瓊奏從其請。 乃更兵制：二十五人為伍，伍有小甲； 二伍為隊，隊有總甲； 四隊為哨，哨有長，協哨二佐之； 二哨為營，營有官，參謀二佐之； 三營為陣，陣有偏將； 二陣為軍，軍有副將。 皆臨事委，不命於朝； 副將以下，得遞相罰治。
Minister of War Wang Qiong had long regarded Shouren's ability with wonder. In the eighth month of the eleventh year (1516) he was promoted to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief and appointed grand coordinator of southern Jiangxi. At that time bandits were swarming across the southern provinces. Xie Zhishan held Hengshui, Zuoxi, and Tonggang; Chi Zhongrong held Nantou; each called himself king, and with Chen Yueneng of Dayu, Gao Kuaima of Lechang, Gong Fuquan of Chenzhou, and others they plundered prefectures and counties. Meanwhile the bandits of Damao Mountain in Fujian, led by Zhan Shifu, also rose up. The previous grand coordinator Wen Sen had pleaded illness and left the post. Zhishan allied with the Lechang bandits to raid Dayu and assault Nankang and Ganzhou; Wu Yi, registrar of Ganzhen, was killed in the fighting. When Shouren arrived he realized that many of those around him were the bandits' spies, and he summoned an old, shrewd clerk for questioning. The clerk trembled and dared conceal nothing; Shouren remitted his offenses and set him to infiltrate the bandits, so that their every move was known. He then ordered Fujian and Guangdong to muster troops and struck first at the Damao Mountain bandits. In the first month of the following year, under Vice Commissioner Yang Zhang and others, the bandits were broken at Changfu village and driven toward Xianghu Mountain; Commander Tan Huan and Assistant Magistrate Ji Yong fell in battle. Shouren personally led crack troops and encamped at Shanghang. He feigned a withdrawal and struck where they did not expect it, taking more than forty stockades in succession and capturing or killing more than seven thousand; Commander Wang Kai and others seized Shifu. In a memorial he said his authority was too light to command the troops and asked for banners of office, overall supervision of military affairs, and discretionary authority. Minister Wang Qiong memorialized that his request be approved. He then reorganized the army: twenty-five men to a squad, each squad with a squad leader; two squads to a platoon, each platoon with a platoon chief; four platoons to a sentry, each sentry with a chief and two assistants; two sentries to a camp, each camp with an officer and two staff aides; three camps to a battle array, each array with a deputy commander; two arrays to an army, each army with a vice general. All were appointed on the spot for the campaign and took no orders from the capital; and below the vice general each rank could discipline the ranks beneath it in turn.
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其年七月進兵大庾。 志山乘間急攻南安，知府季斅擊敗之。 副使楊璋等亦生縶曰能以歸。 遂議討橫水、左溪。 十月，都指揮許清、贛州知府邢珣、寧都知縣王天與各一軍會橫水，斅及守備郟文、汀州知府唐淳、縣丞舒富各一軍會左溪，吉安知府伍文定、程鄉知縣張戩遏其奔軼。 守仁自駐南康，去橫水三十里，先遣四百人伏賊巢左右，進軍逼之。 賊方迎戰，兩山舉幟。 賊大驚，謂官軍已盡犁其巢，遂潰。 乘勝克橫水，志山及其黨蕭貴模等皆走桶岡。 左溪亦破。 守仁以桶岡險固，移營近地，諭以禍福。 賊首藍廷鳳等方震恐，見使至大喜，期仲冬朔降，而珣、文定已冒雨奪險入。 賊阻水陣，珣直前搏戰，文定與戩自右出，賊倉卒敗走，遇淳兵又敗。 諸軍破桶岡，志山、貴模、廷鳳面縛降。 凡破巢八十有四，俘斬六千有奇。 時湖廣巡撫秦金亦破福全。 其黨千人突至，諸將擒斬之。 乃設崇義縣於橫水，控諸瑤。
That year, in the seventh month, he marched into Dayu. Zhishan seized an opening to press hard on Nan'an; Prefect Ji Que defeated him. Vice Commissioner Yang Zhang and others also took Chen Yueneng alive and brought him in. They then planned a campaign against Hengshui and Zuoxi. In the tenth month Regional Commander Xu Qing, Ganzhou Prefect Xing Qi, and Ningdu Magistrate Wang Tianyu each led a force to Hengshui; Ji Que, Garrison Commander Zou Wen, Tingzhou Prefect Tang Chun, and Assistant Magistrate Shu Fu each led a force to Zuoxi; Ji'an Prefect Wu Wendading and Chengxiang Magistrate Zhang Xian cut off their escape. Shouren himself held Nankang, thirty li from Hengshui, first sent four hundred men to lie in ambush on either side of the bandit lair, then advanced to press them. As the bandits came out to fight, banners rose on both hills. The bandits were terrified, believing the government troops had already overrun their lair, and broke and fled. Pressing the victory they took Hengshui; Zhishan and his followers Xiao Guimo and the rest all fled to Tonggang. Zuoxi fell as well. Shouren judged Tonggang steep and strong, moved his camp closer, and admonished the bandits on the consequences of fortune and ruin. The bandit leaders Lan Tingfeng and the rest were already shaken with fear; when the envoy came they were overjoyed and set the first day of the eleventh month to surrender, but Xing and Wendading had already forced the passes in the rain. The bandits formed a line across the water; Xing charged straight in to grapple; Wendading and Zhang came out on the right; the bandits broke in confusion, and meeting Tang Chun's troops were beaten again. The combined forces broke Tonggang; Zhishan, Guimo, and Tingfeng came forward with bound hands to surrender. In all they destroyed eighty-four lairs and captured or killed more than six thousand. By then Huguang Grand Coordinator Qin Jin had also defeated Fuquan. A thousand of his followers made a sudden thrust; the generals captured and killed them. They then established Chongyi County at Hengshui to keep the Yao peoples in check.
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還至贛州，議討浰頭賊。 初，守仁之平師富也，龍川賊盧珂、鄭志高、陳英咸請降。 及征橫水，浰頭賊將黃金巢亦以五百人降，獨仲容未下。 橫水破，仲容始遣弟仲安來歸，而嚴為戰守備。 詭言：「珂、志高，仇也，將襲我，故為備。」 守仁佯杖系珂等，而陰使珂弟集兵待，遂下令散兵。 歲首大張燈樂，仲容信且疑。 守仁賜以節物，誘入謝。 仲容率九十三人營教場，而自以數人入謁。 守仁呵之曰：「若皆吾民，屯於外，疑我乎？」 悉引入祥符宮，厚飲食之。 賊大喜過望，益自安。 守仁留仲容觀燈樂。 正月三日大享，伏甲士於門，諸賊入，以次悉擒戮之。 自將抵賊巢，連破上、中、下三浰，斬馘二千有奇。 余賊奔九連山。 山橫亙數百里，陡絕不可攻。 乃簡壯士七百人衣賊衣，奔崖下，賊招之上。 官軍進攻，內外合擊，擒斬無遺。 乃於下浰立和平縣，置戍而歸。 自是境內大定。
On returning to Ganzhou they planned an expedition against the Nantou bandits. Earlier, when Shouren had pacified Shifu, the Longchuan bandits Lu Ke, Zheng Zhigao, and Chen Ying had all offered to surrender. During the campaign against Hengshui, the Nantou bandit commander Huang Jinchao also surrendered with five hundred men, but Zhongrong alone had not submitted. After Hengshui fell, Zhongrong at last sent his younger brother Zhong'an to submit, yet he kept his defenses tight for war. He falsely claimed: "Ke and Zhigao are my enemies and mean to strike me, so I must prepare. Shouren pretended to beat and bind Ke and the others, but secretly had Ke's younger brother muster troops in readiness, then ordered the army disbanded. At the New Year he staged lanterns and music on a grand scale; Zhongrong half believed and half doubted. Shouren gave him festival gifts and lured him in to offer thanks. Zhongrong led ninety-three men to encamp on the drill ground while he himself came in with only a few men to pay his respects. Shouren rebuked him: "If you are all my people, why camp outside—do you doubt me? He had them all brought into Xiangfu Palace and gave them a lavish feast. The bandits were delighted beyond all expectation and grew still more at ease. Shouren kept Zhongrong to watch the lanterns and music. On the third day of the first month he held a great feast; armed men lay hidden at the gate; as the bandits entered they were seized and killed one after another. He himself led troops against the bandit lair, taking in succession the upper, middle, and lower Nantou, and killing more than two thousand. The remaining bandits fled to Jiulian Mountain. The mountain ran several hundred li, sheer and impossible to assault. He then picked seven hundred stalwart men, dressed them in bandit clothing, and sent them racing down the cliff; the bandits beckoned them up. The government troops attacked from without while those within struck together; not one was left alive. He then established Heping County at lower Nantou, posted a garrison, and returned. From then on the whole region was at peace.
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初，朝議賊勢強，發廣東、湖廣兵合剿。 守仁上疏止之，不及。 桶岡既滅，湖廣兵始至。 及平浰頭，廣東尚未承檄。 守仁所將皆文吏及偏裨小校，平數十年巨寇，遠近驚為神。 進右副都御史，予世襲錦衣衛百戶，再進副千戶。
Earlier the court had judged the bandits too strong and ordered troops from Guangdong and Huguang to join in a combined suppression. Shouren memorialized to halt this, but too late. After Tonggang had been destroyed, the Huguang troops only then arrived. By the time Nantou was pacified, Guangdong had still not received the order. The men Shouren led were all civil officials and junior officers, yet he pacified bandits that had plagued the region for decades, and people near and far hailed him as miraculous. He was promoted to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, granted a hereditary hundred-household post in the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and later advanced to deputy thousand-household.
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十四年六月，命勘福建叛軍。 行至豐城而寧王宸濠反，知縣顧佖以告。 守仁急趨吉安，與伍文定征調兵食，治器械舟楫，傳檄暴宸濠罪，俾守令各率吏士勤王。 都御史王懋中，編修鄒守益，副使羅循、羅欽德，郎中曾直，御史張鰲山、周魯，評事羅僑，同知郭祥鵬，進士郭持平，降謫驛丞王思、李中，咸赴守仁軍。 御史謝源、伍希儒自廣東還，守仁留之紀功。 因集眾議曰：「賊若出長江順流東下，則南都不可保。 吾欲以計撓之，少遲旬日無患矣。」 乃多遣間諜，檄府縣言：「都督許泰、郤永將邊兵，都督劉暉、桂勇將京兵，各四萬，水陸併進。 南贛王守仁、湖廣秦金、兩廣楊旦各率所部合十六萬，直搗南昌，所至有司缺供者，以軍法論。」 又為蠟書遺偽相李士實、劉養正，敘其歸國之誠，令從臾早發兵東下，而縱諜泄之。 宸濠果疑。 與士實、養正謀，則皆勸之疾趨南京即大位，宸濠益大疑。 十余日詗知中外兵不至，乃悟守仁紿之。 七月壬辰朔，留宜春王拱嵒居守，而劫其眾六萬人，襲下九江、南康，出大江，薄安慶。 守仁聞南昌兵少則大喜，趨樟樹鎮。 知府臨江戴德孺、袁州徐璉、贛州邢珣，都指揮余恩，通判瑞州胡堯元、童琦、撫州鄒琥、安吉談儲，推官王、徐文英，知縣新淦李美、泰和李楫、萬安王冕、寧都王天與，各以兵來會，合八萬人，號三十萬。 或請救安慶，守仁曰：「不然。 今九江、南康已為賊守，我越南昌與相持江上，二郡兵絕我後，是腹背受敵也。 不如直搗南昌。 賊精銳悉出，守備虛。 我軍新集氣銳，攻必破。 賊聞南昌破，必解圍自救。 逆擊之湖中，蔑不勝矣。」 眾曰「善」。 己酉次豐城，以文定為前鋒，選遣奉新知縣劉守緒襲其伏兵。 庚戌夜半，文定兵抵廣潤門，守兵駭散。 辛亥黎明，諸軍梯糹亙登，縛拱嵒等，宮人多焚死。 軍士頗殺掠，守仁戮犯令者十餘人，宥脅從，安士民，慰諭宗室，人心乃悅。
In the sixth month of the fourteenth year he was ordered to investigate the Fujian rebels. When he reached Fengcheng he learned that the Prince of Ning, Chen Hao, had rebelled; Magistrate Gu Yi brought him the news. Shouren hurried to Ji'an, and with Wu Wendading raised troops and supplies, prepared arms and boats, issued proclamations exposing Chen Hao's crimes, and ordered every prefect and magistrate to lead clerks and soldiers to the emperor's aid. Censor-in-Chief Wang Maozhong, Hanlin compiler Zou Shouyi, Vice Commissioners Luo Xun and Luo Qinde, Director Zeng Zhi, Censors Zhang Aoshan and Zhou Lu, Judicial Reviewer Luo Qiao, Subprefect Guo Xiangpeng, Jinshi Guo Chiping, and the demoted postal assistant magistrates Wang Si and Li Zhong all joined Shouren's army. Censors Xie Yuan and Wu Xiru, returning from Guangdong, Shouren kept to record achievements. He then gathered his officers and said: "If the rebels sail down the Yangzi with the current toward the east, the southern capital cannot be held. I mean to thwart them by stratagem; if we delay them a fortnight or so, we need not worry. He then sent out many spies and issued orders to prefectures and counties saying: "Regional Commanders Xu Tai and Xi Yong will lead frontier troops, Regional Commanders Liu Hui and Gui Yong will lead capital troops, forty thousand each, advancing together by land and water. Wang Shouren of southern Jiangxi, Qin Jin of Huguang, and Yang Dan of the two Guang, each leading his forces for a combined total of one hundred sixty thousand, will strike straight at Nanchang; wherever officials fail in supplies, military law will apply. He also wrote a wax-sealed letter to the rebel chancellors Li Shishi and Liu Yangzheng, professing their loyalty to the realm and urging them to hurry the army eastward, then deliberately let spies leak it. Chen Hao did grow suspicious. When he consulted Shishi and Yangzheng, they all urged him to hurry to Nanjing and seize the throne; Chen Hao grew still more suspicious. After more than ten days of inquiry he learned that no troops from within or without were coming, and then realized Shouren had deceived him. On the first day of the seventh month he left the Prince of Yichun, Gong Yan, to hold the city, seized his host of sixty thousand, stormed Jiujiang and Nankang, entered the great river, and pressed upon Anqing. When Shouren heard that Nanchang was lightly garrisoned he was greatly pleased and hurried to Zhangshu. Prefect Dai Deru of Linjiang, Xu Lian of Yuanzhou, Xing Qi of Ganzhou, Regional Commander Yu En, Subprefects Hu Yaoyuan and Tong Qi of Ruizhou, Zou Hu of Fuzhou, Tan Chu of Anji, Judicial Reviewers Wang and Xu Wenyin, and Magistrates Li Mei of Xingan, Li Ji of Taihe, Wang Mian of Wan'an, and Wang Tianyu of Ningdu each came with troops; together they numbered eighty thousand and proclaimed three hundred thousand. Some urged rescuing Anqing; Shouren said: "That will not do. Jiujiang and Nankang are already in rebel hands; if we cross south of Nanchang and face them on the river, the troops of those two prefectures will cut off our rear—we would be caught between two fires. Better to strike straight at Nanchang. Their crack troops have all marched out; the garrison is empty. Our army is freshly gathered and full of fight; attack and we are sure to take it. When the rebels hear Nanchang has fallen they are sure to lift the siege and hurry back. Meet them on the lake and strike, and we cannot fail to win. All said, "Well said." On ji-you he halted at Fengcheng, made Wendading vanguard, and sent Fengxin Magistrate Liu Shouxu to strike their ambush troops. At midnight on geng-xu Wendading's troops reached the Guangrun Gate; the garrison broke and fled in terror. At dawn on xin-hai the various armies climbed scaling ladders, bound Gong Yan and the rest, and many palace women perished in the flames. The soldiers killed and plundered freely; Shouren executed more than ten who violated orders, pardoned those who had been coerced, reassured scholars and commoners, and comforted the imperial clan, and the people were won over.
10
居二日，遣文定、珣、璉、德孺各將精兵分道進，而使堯元等設伏。 宸濠果自安慶還兵。 乙卯遇於黃家渡。 文定當其前鋒，賊趨利。 珣繞出賊背貫其中，文定、恩乘之，璉、德孺張兩翼分賊勢，堯元等伏發，賊大潰，退保八字腦。 宸濠懼，盡發南康、九江兵。 守仁遣知府撫州陳槐、饒州林城取九江，建昌曾璵、廣信周朝佐取南康。 丙辰復戰，官軍卻，守仁斬先卻者。 諸軍殊死戰，賊復大敗。 退保樵舍，聯舟為方陣，盡出金寶犒士。 明日，宸濠方晨朝其群臣，官軍奄至。 以小舟載薪，乘風縱火，焚其副舟，妃婁氏以下皆投水死。 宸濠舟膠淺，倉卒易舟遁，王冕所部兵追執之。 士實、養正及降賊按察使楊璋等皆就擒。 南康、九江亦下。 凡三十五日而賊平。 京師聞變，諸大臣震懼。 王瓊大言曰：「王伯安居南昌上游，必擒賊。」 至是，果奏捷。
Two days later he sent Wendading, Xing, Lian, and Deru each leading crack troops by separate routes, while Yaoyuan and others lay in ambush. Chen Hao did return his troops from Anqing. On yi-mao they met at Huangjia Ford. Wendading met their vanguard; the rebels rushed to seize the advantage. Xing swung around behind the rebels and drove through their center; Wendading and En pressed the attack; Lian and Deru spread both wings to split the rebel force; Yaoyuan and others sprang the ambush; the rebels broke and fled, falling back to hold Bazinao. Chen Hao was afraid and threw out every soldier from Nankang and Jiujiang. Shouren sent Fuzhou Prefect Chen Huai and Raozhou Prefect Lin Cheng to take Jiujiang, and Zeng Yu of Jianchang and Zhou Chaozuo of Guangxin to take Nankang. On bing-chen they fought again; the government troops fell back; Shouren executed those who retreated first. The various armies fought to the death; the rebels were beaten again. They fell back to Qiaoshe, lashed their boats into a square formation, and poured out all their gold and treasure to reward the troops. The next day Chen Hao was just holding morning court with his ministers when the government army fell upon them. Small boats loaded with kindling rode the wind to set fires and burn the secondary boats; Consort Lou and those below all threw themselves into the water and drowned. Chen Hao's boat ran aground in the shallows; in haste he changed boats to flee; Wang Mian's troops pursued and seized him. Shishi, Yangzheng, and the surrendered rebel Surveillance Commissioner Yang Zhang and others were all taken. Nankang and Jiujiang fell as well. In thirty-five days the rebellion was put down. When the capital heard of the uprising, the ministers were shaken with fear. Wang Qiong declared loudly: "Wang Bo'an holds the upper Yangzi above Nanchang; he is sure to capture the rebels. And by then victory was indeed reported.
11
帝時已親征，自稱「威武大將軍」，率京邊驍卒數萬南下。 命安邊伯許泰為副將軍，偕提督軍務太監張忠、平賊將軍左都督劉暉將京軍數千，溯江而上，抵南昌。 諸嬖幸故與宸濠通，守仁初上宸濠反書，因言：「覬覦者非特一寧王，請黜奸諛以回天下豪傑心。」 諸嬖幸皆恨。 宸濠既平，則相與媢功。 且懼守仁見天子發其罪，競為蜚語，謂守仁先與通謀，慮事不成，乃起兵。 又欲令縱宸濠湖中，待帝自擒。 守仁乘忠、泰未至，先俘宸濠，發南昌。 忠、泰以威武大將軍檄邀之廣信。 守仁不與，間道趨玉山，上書請獻俘，止帝南征。 帝不許。 至錢唐遇太監張永。 永提督贊畫機密軍務，在忠、泰輩上，而故與楊一清善，除劉瑾，天下稱之。 守仁夜見永，頌其賢，因極言江西困敝，不堪六師擾。 永深然之，曰：「永此來，為調護聖躬，非邀功也。 公大勛，永知之，但事不可直情耳。」 守仁乃以宸濠付永，而身至京口，欲朝行在。 聞巡撫江西命，乃還南昌。 忠、泰已先至，恨失宸濠。 故縱京軍犯守仁，或呼名嫚罵。 守仁不為動，撫之愈厚。 病予藥，死予棺，遭喪於道，必停車慰問良久始去。 京軍謂「王都堂愛我」，無復犯者。 忠、泰言：「寧府富厚甲天下，今所蓄安在？」 守仁曰：「宸濠異時盡以輸京師要人，約內應，籍可按也。」 忠、泰故嘗納宸濠賄者，氣懾不敢復言。 已，輕守仁文士，強之射。 徐起，三發三中。 京軍皆歡呼，忠、泰益沮。 會冬至，守仁命居民巷祭，已，上冢哭。 時新喪亂，悲號震野。 京軍離家久，聞之無不泣下思歸者。 忠、泰不得已班師。 比見帝，與紀功給事中祝續、御史章綸讒毀百端，獨永時時左右之。 忠揚言帝前曰：「守仁必反，試召之，必不至。」 忠、泰屢矯旨召守仁。 守仁得永密信，不赴。 及是知出帝意，立馳至。 忠、泰計沮，不令見帝。 守仁乃入九華山，日晏坐僧寺。 帝覘知之，曰：「王守仁學道人，聞召即至，何謂反？」 乃遣還鎮，令更上捷音。 守仁乃易前奏，言「奉威武大將軍方略討平叛亂」，而盡入諸嬖幸名，江彬等乃無言。
The emperor had already gone on campaign in person, styling himself Grand General of Martial Prestige, and led tens of thousands of crack troops from the capital and frontier southward. He appointed the Earl Who Pacifies the Frontier, Xu Tai, vice general; together with the eunuch Zhang Zhong, supervisor of military affairs, and the Pacification General, Left Regional Commander Liu Hui, they led several thousand capital troops up the river to Nanchang. The emperor's favorites had long been in league with Chen Hao; when Shouren first reported the rebellion he also wrote: "Those who covet the throne are not only the Prince of Ning; dismiss the sycophants and flatterers to win back the hearts of heroes throughout the realm. The favorites all hated him for it. Once Chen Hao was defeated, they joined together to claim the credit. They also feared that if Shouren saw the emperor he would expose their crimes; they spread slander far and wide, saying Shouren had first conspired with Chen Hao and, fearing failure, then raised troops. They also wanted Chen Hao released on the lake so the emperor could capture him himself. Before Zhong and Tai arrived, Shouren captured Chen Hao first and set out from Nanchang with him. Zhong and Tai, by order of the Grand General of Martial Prestige, summoned him to Guangxin. Shouren refused; by a side road he hurried to Yushan and memorialized asking to present the captive and halt the emperor's southern campaign. The emperor would not agree. At Qiantang he met the eunuch Zhang Yong. Yong supervised secret military planning and outranked Zhong, Tai, and their sort; he was also old friends with Yang Yiqing and had helped remove Liu Jin, for which the realm praised him. Shouren visited Yong by night, praised his worth, and spoke at length of how exhausted Jiangxi was and could not bear the disturbance of the imperial armies. Yong deeply agreed and said: "I have come to safeguard the emperor's person, not to claim merit. Your great merit I know well, but the affair cannot follow straightforward feeling. Shouren then handed Chen Hao over to Yong and himself went to Jingkou, wishing to attend the emperor's camp. On hearing he had been appointed grand coordinator of Jiangxi, he returned to Nanchang. Zhong and Tai had already arrived and resented having lost Chen Hao. They therefore let the capital troops harass Shouren, some calling his name and reviling him. Shouren was unmoved and treated them all the more generously. If they fell ill he gave them medicine; if they died he gave them coffins; if they met with mourning on the road he always halted his carriage to console them at length before moving on. The capital troops said, "Commissioner Wang cares for us," and none offended him again. Zhong and Tai said: "The Prince of Ning's wealth topped the realm; where is what he stored now? Shouren said: "Chen Hao long ago gave it all to powerful men in the capital, arranging for inside collusion; the registers can be checked." Zhong and Tai had themselves accepted bribes from Chen Hao; cowed, they dared say no more. Later, despising Shouren as a mere scholar, they forced him to shoot. He rose slowly and with three shots hit the target three times. The capital troops all cheered; Zhong and Tai grew still more dejected. At the winter solstice Shouren ordered the residents to perform lane sacrifices; afterward he went to the tombs and wept. The land had just been torn by rebellion and mourning; cries of grief shook the open country. The capital troops had been long from home; hearing this, every one of them wept and longed to return. Zhong and Tai had no choice but to withdraw the army. When they saw the emperor, together with Merit-Recording Supervising Secretary Zhu Xu and Censor Zhang Lun they slandered him in every way; only Yong from time to time spoke in his favor. Zhong declared before the emperor: "Shouren is sure to rebel; try summoning him—he will not come. Zhong and Tai repeatedly forged orders summoning Shouren. Shouren received Yong's secret letter and did not go. When he learned this came from the emperor himself he galloped to attend at once. Zhong and Tai's plot was thwarted; they would not let him see the emperor. Shouren then withdrew to Jiuhua Mountain and at day's end sat in a monk's temple. The emperor learned of it and said: "Wang Shouren is a man who studies the Way; hearing a summons he comes at once—how can he be called a rebel? He then sent him back to his post and ordered him to submit a new report of victory. Shouren then altered his former memorial, saying he had followed the Grand General of Martial Prestige's strategy in pacifying the rebellion, and entered the names of all the favorites; Jiang Bin and the rest then had nothing to say.
12
當是時，讒邪構煽，禍變叵測，微守仁，東南事幾殆。 世宗深知之。 甫即位，趣召入朝受封。 而大學士楊廷和與王瓊不相能。 守仁前後平賊，率歸功瓊，廷和不喜，大臣亦多忌其功。 會有言國哀未畢，不宜舉宴行賞者，因拜守仁南京兵部尚書。 守仁不赴，請歸省。 已，論功封特進光祿大夫、柱國、新建伯，世襲，歲祿一千石。 然不予鐵券，歲祿亦不給。 諸同事有功者，惟吉安守伍文定至大官，當上賞。 其他皆名示遷，而陰絀之，廢斥無存者。 守仁憤甚。 時已丁父憂，屢疏辭爵，乞錄諸臣功，咸報寢。 免喪，亦不召。 久之，所善席書及門人方獻夫、黃綰以議禮得幸，言於張璁、桂萼，將召用，而費宏故銜守仁，復沮之。 屢推兵部尚書，三邊總督，提督團營，皆弗果用。
At that time slanderers and the wicked were stirring trouble and disaster was hard to foresee; but for Shouren, the southeast would nearly have been lost. Emperor Shizong understood this well. As soon as he took the throne he urgently summoned Shouren to court to receive enfeoffment. But Grand Secretary Yang Tinghe and Wang Qiong were at odds. In his campaigns against bandits Shouren had consistently given the credit to Qiong; Tinghe was displeased, and many ministers also resented his achievements. Some argued that national mourning was not yet complete and it was improper to hold feasts and grant rewards; Shouren was therefore appointed Minister of War at Nanjing. Shouren did not take up the post and asked to return home to visit his parents. Later, when merit was assessed, he was enfeoffed as specially promoted Grand Master of Splendid Happiness, Pillar of the State, and Earl of Xinjian, with hereditary succession and an annual stipend of one thousand piculs. Yet he was not granted an iron certificate, nor was his annual stipend paid. Of those who had served with merit, only Ji'an Prefect Wu Wendading rose to high office and deserved the highest reward. The rest were nominally promoted while secretly demoted; dismissed and cast out, none remained in office. Shouren was furious. He was then in mourning for his father; he repeatedly memorialized to decline the title and begged that his colleagues' merit be recorded—all were shelved. When mourning ended he was still not summoned. After a long time his friends Xi Shu and his disciples Fang Xianfu and Huang Guan, who had gained favor in the Rites Controversy, spoke to Zhang Cong and Gui E about summoning him, but Fei Hong bore an old grudge against Shouren and blocked it again. He was repeatedly recommended for Minister of War, grand coordinator of the three frontiers, and supervisor of the regiment camps, but none came to pass.
13
嘉靖六年，思恩、田州土酋盧蘇、王受反。 總督姚鏌不能定，乃詔守仁以原官兼左都御史，總督兩廣兼巡撫。 綰因上書訟守仁功，請賜鐵券、歲祿，並敘討賊諸臣，帝咸報可。 守仁在道，疏陳用兵之非，且言：「思恩未設流官，土酋歲出兵三千，聽官征調。 既設流官，我反歲遣兵數千防戍。 是流官之設，無益可知。 且田州鄰交阯，深山絕谷，悉瑤、僮盤據，必仍設土官，斯可藉其兵力為屏蔽。 若改土為流，則邊鄙之患，我自當之，後必有悔。」 章下兵部，尚書王時中條其不合者五，帝令守仁更議。 十二月，守仁抵潯州，會巡按御史石金定計招撫。 悉散遣諸軍，留永順、保靖土兵數千，解甲休息。 蘇、受初求撫不得，聞守仁至益懼，至是則大喜。 守仁赴南寧，二人遣使乞降，守仁令詣軍門。 二人竊議曰：「王公素多詐，恐紿我。」 陳兵入見。 守仁數二人罪，杖而釋之。 親入營，撫其眾七萬。 奏聞於朝，陳用兵十害，招撫十善。 因請復設流官，量割田州地，別立一州，以岑猛次子邦相為吏目，署州事，俟有功擢知州。 而於田州置十九巡檢司，以蘇、受等任之，並受約束於流官知府。 帝皆從之。 斷藤峽瑤賊，上連八寨，下通仙台、花相諸洞蠻，盤亙三百余里，郡邑罹害者數十年。 守仁欲討之，故留南寧。 罷湖廣兵，示不再用。 伺賊不備，進破牛腸、六寺等十余寨，峽賊悉平。 遂循橫石江而下，攻克仙台、花相、白竹、古陶、羅鳳諸賊。 令布政使林富率蘇、受兵直抵八寨，破石門，副將沈希儀邀斬軼賊，盡平八寨。
In Jiajing 6 (1527) the native chieftains of Si'en and Tianzhou, Lu Su and Wang Shou, rebelled. Grand Coordinator Yao Mo could not pacify them; the emperor then ordered Shouren, retaining his former rank plus Left Censor-in-Chief, to be grand coordinator of the two Guang provinces. Guan thereupon memorialized in defense of Shouren's merit, asking for an iron certificate and annual stipend and that the officials who suppressed the rebels be rewarded; the emperor approved all. On the road Shouren memorialized that war was wrong and said: "Before Si'en had a regular official, the native chieftain each year sent three thousand troops at the government's call. Once a regular official was installed, we instead had to send several thousand troops each year to garrison the place. It is clear that installing regular officials brought no benefit. Moreover Tianzhou borders Jiaozhi; deep mountains and sheer valleys are held by Yao and Zhuang; native officials must remain in place so their troops can serve as a screen. If native rule is replaced with regular administration, we ourselves must bear the border troubles, and later we will surely regret it. The memorial went to the Ministry of War; Minister Wang Shizhong listed five objections; the emperor ordered Shouren to reconsider. In the twelfth month Shouren reached Xunzhou and met Touring Censor Shi Jin to plan a policy of appeasement. He dismissed all the armies, retaining only several thousand native troops from Yongshun and Baojing, who laid down arms and rested. Su and Shou had first sought appeasement without success; hearing Shouren was coming they had grown more afraid, but now were overjoyed. Shouren went to Nanning; the two sent envoys to beg surrender; Shouren ordered them to come to headquarters. The two whispered: "Lord Wang has always been full of tricks; he may be deceiving us. They came in with troops arrayed. Shouren recounted their crimes, had them beaten, and released them. He personally entered the camp and reassured their host of seventy thousand. He reported to court, setting forth ten harms of war and ten benefits of appeasement. He then asked to restore a regular official, carve out part of Tianzhou to establish a separate prefecture, appoint Cen Meng's second son Bangxiang as clerk to administer it, and promote him to magistrate when he earned merit. In Tianzhou he set up nineteen inspection offices staffed by Su, Shou, and others, all subject to the regular prefect. The emperor approved all. The Yao bandits of Duanteng Gorge linked above with the Eight Stockades and below with the cave tribes of Xiantai and Huaxiang, sprawling over more than three hundred li; prefectures and counties had suffered for decades. Shouren wished to campaign against them and therefore remained at Nanning. He dismissed the Huguang troops to show they would not be used again. Waiting until the bandits were off guard, he advanced and broke more than ten stockades including Niuchang and Liusi; the gorge bandits were all pacified. He then followed the Hengshi River downstream and took the bandits of Xiantai, Huaxiang, Baizhu, Gutao, Luofeng, and others. He ordered Provincial Administration Commissioner Lin Fu to lead Su and Shou's troops straight to the Eight Stockades, break Shimen, and with Vice General Shen Xiyi intercept and kill fleeing bandits, pacifying all eight stockades.
14
始，帝以蘇、受之撫，遣行人奉璽書獎諭。 及奏斷藤峽捷，則以手詔問閣臣楊一清等，謂守仁自誇大，且及其生平學術。 一清等不知所對。 守仁之起由璁、萼薦，萼故不善守仁，以璁強之。 後萼長吏部，璁入內閣，積不相下。 萼暴貴喜功名，風守仁取交阯，守仁辭不應。 一清雅知守仁，而黃綰嘗上疏欲令守仁入輔，毀一清，一清亦不能無移憾。 萼遂顯詆守仁征撫交失，賞格不行。 獻夫及霍韜不平，上疏爭之，言：「諸瑤為患積年，初嘗用兵數十萬，僅得一田州，旋復召寇。 守仁片言馳諭，思、田稽首。 至八寨、斷藤峽賊，阻深岩絕岡，國初以來未有輕議剿者，今一舉蕩平，若拉枯朽。 議者乃言守仁受命征思、田，不受命征八寨。 夫大夫出疆，有可以安國家，利社稷，專之可也，況守仁固承詔得便宜從事者乎？ 守仁討平叛籓，忌者誣以初同賊謀，又誣其輦載金帛。 當時大臣楊廷和、喬宇飾成其事，至今未白。 夫忠如守仁，有功如守仁，一屈於江西，再屈於兩廣。 臣恐勞臣灰心，將士解體，後此疆圉有事，誰復為陛下任之！」 帝報聞而已。
At first, because Su and Shou had submitted, the emperor sent an emissary with an imperial commendation. When victory at Duanteng Gorge was reported, he used a handwritten edict to ask Grand Secretary Yang Yiqing and others whether Shouren was boasting, and also touched on his philosophy. Yiqing and the others did not know how to reply. Shouren's recall came through recommendation by Cong and E; E had never liked Shouren and was pressed by Cong. Later E headed the Ministry of Personnel and Cong entered the Grand Secretariat; they were long at odds. E rose suddenly and loved glory; he urged Shouren to take Jiaozhi; Shouren declined. Yiqing truly valued Shouren, but Huang Guan had once memorialized for Shouren to enter the cabinet and slandered Yiqing; Yiqing too could not help resenting it. E then openly attacked Shouren for failures in the Guang campaigns and blocked the promised rewards. Xianfu and Huo Tao were indignant and memorialized in protest, saying: "The Yao had plagued the region for years; at first several hundred thousand troops were used and only Tianzhou was gained, then the troubles returned. Shouren with a few swift words brought them to submit, and Si'en and Tianzhou bowed their heads. As for the Eight Stockades and Duanteng Gorge bandits, walled in by deep cliffs and sheer ridges, since the founding of the dynasty no one had lightly proposed suppressing them; now in one stroke they were swept away like rotten timber. Critics then said Shouren had orders to campaign against Si'en and Tianzhou but not against the Eight Stockades. When a great officer goes beyond the frontier, if he can secure the state and benefit the realm, he may act on his own authority; how much more when Shouren had imperial orders to act at discretion? Shouren had put down the rebel prince; the jealous slandered him as having first conspired with the rebels and as having loaded carts with gold and silk. The great ministers Yang Tinghe and Qiao Yu had helped make this slander stick; to this day it has not been cleared. Loyal as Shouren, meritorious as Shouren—once humbled in Jiangxi, again humbled in the two Guang. I fear that loyal servants will lose heart and troops will lose spirit; hereafter if the frontier has trouble, who will bear it for Your Majesty! The emperor merely acknowledged receipt.
15
守仁已病甚，疏乞骸骨，舉鄖陽巡撫林富自代，不俟命竟歸。 行至南安卒，年五十七。 喪過江西，軍民無不縞素哭送者。
Shouren was already gravely ill; he memorialized to retire, recommended Yunyang Grand Coordinator Lin Fu to replace him, and returned without awaiting orders. When he reached Nan'an he died, aged fifty-seven. As the funeral procession passed through Jiangxi, soldiers and civilians alike wore mourning white and wept as they sent him off.
16
守仁天姿異敏。 年十七謁上饒婁諒，與論硃子格物大指。 還家，日端坐，講讀《五經》，不苟言笑。 游九華歸，築室陽明洞中。 泛濫二氏學，數年無所得。 謫龍場，窮荒無書，日繹舊聞。 忽悟格物致知，當自求諸心，不當求諸事物，喟然曰：「道在是矣。」 遂篤信不疑。 其為教，專以致良知為主。 謂宋周、程二子後，惟象山陸氏簡易直捷，有以接孟氏之傳。 而硃子《集注》、《或問》之類，乃中年未定之說。 學者翕然從之，世遂有「陽明學」雲。
Shouren was exceptionally quick of mind. At seventeen he visited Lou Liang of Shangrao and discussed Zhu Xi's doctrine of investigating things. Returning home, he sat upright each day lecturing on the Five Classics, never casual in speech or laughter. After traveling to Jiuhua he returned and built a dwelling in Yangming Cave. He drifted through Daoist and Buddhist learning for several years and gained nothing. Banished to Longchang, in remote wilderness without books, he daily turned over what he had learned before. Suddenly he understood that investigating things and extending knowledge must be sought in the mind, not in external things, and sighed: "The Way is here. From then on he believed it firmly. In his teaching he focused solely on extending innate knowing. He held that after the Song masters Zhou and the two Chengs, only Xiangshan Lu's school was simple and direct enough to link to Mencius's transmission. Zhu Xi's Collected Commentaries, Or Questions, and the like were doctrines of his middle years, not yet settled. Scholars flocked to follow him, and the age came to speak of Yangming learning.
17
守仁既卒，桂萼奏其擅離職守。 帝大怒，下廷臣議。 萼等言：「守仁事不師古，言不稱師。 欲立異以為高，則非硃熹格物致知之論； 知眾論之不予，則為硃熹晚年定論之書。 號召門徒，互相倡和。 才美者樂其任意，庸鄙者借其虛聲。 傳習轉訛，背謬彌甚。 但討捕畲賊，擒獲叛籓，功有足錄，宜免追奪伯爵以章大信，禁邪說以正人心。」 帝乃下詔停世襲，恤典俱不行。
After Shouren died, Gui E memorialized that he had left his post without authorization. The emperor was furious and ordered the court to deliberate. E and others said: "Shouren in affairs does not follow antiquity; in speech he does not honor teachers. Wishing to set up heterodoxy to make himself lofty, he rejects Zhu Xi's doctrine of investigating things and extending knowledge; knowing public opinion would not accept it, he claims Zhu Xi's later settled conclusions. He calls disciples and they echo one another. The talented delight in his license; the mediocre borrow his empty fame. Transmission and practice grow ever more erroneous; error grows ever greater. Yet in suppressing She bandits and capturing the rebel prince his merit is worth recording; the earldom should not be posthumously stripped to show imperial faith, and heterodox doctrines should be forbidden to rectify hearts. The emperor then issued an edict halting hereditary succession; condolence rites were all withheld.
18
隆慶初，廷臣多頌其功。 詔贈新建侯，諡文成。 二年予世襲伯爵。 既又有請以守仁與薛瑄、陳獻章同從祀文廟者。 帝獨允禮臣議，以瑄配。 及萬曆十二年，御史詹事講申前請。 大學士申時行等言：「守仁言致知出《大學》，良知出《孟子》。 陳獻章主靜，沿宋儒周敦頤、程顥。 且孝友出處如獻章，氣節文章功業如守仁，不可謂禪，誠宜崇祀。」 且言胡居仁純心篤行，眾論所歸，亦宜並祀。 帝皆從之。 終明之世，從祀者止守仁等四人。
Early in Longqing many court ministers praised his merit. An edict posthumously enfeoffed him as Marquis of Xinjian with the posthumous title Wencheng. In the second year hereditary succession to the earldom was granted. Later there was again a request that Shouren, together with Xue Xuan and Chen Xianzhang, be granted secondary sacrifice in the Confucian temple. The emperor approved only the rites officials' proposal to enshrine Xuan. By Wanli 12 (1584), Censor Zhan Shijiang renewed the earlier request. Grand Secretary Shen Shixing and others said: "Shouren's extending knowledge comes from the Great Learning; innate knowing comes from Mencius. Chen Xianzhang upheld stillness, following the Song Ruists Zhou Dunyi and Cheng Hao. Moreover in filial piety and conduct in office he is like Xianzhang; in integrity, literary works, and achievements he is like Shouren—they cannot be called Chan Buddhism and truly deserve honored sacrifice. They also said Hu Juren had a pure heart and sincere conduct to which public opinion inclined, and he too should be enshrined. The emperor approved all. Through the entire Ming, only Shouren and three others were granted secondary sacrifice.
19
始守仁無子，育弟子正憲為後。 晚年，生子正億，二歲而孤。 既長，襲錦衣副千戶。 隆慶初，襲新建伯。 萬曆五年卒。 子承勛嗣，督漕運二十年。 子先進，無子，將以弟先達子業弘繼。 先達妻曰：「伯無子，爵自傳吾夫。 由父及子，爵安往？」 先進怒，因育族子業洵為後。 及承勛卒，先進未襲死。 業洵自以非嫡嗣，終當歸爵先達，且虞其爭，乃謗先達為乞養，而別推承勛弟子先通當嗣，屢爭於朝，數十年不決。 崇禎時，先達子業弘復與先通疏辨。 而業洵兄業浩時為總督，所司懼忤業浩，竟以先通嗣。 業弘憤，持疏入禁門訴。 自刎不殊，執下獄，尋釋。 先通襲伯四年，流賊陷京師，被殺。
At first Shouren had no son and raised his disciple Zhengxian as heir. In his later years he had a son Zhengyi, who was orphaned at two. When grown he inherited the deputy thousand-household post in the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Early in Longqing he inherited the earldom of Xinjian. He died in Wanli 5 (1577). His son Chengxun succeeded and supervised grain transport for twenty years. His son Xianjin had no son; the plan was for his younger brother Xianda's son Yehong to succeed. Xianda's wife said: "The elder brother has no son; the title should pass to my husband. From father to son—where would the title go? Xianjin was angry and therefore raised a clansman's son Yexun as heir. When Chengxun died, Xianjin had not yet inherited the title before he too died. Yexun, believing himself not the legitimate heir and that the title would ultimately pass to Xianda, and fearing a contest, slandered Xianda as having begged to adopt an heir and instead pushed Chengxun's nephew Xiantong as successor; the dispute raged at court for decades without resolution. Under Chongzhen, Xianda's son Yehong again memorialized against Xiantong. Meanwhile Yexun's elder brother Yehao was then grand coordinator; the officials feared offending him and ultimately awarded succession to Xiantong. Yehong was furious and took a memorial through the forbidden gate to plead his case. He cut his throat but did not die; he was arrested and imprisoned, then soon released. Xiantong held the earldom four years; when roving bandits took the capital he was killed.
20
守仁弟子盈天下，其有傳者不覆載。 惟冀元亨嘗與守仁共患難。
Shouren's disciples filled the realm; not all who transmitted his teaching are recorded here. Only Ji Yuanheng once shared hardship with Shouren.
21
附冀元亨
Appendix: Ji Yuanheng
22
冀元亨，字惟乾，武陵人。 篤信守仁學。 舉正德十一年鄉試。 從守仁於贛，守仁屬以教子。 宸濠懷不軌，而外務名高，貽書守仁問學，守仁使元亨往。 宸濠語挑之，佯不喻，獨與之論學，宸濠目為痴。 他日講《西銘》，反覆君臣義甚悉。 宸濠亦服，厚贈遣之，元亨反其贈於官。 已，宸濠敗，張忠、許泰誣守仁與通。 詰宸濠，言無有。 忠等詰不已，曰：「獨嘗遣冀元亨論學。」 忠等大喜，搒元亨，加以砲烙，終不承，械系京師詔獄。
Ji Yuanheng, whose courtesy name was Weiqian, came from Wuling. He devotedly upheld Shouren's learning. He passed the provincial examination in Zhengde 11 (1516). He followed Shouren in Ganzhou, and Shouren entrusted him to teach his son. Chen Hao harbored rebellious designs but outwardly cultivated a lofty reputation; he wrote Shouren asking about learning, and Shouren sent Yuanheng in reply. Chen Hao spoke provocatively; Yuanheng pretended not to understand and discussed only learning with him; Chen Hao took him for a fool. On another day, lecturing on the Western Inscription, he expounded lord-and-minister righteousness again and again with great fullness. Chen Hao was won over as well; he gave lavish parting gifts, which Yuanheng turned over to the authorities. Later, when Chen Hao was defeated, Zhang Zhong and Xu Tai slandered Shouren as having been in league with him. When Chen Hao was interrogated, he said there was nothing of the kind. Zhong and the others kept pressing him; he said: "I only once sent Ji Yuanheng to discuss learning. Zhong and the others were delighted; they beat Yuanheng and applied branding irons; he still would not confess and was shackled in the capital imperial prison.
23
世宗嗣位，言者交白其冤，出獄五日卒。 元亨在獄，善待諸囚若兄弟，囚皆感泣。 其被逮也，所司系其妻李，李無怖色，曰：「吾夫尊師樂善，豈他慮哉！」 獄中與二女治麻枲不輟。 事且白，守者欲出之。 曰：「未見吾夫，出安往？」 按察諸僚婦聞其賢，召之，辭不赴。 已就見，則囚服見，手不釋麻枲。 問其夫學，曰：「吾夫之學，不出閨門衽席間。」 聞者悚然。
When Shizong succeeded to the throne, memorializers repeatedly cleared his name; he left prison and died five days later. In prison Yuanheng treated the other prisoners like brothers; they all wept at his kindness. When he was arrested, the authorities imprisoned his wife Li as well; Li showed no fear and said: "My husband honors his teacher and delights in doing good—what else should I worry about? In prison she and her two daughters worked hemp and ramie without pause. When the affair was about to be cleared, the keepers wished to release her. She said: "I have not yet seen my husband—where would I go? The wives of surveillance officials, hearing of her virtue, summoned her; she declined to go. When she did go, she came in prisoner's garb and did not lay down the hemp and ramie in her hands. Asked about her husband's learning, she said: "My husband's learning does not go beyond the women's quarters and the bed mats. Those who heard were startled.
24
贊曰：王守仁始以直節著。 比任疆事，提弱卒，從諸書生掃積年逋寇，平定孽籓。 終明之世，文臣用兵制勝，未有如守仁者也。 當危疑之際，神明愈定，智慮無遺，雖由天資高，其亦有得於中者歟。 矜其創獲，標異儒先，卒為學者譏。 守仁嘗謂胡世寧少講學，世寧曰：「某恨公多講學耳。」 桂萼之議雖出於媢忌之私，抑流弊實然，固不能以功多為諱矣。
The eulogy says: Wang Shouren at first was known for upright integrity. When he took frontier duty, he led weak troops alongside scholars to sweep away bandits of many years' standing and pacify the rebel prince. Through the entire Ming, no civil official who took the field and won was Shouren's equal. In moments of peril and doubt his spirit grew steadier and his plans left nothing out; though this owed much to lofty natural gifts, had he not also gained something within? He prized his own discoveries and set himself apart from earlier Confucians, and in the end was mocked by scholars. Shouren once said Hu Shining spoke too little of learning; Shining replied: "I only regret that you speak too much of it. Gui E's critique, though born of jealous private motive, also checked real abuses in the school; one cannot, because of great merit, cover that up entirely.