Volume 198 Biographies 86: Yang Yiqing, Wang Qiong, Peng Ze, Mao Bowen, Weng Wanda

楊一清王瓊彭澤毛伯溫〈（汪文盛鮑象賢）〉翁萬達

Yang Yiqing, Wang Qiong, Peng Ze, and Mao Bowen (Wang Wensheng and Bao Xiangxian)〉 Weng Wanda

楊一清，字應寧，其先雲南安寧人。父景，以化州同知致仕，攜之居巴陵。少能文，以奇童薦為翰林秀才。憲宗命內閣擇師教之。年十四舉鄉試，登成化八年進士。父喪，葬丹徒，遂家焉。服除，授中書舍人。久之，遷山西按察僉事，以副使督學陜西。一清貌寢而性警敏，好談經濟大略。在陜八年，以其暇究邊事甚悉。入為太常寺少卿，進南京太常寺卿。

Yang Yiqing, courtesy name Yingning, came from a family originally of Anning in Yunnan. His father Yang Jing had retired as vice-prefect of Huazhou and brought him to settle at Baling. As a boy he showed literary talent and, recommended as a child prodigy, was enrolled as a Hanlin student. Emperor Xianzong directed the Grand Secretariat to select tutors for him. At fourteen he passed the provincial examination, and in 1472 he received his jinshi degree. After his father's death he buried him at Dantu and established his household there. When the mourning period ended, he was appointed a drafting secretary in the Secretariat. After some time he was promoted to assistant surveillance commissioner of Shanxi and, as education intendant, oversaw schools in Shaanxi. Yiqing was plain in appearance but quick-witted, and loved to discourse on matters of statecraft. During eight years in Shaanxi he used his spare time to master frontier affairs in great detail. He was recalled to serve as vice minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and later promoted to minister of the Nanjing court.

弘治十五年用劉大夏薦，擢都察院左副都御史，督理陜西馬政。西番故饒馬，而仰給中國茶飲以去疾。太祖著令，以蜀茶易番馬，資軍中用。久而浸弛，奸人多挾私茶闌出為利，番馬不時至。一清嚴為禁，盡籠茶利於官，以服致諸番，番馬大集。會寇大入花馬池，帝命一清巡撫陜西，仍督馬政。甫受事，寇已退。乃選卒練兵，創平虜、紅古二城以援固原；築垣瀕河以捍靖虜；劾罷貪庸總兵武安侯鄭宏；裁鎮守中官冗費，軍紀肅然。武宗初立，寇數萬騎抵固原，總兵曹雄軍隔絕不相聞。一清帥輕騎自平涼晝夜行，抵雄軍，為之節度，多張疑兵脅寇，寇移犯隆德。一清夜發火炮，響應山谷間。寇疑大兵至，遁出塞。一清以延綏、寧夏、甘肅有警不相援，患無所統攝，請遣大臣兼領之。大夏請即命一清總制三鎮軍務。

In 1502, on Liu Daxia's recommendation, he was promoted to left vice censor-in-chief and placed in charge of Shaanxi's horse administration. The western tribes had long been abundant in horses but depended on Chinese tea to treat their ailments. The Hongwu Emperor had decreed that Sichuan tea be traded for tribal horses to supply the military. In time the system slackened; unscrupulous men smuggled private tea across the border for profit, and tribal horses ceased to arrive regularly. Yiqing enforced the prohibition rigorously, monopolized tea profits for the state, won over the tribes, and tribal horses came in great numbers. When raiders launched a major attack on Huama Chi, the emperor appointed Yiqing grand coordinator of Shaanxi while retaining his charge over horse administration. He had barely assumed his post when the raiders had already withdrawn. He then selected troops for training and built the two garrison towns of Pinglu and Honggu to reinforce Guyuan; constructed riverfront ramparts to shield Jinglu; impeached and dismissed the corrupt and inept regional commander, Marquis of Wu'an Zheng Hong; and trimmed the wasteful spending of the eunuch garrison commissioners, bringing military discipline to order. Shortly after Emperor Wuzong's accession, raiders with tens of thousands of horsemen reached Guyuan, while Regional Commander Cao Xiong's forces were cut off and out of contact. Yiqing led light cavalry from Pingliang in a forced march, joined Xiong's army, took command, and deployed numerous decoys to intimidate the raiders, who then turned toward Longde. That night Yiqing fired cannon, and the echoes rolled through the valleys. The raiders, suspecting a large army had arrived, fled beyond the frontier. Yiqing observed that when Yan-sui, Ningxia, and Gansu faced alarms they failed to support one another for lack of unified command, and petitioned that a senior minister be sent to oversee all three. Liu Daxia recommended that Yiqing be appointed at once to take overall command of military affairs in all three regions.

尋進右都御史。一清遂建議修邊，其略曰：

He was soon promoted to right censor-in-chief. Yiqing then submitted a proposal for frontier defense, which in summary stated:

陜西各邊，延綏據險，寧夏、甘肅扼河山，惟花馬池至靈州地寬延，城堡復疏。寇毀墻入，則固原、慶陽、平涼、鞏昌皆受患。成化初，寧夏巡撫徐廷璋築邊墻綿亙二百餘里。在延綏者，余子俊修之甚固。由是，寇不入套二十余年。後邊備疏，墻塹日夷。弘治末至今，寇連歲侵略。都御史史琳請於花馬池、韋州設營衛，總制尚書秦纮僅修四五小堡及靖虜至環慶治塹七百里，謂可無患。不一二年，寇復深入。是纮所修不足捍敵。臣久官陜西，頗諳形勢。寇動稱數萬，往來倏忽。未至，征兵多擾費；既至，召援輒後時。欲戰，則彼不來；持久，則我師坐老。臣以為防邊之策，大要有四：修浚墻塹，以固邊防；增設衛所，以壯邊兵；經理靈、夏，以安內附；整飭韋州，以遏外侵。

Among Shaanxi's frontiers, Yan-sui held defensible terrain and Ningxia and Gansu guarded the rivers and mountains, but from Huama Chi to Lingzhou the land was open and extended, and fortifications were thin. Once raiders breached the walls, Guyuan, Qingyang, Pingliang, and Gongchang would all be exposed to attack. In the early Chenghua reign, Ningxia Grand Coordinator Xu Tingzhang built a frontier wall more than two hundred li long. The wall in Yan-sui was repaired very solidly by Yu Zijun. As a result, raiders did not enter the Ordos for more than twenty years. Later frontier defenses grew lax, and walls and ditches fell into ruin day by day. From the late Hongzhi period to the present, raiders have attacked year after year. Censor-in-Chief Shi Lin had proposed establishing garrisons at Huama Chi and Weizhou; Overall Commander Qin Hong had only repaired four or five small forts and cleared ditches for seven hundred li from Jinglu to Huanqing, claiming this would suffice. Within a year or two the raiders penetrated deep again. Qin Hong's repairs had proved inadequate to hold the enemy at bay. Your subject has long served in Shaanxi and is well acquainted with the terrain. The raiders routinely claim tens of thousands of men and move with lightning speed. Before they arrive, mobilizing troops mostly wastes money in futile disruption; once they strike, calling for reinforcements is always too late. If we seek battle, they will not engage; if we wait them out, our troops are worn down in idleness. Your subject believes frontier defense rests on four main measures: repair walls and ditches to strengthen the border; establish new garrisons to strengthen frontier forces; administer Lingzhou and Ningxia to secure those tribes who have submitted; and put Weizhou in order to block external incursions.

今河套即周朔方，漢定襄，赫連勃勃統萬城也。唐張仁願築三受降城，置烽堠千八百所，突厥不敢逾山牧馬。古之舉大事者，未嘗不勞於先，逸於後。夫受降據三面險，當千里之蔽。國初舍受降而衛東勝，已失一面之險。其後又輟東勝以就延綏，則以一面而遮千餘里之沖，遂使河套沃壤為寇巢穴。深山大河，勢乃在彼，而寧夏外險反南備河。此邊患所以相尋而不可解也。誠宜復守東勝，因河為固，東接大同，西屬寧夏，使河套方千里之地，歸我耕牧，屯田數百萬畝，省內地轉輸，策之上也。如或不能，及今增築防邊，敵來有以待之，猶愈無策。

The Ordos of today was the Zhou domain of Shuofang, the Han commandery of Dingxiang, and the site of Helian Bobo's capital at Tongwan. In Tang times Zhang Renyuan built the three surrender cities and established eighteen hundred beacon towers, and the Turks dared not cross the mountains to pasture their herds. Those who undertook great enterprises in antiquity always labored first and enjoyed ease afterward. The surrender cities held strategic terrain on three sides and shielded a thousand li of frontier. At the dynasty's founding, abandoning the surrender cities to guard Dongsheng already sacrificed one flank's strategic advantage. Later Dongsheng was abandoned in turn for Yan-sui, leaving a single flank to block an attack front of more than a thousand li and turning the fertile Ordos into the raiders' stronghold. The deep mountains and great rivers give the enemy the advantage, while Ningxia's outer defenses face south to guard the river instead. This is why frontier troubles follow one upon another without end. We should truly restore the garrison at Dongsheng, use the river as our bulwark, link east to Datong and west to Ningxia, and recover the thousand-li square of the Ordos for farming and grazing, with garrison colonies of millions of mu and savings on grain transport from the interior—this would be the best policy. If that cannot be done, we should at least strengthen frontier defenses now so that when the enemy comes we are prepared—still better than having no plan at all.

因條具便宜：延綏安邊營石澇池至橫城三百里，宜設墩臺九百座，暖譙九百間，守軍四千五百人；石澇池至定邊營百六十三里，平衍宜墻者百三十一里，險崖峻阜可鏟削者三十二里，宜為墩臺，連接寧夏東路；花馬池無險，敵至仰客兵，宜置衛；興武營守禦所兵不足，宜召募；自環慶以西至寧州，宜增兵備一人；橫城以北，黃河南岸有墩三十六，宜修復。帝可其議。大發帑金數十萬，使一清築墻。而劉瑾憾一清不附己，一清遂引疾歸。其成者，在要害間僅四十里。瑾誣一清冒破邊費，逮下錦衣獄。大學士李東陽、王鏊力救得解。仍致仕歸，先後罰米六百石。

He then itemized specific measures: along the three hundred li from Shilao Chi to Hengcheng in Yan-sui's Anbian sector, nine hundred beacon platforms, nine hundred heated watch towers, and four thousand five hundred garrison troops should be established; along the one hundred sixty-three li from Shilao Chi to Dingbian camp, walls should be built for one hundred thirty-one li of level ground and beacon platforms cut into thirty-two li of steep cliffs, linking with Ningxia's eastern route; Huama Chi lacks natural defenses and must rely on auxiliary troops when the enemy strikes—a garrison should be established there; the Xingwu defense battalion lacks sufficient troops and should recruit more; from Huanqing west to Ningzhou, an additional military intendant should be appointed; north of Hengcheng, thirty-six beacons on the south bank of the Yellow River should be restored. The emperor approved his proposal. Several hundred thousand taels were released from the treasury for Yiqing to build the wall. But Liu Jin resented Yiqing's refusal to join his faction, and Yiqing cited illness and retired. Of what was actually completed, only forty li in the most critical sectors. Jin falsely accused Yiqing of embezzling frontier funds and had him imprisoned in the Embroidered Uniform Guard jail. Grand Secretaries Li Dongyang and Wang Ao intervened strenuously and secured his release. He still retired home and was fined six hundred piculs of grain in all.

安化王寘鐇反。詔起一清總制軍務，與總兵官神英西討，中官張永監其軍。未至，一清故部將仇鉞已捕執之。一清馳至鎮，宣布德意。張永旋亦至，一清與結納，相得甚歡。知永與瑾有隙，乘間扼腕言曰：「賴公力定反側。然此易除也，如國家內患何。」永曰：「何謂也？」一清遂促席畫掌作「瑾」字。永難之曰：「是家晨夕上前，枝附根據，耳目廣矣。」一清慷慨曰：「公亦上信臣，討賊不付他人而付公，意可知。今功成奏捷，請間論軍事，因發瑾奸，極陳海內愁怨，懼變起心腹。上英武，必聽公誅瑾。瑾誅，公益柄用，悉矯前弊，收天下心。呂強、張承業暨公，千載三人耳。」永曰：「脫不濟，奈何？」一清曰：「言出於公必濟。萬一不信，公頓首據地泣，請死上前，剖心以明不妄，上必為公動。茍得請，即行事，毋須臾緩。」於是永勃然起曰：「嗟乎，老奴何惜余年不以報主哉！」竟如一清策誅瑾。永以是德一清，左右之，得召還，拜戶部尚書。論功，加太子少保，賜金幣。尋改吏部。

The Prince of Anhua, Zhu Zhifan, rebelled. An edict recalled Yiqing to take overall command; with Regional Commander Shen Ying he marched west to suppress the rebellion, while the eunuch Zhang Yong supervised the army. Before they arrived, Yiqing's former subordinate Qiu Yi had already captured the prince. Yiqing rode swiftly to the garrison and proclaimed the emperor's benevolent intentions. Zhang Yong soon arrived as well; Yiqing befriended him and they became quite close. Knowing that Yong and Jin were at odds, he seized a moment, gripped his arm, and said, "Thanks to your efforts the rebellion has been put down. But that was easy to remove. What of the state's internal affliction? Yong said, "What do you mean?" Yiqing drew closer and traced the character for Jin on his palm. Yong hesitated. "That family is at the emperor's side morning and night, with branches and roots everywhere, and eyes and ears throughout the court. Yiqing said fervently, "The emperor trusts you as well. He did not entrust the campaign to anyone else but to you—his intent is clear. Now that you have won, report your victory and request a private audience on military affairs. There expose Jin's crimes, lay bare the realm's grievances, and warn that trouble may erupt at the very center of power. The emperor is resolute; he will surely heed you and execute Jin. Once Jin is dead, you will wield even greater power, correct all past abuses, and win the hearts of the empire. Lü Qiang, Zhang Chengye, and you—only three such men in a thousand years. Yong said, "But if it fails, what then?" Yiqing said, "Words from you will surely succeed. If he does not believe you, bow your head, beat the ground, and weep before him; beg for death and lay bare your heart to prove you speak truth—the emperor will surely be moved. Once you have permission, act at once without the slightest delay. At this Yong rose abruptly and cried, "Alas! Why should this old servant begrudge his remaining years rather than repay his lord!" In the end he followed Yiqing's plan and had Jin executed. Yong was grateful to Yiqing for this, supported him at court, and Yiqing was recalled and appointed minister of revenue. For his merit he was made Junior Guardian of the Heir Apparent and rewarded with gold and silks. He was soon transferred to the Ministry of Personnel.

一清於時政最通練，而性闊大。愛樂賢士大夫，與共功名。凡為瑾所構陷者，率見甄錄。朝有所知，夕即登薦，門生遍天下。嘗再帥關中，起偏裨至大將封侯者，累累然不絕。饋謝有所入，緣手即散之。大盜躪中原，一清疏請命將調兵。前後凡數上，皆報可。盜平，加少保、太子太保，蔭錦衣百戶。再推內閣，不用。用尚書靳貴，而進一清少傅、太子太傅。給事中王昂論選法幣，指一清植私黨，帝為謫昂。一清更申救，優旨報聞。乾清宮災，詔求直言。一清上書言視朝太遲，享祀太慢，西內創梵宇，禁中宿邊兵，畿內皇店之害，江南織造之擾。因引疾乞歸，帝慰留之。大學士楊廷和憂去，命一清兼武英殿大學士入參機務。

Yiqing was the most thoroughly versed in current affairs of his day, yet his temperament was broad and magnanimous. He delighted in worthy scholar-officials and shared glory with them. All who had been framed by Liu Jin were in general restored to office. If he learned of talent in the morning, he would recommend it by evening; his protégés were found throughout the empire. Twice he commanded in the Guanzhong region, and from junior officers to great generals enfeoffed as marquises, he raised them in an unbroken stream. Whatever gifts or gratuities came to him he passed on at once. When great bandit armies ravaged the central plains, Yiqing memorialized asking that generals be appointed and troops mobilized. He submitted several such memorials in succession, and all were approved. When the bandits were pacified, he was made Junior Guardian and Guardian of the Heir Apparent, with hereditary enrollment of one hundred Embroidered Uniform Guard households. He was again recommended for the Grand Secretariat but was passed over. Minister Jin Gui was appointed instead, while Yiqing was promoted to Junior Tutor and Tutor of the Heir Apparent. Supervising Secretary Wang Ang criticized abuses in the selection system and accused Yiqing of building a private faction; the emperor demoted Ang on Yiqing's behalf. Yiqing interceded for him again, and the emperor responded with a gracious edict. When fire struck the Qianqing Palace, the emperor issued an edict calling for forthright counsel. Yiqing memorialized that imperial audiences began too late, sacrifices were performed too slowly, Buddhist temples had been built in the western inner palace, frontier troops were quartered within the forbidden city, imperial shops in the capital region were causing harm, and Jiangnan weaving commissions were causing disruption. He then cited illness and asked to retire, but the emperor comforted him and kept him at court. When Grand Secretary Yang Tinghe left office to mourn, Yiqing was ordered to serve concurrently as Grand Secretary of the Wuying Hall and join in deliberations on state affairs.

張永尋得罪罷，而義子錢寧用事。寧故善一清，有構之者因蓄怨。會災異，一清自劾，極陳時政，中有「狂言惑聖聽，匹夫搖國是，禁廷雜介胄之夫，京師無藩籬之托」語，譏切近幸，帝弗省。寧與江彬輩聞之，大怒。使優人於帝前為蜚語，刺譏一清。時有考察罷官者，嗾武學生朱大周訐一清陰事，而以寧為內主。給事御史周金、陳軾等交章劾大周妄言，請究主使，帝不聽。一清乃力請骸骨歸，賜敕褒諭，給夫廩如制。帝南征，幸一清第，樂飲兩晝夜，賦詩賡和以十數。一清從容諷止，帝遂不為江浙行。

Zhang Yong soon fell from favor and was dismissed, while the emperor's adopted son Qian Ning came to power. Ning had formerly been on good terms with Yiqing, but those who sowed discord between them bred resentment. When omens and disasters occurred, Yiqing submitted a self-impeachment laying out current abuses, including the words, "reckless talk deludes the emperor's ear, a common man shakes the course of state, the forbidden court is filled with men in armor, and the capital lacks any protective barrier"—a cutting rebuke of the emperor's favorites, which the emperor did not heed. Ning and Jiang Bin and their faction heard this and were furious. They had actors perform before the emperor with slanderous lines aimed at Yiqing. An official dismissed in the regular evaluation was instigated to set Military Student Zhu Dazhou to accuse Yiqing of secret misconduct, with Ning as the hidden patron behind the attack. Supervising secretaries and censors Zhou Jin, Chen Shi, and others submitted successive memorials accusing Dazhou of false charges and demanding that the instigator be investigated; the emperor would not listen. Yiqing then pressed hard to retire, and was granted an edict of praise and consolation, with carriers and grain allowance according to regulation. On the southern campaign the emperor visited Yiqing's residence, feasted with him for two days and nights, and composed and exchanged more than ten poems. Yiqing gently dissuaded him, and the emperor abandoned his planned tour of Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

會張璁等力排費宏，御史吉棠因請還一清內閣。給事中章僑、御史侯秩等爭之。帝謫秩官，召一清為吏部尚書、武英殿大學士。既入見，加少師，仍兼太子太傅，非故事也。亡何，《獻皇帝實錄》成，加太子太師、謹身殿大學士。一清以不預纂修辭，不許。王憲奏捷，推功一清，加特進左柱國、華蓋殿大學士。費宏已去，一清遂為首輔。帝賜銀章二，曰「耆德忠正」，曰「繩愆糾違」，令密封言事。與張璁論張永前功，起為提督團營。給事中陸粲請增築邊墻，推明一清曩時議，一清因力從臾之。帝為發帑金，命侍郎王廷相往，然久之亦竟止。《明倫大典》成，加正一品俸。

When Zhang Cong and others forced Fei Hong from office, Censor Ji Tang petitioned to recall Yiqing to the Grand Secretariat. Supervising Secretary Zhang Qiao, Censor Hou Zhi, and others protested. The emperor demoted Hou Zhi and summoned Yiqing as minister of personnel and Grand Secretary of the Wuying Hall. After his audience he was made Junior Preceptor while retaining the concurrent post of Tutor of the Heir Apparent—an unprecedented arrangement. Before long, when the Veritable Record of the Xian Emperor was completed, he was made Grand Preceptor of the Heir Apparent and Grand Secretary of the Jinshen Hall. Yiqing declined on the ground that he had not taken part in the compilation, but the emperor would not allow it. When Wang Xian reported victory, credit was given to Yiqing, who was granted special advancement as Left Pillar of the State and Grand Secretary of the Huagai Hall. With Fei Hong already gone, Yiqing became chief minister. The emperor bestowed two silver seals inscribed "aged in virtue and loyal and upright" and "correcting faults and rectifying transgressions," authorizing him to submit sealed memorials on state affairs. After Zhang Cong argued for Zhang Yong's former merit, Yong was restored to command of the regimented camps. Supervising Secretary Lu Can petitioned to extend the frontier wall, citing Yiqing's earlier proposal, and Yiqing strongly pressed the measure. The emperor released treasury funds and ordered Vice Minister Wang Tingxiang to oversee the work, but in time the project was abandoned. When the Great Canon of Bright Relations was completed, he was granted salary of the first rank.

初，「大禮」議起，一清方家居，見張璁疏，寓書門人喬宇曰：「張生此議，聖人復起，不能易也。」又勸席書早赴召，以定大議。璁等既驟顯，頗引一清。帝亦以一清老臣，恩禮加渥。免常朝日講侍班，朔望朝參，令晨初始入閣視事。禦書、和章及金幣、牢醴之賜甚渥。所言邊事、國計，大小無不傾聽。

At the outset of the Great Rites controversy, Yiqing was at home. Reading Zhang Cong's memorial, he wrote to his disciple Qiao Yu, "Zhang's argument is such that even if a sage were to rise again, he could not overturn it." He also urged Xi Shu to hurry to court and settle the great debate. Once Zhang Cong and his allies rose to power, they drew heavily on Yiqing's support. The emperor also treated Yiqing, as a senior minister, with exceptional favor. He was exempted from daily audiences and lecture attendance, attended court only on the first and fifteenth of the month, and was ordered to enter the Grand Secretariat to conduct business only from early morning. Imperial writings, matching poems, and gifts of gold, silks, and sacrificial offerings were lavished upon him. Whatever he said on frontier affairs or state finance, great or small, the emperor listened attentively.

璁與桂萼既攻去費宏，意一清必援己。一清顧請召謝遷，心怨之。遷未至，璁已入內閣，多所更建。一清引故事稍裁抑，其黨積不平。錦衣聶能遷訐璁，璁欲置之死，一清不可。璁怒，上疏陰詆一清，又嗾黃綰排之甚力。一清疏辨，言璁以能遷故排己，且傍及璁他語。因乞骸骨。帝為兩解之。一清又因災變請戒飭百官和衷，復乞宥議禮諸臣罪，璁益憾。柱萼入內閣，亦不相能。一清屢求去，且言：「今持論者尚紛更，臣獨主安靜；尚刻核，臣獨主寬平。用是多齟齬，願避賢者路。」帝復溫旨褒之。而給事中王準、陸粲發璁、萼招權納賄狀，帝立罷璁、萼，且暴其罪。其黨霍韜攘臂曰：「張、桂行，勢且及我。」遂上疏力攻一清，言其受張永、蕭敬賄。一清再疏辨，乞罷。帝雖慰留之，而璁復召還，韜攻益急，且言法司承一清風指，構成萼罪。帝果怒，令法司會廷臣雜議。出刑部尚書周倫於南京，以侍郎許贊代。贊乃實韜言，請削一清籍。帝令一清自陳。璁乃三上密疏，引一清贊禮功，乞賜寬假，實以堅帝意俾之去。帝果允致仕，馳驛歸，仍賜金幣。明年，璁等構朱繼宗獄，坐一清受張永弟容金錢，為永誌墓，又與容世錦衣指揮，遂落職閑住。一清大恨曰：「老矣，乃為孺子所賣！」疽發背死。遺疏言身被汙蔑，死且不瞑，帝令釋贓罪不問。後數年復故官。久之，贈太保，謚文襄。

Zhang Cong and Gui E, having driven Fei Hong from office, expected Yiqing to support them. Yiqing instead petitioned to recall Xie Qian, and they resented him for it. Before Xie Qian arrived, Zhang Cong had already entered the Grand Secretariat and instituted many changes. Yiqing cited precedent to restrain them somewhat, and their faction grew increasingly resentful. Embroidered Uniform Guard Nie Nengqian accused Zhang Cong, who wished to have him executed; Yiqing would not permit it. Zhang Cong was enraged, submitted a secret memorial slandering Yiqing, and also instigated Huang Guan to attack him fiercely. Yiqing memorialized in defense, saying Zhang Cong attacked him because of the Nie Nengqian affair and also alluding to Cong's other misconduct. He thereupon asked to retire. The emperor mediated between them. Yiqing again cited omens and disasters to urge the officials to work in harmony and again asked pardon for those punished in the Rites controversy, deepening Zhang Cong's resentment. Gui E entered the Grand Secretariat and likewise could not work with him. Yiqing repeatedly asked to retire, saying, "Those who hold power today still favor constant change, while I alone uphold stability; they favor severity, while I alone uphold leniency and fairness. For this reason we are constantly at odds, and I wish to yield the road to worthier men. The emperor again responded with warm words of praise. But Supervising Secretaries Wang Zhun and Lu Can exposed Zhang Cong and Gui E for abuse of power and taking bribes; the emperor immediately dismissed them and publicly announced their crimes. Their ally Huo Tao cried, "If Zhang and Gui fall, the blow will reach me next." He then submitted a fierce memorial attacking Yiqing, accusing him of taking bribes from Zhang Yong and Xiao Jing. Yiqing memorialized again in defense and asked to be dismissed. Although the emperor comforted him and kept him at court, Zhang Cong was recalled; Huo Tao's attacks grew fiercer, and he charged that the judiciary followed Yiqing's direction in fabricating Gui E's guilt. The emperor was indeed enraged and ordered the judiciary to convene with court ministers for joint deliberation. Minister of Justice Zhou Lun was transferred to Nanjing and replaced by Vice Minister Xu Zan. Xu Zan then upheld Huo Tao's charges and recommended stripping Yiqing of his official rank. The emperor ordered Yiqing to state his own case. Zhang Cong then submitted three secret memorials citing Yiqing's merit in the Rites controversy and begging leniency for him—in reality to harden the emperor's resolve that Yiqing should go. The emperor granted his retirement; he returned home by express relay and was still rewarded with gold and silks. The next year Zhang Cong and others fabricated the Zhu Jizong case, implicating Yiqing for taking money from Zhang Yong's brother Rong, composing Yong's tomb inscription, and securing a hereditary Embroidered Uniform command for Rong's son; Yiqing was demoted and lived in retirement. Yiqing cried out in bitter anger, "I am old, yet sold out by a stripling! An abscess broke out on his back and he died. In his final memorial he wrote that he had been slandered and could not die in peace; the emperor ordered the bribery charge dropped. Several years later his former rank was restored. In time he was posthumously made Grand Guardian with the posthumous name Wenxiang.

一清生而隱宮，貌寺人，無子。博學善權變，尤曉暢邊事。羽書旁午，一夕占十疏，悉中機宜。人或訾己，反薦揚之。惟晚與璁、萼異，為所軋，不獲以恩禮終。然其才一時無兩，或比之姚崇雲。

Yiqing was born with a hidden palace mark on his body, looked like a eunuch, and had no son. He was broadly learned and skilled in flexible adaptation, especially expert in frontier affairs. When urgent dispatches arrived from all sides, he could draft ten memorials in a single night, each striking the right note. If someone criticized him, he would recommend and praise them instead. Only in his later years did he fall out with Zhang Cong and Gui E; crushed by them, he was denied a gracious end. Yet his talent had no equal in his day; some compared him to Yao Chong and Wei Zheng.

王瓊，字德華，太原人。成化二十年進士。授工部主事，進郎中。出治漕河三年，臚其事為誌。繼者按稽之，不爽毫髮，由是以敏練稱。改戶部，歷河南右布政使。正德元年，擢右副都御史督漕運。明年入為戶部右侍郎。衡府有賜地，蕪不可耕，勒民出租以為常，王反誣民趙賢等侵據。瓊往按，奪旁近民地予之，賢等戍邊，民多怨者。三年春，廷推吏部侍郎，前後六人，皆不允。最後以瓊上，許之。坐任戶部時邊臣借太倉銀未償，所司奏遲，尚書顧佐奪俸，而瓊改南京。已，復改戶部。八年進尚書。

Wang Qiong, courtesy name Dehua, was a native of Taiyuan. He received his jinshi degree in 1484. He was appointed a clerk in the Ministry of Works and later promoted to director. Sent to administer the Grand Canal for three years, he compiled a detailed record of the work. His successor checked his records and found not a hair's breadth of discrepancy; from this he gained a reputation for keen efficiency. He was transferred to the Ministry of Revenue and served as right provincial administration commissioner of Henan. In 1506 he was promoted to right vice censor-in-chief in charge of grain transport. The following year he entered the capital as right vice minister of revenue. The Princely Establishment of Heng held granted lands that were overgrown and uncultivable; the people were compelled to pay rent as a fixed obligation, while the prince in turn falsely accused Zhao Xian and others of encroaching on the land. Qiong went to investigate, seized nearby commoners' lands and gave them to the prince; Zhao Xian and others were sent to frontier garrison duty, and many people resented the decision. In the spring of his third year, six candidates in succession were recommended for vice minister of personnel, and all were rejected. Finally Wang Qiong was put forward and approved. Because frontier officials had borrowed silver from the Taicang treasury without repaying during his tenure at the Ministry of Revenue, and the responsible office reported late, Minister Gu Zuo had his salary docked and Qiong was transferred to Nanjing. Before long he was transferred back to the Ministry of Revenue. In his eighth year he was promoted to minister.

瓊為人有心計，善鉤校。為郎時悉錄故牘條例，盡得其斂散盈縮狀。及為尚書，益明習國計。邊帥請芻糗，則屈指計某倉、某場庤糧草幾何；諸郡歲輸、邊卒歲采秋青幾何，曰：「足矣。重索妄也。」人益以瓊為才。

Qiong was calculating by nature and skilled at auditing accounts. As a bureau secretary he copied out all old documents and regulations, mastering every detail of revenue intake, expenditure, surplus, and shortfall. Once he became minister, he grew even more expert in national finance. When frontier commanders requested fodder and grain, he would reckon on his fingers how much was stored in each granary and depot; how much each prefecture delivered annually and how much autumn forage the frontier troops collected, and say, "That is enough. To demand more would be unjust. People regarded Qiong as even more capable.

十年代陸完為兵部尚書。時四方盜起，將士以首功進秩。瓊言：「此嬴秦弊政。行之邊方猶可，未有內地而論首功者。今江西、四川妄殺平民千萬，縱賊貽禍，皆此議所致。自今內地征討，惟以蕩平為功，不計首級。」從之。帝時遠遊塞外，經歲不還，近畿盜竊發。瓊請於河間設總兵一人，大名、武定各設兵備副使一人，責以平賊，而檄順天、保定兩巡撫，嚴要害為外防，集遼東、延綏士馬於行在，以護軍駕。中外恃以無恐。孝豐賊湯麻九反，有司請發兵剿。瓊請密敕勘糧都御史許廷光，出不意擒之，無一脫者。四方捷奏上，多推功瓊，數受蔭賚，累加至少師兼太子太師，子錦衣世千戶。及營建乾清宮，又蔭錦衣千戶者二，寵遇冠諸尚書。十四年，寧王宸濠反。瓊請敕南和伯方壽祥督操江兵防南都，南贛巡撫王守仁、湖廣巡撫秦金各率所部趨南昌，應天巡撫李充嗣鎮京口，淮揚巡撫叢蘭扼儀真。奏上，帝意欲親征，持三日不下。大學士楊廷和趣之，竟下親征詔，命瓊與廷和等居守。先是，瓊用王守仁撫南、贛，假便宜提督軍務。比宸濠反，書聞，舉朝惴惴。瓊曰：「諸君勿憂，吾用王伯安贛州，正為今日，賊旦夕擒耳。」未幾，果如其言。

In the tenth year he replaced Lu Wan as minister of war. At the time bandits rose throughout the empire, and officers and soldiers were promoted by the number of enemy heads they claimed. Qiong said, "This is the corrupt Qin-dynasty policy. It may still be applied on the frontier, but head-count merit has never been used in the interior provinces. Now in Jiangxi and Sichuan countless civilians are killed without cause, bandits are allowed to escape and leave disaster behind—all because of this policy. Henceforth, for interior campaigns, only complete pacification shall count as merit; enemy heads shall not be counted. The emperor approved. The emperor at the time made extended tours beyond the frontier and was away for a year at a time, while theft and banditry broke out near the capital. Qiong proposed stationing a regional commander at Hejian and military intendants at Daming and Wuding to suppress bandits; he ordered the grand coordinators of Shuntian and Baoding to guard key passes, and assembled troops from Liaodong and Yan-sui at the temporary palace to protect the emperor. Court and country alike took comfort and were unafraid. At Xiaofeng the bandit Tang Majiu rebelled, and local officials requested troops to suppress him. Qiong asked for a secret edict to Grain-Inspection Censor-in-Chief Xu Tingguang to seize them by surprise; not one escaped. Victory reports from all directions mostly credited Qiong; he received repeated hereditary rewards and rose to Junior Preceptor and Grand Preceptor of the Heir Apparent, with his son enrolled as a hereditary commander of one thousand Embroidered Uniform households. When the Qianqing Palace was constructed, two more hereditary Embroidered Uniform commands of one thousand households each were granted; his favor surpassed all other ministers. In the fourteenth year the Prince of Ning, Zhu Chenhao, rebelled. Qiong proposed an edict ordering the Earl of Nanhe Fang Shouxiang to command river-defense troops to protect Nanjing; Nan-Gan Grand Coordinator Wang Shouren and Huguang Grand Coordinator Qin Jin to march on Nanchang; Yingtian Grand Coordinator Li Chongsi to guard Jingkou; and Huai-Yang Grand Coordinator Cong Lan to block Yizhen. When the memorial was submitted, the emperor wished to campaign in person and withheld approval for three days. Grand Secretary Yang Tinghe pressed him, and the edict for a personal campaign was finally issued, with Qiong and Tinghe ordered to remain and guard the capital. Earlier Qiong had appointed Wang Shouren to pacify southern Ganzhou with discretionary authority as overall military supervisor. When news of Chenhao's rebellion arrived, the whole court was alarmed. Qiong said, "Do not worry, gentlemen. I placed Wang Shouren in Ganzhou precisely for this day; the rebel will be captured within days. Before long events proved him right.

瓊才高，善結納。厚事錢寧、江彬等，因得自展，所奏請輒行。其能為功於兵部者，亦彬等力也。陸完敗，代為吏部尚書。瓊忌彭澤平流賊，聲望出己上，構於錢寧，中澤危法。又陷雲南巡撫範鏞、甘肅巡撫李昆、副使陳九疇於獄，中外多畏瓊。而大學士廷和亦以瓊所誅賞，多取中旨，不關內閣，弗能堪。明年，世宗入繼，言官交劾瓊，系都察院獄。瓊力訐廷和，帝愈不直瓊，下廷臣雜議。坐交結近侍律論死，命戍莊浪。瓊復訴年老，改戍綏德。

Qiong was highly capable and skilled at cultivating connections. He lavished favors on Qian Ning, Jiang Bin, and their faction and thereby gained room to act; his memorials were generally approved. What he achieved as minister of war owed much to Bin and his allies. When Lu Wan fell, Qiong replaced him as minister of personnel. Qiong resented Peng Ze for pacifying the river bandits and surpassing him in reputation; he framed Ze through Qian Ning and nearly had him executed. He also had Yunnan Grand Coordinator Fan Yong, Gansu Grand Coordinator Li Kun, and Vice Commissioner Chen Jiuchou imprisoned; many at court and beyond feared him. Grand Secretary Yang Tinghe also resented that Qiong's rewards and punishments mostly followed direct edicts without Grand Secretariat review. The next year, when Emperor Shizong succeeded, censorial officials impeached Qiong in succession and he was imprisoned in the Censorate jail. Qiong attacked Tinghe fiercely; the emperor was all the less disposed in his favor and ordered a joint deliberation by court ministers. He was convicted under the statute on associating with imperial favorites and sentenced to death, then ordered exiled to Zhuanglang. Qiong again pleaded old age and was transferred to exile at Suide.

張璁、桂萼、霍韜用事，以瓊與廷和仇，首薦之，不納。至嘉靖六年有邊警，萼力請用瓊，不果。帝亦憫瓊老病，令還籍為民。御史胡松因劾萼謫外任，其同官周在請宥松，並下詔獄。萼復言瓊前攻廷和，故廷臣群起排之。帝乃命復瓊尚書待用。明年遂以兵部尚書兼右都御史代王憲督陜西三邊軍務。土魯番據哈密，廷議閉關絕其貢，四年矣。至是，其將牙木蘭為酋速檀滿速兒所疑，率從二千求內屬。沙州番人帖木哥、土巴等，素為土魯番役屬者，苦其征求，亦率五千余人入附。番人來寇，連為參將雲昌等所敗。其引瓦剌寇肅州者，遊擊彭濬擊退之。賊既失援，又數失利，乃獻還哈密。求通貢，乞歸羈留使臣，而語多謾。瓊奏乞撫納，帝從兵部尚書王時中議，如瓊請。霍韜難之，瓊再疏請詔還番使，通貢如故。自是西域復定，而北寇常為邊患。初入犯莊浪，瓊部諸將遮擊之，斬數十級。俄由紅城子入，殺部餉主簿張文明。明年以數萬騎寇寧夏。已又犯靈州，瓊督遊擊梁震等邀斬七十余人。其秋，集諸道精卒三萬，按行塞下。寇聞，徙帳遠遁。諸軍分道出，縱野燒，耀兵而還。

When Zhang Cong, Gui E, and Huo Tao held power, they recommended Qiong first because of his feud with Tinghe, but the appointment was not made. In the sixth year of Jiajing a frontier alarm arose; Gui E pressed hard to employ Qiong, but without success. The emperor also pitied Qiong's age and illness and ordered him returned home as a commoner. Censor Hu Song was demoted for impeaching Gui E; his colleague Zhou Zai asked pardon for Song, and both were sent to the imperial prison. Gui E again argued that because Qiong had attacked Tinghe, court ministers had banded together to exclude him. The emperor then ordered Qiong's ministerial rank restored for future employment. The next year he was appointed minister of war and right censor-in-chief in place of Wang Xian to supervise military affairs on Shaanxi's three frontiers. Turpan held Hami, and the court had closed the border and cut off tribute for four years. By then their general Yalansha, suspected by the chief Shaytans Mansuer, led two thousand followers to seek submission within the border. Shazhou tribesmen Tiemuge, Tuba, and others, long subject to Turpan and worn down by their levies, also led more than five thousand people to submit. Tribal raiders were repeatedly defeated by Regional Commander Yun Chang and others. Those who led Oirat raiders against Suzhou were repulsed by Mobile Corps Commander Peng Jun. Having lost their allies and suffered repeated defeats, they then returned Hami. They sought to resume tribute and asked for the return of detained envoys, but their language was mostly insolent. Qiong memorialized asking to pacify and accept them; the emperor followed Minister of War Wang Shizhong's recommendation and approved Qiong's request. Huo Tao objected; Qiong memorialized again asking for an edict to return the tribal envoys and restore tribute as before. From this the western regions were pacified again, while northern raiders remained a constant frontier threat. When they first invaded Zhuanglang, Qiong's generals intercepted them and beheaded several dozen. Soon they entered through Hongchengzi and killed provisions clerk Zhang Wenming. The next year they raided Ningxia with tens of thousands of horsemen. They then attacked Lingzhou; Qiong directed Mobile Corps Commander Liang Zhen and others to ambush them and behead more than seventy. That autumn he assembled thirty thousand picked troops from all routes and inspected the frontier defenses. When the raiders heard of this, they moved their camps far away. The armies marched out by separate routes, burned the open country, displayed their strength, and returned.

先是，南京給事中邱九仞劾瓊，帝慰留之。及璁、萼罷政，諸劾璁、萼黨者鹹首瓊，乃令致仕。俄寢前詔，遣慰諭。會番大掠臨洮，瓊集兵討若籠、板爾諸族，焚其巢，斬首三百六十，撫降七十余族。錄功，加太子太保。瓊在邊，戎備甚飭。寇嘗入山西得利，逾歲復獵境上，陽欲東，瓊令備其西。寇果入，大敗之。諸番蕩平，西陲益靖。甘肅軍民素苦土魯番侵暴，恐瓊去，相率乞守臣奏留。於是巡撫唐澤、巡按胡明善具陳其功，乞如軍民請。優詔獎之。

Earlier, Nanjing Supervising Secretary Qiu Jiuren had impeached Qiong, and the emperor comforted him and kept him at his post. When Zhang Cong and Gui E fell from power, those who had impeached their faction named Qiong first, and he was ordered to retire. Before long the retirement edict was suspended and envoys were sent to console him. When tribes raided Lintao on a large scale, Qiong assembled troops against the Ruolong and Ban'er clans, burned their camps, beheaded three hundred sixty, and pacified more than seventy clans. His merit was recorded and he was made Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent. On the frontier Qiong maintained very strict military discipline. The raiders once raided Shanxi with success; more than a year later they prowled the border again, feigning an eastern thrust, and Qiong ordered defenses to the west. The raiders entered as he expected and were heavily defeated. The tribes were pacified and the western frontier grew tranquil. The people of Gansu had long suffered Turpan's raids and, fearing Qiong's departure, petitioned through local officials to keep him. Grand Coordinator Tang Ze and Investigating Censor Hu Mingshan then detailed his achievements and supported the people's request. The emperor issued a gracious edict praising him.

初，帝惡楊廷和，疑廷臣悉其黨，故連用桂萼、方獻夫為吏部。及獻夫去，帝不欲授他人，久不補。至十年冬，遣行人賫敕召瓊為吏部尚書。南京御史馬敭等十人力詆瓊先朝遺奸。帝大怒，盡逮敭等下詔獄，慰諭瓊。未凡，敭等亦還職。花馬池有警，兵部尚書王憲請發兵。瓊言花馬池備嚴，寇不能入，大軍至，且先退，徒耗中國。憲竟發六千人，比至彰德，寇果遁。明年秋卒官。贈太師，謚恭襄。是年，彭澤已先卒矣。

At first the emperor disliked Yang Tinghe and suspected court ministers were all his partisans, so he repeatedly appointed Gui E and Fang Xianfu as minister of personnel. When Xianfu left, the emperor did not wish to appoint anyone else and left the post vacant for a long time. By the winter of the tenth year he sent an envoy with an edict summoning Qiong as minister of personnel. Ten Nanjing censors including Ma Yang strenuously denounced Qiong as a surviving villain of the previous reign. The emperor was furious, had Yang and the others arrested and sent to the imperial prison, and comforted Qiong. Before long Yang and the others were also restored to their posts. When there was an alarm at Huama Chi, Minister of War Wang Xian requested troops. Qiong said Huama Chi was well defended and raiders could not penetrate; a large army would arrive only after they had withdrawn, wasting imperial resources. Wang Xian still dispatched six thousand men; by the time they reached Zhangde the raiders had fled. The following autumn he died in office. He was posthumously made Grand Preceptor with the posthumous name Gongxiang. That year Peng Ze had already died before him.

當正、嘉間，澤、瓊並有才略，相中傷不已，亦叠為進退。而瓊險忮，公論尤不予。然在本兵時功多。而其督三邊也，人以比楊一清雲。

During the Zhengde and Jiajing reigns, Peng Ze and Qiong were both talented strategists who ceaselessly undermined each other and rose and fell in turn. Yet Qiong was treacherous and jealous, and public opinion especially disapproved of him. Yet while he held the Ministry of War he accomplished a great deal. In supervising the three frontiers, people compared him to Yang Yiqing.

彭澤，字濟物，蘭州人。幼學於外祖段堅，有誌節。會試二場畢，聞母病，徑歸，母病亦已。登弘治三年進士，授工部主事，歷刑部郎中。勢豪殺人，澤置之辟。中貴為祈免，執不聽。出為徽州知府。澤將遣女，治漆器數十，使吏送其家。澤父大怒，趣焚之，徒步詣徽。澤驚出迓，自吏負其裝。父怒曰：「吾負此數千里，汝不能負數步耶？」入，杖澤堂下。杖已，持裝徑去。澤益痛砥礪。政最，人以方前守孫遇。遇見《循吏傳》中。父喪歸。

Peng Ze, courtesy name Jiwu, was a native of Lanzhou. As a boy he studied with his maternal grandfather Duan Jian and possessed firm resolve and integrity. He had finished the second session of the metropolitan examination when he heard his mother was ill; he went straight home, and found her already recovered. He received his jinshi degree in 1490, was appointed a clerk in the Ministry of Works, and rose to director in the Ministry of Justice. When a powerful family committed murder, Ze sentenced the killer to death. A palace eunuch interceded for pardon, but he stood firm and refused. He was appointed prefect of Huizhou. When Peng Ze was preparing to marry off his daughter, he had several dozen lacquer objects made and sent clerks to carry them to his family home. His father flew into a rage, had the lacquerware burned, and walked the whole way to Huizhou. Peng Ze hurried out to welcome him, took his father’s luggage from the clerk, and carried it himself. His father thundered, “I bore this load thousands of li—are you unable to carry it a few steps? Then he went inside and had Peng Ze flogged in the main hall. When the flogging ended, he shouldered the luggage and left without another word. The humiliation cut deep, and Peng Ze redoubled his efforts at self-discipline. His governance was rated the finest in the province, and contemporaries ranked him with the celebrated prefect Sun Yu. Sun Yu himself is commemorated in the “Diligent Officials” section of the histories. He left office to observe mourning when his father died.

正德初，起知真定。閹人數撓禁，澤治一棺於廳事，以死怵之，其人不敢逞。遷浙江副使，歷河南按察使，所至以威猛稱。擢右僉都御史，巡撫遼東。進右副都御史，改保定。未赴，而劉惠、趙鐩等亂河南，命澤與鹹寧伯仇鉞提督軍務討之。陳便宜十一事，厚賞峻罰，以激勸將吏。澤體幹修偉，腰帶十二圍，大音聲，與人語若叱咤。始至，大陳軍容，引見諸將校，責以畏縮當死。諸將校股栗伏罪，良久乃釋。遂下令鼓行薄賊，大小數十戰，連破之。甫四月，賊盡平，語詳《鉞傳》。錄功，進右都御史、太子少保，蔭子錦衣世百戶。尋代洪鐘總督川、陜諸軍，討四川賊。時鄢本恕、藍廷瑞、廖惠、曹甫已平，惟廖麻子、喻思俸猖獗如故。澤偕總兵官時源數敗賊，部將閻勛追擒麻子於劍州。思俸竄通、巴間，勢復振。澤督諸軍圍之，卒就擒。澤遂移漢中，請班師。未報，而內江、榮昌賊復熾，澤又移師討平之。且平成都亂卒之執知州、指揮者。請班師益力，詔暫留保寧鎮撫。進左都御史、太子太保，蔭子如初。澤復請還者再，乃召還。未行，會土魯番據哈密，執忠順王速檀拜牙郎，以其印去，投謾書甘肅，要索金幣。總制鄧璋、甘肅巡撫趙鑒以聞，請遣大臣經略。大學士楊廷和等共薦澤。澤久在兵間，厭之。以鄉土為辭，且引疾，推璋及鹹寧侯鉞可任。帝優詔慰勉，乃行。

Early in the Zhengde era he was recalled and appointed prefect of Zhending. When eunuchs kept breaking local rules, he placed a coffin in the reception hall and threatened offenders with death—after that they dared not abuse their power. Promoted to vice commissioner in Zhejiang and later surveillance commissioner in Henan, he earned a reputation for relentless severity wherever he served. He rose to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief and was appointed grand coordinator of Liaodong. Further promoted to Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief, he was transferred to Baoding. He had not yet assumed the Baoding post when Liu Hui and Zhao Zhen rose in Henan; the court ordered Peng Ze and the Earl of Xianning, Qiu Yue, to take joint command and crush the rebellion. He submitted eleven practical proposals pairing generous rewards with stern punishments to galvanize officers and troops. Peng Ze was a towering man with a twelve-fold belt girth, a booming voice, and a manner of address that sounded like a battlefield roar. On arrival he paraded the full army, summoned every commander, and denounced them for timidity, declaring them worthy of execution. The commanders shook with fear and confessed their fault; he kept them in suspense a long while before letting them go. He then ordered a general advance, engaged the rebels in dozens of clashes, and broke them battle after battle. Within four months the rebels were wholly suppressed; the campaigns are narrated at length in Qiu Yue’s biography. Rewards followed: he became Right Censor-in-Chief and Junior Guardian of the Heir Apparent, and his son received a hereditary post as hundred-household commander in the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Shortly afterward he succeeded Hong Zhong as supreme commander of Sichuan and Shaanxi forces to quell brigandage in Sichuan. Yan Benshu, Lan Tingrui, Liao Hui, and Cao Fu were already subdued; only Liao Mazi and Yu Sifu still rampaged unchecked. Peng Ze and regional commander Shi Yuan won repeated victories; subordinate Yan Xun ran down Liao Mazi and captured him at Jianzhou. Yu Sifu slipped into the Tong–Ba country, and rebel strength surged again. Peng Ze encircled him with combined forces until he was taken at last. He moved his headquarters to Hanzhong and asked permission to withdraw the troops. Before the court answered, unrest reignited in Neijiang and Rongchang, and he marched out again and crushed it. He likewise put down Chengdu mutineers who had taken the prefect and a military commander hostage. He pleaded more urgently to come home; the throne instead told him to stay at Baoning and settle the province. He was raised to Left Censor-in-Chief and Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent, with the same hereditary honors for his son. Peng Ze petitioned twice more to retire before the court finally recalled him. Before he could leave, Turpan occupied Hami, captured the loyal king Sultan Bayandorji, carried off his seal, sent a contemptuous missive to Gansu, and demanded gold and tribute. Supreme commander Deng Zhang and Gansu grand coordinator Zhao Jian memorialized the crisis and urged dispatch of a senior minister to direct policy on the frontier. Grand Secretaries led by Yang Tinghe united in recommending Peng Ze. Peng Ze had spent years in the field and loathed returning to war. He pleaded distance from home and ill health, naming Deng Zhang and the Marquis of Xianning, Qiu Yue, as better choices. The emperor answered with a warm edict of encouragement, and Peng Ze at last departed.

澤材武知兵，然性疏闊負氣。經略哈密事頗不當，錢寧、王瓊等交齮龁之，遂因此得罪。澤至甘州，土魯番方寇赤斤、苦峪諸衛，遣使索金幣，請還哈密。澤以番人可利啖也，與鑒謀，遣哈密都督寫亦虎仙以幣二千、銀酒槍一賂之，令還哈密城印。未得報，輒奏事平，乞骸骨。召還理院事。巡按御史馮時雍言城未歸，澤不宜遽召。不納。

Peng Ze was capable in military affairs, but his temperament was blunt and headstrong. His Hami strategy misfired; Qian Ning and Wang Qiong piled on with mutual slander until he was ruined. At Ganzhou he found Turpan raiding Chijin, Kuyu, and neighboring guards while envoys demanded bullion and the restoration of Hami. Believing the nomads could be bought off, he and Zhao Jian sent Hami assistant commander Shayihuxian with two thousand strings of coin and a silver wine ewer as a bribe, demanding Hami’s city and seal in return. Without waiting for a reply he reported victory and asked to retire on grounds of age and illness. The court recalled him to resume duties at the Ministry of War. Touring censor Feng Shiyong protested that Hami was still lost and Peng Ze should not be recalled prematurely. The memorial was ignored.

初，兵部缺尚書，廷臣共推澤，而王瓊得之，且陰阻澤。言官多劾瓊者，由是有隙。澤又使酒常淩瓊，瓊愈欲傾之。澤時時罵錢寧，瓊以語寧，寧未信。瓊乃邀澤飲，匿寧所親屏間，挑澤醉罵使聞之，寧果大怒。會寇大入宣府，廷議以許泰將兵，澤總制東西兩邊軍務。及詔下，罷泰不遣，又不命澤總制，獨令提督兩遊擊兵六千人以行，意以困澤。澤言：「臣文臣，摧鋒陷陣非臣所能獨任。」瓊乃奏遣成國公朱輔。會寇遁，澤還理院事。

Earlier, when the war ministry fell vacant, the court had favored Peng Ze, but Wang Qiong won the appointment and quietly worked against him. Censors had repeatedly attacked Wang Qiong, and bad blood opened between the two men. Peng Ze drank hard and habitually humiliated Wang Qiong, who grew only more determined to destroy him. Peng Ze regularly denounced Qian Ning; Wang Qiong relayed the abuse, but Ning would not credit it. Wang Qiong invited Peng Ze to a banquet, hid one of Ning’s confidants behind a screen, and provoked him into drunken abuse within earshot—Qian Ning was finally enraged. When raiders poured into Xuanfu, the court debated putting Xu Tai in the field while Peng Ze coordinated both eastern and western frontiers. The final edict kept Xu Tai at home, denied Peng Ze overall command, and sent him only six thousand troops from two mobile detachments—an obvious setup to humiliate him. Peng Ze protested, “I am a civil minister; I cannot alone bear the work of leading a charge. Wang Qiong then secured an order sending the Duke of Cheng, Zhu Fu, to join him. Once the raiders withdrew, Peng Ze went back to the Ministry of War.

寫亦虎仙者，素桀黠。雖居肅州，陰通土魯番酋速檀滿速兒，為之耳目，據城奪印皆其謀。澤初不知而遣之。滿速兒以城印來歸，留速檀拜牙郎如故。虎仙復啖使入寇，曰：「肅州可得也。」滿速兒悅，使其婿馬黑木隨入貢，以覘虛實，且征賄。澤已還，鑒亦遷去，李昆代巡撫，慮他變，質其使於甘州，而驅虎仙出關。虎仙懼弗去。滿速兒聞之怒，復取哈密，分兵據沙州，自率萬騎寇嘉峪關。遊擊芮寧與參將蔣存禮禦之。寧以七百人先遇寇沙子壩。寇圍寧，而分兵綴存禮軍。寧軍盡沒，遂墮城堡，縱殺掠。詔澤提督三邊軍務往禦。會副使陳九疇系其使失拜煙答及虎仙等，內應絕，乃復求和。澤兵遂罷。尋乞骸骨歸，馳驛給夫廩如制。

Shayihuxian had always been cunning and unruly. Though stationed at Suzhou, he secretly served Turpan’s chief Sultan Mansur as spy and architect of the seizure of Hami and its seal. Peng Ze, unaware, had sent him on the mission. Mansur handed back the city and seal yet retained Sultan Bayandorji under his control. Shayihuxian once more urged invasion, promising, “Suzhou can be yours. Delighted, Mansur sent his son-in-law Ma Heimu with a tribute mission to probe Ming defenses and extort gifts. Peng Ze was gone and Zhao Jian transferred; Li Kun became grand coordinator, detained the envoys at Ganzhou for fear of treachery, and expelled Shayihuxian beyond the frontier. Shayihuxian panicked and refused to go. Mansur flew into a rage, retook Hami, occupied Shazhou with a detachment, and led ten thousand horsemen against Jiayu Pass. Mobile-corps commander Rui Ning and assistant commander Jiang Cunli met the invasion. Rui Ning with seven hundred men met the vanguard first at Shaziba. The raiders encircled Rui Ning and pinned Jiang Cunli with a separate force. Rui Ning’s detachment was wiped out; the enemy stormed the fortifications and ravaged the countryside. The throne ordered Peng Ze to take command of the three frontiers and march to repel them. Meanwhile vice commissioner Chen Jiuchou seized Ibakiyata and Shayihuxian; cut off from inside help, Turpan sued for peace. Peng Ze’s expedition was stood down. He soon retired home on grounds of age, traveling by imperial courier relay with the usual porter rations.

澤既去，瓊追論嘉峪之敗，請窮詰增幣者主名。錢寧從中下其事，大學士梁儲等持之，乃已。會失拜煙答子訟父冤，下法司議，釋寫亦虎仙等。瓊因請遣給事御史勘失事狀，還報無所引。瓊遂劾澤妄增金幣，遺書議和，失信啟釁，辱國喪師；昆、九疇俱宜罪。詔斥澤為民，昆、九疇逮訊。昆謫官，九疇除名。

Once Peng Ze was gone, Wang Qiong reopened the Jiayu disaster and demanded a full inquiry into who had authorized the extra tribute. Qian Ning tried to drive the investigation from within, but Grand Secretary Liang Chu and others blocked it until the affair died. When Ibakiyata’s son petitioned over his father’s death, the judiciary reviewed the case and freed Shayihuxian and his party. Wang Qiong sent a supervising secretary and a censor to investigate the defeat; their report cited no one. Wang Qiong then impeached Peng Ze for lavishing gold, negotiating by private letter, breaking faith, inviting attack, and bringing national shame and military disaster; he argued that Li Kun and Chen Jiuchou should be punished as well. An edict stripped Peng Ze of rank and ordered Li Kun and Chen Jiuchou taken for questioning. Li Kun was demoted; Chen Jiuchou was dismissed from service.

世宗入繼，錢寧敗，瓊亦得罪。御史楊秉中請召澤，遂即家起兵部尚書、太子太保。昆、九疇亦復官。部事積壞久，澤核功罪，杜幹請，兵政一新。初，正德時，廷臣建白戎務奉俞旨者，多廢格。澤請臚列成書，次第修舉。又請敕九邊守臣，策防禦方略，毋畫境自保。鎮、巡居中調度，毋相牽制。諸邊各以農隙築墻浚濠，修墩臺，飭屯堡，為經久計。內地盜甫息，敕守臣練卒伍，立保甲，懲匿盜不舉者。且撫西南諸苗蠻，申海禁，汰京軍老弱。帝鹹嘉納。詔遣中官楊金、鄭斌、安川更代鎮守，復令張弼、劉瑤守涼州、居庸。澤持不可，罷弗遣。四川巡撫胡世寧劾分守中官趙欽，澤因請盡罷諸鎮守。時雖不從，其後鎮守竟罷。

After the Jiajing emperor took the throne, Qian Ning was ruined and Wang Qiong fell with him. Censor Yang Bingzhong urged Peng Ze’s recall; he was summoned straight from retirement as Minister of War and Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent. Li Kun and Chen Jiuchou were reinstated as well. Years of rot had crippled the ministry; Peng Ze judged rewards and blame, shut down backdoor pleading, and renewed military administration. Under Zhengde, many approved military reforms proposed by the court had never been carried out. Peng Ze asked that they be compiled into a book and enforced step by step. He urged the nine frontier governors to draft coordinated defense plans instead of hoarding troops within their own jurisdictions. Regional and coordinating officers should orchestrate operations centrally rather than trip one another up. Every border sector should use the farming off-season to build walls, dig moats, repair beacon towers, and tighten garrison forts as a lasting program. With inland banditry only just quieting, he ordered local defenders to drill militia, institute baojia mutual surveillance, and punish those who hid thieves. He further pacified southwestern Miao peoples, reinforced the maritime ban, and culled aged and unfit soldiers from the capital armies. The emperor praised and adopted every proposal. An edict dispatched eunuchs Yang Jin, Zheng Bin, and An Chuan to rotate frontier garrison commands and reappointed Zhang Bi and Liu Yao to Liangzhou and Juyong. Peng Ze objected and blocked the appointments. When Sichuan grand coordinator Hu Shining attacked the garrison eunuch Zhao Qin, Peng Ze seized the moment to demand abolition of all frontier eunuch commands. The court refused at first, yet in time the garrison eunuchs were abolished after all.

在部多所執持。會御史史道以訐楊廷和下獄，澤復劾道。帝因諭言官，惟大奸及機密事專疏奏，余只具公疏，毋挾私中傷善類。詔下，給事御史交章劾澤阻言路，壞祖宗法。帝乃從吏部言，停前諭。澤不自安，累疏乞休。言者復交劾之，乃加少保，賜敕乘傳歸。錦衣百戶王邦奇憾澤嘗抑己，上書言哈密失國，由澤賂番求和所致，語侵楊廷和、陳九疇等。張璁、桂萼方疾廷和，遂逮九疇廷訊，戍邊。澤復奪官為民，家居郁郁以卒。

As minister he frequently stood his ground on policy. When censor Shi Dao was thrown into prison for denouncing Yang Tinghe, Peng Ze impeached him again. The emperor then admonished the censorate that only grave treason and confidential matters warranted individual memorials; everything else belonged in collective submissions, and officials must not settle private scores by smearing upright colleagues. Once the edict appeared, supervising secretaries and censors flooded the throne with charges that Peng Ze had blocked the remonstrance channels and broken ancestral precedent. The emperor then heeded the Ministry of Personnel and revoked the earlier directive. Uneasy in his post, Peng Ze memorialized again and again requesting retirement. When critics renewed their attacks, the court made him Junior Guardian and sent him home with an imperial letter and relay horses. Wang Bangqi, a hundred-household officer of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, still smarting from Peng Ze's earlier rebuke, memorialized that Hami had been lost because Ze had bribed the tribes into a peace settlement, and his charges also touched Yang Tinghe, Chen Jiuchou, and others. Zhang Cong and Gui E, then eager to strike at Yang Tinghe's circle, had Chen Jiuchou seized for court interrogation and exiled to the frontier. Peng Ze was stripped of rank once more and reduced to commoner status; he lived out his days at home in dejection until death.

總制尚書唐龍言：「澤孝友廉直，先後討平群盜，功在盟府。陛下起之田間，俾掌邦政。澤孜孜奉國，復為讒言構罷。今歿已五年，所遺二妾，衣食不給。請核澤往勞，復官加恤，以作忠臣之氣。」不從。隆慶初，復官，謚襄毅。

Grand Coordinator Minister Tang Long wrote: "Peng Ze was filial, loyal to friends, upright, and incorruptible; he put down bandit armies one after another, and his deeds belong in the Hall of Fealty. Your Majesty plucked him from private life and entrusted him with the governance of the realm. He served the state tirelessly, only to be driven out again by malicious accusations. Five years after his death, the two concubines he left behind still cannot afford food and clothing. I beg that his past service be reviewed, his rank restored, and additional honors granted, so as to sustain the morale of loyal ministers. The court refused. Early in the Longqing reign his rank was restored and he was posthumously titled Xiangyi.

毛伯溫，字汝厲，吉水人。祖超，廣西知府。伯溫登正德三年進士，授紹興府推官。擢御史，巡按福建、河南。世宗即位，中官張銳、張忠等論死，其黨蕭敬、韋霦陰緩之。伯溫請並誅敬、霦，中官為屏氣。嘉靖初，遷大理寺丞。擢右僉都御史，巡撫寧夏。李福達獄起，坐為大理時失入，褫職歸。用薦起故官，撫山西，移順天，皆未赴。改理院事，進左副都御史。為趙府宗人祐椋所訐，解官候勘。已，復褫職。

Mao Bowen, courtesy name Ruli, came from Jishui. His grandfather Chao had served as prefect of Guangxi. Bowen passed the jinshi examination in Zhengde year 3 and was appointed investigating magistrate of Shaoxing Prefecture. Promoted to censor, he toured Fujian and Henan on inspection duty. When Emperor Shizong took the throne, the eunuchs Zhang Rui and Zhang Zhong were condemned to death, but their allies Xiao Jing and Wei Rong worked behind the scenes to stall the sentences. Bowen demanded that Jing and Rong be executed as well, and the eunuch faction fell silent in fear. Early in the Jiajing reign he was transferred to the Court of Judicial Review as vice director. Raised to Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief, he was sent to govern Ningxia as grand coordinator. When the Li Fuda case erupted, he was blamed for a wrongful ruling from his days at the Court of Judicial Review, stripped of office, and sent home. Recommended back to office, he was assigned to govern Shanxi and then Shuntian, but he never took either post. He was reassigned to the Court of Judicial Review and promoted to Left Vice Censor-in-Chief. You Liang, a clansman of the Zhao princely establishment, denounced him, and he was suspended pending investigation. He was eventually stripped of rank once more.

十五年冬，皇嗣生，將頒詔外國。禮部尚書夏言以安南久失朝貢，不當遣使，請討之。遂起伯溫右都御史，與鹹寧侯仇鸞治兵待命。以父喪辭，不許。明年五月至京，上方略六事。會安南世孫黎寧遣陪臣鄭惟僚等訴莫登庸弒逆，請興師復仇。帝疑其不實，命暫緩師，敕兩廣、雲南守臣勘報，而命伯溫協理院事。御史何維柏請聽伯溫終制，不許。伯溫引疾不出，至禫除始起視事。其冬遷工部尚書。十七年春，黔國公沐朝輔等以登庸降表至，請宥罪許貢。先是，雲南巡撫汪文盛奏登庸聞發兵進討，遣使潛覘。帝已敕遵前詔進兵，文盛又納安南降人武文淵策，具言登庸可破狀，復傳檄安南令奉表獻地。及是，下朝輔奏付廷議，僉言不可許。乃改伯溫兵部尚書兼右都御史，克期啟行。帝以用兵事重，無必討意，特欲威服之。而兵部尚書張瓚無所畫，視帝意為可否。朝論多主不當興師，顧不敢顯諫。制下數月，兩廣總督侍郎張經以用兵方略上，且言須兵三十萬，餉百六十萬石。欽州知州林希元則極言登庸易取，請即日出師。瓚不敢決，復請廷議。議上無成策，帝不懌，讓瓚，師復止。命伯溫仍協理院事。

In the winter of year 15 a royal heir was born, and the court prepared to announce the birth to foreign states. Minister of Rites Xia Yan argued that Annam had long ceased tribute missions and should not receive an envoy; he urged a punitive expedition instead. Bowen was recalled as Right Censor-in-Chief and, with Marquis Qiu Luan of Xianning, began mobilizing troops for action. He asked to withdraw for his father's mourning, but the court refused. The following May he reached the capital and submitted six strategic proposals to the emperor. Just then Li Ning, Annam's hereditary heir, sent attendant ministers including Zheng Weiliao to accuse Mac Dang Dung of regicide and plead for a punitive campaign. The emperor doubted the account, suspended the campaign, ordered officials in the Two Guangs and Yunnan to investigate, and had Bowen assist at the Court of Judicial Review. Censor He Weibai asked that Bowen be allowed to finish mourning, but the court refused. Bowen stayed away on grounds of illness and did not resume duty until mourning ended. That winter he was appointed Minister of Works. In the spring of year 17, Duke Mu Zhaofu of Qian and others arrived with Mac Dang Dung's surrender memorial, asking pardon and permission to resume tribute. Earlier, Yunnan grand coordinator Wang Wensheng reported that once Mac Dang Dung heard of the planned expedition, he sent spies to reconnoiter. The emperor had already ordered troops forward under the earlier edict; Wang Wensheng also took counsel from the Annamese defector Wu Wenyuan, laid out a plan to break Mac Dang Dung, and again demanded submission and territorial surrender. When Zhaofu's memorial reached court, the consensus was that surrender could not be accepted. Bowen was then made Minister of War and concurrent Right Censor-in-Chief, with a fixed departure date. The emperor treated war as a grave matter and had no fixed appetite for conquest; he mainly wanted to intimidate Annam into submission. Minister of War Zhang Zan offered no plan of his own and simply mirrored the emperor's mood. Most at court believed war was unwise, yet few dared say so openly. Months after the order, Two Guangs grand coordinator Vice Minister Zhang Jing submitted a war plan calling for three hundred thousand troops and 1.6 million shi of grain. Qinzhou prefect Lin Xiyuan insisted Mac Dang Dung would be easy to defeat and urged immediate mobilization. Zhang Zan would not decide and sent the question back to court. The deliberation produced no clear plan; the emperor was displeased, rebuked Zhang Zan, and halted the campaign again. Bowen was ordered back to assisting at the Court of Judicial Review.

明年二月，帝幸承天。詔伯溫總督宣、大、山西軍務。俄選宮僚，加兼太子賓客。大同所轄鎮邊、鎮川、弘賜、鎮河、鎮虜五堡，相距二百餘里，極邊近賊帳。自巡撫張文錦以築堡致亂，後無敢議修者。伯溫曰：「變所由生，以任用匪人，非建議謬也。」卒營之。募軍三千防守，給以閑田，永除其賦。邊防賴焉。錄功，加太子少保。

The following February the emperor traveled to Chengtian. An edict put Bowen in overall command of military affairs in Xuanfu, Datong, and Shanxi. Soon he was chosen as a palace adviser and additionally made Mentor of the Heir Apparent. The five forts under Datong—Zhenbian, Zhenchuan, Hongci, Zhenhe, and Zhenlu—lay more than two hundred li apart on the outer frontier, hard against the enemy camps. Since grand coordinator Zhang Wenjin's fort-building had sparked rebellion, no one dared propose new construction. Bowen said: "The trouble came from appointing the wrong men, not from the fort-building plan itself. He went ahead and built them anyway. He recruited three thousand garrison troops, granted them idle land, and permanently exempted them from tax. The frontier defenses depended on these measures. His service was rewarded with promotion to Junior Mentor of the Heir Apparent.

是時登庸懼討，數上表乞降。帝亦欲因撫之，遣侍郎黃綰招諭。綰多所要求，帝怒，罷綰。再下廷議，鹹言當討，帝從之。閏七月命伯溫、鸞南征。文武三品以下不用命者，許軍令從事。伯溫等至廣西，會總督張經，總兵官安遠侯柳珣，參政翁萬達、張嶽等議，征兩廣、福建、湖廣狼土官兵凡十二萬五千余人，分三哨，自憑祥、龍峒、思陵州入，而以奇兵二為聲援。檄雲南巡撫汪文盛帥兵駐蓮花灘，亦分三道進。部署已定，會鸞有罪召還，即以珣代。十九年秋，伯溫等進駐南寧。檄安南臣民，諭以天朝興滅繼絕之義，罪止登庸父子，舉郡縣降者以其地授之。懸重購購登庸父子，而宣諭登庸籍土地、人民納款，即如詔書宥罪。登庸大懼，遣使詣萬達乞降，詞甚哀。萬達送之伯溫所。伯溫承制許之，宣天子恩威，納其圖籍，並所還欽州四峒地。權令還國聽命。馳疏以聞，帝大悅。詔改安南國為安南都統使司，以登庸為都統使，世襲，置十三宣撫司，令自署置。伯溫受命歲餘，不發一矢，而安南定，由帝本不欲用兵故也。論功，加太子太保。

By then Mac Dang Dung, fearing attack, repeatedly petitioned to surrender. The emperor also hoped to settle the matter peacefully and sent Vice Minister Huang Wan to negotiate. Huang Wan drove too hard a bargain; the emperor grew angry and dismissed him. The question went back to court, where the consensus favored war, and the emperor agreed. In the intercalary seventh month Bowen and Qiu Luan were ordered south on campaign. Civil and military officials below third rank who disobeyed could be punished under military law. In Guangxi, Bowen met grand coordinator Zhang Jing, regional commander Marquis Liu Xun of Anyuan, and administration commissioners Weng Wanda and Zhang Yue to plan the campaign; they mustered more than 125,000 Lang and native troops from the Two Guangs, Fujian, and Huguang, divided them into three columns entering through Pingxiang, Longdong, and Siling Prefecture, and posted two flanking detachments in support. They also ordered Yunnan grand coordinator Wang Wensheng to hold Lianhua Beach and advance in three columns. Once the plan was set, Qiu Luan was recalled for misconduct and Liu Xun replaced him. In the autumn of year 19 Bowen and his staff established headquarters at Nanning. They proclaimed to Annam's officials and people the court's doctrine of restoring fallen states and preserving broken lineages: only Mac Dang Dung and his son would be punished, and any district that surrendered would keep its lands. They offered a rich bounty for Mac Dang Dung and his son, while also telling Dang Dung that registering land and people and submitting would bring the pardon promised in the edict. Mac Dang Dung was terrified and sent envoys to Weng Wanda pleading to surrender in the most abject terms. Weng Wanda forwarded them to Bowen's headquarters. Acting on imperial authority, Bowen accepted the surrender, proclaimed the emperor's blend of mercy and force, took their maps and registers, and received back the four dong districts of Qinzhou. He provisionally allowed them to return home and await further orders. He sent an urgent report to court, and the emperor was delighted. An edict transformed Annam into the Annam Regional Military Commission, made Mac Dang Dung hereditary Regional Commander, established thirteen pacification commissions, and let him appoint his own officials. More than a year into his command, Bowen had not fired a single arrow, yet Annam was pacified—because the emperor had never truly wanted war. For his service he was promoted to Senior Mentor of the Heir Apparent.

二十一年正月還朝，復理院事。邊關數有警，伯溫請築京師外城。帝已報可，給事中劉養直言，廟工方興，物力難繼，乃命暫止。其年十月，張瓚卒，伯溫代為兵部。瓚貪黷，在部八年，戎備盡墮。伯溫會廷臣議上防邊二十四事，軍令一新。言官建議，請核實新軍、京軍及內府力士、匠役，以裕國儲。伯溫因上冗濫當革者二十余條，凡錦衣、騰驤諸衛，禦馬、內官、尚膳諸監，素為中貴盤踞者，盡在革中。帝稱善，立命清汰。宿弊頗厘，而左右近習多不悅。

In the first month of year 21 he returned to court and resumed work at the Court of Judicial Review. With repeated frontier alarms, Bowen proposed building an outer wall around the capital. The emperor had already approved, but supervising secretary Liu Yangzhi argued that temple construction was already straining resources, and the project was suspended. That October, when Zhang Zan died, Bowen succeeded him as Minister of War. Zhang Zan had been corrupt, and during his eight years at the ministry frontier readiness had collapsed. Bowen convened court officials to submit twenty-four frontier reforms, and military discipline was thoroughly renewed. Censors proposed auditing rolls of new troops, capital garrisons, and inner-palace laborers and artisans to ease state finances. Bowen followed with more than twenty proposed cuts to wasteful posts, targeting eunuch-dominated offices from the Embroidered Uniform and Tengxiang guards to the Imperial Horse, Inner Palace, and Imperial Kitchen directorates. The emperor approved and immediately ordered a purge. Long-standing abuses were largely corrected, but many of the emperor's intimates were displeased.

二十三年秋，順天巡撫朱方以防秋畢請撤客兵。未幾，寇大入，直逼畿輔。帝震怒，並械總督翟鵬遣戍，斃方杖下。御史舒汀言，方止議撤薊兵，而並撤宣、大，則伯溫與職方郎韓最也。帝遂削伯溫籍，杖最八十，戍極邊。伯溫歸，疽發背卒。穆宗立，復官，賜恤。天啟初，追謚襄懋。

In the autumn of year 23, Shuntian grand coordinator Zhu Fang asked to withdraw guest troops once the autumn defense season ended. Soon afterward the enemy raided in force and drove toward the capital region. The emperor was furious: grand coordinator Zhai Peng was shackled and exiled, and Zhu Fang was beaten to death. Censor Shu Ting argued that Zhu Fang had only proposed withdrawing Ji troops, while the broader pullout from Xuanfu and Datong had been ordered by Bowen and Bureau of Military Appointments director Han Zui. The emperor then struck Bowen from the rolls, had Han Zui beaten eighty strokes, and exiled him to the remotest frontier. Bowen went home, developed a carbuncle on his back, and died. When Emperor Muzong took the throne, Bowen's rank was restored and posthumous honors were granted. Early in the Tianqi reign he was posthumously titled Xiangmao.

伯溫氣宇沈毅，飲啖兼十人。臨事決機，不動聲色。安南之役，萬達、嶽策為多。伯溫力薦於朝，二人遂得任用。

Bowen had a grave, resolute bearing, and at table he could eat and drink as much as ten men. In handling affairs he made decisions without the slightest change in voice or expression. In the campaign against Annam, Weng Wanda and Yue Ce did most of the strategic work. Bowen pressed their case at court, and the two were duly appointed.

汪文盛，字希周，崇陽人。正德六年進士。授饒州推官。有顧嵩者，挾刃入淮王祐棨府，被執，誣文盛使刺王。下獄訊治，久之得白，還官。事詳《淮王傳》。入為兵部主事，偕同官諫武宗南巡，杖闕下。嘉靖初，歷福州知府，遷浙江、陜西副使，皆督學校。擢雲南按察使。

Wang Wensheng, courtesy name Xizhou, was a native of Chongyang. He passed the jinshi examination in Zhengde year 6. He was appointed investigating magistrate of Raozhou. A man named Gu Song forced his way, blade in hand, into the residence of Prince Huai Youqi, was seized, and falsely claimed Wensheng had sent him to assassinate the prince. He was imprisoned and tried; after a long time he was cleared and restored to his post. The affair is recounted in full in the Biography of Prince Huai. He entered the Ministry of War as a secretary and, with fellow officials, remonstrated against Emperor Wuzong's southern tour, for which he was beaten at the palace gate. Early in the Jiajing reign he served as prefect of Fuzhou, then as educational commissioner in Zhejiang and Shaanxi. He was promoted to provincial surveillance commissioner of Yunnan.

十五年冬，廷議將討安南。以文盛才，就拜右僉都御史，巡撫其地。黔國公沐朝輔幼，兵事一決於文盛。副使鮑象賢言剿不如撫，文盛然之。會聞莫登庸已篡位，安南舊臣不服，多據地構兵。有武文淵者，據宣光，以所部萬人降。獻進兵地圖，且言舊臣阮仁蓮、黎景眉等皆分據一方與登庸抗，天兵至，號召國中義士，諸方並起，登庸可擒也。文盛以聞。授文淵四品章服，子弟給冠帶。文盛又招安南旁近諸國助討，皆聽命。乃奏言：「老撾地廣兵眾，可使當一面。八百、車裏、孟艮多兵象，可備征調。酋長俱未襲職，乞免其保勘，先授以官，彼必鼓勇為用。」帝悉從之。文盛乃檄安南所部以土地歸者，仍故職，並諭登庸歸命。攻破鎮守營，方瀛救之失利。登庸部眾多來附，文盛列營樹柵蓮花灘處之。蓮花灘者，蒙自縣地，當交、廣水陸沖，為安南腹裏。登庸益懼，請降，願修貢，因言黎寧阮氏子，所持印亦偽。文盛以聞，朝議不許。既而毛伯溫至南寧，受登庸降如文盛議，安南遂定。是役也，功成於伯溫，然伐謀制勝，文盛功為多。及論功，伯溫及兩廣鎮巡官俱進秩，而文盛止賚銀幣。奸人唐弼請開大理銀礦，帝許之。文盛斥其妄，下之吏。召為大理卿。九廟災，道病，自陳疏少緩，令致仕。卒，賜恤如制。

In the winter of year 15 the court began planning a punitive expedition against Annam. On account of Wensheng's talent he was immediately made Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief and grand coordinator of the region. Duke Mu Zhaofu of Qian was still young, and all military decisions fell to Wensheng. Vice Commissioner Bao Xiangxian argued that pacification was preferable to extermination, and Wensheng agreed. Word then arrived that Mac Dang Dung had seized the throne; former Annamese ministers refused to submit, and many held territory and took up arms. Wu Wenyuan held Xuanguang and surrendered with the ten thousand men under his command. He submitted a campaign map and reported that former ministers Ruan Renlian, Li Jingmei, and others each held territory in defiance of Mac Dang Dung; once the imperial army arrived and rallied loyalists across the realm, every region would rise together and Dang Dung could be taken. Wensheng reported this to the throne. Wenyuan was granted fourth-rank insignia and robes, and his sons and younger kinsmen received official caps and belts. Wensheng also rallied neighboring states around Annam to join the expedition, and all complied. He then memorialized: "Laos is broad in territory and strong in manpower; it can be assigned to hold one front. Bamo, Cheli, and Menggen have ample troops and war elephants and can be mobilized as needed. Their chieftains have not yet formally inherited office; I ask that guarantee investigations be waived and appointments made at once—they will then serve with full zeal. The emperor approved everything. Wensheng issued a proclamation promising former ranks to Annamese commanders who returned territory, and summoned Mac Dang Dung to submit. They overran the garrison camp; Fang Ying led a relief force but was beaten back. Many of Dang Dung's followers defected, and Wensheng encamped them at Lianhua Beach behind palisades. Lianhua Beach lay in Mengzi County, at the land and river junction between Jiaozhi and Guangxi—the heartland of Annam. Dang Dung grew alarmed, asked to surrender, offered to resume tribute, and claimed that Li Ning of the Nguyen house and the seal he bore were likewise spurious. Wensheng reported this, but the court refused. Before long Mao Bowen reached Nanning, accepted Dang Dung's surrender as Wensheng had urged, and Annam was pacified. In this campaign the final success went to Bowen, but Wensheng contributed most to the strategic planning that won the war. When rewards were dispensed, Bowen and the Two Guangs commanders all gained promotions, while Wensheng received only silver and silk. A schemer named Tang Bi petitioned to open silver mines in Dali, and the emperor assented. Wensheng denounced the scheme as spurious and had him handed over to the authorities. He was summoned to serve as chief minister of Dali. After fire devastated the Nine Temples he fell ill en route; a tardy memorial of self-accusation led to an order of retirement. He died, and posthumous honors were granted as prescribed.

從子宗伊，字子衡，為文盛後。嘉靖十七年進士。除浮梁知縣，累官兵部郎中。楊繼盛劾嚴嵩及其孫鵠冒功事，宗伊議不撓。忤嵩，自免歸。隆慶初，起南京吏部郎中，歷應天府尹。裁諸司供億，歲省民財萬計。萬歷初，進南京大理卿。三遷戶部尚書總督倉場，致仕，卒。天啟初，追謚恭惠。

His nephew Zongyi, courtesy name Ziheng, was made Wensheng's heir. He passed the jinshi examination in Jiajing year 17. He served as magistrate of Fuliang and rose to become a director in the Ministry of War. When Yang Jisheng impeached Yan Song and his grandson Yan Hu for falsely claiming merit, Zongyi would not bend in deliberation. He crossed Song and resigned to go home. Early in the Longqing reign he was recalled as a director in the Nanjing Ministry of Personnel and later served as prefect of Yingtian. He slashed departmental supply costs, saving tens of thousands in public funds each year. Early in the Wanli reign he was promoted to chief minister of Dali at Nanjing. After three further promotions he became Minister of Revenue and superintendent of the grain depots, then retired and died. Early in the Tianqi reign he was posthumously titled Gonghui.

鮑象賢，歙人。由進士授御史，歷雲南副使。毛伯溫檄文盛會師，以象賢領中哨。屢遷右副都御史，巡撫陜西，代石簡撫雲南。初，元江土舍那鑒殺知府那憲以叛，布政使徐樾往招降被殺。簡攻之未克，坐樾事罷，而象賢代之。乃集士、漢兵七萬以討，鑒懼，仰藥死，擇那氏後立之。遷兵部右侍郎，總督兩廣軍務。賊魁徐銓等糾倭橫海上，檄副使汪柏等擊斬之。廣西賊黃父將等擾慶遠，搗其巢，大獲。予象賢一子官。入佐南京兵部。被劾，回籍聽勘。家居十年，起太仆卿。復以右副都御史巡撫山東。召拜兵部左侍郎。年老引去。隆慶初卒。

Bao Xiangxian was a native of She County. A jinshi, he became a censor and later served as vice commissioner in Yunnan. Mao Bowen ordered Wang Wensheng to link up and put Xiangxian in command of the center column. He rose to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, served as grand coordinator of Shaanxi, and replaced Shi Jian as Yunnan governor. Earlier, the Yuanjiang native chieftain Na Jian murdered Prefect Na Xian in rebellion; Administrative Commissioner Xu Yue went to negotiate surrender and was killed. Shi Jian besieged him without success, was dismissed over the Xu Yue affair, and Xiangxian took his place. He then assembled seventy thousand native and Han troops for the punitive expedition; Na Jian, in terror, took poison and died, and a Na clansman was chosen to succeed him. He was made Right Vice Minister of War and put in overall charge of military affairs in the Two Guangs. Bandit leaders Xu Qian and others rallied Wokou pirates who raided the coast; he dispatched Vice Commissioner Wang Bai and others, who killed them. Guangxi bandits led by Huang Fujiang harassed Qingyuan; he stormed their stronghold with great success. One of Xiangxian's sons was granted an official appointment. He entered service as an assistant at the Nanjing Ministry of War. Impeached, he returned home to await investigation. After ten years at home he was recalled as chief minister of the Court of the Imperial Stud. He was again made Right Vice Censor-in-Chief and grand coordinator of Shandong. He was summoned and appointed Left Vice Minister of War. Advancing in age, he retired. He died early in the Longqing reign.

翁萬達，字仁夫，揭陽人。嘉靖五年進士。授戶部主事。再遷郎中，出為梧州知府。鹹寧侯仇鸞鎮兩廣，縱部卒為虐。萬達縛其尤橫者，杖之。閱四年，聲績大著。會朝議將討安南，擢萬達廣西副使，專辦安南事。萬達請於總督張經曰：「莫登庸大言『中國不能正土官弒逆罪，安能問我』。今憑祥州土舍李寰弒其土官珍，思恩府土目盧回煽九司亂，龍州土舍趙楷殺從子燧、煖，又結田州人韋應殺燧弟寶，斷藤峽瑤侯公丁負固。此曹同惡共濟，一旦約為內應，我且不自保。先擒此數人問罪，安南易下耳。」經曰：「然，惟君之所為。」於是誅寰、應，擒回，招還九司，誘殺楷，佯系訟公丁者紿公丁，執諸坐。以兩軍破平其巢。又議割四峒屬南寧，降峒豪黃賢相。登庸始懼。遷浙江右參政。經以征安南非萬達不可，奏留之，乃命以參政蒞廣西。已而毛伯溫集兵進剿，萬達上書伯溫，言：「揖讓而告成功，上策也。懾之以不敢不從，中策也。芟夷絕滅，終為下策。」伯溫然之。會獲安南諜者丁南傑，萬達解其縛，厚遇，遣之去，怵以天朝兵威。登庸大懼，乃詣伯溫乞降。是役也，萬達功最，賞不逾常格。然帝知其能，遷四川按察使。歷陜西左、右布政使。

Weng Wanda, courtesy name Renfu, was a native of Jieyang. He passed the jinshi examination in Jiajing year 5. He was appointed a secretary in the Ministry of Revenue. Promoted twice to director, he then went out as prefect of Wuzhou. Marquis Qiu Luan of Xianning held command in the Two Guangs and let his troops run rampant. Wanda seized the worst offenders among them and had them flogged. Within four years his reputation and record were greatly established. When the court began planning a punitive expedition against Annam, Wanda was promoted to vice commissioner of Guangxi to handle the campaign exclusively. Wanda appealed to Governor-General Zhang Jing: "Mac Dang Dung loudly declares, 'China cannot punish native officials for regicide—how can it question me? Right now Li Huan, a native clerk of Pingxiang, has murdered his native official Zhen; Lu Hui, a native chieftain of Si'en, has incited the Nine Offices to revolt; Zhao Kai of Longzhou has killed his nephews Sui and Nuan and, with Wei Ying of Tianzhou, killed Sui's brother Bao; and the Yao leader Hou Gongding holds fast in Duanteng Gorge. These men are united in villainy; if they ever agreed to serve as inner collaborators, we could not even protect ourselves. Seize these men first and bring them to justice, and Annam will fall easily.' Zhang Jing replied: "True—do as you see fit." He then executed Li Huan and Wei Ying, captured Lu Hui, restored the Nine Offices, lured and killed Zhao Kai, and, using men feigning legal disputes to trap Hou Gongding, seized him in court. Two armies then stormed and leveled their stronghold. He further proposed assigning the Four Caves to Nanning and accepting the surrender of cave chieftain Huang Xianxiang. Only then did Mac Dang Dung grow alarmed. He was transferred to Right Administrative Commissioner of Zhejiang. Zhang Jing insisted the Annam expedition required Wanda and memorialized to keep him; Wanda was then ordered to Guangxi as administrative commissioner. Before long Mao Bowen mustered troops for a punitive advance; Wanda wrote Bowen: "Winning through courtesy and submission is the best course. Intimidating them into compliance is the middle course. Extermination is the worst option. Bowen agreed. An Annamese spy named Ding Nanjie was captured; Wanda freed him, treated him generously, sent him home, and impressed upon him the might of the imperial army. Mac Dang Dung, deeply alarmed, went to Bowen to sue for surrender. In this campaign Wanda's merit ranked first, yet his reward did not exceed the usual scale. But the emperor recognized his ability and made him provincial surveillance commissioner of Sichuan. He served in turn as Left and Right Administrative Commissioner of Shaanxi.

二十三年，擢右副都御史，巡撫陜西。尋進兵部右侍郎兼右僉都御史，代翟鵬總督宣、大、山西、保定軍務。劾罷宣府總兵官郤永、副總兵姜奭，薦何卿、趙卿、沈希儀。趙卿遂代永。萬達謹偵候，明賞罰。每當防秋，發卒乘障，陰遣卒傾朱於油，察離次者朱其處。卒歸輒縛，毋敢復離次者。嚴殺降禁，違輒抵死。得降人，撫之如所親，以是益知敵情。寇數萬騎犯大同中路，入鐵裹門，故總兵官張達力戰卻之。又犯鵓鴿谷，參將張鳳、諸生王邦直等戰死。萬達與總兵官周尚文備陽和，而遣騎四出邀擊，頗有斬獲。寇登山，見官兵大集，乃引去。事聞，賜敕獎賚。屢疏請修築邊墻，議自大同東路陽和口至宣府西陽河，須帑銀二十九萬。帝已許之，兵部撓其議，以大同舊有二邊，不當復於邊內築墻。帝不聽。乃自大同東路天城、陽和、開山口諸處為墻百二十八里，堡七，墩臺百五十四；宣府西路西陽河、洗馬林、張家口諸處為墻六十四里，敵臺十。斬崖削坡五十里。工五十余日成。進右都御史。發代府宗室充灼等叛謀，進左都御史。

In year 23 he was promoted to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief and grand coordinator of Shaanxi. He was soon promoted to Right Vice Minister of War and concurrent Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief, succeeding Zhai Peng as overall commander of military affairs in Xuanfu, Datong, Shanxi, and Baoding. He impeached and removed Xuanfu regional commander Qi Yong and vice commander Jiang Yi, and recommended He Qing, Zhao Qing, and Shen Xiyi. Zhao Qing then replaced Xi Yong as regional commander. Weng Wanda kept strict watch on enemy movements and made rewards and punishments unmistakably clear. During each autumn defense season, when troops manned the ramparts, he secretly had men mix vermilion into oil and mark any spot where a soldier had left his post. When the men came back, offenders were bound on the spot, and no one dared leave his post again. He strictly forbade the killing of surrenderers, and anyone who violated the rule was put to death. When he took surrenderers, he treated them as if they were his own kin, and so learned ever more about the enemy. Raiders in tens of thousands of horsemen struck the middle route at Datong and entered Tiego Gate; the former regional commander Zhang Da fought fiercely and drove them back. They struck again at Bogue Valley, where Assistant Commander Zhang Feng, the scholar Wang Bangzhi, and others were killed in battle. Weng Wanda and regional commander Zhou Shangwen held Yanghe while dispatching cavalry in all directions to intercept the enemy, with considerable kills and captures. The raiders climbed a hill, saw government troops massed below, and withdrew. When the report reached the throne, the emperor issued an edict commending and rewarding them. He repeatedly memorialized asking to build border walls from Yanghekou on the eastern Datong route to Xiyang River in Xuanfu, at an estimated cost of 290,000 taels from the treasury. The emperor had already approved, but the Ministry of War blocked the plan, arguing that Datong already had inner and outer defense lines and that walls should not be built again inside the border. The emperor would not heed them. He therefore built 128 li of wall, seven forts, and 154 beacon platforms from Tiancheng, Yanghe, Kaishankou, and other points on the eastern Datong route; and on the western Xuanfu route at Xiyang River, Ximalin, Zhangjiakou, and elsewhere, 64 li of wall and ten enemy towers. Cliffs were cut back and slopes leveled over fifty li. The work was finished in a little over fifty days. He was promoted to Right Censor-in-Chief. After exposing the treasonous plot of the Dai Prefecture imperial clansman Chongzhuo and others, he was promoted to Left Censor-in-Chief.

已，會宣、大、山西鎮巡官議上邊防修守事宜，其略曰：

Later, the inspecting and pacifying officials of Xuanfu, Datong, and Shanxi met to submit proposals on border defense; the gist was as follows:

山西起保德州黃河岸，歷偏頭，抵老營二百五十四里。大同西路起丫角山，歷中北二路，東抵東陽河鎮口臺六百四十七里。宣府起西陽河，歷中北二路，東抵永寧四海冶千二十三里。凡千九百二十四里，皆逼巨寇，險在外，所謂極邊也。山西老營堡轉南而東，歷寧武、雁門，至平刑關八百里。又轉南而東，歷龍泉、倒馬、紫荊之吳王口、插箭嶺、浮圖峪，至沿河口千七十餘里。又東北，歷高崖、白羊，至居庸關一百八十餘里。凡二千五十餘里，皆峻山層岡，險在內，所謂次邊也。外邊，大同最難守，次宣府，次山西之偏、老。大同最難守者，北路。宣府最難守者，西路。山西偏關以西百五十里，恃河為險；偏關以東百有四里，略與大同西路等。內邊，紫荊、寧武、雁門為要，次則居庸、倒馬、龍泉、平刑。邇年寇犯山西，必自大同；犯紫荊，必自宣府。

In Shanxi, the outer line runs 254 li from the Yellow River bank at Baode Prefecture through Piantou to Laoying. The western Datong route runs 647 li from Yajiao Mountain through the middle and northern routes east to Zhenkoutai at Dongyang River. Xuanfu runs 1,023 li from Xiyang River through the middle and northern routes east to Yongning and Sihaiye. Altogether 1,924 li—all facing major raiders, with the danger lying outward—constitute what is called the outermost border. From Laoying Fort in Shanxi, turning south and then east through Ningwu and Yanmen to Pingxing Pass is 800 li. Turning south and east again through Longquan, Daoma, and Zijing—Wuwangkou, Chajian Ridge, and Futu Valley—to Yanhekou is more than 1,070 li. Northeast from there through Gaoya and Baiyang to Juyong Pass is more than 180 li. Altogether more than 2,050 li of steep mountains and layered ridges, with the danger lying inward, constitute what is called the secondary border. Of the outer border, Datong is the hardest to hold, then Xuanfu, then Piantou and Laoying in Shanxi. Within Datong, the northern route is the hardest to defend. Within Xuanfu, the western route is the hardest to defend. West of Pianguan in Shanxi, for 150 li the defense relies on the river; east of Pianguan, for 104 li, conditions are much like those on the western Datong route. Of the inner border, Zijing, Ningwu, and Yanmen are the key points; next come Juyong, Daoma, Longquan, and Pingxing. In recent years, raids into Shanxi have always entered from Datong; and raids on Zijing have always entered from Xuanfu.

先年山西防秋，止守外邊偏、老一帶，歲發班軍六千人備禦，大同仍置兵，寧、雁為聲援。比棄極沖，守次邊，非守要之意。宣府亦專備西、中二路，而北路空虛。且連年三鎮防秋，征調遼、陜兵馬，糜糧賞不訾，恐難持久。並守之議，實為善經。外邊四時皆防，城堡兵各有分地，冬春徂夏，不必參錯征發。若泥往事臨時調遣，近者數十里，遠者百餘里，首尾不相應。萬一如往年潰墻而入，越關而南，京師震駭，方始征調，何益事機？擺邊之兵，未可遽罷。

In earlier years Shanxi's autumn defense held only the outer Piantou–Laoying strip, sending 6,000 rotating troops each year while Datong kept its own forces and Ningwu and Yanmen served as reserves. To abandon the most critical points and defend only the secondary border is not what holding the key passes should mean. Xuanfu likewise concentrated on the western and middle routes, leaving the northern route undefended. Moreover, for years the three garrisons' autumn defense has drawn troops from Liaodong and Shaanxi, consuming grain and rewards beyond reckoning—a burden that cannot be sustained indefinitely. The proposal to defend both lines together is truly sound long-term policy. The outer border should be defended year-round, with garrison troops at each fort assigned fixed sectors from winter through summer, without the need for haphazard requisitioning. If one clings to the old practice of last-minute dispatch, nearby units may be several tens of li away and distant ones more than a hundred li, with no way for front and rear to coordinate. If, as in past years, raiders breach the wall, cross the passes southward, and the capital is thrown into alarm before troops are even mobilized, what good will that do? The troops deployed along the border must not be disbanded hastily.

《易》曰「王公設險以守其國」。「設」之雲者，築垣乘障、資人力之謂也。山川之險，險與彼共。垣塹之險，險為我專。百人之堡，非千人不能攻，以有垣塹可憑也。修邊之役，必當再舉。夫定規畫，度工費，二者修邊之事；慎防秋，並兵力，重責成，量征調，實邊堡，明出塞，計供億，節財用，八者守邊之事。

The Book of Changes says, "Kings and dukes set up defenses to guard their states." What "set up" means is building walls and ramparts and relying on human labor. The advantage of mountains and rivers is an advantage shared with the enemy. The advantage of walls and moats is an advantage ours alone. A fort of a hundred men cannot be taken by fewer than a thousand, because walls and moats give defenders something to stand on. Border repair must be undertaken again. Setting plans and estimating costs are matters of border repair; careful autumn defense, combining forces, strict accountability, measured requisitioning, strengthening border forts, clear rules for campaigns beyond the border, calculating supplies, and economizing expenditures—these eight are matters of border defense.

因條十事上之，帝悉報許。乃請帑銀六十萬兩，修大同西路、宣府東路邊墻，凡八百里。工成，予一子官。

He submitted ten detailed proposals, and the emperor approved them all. He then requested 600,000 taels from the treasury to build border walls on the western Datong route and eastern Xuanfu route—800 li in all. When the work was completed, one of his sons was granted an official post.

萬達精心計，善鉤校，墻堞近遠，濠塹深廣，曲盡其宜。寇乃不敢輕犯。墻內戍者得以暇耕牧，邊費亦日省。初，客兵防秋，歲帑金一百五十余萬，添發且數十萬，其後減省幾半。又議掣山西兵並力守大同，巡撫孫繼魯沮之。帝為逮繼魯，悉納萬達言。

Weng Wanda planned meticulously and inspected every detail; the spacing of towers, and the depth and width of moats, were all adjusted to perfection. The raiders then did not dare attack lightly. Garrison troops inside the walls could farm and herd in their spare time, and border expenses dwindled day by day. At first, guest troops for autumn defense cost the treasury more than 1.5 million taels a year, with supplemental payments of several hundred thousand more; afterward expenditures were cut by nearly half. He also proposed pulling Shanxi troops to concentrate on defending Datong, but Grand Coordinator Sun Jilu blocked the plan. The emperor had Sun Jilu arrested and fully adopted Weng Wanda's proposals.

萬達更事久，帝深倚之，所請無不從，獨言俺答貢事與帝意左。先是，二十一年，俺答阿不孩使石天爵等款鎮遠堡求貢。言小王子等九部牧青山，艷中國縑帛，入掠止人畜，所得寡，且不能無亡失，故令天爵輸誠。朝議不納。天爵等復至，巡撫龍大有執之。大有進一官，將吏悉遷擢，磔天爵於市。寇怒，大入，屠村堡，信使絕五年。會玉林衛百戶楊威為所掠，威詭能定貢市，遂釋還。俺答阿不孩復遣使款大同左衛塞，邊帥家丁董寶等狃天爵前事，復殺之，以首功報。萬達言：「北敵，弘治前歲入貢，疆場稍寧。自虞臺嶺之戰覆我師，漸輕中國，侵犯四十余年。石天爵之事，臣嘗痛邊臣失計。今復通款，即不許，當善相諭遣。誘而殺之，此何理也？請亟誅寶等，榜塞上，明告以朝廷德意，解其蓄怨構兵之謀。」帝不聽。未幾，俺答阿不孩復奉印信番文，欲詣邊陳款。萬達為奏曰：「今屆秋，彼可一逞。乃屢被殺戮，猶請貢不已者，緣入犯則利在部落，獲貢則利歸其長。處之克當，邊患可弭。若臣等封疆臣，貢亦備，不貢亦備，不緣此懈也。」兵部尚書陳經等言敵難信，請敕邊臣詰實，責萬達十日內回奏。萬達還其使，與約。至期，使者不至。萬達慮帝督過，以使者去無可究為辭。已而使狎至，牢拒之，好言慰答而已。俺答以通好，散處其眾，不設備，亦不殺哨卒。頃之，復至，詞益恭。萬達又為奏曰：「敵懇懇求貢，去而復來。今宣、大興版築，正當羈縻，使無擾。請限以地、以人、以時。悉聽，即許之貢；不聽，則曲在彼，即拒絕之。」帝責其瀆奏，卒不許。蓋是時曾銑有復套之議，夏言主之，故力絀貢議，且以復套事行諸邊臣議之。萬達議曰：

Weng Wanda had long experience in frontier affairs; the emperor relied on him deeply and granted every request—only his advice on Altan Khan's tribute proposals ran counter to the emperor's wishes. Earlier, in the twenty-first year of the reign, Altan Abunai sent Shi Tianjue and others to Zhenyuan Fort to sue for tribute. They said the Little Prince and nine tribes pastured at Qingshan, coveted Chinese silks, and gained little from raids beyond people and livestock while suffering unavoidable losses—hence Tianjue was sent to offer their sincerity. The court rejected the proposal. When Tianjue and his party came again, Grand Coordinator Long Dayou seized them. Long Dayou was promoted one rank, his officers were all promoted, and Tianjue was dismembered in the marketplace. The Mongols were enraged, raided on a large scale, slaughtered villages and forts, and diplomatic contact was severed for five years. Company commander Yang Wei of Yulin Guard was captured; he falsely claimed he could arrange tribute and trade, and was then released. Altan Abunai again sent envoys to sue for peace at the Datong Left Guard pass; the border commander's household retainers Dong Bao and others, emboldened by the Tianjue affair, killed them again and reported it as a victory of severed heads. Weng Wanda said, "Before Hongzhi, the northern enemy paid tribute yearly and the frontier was relatively calm. Since the battle at Yutailing destroyed our army, they have gradually looked down on China and raided for more than forty years. In the Shi Tianjue affair, I grieved that the border officials had miscalculated. Now they have opened relations again; even if tribute is not granted, they should be courteously instructed and sent away. To lure them in and kill them—what principle is that? I ask that Dong Bao and his accomplices be executed at once, a proclamation posted on the border, and the court's benevolent intent clearly announced, to dissolve their accumulated grievances and war plans." The emperor would not listen. Before long, Altan Abunai again presented his seal and a Mongol document, wishing to come to the border to declare his sincerity. Weng Wanda memorialized, "Autumn is here, and they may yet strike once. Yet though their envoys have been killed again and again, they still ceaselessly request tribute, because raids profit the tribes while tribute profits their chief. If handled properly, border troubles can be quelled. As frontier officials, we will remain prepared whether tribute is granted or not, and will not slacken our defenses on that account." Minister of War Chen Jing and others said the enemy could not be trusted, asked that border officials verify the matter, and ordered Weng Wanda to reply within ten days. Weng Wanda sent their envoy back and made an agreement. When the deadline came, the envoy did not arrive. Weng Wanda feared the emperor would hold him accountable and pleaded that the envoy had already left and nothing could be investigated. Soon envoys came repeatedly; he firmly refused them, offering only polite words in reply. Because of the overtures, Altan dispersed his followers, made no preparations, and did not kill sentry soldiers. Before long they came again, their language ever more deferential. Weng Wanda memorialized again, "The enemy earnestly seeks tribute, leaving and returning. Xuanfu and Datong are now undertaking large-scale construction; this is exactly the time to keep them in check so they do not disturb us. I ask that limits be set on place, personnel, and time. If they accept all the limits, then grant tribute; if they refuse, the fault lies with them, and we may reject them." The emperor rebuked him for importunate memorializing and ultimately refused. At that time Zeng Xian had proposed recovering the Ordos, which Xia Yan supported, so tribute was forcefully blocked, and the Ordos recovery plan was sent to border officials for deliberation. Weng Wanda submitted his opinion:

河套本中國故壤。成祖三犁王庭，殘其部落，舍黃河，衛東勝。後又撤東勝以就延綏，套地遂淪失。然正統、弘治間，我未守，彼亦未取。乃因循畫地守，捐天險，失沃野之利。弘治前，我猶歲搜套，後乃任彼出入，盤據其中，畜牧生養。譬之為家，成業久矣，欲一舉復之，毋乃不易乎！提軍深入，山川之險易，途徑之迂直，水草之有無，皆未熟知。我馬出塞三日已疲，彼騎一呼可集。我軍數萬眾，緩行持重則備益固，疾行趨利則輜重在後。即得小利，歸師尚艱。倘失向導，全軍殆矣。彼遷徙遠近靡常。一戰之後，彼或保聚，或佯遁，笳角時動，壁壘相持，已離復合，終不渡河。我軍於此，戰耶，退耶，兩相守耶？數萬眾出塞，亦必數萬眾援之，又以驍將通糧道，是皆至難而不可任者也。

The Ordos was originally Chinese territory. Yongle thrice led campaigns deep into the steppe, shattered the Mongol tribes, took the Yellow River as his line of defense, and garrisoned Dongsheng. Later Dongsheng was abandoned in turn for Yan-sui, and the Ordos was lost entirely. Yet during the Zhengtong and Hongzhi reigns, China did not hold it, and the Mongols did not take it either. We fell into the habit of defending drawn boundaries, gave up natural strongholds, and forfeited the wealth of the open grasslands. Before the Hongzhi era we still raided into the Ordos each year; afterward we let them come and go freely until they entrenched themselves there, grazing and multiplying their herds. It is like a family estate held for generations: to try to reclaim it all in a single stroke would be far from easy! If we march deep into enemy country, we lack detailed knowledge of terrain—where mountains offer advantage, which routes twist or run straight, where water and pasture can be found. Our horses are worn out after three days beyond the frontier, while their riders rally at a single summons. An army of tens of thousands faces a cruel choice: advance slowly and our defenses hold, but rush for advantage and our supply train is left behind. Even a small victory would leave a brutal withdrawal ahead. Lose our guides, and the entire army is doomed. They migrate unpredictably, never staying in one place. After a single clash they may rally or feign retreat; horns and drums sound intermittently as their camps stand firm—they scatter and reassemble, but never cross the river to give us the opening we need. What then for our army—fight, retreat, or stand locked in stalemate? Tens of thousands marching beyond the frontier require tens of thousands more in support, plus elite generals to keep supply lines open—all of this is extraordinarily difficult and should not be lightly attempted.

夫馳擊者彼所長，守險者我所便。弓矢利馳擊，火器利守險。舍火器守險，與之馳擊於黃沙白草間，大非計。議者欲整六萬眾，為三歲期。春夏馬瘦，彼弱，我利於征；秋冬馬肥，彼強，我利於守。春搜套，秋守邊，三舉彼必遠遁，我乃拒河守。夫馬肥瘦，我與敵共之。即彼弱，然坐以待，懼其擾擊我，及彼強，又懼其報復我。且六萬之眾，千里襲人，一舉失利，議論蜂起，烏能待三？即三舉三勝，彼敗而守，終不渡河，版築亦無日。

Charged raids are their strength; holding defensible terrain is ours. Bows and arrows suit the charge; firearms suit static defense. To abandon firearms and fortified positions and meet them in open steppe combat amid the dunes and grass would be disastrous strategy. The advocates propose assembling sixty thousand men for a three-year campaign. In spring and summer horses are lean and the enemy weakened—we should attack then. In autumn and winter their horses are fat and they grow stronger—we should hold our defenses then. Raid the Ordos in spring, defend the frontier in autumn—after three such cycles the enemy must flee, and we can hold the river line. Fat and lean seasons affect both sides equally. When they are weak we cannot sit idle for fear of harassment; when they grow strong we dread their revenge. Moreover, sixty thousand men raiding a thousand li away—one failure will bring a storm of criticism. How could we sustain three campaigns? Even three victories in three campaigns would leave them entrenched, never crossing the river—and we would never have the chance to build our fortifications.

議者見近時搗巢，恒獲首功，昔年城大同五堡，寇不深競，以為套易復。然搗巢，因其近塞，乘不備，勝則倏歸，舉足南向即家門。復套，則深入其地，後援不繼，事勢異也。往城諸邊，近我土，彼原不以為利。套，自其四時駐牧地，肯晏然已乎？事體異也。曰伺彼出套，據河守，先亟築渡口垣墻，以次移置邊堡。彼控弦十余萬，豈有空套出。築垣二千餘里，豈不日可成？堡非百數十不相聯絡，堡兵非千人不可居，而遊僥瞭望者不與，當三十萬眾不止也。況循邊距河，動輒千里，一歲食糜億萬。自內輸邊，自邊輸河，飛挽之艱不可不深慮。若令彼有其隙，我乘其敝，從而圖之，未嘗不可。今塞下喘息未定，邊卒瘡痍未起，橫挑強寇以事非常，愚所不解也。

Advocates point to recent raids that routinely yield trophies, and to the five Datong forts once built without fierce resistance—they conclude the Ordos can be easily retaken. Raiding works because camps lie near the frontier—we strike unawares, withdraw quickly, and a step south brings us home. Recovering the Ordos means marching deep with no reliable support—the strategic situation is wholly different. Forts built along the frontier stood on our own ground—the enemy never considered them worth fighting for. The Ordos is their year-round pasture—would they passively surrender it? The circumstances are entirely different. Some propose waiting until they leave the Ordos, holding the river, urgently building walls at the crossings, then moving frontier forts forward step by step. With more than a hundred thousand warriors under arms, how could the Ordos ever stand empty? Walls stretching two thousand li and more—could they be built in a day? Forts must number in the dozens to link together; each needs a garrison of at least a thousand, patrol troops not included—the total would exceed three hundred thousand men. The frontier runs along the river for a thousand li and more—a single year's rations would cost hundreds of millions. Grain must flow from the interior to the frontier, then from the frontier to the river—the strain of emergency convoys cannot be underestimated. Wait until they expose a weakness, strike when they falter—then success is possible. The frontier has barely recovered; border troops still bear their wounds. To deliberately provoke a powerful enemy on so rash a venture—I cannot comprehend it.

議上，不省。

The memorial reached the throne and was ignored.

其後，俺答與小王子隙。小王子欲寇遼東，俺答以其謀告，請與中國夾攻以立信。萬達不敢聞。使者再至，為言於朝，帝不許。二十七年三月，萬達又言諸部求貢不遂，慚且憤，聲言大舉犯邊，乞令邊臣得便宜從事。帝怒，切責之，通貢議乃絕。其年八月，俺答犯大同不克，退攻五堡，官軍戰彌陀山卻之。趨山西，復敗還。逾月，犯宣府，大掠永寧、隆慶、懷來，軍民死者數萬。萬達坐停俸二級。俄錄彌陀山功，還其俸。俺答將復寇宣府，總兵官趙卿怯，萬達奏以周尚文代。未至，寇犯滴水崖，指揮董抃、江瀚、唐臣、張淮等戰死，遂南下駐隆慶石河營，分遊騎東掠。遊擊王鑰、大同遊擊袁正卻之，寇移而南。會尚文萬騎至，參將田琦騎千余與合，連戰曹家莊、斬四首，搴其旗，寇據險不退。萬達督參將姜應熊等馳赴，順風鼓噪，揚沙蔽天。寇驚曰：「翁太師至矣！」是夜東去。諸將追擊，連敗之。帝偵萬達督戰狀，大喜，立進兵部尚書兼右副都御史。尋召理部事。以父憂歸。

Afterward Altan Khan and the Little Prince fell out. When the Little Prince planned to raid Liaodong, Altan revealed the scheme and proposed a joint attack with Ming forces to prove his sincerity. Weng Wanda did not dare report this. When envoys arrived again Weng reported to court; the emperor refused. In the third month of year 27 Weng reported that the tribes, rebuffed in their tribute requests, were shamed and furious, threatening massive raids, and asked that frontier officials be granted discretionary authority. The emperor was furious, sharply rebuked him, and the entire tribute negotiation collapsed. In the eighth month of that year Altan struck at Datong without success, then turned to attack the Five Forts, where government forces repelled him at Mount Mituo. He drove toward Shanxi, was beaten again, and withdrew. A month later he struck Xuanfu, ravaging Yongning, Longqing, and Huailai—tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians perished. Weng Wanda was penalized with a two-rank salary cut. Soon the victory at Mount Mituo was recognized and his salary restored. As Altan prepared another strike on Xuanfu, regional commander Zhao Qing proved timid, and Weng memorialized to replace him with Zhou Shangwen. Before Zhou arrived the raiders struck Dishui Cliff; commanders Dong Bian, Jiang Han, Tang Chen, and Zhang Huai fell in battle. The enemy then moved south to encamp at Shihé in Longqing and sent raiding parties east. Mobile-detachment commanders Wang Yao and Yuan Zheng of Datong drove them back, and the raiders turned south. Zhou Shangwen arrived with ten thousand horsemen; vice commander Tian Qi joined with a thousand cavalry. They fought at Caojia Village, took four heads and captured an enemy banner, but the raiders held the high ground and would not yield. Weng Wanda raced to the field with vice commander Jiang Yingxiong and others; with the wind at their backs they raised a thunderous clamor, dust swirling until it blotted out the sky. The raiders shouted in alarm: "Grand Mentor Weng is here!" That night they withdrew eastward. The generals pursued and routed them repeatedly. Learning how Weng commanded the battle, the emperor was delighted and immediately promoted him to Minister of War with concurrent appointment as Right Vice Censor-in-Chief. He was soon summoned to head the ministry. He left office to mourn his father.

明年秋，大同失事，督撫郭宗臯、陳耀被逮，詔起萬達代宗臯。萬達方病疽，廬墓間，疏請終制。未達，而俺答犯都城。兵部尚書丁汝夔得罪，遂即以萬達代之。萬達家嶺南，距京師八千里，倍道行四十日抵近京。時寇氛熾，帝日夕徯萬達至。遲之，以問嚴嵩。嵩故不悅萬達，言寇患在肘腋，諸臣觀望，非君召不俟駕之義。帝遂用王邦瑞於兵部。不數日，萬達至，具疏自明。帝責其欺慢，念守制，姑奪職，聽別用。仇鸞時為大將軍，寵方盛，銜宿怨，讒言構於帝。萬達遂失眷，降兵部右侍郎兼右僉都御史，經略紫荊諸關。三十年二月，京察，自陳乞終制。帝疑其避事，免歸。瀕行疏謝，復摘訛字為不敬，斥為民。明年十月，兵部尚書趙錦以附仇鸞戍邊，復起萬達代之。未聞命卒，年五十五。

The following autumn disaster struck Datong; grand coordinators Guo Zonggao and Chen Yao were arrested, and Weng was recalled by edict to replace Guo. Weng was then ill with an abscess and living by his father's grave; he memorialized to complete his mourning obligations. Before his memorial reached court, Altan struck at the capital. Minister of War Ding Ruai fell from favor, and Weng was appointed in his stead. Weng's home was in Lingnan, eight thousand li from the capital; he traveled by forced marches and reached the outskirts of Beijing in forty days. With the raider threat at its height, the emperor waited day and night for Weng's arrival. When Weng was slow to arrive, the emperor turned to Yan Song. Yan Song, who had always disliked Weng, said the enemy was at the emperor's very gates while officials dallied—hardly the loyalty owed a sovereign's urgent summons. The emperor accordingly appointed Wang Bangrui as Minister of War instead. Within days Weng arrived and submitted a detailed memorial in his own defense. The emperor rebuked him for insolence but, considering his mourning obligations, stripped his rank for the moment and permitted other appointment. Qiu Luan, then grand general and at the height of imperial favor, nursed an old grudge and poisoned the emperor against Weng with slander. Weng lost imperial favor, was demoted to Vice Minister of War with concurrent appointment as Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief, and assigned to oversee the Zijing and related passes. In the second month of year 30, at the capital personnel review, he asked to be allowed to complete his mourning. The emperor suspected he was evading duty and sent him home. On the eve of his departure he submitted a farewell memorial; the emperor seized on textual errors as disrespect and stripped him of all rank. The following tenth month, Minister Zhao Jin was exiled to the frontier for aligning with Qiu Luan, and Weng was recalled to replace him. He died before the edict reached him, at the age of fifty-five.

萬達事親孝。父歿，負土成墳。好談性命之學，與歐陽德、羅洪先、唐順之、王畿、魏良政善。通古今，操筆頃刻萬言。為人剛介坦直，勇於任事，履艱危，意氣彌厲。臨陣嘗身先士卒，尤善禦將士，得其死力。嘉靖中，邊臣行事適機宜、建言中肯窾者，萬達稱首。隆慶中，追謚襄毅。

Weng Wanda was devoted filially to his parents. When his father died he personally carried earth to build the tomb mound. He delighted in philosophical discourse and was close to Ouyang De, Luo Hongxian, Tang Shunzhi, Wang Ji, and Wei Liangzheng. Erudite in history and the present, he could write ten thousand words in a sitting. Stern, upright, and plain-spoken, he was bold in action; the graver the danger, the fiercer his resolve. In battle he led from the front; he excelled at commanding men and winning their utmost loyalty. Among Jiajing frontier officials whose actions matched circumstances and whose counsel hit the mark, Weng Wanda stood first. In the Longqing reign he was posthumously honored with the title Xiangyi (Resolute and Fierce).

贊曰：楊一清、王瓊俱負才略，著績邊陲，有人倫鑒，鋤奸定難因以成功。亦俱任智數。然瓊，其權譎之尤歟！彭澤望甚偉，顧處置哈密，抑何舛也。毛伯溫能任翁萬達、張嶽，以成安南之功，不失為持重將。萬達飭邊備，整軍實，其爭復套，知彼知己，尤深識遠慮雲。

The historian writes: Yang Yiqing and Wang Qiong both possessed talent and strategic vision, distinguished themselves on the frontier, showed keen judgment of character, and succeeded by rooting out traitors and quelling crises. Both also relied on clever stratagem. Yet Wang Qiong was surely the most consummate master of cunning intrigue! Peng Ze cut an imposing figure, yet his handling of Hami—how badly misjudged! Mao Bowen knew how to deploy Weng Wanda and Zhang Yue to win the Annam campaign—a commander's measured judgment, at least. Weng Wanda strengthened frontier defenses and rebuilt military capacity; in his opposition to recovering the Ordos he knew both enemy and self, and displayed especially penetrating insight and long vision.

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