Volume 215 Biographies 103: Ouyang Yijing, Zhou Hongzu, Zhan Yangbi, Luo Wenli, Zheng Luchun, Chen Wude, Wang Wenhui, Liu Fenyong

王治歐陽一敬〈（胡應嘉）〉周弘祖〈（岑用賓鄧洪震）〉詹仰庇駱問禮〈（楊松張應治）〉鄭履淳陳吾德〈（李已胡涍）〉汪文輝劉奮庸〈（曹大埜）〉

Wang Zhi and Ouyang Yijing (Hu Yingjia)〉 Zhou Hongzu (Cen Yongbin and Deng Hongzhen)〉 Zhan Yangbi and Luo Wenli (Yang Song and Zhang Yingzhi)〉 Zheng Luchun and Chen Wude (Li Yi and Hu Xiao)〉 Wang Wenhui and Liu Fenyong (Cao Dayan)〉

王治，字本道，忻州人。嘉靖三十二年進士。除行人，遷吏科給事中。寇屢盜邊，邊臣多匿不奏；小勝，文臣輒冒軍功。治請臨陣斬獲，第錄將士功；文臣及鎮帥不親搏戰者止賜賚。從之，再遷禮科左給事中。

Wang Zhi, styled Bendao, came from Xinzhou. He passed the jinshi examination in the thirty-second year of the Jiajing reign. He was appointed a courier, then promoted to supervising secretary in the Ministry of Personnel section. Raiders struck the frontier again and again, yet border officials often hushed it up and filed no reports; after the slightest success, civil officials would claim military credit for themselves. Zhi petitioned that battlefield kills and captures be credited only to officers and soldiers; civil officials and regional commanders who did not fight in person should receive only stipends and gifts. The court agreed, and he was soon promoted to Left Supervising Secretary in the Ministry of Rites section.

隆慶元年，偕御史王好問核內府諸監局歲費。中官崔敏請止之，為給事中張憲臣所劾。得旨：「詔書所載者，自嘉靖四十一年始，聽治等詳核。不載者，已之。」治等力爭，不許。事竣，劾中官趙廷玉、馬尹幹沒罪，詔下司禮監按問。尋上疏陳四事：「一、定宗廟之禮以隆聖孝。獻皇雖貴為天子父，未嘗南面臨天下；雖親為武宗叔，然嘗北面事武宗。今乃與祖宗諸帝並列，設位於武宗右，揆諸古典，終為未協。臣以為獻皇祔會太廟，不免遞遷。若專祀世廟，則億世不改。乞敕廷臣博議，務求至當。一、謹燕居之禮以澄化源。人主深居禁掖，左右便佞窺伺百出，或以燕飲聲樂，或以遊戲騎射。近則損敝精神，疾病所由生。久則妨累政事，危亂所由起。比者人言籍籍，謂陛下燕閑舉動，有非諒闇所宜者。臣竊為陛下慮之。」其二，請勤朝講、親輔弼。疏入，報聞。

In the first year of Longqing, he joined Censor Wang Haowen in auditing the annual costs of the inner-palace directorates and offices. The eunuch Cui Min asked that the audit be halted and was impeached by Supervising Secretary Zhang Xianchen. An edict came down: "Items listed in the imperial proclamation are to be audited in detail by Zhi and his colleagues from the forty-first year of Jiajing onward. What is not listed is to be discontinued. Zhi and his colleagues protested vigorously, but the court would not yield. When the audit was finished, they impeached the eunuchs Zhao Tingyu and Ma Yin for embezzlement, and an edict sent the case to the Directorate of Ceremonial for inquiry. He soon memorialized on four matters: "First, settle the ancestral temple rites to exalt filial devotion to the sages. Although the Xian Emperor was honored as the emperor's father, he never faced south to rule the realm; though he was the Jiajing Emperor's uncle, he had once faced north in service to Emperor Wuzong. Now he is ranked with the dynastic founders and given a place to Emperor Wuzong's right—a placement that, by ancient precedent, remains out of keeping. Your subject believes that if the Xian Emperor is enshrined in the Grand Ancestral Temple, he cannot escape eventual displacement. If he is worshipped solely in the Shrine of Generations, the arrangement will stand for all time. I beg that Your Majesty order the court to debate the matter broadly until the most fitting arrangement is found. Second, observe the rites of daily repose with care to keep the source of moral transformation clear. The ruler dwells deep within the forbidden quarters, where fawning attendants watch for every opening—sometimes with banquets and music, sometimes with games, riding, and archery. In the short run it drains the spirit and breeds illness. Over time it obstructs government and opens the way to peril and disorder. Lately rumor has been rife that Your Majesty's leisure and conduct include things unsuited to a period of filial mourning. Your subject ventures to worry on Your Majesty's behalf." His second and third points urged diligent attendance at court and the Classics Lectern, and close reliance on chief ministers. When the memorial arrived, the court merely acknowledged receipt.

進吏科都給事中。劾薊遼總督都御史劉燾、南京督儲都御史曾於拱不職，於拱遂罷。山西及薊鎮並中寇，治以罪兵部尚書郭乾、侍郎遲鳳翔，偕同官歐陽一敬等劾之。詔罷乾，貶鳳翔三秩視事。部議恤光祿少卿馬從謙。帝不許，治疏爭。帝謂從謙所犯，比子罵父律，終不允。治又請追謚何瑭，雪夏言罪，且言大理卿朱廷立、刑部侍郎詹瀚共鍛成夏言、曾銑獄，宜追奪其官。鹹報可。明年，左右有言南海子之勝者，帝將往幸。治率同官諫，大學士徐階、尚書楊博、御史郝傑等並阻止，皆不聽。至則荒莽沮濕，帝甚悔之。治尋擢太仆少卿，改大理，進太仆卿。憂歸，卒。

He was promoted to Chief Supervising Secretary in the Ministry of Personnel section. He impeached Liu Tao, Censor-in-Chief and regional commander of Jizhou and Liaodong, and Zeng Yugong, Nanjing grain-storage supervisor, for dereliction of duty; Yugong was dismissed. When Shanxi and the Jizhou garrison alike were raided, Zhi blamed Minister of War Guo Qian and Vice Minister Chi Fengxiang and, with his colleague Ouyang Yijing and others, impeached them. An edict dismissed Qian and demoted Fengxiang three ranks while leaving him in office. The ministry deliberated posthumous honors for Ma Congqian, Vice Director of the Court of Imperial Entertainments. The emperor refused, and Zhi memorialized in protest. The emperor said Congqian's offense was comparable to the statute on a son cursing his father, and would not relent. Zhi again asked that He Tang receive a posthumous title and Xia Yan's guilt be cleared, and charged that Chief Judge Zhu Tingli and Vice Minister of Justice Zhan Han had together forged the cases against Xia Yan and Zeng Xian—offices that should be posthumously revoked. The emperor approved all of it. The next year attendants praised the charms of the Southern Park, and the emperor prepared to visit it. Zhi led his colleagues in remonstrance; Grand Secretary Xu Jie, Minister Yang Bo, Censor Hao Jie, and others joined in trying to stop him, but none were heeded. When he arrived he found only wilderness and bog, and deeply regretted the trip. Zhi was soon promoted to Vice Minister of the Imperial Stud, transferred to the Court of Judicial Review, and then advanced to Minister of the Imperial Stud. He went home on mourning leave and died there.

歐陽一敬，字司直，彭澤人。嘉靖三十八年進士。除蕭山知縣。征授刑科給事中。劾太常少卿晉應槐為文選郎時劣狀，而南京侍郎傅頤、寧夏巡撫王崇古、湖廣參政孫弘軾由應槐進，俱當罷。吏部為應槐等辨，獨罷頤官。未幾，劾罷禮部尚書董份。三遷兵科給事中。言廣西總兵當用都督，不當用勛臣。因劾恭順侯吳繼爵，罷之，以俞大猷代。寇大入陜西，劾總督陳其學、巡撫戴才，俱奪官。又以軍政劾英國公張溶，山西、浙江總兵官董一奎、劉顯，掌錦衣衛都督李隆等九人不職。溶留，余俱貶黜。

Ouyang Yijing, styled Sizhi, came from Pengze. He passed the jinshi examination in the thirty-eighth year of the Jiajing reign. He was appointed magistrate of Xiaoshan. He was summoned to court and appointed supervising secretary in the Ministry of Justice section. He impeached Jin Yinghuai, Vice Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, for misconduct when he had served as a selection secretary, and argued that Nanjing Vice Minister Fu Yi, Ningxia Grand Coordinator Wang Chonggu, and Huguang Administration Vice Commissioner Sun Hongshi—all promoted through Yinghuai—should be dismissed as well. The Ministry of Personnel defended Yinghuai and the others, and only Yi lost his post. Before long he impeached and brought about the dismissal of Minister of Rites Dong Fen. After three transfers he became supervising secretary in the Ministry of War section. He argued that Guangxi's regional commander should be a regional military commissioner, not a meritorious noble. He therefore impeached Wu Jijue, Marquis of Gongshun, who was dismissed and replaced by Yu Dayou. When raiders made a major incursion into Shaanxi, he impeached Regional Commander Chen Qixue and Grand Coordinator Dai Cai, and both were stripped of office. He also impeached on military grounds the Duke of Ying, Zhang Rong; the regional commanders of Shanxi and Zhejiang, Dong Yikui and Liu Xian; Embroidered Uniform Guard Commissioner Li Long; and nine others in all for dereliction. Rong was kept in post; the rest were demoted or dismissed.

已，陳兵政八事，部皆議行。南京振武營兵由此罷。湖廣巡按陳省劾太和山守備中官呂祥，詔征祥還，罷守備官。未幾，復遣監丞劉進往代。一敬言：「進故名俊，守顯陵無狀。肅皇帝下之獄，充孝陵衛凈軍，今不宜用。」從之。中官呂用等典京營，一敬力諫，事寢。黔國公沐朝弼殘恣，屢抗詔旨。一敬請治其罪，報可。俄擢太常少卿。拱再起柄政，一敬懼，即日告歸，半道以憂死。時應嘉已屢遷參議，憂歸，聞拱再相，亦驚怖而卒。

He then set forth eight proposals on military administration, and the ministry adopted them all. The soldiers of Nanjing's Zhenwu Battalion were abolished as a result. Huguang touring censor Chen Sheng impeached Lü Xiang, the eunuch defender of Mount Taihe; an edict recalled Xiang and abolished the defender post. Before long Supervising Secretary Liu Jin was sent to replace him. Yijing said, "Jin's former name was Jun; he served at the Xian Mausoleum with grave misconduct. The Jiajing Emperor sent him to prison and made him a purifying soldier of the Xiaoling guard; he must not be appointed now." The court agreed. When the eunuchs Lü Yong and others were put in charge of the capital garrison, Yijing remonstrated forcefully and the plan was dropped. Mu Chaobi, Duke of Qian, was cruel and willful and repeatedly defied imperial edicts. Yijing asked that he be punished, and the emperor agreed. He was soon promoted to Vice Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. When Gao Gong again seized power, Yijing was afraid, resigned that very day, and died of grief on the road home. By then Yingjia had already risen several times to administration commissioner; he was home on mourning leave, and on hearing that Gao Gong was chief minister again, he too died of fright.

應嘉，沐陽人。由宜春知縣擢吏科給事中。三遷都給事中。論侍郎黃養蒙、李登雲及布政使李磐、侯一元不職，皆罷去。登雲者，大學士高拱姻也。應嘉策拱必害己，遂並劾拱，言：「拱輔政初，即以直廬為隘，移家西安門外，夤夜潛歸。陛下近稍違和，拱即私運直廬器物於外。臣不知拱何心。」疏入，拱大懼，亟奏辯。會帝崩，得不竟。拱以此銜應嘉。穆宗嗣位，應嘉請帝御文華殿與輔臣面議大政，召訪諸卿顧問侍從，令科臣隨事駁議。帝納焉。應嘉居諫職，號敢言。然悻悻好搏擊，議者頗以傾危目之。

Yingjia came from Muyang. From magistrate of Yichun he was promoted to supervising secretary in the Ministry of Personnel section. After three transfers he became chief supervising secretary. He charged Vice Ministers Huang Yangmeng and Li Dengyun and administration commissioners Li Pan and Hou Yiyuan with dereliction, and all were dismissed. Dengyun was related by marriage to Grand Secretary Gao Gong. Yingjia reckoned that Gao Gong would surely move against him and therefore impeached Gong as well, saying, "When Gong first took up government, he found the straight residence too cramped, moved his household outside Xi'an Gate, and slipped home in the dead of night. Your Majesty has recently been slightly unwell, and Gong has privately moved the furnishings of the straight residence outside. Your subject does not know what is in Gong's heart." When the memorial arrived, Gong was greatly afraid and urgently memorialized in his defense. Just then the emperor died, and the matter was not carried through. Gong therefore bore a grudge against Yingjia. When Emperor Muzong succeeded, Yingjia asked that the emperor preside in the Wenhua Hall to discuss great affairs face to face with chief ministers, summon ministers, advisers, and attendants for consultation, and order supervising secretaries to debate and rebut matters as they arose. The emperor adopted the proposal. In his remonstrance office Yingjia was known for speaking boldly. Yet he was resentful and fond of attack, and critics largely saw him as a destabilizing force.

周弘祖，麻城人。嘉靖三十八年進士。除吉安推官。征授御史，出督屯田、馬政。隆慶改元，司禮中貴及藩邸近侍蔭錦衣指揮以下至二十余人。弘祖馳疏請止賚金幣，或停世襲，且言：「高皇帝定制，宦侍止給奔走掃除，不關政事。孝宗召對大臣，宦侍必退去百余武，非惟不使之預，亦且不使之聞。願陛下勿與謀議，假以嚬笑，則彼無亂政之階，而聖德媲太祖、孝宗矣。臣又聞先帝初載，欲蔭太監張欽義子錦衣，兵部尚書彭澤執奏再四。今趙炳然居澤位，不能效澤忠，無所逃罪。」報聞。已，請汰內府監局、錦衣衛、光祿寺、文思院冗員，復嘉靖初年之舊，又請仿行古社倉制。詔皆從之。

Zhou Hongzu came from Macheng. He passed the jinshi examination in the thirty-eighth year of the Jiajing reign. He was appointed investigating censor of Ji'an. He was summoned to court and appointed censor, then sent out to supervise garrison farms and horse administration. At the start of the Longqing reign, eunuchs of the Directorate of Ceremonial and close attendants from the princely residence received hereditary appointments as Embroidered Uniform Guard commanders and below—more than twenty men in all. Hongzu sent an urgent memorial asking that gold and silks not be bestowed, or that hereditary succession be halted, and said, "The founding emperor established the rule that palace attendants were only to run errands and sweep clean, with no part in government. When Emperor Xiaozong summoned ministers for audience, palace attendants had to withdraw more than a hundred paces—not only kept from taking part, but even from hearing. I pray Your Majesty will not deliberate with them or grant them smiles and favor; then they will have no foothold to disorder government, and Your sagely virtue will match the founding emperor and Emperor Xiaozong. Your subject has also heard that in the late emperor's first years he wished to grant hereditary Embroidered Uniform Guard rank to the adopted son of eunuch Zhang Qin, and Minister of War Peng Ze memorialized in opposition again and again. Now Zhao Bingran holds Ze's post yet cannot emulate Ze's loyalty; he cannot escape blame." The court merely acknowledged receipt. He then asked to cut redundant staff in the inner-palace directorates, the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Court of Imperial Entertainments, and the Wensi Bureau, restoring early Jiajing practice, and also asked to revive the ancient communal granary system. Edicts approved all of it.

明年春，言：「近四方地震，土裂成渠，旗竿數火，天鼓再鳴，隕星旋風，天雨黑豆，此皆陰盛之徵也。陛下嗣位二年，未嘗接見大臣，咨訪治道。邊患孔棘，備禦無方。事涉內庭，輒見撓沮，如閱馬、核庫，詔出復停。皇莊則親收子粒，太和則榷取香錢，織造之使累遣，糾劾之疏留中。內臣爵賞謝辭，溫旨遠出六卿上，尤祖宗朝所絕無者。」疏入，不報。其冬詔市珍寶，魏時亮等爭，不聽。弘祖復切諫。尋遷福建提學副使。大學士高拱掌吏部，考察言官，惡弘祖及岑用賓等，謫弘祖安順判官，用賓宜川縣丞。

The next spring he said, "Lately earthquakes have struck in every quarter; earth has split into channels, flagpoles have caught fire, the sky drum has sounded twice, meteors and whirlwinds have appeared, and black beans have rained from heaven—all signs of excessive yin. Your Majesty has been on the throne two years yet has never received chief ministers or consulted on the way of governance. Border troubles are acute, and there is no plan for defense. When matters touch the inner court they are at once obstructed—as with inspecting horses and auditing storehouses: edicts go out and are then halted. At the imperial estates the emperor personally collects grain rents; at Mount Taihe incense money is levied; weaving envoys are sent again and again; and memorials of impeachment are held at court. When inner attendants declined ennoblement and rewards, warm edicts placed them far above the six ministers—something utterly unknown under the dynastic founders." When the memorial arrived, no response was given. That winter an edict ordered the purchase of precious objects; Wei Shiliang and others protested, but were not heeded. Hongzu remonstrated again in strong terms. He was soon transferred to Educational Vice Commissioner of Fujian. Grand Secretary Gao Gong headed the Ministry of Personnel, reviewed the remonstrance officials, hated Hongzu and Cen Yongbin and others, and demoted Hongzu to judge of Anshun and Yongbin to county assistant of Yichuan.

用賓，廣東順德人。官南京給事中，多所論劾。又嘗論拱很愎，以故拱憾之，出為紹興知府。既中以察典，遂卒於貶所。而弘祖謫未幾，拱罷，量移廣平推官，萬歷中，屢遷南京光祿卿。坐朱衣謁陵免。

Yongbin came from Shunde in Guangdong. As supervising secretary in Nanjing he impeached many officials. He had also criticized Gao Gong as obstinate and willful; for this Gong resented him and sent him out as prefect of Shaoxing. He was soon caught in the personnel review and died in exile. Hongzu had not long been demoted when Gao Gong fell; he was transferred in grade to investigating censor of Guangping, and in the Wanli years rose repeatedly to Minister of the Court of Imperial Entertainments in Nanjing. He was dismissed for wearing vermilion robes when paying respects at the imperial mausoleum.

當隆慶初，以地震言事者，又有鄧洪震，宣化人。時為兵部郎中，上疏曰：「入夏以來，淫雨彌月。又京師去冬地震，今春風霾大作，白日無光。近大同又報雨雹傷物，地震有聲。陛下臨禦甫半年，災異疊見。傳聞後宮遊幸無時，嬪禦相隨，後車充斥。左右近習，濫賜予。政令屢易，前後背馳，邪正混淆，用舍猶豫。萬一奸宄潛生，寇戎軼犯，其何以待之？」帝納其言，下禮官議修省。洪震尋以疾歸。萬歷改元，督撫交章論薦，竟不起。

At the beginning of Longqing, among those who spoke out after earthquakes was Deng Hongzhen, who came from Xuanhua. At the time he was a bureau director in the Ministry of War and memorialized, "Since summer began, excessive rain has lasted a full month. Last winter the capital region suffered an earthquake; this spring dust storms have raged and the sun has been dimmed. Recently Datong has also reported hail damaging crops and an earthquake that was heard. Your Majesty has held court barely half a year, yet calamities and prodigies have appeared one after another. Rumor says the inner palace goes out at all hours without schedule, with consorts and attendants following and the rear carriages packed full. Close attendants receive lavish gifts. Government orders change repeatedly and contradict one another; the wicked and upright are confused, and appointments and dismissals are hesitant. If treachery arises in secret or border raiders strike suddenly, how will you meet it?" The emperor accepted his words and ordered the ritual officials to deliberate on self-reform. Hongzhen soon returned home on account of illness. When the Wanli reign began, regional commanders and grand coordinators recommended him in memorial after memorial, but in the end he did not take office.

詹仰庇，字汝欽，安溪人。嘉靖四十四年進士。由南海知縣征授御史。隆慶初，穆宗詔戶部購寶珠，尚書馬森執奏，給事中魏時亮、御史賀一桂等繼爭，皆不聽。仰庇疏言：「頃言官諫購寶珠，反蒙詰讓。昔仲虺戒湯不邇聲色，不殖貨利；召公戒武王玩人喪德，玩物喪誌。湯、武能受二臣之戒，絕去玩好，故聖德光千載。若侈心一生，不可復遏，恣情縱欲，財耗民窮。陛下玩好之端漸啟，弼違之諫惡聞，群小乘隙，百方誘惑，害有不勝言者。況寶石珠璣，多藏中貴家，求之愈急，邀直愈多，奈何以有用財，耗之無用之物。今兩廣需餉，疏請再三，猶靳不予，何輕重倒置乎！」不報。三年正月，中官制煙火，延燒禁中廬舍，仰庇請按治。左右近習多切齒者。

Zhan Yangbi, styled Ruqin, came from Anxi. He passed the jinshi examination in the forty-fourth year of the Jiajing reign. From magistrate of Nanhai he was summoned and appointed censor. At the beginning of Longqing, Emperor Muzong ordered the Ministry of Revenue to purchase precious pearls; Minister Ma Sen memorialized in opposition, and Supervising Secretary Wei Shiliang, Censor He Yigui, and others protested in turn, but none were heeded. Yangbi memorialized, "Just now remonstrance officials advised against purchasing pearls and were rebuked instead. In old times Zhong Hui admonished Tang not to draw near sounds and colors or amass goods for profit; the Duke of Shao admonished King Wu that to toy with men is to lose virtue, and to toy with things is to lose purpose. Tang and Wu accepted the admonitions of these two ministers and cut off indulgence in playthings and delights; therefore their sagely virtue shines for a thousand years. Once the heart of extravagance is born it cannot be checked again; to indulge feeling and release desire exhausts wealth and impoverishes the people. Your Majesty's indulgence in delights has gradually opened; admonitions that oppose you are hated to hear; petty men seize their openings and tempt from every side—harms beyond numbering. Moreover gems and pearls are mostly hoarded in eunuch households; the more urgently they are sought, the more bribes are demanded—how can useful funds be squandered on useless things? Now the two Guang regions need military pay; memorials have requested it again and again, yet it is still withheld—how is priority turned upside down!" No response was given. In the first month of the third year, eunuchs made fireworks that spread and burned lodges within the forbidden precinct; Yangbi asked that they be investigated and punished. Many close attendants gnashed their teeth at him.

帝頗耽聲色，陳皇后微諫，帝怒，出之別宮。外庭皆憂之，莫敢言。仰庇入朝，遇醫禁中出。詢之，知後寢疾危篤，即上疏言：「先帝慎擇賢淑，作配陛下，為宗廟社稷內主。陛下宜遵先帝命，篤宮闈之好。近聞皇后移居別宮，已近一載，抑郁成疾，陛下略不省視。萬一不諱，如聖德何？臣下莫不憂惶，徒以事涉宮禁，不敢頌言。臣謂人臣之義，知而不言，當死；言而觸諱，亦當死。臣今日固不惜死，願陛下采聽臣言，立復皇后中宮，時加慰問，臣雖死賢於生。」帝手批答曰：「後無子多病，移居別宮，聊自適，以冀卻疾。爾何知內庭事，顧妄言。」仰庇自分得重譴，同列亦危之。及旨下，中外驚喜過望，仰庇益感奮。

The emperor was rather addicted to sounds and colors; Empress Chen remonstrated mildly, and the emperor in anger sent her to a separate palace. The outer court was anxious, but none dared speak. Yangbi entered court and met a physician coming out of the inner palace. On inquiry he learned that the empress lay gravely ill, and at once memorialized, "The late emperor carefully chose a worthy and virtuous consort to be Your Majesty's mate, the inner mistress of the ancestral temples and the altars of soil and grain. Your Majesty should follow the late emperor's command and deepen the affection of the inner palace. Recently it is heard that the empress was moved to a separate palace nearly a year ago, fell ill from depression, and Your Majesty has scarcely visited her. If the worst should happen, what of Your sagely virtue? Your subjects are all anxious and fearful, yet because the matter touches the forbidden palace they dare not speak openly. Your subject holds that a minister who knows and does not speak deserves death; to speak and touch taboo also deserves death. Your subject today truly does not spare his life; I pray Your Majesty will heed my words, immediately restore the empress to the central palace, and visit her from time to time with comfort—then though I die I am better off than living." The emperor wrote a reply in his own hand: "The empress is childless and often ill; she was moved to a separate palace merely to suit herself, in hope of recovering. What do you know of inner-court affairs, that you speak rashly?" Yangbi himself expected heavy punishment, and his colleagues also feared for him. When the edict came down, inside and outside the court were astonished beyond expectation, and Yangbi was all the more stirred.

亡何，巡視十庫，疏言：「內官監歲入租稅至多，而歲出不置籍。按京城內外園廛場地，隸本監者數十計，歲課皆屬官錢，而內臣假上供名，恣意漁獵。利填私家，過歸朝寧。乞備核宜留宜革，並出入多寡數，以杜奸欺。再照人主奢儉，四方系安危。陛下前取戶部銀，用備緩急。今如本監所稱，則盡以創鰲山、修宮苑、制鞦韆、造龍鳳艦、治金櫃玉盆。群小因幹沒，累聖德，虧國計。望陛下深省，有以玩好逢迎者，悉屏出罪之。」宦官益恨。故事，諸司文移往還及牧民官出教，用「照」字，言官上書無此體。宦官因指「再照人主」語，為大不敬。帝怒，下詔曰：「仰庇小臣，敢照及天子，且狂肆屢不悛。」遂廷杖百，除名，並罷科道之巡視庫藏者。南京給事中駱問禮、御史余嘉詔等疏救，且言巡視官不當罷。不納。仰庇為御史僅八月，數進讜言，竟以獲罪。

Before long, inspecting the ten storehouses, he memorialized, "The Directorate of Palace Attendants receives the most rent and tax each year, yet yearly expenditures are not recorded. Gardens, markets, and grounds inside and outside the capital under this directorate number several tens; yearly levies all belong to official funds, yet inner attendants under the name of tribute to the throne extort as they please. Profit fills private homes while excess returns to the court. I beg a full audit of what should be kept and what abolished, together with the amounts of income and outgo, to stop fraud. Again, the ruler's extravagance or frugality bears on the safety or peril of the realm. Your Majesty earlier took silver from the Ministry of Revenue to meet emergencies. Now, as this directorate reports, it has all been spent on building the Tortoise Mountain, repairing palace gardens, making swings, constructing dragon-phoenix ships, and making gold cabinets and jade basins. Petty men thereby embezzle, burdening sagely virtue and harming the state treasury. I hope Your Majesty will reflect deeply and dismiss and punish all who use delights to curry favor." The eunuchs hated him all the more. By precedent, when offices exchanged documents and local officials issued instructions, they used the character zhao; remonstrance officials' memorials had no such form. The eunuchs therefore seized on the phrase "again, the ruler" as gross disrespect. The emperor was angry and issued an edict: "Yangbi is a petty official who dares use zhao toward the Son of Heaven, and is moreover wild and unrestrained, repeatedly unrepentant." He was then beaten a hundred strokes at court, dismissed from the rolls, and the censorate officials inspecting the storehouses were also dismissed. Nanjing Supervising Secretary Luo Wenli, Censor Yu Jiazhao, and others memorialized in his defense and said the inspection officials should not be dismissed. This was not accepted. Yangbi had been censor only eight months, offered forthright counsel several times, and in the end was punished.

神宗嗣位，錄先朝直臣。以仰庇在京時嘗為商人居間，不得內召，除廣東參議。尋乞歸。家居十余年，起官江西。再遷南京太仆少卿。入為左僉都御史，進左副都御史。仰庇初以直節負盛名，至是為保位計，頗不免附麗。饒伸以科場事劾大學士王錫爵、左都御史吳時來，仰庇即劾伸。進士薛敷教劾時來及南京右都御史耿定向，仰庇未及閱疏，即論敷教排陷大臣，敷教坐廢。及吏部侍郎趙煥、兵部侍郎沈子木相繼去，仰庇謀代之，蹤跡頗著。給事中王繼光、主事姜延士昌、員外郎趙南星、南京御史王麟趾等交章論列。仰庇不自安，屢求去。帝雖慰留，而眾議籍籍不止。稍遷刑部右侍郎。移疾歸，久之卒。

When Emperor Shenzong succeeded, he recorded the upright ministers of the previous reign. Because while in the capital Yangbi had once acted as go-between for merchants, he was not summoned within; he was appointed administration commissioner of Guangdong. He soon asked to return home. He lived at home more than ten years, then was raised to office in Jiangxi. After two transfers he became Vice Minister of the Imperial Stud in Nanjing. He entered court as Left Assistant Censor-in-Chief and advanced to Left Vice Censor-in-Chief. Yangbi had first been famed for upright integrity, but by now, calculating to preserve his position, he could not altogether avoid clinging to powerful patrons. Rao Shen impeached Grand Secretary Wang Xijue and Left Censor-in-Chief Wu Shilai over the examination-field affair; Yangbi at once impeached Shen. Jinshi Xue Fujiao impeached Shilai and Nanjing Right Censor-in-Chief Geng Dingxiang; Yangbi had not yet read the memorial when he charged that Fujiao was framing great ministers, and Fujiao was dismissed. When Vice Minister of Personnel Zhao Huan and Vice Minister of War Shen Zimu left office in succession, Yangbi plotted to replace them, and his tracks were rather plain. Supervising Secretary Wang Jiguang, Section Director Jiang Yan, Bureau Director Zhao Nanxing, Nanjing Censor Wang Linzhi, and others submitted memorial after memorial discussing him. Yangbi was ill at ease and repeatedly asked to leave. Though the emperor comforted him and urged him to stay, public criticism never ceased. He was soon promoted to Right Vice Minister of Justice. He pleaded illness and retired; after some time he died.

駱問禮，諸暨人。嘉靖末進士。歷南京刑科給事中。隆慶三年，陳皇后移別宮，問禮偕同官張應治等上言：「皇后正位中闈，即有疾，豈宜移宮。望亟返坤寧，毋使後世謂變禮自陛下始。」不報。給事張齊劾徐階，為廷臣所排，下獄削籍。問禮獨言齊贓可疑，不當以糾彈大臣實其罪。張居正請大閱，問禮謂非要務，而請帝日親萬幾，詳覽奏章。未幾，劾誠意伯劉世延、福建巡撫塗澤民不職，帝並留之。

Luo Wenli was a native of Zhuji. He passed the jinshi examination in the late Jiajing era. He served as a supervising secretary in the Penalties Section at Nanjing. In Longqing 3, when Empress Chen was moved to another palace, Wenli and his colleague Zhang Yingzhi and others memorialized: "The empress holds her rightful place in the inner quarters; even if she is ill, how can she be moved from her palace? We pray she be brought back to Kunning Palace at once, lest posterity say that ritual was first altered under Your Majesty." No response was given. Supervising Secretary Zhang Qi impeached Xu Jie, was ostracized by court ministers, imprisoned, and dismissed from office. Wenli alone argued that Qi's bribery charges were dubious and that his guilt should not be established simply because he had impeached senior ministers. When Zhang Juzheng requested a grand military review, Wenli said it was not the urgent priority and urged the emperor to attend daily to state affairs and review memorials carefully. Before long he impeached Marquis of Chengyi Liu Shiyan and Fujian Grand Coordinator Tu Zemin for incompetence; the emperor retained both men.

帝初納言官請，將令諸政務悉面奏於便殿，問禮遂條上面奏事宜。一言：「陛下躬攬萬幾，宜酌用群言，不執己見，使可否予奪，皆合天道，則有獨斷之美，無自用之失。」二言：「陛下宜日居便殿，使侍從官常在左右，非向晦不入宮闈，則涵養薰陶，自多裨益。」三言：「內閣政事根本，宜參用諸司，無拘翰林，則講明義理，通達政事，皆得其人。」四言「詔旨必由六科，諸司始得奉行，脫有未當，許封還執奏。如六科不封駁，諸司失檢察者，許御史糾彈。」五言：「頃詔書兩下，皆許諸人直言。然所采納者，除言官與一二大臣外，盡付所司而已。宜益廣言路，凡臣民章奏，不惟其人惟其言，令匹夫皆得自效。」六言：「陛下臨朝決事，凡給事左右，如傳旨、接奏章之類，宜用文武侍從，毋使中官參與，則窺竊之漸，無自而生。」七言：「士習傾危，稍或異同，輒加排陷。自今凡議國事，惟論是非，不徇好惡。眾人言未必得，一人言未必非，則公論日明，士氣可振。」八言：「政令之出，宜在必行。今所司題覆，已報可者未見修舉，因循玩愒，習為故常。陛下當明作於上，敕諸臣奮勵於下，以挽頹惰之風」。九言：「面奏之儀，宜略去繁文，務求實用，俾諸臣入而敷奏，退而治事，無或兩妨，斯上下之交可久。」十言：「修撰、編檢諸臣，宜令更番入直，密邇乘輿，一切言動，執簡侍書。其耳目所不及者，諸司或以月報，或以季報，令得隨事纂緝，以垂勸戒。」

When the emperor first accepted the remonstrance officials' request and proposed that all government business be presented face-to-face in the informal hall, Wenli submitted a detailed memorial on how such audiences should be conducted. First point: "Your Majesty personally handles the myriad affairs of state; you should weigh the counsel of many voices rather than cling to your own views, so that every approval and denial accords with Heaven's Way—then you will have the virtue of decisive judgment without the error of acting on whim alone." Second point: "Your Majesty should remain daily in the informal hall with attendant officials always at hand, entering the inner palace only as dusk approaches—then steady moral cultivation will bring great benefit." Third point: "The Grand Secretariat is the foundation of government; ministers should be drawn from all bureaus without limiting selection to the Hanlin Academy—then those who expound principle and those who understand affairs will each be properly placed." Fourth point: "Edicts must pass through the Six Sections before bureaus may carry them out; if anything is improper, allow them to return the sealed memorial and remonstrate in person. If the Six Sections fail to seal and return objections, and bureaus neglect their oversight, censors should be allowed to impeach." Fifth point: "Recently two edicts were issued, both allowing everyone to speak frankly. Yet what was adopted, apart from remonstrance officials and one or two senior ministers, was simply handed over to the relevant bureaus. You should further broaden the avenue of remonstrance: for all memorials from ministers and commoners, judge not the person but the words, so that even common men may serve the state." Sixth point: "When Your Majesty decides affairs at court, all attendant duties—such as transmitting edicts and receiving memorials—should be entrusted to civil and military attendants; do not let eunuchs take part, and the first steps toward usurpation will never arise." Seventh point: "Scholarly custom has grown perilous: the slightest difference of opinion brings attack and framing. From now on, in all discussion of state affairs, judge only right and wrong, not personal likes and dislikes. What many say is not necessarily right, and what one says is not necessarily wrong—then public judgment will daily grow clearer and scholarly morale can be revived." Eighth point: "When orders issue forth, they should be enforced without fail. Today in bureau replies, items already approved are never carried out; procrastination and negligence have become routine. Your Majesty should give clear direction above and charge ministers below to exert themselves, to reverse the tide of decay and indolence." Ninth point: "The ritual of face-to-face audience should strip away needless formality and seek practical use, so ministers may enter to report and withdraw to govern without either duty hindering the other—then relations between ruler and ministers can endure." Tenth point: "Drafting and editing compilers should rotate into attendance close to the imperial carriage, recording every word and deed with brush in hand. Matters beyond their sight and hearing, bureaus might report monthly or quarterly, allowing events to be compiled as they occur to serve as warning and instruction."

疏奏，帝不悅。宦侍復從中構之，謫楚雄知事。明年，吏部舉雜職官當遷者，問禮及御史楊松在舉中。帝曰：「此兩人安得遽遷，俟三年後議之。」萬歷初，屢遷湖廣副使，卒。

When the memorial was submitted, the emperor was displeased. Eunuch attendants again slandered him from within, and he was demoted to bureau official at Chuxiong. The next year, when the Ministry of Personnel listed miscellaneous officials due for promotion, Wenli and Censor Yang Song were on the list. The emperor said: "How can these two men be promoted so soon? Let it be considered after three years." At the beginning of the Wanli reign he was repeatedly promoted to Vice Commissioner of Huguang, and died.

楊松，河南衛人。歷官御史，巡視皇城。尚膳少監黃雄征子錢與民哄，兵馬司捕送松所。事未決，而內監令校尉趣雄入直，詭言有駕帖。松驗問無有，遂劾雄詐稱詔旨。帝令黜兵馬司官，而鐫松三秩，謫山西布政司照磨。神宗立，擢廬州推官，終山西副使。

Yang Song was a native of Henan Guard. He served as censor and inspected the Imperial City. Assistant Director of the Imperial Pantry Huang Xiong lent money at usurious rates and brawled with commoners; the Horse and Circuit Office arrested him and brought him before Song. Before the matter was decided, an inner eunuch sent guards to hurry Xiong to palace duty, falsely claiming there was an imperial summons. Song investigated and found no such summons; he then impeached Xiong for falsely claiming an imperial edict. The emperor ordered the Horse and Circuit Office officials dismissed, but reduced Song three ranks and demoted him to registrar of the Shanxi Provincial Administration Commission. When Shenzong acceded, he was promoted to magistrate of Luzhou and ended his career as Vice Commissioner of Shanxi.

張應治，秀水人。在垣中抗疏，多可稱。為高拱所惡，出為九江知府。終山東副使。

Zhang Yingzhi was a native of Xiushui. While in the censorate he submitted bold memorials, many of them praiseworthy. Gao Gong took a dislike to him, and he was sent out as prefect of Jiujiang. He ended his career as Vice Commissioner of Shandong.

鄭履淳，字叔初，刑部尚書曉子也。舉嘉靖四十年進士，除刑部主事，遷尚寶丞。隆慶三年冬，疏言：

Zheng Luchun, style Shuchu, was the son of Minister of Justice Zheng Xiao. He passed the jinshi examination in Jiajing 40, was appointed section director in the Ministry of Justice, and was transferred to Vice Director of the Court of Imperial Regalia. In the winter of Longqing 3, he submitted a memorial saying:

頃年以來，萬民失業，四方多故，天鳴地震，災害洊臻，正陛下宵旰憂勤時也。夫饑寒迫身，易為衣食，嗷嗷赤子，聖主之所以為資。不及今定周家桑土之謀，切虞廷困窮之懼，則上天所以警動海內者，適足以資他人矣。今最急莫如用賢。陛下禦極三祀矣，曾召問一大臣，面質一講官，賞納一諫士，以共畫思患豫防之策乎？高亢暌孤，乾坤否隔，忠言重折檻之罰，儒臣虛納牖之功，宮闈違脫珥之規，朝陛拂同舟之義。回奏蒙譴，補牘奚從？內批徑出，封還何自？紀綱因循，風俗玩愒。功罪罔核，文案徒繁。閽寺潛為厲階，善類漸以短氣。言涉宮府，肆撓多端。梗在私門，堅持不破。萬眾惶惶，皆謂群小侮常，明良疏隔，自開辟以來，未有若是而永安者。伏願奮英斷以決大計，勿為小故之所淆；弘浚哲以任君子，勿為嬖昵之所惑。移美色奇珍之玩而保瘡痍，分昭陽細務之勤而和庶政。以蠻裔為關門勁敵，以錢谷為黎庶脂膏。拔用陸樹聲、石星之流，嘉納殷士儋、翁大立諸疏。經史講筵，日親無倦。臣民章奏，與所司面相可否。萬幾之裁理漸熟，人才之邪正自知。察變謹微，回天開泰，計無逾於此。

In recent years the people have lost their livelihoods, troubles multiply on every side, heaven sounds and earth quakes, and disasters come one after another—this is precisely when Your Majesty should toil through the night with concern. When hunger and cold press upon the body, people easily turn to food and clothing alone; the wailing infants are the very resource upon which a sage ruler relies. If you do not now settle the plan of the Zhou for mulberry lands and soil, but deeply fear the poverty of the court of Yu, then what heaven uses to warn and stir the realm will only supply your enemies. Today nothing is more urgent than employing the worthy. Your Majesty has held the throne three years—have you ever summoned a senior minister to inquire of him, face-to-face examined a lecturer, or rewarded and accepted one remonstrating scholar, to jointly devise policies for thinking ahead to dangers and taking preventive measures? Lofty and aloof, heaven and earth blocked in separation, loyal words repeatedly meet with the punishment of breaking the balustrade, Confucian ministers vainly perform the service of offering counsel through the window, the inner palace violates the rule of removing earrings to remonstrate, and the court steps violate the spirit of sharing one boat. Memorials submitted meet with reproof—what further memorials can follow? Inner drafts issue directly—whence comes returning sealed memorials? Discipline drags on, and custom grows slack and negligent. Merit and fault go unchecked, and paperwork alone grows thick. Gate attendants secretly serve as stepping-stones to disaster, and good men gradually lose heart. Speech touching palace or government is freely obstructed in many ways. Obstructions lie in private factions, firmly upheld and never broken. The people are anxious and fearful; all say petty men scorn norms, ruler and worthy are estranged—and since the beginning of time, none has remained secure forever in such a state. I humbly pray you rouse resolute judgment to decide great policy, and not be confused by petty matters; Expand far-seeing wisdom to employ gentlemen, and not be deluded by favorites. Shift from delight in beauty and rare treasures to protecting the wounded land; divide the toil of Zhaoyang's minor affairs and harmonize common governance. Treat frontier peoples as powerful enemies at the strategic passes, and treat money and grain as the fat and marrow squeezed from the common people. Promote men such as Lu Shusheng and Shi Xing; gladly accept the memorials of Yin Shidan, Weng Dali, and others. At the classics-and-history lecture, attend daily without weariness. For memorials of ministers and people, face the relevant bureaus in approving or denying them. Judgment over the myriad affairs will gradually mature, and the upright and corrupt among talent will become known of themselves. Discern change and heed the subtle, turn heaven and open prosperity—no plan surpasses this.

疏入，帝大怒，杖之百，系刑部獄數月。刑科舒化等以為言，乃釋為民。神宗立，起光祿少卿，卒。

When the memorial arrived, the emperor was greatly enraged; he was beaten one hundred strokes and imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice for several months. Shu Hua of the Penalties Section and others spoke on his behalf, and he was released as a commoner. When Shenzong acceded, he was recalled as Vice Director of the Court of Imperial Entertainments, and died.

陳吾德，字懋修，歸善人。嘉靖四十四年進士。授行人。隆慶三年，擢工科給事中。兩廣多盜，將吏率虛文罔上。吾德列便宜八事，皆允行。明年正月朔，日有食之，已而月復食。吾德言：「歲首日月並食，天之大災，陛下宜屏斥一切玩好，應天以實。」詔遣中官督織造，吾德偕同官嚴用和切諫，報聞。帝從中官崔敏言，命市珍寶，戶部尚書劉體乾、戶科都給事中李已執奏，不從。吾德復偕已上疏曰：「伏睹登極詔書，罷采辦，蠲加派，且雲『各監局以缺乏為名，移文苛取，及所司阿附奉行者，言官即時論奏，治以重典』，海內聞之，歡若更生。比者左右近習，幹請紛紜，買玉市珠，傳帖數下。人情惶駭，鹹謂詔書不信，無所適從。邇時府庫久虛，民生困瘁，司度支者日夕憂危。陛下奈何以玩好故，費數十萬貲乎！敏等獻諂營私，罪不可宥。乞亟譴斥，以全詔書大信。」帝震怒，杖已百，錮刑部獄，斥吾德為民。

Chen Wude, style Maoxiu, was a native of Guishan. He passed the jinshi examination in Jiajing 44. He was appointed courier. In Longqing 3 he was promoted to supervising secretary of the Works Section. Guangdong and Guangxi had many bandits, and generals and officials mostly used empty reports to deceive the throne. Wude listed eight practical measures, all of which were approved and carried out. On the new moon of the first month of the next year, there was a solar eclipse; soon after, the moon was eclipsed as well. Wude said: "At the year's start sun and moon were both eclipsed—a great calamity from heaven; Your Majesty should dismiss all delights and respond to heaven with substance." An edict sent eunuchs to supervise weaving and manufacture; Wude and his colleague Yan Yonghe remonstrated urgently, and notice was received. The emperor, following eunuch Cui Min's advice, ordered the purchase of rare treasures; Minister of Revenue Liu Tigan and Chief Supervising Secretary of the Revenue Section Li Yi submitted firm memorials, but he did not follow them. Wude again joined Yi in submitting a memorial: "I have seen the accession edict abolishing procurement, remitting additional levies, and stating that 'where the various directorates and offices, under the pretext of shortage, issue documents to exact harshly, and relevant bureaus fawn and carry out such orders, remonstrance officials shall at once discuss and memorialize, punishing with severe statutes'—when the realm heard this, all rejoiced as if reborn. Recently close attendants at your side have made requests in profusion, buying jade and purchasing pearls, with orders transmitted again and again. People are anxious and alarmed; all say the edict cannot be trusted and there is nowhere to turn. Recently the treasury has long been empty, the people's livelihood is exhausted and distressed, and those in charge of revenue worry day and night over the danger. Your Majesty, how can you for the sake of delights spend hundreds of thousands in funds! Min and the others offer flattery and pursue private gain—their crime cannot be pardoned. I beg you quickly to reprimand and dismiss them, to preserve the great credibility of the edict." The emperor was greatly enraged; Yi was beaten one hundred strokes and imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice, and Wude was dismissed as a commoner.

李已，字子復，磁人。嘉靖四十四年進士。除太常博士，擢禮科給事中。隆慶中，頻詔戶部有所征索。尚書劉體乾輒執奏，已每助之，以是積失帝意。及爭珍寶事，遂得禍。未幾，刑科給事中舒化等請釋已，刑部尚書葛守禮等因言：「朝審時，重囚情可矜疑者，鹹得末減。已及內犯張恩等十人，讞未定，不列朝審中。茍瘐死犴狴，將累深仁。」帝乃釋已，恩等系如故。法司以恩等有內援，欲借以脫已。及已獨釋，眾翕然稱帝仁明。

Li Yi, style Zifu, was a native of Ci. He passed the jinshi examination in Jiajing 44. He was appointed erudite of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and was promoted to supervising secretary of the Rites Section. During the Longqing reign, edicts frequently ordered the Ministry of Revenue to make levies. Minister Liu Tigan repeatedly submitted firm memorials, and Yi always assisted him; by this he gradually lost the emperor's favor. When the dispute over purchasing precious treasures erupted, disaster followed. Before long, Supervising Secretary Shu Hua of the Punishments Section and others petitioned for Li Yi's release. Minister of Justice Ge Shouli and others then argued: "At the Court Review, serious offenders whose cases warrant compassion or doubt should all be eligible for commuted sentences. Li Yi and the ten inner-palace offenders, including Zhang En, whose verdicts had not yet been fixed, were excluded from the Court Review altogether. Should any of them die of illness in custody, it would tarnish Your Majesty's reputation for deep mercy." The emperor then released Li Yi alone; Zhang En and the others remained in custody as before. The judicial offices assumed that En and the others enjoyed patrons within the palace and hoped to use their case as leverage to secure Li Yi's release. When Li Yi alone was freed, the court united in praising the emperor's benevolence and clear judgment.

神宗立，薦起兵科都給事中。奏言：「陛下初基，弊端盡去，傳奉一事，豈可尚踵故常。內臣即有勤勞，當優以金帛，名器所在，不容濫設。」帝嘉納之。御史胡涍建言得罪，已首論救。尋劾兵部尚書譚綸去取邊將不當。平江伯陳王謨罪廢，復夤緣出鎮湖廣，已力爭得寢。擢順天府丞，遷大理右少卿。疏請改父母誥命，日已暮，逼禁門守者投入。帝怒，謫常州同知。

After the Shenzong Emperor acceded, Li Yi was recommended and appointed Chief Supervising Secretary of the Military Affairs Section. He submitted a memorial: "Your Majesty has only just ascended the throne and swept away longstanding abuses. On the question of honorary commissions, how can we simply carry on as before? Even when inner attendants have earned merit, they should be rewarded with gold and silk alone. Offices and insignia must never be handed out indiscriminately." The emperor praised the proposal and accepted it. When Censor Hu Jiao was punished for a forthright memorial, Li Yi was the first to speak up in his defense. He soon impeached Minister of War Tan Lun for mishandling the appointment and removal of frontier generals. The Earl of Pingjiang, Chen Wangmo, though convicted and dismissed, again used connections to secure a command in Huguang. Li Yi fought the appointment vigorously and had it blocked. He was promoted to vice magistrate of Shuntian Prefecture and later transferred to Right Assistant Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. He submitted a memorial requesting changes to his parents' patent of nobility. The hour was late, so he pressed the palace gate guards to accept it anyway. The emperor was enraged and demoted him to vice prefect of Changzhou.

初，已與吾德並敢言，已尤以直著。兩遭摧抑，頗事營進。後為南京考功郎中。九年京察，希張居正指，與尚書何寬置司業張位、長史趙世卿察典，遂得擢南京尚寶卿。三遷右僉都御史，巡撫保定六府。逾年，罷歸，卒。

At first Li Yi and Chen Wude were both known for speaking boldly, but Yi was especially famed for his bluntness. After suffering two crushing setbacks, he turned increasingly to scheming for promotion. He later became bureau director of merit evaluation in Nanjing. During the ninth year's metropolitan evaluation, taking his cue from Zhang Juzheng, he joined Minister He Kuan in putting Vice Director of Studies Zhang Wei and chief steward Zhao Shiqing in charge of the review. By this maneuver he won promotion to Minister of the Court of Imperial Regalia in Nanjing. After three further promotions he became Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief and grand coordinator of the six prefectures of Baoding. A year later he was dismissed, returned home, and died.

胡涍，字原荊，無錫人。嘉靖末舉進士。歷知永豐、安福二縣，擢御史。神宗即位之六日，命馮保代孟沖掌司禮監，召用南京守備張宏。涍請嚴馭近習，毋惑諂諛，虧損聖德。保大怒，思傾之。其冬，妖星見，慈寧宮後延燒連房。涍乞遍察掖廷中曾蒙先朝寵幸者，體恤優遇，其余無論老少，一概放遣。奏中有「唐高不君，則天為虐」語。帝怒，問輔臣，二語所指為誰。張居正對曰：「涍言雖狂悖，心無他。」帝意未釋，嚴旨譙讓。涍惶恐請罪，斥為民。逾年，巡按御史李學詩薦涍。詔自後有薦者，並逮治涍。久之，卒。

Hu Jiao, styled Yuanjing, came from Wuxi. He passed the jinshi examination near the end of the Jiajing reign. He served successively as magistrate of Yongfeng and Anfu counties before being promoted to censor. Six days after the Shenzong Emperor's accession, Feng Bao was ordered to replace Meng Chong as director of the Directorate of Ceremonial, and Zhang Hong, the Nanjing garrison commander, was recalled to office. Jiao urged the emperor to keep his close attendants under strict discipline, lest flattery and sycophancy erode his moral authority. Feng was furious and set about trying to destroy him. That winter an ominous star appeared, and a fire behind Cining Palace spread through a row of adjoining buildings. Jiao petitioned for a thorough review of every woman in the rear palaces who had once enjoyed the late emperor's favor, that they be treated with kindness and care. All the rest, young or old alike, should be released and sent away. The memorial included the lines "Gaozu of Tang was no true sovereign, and Wu Zetian was a tyrant." The emperor was furious and asked his chief ministers whom the two phrases were meant to describe. Zhang Juzheng replied: "Jiao's language may be reckless and disrespectful, but his heart is not disloyal." The emperor's anger did not subside, and a stern edict rebuked Jiao sharply. Jiao, terrified, begged forgiveness and was stripped of office and reduced to commoner status. A year later, Regional Investigating Censor Li Xueshi recommended Jiao for office. An edict declared that from then on anyone who recommended him would be seized and punished along with Jiao. Many years later, he died.

汪文輝，字德充，婺源人。嘉靖四十四年進士。授工部主事。隆慶四年，改御史。高拱以內閣掌吏部，權勢烜赫。其門生韓楫、宋之韓、程文、塗夢桂等並居言路，日夜走其門，專務搏擊。文輝亦拱門生，心獨非之。明年二月，疏陳四事，專責言官。其略曰：

Wang Wenhui, styled Dechong, came from Wuyuan. He passed the jinshi examination in Jiajing 44. He received appointment as a secretary in the Ministry of Works. In Longqing 4 he transferred to the censorate. Gao Gong controlled the Ministry of Personnel from within the inner cabinet, and his power and influence were dazzling. His disciples Han Ji, Song Zhihan, Cheng Wen, Tu Menggui, and others all held remonstrance posts. Day and night they flocked to his door, devoting themselves entirely to denunciations and impeachments. Wenhui was also Gao's disciple, but he alone disapproved in his heart. The following February he submitted a memorial outlining four abuses, placing the blame squarely on the remonstrance officials. The gist of it read:

先帝末年所任大臣，本協恭濟務，無少釁嫌。始於一二言官見廟堂議論稍殊，遂潛察低昂、窺所向而攻其所忌。致顛倒是非，熒惑聖聽，傷國家大體。茍踵承前弊，交煽並構，使正人不安其位，恐宋元祐之禍，復見於今，是為傾陷。

The great ministers the late emperor appointed in his final years worked together in harmony, without the slightest hint of discord. It began when one or two remonstrance officials, noticing slight differences in court deliberation, secretly tracked who was rising and who was falling, watched which way the wind blew, and attacked those they resented. The result was the inversion of right and wrong, the bewildering of the imperial ear, and grave damage to the fundamental interests of the state. If these old abuses continue—officials colluding to incite one another and fabricate charges until upright men cannot hold their posts—I fear the catastrophe of the Yuanyou era may return in our own day. This I call entrapment.

祖宗立法，至精密矣，而卒有不行者，非法敝也，不得其人耳。今言官條奏，率銳意更張。部臣重違言官，輕變祖制，遷就一時，茍且允覆。及法立弊起，又議復舊。政非通變之宜，民無畫一之守，是為紛更。

The laws our forefathers established were precise to the last detail, yet some still went unenforced—not because the laws themselves were defective, but because the right men were not appointed to carry them out. Today remonstrance officials' itemized memorials invariably push for sweeping reforms. Ministry officials, afraid to cross the remonstrance officials, lightly alter ancestral institutions, yielding to the moment and granting perfunctory approval. Once the new law is in place and new abuses appear, they debate restoring the old system. Government loses the virtue of measured adaptation, and the people have no consistent rule to live by. This I call chaotic alternation.

古大臣坐事退者，必為微其詞；所以養廉恥，存國體。今或掇其已往，揣彼未形，逐景循聲，爭相詬病，若市井喧哄然。至方面重臣，茍非甚奸慝，亦宜棄短錄長，為人才惜。今或搜抉小疵，指為大蠹，極言醜詆，使決引去。以此求人，國家安得全才而用之？是為苛刻。

In antiquity, when great ministers stepped down because of a scandal, their memorials always softened the language; this was done to preserve their honor and the dignity of the state. Now some dredge up the distant past, surmise offenses not yet committed, chase shadows and follow rumors, and compete in reviling and finding fault—as clamorous as a marketplace brawl. As for regional heavyweights, unless they are utterly corrupt, one should overlook their faults and value their strengths, cherishing talent for the state's sake. Now some hunt out minor flaws, declare them grave corruption, vilify their targets without restraint, and drive them to resign. If this is how we search for talent, how can the state find capable men in full measure and put them to use? This I call harsh severity.

言官能規切人主，糾彈大臣。至言官之短，誰為指之者？今言事論人或不當，部臣不為奏覆，即憤然不平；雖同列明知其非，亦莫與辨，以為體貌當如是。夫臣子且不肯一言受過，何以責難君父哉？是為求勝。

Remonstrance officials may admonish the ruler and impeach great ministers. But when remonstrance officials themselves fall short, who is there to call them to account? Nowadays, when a remonstrance official's accusation misses the mark and a ministry does not relay a formal reply, he flies into a rage at once; even colleagues who know perfectly well that he is in the wrong refuse to argue with him, believing such deference is only proper. If even as subjects they will not accept a single word of criticism, how can we expect them to hold the ruler himself to account? This I call striving for victory.

此四弊者，今日所當深戒。然其要在大臣取鑒前失，勿用希指生事之人。希指生事之人進，則忠直貞諒之士遠，而頌成功、譽盛德者日至於前。大臣任己專斷，即有闕失，孰從聞之？蓋宰相之職，不當以救時自足，當以格心為本。願陛下明飭中外，消朋比之私，還淳厚之俗，天下幸甚。

These four abuses are precisely what the court must guard against today. Yet the heart of the matter is that great ministers must learn from past mistakes and refuse to employ men who seize upon hints to manufacture trouble. When men who seize upon hints to stir trouble rise to power, loyal and upright men keep their distance, while flatterers praising every achievement and extolling every virtue arrive daily at one's door. If great ministers act on their own authority, who will ever hear of their faults and failures? The chancellor's duty is not merely to rescue the times; it is, above all, to rectify the ruler's heart. I pray that Your Majesty will clearly admonish court and countryside alike, dissolve the private bonds of faction, and restore a wholesome custom to the realm. All under Heaven would be greatly fortunate.

疏奏，下所司。拱惡其刺己，甫三日，出為寧夏僉事。修屯政，蠲浮糧，建水閘，流亡漸歸。御史富平孫丕揚忤拱，為希指者所劾。方行勘，文輝抗言曰：「毛舉細故，齮龁正人，以快當路之私，我固不肯為，諸君亦不可也。」於是緩其事。未幾，劾者先得罪去，丕揚竟獲免。神宗嗣位，拱罷政，召為尚寶卿。尋告歸。久之，有詔召用。未赴卒。

The memorial was submitted and forwarded to the appropriate offices. Gao Gong resented its implicit attack on him. Within three days Wenhui was sent out to serve as administration vice commissioner of Ningxia. He restored the garrison-farm system, remitted excess grain levies, built sluice gates, and refugees gradually returned home. Censor Sun Piyang of Fuping offended Gao Gong and was impeached by those who seized upon hints to do his bidding. Just as the investigation was underway, Wenhui spoke out: "Raising petty charges and gnawing at upright men to gratify those in power—I will never do it, and neither should you." The investigation was accordingly slowed. Before long the accusers were themselves punished and dismissed, and Sun Piyang ultimately escaped punishment. When the Shenzong Emperor succeeded to the throne and Gao Gong left office, Wenhui was recalled as Minister of the Court of Imperial Regalia. He soon requested leave to retire home. Many years later, an edict summoned him back to office. Before he could take up the post, he died.

劉奮庸，洛陽人。嘉靖三十八年進士。授兵部主事。尋改禮部兼翰林待詔。侍穆宗裕邸。進員外郎。穆宗即位，以舊恩，擢尚寶卿。已，藩邸舊臣相繼柄用，獨奮庸久不調。大學士高拱亦故官也，再起任事，頗專恣，奮庸疾之。隆慶六年三月，上疏曰：

Liu Fenyong came from Luoyang. He passed the jinshi examination in Jiajing 38. He received appointment as a secretary in the Ministry of War. He was soon transferred to the Ministry of Rites, concurrently serving as a Hanlin awaiting-imperial-call. He served the future Emperor Muzong in the Prince of Yu's household. He rose to the rank of vice director. When Muzong took the throne, Fenyong was promoted to Minister of the Court of Imperial Regalia in recognition of their old bond. Before long, old companions from the princely household were put in power one after another, while Fenyong alone went long without a new appointment. Grand Secretary Gao Gong was also a former companion from the princely household. Recalled to office, he grew domineering and self-willed, and Fenyong deeply resented it. In the third month of Longqing 6 he submitted a memorial that read:

陛下踐阼六載，朝綱若振飭，而大柄漸移；仕路若肅清，而積習仍故。百僚方引領以睹勵精之治，而陛下精神誌意漸不逮初。臣念潛邸舊恩，誼不忍默。謹條五事，以俟英斷。

Your Majesty has reigned six years. Court discipline seems restored, yet the levers of power are gradually slipping away; the official ranks seem cleansed, yet entrenched habits remain unchanged. The hundred officials are craning their necks in hope of a reign of renewed vigor, yet Your Majesty's spirit and resolve are gradually falling short of what they were at the beginning. Mindful of the old favor of the prince's household, your subject cannot in conscience remain silent. I respectfully lay out five matters for Your resolute judgment.

一、保聖躬。人主一身，天地人神之主，必誌氣清明，精神完固，而後可以禦萬幾。望凝神定誌，忍性抑情，毋逞旦夕之娛，毋徇無涯之欲，則無疆之福可長保也。

First, preserve the sacred person of the ruler. The ruler's person is lord of Heaven, Earth, and the spirits; his will and spirit must be clear and whole before he can govern the myriad affairs of state. I pray you concentrate your spirit and settle your will, restrain your nature and master your passions, indulge neither momentary pleasure nor boundless desire—then boundless blessing may be long preserved.

二、總大權。今政府所擬議，百司所承行，非不奉詔旨，而其間從違之故，陛下曾獨斷否乎？國事之更張，人才之用舍，未必盡出忠謀，協公論。臣願陛下躬攬大權，凡庶府建白，閣臣擬旨，特留清覽，時出獨斷，則臣下莫能測其機，而政柄不致旁落矣。

Second, gather supreme authority in your own hands. Today what the government deliberates and the hundred offices carry out does follow imperial edict—yet among the reasons for compliance or refusal, has Your Majesty ever judged alone? Changes in state affairs and the appointment or dismissal of talent do not necessarily all spring from loyal counsel or accord with public judgment. Your subject prays that Your Majesty personally hold great authority: for every proposal from the ministries and every draft rescript from the Grand Secretariat, reserve them for your own clear reading and from time to time render independent judgment—then subjects cannot fathom your intent and the handle of government will not slip from your grasp.

三、慎儉德。陛下嗣位以來，傳旨取銀不下數十萬，求珍異之寶，作鰲山之燈，服禦器用，悉鏤金雕玉。生財甚難，靡敝無紀。願察內帑之空虛，思小民之艱苦，不作無益，不貴異物，則國用充羨，而民樂其生矣。

Third, guard frugal virtue with care. Since Your Majesty succeeded, edicts ordering silver have totaled no less than several hundred thousand taels; rare treasures have been sought, Tortoise Mountain lamps made, and imperial garments and utensils all carved in gold and jade. Wealth is hard to produce, yet waste knows no limit. I pray you observe the emptiness of the inner treasury, reflect on the hardship of the common people, undertake nothing useless, and prize no exotic things—then state revenue will be ample and the people will rejoice in their lives.

四、覽章奏。人臣進言，豈能皆當。陛下一切置不覽，非惟虛忠良獻納之誠，抑恐權奸蔽壅，勢自此成。望陛下留神章奏，曲垂容納。言及君德，則反己自修；言及朝政，則更化善治。聽言者既見之行事，而進言者益樂於效忠矣。

Fourth, read memorials attentively. When ministers offer counsel, how can it all be right? Your Majesty sets them all aside unread—not only rendering vain the sincere offerings of loyal men, but also allowing powerful traitors to block and choke off access, and the momentum for this begins here. I pray Your Majesty will attend to memorials and graciously accept them. When counsel touches the ruler's virtue, turn back and cultivate yourself; when it touches court government, then reform and govern well. Those who hear counsel will see it put into action, and those who offer counsel will be all the more glad to serve loyally.

五、用忠直。邇歲進諫者，或以勤政，或以節用，或以進賢退不肖，此皆無所利而為之；非若承望風旨，肆攻擊以雪他人之憤，迎合權要，交薦拔以樹淫朋之黨者比也。

Fifth, employ loyal and upright men. In recent years those who remonstrated did so for diligent government, or frugality, or advancing the worthy and removing the unworthy—all acted without personal gain; they are not like those who watch the wind of power, attack freely to vent others' anger, curry favor with the mighty, and recommend one another to build factions of corrupt associates.

願恕狂愚之罪，嘉批鱗之誠，登之有位，以作士氣，則讜規日聞，裨益非鮮。

I pray you pardon my rash folly, honor the sincerity of touching the dragon's scales, place such men in office to revive scholarly morale—then forthright counsel will daily be heard and the benefit will be no small matter.

大埜，巴縣人。其劾拱，張居正實使之。萬歷中，累遷右副都御史，巡撫江西。以貪劾免。

Cao Dayan came from Baxian. His impeachment of Gao Gong was in fact instigated by Zhang Juzheng. In the Wanli years he rose repeatedly to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief and grand coordinator of Jiangxi. He was impeached for corruption and removed from office.

贊曰：世宗之季，門戶漸開。居言路者，各有所主，故其時不患其不言，患其言之冗漫無當，與其心之不能無私；言愈多，而國是愈益淆亂也。汪文輝所陳四弊，有旨哉！論明季言路諸臣，而考其得失，當於是觀之。

The appraiser says: In the late years of Emperor Jiajing, factional gates gradually opened. Those who held the remonstrance path each had their patrons; thus the age did not worry that they would not speak, but that their words were prolix, diffuse, and beside the point, and that their hearts could not be without private motive; the more they spoke, the more confused the national consensus became. The four abuses set forth by Wang Wenhui—how pointed they were! In discussing the remonstrance officials of the late Ming and weighing their gains and losses, one should take this as the measure.

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