Volume 246 Biographies 134: Man Chaojian, Jiang Bingqian, Hou Zhenyang, Wang Yuncheng

滿朝薦江秉謙侯震旸〈（倪思輝朱欽相王心一）〉王允成〈（李希孔毛士龍）〉

Man Chaojian, Jiang Bingqian, and Hou Zhenyáng. (with the biographies of Ni Sihui, Zhu Qinxiang, and Wang Xinyi)]〉 Wang Yuncheng (with the biographies of Li Xikong and Mao Shilong)]〉

滿朝薦，字震東，麻陽人。萬歷三十二年進士。授鹹寧知縣，有廉能聲。稅監梁永縱其下劫諸生橐，朝薦捕治之。永怒，劾其擅刑稅役，詔鐫一官。大學士沈鯉等論救，不聽。會巡撫顧其誌極論永貪殘狀，乃復朝薦官，奪俸一歲。無何，永遣人蠱巡按御史余懋衡。事覺，朝薦捕獲其人。永懼，率眾擐甲入縣庭。吏卒早為備，無所掠而去。城中數夜驚，言永反，或謂永宜自明，永遂下教，自白不反狀，然蓄甲者數百。而朝薦助懋衡操之急，諸惡黨多亡去。朝薦追之渭南，頗有所格傷。永懼，使使系書發中，入都訟朝薦劫上供物，殺數人，投屍河中。帝震怒，立遣使逮治，時三十五年七月也。既至，下詔獄搒掠，遂長系。中外論救，自大學士朱賡以下，百十疏。最後，四十一年秋，萬壽節將屆，用大學士葉向高請，乃與王邦才、卞孔時並釋歸。

Man Chaojian, courtesy name Zhendong, came from Mayang. He received his jinshi degree in 1604. Appointed magistrate of Xianning, he soon won a name for clean and capable government. When the tax commissioner Liang Yong allowed his men to rob local scholars, Chaojian seized and punished the culprits. Yong struck back with a memorial accusing Chaojian of unlawfully punishing tax agents, and the throne demoted him one grade. Grand Secretaries such as Shen Li pleaded for him, but the emperor refused to relent. When Grand Coordinator Gu Qizhi laid out Yong's greed and brutality in full, Chaojian was reinstated, though his salary was withheld for a year. Soon afterward Yong sent men to work sorcery against the touring censor Yu Maoheng. Once the plot was exposed, Chaojian arrested the culprit. Terrified, Yong marched an armed mob into the county seat. The yamen staff had been ready; finding nothing to seize, the mob withdrew. Rumors of rebellion kept the city on edge for nights; advised to clear his name, Yong issued a proclamation denying revolt, yet still kept several hundred men under arms. Chaojian helped Maoheng press the investigation hard, and most of Yong's ruffians fled. Chaojian pursued them as far as Weinan and killed or wounded many. In panic Yong sent a courier with a petition hidden in his hair to the capital, charging Chaojian with plundering imperial tribute, murdering several men, and casting the corpses into the river. The emperor flew into a rage and at once dispatched officers to seize him; it was the seventh month of 1607. On reaching the capital he was thrown into the imperial prison, beaten under interrogation, and held for years. Officials across the empire pleaded for mercy; from Grand Secretary Zhu Geng on down, more than a hundred memorials were filed. At last, in the autumn of 1613, as the empress dowager's longevity celebration neared, Grand Secretary Ye Xianggao's petition won their release together with Wang Bangcai and Bian Kongshi.

光宗立，起南京刑部郎中，再遷尚寶卿。天啟二年，遼東地盡失，海內多故，而廷臣方植黨逞浮議。朝薦深慮之，疏陳時事十可憂、七可怪，語極危切。尋進太仆少卿，復上疏曰：

When Guangzong took the throne, Chaojian was recalled to serve in the Nanjing Ministry of Justice and soon promoted to Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Entertainments. In 1622, with Liaodong lost and the empire in turmoil, courtiers were busy forming factions and trading in hollow debate. Deeply alarmed, he memorialized listing ten worries and seven portents of the age, in language stark and urgent. Soon promoted to Vice Minister of the Court of the Imperial Stud, he submitted another memorial:

比者，風霾曀晦，星月晝見，太白經天，四月雹，六月冰，山東地震，畿內霪潦，天地之變極矣。四川則奢崇明叛，貴州則安邦彥叛，山東則徐鴻儒亂，民人之變極矣。而朝廷政令乃顛倒日甚。

Of late the sky has hung dark with dust, stars and moon have shone by day, Venus has crossed the heavens, hail has fallen in the fourth month and ice in the sixth, Shandong has quaked and the capital districts have drowned in flood — Heaven and Earth have shown every sign of extremity. In Sichuan She Chongming has risen, in Guizhou An Bangyan, in Shandong Xu Hongru — the disorders of the people have reached their extreme as well. Yet the court's policies grow more perverse with every passing day.

一乞骸耳，周嘉謨、劉一燝，顧命之元老，以中讒去；孫慎行，守禮之宗伯，以封典去；王紀，執法如山之司寇，以平反去；皆漠不顧惜。獨忄卷忄卷於三十疏劾之沈纮，即去而猶加異數焉。祖宗朝有是顛倒乎？一建言耳，倪思輝、朱欽相等之削籍，已重箝口之嗟；周朝瑞、惠世揚等之拂衣，又中一網之計。祖宗朝有是顛倒乎？一邊策耳，西部索百萬之貲，邊臣猶慮其未飽；健兒乞錙銖之餉，度支尚謂其過奢。祖宗朝有是顛倒乎？一棄城耳，多年議確之犯或以庇厚而緩求，旬日矜疑之輩反以妒深而苛督。祖宗朝有是顛倒乎？一緝奸耳，正罪自有常律，平反原無濫條。遼陽之禍，起於袁應泰之大納降人，降人盡占居民婦女，故遼民發憤，招敵攻城。事發倉卒，未聞有何人獻送之說也。廣寧之變，起於王化貞之誤信西部，取餉金以啖插而不給卒伍，以故人心離散。敵兵過河，又不聞西部策應，遂至手足無措，抱頭鼠竄。亦事發倉卒，未聞有何人獻送之說也。深求奸細，不過為化貞卸罪地耳。王紀不欲殺人媚人，反致削籍。祖宗朝有是顛倒乎？若夫閣臣之職，在主持清議。今章疏有妒才壞政者，非惟不斥也，輕則兩可，重則竟行其言矣。有殛奸報國者，非惟不納也，輕則見讓，重則遞加黜罰矣。尤有恨者，沈纮賄盧受得進，及受敗，又交通跋扈之奄以樹威。振、瑾僨裂之禍，皆纮作俑，而放流不加。他若戚畹，豈不當檢，何至以閹寺之讒，斃其三仆？三宮分有常尊，何至以傾國之昵，僭逼母儀。此皆顛倒之甚者也。顧成於陛下者什之一二，成於當事大臣者十之八九。臣誠不忍見神州陸沈，祈陛下終覽臣疏，與閣部大臣更弦易轍，悉軌祖宗舊章，臣即從逢、幹於地下，猶生之年。

Take a single case of requesting retirement: Zhou Jiamo and Liu Yijing, the dying emperor's chosen elders, were driven out on trumped-up charges; Sun Shenxing, a Minister of Rites who stood for propriety, was dismissed over a feudal investiture dispute; Wang Ji, a Minister of Justice famed for unbending enforcement, was cashiered for refusing to execute innocents; and the court let them go without a second thought. Yet Shen Hong, impeached in thirty memorials, alone was treated with zealous favor; even after leaving office he still received extraordinary marks of grace. Did our ancestral emperors ever tolerate such inversion? Take a single case of speaking out: Ni Sihui, Zhu Qinxiang, and others were expelled from office, a bitter sign that honest speech had been gagged; and when Zhou Chaorui, Hui Shiyang, and others resigned in protest, they too were caught in the same snare. Did our ancestral emperors ever tolerate such inversion? Take frontier policy alone: the western allies demand millions in tribute, and border officials still worry it is not enough; while soldiers plead for scraps of pay, the Ministry of Revenue still denounces the cost as lavish. Did our ancestral emperors ever tolerate such inversion? Take the abandonment of a single city: men whose guilt was settled years ago escape slowly thanks to powerful patrons, while newcomers under brief suspicion are hounded mercilessly out of spite. Did our ancestral emperors ever tolerate such inversion? Take the hunt for spies: established law already governs punishment, and there is no blanket clause for reversing verdicts. The fall of Liaoyang began when Yuan Yingtai took in masses of surrendered tribesmen who seized local women; enraged, the people of Liaodong opened the gates to the enemy. The catastrophe struck in sudden confusion; no one then spoke of traitors handing the city to the foe. The loss of Guangning sprang from Wang Huazhen's misplaced faith in the western allies: he spent army funds bribing the Chahar while starving his own troops, and morale collapsed. When the enemy crossed the river no western aid appeared; officers were left helpless and fled in panic like rats. That disaster too came in sudden chaos; again no one spoke of traitors handing over the city. The fevered hunt for spies is only a way to shift blame onto others and absolve Huazhen. Wang Ji, who refused to kill innocents to please the powerful, was himself expelled from office. Did our ancestral emperors ever tolerate such inversion? Grand secretaries exist to uphold honest debate at court. Today memorials from men who envy talent and wreck policy are not rebuked; at best the court wavers, at worst it enacts their proposals outright. Memorials urging execution of traitors for the nation's sake are not welcomed; mildly their authors are scolded, severely they are demoted again and again. Worst of all, Shen Hong bought his rise by bribing Lu Shou; when Shou fell, he courted overbearing eunuchs to build a private power base. The catastrophes of Wang Zhen and Liu Jin that nearly tore the dynasty apart were Shen Hong's handiwork, yet he was never banished. Other imperial in-laws surely deserved scrutiny; how could eunuch slander end with three of their servants beaten to death? The three inner palaces each have their proper rank — how could a nursemaid's state-shaking favor usurp the empress's dignity? These are among the gravest inversions of all. Yet only one or two parts in ten of this disorder springs from Your Majesty; eight or nine parts spring from the ministers who hold power. I cannot bear to watch the empire sink; I beg Your Majesty to read this memorial through, change course with the Grand Secretariat and ministry heads, and return wholly to the ancestral statutes — then even if I join the loyal dead underground, I shall count myself among the living.

既奏，魏忠賢激帝怒，降旨切責，褫職為民。大學士向高申救甚力，帝不納。已，忠賢黨撰《東林同誌錄》，朝薦與焉，竟不復用。崇禎二年薦起故官，未上卒。

Once the memorial was in, Wei Zhongxian inflamed the emperor's wrath; an edict sharply rebuked Chaojian and reduced him to a commoner. Grand Secretary Ye Xianggao pleaded vigorously for him, but the emperor would not relent. Later Zhongxian's faction compiled 《Register of Donglin Comrades》; Chaojian was named in it and never served again. In 1629 he was recommended to his old post but died before he could report.

江秉謙，字兆豫，歙人。萬歷三十八年進士。除鄞縣知縣。用廉能征，擬授御史。久不得命，以葬親歸。光宗立，命始下，入臺，侃侃言事。

Jiang Bingqian, courtesy name Zhaoyu, came from She in Huizhou. He received his jinshi degree in 1610. He was appointed magistrate of Yin County in Zhejiang. Recalled to the capital for his clean record, he was slated for a censor's post. The appointment was long delayed, and he went home to bury a parent. When Guangzong took the throne the appointment finally arrived; he entered the Censorate and spoke his mind plainly.

沈陽既失，朝士多思熊廷弼，而給事中郭鞏獨論廷弼喪師誤國，請並罪閣臣劉一燝。秉謙憤，力頌廷弼保守危疆功，且曰：「今廷弼勘覆已明，議者猶以一人私情沒天下公論，寧壞朝廷封疆，不忘胸中畛域。」章下廷議。會遼陽復失，廷弼旋起經略。鞏坐妄議奪官，遂與秉謙為仇。廷弼既鎮山海，議遣使宣諭朝鮮發兵牽制。副使梁之垣請行，廷弼喜，請付二十萬金為軍貲。兵部尚書張鶴鳴不予，秉謙抗疏爭。鶴鳴怒，力詆秉謙朋黨。秉謙疏辨，帝不罪。

After Shenyang fell many officials looked to Xiong Tingbi to save Liaodong, but Supervising Secretary Guo Gong alone blamed Tingbi for losing the army and asked that Grand Secretary Liu Yijing be punished as well. Bingqian was furious and vigorously praised Tingbi for holding the frontier in crisis, saying: "Tingbi's case has already been cleared, yet critics still let private spite drown the public good — they would rather wreck the empire's defenses than lay aside personal grudges." The memorial was referred to a court conference. Before long Liaoyang fell again and Tingbi was at once reappointed frontier commissioner. Gong lost his post for reckless criticism and thereafter treated Bingqian as an enemy. Once Tingbi held Shanhai Pass, the court debated sending an envoy to urge Korea to raise troops and pin down the enemy. Vice Commissioner Liang Zhiyuan volunteered; Tingbi welcomed the mission and asked for two hundred thousand taels in military funds. Minister of War Zhang Heming refused; Bingqian memorialized forcefully in protest. Heming flew into a rage and accused Bingqian of factional scheming. Bingqian defended himself in a memorial; the emperor did not punish him.

鶴鳴既抑廷弼，專庇巡撫王化貞，朝士多附會之。帝以經、撫不和，詔廷臣議。秉謙言：「陛下再起廷弼，委以重寄，曰『疆場事不從中制』。乃數月以來，廷弼不得措手足，呼號日聞，辨駁踵至。執為詞者曰『經、撫不和，化貞主戰，廷弼主守耳，夫廷弼非專言守，謂守定而後可戰也。化貞銳意戰，即戰勝，可無事守乎？萬一不勝，又將何以守？此中利害，夫人知之。乃一則無言不從，一則無策不棄。豈真不明於戰守之說，但從化貞、廷弼起見耳。陛下既命廷弼節制三方，則三方之進戰退守當一一聽其指揮。乃化貞欲進，則使廷弼從之進，欲退，則使廷弼隨之退。化貞倏進倏退，則使廷弼進不知所以戰，退不知所以守。是化貞有節制廷弼之權，而廷弼未嘗有節制三方之權也。故今日之事，非經、撫不和，乃好惡經、撫者不和；非戰守之議論不合，乃左右經、撫者之議論不合。請專責廷弼，實圖戰守。」末譏首輔葉向高兩可含糊，勢必兩可掣肘，安能責成功。語極切至。

Having sidelined Tingbi, Heming threw his weight behind Grand Coordinator Wang Huazhen, and many officials fell in behind him. The emperor, troubled by the feud between commissioner and coordinator, ordered a court debate. Bingqian said: "Your Majesty restored Tingbi and gave him grave responsibility, declaring that frontier affairs would not be micromanaged from the capital. Yet for months he has been unable to act; his appeals echo daily and rebuttals pour in one after another. The excuse offered is that commissioner and coordinator disagree — Huazhen favors attack, Tingbi defense. Yet Tingbi does not preach defense alone; he means that once defenses are firm, attack becomes possible. Huazhen is eager to fight — even if he wins, will defense no longer matter? And if he loses, how will the frontier be held? Every man at court knows the stakes. Yet Huazhen's every word is obeyed while Tingbi's every plan is cast aside. They are not ignorant of strategy; they simply take sides between Huazhen and Tingbi. Your Majesty placed Tingbi in command of all three sectors; every advance, battle, retreat, and defense ought to follow his orders. Instead, when Huazhen advances Tingbi must follow; when Huazhen retreats Tingbi must follow. Huazhen lurches forward and back, leaving Tingbi unsure how to fight when advancing or how to defend when retreating. Huazhen commands Tingbi, yet Tingbi has never truly commanded the three sectors. Today's trouble is not discord between commissioner and coordinator, but discord among those who take sides for or against them; The deadlock was not over strategy itself—whether to attack or hold—but over the feud between the frontier commanders, the circuit intendant and the grand coordinator. They urged that Xiong Tingbi be given undivided authority and a genuine mandate to prosecute both offense and defense." In closing he ridiculed Chief Grand Secretary Ye Xianggao for straddling both camps; such fence-sitting would only tie everyone's hands—how could victory be expected? The language was unsparing in its bluntness.

後朝議方撤廷弼，而化貞已棄廣寧遁。秉謙益憤，以職方郎耿如杞附和鶴鳴，力助化貞排廷弼，致封疆喪失，連疏攻之。並援世宗戮丁汝夔故事，乞亟置鶴鳴於法。帝以鶴鳴方行邊，不當輕詆，奪秉謙俸半歲，如杞不問。秉謙復上疏言：「鶴鳴一入中樞，初不過鹵莽而無遠識，既乃至兇狠而動殺機。明知西部間諜俱虛，戰守參差難合，乃顧自欺以欺朝廷。何處有機會？而曰機會可乘。何日渡河？而曰渡河必勝。既欲驅經略以出關，而不肯付經略以節制，既欲置廷弼於廣寧，而未嘗移化貞於何地。破壞封疆之罪，可置弗問哉？且化貞先棄地先逃，猶曰功罪相半。即此一言，縱寸斬鶴鳴，不足贖其欺君誤國罪，乃猶敢哆口定他入罪案耶！」當是時，大學士沈纮潛結中官劉朝、乳媼客氏，募兵入禁中，興內操。給事中惠世揚、周朝瑞等十二人再疏力攻，秉謙與焉，並詆朝及客氏。內外胥怨，遂假劾鶴鳴疏，出秉謙於外。無何，郭鞏召還，交通魏忠賢，力沮秉謙。是冬，皇子生，言官被謫者悉召還，獨秉謙不與。家居四年，聞忠賢益亂政，憂憤卒。

By the time the court began deliberating Xiong Tingbi's dismissal, Wang Huazhen had already fled and surrendered Guangning. Zhou Bingqian's outrage only deepened. Geng Ruqi of the Bureau of Military Appointments had sided with Zhang Heming, abetted Wang Huazhen, and helped oust Xiong Tingbi—directly contributing to the loss of the borderlands—so Bingqian hammered them in memorial after memorial. He invoked the precedent of the Jiajing Emperor's execution of Ding Ruao and demanded that Zhang Heming be swiftly tried and punished. The Emperor ruled that Zhang Heming, being on an inspection tour of the frontier, should not be lightly maligned; he docked Zhou Bingqian half a year's pay and took no action against Geng Ruqi. Zhou Bingqian submitted another memorial: "From the moment Zhang Heming entered the inner circle of power, he was crude and shortsighted; before long he had turned vicious and begun plotting lives. He knew perfectly well that western intelligence was worthless and that offensive and defensive plans could never be aligned—yet he chose self-deception as his means of deceiving the throne. Where, in truth, was any opening to be found? Yet he declared that the moment was ripe. When were they ever to cross the river? Yet he insisted that crossing would guarantee triumph. He wanted to drive the frontier commissioner beyond the pass but refused to grant him full command; he meant to station Xiong Tingbi at Guangning but never said where Wang Huazhen was to be redeployed. Could the crime of wrecking the realm's borders simply be ignored? Wang Huazhen had been the first to abandon his post and flee—yet they still treated merit and fault as equal halves. That single utterance alone—even dismembering Zhang Heming inch by inch would not atone for his crimes of deceiving the sovereign and ruining the state—yet he still had the audacity to sit in judgment over others! At that juncture Grand Secretary Shen Hong had secretly joined forces with the eunuch Liu Chao and the wet nurse Madam Ke, raised troops within the Forbidden City, and instituted inner-court military drills. Twelve supervising secretaries, among them Hui Shiyang and Zhou Chaorui, launched fresh memorial assaults—Zhou Bingqian included—also denouncing Liu Chao and Madam Ke. Resentment festered within the palace and without; under cover of the impeachment of Zhang Heming, they sent Zhou Bingqian away from court. Soon Guo Gong was recalled, cultivated ties with Wei Zhongxian, and worked tirelessly to block Zhou Bingqian's restoration. That winter, upon the birth of an imperial prince, every demoted remonstrating official was recalled—all except Zhou Bingqian. He spent four years in retirement; learning that Wei Zhongxian's tyranny only deepened, he died of anguish.

居數月，忠賢黨御史卓邁追劾秉謙保護廷弼，遂削籍。崇禎初，復官。

Months after his death, the Wei Zhongxian loyalist censor Zhuo Mai pursued charges against him for shielding Xiong Tingbi, and Zhou Bingqian was posthumously struck from the official register. When Chongzhen ascended the throne, his official status was posthumously restored.

侯震旸，字得一，嘉定人。祖堯封，監察御史。忤大學士張居正，外轉。累官至福建右參政，有廉直聲。震旸舉萬歷三十八年進士，授行人。

Hou Zhenyáng, styled Deyi, came from Jiading. His grandfather Yao Feng had served as a supervising censor. After crossing Grand Secretary Zhang Juzheng, he was posted away from the capital. He rose through the ranks to Right Vice Administrator of Fujian, where he earned renown for probity and moral courage. Hou Zhenyáng attained jinshi rank in Wanli 38 and received appointment as a Gentlemen for Ceremonial.

天啟初，擢吏科給事中。是時，保姆奉聖夫人客氏方擅寵，與魏忠賢及大學士沈纮相表裏，勢焰張甚。既遣出宮，熹宗思念流涕，至日旰不禦食，遂宣諭復入。震旸疏言：「宮闈禁地，奸珰群小睥睨其側，內外鉤連，借叢煬竈，有不忍言者。王聖寵而煽江京、李閏之奸，趙嬈寵而構曹節、皇甫之變。幺麽裏婦，何堪數昵至尊哉？」不省。

Early in the Tianqi reign he was elevated to Supervising Secretary in the Office of Scrutiny for Personnel. At that time the wet nurse Madam Ke, ennobled as Lady of Fengsheng, held the Emperor's exclusive favor; in league with Wei Zhongxian and Grand Secretary Shen Hong, her faction inside and outside the palace burned with unchecked power. When she was dismissed from the palace, Emperor Xizong missed her so deeply he wept; he skipped meals until dusk, then issued an edict calling her back. Hou Zhenyáng memorialized: "The inner quarters are sacred ground, yet wicked eunuchs and petty schemers watch from the margins; palace and court are entangled, stoking one another's fires from a tangle of hidden hearths—there are horrors one scarcely dares name. Emperor He favored Wang Sheng and thereby unleashed Jiang Jing and Li Run; Emperor Ling indulged Zhao Yao and thus brought on the disaster of Cao Jie and Huangfu Gui. A common wet nurse from the women's quarters—how can she be allowed such repeated intimacy with the Son of Heaven? The Emperor paid no heed.

會遼事棘，經略熊廷弼、巡撫王化貞相牴牾，兵部尚書張鶴鳴右化貞，議者遂欲移廷弼，與化貞畫地任事。震旸逆知其必敗，疏言：「事勢至此，陛下宜遣問經臣。果能加意訓練，則進止遲速不從中制，雖撤撫臣，一以付之，無不可者。如不然，則督其條晰陳奏，以聽吏議，摭拾殘局，專任化貞。此一說也。不則移廷弼密雲，而出本兵為經略。鶴鳴素慷慨自命，與其事敗同罪，不若挺身報國。此又一說也。不則遂以經略授化貞，擇沈深有謀者代任巡撫，以資後勁。此又一說也。不則直移廷弼於登、萊，終其三方布置之策，與化貞相犄角。此又一說也。若復遷延猶豫，必僨國事。」疏上，方有旨集議，而大清兵已破廣寧矣。化貞、廷弼相率入關門，猶數奉溫旨，責以戴罪立功。

The Liaodong crisis sharpened: Frontier Commissioner Xiong Tingbi and Grand Coordinator Wang Huazhen were at loggerheads. Minister of War Zhang Heming favored Wang Huazhen, and court opinion turned toward removing Xiong Tingbi and having the two men split the territory between them. Hou Zhenyáng foresaw disaster and memorialized: "Matters have reached this pass. Your Majesty should summon the frontier commissioner for direct consultation. If he can truly commit to drill and readiness, then let advance and retreat, timing and tempo, lie entirely in his hands—not directed from the capital. Even dismiss the grand coordinator and give him sole charge—anything is acceptable. If not, demand a detailed written plan, let the ministry debate it, salvage what remains, and put Wang Huazhen in sole command. That is one course. Alternatively, transfer Xiong Tingbi to Miyun and dispatch the Minister of War himself to serve as frontier commissioner. Zhang Heming has always prided himself on heroic ambition—better to share the blame of failure by taking the post himself and serving the realm directly. That is another course. Or grant the frontier commission outright to Wang Huazhen and select a seasoned, shrewd man as grand coordinator to sustain the rear. That is yet another course. Or move Xiong Tingbi directly to Deng and Lai to finish his three-front deployment, forming a pincer with Wang Huazhen. That is yet another course. Further delay and vacillation will surely wreck the nation's fortunes. The memorial had barely reached the throne and an edict had just been issued to convene debate—when the Qing army already stormed Guangning. Wang Huazhen and Xiong Tingbi fled back through the pass together—yet still received gracious edicts bidding them redeem their failures with deeds.

震旸大憤懣，再疏言：「臣言不幸驗矣，為今日計，論法不論情。河西未壞以前，舉朝所惜者，什七在化貞，今不能為化貞惜也。河西既壞以後，舉朝所寬者什九在廷弼，今亦不能為廷弼寬也。策撫臣者，謂宜責令還赴廣寧，聯屬西部。然而廥庫已竭，其能赤手效包胥乎？策經臣者，謂宜仍責守關。然所謂守者，將如廷弼前議三十萬兵數十萬餉，以圖後效乎？抑止令率殘卒出關外，姑示不殺乎？凡此無一可者。及今不定逃臣之律，殘疆其奚賴焉？」其後治失事罪，蓋略如震旸疏雲。

Hou Zhenyáng, furious, memorialized again: "My warnings have sadly come true. For the present reckoning, weigh the law—not personal feeling. Before the western frontier collapsed, the court's sympathies ran seven parts in ten toward Wang Huazhen—today no one can afford such tenderness toward him. After the western frontier fell, nine parts in ten of the court's mercy fell on Xiong Tingbi—today even he cannot be spared. Those counseling on the grand coordinator argued he should be ordered back to Guangning to reunite with the western allies. But the stores were empty—could he, empty-handed, work a miracle like Shen Baoxu? Those counseling on the frontier commissioner urged that he still be tasked with holding the passes. But what kind of defense was meant—Xiong Tingbi's original plan of three hundred thousand men and a treasury of supplies, aiming for eventual payoff? Or merely to parade a remnant force beyond the pass as a token gesture of resolve? None of these would suffice. If the law for absconding officials is not settled now, what hope remains for the shattered borderlands? The subsequent disposition of culpability largely tracked Hou Zhenyáng's memorial.

已，遂劾大學士沈纮結納奉聖夫人及諸中官為朋黨，具發其構殺故監王安狀。忠賢即日傳旨謫震旸。震旸陛辭，復上田賦、河渠二議。以逐臣不當建議，再鐫二級以歸。

He then impeached Grand Secretary Shen Hong for conspiring with Madam Ke, Lady of Fengsheng, and several eunuchs as a clique, laying bare in detail Shen's role in framing and killing the former Director of Ceremonies Wang An. Wei Zhongxian that very day had an edict issued banishing Hou Zhenyáng from office. At his farewell audience Hou Zhenyáng submitted further proposals on land tax and irrigation. Because a dismissed official was deemed unfit to counsel, he was stripped of two further ranks and sent home.

震旸在垣八月，章奏凡數十上。崇禎初，召復故官，震旸已前卒。因其子主事峒曾請，特贈太常少卿。

Hou Zhenyáng served at the Censorate for eight months, filing dozens of memorials. When Chongzhen took the throne he was recalled to his former post—but Hou Zhenyáng had already died. At the petition of his son, Director Zhu Zeng, he was posthumously ennobled as Vice Director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

方震旸之論客氏也，給事中祁門倪思輝、臨川朱欽相疏繼之。帝大恚，並貶三官。大學士劉一燝、尚書周嘉謨等交章論救，皆不納。御史吳縣王心一言之尤切，帝怒，貶官如之。心一同官龍溪馬鳴起復抗疏諫，且言客氏六不可留。帝議加重譴，用一燝等言，奪俸一年。

When Hou Zhenyáng attacked Madam Ke, Supervising Secretaries Ni Sihui of Qimen and Zhu Qinxiang of Linchuan followed with memorials of their own. The Emperor erupted in fury and demoted all three. Grand Secretary Liu Yizao, Minister Zhou Jiamo, and others intervened with successive appeals—all rejected. Censor Wang Xinyi of Wuxian spoke with particular bluntness; the Emperor's wrath fell on him too, and he was demoted likewise. Wang Xinyi's colleague Ma Mingqi of Longxi remonstrated again, itemizing six reasons Madam Ke must not remain at court. The Emperor considered a harsher penalty but, heeding Liu Yizao and others, settled on stripping one year's salary.

欽相尋擢太仆少卿。楊漣既劾魏忠賢，欽相亦抗疏極論。五年以右僉都御史巡撫福建，討賊楊六、蔡三、鐘六等有功。旋以忤忠賢，除名。思輝，崇禎時終南京督儲尚書，心一終刑部侍郎，鳴起終南京右都御史。

Zhu Qinxiang was soon promoted to Vice Minister of the Court of the Imperial Stud. After Yang Lian impeached Wei Zhongxian, Zhu Qinxiang too submitted a trenchant memorial of full-throated condemnation. In year five he was appointed Right Vice Censor-in-Chief and Grand Coordinator of Fujian, earning distinction suppressing the bandits Yang Liu, Cai San, Zhong Liu, and their ilk. He soon crossed Wei Zhongxian and was struck from the register. Ni Sihui ended his career as Nanjing Minister of Grain Storage under Chongzhen; Wang Xinyi as Vice Minister of Justice; Ma Mingqi as Right Censor-in-Chief at Nanjing.

王允成，字述文，澤州人。萬歷中舉於鄉，除獲鹿知縣。以治行異等，征授南京御史。時甲科勢重，乙科多卑下之。允成體貌魁梧，才氣飆發，欲淩甲科出其上，首疏論遼左失事諸臣，請正刑辟。

Wang Yuncheng, styled Shuwén, came from Zezhou. During the Wanli reign he passed the provincial examinations and was appointed magistrate of Huolu. Recognized for outstanding governance, he was called to serve as a Nanjing censor. Jinshi holders commanded great prestige then, and men of provincial rank were often treated as lesser. Wang Yuncheng was tall and imposing, his intellect fierce and unrestrained; determined to outshine the jinshi elite, his opening memorial addressed the officials who had lost Liaodong and demanded proper legal reckoning.

已，劾刑部尚書黃克纘倡言保護選侍，貽誤賈繼春，又曲庇盜寶內侍，至辨御史焦源溥綱常一疏，刺謬特甚。已，極論內降及留中之害，末復規切閣部大臣。忤旨，停俸。給事中毛士龍劾府丞邵輔忠，允成亦偕同官李希孔斥輔忠。已，極言綱紀廢弛，請戒姑息、破因循，指斥時事甚悉。

He next impeached Minister of Justice Huang Kezuan for championing the Consort-in-waiting, misleading Jia Jichun, covering for treasure-stealing palace eunuchs, and rebutting Censor Jiao Yuanpu's memorial on ritual propriety with grotesque distortion. He went on to excoriate the damage wrought by secret inner edicts and memorials withheld from the throne, closing with sharp admonitions to the grand secretaries and senior ministers. The Emperor took offense and suspended his salary. When Supervising Secretary Mao Shilong impeached Deputy Prefect Shao Fuzhong, Wang Yuncheng joined colleague Li Xikong in condemning him. He then issued a sweeping indictment of collapsed discipline, urging an end to indulgence and bureaucratic inertia, with detailed condemnation of the reign's ills.

當是時，中貴劉朝、魏進忠與乳媼客氏相倚為奸。允成抗疏歷數其罪，略言：「內廷顧命之珰，犬食其余，不蒙帷蓋之澤；外廷顧命之老，中旨趣出，立見田裏之收。以小馬為馳騁之貲，誰啟盤於遊田之漸；以大臣為釋忿之地，誰啟咈其耇長之心。劉朝輩初亦不預外事，自沈纮、邵輔忠導之，遂恣肆無忌。浸假而王心一、倪思輝、朱欽相斥矣，浸假而司空用陪推矣，浸假而中旨用考官矣。是易置大臣之權在二豎也。近者弄權愈甚，逐大臣如振落，王紀、滿朝薦並削職為編氓。是驅除大臣之權在二豎也。科臣遷改，自有定敘，給假推升，往例皆然。乃惡周朝瑞之正直，忽有不許推用之旨。是轉遷百官之權在二豎也。秦藩以小宗繼大宗，諸子不得封郡王，祖制昭然。乃部科爭之不獲，相繼而去。是進退諸藩之權在二豎也。招權納賄，作福作威；二豎弄權於外，客氏主謀於中。王振、劉瑾之禍將復見今日。」疏入，進忠輩切齒。允成復特疏論秦府濫恩之謬，帝終不省。

At that time the powerful eunuchs Liu Chao and Wei Jinzhong colluded with the wet nurse Madam Ke in a triangle of corruption. Wang Yuncheng filed a defiant memorial cataloguing their crimes, writing in part: "The deathbed eunuch within the palace receives only what the dogs leave behind, denied even the shelter of the imperial canopy; the deathbed minister in the outer court receives a secret summons from within—and is promptly dismissed to tend his fields. A small horse becomes license for reckless galloping—who opened the first breach toward dissolute hunting in the royal parks? Great ministers become targets for petty vindictiveness—who first taught the sovereign to defy his most venerable counselors? Liu Chao and his kind had once kept clear of outer affairs—until Shen Hong and Shao Fuzhong showed them the way, and they grew utterly unrestrained. In time Wang Xinyi, Ni Sihui, and Zhu Qinxiang were expelled; in time the Minister of Works was enlisted for ceremonial promotion duties; in time examiners were appointed by secret edict. The power to install and dismiss great ministers had fallen to two upstart eunuchs. Of late their grip on power has tightened still further; ministers are cast out like leaves in a gale. Wang Ji and Man Chaojian were both demoted to the ranks of commoners. The power to purge great ministers had fallen to two upstart eunuchs. Censorial appointments followed a fixed order of seniority, and promotion during leave had always been governed by established precedent. But because they detested Zhou Chaorui's integrity, an edict suddenly barred him from advancement. The power to shuffle the entire bureaucracy had likewise fallen to those two eunuchs. When a minor princely line inherited the major line, as with the Prince of Qin, sons could not be ennobled as commandery princes. The ancestral rule was explicit. When the ministry and the censorate contested the point and lost, they resigned in succession. Even the power to promote or remove princes of the blood rested with the two eunuchs. They hoarded power, took bribes, dispensed favors, and ruled by fear; the two eunuchs abused their authority at court while Madam Ke plotted from within the inner palace. The disasters wrought by Wang Zhen and Liu Jin were about to repeat themselves." When the memorial reached the throne, Jinzhong and his faction seethed with hatred. Wang Yuncheng filed another special memorial condemning the Qin princedom's abuse of imperial favor, yet the emperor never took the point.

三年六月，允成又劾進忠，進忠益恨。明年，趙南星為吏部，知允成賢，調之於北。未幾，南星被逐，御史張訥劾南星調允成非法，遂除名。後給事中陳維新復劾允成貪險，詔撫按提問，坐以贓私。莊烈帝嗣位，以允成嘗請保護皇弟，識其名，召復故官。未幾卒。

In the sixth month of year three, Yuncheng impeached Jinzhong again, deepening his enmity. The following year Zhao Nanxing took office as Minister of Personnel, recognized Yuncheng's merit, and transferred him north. Soon Nanxing was expelled. Censor Zhang Ne charged that Nanxing's transfer of Yuncheng was unlawful, and Yuncheng was struck from the register. Later Supervising Secretary Chen Weixin impeached Yuncheng again for corruption and malice. An edict ordered provincial authorities to investigate, and he was found guilty of graft. When the Chongzhen Emperor ascended the throne, he remembered Yuncheng's earlier plea to protect the imperial younger brother, recalled his name, and restored him to office. He died soon afterward.

當天啟初，東林方盛，其主張聯絡者，率在言路。允成居南，與北相應和，時貴多畏其鋒。然諤諤敢言，屢犯近幸，其風采足重雲。

In the early Tianqi years the Donglin movement was at its height, and its leaders on the remonstrance circuits worked in close concert. Yuncheng held the southern post and answered the northern wing in concert, and many men of influence feared his sharp tongue. Outspoken and fearless, he crossed the emperor's favorites again and again, yet his moral stature rose high enough to touch the clouds.

昔鄭氏謀危國本，而左袒之者，莫彰著於三王並封之事。今秉筆者不謂非也，且推其功，至與陳平、狄仁傑並。此其說不可解也。當時並封未有旨，輔臣王錫爵蓋先有密疏請也。迨旨下禮部，而王如堅、朱維京、塗一臻、王學曾、嶽元聲、顧允成、於孔兼等苦口力爭，又共責讓錫爵於朝房。於是錫爵始知大義之不可違，而天下之不我予，隨上疏檢舉，而封事停也。假令如堅等不死爭，不責讓，將並封之事遂以定，而子以母貴之說，且徐邀定策國老之勛。而乃飾之曰：「旋命旋引咎，事遂以止。」嗟乎，此可為錫爵諱乎哉！且聞錫爵語人曰：「王給事中遺悔否？」以故事關國本，諸臣稿項黃馘，終錫爵世不復起。不知前代之安劉、復唐者，誰厄王陵，使之不見天日乎？曾剪除張柬之、桓彥範等五人，而令賫誌以沒乎？臣所以折邪議者，一也。

Long ago Lady Zheng schemed against the succession itself, and nowhere did her partisans show themselves more clearly than in the simultaneous enfeoffment of the three princes. Today the historians not only decline to call that wrong—they praise the man's service and rank him beside Chen Ping and Di Renjie. That interpretation defies comprehension. When the matter began there was no edict for simultaneous enfeoffment; Grand Secretary Wang Xijue had almost certainly already petitioned for it in secret. Not until the edict reached the Ministry of Rites did Wang Rujian, Zhu Weijing, Tu Yizhen, Wang Xuezeng, Yue Yuansheng, Gu Yuncheng, Yu Kongjian, and others fight it with desperate eloquence—and together confront Xijue in the court offices. Only then did Xijue grasp that the great principle could not be breached and that the empire would not indulge him. He at once memorialized in self-reproach, and the enfeoffment was stopped. Had Rujian and the rest not fought to the last and not held Xijue to account, simultaneous enfeoffment would have stood, and the doctrine of elevation through the mother would gradually have secured the succession-fixing minister his laurels. Yet they gloss it thus: "The order came and blame was instantly accepted, and so the matter ended." Alas—is this meant to shield Xijue from blame? And one hears that Xijue asked others, "Does Supervising Secretary Wang die with regrets?" Because the matter struck at the succession itself, loyal officials wore themselves to the bone, yet Xijue never held office again for the rest of his life. Do they forget that among the men of old who secured the Liu line and restored the Tang, who ever buried Wang Ling so that he never saw daylight again? Who ever destroyed Zhang Jianzhi, Huan Yanfan, and their four companions and sent them to their graves with thwarted purpose? That is my first reason for rejecting this corrupt reading of events.

其次，莫彰於張差闖宮之事。而秉筆者猶謂無罪也，且輕其事，而列王大臣、貫高事為辭。此其說又不可解也。王大臣之徒手而闖至乾清宮門也，馮保怨舊輔高拱，置刃其袖，挾使供之，非實事也。張差之梃，誰授之而誰使之乎？貫高身無完膚，而詞不及張敖，故漢高得釋敖不問。可與張差之事，造謀主使口招歷歷者比乎？昔寬處之以全倫，今直筆之以存實，以戒後，自兩不相妨，而奈之何欲諱之？且諱之以為君父隱，可也；為亂賊輩隱，則何為？臣所以折邪議者，二也。

Second, no case is clearer than Zhang Chachi's assault on the palace. Yet the historians still declare the man innocent, treat the crime as trivial, and invoke the precedents of Wang Dachen and Guan Gao in his defense. That argument, too, defies comprehension. Wang Dachen burst through to the Gate of Heavenly Purity with empty hands. Feng Bao, nursing a grudge against former chief minister Gao Gong, hid a blade in his sleeve and coerced a confession. That was not truth—it was fabrication. Who placed the club in Zhang Chachi's hands, and who commanded the attack? Guan Gao was tortured until no inch of flesh was intact, yet his confession never touched Zhang Ao, and so Emperor Gaozu freed Ao without further inquiry. Can that be compared with the Zhang Chachi case, where the plotters and their masters confessed point by point from their own lips? Once leniency preserved the bonds of kinship; now honest writing preserves truth to warn posterity. The two need not clash. Why insist on hiding what happened? Concealment out of reverence for lord and father may be defensible; but concealment on behalf of traitors and criminals serves what end? That is my second reason for rejecting this corrupt reading.

至封後遺詔，自古未有帝崩立後者。此不過貴妃私人謀假母後之尊，以弭罪狀。故稱遺詔，以要必行。奈何猶稱先誌，重誣神祖，而陰為阿附傳封者開一面也？臣所以折邪議者，三也。

As for the so-called posthumous edict issued after elevating a consort to empress, no emperor in history ever created an empress only as he lay dying. It was nothing but the favored consort's private intrigue, borrowing the empress dowager's authority to smother her own guilt. Hence the label "posthumous edict"—to force compliance as if it were binding law. How then can they still call it the late emperor's true wish, slander Shenzu anew, and quietly make room for those who abetted the enfeoffment? That is my third reason for rejecting this corrupt reading.

先帝之令德考終，自不宜謂因藥致崩，被不美之名。而當時在內視病者，烏可於積勞積虛之後，投攻克之劑。群議洶洶，方蓄疑慮變之深，而遽值先帝升遐，又適有下藥之事，安得不痛之恨之，疾首頓足而深望之？乃討奸者憤激而甚其詞，庇奸者借題以逸其罰。君父何人，臣子可以僥幸而嘗試乎？臣所以折邪議者，四也。

The late emperor died in virtue after a life of merit; to claim that medicine brought down his death and stain his name was wholly unjust. Yet how could those attending him inside the palace, after years of exhaustion and depletion, have poured aggressive purgatives down his throat? Rumors swirled and suspicion ran deep just as the late emperor died—and at that very moment came word of forced medicine. Who could fail to grieve, rage, and cry out for justice? Those pursuing the guilty grew furious and overwrote the facts; those shielding them seized on the uproar to evade punishment. Lord and father is no subject for trial and error. What minister would dare treat the sovereign's life as a wager? That is my fourth reason for rejecting this corrupt reading.

先帝之繼神廟棄群臣也，兩月之內，鼎湖再號。陛下孑然一身，怙恃無托，宮禁深，狐鼠實繁，其於杜漸防微，自不得不倍加嚴慎。即不然，而以新天子儼然避正殿，讓一先朝宮嬪，萬世而下謂如何國體。此楊漣等諸臣所以權衡輕重，亟以移宮請也。宮已移矣，漣等之心事畢矣，本未嘗居以為功，何至反以為罪而禁錮之、擯逐之，是誠何心？即選侍久侍先帝，生育公主，諸臣未必不力請於陛下，加之恩禮。今陛下既安，選侍又未嘗不安，有何冤抑，而汲汲皇皇為無病之沈吟？臣所以折邪議者，五也。

The late emperor had barely succeeded Shenzong and cast his ministers aside when, within two months, the throne mourned two emperors in succession. Your Majesty stands utterly alone, without protector or patron. The palace runs deep, and vermin multiply within it. To choke corruption at the root, extraordinary vigilance was unavoidable. Even setting that aside, what would posterity say of a new emperor vacating the main hall for a former concubine of his predecessor? What becomes of the dignity of the throne? That is why Yang Lian and his colleagues weighed the stakes and urgently petitioned for the palace transfer. The transfer was done and their purpose fulfilled; they had never claimed credit for it. Why then treat their act as crime, imprison them, and drive them away? What motive could justify that? Even had Lady Attendant Li long served the late emperor and borne a princess, the ministers would surely have urged Your Majesty to honor her with due ceremony. Your Majesty is secure, and Lady Li is secure as well. What injustice demands this frantic pretense of grievance where none exists? That is my fifth reason for rejecting this corrupt reading.

抑猶有未盡者。神祖與先帝所以處父子骨肉之際，仁義孝慈，本無可以置喙。即當年母愛子抱，外議喧嘩，然雖有城社媒孽之奸，卒不以易祖訓立長之序，則愈足見神祖之明聖，與先帝之大孝。何足諱、何必諱，又何可諱？若謂言及鄭氏之過，便傷神祖之明，則我朝仁廟監國危疑，何嘗為成祖之累。而當時史臣直勒之汗青，並未聞有嫌疑之避也。何獨至今而立此一說，巧為奸人脫卸，使昔日不能置之罪，今日不容著之書，何可訓也！今史局開，公道明，而坐視奸輩陰謀，辨言亂義，將令三綱紊，九法滅，天下止知有私交，而不知有君父。乞特敕纂修諸臣，據事直書，無疑無隱，則繼述大孝過於武、周，而世道人心攸賴之矣。

Yet more remains unsaid. In the handling of father and son, kin and blood, Shenzu and the late emperor acted with such benevolence, righteousness, filial piety, and kindness that no reproach could rightly attach. Even when the mother's favor and public uproar shook the court, and schemers threatened the realm itself, the ancestral rule of primogeniture held firm—proof of Shenzu's wisdom and the late emperor's filial devotion. What is there to hide, what need to hide, and what could be hidden? If mentioning Lady Zheng's fault is said to dim Shenzu's brilliance, then when Renzong governed amid crisis during Yongle's campaigns, did that ever tarnish Chengzu's name? The historians of that age wrote it plainly in the annals, and no one shrank from the truth out of delicacy. Why alone today invent this doctrine to absolve the guilty—so that yesterday they escaped punishment and today they must be erased from the record? What kind of moral instruction is that? The historiographical bureau is now at work and justice is plain, yet wicked men are allowed to conspire in silence, twisting language and corrupting principle until the three bonds unravel, law itself collapses, and the empire knows only private faction, not sovereign and father. I beg an explicit command that the compiling ministers write according to fact, without hesitation or concealment. Then the dynasty's filial succession will outshine even Wu and Zhou, and the moral order of the age will rest upon it.

詔付史館參酌，然其後卒不能改也。已，又請出客氏於外，請誅崔文升。忌者甚眾，指為東林黨。未幾，卒官，故不與珰禍。

An edict referred the matter to the History Bureau for deliberation, but in the end nothing was changed. He soon petitioned again to expel Madam Ke from the palace and to execute Cui Wensheng. His enemies were legion, and denounced him as a Donglin partisan. He died in office soon afterward and so escaped the eunuchs' later reign of terror.

李選侍之移宮也，其內豎劉朝、田詔、劉進忠等五人，以盜貲下刑部獄。尚書黃克纘庇之，數稱其冤。帝不從，論死。是年五月，王安罷，魏進忠用事。詔等進重賂，令其下李文盛等上疏鳴冤，進忠即傳旨貸死。大學士劉一燝等執奏者再。旨下刑科，士龍抄參者三，旨幾中寢。克纘乃陳其冤狀，而請付之熱審。進忠不從，傳旨立釋。士龍憤，劾克纘阿旨骫法，不可為大臣，且數朝等罪甚悉。由是進忠及諸奄銜士龍次骨。進忠廣開告密，誣天津廢將陳天爵交通李承芳，逮其一家五十余人，下詔獄。士龍即劾錦衣駱思恭及誣告者罪。進忠憾張後抑己，誣為死囚孫二所出，布散流言。士龍請究治妖言奸黨並主使逆徒，進忠益憾。

When Lady Attendant Li vacated the palace, five of her inner eunuchs—Liu Chao, Tian Zhao, Liu Jinzhong, and others—were imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice for embezzlement. Minister Huang Kezuan shielded them and repeatedly proclaimed their innocence. The emperor refused, and death sentences were passed. That May, Wang An was removed, and Wei Jinzhong seized control. Zhao and his associates paid heavy bribes and had subordinates such as Li Wensheng file memorials pleading innocence. Jinzhong at once issued an edict commuting the death sentences. Grand Secretaries led by Liu Yijiao remonstrated twice, holding firm. The edict went to the Office of Scrutiny for Justice. Shilong submitted copied memorials for reference three times, and the order nearly stalled. Kezuan then laid out their claims of injustice and asked that the case be sent to the summer judicial review. Jinzhong refused and issued an edict ordering their immediate release. Shilong, furious, impeached Kezuan for fawning on the throne and perverting the law, declaring him unfit for high office, and detailed the crimes of Chao and the rest. From that moment Jinzhong and the eunuchs nursed a bone-deep hatred of Shilong. Jinzhong opened the floodgates of denunciation, falsely accusing the cashiered Tianjin general Chen Tianjue of colluding with Li Chengfang. More than fifty members of his household were seized and thrown into the imperial prison. Shilong at once impeached Brocade Guard officer Luo Sigong and the false accusers. Jinzhong resented Empress Zhang for holding him in check and spread slander claiming the rumor originated with the executed convict Sun Er. Shilong demanded a full investigation of the seditious rumors, the factions behind them, and their masterminds. Jinzhong's hatred deepened.

至九月，士龍劾順天府丞邵輔忠奸貪，希孔、允成亦劾之，輔忠大懼。朝等因誘以超擢，令攻士龍。輔忠遂訐士龍官杭州時盜庫納妓，進忠從中下其疏。尚書周嘉謨等言兩人所訐，風聞，請寬貸。進忠不從，削士龍籍，輔忠落職閑住。進忠後易名忠賢，顯盜國柄，恨士龍未已。四年冬，令其私人張訥劾之，再命削籍。明年三月入之汪文言獄詞，謂納李三才賄三千，謀起南京吏部，下撫按提訊追贓，遣戍平陽衛。已而輔忠起用，驟遷兵部侍郎。六年十二月，御史劉徽復摭輔忠前奏，劾士龍納訪犯萬金，下法司逮治。士龍知忠賢必殺己，夜中逾墻遁，其妾不知也，謂有司殺之，被發號泣於道，有司無如之何。士龍乃潛至家，載妻子浮太湖以免。

By the ninth month Shilong impeached Shao Fuzhong, deputy prefect of Shuntian, for corruption and greed. Li Xikong and Wang Yuncheng joined the charge, and Fuzhong was terrified. Chao and his associates tempted him with promises of rapid promotion and set him against Shilong. Fuzhong then accused Shilong of embezzling public funds and keeping courtesans while magistrate at Hangzhou. Jinzhong forwarded the memorial from within the palace. Minister Zhou Jiamo and others argued that the mutual accusations were hearsay and pleaded for leniency. Jinzhong refused. Shilong was struck from the register, and Fuzhong was dismissed to idle residence. Jinzhong later took the name Zhongxian, seized open control of the state, and still had not finished with Shilong. That winter in the fourth year, Zhongxian had his own man Zhang Ne impeach Shilong again, and the throne once more ordered his name struck from the rolls. The following March, Shilong's name was woven into Wang Wenyun's confession: he had allegedly taken three thousand taels from Li Sancai and plotted to restore him to the Nanjing Ministry of Personnel. The case went to provincial surveillance for interrogation and recovery of bribes, and he was banished to Pingyang Guard. Before long Fuzhong was brought back into service and swiftly promoted to Vice Minister of War. In the twelfth month of the sixth year, Censor Liu Hui revived Fuzhong's old charges, accusing Shilong of taking ten thousand taels from a man under investigation. The judicial authorities were ordered to arrest and try him. Shilong knew Zhongxian would kill him if he could. In the dead of night he scaled the wall and fled. His concubine, unaware of the escape, thought the authorities had murdered him; she tore her hair loose and wailed in the streets, and the officials were helpless to stop her. Shilong then slipped home in secret, put his wife and children aboard a boat, and crossed Lake Tai to safety.

莊烈帝嗣位，忠賢伏誅。朝士為士龍稱冤，詔盡赦其罪。士龍始詣闕謝恩，且陳被陷之故。帝憐之，命復官致仕，竟不召用。至崇禎十四年，裏人周延儒再相，始起漕儲副使，督蘇、松諸郡糧。明年冬，入為太仆少卿。又明年春，擢左僉都御史。時左都御史李邦華、副都御史惠世揚皆未至，士龍獨掌院事。帝嘗語輔臣：「往例御史巡方，類微服訪民間。近高牙大纛，氣淩巡撫，且公署前後皆通竇納賄，每奉使，富可敵國，宜重懲。」士龍聞，劾逮福建巡按李嗣京。十月謝病歸。國變後卒。

When the Chongzhen Emperor ascended the throne, Zhongxian was put to death. Court officials pleaded Shilong's case, and an edict fully pardoned his offenses. Shilong then came to court to give thanks and explain how he had been framed. The Emperor took pity on him, restored his rank, and granted retirement—but never called him back to office. Not until Chongzhen 14, when his fellow townsman Zhou Yanru again became chief minister, was Shilong recalled as Deputy Commissioner for Grain Transport, supervising the grain supply of Suzhou, Songjiang, and neighboring prefectures. The following winter he entered the capital as Vice Director of the Court of the Imperial Stud. The next spring he was promoted to Left Vice Censor-in-Chief. Left Censor-in-Chief Li Banghua and Vice Censor-in-Chief Hui Shiyang had not yet reached the capital, so Shilong alone ran the Censorate. The Emperor once told his chief ministers: "By precedent, touring censors went in plain dress to hear the people's grievances. Now they go out with lofty banners and great pennants, lording it over governors; their offices are riddled with secret openings for bribes, and every mission makes them rich as a kingdom. They deserve severe punishment." Hearing this, Shilong impeached Li Sijing, the Fujian touring censor, and had him arrested. In the tenth month he retired, pleading illness. He died after the fall of the dynasty.

贊曰：滿朝薦，健令也，出死力以抗兇鋒，幽深牢而弗悔。及躋言路，益發憤時事，庶幾強立不反者歟。江秉謙、侯震旸之論經撫，李希孔之論「三案」，皆切中事理。王允成直攻劉朝、魏進忠，而不與楊、左、周、黃諸人同難。毛士龍顧以譎免。蓋忠賢殺人皆成於附閹邪黨，彼其甘心善類，授之刃而假手焉且加功者，罪直浮於忠賢已。

In praise: Man Chaojian was a man of fierce resolve. He spent his utmost strength against a murderous onslaught and, shut in the darkest prison, never repented. Once he took up the censor's path, his outrage at the times only deepened—perhaps a man who stood firm and would not bend back. Jiang Bingqian and Hou Zhenyáng on provincial governors and grand coordinators, and Li Xikong on the "Three Cases"—all hit the mark. Wang Yuncheng assailed Liu Chao and Wei Jinzhong head-on, yet did not suffer the same fate as Yang, Zuo, Zhou, Huang, and their fellows. Mao Shilong, by contrast, slipped away through cunning. Zhongxian's killings succeeded only because the eunuch-adoring faction was eager to destroy good men—putting the blade in others' hands and even claiming credit for the deed. Their guilt plainly exceeds Zhongxian's own.

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