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卷一 宋本紀上第一 武帝 少帝

Volume 1 Liu Song Annals 1: Emperor Wu, Emperor Shao

Chapter 1 of 南史 · History of the Southern Dynasties
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1
Emperor Wu and Emperor Shao.
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Once, on a visit to Zhulin Temple at Jingkou, he lay alone before the lecture hall. Above him appeared a five-colored dragon pattern. The monks, startled, reported it to him; he alone was pleased and said, "The master speaks no falsehood." His father's tomb lay at Houshan in Dantu, in the very region that Qin dynasty chronicles described as breathing the aura of an imperial destiny between Qu'e and Dantu. There was a man named Kong Gong who was skilled at reading tombs by divination. The Emperor once passed the tomb with him and put him to the test, asking, "What do you make of this tomb?" Kong Gong replied, "This is no ordinary ground." From this the Emperor grew all the more confident in himself. As he traveled, he would sometimes see two small dragons flanking his sides. When he gathered firewood or fished in the hills and marshes, his companions sometimes saw them too. After he rose to high rank, the dragons appeared larger still.
3
The Emperor had always been poor, and few in his day could see what he would become—only Wang Mi of Langya treated him with deep respect. The Emperor once owed Diao Kui thirty thousand in community-district funds. Unable to repay after a long while, he was seized by Kui. Mi secretly paid the debt with his own money and secured his release. Later, while cutting rushes on Xinzhou, he saw a great serpent several zhang in length, shot it, and wounded it. The next day he returned to the islet. From within he heard mortar and pestle at work. Going to look, he found several youths in green garments pounding medicine among the hazel thickets. He asked what they were doing. They answered, "Our king was shot by Liu Jigong; we are mixing a poultice to dress the wound." The Emperor said, "If your king is a spirit, why not kill me?" They answered, "Liu Jigong is a king who cannot die. He cannot be killed." The Emperor shouted at them, and they all vanished. He took the medicine anyway and went back. On another occasion, stopping at a traveler's inn below Xiapi, he met a monk who told him, "The lands south of the Yangtze will soon fall into turmoil. The one who will restore order—is it not you?" The Emperor had long suffered from a hand wound that would not heal for years. The monk gave him a yellow salve and then suddenly vanished. He applied the powder once, and the wound healed. He kept what remained of that salve, together with the medicine taken from the youths, and whenever he suffered a blade or spear wound, applying it never failed.
4
便
His first appointment was as Major on the staff of Champion General Sun Wuzhong. In the eleventh month of the third year of Long'an, the sorcerer-rebel Sun En rose in rebellion at Kuaiji. The court dispatched General of the Guard Xie Yan and Forward General Liu Laozhi to campaign against him in the east. Laozhi asked the Emperor to serve on his staff and sent him with a few dozen men to scout the rebels. They ran into thousands of enemy troops. The Emperor fought at once. Most of his men were killed, but swinging a long blade he cut down a great many of the enemy. Laozhi's son Jingxuan feared the Emperor had been surrounded and rode out with a light escort to find him. Before long the rest of the cavalry arrived, Shanyin was pacified, and En fled out to sea.
5
使退
In the fifth month of the fourth year En returned to Kuaiji and killed Xie Yan. In the eleventh month Laozhi marched east again and posted the Emperor at Gouzhang. Gouzhang was a small city with few defenders, but each time the Emperor broke the enemy line the rebels fell back to Jiakou. At that time the eastern campaign generals allowed their troops to plunder at will, and the people suffered greatly. Only under the Emperor's command were no outrages committed.
6
退 退
In the spring of the fifth year En repeatedly assaulted Gouzhang. The Emperor repulsed him again and again, and En once more fled to sea. In the third month En came north from Haiyan. The Emperor built a fort at old Haiyan. The rebels attacked every day, but with few troops inside the walls he chose dare-to-die warriors and beat them back. Though he had won repeatedly, the Emperor still feared he could not hold against superior numbers. One night he lowered his banners to feign weakness; when he saw the enemy relax, he charged and broke them completely. En saw the city could not be taken and marched toward Huddu. The Emperor abandoned the fort and pursued. Bao Lou, magistrate of Haiyan, sent his son Sizhi ahead with a thousand Wu troops. The Emperor, believing the Wu men poor fighters, ordered them to the rear, but they refused. That night the Emperor laid many ambushes and set drums and banners. When battle came the next day, the trap closed, the rebels fled, and Sizhi's pursuit ended in disaster. The Emperor fought as he withdrew until his followers were nearly all killed or wounded. When he reached the place where he had halted earlier, he ordered his men to strip clothing from the dead to show he still had time to spare. The rebels suspected another ambush and withdrew. In the sixth month En came by sea to Dantu. The Emperor marched at speed, caught up with him, charged, and broke him completely. En reached Jianye, found the court ready, and fled to Yuzhou. In the eighth month the Jin emperor appointed him Governor of Xiapi. The Emperor pursued En again to Yuzhou and Haiyan and defeated him repeatedly. Thereafter En, weakened by famine, fled to Linhai.
7
In the first year of Yuanxing, Jingzhou Inspector Huan Xuan raised an army and marched east. Cavalry General Sima Yuansian sent Laozhi to oppose him, and the Emperor again served on his staff. When Xuan arrived, the Emperor urged an attack. Laozhi refused and sent his son Jingxuan to Xuan to sue for peace. The Emperor and He Wuji of Donghai pleaded with him together, but Laozhi would not listen. Xuan captured Jianye and appointed Laozhi Interior Prefect of Kuaiji. Laozhi, afraid, summoned the Emperor to Guangling to raise troops. The Emperor said, "The people's hearts are already gone. Even Guangling could not be held." Laozhi ended by hanging himself at Xinzhou. He Wuji asked the Emperor, "Where am I to go?" The Emperor answered, "Return with me to Jingkou. Xuan will surely keep faith as a minister, and we can serve him together. Otherwise we shall plot against him together."
8
Xuan's older cousin Xiu, serving as Pacifying Army General at Dantu, appointed the Emperor Army Headquarters Aide. After his defeat Sun En, fearing capture, drowned himself at Linhai. The survivors made En's brother-in-law Lu Xun their leader. Xuan once more dispatched the Emperor on an eastern campaign.
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In the second year Lu Xun fled to Yongjia, and the Emperor pursued and defeated him. In the sixth month he was additionally appointed Interior Prefect of Pengcheng.
10
In the twelfth month Huan Xuan usurped the throne and moved the Jin emperor to Xunyang. Huan Xiu went to court, and the Emperor followed him to Jianye. When Xuan saw the Emperor, he told Minister over the Masses Wang Mi, "Yesterday I saw Liu Yu. His bearing is unlike that of ordinary men. He is clearly a hero." At every gathering he lavished gifts upon him. Xuan's wife, Lady Liu, was the daughter of Director of the Masters of Writing Dan. Clever and sharp-eyed, she once saw the Emperor and told Xuan, "Liu Yu walks like a dragon and steps like a tiger, and his gaze is not that of an ordinary man. I fear he will never serve under another. You should remove him while you still can." Xuan said, "I am just now pacifying the Central Plains, and none but Yu can serve me there. Wait until Guan and Long are settled, and then we shall discuss it."
11
西 簿
Before long Xiu returned to Jingkou. The Emperor pleaded that an old wound had reopened and he could not keep up on foot, and he and Wuji sailed back together. At Jianxing they renewed their plans with his brother Daogui, Liu Yi of Pei, Meng Chang of Pingchang, Wei Yongzhi of Rencheng, Tan Pingzhi of Gaoping, Zhuge Changren of Langya, Wang Yuande of Taiyuan, Xin Huxing of Longxi, and Tong Houzhi of Dongguan. All joined in one righteous plot. At that time Xuan's younger brother Hong was Governor of Qing Province, stationed at Guangling. Daogui served on Hong's staff as Army Headquarters Aide, and Chang was the provincial chief clerk. They sent Yi to Chang to plan a joint strike against Hong. Changren served as Left Army Headquarters Aide to Diao Kui, Governor of Yu Province, and planned to seize Liyang in support. Yuande and Houzhi plotted to strike Xuan at Jianye. All fixed a day to rise together.
12
On the day yimao in the second month of the third year, the Emperor pleaded a hunting trip and gathered Wuji, Yongzhi, Pingzhi, Yi's younger cousin Fan, Pingzhi's nephews Shao, Zhi, Long, and Daoji, Chang's clansman Huaiyu, and others. The sworn company numbered twenty-seven, with more than a hundred men ready to follow. On the day bingchen they waited for the gates to open. Wuji and the others dressed as imperial messengers, proclaimed an edict, and led the charge. The righteous company galloped in with a great shout. Officials and soldiers fled in panic. Xiu was beheaded at once and his head displayed as a warning. The Emperor wept for him with deep grief and gave him generous burial honors. Chang urged Hong to go hunting that day. Before dawn, when the gate opened for the hunt, Chang, Daogui, Yi, and others led fifty or sixty stalwart men straight through the gate. Hong was still eating his gruel when they cut him down. They then gathered the troops and crossed the river.
13
輿 退
When the righteous army first took the capital, Xiu's Major Diao Hong led civil and military aides to come in support. The Emperor mounted the wall and called to them, "Governor Guo of Jiang Province has already received the imperial carriage and restored the rightful order at Xunyang. We too have received secret edicts to execute the rebel faction. By now the traitor Xuan's head should already hang at the Great Crossing. Surely you are still ministers of great Jin?" Hong and his men took him at his word and withdrew. When Yi arrived, the Emperor ordered Hong and the others executed.
14
使 便
Yi's elder brother Mai was already at Jianye. Several days before the plot broke, the Emperor sent their fellow conspirator Zhou Anmu to warn him and enlist him as an inside contact. Mai was terrified. Anmu, fearing exposure, galloped back. Xuan had just made Mai Administrator of Jingling, and Mai boarded a boat intending to take up his post. That night Xuan wrote to Mai: "What is the mood among the Northern Headquarters men? What has Liu Yu lately said to you?" Mai took this to mean Xuan already knew. At dawn he went to confess the plot. Xuan was alarmed. He enfeoffed Mai as Marquis of Chong'an, but because Mai had failed to seize Anmu he killed him as well, and executed Yuande, Huxing, Houzhi, and the others. He then dispatched Dunqiu Administrator Wu Fuzhi and Right Guard General Huangfu Fu north to block the righteous army.
15
滿
Earlier the Emperor had visited General of Mobile Columns He Danzhi. His attendants saw his radiance fill the room and told Danzhi, who reported it to Xuan. Xuan paid no heed. Now, hearing that the righteous army had risen, he was deeply afraid. Someone said, "Yu and the others are very weak. Your Majesty, why fear them so deeply?" Xuan said, "Liu Yu is a hero of the age. Liu Yi keeps not a stone's weight of grain in his house, yet stakes a million at dice. He Wuji is Liu Laozhi's nephew by his sister and is the very image of his uncle. Together they undertake a great affair—how can it fail?" The army then chose the Emperor as covenant leader, made Meng Chang Chief Clerk to manage rear affairs, Tan Pingzhi Major, and more than a thousand common people rallied to them. When the army halted at Zhuli, it issued a proclamation to the capital that read:
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Success and failure follow one upon another; peace is never permanent. When the cunning run wild, they sometimes meet a sage ruler. Since our great Jin has repeatedly met the calamities of the Yang Nine, the royal house has known one disaster after another from Long'an onward. The upright have been ruined by wolves, and loyal ministers crushed in the tiger's maw. The rebel minister Huan Xuan dared to act with insolent contempt, raised troops to hold Jing and Ying, and wantonly ravaged the capital. Heaven had not yet forgotten our hardship, yet his wicked power was still great. Within little more than a year he overturned the throne. The sovereign was driven into exile and wandered in places unfit for him. The sacred regalia sank into disgrace, and the seven ancestral temples were cast down. Even the flight of the Xia after Han Zhuo and Yi, and the sufferings of Han under Wang Mang and Dong Zhuo, scarcely serve as comparison. Since Xuan's usurpation years have passed. Drought has lingered year after year, and the people cannot live. Common folk are exhausted by transport levies; civil and military officials are worn out by forced labor. Families are split apart and fathers separated from sons. This is not merely the sorrow of empty looms in the east, or maidens' longing over unfilled baskets. Looking up to the heavens and down to human affairs—if this can still endure, what could not be destroyed! Every man with a heart in his breast—who does not wring his wrists in grief? For this reason Yu and the others beat their breasts and weep blood, finding no rest whether sitting or lying down.
17
簿簿
Therefore we rise at night and sleep little, search out and reward the loyal and heroic, secretly build plans over paths more perilous than treading on a tiger, seize the moment and strike fiercely, and in righteousness do not seek to save ourselves whole. Auxiliary State General Liu Yi, General of Broad Martial He Wuji, Chief Clerk to the Pacifying North Meng Chang, Chief Clerk of Yan Province Wei Yongzhi, General of Pacifying the Distance Liu Daogui, Dragon Cavalry Headquarters Aide Liu Fan, General Who Shakes Might Tan Pingzhi, and others—their loyalty cleaves metal and their spirit pierces the bright sun. Bearing arms they await the moment to strike, resolved to give their lives to the end. Inspector of Yi Province Mao Jin, though ten thousand li distant, stands in league with us and will sweep and settle Jing and Chu. Governor of Jiang Province Guo Yanzhi receives and escorts the sovereign, establishing his residence at Xunyang. Army Headquarters Aide Wang Yuande and others have likewise mustered their followers and hold Shitou. General Who Displays Martiality Zhuge Changren has rallied righteous warriors and already holds Liyang. Army Headquarters Aide Yu Yizhi and others have secretly joined the league and stand ready as inside contacts. With united strength and shared covenant they rose everywhere; that very day they beheaded the false Inspector of Xu Province, Prince of Ancheng Xiu, and Inspector of Qing Province Hong. Once the righteous army had gathered, civil and military men vied for the lead, all agreeing that without a single commander the cause could not be brought to order. Yu declined but could not refuse; he therefore took command of the armies, trusting above in the spirits of the ancestors and below in the loyalty of righteous men, to cut down fleeing rebels and sweep clean the capital. Lords and marquises—you who for generations upheld loyalty or yourselves have borne honors and favor—yet all bow before this cunning upstart with no means to serve. When you look back upon the way of Zhou, is it not a cause for mourning? Today's undertaking is the moment that has awaited us. Yu, unworthy and lacking the talent of men of old, has taken this charge in a collapsing age and seized momentum when the turn had nearly passed. His loyal heart yet unspoken, he is moved and inflamed with indignation. He gazes toward heaven in lasting devotion and looks upon the land with growing resolve; from the day this proclamation went forth, his spirit has flown to the rebel court.
18
退
On the wuwu day of the third month he encountered Wu Fuzhi at Jiangcheng. The Emperor personally seized a long blade, shouted, and at once cut Fuzhi down. Advancing to Luoluo Bridge, he met Huangfu Fu. Tan Pingzhi was defeated and killed, and the army fell back. The Emperor pressed the attack all the harder and again took Fu's head. Earlier, when the Emperor laid his great plan, a craftsman who read faces examined the Emperor, Wuji, and the others and said they would soon rise to great eminence, but declared that Pingzhi bore no such mark. When Pingzhi fell in battle, the Emperor knew the enterprise would surely succeed.
19
使西 滿
Hearing that Fu and the others had fallen, Xuan sent Huan Qian to hold Dongling Kou and Bian Fanzhi to encamp west of Fuzhou Mountain. On the jiwei day the righteous army reached the east of Fuzhou, spread a screen of decoys, crowned the trees with oil-soaked cloaks, and filled the valleys with them. The Emperor charged at the head. Officers and soldiers fought as if unto death, each man worth a hundred; their battle cries shook heaven and earth. They sent fire with the wind; smoke and flame blotted out the sky. Qian and the others were routed. Though Xuan had sent troops out, his mind was already set on flight. He had Palace Attendant Yin Zhongwen prepare boats at Shitou; when he heard of Qian's defeat, he slipped south in light craft.
20
輿 退
On the gengshen day the Emperor held Shitou fortress, established the rear-capital administration, burned Huan Wen's spirit tablet outside Xuanyang Gate, and set up new Jin ancestral tablets in the Imperial Temple. He sent generals in pursuit of Xuan and ordered Secretariat Director Wang Ga to lead the officials in welcoming the imperial carriage. Minister over the Masses Wang Mi consulted the assembly and urged the Emperor to take charge of Yang Province. The Emperor firmly refused. Mi was then made Supervisor of the Masters of Writing and Inspector of Yang Province; the Emperor was made General Who Pacifies the Army, Commander-in-Chief of military affairs in eight provinces, Inspector of Xu Province, and Palace Attendant. Earlier, Wei Sou of Jinyang was skilled in reading faces. Huan Xiu had him examine whether the Emperor would gain a provincial post. Sou said, "He will receive a frontier inspectorate." After withdrawing he spoke privately to the Emperor: "Your noble bearing is beyond words." The Emperor laughed and said, "If you prove right, I shall make you my marshal." Now Sou came to the Emperor and said, "King Cheng did not break the pledge of the paulownia leaf; you too should not forget your promise about the marshal. I dare not ask to be marshal to the Pacifying Army, but would be content with an aide's post under the Palace Attendant." Thereupon he was given the post.
21
輿
Zhuge Changren had missed his rendezvous and was seized and sent under guard by Diao Kui, but before he arrived Xuan had already been defeated. Xuan passed through Xunyang, where Inspector of Jiang Province Guo Changzhi furnished him with the imperial carriage and regalia. Inspector of Jing Province Wang Sui, a leading house of the south and nephew of the Huan clan, had long treated the Emperor with contempt. Now he and his father, Left Vice Director Yu, both turned inward with suspicion and were executed.
22
On the wuzi day of the fourth month they installed Prince of Wuling Zun as Grand General with imperial commission, proclaimed a general amnesty, and exempted only the descendants of Huan Xuan's house. At Huan Xuan's usurpation Wang Mi had assisted the transfer of power and with his own hands removed Emperor An's seal and cord. When the righteous army rose, many said Mi deserved death, but the Emperor had long respected his character and kept him safe. At a court assembly Liu Yi once asked Mi where the seal cord was kept. Mi grew still more afraid. After Wang Yu and his son were executed, Mi's clansman Chen said to him, "Wang Ju was killed though he had done no wrong. This is the clearing away of men who outshine their masters. You were tied to the Huan faction—do you think you can escape?" Ju was Yu's informal name. Terrified, Mi fled to Qu'e. The Emperor memorialized the Grand General asking that Mi be brought back and his office restored.
23
Xuan fled with the Son of Heaven to Jiangling, then sailed downriver and met Liu Yi, He Wuji, Liu Daogui, and the others at Zhengming Isle. The allied armies broke him completely. Xuan's follower Yin Zhongwen escorted the two Jin empresses back to Jiankang. Xuan again brought the Son of Heaven to Jiangling, then fled toward Nan Commandery. Administrator Wang Tengzhi and Jing Province Registrar Wang Kangchan received the Son of Heaven into the Nan Commandery seat.
24
Earlier, Inspector of Yi Province Mao Jin had sent his grandnephew Youzhi and staff officer Fei Tian to escort his brother's funeral downriver. Jin's nephew Xiuzhi, then Cavalry Commandant under Xuan, lured Xuan toward Shu. At Meihui Isle Tian and Youzhi ambushed him with arrows; Yi Province Supervising Officer Feng Qian cut off Xuan's head and sent it to Jiankang. Xuan's nephew Zhen hid in the marshes of Huarong, rallied rebel bands, and stormed Jiangling. Tengzhi and Kangchan were both killed. Huan Qian, who had first taken refuge at Juchuan, also raised forces and joined Zhen. They mourned Xuan and erected a mourning hall. Qian led the officials in restoring the seal and cord to Emperor An. Liu Yi and He Wuji pressed forward against Zhen and were defeated at Lingxi.
25
殿
In the tenth month the Emperor assumed the post of Inspector of Qing Province and entered the palace hall with a hundred armored guards.
26
Lu Xun sailed across the sea, took Guangzhou, and captured Governor Wu Yinshi. He made Xun Inspector of Guang Province and appointed his follower Xu Daofu Administrator of Shixing.
27
In the third month of the second year the Emperor was given command over Jiao and Guang provinces. In the tenth month, for merit in restoring the dynasty, the Emperor was enfeoffed Duke of Yuzhang with a fief of ten thousand households and granted thirty thousand bolts of silk. The other enfeoffments and rewards were apportioned by rank of service.
28
In the twelfth month of the third year Wang Mi, Minister over the Masses, Supervisor of the Masters of Writing, and Inspector of Yang Province, died.
29
退
In the first month of the fourth year the Emperor was called to court and appointed Palace Attendant, General of Chariots and Cavalry with honors equal to the Three Excellencies, Inspector of Yang Province, and Supervisor of the Masters of Writing, while retaining his posts in Xu and Yan provinces. He submitted a memorial asking to be relieved of Yan Province. Earlier the Emperor had sent Champion General Liu Jingxuan against the Shu rebel Qiao Zong, but Jingxuan returned without victory. In the ninth month, blaming himself for Jingxuan's setback, the Emperor offered to step down, but the court would not accept. In the tenth month he was reduced to General of the Center, though his headquarters commission remained unchanged.
30
In the second month of the fifth year the Yan pretender Murong Chao launched a major raid north of the Huai. In the third month the Emperor memorialized to campaign north and left Chief of Jinyang Meng Chang to oversee headquarters affairs at the capital. He sailed up the Huai into the Si and, in the fifth month, reached Xiapi. Leaving the boats behind, he marched overland into Langya, building fortified posts and leaving garrisons at every stage.
31
Chao's chief general Gongsun Wulou urged him to hold the Great Pass, fortify the walls, and strip the countryside bare while waiting, but Chao refused. When the campaign was first debated, critics said that if the enemy held the Great Pass the army would run out of supplies and have no way to withdraw. The Emperor said, "Not so. The Xianbei are greedy by nature and plunder without looking far ahead. Once they taste victory and covet the grain here, they will surely draw us on—and they will fight rashly besides. Once our army is through the pass, what have I to fear?" When they entered the pass the Emperor lifted his hand toward heaven and said, "The matter is settled." The troops asked why. The Emperor said, "We have passed the danger; every man is ready to die. Grain still stands in the fields, and the army need not fear want. Victory is certain."
32
使 退
In the sixth month Chao left the weak and aged to defend Guanggu and sent Prince of Guangning He Cilu and Gongsun Wulou to hold Linqu with their full strength. Forty li from the city lay the Jumei River. Chao ordered Wulou to seize it immediately. Before Wulou could reach it, Dragon Cavalry General Meng Longfu had already taken the crossing, and Wulou fell back.
33
The main army split four thousand chariots into two wings and advanced in close formation, curtains drawn on the chariots and drivers holding leather shields, with cavalry as roaming screens. Discipline was severe. As they neared Linqu enemy horsemen attacked again and again. The Emperor ordered Inspector of Yan Province Liu Fan, Inspector of Bing Province Liu Daolin, and others to smash their lines. The sun was already westering and the battle still raged. The Emperor took staff officer Hu Fan's advice, stormed Linqu, and the enemy broke and fled. Chao fled back to Guanggu. The army captured his jade seal, leopard-tail standards, imperial carriage, and the like, and sent them to the capital. On the bingzi day they took the outer city of Guanggu; Chao shut himself in the inner citadel. They then drew a long siege around him, fed the army from Qing province's grain, and halted shipments from the Yangtze and Huai.
34
使 西
In the seventh month Chao's Master of Writing Lang Zhang Gang went to Yao Xing to ask for troops, returned from Chang'an, and was seized and sent under guard by Taishan Administrator Shen Xuan. Gang was a clever inventor. While the Emperor was building siege engines, the men on the walls had said, "Without Zhang Gang, what can you accomplish?" When Gang arrived they lifted him onto a tower chariot to display him to the city. Inside the walls every face went pale. Relief did not come, and Gang was now a captive. Chao then offered to submit as a vassal, cede the Great Pass as a border, and present a thousand horses, but the Emperor refused. Yao Xing then sent an envoy declaring that he would cross the Huai. The Emperor told him, "Go tell Yao Xing: when I have settled Qing Province I shall march through Hangu Pass. If the barbarians mean to surrender themselves, the moment is now." Recording Officer Liu Muzhi hurried in and said, "Those words will not frighten the enemy—they may only provoke him. If the Xianbei are not yet broken and the Western Qiang come too, how will you face them?" The Emperor laughed and said, "That is military stratagem—not a matter within your reach. If the Qiang could save them they would not need a warning first; giving one only steels our own ranks."
35
使
In the tenth month Zhang Gang completed the siege engines—flying towers with hanging ladders, wooden screens and plank shelters roofed in oxhide, proof against bow and arrow. Liu Yi sent Shangdang Administrator Zhao Hui with more than a thousand men as reinforcements. The Emperor secretly moved troops by night to meet them. By dawn Hui's force had swelled to five thousand and marched in formation along the road; each time a Jin envoy was due to arrive they staged the display again. On the dinghai day of the second month in the sixth year they sacked Guanggu. Chao fled over the wall, was pursued and captured, and was executed in the Jiankang market. They killed his princes, officials, and their followers, took more than ten thousand captives, and seized two thousand horses.
36
使 輿
When the Emperor marched north, Xu Daofu urged Lu Xun to strike while the capital lay open, but Xun refused. Daofu then went to Panyu and told him, "Today's opportunity must not be missed. If we seize the capital, Liu Yu may return, but he will be powerless." Xun agreed. That month they raided Nankang, Luling, and Yuzhang; every administrator fled. The Emperor was preparing to garrison Xiapi and advance toward the Yellow River and Luoyang, but when the imperial dispatch arrived he marched back the same day. General Who Pacifies the South He Wuji fought Daofu, was defeated, and died at Yuzhang. Court and country were shaken, and some at court urged moving the imperial carriage north. The Emperor halted at Shanyang. Hearing of the defeat, he forced-marched with a few dozen men to the river to gather news and learned that the rebels had not yet arrived.
37
使
On the guiwei day of the fourth month the Emperor reached the capital. Liu Yi volunteered to campaign south in person. The Emperor, judging the rebels fresh from victory and still keen, said they must advance in strength together and sent Liu Fan to hold Yi back, but Yi refused. On the renwu day of the fifth month Lu Xun defeated Yi at Sangluo Isle. When they learned the Emperor had entered the capital in triumph, they looked at one another and went pale, intending to fall back to Xunyang, secure Jiangling, and hold the two provinces against the court. Daofu urged that they press their victory and push downstream; after ten days of argument Xun finally agreed.
38
The northern army had just returned, its wounds still unhealed. The soldiers numbered only a few thousand against more than a hundred thousand rebels, their fleet stretching a thousand li. Meng Chang and Zhuge Changren were terrified and wanted to escort the Son of Heaven across the river. The Emperor said, "Our soldiers are few, but enough for one fight. If we prevail, lord and subject share the victory; if not, we can no longer scrape out a living in the weeds. My mind is made up." When the Emperor had campaigned against Murong Chao, Meng Chang alone had urged him to go. On the bingchen day Chang memorialized the throne accepting blame and died by poison.
39
退 使
Councilors then urged dividing the army to hold the river crossings. The Emperor said, "The enemy outnumbers us. Split our forces and they will read our weakness; lose one post and the whole army loses heart. Gather at Shitou and our strength stays whole. On the wuwu day the Emperor shifted his headquarters to Shicheng. On the yichou day the rebels came in force. The Emperor said, "If they drive straight up from Xinting, we will pull back for now; if they turn and moor at Caizhou, they are as good as ours." Xu Daofu wanted to burn the boats at Xinting and give battle, but Xun was suspicious and indecisive, always insisting on perfect safety, and moored at Caizhou to wait for the army to fall apart. The Emperor climbed Shitou to look out, saw what had happened, and was pleased. On the gengchen day the rebels laid an ambush on the south bank and sent a feint toward Baishi. The Emperor led Liu Yi and Zhuge Changren north to meet them, leaving staff officer Xu Chite to hold Chabu under strict orders not to engage. After the Emperor marched north, the rebels burned Chabu and pushed to Zhanghou Bridge. Chite gave battle and was routed; the rebels advanced and encamped in Danyang commandery. The Emperor raced back to Shitou and executed Xu Chite. After the men had rested out of armor for some time, he deployed his line at Nantang. On the gengshen day of the seventh month Xun pulled back from Caizhou, intending to return to Xunyang. The Emperor sent General Who Assists the State Wang Zhongde and others after him. He sent General Who Establishes Might Sun Chu by sea to strike Panyu and told him, "I will break these rebels by the twelfth month. You can reach Panyu in time—strike their nest first."
40
使 西 竿
In the tenth month the Emperor led the fleet south and left Liu Yi to oversee affairs at the capital headquarters. That month Xu Daofu attacked Jiangling, but Inspector of Jing Province Liu Daogui routed him and Daofu fled back to Penkou. In the eleventh month Sun Chu reached Panyu and took the city. Lu Xun's father Gu fled to Shixing, and Chu reassured the people and held the town. On the jimao day of the twelfth month the main army halted at Dalei. On the gengchen day the rebels came downriver. The Emperor himself took up banner and drum and ordered a united attack. The army fielded many ten-thousand-jun crossbows, and nothing they struck remained standing. The Emperor himself pressed them from midstream. Wind and current drove the rebel ships against the west bank, where the shore troops, fire gear ready, burned them. The enemy was broken completely. Xun fell back to Xunyang, then fled to Yuzhang and threw all his strength into fortifying Zuoli. On the bingshen day the main army halted at Zuoli. As battle was about to begin the Emperor raised his command baton; the shaft snapped and the banner sank in the water. All were afraid. The Emperor laughed and said, "It was just like this at Fuzhou. Victory is certain now." They stormed the fort. Xun escaped alone in a small boat, and his men surrendered. When the army returned, the Jin Emperor sent a Palace Attendant and Yellow Gate officer to honor the troops on the march.
41
On the jiwei day of the first month in the seventh year he returned with his army refreshed and was reassigned Grand General and Governor of Yang Province with twenty ceremonial swords, while retaining his other posts. He firmly declined. All who had fallen in the northern and southern campaigns were listed for burial gifts. Where bodies had not come home, commanders were sent to receive them and return them to their native lands.
42
In the second month Lu Xun reached Panyu, was broken by Sun Chu, gathered his remnant forces, and fled south. Liu Fan and Meng Huaiyu cut off Xu Daofu at Shixing.
43
Since Jin's restoration court discipline had slackened, powerful families had swallowed up holdings, and common people had been driven from their homes, unable to keep their livelihoods. Huan Xuan had wanted to reform this, but in the end could not enforce it. Once the Emperor became regent he made the standards plain. Powerful families fell silent, and lawlessness was forbidden far and near. At this time Yu Liang of Yuyao in Kuaiji again sheltered more than a thousand fugitives. The Emperor executed Liang and removed Sima Xiuzhi from his post as Interior Secretary of Kuaiji.
44
The Jin Emperor again repeated the earlier decree, but the Emperor firmly refused. He was then reassigned Grand Commandant and Director of the Secretariat, accepted the mandate, and was presented with the yellow axe.
45
Inspector of Jiao Province Du Huidu beheaded Lu Xun and his son and sent their heads to the capital in a box. The presented scholars and filial-and-incorrupt candidates sent up from the provinces had often been unworthy. The Emperor memorialized to restore the old rules and tested them by examination.
46
西 西 西
Inspector of Jing Province Liu Daogui fell ill and asked to retire. In the fourth month of the eighth year he was reassigned to Yu Province, and Liu Yi of Yu Province replaced him. Yi had heroic talent and great ambition. He and the Emperor had restored Jin together, and he considered his achievements at the capital and at Guangling a match for the Emperor's. Outwardly he deferred to him, but in his heart he did not submit. He praised himself lavishly, and many respected court officials rallied to him. He formed close ties with Vice Director Xie Hun and Chief of Jinyang Chi Shengshi. When he took Jiangling he pulled much of the old Yu Province staff to himself and asked that Shengshi be made Colonel of the Southern Barbarians. The Emperor knew Yi would eventually turn rebel and secretly laid plans against him. When Yi reached the west he claimed grave illness and asked that his cousin Fan, Inspector of Yan Province, be made his deputy. The Emperor pretended to agree. In the ninth month Fan came to court. The Emperor had Fan and Xie Hun arrested, and both were put to death. He memorialized on his own authority to attack Yi, was again granted the yellow axe, and marched west at the head of the armies. Former General Who Pacifies the Army Sima Xiuzhi was made General Who Pacifies the West and Inspector of Jing Province; Liu Daolin of Yan Province held Dantu; Zhuge Changren of Yu Province oversaw the capital headquarters; and Grand Commandant Marshal Liu Muzhi, Chief of Jinyang, was made General Who Establishes Might, each with real troops under command. On the renwu day he left Jiankang and sent staff officer Wang Zhen'e and Dragon Cavalry General Kuai En ahead to strike Jiangling. They took the city, and Yi and his followers were all executed.
47
西使
In the eleventh month the Emperor reached Jiangling, carved ten Jing commanderies into Xiang Province, and kept command of it himself. Zhu Lingshi, Administrator of Xiyang, was made Inspector of Yi Province and sent to conquer Shu. The Jin Emperor promoted him to Grand Tutor and Governor of Yang Province, adding a feather canopy, drum escort, and twenty ceremonial swords.
48
輿
On the yichou day of the second month in the ninth year the Emperor returned from Jiangling. Zhuge Changren had long been greedy, licentious, and overbearing, and the Emperor had always indulged him. After Liu Yi was executed, Changren told his intimates, "Last year they minced Peng Yue; this year they killed Han Xin. Disaster is near." He began plotting rebellion. The Emperor fixed a date to reach the capital, yet each time delayed and did not come. Grandees and officials came day after day to pay their respects at Xinting, and Changren too went out often. Then the Emperor slipped in by light boat and was already back at the Eastern Headquarters. When Changren came to the gate he was summoned in. The Emperor dismissed the attendants and spoke with him privately, taking up every matter they had never fully aired. Changren was greatly pleased. The Emperor had secretly ordered his attendant Ding Wu to slip out from behind the curtain, seize Changren where he sat, and kill him beside the bed. The body was sent to the Court of Justice, and his younger brother Liren was executed as well. Wu was fierce and strong. People said at the time, "Don't play the tyrant—leave it to Ding Wu."
49
西
Mountains, lakes, rivers, and marshes had all been seized by powerful families. Even gathering firewood, fishing, and cutting reeds were taxed. Now that was forbidden. The people were not yet settled. The Emperor memorialized to fix the rules, and resettlement was carried out by territorial boundaries, except for those from Xu, Yan, and Qing provinces living at Jinling. Many displaced commanderies and counties were merged or abolished. The Emperor was also made General Who Guards the West and Inspector of Yu Province. He firmly declined the posts of Grand Tutor, Governor of Yang Province, and the ceremonial swords, and returned the yellow axe.
50
In the seventh month Zhu Lingshi pacified Shu, beheaded Qiao Zong, and sent his head to Jiankang.
51
In the ninth month, for merit in pacifying Qi and settling Lu Xun, the Jin Emperor enfeoffed the Emperor's second son Yizhen as Duke of Guiyang; and again repeated the earlier command, appointing him Grand Tutor and Governor of Yang Province with feather canopy, drum escort, and twenty ceremonial swords. Generals, officials, and the whole court urged him repeatedly. He accepted the feather canopy, drum escort, and ceremonial swords, but firmly declined the rest.
52
In the tenth year he rested the people and reduced corvée labor, built the Eastern Headquarters city, and raised its offices.
53
The Emperor considered Sima Xiuzhi of Jing Province weighty as a member of the imperial clan and a man who held the hearts of the Jiang and Han regions, and suspected him of disloyal intent; Xiuzhi's son Prince of Qiao Wensi was at the capital gathering rowdies. The Emperor seized him and sent him to Xiuzhi, leaving him to handle the matter himself. Xiuzhi memorialized to disown Wensi and wrote the Emperor a letter of apology.
54
西 西 西 '' '' 使 西
In the first month of the eleventh year the Emperor arrested Xiuzhi's son Wenbao and his brother's son Wenzu, had both put to death, and marched west at the head of his army. He was again granted the yellow axe and held the post of Inspector of Jing Province concurrently. General of the Center Liu Daolin was left to oversee affairs at the capital headquarters. Xiuzhi memorialized in his own defense and also charged the Emperor with crimes. Han YanZhi, Recording Officer on Xiuzhi's staff, was a capable man. Before the Emperor reached Jiangling he wrote secretly to win him over. YanZhi replied, "I learn that you personally lead your army far into the western frontier. Gentry and commoners throughout the region are all struck with terror. I am honored by your letter and understand that this concerns the Prince of Qiao. That only deepens my sighs. Sima the Pacifier of the West embodies the state's loyalty and treats men with sincere goodwill. Because you have the merit of restoring the dynasty, state and family rely upon you. He extended you virtue and entrusted you with sincerity, consulting you in every matter. The Prince of Qiao, though impeached for a minor matter, still memorialized on his own to yield his rank; how much less should one keep silent when faced with a great fault! Your letter says, 'To treat men with an eye to future gain has its own origins.' Now you attack another man's lord and feed men with profit—this is truly what may be called treating men with an eye to future gain. Liu Fan died at Changhe Gate, Zhuge was killed by attendants' hands. With sweet words you deceive the regional lords, then surprise them with light troops. Thus there are no sincere men at the banquet and no confident lords beyond the borders. To call this clever strategy is shameful. Though I am base and mean, I have heard the way from gentlemen. With the Pacifier of the West's supreme virtue, how could there fail to be ministers who would give their lives? If Heaven does not long prolong chaos and the age runs turbid, I shall wander underground with Zang Hong. I shall say no more." The Emperor read the letter, sighed, and showed it to his generals and aides. "Serving one's lord should be like this," he said.
55
殿
In the third month the army halted at Jiangling. Earlier Lu Zongzhi, Inspector of Yong Province, relied on his strength and loved disorder. Fearing the Emperor would not tolerate him, he often repeated a prophecy: "When the fish ascends the sun, it assists the imperial house." He allied with Xiuzhi. Now he led his son Gui, Administrator of Jingling, to rendezvous at Jiangling. The Emperor crossed the river. Xiuzhi's army broke and fled with Gui and the others to Xiangyang. Jiangling was taken. He was also made Chief of the Southern Man. When he was to take office as Chief of the Southern Man, the day fell under the four prohibitions. His clerks Zheng Xianzhi and the others asked to postpone it. He refused. He issued an edict proclaiming clemency and relief. In the fourth month the army marched on Xiangyang. Xiuzhi and his followers fled to Yao Xing. The Jin emperor again pressed the earlier honors on him: Grand Tutor and Governor of Yangzhou, sword and shoes in the hall, no hurrying in court, no naming in obeisance, forward feather-canopy and martial music, four chiefs of staff, marshals, and attending gentlemen on left and right, and enfeoffment of his third son Yilong as Duke of North Pengcheng. On the day jiazi in the eighth month the Emperor returned from Jiangling. He gave back the yellow battle-axe and refused Grand Tutor, Governor, and the forward canopy and music, but accepted the other honors.
56
In the first month of the twelfth year the Jin emperor ordered the Emperor to recruit gentlemen as before, made him General Who Pacifies the North and Governor of Yanzhou, and extended his command to Southern Qin—for twenty-two provinces in all. The Emperor held that Pacifying the North had too few officials and soldiers to warrant a separate headquarters, so he abolished that office and merged it into his main headquarters. In the third month he was made Grand Commander of Court and Country.
57
西
After pacifying Qi he still meant to recover the Guan and Luo region, but Lu Xun's invasion forced him to set that plan aside. With Jing and Yong secure, he turned to campaigns abroad. Yao Xing died. His son Hong had just taken the throne; brothers turned on one another and Guanzhong fell into chaos. On the day yichou in the fourth month the Emperor memorialized for a campaign against Guan and Luo, ordered the army to prepare for a northern expedition, and was also made General Who Campaigns West and Governor of Si and Yu. The heir was made Governor of Xu and Yan. The Emperor wished to win the distant lands by righteous fame and to lead the Prince of Langye north in person. In the fifth month Mount Huo in Lujiang collapsed. Six bells were found and sent to the throne. On the day guisi he was also made Governor of Northern Yong, with forward and rear canopies, martial music, and forty ceremonial swords. On the day dingsi in the eighth month he led the main army out. The heir was made Central Army General and oversaw affairs at the Grand Commandant's headquarters. Liu Muzhi, Vice Director of the Masters of Writing, became Left Vice Director and took charge of the Overseer Army and Central Army staffs at the Eastern Headquarters, directing affairs within and without. In the ninth month the Emperor reached Pengcheng and was also made Governor of Northern Xu. In the tenth month the army reached Luoyang, besieged Jinyong, and took its surrender. The five Jin imperial tombs were restored and guards were posted.
58
In the twelfth month, on the day renshen, the Jin emperor made him Chief Minister, overseer of all government and Governor of Yangzhou, Duke of Song over ten commanderies, with the Nine Bestowals, imperial seals and cord, the far-wandering cap, and the Chief Minister's green sash, ranking him above all princes and kings. The mandate reads:
59
羿
I am dull and weak, yet I uphold the great foundation. Yi seized his chance, overthrew the throne, fled south, and moved the court to Jiujiang. The ancestral rites ceased; gods and men were displaced. I was dragged along with rebels and lived as a refugee on the river. Our ancestors' legacy collapsed; seven hundred years of fortune fell. I was as one drowning in a great sea, with no shore in sight. Heaven did not yet end Jin. It sent a great helper who tightened the loosened bonds, remade the realm, restored the fallen, and brought light to the dark. In supreme merit and virtue I truly rely on him.
60
西
Now I confer the canonical mandate upon him. Hear my command: Huan Xuan usurped power, overwhelmed Heaven, and destroyed the dynasty. He uprooted the state and overturned the cosmic order. Officials bowed in fear; none could save the realm. The Duke's spirit matched the sun; his valor reached the heavens. He crushed the rebels, recovered the capital, and restored the emperor to the spirits' altar. This was his first great act of loyalty, when he served the righteous cause. He took command among the lords, marched upstream, struck the highlands, and won victory at Southern Jing. The chief rebel was destroyed and all enemies swept away. The realm was restored to order. This too was his achievement. As minister at court and lord abroad, he enriched the people, increased households, extended the borders, governed by virtue, and brought peace to the four quarters. This too was his achievement. The Xianbei seized the three Qi and, from their distant strongholds, plagued the borders. The Duke gathered his forces and drove deep into the frontier. His assault towers surrounded the enemy on every side; fortress after fortress fell. Three thousand li of territory were won and his authority proclaimed across the northern desert. This too was his achievement. Lu Xun the rebel watched his chance in the five ridges, swept through Jiang and Yu, and threatened the capital itself. Some urged moving the capital; others urged moving their households. The Duke crossed the river in person, righteous wrath on his face. By unmatched strategy he drove the rebel to flight by night and saved the capital from ruin. This too was his achievement. He pursued the fleeing enemy along the river and sent a fleet across the sea that arrived within days. At Panyu tens of thousands were captured; at Zuoli the enemy broke and scattered like birds and fish. The chief rebel fled far away; his head was sent a thousand leagues. This too was his achievement. Liu Yi rebelled in the west, insulted the throne, and gave free rein to treachery and violence. The Duke struck with the law and destroyed him within a day. The rebel was taken and Jing and Heng were pacified. This too was his achievement. Qiao Zong seized a corner of the realm, blocked royal authority, and drowned the three Ba in rebellion. The Duke sent a detached force with a sound plan. They crossed the rapids, reached the heart of the region, executed the usurper, and pacified Liang and Min. This too was his achievement. Ma Xiu and Lu Zong took up arms in the interior, rallied two regions, and raised rebellion. The Duke moved like a star, outgeneraled them, and struck at the river crossing with the force of wind and lightning. The rebels fled; Jing and Yong revived under his rule. This too was his achievement. Since Yongjia the barbarians had seized China; the five capitals were lost; the tombs lay in shame. The dead cried for vengeance; the living yearned for restoration. The Duke matched Yi Yin who saved the drowning king and the Duke of Qi who avenged a fallen state. He raised his army, proclaimed a great crusade, and sent his generals north to Si and Yan. Xu and Zheng submitted; Gong and Luo were cleared. A century of ruin was swept away in a morning. This too was his achievement.
61
西 使使使 西
The Duke has brought peace to the realm, and his virtue matches his deeds. From his first rise his plans surpassed the ancients. He struck down mighty rebels with lightning speed, pacified the eastern capital, and saved the people. In founding the state he transformed the realm year by year; in saving it from peril he made the Way firm as the mulberry root. He cut away harsh laws with uniform fairness and spread pure civilization throughout the world. Therefore the farthest lands sent tribute and all the nine regions followed his rule. Not even Yu the Great's reach east and west, nor Gao Yao's virtue in planting goodness, could surpass this. I have heard that the ancient kings governed by honoring merit and the worthy, enfeoffing lords and rewarding them with honors, so that they might support the throne and guard the realm forever. Thus Qufu was glorified and Xu extended; Yingqiu looked to the sea and its fame reached the four quarters. King Xiang too relied on hegemons to restore order; he richly rewarded Duke Wen of Jin with full honors. The Duke's virtue surpasses the ancients and his merit shakes history, yet the highest honors have not been granted. I am deeply at fault! Now I make him Chief Minister and Duke of Song over ten commanderies: Pengcheng, Pei, Lanling, Xiapi, Huaiyang, Shanyang, and Guangling in Xu, and Gaoping, Lu, and Taishan in Yan. I bestow this sacred earth wrapped in white thatch, that he may fix his dwelling and establish his altar of soil and grain. Of old Jin and Zheng were frontier lords who became chief ministers; the dukes of Zhou and Shao tutored the heir and governed abroad. The Duke unites both roles. I send Commissioner Zhan, Grand Commandant and Left Vice Director, Baron of Jinning, to confer the Chief Minister's seals and cord and the Duke of Song's seals and sash. I send Commissioner Tai, Minister of Works, Regular Attendant, and Master of Writing, Marquis of Yangsui, to confer the enfeoffment earth, golden tiger tallies one through five on the left, and bamboo envoy tallies one through ten on the left. The Chief Minister oversees all affairs and stands above the court. His ordinary title should change with his new office. Let him as Chief Minister oversee all government and drop the title Recording the Masters of Writing; return the borrowed tally, Attendant's regalia, seals of Grand Commander, Grand Tutor, and Grand Commandant, and the Duke of Yuzhang's seal and mandate; advance him to Governor of Yangzhou, retaining General Who Campaigns West and the governorships of Si, Yu, Northern Xu, and Yong.
62
使 使西
The Duke's governance is the model for all states. He holds firm to the right path and never wavers. Therefore he is granted a great chariot and a war chariot, each with a team of four dark stallions; The Duke honors the root over the branch, devotes himself to farming, and gathers rich harvests. For this he is granted the highest robe and cap, with red shoes; The Duke corrects evil and upholds the right, transforms customs, and shapes all things as music shapes harmony. For this he is granted royal music and the six-row dance; The Duke spreads royal civilization and fine customs; Chinese and barbarians alike look to him, and distant peoples gather. For this he is granted vermilion doors for his dwelling; The Duke appoints the able and gathers the neglected; worthy men fill the court. For this he is granted the hidden steps to ascend; The Duke holds the center, leads by righteousness, repels enemies, and clears away harsh wrongs. For this he is granted three hundred tiger guards; The Duke clarifies punishments and judges fairly; rebels and lawbreakers have nowhere to flee. For this he is granted an axe and a ceremonial axe; The Duke soars like dragon and phoenix; within a foot he commands the eight directions, holds the four seas in his grasp, and repels every foe abroad. For this he is granted one red bow and a hundred red arrows, ten black bows and a thousand black arrows; The Duke is reverent in filial piety and sincere in sacrifice; his loyal devotion is the model for all the realm. For this he is granted sacred wine and libation vessels. In the state of Song, from Chief Minister down, all offices follow the old regulations. Reverence! Reverently accept this mandate, answer Heaven's blessing, care for the people, spread your bright virtue, and fulfill my high ancestor's command! Let Song establish Attendants, Gentlemen of the Yellow Gate, and the Left Assistant Director to welcome the envoy at once. Qifu Chipan of Baoheng sent envoys to the Emperor offering to join the campaign against Yao Hong. He was made General Who Pacifies the West and Duke of Henan.
63
祿 殿
In the first month of the thirteenth year the Emperor marched by river. He left Yilong, Duke of Pengcheng, to guard the city. The army halted at Chenliu. At Zhang Liang's temple the Emperor ordered that the halls be repaired in season and offerings made. The Jin emperor posthumously honored the Emperor's grandfather as Minister of Ceremonies and his father as Special Court Advisor and Left Household Master of Light. The Emperor declined. In the second month Tan Daoji and other generals reached Tong Pass. On the day gengchen in the third month the Emperor led the main army across the Yellow River. In the fifth month the Emperor reached Luoyang and visited the five Jin imperial tombs. In the seventh month he reached Shan. Wang Zhen'e, Flying-Dragon General, sailed his fleet from the Yellow River onto the Wei. In the eighth month Shen Tianzi, Administrator of Fufeng, routed Yao Hong's army at Lantian. Wang Zhen'e took Chang'an and captured Hong alive. Since the ninth year of Yixi, Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, and Venus had gathered at the Well constellation. Now Guanzhong was pacified. In the ninth month the Emperor reached Chang'an. Chang'an was rich and its granaries full. The Emperor first sent its ritual vessels, armillary sphere, earth square, mile-measuring drum, south-pointing carriage, and the jade seal of the First Emperor of Qin to the capital; and distributed the rest of the jewels and treasures among his generals. The Yao clan was resettled south of the river. Hong was sent to the capital and beheaded in the market at Jiankang. He visited the tomb of Emperor Gaozu of Han and held a great assembly of civil and military officials in Weiyang Palace.
64
西
In the tenth month the Jin emperor ordered that the Duke of Song advance to King, adding ten commanderies to the state of Song—for twenty commanderies in all. He remains Chief Minister, Governor of Yangzhou, General Who Campaigns West, and governor of Si, Yu, Northern Xu, and Yong. The Emperor meant to remain at Chang'an and plan for Zhao and Wei, but in the eleventh month Liu Muzhi, Forward General, died, and he turned homeward. In the twelfth month, on the day gengzi, he left Chang'an. Yizhen, Duke of Guiyang, was made Governor of Yong and garrisoned Chang'an, with trusted generals left to assist him.
65
西西西 西
In the first month of the fourteenth year, on the day renxu, the Emperor reached Pengcheng and stood the army down. Liu Zunkao, Assistant General Who Assists the State, was made Governor of Bing and Hedong and garrisoned Puban. The Emperor gave up Si province and took Xu and Ji, but again refused advancement in rank. At that time on the Han River cliffs at Chenggu in Hanzhong came a sound like thunder. The bank collapsed, and twelve bronze bells rose from the buried earth. Zong Yao of Gong county found fine grain in his field, nine ears on a single stalk. The Emperor sent it as tribute, and the Jin emperor returned it to him. The Emperor modestly declined, and the matter was dropped. On the day dinghai in the sixth month he received the mandate of Chief Minister, Duke of Song, and the Nine Bestowals, and ordered a pardon for all within the state guilty of capital crimes and below. An edict made the Grand Matron of Yuzhang Grand Consort of the Duke of Song and the heir Central Army General and deputy at the Chief Minister's headquarters; all other offices followed the imperial court's system. It was also ordered that appointments might be made beyond the ten commanderies of Song. Earlier Shen Tianzi, staff officer of the Pacifying West army, killed Wang Zhen'e, its marshal; the generals then killed Wang Xiu, its chief of staff. Guanzhong fell into chaos. In the tenth month the Emperor sent Zhu Lingshi, Right General, to replace Yizhen as Governor of Yong. On his return Yizhen was pursued by Helian Bobo, routed, and barely escaped alive. The generals and Lingshi were all lost.
66
便 使
In the twelfth month Emperor An of Jin died. The Grand Marshal, Prince of Langye, took the throne. In the first month of the first year of Yuanxi the Jin emperor summoned the Emperor to court, again pressed the earlier honors on him, advanced the Duke to King, and added ten commanderies to Song: Hailing, Northern Donghai, Northern Qiao, and Northern Liang in Xuzhou; Xincai in Yuzhou; Northern Chenliu in Yanzhou; and Chen, Runan, Yingchuan, and Xingyang in Sizhou. In the seventh month he at last accepted the mandate. He pardoned all within the state guilty of punishments of five years and below and moved the capital to Shouyang. In the ninth month he relinquished Yangzhou. In the twelfth month the Jin emperor granted him the twelve-tassel cap, the Son of Heaven's banners, imperial escort, the golden-root chariot with six horses, five seasonal chariots, yak-tail and cloud pennants, eight-row dance, and palace bells. His mother was made Empress Dowager, his wife Queen, his heir Crown Prince; titles for princes and grandsons followed the old regulations. In the first month of the second year the Emperor memorialized declining these special honors. At the Jiang riverbank in Jingling commandery the ground opened by itself, and more than ten ancient bronze ritual vessels emerged. The Emperor offered them to the Jin emperor, who declined to accept them; they were then treated as auspicious objects and stored at the Chief Minister's headquarters. In the fourth month an edict sent earnest persuasion and again summoned the Emperor to court. On the day renxu in the sixth month the Emperor reached the capital. On the day jiayin the Jin emperor abdicated to Song. When the abdication edict was drafted, it was sent to the emperor to copy. He took the brush at once and said to those beside him: "Under Huan Xuan the mandate had already changed. Duke Liu extended my reign for nearly twenty years. Today's affair is what my heart has long accepted." On the day jiazi he sent envoys bearing the mandate document, which read:
67
輿 祿
To you, King of Song: in deepest antiquity, when rule first arose, the details are lost in time. From the age of writing down to the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, sages ruled the four seas, stopped war, and fixed the great enterprise. The emperor is the vessel for ruling all things; the ruler's way is the utmost fairness under Heaven. In high antiquity, when Heaven's blessing ended, Tang and Yu could not pass the throne to their sons; when the mandate came, Shun and Yu could not keep their modest refusal. Thus they ordered the three realms, set the transforming norms, made models for all time, and handed down virtue for ten thousand generations. Thereafter each age grew stronger in this. Han followed Yao's virtue; Wei matched Shun's track. They harmonized men and spirits and took the people as their heart.
68
姿 祿 使祿 ' ' ' ' '
Our ancestors were reverent and bright, and the pole star stood firm; yet light and dark alternate, and fullness and waning have their terms. The fall of Shang foretold calamity for many ages. Once it could not be overcome; how much less today. What Heaven abolishes has long been foretold. Only you hold the sage's stature, embrace heaven and earth's virtue, shine like sun and moon, and match the four seasons in your Way. When the altars fell, you saved them; when the central plains lay waste, you restored them. From stubborn rebels to those who defied the law and seized vast territories—none escaped your rain of grace or thunder of wrath. The nine campaigns were carried out; the eight methods brought order. You have not only enriched the people and saved the masses; your righteousness fills the four seas and your authority the eight directions. Heaven shows signs; the four spirits send omens; prophecies are clear; men and spirits have turned their hope. Craftsmen sing in court, people chant in the fields, and all the realm leaps, awaiting the new age. Unless the people pushed and Heaven's mandate gathered, how could I hold this alone? Therefore I reverently follow Heaven and the people's will, abdicate the throne, and confer the imperial seat upon you. The great fortune is ended; Heaven's blessing passes away. Alas! King, hold the center, follow the canon, fulfill the realm's wish, extend the great enterprise without end, receive Heaven's blessing, and answer the three spirits' regard. He also sent Commissioner Xie Tan, Grand Tutor and Household Master of Light, and Liu Xuanfan, Grand Commandant and Master of Writing, bearing the imperial letter, returning the imperial seals and cord, with the rites of abdication following the precedents of Tang-Yu and Han-Wei. The Emperor submitted a memorial of refusal. The Jin emperor had already moved to the Prince of Langye's residence; the memorial could not reach him. Then Qian Si, Prince of Chenliu, with two hundred seventy others, and all the ministers of Song, memorialized urging him to accept the throne. He still refused. Grand Astrologer Luo Da presented the correspondence of heavenly signs, saying: "From the first year of Yixi of Jin to the first year of Yuanxi, Venus crossed the heavens in daylight seven times. The prognostication says: 'When Venus crosses the heavens, rulers change and a different surname rises. In the seventh year of Yixi, five rainbows appeared in the east. The prognostication says: 'When five rainbows appear, the Son of Heaven is deposed and a sage emerges. In the ninth year, Saturn, Jupiter, Venus, and Mars gathered in the Well constellation. In the thirteenth year, Saturn entered the Grand Subtlety. The prognostication says: 'When Saturn guards the Grand Subtlety, a king is established and a king is displaced. In the winter of the first year of Yuanxi, black dragons ascended to heaven four times. The Commentary on the Changes says: 'When a dragon appears in winter, the Son of Heaven loses the altars of state and a great man receives the mandate. The Daoist monk Fazheng of Jizhou told his disciples: 'The Spirit of Mount Song says: East of the river there is General Liu, a scion of the Han house, who is to receive Heaven's mandate. I give him thirty-two jade disks and one ingot of stabilizing gold—the number by which the Liu house's reign is divined. From Jianwu of Han to the end of Jian'an was one hundred ninety-six years, then abdication to Wei; from Huangchu of Wei to the end of Xianxi was forty-six years, then abdication to Jin; from Taishi of Jin to the present is one hundred fifty-six years. Three dynasties yielding the throne all exhausted their term at six. Also when Emperor Guangwu of Han established the altars at Nanyang, the tree there died at the end of Han; when Liu Bei held Shu, it responded and flourished; by the last years of Jin the old root first sprouted, and by now it had grown luxuriant. There were several tens of items like these. The ministers pressed again, and he at last accepted.
69
In the sixth month of summer of the inaugural year Yongchu, on the day dingmao, the Emperor took the throne at the southern suburb, raised an altar, burned firewood to announce his accession to Heaven, and said:
70
The Emperor, your subject Yu, ventures to offer a black bull and proclaim plainly to August Heaven and Sovereign Earth:
71
殿 宿
The Jin emperor, because divination showed his dynasty's term had ended and the mandate had passed to its rightful holder, reverently followed the age's flourishing fortune and entrusted the mandate to Yu. To set up a ruler and govern the world: the realm belongs to all; when virtue matches that of emperors and kings, the people's willing endorsement gathers of itself. From Yao and Shun down through Han and Wei, none failed to have a supreme sage align with the founding ancestor of civilization and a chief merit-holder ascend the throne, thereby greatly rescuing the common people and handing down instruction without end. After the Jin moved south, the four pillars of order no longer held firm, and the court had long depended on chief ministers. Hardship piled up in the Long'an era, catastrophe took shape under Yuanxing, until emperors were driven from the capital and the ancestral rites were cut off. Though Yu's domain was no match for Qi or Jin and his forces scarcely amounted to a regiment, he looked up in anger at the age's calamities and down in grief at the flood of ruin; with a shake of his sleeve and one command, the imperial sacrifices were restored. In peril he could hold firm; when the order was overturned he could set it right; treacherous evildoers were wiped out and usurping pretenders destroyed. Truly, the revival of what had been cast down has its season, and the end of decline has its reckoning. As for greatly rebuilding the Jin house, quelling chaos and succoring the age—riding the tide of the times, he truly bore the heaviest burden. Moreover, distant peoples admired righteousness, envoys came again and again to court, and wherever the imperial calendar reached, all submitted to civilizing rule. Even the three luminaries sent down portents, mountains and rivers announced auspicious signs, and heaven and earth joined in blessing, so that the mandate grew clearer month by month and year by year. Therefore the nobles, ministers, and officials, and the hundred million common people, all said that the August Spirit looked down from above while the Jin court showed sincerity below: the Mandate of Heaven could not long be delayed, and the imperial throne could not remain vacant. They thereupon pressed him with collective counsel and respectfully performed this great ceremony. Humbly, with scant virtue, I rest upon the myriad people above; though in awe of Heaven's majesty this is a small matter, yet turning deeply to lasting recollection, I am reverently fearful as though about to fall. Respectfully selecting this great day, I ascend the altar to receive the abdication, announce the succession to High God, answer the feeling of all under Heaven, magnify Heaven's blessing, and grant everlasting fortune to Song. May the luminous spirits accept this offering! When the rite was concluded, with full imperial equipage he went to Jiankang Palace, took his seat in the front hall of the Grand Ultimate, proclaimed a general amnesty, and changed the era name. He granted the people two ranks of noble status. Widowers, widows, orphans, and the destitute who could not support themselves received five piculs of grain each; overdue rents and old debts were not collected. Those who violated village standards of conduct, or committed corruption, debauchery, or theft—all were cleared entirely. Persons sentenced to long penal service were all specially pardoned and sent home. Those who lost office or rank, were barred from office, or had labor levies taken—all followed the former standards. The Jin emperor was enfeoffed as Prince of Lingling, with the full revenue of one commandery. He bore the Son of Heaven's banners and flags, rode the five-season secondary chariot, followed the Jin calendar, and in sacrifices to Heaven and Earth, rites, music, and institutions—all followed Jin regulations. In memorials to the throne he did not use the form "memorial"; in replies the word "edict" was not used. He was housed at the old Moling. He posthumously honored his late father as Emperor Xiaomu, his late mother as Empress Mu, and honored the Wang Empress Dowager as Empress Dowager. An edict stated: "The regret at slighting Yu runs deep for later generations; one who loves others cherishes their trees, and even then may not cut them. Though in a different age, righteousness does not permit extinction; the propriety of lowering ranks should wholly follow the former canon. The Duke of Shixing may be reduced to Duke of Shixing county, the Duke of Luling to Duke of Chaisang county, the Duke of Shi'an to Marquis of Lipu, the Duke of Changsha to Marquis of Liling; the Duke of Kangle is immediately reduced to county marquis—to maintain the sacrifices to Wang Dao, Xie An, Wen Qiao, Tao Kan, and Xie Xuan. Those who exerted strength in the Yixi era keep their original ranks."
72
使使
On the day gengwu, Dao Lin, Minister of Works, was made Grand Marshal and enfeoffed as Prince of Changsha; Yiqing, Duke of Nan Commandery, was established as Prince of Linchuan. An edict also set forth regulations for posthumous compensation and rewards for those who died in battle. On the day yihai, Yizhen, Duke of Guiyang, was established as Prince of Luling; Yilong, Duke of Pengcheng, as Prince of Yidu; Yikang as Prince of Pengcheng. On the day dingchou, envoys were sent to travel the four directions, displaying the worthy and raising the good and asking of the people's afflictions. Where lawsuits were deficient or excessive, government and punishments deviated, or harm to order and disturbance of custom failed to satisfy the people's hearing—all were to report fully. On the day wuyin, an edict increased the salaries of the hundred officials. On the day jimao, the Jin Taishi calendar was changed to the Yongchu calendar, with the communal sacrifice at the zi day and the winter sacrifice at the chen day.
73
使
On the day xinyou in the eighth month, an edict ordered that all old commanderies and counties with "north" in their names remove it; those established in the south as exiles might use "south" in their designation. On the day wuchen, an edict stated: "Pengcheng is the mulberry-and-catalpa homeland; honoring one's roots should be exalted—as with Feng and Pei. Pei commandery and Xiapi may each have land cloth exempted for thirty years. On the day xinwei, the late consort Lady Zang was posthumously titled Empress Jing; her tomb was named Everlasting Peace. On the day guiyou, the crown prince Yifu was established as Crown Prince. On the day yihai, those currently under punishment were pardoned. On the day renwu in the intercalary month, guards were established for the tombs of the Jin emperors; famous worthies and former sages were carefully swept and tended. On the day dingyou, Lin Yi sent envoys with tribute.
74
殿
On the ninth month, on the day renzi, ten Eastern Palace Palace Army commanders were established, with twenty supernumerary posts. On the day renshen, the post of Minister of Justice was established.
75
西
That year was the fifth year of Taichang under Emperor Mingyuan of Wei. Western Liang fell.
76
In the second year, on the day xinyou in the first month, he sacrificed at the Southern Altar and proclaimed a general amnesty. On the day bingyin, the use of gold and silver gilding was forbidden. Yizhen, Prince of Luling and Governor of Yangzhou, was made Grand Tutor. Xu Xianzhi, Vice Director of the Masters of Writing, was made Director of the Masters of Writing and Governor of Yangzhou. On the day jimao, copper nails were forbidden in funerals. The Kuaiji commandery headquarters was abolished.
77
使
In the second month, on the day jichou, provincial and commandery candidates for the Flowering Talent and Filial Piety titles were examined by decree in the Hall of Extended Worthies. Wa sent envoys with tribute. In the third month, on the day yichou, limits were first imposed: Jing province headquarters could have no more than two thousand officers and ten thousand clerks. For commandery headquarters, officers were capped at five hundred and clerks at five thousand. Soldiers were exempt from these limits. In the fourth month of summer, on the day jimao, illicit shrines were first forbidden and private lineage temples were abolished. Shrines erected to former worthies for merit and virtue were exempt. On the day wushen, he heard lawsuits in Hualin Garden.
78
In the fifth month, on the day jiyou, three Eastern Palace corps commanders were established: Mounted, Foot, and Assisting Army.
79
In the seventh month of autumn, on the day jisi, the earth quaked.
80
使
In the ninth month, on the day jichou, the Prince of Lingling died—as recorded in the Song Annals. The Emperor with the hundred officials attended at the court hall for three days, following Emperor Ming of Wei's precedent in mourning the Duke of Shanyang. He sent the concurrent Grand Commandant with credentials to oversee the funeral; burial followed Jin rites. In the tenth month of winter, on the day jihai, Juqu Mengxun, Xiongnu chieftain of Liang province, was made Grand General Who Guards the Army, granted privileges equal to the Three Excellencies, and appointed Governor of Liang.
81
In the eleventh month, on the day xinhai, Emperor Gong of Jin was buried at Chongping Mausoleum; the Emperor with the hundred officials attended the funeral procession. In the spring of the third year, on the first day of the first month, jiachen, an edict pardoned all crimes regardless of severity. On the day guichou, Xu Xianzhi, Director of the Masters of Writing and Governor of Yangzhou, was made Minister of Works and Recorder of Affairs of the Masters of Writing, retaining his governorship. Wang Hong, Governor of Jiang, was promoted to Guard General with privileges equal to the Three Excellencies. Fu Liang, Steward of the Heir Apparent's Household, was made Vice Director of the Masters of Writing. In the second month, on the day bingxu, a comet appeared in the lodges of Emptiness and Rooftop.
82
使
In the third month the Emperor fell ill. The Grand Commandant, Prince of Changsha Daoling; Xu Xianzhi, Minister of Works; Fu Liang, Vice Director of the Masters of Writing; Xie Hui, General of the Guard; and Tan Daoji, General Who Protects the Army—all entered to attend him with medicine. The ministers asked to pray to the spirits, but the Emperor refused. He had only Palace Attendant Xie Fangming report the illness to the ancestral temple. On the day dingwei, Yizhen, Prince of Luling, was made Palace Attendant, General of Chariots and Cavalry, granted privileges equal to the Three Excellencies, and appointed Governor of Southern Yu. On the day jiwei, the Emperor recovered; a general amnesty was proclaimed.
83
In the fourth month of summer, on the day yihai, Yang Sheng, Duke of Chouchi, was enfeoffed as King of Wudu.
84
殿 西殿 輿 西 使 西便西西
In the fifth month the Emperor was gravely ill. He summoned the Crown Prince and warned him: "Tan Daoji has talent and strategy, but no far-reaching ambition—not like my elder brother Shao, who had a spirit hard to withstand. Xu Xianzhi and Fu Liang should have no other designs. Xie Hui has often followed on campaign and knows well how to read a moment. If anyone turns against you, it will be he. When he yields a little, place him in Kuaiji or Jiang province." He also wrote a hand edict: "The court need not again maintain separate headquarters. The chief minister who holds Yangzhou may keep one thousand armored men. If any great minister in an important post needs men at his side to guard against ill-intentioned persons, he may be given a guard detail from the palace garrison. When campaigns arise, they are to be supplied with palace garrison troops; on return, the former arrangement is restored. If in later generations there is a young ruler, court affairs are wholly entrusted to the chief minister; the Empress Dowager need not preside at court. As weapons may not enter the palace gates, men of consequence may instead be granted ceremonial swords." On the day guihai the Emperor died in the West Hall. He was sixty years old. In the seventh month, on the day jiyou, he was buried at Chuning Mausoleum on Mount Jiang in Jiankang, Danyang. The ministers submitted the posthumous title Emperor Wu and the temple name Gaozu. The Emperor was plain and abstemious, stern and orderly in law. He never looked upon pearls, jade, chariots, or horses as adornments, and in the inner quarters there was no silk, brocade, or music. At first the court had not yet established music. Chief Clerk Yin Zhongwen raised the matter. The Emperor said: "The day allows no spare time, and besides I do not understand it." Yin Zhongwen said: "Listen often, and you will naturally understand it." The Emperor said: "It is precisely because understanding it would make me like it that I do not study it." Ning province once sent an amber pillow of exquisite luster and color, worth more than a hundred in gold. At the time he was about to campaign north. As amber was said to treat metal wounds, the Emperor was greatly pleased and ordered it broken apart and distributed among the generals. After pacifying Guanzhong he took Yao Xing's niece by marriage and favored her greatly. He neglected affairs of state for her sake; Xie Hui remonstrated, and at once he sent her away. Treasures and silks were kept in the outer treasury; he kept no private store within. When the Song palace was built, the relevant offices proposed cabriole-legged beds with gilt nails for the east and west halls. The Emperor refused. Straight-legged beds were used instead, with iron nails. Guang province once sent fine tube-woven cloth, eight zhang per bolt. The Emperor hated its fineness as a burden on the people; at once he had the prefect impeached, returned the cloth, and forbade its manufacture south of the ranges. The Emperor had long suffered fever and old metal wounds; in his later years these grew especially severe, and sitting or lying he constantly needed something cool. Later someone presented a stone bed. He found it excellent to sleep on, yet sighed and said: "A wooden bed already costs enough—how much more a stone one?" At once he ordered it destroyed. He decreed that when princesses married out, the dowry sent with them might not exceed two hundred thousand, and must include no brocade, embroidery, gold, or jade. Within and without the court, all observed the prohibition; none were not frugal. His nature was especially plain and easy. He once wore wooden clogs with connected teeth and liked to stroll freely within the Shenwu Gate, with no more than a dozen men following. At the time Xu Xianzhi lived in the Western Quarter. Once missing Xianzhi, he simply walked out the Western Side Gate; the imperial guard came in relays in pursuit, and he had already passed through the Western Bright Gate. When his sons came each morning to inquire after his health, he entered the private chamber, removed his official robes, and wore only skirt and cap, as within a family.
85
殿
In humble times he had plowed with his own hands at Dantu. After receiving the mandate, quite a few hoes and plows still remained, and he ordered them stored away for posterity. When Emperor Wen visited the old palace, saw them, and asked, his attendants answered truthfully. Emperor Wen looked ashamed. A close attendant stepped forward and said: "Great Shun plowed at Mount Li; Lord Yu himself took up earthworks and timber. Your Majesty, if you do not behold the relics of the sages, how will you know the hardship of sowing and reaping, or the late Emperor's utmost virtue?" In the Daming era of Emperor Xiaowu, they demolished the dark chamber where the late Emperor had lived and on that site raised Jade Candle Hall. Viewing it with the ministers, they found an earthen screen at the head of the bed, a hemp lamp-shade and a hemp-rope duster on the wall. Palace Attendant Yuan Yi greatly praised the late Emperor's frugal simplicity. Emperor Xiaowu did not reply, but said only: "A rustic landholder who got this would already consider it excessive." Thus he spread his light over the realm and completed the great enterprise—how grand!
86
In the third year of Yongchu, on the day guihai in the fifth month, Emperor Wu died. That same day the Crown Prince took the throne, proclaimed a general amnesty, entered mourning for three years, and honored the Empress Dowager as Grand Empress Dowager.
87
In the sixth month, on the day renshen, Fu Liang, Vice Director of the Masters of Writing, was made Supervisor of the Central Secretariat and Director of the Masters of Writing. Xu Xianzhi, Minister of Works; Xie Hui, General of the Guard; and Fu Liang formed the regency. On the day wuzi, the Grand Commandant, Prince of Changsha Daoling, died. In the ninth month of autumn, on the day dingwei, the relevant offices memorialized that Emperor Wu be paired at the Southern Altar and Empress Jing at the Northern Altar. In the eleventh month of winter, on the day wuwu, a comet appeared in Encampment Chamber.
88
In the twelfth month, on the day gengxu, Wei forces captured Huatai.
89
In the first year of Jingping, on the first day of the first month, jihai, a general amnesty was proclaimed and the era name changed. Civil and military ranks were raised two grades. On the day xinchou, sacrifice was made at the Southern Altar. Wei forces attacked Jinyong. On the day guimao, Henan commandery fell. On the day yimao, a comet appeared in Eastern Wall.
90
使 西 西
In the second month, on the day dingchou, the Grand Empress Dowager died. Juqu Mengxun, Grand General Who Guards the Army, and A'chai of the Tuyuhun Xianbei in Henan both sent envoys with tribute. On the day gengchen, Mengxun was promoted to Grand General of Agile Cavalry and enfeoffed as King of Hexi. A'chai was made General Who Pacifies the West and Governor of Sha, and enfeoffed as Duke of Qiaohe.
91
使
In the third month, on the day renyin, Empress Xiaoyi was buried in association at Xingning Mausoleum. That month, Goguryeo sent envoys with tribute.
92
In the intercalary fourth month of summer, on the day jiwei, Wei forces captured Hulao.
93
In the seventh month of autumn, on the day guiyou, his biological mother Lady Zhang was honored as Empress Dowager. On the day dingchou, those guilty of punishments of five years and below were pardoned.
94
In the tenth month of winter, on the day jiwei, a comet appeared in Root.
95
That year Emperor Mingyuan of Wei died.
96
使使 使
In the second year, on the first day of the second month, guisi, there was a solar eclipse. Yizhen, Prince of Luling and Governor of Southern Yu, was deposed as a commoner and exiled to Xin'an commandery. On the day yisi, a great wind blew and the sky showed clouds of five colors. Diviners judged that war was portended. The regents sent envoys to execute the Emperor's younger brother Yizhen at Xin'an. Goguryeo sent envoys with tribute. At the time the Emperor's conduct in private and in public was mostly errant and unbecoming.
97
西 西
In the fifth month of summer, on the day yiyou, the Empress Dowager issued an order exposing the Emperor's faults and deposed him as Prince of Yingyang. This followed entirely the precedents of Han's Marquis of Haihun and Jin's Prince of Haixi. They welcomed Yilong, Prince of Yidu and General Who Guards the West, to succeed to the throne.
98
使 宿 使
At first, when Xu Xianzhi and Fu Liang were about to depose the Emperor, they hinted to Wang Hong and Tan Daoji that they should ask leave to come for the state mourning. When Hong and the others arrived at court, they made Central Secretariat Attendants Xing Antai and Pan Sheng their inside contacts. That morning Tan Daoji and Xie Hui led troops in front, with Xianzhi and the others following. As the Eastern Side Gate opened, they entered through the Cloud Dragon Gate. Sheng and the others had already warned the palace guard, and none resisted. He had stalls laid out in Hualin Park and sold wine himself, dug a channel and heaped earth to mimic the Pogang Dam, and with his companions hauled boats and whooped for joy. At evening he went to Tianquan Pool and fell asleep on the imperial dragon boat. Before dawn soldiers came in, slew two attendants beside him, cut his finger, led him out to the eastern wing, and seized the imperial seal and cord. The ministers took leave and sent him to the Eastern Palace, then had him imprisoned in Wu. That same day a general pardon was proclaimed for crimes up to and including capital punishment. The empress dowager ordered the regalia returned, and Tan Daoji took charge of the court hall. On the guichou day of the sixth month Xu Xianzhi and his fellows sent palace attendant Xing Antai to kill the emperor at Jinchang Pavilion. Brave and strong, he would not be taken easily; he burst out through Chang Gate, but pursuers dropped the gate leaves on him and crushed him to death. He was nineteen.
99
姿
The historians comment: After the Jin court fled south, royal discipline collapsed and real power rotated among the high ministers at court; the throne survived in name, but the ruler's authority was gone. Huan Wen's genius dominated his generation, and the transfer of the dynasty was within his grasp; heaven and men alike expected a new ruler. Thereafter the throne grew ever weaker: Sima Daozi began the ruin and Sima Yuanxian finished it. Huan Xuan used the times and his family's standing to seize power, and when he took the throne no one expected otherwise. Liu Yu ruled no heartland like Qi or Jin and commanded barely a regiment, yet within ten days he destroyed the rebels, pacified the realm, and achieved merit that touched every rank. Where the people's will and popular acclaim are the measure, beside Wei and Jin he truly earned what they only pretended to hold. Yet as Emperor Wu neared the end of his life, his young son was still a child, doted on by a tender mother and given no firm discipline. Emperor Shao had a nature easily corrupted and a mind ready to sink; outer restraint never touched him, and every whim was satisfied — vice that needed no teaching, downfall that needed no warning. His end was not mere bad luck. Alas!
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