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列傳第五十三
Biographies 53
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王神念羊侃羊鴉仁
Wang Shennian, Yang Kan, and Yang Ren
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王神念，太原祁人也。 少好儒術，尤明內典。 仕魏位潁川太守，與子僧辯據郡歸梁，封南城縣侯。 曆安成、武陽、宣城內史，皆著政績。 後為青、冀二州刺史。 神念性剛正，所更州郡必禁止淫祠，時青州東北有石鹿山臨海，先有神廟祅巫，欺惑百姓，遠近祈禱，糜費極多。 及神念至，便令毀撤，風俗遂改。 後徵為右衛將軍，卒于官，諡曰壯。 及元帝初，追贈侍中、中書令，改諡忠公。
Wang Shennian was a native of Qi in Taiyuan. As a young man he loved Confucian learning and was especially versed in Buddhist scriptures. He served the Wei as Administrator of Yingchuan; he and his son Senbian held the commandery and went over to the Liang, for which he was enfeoffed as Marquis of Nancheng. He served in turn as Interior Minister of Ancheng, Wuyang, and Xuancheng, distinguishing himself in each post. He later became Inspector of Qing and Ji provinces. Shennian was stern and upright by nature; in every province and commandery he held office he banned illicit shrines. In the northeast of Qing Province stood Stone Deer Mountain by the sea, where a spirit temple and shamans had long misled the people; worshippers came from far and wide and spent fortunes in offerings. When Shennian took office he had the shrine torn down, and local custom changed at once. He was later recalled to serve as General of the Right Guard and died in office; his posthumous name was Zhuang. Early in Emperor Yuan's reign he was posthumously made Attendant-in-Ordinary and Director of the Secretariat, and his posthumous title was changed to Loyal Duke.
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神念少善騎射，及老不衰。 嘗于武帝前手執二刀楯，左右交度，馭馬往來，冠絕群伍。
Shennian had been skilled in horsemanship and archery since youth, and even in old age he had not lost his edge. Once before Emperor Wu he took two sabers and shields in hand, crossing them left and right as he drove his horse to and fro—a feat unmatched in the whole company.
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時復有楊華者，能作驚軍騎，亦一時妙捷，帝深賞之。 華本名白花，武都仇池人。 父大眼為魏名將。 華少有勇力，容貌瑰偉，魏胡太后逼幸之。 華懼禍，及大眼死，擁部曲，載父屍，改名華，來降。 胡太后追思不已，為作楊白花歌辭，使宮人晝夜連臂蹋蹄歌之，聲甚淒斷。 華後位太子左衛率，卒于侯景軍中。
At the same time there was Yang Hua, who could perform startling cavalry feats—another marvel of the day whom the Emperor greatly admired. Hua had originally been named Bai Hua and came from Chouchi in Wudu. His father Dahuan was a celebrated Wei general. In youth Hua was brave and powerfully built, with a striking appearance; Empress Dowager Hu of the Northern Wei took him as her lover. Fearing ruin, Hua waited until Dahuan died, then gathered his followers, bore his father's body away, changed his name to Hua, and defected to the Liang. Empress Dowager Hu could not stop mourning him; she had the lyrics of the Song of Yang Bai Hua written and set palace women to link arms and stamp their feet in song day and night—the melody was heartbreakingly sad. Hua later served as Commander of the Left Guard of the Heir Apparent and died in Hou Jing's forces.
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神念長子遵業，位太僕卿。 次子僧辯。
Shennian's eldest son Zunye rose to Minister Coachman. His second son was Senbian.
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僧辯字君才，學涉該博，尤明左氏春秋。 言辭辯捷，器宇肅然，雖射不穿劄，而有陵雲之氣。 元帝為江州刺史，僧辯隨府為中兵參軍。 時有安成望族劉敬躬者，田間得白蛆化為金龜，將銷之，龜生光照室，敬躬以為神而禱之。 所請多驗，無賴者多依之。 平生有德有怨者必報，遂謀作亂，遠近回應。 元帝命中直兵參軍曹子郢討之，使僧辯襲安成。 子郢既破其軍，敬躬走安成，僧辯禽之。 又討平安州反蠻，由是以勇略稱。
Senbian, styled Juncai, was broadly learned and especially expert in the Zuo Commentary to the Spring and Autumn Annals. He spoke with eloquence and quick wit and bore himself with grave dignity; though his archery could not pierce a writing slip, he had the air of one who might rise above the clouds. When the future Emperor Yuan was Inspector of Jiang Province, Senbian served on his staff as Central Army Aide. At that time a man of a leading Ancheng clan, Liu Jinggong, found white maggots in his fields that turned into a golden tortoise. When he was about to melt it down, the tortoise emitted light that filled the room; Jinggong took it for a divine sign and began to worship it. Most of his petitions were answered, and many ruffians rallied to him. He settled every old score, whether of kindness or resentment, then plotted rebellion; supporters rallied from near and far. Emperor Yuan ordered Central Direct Army Aide Cao Ziying to suppress him and sent Senbian to raid Ancheng. Ziying routed his army; Jinggong fled to Ancheng, where Senbian captured him. He also put down rebellious Man tribes in An Province, and from then on was known for courage and strategy.
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元帝除荊州，僧辯為貞毅府諮議參軍，代柳仲禮為竟陵太守。 及侯景反，元帝命僧辯總督舟師一萬赴援。 及至，台城陷沒，侯景悉收其軍實而厚加綏撫，遣歸竟陵。 於是倍道兼行，西就元帝。 元帝承制，以為領軍將軍。 及荊、湘疑貳，元帝令僧辯及鮑泉討之。 時僧辯以竟陵間部下皆勁勇，猶未盡來，意欲待集然後上頓。 與泉俱入，使泉先言之，泉入不敢言。 元帝問僧辯，僧辯以情對。 元帝性忌，以為遷延不去，大怒厲聲曰：「卿憚行拒命，欲同賊邪？ 今唯死耳。」 僧辯對曰：「今日就戮甘心，但恨不見老母。」 帝自斫之，中其髀，流血至地，悶絕，久之方蘇。 即送廷尉，並收其子侄並系之。 其母脫簪珥待罪，帝意解，賜以良藥，故不死。 會岳陽軍襲江陵，人情搔擾。 元帝遣就獄出僧辯以為城內都督。 俄而岳陽奔退，而鮑泉力不能克長沙，帝命僧辯代之。 僧辯仍部分將帥，並力攻圍，遂平湘土。 還復領軍將軍。
When Emperor Yuan was assigned to Jing Province, Senbian became Advisory Aide of the Zhengyi Prefecture and replaced Liu Zhongli as Administrator of Jingling. When Hou Jing rebelled, Emperor Yuan put Senbian in command of ten thousand river troops to relieve the capital. By the time he arrived the Terrace City had fallen; Hou Jing seized his supplies but treated him generously and sent him back to Jingling. He then marched day and night by forced marches to join Emperor Yuan in the west. Emperor Yuan, acting under provisional authority, made him General Who Leads the Army. When Jing and Xiang provinces wavered in loyalty, Emperor Yuan sent Senbian and Bao Quan to suppress them. Senbian's crack troops from the Jingling region had not all yet arrived; he meant to wait until they were assembled before moving up to camp. He and Quan went in together; Senbian had Quan speak first, but Quan entered and dared not say a word. Emperor Yuan questioned Senbian, who told him plainly how matters stood. Emperor Yuan was suspicious by nature; he took Senbian's delay for refusal to march and shouted in fury: "You shrink from the campaign and defy my orders—do you mean to join the rebels? Death is all that awaits you now. Senbian answered: "I accept death today without regret; I grieve only that I shall not see my mother again." The Emperor himself struck at him and hit his thigh; blood pooled on the floor as Senbian fainted and lay long unconscious before reviving. He was sent at once to the Minister of Justice, and his sons and nephews were seized and imprisoned as well. His mother laid aside her hairpins and earrings to plead for mercy; the Emperor relented and gave him good medicine, so he survived. Just then the Yueyang army raided Jiangling and the city fell into uproar. Emperor Yuan had Senbian released from prison and made him commander of the city's defense. Soon the Yueyang forces fled, but Bao Quan could not take Changsha; the Emperor replaced him with Senbian. Senbian redeployed his generals, concentrated the siege, and pacified the Xiang region. On his return he was again made General Who Leads the Army.
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侯景浮江西寇，軍次夏首。 僧辯為大都督，軍次巴陵。 景既陷郢城，將進寇荊州，於是緣江屯戍望風請服。 僧辯並沈公私船于水，分命眾軍乘城固守，偃旗臥鼓，安若無人。 翌日，賊眾濟江，輕騎至城下，謂城中曰：「語王領軍，何不早降？ 「僧辯使答曰：「大軍但向荊州，此城自當非礙。 僧辯百口在人掌握，豈得便降。」 景軍肉薄苦攻，城內同時鼓噪，矢石雨下，賊乃引退。 元帝又命平北將軍胡僧佑率兵援僧辯。 是日，賊復攻城不克，又為火艦燒柵，風不便，自焚而退。 有流星墮其營中，賊徒大駭，相顧失色。 賊帥任約又為陸法和所禽，景乃燒營夜遁，旋軍夏首。
Hou Jing sailed up the Yangzi to invade the west and camped at Xiashou. Senbian served as Grand Commander with his army at Baling. After Hou Jing took Ying City and prepared to march on Jing Province, garrisons along the river surrendered at the first sight of his banners. Senbian sank every public and private boat in the harbor, ordered his troops to man the walls and hold firm, and lowered banners and silenced drums so the city seemed deserted. The next day the rebels crossed the river; light cavalry rode to the wall and called out: "Tell Wang the Army Leader—why not surrender now? Senbian sent back word: "March on to Jing Province; this city will not stand in your way. A hundred lives depend on me—how could I surrender so easily?" Hou Jing's men pressed the assault at close quarters; the defenders beat drums and shouted as one, and arrows and stones rained down until the rebels withdrew. Emperor Yuan also ordered Pacifier of the North Hu Sengyou to reinforce Senbian with troops. That day the rebels attacked again without success, then sent fire ships against the palisades; the wind turned against them, their own ships burned, and they withdrew. A shooting star fell into their camp; the rebels were terrified and looked at one another in dismay. Their commander Ren Yue was captured by Lu Fahe; Hou Jing burned his camp and fled by night, withdrawing his army to Xiashou.
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元帝以僧辯為征東將軍、開府儀同三司、江州刺史，封長寧縣公，命即率巴陵諸軍沿流討景。 攻拔魯山，仍攻郢，即入羅城。 又有大星如車輪墜賊營，去地十丈變成火，一時碎散。 有龍自城出，五色光曜，入城前鸚鵡洲水中。 景聞之，倍道歸建鄴。 賊帥宋子仙等困蹙，求輸郢城，身還就景。 僧辯偽許之。 子仙謂為信然，浮舟將發，僧辯命杜龕鼓噪掩至，大破之，禽子仙、丁和等送江陵。 元帝命生釘和舌臠殺之。
Emperor Yuan made Senbian General Who Campaigns East with privileges equal to the Three Excellencies, Inspector of Jiang Province, and Duke of Changning, and ordered him to lead the Baling armies downriver against Hou Jing at once. He stormed Lushan, then pressed on to Ying and entered the outer city. Another great star like a carriage wheel fell into the rebel camp; ten zhang above the ground it burst into flame and shattered. A dragon emerged from the city in dazzling five-colored light and plunged into the water off Parrot Isle. When Hou Jing heard of these omens he marched day and night back to Jianye. The rebel commanders Song Zixian and others, hard pressed, offered to surrender Ying City and return to Hou Jing in person. Senbian pretended to agree. Zixian took the offer at face value; as his boats were about to cast off, Senbian had Du Kan charge with drums and shouts, routed them completely, and sent Zixian, Ding He, and others as prisoners to Jiangling. Emperor Yuan had them nailed alive, their tongues cut out, and dismembered.
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郢州既平，僧辯進師尋陽。 軍人多夢周何二廟神云：「吾已助天子討賊。」 自稱征討大將軍，並乘朱航。 俄而反曰：「已殺景。」 同夢者數十百焉。
After Ying Province was pacified, Senbian advanced on Xunyang. Many soldiers dreamed that the gods of the Zhou and He temples said, "We have already aided the Son of Heaven in punishing the rebels. They called themselves Grand Generals on Campaign and rode vermilion boats." Soon they turned back and said, "Hou Jing is already dead. Dozens and hundreds of men had the same dream.
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元帝加僧辯侍中、尚書令、征東大將軍。 僧辯頻表勸進，並蒙優答。 於是發江州直指建鄴，乃先命南兗州刺史侯瑱襲南陵、鵲頭等戍，並克之。
Emperor Yuan further made Senbian Attendant-in-Ordinary, Director of the Secretariat, and Grand General Who Campaigns East. Senbian repeatedly urged Emperor Yuan to take the throne and each time received a gracious reply. He then marched from Jiang Province straight for Jianye, first sending Inspector of Southern Yanzhou Hou Tian to storm the garrisons at Nanling, Quetou, and elsewhere—all fell.
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先是，陳武帝率眾五萬出自南江，前軍五千行至盆口。 陳武名蓋僧辯，僧辯憚之。 既至盆口，與僧辯會于白茅洲為盟。 於是升壇歃血，共讀盟文，辭氣慷慨，皆淚下沾衿。 及發鵲頭，中江而風浪，師人咸懼。 僧辯再拜告天曰：「僧辯忠臣，奉辭伐罪，社稷中興，當使風息； 若鼎命中淪，請從此逝。」 言訖風止，自此遂泛安流。 有群魚躍水飛空引導，賊望官軍上有五色雲，雙龍挾艦，行甚迅疾。
Earlier, the future Chen Emperor had led fifty thousand men up the southern Yangzi; his vanguard of five thousand reached Penkou. Chen's reputation overshadowed Senbian's, and Senbian was wary of him. When he reached Penkou he met Senbian at White Reed Isle to swear alliance. They ascended the altar, drank the blood oath, and read the alliance text together; their voices rang with passion, and all wept until their collars were soaked. When they sailed from Quetou, wind and waves struck mid-river and the troops were terrified. Senbian bowed twice toward Heaven and said: "Senbian is a loyal minister bearing the mandate to punish the wicked; if the dynasty is to be restored, let the wind fall still. If the Mandate is lost beyond recovery, let me perish here. When he had finished, the wind died; from then on they sailed on calm waters. Schools of fish leaped from the water and flew through the air as if to guide them; the rebels saw five-colored clouds above the imperial fleet and two dragons flanking the ships as they sped forward.
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景自出戰於石頭城北，僧辯等大破之。 盧暉略聞景戰敗，以石頭城降。 僧辯引軍入據之。 景走朱方，僧辯命眾將入據台城。 其夜軍人失火燒太極殿及東西堂。 僧辯雖有滅賊之功，而馭下無法，軍人鹵掠，驅逼居人。 都下百姓父子兄弟相哭，自石頭至於東城，被執縛者，男女裸露，衵衣不免。 緣淮號叫，翻思景焉。
Hou Jing came out to fight north of Stone City; Senbian and his allies routed him completely. Lu Huilue, hearing that Hou Jing had been defeated, surrendered Stone City. Senbian marched in and took possession. Hou Jing fled to Zhufang; Senbian ordered his generals to enter and hold the Terrace City. That night soldiers accidentally set fire to the Hall of Supreme Ultimate and the Eastern and Western Halls. Though Senbian had destroyed the rebels, he could not control his men; soldiers looted and terrorized the populace. Capital families wept together from Stone City to the Eastern City; captives, men and women alike, were stripped naked and could not keep even their underclothes. Along the Qinhuai they wailed that they had almost come to miss Hou Jing.
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僧辯命侯瑱、裴之橫東追景，偽行台趙伯超自吳松江降侯瑱，瑱送至僧辯，僧辯謂曰：「卿荷國重恩，遂復同逆，今日之事，將欲如何。」 因命送江陵。 伯超既出，僧辯顧坐客曰：「朝廷昔唯知有趙伯超，豈識王僧辯乎。 社稷既傾，為我所復，人之興廢，亦復何常。」 賓客皆前稱歎功德，僧辯戄然，乃謬答曰：「此乃聖上威德，群帥用命，老夫雖濫居戎首，何力之有焉。」 於是逆寇悉平。
Senbian sent Hou Tian and Pei Zhiheng east in pursuit of Hou Jing; Zhao Bochao of the rebel Mobile Headquarters surrendered to Hou Tian on the Wusong River, and Tian sent him to Senbian. Senbian said: "The state loaded you with favor, yet you rebelled again—what do you propose to do about today? He then ordered him sent to Jiangling. After Bochao had left, Senbian turned to his guests and said: "The court once knew only Zhao Bochao—who had ever heard of Wang Senbian?". The realm had collapsed, yet we have raised it up again; who among mortals can count on lasting fortune? The guests all stepped forward to praise his achievement; Senbian, taken aback, gave a dissembling reply: "This is the Son of Heaven's majesty and the generals' obedience—though I happen to lead the army, what credit is mine?" With that, the rebel forces were wholly subdued.
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先是，天監中沙門釋寶志為讖云：「太歲龍，將無理。 蕭經霜，草應死。 餘人散，十八子。」 時言蕭氏當滅，李氏代興。 及湘州賊陸納等攻破衡州刺史丁道貴，而李洪雅又自零陵稱助討納。 既而朝廷未達其心，詔征僧辯就宜豐侯循南征，為都督東上諸軍事。 以陳武帝為都督西下諸軍事。 先是，陳武讓都督于僧辯，僧辯不受，故元帝分為東西都督而俱南討焉。 尋而洪雅降納，納以為應符，於是共議拜洪雅為大將軍，尊事為主。 洪雅乘平肩大輿，傘蓋、鼓吹，羽儀悉備，翼從入長沙城。 時納等據車輪，夾岸為城，士卒皆百戰之餘，器甲精嚴，徒黨勇銳，蒙沖鬥艦，亙水陵山。 時天日清明，初無雲霧，軍發之際，忽然風雨，時人謂為泣軍，百姓竊言知其敗也。 三月庚寅，有兩龍自城西江中騰躍升天，五色分明，遙映江水。 百姓咸仰面目之，父老或聚而悲，竊相謂曰：「地龍已去，國其亡乎。」 初，納造大艦，一名曰三王艦者，邵陵王、河東王、桂陽嗣王三人並為元帝所害，故立其像於艦，祭乙太牢，加其節蓋羽儀鼓吹，每戰輒祭之以求福。 又造二艦，一曰青龍艦，一曰白虎艦，皆衣以牛皮，並高十五丈，選其中尤勇健者乘之。 僧辯憚之，稍作連城以逼焉。 賊不敢交鋒，並懷懈怠。 僧辯因其無備，親執旗鼓以誡進止，群賊大敗，歸保長沙。 僧辯乃命築壘圍之，而自出臨視。 賊知不設備，其党吳藏、李賢明等蒙楯直進，僧辯尚據胡床不為之動，指麾勇敢，遂斬賢明，賊乃退歸。 初，陵納作逆，以王琳為辭，云：「若放琳則自服」。 時眾軍未之許，而武陵王紀擁眾上流，內外駭懼。 元帝乃遣琳和解之，湘州乃平。 因被詔會眾軍西討。 尋而武陵敗績。
Earlier, during the Tianjian reign, the monk Baozhi uttered a prophecy: "When the Tai Sui year is the Dragon, the leader will lose legitimacy. The House of Xiao passes through frost; the grass must wither. The commoners disperse; "ten," "eight," and "son." People read the verses as foretelling the fall of the Xiao and the rise of the Li. When the rebel Lu Na of Xiangzhou overran Hengzhou and its inspector Ding Daogui, Li Hongya proclaimed from Lingling that he had come to help crush Na. The court still misread his intentions and ordered Senbian to march south with the Marquis of Yifeng, appointing him commander of all eastern armies. Chen Wudi was placed in command of all western forces. Earlier Chen Wu had offered Senbian supreme command, which Senbian refused; Emperor Yuan therefore split command into eastern and western wings and sent both south. Hongya soon joined Na, who took this as confirmation of the prophecy; the rebels then agreed to make Hongya their generalissimo and acknowledged him as their sovereign. Hongya entered Changsha in a state carriage with parasols, musical escort, and full ceremonial guard. Na held Chelun, fortifying both banks; his troops were hardened veterans with superb arms, his followers fierce, and his covered ships lined the waterway from shore to hill. The sky had been clear, yet the moment the army marched a storm broke; people called it the army weeping, and locals whispered that defeat was foretold. On the third month's gengyin day, two dragons rose from the river west of the city into the sky, their five colors vivid against the distant water. People gazed up at them; some elders wept together and murmured: "The earth dragons have gone—surely the realm is doomed. Na had built a great warship, the Three Kings Ship, for the three princes Shaoling, Hedong, and Guiyang whom Emperor Yuan had killed; he set up their images aboard, sacrificed oxen to them with full honors, and before every battle offered prayers for luck. He also built two tower ships, the Azure Dragon and the White Tiger, sheathed in ox hide and fifteen zhang tall, crewed by his fiercest warriors. Senbian, wary of these vessels, began building linked fortifications to press in on them. The rebels would not engage and grew complacent. Senbian seized their negligence, personally directing the drums and banners; the rebels were routed and fled back to Changsha. Senbian ordered siege works built and went out personally to supervise them. The rebels thought him undefended; Wu Zang, Li Xianming, and others charged under shield cover. Senbian did not rise from his camp chair, coolly directing the fight until Xianming was slain and the attackers fell back. When Lu Na first rebelled, he claimed he would surrender if Wang Lin were freed. The allied armies refused, even as Prince Ji of Wuling massed forces upriver; court and camp alike were terrified. Emperor Yuan dispatched Wang Lin to negotiate; Xiangzhou was finally pacified. He was then ordered to gather the armies for the western campaign. Prince Ji of Wuling was soon crushed.
17
是時，齊遣郭元建謀襲建鄴，又遣其大將東方老等繼之。 陳武帝聞之，馳報江陵。 元帝即詔僧辯急下赴援。 僧辯次姑孰，即留鎮焉。 先命豫州刺史侯瑱築壘于東關以拒北軍，征吳郡太守張彪、吳興太守裴之橫會瑱而大敗之。 僧辯振旅歸建鄴。 承聖三年二月，詔以僧辯為太尉、車騎大將軍。 頃之丁母憂。 母姓魏氏，性甚安和，善於綏接，家門內外莫不懷之。 初，僧辯下獄，母流淚徒行，將入謝罪，元帝不與相見。 時貞惠世子有寵，母詣合自陳無訓，涕泗嗚咽，眾並矜之。 及僧辯罪免，母深相責厲，辭色俱嚴。 雖克復舊都，功蓋宇宙，母恒自謙損，不以富貴驕物，朝野稱之，謂為明哲婦人。 及亡，甚見湣悼，且以僧辯勳重，故喪禮加焉。 命侍中、謁者監護喪事，諡曰貞敬太夫人。 靈柩將歸建康，又遣謁者至舟渚弔祭。
Northern Qi sent Guo Yuanjian to strike at Jiankang, with General Dongfang Lao and others close behind. Chen Wudi heard the news and rushed word to Jiangling. Emperor Yuan at once ordered Senbian to march down in haste to relieve the capital. Senbian halted at Gushu and garrisoned the position. He first had Hou Tian of Yuzhou fortify Dongguan against the northern advance, then called Zhang Biao and Pei Zhiheng to join him—and together they routed the enemy. Senbian marched his army triumphantly back to Jiankang. In the second month of Chengsheng 3, Senbian was appointed Grand Commandant and General of Chariots and Cavalry. Soon afterward he went into mourning for his mother. His mother was of the Wei clan, gentle and gracious, skilled at keeping harmony; everyone in the household and beyond held her in affection. When Senbian was once imprisoned, his mother walked barefoot in tears to plead for him, but Emperor Yuan refused to see her. The heir of Zhenghui was then in favor; she went to the palace gate, confessing that she had failed as a mother, weeping until all present were moved to pity. When Senbian was released, his mother rebuked him sharply, her words and manner unsparing. Though he had retaken the capital with merit surpassing all measure, his mother remained humble and never vaunted their rank; court and country alike praised her as a woman of wisdom. At her death the court mourned her deeply, and because of Senbian's outstanding service her funeral honors were enhanced. Palace Attendants and imperial heralds were appointed to oversee the funeral, and she was posthumously titled the Reverent Lady Zhenjing. When the coffin was sent back to Jiankang, imperial heralds were again dispatched to the river landing to perform mourning rites.
18
其年十月，魏遣兵及梁王察合眾將襲江陵，元帝征僧辯於建鄴，為大都督、荊州刺史。 未至，而荊州已滅。 及敬帝初即梁王位，僧辯預援立功，承制進驃騎大將軍、中書監、都督中外諸軍事、錄尚書。 與陳武帝參謀討伐。
That October Wei troops and Prince Cha of Liang joined forces to attack Jiangling; Emperor Yuan recalled Senbian from Jiankang as supreme commander and governor of Jingzhou. Before he could arrive, Jingzhou had already fallen. When Emperor Jing first took the Liang throne, Senbian's role in restoring order earned him promotion to General of Agile Cavalry, Director of the Secretariat, supreme commander, and chief minister. He and Chen Wudi planned the military campaigns together.
19
時齊文宣又納貞陽侯明以為梁嗣，與僧辯書，並貞陽亦頻與僧辯書，論還國繼統之事。 僧辯不納。 及貞陽與齊上党王高渙至東關，散騎常侍裴之橫軍敗，僧辯遂謀納貞陽，仍書定君臣之禮。 因遣第七子顯、顯所生劉並弟子珍往充質，遣左戶尚書周弘正至曆陽迎明。 又遣吏部尚書王通送啟，因求以敬帝為皇太子。 明報書許之。 僧辯遣使送質於鄴，貞陽求度衛士三千。 僧辯慮其為變，止受散卒千人而已，並遣龍舟法駕往迎。 貞陽濟江之日，僧辯擁烜中流，不敢就岸，末乃同會于江寧浦。 明踐位，授僧辯大司馬，領太子太傅、揚州牧，餘如故。
Northern Qi's Emperor Wenxuan now backed the Marquis of Zhenyang, Xiao Ming, as Liang's rightful heir; both the emperor and Ming wrote repeatedly to Senbian about restoring Ming to the throne. Senbian refused. After Ming and the Prince of Shangdang, Gao Huan, reached Dongguan and Pei Zhiheng's force was defeated, Senbian resolved to welcome Ming back and confirmed their sovereign-minister relationship in writing. He sent his seventh son Xian, Xian's mother Lady Liu, and his nephew Zhen as hostages, and dispatched Zhou Hongzheng of the Left Household to Liyang to receive Ming. He also sent Wang Tong of the Ministry of Personnel with a memorial asking that Emperor Jing be confirmed as crown prince. Ming wrote back in agreement. Senbian sent the hostages to Ye, while Ming asked for an escort of three thousand guards. Fearing treachery, Senbian accepted only a thousand irregular troops and sent the imperial dragon boat to receive him. When Ming crossed the Yangtze, Senbian waited midstream under imperial banners and would not come ashore until they finally met at Jiangning Ford. Once enthroned, Ming made Senbian Grand Marshal, also Grand Tutor to the crown prince and governor of Yangzhou, while his other offices remained unchanged.
20
陳武帝時為司空、南徐州刺史，因自京口舉兵襲之。 僧辯常處石頭城，是日視事，軍人已踰城北而入，南門又白有兵來。 僧辯與子頠遽走出合，計無所出，乃據南門樓拜請求哀。 陳武縱火焚之，方共頠下就執。 陳武謂曰：「我有何辜，公欲與齊師賜討。」 又曰：「何意全無防備。」 僧辯曰：「委公北門，何謂無備？」 是夜，及子頠俱被絞殺。
Chen Wudi, then Minister of Works and governor of Southern Xuzhou, marched from Jingkou to strike him by surprise. Senbian was usually at Stone City; that day, as he held court, soldiers were already coming over the north wall, and the south gate reported an approach. Senbian and his son Yi fled the hall in panic; with no escape, they climbed the south gate tower and bowed in supplication. Chen Wu set the tower afire; only then did Yi come down with his father and they were seized. Chen Wu said: "What have I done that you would bring Qi armies against me? He added: "Why were you completely unprepared?" Senbian replied: "I left the north gate to you—how is that no defense?" That night he and his son Yi were strangled.
21
初，僧辯平建鄴，遣陳武守京口，推以赤心，結廉、藺之分。 且為第三子頠許娶陳武章後所生女，未昏而僧辯母亡，然情好甚密，其長子顗屢諫不聽。 至是，會江淮人報云：「齊兵大舉至壽春」，僧辯謂齊軍必出江表，因遣記室參軍江旰以事報陳武，仍使整舟艦器械。 陳武宿有圖僧辯志，乃聞命，留旰城中，銜枚而進。 知謀者唯侯安都、周文育而已，外人但謂江旰徵兵扞北。 安都舟艦將趣石頭，陳武控馬未進。 安都大懼，乃追陳武罵曰：「今日作賊，事勢已成，生死須決，在後欲何所望？ 若敗俱死，後期得免斫頭邪？」 陳武曰：「安都嗔我。」 乃敢進，遂克之，時壽春竟無齊軍，又非陳武之譎，殆天授也。 顗承聖初位侍中，魏克江陵，隨王琳入齊，為竟陵郡守。 齊遣王琳鎮壽春，將圖江左。 及陳平淮南殺琳，顗聞之，乃出郡城南登高塚上，號哭一慟而絕。
After Senbian pacified Jiankang, he placed Chen Wu at Jingkou in the trust of sworn friendship, like Lian Po and Lin Xiangru. He even betrothed his third son Yi to Chen Wu's daughter by Lady Zhang; though Senbian's mother died before the wedding, the two remained intimate, despite repeated warnings from his eldest son Yan. Just then a man from the Jiang-Huai region reported that Qi was massing at Shouchun; Senbian assumed they would cross the Yangtze and sent his secretary Jiang Gan to inform Chen Wu and prepare the fleet. Chen Wu had long planned Senbian's downfall; he kept Gan in the city and marched silently on Stone City. Only Hou Andu and Zhou Wenyu knew the real plan; everyone else thought Jiang Gan was simply mobilizing against the northern threat. As Hou Andu's fleet bore down on Stone City, Chen Wu held his horse back and would not advance. Terrified, Hou Andu galloped after Chen Wu and shouted: "We are rebels today and there is no turning back—if we fail we die together; what do you expect by hanging back? If we lose we all die—do you think hanging back will save your neck? Chen Wu said: "Andu is furious with me." Only then did he advance and take the city; as it happened there were no Qi troops at Shouchun at all—it was no ruse of Chen Wu's, but almost as if heaven had granted him the moment. Yan became Palace Attendant early in the Chengsheng era; when Wei conquered Jiangling he went north with Wang Lin and served as governor of Jingling. Qi sent Wang Lin to hold Shouchun, aiming to reconquer the south. When Chen conquered Huainan and killed Wang Lin, Yan climbed a mound south of the city, gave one great cry of grief, and died on the spot.
22
顗弟頒，少有志節，恒隨梁元帝。 及荊州覆滅，入于魏。 僧辯既亡，弟僧智得就任約。 敗走，僧智肥不能行，又遇害。
Yan's younger brother Ban was spirited from youth and always followed Emperor Yuan of Liang. When Jingzhou fell he passed into Wei territory. After Senbian's death, his brother Sengzhi joined Ren Yue. In defeat Sengzhi fled, but he was too heavy to run and was killed.
23
僧智弟僧愔位譙州刺史，征蕭勃，及聞兄死，引軍還。 時吳州刺史羊亮隸在僧愔下，與僧愔不平，密召侯瑱見禽。 僧愔以名義責瑱，瑱乃委罪於將羊鯤斬之。 僧愔復得奔齊，與徐嗣徽等挾齊軍攻陳。 軍敗，竄逸荒野，莫知所之，仰天歎曰：「讎恥不雪，未欲身膏野草，若精誠有感，當得道路，誓不受辱人手。」 拔刀將自刎，聞空中催令急去，僧愔異之，勉力馳進，行一里許，顧向處已有陳人。 踰越江山，僅得歸齊。
Sengzhi's brother Sengyin, governor of Qiaozhou, was campaigning against Xiao Bo when he heard of his brother's death and turned his army back. Yang Liang, governor of Wuzhou and nominally under Sengyin, resented him and secretly summoned Hou Tian—and was captured. Sengyin rebuked Hou Tian on grounds of duty; Tian blamed his general Yang Kun and had him executed. Sengyin escaped to Qi and, with Xu Sihui and others, brought northern troops against Chen. Defeated, he fled into the wilderness with no clear destination and cried to heaven: "My shame is unavenged—I am not ready to die in the weeds; if heaven hears sincerity, let a path open—I will never fall into enemy hands. He drew his sword to kill himself, but heard a voice from the air bidding him flee; astonished, he forced himself onward, and a mile later looked back to see Chen soldiers where he had stood. He crossed rivers and mountains and barely made it back to Qi.
24
徐嗣徽，高平人，父雲伯自青部南歸，位終新蔡太守。 侯景之亂，嗣徽歸荊州，元帝以為羅州刺史，及弟嗣宗、嗣產並有武用。 嗣徽從征巴丘，以功為太子右衛率、監南荊州。 徐州之亡，任秦州刺史。 嗣產先在建鄴，嗣宗自荊州滅亡中逃得至都。 從弟嗣先即僧辯之甥，復為比丘慧暹藏，得脫俱還。 及僧辯見害，兄弟抽刀裂眥，志在立功，俱逃就兄嗣徽，密結南豫州刺史任約與僧辯故舊，圖陳武帝。 帝遣江旰說之，嗣徽執旰送鄴乞師焉。 齊文宣帝授為儀同，命將應赴。 及石頭敗退，復請兵于齊，與任約、王曄、席皋同心度江。 及戰敗，嗣徽墮馬，嗣宗援兄見害。 嗣產為陳武軍所禽，辭色不撓而死。 任約、王曄得北歸。
Xu Sihui was from Gaoping; his father Yunbo had migrated south from the north and ended his career as governor of Xincai. During Hou Jing's rebellion Sihui went to Jingzhou, where Emperor Yuan made him governor of Luozhou; his brothers Sizong and Sichan were also capable soldiers. Sihui campaigned at Baqiu and was rewarded with the post of Right Guard of the Crown Prince and supervisor of southern Jingzhou. When Xuzhou fell he was made governor of Qinzhou. Sichan was already in Jiankang; Sizong escaped the fall of Jingzhou and reached the capital. Their cousin Sixian, Senbian's nephew, was hidden by the monk Huixian until all could flee and return together. When Senbian was killed, the brothers swore blood vengeance and fled to Xu Sihui, secretly allying with Ren Yue of southern Yuzhou and Senbian's old friends to move against Chen Wudi. The emperor sent Jiang Gan to negotiate; Sihui seized him and sent him to Ye to request an army. Emperor Wenxuan of Northern Qi made him a Yitong and ordered troops to march to his support. After the defeat at Shitou and their retreat, he once more asked Qi for reinforcements, and together with Ren Yue, Wang Ye, and Xi Gao prepared to cross the Yangtze as one. When the battle was lost, Sihui was thrown from his horse; Sizong rushed to his brother's aid and was slain. Sichan was taken by Chen Wu's troops; even under capture his bearing never broke, and he died unbowed. Ren Yue and Wang Ye made it back to the north.
25
羊侃字祖忻，泰山梁父人也。 父祉，北史有傳。 侃少而瑰偉，身長七尺八寸，雅愛文史。 弱冠隨父在梁州立功，初為尚書郎，以力聞。 魏帝常謂曰：「郎官謂卿為虎，豈羊質虎皮乎？ 試作虎狀。」 侃因伏，以手抉殿沒指。 魏帝壯之，賜以珠劍。 正光中，秦州羌莫折念生據州反，仍遣其弟天生攻陷岐州，寇雍州。 侃為偏將，隸蕭寶寅往討之，射殺天生，其眾即潰。 以功為征東大將軍、東道行台，領泰山太守，進爵钜平侯。
Yang Kan, courtesy name Zuxin, was a native of Liangfu in Taishan commandery. His father Yang Zhi is given a separate biography in the Beishi. From boyhood Kan was striking in stature and bearing. He stood seven feet eight inches tall and had a cultivated love of letters and history. In early manhood he served with his father in Liang Province and won distinction; his first appointment was as a Masters of Writing gentleman, and he earned fame for his physical prowess. The Wei emperor once asked him, "My officials say you are a tiger. Are you a sheep in a tiger's pelt? Show me a tiger's manner. Kan dropped to all fours and dug his fingers into the stone floor of the hall until his knuckles disappeared from sight. The emperor was so impressed that he awarded Kan a sword with a pearl-studded hilt. During the Zhenguang reign, the Qiang chieftain Mo Zheniansheng seized Qin Province in revolt and sent his brother Tiansheng to take Qi Province and harass Yong Province. Serving as a deputy under Xiao Baoyin, Kan joined the campaign, brought down Tiansheng with an arrow, and the rebel ranks broke and fled. For this victory he was appointed General Who Conquers the East and commissioner of the eastern route, made concurrent grand administrator of Taishan, and raised to Marquis of Juping.
26
初，其父祉恒使侃南歸，侃至是將舉濟、河以成先志。 其從兄兗州刺史敦密知之，據州拒侃，侃乃率精兵三萬襲之，不克，仍築十餘城以守之。 梁朝賞授一與元法僧同。 魏帝聞之，使授侃驃騎大將軍、司徒、泰山郡公，長為兗州刺史。 侃斬其使。 魏人大駭，令僕射於暉率眾十萬及高歡、爾朱陽都等相繼而至。 柵中矢盡，南軍不進，乃夜潰圍而出。 一日一夜，乃出魏境。 至渣口，眾尚萬餘人，馬二千匹。 將入南，士卒竟夜悲歌，侃乃謝曰； 「卿等懷土，幸適去留。」 各拜辭而去。
His father Zhi had long urged him to return to the south; now Kan prepared to raise forces in the Ji and He regions to fulfill that old pledge. His cousin Dun, governor of Yan Province, learned of the plan and barred the province against him. Kan led thirty thousand elite troops in a surprise attack but could not break him, and instead fortified more than ten garrison towns to hold his ground. The Liang court honored him with the same titles and rank it had bestowed on Yuan Faseng. When word reached the Wei court, the emperor dispatched envoys offering Kan the posts of General of Fast Cavalry, Grand Mentor, Duke of Taishan commandery, and permanent governor of Yan Province. Kan had the envoys executed. The Wei court was shaken. They dispatched Master of Writing Yu Hui at the head of a hundred thousand men, followed in turn by Gao Huan, Erzhu Yangdu, and others. Arrows inside the fortifications ran out and the Liang relief force never came. In the dark of night they broke through the siege lines and escaped. After a full day and night of flight, they crossed out of Wei territory. By the time they reached Zhakou, they still had more than ten thousand men and two thousand horses. As they prepared to cross into the south, the men wept and sang through the night. Kan dismissed them, saying: "You long for home. Choose freely whether to go on with me or turn back. They took their leave one by one and went their separate ways.
27
侃以大通三年至建鄴，授徐州刺史，並其兄默及三弟忱、給、元皆拜刺史。 侃封高昌縣侯，累遷太子左衛率，中。 車駕幸樂游苑，侃預宴。 時少府奏新造兩刃矟成，長二丈四尺，圍一尺三寸。 帝因賜侃河南國紫騮令試之。 侃執矟上馬，左右擊刺，特盡其妙。 觀者登樹。 帝曰：「此樹必為侍中折矣。」 俄而果折，因號此矟為折樹矟。 北人降者，唯侃是衣冠餘緒，帝寵之踰於他者，謂曰：「朕少時捉矟，形勢似卿，今失其舊體，殊覺不奇。」 上又制武宴詩三十韻示侃，侃即席上應詔。 帝覽曰：「吾聞仁者有勇，今見勇者有仁，可謂鄒、魯遺風，英賢不絕。」 是日詔入直殿省，啟尚方仗不堪用。 上大怒，坐者非一。 及侯景作逆，果弊於仗粗。
Kan reached Jianye in the third year of Datong. He was made governor of Xuzhou, and his elder brother Mo and younger brothers Chen, Gei, and Yuan were each given a provincial governorship as well. He was created Marquis of Gaoxiang County and rose in successive appointments to Left Commandant of the Crown Prince's Guard. When the emperor visited Leyou Park, Kan was among those invited to the feast. The Chamberlain of Palace Revenues announced that a new double-edged spear had been completed: twenty-four feet long with a shaft a foot and three inches around. The emperor gave Kan a famed purple horse from Henan and told him to put the weapon through its paces. Kan mounted with the spear in hand and struck right and left with perfect mastery of the weapon. Spectators scrambled up into the trees for a better view. The emperor remarked, "That tree won't survive the Attendant-in-Ordinary's display. Sure enough, the tree soon snapped, and from then on the spear was called the Tree-Breaker. Of all the northern defectors, only Kan came from the old gentry in cap and gown. The emperor favored him above the rest and said, "When I was young my spear-play looked much like yours. These days I've lost that old form, and by comparison nothing seems quite so marvelous. The emperor then composed a thirty-couplet poem for the martial banquet and presented it to Kan, who answered on the spot from his seat. After reading it the emperor said, "They say the humane are brave; today I see bravery joined with humanity — the spirit of the sages of Zou and Lu still lives, and worthy men are not extinct. That same day he was ordered into attendance at the Palace Secretariat, where he reported that the weapons in the imperial armory were shoddy and unusable. The emperor flew into a rage, and several officials present were held accountable. When Hou Jing rose in rebellion, the dynasty paid dearly for those worthless arms.
28
後遷都官尚書，尚書令何敬容用事，與之並省，未嘗遊造。 左衛蘭欽同侍宮宴，詞色少交，侃於坐折之曰：「小子！ 汝以銅鼓買朱異作父，韋粲作兄，何敢無宜適。」 朱時在席。 後華林法會，欽拜謝於省中。 王銓謂欽曰：「卿能屈膝廉公，彌見盡美； 然羊公意猶未釋，容能更置一拜？」 欽從之。 宦者張僧胤嘗候侃，侃曰：「我床非閹人所坐。」 竟不前之。 時論美其貞正。
He was later made Minister of Justice. He Jingrong, the chief minister, dominated the court, but though they served in the same ministry, Kan never once called on him socially. Left Guard Lan Qin shared a palace banquet with him but barely exchanged a courteous word. Kan publicly dressed him down: "You brat! You traded copper drums to buy yourself Zhu Yi for a patron and Wei Can for a brother — how dare you behave with such shameless impudence! Zhu Yi was sitting right there at the table. Later, during a Buddhist rite at Huashlin Park, Qin came to the ministry to offer his apologies. Wang Quan told Qin, "Your willingness to humble yourself before the old general shows real grace; but Lord Yang's displeasure may not yet be spent. Could you manage one more bow? Qin did as he was advised. When the eunuch Zhang Sengyin once came calling, Kan said, "My bed is no place for a eunuch to sit. Zhang never took another step toward it. Contemporary opinion admired his uncompromising integrity.
29
太清元年，為侍中，會大舉北侵，以侃為冠軍將軍，監作寒山堰事。 堰立，侃勸元帥貞陽侯明乘水攻彭城，不見納。 既而魏援大至，侃頻言乘其遠來可擊，旦日又勸出戰，並不從。 侃乃率所領頓堰上。 及眾軍敗，侃結陣徐還。
In the first year of Taiqing he was made Attendant-in-Ordinary. When the court launched a major invasion of the north, Kan was appointed General Who Establishes Might and put in charge of building the Hanshan Dam. Once the dam was finished, Kan urged the commander, Marquis Zhenyang Ming, to strike Pengcheng while the floodwaters held, but his counsel was rejected. When Wei reinforcements arrived in strength, Kan kept insisting that troops so far from home could be beaten on arrival. The next day he urged battle again, but every recommendation was ignored. Kan withdrew with his own command and held the dam. When the main force collapsed, Kan kept his men in formation and fell back in good order.
30
二年，復為都官尚書。 侯景反，攻陷曆陽，帝問侃討景之策。 侃求以二千人急據採石，令邵陵王襲取壽春，使景進不得前，退失巢窟，烏合之眾，自然瓦解。 議者謂景未敢便逼都，遂寢其策。 令王質往。 侃曰：「今茲敗矣。」 乃令侃率千餘騎頓望國門。 景至新林，追侃入副宣城王都督城內諸軍事。
The following year he was again appointed Minister of Justice. When Hou Jing rebelled and took Liyang, the emperor asked Kan how best to destroy him. Kan asked for two thousand men to seize Caishi immediately and urged the Prince of Shaoling to take Shouchun by surprise, so Hou Jing could neither advance nor retreat to a secure base; his ragtag following would fall apart on its own. The counsellors argued that Hou Jing would never dare march straight on the capital, and Kan's plan was set aside. They sent Wang Zhi in his place. Kan said, "We've lost already. Kan was then ordered to take a thousand-plus cavalry and hold position before the Capital Gate. When Hou Jing reached Xinlin, Kan was rushed inside to serve as deputy to the Prince of Xuancheng in commanding the city's defenses.
31
時景既卒至，百姓競入，公私混亂，無復次序。 侃乃區分防擬，皆以宗室間之。 軍人爭入武庫，自取器甲，所司不能禁，侃命斬數人方得止。 是時梁興四十七年，境內無事，公卿在位，及閭里士大夫莫見兵甲。 賊至卒迫，公私駭震。 時宿將已盡，後進少年並出在外，城中唯有侃及柳津、韋黯。 津年老且疾，黯懦而無謀，軍旅指撝，一決於侃，膽力俱壯，簡文深仗之。
Hou Jing had struck with no warning. People thronged into the city in panic, public and private affairs collapsed into chaos, and every trace of order vanished. Kan organized the defenses sector by sector, placing members of the imperial clan at intervals throughout the lines. Soldiers stormed the armory and helped themselves to arms; the officers on duty could not restrain them until Kan had several men executed. The Liang had enjoyed forty-seven years of peace. Within the realm nothing threatened; ministers at court and gentlemen in every lane had never once seen weapons of war. When the enemy suddenly appeared at the gates, court and city alike were struck with terror. The old commanders were gone, the rising generation was away on campaign, and within the walls only Kan, Liu Jin, and Wei An remained. Liu Jin was old and sick, Wei An timid and without counsel. Every military decision fell to Kan alone. Bold and resolute, he was the man on whom Emperor Jianwen staked the city's survival.
32
及賊逼城，眾皆兇懼，侃偽稱得外射書，云：「邵陵、西昌侯已至近路」，眾乃少安。 賊攻東掖門，縱火甚盛。 侃以水沃滅火，射殺數人，賊乃退。 加侍中、軍師將軍。 有詔送金五千兩、銀萬兩、絹萬匹賜戰士。 侃辭不受，部曲千餘人並私加賞賚。
As the enemy closed on the walls, panic spread through the ranks. Kan feigned receipt of a message brought in by arrow, claiming that the Prince of Shaoling and the Marquis of Xichang were already on the road nearby. The troops steadied somewhat. The rebels assaulted the East Side Gate and raised a tremendous blaze. Kan drowned the flames with water, brought down several of the enemy with his bow, and the attack broke off. He was additionally named Attendant-in-Ordinary and General of the Army. An imperial decree sent five thousand taels of gold, ten thousand taels of silver, and ten thousand bolts of silk to reward the defenders. Kan refused the imperial grant and instead paid rewards out of his own purse to the thousand-odd men of his retinue.
33
賊為尖頂木驢攻城，矢石所不能制。 侃作雉尾炬，施鐵鏃，以油灌之，擲驢上焚之俄盡。 賊又東西起二土山以臨城，城中震駭。 侃命為地道，潛引其土山，不能立。 賊又作登城樓車，高十餘丈，欲臨射城中。 侃曰：「車高塹虛，彼來必倒，可臥而觀之。」 及車動果倒，眾皆服焉。
The rebels rolled up pointed wooden siege towers against the walls — neither arrows nor stones could stop them. Kan devised fire arrows shaped like pheasant tails, tipped with iron and soaked in oil, and hurled them onto the towers until the structures blazed up and were gone. The rebels then piled up two earthen hills east and west to dominate the walls, throwing the city into alarm. Kan had his men dig tunnels beneath the hills to undermine them, and the mounds collapsed before they could be finished. They next built siege towers more than a hundred feet high, intending to fire down into the city. Kan said, "Those towers are too tall for hollow ground at the moat's edge. When they roll forward they'll tip over. We can lie back and watch. When the towers advanced they fell exactly as he had predicted, and everyone acknowledged his judgment.
34
賊既頻攻不捷，乃築長圍。 朱異、張綰議出擊之。 帝以問侃，侃曰：「不可，賊多日攻城，既不能下，故立長圍，欲引城中降者耳。 今擊之，出人若少，不足破賊； 若多，則一旦失利，門隘橋小，必大致挫衄。」 不從，遂使千餘人出戰。 未及交鋒，望風退走，果以爭橋赴水，死者太半。
After repeated assaults failed, the rebels settled in to build a full circumvallation. Zhu Yi and Zhang Wan urged a sortie against the encirclement. The emperor asked Kan's view. Kan said, "No. They have failed to take the city by assault, so they are building a long siege line to tempt defectors inside the walls — that is all. If we sortie with too few men, we won't break them; but if we send out many and lose, the gates are narrow and the bridges small — a retreat would become a slaughter. His counsel was ignored, and more than a thousand men were sent out to fight. They never even closed with the enemy but broke and ran. In the crush at the bridge men tumbled into the water, and more than half perished.
35
初，侃長子鷟為景所獲，執來城下示侃。 侃謂曰：「我傾宗報主，猶恨不足，豈復計此一子。 幸早殺之。」 數日復持來，侃謂鷟曰：「久以汝為死，猶在邪？ 吾以身許國，誓死行陣，終不以爾而生進退。」 因引弓射之。 賊以其忠義，亦弗之害。
Early in the siege Hou Jing captured Kan's eldest son Zhuo and brought him beneath the walls for his father to see. Kan called out, "I have offered my whole house to serve my sovereign and still regret it is too little. Why should I weigh the life of one son? Be done with him at once. Days later they brought the boy before the wall again. Kan said to Zhuo, "I had long taken you for dead — you still breathe? I have given my life to the realm and sworn to die where I stand. I will never let your fate dictate whether I hold or yield." He nocked an arrow and fired at his own son. Moved by his fidelity, the enemy did not harm the boy.
36
景遣儀同傅士哲呼侃與語，曰：「侯王遠來問訊天子，何為閉拒不時進納？ 尚書國家大臣，宜啟朝廷。」 侃曰：「侯將軍奔亡之後，歸命國家，重鎮方城，懸相任寄，何所患苦，忽致稱兵，豈有人臣而至於此。 吾不能妄受浮說，開門揖盜。」 士哲曰：「在北之日，久挹風猷，願去戎服，得一相見。」 侃為免胄，士哲瞻望久之而去，其為北人所欽慕如此。
Hou Jing sent the palace attendant fellow Fu Shizhe to call Kan out for a parley. "The prince-regent has journeyed far to pay his respects to the Son of Heaven," he said. "Why do you keep your gates barred and withhold timely access? You are a minister of the realm — you should open the gates for the court's sake. Kan replied, "After your flight you submitted to the dynasty, were given the weighty post at Fangcheng, and entrusted with command from afar. What complaint could justify suddenly taking up arms? Has any loyal minister ever stooped to this? I will not swallow idle promises and open the gates to welcome a thief." Shizhe said, "When I was in the north I long admired your reputation. I would lay aside my armor — let me see you once." Kan doffed his helmet. Shizhe stared a long while before he left — that was how deeply the northerners revered him.
37
後大雨，城內土山崩，賊乘之垂入，苦戰不能禁。 侃乃令多擲火，為火城以斷其路，徐於城內築城，賊不能進。 尋以疾卒於城內，贈侍中、護軍將軍。 子球嗣。
Later heavy rains caused the earthen siege mounds inside the walls to collapse. The rebels pressed the breach and nearly broke through; despite fierce fighting the defenders could not hold them back. Kan ordered a barrage of fire, forming a wall of flame to block the way, then slowly raised a second wall inside the city. The enemy could advance no farther. Soon afterward he died of illness inside the walls. He was posthumously made Attendant-in-Ordinary and General Who Protects the Army. His son Qiu inherited his position.
38
侃少雄勇，膂力絕人，所用弓至二十石，馬上用六石弓。 嘗於兗州堯廟蹋壁，直上至五尋，橫行得七跡。 泗橋有數石人，長八尺，大十圍。 侃執以相擊，悉皆破碎。 性豪侈，善音律，自造採蓮、棹歌兩曲，甚有新致。 姬妾列侍，窮極奢靡。 有彈箏人陸太喜著鹿角爪，長七寸。 舞人張淨琬腰圍一尺六寸，時人咸推能掌上舞。 又有孫荊玉能反腰帖地，銜得席上玉簪。 敕賚歌人王娥兒，東宮亦賚歌者屈偶之，並妙盡奇曲，一時無對。 初赴衡州，於兩艖滏起三間通梁水齋，飾以珠玉，加之錦繢，盛設帷屏，列女樂。 乘潮解纜，臨波置酒，緣塘傍水，觀者填咽。 大同中，魏使陽斐與侃在北嘗同學，有詔命侃延斐同宴。 賓客三百餘人，食器皆金玉雜寶，奏三部女樂。 至夕，侍婢百餘人俱執金花燭。 侃不飲酒而好賓遊，終日獻酬，同其醉醒。
In youth Kan was fiercely brave, with strength beyond ordinary men. He drew a bow rated at twenty piculs, and on horseback wielded one of six. Once at the Temple of Yao in Yan Province he ran up a wall, climbing straight to a height of five xun and leaving seven horizontal footprints as he went. At Si Bridge stood several stone statues eight feet tall and ten arm-spans around. He picked them up and smashed them together until every one lay in pieces. He was lavish by nature and skilled in music, composing two tunes of his own — "Plucking Lotus" and "Oar Song" — notable for their fresh charm. Rows of concubines attended him in consummate extravagance. One zheng player, Lu Taixi, wore deer-antler finger-picks seven inches long. The dancer Zhang Jingwan measured one chi six inches at the waist; all agreed she could dance upon the palm of one's hand. Another, Sun Jingyu, could arch backward until her back touched the floor and pick up a jade hairpin from the mat with her teeth. The throne bestowed upon him the singer Wang E'er, and the Eastern Palace granted the singer Qu Ouzhi; both mastered rare songs beyond compare in their day. When he first set out for Heng Province he had built on two lashed barges a three-bay waterside hall with linked beams, inlaid with pearls and jade, hung with brocades, draped with curtains and screens, and lined with female musicians. He cast off with the tide, set out wine upon the water, and as he moved along the embankment the shore was choked with onlookers. During the Datong reign Yang Fei, envoy from Wei, had been Kan's schoolmate in the north. An edict directed Kan to entertain him at a feast. More than three hundred guests attended; every serving piece was gold, jade, or some other treasure, and three companies of female musicians performed. At nightfall more than a hundred maidservants each bore gilt-flower candles. Kan himself did not drink but loved hosting company; he spent the day raising his cup with them, sharing alike in their revelry and restraint.
39
性寬厚，有器局。 嘗南還至漣口置酒，有客張孺才者，醉於船中失火，延燒七十餘艘，所燔金帛不可勝數。 侃聞聊不掛意，命酒不輟。 孺才慚懼自逃，侃慰喻使還，待之如舊。
He was broad-minded and magnanimous, with the bearing of a man of large design. Once, returning south, he halted at Lian Mouth for a banquet. A guest named Zhang Rucai, drunk aboard ship, set a fire that spread to more than seventy vessels; the gold and silks lost were beyond reckoning. Kan barely took notice and never stopped the wine. Rucai fled in shame and fear; Kan calmed him and coaxed him back, treating him exactly as before.
40
第三子從字子鵬，隨侃台內，城陷，竄于陽平。 侯景以其妹為小妻，呼還待之甚厚，以為庫真都督。 及景敗，從密圖之，乃隨其東走。 景於松江戰敗，惟餘三舸，下海欲向蒙山。 會景晝寢，從語海師：「此中何處有蒙山，汝但聽我處分。」 遂直向京口，至胡豆洲，景覺，大驚。 問岸上，云：「郭元建猶在廣陵」。 景大喜，將依之。 從拔刀叱海師使向京口。 從與王元禮、謝答仁弟葳蕤，並景之昵也，三人謂景曰：「我等為王百戰百勝，自謂無敵，卒至於此，豈非天乎。 今就王乞頭以取富貴。」 景欲透水，從抽刀斫之。 景乃走入船中，以小刀抉船。 從以矟入刺殺之。 景僕射索超世在別船，葳蕤以景命召之，斬於京口。
His third son Cong, courtesy name Zipeng, had been with Kan inside the capital citadel. When the walls fell he fled to Yangping. Hou Jing took Kan's younger sister as a concubine, recalled Cong, treated him handsomely, and appointed him Director of the Palace Armory. When Hou Jing's cause collapsed, Cong plotted against him in secret and went east with him in flight. Hou Jing was routed on the Song River and left with only three boats. He put out to sea, meaning to make for Meng Mountain. Once when Hou Jing was napping by day, Cong told the helmsman, "Where is Meng Mountain in these waters? You need only do as I say. He then steered straight for Jingkou. When they reached Hudu Isle Hou Jing woke and was greatly alarmed. He asked the shore and was told, "Guo Yuanjian is still at Guangling." Hou Jing was overjoyed and prepared to join him. Cong bared his blade and shouted at the helmsman to make for Jingkou. Cong, Wang Yuanli, and Weirui — younger brother of Xie Daren and all three of Hou Jing's favorites — said to him, "We fought a hundred battles for you and won a hundred times. We thought ourselves invincible. To end here — is this not Heaven's decree? Grant us your head now, lord, and we shall win fortune and rank. Hou Jing tried to leap into the water; Cong struck at him with his blade. Hou Jing ran back into the boat and gouged at the hull with a knife. Cong drove a spear through him and killed him. Hou Jing's vice director Suo Chaoshi was on another boat. Weirui called him in Hou Jing's name and executed him at Jingkou.
41
元帝以從為青州刺史，封昌國縣侯，又領東陽太守。 征陸納，加散騎常侍，除西晉州刺史。 破郭元建于東關，遷東晉州刺史。 承聖三年，西魏圍江陵，從赴援不及。 從王僧愔征蕭勃於嶺表，聞僧辯敗，乃還，為侯瑱所破，遇害，年二十八。
Emperor Yuan made Cong Inspector of Qing Province, enfeoffed him as Marquis of Changguo, and also appointed him Administrator of Dongyang. Campaigning against Lu Na he was promoted to Ordinary Grandee of the Fast Horse and made Inspector of Western Jin Province. He defeated Guo Yuanjian at Dong Pass and was transferred to Inspector of Eastern Jin Province. In Chengsheng year 3 Western Wei besieged Jiangling; Cong marched to the rescue but arrived too late. He followed Wang Sengyin against Xiao Bo in Lingnan. Hearing of Senbian's defeat he turned back, was routed by Hou Tian, and was killed — aged twenty-eight.
42
羊鴉仁字孝穆，泰山钜平人也。 少驍勇，仕郡為主簿。 並通中，率兄弟自魏歸梁，封廣晉侯。 征伐青、齊間，累有功績，位至都督、北司州刺史。 及侯景降，詔鴉仁督土州刺史桓和之、仁州刺史湛海珍等趣縣瓠應接。 景至，仍為都督、司豫二州刺史，鎮縣瓠。 會侯景敗于渦陽，魏軍漸逼，鴉仁恐糧運不繼，遂還北司，上表陳謝。 帝大怒鴉仁，鴉仁懼，頓軍於淮上。 及侯景反，鴉仁率所部入援。
Yang Ren, courtesy name Xiaomu, was a native of Juping in Taishan commandery. As a young man he was bold and brave and served his commandery as chief clerk. In the Datong era he led his brothers in defecting from Wei to the Liang and was enfeoffed as Marquis of Guangjin. On campaigns between Qing and Qi he won repeated distinction, rising to area commander and Inspector of Northern Sizhou. When Hou Jing submitted, Ren was ordered to lead Inspector of Tuzhou Huan Hezhi, Inspector of Renzhou Zhan Haizhen, and others to Xuanhuo to coordinate support. When Hou Jing arrived, Ren remained area commander and Inspector of Si and Yu provinces, holding Xuanhuo. When Hou Jing was defeated at Woyang and Wei forces closed in, Ren, fearing his supply lines would fail, withdrew to Northern Sizhou and submitted a confession to the throne. The emperor was furious with Ren. Afraid, he halted his army on the Huai. When Hou Jing rose in rebellion, Ren led his troops to the capital's relief.
43
太清二年，景既背盟，鴉仁乃與趙伯超及南康王會理共攻賊於東府城，反為賊敗。 台城陷，景以為五兵尚書。 鴉仁常思奮發，謂所親曰：「吾以凡流，受寵朝廷，竟無報效，以答重恩。 今若以此終，沒有餘責。」 因泣下，見者傷焉。
In Taiqing year 2, after Hou Jing broke faith, Ren joined Zhao Bochao and Prince Huili of Nankang in an assault on the rebels at the Eastern Palace City — and was driven back. When the capital citadel fell, Hou Jing appointed him Minister of the Five Arms. Ren long burned to redeem himself. He told his intimates, "I am no one extraordinary, yet the court has heaped favor on me. I have never repaid that debt. If I die like this, I will have nothing left to answer for. He wept as he spoke, and all who heard him were moved to grief.
44
三年，出奔江西，將赴江陵，至東莞，為故北徐州刺史荀伯道子晷所害。 臨死以報效不終，因而泣下。 後鴉仁兄子海珍知之，掘晷父伯道並祖及所生母合五喪，各分其半骨，共棺焚之，半骨雜他骨，作五袋盛之，銘袋上曰：「荀晷祖父母某之骨
In year 3 he fled west into Jiangxi, bound for Jiangling. At Dongguan he was murdered by Xi Gui, son of the former Inspector of Northern Xuzhou Xun Bodao. Facing death, he wept that he could not finish repaying his debt of service. Later Ren's nephew Haizhen learned what had happened. He exhumed Xi Gui's father Bodao, his grandfather, and the mother who bore him — five graves in all — split each skeleton in half, burned the halves together in one coffin, mixed the remaining halves with other bones, packed them in five bags, and wrote on each bag: "The bones of Xi Gui's grandparents So-and-so
45
鴉仁子亮，侯景亂後移至吳州刺史，隨王琳，以名將子見禮甚隆。 為人多酒無賴，酒醉為閹豎所殺。
Yang Ren's son Liang, after the Hou Jing turmoil, was posted as Inspector of Wu Province; he followed Wang Lin and, as a famous general's son, was treated with the greatest honor. He drank heavily and lived dissolutely; one night, drunk, a palace eunuch killed him.
46
論曰：王神念、羊侃、羊鴉仁等，自北徂南，咸受寵任。 既而侃及鴉仁晚遇屯剝。 侃則臨危不撓，鴉仁則守義以殞。 古人所謂「心同鐵石」，此之謂乎。 僧辯風格秀舉，有文武奇才，而逢茲酷濫，幾致隕覆。 幸全首領，卒樹奇功，事人之道，於斯為得。 及時鐘交喪，地居元宰，內有奧主而外求君，遂使尊卑易位，親疏貿序，既同兒戲，且類弈棋。 延敵開釁，實基於此，喪國傾宗，為天下笑。 豈天將啟陳，何斯人而斯謬也，哀哉！
The historian writes: Wang Shennian, Yang Kan, Yang Ren, and others all came south from the north and won the throne's confidence. Yet Kan and Ren met hardship and ruin in their later years. Kan stood unyielding in the face of death; Ren held to his duty and died for it. Is this not what the ancients meant by "hearts as iron and stone"? Senbian was graceful and commanding, gifted in both letters and arms, yet he met this cataclysm and nearly perished. Yet he kept his life, and in the end won a great victory — in the art of serving one's lord, he had done it right. Yet when calamity struck he was chief minister — deferring to a hidden power within while hunting for a patron without — until rank and loyalty traded places, intimacy and distance were scrambled, and governance became child's play, chess on a board. Inviting enemies and opening the way to rebellion — that was where it began. The realm was lost, the house fell, and all under heaven laughed. Was Heaven itself preparing to raise Chen? How could such a man err so gravely? Alas!