Cui Yanzeng (崔彥曾)

Overview

Cui Yanzeng was an official and Administrator.

Life and dates

Death

AD 869 龐勳殺彥曾
Killed · At in his quarters 於寢 · Authority Pang Xun (龐勳)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 158

Attested activity

AD 860 咸通初
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 141
AD 868 to AD 869 龐勳亂
Dated from the passage context · New Book of Tang 114, passages 147, 158

Family

Immediate relationships attested in the translated histories.

Child of Cui Neng (崔能)
son 子
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 141
Parent of Cui Youzhi (崔祐之)
son 子
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 165

sons and younger brothers 子弟
Kinship Role sons-and-younger-brothers · Quantity unspecified
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 173

Origins and identity

Cui associated with Qinghe choronym 清河崔望
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 163

Career and standing

Observation Commissioner of Xuzhou 徐州觀察使
AD 860 咸通初 · Appointed
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 141
Director of the Imperial Stud 太僕卿
AD 860 咸通初 · Held
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 141
Minister of Justice 刑部尚書
Posthumously granted
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 164

Places and affiliations

At Xuzhou 徐州 · Relation Posted to
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 141

Learning and skills

Belief Buddhism 佛 · Relation Made offering
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 160
Skill statutes and ordinances 律令 · Level knowledgeable
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 142

Works and attributed material

Speech · Speaker
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 153

Events and relationships

Beheaded adviser urging flight
Legal · Authority
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 154
Beheaded Pang Xun envoy
Military · Authority
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 150
Conscripted men onto walls against Pang Xun
Military · Defender · With Pang Xun (龐勳)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 152
Diverted Qing River at Zi Pavilion
Construction · Builder
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 161
Executed rebel families
Legal · Authority
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 156
Honey Buddha figures gnawed headless
Omen · Subject
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 160

Show 3 more source-backed claims

Imprisoned at Great Peng Lodge
Military · Captive · With Pang Xun (龐勳)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 156
Pond water turned to blood
Omen · Subject · At Zhengzhou 鄭州
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 159
Relation Entrusted · Person Lu Shenzhong (路審中)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 166

Assessments and attributes

Assessment skilled with civilians, weak with troops · Mode historian-judgment
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 143
brusque, impatient, harsh in governance
Character
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 142

Source notes

Historicity historical
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passage 141
Locals read roofed dragon plus Qinghe/Cui wang as foretelling Pang devouring Cui
Field omen-reading
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 114, passages 162-163

References in the histories

Search passages

History

14 passages

New Book of Tang, Chapter 114Volume 114 Biographies 39: Cui Rong and Descendent Cong, Descendent Neng, Neng's Nephew: Shen You, Neng's Nephew an Qian, Neng's Son: Yan Ceng, Xu Yanbo, Su Weidao, Dou Lu Qin Wang · 14 passages

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能子彥曾彥曾，咸通初，繇太僕卿為徐州觀察使。 Neng's son Yanzeng, at the start of the Xiantong era, moved from director of the imperial stud to observation commissioner of Xuzhou.

徐軍素驕，而彥曾長於撫民，短治軍，士多怨之。 The Xuzhou garrison had long been unruly; Yanzeng was adept at winning over civilians but poor at managing troops, and the men resented him.

至期請代，而彥曾親吏尹戡、徐行儉貪不恤士，乃議稟賜乏，請無發兵，復留屯一年。 When their term ended they asked to be relieved, but Yanzeng's trusted clerks Yin Kan and Xu Xingjian, greedy and indifferent to the soldiers' welfare, claimed funds for rations and rewards were short, refused to send replacements, and kept the garrison another year.

彥曾命牙將田厚簡慰勞，而用都虞候元密伏甲任山館擊賊。 Yanzeng sent his adjutant Tian Houjian with words of comfort while setting Chief Commandant Yuan Mi in ambush at Renshan Lodge to attack the rebels.

勳遣吏紿言士思歸，不敢遏，請至府解甲自歸，彥曾斬其吏。 Xun sent an envoy falsely claiming his men only wanted to go home and asking to surrender at the prefectural seat; Yanzeng had the envoy beheaded.

彥曾料丁男乘城。 Yanzeng drafted every able-bodied man onto the walls.

或勸率眾奔兗州，彥曾曰：「我，方帥也，奉命守此，惟有死爾。」 Some urged him to abandon the city and flee to Yanzhou; Yanzeng replied: "I am a frontier commander charged to hold this post. I can only die here."

彥曾悉誅賊家屬，勳眾四面超墉入，囚彥曾大彭館。 Yanzeng had executed the rebels' families; Xun's men scaled the walls on every side, seized the city, and imprisoned Yanzeng in the Great Peng Lodge.

勳乃殺彥曾於寢，自監軍使逮官屬皆死。 Xun then killed Yanzeng in his quarters, and every official from the army supervisor down was put to death.

始，彥曾治第鄭州，引水灌沼，水十步忽化為血。 Earlier, while building a mansion in Zhengzhou, he had water led into a pond; within ten paces the water suddenly turned to blood.

徐有子亭，下瀦水為沱，彥曾導清河灌之，鐫石龍首注溜，蔽以屋。 Xuzhou had the Zi Pavilion with a dammed pool beneath it; Yanzeng diverted the Qing River to fill it, carved a stone dragon head for the outlet, and roofed it over.

徐吏有路審中者，彥曾知其能，頗任之。 Among Yanzeng's staff was Lu Shenzhong, whom he recognized as capable and entrusted with important duties.

既遇害，賂守卒，斂藏其屍。 After Yanzeng was killed, Shenzhong bribed the guards and secretly recovered his body.

彥曾官屬被囚，鐸潛饋資糧，及死，為收瘞，匿免其子弟，賊平，乃皆歸其喪。 While Yanzeng's staff lay imprisoned, Duo secretly supplied them; after Yanzeng's death he buried the body, sheltered his sons and brothers, and when the rebellion ended restored their remains to the family.