Liu Sheng (晟) | 24 Histories

Overview

Liu Sheng was a ruler.

Other names

Type	English	Chinese	Pinyin
Alternate name	Hongxi	洪熙

Life and dates

Attested activity

AD 945 三年
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 126
AD 943 乾和
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 121
AD 944 二年夏
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 122
AD 947 五年
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 132
AD 948 六年
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 133
AD 943 應乾
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 114

Family

Immediate relationships attested in the translated histories.

Child of Liu Yan (龑)
father 父
Strongly inferred · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 123
Sibling of Liu Hongbi (洪弼)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Hongchang (洪昌)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 108
Sibling of Liu Hongze (洪澤)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Hongjian (洪建)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Hongzhao (洪昭)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Hongwei (洪暐)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Hongjian (洪簡)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Hongdao (洪道)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Hongya (洪雅)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Hongyi (洪益)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Hongji (洪濟)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125
Sibling of Liu Honggao (洪杲)
younger brother 弟 · paternal line
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 108
Sibling of Liu Bin (玢)
younger brother 弟 · Full siblings
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 112

killed one after another
Kinship Role younger brothers · Quantity unspecified
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passage 125

Career and standing

succeeded after murdering Bin
AD 943 應乾
Directly stated · New History of the Five Dynasties 65, passages 112, 114

References in the histories

Search passages

History

20 passages

New History of the Five Dynasties, Chapter 65Volume 65: Hereditary House of Southern Han · 20 passages

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洪熙日益進聲妓誘玢為荒恣。 Hongxi daily presented singing girls and entertainers to lure Bin into dissipation.

洪熙、洪杲、洪昌陰遣陳道庠養勇士劉思潮、譚令禋、林少強、少良、何昌廷等，習為角觝以獻玢。 Hongxi, Honggao, and Hongchang secretly had Chen Daoxiang train braves — Liu Sixiang, Tan Lingyin, Lin Shaoqiang, Shaoliang, He Changting, and others — in wrestling and present them to Bin.

弟晟立。 His younger brother Sheng succeeded him.

晟，初名洪熙，封晉王。 Sheng, whose original name was Hongxi, had been enfeoffed as Prince of Jin.

晟既殺兄，立不順，懼眾不伏，乃益峻刑法以威眾。 Sheng had murdered his elder brother and seized the throne unlawfully; fearing the people would not submit, he made the penal code ever harsher to awe them.

已而洪杲屢請討賊，陰勸晟誅思潮等以止外議。 Before long Honggao repeatedly requested campaigns against bandits and secretly urged Sheng to execute Sixiang and the others to silence outside criticism.

晟大怒，使使者夜召洪杲。 Sheng was furious and sent envoys by night to summon Honggao.

冬，晟祀天南郊，改元曰乾和，群臣上尊號曰大聖文武大明至道大光孝皇帝。 In winter Sheng sacrificed to Heaven at the southern suburb, changed the era name to Qianhe, and the ministers offered the honorific title Great Sage, Martial and Civil, Great Illumination, Supreme Way, Great Radiance, Filial Emperor.

二年夏，遣洪昌祠襄帝陵於海曲，至昌華宮，晟使盜刺殺之。 In the summer of the second year he sent Hongchang to sacrifice at the Accomplished Emperor’s tomb by the sea bend. When Hongchang reached Changhua Palace, Sheng had assassins kill him.

晟自殺洪杲，由是與諸弟有隙，而洪昌最賢，龑素所欲立者，晟尤忌之，故先及害。 Sheng himself had killed Honggao, and from this he was at odds with his younger brothers. Hongchang was the most worthy — the one Yan had always wished to make heir — and Sheng especially feared him, so he struck first.

鎮王洪澤居邕州，有善政，是歲鳳皇見邕州，晟怒，使人冘殺之。 Prince of Zhen Hongze resided at Yongzhou and governed well. That year a phoenix appeared at Yongzhou; Sheng was angered and had him strangled.

晟聞之大怒，以道庠、伸下獄，皆斬之於市，夷其族。 When Sheng heard of it he was furious, threw Daoxiang and Shen into prison, beheaded them both in the market, and exterminated their clans.

五年，晟弟洪弼、洪道、洪益、洪濟、洪簡、洪建、洪暐、洪昭，同日皆見殺。 In the fifth year Sheng’s younger brothers Hongbi, Hongdao, Hongyi, Hongji, Hong Jian, Hong Jian, Hongwei, and Hongzhao were all killed on the same day.

允章還，晟曰：「馬公復能經略南土乎？」 When Yunzhang returned, Sheng said, "Can Lord Ma still manage the southern lands?"

晟乃遣巨象指揮使吳珣、內侍吳懷恩攻賀州，已克之，楚人來救，珣鑿大阱於城下，覆箔於上，以土傅之，楚兵迫城，悉陷阱中，死者數千，楚人皆走。 Sheng then sent Great Elephant Commander Wu Xun and Palace Attendant Wu Huaien to attack Hezhou. They had already taken it when Chu troops came to relieve it. Xun dug a great pit beneath the wall, covered it with matting, and spread earth over it. When Chu troops pressed the wall, all fell into the pit; several thousand died and the Chu army fled.

宦者林延遇、宮人盧瓊仙，內外專恣為殺戮，晟不復省。 The eunuch Lin Yanyu and the palace woman Lu Qiongxian wielded unchecked power inside and out to kill at will; Sheng no longer attended to affairs.

明日酒醒，復召玉樓侍飲，左右白已殺之，晟嘆息而已。 The next day when he sobered he again summoned Yulou to attend his drinking; his attendants reported that Yulou had already been killed, and Sheng only sighed.

權死，子昌岌立，昌岌卒，弟昌濬立，始稱臣於晟。 When Quan died his son Changji succeeded; when Changji died his younger brother Changjun succeeded and first declared himself a subject to Sheng.

晟遣給事中李璵以旌節招之，璵至白州，濬使人止璵曰：「海賊為亂，道路不通。」 Sheng sent Supervising Secretary Li Yu with credentials to summon him. When Yu reached Baizhou, Changjun had men stop him and say, "Sea bandits are in revolt and the roads are blocked."

晟卒，以長子立，改元曰大寶。 When Sheng died the eldest son succeeded; the era name was changed to Dabao.