Dates uncertain · Knight-errant and Official

Yuan She 原涉

Dates uncertain

Passages: 49
Chapters: 1
Histories: 1

Overview

The translated histories identify Yuan She as a named individual and official. This record brings together 49 passages from 1 chapter across 1 history, with names, dates, relationships, offices, and events preserved as source-backed claims.

Names

Type	English	Chinese	Pinyin
Personal	Yuan She	原涉	Yuan She
Courtesy	Juxian	巨先	Juxian
Title	Prefect Yuan	原尹	Yuan Yin
Given	She	涉	She
Surname	Yuan	原	Yuan
Courtesy	Yuan Juxian	原巨先	Yuan Juxian

Identity

Historicity: Historical
Identification: Named
Sex: Male

Sex: male
Explicit · hanshu:104:s0215
Sex: male
Strongly inferred · hanshu:104:s0232, hanshu:104:s0270

Roles

Named Individual
Official

Life and dates

Death

beheaded and hung in the Chang'an market / 斬涉，懸之長安市
Explicit · hanshu:104:s0288

Age

Stated Age: 二十餘 · Text: over twenty years of age / 年二十餘 · Reckoning: sui
Explicit · hanshu:104:s0222

Career and standing

clerk in a minister's mansion / 卿府掾史
Explicit · hanshu:104:s0251
colonel of the earth-returning work / 守復土校尉
Explicit · hanshu:104:s0252
Grand Administrator of Tianshui / 天水太守
Explicit · hanshu:104:s0276
Grand Guardian of the Pacified Rong / 鎮戎大尹
Explicit · hanshu:104:s0276
palace gentleman / 中郎
Explicit · hanshu:104:s0253

Events and relationships

Type: father-of · Person Id: Chu (初)
Explicit · hanshu:104:s0270

References in the histories

Open any source group to read the Chinese and English passage in context.

Book of Han, Chapter 104Volume 92: Youxias · 49 passages

及王莽時，諸公之間陳遵為雄，閭里之俠原涉為魁。 By Wang Mang's day Chen Zun lorded it among the great ministers, while Yuan She ruled the back-alley swordsmen.

原涉字巨先。 Yuan She, styled Juxian.

涉父哀帝時為南陽太守。 His father governed Nanyang under Emperor Ai.

及涉父死，讓還南陽賻送，行喪塚廬三年，由是顯名京師。 When his father died he sent back the Nanyang condolence gold, mourned three years by the grave, and became famous in Chang'an.

先是，涉季父為茂陵秦氏所殺，涉居谷口半歲所，自劾去官，欲報仇。 Years before, a Qin of Maoling had murdered his uncle; Yuan She quit Gukou after six months to hunt revenge.

涉遂傾身與相待，人無賢不肖闐門，在所閭里盡滿客。 He threw his doors open to saint and scoundrel alike until every lane he touched overflowed with clients.

或譏涉曰：「子本吏二千石之世，結髮自修，以行喪推財禮讓為名，正復讎取仇，猶不失仁義，何故遂自放縱，為輕俠之徒乎？」 A critic said, "You were born to office, built a name on refusing gifts and keeping mourning—even blood feud could stay righteous—so why slide into alley-knight swagger?"

涉應曰：「子獨不見家人寡婦邪？ Yuan She shot back, "Have you never seen a household widow?

涉自以為前讓南陽賻送，身得其名，而令先人墳墓儉約，非孝也。 He decided that refusing Nanyang gold had bought him fame at the cost of shabby ancestral tombs—unfilial after all.

初，武帝時，京兆尹曹氏葬茂陵，民謂其道為京兆仟，涉慕之，乃買地開道，立表署曰南陽仟，人不肯從，謂之原氏仟。 Emperor Wu's Governor Cao had left a "Metropolitan Thousand" funeral avenue at Maoling; Yuan She copied the stunt, labeled his "Nanyang Thousand," but locals dubbed it the Yuan family lane.

人嘗置酒請涉，涉入里門，客有道涉所知母病避疾在裡宅者。 Someone once invited Yuan She to a banquet. As he entered the ward gate, a guest told him that the mother of a family he knew was ill and had moved to a house within the ward in hopes of escaping the sickness.

涉即往候，叩門。 He turned aside at once and knocked at her door.

家哭，涉因入吊，問以喪事。 He found the house in tears, stepped in to mourn, and asked what the burial needed.

家無所有，涉曰：「但潔掃除沐浴，待涉。」 They owned nothing; Yuan She said, "Scrub the rooms, wash the body, and wait for me."

還至主人，對賓客歎息曰：「人親臥地不收，涉何心鄉此！ Back at the party he told the crowd, "A mother lies unburied—how can I swallow your wine!

賓客爭問所當得，涉乃側席而坐，削牘為疏，具記衣被棺木，下至飯含之物，分付諸客。 Guests pressed for tasks; he sat, cut a tally sheet, and assigned shroud, coffin, even grave goods to each man.

涉親閱視已，謂主人：「願受賜矣。」 He checked the haul and told the host, "Now I will take your cup."

既共飲食，涉獨不飽，乃載棺物，從賓客往至喪家，為棺斂勞徠畢葬。 He barely touched food, then convoyed the goods to the dead woman's house and stayed until she was sealed in the earth.

後人有毀涉者曰「奸人之雄也」，喪家子即時刺殺言者。 Later someone who slandered Yuan She said he was "champion of villains"; the son of the mourning house immediately stabbed and killed the speaker.

涉懼，求為卿府掾史，欲以避客。 He took a clerkship to dodge his mob of hangers-on.

涉欲上塚，不欲會賓客，密獨與故人期會。 He wanted a quiet grave visit and set secret rendezvous with old friends only.

涉單車驅上茂陵，投暮，入其裡宅，因自匿不見人。 He raced alone to Maoling, slipped into his lane house at dusk, and hid.

遣奴至市買肉，奴乘涉氣與屠爭言，斫傷屠者，亡。 He sent a slave for meat; the man picked a fight with a butcher, cut him, and bolted.

是時，茂陵守令尹公新視事，涉未謁也，聞之大怒。 The new Maoling prefect Yin had not been visited; when he heard, he raged.

知涉名豪，欲以示眾厲俗，遣兩吏脅守涉。 Knowing Yuan She's fame, Yin posted two bailiffs on him to teach the town a lesson.

至日中，奴不出，吏欲便殺涉去。 Noon passed with no slave; the bailiffs threatened to execute Yuan She instead.

涉迫窘不知所為。 Yuan She was cornered.

會涉所與期上塚者車數十乘到，皆諸豪也，共說尹公。 Dozens of chariots of his grave-appointment allies roared in and pleaded with Yin.

尹公不聽，諸豪則曰：「原巨先奴犯法不得，使肉袒自縛，箭貫耳，詣廷門謝罪，於君威亦足矣。」 Yin refused; they offered, "Since the guilty slave cannot be caught, let Yuan She strip, bind himself, thread his ear with an arrow, and kowtow at your gate—that should satisfy your authority."

涉如言謝，復服遣去。 Yuan She did the ritual penance and walked free.

初，涉與新豐富人祁太伯為友，太伯同母弟王游公素嫉涉，時為縣門下掾，說尹公曰：「君以守令辱原涉如是，一旦真令至，君復單車歸為府吏，涉刺客如雲，殺人皆不知主名，可為寒心。 Yuan She had befriended Qi Taibo, a wealthy man of Xinfeng. Taibo's younger maternal half brother, Wang Yougong, had always resented Yuan She and was then a clerk in the county office. He told Yin, "As acting magistrate, you have humiliated Yuan She. Once the permanent magistrate arrives, you will return alone by cart to your old post as a commandery clerk. Yuan She's assassins are as numerous as clouds, and when they kill, no one ever knows who ordered it. The thought should chill you.

涉治塚捨，奢僭逾制，罪惡暴著，主上知之。 Yuan's tomb mansion breaks sumptuary law—one memorial and the throne will hear.

今為君計，莫若墮壞涉塚捨，條奏其舊惡，君必得真令。 Smash his shrine, list his crimes, and you will win the real post.

如此，涉亦不敢怨矣。」 Thus Yuan She would not dare resent you, either."

涉由此怨王游公，選賓客，遣長子初從車二十乘劫王游公家。 Yuan She then sent his son Chu at the head of twenty wagons to sack Wang Yougong's house.

涉性略似郭解，外溫仁謙遜，而內隱好殺。 Like Guo Xie he smiled in public and nursed killers within.

王莽末，東方兵起，諸王子弟多薦涉能得士死，可用。 Late in Wang Mang's reign eastern rebels rose; princelings urged hiring Yuan She for his suicide squads.

涉至官無幾，長安敗，郡縣諸假號起兵攻殺二千石長吏以應漢。 He had barely taken office when Chang'an fell and every pretender army murdered Han magistrates.

諸假號素聞涉名，爭問原尹何在，拜謁之。 The rebel chiefs had long heard Yuan She's name and vied to learn where Prefect Yuan was so they could pay their respects to him.

時莽州牧使者依附涉者皆得活。 Wang Mang stranded officials who clung to him lived.

傳送致涉長安，更始西屏將軍申徒建請涉與相見，大重之。 They convoyed him to Chang'an where Shentu Jian, Gengshi's western-screen general, courted him.

故茂陵令尹公壞涉塚捨者為建主簿，涉本不怨也。 The old prefect Yin who had smashed his tomb-shrine now served as Shentu Jian's chief clerk—Yuan bore him no malice.

涉從建所出，尹公故遮拜涉，謂曰：「易世矣，宜勿復相怨！」 Yin blocked his path, bowed, and said, "Times have turned—we should bury the feud."

涉曰：「尹君，何一魚肉涉也！」 Yuan She said, "Lord Yin, how could you treat me like fish on the chopping block!"

涉用是怒，使客刺殺主簿。 For this Yuan She was angry and had a guest stab and kill the chief clerk.

涉欲亡去，申徒建內恨恥之，陽言「吾欲與原巨先共鎮三輔，豈以一吏易之哉！」 Yuan She planned to flee. Shentu Jian, inwardly resentful and ashamed, put on a show of saying, "I intend to guard the Three Adjuncts together with Yuan Juxian. How could I trade him for a single clerk?"

賓客通言，令涉自系獄謝，建許之。 Clients relayed the word: Yuan She should bind himself in prison to apologize; Jian granted it.

賓客車數十乘共送涉至獄。 Dozens of wagons escorted him to jail.

建遣兵道徼取涉於車上，送車分散馳，遂斬涉，懸之長安市。 Shentu Jian's soldiers snatched him from his carriage, scattered his friends, and spiked his head in the Chang'an market.