Sui and Tang · Official and Statesman

Yuwen Rong 宇文融

Attested AD 725 - AD 730

Passages: 12
Chapters: 1
Histories: 1

Overview

Yuwen Rong was an official and Statesman.

Life and dates

Death

Died en route to exile · At Guang Prefecture route 廣州道
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 58

Attested activity

AD 725 to AD 730 開元中
Dated from the passage context · New Book of Tang 134, passages 40, 45

Family

Immediate relationships attested in the translated histories.

Spouse of Mother of Yuwen Shen
mother of his children 母 · Marriage
Strongly inferred · New Book of Tang 134, passage 64
Parent of Yuwen Shen (宇文審)
son 子
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 63
Parent of Son of Yuwen Rong (bribery)
son 息
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 55

Kinship Role sons · Quantity unspecified
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 64

Career and standing

acting inspector of Bian Prefecture 檢校汴州刺史
Appointed
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 40
Grand Counselor 同中書門下平章事
Appointed
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 44
Minister of State Ceremonial 鴻臚卿
Appointed
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 43
Pacification Commissioner 宣撫使
Appointed
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 40
Vice Director of the Chancery 黃門侍郎
Appointed
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 44
inspector of Ru Prefecture 汝州刺史
Demoted
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 52

Show 4 more source-backed claims

sheriff of Pingle 平樂尉
Demoted
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 55
Vice Director of the Treasury 戶部侍郎
Held
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 43
inspector of Tai Prefecture 臺州刺史
Posthumous grant
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 61
Banished
Exile · At Yan Prefecture 巖州
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 56

Works and attributed material

Speech · Speaker · Mode quotation Speaker Yuwen Rong (宇文融)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 45

Events and relationships

Relation Patron of · Person Li Zhou (李宙)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 134, passage 50

References in the histories

Search passages

History

12 passages

New Book of Tang, Chapter 134Volume 134 Biographies 59: Yuwen, Wei, Yang, Wang · 12 passages

融曰：「使吾執政得數月久，天下定矣。」 Rong declared, "If I could govern for just a few months more, the realm would be put in order."

信安王祎節度朔方，融畏其權，諷侍御史李宙劾奏之。 Prince Xin'an Yi held military command over Shuofang. Rong feared his authority and induced Attendant Censor Li Zhou to memorialize against him.

翌日，宙通奏，帝怒，罷融為汝州刺史。 The following day Li Zhou presented the full impeachment. The emperor flew into a rage and dismissed Rong, sending him to serve as inspector of Ru Prefecture.

帝思之，讓宰相曰：「公等暴融惡，朕既罪之矣，國用不足，將奈何？」 The emperor still thought of him and rebuked the Grand Counselors: "You exposed Rong's wrongdoing, and I have already punished him. But the treasury is short—what is to be done?"

裴光庭等不能對，即使有司劾融交不逞，作威福，其息受贓饋狼藉，乃貶融平樂尉。 Pei Guangting and the others had no answer. Before long the relevant offices impeached Rong for consorting with violent men and wielding power arbitrarily; his son had taken bribes on a scandalous scale, and Rong was demoted to sheriff of Pingle.

歲餘，司農發融在汴州紿隱官息錢巨萬，給事中馮紹烈深文推證，詔流於巖州。 A year later the Directorate of Agriculture uncovered that Rong had hidden millions in official interest money while serving in Bian Prefecture. Supervising Secretary Feng Shaolie pressed the case with relentless legal argument, and an edict banished him to Yan Prefecture.

初，融廣置使額以侈上心，百姓愁恐。 From the start Rong had proliferated special commissioner posts to gratify the emperor's ambitions, leaving the people anxious and afraid.

有司浸失職，自融始。 The progressive erosion of the regular bureaucracy's authority began with Rong.

其後言利得幸者踵相躡，皆本於融雲。 After his time, officials who won imperial favor through schemes for revenue followed in unbroken succession—all of them, it was said, took Rong as their model.

融之貶也，審與兄弟侍母京師。 When Rong was demoted, Shen and his brothers stayed in the capital to care for their mother.

及聞融再貶，不告其家，徒步號泣省父，使者憐之，以車共載達於嚴州。 Learning that Rong had been demoted a second time, he told no one at home but set out on foot, weeping as he went to see his father. The escort official took pity on him and let him ride along until they reached Yan Prefecture.

見宇文融、楊慎矜父子以聚斂進，乃運江、淮租賦，所在置吏督察，以佐國稟，歲終增鉅萬。 Observing how Yuwen Rong and Yang Shenjin and his son had risen through fiscal exploitation, he took charge of transporting rent and tax goods from the Jiang and Huai regions, posting supervisory officials along the route to bolster the state's grain supply. By year's end revenues had swelled by tens of thousands.