← Back to 清史稿

卷283 列傳七十 觉罗武默讷 舒兰 图理琛 何国宗

Volume 283 Biographies 70: Jue Luo Wu Mo Ne, Shu Lan, Tu Li Chen, He Guozong

Chapter 283 of 清史稿 · Draft History of Qing
← Previous Chapter
Chapter 283
Next Chapter →
1
Biographies 70
2
Jue Luo Wu Mone, Shu Lan, La Xi, Wangzhar son of La Xi, Sun Boling'a, Tulichen, and He Guozong
3
Jue Luo Wu Mone belonged to the Plain Yellow Banner and was a fourth-generation descendant of Suochanga, the Jing Emperor's third elder brother. In Shunzhi 4 he received the hereditary rank of Tusahara Khan, rose in steps to third-rank Adaha Khan, and was promoted to first-class imperial bodyguard. In Kangxi 6 he was made an inner minister and put in charge of a banner company.
4
耀 鹿宿
In Kangxi 16 he was sent with the bodyguards Fei Yaose, Sai Huli, and Suonai to worship at Mount Changbai. The emperor instructed them: "Mount Changbai is where our ancestors first rose. Go to Jilin, find guides who know the way, perform the observance and rites, and inspect Ningguta and the surrounding region. Ride post-horses and hurry there before the height of summer." On jimao day in the fifth month Wu Mone and his party left the capital; on jichou day they reached Shengjing and traveled east; on wuxu day they arrived at Jilin. They asked the locals, but no one knew the route to Mount Changbai. They found Daimuburu, a hunter who had long lived at Eheneo, who said his father had hunted at the foot of Changbai, carried a deer home, and spent three nights on the road—suggesting the mountain was not far from Eheneo. Overland from Jilin to Eheneo took ten days; by river it took nearly several times longer. General Baha of Ningguta sent seventeen grain boats ahead to Eheneo and ordered Assistant Commandant Sabusu to escort Wu Mone's party. On dingwei day in the sixth month Wu Mone's party set out with three months' rations, marching overland past the Wenduhen River, Kulene Range, Qiersa River, Bu'erkan River, Nadanjeflo, Huifa River, Fa River, and Zhuolong'e River to the Neo River headwaters, where the grain convoy also arrived. They then boarded small boats, parting from Sabusu, and poled up the Neo River against the current.
5
鹿 鹿
On bingyin day they rendezvoused at Eheneo. Deep forest stretched ahead with no trail; Sabusu led the party forward, felling trees to cut a path. He sent word back: after thirty li they climbed a hill; from the summit, peering along the treetops, they sighted Mount Changbai more than a hundred li off—patches of white like piled jade, startlingly clear. On wuchen day Wu Mone pressed forward. On jisi day he met Sabusu in the woods. At dawn on renshen day a thick fog hid the mountain entirely. They heard cranes calling, followed the sound, found a deer trail, and reached the mountain foot—a ring of dense forest enclosing a level, grassy clearing without trees. Ahead lay a small wood ending in white birches aligned as if planted by hand; when they circled outside the grove, fog still hid everything. They knelt, recited the edict, and bowed; when they rose the fog had lifted, the peaks stood plain before them, and a path led upward. From afar the mountain rose tall and sheltering; up close its summit was level and rounded—the jade-like gleam they had seen was compacted ice and snow. The mountain climbed steeply for over a hundred li; at the summit lay a lake encircled by five peaks—four flanking the water like a bow, the southernmost slightly lower, forming twin gate towers. The lake stretched thirty or forty li across; streams burst from the slopes—the left becoming the Songhua, the right the Greater and Lesser Neo Rivers—with level forest all around the mountain. Wu Mone worshipped and came down. On the summit a herd of deer stampeded; seven collapsed and fell at Wu Mone's feet. Only seven men had reached the summit and were nearly out of food; they thanked the mountain spirit for the gift. They had barely gone a li downhill when fog closed in again. On guiyou day they returned to their first lookout point, but never again caught sight of the mountain. On gengchen day in the seventh month they reached the Qiaku River, their horses spent. On jiashen day they boarded boats at the Qiaku River and sailed back past the Seketeng, Tubohe, Ga'erhan, Gadahun, Samu, Sakexi, Fakeshi, and Duohun rivers to the Songhua. On dingwei day in the eighth month they returned to Jilin and inspected Ningguta and the surrounding districts. On yichou day they returned to the capital.
6
殿
Their report reached the throne, and an edict ennobled the spirit of Mount Changbai with sacrifices ranked equal to the Five Sacred Peaks. In Kangxi 17 Wu Mone was sent with an edict to perform the enfeoffment; he conducted the seasonal observances according to established ritual. In Kangxi 19 he was summoned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, where the emperor had artists paint his portrait and bestow it upon him. The emperor said: "Let your descendants worship before this portrait for all generations, as a sign of my favor." In Kangxi 29 he died, and the court granted funeral sacrifices.
7
滿
Shu Lan, of the Nara clan, was a Manchu of the Plain Red Banner. His father Dundoli was vice minister of the Board of Punishments and also commanded a banner company. While trying Governor-General Cai Yurong, he sided with Minister Xifu in leniency; he was dismissed and exiled to Heilongjiang.
8
滿
Shu Lan advanced from a clerk in the Court of Colonial Affairs to director. In Kangxi 38, with Vice Minister Manpi and Commander-in-Chief Udazan, he induced over three thousand Barhu to surrender, settled them on Chahar grazing lands, and enrolled them under banner companies. Soon the Barhu company commander Eketu rebelled, killed Chahar Deputy Commander Abida and Cavalry Captain Bandi, seized livestock, and fled. The emperor ordered Khalkha Prince Sibutuihatan to pursue with Mongol troops; Shu Lan carried orders to the Mongol princes and taiji and raised Chahar and Oirat forces; joining Udazan, they captured the rebel leader. He was promoted to reader in the Grand Secretariat.
9
In Kangxi 40 he was sent with bodyguard La Xi to find the Yellow River's source. The emperor said: "Though the source is called Gurban Suurimale, its true spring lies where almost no one has gone. You must trace it to the end and determine where the river enters Chinese territory from beyond the snow mountains. Survey every stretch of its course in detail." On xinyou day in the fourth month Shu Lan's party left the capital. On jihai day in the fifth month they reached Qinghai. On gengzi day they reached Kukubulak. Prince Sebutengzhale accompanied them.
10
西 宿 宿 西西
On guihai day in the sixth month they reached Eling Nur. On jiazi day they went west to Zhaling Nur. Eling measured over two hundred li around, Zhaling over three hundred; the two lakes lay about thirty li apart. On yichou day they reached the Sea of Starry Constellations, known in Mongol as Edun Tala. At its source countless small springs glittered like stars, encircled by mountains. South stood Gurban Tuleha; southwest, Buhuzhulehe; west, Barbuha; north, Aktaqile; northeast, Wulandushi—the Mongols called the range collectively Kurkun, the Kunlun. The spring from Gurban Tuleha was the Garmatang; from Barbuha, the Garmachumulang; from Aktaqile, the Garmaqinni. Springs from the three mountains fed three branch streams—Gurban Suurimale itself. The three rivers ran east into Zhaling Nur; a branch of Zhaling fed Eling Nur, and the Yellow River flowed out from Eling. Countless other mountain and plain springs pooled and converged, all feeding the Yellow River eastward.
11
宿 宿 西宿
On dingmao day Shu Lan's party left the Sea of Starry Constellations, forsook the outbound route, and followed the river southeast. On jisi day they climbed Mount Ha'erji and traced the Yellow River bending east to Kukutuoluohai, looping south around Sachuke, turning north again, and passing south of Ba'ertuoluohai. On gengwu day they reached Mount Amunimalezhamuxun—the loftiest peak, wrapped in cloud so its full extent could not be seen. Mongols said it ran over three hundred li, with nine peaks whose ice never melted. Snow and rain were nearly constant—only three or four clear days in a month. Shu Lan's party turned back from here. On renshen day they reached Xilakutile, crossed Mount Sengku'ergao to the south, and after another hundred-odd li reached the Yellow River bank. They saw the Yellow River flow northeast from Ba'ertuoluohai, thread the gorge between Guide Fort and Mount Daka, and enter Lanzhou. From the capital to the Sea of Starry Constellations was over seven thousand six hundred li. West of Ningxia, from Songshan to the Sea of Starry Constellations, the air thinned, the land rose, and travelers were often short of breath. In the ninth month they returned to the capital, memorialized their route in detail, and presented maps.
12
使輿 西''西'''宿'
The emperor told his ministers: "For place-names ancient and modern, even in the farthest borderlands I examine maps, consult local usage, and insist on accuracy. That is why I sent envoys to Kunlun to verify on the ground and record the results in the imperial atlas. The Yellow River rises east of Kurkun beyond the western passes; countless springs glitter like stars. Mongols call it Edun Tala, Tibetans Suurimale, Chinese the Sea of Starry Constellations—that is the source. They gather in the two lakes, Zhaling and Eling. It runs southeast, bends north, then east again through Guide Fort and Jishi Pass into Lanzhou—its full course can now be traced in detail."
13
西 調 調
Shu Lan rose to grand secretary of the Grand Secretariat. In Kangxi 45 he was sent to Tibet to enfeoff Lozang as Yifa Gongshun Khan. Back in the capital he fell ill with a wind disorder; court physicians were sent to treat him. Two years later the illness returned; he asked to retire and was allowed to leave office to recover. In Kangxi 52, recovered, he was restored to his former post. That year, as part of the Longevity amnesty, his father Dundoli's former rank was restored. He was soon made vice minister of the Board of Works. Soon he was implicated in a case, demoted three ranks, and reassigned. In Kangxi 59 he died.
14
滿滿
La Xi, of the Tubote clan, was a Mongol of the Plain White Banner. He rose from personal guard corporal through three promotions to second-class bodyguard; with Shu Lan he traced the Yellow River to its source and was promoted to first class. Early in Yongzheng he rose to commander-in-chief of his banner. For capable administration he received the hereditary rank of Baitalabule Khan and a seat among the deliberative ministers. La Xi knew banner affairs inside out; his reports always pleased the throne; he was repeatedly praised and additionally granted the rank of Tusahara Khan. In Yongzheng 4, for concealing Ulianghai affairs, he lost all rank, was demoted to first-class bodyguard, and put in charge of the Court of the Imperial Stud. He was soon promoted again to Manchu commander-in-chief of the Bordered White Banner, served in turn as acting Jiangning general and commander of the Tianjin Manchu naval camp, and was made senior imperial bodyguard minister. He died.
15
使 滿 沿
His son Wangzhar was first made a bodyguard and inherited the family rank. He accompanied Vice Minister Akedun on a mission to fix the border with Galdan. He conducted investigations in Suzhou and Zhejiang. He rose in turn to Manchu commander-in-chief of the Bordered White Banner, vice minister of the Court of Colonial Affairs, and minister in attendance before the throne. He was sent to Jinchuan to inspect relay stations along the route. After Jinchuan was pacified he was promoted to senior imperial bodyguard minister. He died and was posthumously titled Ke-shen.
16
His grandson Sun Boling'a inherited the family rank. He began as a bodyguard and rose to Mongol deputy commander-in-chief of the Plain Blue Banner. On the Jinchuan campaign he attacked Dangga'erla, was wounded storming a blockhouse, and died. He was posthumously given commander-in-chief rank, his hereditary office was raised to first-class commandant of light chariots, and his portrait was enshrined in the Hall of Purple Splendor.
17
西 宿西西 '''''''' 宿
In Qianlong 47 the Gaozong Emperor sent bodyguard Amita to Xining to sacrifice to the river god and once more trace the Yellow River to its source. On returning he reported: "Southwest of the Sea of Starry Constellations lies a stream called Altan Gol; farther west stands a boulder several zhang high called Altan Gadasu Qilao. In Mongol altan means gold, gadasu the North Star, gol a river, and qilao a stone. The cliff shone golden; above it a pool fed springs that burst forth in a hundred golden streams. The Altan Gol wound over three hundred li before reaching the Sea of Starry Constellations—the Yellow River's true source." The emperor ordered Siku scholars to compile the He Yuan Ji Lue to document the discovery. Amita was renamed Abida. He was a son of Grand Secretary Agui; see Agui's biography.
18
滿 使
Tulichen, of the Ayin Jueluo clan, was a Manchu of the Plain Yellow Banner. As an Imperial Academy student he passed examination for Grand Secretariat secretary and was later promoted to reader. He was dismissed for an offense. In Kangxi 51 he was specially restored and sent as envoy to the Torghuts.
19
西 使
Earlier, Torghut Khan Ayuki's nephew Alabuzhur had traveled through Dzungaria to Tibet to see the Dalai Lama. Dzungar taiji Tsewang Arabtan feuded with Ayuki; unable to return, Alabuzhur sought entry at the border, was enfeoffed as beile, and was given pasture outside Jiayu Pass at Dangse'erteng. When Ayuki later sent tribute envoys, the emperor wished to send Alabuzhur home. Tulichen was sent with Hanlin reader Yin Zhana and Director Nayin, bearing an edict to Ayuki by way of Russia.
20
使 西
In the fifth month Tulichen's party left the capital; in the seventh month they reached Chukuboishing in Russia. As they were transiting Russian territory, they waited for the Tsar's permission to proceed. In the first month of Kangxi 52 passage was granted and they continued. They returned to Udoboishing, crossed Lake Baikal northward, and reached Erku. The Tobolsk governor sent his aide Bolkoni to meet them. Gagalin was their title for a regional governor. When they wished to move on, Bolkoni said the governor required travel by water, but the Angara was still frozen—they must wait. In the third month they boated down the Angara to Yeniseiboishing and went ashore. In the fifth month they reached Makosike, then boated down the Ket past Nalimuboishing, Suerhutuboishing, Samarsike, and Dimuyansike. In the seventh month they reached Tobol. The local governor Matifeifeiduoliyuchi received them at his office and kept them eight days. Bolkoni escorted them again; they landed at Yabanqin. From Feiye'erhetu'ersike they crossed Foluoke Ridge to Solikamusike; the roads were impassable mud and they waited ten frozen days. They continued through Gaigeluoduo, Heilinnuofu, Kazan, and Ximubiersike. In the eleventh month they reached Saratov, the border between Russia and the Torghuts. The river came from the northeast and turned south—Russians called it the Volga, the Torghuts the Ejin Gol. Ayuki Khan pastured at Manuotohai, ten days off, but deep snow blocked the way.
21
使
In the fourth month of Kangxi 53 Ayuki sent taiji Weizheng and others to meet them. In the fifth month they crossed the Ejin Gol; Alabuzhur's father Nazarmamut sent horses as gifts, which they refused. On New Year's Day of the sixth year they reached Manuotohai; Ayuki chose a day to receive the edict. Tulichen conveyed the emperor's message: "Alabuzhur has been ennobled and well provided for; we wish to send him home to your pastures, but Tsewang Arabtan is your enemy and may kill him. If you want him back, you must come through Russia to fetch him." Ayuki replied: "Though we are outsiders, our dress matches China's. Russia is a land of alien customs and speech; on your return, observe it closely. If Russia refuses passage because of our frequent travel, I cannot send tribute. Alabuzhur owes deep gratitude; his return is assured—what doubt remains?" Ayuki, Nazarmamut, and others offered horses and gifts; Tulichen declined, holding that envoys abroad must accept no private gifts. Ayuki entertained them lavishly for fourteen days of unbroken feasting. He also sent a memorial of thanks. Tulichen's party set out homeward by the same route, with Russian escorts as before. In the third month of Kangxi 54 they returned to the capital.
22
使 使輿
The mission lasted over three years round trip and crossed tens of thousands of li. The Torghuts were cut off by Russia, far from the court's reach, and Russia deliberately sent our envoys by roundabout routes. Tulichen fulfilled his mission honorably; on return he had audience, recounted the journey, and compiled the Record of Strange Lands—maps first, then a travel narrative—for the emperor's review. The emperor was pleased and soon made him vice director in the Board of War. Alabuzhur stayed at Dangse'erteng and was never sent home; his son Danzhong, in Yongzheng, moved the herds to the Ejin River inside the frontier.
23
使 調西 調 調 使貿 西
Tulichen was promoted to director. When Yongzheng acceded, he was sent to inspect Guangdong's treasury and was promoted provincial administration commissioner on the spot. He was transferred to Shaanxi. In Yongzheng 3 he was made governor. In Yongzheng 5 he was recalled as vice minister of War, then moved to the Board of Civil Office. With Khalkha Prince and imperial son-in-law Celeng he went to delimit the Khalkha–Russia border. He was transferred back to the Board of War. In Yongzheng 6 a review of the border mission charged that with Russian envoy Sava he had fired cannon to thank Heaven, erected markers without authorization, and admitted Russian traders across the border; and as Shaanxi governor he had privately given General Yanxin a memorial listing empire-wide troop strengths; he was arrested and sentenced to death. An edict pardoned him and sent him to build Zakbaydarik. When Qianlong acceded he was made grand secretary and vice minister of the Board of Works. In Qianlong 1, citing age, he left the vice ministership but remained grand secretary. In Qianlong 2 he retired on grounds of illness. In Qianlong 5 he died.
24
He Guozong, whose style was Hanru, came from Daxing in Shuntian. In Kangxi 51 he passed the jinshi, entered the Hanlin as a bachelor, and was assigned to the inner court to study calendrical science. In Kangxi 52 he was ordered to compile the Origins of Pitch and Calendar. Before completing Hanlin training he was appointed compiler. He rose through three promotions to tutor in the Heir Apparent's household. Early in Yongzheng he became Hanlin reader and then grand secretary.
25
使 使調 西
In Yongzheng 3 he was sent to inspect the Yellow River and Grand Canal; he proposed enlarging the Daicun stone dam and dredging the Qili River south of Dongchang, Weijiawan north of the city, and the flood channel south of Dezhou; because the Wen and Si headwaters lay far upstream, he also asked for a dedicated subprefect to manage the springs; and he proposed repairing the stone dike at Gaojiayan. The emperor approved all requests and, deeming the Gaojiayan dike critical, ordered treasury funds for its repair. He memorialized again: "Above Linqing the canal depends on the Wei River. The Wei rises at the Hundred Springs, swelled by the Dan and Huan, before its flow is adequate. I propose dividing the Hundred Springs into three channels and on the Huan building a dam and canal—one share for irrigation, three for the transport canal." The emperor approved. Soon Shandong Governor Saleng'e reported that counties along Guozong's route had supplied over seven thousand six hundred taels of silver. The emperor rebuked Guozong for wasting resources and failing his mission; he was demoted and reassigned. In Yongzheng 5 he was made president of the Court of Judicial Review. In Yongzheng 6 he was again made grand secretary and vice minister of the Board of Works. In Yongzheng 8 he and Vice Minister Niuchu were ordered to repair flood-relief dams on the Northern Canal and dredge diversion channels. Guozong proposed protecting the Hexiwu north dike and Shua'erdu scale-pattern dam, opening a drain at Jiajiagu below Tahedian, and building diversion dams at Sanliqian, Kuang'ergang, and Zhangjiazhuang; the emperor ordered immediate action. In Yongzheng 9 he also served as director-general of the Hedong waterways. Tian Wenjing reported that at Daicun the Linglong, Luanshi, and Gunshui dams had first been built. When the Wen swelled, water spilled over the dam into the salt river and on to the sea. Guozong's party enlarged the stone dam until water could not pass, and riverside counties suffered floods year after year. They asked to demolish the stone dam and restore the Luanshi and Gunshui spillways. The emperor blamed Guozong for faulty surveying that harmed the people and stripped him of office.
26
Early in Qianlong he was recalled as chief compiler of the Mathematical Institute and the Pitch and Calendar Institute. In Qianlong 9 he was granted rank equivalent to third grade. He was soon made left vice censor-in-chief. In Qianlong 10 he also served as director of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau. In Qianlong 13 he was made vice minister of the Board of Works.
27
輿使
Under Kangxi the Sacred Ancestor ordered the Complete Map of the Imperial Dominion, fixing scale at two hundred li per degree of latitude; envoys went to Fengtian, followed the Hun/Tong and Yalu rivers to the Korean border, and surveyed the route. Because the Yalu–Tumen stretch remained unclear, in Kangxi 50 Director Mukedeng of Wula was sent back with ministry investigators for a detailed survey. Guozong's younger brother Guodong, skilled in calendrics, also served in the inner court. In Kangxi 53 Guodong and others were ordered to tour the provinces south of the Yangtze, measuring polar altitude and the sun's shadow. In Kangxi 58 the map was finished: one complete atlas of thirty-two sheets, plus a separate provincial sheet for each province. Jiang Tingxi was told to show it to the ministers. The emperor said: "I spent more than thirty years on this before it was done. Mountains and waterways all match the Yu Gong. Have the Nine Ministers review it carefully; if anything is wrong, let whoever knows of it report it in memorial." It was engraved on copper plates and stored in the inner palace.
28
西西 輿
After Qianlong pacified Dzungaria, in Qianlong 21 Guozong was sent with bodyguards Nukesan and Haqing'a to lead Astronomical Bureau Europeans to Ili; from Barkol they split into northwest and southwest routes to measure latitude and survey maps. On their return he was ordered to serve as acting left censor-in-chief. In Qianlong 22 he was made minister of Rites. In the metropolitan evaluation he recommended his brother Guodong; for favoritism he was stripped of office. He was soon made compiler and assigned to the Upper Study. In Qianlong 28 he was again made grand secretary. That year, with the Muslim regions pacified, the emperor again sent Minister Ming Antu and others to measure and map—the Qianlong inner-palace imperial atlas. In Qianlong 26 he was made vice minister of Rites. In Qianlong 27 he retired on grounds of age. In Qianlong 31 he died.
29
西使
The commentator writes: When the state holds territory, it is called ban tu—ban refers to having people, tu to having land. The Sacred Ancestor visited Changbai in the east, traced the river source in the west, and received the Torghuts in the north; Wu Mone, Shu Lan, and Tulichen all served ably as envoys. Their returned memorials are exhaustive in detail, vivid as paintings. Guozong, expert in calculation, served the Sacred Ancestor and lived to great age; under Qianlong he went to Xinjiang to survey and map. He personally helped compile both the Kangxi and Qianlong inner-palace atlases. Judged against antiquity, is he not the equal of Pei Xiu and Jia Dan?
← Previous Chapter
Back to Chapters
Next Chapter →