1
孫亮字子明,權少子也。 權春秋高,而亮最少,故尤留意。 姊全公主嘗譖太子和子母,心不自安,因倚權意,欲豫自結,數稱述全尚女,勸爲亮納。 赤烏十三年,和廢,權遂立亮爲太子,以全氏爲妃。
Sun Liang, whose courtesy name was Ziming, was Sun Quan's youngest son. Sun Quan was growing old, and Liang was his youngest child, so the emperor watched over him with particular care. His elder sister, Princess Quan, had earlier turned Sun Quan against Crown Prince He and He’s mother, and she lived in fear of the consequences. Playing to the emperor’s mood, she sought allies early: she kept praising Quan Shang’s daughter and pressed for the girl to be married to Liang. In the thirteenth year of Chiwu, Crown Prince He was removed from succession; Sun Quan then named Liang heir apparent and took a woman of the Quan family as his principal consort.
2
太元元年夏,亮母潘氏立爲皇后。 冬,權寢疾,徵大將軍諸葛恪爲太子太傅,會稽太守滕胤爲太常,並受詔輔太子。 明年四月,權薨,太子即尊號,大赦,改。 是歲,於魏嘉平四年也。
That summer, in the first year of Taiyuan, Sun Liang’s mother, Lady Pan, was raised to empress. In winter, as Sun Quan lay gravely ill, he called in Grand General Zhuge Ke to serve as tutor to the heir, named Teng Yin, the governor of Kuaiji, as grand master of ceremonies, and ordered both men to support the young crown prince under imperial mandate. The next year, in the fourth month, Sun Quan passed away. The crown prince took the throne, issued a general amnesty, and declared a new reign title. In the calendar of Wei, the year was the fourth of Jiaping.
3
閏月,以恪爲帝太傅,胤爲衞將軍領尚書事,上大將軍呂岱爲大司馬,諸文武在位皆進爵班賞,宂官加等。 冬十月,太傅恪率軍遏巢湖, 〈巢音祖了反。〉 城東興,使將軍全端守西城,都尉留略守東城。 十二月朔丙申,大風雷電,魏使將軍諸葛誕、胡遵等步騎七萬圍東興,將軍王昶攻南郡,毌丘儉向武昌。 甲寅,恪以大兵赴敵。 戊午,兵及東興,交戰,大破魏軍,殺將軍韓綜、桓嘉等。 是月,雷雨,天災武昌端門; 改作端門,又災內殿。 〈臣松之案:孫權赤烏十年,詔徙武昌宮材瓦,以繕治建康宮,而此猶有端門內殿。 《吳錄》云:諸葛恪有遷都意,更起武昌宮。 今所災者恪所新作。〉
That intercalary month, Zhuge Ke became grand mentor to the emperor, Teng Yin was named general of the guard while retaining direction of the Secretariat, Senior General Lü Dai was raised to grand marshal, every serving civil and military officer received promotions and awards, and redundant posts were upgraded. In winter, the tenth month, Grand Mentor Zhuge Ke marched his army to the Chaohu region, 〈Note on pronunciation: “Chao” (Lake Chao) uses the fanqie spelling zu-liao.〉 built up Dongxing, and stationed General Quan Duan in the west fort and Commandant Liu Lüe in the east. The new moon of the twelfth month fell on bingshen, a day of howling wind, thunder, and lightning. Wei committed seventy thousand troops under Zhuge Dan, Hu Zun, and others to invest Dongxing, while Wang Chang struck Nan commandery and Guanqiu Jian advanced on Wuchang. On jiayin, Zhuge Ke led a large force to engage the invaders. By wuwu the Wu host had closed on Dongxing, and in the fighting that followed they routed the Wei army, slaying generals such as Han Zong and Huan Jia. That same month, amid thunder and rain, lightning struck the Duan Gate at Wuchang; workmen rebuilt the Duan Gate, and then the inner palace hall was hit as well. 〈Commentator’s note: In the tenth year of Chiwu the court ordered Wuchang palace timber and tiles carried south to repair the capital at Jianye—yet Wuchang still had its Duan Gate and inner halls. The Records of Wu adds that Zhuge Ke planned to shift the seat of government and therefore raised a new palace complex at Wuchang. The structures lightning burned were the ones Zhuge Ke had just erected.〉
4
二年春正月丙寅,立皇后全氏,大赦。 庚午,王昶等皆退。 二月,軍還自東興,大行封賞。 三月,恪率軍伐魏。 夏四月,圍新城,大疫,兵卒死者大半。 秋八月,恪引軍還。 冬十月,大饗。 武衞將軍孫峻伏兵殺恪於殿堂。 大赦。 以峻爲丞相,封富春侯。 十一月,有大鳥五見于春申,明年改元。
In the second year, on bingyin in the first month of spring, Sun Liang invested Lady Quan as empress and declared a general amnesty. On gengwu the Wei forces under Wang Chang broke off and withdrew. In the second month the army marched back from Dongxing, and the court lavished titles and prizes on those who had fought. In the third month Zhuge Ke took the field against Wei. That summer, in the fourth month, they laid siege to Xincheng, but plague swept the camps and killed more than half the troops. In the eighth month of autumn Zhuge Ke withdrew his army. In winter, the tenth month, the court held a grand banquet. Sun Jun, general of the military guard, sprang an ambush in the audience hall and cut down Zhuge Ke. The emperor proclaimed a general amnesty. Sun Jun was appointed chancellor and invested as marquis of Fuchun. In the eleventh month five enormous birds were sighted at Chunshen, and the court took it as an omen—next year the reign title was changed.
5
五鳳元年夏,大水。 秋,吳侯英謀殺峻,覺,英自殺。 冬十一月,星茀于斗、牛。 〈《江表傳》曰:是歲交阯稗草化爲稻。〉
The first year of Wufeng brought severe summer flooding. That autumn Marquis Ying of Wu conspired to murder Sun Jun; the plot was uncovered, and Ying took his own life. In winter, the eleventh month, a comet blazed across the sky between the Dipper and Ox asterisms. 〈According to the Jiangbiao zhuan, barnyard grass in Jiaozhi that year turned into rice stalks.〉
6
二年春正月,魏鎮東將軍毌丘儉、前將軍文欽以淮南之衆西入,戰于樂嘉。 閏月壬辰,峻及驃騎將軍呂據、左將軍留贊率兵襲壽春,軍及東興,聞欽等敗。 壬寅,兵進于橐臯,欽詣峻降,淮南餘衆數萬口來奔。 魏諸葛誕入壽春,峻引軍還。 二月,及魏將軍曹珍遇于高亭,交戰,珍敗績。 留贊爲誕別將蔣班所敗於菰陂,贊及將軍孫楞、蔣脩等皆遇害。 三月,使鎮南將軍朱異襲安豐,不克。 秋七月,將軍孫儀、張怡、林恂等謀殺峻,發覺,儀自殺,恂等伏辜。 陽羨離里山大石自立。 使衞尉馮朝城廣陵,拜將軍吳穰爲廣陵太守,留略爲東海太守。 是歲大旱。 十二月,作太廟。 以馮朝爲監軍使者,督徐州諸軍事,民饑,軍士怨畔。
In the second year, the first month of spring, Wei’s east-pacifying general Guanqiu Jian and forward general Wen Qin led the Huainan armies west and clashed with court troops at Lejia. On renchen in the intercalary month, Sun Jun marched with Chief General Lü Ju and General of the Left Liu Zan toward Shouchun, but when they reached Dongxing word arrived that Wen Qin’s rebellion had already collapsed. On renyin the Wu army pressed on to Tuogao; Wen Qin presented himself to Sun Jun and capitulated, and tens of thousands of refugees from southern Huainan fled across the border into Wu. Zhuge Dan of Wei occupied Shouchun, so Sun Jun turned his army homeward. In the second month Wu troops met Wei general Cao Zhen at Gaoting; Zhen was routed in the engagement. At Gubei, Zhuge Dan’s subordinate Jiang Ban crushed Liu Zan; Zan and officers such as Sun Leng and Jiang Xiu were killed. In the third month the court ordered south-pacifying general Zhu Yi to strike Anfeng, but the attack failed. That autumn, in the seventh month, Sun Yi, Zhang Yi, Lin Xun, and others conspired to assassinate Sun Jun; the plot leaked. Yi committed suicide, while Xun and his accomplices were executed. On Mount Lili in Yangxian a boulder toppled upright without human aid—another heaven-sent portent. The court put Commandant of the Guard Feng Chao in charge of fortifying Guangling, named General Wu Rang governor of Guangling, and transferred Liu Lüe to Donghai as governor. A severe drought gripped the realm that year. In the twelfth month work began on the state ancestral shrine. Feng Chao was appointed overseer of armies for Xuzhou, but famine stalked the countryside and the garrison troops mutinied in anger.
7
太平元年春 〈《吳歷》曰:正月,爲權立廟,稱太祖廟。〉 二月朔,建業火。 峻用征北大將軍文欽計,將征魏。 八月,先遣欽及驃騎呂據、車騎劉纂、鎮南朱異、前將軍唐咨軍自江都入淮、泗。 九月丁亥,峻卒,以從弟偏將軍綝爲侍中、武衞將軍,領中外諸軍事,召還據等。 據聞綝代峻,大怒。 己丑,大司馬呂岱卒。 壬辰,太白犯南斗。 據、欽、咨等表薦衞將軍滕胤爲丞相,綝不聽。 癸卯,更以胤爲大司馬,代呂岱駐武昌。 據引兵還,欲討綝。 綝遣使以詔書告喻欽、咨等,使取據。 冬十月丁未,遣孫憲及丁奉、施寬等以舟兵逆據於江都,遣將軍劉丞督步騎攻胤。 胤兵敗夷滅。 己酉,大赦,改年。 辛亥,獲呂據於新州。 十一月,以綝爲大將軍、假節,封永康侯。 孫憲與將軍王惇謀殺綝,事覺,綝殺惇,迫憲令自殺。 十二月,使五官中郎將刁玄告亂于蜀。
Spring of the first year of Taiping. 〈The Wu calendar notes that in the first month the court dedicated a shrine to Sun Quan as founding emperor and styled it the Taizu temple.〉 The new moon of the second month brought a disastrous fire at Jianye. Sun Jun adopted the strategy proposed by north-conquering grand general Wen Qin and prepared a strike against Wei. In August he sent Wen Qin ahead with Chief General Lü Ju, Chariots Commander Liu Zuan, South-Pacifying General Zhu Yi, and Forward General Tang Zi: their column marched from Jiangdu into the Huai and Si valleys. On dinghai in the ninth month Sun Jun died. His cousin Sun Lin, a lieutenant general, won appointment as palace attendant and military-guard commander with authority over every army at court and in the provinces; Lü Ju’s expedition was recalled. When Lü Ju learned that Sun Lin had stepped into Sun Jun’s place, he exploded with rage. On jichou Grand Marshal Lü Dai passed away. On renchen Venus trespassed across the Southern Dipper—a troubling omen. Lü Ju, Wen Qin, Tang Zi, and their allies jointly memorialized to make Teng Yin chancellor; Sun Lin refused. On guimao the emperor reassigned Teng Yin as grand marshal, ordering him to replace the late Lü Dai at Wuchang. Lü Ju marched his army homeward intent on bringing Sun Lin down. Sun Lin sent couriers bearing edicts to Wen Qin, Tang Zi, and the rest, commanding them to arrest Lü Ju. On dingwei in winter, the tenth month, Sun Xian, Ding Feng, Shi Kuan, and their river fleet blocked Lü Ju at Jiangdu while General Liu Cheng led infantry and cavalry against Teng Yin. Teng Yin’s forces were crushed and wiped out. On jiyou the court declared an amnesty and adopted a new reign title. On xinhai Lü Ju was taken prisoner at Xinzhou. That November Sun Lin received the grand generalcy, the imperial baton, and the marquisate of Yongkang. Sun Xian and Wang Dun conspired to assassinate Sun Lin; the plot leaked. Lin executed Wang Dun and forced Xian to kill himself. In the twelfth month courtier-of-the-fifth-rank Diao Xuan was dispatched west to inform Shu of Wu’s internal crisis.
8
二年春二月甲寅,大雨,震電。 乙卯,雪,大寒。 以長沙東部爲湘東郡,西部爲衡陽郡,會稽東部爲臨海郡,豫章東部爲臨川郡。 夏四月,亮臨正殿,大赦,始親政事。 綝所表奏,多見難問,又科兵子弟年十八已下十五已上,得三千餘人,選大將子弟年少有勇力者爲之將帥。 亮曰:「吾立此軍,欲與之俱長。」 日於菀中習焉。 〈《吳歷》曰:亮數出中書視孫權舊事,問左右侍臣:「先帝數有特制,今大將軍問事,但令我書可邪!」 亮後出西苑,方食生梅,使黃門至中藏取蜜漬梅,蜜中有鼠矢,召問藏吏,藏吏叩頭。 亮問吏曰:「黃門從汝求蜜邪?」 吏曰:「向求,實不敢與。」 黃門不服,侍中刁玄、張邠啟:「黃門、藏吏辭語不同,請付獄推盡。」 亮曰:「此易知耳。」 令破鼠矢,矢裏燥。 亮大笑謂玄、邠曰:「若矢先在蜜中,中外當俱溼,今外溼裏燥,必是黃門所爲。」 黃門首服,左右莫不驚悚。 《江表傳》曰:亮使黃門以銀碗并蓋就中藏吏取交州所獻甘蔗餳。 黃門先恨藏吏,以鼠矢投餳中,啟言藏吏不謹。 亮呼吏持餳器入,問曰:「此器旣蓋之,且有掩覆,無緣有此,黃門將有恨於汝邪?」 吏叩頭曰:「嘗從某求宮中莞席,宮席有數,不敢與。」 亮曰:「必是此也。」 覆問黃門,具首伏。 即於目前加髠鞭,斥付外署。 臣松之以爲鼠矢新者,亦表裏皆溼。 黃門取新矢則無以得其姦也,緣遇燥矢,故成亮之惠。 然猶謂吳曆此言,不如《江表傳》爲實也。〉
In the second year, on jiayin in the second month of spring, torrential rain fell amid thunder and lightning. The next day, yimao, snow fell and an icy cold gripped the capital. The court carved out Xiangdong and Hengyang commanderies from eastern and western Changsha, designated eastern Kuaiji as Linhai, and eastern Yuzhang as Linchuan. That summer, in the fourth month, Sun Liang took his seat in the main palace hall, ordered a general amnesty, and began to rule in his own right. Sun Liang repeatedly challenged Sun Lin’s memorials, and he drafted every youth between fifteen and eighteen from military households—more than three thousand in all—then picked the sons of senior generals who were young and vigorous to lead them. Sun Liang declared, “I founded this corps so we could mature side by side.” Each day he drilled the boys in the imperial park. 〈The court diary records that Sun Liang often visited the Secretariat to read his father’s old orders. Turning to his attendants he asked, “My father issued special instructions whenever he pleased. Now the grand general handles everything—am I reduced to nothing but stamping documents?” Later, while Sun Liang was dining on green plums in the Western Park, he sent a eunuch to the palace treasury for honeyed plums. The jar contained rat droppings. When the keeper was summoned, he kowtowed in terror. The emperor asked him, “Did that eunuch beg honey from you?” The keeper replied, “He asked, but I dared not hand it over.” The eunuch denied wrongdoing. Attendants-in-waiting Diao Xuan and Zhang Bin urged, “Their stories conflict—commit both men to the interrogators.” Sun Liang answered, “There is nothing obscure here.” He had the pellet split: the interior was dry. Sun Liang laughed and told Diao Xuan and Zhang Bin, “Had the pellet stewed in the honey, both core and shell would be sodden. The shell is damp while the core stays dry—the eunuch planted it.” The eunuch confessed on the spot, and every courtier present shivered with admiration. The Jiangbiao zhuan offers another version: Sun Liang sent a eunuch with a lidded silver bowl to the treasury to draw the Jiaozhi tribute of sugarcane molasses. The eunuch, nursing a grudge, dropped rat droppings into the sweet jar and denounced the keeper for carelessness. Sun Liang had the jar brought in and asked, “It was sealed and covered—there should be no droppings inside. Has that eunuch been nursing a grievance against you?” The keeper kowtowed and said, “He once demanded palace rush mats, but the inventory is fixed—I refused.” Sun Liang said, “That explains it.” Further questioning forced the eunuch to confess everything. Sun Liang had him shaved, flogged on the spot, and expelled to menial service outside the palace. Pei Songzhi remarks that even fresh pellets would be damp throughout. Had the eunuch used fresh droppings, Sun Liang could not have proved the trick; only because the pellet was dry did the emperor’s insight prevail. Even so, Pei Songzhi judges the Jiangbiao zhuan more credible than this passage from the court diary.〉
9
五月,魏征東大將軍諸葛誕以淮南之衆保壽春城,遣將軍朱成稱臣上疏,又遣子靚、長史吳綱諸牙門子弟爲質。 六月,使文欽、唐咨、全端等步騎三萬救誕。 朱異自虎林率衆襲夏口,夏口督孫壹奔魏。 秋七月,綝率衆救壽春,次于鑊里,朱異至自夏口,綝使異爲前部督,與丁奉等將介士五萬解圍。 八月,會稽南部反,殺都尉。 鄱陽、新都民爲亂,廷尉丁密、步兵校尉鄭胄、將軍鍾離牧率軍討之。 朱異以軍士乏食引還,綝大怒,九月朔己巳,殺異於鑊里。 辛未,綝自鑊里還建業。 甲申,大赦。 十一月,全緒子禕、儀以其母奔魏。 十二月,全端、懌等自壽春城詣司馬文王。
In the fifth month Wei’s east-conquering grand general Zhuge Dan locked Huainan’s armies inside Shouchun, dispatched Zhu Cheng to swear allegiance with a memorial, and sent his son Zhuge Jing, Chief Clerk Wu Gang, and junior officers’ sons as hostages. In June Wu detached thirty thousand troops under Wen Qin, Tang Zi, and Quan Duan to break the siege for Zhuge Dan. Zhu Yi marched from Hulin against Xiakou, whose commander Sun Yi defected to Wei. That July Sun Lin marched toward Shouchun and camped at Huoli. After Zhu Yi linked up from Xiakou, Lin named him vanguard commander; together with Ding Feng he committed fifty thousand picked troops to raise the siege. In August southern Kuaiji rose in revolt and slew the local commandant. Riots broke out in Poyang and Xindu; Chief Justice Ding Mi, Colonel of the Infantry Zheng Zhou, and General Zhongli Mu led punitive columns. When Zhu Yi fell back for lack of supplies, Sun Lin flew into a rage: on the new moon of the ninth month, jisi, he had Zhu Yi executed at Huoli. On xinwei Sun Lin marched from Huoli back to Jianye. On jiashen the court declared a general amnesty. In the eleventh month Quan Wei and Quan Yi, sons of Quan Xu, escorted their mother across the border into Wei. In the twelfth month Quan Duan, Quan Yi, and their companions slipped out of besieged Shouchun to surrender to Sima Zhao.
10
三年春正月,諸葛誕殺文欽。 三月,司馬文王克壽春,誕及左右戰死,將吏已下皆降。 秋七月,封故齊王奮爲章安侯。 詔州郡伐宮材。 自八月沈陰不雨四十餘日。 亮以綝專恣,與太常全尚,將軍劉丞謀誅綝。 九月戊午,綝以兵取尚,遣弟恩攻殺丞於蒼龍門外,召大臣會宮門,黜亮爲會稽王,時年十六。
In the third year, the first month of spring, Zhuge Dan executed Wen Qin. In March Sima Zhao captured Shouchun; Zhuge Dan and his household fell fighting, while every officer and soldier capitulated. That autumn, in the seventh month, the former Prince of Qi, Sun Fen, was invested as marquis of Zhang’an. Imperial orders went out for every province and commandery to supply palace lumber. From August onward leaden skies hung over the land with no rain for well over forty days. Sun Liang, chafing under Sun Lin’s arrogance, conspired with Grand Master of Ceremonies Quan Shang and General Liu Cheng to kill him. On wuwu in the ninth month Sun Lin seized Quan Shang at sword point, sent his brother Sun En to cut down Liu Cheng outside the Azure Dragon Gate, called the high ministers to the palace gate, and stripped Sun Liang of the throne, reducing him to prince of Kuaiji at age sixteen.
11
十一月甲午,風四轉五復,蒙霧連日。 綝一門五侯皆典禁兵,權傾人主,有所陳述,敬而不違,於是益恣。 休恐其有變,數加賞賜。 丙申,詔曰:「大將軍忠款內發,首建大計以安社稷,卿士內外,咸贊其議,並有勳勞。 昔霍光定計,百僚同心,無復是過。 亟案前日與議定策告廟人名,依故事應加爵位者,促施行之。」 戊戌,詔曰:「大將軍掌中外諸軍事,事統煩多,其加衞將軍御史大夫恩侍中,與大將軍分省諸事。」 壬子,詔曰:「諸吏家有五人三人兼重爲役,父兄在都,子弟給郡縣吏,旣出限米,軍出又從,至於家事無經護者,朕甚愍之。 其有五人三人爲役,聽其父兄所欲留,爲留一人,除其米限,軍出不從。」 又曰:「諸將吏奉迎陪位在永昌亭者,皆加位一級。」 頃之,休聞綝逆謀,陰與張布圖計。 十二月戊辰臘,百僚朝賀,公卿升殿,詔武士縛綝,即日伏誅。 己巳,詔以左將軍張布討姦臣,加布爲中軍督,封布弟惇爲都亭侯,給兵三百人,惇弟恂爲校尉。
On jiawu in the eleventh month the wind veered and backed erratically, and impenetrable fog blanketed the capital for days on end. Sun Lin’s clan held five marquisates and controlled the inner garrison, eclipsing the throne. The sovereign humored every demand, and the family grew ever more brazen. Fearing a coup, Sun Xiu showered the Lin clan with honors and largesse. On bingshen an edict declared: “The grand general proved his loyalty by framing the strategy that saved the altars of state. Every minister at court and in the provinces endorsed his design, and together they earned lasting merit. When Huo Guang settled the Han succession, the entire bureaucracy stood united—nothing has exceeded that feat. Review at once every official who took part in the temple deliberations and, following precedent, expedite the promotions they are owed.” On wuxu another edict ran: “Because the grand general’s military portfolio is overwhelming, appoint General of the Guard and Imperial Counselor Sun En as palace attendant so he may share the civil-military brief with the grand general.” On renzi the emperor proclaimed: “Households where three or five members shoulder overlapping corvée duties—fathers in the capital, sons posted as county clerks after paying grain quotas, then dragooned again whenever troops march—are left with no one to mind the farm. I pity them deeply. For such families, let fathers or elder brothers designate one member to stay home, waive that person’s grain levy, and exempt him from campaign duty.” The edict added: “Every officer who attended my reception at Yongchang pavilion is promoted one rank.” Soon afterward Sun Xiu learned of Sun Lin’s conspiracy and began conferring in secret with Zhang Bu. At the year-end la ceremony on wuchen in the twelfth month, while nobles mounted the dais to offer New Year felicitations, Sun Xiu signaled his guards: Sun Lin was seized on the spot and beheaded that day. On jisi an edict praised Left General Zhang Bu for destroying the traitors, named him commander of the central army, invested his brother Zhang Dun as village marquis of Du with a guard of three hundred, and appointed Zhang Dun’s brother Zhang Xun as a colonel.
12
詔曰:「古者建國,教學爲先,所以道世治性,爲時養器也。 自建興以來,時事多故,吏民頗以目前趨務,去本就末,不循古道。 夫所尚不惇,則傷化敗俗。 其案古置學官,立五經博士,核取應選,加其寵祿,科見吏之中及將吏子弟有志好者,各令就業。 一歲課試,差其品第,加以位賞。 使見之者樂其榮,聞之者羨其譽。 以敦王化,以隆風俗。」
An edict proclaimed: “The founders of old put schools first, using education to guide the realm, shape character, and cultivate talent for the age. Since the Jianxing era upheavals have multiplied; officials and commoners chase whatever task lies before them, abandoning fundamentals for expedients and ignoring the old paths. When a court esteems the wrong things, morals wither and customs rot. Therefore revive the ancient model: appoint academy directors, institute chairs for the Five Classics, select candidates by examination, grant them generous stipends, and require every promising son of official or military families to enroll. Hold yearly examinations, rank the students, and promote the deserving with office and gifts. Let those who watch take pride in such honors, and let those who hear burn to join them. Thus we strengthen royal influence and lift the customs of the land.”
13
二年春正月,震電。 三月,備九卿官,詔曰:「朕以不德,託于王公之上,夙夜戰戰,忘寢與食。 今欲偃武脩文,以崇大化。 推此之道,當由士民之贍,必須農桑。 管子有言:『倉廩實,知禮節; 衣食足,知榮辱。』 夫一夫不耕,有受其饑,一婦不織,有受其寒; 饑寒並至而民不爲非者,未之有也。 自頃年已來,州郡吏民及諸營兵,多違此業,皆浮船長江,賈作上下,良田漸廢,見穀日少,欲求大定,豈可得哉? 亦由租入過重,農人利薄,使之然乎! 今欲廣開田業,輕其賦稅,差科彊羸,課其田畝,務令優均,官私得所,使家給戶贍,足相供養,則愛身重命,不犯科法,然後刑罰不用,風俗可整。 以羣僚之忠賢,若盡心於時,雖太古盛化,未可卒致,漢文升平,庶幾可及。 及之則臣主俱榮,不及則損削侵辱,何可從容俯仰而已? 諸卿尚書,可共咨度,務取便佳。 田桑已至,不可後時。 事定施行,稱朕意焉。」
In the second year, the first month of spring, lightning split the sky. In the third month the posts of the Nine Ministers were finally filled. The edict read: “Unworthy as I am, I bear the mandate above the nobles; day and night I tremble on this throne, sleepless and fasting. I mean to beat swords into books and let civilization flourish. But such an endeavor rests on a prosperous people, and prosperity begins with tillage and silk. Guan Zhong said: ‘Full granaries teach ritual; ample clothing and food teach honor and shame.” If one man leaves the plow, another goes hungry; if one woman leaves the loom, another shivers. Hunger and cold together will always drive people to lawlessness. Lately commandery folk and garrison troops alike have quit the fields to ply the Yangzi as traders. Prime paddy lies fallow, granaries dwindle, and the realm will never know peace on such a course. Exorbitant rent and meager returns have forced them off the land! I will therefore expand agriculture, cut taxes, apportion service by strength, survey every acre, balance the burden between state and farm, and ensure each household can feed itself. When people can live by the plow, they will honor life and shun crime—only then may punishments grow rare and morals recover. With loyal ministers devoting themselves to this task, we may not reach the utopia of high antiquity overnight, but we can hope to match the mild reign of Han Wendi. Success will bring honor to throne and subject alike; failure invites decay and humiliation for us all—this is no time for complacency. Ministers and Masters of Writing: meet, debate, and bring me practical measures. The plowing and sericulture season is here; delay is impossible. Once your plans are ready, put them into effect without fail—that will satisfy me.”
14
三年春三月,西陵言赤烏見。 秋,用都尉嚴密議,作浦里塘。 會稽郡謠言王亮當還爲天子,而亮宮人告亮使巫禱祠,有惡言。 有司以聞,黜爲候官侯,遣之國。 道自殺,衞送者伏罪。 〈《吳錄》曰:或云休鴆殺之。 至晉太康中,吳故少府丹楊戴顒迎亮喪,葬之賴鄉。〉 以會稽南部爲建安郡,分宜都置建平郡。 〈《吳歷》曰:是歲得大鼎於建德縣。〉
In the third year of Yong'an, the third month of spring, Xiling reported the apparition of a red crow. That autumn the court followed Commandant Yan Mi’s plan and built the Puli reservoir. Kuaiji rang with rumors that Sun Liang would regain the throne, while his own attendants accused him of employing wizards to utter imprecations against the court. The judiciary memorialized the charges; Sun Liang was stripped to marquis of Houguan and banished to his domain. He died by his own hand en route, and the guards who escorted him were tried for their negligence. 〈The Records of Wu adds that some believed Sun Xiu murdered him with poisoned wine. During Jin’s Taikang era, former Wu chamberlain Dai Yong of Danyang recovered Sun Liang’s remains and interred them at Laixiang.〉 Southern Kuaiji became Jian’an commandery, and a new Jianping commandery was split off from Yidu. 〈The court diary notes that a huge bronze ding was recovered that year in Jiande county.〉
15
五年春二月,白虎門北樓災。 秋七月,始新言黃龍見。 八月壬午,大雨震電,水泉涌溢。 乙酉,立皇后朱氏。 戊子,立子𩅦爲太子,大赦。 〈《吳錄》載休詔曰:「人之有名,以相紀別,長爲作字,憚其名耳。 禮,名子欲令難犯易避,五十稱伯仲,古或一字。 今人競作好名好字,又令相配,所行不副,此瞽字伯明者也,孤常哂之。 或師友父兄所作,或自己爲; 師友尚可,父兄猶非,自爲最不謙。 孤今爲四男作名字:太子名𩅦,𩅦音如『湖水灣澳』之灣,字莔,莔音如『迄今』之迄; 次子名𩃙,𩃙音如『兕觥』之觥,字𧟨,𧟨音如『玄礥首』之礥; 次子名壾,壾音如『草莽』之莽,字昷,昷音如『舉物』之舉; 次子名𠅬,𠅬音如『襃衣下寬大』之襃,字㷏,㷏音如『有所擁持』之擁。 此都不與世所用者同,故鈔舊文會合作之。 夫書八體損益,因事而生,今造此名字,旣不相配,又字但一,庶易棄避,其普告天下,使咸聞知。」 臣松之以爲傳稱「名以制義,義以出禮,禮以體政,政以正民。 是以政成而民聽,易則生亂」。 斯言之作,豈虛也哉! 休欲令難犯,何患無名,而乃造無況之字,制不典之音,違明誥於前脩,垂嗤騃於後代,不亦異乎! 是以墳土未乾而妻子夷滅。 師服之言,於是乎徵矣。〉 冬十月,以衞將軍濮陽興爲丞相,廷尉丁密、光祿勳孟宗爲左右御史大夫。 休以丞相興及左將軍張布有舊恩,委之以事,布典宮省,興關軍國。 休銳意於典籍,欲畢覽百家之言,尤好射雉,春夏之間常晨出夜還,唯此時舍書。 休欲與愽士祭酒韋曜、博士盛沖講論道藝,曜、沖素皆切直,布恐入侍,發其陰失,令己不得專,因妄飾說以拒遏之。 休荅曰:「孤之涉學,羣書略徧,所見不少也; 其明君闇王,姦臣賊子,古今賢愚成敗之事,無不覽也。 今曜等入,但欲與論講書耳,不爲從曜等始更受學也。 縱復如此,亦何所損? 君特當以曜等恐道臣下姦變之事,以此不欲令入耳。 如此之事,孤已自備之,不須曜等然後乃解也。 此都無所損,君意特有所忌故耳。」 布得詔陳謝,重自序述,又言懼妨政事。 休荅曰:「書籍之事,患人不好,好之無傷也。 此無所爲非,而君以爲不宜,是以孤有所及耳。 王務學業,其流各異,不相妨也。 不圖君今日在事,更行此於孤也,良所不取。」 布拜表叩頭,休荅曰:「聊相開悟耳,何至叩頭乎! 如君之忠誠,遠近所知。 往者所以相感,今日之巍巍也。 詩云:『靡不有初,鮮克有終。』 終之實難,君其終之。」 初休爲王時,布爲左右將督,素見信愛,及至踐阼,厚加寵待,專擅國勢,多行無禮,自嫌瑕短,懼曜、沖言之,故尤患忌。 休雖解此旨,心不能恱,更恐其疑懼,竟如布意,廢其講業,不復使沖等入。 是歲使察戰到交阯調孔爵、大豬。 〈臣松之案:察戰吳官號,今揚都有察戰巷。〉
In the fifth year of Yong'an, the second month of spring, fire destroyed the north tower of the White Tiger Gate. That July word came from Shixin that a yellow dragon had appeared. On renwu in August torrential rains and lightning swept the capital; springs burst their banks. On yiyou Sun Xiu invested Lady Zhu as empress. On wuzi he named his heir apparent—whose childhood name uses an uncommon character pronounced like wan “inlet”—and declared a general amnesty. 〈The Records of Wu preserves Sun Xiu’s edict: “We receive personal names to tell one person from another; at adulthood we take courtesy names because the childhood name is too intimate for public use. Rites teach that a boy’s name should be hard to speak casually yet easy to substitute in taboo; at fifty men answer to Elder or Second Brother, and ancient usage often required only one graph. Modern families vie for ornate paired names that their sons cannot live up to—like a blind man styled “Bright”—and I have always found it absurd. Some names come from teachers, friends, or elders; some men coin their own. Names from teachers pass muster; fathers and brothers should still defer to others; choosing one’s own is rank vanity. I therefore assign names to my four sons: the heir bears a given graph pronounced like the wan in húshuǐ wān'ào, and a courtesy graph pronounced like the qi in qìjīn “to this day”; the second prince’s given graph matches the gong in sìgōng; his courtesy graph follows the xie of xuán xié shǒu; another son’s given graph rhymes with mang “wild growth”; his courtesy graph sounds like the ju in jǔ wù “to lift a thing”; the youngest son’s given graph echoes bāo in bāoyī; his courtesy graph echoes yǒng in yǒu suǒ yǒng chí. None of these characters appear in everyday usage, so I have pieced them together from classical fragments. Scripts evolve with the needs of the age; because these coinages are deliberately mismatched and each courtesy graph stands alone, taboo avoidance should be simpler—publish this edict so every commandery understands.” Your servant Songzhi considers that the tradition states: “Names are used to regulate meanings; meanings emerge through ritual; ritual embodies governance; governance rectifies the people. When policy succeeds, the people obey; tamper with it and chaos follows.” Those are not idle words. Sun Xiu wanted taboo-proof names, yet plenty of ordinary graphs would serve; instead he minted grotesque characters and barbarous sounds, spurning every classical precedent and inviting generations of ridicule—how bizarre! His tomb was still fresh when his family was annihilated. Shifu of Jin’s warning was thus proved true.〉 In winter, the tenth month, Sun Xiu appointed General of the Guard Puyang Xing chancellor, Chief Justice Ding Mi and Superintendent of the Palace Meng Zong as left and right imperial counselors. Sun Xiu owed debts of gratitude to Puyang Xing and Left General Zhang Bu, so he handed them real power: Zhang Bu ran the inner palace, Puyang Xing the armies and administration. Sun Xiu devoured the canon and meant to master every school of thought, yet he adored pheasant hunts: spring and summer found him riding out at dawn and galloping home by torchlight—only those outings pulled him from his desk. Sun Xiu wanted Erudite Libationer Wei Yao and Doctor Sheng Chong to lecture at court—both men were famously blunt. Zhang Bu feared they would serve beside the throne, expose his secrets, and break his monopoly, so he invented excuses to block them. Sun Xiu answered, “I have read widely enough among the classics—my studies are already ample; from wise sovereigns to ruined tyrants, loyal ministers to turncoats, every rise and fall is familiar to me. When Wei Yao arrives I merely wish to discuss texts with him—not to enroll as his pupil. Even if I did sit at his feet, what harm would follow? You only fear Wei Yao might speak of corruption among your faction and therefore bar him from court. I already know every intrigue in this palace—I need no tutor to explain treason to me. Books threaten nothing; your objections spring from private anxiety alone.” Zhang Bu kowtowed, thanked the emperor, rehearsed his excuses, and pleaded that debates might distract the administration. Sun Xiu answered, “The danger with scholarship is indifference, not enthusiasm. Reading violates no law; you call it improper only because I pressed the point. Statecraft and scholarship follow different channels—they need not clash. I never thought a chief minister would obstruct his sovereign’s studies—this I cannot accept.” Zhang Bu threw himself on the floor; Sun Xiu said, “I only meant to clear the air—why such theater? Your loyalty is famous from the capital to the frontier. The devotion that raised me to this throne is the devotion everyone still sees in you. The Songs warn: ‘Every deed begins well; few finish well. Perseverance is the hardest virtue—see this loyalty through to the end.” While Sun Xiu was still heir, Zhang Bu commanded his household guards and enjoyed absolute trust. After the enthronement the emperor showered him with favor until Zhang monopolized power and behaved with gross impunity. Conscious of his own shortcomings, Zhang lived in terror that Wei Yao and Sheng Chong would expose him—hence his obsessive obstruction. Sun Xiu saw through the stratagem yet could not bring himself to punish his old ally; fearing Zhang would bolt, he yielded—ending the lecture program and barring Sheng Chong from court. That year Wu dispatched an imperial inspector to Jiaozhi to levy peacocks and hogs for the palace menagerie. 〈Pei Songzhi remarks that “battle-inspector” was a Wu bureaucratic title—Yangzhou city still has a lane named for it.〉
16
六年夏四月,泉陵言黃龍見。 五月,交阯郡吏呂興等反,殺太守孫諝。 諝先是科郡上手工千餘人送建業,而察戰至,恐復見取,故興等因此扇動兵民,招誘諸夷也。 冬十月,蜀以魏見伐來告。 癸未,建業石頭小城火,燒西南百八十丈。 甲申,使大將軍丁奉督諸軍向魏壽春,將軍留平別詣施績於南郡,議兵所向,將軍丁封、孫異如沔中,皆救蜀。 蜀主劉禪降魏問至,然後罷。 呂興旣殺孫諝,使使如魏,請太守及兵。 丞相興建取屯田萬人以爲兵。 分武陵爲天門郡。 〈《吳歷》曰:是歲青龍見於長沙,白燕見於慈胡,赤雀見於豫章。〉
In the sixth year of Yong’an, the fourth month of summer, Quanling reported a yellow dragon sighting. In May commandery clerks led by Lü Xing rose in Jiaozhi and murdered Administrator Sun Xu. Sun Xu had already drafted over a thousand artisans to Jianye; when another inspector arrived to seize more labor, Lü Xing seized the moment to incite soldiers, settlers, and tribal peoples alike. In winter, the tenth month, Shu sent envoys begging aid as Wei invaded. On guiwei fire swept the Shitou fortress at Jianye, consuming a hundred eighty zhang of the southwest wall. On jiashen Wu hurled Grand General Ding Feng at Wei’s Shouchun, sent Liu Ping south to plan joint movements with Shi Ji, and ordered General Ding Feng (not the grand general) and Sun Yi up the Han—all feints to distract Wei from Shu. The expeditions ended once word reached Jianye that Liu Shan had surrendered. Having killed Sun Xu, Lü Xing dispatched ambassadors to Wei requesting a governor and garrison support. Chancellor Puyang Xing proposed drafting ten thousand colonists into the army. The court carved Tianmen commandery out of Wuling. 〈The court diary records prodigies that year: an azure dragon at Changsha, white swallows at Cihu, red sparrows at Yuzhang.〉
17
七年春正月,大赦。 二月,鎮軍陸抗、撫軍步恊、征西將軍留平、建平太守盛曼,率衆圍蜀巴東守將羅憲。 夏四月,魏將新附督王稚浮海入句章,略長吏賞林及男女二百餘口。 將軍孫越徼得一船,獲三十人。 秋七月,海賊破海鹽,殺司鹽校尉駱秀。 使中書郎劉川發兵廬陵。 豫章民張節等爲亂,衆萬餘人。 魏使將軍胡烈步騎二萬侵西陵,以救羅憲,陸抗等引軍退。 復分交州置廣州。 壬午,大赦。 癸未,休薨, 〈《江表傳》曰:休寢疾,口不能言,乃手書呼丞相濮陽興入,令子𩅦出拜之。 休把興臂,而指𩅦以託之。〉 時年三十,謚曰景皇帝。 〈葛洪《抱朴子》曰:吳景帝時,戍將於廣陵掘諸冢,取版以治城,所壞甚多。 後發一大冢,內有重閤,戶扇皆樞轉可開閉,四周爲徼道通車,其高可以乘馬。 又鑄銅爲人數十枚,長五尺,皆大冠朱衣,執劒列侍靈座,皆刻銅人背後石壁,言殿中將軍,或言侍郎、常侍。 似公王之冢。 破其棺,棺中有人,髮已班白,衣冠鮮明,面體如生人。 棺中雲母厚尺許,以白玉璧三十枚藉尸。 兵人輩共舉出死人,以倚冢壁。 有一玉長一尺許,形似冬瓜,從死人懷中透出墮地。 兩耳及鼻孔中,皆有黃金如棗許大,此則骸骨有假物而不朽之効也。〉
The seventh year opened with a general amnesty in the first month of spring. In February Lu Kang, Bu Xie, Liu Ping, and Jianping governor Sheng Man invested Badong, pinning down Shu’s commander Luo Xian. That April Wei coastal commander Wang Zhi sailed into Gouzhang, kidnapping Magistrate Shang Lin and over two hundred civilians. General Sun Yue intercepted a second craft and took thirty prisoners. In July pirates sacked Haiyan and slew Salt Commissioner Luo Xiu. Palace Secretary Liu Chuan was ordered to raise troops in Luling. Zhang Jie of Yuzhang led more than ten thousand rebels. Hu Lie’s twenty-thousand-man column struck Xiling to rescue Luo Xian, forcing Lu Kang to lift the siege. The court once more split Jiaozhou, carving Guangzhou from its territory. On renwu the emperor declared a general amnesty. On guiwei Sun Xiu died, 〈The Jiangbiao zhuan records that Sun Xiu lost speech to illness and scribbled a summons for Chancellor Puyang Xing, then had the crown prince bow to him. Clutching Puyang Xing’s arm, Sun Xiu gestured toward the heir—passing the boy into his care.〉 He was thirty sui; posterity honors him as Emperor Jing. 〈Ge Hong’s Baopuzi tells how, under Emperor Jing, Guangling garrison troops looted ancient tombs for timber to patch the walls—scores of graves were violated. They broke into an immense vault with stacked chambers, hinged doors, chariot-wide ramps, and ceilings high enough for mounted riders. Dozens of life-size bronze attendants in vermilion robes flanked the catafalque; labels carved into the rear wall styled them palace generals, gentleman attendants, or palace stewards. The splendor matched a royal burial. When they shattered the inner coffin they found a corpse with silvered hair, robes still brilliant, flesh uncannily lifelike. An inch-thick layer of mica lined the coffin, the body resting on thirty white jade bi disks. The soldiers hauled the cadaver out and propped it against the vault wall. A winter-melon-shaped jade a foot long slipped from the corpse’s breast and clattered to the floor. Lumps of gold the size of jujubes plugged ears and nostrils—proof, claimed Ge Hong, that elixirs had preserved the bones.〉
18
孫皓字元宗,權孫,和子也,一名彭祖,字皓宗。 孫休立,封皓爲烏程侯,遣就國。 西湖民景養相皓當大貴,皓陰喜而不敢泄。 休薨,是時蜀初亡,而交阯攜叛,國內震懼,貪得長君。 左典軍萬彧昔爲烏程令,與皓相善,稱皓才識明斷,是長沙桓王之疇也,又加之好學,奉遵法度,屢言之於丞相濮陽興、左將軍張布。 興、布說休妃太后朱,欲以皓爲嗣。 朱曰:「我寡婦人,安知社稷之慮,苟吳國無損,宗廟有賴可矣。」 於是遂迎立皓,時年二十三。 改元,大赦。 是歲,於魏咸熙元年也。
Sun Hao (courtesy Yuanzong), grandson of Sun Quan and son of Crown Prince He, also bore the childhood names Pengzu and Haozong. Sun Xiu invested him as marquis of Wucheng and packed him off to his estate. A West Lake diviner named Jing Yang read prodigious greatness in Sun Hao’s face; the prince hugged the prophecy to himself. Sun Xiu’s death found Shu extinguished, Jiaozhi in revolt, and the court desperate for an adult sovereign. Wan Yu, once magistrate of Wucheng and Sun Hao’s friend, praised him to Puyang Xing and Zhang Bu as decisive as Prince Huan of Changsha, devoted to study, and respectful of law. Puyang Xing and Zhang Bu lobbied Empress Dowager Zhu to adopt Sun Hao as heir. She replied, “I am only a widow—what do I know of statecraft? Choose whichever prince preserves Wu and the ancestral shrines.” They rode north and enthroned Sun Hao—aged twenty-three. He proclaimed a new reign title and granted amnesty. On Wei’s calendar the year was the first of Xianxi.
19
二年春,大赦。 右丞相萬彧上鎮巴丘。 夏六月,起顯明宮, 〈太康三年 〈地記〉 曰:吳有太初宮,方三百丈,權所起也。 昭明宮方五百丈,皓所作也。 避晉諱,故曰顯明。 《吳歷》云:顯明在太初之東。 《江表傳》曰:皓營新宮,二千石以下皆自入山督攝伐木。 又破壞諸營,大開園囿,起土山樓觀,窮極伎巧,功役之費以億萬計。 陸凱固諫,不從。〉 冬十二月,皓移居之。 是歲,分豫章、廬陵、長沙爲安成郡。
His second year opened with a general amnesty. Right Chancellor Wan Yu took post at Bazhou. That summer, the sixth month, ground broke on the Palace of Manifest Brightness, 〈In the third year of Jin’s Taikang era 〈According to the Terrestrial Record〉 Wu already possessed Sun Quan’s three-hundred-zhang Grand Inception Palace. Sun Hao’s Radiant Illumination Palace spanned five hundred zhang per side. Later writers renamed it “Manifest Brightness” to avoid Jin dynastic taboos. The court diary places it east of the Grand Inception Palace. The Jiangbiao zhuan adds that officials below two-thousand-shi rank were forced into the hills to supervise lumbering. Garrisons were demolished to expand royal parks; artificial peaks and belvederes rose in ostentatious excess at a cost counted in hundreds of millions. Lu Kai protested in vain.〉 That winter, the twelfth month, Sun Hao moved his court into the new palace. The same year saw Ancheng commandery carved from Yuzhang, Luling, and Changsha.
20
三年春二月,以左右御史大夫丁固、孟仁爲司徒、司空。 〈《吳書》曰:初,固爲尚書,夢松樹生其腹上,謂人曰:「松字十八公也,後十八歲,吾其爲公乎!」 卒如夢焉。〉 秋九月,皓出東關,丁奉至合肥。 是歲,遣交州刺史劉俊、前部督脩則等入擊交阯,爲晉將毛炅等所破,皆死,兵散還合浦。
In the third year, the second month of spring, Ding Gu and Meng Ren rose from imperial counselors to minister of education and minister of works. 〈The Book of Wu recounts Ding Gu’s dream of a pine sprouting from his belly—‘pine,’ he said, parses as ‘eighteen duke’—would he reach duke rank in eighteen years?” Time vindicated the dream.〉 That September Sun Hao rode to East Pass while Ding Feng advanced on Hefei. The same year Liu Jun and Xiu Ze invaded Jiaozhi but Jin’s Mao Jiong crushed them; both commanders fell and the survivors straggled back to Hepu.
21
建衡元年春正月,立子瑾爲太子,及淮陽、東平王。 冬十月,改年,大赦。 十一月,左丞相陸凱卒。 遣監軍虞汜、威南將軍薛珝、蒼梧太守陶璜由荊州,監軍李勗、督軍徐存從建安海道,皆就合浦擊交阯。
The first year of Jianheng opened with Sun Hao naming his son Jin heir apparent and investing younger princes as kings of Huaiyang and Dongping. In winter, the tenth month, he changed the reign title and declared amnesty. Left Chancellor Lu Kai died in the eleventh month. Yu Si, Xue Xu, and Tao Huang drove inland from Jingzhou while Li Xu and Xu Cun sailed from Jian’an; both columns aimed at Hepu for the reconquest of Jiaozhi.
22
二年春。 萬彧還建業。 李勗以建安道不通利,殺導將馮斐,引軍還。 三月,天火燒萬餘家,死者七百人。 夏四月,左大司馬施績卒。 殿中列將何定曰:「少府李勗枉殺馮斐,擅徹軍退還。」 勗及徐存家屬皆伏誅。 秋九月,何定將兵五千人上夏口獵。 都督孫秀奔晉。 是歲大赦。
Spring of the second year of Jianheng. Wan Yu returned to the capital. When the Jian’an sea lane proved impassable, Li Xu executed his pilot Feng Fei and withdrew. In March a catastrophic fire consumed ten thousand homes and killed seven hundred souls. Grand Marshal of the Left Shi Ji died that April. Palace colonel He Ding charged Chamberlain Li Xu with murdering Feng Fei without cause and abandoning the expedition without orders.” Li Xu and Xu Cun were put to death together with their households. That September He Ding marched five thousand men upstream to Xiakou on a hunting junket. Regional commander Sun Xiu defected to Jin. A general amnesty closed the year.
23
三年春正月晦,皓舉大衆出華里,皓母及妃妾皆行,東觀令華覈等固爭,乃還。 〈《江表傳》曰:初丹楊刁玄使蜀,得司馬徽與劉廙論運命歷數事。 玄詐增其文以誑國人曰:「黃旗紫蓋見於東南,終有天下者,荊、揚之君乎!」 又得中國降人,言壽春下有童謠曰「吳天子當上」。 皓聞之,喜曰:「此天命也。」 即載其母妻子及後宮數千,從牛渚陸道西上,云青蓋入洛陽,以順天命。 行遇大雪,道塗陷壞,兵士被甲持仗,百人共引一車,寒凍殆死。 兵人不堪,皆曰:「若遇敵便當倒戈耳。」 皓聞之,乃還。〉 是歲,汜、璜破交阯,禽殺晉所置守將,九真、日南皆還屬。 〈《漢晉春秋》曰:初霍弋遣楊稷、毛炅等戍,與之誓曰:「若賊圍城,未百日而降者,家屬誅; 若過百日而城沒者,刺史受其罪。」 稷等日未滿而糧盡,乞降於璜。 璜不許,而給糧使守。 吳人並諫,璜曰:「霍弋已死,無能來者,可須其糧盡,然後乃受,使彼來無罪,而我取有義,內訓吾民,外懷鄰國,不亦可乎!」 稷、炅糧盡,救不至,乃納之。 華陽國志曰:稷,犍爲人。 炅,建寧人。 稷等城中食盡,死亡者半,將軍王約反降,吳人得入城,獲稷、炅,皆囚之。 孫皓使送稷下都,稷至合浦,歐血死。 晉追贈交州刺史。 初,毛炅與吳軍戰,殺前部督脩則。 陶璜等以炅壯勇,欲赦之。 而則子允固求殺炅,炅亦不爲璜等屈,璜等怒,靣縛炅詰之,曰:「晉兵賊!」 炅厲聲曰:「吳狗,何等爲賊?」 吳人生剖其腹,允割其心肝,罵曰:「庸復作賊?」 炅猶罵不止,曰:「尚欲斬汝孫皓,汝父何死狗也!」 乃斬之。 晉武帝聞而哀矜,即詔使炅長子襲爵,餘三子皆關內侯。 此與漢晉春秋所說不同。〉 大赦,分交阯爲新昌郡。 諸將破扶嚴,置武平郡。 以武昌督范慎爲太尉。 右大司馬丁奉、司空孟仁卒。 〈《吳錄》曰:仁字恭武,江夏人也,本名宗,避皓字,易焉。 少從南陽李肅學。 其母爲作厚褥大被,或問其故,母曰:「小兒無德致客,學者多貧,故爲廣被,庶可得與氣類接也。」 其讀書夙夜不懈,肅奇之,曰:「卿宰相器也。」 初爲驃騎將軍朱據軍吏,將母在營。 旣不得志,又夜雨屋漏,因起涕泣,以謝其母,母曰:「但當勉之,何足泣也?」 據亦稍知之,除爲塩池司馬。 自能結網,手以捕魚,作鮓寄母,母因以還之,曰:「汝爲魚官,而以鮓寄我,非避嫌也。」 遷吳令。 時皆不得將家之官,每得時物,來以寄母,常不先食。 及聞母亡,犯禁委官,語在權傳。 特爲減死一等,復使爲官,蓋優之也。 楚國先賢傳曰:宗母嗜筍,冬節將至。 時筍尚未生,宗入竹林哀歎,而筍爲之出,得以供母,皆以爲至孝之所致感。 累遷光祿勳,遂至公矣。〉 西苑言鳳皇集,改明年元。
On the last day of the first month of the third year Sun Hao marched the capital army toward Huali, dragging along his mother and concubines until Overseer Hua He’s protests turned him back. 〈The Jiangbiao zhuan narrates how Diao Xuan brought back from Shu dialogues between Sima Hui and Liu Yi on destiny and cosmic cycles. Diao forged a gloss predicting yellow banners and purple canopies in the southeast—the realm would fall to a lord of Jing or Yang.” Defectors from the north added a Shouchun nursery rhyme: ‘The Wu emperor shall ascend.’” Sun Hao crowed, “Heaven calls me west.” He packed his mother, empress, heir, and thousands of ladies onto carts, climbed the Niuzhu road toward Wei, boasting that Luoyang would welcome his green imperial canopy. Blizzards swallowed the roads; armored soldiers had to haul each wagon with hundred-man teams, and frostbite stalked the column. The rank and file muttered that at the first sight of the enemy they would mutiny.” Sun Hao turned the procession homeward.〉 That year Tao Huang and Yu Si stormed Jiaozhi, executed Jin’s garrison commanders, and restored Jiuzhen and Rinan to Wu. 〈The Han–Jin Annals states: At first Huo Yi dispatched Yang Ji, Mao Jiong, and others to garrison, and swore with them: “If bandits surround the city and [you] surrender before a hundred days, family members will be executed; Hold out beyond a hundred days and any blame falls on the inspector alone.” Yang Ji ran out of grain before the hundred-day mark and sued Tao Huang for terms. Huang refused capitulation yet sent rice so they could keep fighting. Wu officers protested, but Huang argued that Huo Yi was dead, relief impossible; starving them out would yield a blameless surrender, pacify Wu’s soldiers, and show mercy toward Jin—why rush?” When supplies vanished and no Jin column appeared, Huang accepted their surrender. The Huayang guozhi identifies Yang Ji as a native of Qianwei. Mao Jiong came from Jianning. Starvation halved the garrison until Wang Yue opened the gates; Tao Huang’s troops seized Yang Ji and Mao Jiong and clapped them in chains. Sun Hao sent Yang Ji toward Jianye under guard; at Hepu he coughed blood and died. The Jin court posthumously named him inspector of Jiaozhi. Earlier Mao Jiong had killed Wu’s vanguard commander Xiu Ze in battle. Tao Huang wished to spare Mao Jiong for his valor. Xiu Ze’s son Xiu Yun insisted on execution; Mao Jiong refused to bend to Tao Huang; enraged, Wu officers bound him and screamed, “Jin bandit!” Mao Jiong roared back, “Wu curs—which side are the traitors?” They disemboweled him alive; Xiu Yun carved out his organs, snarling, “Still playing rebel?” Mao Jiong kept cursing: “I would strike at Sun Hao himself—your father was only a carrion hound!” Then they took his head. Emperor Wu of Jin mourned the deed and ordered Mao Jiong’s eldest son to inherit his title while raising his three younger sons to village marquis within the passes. Pei Songzhi notes that this diverges from the Han–Jin Annals account.〉 The court proclaimed amnesty and split Xinchang commandery from Jiaozhi. Wu columns crushed Fuyan and annexed its territory as Wuping commandery. Fan Shen, commander at Wuchang, became grand commandant. Right Grand Marshal Ding Feng died, as did Minister of Works Meng Ren. 〈The Records of Wu records Meng Ren, courtesy Gongwu, of Jiangxia—originally named Zong, altered to avoid Sun Hao’s taboo. He studied in his youth under Li Su of Nanyang. His mother sewed an oversized quilt so the boy could share it with indigent classmates—poverty need not bar fellowship.” Meng Ren studied day and night until Li Su pronounced him ministerial timber.” He began as a clerk under Zhu Ju, keeping his mother inside camp regulations. Frustrated ambition and a leaking roof drove him to tears before his mother; she answered, “Work harder—why weep?” Zhu Ju noticed his diligence and named him marshal of the salt pools. He netted fish to pickle for his mother; she returned the jars, saying, “A fisheries officer cannot mail pickles home—people will talk.” Promotion followed to magistrate of Wu county. Officials could not bring kin to post; Meng Ren shipped every seasonal delicacy to his mother and ate only after she did. Learning of her death he threw away his seal in defiance of regulation—the tale appears in Sun Quan’s memoir. The court commuted his capital offense and restored him—clear favor. The Chu gazetteer adds that Zong’s mother craved bamboo shoots as winter approached. When no shoots yet pierced the snow, Zong’s lament in the bamboo grove reportedly forced sprouts from the earth—all hailed his filial power. He rose through the palace secretariat to one of the three dukes.〉 Western Park reported assembled phoenixes, prompting a new reign title the following year.
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二年春三月,以陸抗爲大司馬。 司徒丁固卒。 秋九月,改封淮陽爲魯,東平爲齊,又封陳留、章陵等九王,凡十一王,王給三千兵。 大赦。 皓愛妾或使人至市劫奪百姓財物,司市中郎將陳聲,素皓幸臣也,恃皓寵遇,繩之以法。 妾以愬皓,皓大怒,假他事燒鋸斷聲頭,投其身於四望之下。 是歲,太尉范慎卒。
In the third month of spring in the second year of Tian Ce, Lu Kang became grand marshal. Minister of Education Ding Gu died. That autumn Huaiyang became the kingdom of Lu, Dongping became Qi, and nine more princes received domains—eleven royal households in all, each with three thousand guards. The court proclaimed a general amnesty. Sun Hao’s concubines sent agents to loot the markets; market commandant Chen Sheng, a longtime favorite, dared to arrest them under statute. Enraged, Sun Hao invented new charges, sawed through Chen Sheng’s neck, and hurled the corpse from the Siwang lookout. Grand Commandant Fan Shen died the same year.
25
三年,會稽妖言章安侯奮當爲天子。 臨海太守奚熙與會稽太守郭誕書,非論國政。 誕但白熙書,不白妖言,送付建安作船。 〈會稽邵氏 〈家傳〉 曰:邵疇字溫伯,時爲誕功曹。 誕被收,惶遽無以自明。 疇進曰:「疇今自在,疇之事,明府何憂?」 遂詣吏自列,云不白妖言,事由於己,非府君罪。 吏上疇辭,皓怒猶盛。 疇慮誕卒不免,遂自殺以證之。 臨亡,置辭曰:「疇生長邊陲,不閑教道,得以門資,厠身本郡,踰越儕類,位極朝右,不能贊揚盛化,養之以福。 今妖訛橫興,干國亂紀,疇以噂𠴲之語,本非事實,雖家誦人詠,不足有慮。 天下重器,而匹夫橫議,疾其醜聲,不忍聞見,欲含垢藏疾,不彰之翰筆,鎮躁歸靜,使之自息。 愚心勤勤,每執斯旨,故誕屈其所是,默以見從。 此之爲愆,實由於疇。 謹不敢逃死,歸罪有司,唯乞天鑒,特垂清察。」 吏收疇喪,得辭以聞,皓乃免誕大刑,送付建安作船。 疇亡時,年四十。 皓嘉疇節義,詔郡縣圖形廟堂。〉 遣三郡督何植收熙,熙發兵自衞,斷絕海道。 熙部曲殺熙,送首建業,夷三族。 秋七月,遣使者二十五人分至州郡,科出亡叛。 大司馬陸抗卒。 自改年及是歲,連大疫。 分鬱林爲桂林郡。
In the third year Kuaiji buzzed with prophecy that Sun Fen would seize the throne. Linhai governor Xi Xi wrote Kuaiji governor Guo Dan letters attacking court policy. Guo Dan forwarded Xi’s sedition but suppressed the prophecy and shipped Xi to Jian’an shipyards. 〈The Kuaiji Shao lineage 〈House Tradition〉 records:〉 names Shao Chou, courtesy Wenbo, Guo Dan’s chief clerk. When Guo Dan was arrested he panicked, unable to clear his name. Shao Chou spoke up: “Let me answer for myself—your lordship need not fear.” He surrendered to the prefectural jail, confessing that he had urged silence on the prophecy—the fault was his, not Guo Dan’s. Even after reading Shao Chou’s confession Sun Hao’s rage burned hot. Fearing Guo Dan would still die, Shao Chou killed himself to prove the governor’s innocence. His deathbed petition read: “I, a rustic borderer raised by family privilege above my peers, reached the court’s right hand yet never spread the royal beneficence or brought blessing to the people. Sedition now stalks the realm; village gossip about omens is harmless chatter though every lane repeats it. The mandate is sacred; I loathed recording vulgar rumors on silk and hoped silence would starve the scandal. Therefore I persuaded Prefect Guo to bury the memorial rather than stir panic. Blame this fool alone. I welcome execution so long as Heaven judges Guo Dan innocent.” Officials found the testament on his corpse; Sun Hao spared Guo Dan execution and shipped him to Jian’an shipyards. Shao Chou was forty when he died. Sun Hao ordered portrait sacrifices to Shao Chou in every shrine.〉 He Zhi marched to arrest Xi Xi, who mobilized private armies and blocked the coast road. Xi’s own retainers slew him and carried his head to Jianye; three generations of his kin were executed. That July twenty-five inspectors scoured every province for runaways and traitors. Grand Marshal Lu Kang died. Since the reign-title change plague had ravaged Wu year after year. The court carved Guilin commandery out of Yulin.
26
天冊元年,吳郡言掘地得銀,長一尺,廣三分,刻上有年月字,於是大赦,改年。
The first year of Tian Ce opened when Wu commandery unearthed an inscribed silver tally—Sun Hao answered with amnesty and yet another reign title.
27
天紀元年夏,夏口督孫慎出江夏、汝南,燒略居民。 初,騶子張俶多所譖白,累遷爲司直中郎將,封侯,甚見寵愛,是歲姦情發聞,伏誅。 〈《江表傳》曰:俶父,會稽山陰縣卒也,知俶不良,上表云:「若用俶爲司直,有罪乞不從坐。」 皓許之。 俶表正彈曲二十人,專糾司不法,於是愛惡相攻,互相謗告。 彈曲承言,收繫囹圄,聽訟失理,獄以賄成。 人民窮困,無所措手足。 俶奢淫無厭,取小妻三十餘人,擅殺無辜,衆姦並發,父子俱見車裂。〉
The first summer of Tianji saw Xikou commander Sun Shen raiding into Jiangxia and Runan, burning hamlets and looting farmers. The groom Zhang Xu had climbed to chief censor by informing on colleagues; exposed that year, he was executed. 〈His father, a Shanyin clerk, once memorialized: 'If my son becomes chief censor, do not punish me for his crimes.'” Sun Hao agreed. Zhang Xu impeached twenty colleagues at will; factions exchanged accusations faster than verdicts. Denunciation led straight to jail; judges pocketed silver and ignored justice. Commoners stood paralyzed by terror. Zhang Xu hoarded thirty concubines and murdered at whim until exposure doomed father and son to death by tearing.〉
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二年秋七月,立成紀、宣威等十一王,王給三千兵,大赦。
That July Sun Hao invested eleven more kingdoms—Chengji, Xuanwei, and others—each with three thousand guards, and proclaimed amnesty.
29
三年夏,郭馬反。 馬本合浦太守脩允部曲督。 允轉桂林太守,疾病,住廣州,先遣馬將五百兵至郡安撫諸夷。 允死,兵當分給,馬等累世舊軍,不樂離別。 皓時又科實廣州戶口,馬與部曲將何典、王族、吳述、殷興等因此恐動兵民,合聚人衆,攻殺廣州督虞授。 馬自號都督交廣二州諸軍事、安南將軍,興廣州刺史,述南海太守。 典攻蒼梧,族攻始興。 〈《漢晉春秋》曰:先是,吳有說讖者曰:「吳之敗,兵起南裔,亡吳者公孫也。」 皓聞之,文武職位至于卒伍有姓公孫者,皆徙於廣州,不令停江邊。 及聞馬反,大懼曰:「此天亡也。」〉 八月,以軍師張悌爲丞相,牛渚都督何植爲司徒。 執金吾滕循爲司空,未拜,轉鎮南將軍,假節領廣州牧,率萬人從東道討馬,與族遇於始興,未得前。 馬殺南海太守劉略,逐廣州刺史徐旗。 皓又遣徐陵督陶濬將七千人從西道,命交州牧陶璜部伍所領及合浦、鬱林諸郡兵,當與東西軍共擊馬。
The third year of Tianji brought Guo Ma's rebellion in the south. Guo Ma had commanded retainers for Hepu governor Xiu Yun. When Xiu Yun moved to Guilin but fell ill at Guangzhou, he sent Guo Ma ahead with five hundred men to pacify the tribes. Xiu Yun's death meant splitting his veterans—hereditary soldiers who refused dispersal. Sun Hao's census drove Guo Ma, He Dian, Wang Zu, Wu Shu, and Yin Xing to incite mutiny and murder Guangzhou commander Yu Shou. Guo Ma dubbed himself governor-general of Jiao and Guang; Yin Xing claimed Guangzhou; Wu Shu claimed Nanhai. He Dian struck Cangwu while Wang Zu struck Shixing. 〈The Han–Jin Annals recalls a prophecy: 'Wu falls when southern armies rise; the ruin comes through the house of Gongsun.'” Sun Hao banished every official or soldier surnamed Gongsun to Guangzhou, far from the Yangzi. When he heard Ma had rebelled, he was greatly frightened and said: “This is Heaven destroying us.”〉 In August Zhang Ti became chancellor and Niuzhu commander He Zhi minister of education. Chamberlain Teng Xun was slated for minister of works but rerouted south as Guangzhou shepherd with ten thousand men—only to stall against Wang Zu at Shixing. Guo Ma slew Liu Lüe of Nanhai and drove off Inspector Xu Qi. Sun Hao ordered Tao Jun west from Xuling with seven thousand men while Tao Huang mobilized Jiaozhi, Hepu, and Yulin—the pincers meant to crush Guo Ma.
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有鬼目菜生工人黃耇家,依緣棗樹,長丈餘,莖廣四寸,厚三分。 又有買菜生工人吳平家,高四尺,厚三分,如枇杷形,上廣尺八寸,下莖廣五寸,兩邊生葉綠色。 東觀案圖,名鬼目作芝草,買菜作平慮草,遂以耇爲侍芝郎,平爲平慮郎,皆銀印青綬。
A freak vegetable dubbed “ghost-eye” sprouted against Huang Gou's date tree—over a yard tall with a thick stalk. Another mutant vine—“mai vegetable”—rose at Wu Ping's door, loquat-shaped with emerald leaves. Court librarians styled the weeds auspicious fungus and named Huang Gou and Wu Ping petty chamberlains with silver seals.
31
冬,晉命鎮東大將軍司馬伷向涂中,安東將軍王渾、揚州刺史周浚向牛渚,建威將軍王戎向武昌,平南將軍胡奮向夏口,鎮南將軍杜預向江陵,龍驤將軍王濬、廣武將軍唐彬浮江東下,太尉賈充爲大都督,量宜處要,盡軍勢之中。 陶濬至武昌,聞北軍大出,停駐不前。
Winter brought Jin's seven-pronged invasion: Sima You on Tu, Wang Hun and Zhou Jun on Niuzhu, Wang Rong on Wuchang, Hu Fen on Xiakou, Du Yu on Jiangling, Wang Jun and Tang Bin sailing downstream, Jia Chong coordinating the whole. Tao Jun froze at Wuchang when reports described the scale of the Jin host.
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初,皓每宴會羣臣,無不咸令沈醉。 置黃門郎十人,特不與酒,侍立終日,爲司過之吏。 宴罷之後,各奏其闕失,迕視之咎,謬言之愆,罔有不舉。 大者即加威刑,小者輒以爲罪。 後宮數千,而採擇無已。 又激水入宮,宮人有不合意者,輒殺流之。 或剥人之面,或鑿人之眼。 岑昬險諛貴幸,致位九列,好興功役,衆所患苦。 是以上下離心,莫爲皓盡力,蓋積惡已極,不復堪命故也。 〈吳平後,晉侍中庾峻等問皓侍中李仁曰:「聞吳主披人面,刖人足,有諸乎?」 仁曰:「以告者過也。 君子惡居下流,天下之惡皆歸焉。 蓋此事也,若信有之,亦不足能恠。 昔唐、虞五刑,三代七辟,肉刑之制,未爲酷虐。 皓爲一國之主,秉殺生之柄,罪人陷法,加之以懲,何足多罪! 夫受堯誅者不能無怨,受桀賞者不能無慕,此人情也。」 又問曰:「云歸命侯乃惡人橫睛逆視,皆鑿其眼,有諸乎?」 仁曰:「亦無此事,傳之者謬耳。 曲禮曰視天子由袷以下,視諸侯由頤以下,視大夫由衡,視士則平面,得游目五步之內; 視上於衡則傲,下於帶則憂,旁則邪。 以禮視瞻,高下不可不慎,況人君乎哉? 視人君相迕,是乃禮所謂傲慢; 傲慢則無禮,無禮則不臣,不臣則犯罪,犯罪則陷不測矣。 正使有之,將有何失?」 凡仁所荅,峻等皆善之,文多不悉載。〉
Sun Hao forced every banquet guest into drunken stupors. Ten sober eunuchs stood witness, cataloguing slips of shame. When cups emptied, they denounced every bleary misstep—awkward glances, sloppy phrases. Major slips earned torture; minor slips still counted as guilt. Thousands of concubines filled the harem, yet press-gangs still hunted beauties. He flooded palace corridors to drown girls who displeased him. Others he flayed or blinded for sport. The odious favorite Cen Hun climbed to the highest ministerial rank and drenched Wu in forced labor until the realm groaned. Court and countryside alike withdrew loyalty from Sun Hao: tyranny had exhausted every ounce of patience. 〈After the conquest of Wu, Yu Jin questioned Li Ren: ‘Did Sun Hao really flay faces and sever feet?’” Ren said: “Those who reported exaggerated. The drowned ruler attracts every slander—mud sticks downstream. Even if true, nothing Sun Hao did should surprise anyone. Antiquity knew amputation and tattoo—Wu cruelties hardly invented torture. A sovereign punishes crime—that is not atrocity but sovereignty. Victims resent executioners; rewarded lackeys sing praise—human nature.” ‘Did Sun Hao gouge every sidelong glance?’” Ren said: “Neither has this matter truth—the transmitters erred. The Classic of Rites prescribes downcast eyes toward superiors—eyes above the brow spell arrogance. Low eyes mean fear; wandering eyes mean treason. Court etiquette regulates every glance—how dare commoners eye a throne? Defiant eyes violate ritual. Disrespect cascades into treason and the headsman’s block. Even had Sun Hao gouged rebels—would law complain?” Yu Jin approved Li Ren’s sophistry—Pei Songzhi omits the rest.〉
33
四年春,立中山、代等十一王,大赦。 濬、彬所至,則土崩瓦解,靡有禦者。 預又斬江陵督伍延,渾復斬丞相張悌、丹楊太守沈瑩等,所在戰克。 〈干寶《晉紀》曰:吳丞相軍師張悌、護軍孫震、丹楊太守沈瑩帥衆三萬濟江,圍成陽都尉張喬於楊荷橋,衆才七千,閉柵自守,舉白接告降。 吳副軍師諸葛靚欲屠之,悌曰:「彊敵在前,不宜先事其小; 且殺降不祥。」 靚曰:「此等以救兵未至而力少,故且僞降以緩我,非來伏也。 因其無戰心而盡阬之,可以成三軍之氣。 若舍之而前,必爲後患。」 悌不從,撫之而進。 與討吳護軍張翰、揚州刺史周浚成陣相對。 沈瑩領丹楊銳卒刀楯五千,號曰青巾兵,前後屢陷堅陣,於是以馳淮南軍,三衝不動。 退引亂,薛勝、蔣班因其亂而乘之,吳軍以次土崩,將帥不能止,張喬又出其後,大敗吳軍于阪橋,獲悌、震、瑩等。 《襄陽記》曰:悌字巨先,襄陽人,少有名理,孫休時爲屯騎校尉。 魏伐蜀,吳人問悌曰:「司馬氏得政以來,大難屢作,智力雖豐,而百姓未服也。 今又竭其資力,遠征巴蜀,兵勞民疲而不知恤,敗於不暇,何以能濟? 昔夫差伐齊,非不克勝,所以危亡,不憂其本也,況彼之爭地乎!」 悌曰:「不然。 曹操雖功蓋中夏,威震四海,崇詐杖術,征伐無已,民畏其威,而不懷其德也。 丕、叡承之,係以慘虐,內興宮室,外懼雄豪,東西驅馳,無歲獲安,彼之失民,爲日乆矣。 司馬懿父子,自握其柄,累有大功,除其煩苛而布其平惠,爲之謀主而救其疾,民心歸之,亦已乆矣。 故淮南三叛而腹心不擾,曹髦之死,四方不動,摧堅敵如折枯,蕩異同如反掌,任賢使能,各盡其心,非智勇兼人,孰能如之? 其威武張矣,本根固矣,羣情服矣,姦計立矣。 今蜀閹宦專朝,國無政令,而玩戎黷武,民勞卒弊,競於外利,不脩守備。 彼彊弱不同,智筭亦勝,因危而伐,殆其克乎! 若其不克,不過無功,終無退北之憂,覆軍之慮也,何爲不可哉? 昔楚劒利而秦昭懼,孟明用而晉人憂,彼之得志,故我之大患也。」 吳人笑其言,而蜀果降于魏。 晉來伐吳,皓使悌督沈瑩、諸葛靚,率衆三萬渡江逆之。 至牛渚,沈瑩曰:「晉治水軍於蜀乆矣,今傾國大舉,萬里齊力,必悉益州之衆浮江而下。 我上流諸軍,無有戒備,名將皆死,幼少當任,恐邊江諸城,盡莫能禦也。 晉之水軍,必至于此矣! 宜畜衆力,待來一戰。 若勝之日,江西自清,上方雖壞,可還取之。 今渡江逆戰,勝不可保,若或摧喪,則大事去矣。」 悌曰:「吳之將亡,賢愚所知,非今日也。 吾恐蜀兵來至此,衆心必駭懼,不可復整。 今宜渡江,可用決戰力爭。 若其敗喪,則同死社稷,無所復恨。 若其克勝,則北敵奔走,兵勢萬倍,便當乘威南上,逆之中道,不憂不破也。 若如子計,恐行散盡,相與坐待敵到,君臣俱降,無復一人死難者,不亦辱乎!」 遂渡江戰,吳軍大敗。 諸葛靚與五六百人退走,使過迎悌,悌不肯去,靚自往牽之,謂曰:「且夫天下存亡有大數,豈卿一人所知,如何故自取死爲?」 悌垂涕曰:「仲思,今日是我死日也。 且我作兒童時,便爲卿家丞相所拔,常恐不得其死,負名賢知顧。 今以身徇社稷,復何遁邪? 莫牽曳之如是。」 靚流涕放之,去百餘步,已見爲晉軍所殺。 《吳錄》曰:悌少知名,及處大任,希合時趣,將護左右,清論譏之。 《搜神記》曰:臨海松陽人柳榮從悌至楊府,榮病死船中二日,時軍已上岸,無有埋之者,忽然大呼,言「人縛軍師! 人縛軍師!」 聲激揚,遂活。 人問之,榮曰:「上天北斗門下卒見人縛張悌,意中大愕,不覺大呼,言『何以縛張軍師。』 門下人怒榮,叱逐使去。 榮便去,怖懼,口餘聲發揚耳。」 其日,悌戰死。 榮至晉元帝時猶在。〉
The fourth year opened with eleven new royal investitures and amnesty. Wang Jun and Tang Bin shattered every Wu line without resistance. Du Yu slew Wu Yan at Jiangling; Wang Hun routed Zhang Ti and Shen Ying—victory everywhere. 〈Gan Bao describes Zhang Ti’s thirty thousand troops trapping Zhang Qiao’s seven thousand at Yanghe Bridge behind raised palisades. Wu deputy military counselor Zhuge Jing wished to slaughter them; Ti said: “With a strong enemy ahead, one ought not first attend to small matters; Slaying capitulators brings ill luck.’” Jing said: “These men, because relief troops had not arrived and their strength was slight, therefore temporarily feigned surrender to delay us—they did not come to submit lying prostrate. Massacre would steel Wu morale. Leave them alive and they stab our rear.’” Zhang Ti spared Qiao and marched on. Wu drew up against Jin’s Zhang Han and Zhou Jun. Shen Ying’s five thousand ‘green scarf’ shock troops shattered Jin lines until Huainan veterans stood immovable. Retreat turned to rout; Zhang Qiao struck from the rear at Ban Bridge—Zhang Ti fell captive with Sun Zhen and Shen Ying. The Xiangyang Ji praises Zhang Ti’s early brilliance under Sun Xiu. When Wei attacked Shu, Wu men asked Ti: “Since the Sima clan seized power, great disasters have recurred one after another; although intelligence and strength are abundant, the hundred surnames do not submit. Wei drains itself conquering Shu—how can it endure? Fuchai won Qi yet lost Wu—foreign wars neglect the root.’” Ti said: “It is not so. Cao Cao conquered through terror, not love. Wei emperors burned resources on palaces and paranoia until the realm despised them. The Simas repealed Wei excess and won lasting loyalty. Huainan rose thrice yet Jin held firm; regicide barely rippled—the Simas wield supreme skill. Jin’s foundation is iron—Wu cannot rely on Wei chaos. Shu rots from within—eunuchs and futile wars. Strike Shu while chaos reigns—victory follows. Failure costs little; caution gains nothing. When rivals triumph on our frontier, Wu suffers.” Wu mocked Zhang Ti—yet Shu fell exactly as he predicted. Sun Hao ordered Zhang Ti, Shen Ying, and Zhuge Jing across the river with thirty thousand. At Niuzhu, Shen Ying said: “Jin has long trained a navy in Shu; now it raises the whole state in great expedition—ten thousand li acting together—it must send all Yizhou’s host floating downstream. Wu’s upstream posts lie leaderless—boys hold commands. Jin ships will surround us. Mass reserves for one clash. Win once and the west stabilizes; we retake lost towns later. Attack now and one defeat ends Wu.’” Ti said: “Wu’s impending doom—wise and foolish alike know it—not only today. Wait upstream and Jin surrounds us—panic kills armies. Strike first across the river. Lose and we die for Wu—honor intact. Win and pursue shattered Jin—momentum carries us north. Your timidity leaves us kneeling slaves—never soldiers.’” They crossed—and Wu shattered. Zhuge Jing fled but returned for Zhang Ti—‘Destiny dwarfs one man—why die?’” Ti with tears hanging said: “Zhongsi—today is my day to die. Your father raised me—I owe Wu a martyr’s death. Now I repay the state—where would I run? Let me go.’” Zhuge Jing released him—moments later Jin spears found Zhang Ti. Later critics mocked Zhang Ti’s compromises. The In Search of the Supernatural states: Liu Rong of Songyang in Linhai followed Ti to Yang prefecture—Rong died sick in the boat two days; at the time the army had already gone ashore—there was none who buried him—suddenly he cried loudly: “They bind the military counselor! They seize the commander!’” The corpse sat up screaming. People asked him; Rong said: “At the Gate of the Northern Dipper in Heaven I saw men binding Zhang Ti—I was greatly shocked in mind—unconsciously I cried loudly—saying ‘Why bind Military Counselor Zhang? Spectral guards drove him back to life. He woke trembling, voice raw.” Zhang Ti fell that same day. Liu Rong survived until Emperor Yuan of Jin.〉
34
三月丙寅,殿中親近數百人叩頭請皓殺岑昏,皓惶憒從之。 〈干寶《晉紀》曰:皓殿中親近數百人叩頭請皓曰:「北軍日近,而兵不舉刃,陛下將如之何!」 皓曰:「何故?」 對曰:「坐岑昏。」 皓獨言:「若爾,當以奴謝百姓。」 衆因曰:「唯!」 遂並起收昏。 皓駱驛追止,已屠之也。〉
Third-month bingyin: hundreds of Sun Hao’s guards demanded Cen Hun’s head—the emperor yielded. 〈Gan Bao records guards crying that Jin approached while Wu refused to fight.’” Sun Hao asked why.” ‘Blame Cen Hun.’” Sun Hao muttered, ‘Then sacrifice Cen Hun to the people.’” ‘Yes!’ roared the guards.” They seized Cen Hun. Sun Hao’s countermand arrived too late—Cen Hun was dead.〉
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戊辰,陶濬從武昌還,即引見,問水軍消息,對曰:「蜀船皆小,今得二萬兵,乘大船戰,自足擊之。」 於是合衆,授濬節鉞。 明日當發,其夜衆悉逃走。 而王濬順流將至,司馬伷、王渾皆臨近境。 皓用光祿勳薛瑩、中書令胡沖等計,分遣使奉書於濬、伷、渾曰:「昔漢室失統,九州分裂,先人因時,略有江南,遂分阻山川,與魏乖隔。 今大晉龍興,德覆四海。 闇劣偷安,未喻天命。 至於今者,猥煩六軍,衡蓋路次,遠臨江渚,舉國震惶,假息漏刻。 敢緣天朝含弘光大,謹遣私署太常張夔等奉所佩印綬,委質請命,惟垂信納,以濟元元。」 〈《江表傳》載皓將敗,與舅何植書曰:「昔大皇帝以神武之略,奮三千之卒,割據江南,席卷交、廣,開拓洪基,欲祚之萬世。 至孤末德,嗣守成緒,不能懷集黎元,多爲咎闕,以違天度。 闇昧之變,反謂之祥,致使南蠻逆亂,征討未克。 聞晉大衆,遠來臨江,庶竭勞瘁,衆皆摧退,而張悌不反,喪軍過半。 孤甚愧悵,于今無聊。 得陶濬表云武昌以西並復不守。 不守者,非糧不足,非城不固,兵將背戰耳。 兵之背戰,豈怨兵邪? 孤之罪也。 天文縣變於上,士民憤歎於下,觀此事勢,危如累卵,吳祚終訖,何其局哉! 天匪亡吳,孤所招也。 瞑目黃壤,當復何顏見四帝乎! 公其勗勉奇謨,飛筆以聞。」 皓又遺羣臣書曰:「孤以不德,忝繼先軌。 處位歷年,政教凶勃,遂令百姓乆困塗炭,至使一朝歸命有道,社稷傾覆,宗廟無主,慙愧山積,沒有餘罪。 自惟空薄,過偷尊號,才瑣質穢,任重王公,故周易有折鼎之誡,詩人有彼其之譏。 自居宮室,仍抱篤疾,計有不足,思慮失中,多所荒替。 邊側小人,因生酷虐,虐毒橫流,忠順被害。 闇昧不覺,尋其壅蔽,孤負諸君,事已難圖,覆水不可收也。 今大晉平治四海,勞心務於擢賢,誠是英俊展節之秋也。 管仲極讎,桓公用之,良、平去楚,入爲漢臣,舍亂就理,非不忠也。 莫以移朝改朔,用損厥志。 嘉勗休尚,愛敬動靜。 夫復何言,投筆而已!」〉
Wuchen: Tao Jun promised twenty thousand men on large ships could crush Jin.” Sun Hao gave Tao Jun supreme naval command. By dawn the fleet had deserted. Wang Jun sailed nearer while Sima You and Wang Hun closed both flanks. Hao employed Superintendent of the Palace Xue Ying, Palace Secretariat Director Hu Chong, and others’ plan—separately dispatching envoys presenting letters to Jun, You, and Hun: “Formerly the Han house lost alignment—the nine provinces split—our predecessors seized the moment to occupy Jiangnan—thereupon divided by mountains and rivers—estranged from Wei. Great Jin’s virtue floods the realm. We clung to ignorance. Your armies terrify every shore. We offer seals and hostages—spare the people.’” 〈The Jiangbiao zhuan carries Hao’s letter as defeat neared to his maternal uncle He Zhi: “Formerly the great emperor by divine martial strategy raised three thousand troops—carved out Jiangnan—rolled up Jiao and Guang—opened vast foundations—intending fortune for ten thousand generations. I inherited ruin through incompetence. Mistook calamity for blessing—south rebels rage. Jin surrounds us—Zhang Ti lost half my army. Shame consumes me. Tao Jun reports collapse west of Wuchang. We lose not from hunger but mutiny. Can soldiers fight when hearts flee? The fault is mine alone. Heaven’s omens turned grim above while men groaned below; the kingdom stood like a pile of eggs, Wu’s line was finished—how utterly boxed in. Heaven did not doom Wu—I brought it on myself. Buried in the yellow soil, what face would I have to meet the four rulers who came before? Press on with bold counsel and send word swiftly by letter.” Sun Hao wrote again to his officials: "My lack of virtue disgraces the succession I inherited. Years on the throne brought cruel rule and left the people in misery until they turned to a righteous conqueror; altars fell and shrines stood empty—my shame is mountain-high, and death cannot repay it. I seized a throne my talents never deserved—small wit, coarse nature, yet I bore a king’s burden—exactly the ‘broken cauldron’ the Classic of Changes warns against and the butt of the poets’ mockery. From the day I entered the palace I have been gravely ill at heart; judgment failed me again and again, and affairs slid into ruin. Mean creatures at court bred cruelty; poison spread everywhere, and the faithful were destroyed. I stayed blind while flatterers walled me in; I betrayed you all, and it is too late now—like water spilled from a bowl. Great Jin now rules the realm and strains to raise able men—this is the very season for talent to show its mettle. Guan Zhong had been Huan’s bitter enemy yet served him well; Zhang Liang and Chen Ping left Chu for Han—turning from chaos to good government is not treason. Do not let the change of dynasty shake your purpose. Cherish one another, honor rest and dignity, and meet every duty with love and respect. I have nothing left to say—I lay down my brush.」"〉"
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【評】
【Appraisal】
37
評曰:孫亮童孺而無賢輔,其替位不終,必然之勢也。 休以舊愛宿恩,任用興、布,不能拔進良才,改絃易張,雖志善好學,何益救亂乎? 又使旣廢之亮不得其死,友于之義薄矣。 皓之淫刑所濫,隕斃流黜者,蓋不可勝數。 是以羣下人人惴恐,皆日日以兾,朝不謀夕。 其熒惑、巫祝,交致祥瑞,以爲至急。 昔舜、禹躬稼,至聖之德,猶或矢誓衆臣,予違女弼,或拜昌言,常若不及。 況皓凶頑,肆行殘暴,忠諫者誅,讒諛者進,虐用其民,窮淫極侈,宜腰首分離,以謝百姓。 旣蒙不死之詔,復加歸命之寵,豈非曠蕩之恩,過厚之澤也哉!
The appraisal: Sun Liang was a boy without good ministers to guide him; losing his throne unfinished was inevitable. Sun Xiu favored old favorites like Puyang Xing and Zhang Bu—he never promoted real talent or changed course; zeal for books could not save a realm already falling apart. He also ensured the deposed Sun Liang died unnaturally—brotherly duty meant nothing to him. Sun Hao’s arbitrary cruelty killed or banished countless people. Every official lived in terror, hoping only to survive the day. Astrologers and sorcerers competed to invent lucky signs—as if that were the urgent thing. Even Shun and Yu, saints who worked the fields, bound their ministers by oath—‘Correct me when I stray’—and bowed to blunt counsel as if always falling short. Sun Hao was brutal and stubborn: he executed honest advisers, promoted toadies, tormented the people, and pursued every excess—he deserved to die at the waist for what he did to his subjects. Yet he was spared by edict and honored as a surrendered ruler—what boundless kindness, what richer mercy could there be?
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〈孫盛曰:夫古之立君,所以司牧羣黎,故必仰協乾坤,覆燾萬物; 若乃淫虐是縱,酷被羣生,則天殛之,勦絕其祚,奪其南面之尊,加其獨夫之戮。 是故湯、武抗鉞,不犯不順之譏; 漢高奮劒,而無失節之議。 何者? 誠四海之酷讎,而人神之所擯故也。 況皓罪爲逋寇,虐過辛、癸,梟首素旗,猶不足以謝冤魂,洿室荐社,未足以紀暴迹,而乃優以顯命,寵錫仍加,豈龔行天罰,伐罪弔民之義乎? 是以知僭逆之不懲,而凶酷之莫戒。 詩云:「取彼譖人,投畀豺虎。」 聊譖猶然,矧僭虐乎? 且神旗電掃,兵臨僞窟,理窮勢迫,然後請命,不赦之罪旣彰,三驅之義又塞,極之權道,亦無取焉。〉
〈Sun Sheng argues that rulers exist to shepherd the people and must harmonize with heaven and earth and shelter every creature. When a ruler indulges cruelty, heaven strikes him down, ends his line, strips his throne, and treats him as a tyrant worth executing. That is why Tang and Wu could raise the axe without being called rebels. Gaozu of Han drew his sword and no one accused him of betraying his duty. Why? Because those rulers were enemies of all under heaven, rejected by men and gods alike. Sun Hao was a fugitive villain crueler than Jie and Zhou; even exposing his head and razing his shrines could hardly appease his victims—yet Jin clothed him in honors. Is that how one carries out heaven’s judgment or consoles the people? Thus usurpation goes unpunished and brutality learns no lesson. The Classic of Poetry says: ‘Throw those slanderers to the wolves.’ If mere slander earns that fate, what of usurpation and tyranny? When Jin’s banners swept like lightning and armies stood at his false court, he sued for mercy only after every hope was gone—his guilt was plain and the mercy owed a cornered foe could no longer apply; such ‘expediency’ wins nothing.〉
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〈陸機著《辨亡論》,言吳之所以亡,其上篇曰:「昔漢氏失御,姦臣竊命,禍基京畿,毒徧宇內,皇綱弛紊,王室遂卑。 於是羣雄蜂駭,義兵四合,吳武烈皇帝慷慨下國,電發荊南,權略紛紜,忠勇伯世。 威稜則夷羿震蕩,兵交則醜虜授馘,遂掃清宗祊,蒸禋皇祖。 於時雲興之將帶州,飈起之師跨邑,哮闞之羣風驅,熊羆之族霧集,雖兵以義合,同盟勠力,然皆包藏禍心,阻兵怙亂,或師無謀律,喪威稔寇,忠規武節,未有若此其著者也。 武烈旣沒,長沙桓王逸才命世。 弱冠秀發,招擥遺老,與之述業。 神兵東驅,奮寡犯衆,攻無堅城之將,戰無交鋒之虜。 誅叛柔服而江外厎定,飭法脩師而威德翕赫,賔禮名賢而張昭爲之雄,交御豪俊而周瑜爲之傑。 彼二君子,皆弘敏而多奇,雅達而聦哲,故同方者以類附,等契者以氣集,而江東蓋多士矣。 將北伐諸華,誅鉏干紀,旋皇輿於夷庚,反帝座于紫闥,挾天子以令諸侯,清天步而歸舊物。 戎車旣次,羣凶側目,大業未就,中世而隕。 用集我大皇帝,以奇蹤襲於逸軌,叡心發乎令圖,從政咨於故實,播憲稽乎遺風,而加之以篤固,申之以節儉,疇咨俊茂,好謀善斷,束帛旅於丘園,旌命交于塗巷。 故豪彥尋聲而響臻,志士希光而影騖,異人輻湊,猛士如林。 於是張昭爲師傅,周瑜、陸公、魯肅、呂蒙之疇入爲腹心,出作股肱; 甘寧、淩統、程普、賀齊、朱桓、朱然之徒奮其威,韓當、潘璋、黃蓋、蔣欽、周泰之屬宣其力; 風雅則諸葛瑾、張承、步隲以聲名光國,政事則顧雍、潘濬、呂範、呂岱以器任幹職,奇偉則虞翻、陸績、張溫、張惇以諷議舉正,奉使則趙咨、沈珩以敏達延譽,術數則吳範、趙達以禨祥協德,董襲、陳武殺身以衞主,駱統、劉基彊諫以補過,謀無遺筭,舉不失策。 故遂割據山川,跨制荊、吳,而與天下爭衡矣。 魏氏嘗藉戰勝之威,率百萬之師,浮鄧塞之舟,下漢陰之衆,羽楫萬計,龍躍順流,銳騎千旅,虎步原隰,謀臣盈室,武將連衡,喟然有吞江滸之志,一宇宙之氣。 而周瑜驅我偏師,黜之赤壁,喪旗亂轍,僅而獲免,收迹遠遁。 漢王亦馮帝王之號,率巴、漢之民,乘危騁變,結壘千里,志報關羽之敗,圖收湘西之地。 而我陸公亦挫之西陵,覆師敗績,困而後濟,絕命永安。 續以濡須之寇,臨川摧銳,蓬籠之戰,孑輪不反。 由是二邦之將,喪氣挫鋒,勢衄財匱,而吳藐然坐乘其弊,故魏人請好,漢氏乞盟,遂躋天號,鼎峙而立。 西屠庸蜀之郊,北裂淮漢之涘,東苞百越之地,南括羣蠻之表。 於是講八代之禮,蒐三王之樂,告類上帝,拱揖羣后。 虎臣毅卒,循江而守,長戟勁鎩,望飇而奮。 庶尹盡規於上,四民展業于下,化協殊裔,風衍遐圻。 乃俾一介行人,撫巡外域,臣象逸駿,擾於外閑,明珠瑋寶,輝於內府,珍瑰重跡而至,奇玩應響而赴,輶軒騁於南荒,衝輣息於朔野,齊民免干戈之患,戎馬無晨服之虞,而帝業固矣。 大皇旣歿,幼主莅朝,姦回肆虐。 景皇聿興,虔修遺憲,政無大闕,守文之良主也。 降及歸命之初,典刑未滅,故老猶存。 大司馬陸公以文武熙朝,左丞相陸凱以謇諤盡規,而施績、范慎以威重顯,丁奉、鍾離斐以武毅稱,孟宗、丁固之徒爲公卿,樓玄、賀劭之屬掌機事,元首雖病,股肱猶良。 爰及末葉,羣公旣喪,然後黔首有瓦解之志,皇家有土崩之釁,歷命應化而微,王師躡運而發,卒散於陣,民奔于邑,城池無藩籬之固,山川無溝阜之勢,非有工輸雲梯之械,智伯灌激之害,楚子築室之圍,燕人濟西之隊,軍未浹辰而社稷夷矣。 雖忠臣孤憤,烈士死節,將奚救哉? 夫曹、劉之將非一世之選,向時之師無曩日之衆,戰守之道抑有前符,險阻之利俄然未改,而成敗貿理,古今詭趣,何哉? 彼此之化殊,授任之才異也。」 其下篇曰:「昔三方之王也,魏人據中夏,漢氏有岷、益,吳制荊、揚而奄交、廣。 曹氏雖功濟諸華,虐亦深矣,其民怨矣。 劉公因險飾智,功已薄矣,其俗陋夫。 吳桓王基之以武,太祖成之以德,聦明睿達,懿度深遠矣。 其求賢如不及,恤民如稚子,接士盡盛德之容,親仁罄丹府之愛。 拔呂蒙於戎行,識潘濬於係虜。 推誠信士,不恤人之我欺; 量能授器,不患權之我逼。 執鞭鞠躬,以重陸公之威; 悉委武衞,以濟周瑜之師。 卑宮菲食,以豐功臣之賞; 披懷虛己,以納謨士之筭。 故魯肅一面而自託,士燮蒙險而效命。 高張公之德而省游田之娛,賢諸葛之言而割情欲之歡,感陸公之規而除刑政之煩,奇劉基之議而作三爵之誓,屏氣跼蹐以伺子明之疾,分滋損甘以育淩統之孤,登壇慷慨歸魯肅之功,削投惡言信子瑜之節。 是以忠臣競盡其謀,志士咸得肆力,洪規遠略,固不厭夫區區者也。 故百官苟合,庶務未遑。 初都建業,羣臣請備禮秩,天子辭而不許,曰:『天下其謂朕何!』 宮室輿服,蓋慊如也。 爰及中葉,天人之分旣定,百度之缺粗修,雖醲化懿綱,未齒乎上代,抑其體國經民之具,亦足以爲政矣。 地方幾萬里,帶甲將百萬,其野沃,其民練,其財豐,其器利,東負滄海,西阻險塞,長江制其區宇,峻山帶其封域,國家之利,未見有弘於茲者矣。 借使中才守之以道,善人御之有術,敦率遺憲,勤民謹政,循定策,守常險,則可以長世永年,未有危亡之患。 或曰,吳、蜀脣齒之國,蜀滅則吳亡,理則然矣,夫蜀蓋藩援之與國,而非吳人之存亡也。 何則? 其郊境之接,重山積險,陸無長轂之徑; 川阨流迅,水有驚波之艱。 雖有銳師百萬,啟行不過千夫; 軸艫千里,前驅不過百艦。 故劉氏之伐,陸公喻之長虵,其勢然也。 昔蜀之初亡,朝臣異謀,或欲積石以險其流,或欲機械以御其變。 天子緫羣議而諮之大司馬陸公,陸公以四瀆天地之所以節宣其氣,固無可遏之理,而機械則彼我之所共,彼若棄長伎以就所屈,即荊、揚而爭舟楫之用,是天贊我也,將謹守峽口以待禽耳。 逮步闡之亂,憑保城以延彊寇,重資幣以誘羣蠻。 于時大邦之衆,雲翔電發,縣旌江介,築壘遵渚,襟帶要害,以止吳人之西,而巴漢舟師沿江東下。 陸公以偏師三萬,北據東坑,深溝高壘,案甲養威。 反虜踠跡待戮,而不敢北闚生路,彊寇敗績宵遁,喪師大半,分命銳師五千,西禦水軍,東西同捷,獻俘萬計。 信哉賢人之謀,豈欺我哉! 自是烽燧罕警,封域寡虞。 陸公沒而潛謀兆,吳釁深而六師駭。 夫太康之役,衆未盛乎曩日之師,廣州之亂,禍有愈乎向時之難,而邦家顛覆,宗廟爲墟。 嗚呼! 人之云亡,邦國殄瘁,不其然與! 易曰『湯武革命順乎天』,玄曰『亂不極則治不形』,言帝王之因天時也。 古人有言,曰『天時不如地利』,易曰『王侯設險以守其國』,言爲國之恃險也。 又曰:『地利不如人和』,『在德不在險』,言守險之由人也。 吳之興也,參而由焉,孫卿所謂合其參者也。 及其亡也,恃險而已,又孫卿所謂舍其參者也。 夫四州之氓非無衆也,大江之南非乏俊也,山川之嶮易守也,勁利之器易用也,先政之業易循也,功不興而禍遘者何哉? 所以用之者失也。 故先王達經國之長規,審存亡之至數,恭己以安百姓,敦惠以致人和,寬沖以誘俊乂之謀,慈和以結士民之愛。 是以其安也,則黎元與之同慶; 及其危也,則兆庶與之共患。 安與衆同慶,則其危不可得也; 危與下共患,則其難不足卹也。 夫然,故能保其社稷而固其土宇,麥秀無悲殷之思,黍離無愍周之感矣。」〉
"〈Lu Ji composed the Discourse Distinguishing Wu’s Fall—speaking of why Wu perished—its upper scroll says: Anciently the Han house lost the reins—treacherous ministers stole the mandate—disaster rooted in the capital region—poison spread within the realm—the imperial net slackened in disorder—the royal house thus sank. Heroes rose like swarming bees; armies of righteousness gathered as Emperor Wu of Wu swept down from Jingnan like lightning—bold plans everywhere, loyalty and courage unmatched. His majesty shook mighty foes; battle brought severed heads from the enemy; he cleansed the ancestral shrine and offered solemn sacrifices to the imperial ancestor. Generals rose like clouds and armies like storms; war bands swept in and champions gathered. All claimed righteousness, yet many nursed treachery, clung to chaos, or lacked discipline—feeding rebels—nowhere were loyalty and martial honor clearer than under Wu. When Emperor Wu died, the Prince Huan of Changsha stood forth—a genius for his times. Still in his twenties he shone; he called old loyalists to his side and laid out his design with them. His host drove east: few men broke many lines; cities fell without stubborn defenders, battles ended before blades could meet. He crushed rebels and won allegiance until the land beyond the Yangzi was still; he drilled law and armies until awe spread. He honored men of renown with Zhang Zhao foremost, and champion warriors with Zhou Yu at their head. Both men were brilliant, versatile, and wise; like drew to like, and east of the Yangzi filled with talent. He meant to march north into the heartland, punish traitors, wheel the imperial carriage onto the high road, restore the throne to the palace, take the emperor in hand to command the lords, and set the realm right. His chariots were drawn up and rivals watched in fear, but the great work was unfinished—he died in his prime. Then came our Emperor Da—wise heir who followed great examples, shaped policy from precedent, spread law from ancient ways, and layered firm purpose and thrift upon them. He sought counsel from the able, loved strategy and decisive judgment, and silk invitations ran from wild retreats to busy streets. Heroes answered his call like echoes; men of purpose flocked to his light; uncommon talents converged and fierce soldiers stood thick as a wood. Zhang Zhao became tutor; Zhou Yu, Lu Xun, Lu Su, Lu Meng, and their kind served as his inner council abroad and his arms at home; Gan Ning, Ling Tong, Cheng Pu, He Qi, Zhu Huan, and Zhu Ran displayed martial terror; Han Dang, Pan Zhang, Huang Gai, Jiang Qin, and Zhou Tai showed raw strength; Culture had Zhuge Jin, Zhang Cheng, and Bu Zhi; administration Gu Yong, Pan Jun, Lu Fan, and Lu Dai; bold spirits Yu Fan, Lu Ji, Zhang Wen, and Zhang Dun; envoys Zhao Zi and Shen Heng; diviners Wu Fan and Zhao Da; Dong Xi and Chen Wu died for their ruler; Luo Tong and Liu Ji forced counsel to fix mistakes—every design sound, every choice sound. Thus Wu carved out its mountains and rivers, held Jing and Wu, and matched strength against the world. Wei once rode victory with armies in the millions—boats from the Deng fortifications, troops from south of the Han, countless oars streaming downstream like dragons, crack cavalry sweeping the plain, ministers packed in council and generals aligned—they meant to swallow the Yangzi bank and unite the world. Yet Zhou Yu led Wu’s contingent against them at Red Cliffs; Wei broke and fled, banners scattered, barely escaping with their lives. The Han king too proclaimed kingship, marched Ba and Han’s men through crisis, strung camps for a thousand li, burned to avenge Guan Yu’s defeat, and aimed to retake the lands west of Xiang. Our Lu Xun broke him at Xiling and shattered his army; hemmed in, he escaped only to die at Yong’an. Then came Ruxu, the strike at Linchuan, and the slaughter at Dongguan—not a single wheel came back. Both rivals lost heart and supplies while Wu watched and seized the advantage—Wei sued for peace, Shu begged a treaty—Wu rose to imperial rank and stood as a third power. Westward they carved Shu’s borderlands; northward they split the Huai and Han; eastward they embraced the Baiyue; southward they gathered the southern tribes. They refined the rites of eight ages and the music of the ancient kings, reported to Heaven, and bowed to the feudal lords. Fierce captains and hardened troops lined the Yangzi with halberd and spear, ready to strike at the first squall. Ministers offered counsel above while farmers, artisans, and traders flourished below; civilization reached alien peoples and custom spread to the frontiers. A single envoy could pacify distant lands; tribute horses neighed at the frontier stalls and pearls glowed in the palace—treasures streamed in and curiosities answered the call; light carts raced to the southern wilds while siege engines fell silent on the northern steppe; commoners knew no war and horses were not saddled before dawn—the imperial enterprise stood secure. After Emperor Da died, a boy took the throne and villains ran rampant. Emperor Jing restored his father’s laws and governed without grave fault—a worthy keeper of the founder’s pattern. Down to the eve of surrender, models of virtue still lived among aged ministers. Lu Kang filled the court with civil and military excellence; Lu Kai remonstrated bluntly as chief minister; Shi Ji and Fan Shen commanded respect; Ding Feng and Zhongli Fei were famed as warriors; Meng Zong and Ding Gu rose to high office; Lou Xuan and He Shao handled state secrets—the sovereign was weak, but capable arms still served him. In the final years those ministers died; commoners lost heart and the house showed cracks in its foundations; Wu’s mandate faded and Jin’s armies struck—troops melted at the first clash, people fled to the towns; walls offered no hedge, terrain no trench—there were no Gongshu ladders, no Zhi Bo floods, no Chu-style sieges, no Yan ranks west of the Ji—within days the altars fell. What could loyal rage or martyred heroes salvage then? Cao and Liu had fine generals and armies no smaller than before; offense and defense followed the same logic and the rivers and mountains were unchanged—yet fortune reversed. Why do outcomes invert so strangely between ages? Because customs differed and the talent entrusted to rule differed." 」The lower scroll reads: ‘When the three realms stood as kings, Wei held the Central Plain, Shu Min and Yi, Wu Jing and Yang plus Jiao and Guang. The Caos aided China yet ruled with crushing cruelty—the people hated them. Liu Bei hid weakness behind clever stratagems—his deeds were slight and his realm crude. Sun Ce laid Wu’s foundations by arms and Sun Quan perfected them with virtue—clear-sighted, magnanimous, and far-seeing. He hunted talent as if always behind; he cherished the people like children; he received scholars with perfect courtesy and poured sincere kindness on the worthy. He pulled Lü Meng from the ranks and spotted Pan Jun among prisoners. He trusted men with open heart and did not fret over being fooled; he matched office to ability and never feared a minister’s power. He showed deference like a groom to magnify Lu Xun’s authority; he placed the palace guard in Zhou Yu’s hands to complete his campaigns. He kept palaces plain and meals spare so heroes could be richly rewarded; he opened his heart and humbled himself to hear every strategist. Lu Su pledged loyalty after a single audience; Shi Xie crossed danger to serve. He honored Zhang Zhao and gave up the chase; he prized Zhuge Jin’s counsel and put aside pleasure; he heeded Lu Xun and swept away cruel laws; he admired Liu Ji and swore the three-cup oath; he waited breathless at Lü Meng’s sickbed; he denied himself delicacies to raise Ling Tong’s orphans; he praised Lu Su on the altar and dismissed slander so Zhuge Jin’s integrity stood unquestioned. Loyal men poured out counsel and bold spirits gave their all—great policy tolerates no pettiness. Posts filled quickly while lesser tasks still waited. When he first made Jianye his capital, ministers asked for full imperial ceremony; he refused, saying, ‘What would the empire think of me? Palaces and regalia stayed plainly humble. By mid-reign heaven and men had found their roles and institutions were patched—culture fell short of antiquity, yet the tools to govern body and people were enough. Its territory spanned tens of thousands of li with a million armored men—rich soil, trained people, ample wealth, sharp weapons; sea to the east, mountains to the west, the Yangzi as spine and peaks as belt—no kingdom was ever better favored. Had middling talent held it by the Way and good men governed with skill—honoring old laws, caring for the people, keeping settled strategy and strong barriers—it could have lasted ages without fear of ruin. Some say Wu and Shu were lips and teeth—Shu’s fall doomed Wu. Shu was only an ally on the flank; Wu’s fate did not hang on Shu alone. Why? Their frontier stacked mountain on mountain—no corridor wide enough for chariot trains; rivers ran narrow and fast—terrifying chop blocked passage. A million elite troops could march only a thousand abreast; a thousand li of hulls still put fewer than a hundred ships in the van. That is why Lu Kang compared Liu Shan’s invasion to striking a long snake—the geometry of the threat demanded it. When Shu first fell, ministers quarreled—some proposed damming the Yangzi with stone, others deploying engines against whatever came. The emperor polled the court and asked Lu Kang, who answered that the four great rivers vent heaven’s breath and cannot be dammed; engines both sides might wield, but if Shu gave up its strengths and yielded ground, fighting would shift to Jing and Yang for mastery of the water—Heaven would favor Wu—and he would hold the Gorges and wait for prey. When Bu Chan rebelled, he sheltered behind walls to invite powerful enemies and showered gold on the southern tribes to win them. Jin’s armies rose like storm clouds—flags flew midstream, forts rose on every shoal, choke points were sealed to bar Wu’s westward thrust while Ba and Han fleets swept downriver. Lu Kang took thirty thousand men, seized the Dongkeng heights northward, dug deep moats and raised walls, and rested his blades to gather strength. The traitors cowered awaiting death and dared not seek escape north; the main enemy broke at night and lost half its force. Lu Kang detached five thousand veterans to block the western fleet—east and west triumphed together and captives numbered in the tens of thousands. So the wise man’s plan proved true—could such counsel lie? Afterward beacons seldom flared and the frontier knew little fear. When Lu Kang died, plots multiplied; Wu’s weakness alarmed every neighboring host. The Taikang expedition fielded fewer men than earlier campaigns; the Guangzhou rising hurt less than past crises—yet the state fell and temples burned. Alas! Good men gone—the realm withers—was it not exactly so? The Classic of Changes praises Tang and Wu for reform that matched Heaven; Yang Xiong adds that order appears only when chaos peaks—both describe rulers riding the moment. The proverb ranks terrain above timing; the Changes tells lords to fortify defenses—a kingdom holds by its barriers. Yet harmony outweighs terrain and virtue outweighs walls—defenses succeed only through human hearts. Wu rose because Heaven, earth, and humanity aligned—what Xun Qing meant by ‘harmonizing the three. At its fall Wu trusted only cliffs and currents—abandoning two-thirds of what sustains a state. Four provinces still held multitudes, Jiangnan still bred heroes, mountains stayed defensible, arms stayed sharp, precedents lay ready—why ruin instead of renewal? Those who wielded these advantages squandered them. Ancient kings grasped lasting policy and judged fate’s ledger—they humbled themselves to reassure the people, nurtured kindness for harmony, stayed open to recruit genius, and ruled gently to win hearts. When times were calm, the common people rejoiced with their ruler; when danger came, every household bore the wound alongside him. Shared joy erases peril; Shared peril leaves hardship nothing to dread. That is how rulers kept altars and borders secure—never tasting the ‘ripe wheat’ lament for Yin nor the ‘millet thick’ grief for Zhou.」"〉"