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魯宗道
Lu Zongdao
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魯宗道，字貫之，亳州譙人。 少孤，鞠於外家。 諸舅皆武人，頗易宗道，宗道益自奮厲讀書。 袖所著文謁戚綸，綸器重之。 舉進士，為濠州定遠尉，再調海鹽令。 縣東南舊有港，導海水至邑下，歲久堙塞，宗道發鄉丁疏治之，人號“魯公浦”。 改歙州軍事判官，再遷秘書丞。 陳堯叟辟通判河陽。
Lu Zongdao, whose courtesy name was Guanzhi, came from Qiao in Bozhou. He lost his parents while still young and was brought up in the home of his mother's family. His uncles on his mother's side were soldiers who tended to treat him lightly, which only made him drive himself harder in his reading. He went to see Qi Lun carrying essays he had written in his sleeve, and Lun was deeply impressed by him. After earning his jinshi degree, he served as assistant magistrate of Dingyuan in Haozhou and was later reassigned as magistrate of Haiyan. Southeast of the county lay an old channel that had once brought seawater to the town, but it had long since silted up. Zongdao called out the local militia to clear and repair it, and the people nicknamed it "Duke Lu's Channel." He was moved to the post of military administrative assistant in Shezhou, then promoted to secretary in the palace archive. Chen Yaosou brought him in as supervisory commissioner of Heyang.
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天禧元年，始詔兩省置諫官六員，考所言為殿最，首擢宗道與劉燁為右正言。 諫章由閣門始得進而不賜對，宗道請面論事而上奏通進司，遂為故事。 嘗言：“守宰去民近，而無以區別能否。 今除一守令，雖資材低下，而考任應格，則左司無擯斥，故天下親民者黷貨害政，十常二三，欲裕民而美化，不可得矣。 漢宣帝除刺史守相，必親見而考察之。 今守佐雖未暇親見，宜令大臣延之中書，詢考以言，察其應對，設之以事，觀其施為才不肖，皆得進退之。 吏部之擇縣令放此，庶得良守宰宣助聖化矣。 ”真宗納之。 宗道風聞，多所論列，帝意頗厭其數。 後因對，自訟曰：“陛下用臣，豈欲徒事納諫之虛名邪？ 臣竊恥屍祿，請得罷去。 ”帝撫諭良久，他日書殿壁曰：“魯直”，蓋思念之也。 尋除戶部員外郎兼右諭德。 逾年，遷左諭德、直龍圖閣。
In the first year of the Tianxi reign, the court for the first time ordered six remonstrance officers set up in the eastern and western secretariats and graded their remonstrances for merit review. Zongdao and Liu Ye were the first appointed as Right Rectifiers. Until then remonstrance memorials had to go through the Gate Office before submission and were not granted a personal audience. Zongdao asked to discuss affairs in person and to submit memorials through the general memorial office instead, and that became established practice. He once said: "Prefects and magistrates stand closest to the people, yet we have no reliable way to tell who is capable and who is not. Today when a prefect or magistrate is appointed, even a man of mediocre talent cannot be rejected so long as his service review meets the formal requirements. Across the empire, officials who deal directly with the people corrupt their offices and ruin governance—perhaps two or three in ten—and under such conditions there is no hope of enriching the people and improving government. When Emperor Xuan of Han appointed regional inspectors, prefects, and counselors, he always met them in person and tested their fitness for office. Even if the emperor cannot meet every prefect and assistant in person, he should have senior ministers summon them to the Secretariat, question them, observe how they answer, set them tasks, and watch how they perform, so that promotion and dismissal may rest on genuine merit. The Ministry of Personnel should apply the same procedure in choosing county magistrates, so that worthy local officials may be found to carry forward the emperor's civilizing rule. " Emperor Zhenzong adopted his recommendation. Zongdao heard reports of abuses and remonstrated frequently; the emperor grew annoyed at his persistence. Later, in an audience, he rebuked himself, saying: "Your Majesty has put me in office. Surely you did not mean to gain only the empty reputation of accepting remonstrance? I am ashamed to draw salary without earning it. Please let me resign." The emperor comforted him at length. On another day he wrote on a palace wall the words "Straight Lu," evidently missing him. He was soon made vice director of the Ministry of Revenue and concurrently Right Tutor. After a year he was promoted to Left Tutor and made a direct appointee of the Longtu Pavilion.
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仁宗即位，遷戶部郎中、龍圖閣直學士兼侍講、判吏部流內銓。 宗道在選調久，患銓格煩密，及知吏所以為奸狀，多厘正之，悉揭科條廡下，人便之。 雷允恭擅易山陵，詔與呂夷簡等按視。 還，拜右諫議大夫、參知政事。
When Renzong came to the throne, he was made director of the Ministry of Revenue, associate academician of the Longtu Pavilion, court reader, and supervisor of the mobile selection office in the Ministry of Personnel. Having long worked in personnel appointments, he hated how tangled and rigid the selection rules had become. Once he understood how clerks were cheating, he corrected many abuses and posted all regulations in the hall so that everyone could see them, which made the office far easier to use. When Lei Yungong altered the imperial tomb without authority, the court ordered Zongdao to investigate alongside Lü Yijian and others. On his return he was made Right Remonstrance Counselor and vice grand councilor.
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章獻太后臨朝，問宗道曰：“唐武后何如主？ ”對曰：“唐之罪人也，幾危社稷。 ”后默然。 時有請立劉氏七廟者，太后問輔臣，眾不敢對。 宗道不可，曰：“若立劉氏七廟，如嗣君何？ ”帝、太后將同幸慈孝寺，欲以大安輦先帝行，宗道曰：“夫死從子，婦人之道也。 ”太后遽命輦后乘輿。 時執政多任子於館閣讀書，宗道曰：“館閣育天下英才，豈紈袴子弟得以恩澤處邪？ ”樞密使曹利用恃權驕橫，宗道屢於帝前折之。 自貴戚用事者皆憚之，目為“魚頭參政”，因其姓，且言骨鯁如魚頭也。 再遷尚書禮部侍郎、祥源觀使。 在政府七年，務抑僥幸，不以名器私人。 疾劇，帝臨問，賜白金三千兩。 既卒，皇太后臨奠之，贈兵部尚書。
While Empress Dowager Zhangxian was regent, she asked Zongdao: "What kind of ruler was Empress Wu of Tang? " He answered: "A criminal of the Tang who nearly brought down the dynasty. " The empress fell silent. Some then proposed establishing the seven ancestral temples of the Liu clan. The empress asked the chief ministers, but none dared reply. Zongdao objected, saying: "If the Liu temples are set up, what becomes of the heir apparent? " When the emperor and empress were about to visit Cixiao Temple together, they wanted the great imperial palanquin to go ahead carrying the late emperor's spirit tablet. Zongdao said: "When a husband dies, a wife follows her son—that is the proper order for a woman. " The empress at once ordered the palanquin to follow behind her own carriage. At the time those in power often placed their sons in the Hanlin Academy to study. Zongdao said: "The Academy exists to nurture the empire's finest talents. How can the sons of the privileged occupy it through favoritism? " The commissioner of military affairs Cao Liyong abused his power and acted arrogantly; Zongdao repeatedly confronted him before the emperor. From the imperial kin to the powerful at court, all feared him. They nicknamed him "Fish-head Vice Councilor"—a play on his surname Lu, meaning fish, and a remark that his backbone was as stiff as a fish head. He was promoted again to vice minister of rites and made commissioner of Xiangyuan Temple. During seven years in the central government he worked to curb favoritism and refused to hand out offices and honors to private connections. When his illness grew grave, the emperor visited him in person and granted three thousand taels of silver. After his death the empress dowager came in person to mourn him, and he was posthumously made minister of war.
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宗道為人剛正，疾惡少容，遇事敢言，不為小謹。 為諭德時，居近酒肆，嘗微行就飲肆中，偶真宗亟召，使者及門久之，宗道方自酒肆來。 使者先入，約曰：“即上怪公來遲，何以為對？ ”宗道曰：“第以實言之。 ”使者曰：“然則公當得罪。 ”曰：“飲酒，人之常情； 欺君，臣子之大罪也。 ”真宗果問，使者具以宗道所言對。 帝詰之，宗道謝曰：“有故人自鄉里來，臣家貧無杯盤，故就酒家飲。 ”帝以為忠實可大用，嘗以語太后，太后臨朝，遂大用之。 初，太常議諡曰剛簡，復改為肅簡。 議者以為“肅”不若“剛”為得其實云。
Zongdao was upright and stern, intolerant of wrongdoing, and spoke boldly without fussing over minor proprieties. While serving as tutor he lived near a tavern and once went there in plain clothes to drink. Emperor Zhenzong happened to summon him urgently; the messenger waited at his door a long time before Zongdao returned from the tavern. The messenger went in ahead of him and said: "If His Majesty asks why you are late, what shall we tell him? " Zongdao said: "Just tell the truth. " The messenger said: "Then you will surely be punished. " He said: "Drinking is human nature; deceiving one's sovereign is a minister's gravest offense. " When Zhenzong did ask, the messenger repeated Zongdao's words exactly. The emperor questioned him further, and Zongdao explained: "An old friend had arrived from my home district. My household is poor and had no proper dishes, so I went to a tavern to entertain him. " The emperor judged him loyal and honest and fit for high office. He once told the empress about the incident, and when she later held court she relied on him heavily. At first the Court of Imperial Sacrifices proposed the posthumous title Gangjian (Steadfast and Simple), then changed it to Sujian (Solemn and Simple). Commentators felt that "solemn" did not capture his character as well as "steadfast" did.
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薛奎，字宿藝，絳州正平人。 父化光，善數術，嘗以平晉策幹太宗行在，召見不用，罷歸。 適奎始生，撫其首曰：“是子必至公輔。 ”奎舉進士，為州第一，乃推與裏人王嚴，而處嚴下。 進士及第，為隰州軍事推官。 州民常聚博僧舍，一日，盜殺寺奴取財去，博者適至，血偶涴衣，邏卒捕送州，考訊誣伏。 奎獨疑之，白州緩其獄，後果得殺人者。 徙儀州推官，嘗部丁夫運糧至鹽州，會久雨，粟麥漬腐，奎白轉運盧之翰，請縱民還州而償所失。 之翰怒，欲劾奏之。 奎徐曰：“用兵久，人疲轉餉，今幸兵食有餘，安用此陳腐以困民哉！ ”之翰意解，凡民所失，悉奏除之。 改大理寺丞、知莆田縣。 請蠲南閩時稅鹹魚、蒲草錢。
Xue Kui, whose courtesy name was Suyi, came from Zhengping in Jiangzhou. His father Huaguang was skilled in numerology and once offered Taizong a plan for pacifying Jin at the emperor's field headquarters; summoned but not employed, he went home. Just as Kui was born, he stroked the infant's head and said: "This child will surely rise to chief minister. " Kui took the jinshi examination and ranked first in the prefecture, yet yielded first place to his fellow townsman Wang Yan and placed himself below him. After passing the jinshi examination, he became military judicial officer of Xizhou. The people of the prefecture often gambled in a Buddhist monastery. One day a thief killed a temple servant and made off with the goods. Gamblers arrived just then, and blood happened to stain their clothes. Patrolmen seized them and sent them to the prefecture, where interrogation forced false confessions. Kui alone doubted the case, persuaded the prefect to delay judgment, and later found the real killer. Transferred to judicial officer of Yizhou, he once led corvée laborers hauling grain to Yanzhou. After long rains the grain and wheat rotted. Kui reported to transport commissioner Lu Zhihan and asked to send the laborers home while making good the loss. Zhihan was angry and wanted to impeach him. Kui said calmly: "The army has been at war for years and the people are exhausted hauling supplies. We are fortunate that military stores are ample—why trouble them with rotten grain?" Zhihan relented, and all losses borne by the people were memorialized for remission. He was made vice director of the Court of Judicial Review and magistrate of Putian County. He petitioned to abolish the wartime taxes on salted fish and sedge grass in southern Fujian.
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遷殿中丞、知長水縣，徙知永州。 州有錢監，歲調兵三百人采鐵，而歲入不償費。 奎奏聽民自采，而所輸輒倍之。 遷太常博士。 向敏中薦為殿中侍御史，出為陝西轉運使。 趙德明言延州蕃落侵其地黑林平，下詔按驗。 奎閱郡籍，德明嘗假道黑林平，移文錄示之，德明遂伏。 未幾，坐失舉免。 數月，起通判陝州，改尚書戶部員外郎、淮南轉運副使，遷江、淮制置發運使。 疏漕河、廢三堰以便餉運，進吏部員外郎。 父喪，奪哀，擢三司戶部副使。 與使李士衡爭論事，改戶部郎中、直昭文館、知延州。
He was promoted to director in the palace service and magistrate of Changshui County, then transferred to Yongzhou as magistrate. The prefecture had a mint that each year drafted three hundred soldiers to mine iron, yet annual revenue did not cover the cost. Kui memorialized to let the people mine on their own, and their deliveries promptly doubled. He was promoted to erudite of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Xiang Minzhong recommended him as palace censor, and he went out as Shaanxi transport commissioner. Zhao Deming claimed that Tangut tribes at Yanzhou had encroached on his territory at Heilinping, and the court ordered an investigation. Kui examined the prefectural records and found that Deming had once borrowed passage through Heilinping. He sent an official note with the record attached, and Deming at once backed down. Before long he was dismissed for a faulty recommendation. Several months later he was recalled as supervisory commissioner of Shaanzhou, made vice director of the Ministry of Revenue, vice transport commissioner of Huainan, then commissioner for Jiang-Huai transport and grain distribution. He dredged the canal and abolished three weirs to ease supply transport, and was promoted to vice director in the Ministry of Personnel. When his father died he was recalled from mourning and made vice commissioner of the Ministry of Revenue in the Finance Commission. He quarreled with commissioner Li Shiheng over policy and was reassigned as director in the Ministry of Revenue, direct appointee of the Zhaowen Pavilion, and prefect of Yanzhou.
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趙元昊每遣吏至京師請奉予，吏因市禁物，隱關算為奸利，奎廉得狀，請留蜀道縑帛於關中，轉致給之。 遷吏部，擢龍圖閣待制、權知開封府。 為政嚴敏，擊斷無所貸，帝益加重。 使契丹，還，遷右諫議大夫、權御史中丞。 上疏論擇人、求治、崇節儉、屏聲色，凡十數事。 章獻太后稱制，契丹使蕭從順請見太后，且言南使至契丹者皆見太后，而契丹使來乃不得見。 奎時館伴，折之曰：“皇太后垂簾聽政，雖本朝群臣，亦未嘗見也。 ”從順乃已。 或讒云奎漏禁中語，改授集賢院學士、知并州，改秦州。 州宿重兵，經費常不足，奎務為儉約，教民水耕，謹商算。 歲中積粟三百萬，征算餘三千萬，核民隱田數千頃，得芻粟十餘萬。 加樞密直學士、知益州。 秦民與夷落數千人列奎治狀，請留，璽書褒諭，不許。 成都民婦訟其子不孝，詰之，乃曰：“貧無以為養。 ”奎出俸錢與之，戒曰：“若復失養，吾不貸汝矣！ ”其母子遂如初。 嘗夜燕，有戍卒殺人，人皆奔走，奎密遣捕殺之，坐客莫有知者。 臨事持重明決，多此類也。
Each year Zhao Yuanhao sent officials to the capital to request stipends; they bought forbidden goods and evaded customs duties for illicit profit. Kui investigated, obtained proof, and asked to keep Shu Road silk goods in Guanzhong and forward them as payment. Transferred to the Ministry of Personnel, he was promoted to awaiting academician of the Longtu Pavilion and acting prefect of Kaifeng. In office he was strict and decisive, punishing without mercy, and the emperor valued him all the more. Sent as envoy to the Khitan, he returned to become Right Remonstrance Counselor and acting censor-in-chief. He submitted a memorial on choosing men, pursuing good government, honoring frugality, and rejecting music and sensual pleasure—more than ten topics in all. When Empress Dowager Zhangxian held power, the Khitan envoy Xiao Congshun asked to see the empress and complained that southern envoys to the Khitan all saw the empress while Khitan envoys here could not. Kui was then hosting the envoy and rebuked him: "The empress dowager rules from behind the curtain. Even our own ministers have never seen her. " Congshun then dropped the matter. Some slandered that he had leaked palace secrets. He was reassigned academician of the Jixian Academy and prefect of Bingzhou, then moved to Qinzhou. The prefecture long housed heavy garrisons and funds were often short; Kui practiced economy, taught wet-field farming, and kept strict commercial accounts. Within a year he accumulated three million bushels of grain, thirty million in tax surplus, uncovered several thousand qing of concealed private fields, and obtained more than a hundred thousand bundles of fodder. He was made associate academician of the Bureau of Military Affairs and prefect of Yizhou. Several thousand Qin people and tribal groups petitioned listing his achievements and asking that he stay; an imperial letter praised him but did not allow it. A Chengdu woman sued her son for unfilial conduct. When questioned, the son said: "We are too poor to support her properly. " Kui gave him money from his own salary and warned: "If you neglect her again, I will not spare you!" Mother and son then lived together as before. Once at a night banquet a garrison soldier killed someone and guests fled in panic. Kui secretly sent men to seize and execute him, and none of the guests knew. In handling affairs he was steady, clear, and decisive—many cases were like this.
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召為龍圖閣學士、權三司使，遂參知政事。 帝諭曰：“先帝嘗以為卿可任，今用卿，先帝意也。 ”俄遷給事中。 帝嘗謂輔臣曰：“臣事君鮮有克終者。 ”奎曰：“保終之道，匪獨臣不然也。 ”曆數唐開元、天寶時事以對，帝然之。 遷尚書禮部侍郎。 太后謁太廟，欲被服天子袞冕，奎曰：“必御此，若何為拜？ ”力陳其不可，終不見聽。 及太后崩，帝見左右泣曰：“太后疾不能言，猶數引其衣若有所屬，何也？ ”奎曰：“其在袞冕也。 服之豈可見先帝於地下！ ”帝悟，卒以后服斂。 因上言請逐內侍羅崇勳等。 時二府大臣多罷去，奎得喘疾，數辭位，罷為戶部侍郎、資政殿學士、判尚書都省。 帝手書禁方賜之，小間，入見。 疾尋作，卒，贈兵部尚書，諡簡肅。
He was summoned as academician of the Longtu Pavilion and acting commissioner of the Finance Commission, then made vice grand councilor. The emperor told him: "The late emperor once judged you fit for high office. In appointing you now, I follow his intent. " Soon he was made Supervising Secretary. The emperor once told his chief ministers: "Few ministers who serve their sovereign manage to finish what they begin. " Kui replied: "The path to a worthy ending is not something only ministers fail to walk." He answered by recounting events from the Kaiyuan and Tianbao reigns of Tang, and the emperor agreed. He was promoted to vice minister of rites. When the empress dowager visited the Imperial Ancestral Temple she wished to wear the emperor's dragon robe and coronet. Kui said: "If you wear these, how can you perform the ritual bows? " He argued forcefully against it, but was not heeded. After the empress dowager died, the emperor saw attendants weeping and said: "In her illness she could not speak, yet she kept pulling at her robe as if to indicate something. What did she mean? " Kui said: "It was about the dragon robe and coronet. How could she face the late emperor in the afterlife wearing them! " The emperor understood and had her buried in proper empress's attire. He then memorialized asking that the inner attendant Luo Chongxun and others be removed. Many chief ministers of the two councils had already been dismissed. Kui developed asthma, repeatedly asked to resign, and was relieved as vice minister of revenue, academician of the Zizheng Hall, and director of the Secretariat's general office. The emperor wrote out a secret medical prescription for him and, a little later, received him in audience. His illness soon worsened and he died. He was posthumously made minister of war with the posthumous title Jiansu (Simple and Solemn).
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奎性剛不苟合，遇事敢言，真宗時數宴大臣，至有沾醉者。 奎諫曰：“陛下即位之初，勵精萬幾而簡宴幸。 今天下誠無事，而宴樂無度，大臣數被酒無威儀，非所以重朝廷也。 ”真宗善其言。 及參政事，謀議無所避。 能知人，范仲淹、龐籍、明鎬自為吏部選人，皆以公輔許之。 無子，以從子為嗣。
Kui was stern and uncompromising and spoke boldly on public affairs. Under Zhenzong the court often banqueted chief ministers until some were visibly drunk. Kui remonstrated: "When Your Majesty first took the throne, you devoted yourself to governance and kept feasts few. Today the realm may be at peace, yet feasting knows no limit and ministers often appear before you drunk and undignified. That is no way to honor the court. " Zhenzong approved his words. Once in the central government he spoke his mind without holding back. He had a gift for judging men. Fan Zhongyan, Pang Ji, and Ming Hao were still only candidates in the Ministry of Personnel when he already predicted they would reach the highest offices. He had no son and adopted a younger clansman's child as heir.
12
王曙，字晦叔，隋東皋子績之後。 世居河汾，後為河南人。 中進士第，再調定國軍節度推官。 咸平中，舉賢良方正科，策入等，遷秘書省著作佐郎、知定海縣。 還，為群牧判官，考集古今馬政，為《群牧故事》六卷，上之。 遷太常丞、判三司憑由理欠司。 坐舉進士失實，降監盧州茶稅，再遷尚書工部員外郎、龍圖閣待制。 以右諫議大夫為河北轉運使，坐部吏受賕，降知壽州。 徙淮南轉運使，勾當三班院，權知開封府。 以樞密直學士知益州。 繩盜以峻法，多致之死。 有卒夜告其軍將亂，立辨其偽，斬之。 蜀人比之張詠，號“前張後王”。 入為給事中。 仁宗為皇太子，與李迪同選兼賓客，復坐貢舉失實，黜官。 復為給事中兼群牧使。 其妻，寇準女也。 準罷相且貶，曙亦降知汝州。 準再貶，曙亦貶郢州團練副使。 起為光祿卿、知襄州，又徙汝州。 復給事中、知潞州。 州有殺人者，獄已具，曙獨疑之。 既而提點刑獄杜衍至，事果辨。 曙為作《辨獄記》以戒官吏。
Wang Shu, whose courtesy name was Huishu, was descended from Wang Ji, the Eastern Gaozi of Sui. His family had long lived along the Fen River and later became residents of Henan. He passed the jinshi examination and served twice as military judicial officer under the Dingguo Army command. During the Xianping era he entered the erudite and upright examination; his policy essay ranked in the top grade and he was made assistant in the Secretariat's works office and magistrate of Dinghai County. On returning to court he became herds judge of the Herds Office, compiled ancient and modern records of horse administration into six fascicles titled Herds Office Stories, and submitted them. He was made vice director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and director of the Finance Commission's credentials and arrears office. Because a jinshi candidate he recommended was found inaccurate, he was demoted to supervisor of Luzhou tea tax, then restored as vice director of works and awaiting academician of the Longtu Pavilion. As Right Remonstrance Counselor he became Hebei transport commissioner, but was demoted to prefect of Shouzhou when subordinates accepted bribes. He was moved to Huainan transport commissioner, oversaw the Third Class Bureau, and acted as prefect of Kaifeng. As associate academician of the Bureau of Military Affairs he was made prefect of Yizhou. He pursued bandits with harsh laws and often had them executed. A soldier reported at night that his commander was plotting rebellion; Shu immediately judged the report false and executed the informant. The people of Shu compared him to Zhang Yong and called him "Zhang before, Wang after." He entered court as Supervising Secretary. When Renzong was crown prince, he and Li Di were chosen as his tutors. He was dismissed again for errors in the tribute examination. He was restored as Supervising Secretary and concurrent herds commissioner. His wife was Kou Zhun's daughter. When Kou Zhun was dismissed and demoted, Shu was demoted to prefect of Ruzhou. When Kou Zhun was demoted again, Shu was demoted to military training vice commissioner of Ezhou. He was recalled as director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and prefect of Xiangzhou, then moved to Ruzhou. Restored as Supervising Secretary, he became prefect of Luzhou. In the prefecture a murder case had already been closed, but Shu alone doubted it. Soon judicial intendant Du Yan arrived and the matter was indeed cleared. Shu wrote Discerning Prison Cases to warn officials against such errors.
13
徙河南府、永興軍，召為御史中丞兼理檢使，理檢置使自此始。 玉清昭應宮災，繫守衛者御史獄。 曙恐朝廷議修復，上言：“昔魯桓、僖宮災，孔子以為桓、僖親盡當毀者也。 遼東高廟及高園便殿災，董仲舒以為高廟不當居陵旁，故災。 魏崇華殿災，高堂隆以壹榭宮室為戒，宜罷之勿治，文帝不聽，明年，復災。 今所建宮非應經義，災變之來若有警者。 願除其地，罷諸禱祠，以應天變。 ”仁宗與太后感悟，遂減守衛者罪。 已而詔以不復繕修諭天下。 又請三品以上立家廟，復唐舊制。 以尚書工部侍郎參知政事。 以疾請罷，改戶部侍郎、資政殿學士、知陝州，徙河陽。 再知河南府，遷吏部。 召為樞密使，拜同中書門下平章事。 逾月，首發疽，卒。 贈太保、中書令，諡文康。
Transferred to Henan prefecture and the Yongxing Army, he was summoned as censor-in-chief and concurrent inspection commissioner—the post of inspection commissioner began with him. When the Yuqing Zhaoying Palace burned, the guards were imprisoned in the censor's jail. Fearing the court would discuss rebuilding, Shu memorialized: "When the palaces of Duke Huan and Duke Xi of Lu burned, Confucius held that their kin ties were exhausted and the palaces ought to be destroyed. When the Gaomiao and Gaoyuan side hall in Liaodong burned, Dong Zhongshu held that the Gaomiao should not stand beside the tomb, hence the disaster. When Wei's Chonghua Hall burned, Gao Tanglong warned against extravagant palaces and advised halting repairs; Emperor Wen did not listen, and the next year it burned again. The palace now proposed does not accord with canonical principle; the disaster seems to carry a warning. I ask that the site be cleared and prayer shrines abolished to answer Heaven's warning. " Renzong and the empress were moved and reduced the guards' punishment. Soon an edict announced throughout the realm that the palace would not be rebuilt. He also asked that officials of the third rank and above establish family temples, restoring the Tang system. As vice minister of works he became vice grand councilor. Illness led him to request dismissal; he was made vice minister of revenue, academician of the Zizheng Hall, and prefect of Shaanzhou, then moved to Heyang. Again made prefect of Henan, he was transferred to the Ministry of Personnel. Summoned as commissioner of military affairs, he was appointed grand councilor. After little more than a month an abscess broke out and he died. He was posthumously made Grand Guardian and Grand Preceptor of the Secretariat with the posthumous title Wenkang (Cultured and Tranquil).
14
曙方嚴簡重，有大臣體，居官深自抑損。 喜浮圖法，齋居蔬食，泊如也。 初，錢惟演留守西京，歐陽修、尹洙為官屬。 修等頗遊宴，曙後至，嘗厲色戒修等曰：“諸君縱酒過度，獨不知寇萊公晚年之禍邪！ ”修起對曰：“以修聞之，萊公正坐老而不知止爾！ ”曙默然，終不怒。 及為樞密使，首薦修等，置之館閣。 有集四十卷，《周書音訓》十二卷，《唐書備問》三卷，《莊子旨歸》三篇，《列子旨歸》一篇，《戴鬥奉使錄》二卷，集《兩漢詔議》四十卷。 子益恭、益柔。
Shu was stern, dignified, and weighty, with the bearing of a great minister, and deeply restrained himself in office. He favored Buddhist practice, kept vegetarian fasts at home, and lived quietly. At first Qian Weiyan guarded the western capital; Ouyang Xiu and Yin Zhu served under him. Xiu and the others often feasted excessively. When Shu arrived later he sternly warned them: "You drink without limit—have you forgotten Minister Kou's fate in his old age? " Xiu rose and replied: "As I understand it, Minister Kou was ruined because in old age he did not know when to stop!" Shu fell silent and never grew angry. When he became commissioner of military affairs he first recommended Xiu and the others and placed them in the Hanlin Academy. His collected works ran to forty fascicles; he also wrote twelve fascicles on Zhou pronunciation, three on questions about the Tang History, essays on Zhuangzi and Liezi, two fascicles on the Dai Dou embassy, and forty fascicles of edicts from the two Han dynasties. His sons were Yigong and Yirou.
15
益恭字達夫，以蔭為衛尉寺丞。 性恬淡，慕唐王龜之為人，數解官就養。 曙參知政事，治第西京，益恭勸曙引年謝事，曙不果去。 終父喪，遂以尚書司門員外郎致仕，間與浮圖、隱者出遊，洛陽名園山水，無不至也。 以子登朝，累遷司農少卿，卒。
Yigong, whose courtesy name was Dafu, entered office through yin privilege as vice director of the Court of Imperial Guards. Tranquil by nature, he admired Tang Wang Guizhi and several times resigned to care for his parents. When Shu became vice grand councilor he built a residence in the western capital; Yigong urged him to retire on grounds of age, but Shu did not leave. After completing mourning he retired as vice director in the Ministry of Revenue's gate office and often traveled with Buddhists and recluses through Luoyang's famous gardens, mountains, and rivers. When his son entered court he was promoted repeatedly to vice director of the Court of Imperial Granaries and died.
16
〈子〉 益柔
〈Son〉 Yirou
17
益柔字勝之。 為人伉直尚氣，喜論天下事。 用蔭至殿中丞。 元昊叛，上備邊選將之策。 杜衍、丁度宣撫河東，益柔寓書言：“河外兵餉無法，非易帥臣、轉運使不可。 ”因條其可任者。 衍、度使還，以學術政事薦，知介丘縣。 慶曆更用執政，異意者指為朋黨，仁宗下詔戒敕，益柔上書論辨，言尤切直。 尹洙與劉滬爭城水洛事，自涇原貶慶州。 益柔訟之曰：“水洛一障耳，不足以拒賊。 滬裨將，洙為將軍，以天子命呼之不至，戮之不為過； 顧不敢專執之以聽命，是洙不伸將軍之職而上尊朝廷，未見其有罪也。 ”不聽。 范仲淹未識面，以館閣薦之，除集賢校理。 預蘇舜欽奏邸會，醉作《傲歌》。 時諸人欲遂傾正黨，宰相章得象、晏殊不可否，參政賈昌朝陰主之，張方平、宋祁、王拱辰攻排不遺力，至列狀言益柔罪當誅。 韓琦為帝言：“益柔狂語何足深計。 方平等皆陛下近臣，今西陲用兵，大事何限，一不為陛下論列，而同狀攻一王益柔，此其意可見矣。 ”帝感悟，但黜監復州酒。 久之，為開封府推官、鹽鐵判官。 凡中旨所需不應法式，有司迎合以求進者，悉論之不置。 出為兩浙、京東西轉運使。 上言：“今考課法區別長吏能否，必明有顯狀，顯狀必取其更置興作大利。 夫小政小善，積而不已，然後能成其大。 取其大而遺其細，將競利圖功，恐事之不舉者日多，而虛名無實之風日起。 願參以唐四善，兼取行實，列為三等。 ”不行。
Yirou, whose courtesy name was Shengzhi. Upright and high-spirited, he loved to discuss affairs of the realm. Through yin privilege he rose to palace director. When Yuanhao rebelled he submitted a strategy for choosing border generals. When Du Yan and Ding Du were pacification commissioners of Hedong, Yirou wrote: "Military supplies beyond the river have no proper system. The commander and transport commissioner must be changed." He then listed men fit for the posts. When Yan and Du returned they recommended him for scholarship and governance, and he was made magistrate of Jieqiu County. During the Qingli reshuffle those of different views were called a faction. Renzong issued a warning edict; Yirou memorialized in rebuttal with especially sharp words. Yin Zhu and Liu Hu disputed the Shuiluo fort affair, and Zhu was demoted from Jingyuan to Qingzhou. Yirou pleaded for Zhu: "Shuiluo is only one outpost and cannot repel the enemy alone. Hu is a deputy and Zhu a commanding general. If the Son of Heaven summons him and he does not come, execution would not be excessive; yet Zhu did not dare execute on his own but awaited orders—that is honoring the court, not exceeding a general's duty. I see no crime. " The court did not listen. Fan Zhongyan, though he had not met him, recommended him through the Hanlin Academy and he was made collator of the Jixian collection. He took part in Su Shunqin's lodge gathering memorial and, while drunk, composed Arrogant Song. Some then sought to destroy the upright faction. Grand Councilor Zhang Dexiang and Yan Shu would neither approve nor deny; Vice Councilor Jia Changchao backed them secretly; Zhang Fangping, Song Qi, and Wang Gongchen attacked relentlessly, even memorializing that Yirou deserved death. Han Qi told the emperor: "Yirou's reckless words are not worth serious concern. Yet Fangping and the others are Your Majesty's close ministers. The western border is at war and great affairs abound, yet they discuss none of them and jointly attack one Wang Yirou. Their intent is plain. " The emperor was moved and only demoted him to supervisor of Fuzhou wine. After a long time he was made Kaifeng judicial officer and salt-iron judge. Whenever central edicts demanded something improper and offices curried favor to advance favorites, he blocked them all. He went out as transport commissioner of the two Zhe and two Jing circuits. He memorialized: "Today's examination law judges chief officials only by conspicuous achievements, and conspicuous achievements mean major profitable projects by one's successor. Yet small policies and small goods steadily accumulated can accomplish great things. If we prize only grand projects and neglect small ones, officials will scramble for profit and credit. Failures will multiply and empty reputation without real achievement will spread. I ask that we consult the Tang 'Four Goods,' weigh actual conduct, and rank officials in three grades. " The proposal was not adopted.
18
熙寧元年，入判度支審院。 詔百官轉對，益柔言：“人君之難，莫大於辨邪正； 邪正之辨，莫大於置相。 相之忠邪，百官之賢否也。 若唐高宗之李義甫，明皇之李林甫，德宗之盧杞，憲宗之皇甫鎛，帝王之鑒也。 高宗、德宗之昏蒙，固無足論； 明皇、憲宗之聰明，乃蔽於二人如此。 以二人之庸，猶足以致禍，況誦六藝、挾才智以文致其奸說者哉！ ”意蓋指王安石也。 判吏部流內銓。 舊制，選人當改京官，滿十人乃引見。 由是士多困滯，且遇舉者有故，輒不用。 益柔請才二人即引見，眾論翕然稱之。 直舍人院、知制誥兼直學士院。 董氈遇明堂恩，中書熟狀加光祿大夫，而舊階已特進，益柔以聞。 帝謂中書曰：“非翰林，幾何不為羌夷所笑。 ”宰相怒其不申堂，用他事罷其兼直。 遷龍圖閣直學士、秘書監，知蔡揚亳州、江寧應天府。 卒，年七十二。
In the first year of the Xining reign he entered to judge the Revenue Review Court. An edict ordered rotating memorials from all officials. Yirou said: "A ruler's greatest difficulty is telling wicked from upright; and the greatest difficulty in that lies in appointing a chancellor. Whether the chancellor is loyal or wicked determines whether the hundred officials are worthy or not. Li Yifu under Tang Gaozong, Li Linfu under Minghuang, Lu Qi under Dezong, Huangfu Bo under Xianzong—these are mirrors for emperors. Gaozong and Dezong were benighted and hardly worth discussion; yet Minghuang and Xianzong were intelligent and still blinded by two men each. Mediocre men could still bring disaster—how much more those who recite the classics and wield talent to dress up wicked doctrines!" His intent plainly targeted Wang Anshi. He judged the Ministry of Personnel's mobile selection office. Under the old rule, candidates advancing to capital office had to wait until ten were ready before presentation. Scholars were often stalled, and when a recommender had some excuse they were often passed over. Yirou asked that two talented men be presented at once; public opinion warmly praised the change. He was direct appointee of the Drafting Office, drafter of edicts, and concurrent direct academician of the Academy. When Dong Zhan received Bright Hall grace, the Secretariat's routine memorial added Grandee of Splendid Happiness though his old rank was already Special Advancement; Yirou reported the error. The emperor told the Secretariat: "Without the Hanlin Academy we would nearly have been mocked by the frontier tribes. " The chief minister was angry he had not reported through the council and used another matter to strip his concurrent academy post. He was made direct academician of the Longtu Pavilion and director of the palace library, and served as prefect of Cai, Yang, Bozhou, Jiangning, and Yingtian. He died at seventy-two.
19
益柔少力學，通群書，為文日數千言。 尹洙見之曰：“贍而不流，制而不窘，語淳而厲，氣壯而長，未可量也。 ”時方以詩賦取士，益柔去不為。 范仲淹薦試館職，以其不善詞賦，乞試以策論，特聽之。 司馬光嘗語人曰：“自吾為《資治通鑒》，人多欲求觀讀，未終一紙，已欠伸思睡。 能閱之終篇者，惟王勝之耳。 ”其好學類此。
From youth Yirou studied hard, mastered many books, and could write several thousand characters a day. Yin Zhu said of him: "Rich without overflowing, restrained without cramping, language pure yet stern, spirit strong yet sustained—his measure is not yet known. " At the time scholars were chosen by poetry and fu; Yirou refused to compete on those terms. Fan Zhongyan recommended him for Hanlin examination; because he was weak in lyric and fu he asked to be tested on policy essays and was specially allowed. Sima Guang once said: "Since I wrote Comprehensive Mirror, many ask to read it, but before finishing one page they stretch and want to sleep. The only one who can read it through is Wang Shengzhi. " His love of learning was of that sort.
20
蔡齊，字子思，其先洛陽人也。 曾祖綰，為萊州膠水令，因家焉。 齊少孤，依外家劉氏。 舉進士第一。 儀狀俊偉，舉止端重，真宗見之，顧宰相寇準曰：“得人矣。 ”詔金吾給七騶，傳呼以寵之。 狀元給騶，自齊始也。 除將作監丞、通判袞州，徙濰州。 以秘書省著作郎直集賢院。
Cai Qi, whose courtesy name was Zisi, came originally from Luoyang. His great-grandfather Wan was magistrate of Jiaoshui in Laizhou, and the family settled there. Qi was orphaned young and lived with his maternal kin, the Liu family. He took the jinshi examination and ranked first. Handsome in bearing and dignified in manner, he was presented to Zhenzong, who turned to Kou Zhun and said: "We have found our man. " An edict ordered the Golden Crow guard to provide seven outrunners and ceremonial shouting in his honor. The honor of outrunners for the top graduate began with Qi. He was made vice director of the Directorate of Palace Buildings and supervisory commissioner of Yanzhou, then moved to Weizhou. As works officer of the Secretariat he was direct appointee of the Jixian collection.
21
太后崩，遺詔以楊太妃為皇太后，同裁制軍國事。 閣門趣百官賀，齊使台吏毋追班，乃入白執政曰：“上春秋富，習知天下情偽，今始親政事，豈宜使女后相踵稱制乎！ ”遂罷預政。 復為龍圖閣學士、權三司使。 有飛語傳荊王元儼為天下兵馬都元帥者，捕得繫獄，連逮甚眾。 帝怒，使齊按問之。 齊曰：“此小人無知，不足治，且無以安荊王。 ”帝悟，遽釋之。 拜樞密副使。 交阯虐其部人，款宜州自歸者八百餘人，議者謂不可內。 齊曰：“蠻人去暴而歸有德，卻之不祥，請給荊湖閑田使自營； 若縱去，當不復還舊部，必聚而為盜賊矣。 ”不從。 後數年，蠻果為亂。 蜀大姓王齊雄坐殺人除名。 齊雄，太后姻家，未更赦，復官。 齊曰：“果如此，法撓矣！ ”明日，入奏事曰：“齊雄恃勢殺人，不死，又亟授以官，是以恩廢法也。 ”帝曰：“降一等與官可乎？ ”齊曰：“以恩廢法，如朝廷何！ ”帝勉從之，乃抵齊雄罪。 錢惟演附丁謂，樞密題名，輒削去寇準姓氏，云“逆準不書”。 齊言於仁宗曰：“寇準忠義聞天下，社稷之臣也，豈可為奸黨所誣哉！ ”仁宗遽令磨去。
When the empress dowager died, her testament made Consort Yang empress dowager with joint authority over state and military affairs. The Gate Office urged officials to congratulate. Qi told review clerks not to assemble the court, then told the chief ministers: "The emperor is young and vigorous and knows the realm's truths. He has just begun to rule in person—how can another empress succeed in regency?" Joint government was at once abolished. He was restored as academician of the Longtu Pavilion and acting commissioner of the Finance Commission. A rumor spread that Prince Jing Wang Yuanyan was commander-in-chief of all armies. The source was arrested and many were implicated. The emperor was angry and sent Qi to investigate. Qi said: "This is ignorant gossip, not worth prosecuting, and it will not reassure Prince Jing. " The emperor understood and released them at once. He was appointed vice commissioner of military affairs. Jiaozhi abused its subjects and more than eight hundred came to Yizhou seeking refuge; officials said they should not be admitted. Qi said: "They flee violence for virtue; to reject them is ill-omened. Give them idle fields in Jing and Hu to settle; if we let them go they will not return home but gather as bandits." The court did not listen. Several years later the tribes did rebel. The great Shu clan Wang Qixiong was struck from office for murder. Qixiong was related to the empress dowager; before an amnesty could intervene his office was restored. Qi said: "If this stands, the law is bent!" The next day he memorialized: "Qixiong killed by power and was not executed, yet office was quickly granted—favor has abolished law. The emperor asked: "Would one grade lower suffice? Qi said: "Using favor to abolish law—what becomes of the court! The emperor reluctantly agreed and charged Qixiong. Qian Weiyan attached to Ding Wei; on the military affairs roster he cut out Kou Zhun's name, writing "rebel Zhun not recorded." Qi told Renzong: "Kou Zhun's loyalty is known throughout the realm. He was a pillar of state—how can a wicked faction slander him!" Renzong immediately ordered the slander erased.
22
郭皇后廢，將立富人陳氏女為后，齊極論之。 拜禮部侍郎、參知政事。 契丹祭天於幽州，以兵屯境上。 輔臣欲調兵備邊，與齊迭議帝前，齊畫三策，料契丹必不叛盟。 王曾與齊善，曾與夷簡不相能，曾罷相，齊亦以戶部侍郎歸班。 尋出知潁州，卒，年五十二，贈兵部尚書，諡曰文忠。 潁人見其故吏朱采會喪，猶號泣思之。
When Empress Guo was deposed and a rich man's daughter of the Chen clan was to be made empress, Qi argued forcefully against it. He was made vice minister of rites and vice grand councilor. The Khitan sacrificed at Youzhou and massed troops on the border. Chief ministers wished to mobilize border troops and debated with Qi before the emperor; Qi laid out three strategies and judged the Khitan would not break the alliance. Wang Zeng was friendly with Qi; Zeng and Lü Yijian clashed; when Zeng left the chancellorship, Qi also returned as vice minister of revenue. Soon he went out as prefect of Yingzhou and died at fifty-two. He was posthumously made minister of war with the posthumous title Wenzhong (Cultured and Loyal). People of Ying, seeing his former clerk Zhu Cai at the funeral, still wept for him.
23
齊方重有風采，性謙退，不妄言。 有善未嘗自伐。 丁謂秉政，欲齊附己，齊終不往。 少與徐人劉顏善，顏罪廢，齊上其書數十萬言，得復官。 顏卒，又以女妻其子庠。 所薦龐籍、楊偕、劉隨、段少連，後率為名臣。 始，齊無子，以從子延慶為後。 既歿，有遺腹子曰延嗣。
Qi was square, dignified, and commanding, yet modest and sparing of words. He never boasted of his own good deeds. When Ding Wei held power he wanted Qi's support; Qi never went to him. In youth he befriended Liu Yan of Xuzhou. When Yan was dismissed for a crime, Qi submitted his writings—hundreds of thousands of characters—and Yan was restored. When Yan died he gave his daughter to Yan's son Xiang in marriage. Men he recommended—Pang Ji, Yang Xie, Liu Sui, and Duan Shaolian—later all became famous ministers. At first Qi had no son and adopted his clansman Yanqing. After his death a posthumous son named Yansi was born.
24
〈從子〉 延慶
〈Younger clansman〉 Yanqing
25
延慶字仲遠，中進士第，通判明州。 曆福建路轉運判官，提點京東、陝西刑獄。 神宗初，以集賢校理曆開封府推官。 有衛士告黃衣老卒筒火入直，延慶察卒色辭，疑焉，詢之，果為所誣，即反坐告者。 事聞，帝重之，加直史館、知河中府。 明年，同修起居注，直舍人院、判流內銓，拜天章閣待制、秦鳳等路都轉運使，以應辦熙河軍須功，進龍圖閣直學士。
Yanqing, whose courtesy name was Zhongyuan, passed the jinshi examination and was supervisory commissioner of Mingzhou. He served as transport judge of Fujian circuit and judicial intendant of Jingdong and Shaanxi. Early in Shenzong's reign, as Jixian collator he served as Kaifeng judicial officer. A guardsman reported an old soldier in yellow carrying fire on duty. Yanqing studied his face and words, doubted the report, questioned him, found a false accusation, and punished the accuser. When the matter was reported the emperor valued him, made him direct historian, and prefect of Hezhong. The next year he compiled the imperial diary, drafted edicts, judged the mobile selection office, became Tianzhang awaiting academician and overall transport commissioner of Qinfeng circuits, and was promoted to direct Longtu academician for supplying the Hexi army.
26
王韶進師河州，羌斷其歸路。 延慶曰：“兵事非吾所宜預，然主帥在難，不急援之，恐敗國事。 ”遂檄兵赴救，羌解去，韶得全師還。 轉運判官蔡蒙劾其擅興，朝廷問知狀，易蒙他道。 韶入朝，延慶攝熙帥。 元夕張燈，羌乘隙伏兵北關下，遣其種二十九人偽請來屬，將舉火內應。 延慶覘知，悉斬以徇，伏者宵潰。 蕃官詐稱木征欲降，邀大將景思立來迎。 延慶命毋輒出，即違節制，雖有功亦誅，思立不從，卒敗死。
Wang Shao advanced on Hezhou and the Qiang cut his retreat. Yanqing said: "Military affairs are not my province, but the commander is trapped. If we do not rescue him quickly, the campaign may fail." He dispatched troops; the Qiang withdrew and Shao returned intact. Transport judge Cai Meng impeached him for unauthorized action; the court questioned witnesses and transferred Meng elsewhere. When Shao came to court, Yanqing acted as commander of Xi. On the Lantern Festival the Qiang ambushed below the north gate and sent twenty-nine tribesmen feigning submission, planning an internal rising by fire. Yanqing detected the plot, executed all twenty-nine as a warning, and the ambushers fled by night. A tribal officer falsely claimed Muzheng wished to surrender and invited general Jing Sil to welcome him. Yanqing ordered no one to go out rashly: even merit would not save disobedience. Sil went anyway and was defeated and killed.
27
徙知成都府兼兵馬都鈐轄。 本道舊不置都鈐轄，至是特命之。 茂州羈縻州蠻族九，自推一人為將統其眾，將常在州聽要束。 州居群蠻中，無城塹，惟樹鹿角為固。 蠻屢夜入剽人畜，徼貨來贖。 民患苦，詣郡守李琪請築城。 琪上於朝，詔延慶度其利便，延慶下其事，琪已去。 後守範百常以為利，築之。 蠻酋訴謂侵其土地，乞罷築，不許。 蠻數百奄至，拒卻之。 明日，又大至，盡焚鹿角及民盧舍，引梯衝攻牙城，百常扞禦，殺二蠻酋，乃退。 然遊騎猶繞四山，南北路皆為所據，城中不敢出。 百常募人間道告急於成都。 延慶命與之和，奏乞遣近上內臣共經蠻事。 詔押班王中正往，中正受旨，凡軍事皆令與都鈐轄議。 將行，言茂去成都遠，一一與議，慮失事機，請得專決。 於是事無巨細皆自處，延慶不復預。 監司附中正，奏延慶區理失宜，致生邊患。 徙知渭州，仍降為天章閣待制。
He was transferred to prefect of Chengdu and concurrent overall military commander. The circuit had never had such a commander; he was specially appointed. Maozhou had nine dependent tribal states that chose their own leader; the leader always remained in the prefecture under restraint. The prefecture lay amid tribes without walls or moats, defended only by antler palisades. Tribes often raided by night for people and livestock and extorted ransom. The people suffered and asked prefect Li Qi to build walls. Qi memorialized; the court ordered Yanqing to assess the project. Yanqing referred it downward, but Qi had already left. Later prefect Fan Baichang thought it worthwhile and built the walls. Tribal chiefs complained of encroachment and begged to halt construction; the court refused. Several hundred tribesmen attacked and were repelled. The next day they returned in force, burned palisades and houses, and assaulted the yamen with ladders and rams. Baichang defended, killed two chiefs, and they withdrew. Roaming horsemen still held the surrounding hills; roads north and south were cut and the city dared not venture out. Baichang sent messengers by secret paths to Chengdu for help. Yanqing ordered peace talks and asked the court to send a senior inner attendant to manage tribal affairs. The court sent escort officer Wang Zhongzheng with orders that all military affairs be discussed with the overall commander. Before leaving he said Maozhou was far from Chengdu; joint consultation would lose time, and he asked sole authority. Thereafter he decided everything himself and Yanqing had no further role. Supervisory officials sided with Zhongzheng and memorialized that Yanqing's management had caused border trouble. He was moved to Weizhou and demoted to Tianzhang awaiting academician.
28
夏人禹臧苑麻疑邊境有謀，使人入塞賣馬，吏執以告。 延慶曰：“彼疑，故來覘。 執之，是成其疑。 ”約馬直授之使去。 疆吏入敵境攘羊馬，得而戮諸境上，且告之曰：“兩境不相侵，則相保以安，故戮以戒。 若有之，亦當爾也。 ”夏人悅服。
The Xia leader Yu Zang Yuanma suspected border plots and sent a man to sell horses inside the frontier; officials seized him. Yanqing said: "He suspects us, so he comes to spy. Seizing him only confirms his suspicion. " He agreed a fair price and let the envoy go. When border officials seized sheep and horses in enemy territory, he had them executed on the border with notice: "Peace requires mutual non-aggression; this execution is a warning. If you do the same, we will do the same. " The Xia were satisfied.
29
嘗得《安南行軍法》讀之，仿其製，部分正兵弓箭手人馬，團為九將，合百隊，分左右前後四部。 隊有駐戰、拓戰之別，步騎器械，每將皆同。 以蕃兵人馬為別隊，各隨所近分隸焉。 諸將之數，不及正兵之半，乃所以制之。 處老弱於城砦，較其遠近而為區別。 使蕃、漢無得相雜，以防其變。 具為書上之。 時鄜延呂惠卿亦分畫兵，延慶條其不便，神宗善其議。 召知開封府，拜翰林學士。 以言者罷知滁州，曆瀛、洪州，復龍圖閣待制，帥高陽。 閱歲，復直學士，移定武。 元祐中，入為工部、吏部侍郎。 卒，年六十二，賜錢三十萬，官庀其葬。
Reading Annan Campaign Methods, he modeled his forces: regular troops and archers in nine generals commanding a hundred companies in four sections. Companies were designated for holding or expanding battle; each general's infantry, cavalry, and arms matched. Tribal troops formed separate companies attached by proximity. Tribal generals numbered less than half the regular force—by design, to control them. The old and weak were placed in fortresses according to distance. Tribal and Han troops were kept separate to prevent mutiny. He wrote it up fully and submitted it. When Lü Huiqing of Fuyan also reorganized troops, Yanqing listed the flaws and Shenzong approved his view. Summoned as prefect of Kaifeng, he was made Hanlin academician. Critics removed him to Chuzhou; he served Ying and Hong, was restored as Longtu awaiting academician, and commanded Gaoyang. After a year he was again direct academician and moved to Dingwu. In the Yuanyou era he entered as vice minister of works and personnel. He died at sixty-two; the court granted thirty thousand cash and arranged his burial.
30
延慶有學問，平居簡嘿，遇事能別白是非，所至有惠政。 既為伯父齊後，齊晚得子，乃歸其宗，籍家所有付之，無一毫自予，萊人義焉。
Yanqing was learned, quiet in daily life, clear in judgment, and benevolent in every post. Adopted as Qi's heir, when Qi late in life had a son of his own Yanqing returned to his birth clan and gave Qi all family property without keeping a penny—men of Lai praised his righteousness.
31
論曰：章獻太后稱制時，群臣多希合用事，魯宗道、薛奎、蔡齊參預其間，正色孤立，無所回撓。 宗道能沮劉氏七廟之議，奎正母后袞冕為非禮，齊從容一言絕女后相踵稱制之患，真所謂以道事君者歟！ 曙辨奸斷獄，為時良吏，在位又多薦拔名臣，若請群臣立家廟以復古禮，皆知為政之本焉。
The historians say: When Empress Dowager Zhangxian held power, many ministers curried favor. Lu Zongdao, Xue Kui, and Cai Qi stood apart, unbending. Zongdao blocked the Liu ancestral temples; Kui condemned the empress dowager's imperial robes; Qi with one calm sentence ended successive female regency—they truly served their ruler by the Way. Shu discerned fraud and judged cases as a model official of his age, recommended many famous ministers in office, and in asking officials to restore family temples showed he knew the root of governance.