1
蔡襄，字君謨，興化仙遊人。 舉進士，為西京留守推官、館閣校勘。 范仲淹以言事去國，余靖論救之，尹洙請與同貶，歐陽修移書責司諫高若訥，由是三人者皆坐譴。 襄作《四賢一不肖詩》，都人士爭相傳寫，鬻書者市之，得厚利。 契丹使適至，買以歸，張於幽州館。
Cai Xiang, courtesy name Junmo, came from Xianyou in Xinghua Prefecture. After passing the jinshi examination, he served as judicial aide to the Western Capital military commissioner and as a collator in the Hall of Imperial Archives. When Fan Zhongyan was dismissed from court for his memorials, Yu Jing pleaded on his behalf, Yin Zhu asked to be demoted alongside him, and Ouyang Xiu wrote a letter condemning Supervisory Censor Gao Ruonuo. All three were consequently punished with demotion. Cai Xiang wrote the "Poem on Four Worthies and One Unworthy," which people in the capital eagerly copied and circulated; booksellers sold copies on the market at a handsome profit. A Liao envoy happened to be visiting, bought a copy to take home, and displayed it at the lodge in Youzhou.
2
慶曆三年，仁宗更用輔相，親擢靖、脩及王素為諫官，襄又以詩賀，三人列薦之，帝亦命襄知諫院。 襄喜言路開，而慮正人難久立也。 乃上疏曰：「朝廷增用諫臣，脩、靖、素一日並命，朝野相慶。 然任諫非難，聽諫為難； 聽諫非難，用諫為難。 三人忠誠剛正，必能盡言。 臣恐邪人不利，必造為禦之之說。 其禦之之說不過有三，臣請為陛下辨之。 一曰好名——夫忠臣引君當道，論事唯恐不至，若避好名之嫌無所陳，則土木之人，皆可為矣。 二曰好進——前世諫者之難，激於忠憤，遭世昏亂，死猶不辭，何好進之有？ 近世獎拔太速，但久而勿遷，雖死是官，猶無悔也。 三曰彰君過——諫爭之臣，蓋以司過舉耳，人主聽而行之，足以致從諫之譽，何過之能彰。 至於巧者亦然，事難言則喑而不言，擇其無所忤者，時一發焉，猶或不行，則退而曰吾嘗論某事矣，此之謂好名。 默默容容，無所愧恥，躡資累級，以挹顯仕，此之謂好進。 君有過失，不救之於未然，傳之天下後世，其事愈不可掩，此之謂彰君過。 願陛下察之，毋使有好諫之名而無其實。」
In the third year of the Qingli era (1043), Emperor Renzong reshuffled his senior ministers and personally elevated Yu Jing, Ouyang Xiu, and Wang Su to remonstrance posts. Cai Xiang once again wrote a congratulatory poem; the three recommended him in turn, and the emperor also appointed Cai Xiang director of the Remonstrance Bureau. Cai Xiang was glad that the path for candid counsel had opened, but he feared that upright men would find it hard to hold their positions for long. He therefore submitted a memorial: "The court has newly empowered remonstrance officials—Xiu, Jing, and Su were appointed on the same day, to the rejoicing of both court and countryside. But appointing remonstrators is not the difficult thing—listening to remonstrance is. And heeding remonstrance is not the difficult thing—acting on it is. These three men are loyal and forthright; they will surely speak their minds without reserve. I fear that men of ill intent, seeing this as harmful to themselves, will surely devise arguments to ward off their counsel. There are no more than three such arguments, and I ask leave to refute them for Your Majesty. The first is "craving renown." Loyal ministers guide the ruler toward the right path and speak on affairs with every ounce of conviction they possess; if, to avoid appearing fame-seekers, they held their tongues, then wooden idols could serve as ministers. The second is "craving promotion." Remonstrators of old suffered hardship stirred by loyal outrage; in dark and chaotic times they did not shrink from death—where was any craving for advancement in that? In recent times promotions have come too quickly; if men were simply left in their posts without rapid transfer, they would die in those offices without regret. The third is "exposing the ruler's faults." Remonstrating ministers exist to detect and report errors; when the sovereign listens and acts, he earns a reputation for accepting counsel—how does that expose his faults? The clever operate the same way: they stay silent when matters are difficult to raise, choose topics that give no offense and speak up now and then; if even that goes unheeded, they retire saying, "I did speak on such-and-such a matter"—that is what is called craving renown. Silent and compliant, without a shred of shame, climbing rung by rung to seize high office—this is what is called craving promotion. When the ruler errs and no one corrects him before the fact, and the matter spreads throughout the realm and to posterity until it can no longer be hidden—this is what is called exposing the ruler's faults. I urge Your Majesty to discern this clearly and not allow the court to bear the name of accepting good remonstrance without the substance.
3
時有旱蝗、日食、地震之變，襄以為：「災害之來，皆由人事。 數年以來，天戒屢至，原其所以致之，由君臣上下皆闕失也。 不顓聽斷，不攬威權，使號令不信於人，恩澤不及於下，此陛下之失也。 持天下之柄，司生民之命，無嘉謀異畫以矯時弊，不盡忠竭節以副任使，此大臣之失也。 朝有敝政而不能正，民有疾苦而不能去，陛下寬仁少斷而不能規，大臣循默避事而不能斥，此臣等之罪也。 陛下既有引過之言，達於天地神祇矣，願思其實以應之。」 疏出，聞者皆悚然。
At that time drought, locusts, eclipses, and earthquakes occurred in succession. Cai Xiang argued: "Disasters come entirely from human conduct. Heaven's warnings have come again and again in recent years; the root cause is failure and neglect at every level of the court. Your Majesty does not concentrate on hearing cases and deciding them, nor does he hold authority firmly in his own hands, so that commands are not trusted and bounty fails to reach the people below—this is Your Majesty's failing. The grand ministers hold the reins of empire and hold the lives of the people in their charge, yet offer no worthy plans to remedy the ills of the age and do not exhaust their loyalty to fulfill their duties—this is their failing. Corrupt policies go uncorrected at court, the people's suffering goes unrelieved, Your Majesty's lenience and reluctance to decide goes unremonstrated with, and grand ministers' silence and evasion goes unpunished—this is the guilt of us, your ministers. Your Majesty has already spoken words of self-reproach that have reached Heaven, Earth, and the spirits; I hope you will match those words with real action. When the memorial was circulated, all who read it were deeply shaken.
4
進直史館，兼修起居注，襄益任職論事，無所回撓。 開寶浮圖災，下有舊瘞佛舍利，詔取以入，宮人多灼臂落髮者。 方議復營之，襄諫曰：「非理之福，不可徼幸。 今生民困苦，四夷驕慢，陛下當修人事，奈何專信佛法？ 或以舍利有光，推為神異，彼其所居尚不能護，何有於威靈。 天之降災，以示儆戒，顧大興功役，是將以人力排天意也。」
Promoted to duty in the Historiography Office and appointed concurrently to compile the Daily Record, Cai Xiang grew all the more resolute in memorializing on affairs, never yielding. When the Kaibao Pagoda burned, old buried Buddhist relics were found beneath it. An edict ordered them brought into the palace, and many palace women burned their arms and shaved their heads in devotion. As a plan to rebuild the pagoda was being discussed, Cai Xiang remonstrated: "Blessing that runs against reason cannot be courted through luck. The people are suffering, the foreign tribes grow arrogant—Your Majesty should set human affairs in order; why rely solely on Buddhism? Some point to the relics' glow as proof of the miraculous, yet they could not even protect their own dwelling—what numinous power is there in them? Heaven sends calamities as warnings; to launch grand construction projects in response is to use human labor to defy Heaven's intent."
5
呂夷簡平章國事，宰相以下就其第議政事，襄奏請罷之。 元昊納款，始自稱「兀卒」，既又譯為「吾祖」。 襄言：「『吾祖』猶云『我翁』，慢侮甚矣。 使朝廷賜之詔，而亦曰『吾祖』，是何等語邪？」
With Lü Yijian serving as concurrent Director of State Affairs, chancellors and subordinates went to his home to discuss state business. Cai Xiang memorialized asking that this practice be ended. When Yuan Hao submitted to the Song, he first styled himself "Wuzu," which was then rendered in Chinese as "My Forefather." Cai Xiang said: "'My Forefather' amounts to saying 'my old man'—the insult is profound. If the court issued an edict addressing him as 'My Forefather,' what sort of language would that be?"
6
夏竦罷樞密使，韓琦、范仲淹在位，襄言：「陛下罷竦而用琦、仲淹，士大夫賀於朝，庶民歌於路，至飲酒叫號以為歡。 且退一邪，進一賢，豈遂能關天下輕重哉？ 蓋一邪退則其類退，一賢進則其類進。 眾邪並退，眾賢並進，海內有不泰乎！ 雖然，臣切憂之。 天下之勢，譬猶病者，陛下既得良醫矣，信任不疑，非徒愈病，而又壽民。 醫雖良術。 不得盡用，則病且日深，雖有和、扁，難責效矣。」
When Xia Song was removed as Military Affairs Commissioner and Han Qi and Fan Zhongyan took office, Cai Xiang said: "Your Majesty dismissed Song and appointed Qi and Zhongyan; officials celebrated at court and common folk sang in the streets, some drinking and shouting for joy. Removing one corrupt man and advancing one worthy—can that alone shift the fortunes of the realm? When one corrupt man is dismissed, his like are dismissed; when one worthy man is promoted, his like are promoted. When the corrupt are cleared out together and the worthy rise together, how could the realm not prosper! Even so, I am deeply troubled. The state of the realm is like a sick patient; Your Majesty has found capable physicians—if you trust them fully, you will not merely cure the illness but prolong the life of the people. Skilled though the physicians may be, if their remedies cannot be fully applied, the illness will only deepen day by day; even He Qubo and Bian Que could not be expected to cure it."
7
保州卒作亂，推懦兵十餘輩為首惡，殺之以求招撫。 襄曰：「天下兵百萬，苟無誅殺決行之令，必開驕慢暴亂之源。 今州兵戕官吏、閉城門，不能討，從而招之，豈不為四方笑。 乞將兵入城，盡誅之。」 詔從其議。
Troops at Baozhou mutinied; more than a dozen low-ranking soldiers were singled out as ringleaders and executed in a bid to negotiate surrender. Cai Xiang said: "There are a million troops in the empire; without firm orders for execution and punishment, this will open the door to arrogance and mutiny. When garrison troops kill officials and shut the city gates, and we cannot suppress them but instead offer pacification, will we not become a laughingstock everywhere? I ask that troops be sent into the city to execute them all. The emperor approved his proposal.
8
以母老，求知福州，改福建路轉運使，開古五塘溉民田，奏減五代時丁口稅之半。 復修起居注。 唐介擊宰相，觸盛怒，襄趨進曰：「介誠狂愚，然出於進忠，必望全貸。」 既貶春州，又上疏以為此必死之謫，得改英州。 溫成后追冊，請勿立忌，而罷監護園陵官。
Because his mother was elderly, he asked to be prefect of Fuzhou and was instead made transport commissioner for Fujian Circuit. He reopened the ancient Five Ponds to irrigate farmland and memorialized to cut the Five Dynasties per-capita tax in half. He again served as compiler of the Daily Record. When Tang Jie struck the chancellor, provoking the emperor's fury, Cai Xiang stepped forward and said: "Jie was indeed reckless and foolish, but he acted out of loyalty; I beg that he be fully spared. After Tang Jie was demoted to Chunzhou, Cai Xiang submitted another memorial arguing that this was a posting tantamount to a death sentence, and the demotion was changed to Yingzhou. When Empress Wencheng was posthumously ennobled, he asked that no anniversary memorial be established and that tomb-guard officials be dismissed.
9
進知制誥，三御史論梁適解職，襄不草制。 後每除授非當職，輒封還之。 帝遇之益厚，賜其母冠帔以示寵，又親書「君謨」兩字，遣使持詔予之。 遷龍圖閣直學士、知開封府。 襄精吏事，談笑剖決，破奸發隱，吏不能欺。 以樞密直學士再知福州。 郡士周希孟、陳烈、陳襄、鄭穆以行義著，襄備禮招延，誨諸生以經學。 俗重凶儀，親亡或秘不舉，至破產飯僧，下令禁止之。 徙知泉州，距州二十里萬安渡，絕海而濟，往來畏其險。 襄立石為梁，其長三百六十丈，種蠣於礎以為固，至今賴焉。 又植松七百里以庇道路，閩人刻碑紀德。
Promoted to draftsman of edicts, when three censorial officials argued for Liang Shi's dismissal, Cai Xiang refused to draft the dismissal edict. Thereafter, whenever he judged an appointment improper for the office, he sealed and returned the edict. The emperor treated him with growing favor, granted his mother ceremonial dress as a mark of grace, and personally wrote the two characters "Junmo," sending an envoy to bestow them by edict. He was promoted to academician of the Dragon Designs Pavilion and appointed prefect of Kaifeng. Cai Xiang was masterful in administrative affairs, deciding cases with ease while unmasking fraud and uncovering hidden crimes; his clerks could not deceive him. As academician directly attached to the Bureau of Military Affairs, he served again as prefect of Fuzhou. Local scholars Zhou Ximeng, Chen Lie, Chen Xiang, and Zheng Mu were known for their integrity; Cai Xiang invited them with full courtesy and instructed students in the classics. Local custom placed excessive emphasis on funeral rites; some families hid deaths and failed to report them, ruining themselves to feast monks. He issued an order forbidding the practice. Transferred to Quanzhou prefect, he faced the Wan'an Crossing twenty li from the city, where travelers crossed open sea and feared the peril. Cai Xiang built a stone bridge three hundred and sixty zhang long, planting oysters on the foundations to bind them—a bridge people rely on to this day. He also planted pines along seven hundred li of road to provide shade, and the people of Fujian erected steles in his honor.
10
召為翰林學士、三司使，較天下盈虛出入，量力以制用。 剗剔蠹敝，簿書紀綱纖悉皆可法。
Summoned as Hanlin academician and commissioner of the Three Fiscal Departments, he assessed national revenues and expenditures and regulated spending according to capacity. He rooted out corruption and waste; his account books and administrative standards, down to the smallest detail, became models for all.
11
英宗不豫，皇太后聽政，為輔臣言：「先帝既立皇子，宦妾更加熒惑，而近臣知名者亦然，幾敗大事，近已焚其章矣。」 已而外人遂云襄有論議，帝聞而疑之。 會襄數謁告，因命擇人代襄。 襄乞為杭州，拜端明殿學士以往。 治平三年，丁母憂。 明年卒，年五十六。 贈吏部侍郎。
When Emperor Yingzong fell ill and the empress dowager regent addressed the chief ministers, she said: "The late emperor had already named the heir, but palace women and well-known inner-circle officials tried to sway him further, nearly wrecking the succession; their memorials have now been burned. Word then spread outside the palace that Cai Xiang had spoken on the matter, and the emperor grew suspicious when he heard it. As Cai Xiang repeatedly requested leave, the emperor ordered a replacement to be chosen. Cai Xiang asked to be sent to Hangzhou and was appointed academician of the Hall of Bright Clarity for that posting. In the third year of the Zhiping era (1066), he entered mourning for his mother. The following year he died at the age of fifty-six. He was posthumously enfeoffed as vice minister of personnel.
12
襄工於書，為當時第一，仁宗尤愛之，製《元舅隴西王碑文》命書之。 及令書《溫成后父碑》，則曰：「此待詔職耳。」 不奉詔。 於朋友尚信義，聞其喪，則不御酒肉，為位而哭。 嘗飲會靈東園，坐客誤射矢傷人，遽指襄。 他日帝問之，再拜愧謝，終不自辨。
Cai Xiang was a master calligrapher, considered the finest of his age. Emperor Renzong especially favored him and had him inscribe the epitaph for the Prince of Longxi, his maternal uncle. When ordered to inscribe the stele for Empress Wencheng's father, he said, "That is merely the work of a court calligrapher. He declined the order. He held faith and loyalty sacred among friends; on news of a friend's death he abstained from wine and meat and wept at a mourning seat. Once while dining at the Eastern Garden of the Hall of Assembled Spirits, a guest accidentally shot someone with an arrow and immediately blamed Cai Xiang. When the emperor later asked him about it, he bowed in apology and never offered a word in his own defense.
13
蔡京與同郡而晚出，欲附名閥，自謂為族弟。 政和初，襄孫佃廷試唱名，居舉首，京侍殿上，以族孫引嫌，降為第二，佃終身恨之。 乾道中，賜襄諡曰忠惠。
Cai Jing was from the same region but of a later generation; seeking to attach himself to a prominent clan, he claimed to be Cai Xiang's clansman and junior. Early in the Zhenghe era, Cai Xiang's grandson Dian ranked first when palace examination names were announced. Cai Jing, attending at court, cited kinship as grounds for recusal and demoted him to second place—a slight Dian resented for the rest of his life. In the Qiandao era (1165–1173), Cai Xiang was granted the posthumous epithet Loyal and Beneficent.
14
呂溱，字濟叔，揚州人。 進士第一。 通判亳州，直集賢院，同修起居注。 坐預進奏院宴飲，出知蘄、楚、舒三州。 復修起居注。
Lü Zhen, courtesy name Jishu, was a native of Yangzhou. He ranked first on the jinshi examination. He served as vice-prefect of Bozhou, was appointed to the Academy of Worthies, and helped compile the Daily Record. Punished for attending a feast at the Imperial Bulletin Office, he was posted in succession as prefect of Qi, Chu, and Shu. He again served as compiler of the Daily Record.
15
儂智高寇嶺南，詔奏邸毋得輒報。 溱言：「一方有警，使諸道聞之，共得為備。 今欲人不知，此何意也。」 進知制誥，又出知杭州，入為翰林學士。 疏論宰相陳執中奸邪，仁宗還其疏。 溱曰：「以口舌論人，是陰中大臣也。 願出以示執中，使得自辨。」 未幾，執中去，溱亦以侍讀學士知徐州，賜宴資善堂，遣使諭曰：「此特為卿設，宜盡醉也。」 詔自今由經筵出者視為例。
When Nong Zhigao invaded Lingnan, an edict forbade the memorial transmission office from reporting the news on its own. Lü Zhen said: "When one region faces an emergency, every circuit should hear of it so all can prepare together. To want no one to know—what is the purpose of that? Promoted to draftsman of edicts, he was then posted as prefect of Hangzhou before returning to court as Hanlin academician. He memorialized accusing Chancellor Chen Zhizhong of treachery; Emperor Renzong returned the memorial unread. Lü Zhen said: "To judge a man by mere words is to attack a grand minister in secret. I ask that it be shown to Zhizhong so he may answer for himself. Before long Chen Zhizhong was dismissed. Lü Zhen was posted as prefect of Xuzhou while serving as reader-in-waiting. The emperor granted him a feast at the Hall of Cultivating Goodness and sent word: "This feast is held especially for you; drink your fill. An edict declared that henceforth officials leaving the classics lecture hall would receive the same honor as precedent.
16
徙成德軍，時方開六塔河，宰相主其議。 會地震，溱請罷之，以答天戒。 溱豪侈自放，簡忽於事。 與都轉運使李參不相能，還，判流內銓，參劾其借官麹作酒，以私貨往河東貿易，及違式受饋贐，事下大理議。 溱乃未嘗受，而外廷紛然謂溱有死罪。 帝知其過輕，但貶秩，知和州。 御史以為未抵罪，分司南京。 起知池州、江寧府，復集賢院學士，加龍圖閣直學士、知開封府。
Transferred to Chengdé Army, he arrived as work on the Six Pagoda Canal was underway, a project the chancellor strongly supported. When an earthquake struck, Lü Zhen asked that the project be stopped as a response to Heaven's warning. Lü Zhen lived extravagantly and was careless in his duties. At odds with metropolitan transport commissioner Li Can, he returned to court and was assigned to the internal personnel bureau. Li Can impeached him for using official malt to brew wine, trading private goods in Hedong, and improperly accepting farewell gifts; the case went to the Court of Judicial Review. Lü Zhen had in fact never accepted the gifts, yet officials outside the palace clamored that he deserved death. The emperor knew his offenses were minor and merely reduced his rank, posting him as prefect of Hezhou. Censors thought the punishment insufficient and he was assigned to branch service at the Southern Capital. Recalled to serve as prefect of Chizhou and Jiangning, restored as an Academy of Worthies academician, promoted to academician of the Dragon Designs Pavilion, and appointed prefect of Kaifeng.
17
時為京尹者比不稱職，溱精識過人，辨訟立斷，豪惡斂跡。 嘗以職事對，神宗察其有疾色，勉以近醫藥，已而果病。 改樞密直學士、提舉醴泉觀，遂卒，年五十五。 贈禮部侍郎。 帝悼念之，詔中書曰：「溱立朝最孤，知事君之節，絕跡權貴，故中廢十餘年，人無言者。 方擢領要劇，而奄忽淪亡，家貧子幼，遭此大禍，必至狼狽。 宜優給賻禮，官庀其葬，以厲臣節。」 敕其婦兄護喪歸。
Prefects of the capital had generally failed in their duties; Lü Zhen's sharp judgment surpassed others, he decided cases on the spot, and the powerful and wicked fell silent. Once when he reported on his duties, Emperor Shenzong noticed he looked unwell and urged him to see a physician; before long he fell ill. Transferred to academician directly attached to the Bureau of Military Affairs and placed in charge of the Liquan Abbey, he soon died at the age of fifty-five. He was posthumously enfeoffed as vice minister of rites. The emperor mourned him and instructed the Secretariat: "Zhen stood alone at court, knowing how to serve his ruler with integrity and keeping his distance from the powerful; for this he was sidelined for more than ten years, and no one spoke up for him. Just as he was promoted to demanding posts of great responsibility, he died suddenly. His family was poor and his children young; faced with this catastrophe, they would surely be left in dire straits. He should receive generous funeral provisions, and the government should arrange his burial, to encourage ministerial integrity. An edict ordered his wife's elder brother to escort the coffin home.
18
溱開敏，善議論，一時名輩皆推許。 然自貴重，在杭州接賓客，不過數語，時目為「七字舍人」云。
Lü Zhen was quick-witted and eloquent; leading figures of the day all praised him. Yet he held himself in high esteem; when receiving guests in Hangzhou he spoke only a few words, and people called him the "Seven-Character Academician."
19
王素，字仲儀，太尉旦季子也。 賜進士出身，至屯田員外郎。 御史中丞孔道輔薦為侍御史。 道輔貶，出知鄂州。 仁宗思其賢，擢知諫院。 素方壯年，遇事感發。 嘗言：「今中外無名之費，倍蓰於前，請省其非急者。」 適皇子生，將進百僚以官，惠諸軍以賞。 素爭曰：「今西夏畔渙，契丹要求，縣官之須，且日急矣。 宜留爵秩以賞戰功，儲金繒以佐邊費。」 議遂已。
Wang Su, courtesy name Zhongyi, was the youngest son of Grand Marshal Wang Dan. Granted jinshi status, he rose to assistant director in the Ministry of Public Works. Vice censor-in-chief Kong Daofu recommended him as attending censor. When Kong Daofu was demoted, Wang Su was posted as prefect of Ezhou. Emperor Renzong, mindful of his talent, promoted him to director of the Remonstrance Bureau. Still in the prime of life, Wang Su was stirred to action by every affair that came before him. He once said: "Unnecessary expenditures at court and throughout the realm have multiplied; I ask that nonessential spending be cut. Just then a prince was born, and the court planned to promote all officials and reward the armies. Wang Su objected: "The Western Xia is in revolt, the Khitan is pressing demands, and the treasury's needs grow more urgent by the day. Ranks and titles should be reserved to reward military merit, and gold and silk saved to fund the border. The plan was dropped.
20
京師旱，素請帝禱於郊，帝曰：「太史言月二日當雨，今將以旦日出禱。」 素曰：「臣非太史，然度是日必不雨。」 帝問故，曰：「陛下知其且雨而禱之，應天不以誠，故臣知不雨。」 帝曰：「然則明日詣醴泉觀。」 素曰：「醴泉之近，猶外朝耳，豈憚暑不遠出邪？」 帝悚然。 更詔詣西太一宮，諫官故不在屬車間，乃命素扈從。 日甚熾，埃氛翳空，比輿駕還，未薄城，天大雷電而雨。
When the capital suffered drought, Wang Su asked the emperor to pray at the suburban altar. The emperor said: "The grand astrologer says it will rain on the second of the month; I will go out to pray at dawn that day. Wang Su said: "I am no astrologer, but I am certain it will not rain that day. When the emperor asked why, he said: "Your Majesty knows rain is coming yet still goes to pray—responding to Heaven without sincerity. That is why I know it will not rain. The emperor said: "Then tomorrow I will go to the Liquan Abbey. Wang Su said: "The Liquan Abbey is nearby—it is still within the outer court. Are you unwilling to go farther because of the heat?" The emperor was startled. He changed the edict to go to the Western Grand Unity Palace. Remonstrance officials were not customarily among the accompanying carriages, so he ordered Wang Su to attend as escort. The sun blazed and dust filled the sky. Just as the imperial carriage returned and had not yet reached the city walls, thunder cracked and rain poured down.
21
王德用進二女子，素論之，帝曰：「朕真宗皇帝之子，卿王旦之子，有世舊，非他人比也。 德用實進女，然已事朕左右，奈何？」 素曰：「臣之憂正恐在左右爾。」 帝動容，立命遣二女出。 賜素銀緋，擢天章閣待制、淮南都轉運按察使。 時新置按察，類多以苛為明。 素獨不擿細故，即有貪刻，必繩治窮竟，以故下吏愛而畏之。 改知渭州，坐市木河東有擾民狀，降華州，又奪職徙汝。 俄悉還其故，遷龍圖閣直學士。
When Wang Deyong presented two women to the court, Wang Su remonstrated. The emperor said: "I am the son of Emperor Zhenzong, and you are the son of Wang Dan—we have ties across generations and are not like other men. Deyong did present women, and they already serve at my side—what is to be done?" Wang Su said: "My worry is precisely that they are at Your Majesty's side." The emperor was moved and immediately ordered the two women dismissed. Wang Su was granted silver-red robes and promoted to awaiting draftsman of the Hall of Heavenly Manifestations and metropolitan transport and investigation commissioner for Huainan. Investigation posts had been newly established, and most commissioners used harshness to display their acumen. Wang Su alone did not pick at minor matters; when he found greed or cruelty, he pursued punishment to the end. Subordinate officials both loved and feared him. Transferred to Weizhou prefect, he was demoted to Huazhou for purchasing timber in Hedong in a way that harmed the people, then stripped of office and posted to Ru. Before long all his former honors were restored and he was promoted to academician of the Dragon Designs Pavilion.
22
初，原州蔣偕建議築大蟲巉堡，宣撫使聽之。 役未具，敵伺間要擊，不得成。 偕懼來歸死。 素曰：「若罪偕，乃是墮敵計。」 責偕使畢力自效。 總管狄青曰：「偕往益敗，不可遣。」 素曰：「偕敗則總管行，總管敗，素即行矣。」 青不敢復言，偕卒城而還。 以樞密直學士知開封府。 至和秋，大雨，蔡河裂，水入城。 詔軍吏障朱雀門，素曰：「皇上不豫，兵民廬舍多覆壓，眾心怦怦然，奈何更塞門以動眾。」 違詔止其役，水亦不害。
Initially Jiang Jie of Yuanzhou proposed building Great Worm Cliff Fort, and the pacification commissioner approved it. Before the work was ready, the enemy intercepted them and the fort could not be completed. Jie, in fear, returned to court expecting execution. Wang Su said: "If Jie is punished, we will simply have fallen into the enemy's trap." He charged Jiang Jie to exert his full strength in loyal service. Commander-in-chief Di Qing said: "If Jie goes, defeat will only worsen; he must not be sent." Wang Su said: "If Jie is defeated, the commander-in-chief will go; if the commander-in-chief is defeated, I will go myself." Di Qing said no more; Jiang Jie completed the fort and returned. As academician directly attached to the Bureau of Military Affairs, he served as prefect of Kaifeng. In the autumn of the Zhihe era, heavy rains burst the Cai River and floodwater entered the city. An edict ordered troops to block the Vermilion Bird Gate. Wang Su said: "The emperor is unwell, many dwellings have been crushed, and the people's hearts are pounding with alarm—how can we block the gate and stir them further?" Defying the edict, he stopped the work, and the flood did no further harm.
23
出知定州、成都府。 先是，牙校歲輸酒坊錢以供廚傳，日加厚，輸者轉困。 素一切裁約之。 鐵錢布滿兩蜀，而鼓鑄不止，幣益輕，商賈不行，命罷鑄十年，以權物價。 凡為政，務合人情，蜀人紀其目，號曰「王公異斷」。 復知開封。 素以三公子少知名，出入侍從將帥，久頗鞅鞅，厭倦劇煩，事多鹵莽不治，盜賊數發。 御史糾其過，出知許州。
He was posted as prefect of Dingzhou and Chengdu. Previously, military adjutants had paid wine-monopoly funds annually to supply official hospitality; the burden grew heavier each year and those who paid grew ever more distressed. Wang Su cut back all of it. Iron coins flooded both Shu regions, yet minting continued; currency grew lighter and commerce stalled. He ordered minting halted for ten years to stabilize prices. In all his governance he sought to accord with human feeling; the people of Shu recorded his decisions and called them "Lord Wang's Exceptional Judgments." He again served as prefect of Kaifeng. As a son of the Three Dukes, Wang Su had been known from youth; having long moved among attendant officials and generals, he grew discontented and weary of arduous duties; many matters were handled carelessly, and bandits arose repeatedly. Censors impeached him for his faults and he was posted as prefect of Xuzhou.
24
治平初，夏人寇靜邊砦。 召拜端明殿學士，復知渭州，於是三鎮、涇原蕃夷故老皆歡賀，比至，敵解去。 拓渭西南城，浚隍三周，積粟支十年。 屬羌奉土地來獻，悉增募弓箭手。 行陳出入之法，身自督訓。 其居舊穿土為室，寇至，老幼多焚死，為築八堡使居之。 其從領於兩巡檢，人莫得自便。 素曰：「是豈募民兵意邪？」 聽散耕田里，有警則聚，故士氣感奮，精悍他道莫及。 嘗宴堂上，邊民傳寇至，驚入城。 諸將曰：「使奸人亦從而入，將必為內應，合拒勿內。」 素曰：「若拒之東去，關中必搖。 吾在此，敵必不敢犯我，此當有奸言。」 乃下令：「敢稱寇至者斬。」 有頃，候騎從西來，人傳果妄，諸將皆服其明。
At the beginning of the Zhiping era, the Tangut raided Jingbian Stockade. Summoned as academician of the Hall of Bright Clarity and again posted to Weizhou, old tribal leaders of the Three Garrisons and Jingyuan Circuit all rejoiced; by the time he arrived, the enemy had withdrawn. He expanded Weizhou's southwestern wall, dredged the moat three circuits deep, and stockpiled grain sufficient for ten years. When dependent Qiang submitted land as tribute, he increased recruitment of archer militia throughout. He implemented formation drill methods and personally supervised training. They had formerly dug earthen dwellings; when raiders came, old and young were often burned to death. He built eight forts for them to live in. Their followers were placed under two patrol inspectors, and the people could not manage their own affairs. Wang Su said: "Is this the intent of recruiting militia?" He allowed them to disperse and farm in the fields, gathering when alarm came; morale soared, and their fierceness was unmatched in other circuits. Once while feasting in the hall, border people spread word that raiders had come, and people fled in alarm into the city. The generals said: "If treacherous men enter with them, they will serve as inside collaborators; we should refuse them entry." Wang Su said: "If we refuse them and they flee eastward, Guanzhong will surely be shaken. While I am here, the enemy will not dare attack us; this must be malicious rumor." He then ordered: "Whoever dares say raiders have come shall be executed." Before long, scout riders came from the west confirming the rumor was false; all the generals admired his clear judgment.
25
換澶州觀察使、知成德軍，改青州觀察使。 熙寧初。 還，以學士知太原府。 汾河大溢，素曰：「若壞平晉，遂灌州城矣。」 亟命具舟楫，築堤以捍之。 一夕，水驟至，人賴以安。 入知通進銀臺司，轉工部尚書，仍故職致仕。 故事，雖三公致仕，亦不帶職。 朝廷方新法制，素首以學士就第。 卒，年六十七，諡曰懿敏。 子：鞏； 從子：靖； 從孫：震。
Transferred to military commissioner of Chanzhou and prefect of Chengdé Army, he was then changed to military commissioner of Qingzhou. At the beginning of the Xining era. Returning to court, he served as academician and prefect of Taiyuan. When the Fen River overflowed, Wang Su said: "If Pingjin is breached, it will flood the prefectural city." He urgently ordered boats prepared and dikes built to hold it back. Overnight the flood surged, and the people were saved by his preparations. He entered court as director of the Gateway for Memorials and Silver Terrace Office, was transferred to minister of public works, and retired while retaining his former rank. By precedent, even when the Three Dukes retired, they did not retain office. As the court instituted new regulations, Wang Su was the first academician to retire to his residence. He died at the age of sixty-seven and was granted the posthumous epithet Dignified and Keen. Son: Gong; Nephew: Jing; Grandnephew: Zhen.
26
鞏有雋才，長於詩，從蘇軾遊。 軾守徐州，鞏往訪之，與客遊泗水，登魋山，吹笛飲酒，乘月而歸。 軾待之於黃樓上，謂鞏曰：「李太白死，世無此樂三百年矣。」 軾得罪，鞏亦竄賓州。 數歲得還，豪氣不少挫。 後歷宗正丞，以跌蕩傲世，每除官，輒為言者所議，故終不顯。
Gong had outstanding talent, excelled in poetry, and associated with Su Shi. When Su Shi was prefect of Xuzhou, Gong visited him; with guests he toured the Si River, climbed Mount Gui, played the flute and drank wine, and returned by moonlight. Su Shi received him at the Yellow Tower and said to Gong: "Since Li Bai died, the world has had no such pleasure for three hundred years. When Su Shi was punished, Gong was also banished to Binzhou. After several years he was allowed to return, and his bold spirit was little diminished. Later he served as vice director of the Imperial Clan Court; unrestrained and proud, he was criticized whenever appointed to office and never achieved prominence.
27
從子靖
Nephew: Jing
28
靖，字詹叔，蚤孤，自力於學，好講切天下利害。 以祖蔭歷通判閬州、知滁州，主管北京御史臺。 契丹數遣橫使來，靖疏言：「彼利中國賜遺，挾虛聲以濟其欲，漸不可長，宜有以折之。」 又請復明經科，加試貢士以策，觀其所學，稍變聲律之習。
Jing, courtesy name Zhanshu, lost his father early, applied himself to study, and loved to discuss the benefits and harms of affairs throughout the realm. Through his grandfather's privilege he served as vice-prefect of Langzhou, prefect of Chuzhou, and supervisor of the Beijing Censorate. The Khitan repeatedly sent cross-border envoys. Jing memorialized: "They profit from Song gifts and tribute, wielding empty threats to satisfy their desires; this cannot be allowed to grow—we should find means to check them." He also asked to restore the Classics Examination and add policy essays for presented scholars, to observe their learning and gradually change the habit of tonal prosody.
29
擢利州路轉運判官，提點陝西刑獄。 鄉戶役於州縣者，優則願久留，勞則欲亟去，吏得權其遲速。 靖一以歲月遣代，遂為令。 徙河東長子縣。 賊殺人，捕治十數輩，不得實，皆釋去。 靖閱其牘曰：「此真盜也。」 教吏曲折訊囚，果服罪。 為開封府推官。 曹、濮盜害，官吏久不獲，靖受詔督捕，成擒者十八九。 因言盜之不戢，由大姓為囊橐，請並坐之，著為令。
Promoted to transport assessor of Lizhou Circuit and investigating commissioner of Shaanxi judicial affairs. Households serving corvée at prefectures and counties, when treated well wished to stay, when overworked wished to leave quickly, and clerks controlled whether they stayed or went. Jing uniformly dispatched replacements by fixed terms, and this became regulation. He was transferred to Changzi County in Hedong. When bandits killed someone, more than ten suspects were arrested but the truth could not be found, and all were released. Jing reviewed the dossier and said: "This is the real thief." He instructed clerks to interrogate the prisoner by indirect means, and the man confessed. He served as judicial aide of Kaifeng Prefecture. When bandits ravaged Cao and Pu prefectures and officials had long failed to capture them, Jing received an edict to supervise the hunt and captured eight or nine tenths of them. He argued that bandits went unchecked because great clans sheltered them; he asked that they be punished together and this be established as regulation.
30
徙廣南轉運使。 熙寧初，廣人訛言交阯且至，老幼入保。 事聞，中外以為憂。 神宗曰：「王靖在彼，可無念。」 即拜太常少卿、直昭文館、知廣州。 居二年，入為度支副使，卒。
He was transferred to transport commissioner of Guangnan. At the beginning of the Xining era, people of Guang spread false rumors that Jiaozhi was about to invade, and old and young fled into stockades. When the matter was reported, court and country alike regarded it with alarm. Emperor Shenzong said: "With Wang Jing there, there is no need for concern." He was immediately appointed vice director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, appointed directly to the Hall of Illustrious Culture, and made prefect of Guangzhou. After two years he entered court as vice commissioner of revenue and died.
31
子古，字敏仲，第進士。 熙寧中，為司農主簿，使行淮、浙振旱菑，究張若濟獄，劾轉運使王廷老、張靚失職，皆罷之。 連提舉四路常平，王安禮欲用為太常丞，神宗謂古好異論，止以為博士。 加上仁宗、英宗諡，因升祔四后，初議不發冊，古言：「發冊之禮，雖為祔廟節文，而升祔之重，乃由冊而後顯。 今既行升祔，則禮不可廢。」 乃詔用竹冊。 又定諸神祠封額、爵號之序。
His son Gu, courtesy name Minzhong, passed the jinshi examination. During the Xining era he served as chief clerk of the Ministry of Revenue, was dispatched to Huai and Zhe to relieve drought famine, investigated the Zhang Ruoji case, impeached transport commissioners Wang Tinglao and Zhang Jing for neglect of duty, and all were dismissed. He successively supervised the Ever-Normal Granaries of four circuits. Wang Anli wished to appoint him vice director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, but Emperor Shenzong said Gu loved unorthodox opinions and made him only an erudite. When posthumous titles were added for Emperors Renzong and Yingzong and four empresses were elevated for joint enshrinement, the initial plan was not to issue registers. Gu said: "The rite of issuing registers, though a detail of joint enshrinement, is what makes the weight of elevation visible through the register. Now that joint enshrinement is being carried out, the rite cannot be abandoned. An edict thereupon ordered the use of bamboo registers. He also fixed the order of enfeoffment titles and noble ranks for spirit shrines.
32
出為湖南轉運判官，提點淮東刑獄，歷工部、吏部、右司員外郎，太府少卿。 奉使契丹，異時北使所過，凡供張悉貸於民，古請出公錢為之，民得不擾。 紹聖初，遷戶部侍郎，詳定役法，與尚書蔡京多不合。 京言：「臣欲用元豐人額雇直，而古乃用司馬光法。」 詔徙古兵部，尋以集賢殿修撰為江淮發運使，進寶文閣待制、知廣州。 言者論其常指平歲為凶年，妄散邦財，奪職知袁州。
Posted as transport assessor of Hunan and investigating commissioner of Huaidong judicial affairs, he served successively as assistant director in the ministries of public works and personnel, the Right Office, and as vice director of the Court of the Imperial Treasury. On a mission to the Khitan, formerly wherever northern envoys passed, all provisions were levied from the people. Gu requested that public funds be used instead, and the people were not disturbed. At the beginning of the Shaosheng era he was promoted to vice minister of revenue, detailed to revise the corvée law, and often disagreed with Minister Cai Jing. Cai Jing said: "I wish to use the Yuanfeng quota hire rates, yet Gu uses Sima Guang's method." An edict transferred Gu to the Ministry of War; soon after, as compiler of the Hall of Assembled Worthies he served as transport commissioner of the Jiang-Huai region, was promoted to awaiting draftsman of the Hall of Precious Culture, and made prefect of Guangzhou. Remonstrators argued that he habitually treated normal years as famine years and recklessly dispersed state funds; he was stripped of office and posted as prefect of Yuanzhou.
33
徽宗立，復拜戶部侍郎，遷尚書。 與御史中丞趙挺之偕領放欠，挺之言：「古蠲除太多，欲盡傾天下之財，不可用。」 遂改刑部。 攻不已，以寶文閣直學士知成都。 墮崇寧黨籍，責衡州別駕，安置溫州。 復朝散郎，尋卒。
When Emperor Huizong ascended, Gu was again appointed vice minister of revenue and promoted to minister. Together with vice censor-in-chief Zhao Tingzhi he jointly supervised debt remission. Tingzhi said: "Gu remits too much and wishes to drain all the wealth under heaven; he cannot be used." He was thereupon transferred to the Ministry of Justice. As attacks continued, he was made academician of the Hall of Precious Culture and prefect of Chengdu. He fell into the Chongning faction register, was demoted to assistant administrator of Hengzhou, and assigned to Wenzhou. He was restored to gentleman for court discussion and soon died.
34
從孫震
Grandnephew: Zhen
35
震，字子發，以父任試銓優等，賜及第。 上諸路學制，神宗稱其才。 以習學中書刑房公事，遂為檢正。 預修條例，加館閣校勘，檢正孔目吏房。
Zhen, courtesy name Zifa, through his father's privilege passed the examination bureau with superior grade and was granted examination success. He submitted the school system for all circuits; Emperor Shenzong praised his talent. Through study of the criminal affairs section of the Secretariat, he became a rectifying official. He participated in compiling regulations, was added as collator in the Imperial Archives, and served as rectifying official of the Personnel and Accounts Section.
36
元豐官制行，震與吳雍從輔臣執筆入記上語，面授尚書右司員外郎，使自書除目，舉朝榮之。 兼修《市易敕》，帝諭之曰：「朝廷造法，皆本先王之制，推行非人，故不能善後。 且以錢貸民，有不能償，輒籍其家，豈善政也。 宜計其負幾何，悉捐之。」 震頓首奉詔。
When the Yuanfeng bureaucratic system was implemented, Zhen and Wu Yong followed the chief ministers with brush in hand to record the emperor's words; he was personally appointed assistant director of the Right Office and ordered to write his own appointment edict—the whole court honored him. While compiling the Market Exchange Edict, the emperor instructed him: "When the court creates laws, all are based on the institutions of former kings; when implementation is entrusted to the wrong men, good results cannot follow. Moreover, when money is lent to the people and they cannot repay, their households are immediately confiscated—is this good governance? Calculate how much is owed and remit it all. Zhen bowed and received the edict.
37
進起居舍人，使行西邊，還為中書舍人。 元祐初，遷給事中，御史王岩叟劾之，以龍圖閣待制知蔡州，歷五郡。
Promoted to daily record attendant, dispatched on a mission to the western border, he returned as secretariat drafter. At the beginning of the Yuanyou era he was promoted to supervising attendant; censor Wang Yansou impeached him and he was made awaiting draftsman of the Dragon Designs Pavilion and prefect of Caizhou, serving in five prefectures.
38
紹聖初，復為給事中，權吏部尚書，拜龍圖閣直學士、知開封府。 震與章惇皆呂惠卿所薦，而素不相能。 府奏獄空，哲宗疑不實。 震謂惇抑已，於是潁昌蓋漸有訟，許賂惇子弟，震捕漸掠治，頗得蹤跡。 惇懼，以獄付大理，而徙震為樞密都承旨，遂坐折獄滋蔓、傾搖大臣，奪職知岳州，卒。
At the beginning of the Shaosheng era he again served as supervising attendant, acted as minister of personnel, and was appointed academician of the Dragon Designs Pavilion and prefect of Kaifeng. Zhen and Zhang Dun were both recommended by Lü Huiqing, yet had never gotten along. The prefecture reported empty prisons; Emperor Zhezong suspected this was untrue. Zhen believed Dun was suppressing him; thereupon in Yingchang a man named Gai came under litigation, having promised bribes to Dun's sons and nephews; Zhen arrested Gai and interrogated him, obtaining considerable evidence. Dun grew afraid and transferred the case to the Court of Judicial Review, while Zhen was moved to chief coordinator of the Bureau of Military Affairs; he was then punished for letting the case spread and implicate grand ministers, stripped of office and posted to Yuezhou, and died.
39
余靖，字安道，韶州曲江人。 少不事羈檢，以文學稱鄉里。 舉進士起家，為贛縣尉，試書判拔萃，改將作監丞、知新建縣，遷秘書丞。 數上書論事，建言班固《漢書》舛謬，命與王洙並校司馬遷、范曄二史。 書奏，擢集賢校理。
Yu Jing, courtesy name Andao, was a native of Qujiang in Shaozhou. In youth he did not submit to restraint and was renowned in his home district for literary learning. Passing the jinshi examination he began his career as magistrate of Gan County; excelling in the document-judgment examination, he was changed to director of the Directorate of Imperial Manufactories and prefect of Xinjian County, and promoted to secretariat director. He repeatedly submitted memorials discussing affairs, proposed that Ban Gu's Book of Han contained errors, and was ordered together with Wang Zhu to collate the histories of Sima Qian and Fan Ye. When the memorial was submitted, he was promoted to collator of the Academy of Worthies.
40
范仲淹貶饒州，諫官御史莫敢言。 靖言：「仲淹以刺譏大臣重加譴謫，倘其言未合聖慮，在陛下聽與不聽耳，安可以為罪乎？ 汲黯在廷，以平津為多詐； 張昭論將，以魯肅為粗疏。 漢皇、吳主熟聞訾毀，兩用無猜，豈損令德。 陛下自親政以來，屢逐言事者，恐鉗天下口，不可。」 疏入，落職監筠州酒稅。 尹洙、歐陽修亦以仲淹故，相繼貶逐，靖繇是益知名。 徙監泰州稅，知英州，遷太常博士，復為校理、同知禮院。
When Fan Zhongyan was demoted to Raozhou, remonstrance officials and censors dared not speak. Yu Jing said: "Zhongyan was heavily punished for criticizing grand ministers; if his words did not accord with Your Majesty's intent, that lies in whether Your Majesty listens or not—how can this be made a crime? Ji An was at court and called Lord Pingjin deceitful; Zhang Zhao discussed generals and called Lu Su crude and careless. The Han emperor and the Wu ruler often heard such criticism yet employed both men without suspicion—did this harm their fine virtue? Since Your Majesty personally assumed governance, remonstrators have been repeatedly dismissed; I fear this will clamp shut the mouths of all under heaven—this cannot be allowed. When the memorial was submitted, he was stripped of office and made supervisor of wine taxes at Yunzhou. Yin Zhu and Ouyang Xiu were also demoted and banished on Zhongyan's account; Yu Jing thereby grew all the more renowned. Transferred to supervise taxes at Taizhou, he served as prefect of Yingzhou, was promoted to erudite of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and again served as collator and associate director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.
41
慶曆中，仁宗銳意欲更天下敝事，增諫官員，使論得失，以靖為右正言。 時四方盜賊竊發，州郡不能制。 靖言：「朝廷威制天下在賞罰，今官吏弛事，群盜蜂起，大臣齷齪守常，不立法禁，可為國家憂也。 請嚴捕賊賞罰，及定為賊劫質、亡失器甲除名追官之法。」
During the Qingli era, Emperor Renzong was keen to reform corrupt affairs throughout the realm, increased remonstrance officials to discuss policy, and appointed Yu Jing as right remonstrator. At the time bandits arose throughout the realm and prefectures and circuits could not control them. Yu Jing said: "The court's authority over the realm lies in rewards and punishments; now officials neglect their duties, bandits swarm, grand ministers are petty and cling to routine, and no laws or prohibitions are established—this is cause for alarm. I ask that rewards and punishments for capturing bandits be made strict, and that laws be fixed for stripping names and ranks when bandits seize hostages or when armor and weapons are lost."
42
司天言太白犯歲星，又犯執法。 靖上疏請責躬修德，以謝天變。 使契丹，辭日，以所奏事書笏，各舉一字為目，凡數十事。 帝顧見之，命悉條奏，日幾昃，乃罷。 進修起居注。 開寶寺靈感塔災，復上疏言：「五行之占，本是災變，朝廷所宜誡懼，以答天意。 聞嘗詔取舊瘞舍利入禁中閱視，道路傳言，舍利在內廷有光怪，竊恐巧佞之人，推為靈異，惑亂視聽，再圖營造。 臣聞帝王之道，能勤儉厥德，感動人心，則雖有危難，後必安濟。 今自西垂用兵，國帑虛竭，民亡儲蓄，十室九空。 陛下若勤勞罪己，憂人之憂，則四民安居，海內蒙福。 如不恤民病，廣事浮費，奉佛求福，非天下所望也。 若以舍利經火不壞，遽為神異，即本在土中，火所不及。 若言舍利皆能出光怪，必有神靈憑之，此妄言也。 且一塔不能自衛，為火所毀，況藉其福以庇民哉？」
The Directorate of Astronomy reported that Venus had encroached upon Jupiter and also upon the asterism Zhifa. Yu Jing submitted a memorial asking that the emperor examine himself and cultivate virtue to respond to Heaven's changes. On a mission to the Khitan, at his farewell audience he wrote his memorial matters on his court tablet, taking one character from each as a heading—several dozen matters in all. The emperor glanced and saw it, ordered that all be submitted item by item, and only when the sun was nearly setting did he dismiss him. He was promoted to compile the Daily Record. When the Spirit Response Pagoda of Kaibao Temple burned, he again submitted a memorial: "Divinations of the Five Phases are portents of disaster; the court ought to be warned and fearful to respond to Heaven's intent. I hear that an edict once ordered old buried relics brought into the inner palace for inspection; rumors spread that the relics in the inner court emitted strange lights; I fear that artful sycophants will promote them as miraculous, confusing the court, and again plan construction. The way of emperors and kings is that if one is diligent and frugal in virtue and moves people's hearts, then though there be danger and hardship, peace will surely follow. Since war on the western frontier, the state treasury is empty, the people have lost their savings, and nine of ten households stand vacant. If Your Majesty labors diligently, takes blame upon yourself, and shares the people's worries, then the four classes of people will dwell in peace and the realm will receive blessing. If you do not care for the people's afflictions, undertake wasteful expenditures, and seek fortune through Buddhism, this is not what the realm hopes for. If because the relics were unharmed by fire they are suddenly deemed miraculous, they were originally in the earth where fire could not reach them. If one says all relics can emit strange lights, there must be spirits dwelling in them—this is false talk. Moreover, a single pagoda could not protect itself and was destroyed by fire—how much less could one rely on its blessing to shelter the people?"
43
靖在職數言事，嘗論夏竦奸邪，不可為樞密使； 王舉正不才，不宜在政府； 狄青武人，使之獨守渭州，恐敗邊事； 張堯佐以修媛故，除提點府界公事，非政事之美，且郭后之禍，起於楊、尚，不可不監。 太常博士王翼西京治獄還，賜五品服，靖曰：「治獄而錫服，外人不知，必以為翼深文重法，能希陛下意，以取此寵，所損非細事也。 嘗有工部郎中呂覺以治獄賜對，祈易章綬，陛下諭之曰：『朕不欲因鞫囚與人恩澤。』 覺退以告臣，臣嘗書之起居注。 陛下前日諭覺是，則今日賜翼非矣。 是非與奪之間，貴乎一體。 小人望風希進，無所不至，幸陛下每於事端，抑其奔競。」 其說多見納用。
Yu Jing repeatedly spoke on affairs in office; he once argued that Xia Song was wicked and treacherous and could not serve as military affairs commissioner; Wang Juzheng was without talent and was unsuited for the government; Di Qing was a military man; to have him alone guard Weizhou might ruin border affairs; Zhang Yaozuo, on account of Lady Xiu, was appointed supervisor of capital-district affairs—not a fine matter of governance; moreover, the calamity of Empress Guo arose from Lady Yang and Lady Shang—this must be taken as a warning. Erudite Wang Yi of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices returned from handling cases in the Western Capital and was granted fifth-rank robes. Yu Jing said: "To grant robes for handling cases—outsiders will think Yi applied harsh laws to win Your Majesty's favor; the harm is no small matter. Once bureau director Lü Jue of the Ministry of Public Works was granted an audience for handling cases and requested a change of insignia; Your Majesty instructed him: 'I do not wish to bestow grace upon men because of interrogating prisoners. Jue withdrew and told me; I recorded this in the Daily Record. Your Majesty's instruction to Jue the other day was right; then today's grant to Yi is wrong. Between right and wrong, grant and denial, what is valued is consistency. Petty men watch the wind and hope for advancement; I hope Your Majesty will at every turn of affairs restrain their scrambling for promotion. Many of his proposals were accepted and implemented.
44
會西鄙厭兵，元昊請和，議增歲賜。 靖言：「景德中，契丹舉國興師，直抵澶淵，先帝北征渡河，止捐金繒三十萬與之。 今元昊戰雖累勝，皆由將帥輕敵易動之故。 數年選將練兵，始知守戰之備，而銳意解仇，所予至二十六萬。 且戎事有機，國力有限，失之於始，雖悔何追。 夫以景德之患，近在封域之內，而歲賜如彼； 今日之警，遠在邊鄙之外，而歲賜如此。 若元昊使還，益有所許，契丹聞之，寧不生心？ 無厭之求，自此始矣。 儻移西而備北，為禍更深。 但思和與不和，皆有後患，則不必曲意俯徇，以貽國羞。」 擢知制誥。
Just as the western frontier grew weary of war, Yuan Hao requested peace, and there was discussion of increasing the annual gifts. Yu Jing said: "In the Jingde era, the Khitan mobilized the entire nation and marched straight to Chanyuan; Emperor Zhenzong personally led a northern expedition across the river and gave them only three hundred thousand in gold and silk. Today Yuan Hao has won battle after battle, all because generals underestimated the enemy and acted rashly. For several years generals were selected and troops trained before defensive preparations were in place; yet now, eager to settle the feud, what is offered reaches two hundred and sixty thousand. Border affairs have their moment, and state strength has its limits; lose at the start, and no recovery is possible. The Jingde calamity was close, within the borders themselves, yet annual gifts were as they were; today's alarm is far beyond the frontier, yet annual gifts are like this. If when Yuan Hao's envoy returns he is granted still more, when the Khitan hear of it, will they not take heart? Insatiable demands begin from this. If forces shift west to guard the north, the calamity will be deeper still. But consider that whether there is peace or not, there are consequences either way—then there is no need to bend and defer, bringing shame upon the state. He was promoted to draftsman of edicts.
45
元昊既歸款，朝廷欲加封冊，而契丹以兵臨西境，遣使言：「為中國討賊，請止毋和。」 朝議難之。 會靖數言契丹挾詐，不可輕許，即遣靖往報，而留夏國封策不發。 靖至契丹，卒屈其議而還。 朝廷遂發夏冊，臣元昊。 西師既解嚴，北邊亦無事。 靖三使契丹，亦習外國語，嘗為番語詩，御史王平等劾靖失使者體，出知吉州。 靖為諫官時，嘗劾奏太常博士茹孝標不孝，匿母喪，坐廢。 靖既失勢，孝標詣闕言靖少遊廣州，犯法受榜。 靖聞之不自得，求侍養去。 改將作少監，分司南京，居曲江。 已而授左神武軍大將軍、雅州刺史、壽州兵馬鈐轄，辭不就。 再遷衛尉卿、知虔州，丁父憂去。
After Yuan Hao submitted allegiance, the court wished to bestow enfeoffment, but the Khitan massed troops on the western border and sent envoys saying: "We are punishing the bandits for China; please stop and do not make peace. Court discussion found this difficult. Just then Yu Jing repeatedly said the Khitan were wielding deception and could not be lightly conceded to; he was immediately dispatched to report back, while the Western Xia enfeoffment edict was held back. When Yu Jing reached the Khitan, he ultimately forced them to yield on the issue and returned. The court thereupon issued the Western Xia enfeoffment and enfeoffed Yuan Hao. The western armies were relieved from alert, and the northern border was also without incident. Yu Jing went on three missions to the Khitan and also learned foreign languages; he once composed a poem in the barbarian tongue; censor Wang Ping and others impeached him for failing the dignity of an envoy and he was posted as prefect of Jizhou. When Yu Jing was a remonstrance official, he once impeached erudite Ru Xiaobiao of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices for filial impiety, concealing his mother's death, and Ru was dismissed. After Yu Jing lost influence, Xiaobiao came to court and said Jing in youth had traveled in Guangzhou and violated the law, receiving beating punishment. When Yu Jing heard of this he was ill at ease and requested leave to care for his parents. He was changed to vice director of the Directorate of Imperial Manufactories and assigned to branch service at the Southern Capital, residing in Qujiang. Soon after he was appointed grand general of the Left Divine Martial Army, prefect of Yazhou, and military coordinator of Shouzhou, but he declined and did not accept. He was again transferred to minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and made prefect of Qianzhou, then left office upon his father's death.
46
儂智高反邕州，乘勝掠九郡，以兵圍廣州。 朝廷方顧南事，就喪次起靖為秘書監、知潭州，改桂州，詔以廣南西路委靖經制。 智高西走邕州，靖策其必結援交阯，而脅諸峒以自固，乃約李德政會兵擊賊於邕州，備萬人糧以待之； 而詔亦給緡錢二萬助德政興師，且約賊平更賞以緡錢二萬。 又募儂、黃諸姓酋長，皆縻以職，使不與智高合。 既而朝廷遣狄青、孫沔將兵共討賊。 青卻交阯，援兵不用，賊平。 就遷靖給事中。 御史梁蒨言賞薄，又遷尚書工部侍郎。 初，青兵未至前，戒部將勿戰。 靖迫鈐轄陳曙出鬥，敗走。 青至，按軍法斬曙及指使袁用等於坐，靖瞿然起拜。 及諸將班師，獨留靖廣西，遣人入特磨道擒智高母子弟三人，生致之闕下。 加集賢院學士，徙知潭州，又徙青州。
Nong Zhigao rebelled at Yongzhou, seized the victory to plunder nine prefectures, and besieged Guangzhou with troops. The court was then concerned with southern affairs; from his mourning residence Yu Jing was summoned as director of the Secretariat and prefect of Tanzhou, changed to Guizhou; an edict entrusted the Guangnan West Circuit to Jing for overall management. Zhigao fled west to Yongzhou; Yu Jing calculated that he would surely seek aid from Jiaozhi and coerce the various dong to strengthen himself; he therefore arranged with Li Dezheng to join forces and strike the bandits at Yongzhou, preparing provisions for ten thousand men to await them; an edict also granted twenty thousand strings of cash to assist Dezheng in raising troops, with the further promise that when the bandits were pacified another twenty thousand strings would be rewarded. He also recruited chieftains of the Nong, Huang, and other surnames, all tethering them with offices so they would not join Zhigao. Before long the court dispatched Di Qing and Sun Kan to lead troops jointly to suppress the bandits. Qing turned back Jiaozhi; reinforcements were not used, and the bandits were pacified. Yu Jing was thereupon promoted to supervising attendant. Censor Liang Qian said the reward was too meager, and Yu Jing was further promoted to vice minister of public works. Initially, before Qing's troops arrived, he had warned subordinate generals not to fight. Yu Jing pressured military coordinator Chen Shu to sally forth and fight, and they were defeated and fled. When Qing arrived, he executed Shu and commanders Yuan Yong and others on the spot according to military law; Yu Jing started up and bowed. When the generals returned in triumph, Yu Jing alone remained in Guangxi; he sent men into the Temó Trail to capture Zhigao's mother, younger brother, and three sons, delivering them alive to the capital. He was added as academician of the Academy of Worthies, transferred to prefect of Tanzhou, and again to Qingzhou.
47
交阯蠻申紹泰寇邕州，殺五巡檢。 以靖安撫廣西，至則召交阯用事臣費嘉祐詰問之，嘉祐至，紿以近邊種落相侵報，誤犯官軍，願悉推治，還所掠及械罪人以自贖。 靖信之，厚謝遣去，嘉祐遂歸，不復出。
The Jiaozhi barbarian Shen Shaotai raided Yongzhou and killed five patrol inspectors. Yu Jing was made pacification commissioner of Guangxi; upon arrival he summoned Jiaozhi's powerful minister Fei Jiayou for questioning; when Jiayou came, he deceived them saying nearby border tribes had mutually raided and reported, mistakenly striking official troops, and wished to have all responsible parties punished, returning captives and criminals to redeem himself. Yu Jing believed him, thanked him warmly and sent him away; Jiayou then returned and did not come out again.
48
知廣州，官至工部尚書，代歸，卒。 三司使蔡襄為靖言，特贈刑部尚書，諡曰襄。 靖嘗夢神人告以所終官而死秦亭，故靖常畏西行。 及卒，則江寧府秦淮亭也。
He served as prefect of Guangzhou, rose to minister of public works, returned upon replacement, and died. Commissioner of the Three Departments Cai Xiang spoke on Yu Jing's behalf, and he was specially posthumously enfeoffed as minister of justice with the posthumous epithet Xiang. Yu Jing once dreamed that a spirit told him he would die at the rank he ultimately held, at Qin Pavilion; therefore he always feared going west. When he died, it was at the Qinhuai Pavilion in Jiangning Prefecture.
49
彭思永
Peng Siyong
50
彭思永，字季長，廬陵人。 第進士，知南海、分寧縣，通判睦州。 台州大水敗城，人多溺，往攝治焉。 盡葬死者，作文祭之； 民貧不能葺居，為伐木以助之，數月，公私之舍皆具，城築高於前，而堅亦如之。
Peng Siyong, courtesy name Jichang, was a native of Luling. He passed the jinshi examination and served as magistrate of Nanhai and Fenning counties and as vice-prefect of Muzhou. Great floods in Taizhou destroyed the city walls and many people drowned; he went to take charge of relief there. He buried all the dead and composed a text to sacrifice to them; the people were too poor to rebuild their dwellings, so he felled timber to assist them; within several months, public and private dwellings were all restored, and the walls were built higher than before and equally solid.
51
知潮州、常州。 入為侍御史，論內降授官賞之弊，謂斜封非盛世所當有，仁宗深然之。 皇祐祀明堂前一日，有傳百官皆進秩者。 思永言不宜濫恩，以益僥幸。 時張堯佐已貴而猶覬執政，王守忠已受寵而求旄節。 思永率同列言之，或曰：「俟命出，未晚也。」 思永曰：「先事而言，第得罪爾； 命一出，不可止矣。」 遂獨抗疏曰：「陛下覃此謬恩，豈為天下孤寒哉。 不過為堯佐、守忠取悅眾人耳。 外戚秉政，宦侍用權，非社稷之福也。」 帝怒，中丞郭勸、諫官吳奎為之請，乃以泛恩轉司封員外郎而解臺職，為湖北轉運使。
He served as prefect of Chaozhou and Changzhou. He entered court as attending censor, discussing the abuses of inner-palace bestowal of ranks and rewards, saying that irregular appointments were not what a flourishing age should have; Emperor Renzong deeply agreed. On the day before the Huangyou Bright Hall sacrifice, word spread that all officials would be advanced in rank. Siyong said indiscriminate grace should not be granted, as it would only increase opportunism. At the time Zhang Yaozuo was already honored yet still coveted a place in the government, and Wang Shouzhong had already received favor yet sought a military commission. Siyong led his colleagues in speaking on this; some said: "Wait until the edict is issued—it will not be too late. Siyong said: "To speak before the fact is merely to risk offense; once the edict is issued, it cannot be stopped. He thereupon submitted a memorial alone saying: "Your Majesty grants this mistaken grace—is it for the poor and isolated of all under heaven? It is nothing but to please the crowd for Yaozuo and Shouzhong. Imperial affines holding power and eunuch attendants wielding authority are no blessing to the altars of state. The emperor was angry; vice censor-in-chief Guo Quan and remonstrator Wu Kui pleaded on his behalf; he was thereupon transferred to assistant director in the Ministry of Rites through general grace and relieved of censorial duty, becoming transport commissioner of Hubei.
52
下溪蠻彭仕羲作亂，先移書激罵辰州守。 守將討之，思永按部適至，仕羲懼，遣使迎謝，寢其謀。
The Xixi barbarian Peng Shiyi rebelled; he first sent a letter with fierce abuse to the prefect of Chenzhou. The defending general attacked him; Siyong happened to be on inspection tour and arrived; Shiyi grew afraid, sent envoys to welcome and apologize, and abandoned his plot.
53
加直史館，為益州路轉運使。 成都府吏盜公錢，付獄已三歲，出入自如。 思永攝府事甫一日，即具獄。 民以楮券為市，藏衣帶中，盜置刃於爪，捷取之，鮮敗者。 思永得一人詰之，悉黥其黨隸兵間。 中使歲祠峨眉，率留成都掊珍玩，價直數百萬錢，悉出於民。 思永朘其三之一，使怒去，而不能有所中傷也。
He was added to appointment in the Direct Historiography Office and made transport commissioner of Yizhou Circuit. A clerk of Chengdu Prefecture stole public funds; after being put in prison for three years, he came and went as he pleased. Siyong took charge of the prefecture for only one day and immediately completed the case. The people used paper notes as currency, keeping them in their belts; thieves placed blades in their fingernails and swiftly snatched them—few were caught. Siyong caught one man and interrogated him, then tattooed the entire gang and assigned them among the troops. Imperial envoys annually sacrificed at Mount Emei and always stayed in Chengdu to extort precious curios worth millions, all extracted from the people. Siyong reduced this by one third; the envoy left in anger but could do no harm.
54
尋為戶部副使，擢天章閣待制、河北都轉運使、知瀛州。 北俗以桑麻為產籍，民懼賦不敢藝，日益貧，思永始奏更之。 徒知江寧府。
Soon after he became vice commissioner of revenue, was promoted to awaiting draftsman of the Hall of Heavenly Manifestations, metropolitan transport commissioner of Hebei, and prefect of Yingzhou. Northern custom used mulberry and hemp as production registers; the people feared taxation and dared not cultivate, growing poorer day by day; Siyong was the first to memorialize for a change. He was transferred to prefect of Jiangning Prefecture.
55
治平中，召為御史中丞。 濮王有稱親之議，言事者爭之，皆斥去。 思永更上疏極論曰：「濮王生陛下，而仁宗以陛下為嗣，是仁宗為皇考，而濮王於屬為伯，此天地大義，生人大倫。 如乾坤定位，不可得而變也。 陛下為仁廟子，曰考曰親，乃仁廟也； 若更施於濮王，是有二親矣。 使王與諸父夷等，無有殊別，則於大孝之心亦為難安。 臣以為當尊為濮國大王，祭告之辭，則曰『侄嗣皇帝書名昭告於皇伯父』。 在王則極尊崇之道，而於仁廟亦無所嫌矣，此萬世之法也。」 疏入，英宗感其切至，垂欲施行，而中書持之甚力，卒不果。
During the Zhiping era he was summoned as vice censor-in-chief. There was debate over calling the Prince of Pu a parent; remonstrators argued fiercely and were all dismissed. Siyong submitted another memorial arguing forcefully: "The Prince of Pu begat Your Majesty, yet Emperor Renzong took Your Majesty as heir—thus Emperor Renzong is imperial father, and the Prince of Pu in kinship terms is paternal uncle; this is the great righteousness of Heaven and Earth and the great norm of human relations. It is like the positioning of Heaven and Earth—it cannot be changed. Your Majesty is the son of Emperor Ren; you call him Father and Parent—that refers to Emperor Ren; if this is also applied to the Prince of Pu, there would be two parents. If the Prince is made equal to other paternal uncles without special distinction, then the heart of great filial piety would also find this hard to accept. I believe he should be honored as Prince of Pu, and in the sacrificial announcement it should read: "Nephew and Successor Emperor [name] announces to Imperial Paternal Uncle." For the Prince this is the utmost path of honor, and for Emperor Ren there is also no cause for offense—this is the law for ten thousand generations. When the memorial was submitted, Emperor Yingzong was moved by its earnestness and was about to implement it, but the Secretariat held fast and in the end it did not come to pass.
56
思永仁厚廉恕。 為兒時，旦起就學，得金釵於門外，默坐其處。 須臾亡釵者來物色，審之良是，即付之。 其人欲謝以錢，思永笑曰：「使我欲之，則匿金矣。」 始就舉，持數釧為資。 同舉者過之，出而玩，或墜其一於袖間，眾相為求索。 思永曰：「數止此耳。」 客去，舉手揖，釧墜於地，眾皆服其量。 居母喪，窶甚，鄉人饋之，無所受。 子：衛，亦孝謹，以父老，棄官家居十餘年，族里稱之。
Siyong was benevolent, generous, honest, and forgiving. As a child, rising early to go to study, he found a gold hairpin outside the gate and sat silently in that spot. Before long the owner of the lost pin came searching; after verifying it was indeed hers, he gave it to her. The person wished to thank him with money; Siyong smiled and said: "If I had wanted it, I would have hidden the gold. When he first went to take the examination, he carried several bracelets as capital. Fellow examinees visited; one took them out to play with, and one fell into his sleeve; all searched together. Siyong said: "The number stops here. When the guest left, he raised his hand in farewell and the bracelet fell to the ground; all admired his magnanimity. While in mourning for his mother he was extremely impoverished; neighbors offered gifts but he accepted none. Son: Wei, also filial and careful; because his father was elderly, he abandoned office and lived at home for more than ten years; kinsmen praised him.
57
張存，字誠之，冀州人。 舉進士，為安肅軍判官。 天禧中，詔銓司以身言書判取士，才得二人，存預其選。 改著作佐郎，知大名府朝城縣。 寇準為守，異待之。 御史中丞王曙，屢薦為殿中侍御史，遷侍御史。
Zhang Cun, courtesy name Chengzhi, was a native of Jizhou. He passed the jinshi examination and served as judicial aide of Ansu Army. In the Tianxi era, an edict ordered the Personnel Bureau to select officials by personal conduct, speech, and document judgment; only two men qualified, and Cun was among them. He was changed to assistant compiler and served as magistrate of Chaocheng County in Daming Prefecture. Kou Zhun was prefect and treated him with special regard. Vice censor-in-chief Wang Shu repeatedly recommended him as attending censor in the palace and promoted him to attending censor.
58
仁宗初親政，罷百官轉對，存請復之。 又言：「前者曹修古輩同忤旨廢黜，布衣林獻可因上封事竄惡地，恐自今忠直之言，與夫理亂安危之機，蔽而不達。」 因歷引周昌、朱雲、辛慶忌、辛毗事，以開帝意。 歷京東陝西、河北、轉運使、戶部度支副使。 西邊動兵，以天章閣待制為陝西都轉運使。
When Emperor Renzong first personally assumed governance, the rotation of officials for direct audience was abolished; Zhang Cun requested its restoration. He also said: "Previously Cao Xiugu and his like were all dismissed for opposing the imperial will; commoner Lin Xiank submitted a sealed memorial and was banished to a harsh place—I fear that from now on loyal and upright words, and the turning points of order and chaos, safety and danger, will be blocked and not reach you. He thereupon cited in succession the cases of Zhou Chang, Zhu Yun, Xin Qingji, and Xin Pi to open the emperor's mind. He served successively as transport commissioner of Jingdong, Shaanxi, and Hebei, and as vice commissioner of revenue. When war was launched on the western frontier, he was made awaiting draftsman of the Hall of Heavenly Manifestations and metropolitan transport commissioner of Shaanxi.
59
黃德和之誣劉平也，存奏言：「平與敵接戰，自旦至暮，殺傷相當，因德和引卻，以致潰敗。 方賊勢甚張，非平搏戰，其勢必不沮； 延州孤壘，非平解圍，其城必不守。 身既陷沒，而不幸又為讒狡所困，邊臣自此無復死節矣。」 朝廷采其說，始遣文彥博按治，由是平得直，而德和誅。
When Huang Dehe falsely accused Liu Ping, Zhang Cun submitted a memorial saying: "Ping engaged the enemy from dawn to dusk with roughly equal casualties; because Dehe withdrew, defeat and rout followed. Just as the bandits' momentum was at its height, had Ping not fought them, their momentum would surely not have been checked; Yanzhou was an isolated fortress; had Ping not broken the siege, the city would surely not have been held. He has already fallen in battle, yet unhappily is further trapped by slanderous and cunning men—from this border officials will no longer die for their integrity. The court adopted his proposal and first dispatched Wen Yanbo to investigate; thereby Liu Ping was vindicated and Dehe was executed.
60
元昊求款附，議者猶執攻討之策。 存建言：「兵役不息，生民疲弊。 敵既有悛心，雖名號未正，頗羈縻之。」 遷龍圖閣直學士，知延州。 以母老憚行，徙澤州，還為待制。 逾年，知成德軍，復學士。
Yuan Hao sought to submit, yet debaters still clung to strategies of attack and suppression. Zhang Cun submitted a proposal: "Military service does not cease and the people are worn and impoverished. The enemy already has a mind to reform; though his titles are not yet regularized, he should be tethered and managed. He was promoted to academician of the Dragon Designs Pavilion and made prefect of Yanzhou. Because his mother was old he feared the journey and was transferred to Zezhou, then returned as awaiting draftsman. After a year he served as prefect of Chengdé Army and was restored as academician.
61
契丹與元昊結昏，陰謀相首尾，聚兵塞上而求關南。 存言：「河北城久不治，宜留意。」 乃以為都運使，盡城諸州。 入知開封府，復使河北。 王則反，坐失察，降知汀州。
The Khitan formed a marriage alliance with Yuan Hao and secretly plotted to act in concert, massing troops on the border to demand the southern passes. Zhang Cun said: "The cities of Hebei have long gone unrepaired; attention should be paid." He was thereupon made metropolitan transport commissioner and walled all the prefectures. He entered court as prefect of Kaifeng and was again dispatched to Hebei. When Wang Ze rebelled, Zhang Cun was punished for failure of oversight and demoted to prefect of Tingzhou.
62
存婿李敭之弟李教，因醉為妖言，事覺自縊死。 或言教不死，在貝州，父母私屬以存故得免。 御史案驗無狀，猶奪職知池州，又徙郴。 久之，乃復職，以吏部侍郎致仕，凡十五年，積遷禮部尚書。
Zhang Cun's son-in-law Li Yang's younger brother Li Jiao, while drunk, uttered sorcerous words; when the matter was discovered he hanged himself. Some said Jiao did not die but was in Beizhou; his parents and private associates were spared on Zhang Cun's account. Censors investigated and found no substance, yet Zhang Cun was still stripped of office and posted as prefect of Chizhou, then transferred to Chen. After a long time his office was restored; he retired as vice minister of personnel; over fifteen years he accumulated promotions to minister of rites.
63
存性孝友，嘗為蜀郡，得奇繒文錦以歸，悉布之堂上，恣兄弟擇取。 常曰：「兄弟，手足也； 妻妾，外舍人耳。 奈何先外人而後手足乎？」 收恤宗屬，嫁聘窮嫠，不使一人失所。 家居矜莊，子孫非正衣冠不見。 與賓友燕接，垂足危坐終日，未嘗傾倚。 棗強河決，勢逼冀城，或勸使他徒，曰：「吾家，眾所望也，苟輕舉動，使一州吏民何以自安。」 訖不徙。 卒，年八十八，諡恭安。
Zhang Cun was filial and friendly by nature; once while serving in a Shu prefecture he obtained rare silks and brocades and brought them home, spreading them all in the hall and letting his brothers choose freely. He often said: "Brothers are hands and feet; wives and concubines are merely outsiders. How can one put outsiders before hands and feet? He gathered and supported clansmen, arranging marriages and betrothals for impoverished widows, not letting a single person lose their place. At home he was dignified and solemn; he would not see his children and grandchildren unless they wore proper dress. When feasting and receiving guests and friends, he sat upright with feet hanging all day long, never leaning back. When the Zaoqiang River burst its banks and the flood threatened Jicheng, some urged him to move elsewhere; he said: "My household is what the multitude looks to; if I act rashly, how can the officials and people of the whole prefecture find peace?" In the end he did not move. He died at the age of eighty-eight and was granted the posthumous epithet Respectful and Tranquil.
64
論曰：蔡襄、王素、余靖，皆昭陵賢御史也。 襄數論治體，推韓琦、范仲淹之賢。 素請罷不急之賞，論仁宗納二女子為非。 靖黜夏竦、王舉正為不可用。 蓋仁宗銳於求治，數君子提綱振紀而扶持之，卒成慶曆之治，良有以也。 夫襄精於民事，吏不敢欺； 靖用兵蠻徼，卒收功名； 素在西邊多惠政，其尹開封，雖頗厭煩劇，再為渭州，邊民老幼，至相率稱賀，其惠之在民者，深矣哉。 若呂溱論陳執中，則不欲以口舌中人。 彭思永名士，能識程頤之賢，而不能容歐陽修之剛； 蔣之奇之誣，竟坐是黜，士論憾之。 劉平之死，眾莫敢言，張存獨處而明之。 使忠義之氣，死而復生，較之諸人，亦無忝焉。
The commentator says: Cai Xiang, Wang Su, and Yu Jing were all worthy censors of Emperor Renzong's reign. Cai Xiang repeatedly discussed the fundamentals of governance and promoted the worth of Han Qi and Fan Zhongyan. Wang Su requested abolition of non-urgent rewards and argued that Emperor Renzong's acceptance of two women was wrong. Yu Jing dismissed Xia Song and Wang Juzheng as unfit for office. Emperor Renzong was keen to seek good governance; these several gentlemen raised the standards and restored discipline while supporting him, ultimately achieving the governance of the Qingli era—there was good reason for it. Cai Xiang was skilled in civil affairs and clerks dared not deceive him; Yu Jing used troops on the barbarian frontier and ultimately won merit and fame; Wang Su enacted many benevolent policies on the western frontier; though as prefect of Kaifeng he grew weary of arduous duties, when he again served as prefect of Weizhou, old and young among the border people joined in congratulating him—the depth of his bounty to the people was profound indeed. As for Lü Zhen's discussion of Chen Zhizhong, he did not wish to strike at a man with words alone. Peng Siyong was a renowned scholar, able to recognize the worth of Cheng Yi yet unable to tolerate the forthrightness of Ouyang Xiu; Jiang Zhiqi's false accusation ultimately led to Siyong's dismissal on that account, and scholarly opinion regretted it. At Liu Ping's death, none dared speak; Zhang Cun alone stood apart and clarified the truth. He caused the spirit of loyalty and righteousness to live again after death; compared with the others, he was not unworthy.