Volume 408 Biographies 167: Wu Changyi, Wang Gang, Chen Mi, Wang Ting

吳昌裔汪綱陳宓王霆

Wu Changyi, Wang Gang, Chen Mi, and Wang Ting

吳昌裔，字季永，中江人。蚤孤，與兄泳痛自植立，不肯逐時好，得程頤、張載、朱熹諸書，輒研繹不倦。嘉定七年舉進士，聞漢陽守黃幹得熹之學，往從之。

Wu Changyi, styled Jiyong, was a native of Zhongjiang. Orphaned in childhood, he and his elder brother Yong rigorously made their own way in the world, refusing to follow prevailing fashions. Whenever he obtained works by Cheng Yi, Zhang Zai, Zhu Xi, and others, he would study and interpret them tirelessly. In the seventh year of the Jiading reign (1214) he passed the jinshi examination. Hearing that Huang Gan, prefect of Hanyang, had inherited Zhu Xi's teaching, he went to study under him.

調閩中尉。利路轉運使曹彥約聞其賢，俾司糴場。時歲饑，議糴上流，昌裔請發本倉所儲數萬而徐糴以償，從之。調眉州教授。眉士故尚蘇軾學，昌裔取諸經為之講說，祠周惇頤及顥、頤、載、熹，揭《白鹿洞學規》，仿潭州釋奠儀，簿正祭器，士習丕變。製置使崔與之薦之，改知華陽縣。修學宮，來四方士，斥羨錢二十萬緡，買良田備旱。通判眉州，著《苦言》十篇，慮蜀甚悉。攝郡事，禦軍有紀律。尋權漢州，故事比攝官，奉饋皆如真，昌裔命削其半。核兵籍，興社倉，郡政畢舉。興元帥趙彥呐議東納武仙，西結秦、鞏，人莫敢言，昌裔獨奮筆力辨其非。未幾，武仙敗，二州之民果叛。

He was appointed assistant in the Minzhong guard office. Cao Yanyue, transport commissioner of the Lili circuit, heard of his ability and put him in charge of the grain-purchase stations. There was a famine that year. When officials proposed buying grain upstream, Changyi asked that tens of thousands of piculs stored in the local granary be released first and gradually repurchased to make restitution. His plan was adopted. He was transferred to serve as instructor at Meizhou. The scholars of Meizhou had long favored Su Shi's school of learning. Changyi lectured on the classics instead, erected shrines to Zhou Dunyi and to Hao, Cheng Yi, Zhang Zai, and Zhu Xi, posted the White Deer Grotto Academy regulations, imitated the Tanzhou libation ceremony, put the ritual vessels in proper order on the register, and scholarly practice was thoroughly transformed. Pacification commissioner Cui Yuzhi recommended him, and he was appointed magistrate of Huayang County. He restored the county school, attracted scholars from all quarters, spent two hundred thousand strings of surplus funds, and purchased fertile fields as a reserve against drought. As vice-prefect of Meizhou, he wrote ten chapters of Bitter Words, expressing very thorough concern for the security of Shu. While acting prefect, he kept the troops under strict discipline. Soon afterward he served as acting prefect of Hanzhou. By precedent, acting officials received stipends and gifts equal to those of regular appointees; Changyi ordered these cut in half. He audited the military registers, established community granaries, and brought prefectural administration fully up to standard. Zhao Yan'a, military commissioner of Xingyuan, proposed accepting the Jin general Wuxian in the east and allying with Qin and Gong in the west. No one else dared object, but Changyi alone took up his brush and argued forcefully that the plan was wrong. Before long Wuxian was defeated, and the people of the two prefectures did in fact revolt.

台臣故事，季詣獄點檢。時有爭常州田萬四千畝，平江亦數百畝，株逮百餘人，視其牘，乃趙善湘之子汝櫄、汝榟也，州縣不敢決，昌裔連疏劾罷之。冬洊雷，春大雨雪，昌裔居齋宮秉燭草疏，凡上躬缺失，宮庭嬖私，廟堂除授，皆以為言。又言：“將帥方命，女寵私謁，舊黨之用，邊疆之禍，皆此陰類。 ”且曰：“今大昕坐朝，間有時不視事之文；私第謁假，或有時不入堂之報。上有耽樂慆逸之漸，下無協恭和衷之風。內則嬖禦懷私，為君心之蠹；外則子弟寡謹，為朝政之累。遊言噂遝，寵賂章聞，欲《簫》、《勺》大和，得乎？”

By censorial precedent, each season the censor went to the prison to inspect the inmates. At the time a dispute arose over fourteen thousand mu of land in Changzhou and several hundred mu in Pingjiang, implicating more than a hundred people. When he examined the documents, he found that the claimants were Zhao Shanxiang's sons Ruchao and Ruzi. The prefecture and county dared not decide the case, so Changyi submitted successive memorials impeaching them until they were removed from office. Repeated thunder sounded in winter, and heavy rain and snow fell in spring. Changyi stayed in the fasting palace, drafting memorials by candlelight. He spoke on every matter touching the emperor's own conduct, palace favorites and private interests, and court appointments. He also wrote: "Generals who defy orders, private audiences granted to imperial consorts, the reuse of old faction members, and frontier disasters—all stem from this class of hidden influence." He went on: "Nowadays the emperor holds court at dawn, yet from time to time there appear notices that he is not attending to affairs;" "from his private residence come requests for leave, and sometimes reports that he has not entered the audience hall." Above, there are signs that the emperor is slipping into indulgence and idleness; below, there is no spirit of united respect and harmony among officials. Within the palace, favored attendants pursue private ends and eat away at the ruler's judgment; outside it, the emperor's sons and younger kinsmen lack restraint and burden court administration. Loose talk and slander abound, and favor and bribes are openly reported. How can one expect the great harmony of the Xiao and Shao music?

又念蜀事阽危，條四事以進：實規橅，審功賞，訪軍實，儲帥才。時有果、閬州守臣逃遁而進職，有知遂寧李煒父子足跡不至邊庭而受賞，僨軍之趙楷、棄城之朱揚祖皆不加罰；又帥臣趙彥呐年老智衰，其子淫刑黷貨，士卒不用命，安癸仲恥遭抨彈，經營復用，欲起謫籍以代帥垣，昌裔皆抗疏彈擊。

Concerned that affairs in Shu were on the brink of collapse, he submitted four proposals: put planning on a solid footing, scrutinize rewards for merit, investigate the true state of the army, and cultivate a reserve of commanders. At the time prefects of Guo and Langzhou who had fled were promoted in rank. Li Wei, prefect of Suining, and his son received rewards though their footsteps never reached the frontier. Zhao Kai, who had incited mutiny in the army, and Zhu Yangzu, who had abandoned his city, were not punished at all; and military commissioner Zhao Yan'a was old and failing in judgment, while his son inflicted cruel punishments and took bribes and the troops would not obey orders. An Guizhong, shamed at being impeached, maneuvered for reinstatement and sought to recall men from the banishment rolls to replace the frontier command—Changyi submitted forceful memorials attacking each of these abuses.

又曆言三邊之事曰：“今朝廷之上，百辟晏然，言論多於施行，浮文妨於實務。後族王宮之冗費，列曹坐局之常程，群工閑慢之差除，諸道非泛之申請，以至土木經營，時節宴遊，神霄祈禳，大禮錫賚，藻飾治具，無異平時。至於治兵足食之方，脩車備馬之事，乃缺略不講。 ”且援靖康之敝，痛哭言之。

He also spoke at length on affairs along the three frontiers: "At court today the hundred officials are at ease. Talk outruns action, and empty paperwork obstructs real work." Redundant spending on empresses' kin and princely palaces, the routine paperwork of the various bureaus, leisurely transfers among officials, non-routine petitions from the circuits, construction projects, seasonal banquets and excursions, Shenxiao prayers and exorcisms, great ritual gifts and grants, and ornamental displays of good government—all continued as in normal times. Yet methods for training troops and securing provisions, and for repairing chariots and preparing horses, were neglected entirely. He cited the disasters of the Jingkang era and spoke through tears.

出為大理少卿，屢疏引去，不許。會杜範再入台，擊參政李鳴復，謂昌裔與範善，必相為謀者，數讒之，以權工部侍郎出參讚四川宣撫司軍事。人曰：“此李綱救太原也。太原不可救，特以綱主戰，故出之耳。 ”昌裔曰：“君命也，不可不亟行。 ”慷慨襆被出關，忽得疾，中道病甚，帝聞之，授秘閣修撰，改嘉興府。昌裔曰：“吾以疾不能歸救父母，上負聖恩，下負此心，若舍遠就近，舍危就安，人其謂我何？ ”辭至四五，而言者以避事論矣。

He was appointed Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. He repeatedly memorialized asking to resign, but was not permitted to do so. When Du Fan reentered the Censorate and attacked Vice Grand Councilor Li Mingfu, opponents said that Changyi and Fan were close and must be acting in concert. Changyi was slandered repeatedly and, as Acting Vice Minister of Works, was sent out to assist the military affairs of the Sichuan Pacification Commission. People said, "This is like Li Gang being sent to save Taiyuan." "Taiyuan could not be saved; Li Gang was sent out only because he favored war." Changyi replied, "It is the ruler's command. I must set out at once." He wrapped his bedding with high resolve and set out through the pass. Suddenly he fell ill, and on the road his condition grew grave. When the emperor heard of it, he appointed him Hanlin compiler in the Secretariat Pavilion and transferred him to Jiaxing prefecture. Changyi said, "Because of illness I cannot go back to save my parents. I fail the emperor above and my own conscience below. If I abandon the distant post for a nearby one, abandon danger for safety, what will people say of me?" He declined four or five times, and critics accused him of shirking duty.

改贛州，辭，以右文殿修撰主管鴻慶宮。遷浙東提刑，辭，改知婺州。婺告旱，民日夜望之，乃不忍終辭，減騶從供帳，遣僚佐召邑令周行阡陌，蠲粟八萬一千石、錢二十五萬緡有奇。加集英殿修撰，卒，以寶章閣待制致仕。

He was transferred to Ganzhou, declined the post, and served as Right Culture Hall compiler in charge of Hongqing Palace. He was promoted to judicial intendant of Eastern Zhejiang, declined, and was appointed prefect of Wuzhou instead. Wuzhou reported drought, and the people looked to him day and night. He could not bring himself to decline the post after all. He reduced his escort and official expenses, sent aides to summon county magistrates to tour the fields, and remitted eighty-one thousand piculs of grain and more than two hundred fifty thousand strings of cash. He was promoted to compiler at the Hall for Assembling Excellence. When he died, he was granted retirement with the title of Baozhang Pavilion attendant.

昌裔剛正莊重，遇事敢言，典章多所閑習。嚐輯至和、紹興諸臣奏議本末。名《儲鑒》。又會粹周、漢以至宋蜀道得失，興師取財之所，名《蜀鑒》。有奏議、《四書講義》、《鄉約口義》、《諸老記聞》、《容台議禮》、文集行於世。

Changyi was upright, stern, and dignified, daring to speak out on public affairs, and well versed in regulations and statutes. He once compiled the origins and outcomes of memorial proposals by ministers of the Zhihe and Shaoxing eras. He titled it Stored Mirror. He also compiled the successes and failures along the Shu routes from Zhou and Han down to Song, and the places where armies were raised and wealth extracted, titling the work Mirror of Shu. His Memorial Proposals, Lectures on the Meaning of the Four Books, Oral Expositions of the Village Compact, Records Heard from Various Elders, Rites Discussed at the Guest Terrace, and collected writings circulated in his day.

初，昌裔與徐清叟、杜範一日並入台，皆天下正士，四方想聞風采，人至和《三諫詩》以侈之。然才七閱月以遷，故莫不惋惜雲。後諡忠肅。

Earlier Changyi had entered the Censorate on the same day as Xu Qingsou and Du Fan. All three were men of integrity known throughout the realm, and people everywhere looked to their example. Some even composed a Three Remonstrators Poem in their praise. Yet after only seven months he was transferred, and all regretted it deeply. He was later given the posthumous title Loyal and Stern.

汪綱，字仲舉，黟縣人，簽書樞密院勃之曾孫也。以祖任入官，淳熙十四年中銓試，調鎮江府司戶參軍。

Wang Gang, styled Zhongju, was a native of Yixian County and the great-grandson of Bo, who had held the post of document signer at the Bureau of Military Affairs. He entered office through his grandfather's yin privilege. In the fourteenth year of the Chunxi reign (1187) he passed the selection examination and was appointed revenue recorder of Zhenjiang prefecture.

馬大同鎮京口，強毅自任，綱言論獨不詭隨。議者欲以兩淮鐵錢交子行於沿江，廷議令大同倡率行之，綱貽書曰：“邊麵行鐵錢，慮銅寶泄於外耳。私鑄盛行，故錢輕而物重。今若場務出納不以鐵錢取息，堅守四色請買舊制，冶鑄定額不求餘羨，重禁以戢私鑄，支散邊戍與在軍中半者無異，不以鐵錢準折，則淮民將自便之，何至以敝內郡邪？ ”大同始悟。試湖南轉運司，又中，綱笑曰：“此豈足以用世澤物耶？ ”乃刻意問學，博通古今，精究義理；覃思本原。

When Ma Datong was stationed at Jingkou, he was forceful and self-willed. Gang alone refused to bend his views to please him. Some officials proposed circulating the Huai region's iron cash exchange notes along the Yangzi coast. The court ordered Datong to take the lead in implementing the plan. Gang wrote to him: "On the frontier they use iron cash because they fear copper currency leaking abroad." Private coining is widespread, so money is cheap and goods dear. If market stations no longer took interest in iron cash on receipts and disbursements, if the old four-color purchase system were strictly upheld, if smelting quotas were fixed without seeking surplus profit, if private coining were sternly suppressed, and if payments to frontier garrisons were made no differently than to troops in the interior, without converting at iron-cash rates, the people of the Huai region would find their own remedy. Why harm the inner commanderies? Datong then saw the point. He passed the Hunan transport office examination as well. Gang laughed and said, "How can this be enough to serve the world and benefit the people?" He then devoted himself to serious study, mastering past and present and probing principle to its roots; and pondered deeply the foundations of learning.

調桂陽軍平陽縣令，縣連溪峒，蠻蜒與居，綱一遇以恩信。科罰之害既三十年，綱下車，首白諸台，罷之。桂陽歲貢銀二萬九千餘兩，而平陽當其三分之二。綱謂向者銀礦坌發價輕，故可勉以應，今地寶已竭，市於他郡，其價倍蓰，願力請痛蠲損之。歲饑，旁邑有曹伍者，群聚惡少入境，強貸發廩，眾至千餘，挾界頭、牛橋二砦兵為援，地盤踞萬山間，前後令未嚐一涉其境，不虞綱之至也，相率出迎。綱已夙具酒食，令之曰：“汝何敢亂，順者得食，亂者就誅。 ”夜宿砦中，呼砦官詰責不能防守狀，皆皇恐伏地請死，杖其首惡者八人，發粟振糶，民賴以安。

He was appointed magistrate of Pingyang County in Guiyang Command. The county bordered stream gorges where Man and Yan peoples lived. Gang won them over from the first with kindness and good faith. Penal levies had plagued the county for thirty years. As soon as Gang took office, he reported to the censorial offices and had them abolished. Guiyang Command annually presented more than twenty-nine thousand taels of silver, of which Pingyang County was responsible for two-thirds. Gang said that formerly silver mines had been abundant and prices low, so the quota could barely be met. Now the local deposits were exhausted and silver had to be bought in other commanderies at more than double the price. He petitioned urgently for a sharp reduction in the quota. During a famine year, a man named Cao Wu in a neighboring county gathered ruffians to cross the border, forcibly borrowing grain and breaking open granaries. His band numbered more than a thousand and was backed by troops from the Jietou and Niuqiao forts. The region lay among countless mountains, and no previous magistrate had ever ventured there. They did not expect Gang to come, but when he did they came out together to meet him. Gang had already prepared wine and food. He ordered them: "How dare you make trouble? Those who submit will be fed; those who resist will be executed." He spent the night in the fort, summoned the fort officers, and rebuked them for failing to keep order. They prostrated themselves in terror and begged for death. He caned the eight ringleaders, released grain, and sold relief grain at fair prices, and the people were restored to peace.

改知金壇縣，親嫌，更弋陽縣。父義和為侍御史主管佑神觀。尋丁父喪，服除，知蘭溪縣，決擿如神。歲旱，郡倚辦勸分，綱謂勸分所以助義倉，一切行之，非所謂安富恤貧也，願假常平錢為糶本，使得循環迭濟。又躬勸富民浚築塘堰，大興水利，餓者得食其力，全活甚眾。郡守張抑及部使者列綱為一道荒政之冠。以言去，邑人相率投軌直其事，綱力止之。

He was appointed magistrate of Jintan County, but because of a kinship taboo was transferred to Yiyang County instead. His father Yihe had served as investigating censor in charge of the You Shen Observatory. He soon mourned his father's death. When the mourning period ended, he was appointed magistrate of Lanxi County, where his judgments seemed almost uncanny in their accuracy. In a drought year the prefecture relied on organizing mutual aid among the wealthy. Gang said mutual aid was meant to supplement the charity granaries, and applying it wholesale was not true relief for the poor. He asked to borrow Ever-Normal granary funds as capital for relief sales so that grain could circulate and aid the needy in turn. He also personally urged wealthy households to dredge ponds and build weirs, greatly expanding irrigation works. The hungry earned their food by labor, and very many lives were saved. Prefect Zhang Yi and the circuit envoy ranked Gang the foremost in famine relief in the circuit. He left office after speaking out on policy. The people of the district threw themselves before his carriage to plead his case, but Gang firmly stopped them.

繼知太平縣，主管兩浙轉運司文字，未赴，罹內艱，擢監行在左藏西庫。屬金人殺其主允濟自立，遣使來告襲位，議者即欲遣幣，綱言：‘使名不遜，當止之境上，姑命左帑視例計辦，或且留京口總司，令盱眙諭之曰：‘紀年名節，皆犯先朝避忌，歲幣乃爾前主所增，今既易代，當復隆興、大定之舊。 ’俟此議定，而後正旦、生辰之使可遣。遲以歲月，吾擇邊將葺城堡，簡軍實，儲峙糗糧，使沿邊屹然有不可犯之勢，聽其自相攻擊，然後以全力製其後。 ”廟堂韙之。

He next served as magistrate of Taiping County and was assigned to handle documents for the Two-Zhe transport office, but before he could take up the latter post he mourned a close relative and was promoted to supervise the Western Treasury of the Left Storehouse at the capital. When the Jurchens killed their ruler Yunji and enthroned a new emperor, they sent envoys to announce the succession. Some officials at once wanted to send tribute missions. Gang said: "The envoy's title is disrespectful. He should be stopped at the border. For the moment order the Left Treasury to examine precedent and make arrangements, or detain him at the Jingkou headquarters and have Chuyi instruct him: 'Your reign title and personal name both violate our dynasty's taboos. The annual tribute was increased by your former ruler. Now that the throne has changed, it should revert to the Longxing and Dading precedents.'" 'Only after this matter is settled should envoys for New Year's Day and the emperor's birthday be dispatched.' Delay for months while we choose frontier generals to repair fortifications, streamline the army, and stock provisions, until the border stands in an posture that cannot be violated. Let them fight among themselves, and then strike with full force from behind. The court approved his plan.

提轄東西庫，又幹辦諸司審計司。以選知高郵軍，陛辭，言：“揚、楚二州當各屯二萬人，壯其聲勢，而以高郵為家計砦。高郵三面阻水，湖澤奧阻，戎馬所不能騁，獨西南一路直距天長，無險可守，乃去城六十里隨地經畫，或浚溝塹，或備設伏，以扼其衝。 ”又慮湖可以入淮，招水卒五千人造百艘列三砦以戒非常。興化民田濱海，昔範仲淹築堰以障寫鹵，守毛澤民置石達函管以疏運河水勢，歲久皆壞，綱乃增修之。部使者聞於朝，增一秩，提舉淮東常平。淮米越江有禁，綱念“淮民有警則室廬莫保，歲凶則轉徙無歸，豐年可以少蘇，重以苛禁，自分畛域，豈為民父母意哉！請下金陵糴三十萬以通淮西之運，京口糴五十萬以通淮東之運。 ”又言：“兩淮之積不可多，昇、潤之積不可少。平江積米數百萬，陳陳相因，久而紅腐，宜視其收貯近久，取餉輦下百司、諸軍。江上歲餫當至京者，貯之京口、金陵轉漕。兩淮、中都諸倉，亦當廣糴以補其數。”

He supervised the Eastern and Western treasuries and also handled affairs for the Various Offices Audit Bureau. Selected as prefect of Gaoyou Command, he took leave of the emperor and said: "Yangzhou and Chuzhou should each station twenty thousand troops to strengthen their defensive posture, with Gaoyou serving as the home-base fort." Gaoyou is blocked by water on three sides; its lakes and marshes are deep and difficult, and cavalry cannot operate there. Only the southwest route runs straight toward Tianchang with no natural defenses. He therefore went sixty li from the city to plan defenses according to the terrain—dredging ditches and moats in some places, setting ambushes in others—to block the approach. He also feared that the lake could provide a route into the Huai River. He recruited five thousand naval troops, built a hundred vessels, and stationed three forts as a guard against surprise attack. The farmland of Xinghua bordered the sea. Fan Zhongyan had once built dikes to keep out salt tides, and prefect Mao Zemin had installed stone culverts to regulate the transport canal's flow. After many years these works had fallen into ruin, and Gang enlarged and repaired them. The circuit envoy reported his work to court. Gang was raised one rank and appointed intendant of Huaidong Ever-Normal granaries. Transport of Huai rice across the Yangzi was forbidden. Gang reflected: "When alarm comes to the Huai region, homes cannot be preserved. In lean years people wander with nowhere to return. In good years they might recover a little—yet harsh prohibitions divide regions against one another. Is this how a parent official should act?" He asked that three hundred thousand piculs be purchased at Jinling to open transport to western Huai, and five hundred thousand at Jingkou to open transport to eastern Huai. He also said: "Grain reserves in the Two Huai cannot be too large, while reserves in Sheng and Run cannot be too small." Pingjiang had millions of piculs in store, piled year upon year until the grain turned red and rotted. He proposed that grain be issued according to how long it had been stored, to supply the capital offices and armies. Annual grain transport due to reach the capital along the Yangzi should be stored at Jingkou and Jinling for relay shipment. Granaries in the Two Huai and the central capital region should also purchase grain broadly to replenish their stocks.

製置使訪綱備禦孰宜先，綱言：“淮地自昔號財賦淵藪，西有鐵冶，東富魚稻，足以自給。淮右多山，淮左多水，足以自固。誠能合兩淮為一家，兵財通融，聲勢合一，雖不假江、浙之力可也。祖宗盛時，邊郡所儲足支十年；慶曆間，中山一鎮尚百八十萬石。今宜上法先朝，令商旅入粟近塞，而算請錢貨於京師。入粟拜爵，守之以信，則輸者必多，邊儲不患不豐。州郡禁兵本非供役，乃就糧外郡耳，今不為戰鬥用，乃使之共力役，緩急戍守，專倚大軍，指日待更，不安風土，豈若土兵生長邊地，墳墓室家，人自為守邪？當精擇伉壯，廣其尺籍，悉隸御前軍額，分擘券給以助州郡衣糧之供，大率如山陽武鋒軍製，則邊麵不必抽江上之戍，江上不必出禁闈之師。生券更番，勞費俱息。”

The pacification commissioner asked Gang which defensive measures should come first. Gang said: "The Huai region has long been called a treasury of wealth. It has ironworks in the west and abundant fish and rice in the east—enough for self-sufficiency." Western Huai has many mountains and eastern Huai much water—enough for self-defense. If the Two Huai could truly be united as one, with troops and resources pooled and their defensive strength combined, they could hold their own even without relying on Jiangsu and Zhejiang. In the dynasty's flourishing age, frontier stores sufficed for ten years; In the Qingli era, a single garrison in Zhongshan still held 1.8 million piculs. We should now follow the precedents of earlier reigns: let merchants bring grain to stores near the frontier, and issue credit for money and goods at the capital. Grant rank to those who deliver grain, keep faith with them, and contributors will surely multiply. Frontier stores will not lack for abundance. Prefectural forbidden troops were never meant for corvée but only drew rations from outside the circuit. Today they are not used for battle but put to labor service. In emergencies garrison defense relies solely on the main army, whose men count the days until rotation and never settle into local conditions. How can this compare to local troops raised on the frontier, with their families and ancestral graves there, defending of their own accord? Select the strongest men, expand their registers, attach them all to Imperial Front Army rolls, and issue certificates to help prefectures supply their clothing and grain—on the model of the Shanyang Martial Vanguard. Then the frontier need not draw troops from the Yangzi, and the Yangzi need not send palace guards. With living certificates and rotating duty, labor and expense would both be reduced.

時有獻言製司廣買荒田開墾，以為營田，綱以為“荒瘠之地不難辦，而工力、水利非久不可，棄產欺官，良田終不可得，耗費公帑，開墾難就。曷若勸民盡耕閑田，川澮堙塞則官為之助，變瘠為沃，使民有餘蓄。晁錯入粟之議，本朝便糴之法，在其中矣。 ”製司知其無益，乃止。

At the time someone proposed that the Pacification Commission buy wasteland broadly for garrison farming. Gang argued: "Barren land is easy to obtain, but labor and irrigation cannot be completed quickly. People abandon property and deceive officials; good fields are never really secured; public funds are wasted, and reclamation fails." Better to urge the people to cultivate all idle fields, assist them when streams and canals are blocked, turn poor soil fertile, and let the people build up surplus stores. Chao Cuo's policy of grain delivery for ennoblement and our dynasty's convenient-purchase system embody this approach. The Pacification Commission saw that the plan was useless and abandoned it.

淮東煮鹽之利，本居天下半，歲久敝滋，鹽本日侵，帑儲空竭，負兩總司五十餘萬，亭戶二十八萬，借撥於朝廷五十萬，又會餉所復鹽鈔，舊制弗許商人預供貼鈔錢，鹽司坐是窘不能支。綱抉擿隱伏，凡虛額無實，詭為出內，飛走移易，事製曲防，課乃更羨。既盡償所負，又贏金三十萬緡，為樁辦庫，以備鹽本之闕。添置新灶五十所，諸場悉視乾道舊額三百九十萬石，通一千三百萬緡，課官吏之殿最。綱約己率下，辭台郡之互饋，獨增場官奉以養其廉。

Huaidong's salt monopoly had once produced half the empire's revenue, but over the years abuses multiplied, capital was eroded, and the treasury was drained. The office owed the two general headquarters more than five hundred thousand strings, saltern households two hundred eighty thousand, and had borrowed five hundred thousand from court. When the commissariat restored salt certificates, the old rule forbidding merchants to advance note money left the salt office unable to meet its obligations. Gang exposed hidden abuses: empty quotas, false disbursements, and fraudulent transfers. He blocked every scheme, and revenue turned from deficit to surplus. After repaying all debts, he still yielded three hundred thousand strings, which he placed in a reserve treasury to cover future shortfalls in salt capital. He added fifty new salterns, restored all stations to the Qiandao-era quota of 3.9 million piculs totaling thirteen million strings, and ranked officials by performance. Gang practiced restraint and led by example, declined mutual gifts between censorial and prefectural offices, and alone raised station officials' salaries to support their integrity.

擢戶部員外郎、總領淮東軍馬財賦。時邊麵多生券，山東歸附月餉錢糧，以緡計增三十有三萬，米以石計增六萬，真、楚諸州又新招萬弩手，皆仰給總所，而浙西鹽利積負至七十餘萬緡，諸州漕運不以時至。綱核名實，警稽慢，區畫處分，餉事賴以不乏。

He was promoted to Vice Director of the Ministry of Revenue and appointed overall director of Huaidong military horses and financial levies. The frontier relied heavily on living certificates. Monthly stipends for Shandong submission rose by 330,000 strings and 60,000 piculs of rice. Zhen and Chu prefectures newly recruited ten thousand crossbowmen, all dependent on the general office. Meanwhile Western Zhe salt profits owed more than seven hundred thousand strings, and transport from various prefectures did not arrive on schedule. Gang verified accounts against reality, cracked down on delays, and organized supplies so that provisions did not run short.

移疾乞閑，得直秘閣、知婺州，改提點浙東刑獄，皆屢辭不得請。慮囚，至婺，有奴挾刃欲戕其主，不遇而殺其子，瞞讕妄牽連，徑出斬之。釋衢囚之冤者。台盜鍾百一非共盜，尉覬賞，躐申製司，綱謂：“治盜雖尚嚴，豈得鍛煉傅會以成其罪邪？ ”於是得減死。禱雨龍瑞宮，有物蜿蜒朱色，盤旋壇上者三日。綱曰：“吾欲雨而已，毋為異以惑眾。 ”言未竟，雷雨大至，歲以大熟。

He reported illness and asked to retire. He was appointed Hanlin compiler in the Secretariat Pavilion and prefect of Wuzhou, then judicial intendant of Eastern Zhejiang. He declined each post repeatedly but was not permitted to withdraw. While reviewing prisoners in Wuzhou, he found a slave who had seized a blade to kill his master, failed to find him, and killed the master's son instead. Officials had concealed the facts and falsely implicated others. Gang ordered the slave beheaded at once. He released prisoners wrongly held at Quzhou. A thief named Zhong Baiyi in Taizhou was not an accomplice in the crime, but the district captain, coveting a reward, rashly reported to the Pacification Commission. Gang said: "Punishing thieves must be strict, but how can charges be fabricated to secure a conviction?" The sentence was reduced from death as a result. While praying for rain at Longrui Palace, a vermilion serpentine creature coiled on the altar for three days. Gang said, "I want only rain. Do not make a wonder to mislead the people." Before he had finished speaking, a great thunderstorm broke, and the year brought an abundant harvest.

進直煥章閣、知紹興府、主管浙東安撫司公事兼提點刑獄。訪民瘼，罷行尤切。蕭山有古運河，西通錢塘，東達台、明，沙漲三十餘里，舟行則膠。乃開浚八千餘丈，復創閘江口，使泥淤弗得入，河水不得泄，於塗則盡甃以達城。十里創一廬。名曰“施水”，主以道流。於是舟車水陸，不問晝夜暑寒，意行利涉，歡欣忘勩。屬邑諸縣瀕海，而諸暨十六鄉瀕湖，蕩濼灌溉之利甚博，勢家巨室率私植埂岸，圍以成田，湖流既束，水不得去，雨稍多則溢入邑居，田閭浸蕩。瀕海藉塘為固，堤岸易圮，鹹鹵害稼，歲損動數十萬畝，蠲租亦萬計。以綱言，詔提舉常平司發田園，奇援巧請，一切峻卻，而湖田始復；郡備緡錢三萬專備修築，而海田始固。綱謂：“是邦控臨海道，密拱都畿，而軍籍單弱。 ”乃招水軍，刺叉手，教習甚專，不令他役。創營千餘間，寬整堅密，增置甲兵，威聲赫然。兼權司農卿，尋直龍圖閣，因任。

He was promoted to compiler at the Brilliant Chapter Hall, appointed prefect of Shaoxing, placed in charge of the Eastern Zhejiang Pacification Commission, and also served as judicial intendant. He inquired into the people's hardships and was especially urgent in abolishing abuses. Xiaoshan had an ancient canal connecting west to Qiantang and east to Taizhou and Mingzhou. Sand had silted it for more than thirty li, and boats stuck fast. He dredged more than eight thousand zhang, rebuilt the river-mouth sluice to keep silt out and control the flow, and paved the towpath with brick all the way to the city. He built a rest lodge every ten li. He named them "Bestowing Water" lodges and placed them under Daoist clergy. Thereafter travelers by boat and cart, by day or night and in any season, crossed with ease and forgot their fatigue in joy. Subordinate counties bordered the sea, and sixteen townships of Zhuji bordered the lake, where marsh irrigation brought great benefit. Powerful families had privately built dikes to enclose lake land as fields. Once the lake's flow was confined, water could not drain away. After even moderate rain, towns and fields were flooded. Coastal areas relied on ponds for protection, but dikes easily collapsed and salt tides ruined crops. Tens of thousands of mu were lost each year, and rent remissions ran into the tens of thousands. On Gang's recommendation, an edict ordered the Ever-Normal intendant to reclaim encroached fields. Every specious claim was sternly rejected, and lake fields began to be restored; and the prefecture set aside thirty thousand strings for repairs, so that coastal fields became secure. Gang said, "This prefecture commands the sea route and closely guards the capital, yet its military rolls are thin and weak." He recruited naval troops and fork-handlers, trained them intensively, and assigned them no other duties. He built more than a thousand spacious, solid barracks, increased armor and weapons, and his military reputation became formidable. He concurrently served as acting Minister of Agriculture, then was made compiler at the Dragon Diagram Hall and continued in office.

理宗即位，詔為右文殿修撰，加集英殿修撰，復因任，又加寶謨閣待制。寶慶三年大水，綱發粟三萬八千餘、緡錢五萬振之，蠲租六萬餘石，捐瘠頓蘇，無異常歲。越有經總製窠名四十一萬，其中二十五，則紹興以來虛額也，前後帥懼負殿，以修奉欑宮之資偽增焉。綱謂：“負殿之責小，罔上之罪大”。摭其實以聞。詔免九萬五千緡，而宿敝因是著明矣。

When Emperor Lizong ascended the throne, Gang was appointed Right Culture Hall compiler, promoted to Hall for Assembling Excellence compiler, continued in office, and further made Baomo Pavilion attendant. In the third year of Baoqing a great flood struck. Gang distributed more than thirty-eight thousand piculs of grain and fifty thousand strings for relief, remitted more than sixty thousand piculs of rent, and the starving were suddenly revived as in a normal year. Yue had general aggregate account items totaling 410,000 strings, of which 250,000 were empty quotas dating from the Shaoxing era. Successive prefects, fearing shortfalls, had falsely inflated them with funds nominally for repairing the spirit palaces. Gang said, "Falling short of targets is a small fault; deceiving superiors is a great crime." He gathered the facts and reported them to court. An edict remitted ninety-five thousand strings, and long-standing abuses were thereby exposed.

紹定元年，召赴行在，綱入見，言：“臣下先利之心過於徇義，為身之計過於謀國，俞惰退縮，奔競貪黷，相與為欺，宜有以轉移之。 ”帝曰：“聞卿治行甚美，越中民力如何？ ”對曰：“去歲水潦，諸暨為甚，今歲幸中熟，十年之間，千里晏安，皆朝廷威德所及，臣何力之有。 ”權戶部侍郎。越數月，上章致仕，特畀二秩，守戶部侍郎，仍賜金帶。卒，越人聞之多墮淚，有相率哭於寺觀者。

In the first year of Shaoding he was summoned to the temporary capital. At audience Gang said: "Officials put profit before duty and personal interest before the state. Compliance, laziness, retreat, and corruption prevail, and they deceive one another. Something must be done to change this." The emperor said, "I have heard your governance is excellent. How are the people faring in Yue?" He replied, "Last year there were floods, and Zhuji suffered most. This year we have had a fair harvest. For ten years the region has been at peace—all through the court's virtue. What strength have I?" He was appointed Acting Vice Minister of Revenue. After several months he memorialized to retire. He was specially granted two ranks, retained as Vice Minister of Revenue, and given a gold belt. When he died, many in Yue shed tears on hearing the news, and some gathered to weep at temples and shrines.

綱學有本原，多聞博記，兵農、醫卜、陰陽、律曆諸書，靡不研究；機神明銳，遇事立決。在越佩四印，文書山積，而能操約禦詳，治事不過二十刻，公庭如水。卑官下吏，一言中理，慨然從之。為文尤長於論事，援據古今，辨博雄勁。服用不喜奢麗，供帳車剩，雖敝不更。所著有《恕齋集》、《左帑志》、《漫存錄》。

Gang's learning had deep foundations. He was widely read and had studied every subject—military affairs and agriculture, medicine and divination, yin-yang theory, music, and calendrics; his mind was keen and sharp, and he decided affairs on the spot. In Yue he held four seals at once. Though documents piled like mountains, he governed with concise control of detail, finished business in no more than twenty quarter-hours, and kept the public court as calm as still water. If a humble official or clerk spoke one word that hit the mark, he readily accepted it. In writing he excelled at policy argument, citing past and present with forceful, expansive eloquence. He disliked luxury in dress and furnishings. His carriage and equipment he would not replace even when worn. His writings included Collection of the Forgiving Studio, Record of the Left Treasury, and Random Preserved Records.

陳宓，字師復，丞相俊卿之子。少嚐及登朱熹之門，熹器異之。長從黃幹遊。以父任曆泉州南安鹽稅，主管南外睦宗院、再主管西外，知安溪縣。

Chen Mi, styled Shifu, was the son of Chief Councilor Chen Junqing. In youth he studied under Zhu Xi, who regarded him as exceptional. As an adult he studied with Huang Gan. Through his father's yin privilege he served as salt-tax officer in Nan'an, Quanzhou, supervised the Southern and Western Outer Muzong Courts in turn, and was appointed magistrate of Anxi County.

嘉定七年，入監進奏院。時無敢慷慨盡言者，宓上封事言：“宮中宴飲或至無節，非時賜予為數浩穰，一人蔬食而嬪禦不廢於擊鮮，邊事方殷而樁積反資於妄用，此宮闈儀刑有未正也。大臣所用非親即故，執政擇易製之人，台諫用慎默之士，都司樞掾，無非親昵，貪吏靡不得誌，廉士動招怨尤，此朝廷權柄有所分也。鈔鹽變易，楮幣秤提，安邊所創立，固執己見，動失人心，敗軍之將躐躋殿岩，庸鄙之夫久尹京兆，宿將有守成之功，以小過而貶，三牙無汗馬之勞，托公勤而擢，此政令刑賞多所舛逆也。若能交飭內外，一正紀綱，天且不雨，臣請伏麵謾之罪。 ”奏入，丞相史彌遠不樂，而中宮慶壽，三牙獻遺，至是為之罷卻。尋遷軍器監簿。九年，轉對言：

In the seventh year of Jiading (1214) he entered service as supervisor of the Memorial Transmission Court. At the time no one dared speak boldly. Mi submitted a sealed memorial: "Palace feasting sometimes knows no limit. Untimely gifts are lavished in vast numbers. The emperor eats frugally while consorts still demand fresh delicacies. The frontier is in crisis yet stored supplies are squandered. Palace discipline has not been set right." Great ministers appoint only kin or old associates. Those in power choose men easy to control. Censors select the cautious and silent. Capital and military clerks are all intimates. Greedy officials always get their way; upright men invite resentment. Court authority has been divided up." Salt certificates are changed, paper money manipulated, frontier offices created—officials cling to their own views and constantly lose popular support. Defeated generals leap to high office. Vulgar men long govern the capital. Veteran generals who held the line are demoted for minor faults. Palace guards without battlefield merit are promoted for pretended diligence. Commands, punishments, and rewards run contrary to justice. If inside and outside can be disciplined and order restored, and heaven still withholds rain, I ask to accept the punishment for lying to the throne. When the memorial arrived, Chief Councilor Shi Miyuan was displeased. But the empress was celebrating her birthday and the three guards were presenting gifts—and on this account those gifts were halted. Soon he was transferred to registrar of the Directorate of Armaments. In the ninth year, at his rotation audience he said:

人主之德貴乎明，大臣之心貴乎公，台諫之言貴乎直。陛下臨政雖勤而治功未舉，奉身雖儉而財用未豐，愛民雖仁而實惠未遍。良由上下相蒙，務於欺蔽。匭奏囊封，有懷畢吐，陛下付近臣差擇，是有意於行其言也。而有司惟取專攻上躬與移咎牧守之章，騰播中外，以答觀聽。今赤地千里，蝗飛蔽天，如此其可畏，猶或諱晦以旱不為災、蝗不害稼，其他誣罔，抑又可知。臣故曰人主之德貴乎明。

The ruler's virtue lies in clarity, the minister's heart in fairness, and the censor's words in directness. Your Majesty governs diligently yet achievement is not realized. You are personally frugal yet revenues are not ample. You love the people yet real benefit does not reach them. This is truly because superiors and subordinates deceive one another and devote themselves to concealment. Memorials in the suggestion box and sealed pouches allow people to speak fully. Your Majesty entrusts nearby ministers to select among them—showing intent to act on what is said. Yet the responsible offices take only memorials attacking the emperor personally or shifting blame to local officials, spread them throughout the realm, and present them as the government's response. Now the land is parched for a thousand li and locusts darken the sky. Yet some still conceal the truth, claiming drought is no disaster and locusts do not harm crops. Other deceptions may be imagined. I therefore say the ruler's virtue lies in clarity.

大臣施設，浸異厥初。凡建議求言之人，則以他事逐，諫官言事稍直，則以他職徙。忠憤者指為不靖，切直者目曰沽名，眾怨所萃則相繼超升，物論所歸則以次疏外。某人之遷，是嚐重人罪以快同列之私忿者；某人之擢，是嚐援古事以文邇日之天變者。直節重望以私嫌而久棄，老奸宿臧以巧請而牽復。使大臣果能杜幸門、塞邪徑，則舉錯當而人心服。臣故曰大臣之心貴乎公。

The great ministers' conduct has gradually diverged from their beginnings. Those who proposed seeking candid advice are driven off on other grounds. Remonstrating officials who speak too directly are transferred to other posts. The loyal and indignant are labeled disloyal. The blunt and direct are accused of seeking fame. Those whom popular resentment targets are promoted in succession. Those whom public opinion favors are gradually pushed aside. One man's promotion was of someone who had once inflated others' crimes to satisfy colleagues' private grudges; another's promotion was of someone who had cited ancient precedents to gloss over recent heavenly portents. Men of upright integrity and high reputation are long cast aside for private dislike, while old traitors and long-standing villains are restored through clever pleas. If ministers truly blocked the gate of favoritism and closed evil paths, appointments would be fitting and hearts would be won. I therefore say the minister's heart lies in fairness.

台諫平居未嚐立異，遇事不敢盡言。有如金人再通，最關國體，近而侍從，下至生徒，莫不力爭，冀裨廟算，獨於言責，不出一辭。輦轂之下，乾沒巨萬，莫之誰何；州縣之間，罪僅毫髮，摭以塞責。大臣所欲為之事則遂之，所不右之人則排之。仁宗時，有宰相奉行台諫風旨之譏，今乃有台諫不敢違中書之誚，豈祖宗設官之初意哉？臣故曰台諫之言貴乎直。

Censors and remonstrators in normal times never stand apart. When affairs arise they dare not speak fully. When the Jurchens reopened relations—a matter most vital to the state—attendants and students alike argued forcefully to aid court policy. Only those charged with remonstrance did not utter a word. Under the capital, embezzlement reached tens of thousands—no one could touch the culprits; while in the prefectures and counties, the slightest fault was seized upon to satisfy quotas. What ministers wished to do was carried through; those they disfavored were pushed aside. Under Emperor Renzong there was ridicule of a chief councilor who followed censors' lead. Now there is mockery that censors dare not disobey the Secretariat. Is this what the founders intended when they established these offices? I therefore say the censor's words lie in directness.

三者機括所係，願陛下幡然悔悟，昭明德以照臨百官。大臣、台諫，亦宜公心直節，以副望治之意。指陳敝事，視前疏尤剴切焉。

These three matters are where the pivot lies. May Your Majesty repent and make your virtue shine forth to oversee all officials. Ministers and censors should also act with fair hearts and upright integrity to fulfill the hope for good government. In pointing out abuses, this memorial was even more forceful and cutting than his earlier one.

宓遂請罷，歸。在告日，擢太府丞，不拜，出知南康軍。詣史彌遠別，彌遠曰：“子言甚切當，第愚昧不能行，殊有愧耳。 ”至官，歲大侵，奏蠲其賦十之九。會流民群集，宓就役之，築江堤，而給其食。時造白鹿洞，與諸生討論。改知南劍州。時大旱疫，蠲逋賦十數萬，且弛新輸三之一，躬率僚吏持錢粟藥餌戶給之。創延平書院，悉仿白鹿洞之規。

Mi then asked to be dismissed and returned home. While on leave he was promoted to Vice Director of the Court of the Imperial Treasury but declined the post and was appointed prefect of Nankang Command. When he went to bid farewell to Shi Miyuan, Miyuan said, "Your words are forceful and apt, but I am too foolish to act on them. I am deeply ashamed." On reaching his post he found the year had brought severe crop failure. He memorialized to remit nine-tenths of the tax levy. When refugees gathered in crowds, he put them to work building river dikes and provided them with food. He restored the White Deer Grotto Academy and debated the classics with his students. He was transferred to serve as prefect of Nanjian. There was severe drought and plague. He remitted overdue taxes totaling several hundred thousand strings, reduced new levies by one-third, and personally led his staff door to door distributing money, grain, and medicine. He founded Yanping Academy, following the White Deer Grotto regulations in full.

知漳州，未行，聞寧宗崩，嗚咽累日。亡何，請致仕。寶慶二年，提點廣東刑獄，章復三上，迄不就。直秘閣，主管崇禧觀，宓拜祠命而辭職名。卒，進職一等致仕。三學諸生以起宓為請，而沒已閱月矣。

He was appointed prefect of Zhangzhou but had not yet departed when he heard that Emperor Ningzong had died. He sobbed for many days. Before long he requested retirement. In the second year of Baoqing he was appointed judicial intendant of Guangdong. He submitted three memorials declining the post and never took office. He was appointed Hanlin compiler in the Secretariat Pavilion and placed in charge of Chongxi Observatory. He accepted the temple appointment but declined the official title. When he died, his rank was advanced one grade in recognition of retirement. Students of the Three Academies petitioned to recall Mi to office, but he had already been dead for a month.

初，宓之在朝也，寺丞丁焴往使金，宓歎曰：“世仇未復，何以好為？ ”餞詩有“百年中國豈無人”之句。後數年，聞關外不靖，以書抵焴曰：“蜀口去關外雖遠，實如一身。近事可寒心，皆士大夫之罪，豈非賄道不絕之故耶？ ”焴服其言。

Earlier, when Mi was at court, Vice Director Ding Huang was sent as envoy to the Jin. Mi sighed and said, "Our hereditary enemy is not yet avenged. How can we act cordially?" In his farewell poem he wrote the line, "In a hundred years can China truly have no men?" Several years later, hearing that the region beyond the passes was unsettled, he wrote to Huang: "Though Shu is far from the frontier passes, they are in reality one body." Recent events are chilling to the heart. They are all the fault of scholar-officials. Is this not because the path of bribery never ceases? Huang was convinced by his words.

宓天性剛毅，信道尤篤，嚐為《朱墨銘》，謂朱屬陽，墨屬陰，以驗理欲分寸之多寡。自言居官必如顏真卿，居家必如陶潛，而深愛諸葛亮身死家無餘財，庫無餘帛。庶乎能蹈其語者，端平初，殿中侍御史王遂首言：“宓事先帝有論諫之直，而不及俟聖化之更，宜褒其身後，以勸天下之為臣者。 ”帝為感動，詔贈直龍圖閣。所著書有《論語注義問答》、《春秋三傳抄》、《讀通鑒綱目》、《唐史贅疣》之稿數十卷，藏於家。

Mi was by nature firm and resolute and especially devout in his faith. He once wrote An Inscription on Vermilion and Ink, saying that vermilion belongs to yang and ink to yin, using them to measure the balance between principle and desire. He said that in office one must be like Yan Zhenqing, at home like Tao Qian, and he deeply admired Zhuge Liang, who at death left his family no surplus wealth and the treasury no surplus cloth. Whether he truly lived up to his words, at the beginning of the Duanping reign Palace Attendant Censor Wang Sui was the first to speak: "Mi served the former emperor with forthright remonstrance but did not live to see the renewal of sage rule. He should be honored after death to encourage all who serve as subjects under heaven." The emperor was moved and ordered him posthumously granted the title of compiler at the Dragon Diagram Hall. His writings included Questions and Answers on the Meaning of the Analects Commentary, Extracts of the Three Commentaries on the Spring and Autumn, Reading the Comprehensive Mirror Outline, and drafts of Excrescences on Tang History in several tens of chapters, kept in his household.

王霆，字定叟，東陽人。高大父豪，帥眾誅方臘，以功補官。霆少有奇氣，試有司不偶，去就武舉，嘉定四年，中絕倫異等。喬行簡考藝別頭，喜曰：“吾為朝廷得一帥才矣。”

Wang Ting, styled Dingsou, was a native of Dongyang. His great-grandfather Wang Hao had led troops to suppress Fang La and received an official appointment for his merit. Ting in youth had an unusual spirit. He failed the civil service examination, turned to the military examination, and in the fourth year of Jiading passed at the peerless extraordinary grade. Qiao Xingjian, examining candidates as chief examiner, said with delight, "I have found a commander for the court."

授承節郎，從軍於鄂，帥鍾興嗣戍邊，請於樞密院，以霆為隨軍都錢糧官。總領綦奎委霆專一教閱總效軍，尋委帥師守禦黃州。沿江製置副使李辟置幕下，淮右兵叛，遣霆招諭之。霆於軍事知無不言，謂：“招募良家子，不可以寅緣關節冒濫其間，防守江麵，全藉正軍，若義勇、民兵，特可為聲援耳。而所謂大軍，羸病者多，兵械損舊，豈不敗事。調兵防江，當於江岸創屋居之，使之專心守禦。諸軍伍法既廢，平居則無以稽其虛籍冒請之敝，無以糾其竄逸生事之人，緩急則無以稽其並力向敵之誌，無以連其逃陳不進之心。此尉繚子所以著束部伍之令，太公謂伍法為要者謂此也。用兵不以人數多寡為勝負，惟教習之精否，則勝負之形可見矣。”

He was granted the rank of Bearer of Credentials and joined the army at Ezhou. Commander Zhong Xingsi, garrisoning the frontier, requested from the Bureau of Military Affairs that Ting serve as army funds-and-grain officer. Overall director Qi Kui entrusted Ting solely with training and reviewing the General Effectiveness Army. Soon he was entrusted to command troops defending Huangzhou. Vice Pacification Commissioner along the Yangzi Li Fu recruited him to his staff. When troops in western Huai rebelled, Li sent Ting to summon and instruct them. On military affairs Ting held nothing back. He said: "When recruiting sons of good households, one must not let connections and favoritism flood the ranks. Defending the Yangzi depends entirely on regular troops. Volunteers and militia can serve only as vocal support." Yet the so-called main army has many weak and sick men, and its weapons are damaged and worn. How can this not lead to defeat? Troops transferred to defend the river should be housed on the riverbank so they can concentrate on defense. Since company regulations have been abandoned, in peacetime there is no way to audit empty registers and false claims or correct deserters who stir trouble. In emergencies there is no way to test their will to fight together or bind those who flee the line and refuse to advance. This is why Master Wei Liao wrote orders binding companies and squads, and why the Grand Duke called company law essential. Victory in war does not depend on numbers but on whether training and drill are thorough. Then the outcome can be foreseen.

大帥薦之，召試為閣門舍人。入對言：“恢復之說有二：曰規模，曰機會。顧今日之規模安在哉？守令所以牧民，而惠養之未加；將帥所以禦軍，而拊循之未至。邦財未裕，而楮券之敝浸深；軍儲未豐，而和糴之害徒慘。官有土地而荒蕪，民因賦役而破蕩，獄訟類成冤抑，銓曹率多淹留。薦舉無反坐，貪徒得以引類而通班；按刺不徇公，微官易以迕意而連譴。以言郡計，則紛耗於囊橐包苴；以言戰功，則多私於親昵故舊。至如降卒中處，養虎遺患，輕敵開邊，以肉喂虎。夫以規模之切要者而不滿人意如此，臣敢輕進恢復之說以誤上聽哉？凡臣之所陳者，誠播告中外之臣，悉懲其舊而圖其新。規模既立，然後義旗一麾，諸道並進，臣力尚壯，願效前驅。惟陛下堅定而勉圖之。 ”帝稱其言可采。升武功大夫，出知濠州，賜金帶。至州，節浮費，糴粟買馬，以備不虞。尋差知安豐軍，臣僚上言：“王霆在濠，人甚安之，不宜輕易。 ”詔再任濠，職事修舉，特轉橫班。諸使交薦之。

The commander recommended him, and he was summoned for examination as Gate Guard Attendant. At audience he said, "The theory of recovery has two aspects: planning and opportunity." But where is today's planning? Prefects and magistrates are meant to govern the people, yet benevolent care is not extended to them; generals are meant to command the army, yet they do not comfort and guide their troops. State finances are not ample, yet the abuses of paper money grow worse; military stores are not abundant, yet the harm of government grain purchases grows only more cruel. Government land lies waste. The people are ruined by taxes and corvée. Court cases mostly end in wrongful conviction. The selection bureau mostly delays appointments. Recommendations carry no penalty for falsehood, so the greedy draw their kind into office; investigations are not impartial, and humble officials are easily punished in chains for giving offense. Speaking of prefectural accounts, they are wasted on bribery; speaking of battle merit, it mostly goes to intimates and old friends. As for settling surrendered troops in the interior, it nurtures tigers and leaves calamity behind. Treating the enemy lightly and opening the frontier is feeding tigers with flesh. When planning itself is so unsatisfactory, how dare I lightly advance a theory of recovery to mislead Your Majesty? What I have presented should be broadcast to all officials within and without, that they may abandon old abuses and plan anew. Once planning is established, then with the righteous banner raised all circuits may advance together. My strength is still robust, and I wish to serve in the vanguard. I ask only that Your Majesty be firm and strive to achieve it. The emperor praised his words as worth adopting. He was promoted to Martial Achievement Grandee, appointed prefect of Haozhou, and granted a gold belt. On reaching the prefecture, he cut unnecessary expenses, purchased grain, and bought horses to prepare against emergencies. Soon he was assigned to Anfeng Command. Officials memorialized: "The people are very settled under Wang Ting at Hao. He should not be lightly transferred." An edict ordered him to serve again at Hao. He carried out his duties well and was specially promoted within the lateral ranks. Various commissioners repeatedly recommended him.

北兵至浮光，其民奔遁，相屬於道，朝論以為霆可守之，乃知光州兼沿邊都巡檢使。冒雪夜行，倍道疾馳至州，分遣間探，整飭戰守之具，大戰於謝令橋，光人遂安。督府魏了翁以書來慰安之，以緡錢十萬勞其軍。霆以召，尋為吉州刺史，仍知光州。霆固辭，丞相鄭清之、製置使史嵩之皆數以書留霆，霆不從，且曰：“士大夫當以世從道，不可以道從世也。”

When northern troops reached Fuguang, its people fled in panic along the roads. Court opinion held that Ting could hold the place, and he was appointed prefect of Guangzhou while also serving as frontier overall patrol commissioner. Braving snow he traveled by night and raced to the prefecture by forced marches. He sent out scouts, put battle equipment in order, fought a great battle at Xieling Bridge, and the people of Guangzhou were secured. Supervisor Wei Liaoweng sent a letter of comfort and gave one hundred thousand strings to reward his army. Ting was summoned to court and soon appointed prefect of Jizhou while still governing Guangzhou. Ting firmly declined. Chief Councilor Zheng Qingzhi and Pacification Commissioner Shi Songzhi both wrote repeatedly urging him to stay. Ting refused and said, "Scholar-officials should let the age follow the Way, not let the Way follow the age."

再授閣門舍人，尋為達州刺史、右屯衛大將軍兼知蘄州，不赴。尋遷淮西馬步軍副總管兼淮西遊擊軍副都統製。論遊擊軍十事，不報。提舉崇禧觀。知高郵軍，流民邦傑聚眾三千人為盜，霆剿其渠魁，餘黨悉散。時議出師，和者甚多，霆以為：“莫若遣間探覘敵情，如不得已然後行之；否則無故自蕩其根本，是外兵未至而內兵先慘烈也。 ”諸軍畢行，惟高郵遲之，境內賴以安全。由是與時迕，而讒者益眾。

He was again appointed Gate Guard Attendant, then prefect of Dazhou and General of the Right Encampment Guard while also governing Qizhou. He did not take up the posts. Soon he was promoted to Vice Overall Commander of Huai West horse and foot armies and Vice Commander-in-Chief of Huai West mobile armies. He submitted ten proposals concerning the mobile armies. No response was given. He was appointed intendant of Chongxi Observatory. As prefect of Gaoyou Command, a refugee named Bang Jie gathered three thousand men as bandits. Ting destroyed their ringleaders and the rest dispersed. At the time an expedition was debated and many favored peace. Ting argued: "Better to send scouts to observe the enemy. Only if there is no other way should we act;" "otherwise we will needlessly shake our own foundations—the outer enemy has not yet arrived while our own forces will suffer first." All armies marched out, but Gaoyou delayed, and the region relied on this for its security. From this he fell out with prevailing opinion, and his slanderers grew more numerous.

提舉雲台觀。執政期論邊事，且謂朝廷即有齊安之命。霆曰：“秋防已急，邊守不宜臨時更易，盍少需之。 ”乃授帶行左領軍衛大將軍，充沿江製置副使司計議官，霆乃撰《沿江等邊志》一編上之。製置使董槐、鄧泳交薦之，差知壽昌軍，改蘄州，建學舍，祠忠臣。嚐歎曰：“兩淮藩籬也，大江門戶也，三輔堂奧也。藩籬不固則門戶且危，門戶既危則堂奧豈能久安乎？ ”於是貽書丞相杜範，乞瞰江審察形勢，置三新城：蘄春置於龍眼磯，安慶置於孟城，滁陽置於宣化。不報。卒。

He was appointed intendant of Yuntai Observatory. Those in power scheduled a discussion of frontier affairs and said the court would soon appoint him to Qi'an. Ting said, "Autumn defense is already urgent. Frontier commanders should not be changed at the last moment. Why not wait a little?" He was then granted Acting General of the Left Leading Army Guard and appointed planning officer for the Vice Pacification Commission along the Yangzi. Ting compiled Record of Frontier Regions along the River and presented it to court. Pacification Commissioners Dong Huai and Deng Yong repeatedly recommended him. He was assigned to Shouchang Command, then transferred to Qizhou, where he built school quarters and erected shrines to loyal ministers. He once sighed and said, "The Two Huai are the fence, the Great River is the gate, and the capital region is the inner hall." If the fence is not secure, the gate is in peril. If the gate is in peril, how can the inner hall long remain secure? He therefore wrote to Chief Councilor Du Fan, asking to survey the Yangzi and assess the terrain, and proposed three new fortresses: Qichun at Longyan Rock, Anqing at Mengcheng, and Chuyang at Xuanhua. No response was given. He died.

初，其父析業，霆獨以讓其兄。處宗族有恩意，嚐訓其子弟曰：“窮理盡性，學之本也。 ”有《玉溪集》行於世。

When his father divided the family estate, Ting alone yielded his share to his elder brother. He treated his clan with kindness and once instructed his sons and younger kin: "Exhausting principle and fulfilling nature is the root of learning." His Jade Stream Collection circulated in his day.

論曰：吳昌裔訪道東南，一何勤哉！故其造深醇，見諸事功者，足以知其學無雜也。汪綱之遺愛在越，先民所謂擇賢久任者，固不我欺矣。陳宓以宰相子，論諫之直，於今有光。王霆通兵家言，而謂不可以道從世，此古人謀帥貴乎“說《禮》、《樂》而敦《詩》、《書》”也。

The historians comment: Wu Changyi sought the Way in the southeast—how diligent he was! His achievement was deep and pure, and what appears in his practical accomplishments shows that his learning had no admixture. Wang Gang's enduring benevolence in Yue shows that the ancients were right when they said to choose the worthy and employ them long. Chen Mi, though a chief councilor's son, shone with the directness of his remonstrance, and that light endures today. Wang Ting was versed in military theory yet held that one cannot let the Way follow the age. This is what the ancients meant when they sought commanders who "expound the Rites and Music and honor the Odes and Documents."

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