Volume 410 Biographies 169: Lou Ji, Shen Huan, Shu Lin, Cao Yanyue, Fan Yingling, Xu Jingsun

婁機沈煥〈（舒璘附）〉曹彥約範應鈴徐經孫

Lou Ji and Shen Huan (with appended biography of Shu Lin) Cao Yanyue, Fan Yingling, and Xu Jingsun

婁機，字彥發，嘉興人。乾道二年進士，授鹽官尉。丁母憂，服除，調含山主簿。郡委治銅城圩八十有四，役夫三千有奇，設廬以處之，器用材植，一出於官，民樂勸趨，兩旬告畢。七攝鄰邑，率以治績聞。調於潛縣丞，輕賦稅，正版籍，簡獄訟，興學校。遭外艱，免喪，為江東提舉司幹辦公事，易淮東，已而復舊，改知西安縣。巨室買地為塋域，發地遇石，復索元價。機曰：“設得金，將誰歸？ ”通判饒州，平反冤獄。蜀帥袁說友辟參議幕中，不就，改幹辦諸司審計司。轉對，請裁損經費，又論刑名疑慮之敝。遷宗正寺主簿，為太常博士、秘書郎，請續編《中興館閣書目》，又請寬恤淮、浙被旱州縣。

Lou Ji, whose style name was Yanfa, came from Jiaxing. He passed the jinshi examination in the second year of Qiandao (1166) and was appointed salt commissioner of Yanguan. After his mother's death he left office for mourning; when the mourning period ended he was assigned as registrar of Hanshan. The prefecture put him in charge of eighty-four polders at Tongcheng with a labor force of more than three thousand. He built lodges to house the workers and supplied all tools, materials, and timber from official stores. The people worked willingly, and the project was finished within twenty days. On seven occasions he was sent to administer neighboring counties, and each time his record of good governance won notice. Transferred to serve as assistant magistrate of Yuqian, he reduced tax burdens, straightened out household registers, streamlined court cases, and revived the schools. When his wife's parent died he left office for mourning. After mourning he served as a staff officer on the Jiangdong Intendant Commission, was briefly transferred to Huaidong, then returned to Jiangdong and was appointed magistrate of Xi'an County. A powerful family bought land for a cemetery. When excavation turned up rock, they demanded a refund of the purchase price. Lou Ji said, "If gold were found there, who would it belong to? " As vice-prefect of Raozhou he overturned wrongful convictions. The Sichuan commander Yuan Shuiyou invited him to join his staff as a counselor, but he declined and was instead appointed a staff officer in the Bureau for Auditing Various Offices. At an audience with the emperor he urged reductions in government spending and criticized abuses caused by ambiguous provisions in criminal law. Promoted to registrar of the Directorate of the Imperial Clan, he served as an Erudite of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and as a secretary in the Secretariat. He petitioned to continue compiling the "Catalogue of the Zhongxing Hall of Literature" and asked for relief for drought-stricken counties in the Huai and Zhe regions.

時皇太子始就外傅，遴選學官，以機兼資善堂小學教授。機日陳正言正道，又以累朝事親、修身、治國、愛民四事，手書以獻，太子置之坐右，朝夕觀省。隨事開明，多所裨益。遷太常丞，仍兼資善。旋遷右曹郎官、秘書省著作郎，改兼駕部。都城大火，機應詔上封事，力言朝臣務為奉承，不能出己見以裨國論；外臣不稱職，至苛刻以困民財；將帥偏裨務為交結，而不知訓閱以強軍律。時年七十，丐閑，不許。太子得機所著《廣幹祿字》一編，尤喜，命戴溪跋之。擢監察御史，講未退而除命頒，太子戀戀幾不忍舍，機亦為之感涕。

When the crown prince first began studying under outside tutors, academic officials were chosen, and Lou Ji was appointed concurrently as elementary instructor at the Hall for Cultivating Goodness. Each day Lou Ji lectured on upright conduct and the proper Way. He also copied by hand and presented teachings on honoring parents, self-cultivation, governing the state, and caring for the people as drawn from successive dynasties. The crown prince kept these writings at his right hand and read them morning and evening. He clarified matters as they arose and proved of great benefit to the prince. Promoted to vice director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, he continued to serve concurrently at the Hall for Cultivating Goodness. Soon afterward he was transferred to serve as a bureau secretary of the right section and as a compiler in the Secretariat, and was reassigned to hold a concurrent post in the Department of Transport. After a great fire swept the capital, Lou Ji submitted a sealed memorial by imperial command. He argued forcefully that court officials cared only about flattery and would not offer independent views to strengthen state policy; local officials were incompetent, some so harsh that they drained the people's resources; and generals and their subordinates busied themselves with networking rather than drilling troops to enforce military discipline. He was then seventy years old and asked to retire, but the request was denied. The crown prince obtained a copy of Lou Ji's "Expanded Characters for the Thousand-Character Classic" and was especially pleased with it. He ordered Dai Xi to write a colophon. He was promoted to investigating censor. The appointment arrived before his lecture had ended. The crown prince was so attached to him that he could hardly bear to let him go, and Lou Ji wept as well.

論京官必兩任、有舉主、年三十以上，方許作縣。又論郡守輕濫太甚，貽害千里。蘇師旦怙勢妄作，蒙蔽自肆，語及者皆罪去，而獨憚機。韓侂胄議開邊，機極口沮之，謂：“恢復之名非不美，今士卒驕逸，遽驅於鋒鏑之下，人才難得，財力未裕，萬一兵連禍結，久而不解，奈何？ ”侂胄聞之不說，其議愈密，外廷罔測。又上疏極論：“雖密謀人莫得知，而羽書一馳，中外皇惑。 ”侍御史鄧友龍初不知兵，騰書投合，妄薦大將，既召還，專主此議。機語友龍曰：“今日孰可為大將？孰可為計臣？正使以殿岩當之，能保其可用乎？”

He argued that capital officials should be required to have served two terms, have a sponsor, and be at least thirty before they could be appointed county magistrate. He also warned that prefects were being appointed far too casually, to the harm of entire circuits. Su Shidan abused his power, acted recklessly, deceived others, and did as he pleased. Anyone who spoke against him was punished and dismissed, yet he alone feared Lou Ji. When Han Tuozhou proposed reopening military campaigns on the frontier, Lou Ji strongly opposed him, saying, "The goal of recovering lost territory is admirable in name, but the troops are now arrogant and undisciplined. To rush them into battle when capable commanders are scarce and finances are strained—if war drags on without end, what then? " Tuozhou was displeased. War planning grew ever more secret, and the outer court could not guess what was being decided. He submitted another memorial arguing forcefully, "Even if secret plans are unknown to the public, once urgent dispatches fly out, the court and the realm are thrown into alarm and confusion. " The attending censor Deng Youlong knew nothing of military affairs at first. He sent up writings to curry favor, rashly recommended a commander, and once recalled to court became the chief advocate of war. Lou Ji asked Youlong, "Who today is fit to serve as commander-in-chief? Who is fit to serve as chief strategist? Even if you appoint someone as Palace Front commander, can you guarantee he would be effective?

遷右正言兼侍講，首論廣蓄人才，乞詔侍從、台諫、學士、待制、三牙管軍各舉將帥邊郡一二人，召問甄拔，優養以備緩急。進太常少卿兼權中書舍人，詔遣宣諭荊、襄，機昌言曰：“使往慰安人情則可，必欲開邊啟釁，有死而已，不能從也。 ”泗州捷聞，愈增憂危，且曰：“若自此成功，以攄列聖之宿憤，老臣雖死亦幸，謫官，但恐進銳退速，禍愈深耳。 ”友龍至不能堪曰：“不逐此人，則異議無所回。 ”機遂以言去。

Promoted to right rectifier and concurrent lecturer, he first urged the court to stockpile talent broadly. He asked that attendants, remonstrators, academicians, designated draftsmen, and the three military bureaus each recommend one or two generals or frontier officials, that they be summoned for examination and selection, and that they be supported against future emergencies. He was promoted to vice director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and acting drafting secretary of the Secretariat. When ordered to go announce and reassure the people of Jing and Xiang, Lou Ji spoke bluntly: "If the mission is to comfort the people, I can go. But if the aim is to reopen the frontier and provoke war, I would rather die than obey. " When news of victory at Sizhou arrived, his anxiety only grew. He said, "If the campaign succeeds and the grievances of former emperors are finally redressed, I would die content even as a demoted official. But I fear a rash advance followed by a hasty retreat, which would only deepen the disaster. " Deng Youlong could bear it no longer and said, "Unless this man is removed, dissenting voices cannot be silenced. " Lou Ji was dismissed because of his remonstrances.

侂胄誅，召為吏部侍郎兼太子左庶子，還朝，言：“至公始可以服天下，權臣以私意橫生，敗國殄民，今當行以至公。若曰私恩未報，首為汲引，私仇未復，且為沮抑，一涉於私，人心將無所觀感矣。 ”又言：“兩淮招集敢勇，不難於招而難於處。若非繩以紀律，課其勤惰，必為後害。 ”仍請檢校權臣、內侍等沒入家貲，專為養兵之助。機裏人有故官吏部，喪未舉而子赴調者，機謂彼既冒法禁，而部胥不之問，即撻數吏，使之治葬而後來。聞者韙之。

After Han Tuozhou was executed, Lou Ji was recalled as vice minister of the Ministry of Personnel and left tutor of the crown prince. On returning to court he said, "Only absolute fairness can win the loyalty of the realm. Powerful ministers have risen through private ambition, ruining the state and harming the people. The court must now govern with absolute fairness. If one says private favors remain unrewarded and therefore promotes one's own followers first, or private grudges remain unsettled and therefore blocks one's enemies, once private feeling enters government the people will have nothing to respect or follow. " He also said, "Recruiting bold fighters in the two Huai regions is not difficult; managing them is. Unless they are bound by discipline and judged on diligence and slackness, they will surely become a future menace. " He also asked that confiscated property of powerful ministers and palace eunuchs be audited and devoted exclusively to supporting the troops. A fellow townsman who had formerly served in the Ministry of Personnel had not yet held his parent's funeral when his son reported for assignment. Lou Ji said the son had already violated the law and the ministry clerks had failed to stop him. He had several clerks flogged and ordered the son to complete the funeral before reporting for duty. Those who heard of it approved.

兼太子詹事，著《曆代帝王總要》以裨考訂。遷給事中。海巡八廂親從、都軍頭、指揮使年勞轉資，恩旨太濫，乞收寢未應年格之人，年已及者予之，帝稱善良久。飛蝗為災。機應詔言：“和議甫成，先務安靜，葺罅漏以成紀綱，節財用以固邦本，練士卒以壯國威。”

He served concurrently as tutor of the crown prince and compiled the "Essentials of Successive Emperors" to aid historical verification. He was promoted to supervising secretary. Promotions by seniority for coastal patrol officers, personal followers, commanders-in-chief, and regimental commanders had become too lavish. He asked that those not yet meeting the seniority requirement be denied promotion while those who had earned it receive it promptly. The emperor praised his sound judgment at length. Locusts brought disaster. Lou Ji responded to an imperial edict, saying, "The peace treaty has only just been concluded. The first priority must be stability: mend weaknesses to restore order, economize spending to strengthen the state's foundation, and drill the troops to bolster national prestige.

遷禮部尚書兼給事中，擢同知樞密院事兼太子賓客，進參知政事。當幹戈甫定，信使往來之始，瘡痍方深，敝蠹紛然，機彌縫裨讚甚多。尤惜名器，守法度；進退人物，直言可否，不市私恩，不避嫌怨。有舉員及格，當改秩作邑而必欲朝闕，機曰：“若是則有勞者何以勸？孤寒者何以伸？若至上前，自應執奏。 ”堂吏寄資未仕，而例以升朝官賞陳乞封贈，機曰：“進士非通籍不能及親，汝輩乃以白身得之耶？ ”嘉定二年八月，行皇太子冊命，機攝中書令讀冊。九月祀明堂，為禮儀使。數上章告老，帝不許，皇太子遣官屬勉留之。以資政殿學士知福州，力辭。提舉洞霄宮以歸，遂卒，贈金紫光祿大夫，加贈特進。

He was promoted to minister of rites while retaining his post as supervising secretary, then elevated to associate commissioner of the Bureau of Military Affairs and guest of the crown prince, and finally advanced to vice grand councilor. War had only just ended and diplomatic exchanges were just resuming. The realm was deeply wounded and abuses abounded. Lou Ji contributed greatly to repairing the damage. He was especially careful with offices and titles and upheld law and regulation; in promoting or dismissing officials he spoke plainly on what was right, traded in no private favors, and shrank from no enmity. A candidate who had passed the examination and was due for promotion to district magistrate insisted on an audience at court instead. Lou Ji said, "If that is allowed, how will merit be rewarded? How will the poor and obscure advance? If he wishes to appeal to the throne, let him submit a memorial himself. " A bureau clerk who had registered capital but had not yet taken office sought posthumous honors for his parents under the precedent for court-presenting officials. Lou Ji said, "A jinshi cannot honor his parents until he holds office. Do you think you can obtain such honors as private citizens? " In the eighth month of the second year of Jiading (1209), when the crown prince's investiture was performed, Lou Ji acted as director of the Secretariat and read the patent of appointment. In the ninth month, when sacrifices were offered at the Bright Hall, he served as ritual commissioner. He repeatedly requested retirement, but the emperor refused. The crown prince sent officials to urge him to stay. Appointed academician of the Hall for Assisting Governance and magistrate of Fuzhou, he declined firmly. Made intendant of the Dongxiao Palace, he returned home and soon died. He was posthumously enfeoffed as Grandee of the Gold Seal and Purple Ribbon, with an additional posthumous promotion to Special Advancement.

機初登第，其父壽戒之曰：“得官誠可喜，然為官正自未易爾！ ”機撫其弟模、棟，卒為善士。居鄉以誠接物，是非枉直判於語下，不為後言，人憚而服之。稱獎人才，不遺寸長，訪問賢能，疏列姓名及其可用之實，以備采取，其所薦進，亦不欲人之知也。所著復有《班馬字類》。機深於書學，尺牘人多藏弆雲。

When Lou Ji first passed the examinations, his father Shou admonished him, saying, "Gaining office is indeed a joy, but serving as an official is not easy! " He raised his younger brothers Mo and Dong, who both became men of virtue. At home he dealt with others sincerely. He judged right and wrong on the spot and never spoke behind people's backs. Others feared and respected him. He praised talent and overlooked no small merit. He sought out the worthy and able, listed their names in memorials with notes on how they might serve, and did not wish others to know whom he had recommended. He also wrote the "Classified Characters of Ban and Sima." Lou Ji was deeply learned in calligraphy, and many people treasured his letters.

沈煥，字叔晦，定海人。試入太學，始與臨川陸九齡為友，從而學焉。乾道五年舉進士，授餘姚尉、揚州教授。召為太學錄，以所躬行者淑諸人，蚤暮延見學者，孜孜誨誘，長貳同僚忌其立異。會充殿試考官，唱名日序立庭下，帝偉其儀觀，遣內侍問姓名，眾滋忌之。或勸其姑營職，道未可行也，煥曰：“道與職有二乎？ ”適私試發策，引《孟子》：“立乎人之本朝而道不行，恥也。 ”言路以為訕己，請黜之，在職才八旬，調高郵軍教授而去。

Shen Huan, whose style name was Shuhui, came from Dinghai. On entering the Imperial Academy he first befriended Lu Jiuling of Linchuan and studied under him. He passed the jinshi examination in the fifth year of Qiandao (1169) and was appointed assistant magistrate of Yuyao and professor at Yangzhou. Summoned to serve as recorder of the Imperial Academy, he taught by personal example, received students morning and evening, and instructed them tirelessly. Senior officials and colleagues resented his unconventional ways. When he served as an examiner of the palace examination, on the day candidates were announced he stood in the courtyard in formal order. The emperor admired his bearing and sent a palace attendant to ask his name. His colleagues grew even more jealous. Some urged him to focus on advancing his career, saying the Way could not yet be put into practice. Shen Huan replied, "Are the Way and one's office two different things? " Soon afterward, in setting a policy question for a private examination, he quoted the "Mencius": "To stand in one's ruler's court while the Way goes unheeded is shameful." " The remonstrance officials took this as a personal insult and requested his dismissal. After only eighty days in office he was transferred to serve as professor at Gaoyou Commandery.

後充幹辦浙東安撫司公事。高宗山陵，百司次舍供帳酒食之需，供給不暇，煥亟言於安撫使鄭汝諧曰：“國有大戚，而臣子宴樂自如，安乎？ ”汝諧屬煥條奏。充修奉官，移書御史，請明示喪紀本意，使貴近哀戚之心重，則茇舍菲食自安，不煩彈劾而須索絕矣。於是治並緣為奸者，追償率斂者，支費頓減。

Later he served as a staff officer on the Zhedong Pacification Commission. During the construction of Gaozong's mausoleum, the temporary quarters of the various offices required endless supplies of food and wine. Shen Huan urgently told the pacification commissioner Zheng Ruhe, "The state is in deep mourning, yet officials feast and make merry as usual. How can that be right? " Zheng Ruhe had Shen Huan draft a memorial on the matter. As a maintenance officer he wrote to the censorate asking that the true meaning of mourning regulations be made clear, so that high officials would take grief seriously. Then crude quarters and plain food would suffice, and there would be no need for impeachment or endless demands. Those who used the occasion to commit fraud were punished, extortionists were made to repay what they had taken, and expenditures dropped sharply.

歲旱，常平使分擇官屬振恤，得上虞、餘姚二縣，無復流殍。改知婺源，三省類薦書以聞，遂通判舒州。閑居雖病，猶不廢讀書，拳拳然以母老為念、善類凋零為憂。卒，丞相周必大聞之曰：“追思立朝不能推賢揚善，予愧叔晦，益者三友，叔晦不予愧也。”

During a drought year the Ever-Normal intendant selected officials to distribute relief. Shen Huan was assigned Shangyu and Yuyao counties, and no more corpses of the destitute were seen drifting about. Transferred to serve as magistrate of Wuyuan, he was repeatedly recommended by the three departments and was then appointed vice-prefect of Shuzhou. Though ill in retirement, he never stopped reading. He was deeply mindful of his aged mother and grieved that worthy men were dying off. When he died, Chief Councilor Zhou Bida said, "Looking back on my time at court, I failed to promote the worthy and advance the good. I am ashamed before Shuhui. Of the three friends who benefit one, Shuhui is not ashamed of me.

煥人品高明，而其中未安，不苟自恕，常曰晝觀諸妻子，夜卜諸夢寐，兩者無愧，始可以言學。追贈直華文閣，特諡端憲。

Shen Huan's character was lofty, yet he was never fully at ease with himself and did not lightly forgive his faults. He often said, "By day observe your wife and children; by night consult your dreams. When both are without shame, only then may one speak of learning." He was posthumously enfeoffed as direct academician of the Huawen Pavilion and given the special posthumous title Duanxian (Upright and Law-abiding).

煥之友舒璘字元質，一字元賓，奉化人。補入太學。張栻官中都，璘往從之，有所開警。又從陸九淵遊，曰：“吾惟朝於斯，夕於斯，刻苦磨厲，改過遷善，日有新功，亦可以弗叛矣乎。 ”朱熹、呂祖謙講學於婺，璘徒步往謁之，以書告其家曰：“敝床疏席，總是佳趣；櫛風沐雨，反為美境。”

Shen Huan's friend Shu Lin, whose style names were Yuanzhi and Yuanbin, came from Fenghua. He entered the Imperial Academy by special admission. When Zhang Shi served in the capital, Shu Lin went to study with him and received much enlightenment. He also studied with Lu Jiuyuan, saying, "If I devote myself morning and evening, strive diligently, correct my faults, move toward goodness, and make new progress each day, may I not then remain faithful to the Way?" " When Zhu Xi and Lü Zuqian were teaching in Wu, Shu Lin walked there to visit them. He wrote home, saying, "A worn bed and plain mat are pleasures enough; to brave wind and rain is itself a beautiful realm."

舉乾道八年進士，兩授郡教授，不赴。繼為江西轉運司幹辦公事。或忌璘所學，望風心議，及與璘處，了無疑間。為微州教授，微習頓異。《詩》、《禮》久不預貢士，學幾無傳，璘作《詩禮講解》，家傳人習，自是其學浸盛。丞相留正稱璘為當今第一教官，司業汪逵首欲薦璘，或謂璘舉員已足，逵曰：“吾職當舉教官，舍斯人將誰先？ ”卒剡薦之。知平陽縣，郡政頗苛，及璘以民病告，辭嚴義正，守為改容。秩滿，通判宜州，卒。

He passed the jinshi examination in the eighth year of Qiandao (1172). Twice appointed prefectural professor, he declined both times. He next served as a staff officer on the Jiangxi Transport Commission. Some resented his scholarship and criticized him from afar, but once they met him they harbored no suspicion at all. As professor at Huizhou, he quickly transformed local scholarly customs. The "Odes" and "Rites" had long been omitted from the examination curriculum, and the tradition was nearly lost. Shu Lin wrote "Explanations of the Odes and Rites," which families passed down and students studied. From then on his school gradually flourished. Chief Councilor Liu Zheng called Shu Lin the foremost teacher of the age. Vice Director Wang Kui was the first to recommend him. Some said Lin's recommendation quota was already full. Wang Kui replied, "My duty is to recommend teachers. If not this man, whom should I recommend first? " In the end he submitted the recommendation. As magistrate of Pingyang, he found prefectural policy harsh. When he reported the people's hardships, his words were stern and principled, and the prefect changed his manner. When his term ended he was appointed vice-prefect of Yizhou, and soon died.

璘樂於教人，嚐曰：“師道尊嚴，璘不如叔晦，若啟迪後進，則璘不敢多遜。 ”袁燮謂璘篤實不欺，無豪發矯偽。楊簡謂璘孝友忠實，道心融明。樓鑰謂璘之於人，如熙然之陽春。淳祐中，特諡文靖。

Shu Lin loved teaching and once said, "In the dignity of the teacher's Way I am not Shen Huan's equal, but in guiding younger students I would not yield much to anyone. " Yuan Xie said he was sincere and never deceptive, without the slightest pretense. Yang Jian said he was filial, friendly, loyal, and sincere, with a luminous moral mind. Lou Yue said his effect on people was like a warm spring sun. During the Chunyou era he was posthumously given the title Wenjing (Cultured and Tranquil).

曹彥約字簡甫，都昌人。淳熙八年進士。嚐從朱熹講學，曆建平尉、桂陽司錄、辰溪令，知樂平縣，主管江西安撫司機宜文字。知澧州，未上，薛叔似宣撫京湖，辟主管機宜文字。漢陽闕守，檄攝軍事。時金人大入，郡兵素寡弱，彥約搜訪土豪，得許禼俾總民兵，趙觀俾防水道，黨仲升將宣撫司軍屯郡城。金重兵圍安陸，遊騎闖漢川，彥約授觀方略，結漁戶拒守南河，觀逆擊，斬其先鋒，且遣死士焚其戰艦，晝夜殊死戰，北渡追擊，金人大敗去。又遣仲升劫金人砦，殺千餘人，仲升中流矢死。奏觀補成忠郎、漢川簿尉，贈仲升修武郎，官其後二人。彥約以守禦功進秩二等，就知漢陽。

Cao Yanyue, whose style name was Jianfu, came from Duchang. He passed the jinshi examination in the eighth year of Chunxi (1181). He had studied under Zhu Xi and served successively as assistant magistrate of Jianping, registrar of Guiyang, magistrate of Chenxi, magistrate of Leping County, and confidential secretary on the Jiangxi Pacification Commission. Appointed magistrate of Lizhou, he had not yet taken office when Xue Shusi, pacification commissioner of Jinghu and Hubei, invited him to serve as chief confidential secretary. When Hanyang lacked a magistrate, he was ordered by dispatch to take charge of military affairs. When the Jin invaded in force, the prefectural troops were few and weak. Cao Yanyue sought out local leaders, appointed Xu Qi to command the militia, Zhao Guan to defend the waterways, and Dang Zhongsheng to lead the pacification commission troops garrisoned in the city. Jin forces in strength besieged Anlu while raiding cavalry broke into Hanchuan. Cao Yanyue gave Zhao Guan his plan: Guan rallied fishermen to defend the south river, counterattacked and beheaded the Jin vanguard, and sent volunteers to burn their warships. After a day-and-night battle he crossed the river in pursuit, and the Jin were routed. He also sent Dang Zhongsheng to raid a Jin camp, killing more than a thousand men. Zhongsheng was struck by a stray arrow and died. He memorialized rewards for Guan as Gentleman of Loyal Achievement and registrar of Hanchuan, posthumously enfeoffed Zhongsheng as Gentleman of Martial Cultivation, and gave offices to two of his descendants. For his defensive merit Cao Yanyue was promoted two ranks and appointed magistrate of Hanyang.

嘉定元年，詔求言，彥約上封事，謂“敵豈不以歲幣為利，惟其所向輒應，所求輒得，以我為易與而縱其欲。莫若遲留小使，督責邊備，假以歲月，當知真偽。設復大舉。則民固已怨矣，欲進而我已戒嚴，欲退而彼有叛兵，決勝可期矣。 ”尋提舉湖北常平，權知鄂州兼湖廣總領，改提點刑獄，遷湖南轉運判官。

In the first year of Jiading (1208) the emperor sought opinions. Cao Yanyue submitted a sealed memorial arguing that the enemy profited from annual tribute because whatever they demanded was granted. They treated Song as easy to manipulate and indulged their desires. Better to detain the minor envoys, strengthen border defenses, and allow time to reveal their true intentions. If they launch another major invasion, the people will already be resentful. If they advance, we will already be on alert. If they retreat, they may face mutiny. Victory can then be expected. " Soon afterward he was made intendant of the Hubei Ever-Normal Granary, acting magistrate of Ezhou and general controller of Huguang, then judicial intendant, and finally transport judge of Hunan.

時盜羅世傳、李元礪、李新等相繼竊發，桂陽、茶陵、安仁三縣皆破，環地千里，莽為盜區。彥約至攸督運，人心始定。遷直秘閣、知潭州、湖南安撫。時江西言欲招安李元礪，朝命下湖南議招討之宜，彥約言：“今不行討捕，曲徇招安，失朝廷威重。若無礪設疑詞以款重兵，則兵不可撤戍，民不得安業。 ”元礪果不可降，彥約乃督諸將逼賊巢而屯，擊破李新於酃洣，新中創死，眾推李如鬆為首，如鬆降，遂復桂陽。世傳素與元礪有隙，至是密請圖元礪以自效，彥約錄賞格報之，且告於朝，又予萬緡錢犒其師。世傳遂禽元礪。彥約還長沙，未幾，復出督戰，餘黨悉平。

Bandits led by Luo Shichuan, Li Yuanli, Li Xin, and others rose in succession. Guiyang, Chaling, and Anren counties were overrun, and a thousand-li region became bandit territory. When Cao Yanyue reached You County to supervise transport, public order was restored. He was promoted to direct academician of the Secret Archive, appointed magistrate of Tanzhou, and made pacification commissioner of Hunan. Jiangxi proposed offering amnesty to Li Yuanli. The court ordered Hunan to discuss the policy. Cao Yanyue argued, "If we do not pursue and suppress the bandits but bend to amnesty, we lose the court's authority. If Yuanli uses delaying tactics to hold our troops in place, the garrisons cannot withdraw and the people cannot return to their livelihoods. " Yuanli indeed would not surrender. Cao Yanyue then directed the generals to press the bandit strongholds. Li Xin was defeated at Ling and Mi and died of his wounds. The bandits made Li Rusong their leader; Rusong surrendered, and Guiyang was recovered. Shichuan had long been at odds with Yuanli and now secretly offered to capture him. Cao Yanyue recorded the reward regulations, reported to court, and gave ten thousand strings of cash to reward his troops. Shichuan then captured Yuanli. Cao Yanyue returned to Changsha. Soon afterward he went out again to direct operations, and the remaining bandits were all pacified.

世傳既自以為功，遲留以邀重賂，彥約諭以不宜格外邀求。時池州副都統許俊駐兵吉之龍泉，厚賂以結世傳，超格許轉官資，世傳遂以元礪解江西。胡榘為右司，欲以世傳盡統諸峒而為之帥，悉徹江西、湖南戍兵，彥約固爭之，榘不悅，然世傳終桀驁不肯出峒。彥約密遣羅九遷為間，誘胡友睦，許以重賞，友睦遂殺世傳。江西來爭功，不與校。擢侍右郎官，以右正言鄭昭先言，寢其命。

Shichuan, claiming the credit, lingered to demand heavy rewards. Cao Yanyue told him he should not seek excessive payment. Xu Jun, vice commander-in-chief of Chizhou, was stationed at Longquan in Ji. He bribed Shichuan heavily and promised him promotion beyond regulations. Shichuan then handed Yuanli over to Jiangxi. Hu Ju of the right bureau wished to put Shichuan in command of all the mountain stockades and withdraw all Jiangxi and Hunan garrisons. Cao Yanyue strongly opposed this. Hu was displeased, but Shichuan remained arrogant and refused to leave the mountains. Cao Yanyue secretly sent Luo Jiuqian as an agent to entice Hu Youmu with a heavy reward. Youmu then killed Shichuan. When Jiangxi disputed the credit, he did not argue with them. He was promoted to attendant right bureau secretary, but Right Rectifier Zheng Zhao objected and the appointment was shelved.

久之，以為利路轉運判官兼知利州。關外乏食，彥約悉發本司所儲減價遣糶，勸分免役，通商蠲稅，民賴以濟。時沔州都統製王大才驕橫，製置使董居誼既不得其柄，反曲意奉之。彥約以蜀之邊麵諸司並列，兵權不一，微有小警，紛然奏議，理財者歸怨於兵弱，握兵者歸咎於財寡，乃作《病夫議》，獻之廟堂，曰：

After some time he was appointed transport judge of Lizhou Road and concurrently magistrate of Lizhou. Food was scarce beyond the passes. Cao Yanyue released all stored grain for sale at reduced prices, urged mutual aid and corvée exemptions, opened trade, and remitted taxes. The people were thereby saved. Wang Dacai, commander-in-chief of Mianzhou, was arrogant and overbearing. Commissioner Dong Juyi, unable to control him, instead flattered him. Because on the Sichuan frontier the various commissions stood side by side and military authority was divided, even a minor alarm produced a flood of conflicting memorials. Finance officials blamed weak troops; military commanders blamed scant funds. Cao Yanyue therefore wrote "Discourse of the Sick Man" and presented it to court, saying:

古之臨邊，求一賢者而盡付之兵權，兵權正則事體重，兵權專則號令一。今廟堂之上，患士大夫不奉行詔令，惡士大夫不恪守忠實。故雖信而用之，又以人參之；雖以事權付之，又從中禦以係維之。致使知事者不敢任事，畏事者常至失事，卒有緩急，各持己見，兵權財計，互相歸咎。

In antiquity on the frontier, one sought a single worthy man and entrusted him fully with military authority. When authority was properly vested the matter was weighty; when it was concentrated commands were unified. Today at court the worry is that officials do not carry out edicts, and the fear is that they do not remain loyal and sincere. So though one trusts and employs a man, one also sets others to supervise him; and though one entrusts him with authority, one still controls him from the center to restrain him. This makes capable men afraid to act and timid men prone to failure. When crisis comes, each clings to his own view, and military and financial officials blame one another.

昔秦、隴之俗，以知兵善戰聞天下。自吳氏世襲以來，握兵者誌在於怙勢，不在於尊上；用兵者誌在於誅貨，不在於息民。本原一壞，百病間出，至有世將已叛而宣威不覺，四郡已割而諸將不知。更化之後，逆黨既誅，而土俗人心其實未改。任軍官而領州事者，易成藩鎮之權；起行伍而立微效者，漸無階級之分。由皂郊以至宕昌，即隴西天水之地，其忠義民兵利在戰鬥，緩急之際固易鼓率，若其恃勇貪利，犯上作亂，則又不止於大軍而已。苟不正其本原，磨之以歲月，漸之以禮義，未見其可也。

Formerly the people of Qin and Long were renowned throughout the realm for military skill. Since the Wu family's hereditary rule, those who held troops aimed to rely on power, not to honor superiors; and those who used troops aimed to seize wealth, not to give the people rest. Once the root was corrupted, countless ills followed. A hereditary general had rebelled while the pacification commissioner did not notice; four prefectures had been lost while the generals remained unaware. After the policy change the rebels were executed, yet local customs and popular attitudes had not truly changed. Military officers who also governed prefectures easily became regional warlords; and men who rose from the ranks with slight merit gradually lost proper rank distinctions. From Zaojiao to Dangchang—the region of Longxi and Tianshui—the loyal militia profit from fighting and are easy to rally in emergencies. But if they rely on courage, covet profit, offend superiors, and rebel, the harm extends far beyond the regular armies. Unless the root is corrected, shaped over years, and gradually guided by ritual and righteousness, success is unlikely.

今日之領帥權者，必當近邊境，必當擁親兵；有兵權者，必當領經費，必當寬用度。至於忠義之兵，又須有德者以為統率，擇知書者以為教導，如古人所謂教民而後用之也。今議不出此，乃欲幸勝以為功，苟安以求免，誤天下者必此人也。

Today's frontier commanders must be stationed on the border and must command personal troops; and those with military authority must control funds and have liberal budgets. As for the loyal militia, men of virtue must command them and learned men must instruct them, as the ancients said: teach the people before employing them in war. Today's policy does not follow this course. Officials seek lucky victories and easy escapes from blame. The man who will mislead the realm is such a one.

時朝論未以為然。

Court opinion at the time did not agree.

差知寧國府，又改知隆興府、江西安撫。居亡何，蜀邊被兵，內有張福、莫簡之變，彥約之言無一不驗。遷大理少卿，又權戶部侍郎，以寶謨閣待制知成都。彥約乞赴闕奏事，不允，又申省乞入對，不報。改知福州，又改知潭州，彥約力辭，提舉明道觀，尋以煥章閣待制提舉崇福宮。

Assigned magistrate of Ningguo Prefecture, he was then transferred to Longxing Prefecture and made pacification commissioner of Jiangxi. Before long warfare struck the Sichuan frontier and the Zhang Fu and Mo Jian mutiny broke out within the province. Every warning Cao Yanyue had given proved true. Promoted to vice director of the Court of Judicial Review and acting vice minister of the Ministry of Revenue, he was made designated drafter of the Baomo Pavilion and magistrate of Chengdu. Cao Yanyue asked to go to court to report on affairs but was refused. He petitioned the Secretariat for an audience but received no reply. Transferred to Fuzhou and then Tanzhou, he declined firmly and was made intendant of the Mingdao Abbey. Soon afterward he was made designated drafter of the Huanzhang Pavilion and intendant of the Chongfu Palace.

理宗即位，擢兵部侍郎兼國史院同修撰。寶慶元年入對，勸帝講學，防近習。次言：“當以慶曆、元祐聽言為法，以紹聖、崇、觀諱言為戒。比年以來，有以賣直好名之說見於奏對者，願陛下倚忠直如蓍龜，去邪佞若蟊賊，其有沮撓讜言者，必加斥逐。”

When Emperor Lizong ascended the throne, he was promoted to vice minister of war and concurrent reviser of the National History Institute. In the first year of Baoqing (1225) he had an audience and urged the emperor to pursue learning and guard against intimate attendants. He next said, "Take the openness of the Qingli and Yuanyou eras as your model, and the silencing of dissent in the Shaosheng, Chongning, and Guanning eras as your warning. In recent years some have accused honest remonstrators of seeking fame. I urge Your Majesty to rely on the loyal and upright as on divination, remove the wicked and flattering as crop pests, and expel anyone who obstructs honest counsel.

會下詔求言，彥約上封事曰：“陛下謹定省以事長樂，開王社以篤天倫，孝友之行，宜足以取信於天下。然兄弟至親，猶誤於狂妄小人之手，道路異說，猶襲於尺布不縫之謠。臣以為守法者，人臣之職也，施恩者，人主之柄也。漢淮南王欲危社稷，張蒼、馮敬等請論如法，文帝既赦其罪廢徙，王不幸而死，封其二子於故地。此往事之明驗，本朝太宗皇帝之所已行也。今若徇文帝緣情之義，法太宗繼絕之意，明示好惡，無隙可指，雖不止謗而謗息矣。 ”又言：“陛下求言之詔，惟恐不逮，然外議致疑，以為明言文武，似或止於搢紳，泛言小大，恐不及於韋布，引而伸之，特在一命令之間耳。 ”又薦隆州布衣李心傳素精史學，乞官以初品，置之史館，從之。

When an edict sought opinions, Cao Yanyue submitted a sealed memorial, saying, "Your Majesty carefully attends the inner quarters to serve the Empress Dowager, opens the royal altar to deepen family bonds. Your filial and brotherly conduct ought to win trust throughout the realm. Yet even between closest brothers, rumors spread by arrogant petty men persist, and the old tale of brothers who could not share a foot of cloth still circulates on the roads. I believe that observing the law is a minister's duty, while bestowing grace is the sovereign's prerogative. When the King of Huainan of Han threatened the state, Zhang Cang and Feng Jing urged judgment by law. Emperor Wen pardoned him and banished him. When the king died, Wen enfeoffed his two sons in their former lands. This is a clear precedent from history and a practice already followed by Emperor Taizong of our dynasty. If Your Majesty now follows Emperor Wen's humane mercy and Emperor Taizong's intent to continue severed lines, clearly shows your preferences so that no opening remains for slander, slander will cease even without direct suppression. " He also said, "Your edict seeking opinions fears only that it does not reach far enough, yet outsiders doubt whether civil and military officials alone are meant, and whether commoners in plain cloth are truly included. Whether that is so depends on a single command from Your Majesty. " He also recommended Li Xinchuan, a commoner of Longzhou skilled in historical learning, for an initial office in the History Institute. The request was granted.

尋兼侍讀，俄遷禮部侍郎。加寶謨閣直學士，提舉佑神觀兼侍讀。授兵部尚書，力辭不拜。改寶章閣學士、知常德府，陛辭，言下情未通，橫斂未革。帝曰：“其病安在？ ”對曰：“台諫專言人主，不及時政，下情安得通？包苴公行於都城，則州郡橫斂，無可疑者。 ”提舉崇福宮，卒，以華文閣學士轉通議大夫致仕，贈宣奉大夫。嘉熙初，賜諡文簡。

Soon afterward he served concurrently as lecturer and was soon promoted to vice minister of rites. Made direct academician of the Baomo Pavilion, he was appointed intendant of the Youshen Abbey while retaining his lectureship. Appointed minister of war, he declined firmly and did not accept. Transferred to academician of the Baozhang Pavilion and magistrate of Changde Prefecture, at his farewell audience he said popular sentiment did not reach the throne and harsh exactions had not been reformed. The emperor asked, "Where lies the problem? " He replied, "Censors and remonstrators speak only of the sovereign and not of current policy. How can popular sentiment reach the throne? When bribery is openly practiced in the capital, harsh levies in the provinces are inevitable. " Made intendant of the Chongfu Palace, he soon died. He was granted retirement as academician of the Huawen Pavilion with the rank Grandee of Court Discussion and was posthumously enfeoffed as Grandee of Court Submission. At the beginning of the Jiaxi era he was posthumously given the title Wenjian (Cultured and Concise).

範應鈴，字旂叟，豐城人。方娠，大父夢雙日照庭，應鈴生。稍長，厲誌於學，丞相周必大見其文，嘉賞之。開禧元年，舉進士，調永新尉。縣當龍泉、茶陵溪峒之衝，寇甫平，喜亂者詐為驚擾，應鈴廉得主名，捽而治之。縣十三鄉，寇擾者不時，安撫使移司兼郡，初奏弛八鄉民租二年，詔下如章。既而復催以檢核之數，應鈴力爭，不從。即詣郡自言，反覆數四，帥聲色俱厲，慶鈴從容曰：“某非徒為八鄉貧民，乃深為州家耳！民貧迫之急，將以不肖之心應之，租不可得而禍未易弭也。 ”帥色動，令免下戶。既出令，復征之，應鈴歎曰：“是使我重失信於民也。 ”又力爭之，訖得請，民大感悅。有大姓與轉運使有連，家僮恣橫厲民，應鈴笞而係之獄。郡吏庭辱令，應鈴執吏囚之，以狀聞。

Fan Yingling, whose style name was Qisou, came from Fengcheng. While his mother was pregnant, his grandfather dreamed of two suns shining on the courtyard. Yingling was then born. As he grew older he devoted himself zealously to learning. Chief Councilor Zhou Bida read his writings and praised them highly. In the first year of Kaixi (1205) he passed the jinshi examination and was appointed assistant magistrate of Yongxin. The county lay on the route of the Longquan and Chaling stockades. Bandits had just been pacified, yet troublemakers feigned disturbances. Yingling identified the ringleaders, arrested them, and punished them. The county comprised thirteen townships and suffered bandit raids at irregular intervals. The pacification commissioner transferred his office and took charge of the prefecture as well. He first memorialized to remit grain rent for two years in eight townships, and an edict was issued accordingly. Before long, however, officials again demanded payment according to audited quotas. Yingling argued strenuously but could not prevail. He went at once to the prefectural seat to plead the case himself, arguing back and forth several times. The intendant’s voice and expression were both stern. Yingling replied calmly, “I am not pleading only for the poor of those eight townships — I am doing what is best for the prefecture itself! When the poor are driven to desperation, they will answer with resentment. You will not collect the rent, and the trouble will not easily be stilled. ” The intendant’s face softened, and he ordered relief for lower-grade households. Once the order had been issued, collection was resumed. Yingling sighed, “This forces me to betray the people’s trust all over again. ” He argued again with all his strength and finally won his point. The people were deeply grateful and delighted. A great family had ties to the transport commissioner, and its servants bullied the people at will. Yingling had them flogged and thrown into jail. A prefectural clerk publicly insulted the magistrate in court. Yingling arrested the clerk, put him in prison, and reported the affair to higher authorities.

調衡州錄事，總領聞應鈴名，辟為屬。改知崇仁縣，始至，明約束，信期會，正紀綱，曉諭吏民，使知所趨避。然後罷鄉吏之供需，校版籍之欺敝，不數月省簿成，即以其簿及苗稅則例上之總領所，自此賦役均矣。夙興，冠裳聽訟，發擿如神，故事無不依期結正，雖負者亦無不心服。真德秀扁其堂曰“對越”。將代，整治如始至。歲杪，與百姓休息，閣債負，蠲租稅，釋囚係，恤生瘞死，崇孝勸睦，仁民厚俗之事，悉舉以行，形之榜揭，見者嗟歎。調提轄文思院，幹辦諸軍審計，添差通判撫州，以言者罷，與祠。丁內艱，服除，通判蘄州。

Transferred to serve as recorder of Hengzhou, he came to the attention of the general fiscal supervisor, who recruited him as a staff officer. Reassigned as magistrate of Chongren County, he made clear the rules on arrival, kept deadlines faithfully, restored order, and instructed officials and commoners alike in what to follow and what to shun. He then ended the village clerks’ exactions, corrected fraud in the household registers, and within a few months completed the county ledger. He sent that ledger and the seed-tax schedule to the general fiscal office, and from then on levies and corvée were fairly apportioned. He rose early, dressed in official robes, and heard lawsuits; his ability to expose hidden facts seemed almost uncanny. Backlogged cases were all closed on time, and even the losing parties accepted the verdicts in their hearts. Zhen Dexiu wrote the plaque for his hall: “Facing the Supreme.” As his term drew to a close, he kept the county in order just as he had on first taking office. At year’s end he gave the people a respite: debts were set aside, rents and taxes remitted, prisoners released, the living cared for and the dead buried, filial piety honored and neighborly harmony encouraged. Every measure to benefit the people and improve local custom was carried out and posted on public notices, and all who read them sighed in admiration. Transferred to oversee the Wensi Office and handle audits for the various armies, he was also given an additional assignment as vice-prefect of Fuzhou. Critics brought about his removal, and he was granted a sinecure at a temple. After mourning his mother and completing the mourning period, he served as vice-prefect of Qizhou.

時江右峒寇為亂，吉州八邑，七被殘毀，差知吉州，應鈴慨然曰：“此豈臣子辭難時耶？ ”即奉親以行。下車，首以練兵、足食為先務，然後去冗吏，核軍籍，汰老弱，以次罷行。應鈴洞究財計本末，每鄙榷酤興利，蘄五邑悉改為戶。吉，舟車之會，且屯大軍，六萬戶，人勸之榷，應鈴曰：“理財正辭，吾縱不能禁百姓群飲，其可誘之利其贏耶？ ”永新禾山群盜嘯聚，數日間應者以千數。應鈴察過客趙希邵有才略，檄之攝邑，調郡兵，結隅保，分道搗其巢穴，禽之，誅其為首者七人，一鄉以定。贛叛卒朱先賊殺主帥，應鈴曰：“此非小變也。 ”密遣諜以厚賞捕之。部使者劾其輕發，鐫一官。閑居六年，養親讀書，泊如也。起廣西提點刑獄，力辭，逾年乃拜命。既至，多所平反，丁錢蠹民，力奏免之。

At the time the stockade bandits of Jiangyou were in revolt. Seven of Jizhou’s eight counties had been devastated. When appointed prefect of Jizhou, Yingling said with feeling, “Is this a moment when a subject should shrink from a hard assignment? ” He at once set out, taking his parents with him. On taking office he first made training troops and securing provisions his top priorities, then cut redundant clerks, checked the military rolls, weeded out the aged and infirm, and dismissed them in due order. Yingling traced fiscal matters to their source and always scorned profiting from liquor monopolies. All five counties under Qizhou were converted from monopoly levies to household-based taxation. Jizhou was a junction of river and road traffic and also quartered a large army — sixty thousand households. People urged him to institute a liquor monopoly. Yingling said, “In managing revenue one must speak honestly. Even if I cannot stop the people from drinking together, how could I tempt them with profit and feed on their gains? ” In Yongxin, bandits of Heshan rallied in force; within days their followers numbered in the thousands. Yingling saw that the traveler Zhao Xishao had ability and resourcefulness. He commissioned him to act as county magistrate, called up prefectural troops, organized local defense units, and sent columns by different routes to smash their hideouts. The ringleaders were captured; seven chief offenders were executed, and the township was pacified. Zhu Xian, a mutinous soldier from Gan, killed his commander and turned bandit. Yingling said, “This is no small disturbance. ” He secretly sent agents with rich rewards to seize him. The circuit commissioner impeached him for acting precipitously, and his rank was reduced by one step. He lived in retirement for six years, supporting his parents and reading at leisure, serene and unperturbed. Recalled to serve as Guangxi judicial intendant, he declined firmly; only after more than a year did he accept the commission. After arriving, he reversed many unjust verdicts. The ding money oppressed the people, and he memorialized forcefully to have it abolished.

召為金部郎官，入見，首言：“今以朝行暮改之規模，欲變累年上玩下慢之積習；以悠悠內治之敝政，欲圖一旦赫赫外攘之大功。 ”又曰：“公論不出於君子，而參以逢君之小人；紀綱不正於朝廷，而牽於弄權之閹寺。 ”言皆讜直，識者韙之。遷尚左郎官，尋為浙東提點刑獄，力丐便養，改直秘閣、江西提舉常平，並詭挾三萬戶，風采凜然。

Summoned to serve as a Jinbu lang official, on entering audience he first said, “Today, with policies that change from morning to evening, you wish to overturn customs built up over years in which superiors were indulgent and subordinates contemptuous; with slack and failing domestic administration, you wish to plan in a single day a glorious campaign of external conquest. ” He also said, “Public opinion no longer comes from upright men, but is mixed with flatterers who please the ruler; and discipline is not restored at court, but is held hostage by eunuchs who manipulate power. ” His words were blunt and forthright, and thoughtful men applauded them. Promoted to Shangzuo lang official, he was soon appointed Zhedong judicial intendant but begged hard for a post that would let him care for his parents. He was reassigned as Direct Secretarial Associate and Jiangxi grain intendant, holding at once an unusual cluster of duties over thirty thousand households, and his bearing was formidable.

丁外艱，服除，遷軍器監兼尚左郎官，召見，奏曰：“國事大且急者，儲貳為先。陛下不斷自宸衷，徒眩惑於左右近習之言，轉移於宮庭嬪禦之見，失今不圖，奸臣乘夜半，片紙或從中出，忠義之士束手無策矣。 ”帝為之動容。屬鹽法屢變，商賈之贏，上奪於朝廷之自鬻，下奪於都郡之拘留；九江、豫章扼其襟喉，江右貧民終歲食淡，商與民俱困矣。應鈴力陳四害，願用祖宗入粟易鹽之法。

After mourning his father and completing the mourning period, he was transferred to director of the Armaments Directorate while retaining his post as Shangzuo lang official. Summoned to audience, he memorialized, “Of the great and urgent affairs of state, establishing the heir apparent comes first. If Your Majesty does not decide from your own inner conviction but is dazzled by the talk of close attendants, swayed by the opinions of palace women, and lets the moment pass, treacherous ministers may at midnight produce an order from within the palace, and loyal men will have no recourse. ” The emperor’s expression changed at his words. Because the salt laws changed again and again, merchants’ profits were taken from above by the court’s direct sale of salt and from below by the detention of goods in metropolitan prefectures; Jiujiang and Yuzhang straddled the vital routes, and the poor of Jiangyou ate sparingly all year long. Merchants and commoners alike were worn down. Yingling forcefully enumerated four evils and urged a return to the ancestral system of exchanging grain for salt.

授直寶謨閣，湖南轉運判官兼安撫司。峒獠蔣、何三族聚千餘人，執縣令，殺王官，帥憲招捕，逾年不至，應鈴曰：“招之適以長寇，亟捕之可也。 ”即調飛虎等軍會隅總討之，應鈴親臨誓師，號令明壯，士卒鼓勇以前，禽蔣時選父子及凶渠五人誅之，脅從者使之安業，未一月全師而歸。授直煥章閣，上疏謝事，不允；擢大理少卿，再請又不允。一旦籍府庫，核簿書，處決官事已，遂及家務，纖悉不遺。僚屬勸以清心省事，曰：“生死，數也，平生學力，正在今日。 ”帥別之傑問疾，應鈴整冠肅入，言論如平常，之傑退，倏然而逝。

Granted the title Direct Baomo Pavilion, he was made Hunan transport vice-commissioner with concurrent duties on the pacification staff. Three clans of stockade people, the Jiang and He families, gathered more than a thousand men, seized the county magistrate, and killed a court official. The intendant and judicial commissioner tried negotiation and capture for over a year without result. Yingling said, “Summoning them will only encourage the rebels. They must be seized quickly. ” He immediately mobilized the Flying Tiger Army and others to join local defense units in a joint campaign. Yingling personally came to exhort the troops; his commands were clear and bold, and the soldiers pressed forward with spirit. Jiang Shixuan, his son, and five chief ringleaders were captured and executed; those who had been coerced were allowed to return to their occupations, and in less than a month the entire force returned without loss. Granted Direct Huanzhang Pavilion, he submitted a memorial asking to retire; the request was denied; promoted to vice minister of the Court of Judicial Review; he asked again, and again was refused. One day he took stock of the treasury, checked the account books, finished all official business, then turned to his household affairs, leaving nothing undone, however small. His staff urged him to ease his mind and leave business aside. He said, “Life and death are fate’s decree; a lifetime of learning is proved precisely today. ” Intendant Bie Zhijie came to visit him in illness. Yingling straightened his cap and received him with composure, speaking as he always had. After Zhijie left, he died suddenly.

應鈴開明磊落，守正不阿，別白是非，見義必為，不以得失利害動其心。書饋不交上官，薦舉不徇權門，當官而行，無敢撓以非義。所至無留訟，無滯獄，繩吏不少貸，亦未嚐沒其貲，曰：“彼之貨以悖入，官又從而悖入之，可乎？ ”進修潔，案奸贓，振樹風聲，聞者興起。家居時，人有不平，不走官府，而走應鈴之門；為不善者，輒相戒曰：“無使範公聞之。 ”讀書明大義，尤喜《左氏春秋》，所著有《西堂雜著》十卷，斷訟語曰《對越集》四十九卷。徐鹿卿曰：“應鈴經術似兒寬，決獄似雋不疑，治民似龔遂，風采似范滂，理財似劉晏，而正大過之。 ”人以為名言。

Yingling was open and upright, steadfast and unyielding. He distinguished right from wrong, acted whenever justice required it, and was unmoved by gain, loss, or personal interest. He exchanged no letters or gifts with superiors and did not recommend people to please powerful families. He did his duty as an official, and no one dared interfere with improper pressure. Wherever he served, lawsuits did not linger and prisons did not backlog. He showed no leniency to corrupt clerks, yet he never seized their property, saying, “Their wealth was gained unjustly — should the government then take it unjustly too? ” He upheld integrity, investigated corruption, and set a moral example that stirred those who heard of it. While living at home, people with grievances did not go to the magistrates but came to Yingling’s door; and wrongdoers would warn one another, “Don’t let Master Fan find out. ” He read widely and grasped the larger moral principles, especially favoring the 《Zuo Tradition》. His works included ten juan of 《Miscellaneous Writings from the Western Hall》 and forty-nine juan of judicial remarks titled 《Facing the Supreme Collection》. Xu Luqing said, “In classical learning Yingling was like Er Kuan; in judging cases like Juan Buyi; in governing the people like Gong Sui; in moral bearing like Fan Pang; in managing revenue like Liu Yan — yet in uprightness and breadth he surpassed them all. ” People took this for a memorable saying.

徐經孫，字中立，初名子柔。寶慶二年進士，授瀏陽主簿，潭守俾部牙契錢至州，有告者曰：“朝廷方下令頒行十七界會，令若此錢皆用會，小須，則幸而獲大利矣。 ”經孫曰：“此錢取諸保司，出諸公庫，吾納會而私取其錢，外欺其民，內欺其心，奚可哉！ ”詰旦，悉以所部錢上之，其人驚服有愧色。

Xu Jingsun, whose style name was Zhongli, was originally named Zirou. A jinshi of the second year of Baoqing (1226), he was appointed chief clerk of Liuyang. The prefect of Tanzhou ordered him to convey tooth-contract money to the prefectural seat. Someone told him, “The court has just ordered the circulation of the seventeenth issue of paper notes. If you exchange all this money for notes and wait a little, you may reap a large profit. ” Jingsun said, “This money was taken from the security office and drawn from the public treasury. If I submit notes and keep the cash for myself, I would cheat the people without and betray my own conscience within. How could I do that! ” The next morning he remitted all the money under his charge. The informer was astonished, convinced, and ashamed.

辟永興令，知臨武縣，通判潭州。帥陳韡雅相知，事必谘而後行。秩滿，由豐儲倉提管進權轄，國子博士兼資善堂直講。為監察御史，劾京尹厲文翁言偽而辨，疏入，留中。宣諭至再，即日出關，上遣使追之，不及。進直寶章閣、福建提點刑獄，號稱平允。歲餘升安撫使，召為秘書監兼太子諭德。經孫為安撫時，韡家居，門人故吏有撓法者不得逞，相與搖撼。至是韡起家判本郡，懷私逞忿，無復交承之禮，即日劾奏通判，語侵經孫，謂席卷府庫而去，於是罷通判，削其秩。經孫造朝，具白於政府。事上聞，帝大怒，諭宰執曰：“陳韡老繆至此，宜亟罷之。 ”於是經孫再詣政府，言：“某，韡門生也，前日之白，公事也，苟韡以是得罪，人謂我何？ ”請之不置，俾自乞閑，明通判無罪，識者韙之。

Recruited to serve as magistrate of Yongxing, he later became magistrate of Linwu County and vice-prefect of Tanzhou. Intendant Chen Wei respected him deeply and consulted him before taking action on any matter. When his term expired, he rose from manager of the Fengchu Granary to acting supervisor, then became erudite of the Directorate of Education while also serving as lecturer at the Zishan Hall. As investigating censor, he impeached the capital intendant Li Wenweng for clever but deceptive speech. The memorial was submitted but kept at court. Imperial messages came twice, but that same day he crossed the border out of office. The emperor sent messengers to recall him, but they could not catch up. Promoted to Direct Baozhang Pavilion and Fujian judicial intendant, he won a reputation for fairness. After a little more than a year he was promoted to pacification commissioner and summoned to serve as director of the Secretariat while also tutor to the crown prince. While Jingsun was pacification commissioner, Wei was retired at home. Former protégés and subordinates who had bent the law found themselves blocked and joined in efforts to shake him. Then Wei left retirement to serve as judge of his home prefecture, nursing private grievances and venting his anger, no longer observing the proper rites of transfer. That same day he memorialized against the vice-prefect, his language touching Jingsun and accusing him of emptying the treasury on departure. The vice-prefect was dismissed and demoted. Jingsun went to court and laid the whole matter before the chief ministers. When the matter reached the emperor, he was furious and told the chief councilors, “Chen Wei has grown so senile and confused that he should be dismissed immediately. ” Jingsun then went again to the chief ministers and said, “I am Wei’s student. My report the other day concerned public business. If Wei is punished because of it, what will people think of me? ” He pleaded without stopping, had Wei ask on his own for a retirement post, and made clear that the vice-prefect was innocent. Thoughtful men applauded him.

遷宗正少卿、起居舍人、起居郎，入奏：“君人者當守理欲之界限。 ”遷刑部侍郎兼給事中，升太子左庶子、太子詹事，輔導東宮者三年，敷陳經義，隨事啟迪。太子入侍，必以其所講聞悉奏之，帝未嚐不稱善。景定三年春雷，詔求直言，經孫對曰：“三數年來，言論者以靖共為主，有懷者以嘩訐為戒，忠讜之氣，鬱不得行，上帝降監，假雷以鳴。 ”切中時病。

Promoted to vice director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, diarist, and attendance gentleman, he memorialized on entering office, “A ruler should observe the boundary between principle and desire. ” He was promoted to vice minister of punishments while concurrently receiving edicts, then to left tutor and grand tutor of the crown prince. For three years he guided the Eastern Palace, expounding the classics and offering counsel as occasions arose. Whenever the crown prince attended the emperor, Jingsun always reported everything they had discussed, and the emperor invariably expressed approval. When spring thunder sounded in the third year of Jingding (1262), an edict called for frank counsel. Jingsun replied, “For several years speakers in court have made quiet compliance their standard, while those with honest views have been warned against clamorous accusation. The spirit of loyal remonstrance has been suppressed and cannot act. Heaven has sent down its warning, using thunder to sound the alarm. ” His words cut straight to the sickness of the age.

公田法行，經孫條其利害，忤丞相賈似道，拜翰林學士、知制誥，未逾月，諷御史舒有開奏免，罷歸。授湖南安撫使、知潭州，不拜。授端明殿大學士，閑居十年，卒，贈金紫光祿大夫。經孫所薦陳茂濂為公田官，分司嘉興，聞經孫去國，曰：我不可以負徐公。 ”遂以親老謝歸，終身不起。

When the public-fields policy was put into effect, Jingsun listed its advantages and harms, offending Chief Councilor Jia Sidao. He was appointed Hanlin academician and drafter of edicts, but within a month the censor Shu Youkai was prompted to memorialize for his removal, and he was dismissed and sent home. Appointed Hunan pacification commissioner and magistrate of Tanzhou, he declined the commission. Granted the title academician of the Duanming Hall, he lived in retirement for ten years, then died and was posthumously enfeoffed as Grandee of the Gold Seal and Purple Ribbon. Chen Maolian, whom Jingsun had recommended as public-fields official and posted to Jiaxing, on hearing that Jingsun had left office said, “I cannot betray Master Xu. ” He then pleaded aged parents and resigned, never holding office again for the rest of his life.

論曰：嗚呼，寧宗之為君，韓侂胄之為相，豈用兵之時乎？故婁機力止之。小學之廢久矣，而機獨知致力於此。沈煥、舒璘學遠識明。曹彥約可與建立事功。範應鈴赫然政事如神明。徐經孫清慎有守，卒以爭公田迕賈似道去國，君子稱之。

The commentary says: Alas — with Ningzong as ruler and Han Tuozhou as chief councilor, was this truly a time to go to war? That is why Lou Ji worked hard to stop it. The Elementary Learning had long fallen into neglect, yet Ji alone devoted himself to reviving it. Shen Huan and Shu Lin possessed far-reaching learning and clear judgment. Cao Yanyue was a man capable of accomplishing practical results. Fan Yingling’s governance was brilliant, as though guided by a spirit. Xu Jingsun was pure, cautious, and steadfast; he ultimately left office after opposing the public-fields policy and running afoul of Jia Sidao, and worthy men praised him for it.

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